Matter of Britain The Matter of Britain is a name given collectively to the legends that concern the Celtic and legendary history of the British Isles, centering around King Arthur and the knights of the Round Table. The twelfth century French poet Jean Bodel created the name in a chanson de geste he wrote, the Chanson de Saisnes, in which appear the lines: Ne sont que iij matières à nul homme atandant, De France et de Bretaigne, et de Rome la grant. (There are but 3 literary cycles that no one should be without: the matter of France, of Britain, and of great Rome.) The name distinguishes and relates the Matter of Britain from the mythological themes taken from classical antiquity, the "matter of Rome," and the tales of the paladins of Charlemagne and their wars with the Moors and Saracens, which constituted the "matter of France." While Arthur is the chief subject of the Matter of Britain, other lesser-known legendary history of the British Isles, including Brutus of Britain, Old King Cole, King Lear, and Gogmagog is also included in the subjects covered by the Matter of Britain: see King of the Britons. Outline Two larger stories intermesh in the Matter of Britain. One concerns Camelot, usually envisioned as a doomed utopia of chivalric virtue, undone by the fatal flaws of Arthur and Sir Lancelot. The other concerns the quests of the various knights to achieve the Holy Grail; some succeed (Galahad, Parsifal), and others fail (Lancelot). The mediaeval tale of Arthur and his knights is full of Christian themes; those themes involve the destruction of human plans for virtue by the moral failures of their authors, and the quest for an important Christian relic. Finally, the relationships between the characters invited treatment in the tradition of courtly love, such as Lancelot and Guinevere, or Tristan and Isolde. In more recent years, the trend has been to attempt to link the tales of King Arthur and his knights with Celtic mythology, usually in highly romanticized, early twentieth century reconstructed versions. Characters and subjects Arthur and his entourage King Arthur the Round Table Guinevere, wife of Arthur Excalibur, Arthur's magic sword Uther Pendragon, father of Arthur Camelot, Arthur's capital Mordred, Arthur's heir and enemy Avalon, Arthur's resting place Knights of the Round Table Lancelot Galahad Tristan Gawain Percival Bors Other important figures Merlin Morgan le Fay The Green Knight Noteworthy authors Geoffrey of Monmouth Chrétien de Troyes Marie de France Sir Thomas Malory Wace Edmund Spenser Michael Drayton John Milton Alfred, Lord Tennyson T. H. White Mary Stewart Marion Zimmer Bradley See also Holy Grail Corineus Glastonbury Mons Badonicus chivalry The Faerie Queene List of Arthurian Characters Sites and places associated with Arthurian legend Historical basis for King Arthur External link Timeless Myths - Arthurian Legends FAVORITE ARTICLES: History of the World    History of the United States    History of Europe    Ancient History    History    Military History    World War I    Bombing of Dresden    California    US Constitution    Frank Sinatra    Boston    Marbury v. Madison This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License at http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html You may copy and modify it as long as the entire work (including additions) remains under this license. You must provide a link to http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html To view or edit this article at Wikipedia go to http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matter_of_Britain