Brandegoris

The King of Estranggorre (Estrangore). He married a daughter of Adrian of Constantinople and thus became the brother-in-law of Adrians’s other daughter, the mother of Saigremor le Desree (Sagramore).

Brandegoris joined the rebellious kings in their campaign against King Arthur. He pledged to bring 5,000 mounted men to the battle of Bedegraine. In that battle Brandegoris, King Idres, and King Agwisance (Anguish) unhorsed Sirs Griflet and Lucas. He was defeated by Arthur, Ban and Bors.

Surviving the battle, Brandegoris seems not to have joined the second coalition of rebel kings, for he is almost certainly to be identified with King Brandegore, on whose daughter Sir Bors begat a son, Helin le Blank. Bors revisited Brandegoris when Helin was fifteen years old and, with Brandegoris’ consent, brought the boy to Arthur’s court.

King Brandegoris himself, however, seems never to have officially joined Arthur’s court, though he allied with him in order to expel the Saxons from Britain, and also joined him in the war against Claudas. He married the daughter of Contantinople, and had a beautiful daughter, upon whom Sir Bors fathered Helain the White. He also fathered a son named Evadeam, also known as the Dwarf Knight. His wife had a son from a previous marriage named Sagremor (Sagramore) – later a Knight of the Round Table.

It has been argued that his original name means “Bran of Gore” and that he was originally identical with the god Bran. It seems to be a reference to the Welsh Bran and the land of Gorre (Gore) invented by Chrétien de Troyes.