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Black Knight (Sir Percy)
Encyclopedia
Sir Percy of Scandia, also known as the original Black Knight
, is a fictional character in the Marvel Universe
. He was a medieval knight
created by writer
-editor
Stan Lee
and artist
Joe Maneely
.
in the medieval-adventure series Black Knight vol. 1, #1-5 (May-Dec. 1955) from Atlas Comics
, the 1950s precursor to Marvel Comics.
The five-issue series was written by Stan Lee, with art by Joe Maneely in the first three interiors and all five covers. Fred Kida
and the team of penciller
Syd Shores
and inker
Christopher Rule
drew stories in the latter two issues.
Sir Percy appeared in Mystic Arcana
, representing the element of earth.
as his greatest warrior and one of the Knights of the Round Table. Recruited by the wizard Merlin, Percy adopts a double identity, and pretends to be totally incompetent until changing into the persona of the Black Knight. As the Black Knight, Percy wields the Ebony Blade
, which Merlin forged from a meteorite. A constant foe of the evil knight Mordred the Evil
(Arthur's traitorous "nephew") and Morgan le Fay
, in time Sir Percy retired his dual identity and married Lady Rosamund.
Percy is eventually killed at Castle Scandia by Mordred during the fall of Camelot when stabbed from behind with an enchanted blade made of the same material as his own Ebony Blade - although Mordred then dies himself of wounds inflicted by Arthur during the Battle of Camlann
earlier that day. Merlin ensures that Percy's spirit will live on by casting a spell that will revive his ghost if Mordred should ever return.
Sir Percy was survived by a son, Geoffrey. Lady Rosamund later gave birth to his second son, Edward the Posthumous, who reportedly became ancestor of "a proud lineage". Descendants of Sir Percy adopted the identity of the Black Knight: Sir Raston, active during the late 6th and early 7th century, who eventually became an agent of the time travel
er Kang the Conqueror
; and Sir Eobar Garrington, a 12th century knight serving under Richard the Lionheart
during the Third Crusade
.
Percy's spirit has appeared several times to counsel his descendant, Dane Whitman
. He first appeared as a ghost to act as a mentor to Dane, revealing the circumstances of his death, and appeared a number of times subsequently as a ghost, summoned to give advice. Percy was eventually released from the mortal plane by Doctor Strange
.
His spirit again appeared to Dane Whitman, revealing how he wed Lady Rosamund. His spirit then took possession of Dane's body. With Doctor Strange, he fought Morgan le Fay and Balor
, and was rescued by Valkyrie. He then made Sean Dolan
his squire. His spirit then took possession of the Ebony Blade itself.
Percy wielded the Ebony Blade
, and Merlin
's spells rendered the Black Knight invulnerable to physical harm as long as he held the Ebony Blade. However, the spells were ineffective against a weapon made of the same metal as the Ebony Blade. He also wore body armor and a helmet which were similarly rendered impenetrable by Merlin's spells.
Black Knight (comics)
The Black Knight is the alias of several fictional comic-book characters that appear in the Marvel Comics universe.The first is a medieval knight created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Joe Maneely. The second is a supervillain descendant of the original, created by writer-editor Stan Lee and...
, is a fictional character in the Marvel Universe
Marvel Universe
The Marvel Universe is the shared fictional universe where most comic book titles and other media published by Marvel Entertainment take place, including those featuring Marvel's most familiar characters, such as Spider-Man, the Hulk, the X-Men, and the Avengers.The Marvel Universe is further...
. He was a medieval knight
Knight
A knight was a member of a class of lower nobility in the High Middle Ages.By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior....
created by writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
-editor
Editing
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, and film media used to convey information through the processes of correction, condensation, organization, and other modifications performed with an intention of producing a correct, consistent, accurate, and complete...
Stan Lee
Stan Lee
Stan Lee is an American comic book writer, editor, actor, producer, publisher, television personality, and the former president and chairman of Marvel Comics....
and artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
Joe Maneely
Joe Maneely
Joseph "Joe" Maneely is an American comic book artist best known for his work at Marvel Comics' 1950s predecessor, Atlas Comics, where he co-created the Marvel characters the Black Knight, the Ringo Kid, the Yellow Claw, and Jimmy Woo.An exquisite draftsman whose delicate yet solid, fine-line...
.
Publication history
Marvel Comics' first Black Knight, Sir Percy of Scandia, first appearedFirst appearance
In comic books and other stories with a long history, first appearance refers to the first occurrence to feature a fictional character.-Monetary value of first appearance issues:...
in the medieval-adventure series Black Knight vol. 1, #1-5 (May-Dec. 1955) from Atlas Comics
Atlas Comics (1950s)
Atlas Comics is the term used to describe the 1950s comic book publishing company that would evolve into Marvel Comics. Magazine and paperback novel publisher Martin Goodman, whose business strategy involved having a multitude of corporate entities, used Atlas as the umbrella name for his comic...
, the 1950s precursor to Marvel Comics.
The five-issue series was written by Stan Lee, with art by Joe Maneely in the first three interiors and all five covers. Fred Kida
Fred Kida
Fred Kida is an American comic book and comic strip artist best known for the characters Airboy and Valkyrie.-Early life and career:...
and the team of penciller
Penciller
A penciller is an artist who works in the creation of comic books, graphic novels, and similar visual art forms.The penciller is the first step in rendering the story in visual form and may require several steps of feedback with the writer. These artists are concerned with layout to showcase...
Syd Shores
Syd Shores
Sydney Shores was an American comic book artist known for his work on Captain America both during the 1940s, in what fans and historians call the Golden Age of comic books, and during the 1960s Silver Age of comic books....
and inker
Inker
The inker is one of the two line artists in a traditional comic book or graphic novel. After a pencilled drawing is given to the inker, the inker uses black ink to produce refined outlines over the pencil lines...
Christopher Rule
Christopher Rule
Christopher Rule was an American comic book artist active from the 1940s through at least 1960, and best known as the first regular Marvel Comics inker for comics artist Jack Kirby during the period fans and historians call the Silver Age of Comic Books.-Early life and career:After driving an...
drew stories in the latter two issues.
Sir Percy appeared in Mystic Arcana
Mystic Arcana
Mystic Arcana is a 2007 Marvel Comics storyline published as a series of four one-shot titles. Each book in the series contains an individual main story followed by a back-up story whose plot continues through all four books. The main story in each book focuses upon a different fictional character,...
, representing the element of earth.
Fictional character biography
The original Black Knight is Sir Percy of Scandia, a 6th century knight who serves at the court of King Arthur PendragonKing Arthur
King Arthur is a legendary British leader of the late 5th and early 6th centuries, who, according to Medieval histories and romances, led the defence of Britain against Saxon invaders in the early 6th century. The details of Arthur's story are mainly composed of folklore and literary invention, and...
as his greatest warrior and one of the Knights of the Round Table. Recruited by the wizard Merlin, Percy adopts a double identity, and pretends to be totally incompetent until changing into the persona of the Black Knight. As the Black Knight, Percy wields the Ebony Blade
Ebony Blade
The Ebony Blade is a fictional enchanted sword in the Marvel Comics universe. Though many have used the sword, it is most readily identified with the Black Knight.-History:...
, which Merlin forged from a meteorite. A constant foe of the evil knight Mordred the Evil
Mordred (comics)
Mordred the Evil is a fictional character in the Marvel Universe. He is based loosely on the Mordred of Arthurian legend.-Fictional character biography:...
(Arthur's traitorous "nephew") and Morgan le Fay
Morgan le Fay (Marvel Comics)
Morgan le Fay is a fictional character in the , based loosely on the Morgan le Fay of Arthurian legend. In this version of the character, she is the half-faerie half-sister of the mythic Arthur. Her elven heritage granted her immortality, and she used this time to master the mystic arts. She...
, in time Sir Percy retired his dual identity and married Lady Rosamund.
Percy is eventually killed at Castle Scandia by Mordred during the fall of Camelot when stabbed from behind with an enchanted blade made of the same material as his own Ebony Blade - although Mordred then dies himself of wounds inflicted by Arthur during the Battle of Camlann
Battle of Camlann
The Battle of Camlann is best known as the final battle of King Arthur, where he either died in battle, or was fatally wounded fighting his enemy Mordred.-Historicity:...
earlier that day. Merlin ensures that Percy's spirit will live on by casting a spell that will revive his ghost if Mordred should ever return.
Sir Percy was survived by a son, Geoffrey. Lady Rosamund later gave birth to his second son, Edward the Posthumous, who reportedly became ancestor of "a proud lineage". Descendants of Sir Percy adopted the identity of the Black Knight: Sir Raston, active during the late 6th and early 7th century, who eventually became an agent of the time travel
Time travel
Time travel is the concept of moving between different points in time in a manner analogous to moving between different points in space. Time travel could hypothetically involve moving backward in time to a moment earlier than the starting point, or forward to the future of that point without the...
er Kang the Conqueror
Kang the Conqueror
Kang the Conqueror is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appears in Avengers #8 , and was created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby...
; and Sir Eobar Garrington, a 12th century knight serving under Richard the Lionheart
Richard I of England
Richard I was King of England from 6 July 1189 until his death. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Duke of Aquitaine, Duke of Gascony, Lord of Cyprus, Count of Anjou, Count of Maine, Count of Nantes, and Overlord of Brittany at various times during the same period...
during the Third Crusade
Third Crusade
The Third Crusade , also known as the Kings' Crusade, was an attempt by European leaders to reconquer the Holy Land from Saladin...
.
Percy's spirit has appeared several times to counsel his descendant, Dane Whitman
Black Knight (Dane Whitman)
Dane Whitman is a fictional comic book superhero in the Marvel Comics universe, the company's third person to bear the name Black Knight. Created by writer Roy Thomas and artist John Buscema, he first appeared in The Avengers #47 Dane Whitman is a fictional comic book superhero in the Marvel Comics...
. He first appeared as a ghost to act as a mentor to Dane, revealing the circumstances of his death, and appeared a number of times subsequently as a ghost, summoned to give advice. Percy was eventually released from the mortal plane by Doctor Strange
Doctor Strange
Doctor Stephen Strange is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was co-created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, and first appeared in Strange Tales #110 ....
.
His spirit again appeared to Dane Whitman, revealing how he wed Lady Rosamund. His spirit then took possession of Dane's body. With Doctor Strange, he fought Morgan le Fay and Balor
Balor (comics)
Balor is a fictional character in the Marvel Universe.-Fictional character biography:Balor is a giant red-skinned, yellow-horned, one-eyed member of the Fomor, extra-dimensional beings from the dimension of Avalon...
, and was rescued by Valkyrie. He then made Sean Dolan
Bloodwraith
Bloodwraith is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics universe.-Fictional character biography:He is the murderous enemy of Black Knight and the Avengers. While Sean Dolan was known as Bloodwraith, Bloodwraith is made up of the souls of those the Ebony Blade has slain. He is an expert...
his squire. His spirit then took possession of the Ebony Blade itself.
Powers and abilities
The Black Knight was an athletic man with no superhuman powers. He was a master of swordsmanship, horseback riding, and all forms of combat known in Britain at the time of Camelot. He was also a talented poet, singer, and musician with the lute.Percy wielded the Ebony Blade
Ebony Blade
The Ebony Blade is a fictional enchanted sword in the Marvel Comics universe. Though many have used the sword, it is most readily identified with the Black Knight.-History:...
, and Merlin
Merlin (Marvel Comics)
Merlin is the name of multiple fictional characters in the Marvel Universe.-Fictional character biography:The first Merlin of the Marvel Universe is apparently the figure of Arthurian legend, hailing from 6th century A.D. Britain. He was born in Carmarthen, Wales. He was a powerful sorcerer who...
's spells rendered the Black Knight invulnerable to physical harm as long as he held the Ebony Blade. However, the spells were ineffective against a weapon made of the same metal as the Ebony Blade. He also wore body armor and a helmet which were similarly rendered impenetrable by Merlin's spells.
Television
- The medieval Black Knight appeared in the "Knights & Demons" episode of Spider-Man and His Amazing FriendsSpider-Man and His Amazing FriendsSpider-Man and His Amazing Friends is an animated series produced by Marvel Productions starring established Marvel Comics characters Spider-Man and Iceman and an original character, Firestar...
, scripted by Don Glut. Dane Whitman was also to appear, but was rejected to avoid confusion.
External links
- Black Knight (Sir Percy) at Marvel.com
- Black Knight (Sir Percy) at Marvel Wiki