morgause (poem)

wife, mother, sister, queen but never woman.

image source: pinterest

As I get closer to the end of this series (this will be poem number seven and I am shooting for ten total), I am beginning to explore more prominent characters in Arthurian legend. So, let’s talk about Morgause. If you remember the introduction to my poem about Igraine then you will remember King Arthur has three half-sisters. From oldest to youngest they are Morgause, Elaine, and Morgan (yes, that Morgan). After the death of Morgause’s father, Gorlois, Igraine’s husband marries Morgause off to one of his allies, King Lot. King Lot eventually joins the rebellion against King Arthur and sends Morgause as a spy to Arthur’s court. However, Morgause, unknowingly, ends up sleeping with her half-brother Arthur (yikes). The result of this love affair is a son named Mordred. If you are familiar with Arthurian legend then you know Mordred is destined to bring about Arthur’s downfall. Mordred is not Morgause’s only son. With Lot, Morgause has four other sons who all end up becoming knights of Arthur’s Round Table. Lot, ultimately, is slain in battle by a man named Pellinore. Two of Lot and Morgause’s sons - Gawain and Gaheris - avange the death of their father by killing Pellinore. Since this is peak soap opera drama, Morgause ends up having another love affair with Lamorak who happens to be Pellinore’s son. Eventually, Gaheris discovers Morgause and Lamorak and beheads her on the spot covering Lamorak in her blood. And that is the end of Morgause.

For this poem, I wanted to focus on the consequences of what happens when woman is reduced to her status and titles and is not in control of her own destiny. For a woman like Morgause, all of her choices (and unchoices) result in fates out of her control. Her arranged marriage to Lot resulting in the birth of her eventual killer; her affair with Arthur resulting in the birth of his eventual killer; and her affair with Lamorak directly leading to her beheading are all instances where a woman’s body becomes a weapon of destruction.

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morgause

the sky is streaked with the blood
of all the men destined to live and die
between the soft flesh of my thighs.
i have become nothing but
a body
written into the margins
of someone else’s story
by hands that believe they
own me.
in the face of a fatestorm,
no one bothers to read
a weathered heart
for a weathervane.
nobody warns you
there are no right choices
for the chosen.
wife, mother, sister, queen
but never woman.
only ever
the rust on the
sword.
only ever
the salt in the
wound.
how could i be anything
but?
when the cord is
cut
but the tether remains,
all that we don’t know
will be the end
of us all.

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Other poems in this series:

elaine (poem)

kingmaker (poem)

lunete (poem)

oathbreaker (poem)

deathspell (poem)

nimue, lady of the lake (poems)

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Sources:

Huber, Emily. “Morgause.” Robbins Library Digital Project, d.lib.rochester.edu/camelot/theme/morgause.html. Accessed 1 July 2026.

Linton, Phoebe C. “FEMALE SPACE AND MARGINALITY IN MALORY’S MORTE DARTHUR: IGRAINE, MORGAUSE AND MORGAN.” The University of Edinburgh, 2017.

“Morgan, Morgause, Mordred, and the Fall of King Arthur.” MythDancer, mythdancer.blogspot.com/2015/11/morgan-morgause-mordred-and-fall-of.html. Accessed 1 July 2026.

“Morgause.” King Arthur’s Knights, kingarthursknights.com/arthurian-characters/morgause/. Accessed 1 July 2026.