Wigalois

thumb|Wigalois removing his armor. thumb|250px|Wigalois (on the left, wheel of fortune as shield device) versus heathen dwarf Karrioz (head of a moor/Mohammed on shield). Wigalois is a courtly romance of the Arthurian cycle set down in Middle High German verse by Wirnt von Grafenberg. The title character Wigalois becomes a knight of the Round Table, but he remains not knowing he is the son of Sir Gawain (here Gawein) whom he meets, having spent an upbringing entirely in the care of his mother's royal family, in the otherworldly kingdom, which became undiscoverable to Gawain once he left. The work, written between 1204 and 1220, enjoyed enormous popularity in the Middle Ages, and was printed in (chapbook) format into the early modern period.

The young hero accepts his first adventure and main quest when a female messenger arrives in court (with a dwarf), seeking help for her mistress. The damsel is angered that such an untested novice had been recruited, until the young hero proves his prowess through five side-quest adventures: dispatching a tally of four knights and two giants in the process. The group reaches the castle of Roimunt, which is where the messenger's master, the widowed Queen abides, her husband killed and the rest of the kingdom of Korntin overrun by the heathen lord Roaz of Glois, in league with the devil. Wigalois's quest is now clarified as one of eradicating Roaz and restoring the kingdom, upon which the champion will be recognized as the king, taking princess Larie in marriage (the couple are already in love with each other the first they meet). Wigalois, endowed with a scripted paper amulet for his sword and strength-restoring bread, enters Korntin castle guided by a mysterious beast—a crowned deer-leopard hybrid— who turns out to be the slain King Lar, who reveals to Wigalois his parentage, supplying him with more magic items (protective flower and angel's spear) to first defeat a dragon. Wigalois vanquishes the dragon but is gravely wounded, and a fisherman and his wife rob his armor. He continues on and faces more adversaries, a monstrous forest woman and a powerful heathen dwarf Karrioz. He enters Glois castle after his prayer causes the bladed water-wheel to stop rotating at the gate, and he kills a centaur, two guards, and finally Roaz himself. Wigalois marries Larie in the presence of the Arthurian knights and many guests. There is a further adventure that Wigalois takes up jointly with his father Gawain, avenging the murder of King Amire of Libia (who had been a wedding guest,); the king was murdered by Lion of Namur, who was enamored of the queen; the murder is avenged by Gawein (though Wigalois also took part, since the widowed queen was also second cousin to his bride Larie). Father, son and bride visit Arthur's court, though news arrives during the trip that Wigalois's mother Florie has died. After spending their years back in Korntin, the Wigalois couple have a son, whose fame was also renowned according to the author.