E. Cobham Brewer 18101897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898.
Lady of Shallott.
A maiden who fell in love with Sir Lancelot of the Lake, and died because her love was not returned. Tennyson has a poem on the subject; and the story of Elaine, the lily maid of Astolat, in the Idylls of the King, is substantially the same. (See ELAINE.)