atestat king arthur

8/12/2019 Atestat King Arthur

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The historical character

King Arthur

Statue of King Arthur, Hofkirche, Innsbruck, designed by

Albrecht Drerand cast by Peter Vischer the Elder, !"#s

King Arthur of Britain, byHo$ard Pylefro% The Story ofKing Arthur and His Knights&

'(#)*

King Arthuris a legendary+ritishleader of the late !th and

early th centuries, $ho, according to %edie-al histories and

ro%ances, led the defence of +ritain against Sa.onin-aders

in the early th century& The details of Arthur/s story are%ainly co%0osed of folkloreand literary in-ention, and his

historical e.istence is debated and dis0uted by %odern historians& The s0arse historical

background of Arthur is gleaned fro% -arious sources, including theAnnales Cambriae,theHistoria Brittonum,and the $ritings of1ildas& Arthur/s na%e also occurs in early

0oetic sources such as Y Gododdin&

The legendary Arthur de-elo0ed as a figure of international interest largely through the0o0ularity of 1eoffrey of 2on%outh/s fanciful and i%aginati-e "th3centuryHistoriaRegum Britanniae'History of the Kings of Britain*& So%e 4elshand +retontales and

0oe%s relating the story of Arthur date fro% earlier than this $ork5 in these $orks, Arthur

a00ears either as a great $arrior defending +ritain fro% hu%an and su0ernatural ene%iesor as a %agical figure of folklore, so%eti%es associated $ith the 4elsh 6ther$orld,

Ann$n& Ho$ %uch of 1eoffrey/sHistoria'co%0leted in )7* $as ada0ted fro% such

earlier sources, rather than in-ented by 1eoffrey hi%self, is unkno$n&

Although the the%es, e-ents and characters of the Arthurian legend -aried $idely fro%te.t to te.t, and there is no one canonical -ersion, 1eoffrey/s -ersion of e-entsoften

ser-ed as the starting 0oint for later stories& 1eoffrey de0icted Arthur as a king of +ritain$ho defeated the Sa.ons and established an e%0ire o-er +ritain,Ireland,Iceland,8or$ayand 1aul& 2any ele%ents and incidents that are no$ an integral 0art of the

Arthurian story a00ear in 1eoffrey/sHistoria, including Arthur/s father 9ther Pendragon,

the $i:ard 2erlin, Arthur/s $ife 1uine-ere, the s$ord E.calibur, Arthur/s conce0tion atTintagel, his final battle against 2ordredat ;a%lannand final rest inA-alon& The "th3

century ancelot and the Holy 1railto the

story, began the genre of Arthurian ro%ance that beca%e a significant strand of %edie-al
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hofkirche,_Innsbruckhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albrecht_D%C3%BCrerhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Vischer_the_Elderhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howard_Pylehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Britons_(historical)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romance_(heroic_literature)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saxonhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folklorehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annales_Cambriaehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annales_Cambriaehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annales_Cambriaehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historia_Brittonumhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historia_Brittonumhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gildashttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Y_Gododdinhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geoffrey_of_Monmouthhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historia_Regum_Britanniaehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historia_Regum_Britanniaehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historia_Regum_Britanniaehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welsh_peoplehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breton_peoplehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annwnhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Arthur#Geoffrey_of_Monmouthhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Britainhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irelandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Icelandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norwayhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaulhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uther_Pendragonhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merlinhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guineverehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Excaliburhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tintagel_Castlehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mordredhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camlannhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avalonhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chr%C3%A9tien_de_Troyeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lancelothttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_Grailhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medieval_literaturehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hofkirche,_Innsbruckhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albrecht_D%C3%BCrerhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Vischer_the_Elderhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howard_Pylehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Britons_(historical)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romance_(heroic_literature)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saxonhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folklorehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annales_Cambriaehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historia_Brittonumhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gildashttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Y_Gododdinhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geoffrey_of_Monmouthhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historia_Regum_Britanniaehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historia_Regum_Britanniaehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welsh_peoplehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breton_peoplehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annwnhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Arthur#Geoffrey_of_Monmouthhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Britainhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irelandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Icelandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norwayhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaulhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uther_Pendragonhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merlinhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guineverehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Excaliburhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tintagel_Castlehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mordredhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camlannhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avalonhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chr%C3%A9tien_de_Troyeshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lancelothttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_Grailhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medieval_literature


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literature&In these


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the organising 0rinci0le of his history of sub3?o%an +ritain and Ireland,The Age of

Arthur'(C)*& E-en so, he found little to say about a historical Arthur&

The #th3centuryAnnales Cambriae, as co0ied into a %anuscri0t of c& ##

Partly in reaction to such theories, another school of thought e%erged $hich argued thatArthur had no historical e.istence at all& 2orris/sAge of Arthur0ro%0ted archaeologist

8o$ell 2yresto obser-e that no figure on the borderline of history and %ythology has

$asted %ore of the historian/s ti%e& 1ildas/ th3century 0ole%icDe !"idio etCon#uestu Britanniae'$n the Ruin and Con#uest of Britain*, $ritten $ithin li-ing

%e%ory of 2ount +adon, %entions the battle but does not %ention Arthur& Arthur is not

%entioned in theAnglo%Sa!on Chroni"leor na%ed in any sur-i-ing %anuscri0t $rittenbet$een ## and 7"#& He is absent fro% +ede/s early37th3century""lesiasti"al Historyof the nglish &eole, another %a@or early source for 0ost3?o%an history that %entions

2ount +adon& Historian Da-id Du%-ille has $ritten I think $e can dis0ose of hi%ArthurF uite briefly& He o$es his 0lace in our history books to a /no s%oke $ithout fire/school of thought &&& The fact of the %atter is that there is no historical e-idence about

Arthur5 $e %ust re@ect hi% fro% our histories and, abo-e all, fro% the titles of our

books&

So%e scholars argue that Arthur $as originally a fictional hero of folkloreJor e-en ahalf3forgotten ;eltic deityJ$ho beca%e credited $ith real deeds in the distant 0ast&

They cite 0arallels $ith figures such as the Kentish tote%ic horse3gods Hengest and

Horsa, $ho later beca%e historicised& +ede ascribed to these legendary figures ahistorical role in the !th3centuryAnglo3Sa.onconuest of eastern +ritain& It is not e-en

certain that Arthur $as considered a king in the early te.ts& 8either theHistorianor theAnnalescalls hi% re! the for%er calls hi% instead du!bellorum 'leader of battles*and miles 'soldier*&

Historical docu%ents for the 0ost3?o%an 0eriod are scarce, so a definiti-e ans$er to the

uestion of Arthur/s historical e.istence is unlikely& Sites and 0laces ha-e been identified

as Arthuriansince the "th century, but archaeology can confidently re-eal na%es onlythrough inscri0tions found in secure conte.ts& The so3called Arthur stone, disco-ered in
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irelandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowell_Myreshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gildashttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De_Excidio_et_Conquestu_Britanniaehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De_Excidio_et_Conquestu_Britanniaehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglo-Saxon_Chroniclehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bedehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historia_ecclesiastica_gentis_Anglorumhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historia_ecclesiastica_gentis_Anglorumhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celtic_mythologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingdom_of_Kenthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hengesthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horsahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglo-Saxonshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duxhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sites_and_places_associated_with_Arthurian_legendhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sites_and_places_associated_with_Arthurian_legendhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_stonehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:AC.jpeghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irelandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nowell_Myreshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gildashttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De_Excidio_et_Conquestu_Britanniaehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De_Excidio_et_Conquestu_Britanniaehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglo-Saxon_Chroniclehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bedehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historia_ecclesiastica_gentis_Anglorumhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historia_ecclesiastica_gentis_Anglorumhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celtic_mythologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingdom_of_Kenthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hengesthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horsahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglo-Saxonshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duxhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sites_and_places_associated_with_Arthurian_legendhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sites_and_places_associated_with_Arthurian_legendhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_stone


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((7 a%ong the ruins at Tintagel ;astlein ;orn$allin securely dated th3century

conte.ts, created a brief stir but 0ro-ed irrele-ant&7F6ther inscri0tional e-idence for

Arthur, including the 1lastonbury cross, is tainted $ith the suggestion of forgery&Although se-eral historical figures ha-e been 0ro0osed as the basis for Arthur, no

con-incing e-idence for these identifications has e%erged&

The legends of King Arthur ha-e been seen as co%0lete fiction, but there is e-idence tosho$ that there %ay ha-e been a real +ritish leader called Arthur $ho lead his 0eo0le to

-ictory& Ho$e-er, there is no kno$n ans$er as to $ho the historical Arthur actually $as,

and there are scholars and historians $ho still doubt his e.istence& Da-id Du%-ille said,(The fa"t is that there is no histori"al e)iden"e about Arthur* +e must re,e"t him from

our histories and* abo)e all* from the titles of our boo-s./

4hat is certain is that Arthur $as not a %edie-al king& The %odern i%ages of knights in

0late ar%our and a grand castle called ;a%elot are not historical at all& 4e kno$ -ery

little, historically s0eaking, but Arthur $as 0robably a !th ;entury $arrior $ho 0rotectedhis 0eo0le fro% in-aders for a ti%e&

The legends talk of a s$ord in a stone, $hich could only be dra$n by so%eone truly

$orthy of it& This story see%s too fabulous to be true, but archaeologists belie-e thiscould tell us %ore about the ti%es of Arthur&


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+ho ersists in returning to haunt the Dar- Ages. We ha)e "ome to King Arthur51

In (, there occurred at 1lastonbury the e.hu%ation of Arthur& 1lastonbury is the0lace Arthur is said to ha-e been taken $hen he $as dying& A cross $as found at ArthurLs

to%b, and on it $as inscribed $ords, translating to HE?E >IES THE


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beasts and kings throughout England& >ang gi-es the reader a direct %essage that Arthur

relies on 2erlin in the uote MArthur had %any battles to fight and %any Kings to

conuer before he $as ackno$ledged lord of the% all, and often he $ould ha-e failedhad he not listened to the $isdo% of 2erlin&&&

The round table

Through out Arthurian legend, the ?ound Table has sy%boli:ed Arthur/s drea% for

euality and continuous brotherhood of his 0eo0le in the uto0ia of ;a%elot& The s0heresha0e of the historical round table re0resents $hat Arthur $as trying to acco%0lish for

the 0eo0le that sa$ his as an al%ost ;hrist like figure thought his reign& Arthur/s city $as

built around the round table, and $as seen as an e.a%0le of ho$ to li-e& He sa$ this as

0erfection& The thirteen knights that sat around it $ere only the %ost chi-alrous of allknights and $ere a 0erfect role %odel of $hat the Arthur $as tiring to re0resent $ith the

?ound Table& In turn, this 0erfect society $as established around the ideals of a table&

The origin of the ?ound table can be dated back to !!, $here the first reference to theround table $as $ritten& ?obert 4ace translated it fro% >atin to ittle is kno$n of the $hereabouts of the

round table after that until 9ther/s son Arthur, no$ king of England, $edded >ady1$eni-iere& 4hen Arthur %arried 1$ene-iere, her father 0resented hi% $ith a round

table that had once belonged to 9ther '1eoffrey )"*& It is not kno$n if Arthur had 0lans

for the table at this ti%e, but it 0lays a big 0art in his legendary status&

It is dis0uted ho$ %any 0eo0le the round table has seated throughout the years it $asutili:ed& The %a@ority of sources agree on !#, as in 2allory/s story& 4hen Arthur

established the city of ;a%elot, that $as thought of as a 0erfect society, and the roundtable $as a 0art of this 0erfect society& The king/s court $as called the Knights of the?ound Table, and they $ere considered the %ost brace and chi-alrous of all the knights&

They sat around the round table, none abo-e or belo$ each other, all in a continuous ring

of brotherhood& The na%es of all the knights $ere 0ainted in gold 0aint at each onesdesignated s0ots, all s0ots $ere eual in s0ace e-er Arthur/s& All seats at the table $ere

filled e.ce0t one, Siege Perilous, $hich $as set aside %y 2erlin 'Arthur/s %entor* for a

knight not to be born till a later ti%e& To ensure the reser-ation of the 0redestined seat,2erlin stated, Anyone else atte%0ting to sit in this seat $ill suffer dire conseuences

';a%elot 0ro@ect *& 2erlin has also arranged that this knight $ho $ould fill Siege

Perilous $ould also sit at the table of Gose0h of Ar%ithea& This knight turned out to be

one of the %ost fa%ous knights e-er, Sir 1alahad& It $as ob-ious that the s0ot at theround table belonged to hi% as his na%e a00ears on the seat destined for hi% ';a%elot

Pro@ect *& All these e-ents contributed to the ?ound Tables legendary status&

6ne thing that historically stands out about the ?ound Table is not the table itself but the

knights that sat around it& These %en sy%boli:ed the 0erfect and closest knit fighting unite-er asse%bled in the %iddle Ages and $ere the %ost chi-alrous of all %en& The Knights

of the ?ound Table $ere said to be the reason that Arthur $as able to resist a Sa.on


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in-asion of +ritain and e-entually defeat the% ';a-endish ))*& The roster of King

Arthur/s Knights read as fallo$s, Sir Kay, Sir >ucus, Sir +eda-ire, Sir +adoin, Sir

9l0hias, Sir +rastious, Sir Dagonet, Sir Dynaden, Sir 1$ain, Sir >ancelot, King Arthur,and Siege Perilous $as later filled by 1alahad '2allory !"*& Sir Kay $as 0articularly

close to Arthur because he $as the son of Sir Ector, $ho raised Arthur $hen he $as

young '1eoffrey ))*& These Knights $ere highly res0ected in their ti%e because theycarried the %essage of euality for Arthur&

In %any $ays Arthur/s life and ad-entures influenced the ?ound Table, as it is @ust one of

the threads in the fabric of his legacy& 6ne %an that has a great deal to do $ith Arthur/s

life and the for%ation of the ?ound Table is 2erlin& 2erlin is a 0ro0het and a sorcerer,$ho is said to be the son of the de-il hi%self ';a-endish ))*& During King 9ther/s reign

as king of England, he $as at $ar $ith the Duke of ;orn$all& During there negotiations

he beca%e acuainted $ith the Duke/s $ife and fell in lo-e $ith her& 2erlin at this 0ointca%e to King 9ther and 0resented hi% $ith an offer to hel0 hi% in any$ay he could,

kno$ing e.actly $hat 9ther $anted& 6f course 9ther reuested one night $ith the >ady

of ;orn$all, and 2erlin grated the reuest by changing his a00earance to %ake hi% lookidentical to the Duke& 9ther then $ent to the Nueen that night and Arthur $as concei-ed&

>ater on in the e-ening a %essenger

1eneral %otifs in arthurian legends

The nu%ber three is a recurring %otif on King Arthurs %any stories& Sir 1areth

encounters the three brothers on his uest $ith the >ady >inet& He %eets a knight in black

ar%or, a knight in green ar%or, and a knight in red ar%or, all of $hich Sir 1areth slay&

Another e.a%0le in $hich the nu%ber three is seen is $hen Arthur asks Sir +edi-ere tothro$ E.calibur back into the lake& Arthur recei-ed E.caliber fro% the >ady of the >ake

$hile he $as $ith 2erlin, but to$ards the end of the story he no longer $ants it& In thefirst of three instances, Sir +edi-ere hides the s$ord and 0lans on retrie-ing it later forhis self but Arthur beco%es sus0icious $hen Sir +edi-ere re0lies $ith nothing after King

Arthur asks $hat ha00ened& 6n the second of three instances, Arthur then sends Sir

+edi-ere back to dis0ose of E.caliber but he returns $ith the sa%e story that nothingha00ened& Arthur then threatens Sir +edi-eres/s life and sends hi% for the third ti%e and

$hen he returns he e.0lains that a hand rose fro% the $ater and caught the s$ord as he

thre$ it in&;haracters in ?o%ance literature usually ha-e -isions or drea%s that lead the% or

gi-e the% infor%ation rele-ant to their uest throughout the story& In the story of OThe

Nuesting +east King Arthur has a strange drea% $here he thought the land $as o-er3

run $ith gry0hons and ser0ents $hich burnt and sle$ his 0eo0le, and he %ade $ar on the%onsters, and $as sorely $ounded, though he still killed the% all& Arthurs drea% ca%e

true $hen later in that sa%e story Arthur and his knights encounter a strange beast that is

a co%bination of a ser0ent and gry0hon& Another e.a%0le is $hen a suire has a drea%that a king $ent on a 0ilgri%age and his suire $as slain& The suire had a drea% that he

found a gold candle and $as stabbed& 4hen the suire $oke u0, he shouted for hel0

because he had actually been stabbed and he $as holding a gold candle&


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2agicalQsu0ernatural e-ents occur often in the bookKing Arthur0 Tales from the

Round Table. 6ne e.a%0le is $hen King Arthur and all of his are at the round table

during the story of OThe ;o%ing of the Holy 1raal& En@oying a Pentecost su00er, theknights at the round table suddenly heard a clash of thunder and then a bright light shone

into the roo%& E-eryone ga:ed at each other du%bfounded, then the Holy 1raal floated

into the roo% and food a00eared before the% all as if by %agic& Sir 1a$aine along $ithse-eral other nights $as astonished at $hat they sa$, so they de-oted the%sel-es to

search for the 1raal&

In the story of OThe End of it All, King Arthur is betrayed by his ne0he$ Sir2ordred& Arthur entrusted Sir 2ordred to go-ern the land $hile he $as gone fro%

England to fight Sir >ancelot& Sir 2ordred acce0ted the res0onsibility but his intents of

$hat to do $ith ArthurLs kingdo% $ere e-il& Sir 2ordred betrayed King Arthur trust by

sending letters announcing Arthur had died in battle and Sir 2ordred $as no$ cro$nedking& Sir 2ordred also betrayed Nueen 1uene-ere forcing her to %arry hi% e-en $hen

he that her husband King Arthur $as still ali-e& King Arthur then retured only to be

denied landing by Sir 2ordred and faced a great resistance forcing Arthur to retreat& Sir

2ordred also betrayed Arthur by turning his o$n 0eo0le against hi%& King Arthure-entually killed Sir 2ordred but at a great cost only three of Arthurs Knights sur-i-ed

the battles&A test of honor confir%s a heroLs %orals and $hat they belie-e to be is right and

also his or her 0ledges& In the story of O4hat +eau%ains Asked 6f The King,

+eau%ains, kno$n as Sir 1areth, is tested of honor $hen >ady >inet asks King Arthur torecruit knights to hel0 rescue her sister& Seeing this as an o00ortunity to 0ro-e hi%self to

e-eryone, Sir 1areth asks Arthur to let hi% go on >inetLs uest& Arthur co%0lies $ith Sir

1arethLs reuest but only to %ake >inet furious because Sir 1areth is a kitchen boy& Sir

1areth encounters %any knights that he %ust defeat in order to kee0 his 0ro%ise andfulfill his test of honor& After slaying the knights, >ady >inet reali:es that Sir 1areth is an

honorable %an and $ill kee0 a 0ro%ise to a total stranger& Sir 1areth fulfills his 0ro%ise

in the end of the story by conuering the ?ed Knight and rescues >ady >yonesse&King Arthur is the ideal e.a%0le of a nearly 0erfect yet fla$ed hero& Throughout

the stories, King Arthur 0ro-es to be a 0o$erful, fair, and o0enhanded ruler& King Arthur

hardly e-er co%%its a %istake and has the res0ect of al%ost all of his fello$ knights&Although Arthur %ay see% like the 0erfect hero, there is one thing about hi% that could

be called a fla$ he is too reliant on the 0eo0le around hi%& The do$nfall of King Arthur

$as the fact that he 0ut too %uch trust into the 0eo0le close to hi%& A 0ri%e e.a%0le of

this is $hen King Arthur left Sir 2ordred the 0osition of King& Sir 2ordred betrayedKing Arthur $hich led to -icious battles $ith %any casualties&

The story of King Arthur $ould be nothing $ithout his %any uests he and his

fello$ knights undertake& AlthoughKing Arthur0 Tales 6rom the Round Table is acollection of %any fa%ous stories about King Arthur and his co%0anions, the %ost

fa%ous is the uest for the Holy 1raal& Kno$n by %any, the story of the uest for the

Holy 1raal has been 0assed on for hundreds of years& 8ot only does the book tell theuest of the Holy 1raal, but it also tells fa%ous stories such as OThe Dra$ing of the

S$ord, OThe S$ord E.calibur, OThe Passing of 2erlin, OHo$ 2organ >e ancelot and 1uine-ere, and %ay %ore&


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King Arthur and Nueen 1uine-ere

1uine-ere/s origins see% fir%ly 4elsh& The na%e 1uine-ere %ay be directly fro% the

4elsh /1$ynh$yfer/, or fro% /1$enh$y/ '1$en the 1reat* in contrast to /1$enh$y3-ach/ '1$en the >esser*& A ;eltic ueen $as eual in status to her husband and $as able

to conduct affairs unhindered& Nueen 1uine-ere/s in-ol-e%ent $ith other %en, $illinglyor other$ise, is a recurring the%e throughout Arthurian legend& Although the early

circu%stances of her character %ay ha-e defined her 0ersona fro% the beginning, thelater 2edie-al $riters, $ith their ;hristian3based social 0erce0tions, $ould ha-e found it

hard to treat 1uine-ere as anything other than a %orally dubious, unfaithful $o%an&

Significantly 0erha0s, 1uine-ere stays childless, and lo-es a %an $ith $hich shecan ne-er bear children because of the circu%stances of her husband& To this e.tent, her

life is tragic, but she also re0resents an ideal 3 that of courtly ro%ance& 6b-iously too, she

re%ains both desirable and $ell30rotected 'so%eti%es too $ell* by the %ale of the

s0ecies, and a-oids e.ecution at the stake se-eral ti%es

1uine-ere/s adbuction by %en is a recurring the%e throughout Arthurian legend, and

$hen kidna00ed, she %ust be sa-ed 3 the e0ito%e of the da%sel in distress, though ne-er

is she at serious risk of har%&

In The >ife of 1ildas by ;aradoc of >lancarfan 'c&)#3!#* the ueen '1$enh$yfar*$as abducted to 1lastonia by the $icked King 2el$as of So%erset '0ossibly an early

%anifestation of 2=l=agant*, and Arthur 3 then de0icted as a tyrant and acco%0anied by a

countless %ultitude on account of his $ife being -iolated and carried off 3 searched forthe ueen throughout the course of a $hole year, and at last heard that she re%ained there

'in 1lastonia*& He roused the ar%ies of the $hole of ;ornubia and Dibneria, but the

Abbot of 1lastonia, attended by the clergy and 1ildas the 4ise, ste00ed in bet$een thecontending ar%ies and ad-ised King 2el-as to restore the ra-ished lady& Accordingly,she $as restored in 0eace and good $ill&

1eoffrey of 2on%outh/s -ersion of 1uine-ere/s abduction casts 2ordred, Arthur/s

ne0he$, as the -illain& Arthur left her his care $hilst he $ent to Euro0e to ca%0aign

against the 'fictitious* Procurator of ?o%e, >ucius Hiberius& In the King/s absence2ordred seduced 1uine-ere, declared hi%self king, and took her as his o$n ueen,

forcing Arthur to return to +ritain and fight 2ordred at the +attle of ;a%lann&

;hr=tien de Troyes in >e ;he-alier de la ;harrette has 0oor 1uine-ere abducted by the

e-il 2=l=agant 'the son of King +agde%agus* and this ti%e it $as Sir >ancelot $hoca%e to her rescue, in a cart dri-en by a d$arf, then cra$ling across a bridge $hose

u00er edge $as a shar0 s$ord3blade& During the ensuing co%bat bet$een >ancelot and

2=l=agant, 1uine-ere, at King +agde%agus/s 0leading, $as able to sto0 the fight but>ancelot defended her honour again later $hen 2=l=agant '%istakenly* accused her of an

affair $ith Sir Kay 3 he thought that bloodstains on the lo-e3bed $ere Kay/s $hen in fact

it $as >ancelot/s blood 'fro% an in@ury he sustained forcing the $indo$ bars a0art tocli%b into 1uine-ere/s bedroo%*&


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Guinevere's abduction by Meliagrance in Le Morte d'Arthur

In >e 2orte d/Arthur '+ook (* Nueen 1uine-ere ha00ened to go a32aying in the $oods

behind 4est%inster, $ith her usual retinue of ladies3in3$aiting and 0age3boys, 0lus tenof the Nueen/s Knights 'arrayed in green*& Sir 2eliagrance '2=l=agant*, ins0ired by

%any long years of lust 3 and a$are of >ancelot/s absence fro% the 0arty, attacked $ith# %en3at3ar%s& To a-oid her noble knights being killed, 1uine-ere surrendered herselfto 2eliagrance, then secretly dis0atched a young %essenger to bear her ring to

4est%inster $ith a 0lea that her lo-er co%e to her rescue&

>ancelot rushed to her aid on his horse, but the ani%al $as disabled en route by archers

so he hi@acked a chariot and $as soon at the gates of the kidna00er/s castle, at $hich 0oint2eliagrance i%%ediately surrendered& 1uine-ere and the Nueen/s Knights $ere sa-ed

and Sir >ancelot beca%e kno$n as />e ;he-alier du ;hariot/&

As in ;hr=tien de Troyes, >ancelot that night cli%bed into 1uine-ere/s bedroo% by

forcing the $indo$ bars and in@uring his hand in the 0rocess 'also in the bedroo%,incidentally, $ere the Nueen/s Knights still reco-ering fro% their $ounds and

0resu%ably still dressed in 2ay3green*& 2alory continues Sir >auncelot $ent unto bed

$ith the ueen, and he took no force of his hurt hand, but took his 0leasance and hisliking until it $as in the da$ning of the day &&& and $hen he sa$ his ti%e that he %ight

tarry no longer he took his lea-e and de0arted at the $indo$, and 0ut it together as $ell

as he %ight again& one i%agines 2alory $as a$are of his o$n @oke F

In the %orning 2eliagrance sa$ the blood and clai%ed Nueen 1uine-ere had beendishonoured by one of her $ounded knights& >ancelot ans$ered for the Nueen, denying

the charge but not ad%itting the blood $as his& 2eliagrance thre$ the gauntlet, >ancelot

acce0ted, and the duel $as set for eight days later at 4est%inster& +ut 2eliagrancetricked >ancelot into falling ten fatho%s through a tra0 door do$n into a ca-e, then %adeit look as if >auncelot had gone off ad-enturing& Sir >a-aine ste00ed in to re0resent hi%

but >ancelot $as able to esca0e, and at the last %o%ent a00eared at the duel, and $ith

one ar% tied behind his back 'and shieldless* he cut 2eliagrance/s head in t$o&

Guinevere's final abduction, by Mordred

Technically, this $asn/t an abduction& In >e 2orte d/Arthur +ook " 2ordred,

both son and ne0he$ of King Arthur, $as ruler of all England, ha-ing been left in charge

$hilst Arthur had gone to ancelot&After clai%ing the King had died at >ancelot/s hands he %ade hi%self king and tried to

%arry Nueen 1uine-ere 'his father/s $ife*& 1uine-ere beguiled 2ordred into letting hergo to >ondon, ostensibly to buy all %anner of things that longed unto the $edding butshe locked herself and her entourage a$ay in a $ell3stocked To$er of >ondon& 2ordred

laid seige on the Nueen and by fair %eans or foul tried to 0ersuade her to co%e out, but

she stayed 0ut and e-entually he de0arted $ith his ar%y to Do-er to re0el a returningKing Arthur&

The e-il character in arthurian literature


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t$o regarded each other as best friends& >ife $ould not al$ays re%ain so si%0le as

>auncelot and 1uini-ere felt a dee0, unsto00able lo-e for each other that $ould not die&

The t$o had to hide their lo-e fro% Arthur and this hurt the% both terribly because theyboth lo-ed Arthur -ery %uch& It is -ery sad to see ho$ ha00y Arthur $as in those years

and ho$ he felt for >auncelot and 1uini-ere and yet did not kno$ of their betraying lo-e&

Soon Arthur gre$ older and knights such as 1a$aine, 1areth, >a%orak, and Tristan

ca%e to the ?ound Table& The focus of the story gradually shifts fro% Arthur to different

stories of his knights& The i%age of Arthur is transfor%ed fro% the younger, heroic kingto the older, dignified king $ho e-eryone honored and adored& 4hen Arthur $as young it

$as uite 0ossible that he $as the greatest knight in the $orld but $hen knights such as

>auncelot and Tristan entered his co%0any, this $as seen to certainly not be true& E-en

though he $as a bit older, Arthur ne-er sto00ed @ousting and $hen an ene%y $ouldattack, Arthur $ould al$ays be on the battlefield $ith his knights& After a$hile instead of

being the rescuer, Arthur %any ti%es took the role of the rescued as different knights

hel0ed sa-e Arthur fro% different ene%ies& Arthur took great 0ride in his great kingdo%

and his noble knights& So generous $as Arthur, that he $ould grant al%ost any boon tothose that ca%e to his kingdo% and asked for one&

As the years $ent by, %ore and %ore knights ca%e to the ?ound Table until finally, Sir

1alahad, >auncelot/s son ca%e to the ?ound Table and too the seat of the Siege Perlious&

This $as one of Arthur/s greatest %o%ents to see all !# seats of the ?ound Table filled&9nfortunately, this %o%ent $as -ery short li-ed as Sir 1a$aine, Arthur/s ne0he$

declared that he $ould uest for a year and a day until he had found the Holy 1rail& Soon,

all of the other knights set u0on the sa%e uest and Arthur and ;a%elot $ere stri00ed of

all their legendary knights& This $as a -ery hard %o%ent for Arthur to see all of his loyaland belo-ed knights abandon hi% to seek out their destinies& Arthur then kne$ that not all

of the% $ould return and the ?ound Table $ould ne-er return to its for%er state of glory&

Dee0 inside, Arthur 0robably $ished to @oin his knights on their uest& The ne.t yearArthur s0ent in loneliness and la%entation for the absence of his knights& As the year

0rogressed, %any of the knights returned, tired and $ary, $ith tales of failure and

des0air& 6ut of !# knights that sought the grail, only ) achie-ed it& The ?ound Table$as ne-er the sa%e after only half of the knights returned and 1alahad and Perci-al

$ho% had achie-ed the grail died, after fulfilling their destinies& Arthur $as in great

sorro$ for the de0arted knights but $as none the less, -ery ha00y to see %any of his

knights return&

After the grail uest, ;a%elot kne$ a fe$ %ore years of ha00iness& During this ti%e

ho$e-er, >auncelot/s and 1uini-ere/s lo-er gre$ stronger than e-er and 2ordred secretly0lotted on re-olting against the king to beco%e king hi%self& Another sad e.a%0le of

Arthur not being the greatest knight in the $orld ca%e $hen Sir 9rre of Hungary ca%e to

Arthur/s court $ith $ounds that could only be healed by the greatest knight in the $orld&Arthur $as the first to -olunteer to atte%0t to heal 9rre& Arthur kne$ that he $as not the

greatest knight in the $orld but had s%all ho0es that he 0ossibly $as& 4hen Arthur

failed, he sadly ad%itted, It is not I, and $atched as all of the others knights failed as

$ell until finally >auncelot succeeded and $as declared the greatest knight in the $orld&


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raged on for hours and $as -ery fierce& 2any of Arthur/s greatest knights died on that

day& In the end, there $as only Arthur $ith his t$o knights +edi-ere and >uncan, and

2ordred& Arthur took a s0ear, deter%ined to finish $hat 2ordred had started& Arthurstabbed the s0ear right through 2ordred but at the sa%e ti%e, 2ordred %ortally $ounded

Arthur $ith a stroke to the hel%& Kno$ing that he $as dying, Arthur asked +edi-ere and

>uncan to hel0 hi% u0& >uncan $ho hi%self $as se-erely $ounded fell do$n and diedonce he atte%0ted to lift u0 Arthur& As a final reuest, Arthur asked +edi-ere to take his

s$ord E.calibur and thro$ it into the lake& At first, +edi-ere could not bring hi%self to

thro$ the beautiful s$ord into the $ater& Arthur $as -ery u0set at this and ordered+edi-ere to toss the s$ord into the lake& As +edi-ere tossed the s$ord, a hand reached u0

out of the $ater and took the s$ord& 4hen +edi-ere returned, a barge ca%e fro% the

$atery %ists of the lake $ith ueens, one of $hich $as Arthur/s sister, 2organ le auncelot, and soon the entire kingdo% of Arthur& +ut the Arthurian drea% ne-er died& It

continues to li-e on in the hearts of %any $ho today drea% of being knights of the ?oundTable& Arthur left this $orld $ith a -ery sad tone& Perha0s he thought that he had failed&He did not fail, ho$e-er& Arthur $ill al$ays be re%e%bered as a great hero and one of

the greatest kings that this $orld has e-er kno$n& So%e e-en say that Arthur ne-er died&

There are legends that s0eak of Arthur slee0ing in A-alon until one day a hero $ill co%e

and a$aken hi% $hen he is needed& In so%e stories, Arthur has returned& In the brillianttele-ision 0rogra% 1argoyles, Arthur has returned&

In 1argoyles Arthur has a$akened and tra-els the $orld to seek @ustice& He has e-enreclai%ed his s$ord E.calibur and chosen a gargoyle na%ed 1ry0h to be his first knight&

In this tale, there is no doubt that Arthur is once again the greatest knight in the $orld& Aslong as the Arthurian drea% stays ali-e, there is al$ays ho0e for a better $orld&

atestat king arthur

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