Lancelot-Grail - Sections

Sections

The work is divided into five sections. The last three were actually the first to be written, starting in the 1210s. The first two came later, around the 1230s.

  • The Estoire del Saint Grail (The History of the Holy Grail), about Joseph of Arimathea and his son Josephus bringing the Grail to Britain.
  • The Estoire de Merlin (also called the Vulgate or Prose Merlin), about Merlin and the early history of Arthur.
    • To this section is added the Vulgate Suite du Merlin (Vulgate Merlin Continuation), adding more of Arthur's early adventures.
  • The Lancelot propre (Lancelot Proper), the longest section, making up half of the entire cycle. It concerns the adventures of Lancelot and the other Knights of the Round Table, and the affair between Lancelot and Guinevere.
  • The Queste del Saint Graal (Quest for the Holy Grail), about the Grail Quest and its completion by Galahad.
  • The Mort Artu (Death of Arthur), about the king's death at the hands of Mordred and the collapse of the kingdom.

The work was soon followed by the Post-Vulgate Cycle, a work based on the Vulgate but differing from it in many respects.

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