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Elaine is a name shared by several different female characters in Arthurian legend.

Elaine of Astolat

Elaine of Astolat, also known as Elaine the Fair or the Fair Maid of Astolat (and as The Lady of Shalott in the eponymous poem), is a maiden daughter of the lord of Astolat. She falls in unrequited love with Sir Lancelot, leading to her death of sorrow.

Elaine of Benoic

Elaine of Benoic (Elene, Helaine, Helayne, Helene) is wife of King Ban and birth mother of Lancelot, descended from the biblical kings David and Solomon. Her sister is Evaine, wife of King Bors of Gaunnes and mother of Sir Lionel and Sir Bors. Following the conquest of their kingdom of Benoic (Benwick) by King Claudas, the death of her husband, and the taking of Lancelot by the Lady of the Lake, Elaine becomes known as the Queen of Great Sorrows, living as a nun with her sister Evaine.

In the alternate version from the Italian rewrite Tavola Ritonda, the queen is named Gostanza and she dies of distress just few days after Ban's death and Lancelot's premature birth. The early and even more distinctive Lanzelet calls the hero's mother Clarine and makes her a sister of Arthur.

Elaine of Corbenic

Elaine of Corbenic (also known as Amite, Heliaebel, Helaine, Perevida or Helizabel; identified as "The Grail Maiden" or "Grail Bearer" due to her connection to the Holy Grail) is daughter of King Pelles of Corbenic, descended from Joseph of Arimathea. Elaine becomes mother of Galahad after raping Lancelot.

Elaine of Garlot

Elaine of Garlot (or Elaine of Tintagel), originally known as Blasine (Blaasine, Basyne) in French romances, is the daughter of Gorlois, Duke of Cornwall, and Igraine. She is a sister of Morgan le Fay and Morgause and a half-sister of King Arthur. She marries King Nentres of Garlot and has a son named Galeschin, who becomes a Knight of the Round Table, and a daughter named Elaine the Younger.

Elaine the Peerless

Elaine the Peerless (Elaine sans Pere, Helaine the Peerless, Helayn Withouten Pere, Heleine sans Pair, Heliene sans Per) is niece of the Lord of the Fens and wife of Persides the Red. She is introduced in the Vulgate Lancelot wherein she is freed from her captivity in her husband's castle by Hector de Maris.

Others

• Elaine the daughter of King Nentres (the Didot-Perceval casts her as a child of King Lot). A niece of King Arthur who falls in love with Perceval.

• Eleine the daughter of King Pellinore. She kills herself after the death of her lover Sir Miles of the Laundes. Some modern works such as The Mists of Avalon combine or conflate her with Elaine of Corbenic, due to their shared name and the similarity of their fathers' names.

See also

• List of Arthurian characters

References

1. Bruce, Christopher W. (1999). The Arthurian Name Dictionary. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-0-8153-2865-0.
2. "Elaine | British legendary figure". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 17 August 2021.
3. Wilson, Robert H. (1943). "Malory's Naming of Minor Characters". The Journal of English and Germanic Philology. 42 (3): 364–385. ISSN 0363-6941. JSTOR 27705008.
4. Wilson, Robert H. (1943). "Malory's Naming of Minor Characters". The Journal of English and Germanic Philology. 42 (3): 364–385. ISSN 0363-6941. JSTOR 27705008.

Sources

• University of Idaho, 1997. Web. 04/1999. “The Elaines.”

• Arthurian characters
• King Arthur's family