Geraint

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Geraint is a character from Welsh folklore and Arthurian legend, a king of Dumnonia and a valiant warrior. He may have lived during or shortly prior to the reign of the historical Arthur, but some scholars doubt he ever existed. He is probably most famous as the protagonist in the Welsh tale Geraint and Enid, where he becomes the lover of Enid and assumes the characteristics of Erec from Chrétien de Troyes' Erec and Enide, a tale to which Geraint is related. However, Geraint had a life as a historical and folkloric hero prior to the romance. Geraint's father is Erbin, and according to Culhwch and Olwen, he has brothers named Ermind and Dywel. He appears in the poem Y Gododdin, attributed to Aneirin, and is called one of the "Three Seafarers of the Isle of Britain" in the Welsh Triads. His death while fighting at the Battle of Llongborth is recorded in the Elegy for Geraint.

Geraint and Enid is one of the Three Welsh Romances associated with the Mabinogion. Its story closely parallels Chrétien's Erec and Enide. Some scholars feel both works derived from a common lost source, but most believe the Welsh version derives directly or indirectly from Chrétien. In this case, the renowned figure of Geraint would have been added to the story to suit Welsh audiences unfamiliar with Chrétien's protagonist. Geraint and Enid was reworked by Alfred, Lord Tennyson into the poems The Marriage of Geraint and Geraint and Enid, part of his Idylls of the King.

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