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Elaine of Corbenic
Elaine, also known under many other names and identified as the "Grail Maiden" or the "Grail Bearer", is a character from Arthurian legend. In the Arthurian chivalric romance tradition from the Vulgate Cycle, she is a princess of Corbenic and the mother of Galahad by Lancelot. Due to magical spells, she beds Lancelot, whom she loves, resulting in the conception of Galahad. Then, later—also through magic and deception—Lancelot sleeps with her again, thinking she is Queen Guinevere. This leads to Lancelot's descent into madness, until he is eventually cured by her using the Grail and then lives with her for a time being. She should not be confused with Elaine of Astolat, a different woman who too fell in love with Lancelot.
She is variably known as Elaine (Elayne, Helaine, Oisine) or Elizabeth (Eliabel, Elizabel, Elizabet, Heliabel, Helizabel), and is also concurrently called Amite (Amide, Amides, Anite, Aude, Enite). Her character seems to have been derived from the earlier (and later separate) figure of Percival's sister, and possibly also from that of Arthur's sister. The name "Amite" may furthermore link her to Amice from Meraugis de Portlesguez.
She first appears in the Prose Lancelot, a part of the Vulgate Cycle, as an incredibly beautiful woman named Heliabel but known as Amite (in one spelling variant of these names). Her first significant action is showing the Holy Grail to the near-perfect knight, Sir Lancelot.
In the version as told by Thomas Malory in Le Morte d'Arthur, based on the later Queste part of the Vulgate Cycle, Lady Elaine's father, King Pelles of the Grail castle Corbenic (Corbenek, Corbin, etc.), knew that Lancelot would have a son with Elaine, and that that child would be Galahad, "the most noblest [sic] knight in the world". Moreover, Pelles claims that Galahad will lead a "foreign country...out of danger" and "achieve...the Holy Grail". However, it has been noted that in older manuscripts Elaine is not named as Pelles' daughter, but merely named alongside the latter. The two figures apparently got mixed up by Malory due to a scribal error in his source.
The sorceress Morgan le Fay is jealous of Elaine's beauty, and magically traps her in a boiling bath. After Lancelot rescues her, Elaine falls in love with him, only to find he is already in love with Queen Guinevere and would not knowingly sleep with another woman. In order to seduce Lancelot, Elaine goes to the sorceress Dame Brusen for help. Dame Brusen gives Lancelot wine and Elaine a ring of Guinevere's in order to trick Lancelot into thinking Elaine is Guinevere. The next morning, Lancelot is distraught to discover that the woman he slept with was not Guinevere. He draws his sword and threatens to kill Elaine, but she tells him that she is pregnant with Galahad and he agrees not to kill her, but instead kisses her. Lancelot departs, and Elaine remains in her father's castle and gives birth to Galahad.
Thereafter, Elaine comes to a feast at King Arthur's court. Lancelot ignores her when he sees her, making her sad because she loves him. She complains of this to Brusen, who tells her that she will, as Malory tells, "undertake that this night he [Lancelot] shall lie with [her]". That night, Brusen brings Lancelot to Elaine, pretending that it is Guinevere that summons him. He goes along, and once again is deceived into sleeping with Elaine. At the same time, however, Guinevere herself had summoned Lancelot and is enraged to discover that he is not in his bedchamber. She hears him talking in his sleep, and finds him in bed with Elaine. Guinevere is furious with him and tells him she never wants to see him again. Lancelot goes mad with grief and, naked, jumps out a window and runs away. Elaine confronts Guinevere about treatment of Lancelot; she accuses her of causing Lancelot's madness and tells her that she is being unnecessarily cruel. After this, Elaine leaves court.
Time passes in the story, and Elaine next appears when she finds Lancelot insane in her garden. She brings him to the Grail, which cures him. When he regains his mind, he decides to go under a false name with Elaine to the Isle of Joy, where they live together for several years as husband and wife.
Like the more famous Elaine of Astolat, Elaine of Corbenic is in love with Lancelot, but unlike her she is successful in both bedding and marrying Lancelot. Despite this, she was traditionally overlooked in favor of Elaine of Astolat by literary analysts, perhaps because of the moral ambiguities of her actions.
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Elaine of Corbenic
Elaine, also known under many other names and identified as the "Grail Maiden" or the "Grail Bearer", is a character from Arthurian legend. In the Arthurian chivalric romance tradition from the Vulgate Cycle, she is a princess of Corbenic and the mother of Galahad by Lancelot. Due to magical spells, she beds Lancelot, whom she loves, resulting in the conception of Galahad. Then, later—also through magic and deception—Lancelot sleeps with her again, thinking she is Queen Guinevere. This leads to Lancelot's descent into madness, until he is eventually cured by her using the Grail and then lives with her for a time being. She should not be confused with Elaine of Astolat, a different woman who too fell in love with Lancelot.
She is variably known as Elaine (Elayne, Helaine, Oisine) or Elizabeth (Eliabel, Elizabel, Elizabet, Heliabel, Helizabel), and is also concurrently called Amite (Amide, Amides, Anite, Aude, Enite). Her character seems to have been derived from the earlier (and later separate) figure of Percival's sister, and possibly also from that of Arthur's sister. The name "Amite" may furthermore link her to Amice from Meraugis de Portlesguez.
She first appears in the Prose Lancelot, a part of the Vulgate Cycle, as an incredibly beautiful woman named Heliabel but known as Amite (in one spelling variant of these names). Her first significant action is showing the Holy Grail to the near-perfect knight, Sir Lancelot.
In the version as told by Thomas Malory in Le Morte d'Arthur, based on the later Queste part of the Vulgate Cycle, Lady Elaine's father, King Pelles of the Grail castle Corbenic (Corbenek, Corbin, etc.), knew that Lancelot would have a son with Elaine, and that that child would be Galahad, "the most noblest [sic] knight in the world". Moreover, Pelles claims that Galahad will lead a "foreign country...out of danger" and "achieve...the Holy Grail". However, it has been noted that in older manuscripts Elaine is not named as Pelles' daughter, but merely named alongside the latter. The two figures apparently got mixed up by Malory due to a scribal error in his source.
The sorceress Morgan le Fay is jealous of Elaine's beauty, and magically traps her in a boiling bath. After Lancelot rescues her, Elaine falls in love with him, only to find he is already in love with Queen Guinevere and would not knowingly sleep with another woman. In order to seduce Lancelot, Elaine goes to the sorceress Dame Brusen for help. Dame Brusen gives Lancelot wine and Elaine a ring of Guinevere's in order to trick Lancelot into thinking Elaine is Guinevere. The next morning, Lancelot is distraught to discover that the woman he slept with was not Guinevere. He draws his sword and threatens to kill Elaine, but she tells him that she is pregnant with Galahad and he agrees not to kill her, but instead kisses her. Lancelot departs, and Elaine remains in her father's castle and gives birth to Galahad.
Thereafter, Elaine comes to a feast at King Arthur's court. Lancelot ignores her when he sees her, making her sad because she loves him. She complains of this to Brusen, who tells her that she will, as Malory tells, "undertake that this night he [Lancelot] shall lie with [her]". That night, Brusen brings Lancelot to Elaine, pretending that it is Guinevere that summons him. He goes along, and once again is deceived into sleeping with Elaine. At the same time, however, Guinevere herself had summoned Lancelot and is enraged to discover that he is not in his bedchamber. She hears him talking in his sleep, and finds him in bed with Elaine. Guinevere is furious with him and tells him she never wants to see him again. Lancelot goes mad with grief and, naked, jumps out a window and runs away. Elaine confronts Guinevere about treatment of Lancelot; she accuses her of causing Lancelot's madness and tells her that she is being unnecessarily cruel. After this, Elaine leaves court.
Time passes in the story, and Elaine next appears when she finds Lancelot insane in her garden. She brings him to the Grail, which cures him. When he regains his mind, he decides to go under a false name with Elaine to the Isle of Joy, where they live together for several years as husband and wife.
Like the more famous Elaine of Astolat, Elaine of Corbenic is in love with Lancelot, but unlike her she is successful in both bedding and marrying Lancelot. Despite this, she was traditionally overlooked in favor of Elaine of Astolat by literary analysts, perhaps because of the moral ambiguities of her actions.