Morgause, King Arthur’s Half-sister

by BluSphere in Folklore, March 15, 2010

King Arthur’s half sister.

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Morgause (often confused with her sister Morgan le Fay, and earlier known as Anna) was according to legend, King Arthur’s half sister. She was the daughter of Igraine and Gorlois. She grew up with her aunt Viviane on the sacred island of Avalon. She loved her mother but later it turned to hate because Morgaine was feeding his mother’s son’s child, which she thought was Viviane’s idea. She was instead secretly in love with his aunt’s son, her cousin Lancelot, but nothing happened between them. Morgause becomes pregnant after sleeping with King Arthur. The child she is pregnant with is Mordred. Her husband is King Lot, an enemy of Arthur.

In the later materials she gets five sons. Gawain, later one of Arthur’s greatest knights, Agravaine, who later becomes a wretched traitor, Gaheris, who we unfortunately doesn’t know much about, Gareth, a gentle and loving knight, and at last Mordred. She gets Mordred with Arthur.