Mordred was King Arthur's son. His mother was either Morgan or Morgause, who were both King Arthur's half-sisters, and thus he was both Arthur's son and nephew, and his grandmother Igraine was his twice grandmother.
Because Mordred was an illegitimate child, he was considered the 'devil's spawn', 'unnatural' and 'born evil'. Merlin predicted that Mordred would kill King Arthur, his own father.
Because of how he is written in the legends, people tend to think he was a horrible, evil, cruel, tyrannical monster who killed the Great King Arthur. However, King Arthur was not as great as everyone thought- he attempted to kill Mordred to save his own life.
Merlin told King Arthur that Mordred would kill him one day. So, Arthur gathered up all the noble-born baby boys who were born on May Day (the day of Mordred's birth) Then, he set the 40 infant boys on a small boat out to sea to die. There was a storm and the coracle (boat) was destroyed and shipwrecked. Of course, by trying to avoid your fate, you only aid it- Mordred was the only Survivor, and he was found by a fisherman and looked after by his wife.
This fueled his hate for Arthur.
All of Mordred's life in Camelot was spent being mocked, hated, and feared. No one loved him after he left his fishermother. Some say he was knighted, some say he wasn't, although his name is present on the Winchester Round Table, and he is usually considered a Knight of the Round Table. Some say he was Arthur's best friend, but usually in retellings they always hated each other. Some, more sympathetic retellings, say he fought his fate to the end. Some say he welcomed it.
There is also the matter of Lancelot's affair with Guinevere. Mordred is often credited with being the one who exposed them to Arthur, out of spite, out of hate. Lancelot escaped to France, and Arthur tried to find him. Meanwhile, Mordred took over Camelot in Arthur's absence. This led to the Battle of Camlann as Mordred refused to relinquish the throne back to Arthur upon his return.
At the Battle, Mordred fought Arthur hand-to-hand. It is usually Mordred's determination that kills Arthur- he runs forwards and is speared on Arthur's lance but his force allows him to drive himself further up the shaft and strike Arthur the fatal blow. Arthur is taken to Avalon to be healed but dies.
There's a lot to know about Mordred- like any character or human being he cannot be summed up neatly, and as a character of legend he has many variations, even in things as simple as his parentage (whether he Morgause's son or Morgan's varies on the myth or retelling)- but that basically sums it up.
He wasn't a villain; like Morgan le Fay, he was misunderstood. No child is born evil and Mordred lived with a terrible destiny all his life.
Copyright © 2026 eLLeNow.com All Rights Reserved.
