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The Round Table
King Arthur is raised by a relatively unknown knight, Sir Ector, rather than in the splendor of a royal court, as his lineage might predict. It is only by pulling the enchanted sword from the stone—a task at which all the best knights of the realm fail—that he proves both his blood and his worthiness to be king.
In many ways, Excalibur stands for the highest status of glory and honor that a knight can hope for, since the king of England himself has achieved it. But the sword also stands for divine fate, which human beings cannot hope to change. Arthur was always destined to pull out the stone and fulfill the prophecies set centuries before. In this way, Excalibur actually undercuts human pride and desire for glory, in its suggestion that humans must ultimately submit to what is already written for them. Arthur did not win Excalibur through any real merit or action of his own, but only because he was always destined to do so.
It should also be noted that there are two origin stories for Excalibur: the first is that this is the sword Arthur pulls from the stone, and the second is that Excalibur is given to Arthur by the Lady of the Lake some time after Arthur is already king. Malory includes both of these tales in his work and makes no attempt to reconcile them, which could lead to some confusion regarding how Arthur gained one Excalibur and then seemingly gains another with no explanation.
Excalibur Quotes in Le Morte d’Arthur
The Le Morte d’Arthur quotes below all refer to the symbol of Excalibur. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Book 1
Quotes
And when matins and the first mass was done, there was seen in the churchyard, against the high altar, a great stone four square, like unto a marble stone; and in midst thereof was like an anvil of steel a foot on high, and therein stuck a fair sword naked by the point, and letters there were written in gold about the sword that said thus:— Whoso pulleth out this sword of this stone and anvil, is rightwise king born of all England.
Related Characters:
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Get the entire Le Morte d’Arthur LitChart as a printable PDF.
Excalibur Symbol Timeline in Le Morte d’Arthur
The timeline below shows where the symbol Excalibur appears in Le Morte d’Arthur. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Book 1
...lords arrive and attend church, they see in the churchyard a massive stone with a sword stuck into it: letters in gold around the stone say that whoever pulls the sword...
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Some of the lords try, but none can move the sword. The Archbishop says that the man who can is not there. On New Year’s Day...
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...Kay into the church, and makes him swear on the Bible how he got the sword. Kay tells him the truth, and when Ector asks Arthur how he came upon it,...
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Chapter 6 Kay cannot pull the sword out either. Sir Ector then kneels before Arthur, saying that he is not Arthur’s father,...
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Chapter 7 At the Christian feast of Pentecost, many try to pull the sword out of the stone once again, but only Arthur succeeds. The commoners cry that they...
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...returns to Arthur, telling him to make an offense, but not to draw his miraculous sword until the very end. There are many great deeds in this battle, but finally King...
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Book 2
...at court and asks for her gift. Arthur asks her what the name of his sword is, and she says Excalibur. The Lady then asks for the head of Arthur—since he...
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Book 4
...dwarf arrives sent from Morgan le Fay (Accolon’s lover), saying that she has sent Accolon Excalibur, Arthur’s sword, along with its magical scabbard, with which to fight against a knight the...
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...to save his life through her magic. Arthur, seeing the blood-splotched ground, realizes that his sword has been changed and that Accolon’s sword must be Excalibur. Arthur loses a great deal...
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...on a ride, and she goes in search of Arthur, thinking to steal away his sword. Morgan finds him asleep with Excalibur in his hand, so she only manages to steal...
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Book 5
...until Arthur catches sight of Lucius and rides to him, cutting off his head with Excalibur. The Romans begin to flee, but the Britons chase them down and kill them all:...
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Book 21
...account of his own wound, and dies on the ground. Arthur tells Bedivere to take Excalibur to the riverside and throw it in the water. Bedivere departs, but says to himself...
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