Toys and Games

Arthurian motifs are prevalent in games and toys. The iconic Barbie and Ken, for example, have been incarnated as Arthur and Guinevere and, again, as Merlin (“The Magician”) and Morgan le Fay (“The Enchanted”). Paper dolls, popular since the Victorian era, continue to inspire children to dress Arthurian characters for court or arm them for battle. Puzzles allow them to construct Camelot or scenes from Quest for Camelot or Disney’s The Sword in the Stone. Coloring books encourage them to add personal touches to Arthurian stories—even to some, like the passing of Arthur, that might seem inappropriate for a child’s entertainment. And action figures, board games, and computer games create further opportunities for fantasy and amusement.

 Among the earliest of the Arthurian board games was Parker Brothers’ Chivalry (1887). Reissued with the new title Camelot in 1930 and produced in a variety of new versions until the 1960s, it consisted of charging knights and slower moving footmen, or “men at arms,” who seek to becomes “castled” on the opponent’s end of the board either by “canters” over friendly pieces or “jumps” over enemy pieces. Entering production in the 1950s were a number of similar games that tied in to—and promoted—early television programs or films. The Lisbeth Whiting Company’s board game, Adventures of Sir Lancelot, for example, was based—as the box boldly announced—“on the exciting new NBC TV series” and marketed as “The Official Game” of that popular show. And the board game Prince Valiant: A Game of Valor, released in 1954 as merchandise to promote the Prince Valiant movie, it took players through the seven adventures of Valiant in his quest for knighthood.