King Arthur's Enchantresses

Carolyne Larrington is Fellow and Tutor in Medieval English Literature at St John's College, Oxford. Her previous books include Magical Tales: Myth, Legend and Enchantment in Children's Books (2013)

King Arthur summons visions of courtly chivalry, towering castles, windswept battlefields, heroic quests, and above all of the monarch who dies but who one day shall return. The Arthurian legend lives on as powerfully and enduringly as ever. Yet central to these stories are the mysterious, sexually alluring enchantresses - spellcasters, mistresses of magic who wield extraordinary influence over Arthur's life and destiny. Carolyne Larrington takes her readers on a quest to discover why these dangerous women continue to bewitch us. She explores them as they appear in poetry and painting, on the Internet and TV, in high and popular culture and shows that whether they be chaste or depraved, necrophiliacs or virgins, they are manifestations of the Other, frightening and fascinating in equal measure. 'Original, intelligent, persuasive and always interesting, Carolyne Larrington makes us see the Arthurian legends in a new light. For anyone with the slightest interest in the subject, King Arthur's Enchantresses will be essential reading.' - Allan Massie, author of Arthur the King 'If you have always loved the stories of the Knights of the Round Table, but want to know more: then this is the book for you. If you've heard of the names - Lancelot, Guinevere, Morgan Le Fay - but never read the stories: then King Arthur's Enchantresses is the book that you have to read. New ideas and lost interpretations are brought together in this hugely entertaining and clever book that bridges the gap between simple pleasure and real scholarship.' - Jeanette Winterson, author and broadcaster

• AcknowledgementsIntroductionMagic and the EnchantressMorgan and ArthurMorgan and ChivalryMorgan, Other Knights and EnchantessesViviane, the Damoiselle Cacheresse and the Lady of the LakeThe Queen of OrkneyVivien and the VictoriansMorgan, Morgause and the Modern Age NotesBibliographyList of Pictures and SourcesIndex