Queen of the Black Coast

Plot summary

The story begins in an Argos port where Conan forcefully demands passage aboard a sail barge, the Argus, which is casting off for southern waters to trade beads, silks, sugar and brass-hilted swords to the black kings of Kush. At first, the captain of the barge objects to his demand to travel without paying for the passage, and Conan threatens him and the crew with his drawn sword. But eventually the captain agrees to let Conan stay on board, since "It would be useful to have a fighting man on the voyage" and gradually Conan and the captain, named Tito, become quite friendly. The captain is soon informed that Conan is fleeing the civil authorities of Argos due to a court dispute in which Conan refused to betray the whereabouts of a casual friend to a fascistic magistrate (although no actual political reference is hinted in Howard's story) and instead drew his sword and killed the magistrate - whereupon he had to swiftly flee. It is emphasized that at this moment Conan was a complete land-lubber, with no previous experience or knowledge of the sea.

Upon reaching the pirate-infested waters of Kush, their trade ship is attacked by the infamous reavers led by Bêlit, the Queen of the Black Coast. Bêlit and her ebony-skinned warriors slaughter the crew of the Argus, who are no match for the ferocious pirates. Conan tries to rally the crew after the captain was killed, and when the fight becomes clearly hopeless he manages to jump aboard the pirate ship, intending to sell his life dearly. Conan kills many of the pirates, fully expecting to be overwhelmed and killed - whereupon Bêlit suddenly orders her crew to step back and spare Conan, being impressed with the Cimmerian's courage and ferocity (and being sexually attracted to him, as she immediately and forthrightly declares). Bêlit offers Conan the chance to sail with her, be her chosen mate, and help lead her fierce warriors. Oddly smitten by this fiery woman, Conan agrees and, for a time, they raid the Black Coast together brutally pillaging coastal towns and instilling fear into the superstitious natives.

Soon, the Hyborian legends begin that the she-devil of the sea, Bêlit, has found a mate, Conan, an iron man whose wrath is that of a wounded lion. Survivors of butchered Stygian ships curse the name of Bêlit and her Cimmerian warrior with fierce blue eyes.

Sailing up a nameless river, Bêlit and Conan encounter ancient ruins in which is found a lost treasure, a winged monstrosity and skulking hyenas that were once men. Despite the bizarre murders of their crew and the various horrors lurking in the jungle, Bêlit and Conan still find time for a thorough theological discussion, comparing Conan's grim god Crom with Bêlit's more ambiguous Semite deities - all of which they discuss in between continuing their sexual romance which is alluded to by Howard as having sadomasochistic undertones. In a moment of passion, Bêlit promises that even death could not keep her from Conan's side, a promise which she must keep far sooner than she expects.

Despite her intense love for Conan, Bêlit is soon captivated by a cursed jeweled necklace found among the lost treasure which seemingly instills the wearer with a mix of madness and monomania. In such a twisted mental state, Bêlit issues faulty orders. Given the constant bizarre dangers and her own madness, her crew is soon decimated and Bêlit herself is hanged by the winged monster. Driven to rage and now alone, Conan confronts her supernatural murderer. He is on the verge of being slain when the spirit of Bêlit intervenes. Conan slays the winged horror and leaves the ruins in Bêlit's ship with her corpse.

The story closes with Conan giving Bêlit a Viking funeral - setting on fire the ship, with her surrounded by all her treasures - and reflecting upon his loss.

Reception

The use of poetic descriptions throughout the tale is quite strong, and on par with Howard's "The Frost-Giant's Daughter." However, the narrative is often criticized by Howard scholars for not having the flow of the better Conan yarns. Largely, this is because Howard was aiming for an epic feel, something to which the story is eminently suited. Plot-point by plot-point, "Queen of the Black Coast" comes closest of any of the Conan stories to achieving the quality of "legend" as the story is filled with classic moments: the dead Bêlit hanging by her necklace from a yardarm; Bêlit's Viking funeral in a flaming ship as Conan moodily looks on; the ghostly spirit of Bêlit returning to protect her lover. Howard also begins each chapter with excerpts from The Song of Bêlit, a poem presumably written by Hyborian Age minstrels to honor her memory.

Everett F. Bleiler described "Queen of the Black Coast" as "probably the best of the Conan stories, perhaps because it is the only one based on another emotion than lust, greed, or hatred."

Publication history

The story was first published in the May 1934 issue of Weird Tales magazine. It was republished in the collections The Coming of Conan (Gnome Press, 1953) and Conan of Cimmeria (Lancer Books, 1969). It has most recently been republished in the collections The Conan Chronicles Volume 1: The People of the Black Circle (Gollancz, 2000) and Conan of Cimmeria: Volume One (1932-1933) (Del Rey, 2003).

Adaptation

The story was adapted and expanded by Roy Thomas, Mike Ploog and John Buscema in Conan the Barbarian #57, #58 and #100.

Petri Hiltunen made his own graphic novel adaptation in 1991. It has only been published in Finland.

A roleplaying adventure adaptation, authored by Robert Traynor for the GURPS roleplaying system, named Conan and the Queen of the Black Coast, was published by Steve Jackson Games in 1989.

The concept of the woman who dies, but returns to help Conan in battle, was used in the 1982 movie Conan the Barbarian.

The newly launched Conan the Barbarian series from Dark Horse Comics by writer Brian Wood and artist Becky Cloonan uses Queen of the Black Coast as the basis for the first three issues. The death of Bêlit is told in issues 22-25.