King Leodegrance , sometimes Leondegrance, Leodogran, or variations thereof, is the father of Queen

Guinevere Guinevere ( ; ; , ), also often written in Modern English as Guenevere or Guenever, was, according to Arthurian legend, an early-medieval queen of Great Britain and the wife of King Arthur. First mentioned in literature in the early 12th cen ...

Arthurian legend The Matter of Britain (; ; ; ) is the body of medieval literature and legendary material associated with Great Britain and Brittany and the legendary kings and heroes associated with it, particularly King Arthur. The 12th-century writer Geoffr ...

. His kingdom of

Cameliard In the chivalric romance prose works in the legend of King Arthur, Cameliard (various French and other spellings include ''Ca elide'', ''Camiliard'', ''Carmalide'', ''Carmelide'', ''Carmelyde'', ''Charmelide'', ''Tamalide'', ''Tameli e'', a ...

(or Carmelide) is usually identified with Cornwall but may be located in Breton

Cornouaille Cornouaille (; , ) is a historical region on the west coast of Brittany in West France. The name is cognate with Cornwall in neighbouring Great Britain. This can be explained by the settlement of Cornouaille by migrant princes from Cornwall ...

near the town of

Carhaix-Plouguer Carhaix-Plouguer (; ), commonly known as just Carhaix (), is a commune in the French department of Finistère, region of Brittany, France. The commune was created in 1957 by the merger of the former communes Carhaix and Plouguer.

, which is the Carhaise of ''L'Histoire de Merlin'' (13th century). Leodegrance had served

Uther Pendragon Uther Pendragon ( ; the Brittonic languages, Brittonic name; , or ), also known as King Uther (or Uter), was a List of legendary kings of Britain, legendary King of the Britons and father of King Arthur. A few minor references to Uther appe ...

King Arthur According to legends, King Arthur (; ; ; ) was a king of Great Britain, Britain. He is a folk hero and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain. In Wales, Welsh sources, Arthur is portrayed as a le ...

's biological father and regnal predecessor. Leodegrance was entrusted with the keeping of the

Round Table The Round Table (; ; ; ) is King Arthur's famed table (furniture), table in the Arthurian legend, around which he and his knights congregate. As its name suggests, it has no head, implying that everyone who sits there has equal status, unlike co ...

at Uther's death. When Guinevere marries Arthur, Leodegrance gives the young king the table as a wedding present. In later romance Leodegrance is one of the few kings who accept Arthur as his overlord. For this, his land is invaded by the rebel king

Rience King Rience , also spelt Ryence, Ryons, and Rion(s), is a character from Arthurian legend, an enemy of King Arthur in the early years of his reign. His realm varies; in Thomas Malory's ''Le Morte d'Arthur'', he is king of North Wales, Ireland and ...

, but Arthur comes to his rescue and expels the enemy. Arthur meets Guinevere for the first time during this excursion, and they develop a love that eventually results in their fateful marriage. According to the

Lancelot-Grail The ''Lancelot-Grail Cycle'', also known as the Vulgate Cycle or the Pseudo-Map Cycle, is an early 13th-century French Arthurian legend, Arthurian literary cycle consisting of interconnected prose episodes of chivalric romance originally writte ...

prose cycle, Leodegrance fathered a second daughter out of wedlock; he also names this child Guinevere. The "False Guinevere" later treacherously convinces Arthur's court that she is his real wife and her sister is an impostor, forcing the real queen and her lover

Lancelot Lancelot du Lac (French for Lancelot of the Lake), alternatively written as Launcelot and other variants, is a popular character in the Matter of Britain, Arthurian legend's chivalric romance tradition. He is typically depicted as King Arthu ...

into hiding with their friend

Galehaut Galehaut (or Galaha ''l/u''t, Galeho ''l/u''t, Gallehau ''l''t, Galhault, Galeotto, et al.) is a half-giant knight and sovereign prince in Arthurian legend. He is most prominent within the Lancelot-Grail prose cycle where he is a noble enemy ...

. Guinevere eventually returns and reclaims her throne. In

Welsh mythology Welsh mythology (also commonly known as ''Y Chwedlau'', meaning "The Legends") consists of both folk traditions developed in Wales, and traditions developed by the Celtic Britons elsewhere before the end of the first millennium. As in most of t ...

, the father of Gwenhwyfar (Guinevere) is the giant Ogyruan/Ogyrvan or Gogyrfan, who is mentioned in a number of

Middle Welsh Middle Welsh (, ) is the label attached to the Welsh language of the 12th to 15th centuries, of which much more remains than for any earlier period. This form of Welsh developed directly from Old Welsh (). Literature and history Middle Welsh is ...

texts.Bromwich, Rachel (ed.). ''Trioedd Ynys Prydein''. Cardiff, revised ed. 1991.

In popular culture

Leodegrance was portrayed by

Patrick Stewart Sir Patrick Stewart (born 13 July 1940) is an English actor. With a career spanning over seven decades of Patrick Stewart on stage and screen, stage and screen, he has received List of awards and nominations received by Patrick Stewart, variou ...

in the 1981 film ''

Excalibur Excalibur is the mythical sword of King Arthur that may possess magical powers or be associated with the rightful sovereignty of Britain. Its first reliably datable appearance is found in Geoffrey of Monmouth's ''Historia Regum Britanniae''. E ...

'' and by

Daragh O'Malley Daragh Gerard Marion O'Malley (born 25 May 1954) is an Irish actor, director, and producer. O'Malley is perhaps best known for his portrayal of Patrick Harper in the series '' Sharpe'' (1993–2009) starring with Sean Bean although O'Malley ha ...

in the 2011 television series ''

Camelot Camelot is a legendary castle and Royal court, court associated with King Arthur. Absent in the early Arthurian material, Camelot first appeared in 12th-century French romances and, since the Lancelot-Grail cycle, eventually came to be described ...

''.

References

Family of King Arthur Fictional characters introduced in the 13th century Knights of the Round Table Mythological kings Welsh giants {{fantasy-char-stub