Agilulf Character Analysis in The Decameron

Agilulf is the wise king of the Lombards in Pampinea’s third tale (III, 2). He is married to the beautiful and wise Theodelinda. When he finds himself cuckolded by a Groom, he displays tact by keeping the knowledge of his dishonor secret, rather than airing it publicly (like Amerigo Abate in V, 7 or Arriguccio Berlinghieri in VII, 8). Instead, he plays a wily cat-and-mouse game trying to identify the groom, and even when he fails, he weighs the possibility of his public dishonor against his desire for revenge.

Agilulf Quotes in The Decameron

The The Decameron quotes below are all either spoken by Agilulf or refer to Agilulf. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:

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On hearing these words, the King immediately came to the conclusion that the Queen had been taken in by an outward resemblance to his own physique and manner. But he was a wise man, and since neither the Queen nor anybody else appeared to have noticed the deception, he had no hesitation in deciding to keep his own counsel. Many a stupid man would have reacted differently, and exclaimed “It was not I. Who was the man who was here? What happened? Who was it who came?” But this would only have led to complications, upsetting the lady when she was blameless and sowing the seeds of a desire, on her part, to repeat the experience. And besides, by holding his tongue his honor remained unimpaired, whereas if he were to talk he would make himself look ridiculous.

Related Characters: Pampinea (speaker), Agilulf, Theodelinda, Groom

Page Number and Citation: 202-203

Explanation and Analysis:

Agilulf Character Timeline in The Decameron

The timeline below shows where the character Agilulf appears in The Decameron. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

...and laugh at Filostrato’s tale, and Pampinea is still laughing when she begins her tale. Agilulf, king of Lombardy, is married to the beautiful and virtuous Theodelinda. A certain Groom, who... (full context)

...bed Theodelinda would be to deceive her, the Groom looks for a way to impersonate Agilulf. He hides in the palace, where he witnesses Agilulf—wrapped in a cloak and carrying a... (full context)

...he makes love to her repeatedly. No sooner has the Groom torn himself away than Agilulf himself appears. When Theodelinda expresses surprise that he’s come back for more already, the savvy... (full context)

Agilulf goes to the servants’ dormitory, realizing that the adulterous servant’s heart would still be racing... (full context)

The next morning, Agilulf calls all his servants together, but when he begins to inspect them, he realizes they... (full context)