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King Pellinore

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

King Pellinore/ˈpɛlɪnɔːr/(alternativelyPellinor,Pellynoreand other variants) is the king ofListenoise(possibly theLake District) or of "the Isles" (possiblyAnglesey,or perhapsthe medieval kingdom of the same name) inArthurian legend.In the tradition from theOld Frenchprose, he is associated with theQuesting Beastand is the slayer ofKing Lot.His many children include the sonsAglovale,Lamorak,andPercival,and the daughterDindrane.

In medieval literature

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Pellinor'sattributed arms

Pellinore is a major figure in the 13th-centuryPost-Vulgateprose cycle and the sections ofThomas Malory'sLe Morte d'Arthurbased on it. There, as son of King Pellam and brother of Kings Pelles (theFisher King) and Alain, he is most famous for his endless hunt of theQuesting Beast,which he is tracking whenKing Arthurfirst meets him. Though he claims his bloodline is destined perpetually to chase this bizarre monster, SirPalamedestheSaracentakes up the quest, and, according to one version, slays the beast.

Pellinore beats King Arthur after three jousts and breaks the sword Arthur had withdrawn from the stone (in some versions this isExcalibur,though he gets another sword of that name from theLady of the Lakesoon after).Merlinthrows a spell of enchantment on Pellinore to save Arthur's life. Arthur praises Pellinore's skill, and they soon become friends, with Arthur inviting him to join theRound Table.Pellinore then helps Arthur in his early wars against rebelling vassals, but when he killsKing LotofOrkneyduring the Battle of Tarabel (or Dimilioc), he sparks a blood feud between his and Lot's family that results in his death byGawainand his brothers and the deaths of many others.

Pellinore was said to have been of the royal line ofJoseph of Arimathea,whose dynasty guards theHoly Grail,according to Arthurian lore. In theLivre d'Artus,Pellinore is called the "Maimed King"after being wounded by a holy spear, having doubted the powers of the Grail.

"King Pellinore and the Damsel at the Well",Francis Arthur Fraser's illustration for Henry Frith'sKing Arthur & His Knights of the Round Table(1884)

Pellinore has many legitimate and illegitimate children. His sonsTor,Aglovale,Lamorak,Dornar,andPercivalall eventually join the Round Table as well. It is Percival, who was one of the first Grail seekers, and his grand nephew,Galahad,who finally succeeds in the quest. His daughter,Percival's sister,sometimes known as Dindrane, becomes a servant of the Grail and helps them achieve the mystical objective as the "Grail heroine". Another of his daughters, Alyne, dies early when he, not knowing it is her, ignores her pleas for help while hurrying to retrieveNimuefrom her abductor at the behest of Arthur.[1]

In modern fiction

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  • InT. H. White'sThe Once and Future King,he is a bumbling but endearing old man who cannot give up his search for the "Questin' Beast" lest the poor creature die of loneliness. He also tends to say the word "what" after his sentences (Merlyn makes fun of him by stating: "…Or, if I were King Pellinore, I would say 'what what, what?'" ) In White's novel, Pellinore is vengefully put to death by Sir Gawain and/or his brothers, for unintentionally killing their father, King Lot of Orkney, in ajoustingmatch.
    • He appears in the 1963Walt Disney Studiosfilm adaptation ofThe Sword in the Stone,where he is voiced by actorAlan Napier,and his name being spelled as Pelinore.[2]A friend ofSir Ector,he announces the jousting tournament that will be held in London, with the winner being crowned king. Pelinore is mild-mannered, and wise, appalled at the idea ofKaybeing king due to his bitter nature. He is one of the first to recognise the sword pulled by Arthur from the stone. He, also along with another knight, Sir Bart, stands up for Arthur, and encourages the boy to successfully remove the sword from the stone.
  • In the musicalCamelot,Pellinore (or "Pelly", as he is often called by Arthur) is a comical, much-loved, permanent guest of Arthur and Guinevere. He is however, somewhat unsure of Arthur's new ideas for a new order of chivalry, being against "...anynew ideas "on principle. Pellinore is still with Arthur before Arthur fights his final battle at the end of the play/film; and when Arthur knights the young boy" Tom of Warwick ".
  • InBernard Cornwell'sThe Warlord Chronicles,Pellinore is represented as an old mad man, kept in a cage and commanding imaginary armies. After KingGundleus' sacking of the Tor at Ynys Wydryn (Avalon), Pellinore is retrieved from the Tor by Arthur's men and taken to Caer Cadarn, where he is locked in a store room. While there,Owainargues that he should be sent to the Isle of the Dead, however when Arthur decides to rebuild the Tor, Pellinore is sent back withNimueandMorganto continue his life as before.

References

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  1. ^"Le Morte d'Arthur: Volume 1".
  2. ^"The Sword in the Stone | Disney Movies".movies.disney.com.Archived fromthe originalon 2 August 2019.Retrieved2 August2019.
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