Guinevere
Also known as Gwenevere, Guenevere, Gwenhwyfar, Guanhumara, Gwenhwyvar
Guinevere ( ; ; , ), also often written in Modern English as Guenevere or Guenever, was, according to Arthurian legend, an early-medieval queen of Great Britain and the wife of King Arthur. First mentioned in literature in the early 12th century, nearly 700 years after the purported times of Arthur, Guinevere has since been portrayed as everything from a fatally flawed, villainous, and opportunistic traitor to a noble and virtuous lady. The variably told motif of abduction of Guinevere, or of her being rescued from some other peril, features recurrently and prominently in many versions of the
Key facts
- Character.name
- Guinevere
- Character.image
- Queen Guinevere by James Archer.jpg
- Character.caption
- Guinevere watching the mortally wounded Arthur being sailed off to Avalon in Queen Guinevere by James Archer (c. 1860)
- Character.race
- Giant (some folklore, otherwise human)
- Character.title
- Princess, Queen, Mother Superior
- Character.occupation
- High Queen of Britain Later tradition: Queen of Logres and Britain (or England), convent head
- Character.family
- King Leodegrance (father), Gwenhwyfach (sister)
- Character.spouse
- Arthur, occasionally also Mordred
- Character.significant_other
- Varied, including either Lancelot, Mordred or Yder
- Character.children
- Usually none, occasionally a son with Arthur or children with Mordred
- Character.relatives