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<table align=right><tr><td>[[Image:lancelot3344.jpg|Sir Lancelot, standing in armor with a cape and with visor up, leaning on his sword]]</td></tr></table>

== Archives ==

In the [[Arthurian legend]], '''Sir Lancelot''' ('''Lancelot du Lac''', or '''Lancelot of the Lake'''; also '''Launcelot''') is one of the [[Knights of the Round Table|Knight]]s of the [[Round Table (Camelot)|Round Table]]. In most of the French prose romances and works dependent on them he is characterized as the greatest and most trusted of Arthur's knights, and plays a part in many of Arthur's victories - but Arthur's eventual downfall is also brought about in part by Lancelot, whose affair with Arthur's wife [[Guinevere]] destroys the unity of Arthur's court.

[[User talk:Susvolans/Archive 1|August 2004 to September 2005]]

== Thank you ==

Lancelot is a popular character, and has been the subject of many poems, stories, plays, and films as a famous figure in the Arthurian cycle of romances. To the great majority of English readers the name of no knight of King Arthur's court is so familiar as is that of Sir Lancelot. The mention of Arthur and the Round Table at once brings him to mind to moderns as the most valiant member of that brotherhood and the secret lover of the Queen. Lancelot, however, is not an original member of the cycle, and the development of his story is still a source of considerable disagreement between scholars.

Thank you for speaking up on the behalf of a user you did not even know. I appreciate your efforts for justice. Should you have any lingering concerns, I encourage you to come to my talk page and join the dialog there on what has occured. Discussion is the best way to calm stormy waters. [[User:TheChief|<font color=#0000ff>The</font><font color=#ff7f00>Chief</font>]] [[User_talk:TheChief|(<font color=#0000ff>Pow</font><font color=#ff7f00>Wow</font>)]] 17:30, 3 November 2005 (UTC)

According to legend Lancelot's father is [[King Ban]] of Benoic and his mother is named [[Elaine (legend)|Elaine]]; his illegitimate half-brother is [[Hector de Maris]]. [[King Bors]] is his uncle, and [[Sir Bors]] and [[Sir Lionel]] are his cousins. With the [[Fisher King]]'s daughter [[Elaine (legend)|Elaine]], he becomes the father of [[Galahad]].

==Ignore all rules==

==Lancelot in the Arthurian Legend==

First, obviously, if rule 5 were deleted, it would become four pillars rather than five. I think that any change to the four/five pillars should be well discussed on its talk page first. Failure to do so would be to ignore all rules, which could be seen as [[WP:POINT]].

It is interesting to note that Lancelot does not appear in the earliest existing versions of the Arthurian legends. (See [[Geoffrey of Monmouth]] for an example of one who doesn't mention Lancelot, and [[Chretien de Troyes]] for one who does.) The name ''Lancelot'' is not obviously [[Celtic languages|Celtic]], though attempts have been made to find a possible Celtic origin that might have been corrupted into ''Lancelot'' (such as "Lance ap [[Lot (Arthurian legend)|Lot]]," meaning Lance, son of Lot).

I personally think that the five pillars document is fine, because it says that there are no rules other than those listed, and the writers' rules of engagement are one of the pillars. The real problem is that Ignore All Rules is the wrong summary of the guideline, and is sufficiently wrong as to be a destructive title, because it can easily be read as meaning that one can ignore civility. [[User:Robert McClenon|Robert McClenon]] 18:16, 3 November 2005 (UTC)

===Early prose and poetry===

Thanks Susvolans - I'm just taking baby steps for now [[User:Redkaty|Redkaty]] 14:38, 10 November 2005 (UTC)

Briefly summarized, the outline of his career, as given in the German ''[[Lanzelet]]'' by [[Ulrich von Zatzikhoven]] and the French ''[[Prose Lancelot]]'', is as follows:

==Final decision==

Lancelot was the only child of King [[Ban (mythology)|Ban]] (Pant) of [[Benoic]] (Genewis) and his queen [[Helaine]] (Clarine). While yet an infant, his father was driven from his kingdom, either by a revolt of his subjects, caused by his own harshness (''Lanzelet''), or by the action of his enemy [[Claudas]] de la Deserte ''(Lancelot)''. King and queen fly, carrying the child with them, and while the wife is tending her husband, who dies of a broken heart on his flight, the infant is carried off by a friendly water-fay, the [[Lady of the Lake]], who brings the boy up in her mysterious kingdom. In the German poem this is a veritable &#8220;[[Isle of Maidens]],&#8221; where no man ever enters, and where it is perpetual spring. In the prose Lancelot, on the other hand, the Lake is but a mirage, and the Lady's court does not lack its complement of gallant knights; moreover the boy has the companionship of his cousins, [[Lionel]] and [[Bors]] (sons of his father's younger brother Bors), who, like himself, have been driven from their kingdom by Claudas. When he reaches the customary age (fifteen or eighteen by different texts and calculations), the young Lancelot, suitably equipped, is sent out into the world. In both versions his name and parentage are unknown to him. In the ''Lanzelet'' he also lacks of all knightly accomplishments (not unnatural when we remember he has here been brought up entirely by women) and his inability to handle a steed are insisted upon. Here he rides forth in search of what adventure may bring. In the prose Lancelot he goes with a fitting escort and equipment to Arthur's court where the Lady of the Lake asks that he be knighted.

The arbitration committee has reached a final decision in the [[Wikipedia:Requests for arbitration/Louis Epstein]] case [[User:Raul654|&rarr;Raul654]] 02:12, 12 November 2005 (UTC)

== [[Wikipedia:Neutral point of view]] ==

The subsequent adventures differ widely, but in both tales he rides about the land accompanied by a woman who later abandons him and in both he eventually learns his true name and lineage. In both he eventually regains his rightful heritage peaceably because none dares stand against him. But in the Prose ''Lancelot'' the tale is stretched out by a war of Claudas against the Knights of the Round Table in which neither side gains the upper hand until word comes that Arthur and Lancelot themselves are coming with reinforcements. Claudas immediately flees alone into exile.

Regarding the [http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wikipedia:Neutral_point_of_view&curid=39805&diff=28415528&oldid=28413773 revert; the claim that all five pillars are unchangeable has no foundation in policy], why is it there then? Is the [[Wikipedia:Five pillars]], wrong? -- [[User:Zondor|Zondor]] 17:42, 15 November 2005 (UTC)

In ''Lanzelet'' the hero then reigns in peace over a land inherited though his wife Iblis (while King Ban's kingdom his ruled by an uncle) and both Lancelot and his wife live to see their children's children, and dying on the same day, in good old fairy-tale fashion. In fact, the whole of ''Lanzelet'' has much more the character of [[folklore]] than that of a knightly romance.

== Updated poll ==

In the prose version, Lancelot, from his first appearance at court, conceives a passion for the queen, who is very considerably his senior, his birth taking place some time after her marriage to Arthur. This infatuation colours all his later career. He frees her from imprisonment in the castle of [[Meleagant]], who kidnapped her against her will &#8212; (a similar adventure is related in ''Lanzelet'', where he fights a duel against a would-be abductor Valerin, but when Valerin later succeeds in taking the queen, Lanzelet is not the rescuer). Although he recovers his kingdom from Claudas, he prefers to remain a simple knight of Arthur's court along with his cousins and illegitimate half-brother [[Hector de Maris]] who also refuse to retire from knighthood to take on lordship. Tricked into a liaison with the [[Fisher King]]'s daughter (called [[Elaine (legend)|Elaine]] in a few later texts), he becomes the father of [[Galahad]], the [[Holy Grail|Grail]] winner, and, as a result of the queen's jealous anger at his relations with the lady, goes mad (for the third time), and remains an exile from the court for some years. He takes part, fruitlessly, in the Grail quest, being granted only a fleeting glimpse of the sacred Vessel, which, however, is sufficient to cast him into unconsciousness, in which he remains for as many days as he has spent years in sin. Finally, his relations with Guenevere are revealed to Arthur by the sons of [[Lot (Arthurian legend)|King Lot]], Gawain and Gaheriet (in Malory Gawayne and Gareth) taking no part in the disclosure. Surprised together with the queen, Lancelot escapes, and the queen is condemned to be burnt alive. As the sentence is about to be carried into execution Lancelot and his kinsmen come to her rescue, but in the fight that ensues many of Arthur's knights, including three of Gawain's brothers, are slain. Thus converted into an enemy, Gawain urges his uncle to make war on Lancelot, and there follows a desperate struggle between Arthur and the race of Ban. This is interrupted by an invasion of Gaul by the Romans. But no sooner has Arthur defeated the Romans then there comes tidings of [[Mordred]]'s treachery. Lancelot, taking no part in the last fatal conflict, outlives both king and queen, and the downfall of the Round Table. Finally, retiring to a hermitage, he ends his days in the odour of sanctity.

I have completely changed the poll. Please see [[Wikipedia talk:Naming conventions (years in titles)/Poll]] --[[User:AllyUnion|AllyUnion]] [[User talk:AllyUnion|(talk)]] 02:39, 17 November 2005 (UTC)

== curly quotes ==

The process whereby the independent hero of the ''Lanzelet'' (who, though his mother is Arthur's sister, has but the slightest connection with the British king), the faithful husband of Iblis, became converted into the principal ornament of Arthur's court, and the devoted lover of the queen, is by no means easy to follow, nor do other works of the cycle explain the transformation. In the pseudo-chronicles, the ''Historia'' of Geoffrey and the translations by [[Robert Wace]] and [[Layamon]], Lancelot does not appear at all; the queen's lover, whose guilty passion is fully returned as far as are told, is Mordred.

May I ask why you moved [["—All You Zombies—"]] to [[“—All You Zombies—”]]? &mdash; [[User:Flamingspinach|flamingspinach]] | [[User_talk:Flamingspinach|(talk)]] 06:13, 21 November 2005 (UTC)

[[Chrétien de Troyes]]' treatment of Lancelot is contradictory; in ''[[Erec and Enide]]'', his earliest extant poem, Lancelot's name appears as third on the list of the knights of Arthur's court. (Of course [[Gawain]] is first and Erec, the hero of the tale, is second, so third position indicates Lancelot's general high status.) In ''[[Cligés]]'' Lancelot again ranks as third, just behind the hero of the poem and Gawain. In ''[[Le Chevalier de la Charrette]]'', however, which followed ''Clig&eacute;s'', Lancelot is the hero of the poem and so now of course the best knight of the court and also lover of the queen; this is precisely the position he occupies in the prose romance, where, indeed, the section dealing with this adventure is, as [[Gaston Paris]] clearly proved, an almost literal adaptation of Chr&eacute;tien's poem. The subject of the poem is the rescue of the queen from her abductor [[Meleagant]]; and what makes the matter more perplexing is that Chr&eacute;tien handles the situation as one with which his hearers are already familiar; it is Lancelot, and not Arthur or another, to whom the office of rescuer naturally belongs. In ''[[Perceval, le Conte du Graal]]'', Chr&eacute;tien's last work, he does not appear at all, and yet much of the action passes at Arthur's court. [[Image:Lancelotdulac.jpg|thumb|200px|Lancelot fighting the lions, from a medieval illumination.]]

== class="wikitable" ==

In the Continuations added at various times to Chr&eacute;tien's unfinished work the role assigned to Lancelot is equally modest. Among the fifteen knights selected by Arthur to accompany him to [[Chastel Orguellous]] he only ranks ninth. In a Tristran episode inserted by [[Gerbert de Montreuil]] in his continuation, Lancelot is just one of the knights publicly overthrown and shamed by [[Tristan]].

I wouldn't know how, but why would you want to anyway? [[User:Bluemoose|Martin]] 14:32, 22 November 2005 (UTC)

Nowhere outside of ''Le Chevalier de la Charette'' is Lancelot treated with anything approaching the importance assigned to him in the prose romances. [[Wales|Welsh]] tradition does not know him ([[Roger Sherman Loomis]] posited that Lancelot derived from the character Lloch Llawwynnyawc or Lugh Llenlleawg found in ''[[Culhwch and Olwen]]'' and referenced in the poems ''[[Pa Gur]]'' and ''[[Preiddeu Annwfn]]'', and could be traced back to [[Llew Llaw Gyffesthe]] or even the [[Celtic mythology|Celtic god]] [[Lugh]] or [[Lugus]], but this view is no longer widely accepted). Nor do early [[Italy|Italian]] records, which have preserved the names of Arthur and Gawain, have any reference to Lancelot. What appears to be the most probable solution is that Lancelot was the hero of an independent and widely diffused folk-tale, which, owing to certain special circumstances, was brought into contact with, and incorporated in, the Arthurian tradition. This much has been proved certain of the adventures recounted in the ''Lanzelet''; the theft of an infant by a water-fairy; the appearance of the hero three consecutive days, in three different disguises, at a tournament; the rescue of a queen, or princess, from an Other-World prison, all belong to one well known and widely-spread folk-tale, variants of which are found in almost every land, and of which numerous examples have been collected alike by Mr Cosquin in his ''Contes Lorrains'', and by Mr J.F. Campbell in his ''Tales of the West Highlands''.

:Aha, so you mean find occurances where it was expanded when it used [http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Template:Prettytable&oldid=23029079 this] revision of the prettytable. In which case the only way I think you could find them would be to get someone to use an SQL query on the database dump, but I don't know how successful that would be. At the moment I am not capable of doing this, but plently of other people are. [[User:Bluemoose|Martin]] 16:10, 22 November 2005 (UTC)

The story of the loves of Lancelot and [[Guinevere]], as related by Chr&eacute;tien, has about it nothing spontaneous and genuine; in no way can it be compared with the story of [[Tristan]] and [[Iseult]]. It is the exposition of a relation governed by artificial and arbitrary rules, to which the principal actors in the drama must perforce conform. Chr&eacute;tien states that he composed the poem (which he left to be completed by [[Godefroi de Leigni]]) at the request of the countess [[Marie de Champagne]], who provided him with ''matière et san''. Marie was the daughter of [[Louis VII of France]] and of [[Eleanor of Aquitaine]], subsequently wife of [[Henry II of England|Henry II]] of [[Anjou]] and England. It is a matter of history that both mother and daughter were active agents in fostering that view of the social relations of the sexes which found its most famous expression in the &#8220;Courts of Love,&#8221; and which was responsible for the dictum that love between husband and wife was impossible. The logical conclusion appears to be that the Charrette poem is a ''Tendenz-Schrift'', composed under certain special conditions, in response to a special demand. The story of Tristan and Iseult, immensely popular as it was, was too genuine to satisfy the taste of the court for which Chr&eacute;tien was writing. Moreover, the Arthurian story was the popular story of the day, and Tristan did not belong to the magic circle, though he was ultimately introduced, within its bounds. The Arthurian cycle must have its own love-tale; Guenevere, the leading lady of that cycle, could not be behind the courtly ladies of the day and lack a lover; one had to be found for her. Lancelot, already popular hero of a tale in which an adventure parallel to that of the Charrette figured prominently, was pressed into the service. [[Mordred]], Guenevere's earlier lover, being too unsympathetic a character; moreover, was required for the final role of traitor.

But to whom is the story to be assigned? Here we must distinguish between the Lancelot proper and the Lancelot/Guenevere versions; so far as the latter are concerned, we cannot get behind the version of Chr&eacute;tien. Nowhere, prior to the composition of the ''Chevalier de la Charrette'' is there any evidence of the existence of such a story. Yet Chr&eacute;tien does not claim to have invented the situation. Did it spring from the fertile brain of some court lady, Marie, or another? The authorship of the [[Prose Lancelot|Lancelot]] proper, on the other hand, is invariably ascribed to [[Walter Map]], the chancellor of [[Henry II of England|Henry II]], but so also are the majority of the Arthurian prose romances. Some therefore accept Map as the possible author of a Lancelot romance, which formed the basis for later developments, and there is a growing tendency to identify this hypothetical original Lancelot with the source of the German ''Lanzelet''. The author, [[Ulrich von Zatzikhoven]], tells us that he translated his poem from a French (''welsches'') book in the possession of [[Hugo de Morville]], one of the English hostages, who, in [[1194]], replaced [[Richard Coeur de Lion]] in the prison of [[Leopold V of Austria (Babenberg)|Leopold V of Austria]]. Further evidence on the point is, unfortunately, not at present forthcoming.

To the student of the earliest medieval Arthurian romances Lancelot is an infinitely less interesting hero than Gawain, [[Perceval]] or Tristan, each of whom possesses a well-marked personality, and is the center of what we may call individual adventures. Saving and excepting the incident of his being stolen and brought up by a water-fairy (from a ''Lai'' relating which adventure the whole story probably started), there is absolutely nothing much in the material common to the French and German tales to distinguish him from any other romantic hero of the period.

But in the ''[[Perlesvaus]]'', possibly the earliest French prose Arthurian romance, Lancelot's love affair with Guenevere suddenly re-emerges and Lancelot plays a part in this Grail romance almost equal to that of Perceval the hero and Gawain. But Lancelot in this romance, unlike Perceval, Gawain and Arthur, never sees the Grail.

The language of the prose ''Lancelot'' itself is good, easy and graceful, but except for the earlier sections involving Lancelot and his friend Galehot, most of Lancelot's own adventures lack originality and interest. Situations repeat themselves in a most wearisome manner. English readers, who know the story only through the medium of [[Malory]]'s noble prose and [[Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson|Tennyson]]'s melodious verse, carry away an impression entirely foreign to that produced by a study of the original literature as they are familiar with some of the better episodes. The Lancelot story, in its rise and development, belongs exclusively to the later stage of Arthurian romance; it was a story for the court, not for the folk, and it lacks alike the dramatic force and human appeal of the genuine &#8220;popular&#8221; tale.

The prose ''Lancelot'' was frequently printed; [[J.C. Brunet]] chronicles editions of [[1488]], [[1494]], [[1513]], [[1520]] and [[1533]]; of this last date there are two, one published by Jehan Petit, the other by Philippe Lenoire, this last by far the better, being printed from a much fuller manuscript. There is no critical edition, and the only version available for the general reader is the modernized and abridged text published by Paulin Paris in vols. iii. to v. of ''[[Romans de la Table Ronde]]''. A [[Dutch language|Dutch]] verse translation of the 13th century was published by M. W. J.A. Jonckbloet in 1850, under the title of ''[[Roman van Lanceleet]]''. This only begins with what Paulin Paris terms the [[Agravain section]], all the part previous which contained Guenevere's rescue from Meleagant having been lost; but the text is an excellent one, agreeing closely with the Lenoire edition of 1533. The Books devoted by Malory to Lancelot are also drawn from this latter section of the romance; there is no sign that the English translator had any of the earlier part before him. Malory's version of the Charrette adventure differs in many respects from any other extant form, and the source of this special section of his work is still a question of debate among scholars.

===Modern Interpretations===

In the modern world interpretations of Lancelot have varied with him most stereotypically being portrayed in novels and film as a near perfect warrior, skilled, handsome, and charismatic.

[[T.H. White]]'s ''[[Once and Future King]]'' retelling of the Arthurian legends portrays him very differently. In White's work Lancelot is introverted and has difficulty dealing with people. He is also described as being immensely ugly.

In [[John Boorman]]'s [[1981]] film, ''Excalibur'', Lancelot is portrayed much in the same manner as in Malory, but carries out actions usually assigned to other knights. Like [[Tristam]] he is sent to escort the king's betrothed and falls in love with her on the way. In this version, as in most films, Guinevere and Arthur are the same age as Lancelot. When Arthur first meets Lancelot the two fight and [[Excalibur]] is broken. This reflects Arthur's fight with King [[Pellinore]] in Malory. Later, Arthur discovers the lovers in a forest, but spares them, leaving Excalibur standing between their bodies (again, from the legends of Tristram and Isolde). Lancelot is driven mad by remorse, and lives as a wild man during the quest for the [[Holy Grail|Grail]]. Later, he reemerges during the final battle at [[Camlann]], where he dies, reconciled with Arthur.

In [[Marion Zimmer Bradley]]'s ''[[The Mists of Avalon]]'', Lancelot is a bisexual whose love of Guinevere is (at least partly) fueled by his hidden lust for Arthur.

In [[Bernard Cornwell]]´s ''[[The Warlord Chronicles]]'', Lancelot is portrayed as a cowardly traitor.

In [[Roger Zelazny]]'s ''The Last Defender of Camelot'' Lancelot had been made immortal by [[Merlin]]'s magic. When Merlin contacts Lancelot to revive Arthur in the [[20th Century]] he finds that the centuries have made him wiser and more cynical.

In the [[1975]] comedy film ''[[Monty Python and the Holy Grail]]'', '''Sir Lancelot the Brave''' (played by [[John Cleese]]) is a marvelously violent knight known to attack castle walls, farm animals, wedding guests, and flowers. In the [[2005]] [[Broadway]] version of this film, ''[[Spamalot]]'', Lancelot's quest leads him to discover that he is [[gay]].

In the [[1995]] film, ''[[First Knight]]'', Lancelot ([[Richard Gere]]), comes to the court of King Arthur ([[Sean Connery]]) as a fearless, [[freelance]] fighter. He rescues Guinevere ([[Julia Ormond]]) from [[Meleagant|Sir Malagant's]] brigands early in the film and falls in love with her at their first meeting. Following the death of Arthur, Lancelot and Guinevere marry and rule the kingdom justly.

In the [[2004]] film, ''[[King Arthur (film)|King Arthur]]'', Lancelot is portrayed as an [[atheist]], in contrast to Arthur, who is a devout [[Catholic]]. Notably, he dies at the end, before Arthur even becomes king (as do most of the other knights).

==See also==

*''[[Lancelot du Lac (film)|Lancelot du Lac]]'', a film by [[Robert Bresson]].

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