50 Fun Facts About Excalibur

In the romances, the sword in the stone first appears in a churchyard on the eve of which feast?

Merlin had foretold that only 'the true king' - the rightful heir of Uther - could draw it.

The name Excalibur ultimately derives from a sword name in which language?

Caledfwlch combines 'caled' (hard) and 'bwlch' (breach or cleft); the Cornish play Beunans Ke calls it Calesvol.

Geoffrey of Monmouth Latinised the sword's name as what in his Historia Regum Britanniae?

The spelling may have been nudged by the Latin 'chalybs', meaning steel; French writers turned it into Escalibor and finally Excalibur.

According to Geoffrey of Monmouth, where was the sword forged?

It is the same island where the wounded Arthur is later taken to be healed after Camlann.

The 'sword in the stone' motif first appears in a poem of about 1200 by which French writer?

In his version the sword sits in an anvil atop a stone that appears in a churchyard on the eve of a great feast.

In the earliest sword-in-the-stone story, the sword was lodged in what, sitting atop the stone?

Disney kept the anvil in its 1963 cartoon, and the scene may derive from a miracle credited to Bishop Wulfstan of Worcester.

In Malory, whoever pulls the sword from the stone is 'rightwise king born' of where?

The teenage Arthur first draws it by accident while fetching a sword for his foster brother Kay, then repeats the feat in public.

When Arthur first pulls the sword, he believes himself to be the son of which man?

He had gone to the tournament as squire to Ector's real son, Kay.

In the Post-Vulgate Cycle, the young Arthur breaks his first sword in a duel with which king?

Only then does Merlin take him to the lake to receive the real Excalibur.

Who gives Arthur the second Excalibur, rising from the water, in the Post-Vulgate and Malory?

She grants it in exchange for a later favour, and eventually returns to court to demand the head of Sir Balin.

What special power did Excalibur's scabbard have in the Post-Vulgate version used by Malory?

Merlin scolded Arthur for prizing the blade over its covering, which he called the greater treasure.

Which enchantress, Arthur's half-sister, stole the scabbard and threw it into a lake?

She did it in revenge for the death of her lover, whom Arthur had killed with the real Excalibur after a duel fought with a fake one.

What was the name of the enchantress's lover, given a copy of Excalibur to fight Arthur?

In some versions she also had a duplicate of the scabbard made while the sword was in her keeping.

Malory says the name Excalibur means what, following a fanciful etymology from the Vulgate Merlin?

The French text had claimed it was a Hebrew name meaning 'cuts iron, steel and wood'.

Malory and his sources say that when Arthur first drew Excalibur in battle, its blade did what?

The Welsh Dream of Rhonabwy similarly has fire seeming to pour from the two chimeras on the golden hilt of Arthur's sword.

In the Vulgate Mort Artu, which knight is ordered by the dying Arthur to throw Excalibur into the lake?

He tries to deceive Arthur twice before obeying; English versions later handed the job to Bedivere.

What happens when the sword is finally thrown into the water after Arthur's last battle?

The knight's first two reports that 'nothing happened' tell Arthur he is lying, since a magic sword ought to cause a marvel.

In some French romances, which knight besides Arthur carries Excalibur?

The Prose Merlin even has him kill the Roman leader Lucius with it.

In the Vulgate Merlin, Arthur captures Marmiadoise, a sword once owned by which hero, and prefers it to Excalibur?

Its wounds never healed, so Arthur passed Excalibur down to his nephew.

In Culhwch and Olwen, Arthur's sword Caledfwlch kills which Irish king during the theft of his cauldron?

The killer is not Arthur but his warrior Llenlleawg the Irishman.

Which Irish legendary sword, borne by Fergus mac Róich, is compared to Excalibur because of its similar name?

Scholars Rachel Bromwich and Simon Evans doubt a direct borrowing, suggesting both arose as generic names for a great sword.

In the Alliterative Morte Arthure, which sword does Mordred use to kill Arthur?

It was Arthur's sword of peace, reserved for knighting and ceremonies rather than battle.

A sword claimed to be Excalibur was supposedly found in 1191 at Arthur's grave in which abbey?

That same year Richard the Lionheart gave a claimed Excalibur away as a diplomatic gift.

Richard the Lionheart gave a sword said to be Excalibur to which ally in 1191?

The gift followed the Treaty of Messina, one of several Arthurian gestures by the Anglo-Norman kings.

The only real ancient 'sword in the stone' still existing is kept in a chapel at Montesiepi in which Italian region?

It is tied to the 12th-century legend of Saint Galgano and is nicknamed 'Tuscany's Excalibur'.

In Perceforest, Excalibur is said to have originally belonged to which king of Troy?

Cassandra took it after Troy fell, and it ended up in the 'Great Stone' centuries before Arthur.

Who directed the 1981 film Excalibur?

The project began life as his rejected adaptation of The Lord of the Rings, and much of the imagery was designed with Tolkien in mind.

Who plays Morgana in the 1981 film Excalibur?

Boorman cast her opposite Nicol Williamson's Merlin knowing the two disliked each other after a Macbeth years earlier, hoping the tension would show on screen.

The 1981 film Excalibur was shot entirely on location in which country?

It helped launch the careers of Liam Neeson, Patrick Stewart, Gabriel Byrne and Ciarán Hinds; Neeson and Mirren became a couple during filming.

Which piece by Carl Orff plays prominently in the 1981 film Excalibur?

Wagner's Siegfried's Funeral March and preludes to Parsifal and Tristan also feature; Trevor Jones wrote the original underscore.

In Boorman's Excalibur, who thrusts the sword into the stone in the first place?

The idea of Uther wielding Excalibur before Arthur was new to the film and later reused by the TV series Merlin.

In the 1981 film, which knight throws Excalibur back into the water, replacing the traditional Bedivere?

The film also follows Chrétien de Troyes in making him, rather than Galahad, the knight who achieves the Grail.

How does Arthur break Excalibur in the 1981 film?

The blade is restored to a remorseful Arthur, and Lancelot swears allegiance.

The 1981 film Excalibur won Best Artistic Contribution at which festival?

It also earned an Oscar nomination for cinematography and grossed $35 million in North America on an $11 million budget.

Merlin's 'Charm of Making' in the 1981 film has been reconstructed by linguists as what language?

It translates roughly as 'Serpent's breath, the charm of death and life, thy omen of making' - and has no attested source outside the film.

Disney's The Sword in the Stone (1963) is based on a 1938 novel by which author?

It was the last animated feature released in Walt Disney's lifetime.

In Disney's film, why does Wart go looking for a sword in the first place?

The inn is shut for the tournament, so his owl Archimedes points out a sword in a nearby anvil.

In the BBC series Merlin (2008-12), Excalibur is forged in the breath of what?

The Great Dragon Kilgharrah, voiced by John Hurt, does the forging and demands his freedom in return.

In King Arthur: Legend of the Sword (2017), what does Arthur do with Excalibur out of shame?

Jacqui Ainsley's water spirit drags him under and hands it back with a pep talk.

In Sonic and the Black Knight, King Arthur is corrupted by immortality granted by what?

Sonic wields the talking sword Caliburn, and Shadow the Hedgehog plays Sir Lancelot.

Marvel's Excalibur team, launched in 1988, was based in which country?

Chris Claremont and Alan Davis built it around Captain Britain plus X-Men exiles Nightcrawler, Shadowcat and Rachel Summers.

The Excalibur Hotel and Casino opened in 1990 on the Strip in which city?

Its 3,981 rooms made it the largest hotel in the world until the MGM Grand opened nearby in 1993.

The Excalibur casino's castle design was inspired particularly by which real castle?

The name was chosen from more than 33,000 suggestions in an international contest that drew over 180,000 entries.

The M982 Excalibur is a 155 mm artillery shell guided by what?

It lands within about four metres of its target at up to 57 km, against 150 metres for an unguided shell.

HMS Excalibur, one of only two Royal Navy submarines of her kind, used what unusual fuel?

She and sister ship Explorer later served as high-speed targets for the Royal Navy's first nuclear submarine, Dreadnought; her periscope was later installed in a golf clubhouse in Fife.

In Chrétien de Troyes' Perceval, Escalibor is said to slice through iron as easily as through what?

The Vulgate Merlin later claimed the name was Hebrew for 'cuts iron, steel and wood', the fanciful etymology Malory picked up.

In the Alliterative Morte Arthure, whom does Arthur kill with Excalibur besides the Roman leader Lucius?

Most versions give Excalibur solely to Arthur, though the Prose Merlin uniquely has Gawain kill Lucius with it.

Which knight steals the cursed 'Adventurous Sword' after a contest and later kills his own brother with it?

Galahad later pulls the same sword from a stone floating on the river outside Camelot, and Lancelot uses it to mortally wound Gawain.

In Welsh myth, what did the sword Dyrnwyn do when drawn by a worthy man?

Its owner Rhydderch Hael happily lent it out, hence 'the Generous', but recipients always handed it back once they learned its properties.

In Culhwch and Olwen, what is Prydwen, a name Geoffrey of Monmouth later gave to Arthur's shield?

In the Welsh tale Arthur's shield is Wynebgwrthucher, 'face of evening', while his dagger Carnwennan slices the witch Orddu in half.