What was the story Katherine told in "The English Patient"?

Search: the english patient transcript

Why: She tells a story about a person who marries a queen of a country I've never heard of.

Answer: Here is the story:

The King insisted that he would find some way to prove beyond dispute that his wife was fairest of all women. "I will hide you in our room where we sleep," said Candaules. He tells Gyges that the Queen has the same practice every night: She takes off her clothes and puts them on the chair by the door to her room. "And from where you stand, you will be able to gaze on her at your leisure." And that evening, it's exactly as the King has told him. She goes to the chair, removes her clothes one by one, until she's standing naked in full view of Gyges. And indeed, she was more lovely than he could have imagined. But then, the Queen looked up and saw Gyges concealed in the shadows. Although she said nothing, she shuddered. And the next day, she sent for Gyges and challenged him. And hearing his story, this is what she said: "Either you must submit to death for gazing on that which you should not, or else kill my husband who has shamed me and become King in his place." So Gyges kills the King, marries the Queen, and becomes ruler of Lydia for years.

Source: Script-O-Rama

The More You Know: Lydia was part of the Anatolian (Asia Minor) region of Western Asian, where present-day Turkey is. The first coins were invented in Lydia around 660 BC.