Black Knight comics - Encyclopedia

The Black Knight is the name of several fictional characters, both heroic and villainous, in Marvel Comics' universe. All of these characters have a shared lineage, and all wear similar costumes and use a medieval motif.

The original Black Knight was Sir Percy of Scandia, a 6th century knight in the court of King Arthur's Camelot who appeared in the five-issue series Black Knight (May-Dec. 1955), from Atlas Comics, the 1950s precursor of Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Joe Maneely. he was recruited by Arthur and Merlin to battle evil; in a manner not unlike The Scarlet Pimpernel, he adopted a foppish persona as Percy and became a fearless crusader in his secret identity as the Black Knight. As the Black Knight, Sir Percy wielded the Ebony Blade, a magical sword forged by Merlin from a meteorite.

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.

It was later revealed in Marvel Universe continuity that after numerous battles with Mordred and Morgan le Fay, Sir Percy retired his dual identity and married his love, Lady Rosamund, only to be murdered by Mordred with a dagger carved from the same meteorite as the Ebony Blade. Mordred was reportedly already dying from wounds received during the Battle of Camlann earlier that day. (The Battle is traditionally set in 537). Percy was survived by his son Geoffrey. Lady Rosamund later gave birth to his second son, Edward the Posthumous, who reportedly became ancestor of "a proud lineage".

Later comics revealed that some 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 traveler Kang the Conqueror; and Sir Eobar Garrington, a 12th century knight serving under Richard the Lionheart during the Third Crusade.

Backup feature "The Crusader" starred essentially a 12th century Apache Kid — a Caucasian raised in an exotic culture. English boy O'Dare, captured with his mother by Saracens, was raised Muslin and dubbed El Alemain, "The Hawk." Learning in adulthood that he was the brother of the late Frankish noble Sir John O'Dare, he begins fighting for the British king Richard the Lionhearted, wielding the apparently mystical scimitar the Saracen Blade. His two-episode origin was reprinted in Marvel's 1970s black-and-white magazine Savage Tales. Art was by Maneely in the first three issues, followed by John Romita Sr. and Shores/Rule.

In the Silver Age of Comic Books, the mantle of the Black Knight was revived by Sir Percy's distant descendant Professor Nathan Garrett, who had a brief career as a supervillain beginning in Tales to Astonish #52. This Black Knight used science, not magic; he had a lance that fired bolts of energy; like the Shining Knight of the Golden Age of Comic Books he had a winged horse, though the Black Knight's mount, named Aragorn (after the Lord of the Rings character), was genetically-engineered. He battled Iron Man and The Avengers several times, and joined the supervillain team called the Masters of Evil; during his last battle, he was mortally wounded. Dying, he summoned his nephew Dane Whitman to their family estate, confessed to his life of crime, and bid Whitman to restore the honor of their shared legacy.

Main article Dane Whitman

Whitman agreed, and took up the role of the Black Knight in Avengers Volume 1 #47. During his first outing, he was mistaken for his uncle and attacked by the Avengers, though the mistake was soon realized. Later, he infiltrated the newest incarnation of the Masters of Evil. Whitman, having now fully proven himself a superhero, was, after a further adventure with the group, inducted into the Avengers, and, although he did not join the active membership for some time, he eventually became one of their most loyal members.

Categories: Arthurian legend | Avengers villains | Excalibur members | Fictional knights | Masters of Evil members

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