by Mike Ashley
Merlin remains in the woods till his final days, when he is joined by his sister and a disciple called Maeldin. We do not learn of his death, but from his own musings we can believe that when he died he wanted to be buried by an old oak tree that he had watched grow from an acorn.
Although Geoffrey fused these two Merlins into one, many knew this was not correct. The first to say so was Gerald of Wales, writing in about 1220, who said that there was one prophet Merlin Ambrosius (Myrddin Emrys), who lived in the time of Vortigern and Arthur, and another called Merlin Celidonius (after the forest) or Merlin Silvestris. Silvestris also means “of the trees”, but Gerald believed this name had something to do with an air monster that Merlin encountered and which drove him crazy. This Merlin is also called Merlin the Wild (Myrddin Wyllt).
So were there two Merlins and, if so, were they both real? And what was Merlin’s real name?
2. The original Merlin
At the time Geoffrey published his Vita Merlini, there were those who would have recognised in his portrayal of Merlin the identity of another mad man of the woods called Lailoken (or Llallogan by the Welsh). He lived at the time of St. Kentigern (c550–612), and was known as a troublemaker whose malicious plots resulted in the battle of Arderydd and the death of his lord, Gwenddoleu. He had a vision of angels casting spears at him (possibly Gerald’s air monster), and declared that he would spend the rest of his life living with the beasts. He went mad and fled into the woods, but would occasionally appear on a rock overlooking Glasgow when Kentigern was preaching and utter his own predictions, including that of his own death. There are also notable parallels with Geoffrey’s Merlin and his prediction of the young boy’s triple death. Lailoken is kept in chains and refuses to speak until he reveals the queen’s adultery. Infuriated, the queen arranges for some local shepherds to stone Lailoken to death, at which point he falls upon a sharp stake in a pond with his head in the water, and thus dies a triple death.
Whilst much of this may also be legend, there is no reason to doubt that at the time of Kentigern there was a wild man living in the forests near Glasgow who spouted prophecies. This would make him contemporary with the battle of Arderydd, and presumably he lived sufficiently long enough to earn a reputation. Geoffrey’s version suggests that Merlin the Wild outlived King Rhydderch, but the king did not die until about 614 and it is questionable whether he was involved at Arderydd. This Merlin would also be contemporary with Artúir of Dyfed, although there is no reason why these two would have met. Geoffrey makes Merlin the grandson of a king of Dyfed, but this is almost certainly the sixth century equivalent of an urban myth, associating the name with Carmarthen.
There is, remarkably, a pedigree for Myrddin, albeit a late one. Triad 87, “Three Skilful Bards”, distinguishes between the two Merlins, naming, in addition to Taliesin, Myrddin Emrys and Myrddin ap Morfryn. Even if we accept that this triad dates from after Geoffrey’s work, he makes no mention of Myrddin’s father Morfryn, a name which occurs elsewhere as the grandson of Mar (see Table 3.3). This gives him a possible life span of around 520–590, which fits in with the other known dates.
The question remains, however, as to whether Myrddin ap Morfryn is identical with Lailoken and, if so, why the two names? The name Lailoken, as Llallogan, apparently has the separate meaning as an ordinary noun, in addition to being a name, of “friend”, or even “twin”, suggesting a close friend. This raises the inevitable idea that perhaps Myrddin and Lailoken were twins and used this in some of their deceptions. Or that Merlin had a split personality, so that Lailoken was the Hyde to Myrddin’s Jekyll. More feasible is that Lailoken was used as a nickname because Myrddin was so close to Gwenddoleu. The simplest explanation of all, of course, is that the pedigree was contrived after Geoffrey’s account in order to legitimize Myrddin (although the family is that of Lailoken), and that there only ever was one Lailoken/Myrddin. However, this does not explain the existence of Myrddin by name in the Welsh tales and poems prior to Geoffrey. There must have been a Welsh Myrddin who later became confused (by Geoffrey) with Lailoken.
In Bloodline of the Holy Grail, Laurence Gardner explains the confusion by revealing that the name “Merlin” was a title, not a personal name, and was borne by the king’s prophet or seer. According to Gardner, Taliesin had been the Merlin of Britain and was succeeded by Emrys, son of Ambrosius, who was the Merlin of Arthur. He also makes this Merlin the nephew of Artúir of Dyfed, whose sister Niniane had married Ambrosius. In this genealogical maze, Gardner makes Merlin Emrys the cousin of the Scots king Aedan (father of Artúir of Dál Riata). Thus in one knot Gardner ties together the Myrddin of Dyfed with Emrys Wledig (Ambrosius), along with the Scottish connection.
The noted Welsh scholar A.O.H. Jarman is convinced there only ever was one Myrddin, and that the evidence comes in the poem “The Conversation of Myrddin with Gwenddydd his Sister”, often referred to simply as Cyfoesi. This poem, which is primarily a series of prophecies, dates from perhaps the tenth century and was used by Geoffrey in his Vita Merlini. The title identifies Myrddin as the brother of Gwenddydd, but during the poem the sister also refers to her brother, from whom she has now become estranged, as “my Llallogan Fyrddin”. Fyrddin is the suffix of Carmarthen, known in Welsh as Caerfyrddin, evolving from Caermyrddin. Myrddin is thus given a joint name. Jarman’s conclusion is that the name Myrddin had originally been created to identify the non-existent individual after whom Caermyrddin had gained its name – its derivation from the Latin having by then been forgotten. This Myrddin was then identified with the northern British Lailoken whose story had permeated down into Wales, but thanks to Geoffrey further confusing him with Emrys Wledig, Myrddin took on a new, though totally bogus, identity.
In truth, therefore, we must say that Myrddin never existed, but his alter ego Lailoken quite probably did. Whether the pedigree given to him (as Myrddin), showing a descent from Mar, is legitimate or bogus we cannot tell.
3. Merlin of the romances
Having created Merlin Geoffrey did surprisingly little with him. That in itself is an argument for showing that Geoffrey was working from other sources, and thus had no cause to weave Merlin further into the Arthurian legend. As a consequence Merlin’s existence seems incomplete.
The spinners of the Grail legend found in Merlin the ideal individual to serve both as the prophet of the Grail and the means through which events leading to the Grail quest could be brought about after five centuries. This process was helped by Wace making Merlin the creator of the Round Table, and that was the link that Robert de Boron needed. The first part of Robert’s trilogy, Joseph d’Arimathie, is discussed elsewhere (see Chapter 16). The second part is the following:
MERLIN, Robert de Boron (France, late 1190s or early 1200s) Only a fragment of Robert’s original poem survives, but its content is preserved in the first part of the prose redaction known as the Suite du Merlin (or the Huth Merlin) from the 1230s and in the Dutch translation Boec van Merline by Jacob van Maerlant (completed by 1261).
Robert tells of Merlin’s birth. Demons wish to create a prophet to rival Christ, a form of anti-Christ. An incubus impregnates the daughter of a wealthy man, but she confesses to her priest, Blaise, who by making the sign of the Cross at the child’s birth is able to neutralize the evil. Nevertheless, the young Merlin, who has a hairy body, is still half-human, half-demon and has both perfect knowledge of the past and visions of the future. He thus knows the story of the Grail and of the future design for Arthur.
Robert then retells the story as related by Geoffrey of Monmouth dealing with Vortigern (here called Vertigier) and his tower, and the roles played by Merlin, the Pendragon (Ambrosius) and Uter. We see Merlin’s role in aiding the Pendragon and creating the Round Table. The Round Table is a duplicate of the Grail Table, itself fashioned after the Last Supper Table. Merlin also works the glamour that allows Uter to appear to Ygerne in the guise of her husband. The story follows the traditional tale of Arthur’s birth and upbringing to the point wher
e he pulls the sword from the stone and proves himself the rightful heir.
A translation by Nigel Bryant is in Merlin and the Grail by Robert de Boron (Brewer, 2001).
ESTOIRE DE MERLIN or PROSE MERLIN (Vulgate Cycle), anon. (French, early 1230s).
This follows, so far as we know, Robert’s original Merlin up to the point where Arthur is declared king, but then adds a variety of interlinked stories and a continuation, including how Arthur became the father of Mordred. Before Arthur pulled the sword from the stone he was infatuated with own half-sister, the wife of King Lot. Lot is called to a council of kings early one morning and leaves his wife asleep. Arthur climbs into her bed and she, in her half-sleep, believes him to be her husband, and Mordred is conceived. Anna learns the truth the next day, but the secret is otherwise not revealed. The story also tells how Leodegran, the father of Guenevere, had his evil way with his seneschal’s wife, who then gave birth to a girl who was the exact image of Guenevere except for a birthmark like a king’s crown in the small of her back. This explains the “false” Guenevere who appears in the Vulgate Lancelot. The plan to substitute the false Guenevere as Arthur’s queen is also repeated.
We also see how Merlin sows the seed of his own doom when, disguised as a young squire, he travels through the Forest of Briosque and meets a beautiful young maiden called Vivian [Niniane]. He impresses her with his tricks and she wishes to learn magic from him. He agrees in return for her love.
We follow Merlin as he helps Arthur battle the rebel kings, the Saxons and Claudas in Gaul (see Chapter 17), the last of which is the background to the origins of Lancelot.
Finally Merlin tells Arthur that he is leaving. He visits his old mentor Blaise one last time and returns to Vivian with whom he wants to stay. He teaches Vivian all he knows, and she decides to keep Merlin all to herself. One day, in the Forest of Broceliande, while he sleeps, she conjures up a tower of stone about him that no magic can break and there he remains, trapped. She visits him every day to ensure that he has no desire to leave.
Arthur is upset at Merlin’s departure and sends the knights to look for him. Only Gawain meets with any success, and hears Merlin’s voice as he passes through the Forest of Broceliande, but is unable to see him. Merlin tells him what has happened and that it cannot be undone, and bids Gawain return to Arthur.
The story ends with the facts behind the birth of Lancelot, and leads directly into the Vulgate Lancelot.
→ An English verse adaptation was made by Henry Lovelich as Merlin (cl430s) which strengthens Merlin’s role as a proto-John the Baptist to the advent of the Holy Grail. Merlin dictates the Grail book to Blaise and is instrumental in creating the Round Table as the third of the Grail tables. At about the same time, an anonymous author adapted the Vulgate Merlin in a version known as the Prose Merlin, which portrays Merlin as coming from northern Britain.
A full English translation of the Prose Merlin is not available but extracts will be found in The Romance of Merlin edited by Peter Goodrich (Garland, 1991), the new edition of The Romance of Arthur edited by James J. Wilhelm (Garland, 1994), and The Lancelot-Grail Reader edited by Norris J. Lacy (Garland, 2000).
SUITE DU MERLIN (Post-Vulgate Cycle), anon (French, late 1230s).
This is a more extensive version of the Estoire de Merlin, with several new episodes, many of them with a fantastic or satirical element, such as the Questing Beast, a hybrid monster which sounds like a pack of hounds and which everyone is keen to hunt for the thrill of the chase. The Beast was pursued mostly by Pellinore and, after his death, by Palamedes. It was in battle against Pellinore that Arthur broke his sword, the one pulled from the stone. As a consequence Merlin took him to see the Lady of the Lake and Arthur thereby acquired Excalibur. Although Arthur liked the sword Merlin advised him that it was the scabbard that held the power and that he would remain unharmed all the time he retained it. Morgan le Fay later schemed with Accolon of Gaul to kill Arthur. She stole Excalibur and gave a false Excalibur to Arthur. Arthur was only saved by the intervention of the Lady of the Lake. Although Arthur regained Excalibur, Morgan stole the scabbard.
The Suite’s version of Mordred’s conception is different from that in the Estoire. Here it is placed a month after Arthur’s coronation. Although Anna does not know she is Arthur’s sister (in fact half-sister), Arthur presumably does, because he honours her due to her noble lineage. The Suite makes it clear that here Arthur has literally sown the seeds of his own destruction. The Suite shows Arthur in a further poor light when, after Merlin has predicted the birth of one whose actions will destroy the kingdom, Arthur gathers together all the newly born children and locks them in a tower. Herod-like, he had intended to have them killed, but a dream caused him to cast them loose in a ship which, thanks to God’s guidance, washed up safely and the children were housed in the Castle of Boys. Unbeknown to Arthur, Mordred had not even made it to Arthur’s tower. His boat was shipwrecked on its way to Arthur and Mordred; the only survivor, was rescued by a fisherman and raised by Nabur the Unruly with his son Sagremor.
The Suite tells a different version of the story of the “Knight of the Two Swords”, this time incorporated as a raison d’être for the Grail Quest. As in the original story a lady comes to Arthur’s court with a sword girded round her waist which she is unable to remove or even draw from its scabbard. Only a knight who is pure of heart can withdraw the sword, but whoever does so must return the sword to her. None of the knights can do it until Balin (here called Balain), a humble knight from the north, succeeds. Balin, however, keeps the sword. The Lady of the Lake comes to the court to ask for justice against Balin who killed her brother, but Balin uses his new sword to behead her. Arthur is outraged and Balin leaves Camelot in order to prove himself and gain Arthur’s forgiveness. He takes part in Arthur’s war against King Lot and shows great courage. Lot almost kills Arthur, but he is saved by Pellinor, who kills Lot, setting in train another sequence of events that will lead to Pellinore’s own doom many years later.
Balin then sets out on the adventure that leads to the Dolorous Stroke. He takes a strange knight under his protection but the knight is killed by an invisible enemy. Merlin reveals that the invisible foe was Garlon the Red, brother of King Pellam. When Balin reaches Pellam’s castle he succeeds in killing Garlon. Pellam pursues Balin in revenge and as he is chased through the castle Balin seizes a weapon to hand, which happens to be the Bleeding Lance. He strikes Pellam with it, wounding him through the thighs, and that is the Dolorous Stroke that lays the land to waste, and creates the need for the Grail Quest. Eventually Balin and his brother Balan kill each other in a duel. Merlin takes his sword, the one Balin had taken from the Lady of the Lake, and embeds it in a slab of marble which he magically sets to float around the world, to return when needed by Galahad.
In this version, the death of Merlin is made more sinister. Merlin loves Niviene but their relationship has not been consummated, and Niviene, who feigns love for Merlin to obtain as much knowledge as possible, has no wish to consummate it. Merlin tells Niviene of a couple who had loved each other madly and are buried together in a tomb in a house in the woods. He takes her there and shows her the couple under the stone slab of the tomb. Niviene has steadily been enchanting Merlin so that he weakens and that night she binds him and has him buried in the tomb and the stone replaced. Merlin lives long enough to tell Bagdemagus the story when he passes by some days later.
A full English translation of the Suite de Merlin is not available but extracts will be found in The Romance of Merlin edited by Peter Goodrich (Garland, 1991), the new edition of The Romance of Arthur edited by James J. Wilhelm (Garland, 1994), and The Lancelot-Grail Reader edited by Norris J. Lacy (Garland, 2000).
LES PROPHÉCIES DE MERLIN, Richart d’Irlande (French, 1270s).
Not related to Geoffrey of Monmouth’s original work, this was purportedly a translation from Latin created for the Emperor Frederick II, though it was in fact composed at least two decades after the Emperor’s
death. So whilst it appears to be predictions about political events in Italy and Palestine, it was really an opportunity for an after-the-event commentary, seeking political reform. There are some three hundred utterances apparently made by Merlin to various of his former colleagues, including many spoken from his tomb after he was incarcerated by Niniane.
There is no full English translation but Les Prophécies de Merlin edited by Lucy Allen Paton (Oxford University Press, 2 vols., 1926) includes the original French text with a commentary in English.
ARTHOUR AND MERLIN, anon. (English, cl280s), 9,938 lines.
The earliest story of Merlin to be composed in English, a language that the author seems to have felt obliged to write in, rather than being comfortable with it. It may even have been composed by two poets, and certainly from two or more sources, as there is a sudden change of pace and mood following the crowning of Arthur. The poem follows the standard story of Merlin’s birth, through his service to Uther, the creation of the Round Table, the birth and youth of Arthur and, after his coronation, his wars against the rebel kings.
The text is edited with notes by O.D. Macrae-Gibson in Of Arthour and Merlin (Oxford University Press for Early English Text Society, 2 vols., 1973/79).
16
THE HOLY GRAIL
This book is only concerned with the Grail in how it relates to Arthur, and not whether the Grail exists and where it might be today. What we want to find out is how and why the Grail legend became so closely associated with Arthur, whether there might be any historical relevance, and how the Grail legend affected the stories and legend of Arthur. As we shall see, during the thirteenth century the Grail story dominated the Arthurian romance almost to the point of excluding Arthur himself, and concentrated on his knights, especially Lancelot, Gawain and Perceval. We need to explore the origins of the Grail legend and see what associations there may have been with Arthur before Chrétien de Troyes lit the fuse that began the Grail quest.