The Holy Grail is the name given to the cup which Jesus used in the Last Supper. This cup, according to legend, given to Joseph of Arimethea. It was he who provided the tomb for Jesus’ burial. After an imprisonment, during which he was sustained by the nourishment provided by the cup, Joseph travels to Britain. It is there that he preaches for the first time the Christian Gospel on English soil. He and his group of followers settled at Glastonbury, while the Grail was taken to Corbenic where a formidable castle was built to house it. There whereabouts of the castle became unknown and remained so for centuries.
However, it was said in early medieval Britain that the cup would be re-discovered by one who was the descendant of Joseph of Arimathea. The one who would find it would be the finest knight in the land and would be the only one capable of facing the great trails that faced the seeker of the Grail. King Arthur was thought to lead this noble knight whom the people had been waiting for. Arthur and his knights traveled all over Britain searching for the Grail. Many of the knights came very close, although because of their impurities, the Grail eluded them. Galahad, though, is said to have been the only knight to have seen the Grail. When he gazed upon it, his life was complete, and he was lifted up to heaven. The obstacles, though, proved to be too much for many of the other knights and they returned home after their quest far fewer in number.
This legend was, no doubt, spread and expanded by the great body of romantic literature written in the 1100-1200's. And, it is infinitely more complicated than I have laid it out, with a countless number of twists and turns.
For those who are unfamiliar with the it, I want to introduce you to the subject of Monty Python’s film, on which this web site is based - that is, the quest for the Holy Grail.
