The Maiden Painted on Our Shields

We paint a maiden on our shields. A Maiden, who is also a Mother. We paint her with a Child on her lap that will rule the nations with a rod of iron. We paint her, not as a pinup girl as some do. We paint merciful eyes and a modest robe of blue.

Prydwen and the Shield of Sir Gawain

King Arthur is said to have painted a depiction of this Maiden on the inside of Prydwin, his shield:

Arthur donned a hauberk worthy of a mighty king, placed on his head a golden helmet engraved with the image of a dragon and shouldered his shield called Pridwen, on which was depicted Mary, the Holy Mother of God, to keep her memory always before his eyes. He also buckled on Caliburnus, an excellent blade forged on the isle of Avallon, and graced his hand with his spear, called Ron.

—Historia Regum Britanniae, Geoffrey of Monmouth, 1130s

That shield of valor struck fear into the enemies of King Arthur, who venerated the memory of the God-bearer even in battle. Following this record of King Arthur's Prydwen, the 14th-century Middle English poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight has Gawain paint the Virgin Mary inside his shield, so that "when he looked thereto, his heart never lessened".

J.R.R. Tolkien renders that section of the Sir Gawain poem like this:

For which cause the knight had in comely wise
on the inner side of his shield her image depainted,
that when he cast his eyes thither his courage never failed.

The shields of Arthur and Gawain are important symbols. They represent ideas that, in our modern times, have been abandoned. Battle, Beauty, Authority, Virginity. In our day, we are ashamed of these things. A king’s decisive victory over evil seems like a fairy tale, and libido dominandi has clouded our vision to the point we cannot see the beauty in the most blessed among women.

The image of a noble king, willing to inflict mortal wounds for a righteous cause, bearing a shield emblazoned with a Virgin: mild, gentle, and pure, holding the One Who holds the world, is a sign of contradiction to the modern West. But that image is our past. It is an encapsulation of the most noble parts of our history. It symbolizes the triumph of Good over Evil, reason over desire, Virtue over Vice, Beauty over Ugliness, and the Cross over the World.

What would 21st century man paint on the inside of his shield, to cause his courage never to fail? I do not know if there is anything that he would paint, for C.S. Lewis’ prediction has come to pass: we have made “men without chests.” There is no depiction that could cause his courage to swell. We have removed the organ, and demand the function. He does not believe in God.

The Arming and Departure of the Knights of the Round Table on the Quest for the Holy Grail. Designed by Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones, made by Morris & Co. 1891

The shields of Arthur and Gawain represent a devotion that was deep and strong, flowing into middle-earth from Heaven’s sea of glass, with a Star of the Sea reflecting off of it. They represent a clear understanding of the Antithesis, of the Enmity of Genesis 3, of those who kiss the Son, and of those who scorn His rule. Such shields bespeak a polemic that has mostly faded from our consciousness.

The Last Battle

Then the dragon was angry with the woman, and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and bear testimony to Jesus. —Revelation 12:17

And what is that polemic? It is the cosmic strife in which we find ourselves. The horde is here. It is a dark hour. Sexual immorality is the de facto law of the land. Temptations abound, even to the most careful. Polygamy, pornography, perversion, fornication, feminism, abuse, abortion, euthanasia: the Hydra of Uncleanness rears its many heads. Lies abound, and the love of many grows cold.

The image of the Blessed Virgin painted on a shield is a reminder to fight, a reminder of the existence of Good and Evil, and a reminder that we have need of a shield. Wickedness in high places rushes around us like a river. Many stumble and are swept away. The rapids of the river may kill the body. But her Son can turn those waters to joyful wine even as we die.

Lift up your shield, Christian. Hold the Shield of Faith, with the Cross, terrible to demons, on its face. This is the victory that overcomes the world.

And paint the maiden on the inside of that shield: as a badge of honor, as the epitome of created beauty, as advocata nostra: her for whom “the Mighty One has done great things,” the Maiden Mother of the Crucified. Brace against that shield, with her Magnificat in your ears:

He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts… —Luke 1:15

How can your heart waver, as Miriam goes out singing before the Hosts of the Lord?

The maiden painted on our shields is a source of anger, confusion, and consternation to every ally of the serpent:

To the consternation of the promiscuous, her gate remained shut, for the Lord entered through it.

To the consternation of sorcerers, her only invocation was fiat mihi secundum verbum Tuum.

To the consternation of idolaters, she conceived the Only True and Living God.

To the consternation of the unbelieving nation, she is the Sign: a Virgin bearing Emmanuel.

To the consternation of darkness, she is a clear window showing us the Light of the World.

To the consternation of all our enemies, her Son promises eternal victory.

Until we acquire possession of it, may our courage never fail.

Bogurodzica, Józef Brandt, 1909. Polish-Lithuanian forces singing the Bogurodzica hymn before the battle.

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