Knights of the Round Table

For other uses, see Knights of the Round Table (disambiguation).

The Arming and Departure of the Knights, one of the Holy Grail-themed 19th-century tapestries by Edward Burne-Jones, William Morris, and John Henry Dearle

King Arthur and his knights in a 14th-century Italian manuscript of the Vulgate Cycle's Quest for the Holy Grail

The Knights of the Round Table (Template:Lang-cy, Template:Lang-kw, Template:Lang-br) are the knights in the fellowship of King Arthur in the literary cycle of the Matter of Britain, first appearing in literature in the mid 12th century. In this French-derived branch of Arthurian legend, the Knights are an order in the service of King Arthur, tasked with ensuring the peace of the kingdom and later leading the quest for the legendary Holy Grail. The Round Table, the place at which these characters of legend meet is a symbol of equality, and all members of the round table are thus, equal.

Different stories presented varying numbers of the knights, ranging from only a dozen to as many as one hundred or more. Bedivere, Gawain and Kay are the oldest characters associated with Arthur. Gawain was also one of those persistently most popular, alongside Lancelot, Percival and Tristan, each of them featured as protagonist or eponymous hero in multiple works of the chivalric romance genre. Other well-known members include Galahad, the most perfect knight in the later tradition wherein he replaced Percival as main achiever of the Grail, and the traitor Mordred. At the end of Arthurian prose cycles, including in the seminal Le Morte d'Arthur, the Round Table breaks down into warring factions following the revelation of Queen Guinevere's adultery with Lancelot.

In the same tradition, Queen Guinevere has her own order of young warriors serving her personally, known as the Queen's Knights. Some romances also told of the Knights of the Old Table of Arthur's father and previous ruler, Uther Pendragon.

Numbers of members

The number of the Knights of the Round Table (including King Arthur) and their names vary greatly, depending on the text. The figure may range from only a dozen through to 1,600, the latter as claimed by Layamon. Most commonly there are between some 100 to 300 seats at the table, often with one seat usually empty (300 was also chosen by Edward III of England when he decided to create his own Order of the Round Table at Windsor Castle in 1344). In many versions, including the today best-known telling from Le Morte d'Arthur by Thomas Malory (following the Vulgate Lancelot), they have over one hundred members, as with 140 according to both Malory (150 in Caxton's version) and Hartmann von Aue. Some sources state much smaller numbers, such as 13 in the Didot Perceval, 50 in the Prose Merlin (the expanded Vulgate Merlin has 250), and 60 in the count by Jean d'Outremeuse, or higher, as with 366 in both Perlesvaus and the Chevaliers as deus espees.

Partial lists

The knights mentioned above may include some the following:

Knights of the Round Table
Name	Other names	Introduction	Other medieval works	Notes
Accolon	Sir Accolon of Gaul	Post-Vulgate Cycle, c. 13th century	Le Morte d'Arthur	Loved by Morgan le Fay, accidentally killed in a joust with Arthur.
Aglovale	Agloval, Sir Aglovale de Galis		The Life of Sir Aglovale de Galis	King Pellinore's eldest son.
Agravain	Agravaine		Lancelot-Grail, Le Morte d'Arthur	Second son of King Lot (of either Lothian or Orkney) and Arthur's sister Morgause.
Arthur	Arthur Pendragon, Arturus, King Arthur	Y Gododdin, c. 7th century	Many	High King of the Britons, ruler of Logres and lord of Camelot.
Bagdemagus			Lancelot, the Knight of the Cart, 1170s	Meleagant's father and ruler of Gorre.
Bedivere	(Welsh: Bedwyr, French: Bédoier) Bedevere	Pa Gur yv y Porthaur, c. 10th century	Vita Cadoc, Culhwch and Olwen, Stanzas of the Graves, Welsh Triads, Historia Regum Britanniae, Le Morte d'Arthur, numerous others	Returns Excalibur to the Lady of the Lake; brother to Lucan.
Bors the Younger				Son of Bors the Elder, father of Elyan the White; Arthur's successor in some versions.
Brunor	Breunor le Noir, La Cote Male Taile ("The Badly-shaped Coat")			Knight who wears his murdered father's coat; brother of Dinadan and Daniel.
Cador	(Latin: Cadorius)		Historia Regum Britanniae, The Dream of Rhonabwy	Raised Guinevere as her ward, father to Constantine; described in some works as Arthur's cousin.
Calogrenant	Colgrevance	Yvain, the Knight of the Lion, 1170s	Le Morte d'Arthur	Cousin to Sir Yvain.
Caradoc	(Latin: Caractacus) (Welsh: Caradog Freichfras, meaning Caradoc Strong Arm) (French: Carados Briefbras) (English: Carados of Scotland)		Perceval, the Story of the Grail, the Mabinogion	Rebelled against Arthur when he first became king, but later supported him. Sometimes two characters: Caradoc the Elder (a king) and Caradoc the Younger (a knight).
Claudin			Lancelot-Grail, Le Morte d'Arthur	Virtuous son of the villain king Claudas.
Constantine III of Britain		Historia Regum Britanniae, c. 1136	Le Morte d'Arthur	Arthur's cousin and successor to his throne; Cador's son.
Dagonet				Arthur's court jester.
Daniel von Blumenthal		Daniel von Blumenthal, 1220		Knight found in an early German offshoot of Arthurian legend.
Dinadan		Prose Tristan, 1230s	Le Morte d'Arthur	Son of Sir Brunor the Senior.
Ector	Hector, Antor, Ectorius	Lancelot-Grail, early 13th century	Le Morte d'Arthur	Raises Arthur according to Merlin's command; father to Kay.
Elyan the White	(French: Helyan le Blanc)			Son of Bors
Erec		Unclear; first literary appearance as Erec in Erec and Enide, c. 1170	See Geraint and Enid	Son of King Lac.
Esclabor				Exiled Saracen king; father of Palamedes, Safir, and Segwarides.
Feirefiz		Wolfram von Eschenbach's Parzival, early 13th century		Half-brother to Percival; Arthur's nephew.
Gaheris			Le Morte d'Arthur	Son of King Lot and Morgause, brother to Gawain, Agravaine, and Gareth, and half-brother to Mordred.
Galahad		Lancelot-Grail, early 13th century	Post-Vulgate Cycle, Le Morte d'Arthur	Bastard son of Sir Lancelot and Elaine of Corbenic; the main achiever of the Holy Grail.
Galehault	Galehalt, Galehaut	Lancelot-Grail, early 13th century		A half-giant foreign king, a former enemy of Arthur who becomes close to Lancelot.
Galeschin	Galeshin	The Vulgate Cycle		Son of Elaine of Garlot and King Nentres; nephew of Arthur.
Gareth	Beaumains		Le Morte d'Arthur, Idylls of the King	Also a son of King Lot and Morgause; in love with Lyonesse.
Gawain	(Latin: Walwanus, Welsh: Gwalchmai, Irish: Balbhuaidh)	Culhwch and Olwen, c. 11th century	Conte du Graal, Lancelot-Grail cycle, Prose Tristan,Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Le Morte d'Arthur and many short Middle English romances	Another son of King Lot and Morgause; father of Gingalain.
Geraint			Geraint and Enid	Enid's lover.
Gingalain	Guinglain, Gingalin, Gliglois, Wigalois, etc., also Le Bel Inconnu, or The Fair Unknown		Le Bel Inconnu	Gawain's son.
Gornemant	Gurnemanz	Perceval, the Story of the Grail	Parzival	Mentor of Perceval.
Griflet	Girflet, Jaufre		Jaufré	A cousin to Lucan and Bedivere.
Hector de Maris	Ector de Maris		Quest du Saint Graal (Vulgate Cycle)	Half-brother of Lancelot, son of King Ban; Bors and Lionel are his cousins.
Hoel	(Welsh: Howel, Hywel)		The Dream of Rhonabwy, Geraint and Enid	Son of King Budic of Brittany; father to St. Tudwal.
Kay	(Welsh: Cai, Latin: Caius)	Pa Gur yv y porthaur? 10th century	Many	Ector's son, foster brother to Arthur.
Lamorak		Prose Tristan, c. 1235	Lancelot-Grail Cycle	Son of King Pellinore, brother to Tor, Aglovale, Percival, and Dindrane; lover of Morgause.
Lancelot	Lancelot du Lac, Lancelot of the Lake, Launcelot	Erec and Enide, c. 1170	Lancelot, the Knight of the Cart, Lancelot-Grail, many others	Son of King Ban from France, most famous for his affair with Queen Guinevere, father of Galahad; most prominent Knight of the Round Table in later romances.
Lanval	Landevale, Launfal, Lambewell	Marie de France's Lanval, late 12th century	Sir Landevale, Sir Launfal, Sir Lambewell	Enemy of Guinevere.
Leodegrance	Leondegrance			Guinevere's father, King of Cameliard.
Lionel			Lancelot-Grail, early 13th century	Son of King Bors of Gaunnes (or Gaul) and brother of Bors the Younger.
Lucan	Sir Lucan the Butler		Le Morte d'Arthur	Servant to King Arthur; Bedivere's brother, Griflet's cousin.
Maleagant	Malagant, Meleagant, perhaps Melwas	Unclear, a similar character named "Melwas" appears in the 12th century Life of Gildas	Lancelot-Grail, Post-Vulgate Cycle, Le Morte d'Arthur	Abductor of Guinevere.
Mordred	Modred (Welsh: Medrawd, Latin: Medraut)	Annales Cambriae, c. 970	Many	In the Round Table stories, Arthur's illegitimate son through Morgause.
Morholt	Marhalt, Morold, Marhaus	Tristan poems of Béroul and Thomas of Britain, 12th century	Tristan poems of Eilhart von Oberge, Gottfried von Strassburg, Prose Tristan, Post-Vulgate Cycle, Le Morte d'Arthur	Irish knight, rival of Tristan and uncle of Iseult.
Morien	Moriaen	Dutch romance Morien, 13th century		Half-Moorish son of Aglovale.
Pelleas	Pellias	Post-Vulgate Cycle, 1230s	Le Morte d'Arthur	In love with Ettarre, later lover of Nimue.
Pellinore			Lancelot-Grail, Post-Vulgate Cycle	King of Listenoise and friend to Arthur.
Percival	(Welsh: Peredur) Perceval, Parzifal	As Percival, Erec and Enide, c. 1170	Perceval, the Story of the Grail, Lancelot-Grail, many	Achiever of the Holy Grail; King Pellinore's son in some tales.
Safir			Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur, Prose Tristan	Son to King Esclabor; brother of Segwarides and Palamedes.
Sagramore	Sagramor		Lancelot-Grail, Post-Vulgate Cycle, Prose Tristan, Le Morte d'Arthur	Ubiquitous Knight of the Round Table; various stories and origins are given for him.
Segwarides			Le Morte d'Arthur, Prose Tristan	Son of Esclabor; brother of Safir and Palamedes.
Tor			Le Morte d'Arthur	Son of King Ars, adopted by Pellinore.
Tristan	(Latin/Brythonic: Drustanus; Welsh: Drystan; Portuguese: Tristão; Spanish: Tristán) Tristran, Tristram, etc.	Beroul's Roman de Tristan	The two Folies Tristans, Marie de France's Chevrefeuil, Eilhart von Oberge, Gottfried von Strassburg, Prose Tristan, Post-Vulgate Cycle, Le Morte d'Arthur	King Mark's son or relative, Iseult's lover.
Urien	Uriens	Historical figure	Welsh Triads	King of Rheged (or Gorre), father of Yvain (Owain mab Urien) and husband of Morgan le Fay.
Yvain	(Welsh: Owain) Ywain, Ewain or Uwain	Based on the historical figure Owain mab Urien	Historia Brittonum, Yvain, the Knight of the Lion	King Urien's son.
Yvain the Bastard	Ywain the Adventurous, Uwain le Avoutres			Urien's illegitimate son.

There have been furthermore many others, generally more or less obscure. For instance, Malory's own original episode "Healing of Sir Urry" in the Winchester Manuscript of Le Morte d'Arthur additionally lists also (in addition to many of the above) the following:

• King Anguish of Ireland
• Earl Aristance
• Sir Azreal
• Sir Arrok
• Sir Ascamore
• Sir Balan (brother of Sir Balin, whom he killed by accident in a duel in which both wore helmets and did not know who they were fighting)
• Sir Barrant le Apres (also known as the King with a Hundred Knights)
• Sir Bellenger le Beau
• Sir Belliance le Orgulous
• Sir Blamor de Ganis (brother of Bleoberis)
• Sir Bleoberis de Ganis
• Sir Bohart le Cure Hardy (one of King Arthur's sons)
• Sir Brandiles
• Sir Brian de Listinoise
• Sir Cardok
• Duke Chalance of Clarence
• King Clariance of Northumberland
• Sir Clarus of Cleremont
• Sir Clegis
• Sir Clodrus
• Sir Crosslem
• Sir Damas (reformed co-conspirator of Morgan in the Accolon-Excalibur plot)
• Sir Degrave sans Villainy (fought with the giant of the Black Lowe)
• Sir Degrevant
• Sir Dinas le Seneschal de Cornwall
• Sir Dinas
• Sir Dodinas le Savage
• Sir Dornar
• Sir Drian
• Sir Edward of Orkney
• Sir Epinogris (son of King Clariance of Northumberland)
• Sir Fergus
• Sir Florence (son of Gawain by Sir Brandiles' sister)
• Sir Gahalantine
• Sir Galihodin (not Galehaut, but see Galehaut)
• Sir Galleron of Galway
• Sir Gauter
• Sir Gillimer
• Sir Grummor Grummorson
• Sir Gumret le Petit
• Sir Harry le Fils Lake
• Sir Hebes (not Hebes le Renowne)
• Sir Hebes le Renowne
• Sir Hectimere
• Sir Herminde
• Sir Hervis de la Forest Savage
• Sir Ironside (Knight of the Red Launds)
• Sir Kay l'Estrange (not Kay, Arthur's seneschal)
• Earl Lambaile
• Sir Lambegus
• Sir Lamiel
• Sir Lavain (son of Barnard of Ascolat)
• Sir Lovell (another son of Gawain by Sir Brandiles' sister)
• Sir Mador de la Porte (brother of Gaheris of Carhaix)
• Sir Marrok (whose wife turned him into a werewolf)
• Sir Melias de l'Isle
• Sir Melion of the Mountain
• Sir Meliot de Logris
• Sir Menaduke
• Sir Morganor
• King Nentres of Garlot
• Sir Neroveus
• Sir Ozanna le Cure Hardy
• Sir Perimones (brother to Persant and Pertolepe; called the Red Knight)
• Sir Persant
• Sir Pertolepe
• Sir Petipace of Winchelsea
• Sir Plaine de Fors
• Sir Plenorius
• Sir Priamus
• Sir Reynold
• Sir Sadok
• Sir Selises of the Dolorous Tower
• Sir Sentrail
• Sir Severause le Breuse (known for rejecting battles with men in favour of giants, dragons, and wild beasts)
• Sir Suppinabiles
• Earl Ulbawes
• Sir Urry
• Sir Villiars the Valiant

Conversely, the Winchester Round Table features only the knights Sirs Alynore (Alymere), Bedwere (Bedivere), Blubtlrys (Bleoberis), Bors De Ganys (Bors de Ganis), Brumear (Brunor le Noir), Dagonet, Degore, Ectorde Marys (Ector de Maris), Galahallt (Galahault or Galahad), Garethe (Gareth), Gauen (Gawain), Kay, Lamorak, Launcelot Deulake (Lancelot du Lac), Lacotemale Tayle (La Cote Male Taile), Lucane (Lucan), Lybyus Dysconyus (Le Bel Desconneu), Lyonell (Lionel), Mordrede (Mordred), Plomyde (Palomedes), Pelleus (Pelleas), Percyvale (Percival), Safer (Safir), and Trystram Delyens (Tristram de Lyones) for the total of merely 24 (not counting Arthur).

Selected members

See also: Accolon, Agravain, King Arthur, Bagdemagus, Bedivere, Bors, Brunor, Cador, Caradoc, Dagonet, Dinadan, Feirefiz, Gaheris, Galahad, Galehaut, Gareth, Gawain, Geraint, Gingalain, Hoel, Sir Kay, Lamorak, Lancelot, Sir Lionel, Mordred, Palamedes (Arthurian legend), Pelleas, Pellinore, Percival, Sagramore, Tristan, Urien, and Yvain

Aglovale

The attributed arms of Agloval de Galles

Aglovale de Galis or Agloval de Galles (also Aglaval(e), Agglovale, Aglovan, Aglovaus, etc.) is the eldest legitimate son of King Pellinore of Galis (Wales), introduced in the Vulgate Lancelot. Like his father and several of his brothers including Lamorak, Percival and Tor, he too is a Knight of the Round Table. He is often the favourite brother of Percival, the original Grail Hero.

According to the Post Vulgate Cycle and Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur, it is he who first brings Percival to Camelot to be knighted. In the Livre d'Artus, the young Aglovale had his further brothers killed during the Saxon wars by the forces of King Agrippa in their attack on his mother's domain. Aglovale accompanied Gawain and Sagramore in leading an army that defeats the invaders, and personally slays Agrippa but suffers severe wounds. In the Third Continuation of Perceval, Aglovale dies seven years after Percival became the Grail King, causing Percival's retirement to a hermitage to grieve after his beloved brother for his last ten years. In the Vulgate Cycle, Aglovale dies accidentally at Gawain's hand during the Quest for the Holy Grail. However, the Post-Vulgate Queste turns it into a deliberate murder, a part of the Orkney clan's long vendetta for the death of King Lot, assuring that Percival would have avenged his brother if he only knew the culprit. In Malory, Aglovale is mentioned only a few times before he and Tor turn out among the knights charged by King Arthur with defending the execution of Guinevere and both are killed when Lancelot and his men rescue the queen.

Aglovale appears prominently in the Dutch romance Moriaen. In a situation similar to Gahmuret's begetting of Feirefiz in Parzival, Aglovale visits Moorish lands where he meets a beautiful black Christian princess and conceives a child with her. He returns to his own lands, and thirteen years later, his son Morien comes to find him. After a number of adventures, father and son are reunited and both return to Morien's country to take back their rightful lands.

In modern works, Aglovale is the eponymous protagonist of Clemence Housman's 1905 novel The Life of Sir Aglovale de Galis. T. H. White's book The Once and Future King gives him a particularly endearing portrait.

Bleoberis

Shared attributed arms of Blamor and Blioberis

Bleoberis de Ganis is a Knight of the Round Table from Gaul or perhaps Vannes (as Ganis, also Ganes, Gannes, Gaunes, Gaunnes), first mentioned by Chrétien de Troyes in his Erec and Enide as Bliobleheris. He appeared by variants of this name in many works, including as Bleobleheris (also Bliobliheri) and Bleheris in the First and Second Continuations of Perceval, two different characters named Bleherris and Blias, lord Bliodas in Of Arthour and of Merlin, Bleoberys in Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur (also Bleoberis, Bleoboris, Bleoheris), Bleoris in Henry Lovelich's Merlin, Bleos von Bliriers in Diu Crône, Bleriz in the Povest o Tryschane, two different characters named Bleheris and Blidoblidas in Meriaduec, Bliobleherin in Erec, Blioblieris in Le Bel Inconnu, Bliobleeris in the La Vengeance Raguidel, Bliobleris de Gannes in the French prose cycles (also Biblioberis, Bleob(l)eris, Bleobleheris, Bleosblieris, Blihoble(h)eris, Bliobeheri, Blioberis, Blyob(l)eris; -de Ga(u)n(n)es), Blioblieris in Wigalois, Briobris in the Tavola Ritonda, Pleherin in Tristrant, and Pliopliheri in Parzival. His name is considered to have been derived from the 12th-century Welsh storyteller known as Bledhericus or Bleheris (possibly Bledri ap Cydifor), who is mentioned in several texts, including being credited by Thomas of Britain and Wauchier de Denain as the original source of their early Arthurian poems. References to the narrative authority of Master Blihis repeat in the Elucidation, in which Blihos-Bliheris appears in character as the final opponent for Gawain.

Bleoberis appears a major character the later romances from the French prose cycles and their adaptations where he is one of the cousins of the hero Lancelot as son of Nestor (de Gaunes), godson of Lancelot's father King Bors, and brother of his fellow Round Table companion Blamo(u)r(e). In the Vulgate Merlin, the Livre d'Arthur, and Arthour and Merlin, Bleoberis fights with his brother for Arthur in the wars against the rebel kings at Bedegraine, against the Saxons at Cameliard, and against King Claudas in the Wasteland, the last one earning him his nickname "of the Wasteland" (de la Deserte). In both the Vulgate and Post-Vulgate versions of the Queste, as well as in the Prose Tristan, he participes in the Grail Quest. Malory has him as the lord of Castle of Gannis in Britain. In the Vulgate and the works based on it, Lancelot eventually makes him the duke of Poitiers for his parts in saving Guinevere, after which Bleoberis is one of the leaders of Lancelot faction in their war against Arthur and Gawain. In the Post-Vulgate Mort, he returns to Britain and arrives at Salisbury after the battle to destroy the corpse of Mordred and build the Tower of the Dead. While searching for Lancelot, he meets Arthur's vengeful son Arthur the Less (himself a member of the Round Table as the Unknown Knight), whom he kills in self-defence. Finding Lancelot at a hermitage with the former Archbishop of Canterbury, he joins them. After Lancelot's death, Bleoberis buries his body at Joyous Gard. In Malory, Bleoberis and his brother first live as monks together with Lancelot and the rest of his kinsmen at Glastonbury Tor, then leave on a crusade and together die in battle in Jerusalem.

He also appears as an opponent to overcome for heroes in some stories. In the Prose Tristan, Bleoberis abducts Segwarides' wife from King Mark's court and fights over her against first Segwarides and then the protagonist Tristan. In Wigalois, one of the challenges for try the protagonist Wigalois (Gawain's son, Gingalain) is to defeat Bleoberis, the fierce guardian of the Perilous Ford. Blioblieris is similarly the first adversary conquered by Gawain's son Guinglan in Le Bel Inconnu. In Parzival, Orgeluse's suitor boasts of having him either slain or defeated but spared (depending on interpretation of the text). In Tristrant, he is one of King Mark's vassals and an enemy of Tristan, who dies when the latter brutally brains him with a club during his bloody escape from Mark's court.

Calogrenant

Calogrenant, sometimes known in English as Colgrevance and in German (Diu Crône) as Kalogrenant (there are many other variants, including Calogrenan[s/z], Calogrevant, Calogrinant, Colgrevaunce, Galogrinans, Kalebrant, Kalocreant, Qualogrenans), is a cousin to Yvain, and his courtesy and eloquence were known throughout the kingdom. Calogrenant first appears in Chrétien de Troyes' Yvain, the Knight of the Lion, telling a story to a group of knights and Queen Guinevere about an adventure he had in the forest of Brocéliande, where he had heard of a magic spring in those woods which could create a huge storm whenever someone poured its water into a nearby basin. Calogrenant reached the spring and summoned the storm, after which a knight named Esclados attacked him for causing such havoc, and soundly defeated Calogrenant, but did not kill him. Calogrenant's cousin Yvain is upset that Calogrenant never told him of this defeat, and sets out to avenge him, embarking on the adventure that sets up the remainder of events in the romance.

His character has been derived from the Welsh mythological hero Cynon ap Clydno, usually the lover of Owain's sister Morvydd, although in Owain, or the Lady of the Fountain Cynon is stated to be the son of Clydno, possibly connected to Clyddno Eiddin. Roger Sherman Loomis and other scholars speculated that Calogrenant was used specifically as a foil for Kay in some lost early version of the Yvain story. In Chrétien's romance he is presented as everything Kay is not: polite, respectful, and well-mannered. By this theory, his name can be deconstructed to "Cai lo grenant", or "Cai the grumbler", which would represent another opposite characteristic of Kay, who was famous for his acid tongue.

Calogrenant appears later in the Lancelot-Grail cycle as an excellent knight, though his kinship to Yvain is not as clear as in Chrétien. He dies during the Grail Quest while trying to keep Lionel from killing his own brother, Bors. Bors had faced a dilemma over whom to rescue between Lionel, who was getting beaten with thorns by two rogue knights, and a maiden who had just been abducted, and chose the maiden over his brother. Lionel was not pleased by this, and attacked Bors the next time he saw him. A religious hermit tried to intervene, but was killed accidentally in the process, and Calogrenant stepped in. Bors would not fight his brother, and Lionel slays Calogrenant and goes after Bors until God steps in and renders him immobile.

Thomas Malory recounts Calogrenant's death scene in his Le Morte d'Arthur, but also includes another one later in the narrative. Despite dying on the Grail quest, he turns up as one of the twelve knights who help Agravaine and Mordred trap Lancelot and Guinevere together in the queen's chambers. Lancelot has neither armour nor weapons, but manages to pull Calogrenant into the room and kills him, then uses his sword to defeat the rest of Mordred's companions.

Claudin

Prince Claudin (also Claudine, Claudyne, Claudino) is the son of the Frankish King Claudas of the Wasteland (de la Deserte). He appears in the Lancelot-Grail, the Prose Tristan, the Post-Vulgate Cycle, and Le Morte d'Arthur. His father is a major villain during King Arthur's early reign as an enemy to Arthur's allies Ban and Bors, and so the valiant and noble Claudin fights against Arthur at first. But after Claudas eventually loses in this war and flees to Rome, Claudin surrenders and defects to Arthur, who makes him a member of the Round Table. During the Grail Quest, Claudin is one of the companions of Bors the Younger, Galahad and Perceval in Corbenic.

Elyan

The arms of Helain le Blanc

Elyan the White or Helyan le Blanc (also Elain, Elayn, Helain, Hellaine, Helin; -le Blank) is son of Bors the Younger in the prose romance tradition of Lancelot-Grail. His mother is daughter of British king Brandegoris (an early enemy of King Arthur who later became Arthur's ally against the common enemy of the Saxons but never formally joined him), Claire, who tricked Bors into sleeping with her using a magic ring (the only time Bors broke his vow of chastity). Claire is also half-sister of Sagramore and their shared mother is daughter of the Eastern Roman Emperor.

At the age of 15, Elyan is brought to Arthur's court by Bors and is accepted as a member to the Round Table, where he becomes known as an excellent knight. In the Post-Vulgate Queste and the Prose Tristan, Elyan took a vacant Round Table seat that had belonged to Dragan (Dagarius in Tristan) after the latter knight's death by the jealous Tristan when Dragan became his rival for the love of Iseult while staying with them at Joyous Guard. Like his father Bors and the rest of his family, Elyan later helps his cousin Lancelot rescue Guinevere after their affair is exposed, and then joins him in exile during their war with Arthur. According to the Vulgate Cycle, true to his lineage, Elyan eventually became Emperor of Constantinople.

Elyan should not be confused with Elians (Eliant, Elianz), a Knight of the Round Table from Ireland who then occupied Lancelot's vacant seat in both the Vulgate and Post-Vulgate versions of the Mort Artu. In modern works, Elyan the White was portrayed as Guinevere's brother in the 2008 TV series Merlin; appearing as just Elyan, he was played there by black actor Adetomiwa Edun.

Erec

The attributed arms of "Herec le fils Lac"

Erec, the son of King Lac features in numerous Arthurian tales (notably the Post-Vulgate Cycle), but he is most famous as the protagonist in Chrétien de Troyes' first romance, Erec and Enide. Because of Erec and Enide‘s relationship to the Welsh Geraint and Enid, Erec and Geraint are often conflated or confused.

In Chrétien's story, Erec meets his future wife Enide while on a quest to defeat a knight who had mistreated one of Guinevere's servants. The two fall in love and marry, but rumours spread that Erec no longer cares for knighthood or anything else besides his domestic life. Enide cries about these rumours, causing Erec to prove his abilities, both to himself and to his wife, through a test of Enide's love for him. He has her go on a long, tortuous trip with him where she is forbidden to speak to him. She breaks his conditions several times to warn him of danger, and after a number of adventures that prove both his love and his abilities, husband and wife are reconciled. When Erec's father Lac dies, Erec inherits his kingdom.

In the Post-Vulgate Cycle and the Guiron le Courteous version of Palamedes, King Lac is himself a Knight of the Round Table. The Post-Vulgate Quest of the Holy Grail tells of Lac's murder by the sons of his brother, King Dirac. Erec is then slain by Gawain before he can attempt to regain his father's kingdom from their rule.

Esclabor

The attributed arms of "Exclabor ly Viescovtiens"

Esclabor (Esclabort, Astlabor, Scalabrone) is a pagan lord of Babylon or Galilee in Arthurian legend. He is the father of Palamedes, Safir, and Segwarides, among others. While visiting Rome, he saves the life of the Roman Emperor, and then goes to Arthur's Logres, where he rescues King Pellinore. Esclabor eventually retires to Camelot, later adventuring with Palamedes and Galahad during the Grail Quest. Shortly after converting to Christianity, an act necessary for the full admission into the brotherhood of Round Table, Esclabor commits suicide from grief upon learning of Palamedes' death by Gawain.

Galeschin

Galeschin (Galeshin, Galescin, Galessin, Galachin, Galathin, Galescalain, Galeschalains, Galaas, etc.) is a nephew of King Arthur, son of the king's half-sister Elaine and King Nentres of Garlot. He appears in the story of the Dolorous Tower in the Vulgate Cycle, as he and his cousin Yvain attempt to rescue Gawain from the wicked Carados but are taken captive as well; the trio are eventually rescued by Lancelot. Galeschin is referred to as the Duke of Clarence, an anachronism as the duchy of Clarence was not created until 1362. Though mentioned in a few other Arthurian stories, Galeschin's role is ultimately minor. He is further rescued by Lancelot in other occasions, including from the Vale of No Return.

Roger Sherman Loomis derives the name Galeschin from the name Galvariun, found on the Modena Archivolt. He theorises that the name was altered to make it sound more like Galesche, the Old French word for Gaul, and derives the name Galvariun from the epithet Gwallt Euryn, found in Culhwch and Olwen, which he translates as "golden hair".

Gaswain

Gaswain is a recurring character in Arthurian romances. He is often associated with the similarly named nephew of King Arthur, Gawain of Orkney, as Gawain companion or opponent. Like Gawain's own, his character too is considered as derived from the Welsh legend's Arthurian warrior(s) named Gwrvan (and variants) in Culhwch ac Olwen, the Mabinogion, Peredur fab Efrawg, Preiddeu Annwn, and the Welsh Triads.

He is first found listed as Garravains d'Estrangot among Arthur's knights in some manuscripts of Erec et Enide, as he also is by the name Gasouains in the First Continuation of Perceval ou le Conte du Graal, and appears as Gasosin von Strangot in Erec. In Les Merveilles de Rigomer, he is a knight of Arthur named Garradains, traveling with Gawain on the quest to conquer the eponymous enchanted castle of the Irish queen Dionise.

In a major role in Diu Crône, Gasozein de Dragoz arrives at King Arthur's court to claim of being the first lover and rightful husband of Guinevere. Gasozein later rescues Guinevere from her brother Gotegrin, who wants to kill her for her infidelity, but then he kidnaps her in turn and nearly rapes her. However Gawain arrives in time, defeats Gasozein in a duel, sends him back to Arthur to revoke his claim, and even arranges Gasozein's marriage with his own sister-in-law Sgoidamur. As the antagonist of La Vengeance Raguidel, Guengasoain (Gasouains, Guengasoains, Guengasouain(s), Guingasoain) is much more villainous antagonist in the story of the eponymous quest by Gawain and Yder to avenge his murder of the noble knight named Raguidel. Here he is a nephew of King Aguissant (Angusel, a brother of King Lot in the Historia Regum Britanniae) and a former captive of the fay sorceress Lingrenote, the lady of the Nameless Castle, who made him her knight and armed him powerful enchanted weapons making him near invincible. He is nevertheless successfully defeated and (after refusing mercy) slain by Gawain with the help by Yder, the latter of whom then marries Guengasoain's daughter Trevilonete.

The plot of Meraugis de Portlesguez revolves around the protagonist Meraugis competing for the love of Queen Lidoine with his friend named Gorvain Galvain or Gorvain Cadrut in addition to dealing with Gawain. Gorvain loses to to his rival, but ends up happily married to one of her ladies, Avice. In Hunbaut, Gorvain Cadrus (Cardus) of Castle Pantelion takes Gawain's unnamed sister hostage, seeking vengeance against him for the death of one of his relatives, but is defeated and taken captive by Gawain. He is then sent to Arthur's court at Caerleon as a prisoner and eventually becomes a Knight of the Round Table.

In the Vulgate Estoire de Merlin (and the English Of Arthour and of Merlin), the young Gaswain de Estrango(r)t (Gasoain, Gosenain) fights alongside Gawain in the battles against the invading Saxons and his feats as one of the most valiant and lethal British knights secure him the admission to the Round Table. When Gawain wrongly accuses him of treason, he gives Gawain a severe face wound in a trial by combat in front of King Arthur. In the Vulgate Lancelot, he is with Gawain when they are both captured and imprisoned in the Dolorous Prison until the rescue by Lancelot, who also frees him from Turquine's captivity on another occasion. Noted as "very valorous and a good speaker", he is involved in the adventures of Kay and others as well.

Gornemant

Gornemant of Gohort, also known as Gornemant de Goort or Gurnemans of Gorhaut (among other variants such as Gornemans or Gormans), was Percival's mentor. He is mentioned in a few early romances before achieving prominence in Perceval, the Story of the Grail, in which he instructs the young hero in the ways of knighthood. Gornemant's niece is Blanchefleur, whom Percival later marries after successfully defending her city against attackers. Wolfram von Eschenbach also gives him three sons (Gurzgi, Lascoyt, Schentefleurs), as well as a daughter named Liaze, who falls in love with Percival but he declines to marry her.

In modern works, his character became famous as Gurnemanz in Richard Wagner's opera Parsifal, in which he is one of the main Grail Knights.

Griflet

Coat of arms attributed to Girflet

Giflet throwing Excalibur into the lake in a 1470 illustration for the 13th-century romance La Mort du roi Arthur

Griflet /ˈɡrɪflɪt/, also called Gi(r)flet or Jaufré, is a knight in Arthurian legend. He is the hero of his own, early romance: Jaufre, the only surviving Arthurian romance written in Provençal.

In French prose chivalric romance cycles, Griflet first appears as a squire and one of King Arthur's earliest allies. He is called the son of Do or Don, and is a cousin to Lucan and Bedivere. When he is knighted, he becomes one of the first Knights of the Round Table. Griflet is one of Arthur's chief advisors throughout his career. According to the Lancelot-Grail Cycle, he was one of the few survivors of Arthur's final battle and was asked by the dying king to return his sword Excalibur to the Lady of the Lake. In Le Morte d'Arthur, however, Sir Griflet is one of the knights killed by Lancelot's rescue party at the execution of Guinevere, making Griflet's cousin Bedivere the knight who casts away Excalibur.

Like many another character in Arthurian Romance, his origins lie in Welsh mythology. In this instance, it is the minor deity Gilfaethwy fab Dôn, who features in Math fab Mathonwy, fourth of the Four Branches of the Mabinogi.

Hector de Maris

The attributed arms of Hector des Mares

Hector de Maris (Ector de Maris, Hestor des Mares) is the younger half-brother of Lancelot and the natural son of King Ban of Benwick and the Lady de Maris; Bors and Lionel are his cousins. He should not be mistaken with Ector, the father of Kay and foster father of Arthur.

Hector's adventures in the name of King Arthur were many and wide-ranging. With Morganore, it was Hector de Maris who welcomed Tristan to Camelot when he was shipwrecked nearby. The two jousted in a friendly competition, but Hector was ashamed to have been beaten by a knight of Cornwall. Other times he was more successful at tournaments, getting the better of both Palomides and Percivale. He, however, failed to defeat Turquine and became one of the knights he imprisoned before being rescued by his brother, Lancelot. He returned the favour by rediscovering the lost Knight of the Lake after his period of insanity and returning him to the court. He is known to have had a long relationship with Lady Perse of the Narrow Borderland, whose fiancé he murdered in order to be with her. Hector later had an affair with the cousin of the Lady of Roestoc, before being reunited with Perse. Hector also participates in the Grail Quest, but he is one of the many knights who prove unworthy of achieving the object. In the Quest du Saint Graal of the Vulgate Cycle, Hector and Gawain are travelling together when they experience a vision of what Jessie Weston called an "unintelligent" variation on the theme of the perilous Black Hand in other romances in the Grail Cycle.

When Lancelot is caught in his affair with Guinevere, however, Hector stands by his half-brother and leaves court with him. He becomes one of the top leaders of Lancelot's faction, participating in the battle to rescue the queen at her execution, and the defence of Lancelot's castle Joyous Guard. Like all his family, he joins Lancelot in France when they are expelled from Arthur's kingdom, and he helps defeat the army led by Mordred's sons after the Battle of Camlann (Salisbury). He then joins his brother at the Archbishop of Canterbury's hermitage, and later dies on a crusade in the Holy Land.

King with the Hundred Knights

The King with the Hundred Knights (Roi des Cent Chevaliers, sometimes the King of the Hundred Knights in English) is a moniker most commonly used for an Arthurian character popular in the Old French chivalric romance tradition, sometimes even exclusively so as it is in Palamedes. As for his proper name, today he might be best known as Sir Barant le Apres (also in the form Berrant), as named later by Thomas Malory, but has also appeared under different names, including Malaguin (among many other variants such as Aguignier, Aguigens, Aguigniez, Aguysans, Alguigines, Angvigenes, Malaguis, Malauguin, Malaguins; not to confused with a Saxon fortress castle named Malaguine) in the Prose Lancelot, followed by Margon in the Third Continuation of Perceval, the Story of the Grail, and by Heraut li Aspres (or Horiaus Le Aspres) in the Prose Tristan, another of Malory's sources for his Le Morte d'Arthur. The legendary figure of Malaguin seems to be loosely based on the historical Maelgwn, an early 6th-century king of Gwynedd known for propagating Christianity in Britain.

His first known appearance is possibly in Lanzelet (a German translation of an unknown French book) as Ritschart, a count opposing King Lot, who is mentioned as having a hundred knights and is later aided by Lancelot. However, his original major role as the "King with the Hundred Knights" from the Vulgate and Post-Vulgate Merlin Continuations (also featured in Malory's compilation) is that of one of the chief rebel leaders opposing the young King Arthur in the battle of Bedegraine (where he actually leads four thousand knights), who then goes over to the victorious Arthur in order to together with him fight the invading Saxons after experiencing a prophetic dream, helping to defeat the pagan Saxons by uniting the peoples of Britain to fight them in God's name. He remains on Arthur's side during Lot's second rebellion, but then fights against Arthur in the service of Prince Galehaut in the Vulgate Lancelot, before again submitting to Arthur's rule and joining the Round Table along with Galehaut, and later taking part in the war against Rome (the chronology is different in Malory). In Lancelot of the Laik, a later Scottish version of the Vulgate Lancelot, the King with a Hundred Knights and Maleginis are two different minor kings under Galehaut.

He is the ruler of the land variably known as Estrangore in the Livre d'Artus alternative continuation of Merlin, Malahaut (or Malehaut and other variants) in the Estoire de Merlin' and the Prose Lancelot, Guzilagne in La Tavola Ritonda, Piacenza in the Italian I Due Tristani, and Tumane in Lanzelet. The Vulgate Lancelot gives him a sister known only as the Lady of Malahaut (Malehaut, etc.), a son named Maranz (Marant, Marauz, Martans, Martant), and a daughter named Landoine (Landoigne). The Prose Tristan and Le Morte d'Arthur mentions him as beloved paramour of the enchantress known as the Queen of North Wales (Morgan le Fay's otherwise capricious and often villainous companion). In I Due Tristani, he marries Riccarda, a presumably also half-giant sister of Galehaut. In the Third Continuation of Perceval, his son is named Cargril(o), who falls in one-sided love with Perceval's cousin Sore Pucelle and the father and son besiege her castle; after Gawain lifts the siege, she avenges the death of her lover whom they had hanged by launching the bound Cargril from a catapult. In La Tavola Ritonda, the King with the Hundred Knights himself dies fighting alongside King Amoroldo of Ireland (an Italian version of Morholt) at the Battle of Lerline in a factional conflict in which Lancelot and Tristan find themselves opposing each other.

Lucan

The attributed arms of "Lucam le Bouteillier"

Lucan the Butler (also Lucanere de Buttelere, Lucan(s) li Bouteillier, Lucant le Boutellier, Lucas the Botiller, Lucanus, etc.) is a servant of King Arthur and the son of Duke Corneus, brother to Bedivere and cousin to Griflet. He and his relatives are among Arthur's earliest allies in the fight against the rebel kings such as Lot, Urien and Caradoc, and remained one of Arthur's loyal companions throughout his life.

Lucan was a solid and reliable Knight of the Round Table and one of King Arthur's earliest companions. He took on the post of royal butler – an important position in charge of the royal household rather than a serving man. The duties of a "butler" have changed over time; Lucan was supposed to have been in charge of the royal court, along with Bedivere the Marshal and Kay the Seneschal. He valiantly defended Arthur's right to the throne at the Battle of Bedegraine and against subsequent rebellions. Though he sought adventure, he never came to the fore in Arthurian tales with renowned exploits of his own. He always attended the royal tournaments and was once hurt so badly by Tristram that Yvain had to escort him to Gannes Abbey for medical assistance.

In most accounts of Arthur's death, from the Lancelot-Grail cycle to Le Morte d'Arthur, Lucan is one of the last knights at the king's side at the Battle of Camlann and is usually the last of them to die. Lucan remained loyal to King Arthur throughout the schism with Lancelot and on occasion acted as their go-between. Similarly, he stayed by the monarch's side during Mordred's rebellion and tried to dissuade Arthur from his final attack on his son/nephew, but was unsuccessful and the King received his mortal wound. Gravely wounded himself, Lucan was one of the few knights left at the field of Camlann, along his brother, Bedivere. Worried about looters on the battlefield, Lucan and Bedivere attempt to move the dying Arthur into a nearby chapel for safety, but the strain is too much for Lucan as a severe wound bursts open, spilling out his bowels; he dies from his own wounds just before the king returns Excalibur to the Lady of the Lake and sails off for Avalon. Though the knight Arthur asks to cast the sword into the lake is usually Griflet (Lancelot-Grail) or Bedivere (Le Morte d'Arthur, the Alliterative Morte Arthure, the Stanzaic Morte Arthur), the 16th-century English ballad King Arthur's Death ascribes this duty to Lucan.

In modern treatments, a character named Lucan appears in the 2004 film King Arthur. Played by Johnny Brennan, he is a young boy found and cared for by Arthur's warrior Dagonet.

Meliant

The attributed arms of "Mellienderis"

Meliant (variants of the name include Melians and Melyans) is featured in several Arthurian romances.

In the writings by Chrétien de Troyes and Wolfram von Eschenbach, Meliant de Lis is the King of Lis and one of the Round Table. Along with Bagdemagus and Meleagant, Maliant declares war on his foster-father named Tiebaut or Lyppaut after being rejected by the latter's daughter Obie. Gawain, fighting for Obie's sister Obilot, captures Meliant, who then reconciles with Obie in her captivity. A different version of this story, as told by Heinrich von dem Türlin, names him Fiers von Arramis, whom Gawain also forces to surrender to a young lady who is a sister of his beloved (Flursenesephin). In the Livre de Artus, Meliant de Lis marries Gawain's own lover Floree.

In the Vulgate Cycle's Queste, Melians de Danemarche (Denmark, "Dianarca") joins Galahad (who had knighted him earlier), Bors and Percival at Castle Corbenic at the end of the Grail Quest. King Arthur appoints him to the Round Table, but Meliant later sides with Lancelot in the civil war in the Vulgate Mort. In reward for his support, including a role in the rescue of Guinevere, Lancelot makes him one of his earls in his domains on the continent.

There are also other Arthurian characters by this name. For instance, one Meliant (named Brano in the Italian La Tavola Ritonda) is a relative of King Faramon's daughter Belide when she falsely accuses Tristan of rape in the Prose Tristan. In the Vulgate Lancelot, Carados of the Dolorous Tower takes Melyans le Gai's wife as his mistress. Another Meliant from the cycle is an ancestor of Gawain (himself is descended from Peter, an early Christian follower of Joseph of Arimathea) in the Vulgate Estoire del Saint Graal. In Perlesvaus, Meliant is an enemy lord of Arthur, allied with the traitorous Kay; he is killed by Lancelot who had previously also slain his evil father.

Morholt

Morholt (also called Marhalt, Marhault, Morold, Marhaus and other variations) is an Irish warrior who demands tribute from King Mark of Cornwall until he is slain by Tristan, Mark's nephew and defender. In many versions of the legend, Morholt's name is prefaced with a definite article (i.e. The Morholt) as if it were a rank or a title, but scholars have found no reason for this.

He appears in almost all versions of the legend of Tristan and Iseult, beginning with the verse works of Thomas of Britain and Béroul. In the early material, Morholt is the brother of the Queen of Ireland and the uncle of Tristan's future love (both mother and daughter are named Iseult). He comes to Cornwall to collect tribute owed to his country, but Tristan agrees to battle the champion on the remote Saint Samson's Isle in order to release his people from the debt. Tristan mortally wounds Morholt, leaving a piece of his sword in the Irishman's skull, but Morholt stabs him with a poisoned spear and escapes to Ireland to die. The injured Tristan eventually travels to Ireland incognito to receive healing from the Iseult the Younger, but is found out when the queen discovers the piece of metal found in her brother's head fits perfectly into a chink in Tristan's blade.

The authors of later romances expanded Morholt's role; in works like the Prose Tristan, the Post-Vulgate Cycle, and Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur, he is a Knight of the Round Table before his fateful encounter with Tristan. The prose romances add many more details to Morholt's career; the Post-Vulgate and Malory record his adventures with the young Gawain and Yvain early in King Arthur's reign. In the later versions, Tristan takes Morholt's place at the Round Table when he joins the company himself.

Priamus

Priamus is a Roman ally of Emperor Lucius in Le Morte d'Arthur. He claims to be descended from Alexander of Africa and Judas Maccabeus. Upon meeting Gawain in The Tale of King Arthur and Emperor Lucius, he betrays Lucius to join forces with King Arthur.

Safir

Saphar's attributed arms

Safir or Safere (Safire, Saphar) is the youngest son of the Saracen king Esclabor in the Arthurian legend. A courageous and loyal knight, he was a popular romance character, showing up in the Prose Tristan and Le Morte d'Arthur, and having his name included on the Winchester Round Table. Two of his brothers, Segwarides and Palamedes, also belong to the Round Table.

Safir appears in many works of Arthurian literature, usually alongside his brother Palamedes. Though he is a younger brother, Safir converted to Christianity some time before Palamedes. In one story, Safir is disguised as Ector de Maris and fights with Helior le Preuse, defeats him, and wins Espinogres' lady. Vowing to defend the lady's honour, Palamedes arrives on the scene, and locks sword with Safir, not realising it is his brother. After fighting for an hour, both are impressed with each other's prowess and skill, and decide to ask the other's identity. Safir is devastated to find that he was fighting with his own brother and asks Palamedes for forgiveness; together, they return the lady to Espinogres. When the affair between Lancelot and Guinevere is exposed, Safir and Palamedes join Lancelot's side in the ensuing civil war between Lancelot and King Arthur. When they are banished to Lancelot's homeland in Gaul, Safir is made Duke of Landok while Palamedes becomes Duke of Provence.

Segwarides

The attributed arms of "Securades"

Tristan and Segwarides (1912)

Segwarides (Securades, Seguarades, Segurades, Seguradez) is a liegeman of King Mark who is cuckolded by Tristan in the Prose Tristan and Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur. Malory also lists a knight of this name as a son of the Saracen king Esclabor, his brothers being Palamedes and Safir; it seems there were originally two characters of this name, but the stories in which they appear fail to differentiate between them.

In Malory, Tristan has a brief affair with Segwarides' wife, and wounds the knight after being found out. Tristan encounters Segwarides later on the Isle of Servage. Segwarides forgives the more famous knight saying he "will never hate a noble knight for a light lady" and the two team up to avoid the dangers of the isle. Soon afterwards, Tristan makes Segwarides the Lord of Servage. Segwarides is eventually killed trying to repel Lancelot's rescue of Guinevere from the stake.

Tor

The attributed arms of Tor

Tor appears frequently in Arthurian literature. In earlier mentions Tor's father is King Ars or Aries, but the Post-Vulgate Cycle and Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur say this man is his adoptive father while his natural father is King Pellinore.

In the Post-Vulgate and Malory, Tor is brother to Aglovale, Lamorak, Dornar, Percival, and Dindrane. He is born when Pellinore sleeps with his mother "half by force", and she marries Aries shortly afterward; here Aries is not a king, but a shepherd. Tor and his twelve half-brothers are raised as shepherds, but Tor dreams of being a knight. Finally his parents take him to King Arthur's court, and Arthur makes the boy one of his first knights. Later Merlin reveals Tor's true parentage, and Pellinore embraces his son; neither Aries nor his wife seem offended. Tor distinguishes himself at the wedding feast of Arthur and Guinevere when he takes up a quest to retrieve a mysterious white brachet hound that had come into the court. According to Malory, Tor and his brother Aglovale are among the knights charged with defending the execution of Guinevere and they both die when Lancelot and his followers rescue the queen.

Yvain the Bastard

The attributed arms of Yvain the Bastard

Yvain the Bastard (Yvain[s] li/le[s] Avou[l]tres, -l'Avoltre, -li Batarz) is a son of King Urien of Gore. He is often confused with his half-brother Yvain, after whom he was named; while the older Yvain is Urien's legitimate child from his wife Morgan le Fay, Yvain the Bastard was sired by Urien on the wife of his seneschal. Le Morte d'Arthur split him into two characters: Uwaine les Avoutres the son of Urien and Uwaine les Adventurous, an unrelated knight.

He is encountered frequently in Arthurian romance as a hearty and sensible warrior. His death comes at the hands of his cousin Gawain during the Quest for the Holy Grail. The two, disguised by their armour, meet and decide to joust, during which Yvain is mortally wounded; it is not until Gawain takes him to a hermitage for his last rites that he realises he has fought, and killed, his own cousin.

Other Arthurian fellowships

Queen's Knights

Le Morte d'Arthur scene of Guinevere with some of her unarmed knights before they are ambushed by Maleagant, as depicted in Queen Guinevere's Maying by John Collier

The Queen's Knights (Chevaliers de la Roine) are the knights who serve King Arthur's wife Queen Guinevere in the Old French prose cycles. They are also known in French texts like the "Knights of Queen Guinevere" (Chevaliers de la Roine Guenievre, the form used in the Livre d'Artus) and the more elaborate "Valiant Knights of Queen Guinevere" (Chevalier vaillant de la Roine Gueneure). In the Middle English compilation Le Morte d'Arthur, the simple "Queen's Knights" form is used by the author Thomas Malory who also describes them as "a grete felyshyp of men of arms". Members of this group carry only plain white shields, often accompanying the queen and engaging in rivalry against the more experienced Knights of the Round Table. Heroes Gawain and Lancelot are among those who first serve as the Queen's Knights in their youth after being knighted by Arthur, before winning enough honour to be promoted to fill the Round Table when a vacancy occurs. Others include the younger Sagramore when he mortally wounds the Knight of the Round Table named Agravadain (unrelated to Agravain), grandfather of Hector de Maris, in defense of his comrades. In Malory's version, Lancelot later rescues a new generation of them when they are captured together with Guinevere by the villain Maleagant (himself sometimes depicted as a rogue member of the Round Table), after the Queen ordered her companions to surrender for to spare their lives.

Arthur's minor tables

The Post-Vulgate Cycle has two other table-based orders within Arthur's court. The first of these is the Table of Errant Companions (Tables des Compaignons Errans), reserved for the knights errant who are actively seeking adventures while also seeking promotion to the Round Table.

The second one is ingloriously called the Table of Less-Valued Knights (Tables des Chevaliers Moins Prisiés), the members of which (who originally included Percival) are, as its name indicates, lower in their rank and status. This group seems to be derived from the knights of the Watch (the Guard), featured in the Vulgate Cycle's Prose Lancelot and first mentioned by Chrétien in Perceval.

Grail Table

Robert de Boron's Joseph d'Arimathie introduced the Grail Table as a direct precursor to the Round Table, used by the followers of Joseph of Arimathea. Depending on the text from later works, the Grail Table can be seen again and used by Galahad, Percival and Bors while they are served mass after completing the Grail Quest.

Old Table

Some French and Italian prose romances and poetry feature the original fifty knights of the Round Table from the times of Uther Pendragon, the late father of King Arthur, known in Italian retellings of the Prose Tristan as the Old Table (Tavola Vecchia). Their stories include that of Branor the Dragon Knight, "the flower of the Old Table", unsurpassed in his skills even at the age of over 100.

See also

• List of Arthurian characters
• Paladin
• Pentecostal Oath
• Siege Perilous

Sources

• Chrétien de Troyes; Owen, D. D. R. (translator) (1988). Arthurian Romances. New York: Everyman's Library. ISBN 0-460-87389-X.
• Lacy, Norris J. (Ed.) (1 April 1995). Lancelot-Grail: The Old French Arthurian Vulgate and Post-Vulgate in Translation, Volume 4 of 5. New York: Garland. ISBN 0-8153-0748-9.
• Malory, Thomas; Bryan, Elizabeth J. (introduction) (1994). Le Morte d'Arthur. New York: Modern Library. ISBN 0-679-60099-X. (Pollard text.)
• Loomis, Roger Sherman (1997). Celtic Myth and Arthurian Romance. Academy Chicago Publishers. ISBN 0-89733-436-1.
• Wilson, Robert H. The "Fair Unknown" in Malory. Publications of the Modern-Language Association of America (1943).

External links

• Timeless Myths: Round Table
• EBK: The Knights of the Round Table