Leodegrance
Encyclopedia
King Leodegrance ˈliːoʊdɨɡræns (sometimes Leondegrance or some other minor variation) is the father of Queen Guinevere
in Arthurian legend. His kingdom of Carmelide (or Cameliard) is sometimes identified with a location somewhere in the southwest of England, but may be located in Breton Cornouaille
near the town of Carhaix, which is the Carhaise of L'Histoire de Merlin
(13th century).
Leodegrance had served Uther Pendragon
, King Arthur
's biological father and regnal predecessor. Leodegrance was entrusted with the keeping of the Round Table
at Uther's death. When Guinevere marries Arthur, Leodegrance gives the young king the table as a wedding present. In later romance Leodegrance is one of the few kings who accept Arthur as his overlord. For this, his land is invaded by the rebel King Rience
, but Arthur comes to his rescue and expels the enemy. Arthur meets Guinevere for the first time during this excursion, and they develop a love that eventually results in their fateful marriage.
According to the Lancelot–Grail Cycle, Leodegrance fathered a second daughter out of wedlock; he also names this child Guinevere. The "False Guinevere" later treacherously convinces Arthur's court that she is his real wife and her sister is an impostor, forcing the real queen and her lover Lancelot
into hiding with their friend Galehaut
. Guinevere eventually returns and reclaims her throne.
In Welsh mythology
the father of Gwenhwyfar (Guinevere) is the giant Ogyruan/Ogyrvan or Gogyrfan, who is mentioned in a number of Middle Welsh texts.
Guinevere
Guinevere was the legendary queen consort of King Arthur. In tales and folklore, she was said to have had a love affair with Arthur's chief knight Sir Lancelot...
in Arthurian legend. His kingdom of Carmelide (or Cameliard) is sometimes identified with a location somewhere in the southwest of England, but may be located in Breton Cornouaille
Cornouaille
Cornouaille is a historic region in Brittany, in northwest France. The name is identical to the French name for the Duchy of Cornwall, since the area was settled by migrant princes from Cornwall...
near the town of Carhaix, which is the Carhaise of L'Histoire de Merlin
Post-Vulgate Cycle
The Post-Vulgate Cycle is one of the major Old French prose cycles of Arthurian literature. It is essentially a rehandling of the earlier Vulgate Cycle , with much left out and much added, including characters and scenes from the Prose Tristan.The Post-Vulgate, written probably between 1230 and...
(13th century).
Leodegrance had served Uther Pendragon
Uther Pendragon
Uther Pendragon is a legendary king of sub-Roman Britain and the father of King Arthur.A few minor references to Uther appear in Old Welsh poems, but his biography was first written down by Geoffrey of Monmouth in his Historia Regum Britanniae , and Geoffrey's account of the character was used in...
, 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...
's biological father and regnal predecessor. Leodegrance was entrusted with the keeping of the Round Table
Round Table (Camelot)
The Round Table is King Arthur's famed table in the Arthurian legend, around which he and his Knights congregate. As its name suggests, it has no head, implying that everyone who sits there has equal status. The table was first described in 1155 by Wace, who relied on previous depictions of...
at Uther's death. When Guinevere marries Arthur, Leodegrance gives the young king the table as a wedding present. In later romance Leodegrance is one of the few kings who accept Arthur as his overlord. For this, his land is invaded by the rebel King Rience
Rience
King Rience is a character from Arthurian legend, an enemy of King Arthur in the early years of his reign...
, but Arthur comes to his rescue and expels the enemy. Arthur meets Guinevere for the first time during this excursion, and they develop a love that eventually results in their fateful marriage.
According to the Lancelot–Grail Cycle, Leodegrance fathered a second daughter out of wedlock; he also names this child Guinevere. The "False Guinevere" later treacherously convinces Arthur's court that she is his real wife and her sister is an impostor, forcing the real queen and her lover 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...
into hiding with their friend Galehaut
Galehaut
Galehaut , Sire des Lointaines Isles appears for the first time in Arthurian literature in the early-thirteenth-century prose Lancelot, the central work in the series of anonymous French prose romances collectively called the Lancelot-Grail or Arthurian Vulgate Cycle...
. Guinevere eventually returns and reclaims her throne.
In Welsh mythology
Welsh mythology
Welsh mythology, the remnants of the mythology of the pre-Christian Britons, has come down to us in much altered form in medieval Welsh manuscripts such as the Red Book of Hergest, the White Book of Rhydderch, the Book of Aneirin and the Book of Taliesin....
the father of Gwenhwyfar (Guinevere) is the giant Ogyruan/Ogyrvan or Gogyrfan, who is mentioned in a number of Middle Welsh texts.