Brunor the Black
Son of Esclanor and father of Dinadan and Brunor the Black. The Good Knight’s true name, seldom used, was also Brunor the Black. He was known as a great knight in his day, and Uther Pendragon awarded him the realm of Estrangorre for his valor.
Among his many adventures, he journeyed to the valley of Servage to rescue his friend, Ludinas of North Wales, from a giant called Nabon the Black. He defeated Nabon’s son Nathan, but was betrayed by a maiden and imprisoned in Nabon’s prison, where he went mad. He was eventually freed by Tristan, and he recovered his senses with the help of Baucillas, the king’s doctor.
A story in the Italian Novellino relates how the Good Knight Without Fear told his own soldiers, who did not recognize him, that King Meliadus of Lyoness (Meliodas), his mortal enemy, was a better knight than he. For this “insult”, he was seized by his own troops, only to be rescued by Meliadus. He was eventually murdered, as an old man, by two knights named Ferrant and Briadan.
Sources
Palamedes | c. 1240
Il Novellino | c. 1300