Character guide

Perion de la Forêt

major

Also known as Perion, Sire Perion, Messire de la Forêt, Messire, young Perion, writhing Perion, desirèd Perion

A young knight of Poictesme whose raids against the Emperor have made him notorious, and whose adoration of Melicent drives him toward impossible feats.

Melicent

major

Also known as Dame Melicent, Madame Melicent, young Melicent

The beautiful lady whose hand Perion seeks and whose worth is measured, by her captors and suitors alike, in minae and in madness.

Demetrios

major

Also known as Demetrios of Anatolia, Messire Demetrios, Bracciolini Demetrios

A powerful heathen king whose desire for Melicent draws him into the tangled warfare of domnei, where even a proconsul's strength may stumble.

Ahasuerus

supporting

Also known as Ahasuerus the Jew, the Jew Ahasuerus, the Jew

The Wandering Jew who buys Melicent for a hundred and two minae and speaks of his labours with a candour more chilling than any lie.

Callistion

supporting

A woman of Demetrios's court whose hatred of Melicent and of the man who abandoned her becomes an instrument in Ahasuerus's patient design.

Orestes

supporting

Also known as Men Ordered Matters Orestes

A soldier who wants only a frontier province and daily battle, and who trades Melicent to Ahasuerus for the promise of Messire de la Forêt's head.

King Theodoret

supporting

Also known as Theodoret, Pious Theodoret

Theodoret rules as a Christian monarch whose marriage to Melicent is arranged and awaited at Bellegarde. His piety and royal authority stand in blunt contrast to the troubadour faith of domnei that Perion serves, so the king's claim on Melicent becomes the fixed point against which Perion's worship measures itself. He matters early because the whole drama of devotion, renunciation, and violence turns on whether a husband's lawful right can outweigh a lover's religion.

Ambrogio Bracciolini

supporting

Also known as Bracciolini, this Bracciolini

Bracciolini moves through the story as a scholar and companion to Demetrios, the figure whose over-passionate service Nicolas de Caen treats as domnei dragged dustward. Where Perion's devotion aspires, Bracciolini's association with Demetrios keeps the reader near the appetite, violence, and self-deception that the religion of love can conceal. He matters because his presence lets the narrative hold both the ideal and its corruption in the same frame.

Mélusine

minor

Also known as Dame Mélusine, Melusina, schönen Melusina

A legendary fairy woman referenced in the narrative.

Nicolas de Caen

minor

Also known as Thomas Upcliffe Nicolas de Caen, Nicolas

A minor character associated with Perion's adventures.

Ayrart de Montors

supporting

Also known as de Montors, Ayrart, Messire de Montors

Ayrart de Montors serves as a knight and ally of Perion, standing with him in a life of singular violence where blood hangs scarlet before men's eyes like a tapestry. His loyalty places him among the few who share the practical burden of Perion's exalted service, caught between the demands of comradeship and the madness that domnei can breed. He matters because he gives Perion's quest a human company, showing that the religion of love is carried not by one dreamer alone but by men who ride and fight beside him.

Comte de la Forêt

minor

Also known as the Comte de la Forêt, this Comte de la Forêt

Perion's father or relative, a nobleman.

Cardinal de Montors

minor

A church official and relative of Ayrart.

Count Emmerick of Poictesme

minor

Also known as Count Emmerick, Emmerick

A ruler of Poictesme who interacts with Perion.

King Helmas

minor

Also known as King

A heathen king allied with Demetrios.

Fra Battista

minor

Also known as Battista

A friar who aids Perion.

Euthyclos

minor

A Greek philosopher or scholar mentioned in the narrative.

Vicomte de Puysange

minor

Also known as de Puysange, the Vicomte Was Very Gay There

A jovial nobleman who hosts Perion.

Young Jocelin

minor

Also known as Jocelin

A young man encountered in the story.

Satan

minor

The devil, referenced in the story's supernatural elements.