Elaine of Corbenic

Elaine of Corbenic (also known as Amite, Heliaebel, Helaine, Perevida or Helizabel; identified as "The Grail Maiden" or "Grail Bearer"), is a character in the Arthurian legend. She is the daughter of King Pelles and the mother of Sir Galahad by Sir Lancelot. She first appears in The Prose Lancelot (The Vulgate Cycle), but fully emerges as a character in Sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur. She is described as "passing fair and young". Her first significant action is showing the Holy Grail to Sir Lancelot.

Story

Elaine's father, King Pelles, knew that Sir Lancelot would sire a son with Elaine, and that that child would be Sir Galahad, described as "the most noblest [sic] knight in the world". Moreover, King Pelles claims that Galahad will lead a "foreign country...out of danger" and "achieve...the Holy Grail". The source of King Pelles' knowledge is undisclosed.

The sorceress Morgan le Fay is jealous of Elaine's beauty, and magically traps her in a boiling bath. After Sir Lancelot rescues her, Elaine falls in love with him, only to find he is already in love with Queen Guinevere and would not knowingly sleep with another woman. In order to seduce Lancelot, Elaine goes to her serving woman, Dame Brusen, for help. Dame Brusen gives Lancelot wine and Elaine a ring of Guinevere's in order to trick Lancelot into thinking Elaine is Guinevere.