Cornwall Gang

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Cornwall Gang is a term which members of the Arthuriana fandom use to refer to two groups of characters. The term first came into use to refer to the Cornish knight Tristan and his friends, possibly originating on @oneshoulderangel's Tumblr, though this cannot be determined. It was later applied to Cador of Cornwall and his friends. To differentiate, they may be referred to as the Greater and Lesser Cornwall Gangs, but this also can lead to confusion, since some assume that Lesser Cornwall Gang refers to the more obscure members of the Greater Cornwall Gang.

Greater Cornwall Gang

Members

Best-known Members

• Sir Tristan of Lyonesse: a powerful yet unstable knight who is in love with Isolde and likes music.
• Isolde of Ireland: the doctor-princess everyone is in love with who is married to King Mark and in love with Tristan.
• Sir Palamedes: another knight who is in love with Isolde.
• Sir Dinadan: their good-humored friend who thinks whacking people with swords for the heck of it is dumb and doesn't get romantic attraction.
• Brangaine: Isolde's long-suffering servant or long-suffering relative.

Other Members

• Sir Kahedin: Tristan's brother-in-law, friend, and sometimes love interest of Brangaine.
• Gouvernail: the battle butler who helped raise Tristan.
• Brych Bychan: Tristan's squire.

Connected Characters

• Isolde of the White Hands: Kahedin's sister, she is married to Tristan, who does not love her.
• King Mark: Tristan's uncle, he is married to Isolde of Ireland, who does not love him.

In Fandom

The most common ship is the canon ship Trisolde (Isolde/Tristan), but it is also fairly common to see Isolde/Palamedes/Tristan and occasionally Dinadan/Palamedes as a QPR. Rarer ships include Brangaine/Palamedes, Brangaine/Isolde, or Brangaine/Iseult Blancmains. The Greater Cornwall Gang is generally considered very chaotic but affectionate. The complex love map has led some to call them "Tristan's horrible polycule".

Lesser Cornwall Gang

Members

Primary Members

• Caradoc Briefbras
• Guinier
• Cador of Cornwall
• Aalardin du Lac
• The Maiden of the Pavilion

Secondary Members

• Ydain
• Sir Percival

In Fandom

The Lesser Cornwall Gang is fairly obscure in the Arthuriana fandom and may be best remembered for Cador and Ydain being the parents of Constantine, who succeeds Arthur as King of Britain in multiple texts, including the Historia Regum Britanniae and Le Morte D'Arthur. However, they have some proponents. Their fans tend to like The Story of Caradoc and to refer to their portrayals there.