rdfs:comment
| - The Battle of Ealdor was an armed conflict between the villagers of Ealdor and the brigands of Kanen's raiding party. The battle was precipitated by weeks of attacks by Kanen's raiders, who took food that the villagers needed to survive. The residents of Ealdor petitioned their king Cenred for aid, but he felt the outlying village unworthy of his attention. Hunith then travelled to Camelot, where her son served as the manservant to the Prince, and appealed to King Uther Pendragon for help. Uther sympathised with the plight of Ealdor, but refused to send troops because sending armed forces into the neighbouring and would constitute an act of war that would upset the delicate, hard-earned peace between Camelot and Essetir.
|
abstract
| - The Battle of Ealdor was an armed conflict between the villagers of Ealdor and the brigands of Kanen's raiding party. The battle was precipitated by weeks of attacks by Kanen's raiders, who took food that the villagers needed to survive. The residents of Ealdor petitioned their king Cenred for aid, but he felt the outlying village unworthy of his attention. Hunith then travelled to Camelot, where her son served as the manservant to the Prince, and appealed to King Uther Pendragon for help. Uther sympathised with the plight of Ealdor, but refused to send troops because sending armed forces into the neighbouring and would constitute an act of war that would upset the delicate, hard-earned peace between Camelot and Essetir. Merlin chose to return home with his mother to do what he could, accompanied by Morgana and her handmaid Guinevere; shortly before arriving in Ealdor, they were joined by Arthur. Upon arriving at the village, they broke up a raid in progress, and just barely prevented Kanen from killing Matthew. As the raiders fled, Kanen swore revenge. Arthur thus spent the next day training the men of the village to fight, and assigned Matthew to organise sentry duties; Matthew was later killed on patrol, with a note reading "Make the most of this day. It will be your last." pinned to his back with an arrow. By that night, the women of Ealdor, spurred on by an ardent Gwen, had vowed to fight as well, and Arthur delivered an impassioned speech to hearten the villagers. The next morning, the residents awaited Kanen's attack, which began when his raiders burst from the treeline and sacked the village. Guinevere deployed a hidden wall of barbed sticks that cordoned off the attackers, and Merlin and Morgana lit a blaze that further limited the movement of the raiders. As the battle progressed and it became clear there were too many raiders for the villagers to defeat, Merlin conjured a cyclone that drove off many of the raiders, turning the tide of the battle. With most of his raiders dead or fleeing, Kanen attacked Arthur directly; the two fought, and Arthur ultimately ran Kanen through. As Kanen lay dying, he managed to shoot a crossbow bolt at Arthur, but William leapt in front of the attack and was dealt a fatal wound. Kanen died seconds later, and Will was moved into a stable where he took credit for the magical whirlwind in order to protect Merlin's secret from Arthur. Will died shortly afterward, and was laid to rest on a funeral pyre (The Moment of Truth).
|