Elaine (legend)
Encyclopedia
Elaine is a name shared by several different female characters in Arthurian legend.
, also known in some texts as Elaine the Fair or the Fair Maid of Astolat and as The Lady of Shalott
in Lord Alfred Tennyson
's same-titled poem, is a maiden who falls in unrequited love with Sir Lancelot
.
and the mother of Lancelot
. She is the sister of Evaine
, wife of King Bors of Gaunnes and mother of Sir Lionel
and Sir Bors
. Her husband dies of grief when his enemy Claudas
attacks his city, and Elaine goes to attend to him. She sets the infant Lancelot down, and he is taken by the Lady of the Lake
, who raises him. Elaine sees her son for the first time in years just before she dies.
(also known as Amite, Heliaebel, Helaine, Perevida or Helizabel; identified as "The Grail Maiden" or "Grail Bearer") is the daughter of King Pelles
and the mother of Sir Galahad
by Sir Lancelot
. She first appears in The Prose Lancelot (The Vulgate Cycle), but fully emerges as a character in Sir Thomas Malory
's Le Morte D'Arthur
. Her first significant action is showing the Holy Grail
to Sir Lancelot.
, Duke of Cornwall
, and Igraine
. She is a sister of Morgan le Fay
and Morgause
and a half-sister of King Arthur
. She marries King Nentres of Garlot, and has a son named Galeschin
, who becomes a Knight of the Round Table, and a daughter named Elaine the Younger. Considering the actions of her sisters, she is remarkable in that she is otherwise unremarkable. It is assumed she stayed in her own lands and did little to help or hinder any of her siblings.
. She kills herself after the death of her lover Sir Miles of the Laundes. Some modern authors, such as Marion Zimmer Bradley
in The Mists of Avalon
, combine or conflate her with Elaine of Corbenic, due to their shared name and the similarity of their fathers' names.
. Other versions cast her as a child of King Lot
.
Elaine of Astolat
Elaine of AstolatAstolat
Astolat is a legendary city of Great Britain named in Arthurian legends. It is the home of Elaine, "the fair maiden of Astolat", and of her father Sir Bernard and her brothers Lavaine and Tirre. The city is called Shallott in many cultural references, derived from Alfred Lord Tennyson's poem "The...
, also known in some texts as Elaine the Fair or the Fair Maid of Astolat and as The Lady of Shalott
The Lady of Shalott
"The Lady of Shalott" is a Victorian ballad by the English poet Alfred, Lord Tennyson . Like his other early poems – "Sir Lancelot and Queen Guinevere" and "Galahad" – the poem recasts Arthurian subject matter loosely based on medieval sources.-Overview:Tennyson wrote two versions of the poem, one...
in Lord Alfred Tennyson
Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson
Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson, FRS was Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom during much of Queen Victoria's reign and remains one of the most popular poets in the English language....
's same-titled poem, is a maiden who falls in unrequited love with Sir Lancelot
Lancelot
Sir Lancelot du Lac is one of the Knights of the Round Table in the Arthurian legend. He is the most trusted of King Arthur's knights and plays a part in many of Arthur's victories...
.
Elaine of Benoic
Elaine of Benoic (or Benwick) is the wife of King BanKing Ban
In Arthurian legend, Ban is the King of Benwick or Benoic. He is the father of Sir Lancelot and Sir Hector de Maris, the brother of King Bors, and an early ally of King Arthur.Ban's wife Elaine is the sister to King Bors' wife Evaine...
and the mother of Lancelot
Lancelot
Sir Lancelot du Lac is one of the Knights of the Round Table in the Arthurian legend. He is the most trusted of King Arthur's knights and plays a part in many of Arthur's victories...
. She is the sister of Evaine
Evaine
Evaine is a queen in Arthurian legend, the sister of Elaine, mother of Lancelot; she and her sister married brother kings and suffered parallel fates, both women losing their husbands and sons and then entering the same convent...
, wife of King Bors of Gaunnes and mother of Sir Lionel
Sir Lionel
Sir Lionel is the younger son of King Bors of Gaunnes and Evaine and brother of Bors the Younger in Arthurian legend. He is a double cousin of Lancelot and cousin of Lancelot's younger half-brother Ector de Maris...
and Sir Bors
Bors
Bors circa 540s-580s, is the name of two knights in the Arthurian legend, one the father and one the son. Bors the Elder is the King of Gaunnes or Gaul during the early period of King Arthur's reign, and is the brother of King Ban of Benoic. Gaunnes is the Fredemundian dynastic kingdom of Neustria...
. Her husband dies of grief when his enemy Claudas
Claudas
King Claudas is a fictional Frankish king and an opponent to King Arthur, Lancelot, and Bors in Arthurian literature. His kingdom is named "Terre Deserte", or "Land Laid Waste", so called because of the destruction Uther Pendragon had wrought there. Claudas appears as the Round Table's adversary in...
attacks his city, and Elaine goes to attend to him. She sets the infant Lancelot down, and he is taken by the Lady of the Lake
Lady of the Lake
The Lady of the Lake is the name of several related characters who play parts in the Arthurian legend. These characters' roles include giving King Arthur his sword Excalibur, enchanting Merlin, and raising Lancelot after the death of his father...
, who raises him. Elaine sees her son for the first time in years just before she dies.
Elaine of Corbenic
Elaine of CorbenicCorbenic
Corbenic , Carboneck , or Corbin is the name of the castle of the Holy Grail in the Lancelot-Grail cycle and Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur...
(also known as Amite, Heliaebel, Helaine, Perevida or Helizabel; identified as "The Grail Maiden" or "Grail Bearer") is the daughter of King Pelles
Fisher King
The Fisher King, or the Wounded King, figures in Arthurian legend as the latest in a line charged with keeping the Holy Grail. Versions of his story vary widely, but he is always wounded in the legs or groin, and incapable of moving on his own...
and the mother of Sir Galahad
Galahad
Sir Galahad |Round Table]] and one of the three achievers of the Holy Grail in Arthurian legend. He is the illegitimate son of Lancelot and Elaine of Corbenic, and is renowned for his gallantry and purity. Emerging quite late in the medieval Arthurian tradition, he is perhaps the knightly...
by Sir Lancelot
Lancelot
Sir Lancelot du Lac is one of the Knights of the Round Table in the Arthurian legend. He is the most trusted of King Arthur's knights and plays a part in many of Arthur's victories...
. She first appears in The Prose Lancelot (The Vulgate Cycle), but fully emerges as a character in Sir Thomas Malory
Thomas Malory
Sir Thomas Malory was an English writer, the author or compiler of Le Morte d'Arthur. The antiquary John Leland as well as John Bale believed him to be Welsh, but most modern scholars, beginning with G. L...
's Le Morte D'Arthur
Le Morte d'Arthur
Le Morte d'Arthur is a compilation by Sir Thomas Malory of Romance tales about the legendary King Arthur, Guinevere, Lancelot, and the Knights of the Round Table...
. Her first significant action is showing the Holy Grail
Holy Grail
The Holy Grail is a sacred object figuring in literature and certain Christian traditions, most often identified with the dish, plate, or cup used by Jesus at the Last Supper and said to possess miraculous powers...
to Sir Lancelot.
Elaine of Garlot
Elaine of Garlot is the daughter of GorloisGorlois
Gorlois was a Duke of Cornwall and Igraine's first husband before her marriage to Uther Pendragon, according to the Arthurian legend...
, Duke of Cornwall
Legendary Dukes of Cornwall
"Duke of Cornwall" appears as a title in pseudo-historical authors as Nennius and Geoffrey of Monmouth. The list is extremely patchy, and not every succession was unbroken. Indeed, Geoffrey repeatedly introduces Dukes of Cornwall only to promote them to the Kingship of the Britons and thus put an...
, and Igraine
Igraine
Igraine , in Arthurian legend, is the mother of King Arthur. She is also known in Latin as Igerna, in Welsh as Eigyr, in French as Igerne, in Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur as Ygrayne— often modernized as Igraine—and in Wolfram von Eschenbach's Parzival as Arnive...
. She is a sister of Morgan le Fay
Morgan le Fay
Morgan le Fay , alternatively known as Morgane, Morgaine, Morgana and other variants, is a powerful sorceress in the Arthurian legend. Early works featuring Morgan do not elaborate her character beyond her role as a fay or magician...
and Morgause
Morgause
Morgause , known in earlier works as Gwyar or Anna, is the sister or half-sister of King Arthur in the Arthurian legend. In her earliest appearance she is Arthur's full sister by Uther Pendragon and Igraine; Gwyar is her name and she is the mother of Gwalchmei...
and a half-sister of King Arthur
King Arthur
King Arthur is a legendary British leader of the late 5th and early 6th centuries, who, according to Medieval histories and romances, led the defence of Britain against Saxon invaders in the early 6th century. The details of Arthur's story are mainly composed of folklore and literary invention, and...
. She marries King Nentres of Garlot, and has a son named Galeschin
Galeschin
Galeschin is a Knight of the Round Table in Arthurian legend. He is a nephew of King Arthur, son of the king's half-sister Elaine and King Nentres of Garlot....
, who becomes a Knight of the Round Table, and a daughter named Elaine the Younger. Considering the actions of her sisters, she is remarkable in that she is otherwise unremarkable. It is assumed she stayed in her own lands and did little to help or hinder any of her siblings.
Elaine of Listenoise
Elaine of Listenoise is the daughter of King PellinorePellinore
King Pellinore is the king of Listenoise or of "the Isles" , according to the Arthurian legend. Son of King Pellam and brother of Kings Pelles and Alain, he is most famous for his endless hunt of the Questing Beast, which he is tracking when King Arthur first meets him...
. She kills herself after the death of her lover Sir Miles of the Laundes. Some modern authors, such as Marion Zimmer Bradley
Marion Zimmer Bradley
Marion Eleanor Zimmer Bradley was an American author of fantasy novels such as The Mists of Avalon and the Darkover series. Many critics have noted a feminist perspective in her writing. Her first child, David R...
in The Mists of Avalon
The Mists of Avalon
The Mists of Avalon is a 1983 novel by Marion Zimmer Bradley, in which she relates the Arthurian legends from the perspective of the female characters.-Plot introduction:...
, combine or conflate her with Elaine of Corbenic, due to their shared name and the similarity of their fathers' names.
Elaine the Peerless
Elaine the Peerless is the niece of the Lord of the Fens and wife of Persides the Red of the Castle of Gazevilte.Elaine the Younger
Elaine the Younger is the daughter of Elaine of Garlot and (usually) King Nentres. She is the niece of King Arthur. In some versions of the legend, she falls in love with Sir PercivalPercival
Percival or Perceval is one of King Arthur's legendary Knights of the Round Table. In Welsh literature his story is allotted to the historical Peredur...
. Other versions cast her as a child of King Lot
King Lot
Lot or Loth is the eponymous king of Lothian in the Arthurian legend. He is best known as the father of Sir Gawain. Such a ruler evidently first appeared in hagiographical material concerning Saint Kentigern , which feature a Leudonus, king of Leudonia, a Latin name for Lothian...
.