The History of Avalon – Guest Post by Lisa Dawn

Hi Jewel Fans! We’re back with another amazing post from Friend of the Archive Lisa Dawn! She’s the go-to for all things Princesses over at her site The Princess Blog, and we’re so excited to share another Jewel Riders post from her with all of you!

The Avalon we know from the world of Princess Gwenevere and the Jewel Riders is very different from the Avalon of Athurian lore. How did the enchanted jewels come to be what they are? How did the magic of the Friendship Ring tame the wicked wizards of old? The series left us with many unanswered questions that were only hinted at through Merlin and Morgana’s dialogue in various episodes. One day, we would love to see a reboot or prequel of Jewel Riders that reveals the secrets of Avalon’s ancient past to answer these questions. Here is my interpretation of the dark age of Jewel Riders before Camelot became New Camelot.

We know from the episode “Travel Trees Don’t Dance” that wild magic is an uncontrollable force that results in unexpected and potentially dangerous consequences. Even though dancing dweasels and talking foxes are a lot of fun in theory, no one could survive in a Wonderland-like world where nothing is what it seems and you never know what’s lurking around every corner. Before it was tuned by Merlin, all magic in Avalon was wild. Wizards ruled the land and claimed as many enchanted jewels as they could find for themselves to satiate their unquenchable thirst for power. Chaos ensued. These were the dark days of Avalon.

One wizard saw beyond the chaos and was determined to transform Avalon into something greater. That wizard was Merlin. He befriended the Travel Trees to allow safe passage between the lands of Avalon and beyond and built the Friendship Ring near the Crystal Palace, where the enchanted jewels of the kingdom were stored. With the power of friendship to calm the chaos, Merlin initiated a new age of peace throughout the kingdom and founded the city of New Camelot, a peaceful metropolis of art and music. He worked with the ancestors of King Jared and Queen Anya to ensure that all enchanted jewels were tuned to the power of good so that no one could return the land to its chaotic origins.

To ensure that wicked wizards like Morgana would not interfere with his plans, Merlin founded the first group of Jewel Riders and teamed up with any good wizards who would join him to gather around the Friendship Ring and banish anyone who wanted to take advantages of Avalon’s vast resources of magic. Then he collected one enchanted jewel from seven different areas of Avalon to be safely stored in the Crystal Palace’s Jewel Keep and maintain order throughout the kingdom. Over time, the land became lush, green, and fruitful. Ordinary people from other kingdoms were able to make their homes in Avalon without needing to worry about the unpredictable effects of wild magic. Avalon became a kingdom of skilled artisans and prosperous families. If anyone were to threaten their peace, six new Jewel Riders would be selected each generation to wield the Sun Stone, Heart Stone, Moon Stone, and Forest Stones to defend the land.

However, the peace was not to last. When Queen Anya was selected as the new wielder of the Sun Stone, her sister, Princess Kale, became jealous and found an ancient wizard jewel that once belonged to the wizard Morgana. She forced Morgana’s Dark Stone to succumb to her whim by sending Merlin into the wild magic and stealing the seven crown jewels of the kingdom. Merlin scattered the jewels back to the lands from whence they came, and it was up to the latest generation of Jewel Riders–Princess Gwenevere, Tamara, and Fallon–to recover them and restore peace to the land. Throughout their quest, the Jewel Riders were able to take advantage of the many accommodations Merlin had made throughout the land of Avalon, such as taming the Travel Trees so they could ride the wild magic to chase after Kale and using the Friendship Ring to restore their powers when they reached their lowest point.

The Dark Stone was not the only wizard jewel left behind when Merlin banished the power-hungry wizards of the ancient past. All of these wizards were separated from their jewels, which were scattered to lands beyond Avalon. After the Jewel Riders recovered the crown jewels, Merlin tuned them to their own enchanted jewels, making them even stronger. This allowed them to travel to areas they had never been able to reach before, such as the home of the mermaids, unicorns, and the heart of all magic, where Gwenevere was presented with a new staff for Merlin. Morgana released some of the ancient wizards from their wild magic prisons, but upon defeating her, Gwenevere sent them back to where they came from and freed Merlin from the wild magic instead. Now, the people of Avalon can look forward to another age of peace and prosperity, at least until another wizard gets tainted by greed or jealousy.