Did Arthur get the Excalibur from the stone, or did he get it from the water? Which is it, really?

Answer 1

King Arthur drew the Sword In the Stone (which was the actual title of the blade) first and that is how he became king of England. It was shortly after his rise to ruler that Arthur and his court advisor/magician Merlin visited the lady in the lake. In possession of great magic, the Lady, saw in Arthur the warrior spirit and the potential violence in his future. She gave him the gift of Excalibur to ensure success in his future endeavors (provided that it is always used in battle instead of any other weapon). But I digress, Excalibur is the gift given by the Lady in the Lake and it came second....The Sword in the Stone came first and elevated Arthur to the throne.

Answer 2

I've wondered this before too!
Some say they were two different blades and that Arthur gained Excalibur from the Lady after breaking the sword from the stone.
Others say that they were the same and that the Lady merely repaired/enhanced it for Arthur.
And some legends exclude either the stone or the Lady, one saying that Arthur drew the sword from the stone and it was Excalibur. The other says that the Lady gave him Excalibur after his own sword was broken in battle.
Another legend says that Arthur cast away the sword from the stone (the true Excalibur) after accidentally killing a fellow knight and then received another sword from the Lady, which he named Excalibur after his original sword.
It depends on what you are reading really. I think the last version I mentioned above is the most epic for it paints Arthur as a more trouble figure, not a perfect bastion of goodness. It makes him more..human and real and it's easier to relate to him.
Yet there are so many different stories, and it's impossible to know which is the original legend. Read up on the various versions of the legend and decide for yourself what you think is true.
I hope this helps and that I didn't ramble too much :).

Answer 3

Excalibur was given to Arthur, as a gift from the Lady of the Lake. Hence, when he died, he wished for Exacalibur to be returned to the Lady.

The sword in the stone, was a device, in which Merlin had set up, so Arthur can gained his birthright with minimal discontent from the other Lords.

The enchantment on Excalibur was much too powerful for even Merlin to handle. It was a faerie gift. However, the sheathe for Excalibur was from the mage

Answer 4

Both actually depending on which story you're listening to.

In one version Excalibur is the sword he pulls from the stone signifying that he is the true king of England.

In another version he gains the sword from the Lady of the Lake.

Some people say that one of these swords was actually not Excalibur and was merely a mistranslation of an earlier text. In the movie "Excalibur" they get around this by having Arthur pull the sword from the stone, breaking it and having the Lady recreate it for him.

Answer 5

Arthur became king when he pulled the sword from the stone, he was only able to do this because he
was of pure heart and thought of others, only the one who was to do this was the true king. Excalibur was given to Merlin from the lady of the lake, he was the one to put it in the stone.

Answer 6

Originally, Merlin gained Excaliber from the Lady of the Lake.
He then gave it to Arthur's Father who misused the power and Merlin took it away to place it in the stone.
Arthur then pulled Excaliber from the stone and thus proved himself the rightful king.
(Until, Merlin retreived it after his death and returned it to the Lady of the Lake again.)

Answer 7

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Excalibur
There is two different beginnings to the story