Three Hearts and Three Lions
Encyclopedia
Three Hearts and Three Lions is a 1961 fantasy
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...

 novel by Poul Anderson
Poul Anderson
Poul William Anderson was an American science fiction author who began his career during one of the Golden Ages of the genre and continued to write and remain popular into the 21st century. Anderson also authored several works of fantasy, historical novels, and a prodigious number of short stories...

. It is also a 1953 novella by Poul Anderson which appeared in Fantasy & Science Fiction.

Plot

Holger Carlsen is an Allied covert operative who assists the Danish Resistance to the Nazis. After an explosion, he finds himself carried to a parallel universe
Parallel universe (fiction)
A parallel universe or alternative reality is a hypothetical self-contained separate reality coexisting with one's own. A specific group of parallel universes is called a "multiverse", although this term can also be used to describe the possible parallel universes that constitute reality...

, which proves to have the Matter of France
Matter of France
The Matter of France, also known as the Carolingian cycle, is a body of literature and legendary material associated with the history of France, in particular involving Charlemagne and his associates. The cycle springs from the Old French chansons de geste, and was later adapted into a variety of...

 as its historical past. There he finds that the evil of Faerie is encroaching on humanity. His quest finally leads him to discover that he is Ogier the Dane
Holger Danske
Holger Danske, or Ogier the Dane, is a legendary character appearing in medieval chansons de geste.Holger Danske may also refer to:*Holger Danske a Danish resistance group of World War II...

, sent to this universe by Morgan le Fay
Morgan le Fay
Morgan le Fay , alternatively known as Morgane, Morgaine, Morgana and other variants, is a powerful sorceress in the Arthurian legend. Early works featuring Morgan do not elaborate her character beyond her role as a fay or magician...

, and to fight the battle that drives back the evil. This also thrust him back into our world, in which he is able to ensure that Nazis can not stop a crucial escape from occupied Europe.

At the end of the novel, he is seeking his way back in the other world, where he had fallen in love with a swan may.

Other works

Holger later appears as a minor character in Anderson's A Midsummer Tempest
A Midsummer Tempest
A Midsummer Tempest is an 1974 alternate history fantasy novel by Poul Anderson. In 1975, it was nominated for the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel and Nebula Award for Best Novel and won the Mythopoeic Award.- Plot introduction :...

, still unable to return to his original home. In addition, he appears (with many other classic SF characters) in the tournament at the end of Heinlein's The Number of the Beast
The Number of the Beast (novel)
The Number of the Beast is a science fiction novel by Robert A. Heinlein published in 1980. The first edition featured a cover and interior illustrations by Richard M. Powers...

.

Influences

The original alignment
Alignment (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, alignment is a categorization of the ethical and moral perspective of people, creatures and societies....

 system of Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons is a fantasy role-playing game originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, and first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. . The game has been published by Wizards of the Coast since 1997...

, which grouped all characters and creatures into "Law" and "Chaos", was influenced by Three Hearts and Three Lions. The novel also includes a troll
Troll (Dungeons & Dragons)
Trolls are fictional monsters in the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game. Dungeon Masters can use them as enemies or allies of the player characters.-Publication history:...

 from which the D&D description of the monster was derived. Likewise, significant elements of the paladin class were taken from this novel.

The dividing line running through the fictional Europe of the book, separating this world's version of the Holy Roman Empire
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...

 to the West from the aggressive and threatening Faerie to the East, seems to be on roughly the same location as the actual Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...

dividing line between the West and East Blocs, running through the real Europe at the time of writing. The Empire and Faerie, as described in the book, are indeed engaged in a kind of Cold War, with a perpetual mutual suspicion and hostility and plenty of local conflicts, but shying away from an all-out war with each other.
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