GUINEVERE


Meaning of GUINEVERE in English

[Arthurian] Arthur's queen. According to Giraldus Cambrensis, the inscribed cross from the royal grave at Glastonbury named her as Arthur's second wife. Nothing is known of this first wife. Since the only surviving drawing of the cross only depicts one side and, presumably, any allusion to the queen was on the other, the claim of Giraldus is unverifiable. Those who believe Arthur died and was buried at Glastonbury generally accept that Guinevere was buried with him. By the hand of Geoffrey of Monmouth, Guinevere becomes a beautiful lady with a Roman heritage, raised in the house of Duke Cador of Cornwall. Little else is said until the end of Arthur's reign when she betrays the King by becoming the lover of the usurper Mordred. However, while the two are in battle, she runs away to Caerleon and enters a convent. The recurring theme of her entanglement with men besides her husband, whether by consent or abduction, has many variations. When kidnapped, she must be saved. On the archivolt in Modena C...

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Encyclopedia Mythica English dictionary.      Английский энциклопедический словарь греческой мифологии.