Annis

File:Annis nameplate.png
Also known as:	Queen Annis
Biographical Information
Race:	Human
Gender:	Female
Family:	King Caerleon (husband) † Caerleon's Father (father-in-law) †
Statistics
Affiliation:	Caerleon Arthur Pendragon Gorlois † Derían King Caerleon (husband) † Camelot
Enemies:	Morgana Pendragon
Behind the Scenes
Portrayer:	Lindsay Duncan
List of Appearances:	His Father's Son Series 5

“Arthur will pay for this, by God! The whole of Camelot will pay for this!”

— Annis on Arthur killing her husband^[src]

Queen Annis is the widow of King Caerleon and the Queen of Caerleon.

Biography

At some point Queen Annis befriended Gorlois.

When her husband King Caerleon was killed in cold blood byArthur Pendragon, a grief-stricken Queen Annis declared war on Camelot. Annis soon entered into a pact to gain revenge on Arthur with Morgana, who came to the queen in Gorlois' name.

When Arthur came to Annis and requested to fight single-combat to avoid a full-scale war, the queen agreed. When Annis found out the next day that Arthur was to be Camelot's champion, the queen feared that it was a trick. Morgana assured her that it was "no trick" and commented that it was simply Arthur's nature to risk his own life instead of others'. As a result, Annis agreed to let a champion from Caerleon fight Arthur. Morgana promised Annis that Arthur would lose, informing the queen that she had enchanted Arthur's sword.

During the fight, Morgana triggered the enchantment on Arthur's sword, making the weapon bear the weight of a thousand ages. Queen Annis’ champion, Derian, immediately gained the upper hand but Merlin's intervention saved Arthur, giving him the victory. In the end, Arthur spared Annis' champion; when Annis questioned why, Arthur explained that it wasn't victory he was after, but peace.

Morgana later returned to Annis and swore that Arthur would not be as fortunate next time. Annis refused any further cooperation with Morgana, commenting that she had been blinded by grief which had allowed Morgana to manipulate her. Angrily, Morgana called Annis weak.

Annis, however, shocked Morgana by being the first to openly chastise her for her bitterness and hate. The Queen stunned her further when Annis reminded her that Morgana had come to Annis in Gorlois' name, yet it was Uther that Morgana resembled more. A speechless Morgana left Annis, who returned to Caerleon and left Camelot in peace (His Father's Son).

Personality

Queen Annis was a fierce, strong and courageous woman who, while grieving her husband's death, immediately rose up in defiance to declare war on Caerleon's killer, Arthur Pendragon. She was quick to seek vengeance in her grief and had a strong sence of justice since she responded vehemently to what she saw as a crime on Arthur's part.

However, Annis was also shown to be reasonable, rational and wise. When Arthur came to her unarmed, she allowed him, despite her grief, to negotiate a single-combat match and leave her camp unharmed, thus sparing many lives on both sides. In addition, Annis was a fair and compassionate queen, sparing Merlin's life despite catching him spying, and quickly forgiving Arthur his errors.

Queen Annis proved to be an adept judge of character once she saw past her grief. She came to acknowledge Arthur's sense of justice and mercy, despite his crime with Caerleon. She seemed to see Arthur in a good light and even glorifying him by commenting that he brought hope for all of them.

Annis also saw Morgana for what she was far more astutely than most. She was also the only character to openly criticise Morgana's behaviour when she believed that there were similarities between her and Uther. Annis was ultimately a very just and fair woman, but also spontaneous and extreme in her actions, forgiving Arthur his misjudgment and homicide unusually quickly, withdrawing her army and restoring the peace contract that Uther had with her father-in-law and refused to cooperate further with Morgana.

Appearances

Series 4

His Father's Son

Series 5

(TBA)

Trivia

• Queen Annis will be making an appearance in Series 5. It is unknown at this point what her role will be, this time as an ally of Camelot.

Gallery

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