Moorish princess, but neither could Perceval's father, the direct
descendant of Joseph of Arimathea, and hereditary holder of the Grail.
The _Early History_ of that talisman, as related by Robert de Borron,
once generally accepted, the relationship of _brother_ was as impossible
as that of _son_.

It seems clear that if a genuine tradition of a Moor as near kinsman to
Perceval really existed--and I see no reason to doubt that it did--it
must have belonged to the Perceval story prior to the development of
the Grail tradition, _e.g._, to such a stage as that hinted at by the
chess-board adventure of the "Didot" _Perceval_ and Gautier's poem, when
the hero was as ready to take advantage of his _bonnes fortunes_ as
other heroes of popular folk tales.

Further, judging from these stories it would seem probable that the
requisite modification began with the earlier generation, _i.e._,
Perceval himself still retaining traces of his secular and folk-tale
origin, while his father and mother have already been brought under the
influence of the ecclesiasticised Grail tradition. That this would be
the case appears only probable when we recall the vague and conflicting
traditions as to the hero's parentage; it was Perceval himself, and not
his father or his mother, who was the important factor in the tale;
hence the change in his character was a matter of gradual evolution.
Thus I am of opinion that the Moor as Perceval's brother is likely to be
an earlier conception than the Moor as Perceval's son. It is, I think,
noticeable that the romance containing this feature, the _Parzival_,
also, contrary to the _Early History_ versions, connects him with the
Grail through his mother, instead of through his father.

The _Morien_ is for me a welcome piece of evidence in support of the