The Maid has a minion!

Lancelot the Brave Bee Knight

GuinevereBetter known as Gwen, is the true love and wife of Arthur Pendragon, one of the best friends of Merlin, the younger sister of the Sir Elyan, the only daughter and the youngest child of Tom, and the sister-in-law and former best friend of Morgana Pendragon. Gwen worked as Morgana's maid for many years before marrying Arthur. She had been the personal maidservant to the Lady Morgana since they were both young girls. She works at the palace. She is one of the best seamstresses in Camelot. She learned how to mend, make armor. and work with weapons from her father. Guinevere's mother is never seen or given a name. She's referenced as having worked as a maid in Sir Leon’s household. It's implied that Gwen's mother died before the main events. Upon Merlin’s arrival in Camelot, Gwen almost immediately befriends him. She praises him for his bravery for standing up to Arthur Pendragon, the Prince of Camelot, when he was bullying one of the servants. After developing a friendship with Merlin, she quickly becomes smitten with him (The Dragon's Call). Although Merlin is unaware of Gwen’s feelings for him until she kisses him when she finds out he is alive, despite being poisoned (The Poisoned Chalice).Gwen has no known family other than her father and her brother, Elyan. When Camelot is hit by a plague sent by Nimueh, Gwen’s father falls victim to it. Gwen begs Gaius to help him but there is no known cure. Merlin uses magic to cure Tom as he can’t bear to stand back and see her suffer when he has the power to save Tom. When news of Tom’s sudden recovery reaches Arthur he arrests Gwen for witchcraft, although he disagrees with his father’s assumption that Gwen caused the plague. She is saved when Merlin, Arthur and Morgana discover an Afanc that was poisoning the water supply and destroy it (The Mark of Nimueh).When a swordsman named Lancelot arrives in Camelot he is instantly attracted to Gwen, who in turn, wishes to help him reach his goal of becoming a knight of Camelot. Like Merlin, she is the only one who knows that he isn’t a nobleman. Gwen helps Lancelot with his armour first when he is trying to become a knight and later when he goes to Arthur defeat a Griffin. Gwen quickly grows to like Lancelot and also begs him not to go out to attack the Griffin, fearing that it will cost him his life. Gwen is upset when Lancelot leaves Camelot fearing that she will never see him again (Lancelot).When Arthur is challenged to a duel to the death with a wraith - his uncle Tristan De Bois - it is from Gwen that Merlin gets the legendary sword Excalibur she tells him that it is the finest sword her father ever made. It is from The Great Dragon the sword gains its powers (Excalibur).Gwen has shown she is capable of standing up for herself. When she is arrested for witchcraft she protests her innocence to Uther and Arthur (The Mark of Nimueh). When Merlin, Morgana, Arthur and Gwen traveled to Ealdor to defend it against bandits lead by Kanen she took it upon herself to represent the women of the town. She convinced Arthur to let her, Morgana, and the other women of the village fight. Moreover she scolds Arthur for his lack of gratitude for the food the people give him. Arthur, rather than scolding her for showing him disrespect, apologises for his behaviour. Gwen also encourages Arthur when he begins to doubt their chances of beating Kanen (The Moment of Truth).Tom is killed by Uther after he is accused of harbouring a sorcerer, Tauren, leaving Gwen an orphan. Although she holds a great hate for Uther as a result she states that she wouldn’t kill Uther if she had the power of life and death over him stating that "would make her no better than him." Arthur assures Gwen after Tom’s death that her home and job are still hers and to ask if she needs anything (To Kill the King).When Arthur is bitten by the Questing Beast the kingdom prepares themselves for the fact that he will die but Gwen refuses to give up on him. As she nurses him she tells him that the only thing that keeps her going is the hope that one day he will be king. It is obvious that although she dislikes his attitude and behaviour most of the time, she sees that deep down he is a good man and she believes that he will be a great King one day, and has faith that he will grow into the best leader Camelot has ever seen. When Merlin brings back water from the Cup of Life Arthur recovers, Arthur reminds Gwen of the things she said about him, playfully teasing her. Flustered by his flirting, she denies having said anything complimentary to him and flees, leaving Arthur bemused. Soon after that, Gwen nurses Merlin’s mother Hunith when her life is taken for Arthur’s, instead of Merlin. Before he leaves to confront Nimueh Merlin tells Gwen that she should never lose her good heart (Le Morte d'Arthur).Gwen continues to aid Merlin in his adventures in every way she can. Growing up in Camelot she had been open about her dislike for Prince Arthur. However, she soon gets the opportunity to get to know him better (when he lives with her for a few days during a jousting competition). She realises her opinions of him had been too harsh and based on shallow conclusions (The Moment of Truth, The Once and Future Queen). She and Arthur begin to fall in love, though their different social classes form barriers.They initially clash over Arthur’s rude behavior, but Arthur soon seems genuinely sorry to have treated her so badly, he tries to make it up to her by attempting (and failing) to cook dinner for them. Gwen appreciates the effort he has gone to and they soon start to respect and like each other, the atmosphere becomes more comfortable and they begin to relish being in each others company laughing, teasing and confiding in each other. Before Arthur leaves her home for the final time he impulsively kisses her. Arthur later tells her that it is not possible for them to be together as Uther would never understand, and Gwen is accepting of this. However, they are both reluctant to part ways and have since developed the habit of staring at each other intensely whenever they come into contact. Later in the series, they begin to show more affection to each other, more openly. When Gwen was captured by Hengist’s men, Arthur goes to rescue her, against Uther’s will. On the journey there, he confesses to Merlin that he thinks about Gwen all the time but knows nothing can ever come of their relationship. Arthur warns him keep his confession a secret, unless he is to be behead. He finds that Lancelot has also come to rescue her and Lancelot soon sees that Arthur is in love with Gwen.Morgana suffers from nightmares and when she wakes up she always calls for Gwen to comfort her, Gwen is worried for her friend and often stays awake with her so that she can look after her, she remains unaware that the nightmares are caused by magic and that Morgana is a seer (The Nightmare Begins). Gwen and Morgana have clearly grown apart in series 2. Morgana has no idea that Gwen fell in love with Arthur because Gwen chose not to share her problems with her and Morgana was too troubled by her own problems to notice, she has also chosen not to confide in Gwen about her magical abilities.Gwen is still close friends with Merlin, but no longer has any romantic feelings for him. She is reunited with Lancelot when she is taken prisoner by an outlaw who believes her to be the lady Morgana. Unaware that Arthur has defied his father and is on his way to rescue her, she concludes that Uther will never pay a ransom for her and believes that she has been abandoned to die. She refuses to show her captors any fear, but privately despairs that nobody in the world seems to care for her.Lancelot has become an entertainer of sorts, he has fallen on hard times and now gets paid to sword fight for other (richer) people’s amusement. He is participating in a cage fight when he spots Gwen being held captive. He vows to save her, and tells her that she gives him a reason to live. Gwen is overjoyed to see Lancelot and seems overwhelmed by his feelings for her at first, she soon accepts them and even returns his sentiments.Her brush with death has affected her and she seems determined to take whatever happiness she can get, she no longer wants to be alone and is happy that she has found Lancelot. When Lancelot sees that Arthur cares deeply for Gwen he gives up on her without a fight refusing to come between them. He tells Merlin to tell Gwen that "some things can’t be" and sneaks away in the night when Arthur and Gwen are sleeping. Waking up to discover Lancelot gone Gwen cries silently, heartbroken to be abandoned again. Arthur looks sad for her and equally uncomfortable over the situation. They ride back to Camelot and as Gwen is reunited with Morgana, Arthur shoots Gwen a rather heartbroken look from the stairs (Lancelot and Guinevere). In later episodes, the two have appeared to be back to normal eg. when Gwen goes to Arthur to thank him for his humility (Beauty and the Beast).When Arthur refuses to follow his father's orders (Beauty and the Beast) and punish a man who can’t pay the new tax Uther has imposed on his people, Gwen witnesses Arthur giving people back their money and smiles admiringly at him - although he doesn’t see her. Later in the episode, she visits Arthur in his quarters and comforts him (he is upset at his father's uncaring attitude) he doubts that he can be a king and a friend to his people. Gwen insists he can and that one day he will prove his father wrong. She tells him that he has a kind heart and should never allow himself to change for anyone. As Arthur listens to her and starts to cheer up, Sir Leon interrupts them by summoning Arthur to the great hall. Even after the events with Lancelot, Gwen and Arthur remain close; Gwen’s respect and admiration for Arthur is growing and Arthur is clearly happy that Gwen would seek him out and he seems to appreciate her advice.Arthur is later enchanted by a king to fall in love with another king’s daughter as part of a plot to ruin a potential peace treaty between their kingdoms and Camelot. Around this time, Gwen starts to regain trust in Arthur’s feelings for her. However, she is left heartbroken when she sees him with Vivian. Merlin later seeks her out and informs her that Arthur was under the control of a love potion and she is the only one who can break it. Gwen goes to Arthur and kisses him, which breaks the spell. Arthur later apologises for the pain he caused her, and Gwen accepts it. However, when Arthur professes that he never loved anyone other than her, she sadly tells him she can't be his queen, at least until things can change. She also speaks with Gaius of it and he insists that no love is impossible. After Arthur and Merlin’s battle with the Great Dragon, Gwen runs to Arthur and hugs him when he returns.When Morgana returns to Camelot after being taken away by Morgause, Gwen is relieved but she becomes suspicious of Morgana’s curt and civil nature due to the fact that Morgana has secretly turned evil (The Tears of Uther Pendragon). Because her friendship with Morgana gradually deteriorates, Gwen starts to spend more time with Merlin and Arthur, such as helping Merlin when Gaius is possessed by a Goblin (Goblin's Gold) and persuading Gwaine to return and help Arthur (Gwaine). Morgana soon discovers Gwen’s feeling for Arthur when he is forced to marry a princess (The Changeling), which later results in Gwen getting captured by Cenred to lure Arthur to a trap (The Castle of Fyrien).Gwen’s suspicions of Morgana appear when she sees Morgana with an old woman who is actually Morgause in disguise and when Morgana coldly tells her to get out of her room, to the point that she secretly discovers that Morgana has magic and she tells Gaius of her discovery. This makes Gwen aware that Morgana has turned against Camelot, making her the third person in Camelot after Merlin and Gaius to know of Morgana’s true loyalties (The Eye of the Phoenix).When Morgana is tormented by dreams of Gwen becoming queen, she tries to stop Gwen and Arthur’s romance after encouragement from Morgause. When Morgana suggests it to Arthur, Gwen and Arthur decide to spend a day together away from the city. They have a picnic in the woods, treating each other as equals. When Gwen goes to kiss Arthur, they are interrupted when Uther and Morgana 'coincidentally' come across them during a ride.Back at Camelot, Uther laughs at what he saw and tells Arthur that he was young once and tempted by servings girls. Arthur seems shocked, but surprised that his father has given him his blessing. However, Uther is unaware that Arthur is actually in love with Gwen, and commands that Arthur will never see Gwen again.When Arthur insists that he refuses to abandon his feelings, Uther orders that Gwen be banished, leaving Arthur furious. When Arthur reveals that he intends to leave Camelot with Gwen and later return and take the throne, Morgana decides to frame Gwen for casting a love spell on the prince. Uther sentences her to death, much to Arthur’s fury and Morgana’s amusement. As she is dragged away to the dungeons, Arthur kisses her again, and she catches sight of Morgana smirking at her. When Merlin visits Gwen, she informs him of her suspicions of Morgana. Unbeknownst to Gwen, Merlin casts an ageing spell on himself and pretends to place an identical poultice to that planted by Morgana under Arthur’s pillow, intentionally getting caught so Gwen can be free. She and Arthur later agreed that they have to keep up the master-servant charade, but that they do love each other, and he promises her that when he is king, she will be his queen (Queen of Hearts).When an army of immortal soldiers invade Camelot and when Morgana’s true loyalties are officially revealed when she is crowned Queen, Gwen pretends to remain loyal to Morgana but helps Sir Leon escape Camelot. She is reunited with Arthur, Merlin, Gwaine and Elyan. Later her old love interest Lancelot and his friend Percival arrive. Gwen is not among the group that goes to bring an end to Morgana’s reign but returns to Camelot after Morgana flees with her unconscious sister Morgause (The Coming of Arthur).Although peace is restored to Camelot, Gwen has to look after Uther for a year as he is still shaken by Morgana’s betrayal. Gwen tells Gaius that she is only doing it for Arthur’s sake and not Uther’s. Meanwhile, Morgana attempts to take revenge on Camelot again by summoning creatures known as the Dorocha and Arthur plans to sacrifice himself to defeat them. Before leaving, he tearfully says goodbye to Uther and comforts Gwen by reminding her of the day he first kissed her. Gwen then goes to Lancelot, telling him to keep Arthur safe and he promises that he will protect Arthur with his life.In Arthur’s absence, Agravaine, who is his uncle, takes charge of the kingdom and has the city gates shut to prevent food running out. When Gaius confronted Agravaine about that, Gwen gives a speech to persuade Agravaine to reopen the city gates. Gwen then tends to Uther and reassures him that Arthur will return in a few days when he asks her where he is. Agravaine then visits Gwen and after apologising to her, summons her to his chambers for advice. However, unknown to Gwen, Agravaine is secretly loyal to Morgana and diverts her attention so that Morgana will enter Camelot and knock her unconscious to prevent her vision of Gwen becoming queen from coming true. After Morgana does that, Gaius finds Gwen and tells her that someone wants to get rid of her by leaving her to be killed by the Dorocha. After Arthur returns to Camelot when Lancelot sacrificed himself to defeat the Dorocha, Gwen mourns Lancelot’s death, telling Arthur that he sacrificed himself to fulfill the promise he gave to her (The Darkest Hour).When Uther is mortally wounded by an assassin, Arthur plans to save him with magic but fails, resulting in Uther’s death. After Uther’s death, Gwen is one of the people who watch Arthur being crowned King of Camelot (The Wicked Day).Under Agravaine’s influence, Arthur is forced to break up with Gwen due to her social status of being a servant and his of being a king. Although this breaks Gwen’s heart, she holds her head high and tells Arthur that he should listen to his heart. Gwen even worries about what will become of Arthur when he causes a war between Camelot and Caerleon, and before a match, Arthur gives Merlin a ring, asking him to give to Gwen as an apology. Arthur eventually survives the match and becomes at peace with Caerleon. Upon returning to Camelot, he apologizes for his actions by presenting Gwen with flowers and kissing her.When Merlin is kidnapped by Mercenaries, Gwen grows very worried for her friend's well being, even stating that she is just as worried as Arthur. Merlin was rescued later by Arthur and Gwaine (he had previously been held captive by Morgana, and, under her influence, on a new mission to kill Arthur) and Gwen was happy for her friend's return, even serving Arthur (something Merlin would usually do) as she thought he needed rest. Merlin was rude to her, and after speculation she and Gaius concluded that was being controlled by a snake called the Fomorroh. Gwen knocked Merlin out and Gaius attempts to kill the snake, but to no avail. This forces Gwen to knock Merlin out a second time, and after Merlin manages to destroy the snake, Gwen is happy that her friend has returned to his normal mind.Later, Gaius is abducted and brought to Morgana in an attempt to discover who Emrys is. While the whole of Camelot believed Gaius to be a traitor, Gwen did not believe this, and comforted Merlin and supported his idea that Gaius had been abducted. Gwen later cared for Gaius after he was rescued by Merlin and Gwaine.Lamia goes to the village of Longstrong, and begins preying on its inhabitants. Three villagers become its victims. Fearing an unknown illness, the wife of the village elder goes to Camelot to ask for help. She approaches Gwen, who tells Arthur. After consulting with Gaius, Arthur sends Merlin as the substitute physician, with Gwen and the Knights of Camelot to fix the problem. The Lamia is later caught by bandits, and rescued by the Knights when they leave the village to go back to Camelot.However, she soon starts to exert her power over them, making them aggressive and more violent. Her first victim among them is Sir Elyan. Instead of going back to Camelot, she forces them to travel to a castle to the East that she knows of. Afterwards, the Lamia picks them off, one by one. First is Gwaine, followed by Percival. Leon sees Percival fall because of the Lamia. He attacks her but she defeats him. Merlin sees the Lamia after Leon and is able to wound her with Leon's sword. She changes to her true form and attacks again. Merlin runs and makes it back to Gwen, who hears the commotion. She uses a sword to try to kill the creature. Arthur (who had been following their trail when they were missing) kills the Lamia with a spear to the back. After the Lamia incident, Arthur comments on Gwen's bravery in his chambers, where the couple shares a very intimate kiss (Lamia).When Morgana hears of Arthur's intention to marry Gwen, she uses dark magic to bring Lancelot back from the dead and orders him to present Gwen with a bracelet that will enchant her to fall in love with him. Gwen is surprised by Lancelot's reappearance but is intent on becoming Arthur's wife. After Lancelot puts the bracelet on her wrist, Gwen begins acting strangely, visiting him in his tent before a jousting competition, although she soon comes back to her senses. However, after the match, she visits Lancelot again and is intimate towards him. She agrees to meet him that night in the castle. Agravaine brings Arthur to catch his soon-to-be wife kissing Lancelot and, in a rage, hurls his sword at him, but Gwen stops the commotion quickly. She is imprisoned and throws the bracelet away in rage.During her trial, Arthur asks everyone to step out and demands to know why Gwen did what she did. Gwen says she did not know what happened and once loved Lancelot, but now loves Arthur. Arthur decides not to have her executed but orders her exiled, citing that if she returns, she will pay with her life. Merlin tries to persuade Arthur to change his decision, but Arthur says that he will never again be able to trust Gwen and that his decision was final, leaving Merlin hurt and angry that Morgana stole one friend from him (Gwen) and had dishonoured the other (Lancelot).After her exile, Gwen adapts to life as a peasant in an outside village for some time. She wears Arthur’s engagement ring he gave to her as a necklace. The village is soon invaded by a warlord named Helios, who spares her life and takes her into his refuge because of her beauty. He dines with Gwen and gives her beautiful clothes, but after Gwen finds out that Helios is plotting to capture Camelot with Morgana, she flees and hides out in the forest for some time while Morgana and Helios’ men hunt her down. Morgana and Gwen eventually cross paths and Morgana knocks Gwen out, rips her necklace off and turnsher into a deer. Merlin eventually finds out after a hunting trip with Arthur, when he sees Gwen instead of the deer’s reflection. After she is hit by an arrow, he visits her and heals her wound. The next morning, Merlin and Gwen reunite and Gwen tells Merlin of Morgana and Helios’ plans to capture Camelot, and how they are aided by Agravaine. A Camelot patrol passes, but to Merlin's dismay, Guinevere refuses to join him as she doesn't want to be seen by Arthur. Because Gwen can never return to Camelot, Merlin informs Arthur, but Arthur doesn't believe him. Arthur, who had also found Gwen’s ring in the forest, also realizes that he still has feelings for her and ended his potential relationship with the beautiful Princess Mithian, saying that he still has feelings for her. Merlin later tells Arthur that he and Gwen would somehow find their way back to each other eventually.After these events, Gwen goes to Ealdor, Merlin's hometown, where she is looked after by Hunith, Merlin's mother. Soon after, Merlin brings Arthur to Ealdor to keep him safe after Morgana conquered Camelot. Gwen tends to him, and they reunite when he regains consciousness. However, Agravaine tracks Arthur down and they are forced to flee.Whilst preparing to save Camelot from the clutches of Morgana, Gwen attempts to talk to Arthur but he tells her that the affection he showed when they met in Ealdor was a moment of weakness and he still hasn't forgiven her for her brief affair with Lancelot. Despite this, Gwen stays by Arthur's side throughout the battle to save Camelot and duels against her former friend and mistress, Morgana, but is overwhelmed by Morgana's superior swordplay. Fortunately, Merlin uses his magic to cause an avalanche which knocks Morgana off her feet, but when the dust clears Morgana has disappeared. How Morgana escapes, or even if it is actually an escape or a rescue, is unknown.Gwen and Merlin return to the throne room and find Isolde, a friend Arthur and Merlin had picked up during their travels, dying in the arms of her lover, Tristan. After seeing Isolde die, Arthur realises that he can't bear to lose Gwen again and finally manages to forgive her, asking her to marry him. Gwen accepts, saying "Yes, with all my heart". Following their marriage she is crowned Queen of Camelot (The Sword in the Stone).