Cymochles is an evil knight who has pledged himself to the pleasure-seeking sorceress Acrasia and who clashes with Sir Guyon. Eventually, he teams up with the fiery knight Pyrochles, in hopes of taking down Sir Guyon together. Though Cymochles is a mighty knight, his mistake is pledging his loyalty to the tricky Acrasia.
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Cymochles Character Timeline in The Faerie Queene
The timeline below shows where the character Cymochles appears in The Faerie Queene. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Book II: Canto V
...and thinks Guyon has struck Pyrochles down, so Atin runs off to tell Pyrochles’s brother, Cymochles.
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Cymochles is a mighty knight who has won glory in many perilous fights. His lady is...
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Atin pricks Cymochles with a dart, which seems to wake him up from a dream. He gets up...
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Book II: Canto VI
With his wrath having been kindled by Atin’s story, Cymochles rides forth to find Sir Guyon. He is distracted, however, when he sees a ship...
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Phaedria takes Cymochles in her ship to an island full of beautiful flowers and other vegetation. Phaedria asks...
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Phaedria leaves Cymochles on the island and goes off on her boat again. This time, she finds Sir...
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Cymochles wakes up, and as he walks around the island, he sees Sir Guyon with Phaedria....
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Phaedria goes on to say that if Cymochles and Sir Guyon really want to fight for her, they should leave aside bloody battles...
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Book II: Canto VIII
...confirms that Sir Guyon is alive, and then he happens to notice that Pyrochles and Cymochles are on their way over, with Archimago and Atin as well. Pyrochles and Cymochles confront...
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Pyrochles and Cymochles take Sir Guyon’s shield and helmet. Just then, they see the proudest and noblest knight...
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...isn’t dead, just in a deep daze. He goes on to say how Pyrochles and Cymochles took advantage of the situation by stealing Guyon’s armor. Arthur is indignant about what the...
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...and Arthur responds by stabbing Pyrochles in the chest with a spear and wounding him. Cymochles, struck with grief, lashes out at Arthur, knocking him off his horse. Unhorsed without a...
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Pyrochles and Cymochles both charge Arthur from opposite sides. Though they strike fiercely, Arthur’s shield stays strong. Arthur...
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...attacking again in a rage, like a bull that’s being baited in two different directions. Cymochles and Pyrochles keep getting angrier. Cymochles decides to make an attack so reckless that it...
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Pyrochles is aghast to see Cymochles fall, but he continues the fight. He ends up defeated by Arthur. Arthur says he...
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Book II: Canto IX
After Pyrochles and Cymochles are dead, Arthur recovers his stolen sword and returns Sir Guyon’s stolen shield back to...
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