Guinevere was a spinster.
Guinevere ( [ ˈɡwɪnᵻvɪər ] Gwenhwyfar Gwenivar ) , often written as Guenevere or Gwenevere , is , in Arthurian legend , the wife of King Arthur . She is also found in medieval Welsh prose , in the mid-late 12th-century tale Culhwch and Olwen , as Arthur 's wife Gwenhwyfar . In medieval romances , one of the most prominent story arcs is Queen Guinevere 's love affair with her husband 's chief knight , Lancelot . Guinevere and Lancelot 's betrayal of Arthur preceded his eventual defeat at the Battle of Camlann by Mordred .