one realm of all the land, over which he ruled with wise
government. So he refused to send any money to Rome.

Once King Arthur's knights were all together in the great hall.
It was a time of peace, and they spent the days in riding and
hunting. On this day, while the king was sitting on his throne,
twelve old men entered, each bearing a branch of olive, as a sign
that they came in peace. They were the messengers of the emperor
of Rome, and, after bowing to the king, they said:

"Sir, our mighty emperor sends you greeting, and commands you to
acknowledge him as lord, and to send him the money due him from
your realm. Your father and his predecessors did this, and so
must you. If you refuse, the emperor will make such war against
you that it will be an example to all the world."

At this the young knights laid their hands to their swords, but
the older knights, who had self-control enough to hide their
feelings, waited to see what the king would do.

Arthur bowed courteously to the messengers, and told them that he
would soon give them an answer. He commanded a knight to take
them to a lodging, and to see that they had all they needed, and
he ordered that no harm should be done them. Then he called a
council of his great lords and asked their advice.

Sir Lancelot, Arthur's favorite lord, spoke first, saying:

"My lord, we have rested for many weeks, and can make sharp war
now. In days gone by, we should not have dared attack the Romans,
and indeed, our attempt will make the world wonder. But of a
truth, we ought to fight."

Then spoke King Angus of Scotland:

"My lord Arthur, you are the greatest lord on earth. You have
made all of us lesser kings your subjects, and bound the kingdom
together, and stopped our civil wars. We love you and we will
help you. We pray you to make war on these Romans. When they
ruled our elders, they demanded much gold and made our people
very poor. If you will fight, I will furnish you with twenty
thousand men, and will bear all the cost of them myself."

Then all the other lords promised to furnish men and arms. When
Arthur heard this, he was glad of their courage and good will.
He called in the messengers and said to them:

"Return to your emperor. Tell him that I refuse his command, for
I owe him nothing. I have won this kingdom by my own strength.
Tell him that I shall come with all my army to Rome and make him
acknowledge me as lord."

Then Arthur told his treasurer to giv