HISTORICAL NOTE

To be very frank, I got the idea of doing this while reading 'The Heart of Camelot' by Storyteller Knight. I loved her Guinevere (who is very different from mine), but disliked how Arthur does not get what he deserves (in my opinion).

The entire Arthurian saga started when two travelers stopped at a tavern to rest and spend the night there. Back then, seeing as there were no televisions or radio, entertainment came in the form of bards, who sang tales of great heroes or heroines while playing an instrument called a rebec.

The bard in the tavern was singing a tale of one Arthur, a supposed king of Britain some two hundred years before. He sang of his Round Table, his brave knights, and the tasks these knights faced and, in the end, achieved. While the rest of the tavern listened gravely, our two travelers laughed.

Were they surprised when their laughter caused them to be chased out of the tavern by angry townspeople. Rotten tomatoes and meat flew at them and were followed by furious threats.

The two travelers had underestimated the influence of the great Arthur.

The traditional Arthurian story goes something like this:

When Ambrosias Aurelianus died, he left his bastard son (or somehow related) Uther on the throne of Britain. Uther, having his eye on Lady Igraine, wife of Duke Gorlois of Cornwall for some time, asks a close friend, Merlin, for some help. As Uther wars against Gorlois for Igraine, she stays in the castle of Cornwall.

Merlin, knowing this, casts a spell on Uther that makes him look like Gorlois. Uther passes the guard of the castle and enters the Lady's room. Some stories have him bedding her still in the disguise of Gorlois and others have him reveal his true self but Igraine beds him anyway. Whatever happens, Igraine conceives his child during this night.

Uther wins and by right of conquest (or by right of love if Igraine is in on his plan), he marries Igraine before the baby is born. Eventually, Igraine does find out that it is his baby that she will give birth to.

Arthur.

This is where the story splits.

One variant has Merlin hiding Arthur away from Uther's enemies at Sir Ector's house. Uther dies a few years after Arthur's birth. We eventually find out that Arthur was really Uther's son and heir when he pulls out Excalibur out of the stone while it was being displayed outside a tournament in which Kay, his foster-brother was taking part of. Merlin makes an entrance, pronounces Arthur the true King, and sees to Arthur's coronation.

The second, possibly truer variant, is that Arthur was actually fostered by Sir Ector. A prince being fostered was custom back then. Uther passes away. Merlin shows up and makes Arthur king. A few days after Arthur's coronation, Merlin takes him to a certain lake, where, as they're riding a small boat, a hand comes out. It's holding a sword. A voice booms out, asking Arthur if he swears to defend the weak and never abuse his and the sword's power. He so swears. The sword Excalibur, along with its sheath, which has magical powers that make sure Arthur never gets hurt in battle.

His half-sister, Morgan, unfortunately, steals this sheath. Some say this is because Morgan was jealous of Arthur while others say that Arthur had betrayed Avalon, where this sword was made and it was Morgan's duty to take the sheath away.

Yet another variant says that Arthur was not a king at all. He was just a warlord or a guerilla who led troops against the raiding Saxons. His sword was much feared as it brought imminent death to his enemy.

There is something that almost no traditional story disagrees with. That Arthur was a great leader of his people, whoever they may be. He was just, a defender of the weak, and a usurper of the evil.

The Round Table was either given to Arthur as dowry or given to Arthur by Merlin or is inherited by Arthur or Arthur has it made when he sees that his allies are fighting for spots at his rectangular table.

The Knights of the Round Table are infamous. Their glory, their valor, and their courage have never been forgotten.

The stories of Arthur and his men are like a web of a spider. Intricate, delicate, complex. Just when you think you've unraveled the path of a strand, you see how others weave into it or how it weaves into others. You might even find things that you did not see at your first glance. You see how they are all connected, yet you see the beauty and individuality of each thread. The importance of each piece is clearly visible.

There are two possible weavers of this web. Merlin, obviously, was one. His helper (although she most often doesn't know it) has almost always been Arthur's beloved queen.

Guinevere.

She first caught Arthur's attention while he was walking in her father's garden. She was playing with her maidens while Arthur stared at the spirit and loveliness that was Guinevere.

Her father is traditionally Leodegrance.

I first saw Guinevere as Merlin's daughter in the movie, Arthur. Of course, we all know what a goldmine of truth Hollywood is… The setup fit my character well. Another battle was settled by this movie: a note near the end of the movie said that historians had found evidence that Artorius (Arthur) was real. They had apparently found bones that match description with him and documents that suggest that these bones belonged the famous warlord, and perhaps king, Artorius.

Guinevere is perhaps the most debated character in Arthurian texts. While the earlier stories said that she was faithful to Arthur, modern stories say that she betrayed Arthur and had an affair with Lancelot, one of Arthur's best knights and best friends.

I did not like how Arthur, the hero of many, the wise, sweet, charming man ended up with a treacherous woman.

Some describe her as a foolish, greedy woman while others say that she was as wise and fair as Arthur. Some call her stout and plain while others call her tall and beautiful. Some think that she coupled with Mordred, Arthur's bastard son born of incest, to bring doom to Arthur while others argue that Mordred was not evil at all and Guinevere would never help him. Some say that she was as orthodox as a Christian could get but many argue: she was a pagan!

Somehow, all agree that she was magnificent.

If she was truly a foolish woman, she was a magnificent idol to the foolish; were she brave, she was magnificent to the courageous. If she was a beautiful woman who had the skills of a leader, she was magnificent to all.

As for my stubborn, proud, hot-tempered yet soft Guinevere, she is utterly magnificent to me.