<P> In Arthurian romance, a number of explanations are given for Arthur's possession of Excalibur . In Robert de Boron's Merlin, the first tale to mention the "sword in the stone" motif, Arthur obtained the British throne by pulling a sword from an anvil sitting atop a stone that appeared in a churchyard on Christmas Eve . In this account, the act could not be performed except by "the true king," meaning the divinely appointed king or true heir of Uther Pendragon . As Malory's writes: "Whoso pulleth out this sword of this stone and anvil, is rightwise king born ." This sword is thought by many to be the famous Excalibur, and its identity is made explicit in the later Prose Merlin, part of the Lancelot - Grail cycle . The challenge of drawing a sword from a stone also appears in the Arthurian legends of Galahad, whose achievement of the task indicates that he is destined to find the Holy Grail . </P> <P> However, in what is called the Post-Vulgate Cycle, Excalibur was given to Arthur by the Lady of the Lake sometime after he began to reign . She calls the sword "Excalibur, that is as to say as Cut - steel ." In the Vulgate Mort Artu, Arthur orders Griflet to throw the sword into the enchanted lake; after two failed attempts (as he felt such a great sword should not be thrown away), Griflet finally complies with the wounded king's request and a hand emerges from the lake to catch it . This tale becomes attached to Bedivere instead of Griflet in Malory and the English tradition . Malory records both versions of the legend in his Le Morte d'Arthur, naming both swords as Excalibur . </P> <P> In Welsh legend, Arthur's sword is known as Caledfwlch . In Culhwch and Olwen, it is one of Arthur's most valuable possessions and is used by Arthur's warrior Llenlleawg the Irishman to kill the Irish king Diwrnach while stealing his magical cauldron . Irish mythology mentions a weapon Caladbolg, the sword of Fergus mac Róich, which was also known for its incredible power and was carried by some of Ireland's greatest heroes . The name, which can also mean "hard cleft" in Irish, appears in the plural, caladbuilc, as a generic term for "great swords" in Togail Troi ("The Destruction of Troy"), the 10th - century Irish translation of the classical tale . </P> <P> Though not named as Caledfwlch, Arthur's sword is described vividly in The Dream of Rhonabwy one of the tales associated with the Mabinogion: </P>

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