Siege Perilous

American  

[seej per-uh-luhs] / ˈsidʒ ˈpɛr ə ləs /

noun

1. Arthurian Legend. a vacant seat at the Round Table that could be filled only by the predestined finder of the Holy Grail and was fatal to pretenders.

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Siege Perilous British  

noun

1. (in Arthurian legend) the seat at the Round Table that could be filled only by the knight destined to find the Holy Grail and that was fatal to anyone else

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Etymology

Origin of Siege Perilous

First recorded in 1425–75; from Old French siege perilleus “dangerous seat”; see siege ( def. ), perilous ( def. )

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Siege Perilous

Enough would be a world that, like the Siege Perilous, lets us give one another the lives we are all entitled to.

From Washington Post ● Apr. 22, 2021

Shortly after being beaten down by a group of cyborg supervillains, a number of the heroes enter a mirror-like portal called the Siege Perilous.

From Washington Post ● Apr. 22, 2021

Knighted by Lancelot, 224; occupies "Siege Perilous," 224; sees Holy Grail, 226.

From Legends of the Middle Ages Narrated with Special Reference to Literature and Art by Guerber, H. A. (Hélène Adeline)

Moreover a holy hermit had said that, when the Siege Perilous was filled, the achieving of the Holy Grail should be near.

From Stories of King Arthur and His Knights Retold from Malory's "Morte dArthur" by Cutler, U. Waldo

According to another version of the tale, Merlin, having grown very old indeed, once sat down on the "Siege Perilous," forgetting that none but a sinless man could occupy it with impunity.

From Legends of the Middle Ages Narrated with Special Reference to Literature and Art by Guerber, H. A. (Hélène Adeline)