Lancelot, the Knight of the Cart

Lancelot, the Knight of the Cart
Lancelot crossing the sword bridge (illumination in a manuscript produced for Jacques d'Armagnac, Duke of Nemours, in the workshop of Evrard d'Espinques, c. 1475)
Original title	French: Lancelot, le Chevalier de la charrette
Author(s)	Chrétien de Troyes and Godefroi de Leigni
Patron	Marie of Champagne
Language	Old French
Date	between 1177 and 1181
Provenance	County of Champagne
Manuscript(s)	BnF Français 794
Genre	Chivalric romance
Verse form	Octosyllable rhyming couplets
Length	7,134 lines
Subject	Arthurian legend
Setting	Logres and Gorre
Personages	Lancelot, Maleagant, Guinevere, Gawain

Lancelot, the Knight of the Cart (French: Lancelot, le Chevalier de la charrette), is a 12th-century Old French poem by Chrétien de Troyes, although it is believed that Chrétien did not complete the text himself. It is one of the first stories of the Arthurian legend to feature Lancelot as a prominent character. The narrative tells about the abduction of Queen Guinevere, and is the first text to feature the love affair between Lancelot and Guinevere.

Chrétien's writings impacted the Arthurian canon, establishing Lancelot’s subsequent prominence in English literature. He was the first writer to deal with the Arthurian themes of the lineage of Lancelot, his relationship to Guinevere, secret love and infidelity, and the idea of courtly love. The text also deals with the Christian theme of sin.