"The Birth of Merlin The Birth of Merlin, or, The Child Hath Found his Father is a Jacobean play, probably written in whole or part by William Rowley. It was first performed in 1622 at the Curtain Theatre in Shoreditch. It contains a comic depiction of the birth of the fully grown Merlin to a country girl, and also features figures from Arthurian legend, including Uther Pendragon, Vortigern, and Aurelius Ambrosius. The 1662 first edition, a quarto printed by Thomas Johnson for the booksellers Francis Kirkman and Henry Marsh, attributed the play to William Shakespeare and William Rowley. ""The Birth"
"Gorlois In Arthurian legend, Gorlois () of Tintagel, Duke of Cornwall, is the husband of Igraine prior to Uther Pendragon. He is the father of Morgan le Fay, Morgause, and Elaine. Gorlois' name first appears in Geoffrey of Monmouth's ""Historia Regum Britanniae"" (), in which Uther falls in love with Igraine and wars with Gorlois to get to her. Uther asks for Merlin's aid in pursuing her, and Merlin concocts some drugs that disguise Uther in the form of Gorlois. As Gorlois, he approaches his love easily and they sleep together, conceiving Arthur. Unbeknownst to either of them, the real"
"battle is a portent of things to come. At this point Geoffrey inserts a long section of Merlin's prophecies, taken from his earlier ""Prophetiae Merlini"". He tells only two further tales of the character. In the first, Merlin creates Stonehenge as a burial place for Aurelius Ambrosius, bringing the stones from the Preseli Hills in south-west Wales and Ireland. In the second, Merlin's magic enables the new British king Uther Pendragon to enter into Tintagel Castle in disguise and father his son Arthur with his enemy's wife, Igraine. These episodes appear in many later adaptations of Geoffrey's account. As Lewis"
"and flourished after the Arthurian period. The composite Merlin was created by Geoffrey of Monmouth. In the film, Arthur's father is a Roman general from the Imperial Roman army and his mother is a Celtic woman. In the historical notes of the legend, Arthur's father is Uther Pendragon, a famous Romano-British commander and one of Britain's earlier kings, and his mother is Igraine, a beautiful young woman who was once the wife of Gorlois, the Duke of Cornwall and one of Uther's loyal subjects. Arthur's knights are described differently in the film and the legend. In the film, Lancelot, Tristan,"
"Uther Pendragon sees Igraine, the beautiful wife of Gorlois, the Duke of Cornwall. He desires her and asks for help from the Wizard, Prophet and Enchanter Merlin. Merlin promises to do this in exchange for any child that may be conceived from the union. Merlin enchants Uther to look like Gorlois and Uther has his way with Igraine. Nine months later, Arthur is born and taken away by Merlin. He is raised in secret in Wales until the age of fifteen. During a tournament in London, Arthur, acting as a squire, while searching for a sword for the knight he"
"Verulamium. Uther's family is based on some historical figures; Constantine on the historical Constantine III, a usurper claimant to the Roman throne from 407–411, and Constans on his son. Aurelius Ambrosius is Ambrosius Aurelianus, mentioned by Gildas, though his connection to Constantine and Constans is unrecorded. In Robert de Boron's ""Merlin"" Uther Pendragon kills Hengist after an assassination attempt by the Saxon leader and Merlin creates the Round Table for him. In the ""Prose Lancelot"" Uther Pendragon claims to have been born in Bourges. He takes an army to Brittany to fight against King Claudas of Bourges, a situation resembling"
"the traditional warrior king, are used by Geoffrey for other characters. Ambrosius' supposed supernatural powers are passed to Merlin. Geoffrey's Aurelius Ambrosius rises to the throne but dies early, passing the throne to a previously unknown brother called Uther Pendragon. The role of warrior king is shared by Uther and his son Arthur. Geoffrey also uses the character Gloiu, father of Vitalinus/Vitolinus, derived from Nennius. He names this character as a son of Claudius and appointed by his father as Duke of the Welsh. His predecessor as Duke is called Arvirargus. Assuming that Claudius and Arvirargus are supposed to be"
"Morte d'Arthur, was a loose collection of separate stories. Green attempted to relate each legend so that the entire story would have a beginning, middle and end. Green used many sources in addition to Malory. After Uther Pendragon's death, Merlin the magician forms a stone and in it a sword. After many years, the young Arthur, secretly the son of Uther Pendragon, pulls the sword out of the stone and becomes King. Together with Merlin, he constructs a round table, at which only the best knights of England may sit. More and more knights come to join the brotherhood of"
"the Romans withdrew, and Uther Pendragon rose to power. Circa 450, his son Arturus became king, ruling until 468. Britain descended into barbarism, plagued by ogres, giants, and faeries ruled by Arthur's half-sister Morgana. The faerie remained a powerful force in Britain, so much so that King Henry VIII took the second cousin of King Oberon of the Faerie, the polydactyl Faery-blooded Anne Boleyn, as his wife. From this union sprang Queen Gloriana the First, who reigned from 1558 to 1603. Under her rule, magical and otherworldly forces became more popular in Britain. Her court held such notables as Johannes"
"that of the historical ruler Riothamus who went to Brittany to fight ravagers based in Bourges. There is an alternative account of Uther Pendragon's background in Wolfram von Eschenbach's ""Parzival"". A certain Mazadân went with a fairy named Terdelaschoye to the land of Feimurgân. (This looks like a garbling of some source that told of Mazadân's alliance with the Fay Morgan in Terre de la Joye; the ""Land of Joy"".) Mazadân becomes father of two sons, Lazaliez and Brickus. Brickus becomes father of Utepandragûn, father of Arthur, while the elder son, Lazaliez, becomes father of Gandin of Anjou, father of"
"council of demons plotting to create the future Merlin as their agent on Earth to undo the work of Christ, but their plan is foiled and the mother names the child Merlin after her father. It continues with the story of the usurper king Vortiger (Vortigern) and his tower, featuring the seven-year-old Merlin with amazing prophetic powers. Following Vortiger's death, which Merlin also predicted, he assists the new king Pendragon and his brother Uter (Uther Pendragon, soon himself the king as Uterpendragon after the death of the original Pendragon at Salisbury) in their bloody war against Saxon invaders, later erecting"
"becomes a hermit in an obscure shrine, providing healing to the injured and advice to the insecure. Later, Merlin becomes Arthur's tutor and that of two other boys: Arthur's foster-brother Cei and his friend Bedwyr. One day, Arthur discovers the sword of Maximus — his ancestor and Merlin's — hidden in a cave on an island in the centre of a lake, and names it Caliburn. Later he wins his first battle in a decisive victory against invading Saxons; whereupon his parentage is revealed and he is proclaimed the heir to Uther Pendragon. Shortly before he learns his identity, he"
"of the historical war leader Ambrosius Aurelianus, also known as Aurelius Ambrosius, who led the Romano-British against the invading Saxons. He was said by Geoffrey of Monmouth to have been the brother of Arthur's father Uther Pendragon, and to have opposed Vortigern alongside his brother. In Geoffrey of Monmouth's pseudohistorical work ""The History of the Kings of Britain"" (""Historia Regum Britanniae""), Merlin, originally a figure unconnected with Arthur, is called ""Merlin Ambrosius"" after Geoffrey merged legends of Aurelius Ambrosius into the character. ""Ambrosius"" becomes ""Ambrosinus"" in the film. In the novel, Merlin's original British name Myrdin Emries is directly taken"
"Leodegrance King Leodegrance , sometimes Leondegrance, Leodogran, or variations thereof, is the father of Queen Guinevere in Arthurian legend. His kingdom of Cameliard (or Carmelide) is usually identified with Cornwall but may be located in Breton Cornouaille near the town of Carhaix-Plouguer, which is the Carhaise of ""L'Histoire de Merlin"" (13th century). Leodegrance had served Uther Pendragon, King Arthur's biological father and regnal predecessor. Leodegrance was entrusted with the keeping of the Round Table at Uther's death. When Guinevere marries Arthur, Leodegrance gives the young king the table as a wedding present. In later romance Leodegrance is one of the"
"The Dragon's Call ""The Dragon's Call"" is the first episode of the first series of the British fantasy-adventure family television series ""Merlin"". Written by Julian Jones and directed by James Hawes, the episode was first broadcast on BBC One on 20 September 2008. The episode tells the arrival of Merlin (Colin Morgan) as a young man in Camelot, where magic is banned by King Uther Pendragon (Anthony Head). Taken under the wing of Camelot's physician, Gaius (Richard Wilson), he is warned that he must keep his innate magical ability a secret. In Camelot, he meets Uther's heir, the arrogant Prince"
"achievements of his knights so as to gain entrance to a fortress guarded by Glewlwyd Gafaelfawr, the eponymous porter. The poem relates that Mabon fab Mydron (a misspelling of Modron) is one of Arthur's followers, and is described as a ""servant to Uther Pendragon"". A second figure, Mabon fab Mellt, is described as having ""stained the grass with blood"". He further appears in the medieval tale ""The Dream of Rhonabwy"", in which he fights alongside Arthur at the Battle of Badon and is described as one of the king's chief advisors. Mabon is almost certainly related to the continental Arthurian"
"areas with Celtic connections, there are a number of Arthurian legends associated with Cumbria. Arthur's father Uther Pendragon is supposed to have lived at Pendragon Castle, high in the upper Eden Valley, although the castle itself is probably 12th century and was originally called Mallerstang Castle. It is likely that Robert de Clifford, 1st Baron de Clifford, joining in with the Arthurian obsession of the time, as well as pointing to his Welsh forebears, assumed the name of Uther Pendragon and renamed the existing castle to fit in with the cult. King Arthur's Round Table, a prehistoric earthwork near Penrith,"
"defeated, gaining final victory only with the help of Duke Gorlois of Cornwall. But while celebrating this victory with Gorlois, he falls in love with the duke's wife, Igerna. This leads to war between Uther Pendragon and Gorlois of Cornwall, during which Uther clandestinely lies with Igerna through the magic of Merlin. Arthur is conceived that night. Then Gorlois is killed and Uther marries Igerna. But he must war against the Saxons again. Although Uther ultimately triumphs, he dies after drinking water from a spring the Saxons had poisoned. Uther's son Arthur assumes the throne and defeats the Saxons so"
"of Rheged) and Angusel rule over ""Mureif"" (Moray) and ""Scotland"", respectively. Lot is first mentioned as a loyal vassal to Uther Pendragon, King of Britain, in the king's wars against Octa, the Saxon King of Kent. When Uther falls ill, he marries his daughter Anna to Lot and entrusts them with the oversight of the kingdom. Lot and Anna have sons Gawain and Mordred. When Uther's son Arthur takes up the kingship, he helps Lot and his brothers regain their territories, which have fallen to the Saxons. Lot is also the heir to the kingdom of Norway, as nephew to"
"Merlin explains that the father of the great king would be wearing a dragon on his arm, but Igraine will not listen. Morgaine has a vision, seeing her father dead. Viviane notes that Morgaine has ""the Sight"". The High King, Ambrosius, summons his nobles to a feast to name his successor, Uther Pendragon. Igraine is immediately drawn to Uther; Gorlois interrupts their discussion jealously. After Uther is crowned, Gorlois rebels against him. Igraine sends a message by magic to Uther. The next day, Morgaine and her aunt Morgause find that Gorlois has ordered his guards not to let the women"
"in his fictionalized account of British history, the ""Historia Regum Britanniae"". Geoffrey told the story that Arthur's father, King Uther Pendragon, was disguised by Merlin's sorcery to look like Gorlois, Duke of Cornwall, the husband of Igraine, Arthur's mother. Tintagel Castle has been a tourist destination since the mid-19th century. Owned by Charles, Prince of Wales as part of the landholdings of the Duchy of Cornwall, the site is managed by English Heritage. In the 1st century AD, southern Britain was invaded and occupied by the Roman Empire. The territory of modern Cornwall was assigned to the Roman administrative region"
"this, she has been linked to the Romano-Celtic fertility horse goddess Epona and other instances of the veneration of horses in early Indo-European culture. White horses are the most common type of hill figure in England. Though many are modern, the Uffington White Horse at least dates back to the Bronze Age. In Scottish folklore, the kelpie or each uisge, a deadly supernatural water demon in the shape of a horse, is sometimes described as white, though other stories say it is black. In Greek mythology, the white winged horse Pegasus was the son of Poseidon and the gorgon Medusa."
"Lamorak Sir Lamorak (or Lamocrack, Lamorat, and other spellings) is a Knight of the Round Table in Arthurian legend, a son of King Pellinore and brother of Percival, Tor, Aglovale, and sometimes the Grail maiden Dindrane and others. Introduced in the Prose ""Tristan"", Lamorak reappears in later works including the Post-Vulgate Cycle and Sir Thomas Malory's ""Le Morte d'Arthur"". Malory refers to him as Arthur's third best knight, only inferior to Lancelot and Tristan, but Lamorak was not exceptionally popular in the romance tradition, confined to the cyclical material, subordinate to more prominent characters. His father, King Pellinore, one of"
"at the stake, in addition to for how, as he says, ""by enchantment and sorcery she has been the destroyer of many good knights"") and a dispute over an enchanted sword. The Middle English romance ""Arthour and Merlin"" casts Morgan le Fay herself in the role of the Lady of the Lake and residing near a town named Ninniane. The Italian manuscript ""Tavola ritonda"" (""The Round Table"") makes the Lady a daughter of Uther Pendragon and a sister to both Morgan and Arthur; here she is a character villainous to the extent that her own brother Arthur swears to burn"
"both Merlin and Dumbledore educate a story's main character in a castle. As writer Evelyn Perry notes, ""Dumbledore resembles Merlin both personally and physically; he is an avid lover of books and wisdom who wears flowing robes and a long, white beard."" Dumbledore has also been compared with Gandalf from Tolkien's ""Lord of the Rings"". Dave Kopel draws comparisons between Rowling's writing and John Bunyan's ""The Pilgrim’s Progress"" and states that, among the Christian symbols that Rowling has used in her books, Dumbledore acts like ""the bearded God the Father"" figure in which Harry puts his faith to be saved"
"by pulling a sword from an anvil sitting atop a stone that appeared in a churchyard on Christmas Eve. In this account, the act could not be performed except by ""the true king,"" meaning the divinely appointed king or true heir of Uther Pendragon. As Malory writes: """"Whoso pulleth out this sword of this stone and anvil, is rightwise king born."""" This sword is thought by many to be the famous Excalibur, and its identity is made explicit in the later Prose ""Merlin"", part of the Lancelot-Grail cycle. The challenge of drawing a sword from a stone also appears in"
"and becomes pregnant with Arthur. Her husband Gorlois dies in battle that same night. Geoffrey does not say, and later accounts disagree, as to whether Gorlois died before or after Arthur was begotten (something that might be important in determining whether or not a child could be made legitimate by a later marriage to its true father). Uther Pendragon later marries Igraine. According to Geoffrey, Igraine also bore a daughter Anna (referred to as Morgause in other works) to Uther Pendragon, and this Anna later becoming the mother of Gawain and Mordred. Yet Geoffrey also refers to King Hoel of"
"he loses his brother's sword for the tournament, Arthur, unaware of its significance, pulls the sword from the stone. His action is seen by several people and he is hailed as the new king. Some members of the nobility pledge allegiance to Arthur, whereas others argue against crowning a man of lowly birth. Merlin reveals Arthur's true identity as the son of the last king, Uther Pendragon, but some, led by Maleagant, refuse to accept the rule of an illegitimate royal child and declare war. Merlin takes Arthur to the Forest of Brocéliande to train him. Here, Arthur is called"
"who comes first to the building site to bring them food. All but one break their promise and tell their wives to come late, and it is the wife of the only honest one that is sacrificed. One of the legends associated with Merlin is that Vortigern, the King of the Celts, was building a tower to defend himself from Ambrosius and Uther Pendragon. Like the Bridge of Arta, whenever they finished one day's work on the tower it would collapse in the night and Vortigern's advisors recommended that sacrificing a child and mixing his blood with the mortar would"
"One night, Guinevere takes Arthur to meet with Merlin, the leader of the Woads and her father. At first, Arthur thinks Guinevere has betrayed him, but Merlin has come in peace. In a flashback, it is revealed that, when Arthur was a boy, his mother Igraine died in a Woad attack, and that, hoping to be able to rescue his mother from a burning building, Arthur ran to his father Uther Pendragon's burial mound to pull from it the legendary sword that marked it, Excalibur. Merlin suggests an alliance between the Woads and the Sarmatian knights against the invading Saxons."
", contains the first narrative account of Arthur's life. This work is an imaginative and fanciful account of British kings from the legendary Trojan exile Brutus to the 7th-century Welsh king Cadwallader. Geoffrey places Arthur in the same post-Roman period as do ""Historia Brittonum"" and ""Annales Cambriae"". He incorporates Arthur's father Uther Pendragon, his magician advisor Merlin, and the story of Arthur's conception, in which Uther, disguised as his enemy Gorlois by Merlin's magic, sleeps with Gorlois's wife Igerna (Igraine) at Tintagel, and she conceives Arthur. On Uther's death, the fifteen-year-old Arthur succeeds him as King of Britain and fights"
"out fatally injuring Ambrosia. Merlin tries to attack Mab but can't defeat her; she dismisses the deaths of his mother and Ambrosia as ""casualties of war"" and vows that Merlin will help her in her quest for power. Merlin makes a blood-oath never to use magic. Many years pass. Merlin is brought before the tyrant King Vortigern, who is having problems constructing his castle. Merlin tells the king his vision: a red dragon representing Uther Pendragon defeats the white dragon that represents Vortigern. Mab tells the king that he can vanquish Uther by sacrificing Nimue to a dragon, in the"
"is given the surname ""Pendragon"", which is explained by the author Geoffrey of Monmouth as literally meaning ""dragon's head"". In the prose version of Robert de Boron's ""Merlin"", the name of Uther's elder brother Ambrosius is given as ""Pendragon"", while Uter (Uther) changes his name after his brother's death to ""Uterpendragon"". The use of ""Pendragon"" to refer to Arthur, rather than to Uther or his brother, is of much more recent vintage. In literature, one of its earliest uses to refer to Arthur is in Alfred Tennyson's poem ""Lancelot and Elaine"", where, however, it appears as Arthur's title rather than"