2006 Dunstanburgh Project > Visitors > King Arthur > The Fisher King

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'The story of the "Fisher King" and the Knights search for the Holy Grail'

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The story of the Fisher King was perhaps inspired by the character Bran.

The Fisher King was a man encountered by some of the knights on their quest for the Holy Grail. Wounded by a spear (some say it was the same spear used to crucify Jesus), he was caused unnecessary pain when Perceval failed to ask him three vital questions.

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The Fisher King has ties to Christian, pre-feudal legend, particularly as he is said to have earned his name by offering fish to Joseph of Arimathea, who was the one to bring the Holy Grail to Glastonbury, which then created the Chalice Well.

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The Fisher King also has ties in unexpected places in modern poetry. In his vast poem The Wasteland, T.S. Eliot uses a line from Verlaine's poem about Perceval's quest and his ability to grasp the Grail because of his purity of heart. Thus, Eliot creates a parallel in The Wasteland between the post-war ruins of Europe and the ruinous landscape in Britain after Arthur's death.

See also Parsifal