# Arviragus — Cymbeline character guide

> Arviragus in Cymbeline by William Shakespeare.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Cadwal

**First appearance:** 0017-act-iii-scene-iii

## Snapshot

The gentler of the mountain brothers, he greets a weary stranger with songs and mourns a lost friend like a poet.

## Who they are

Arviragus grows up in the same cave as Guiderius but with a softer temperament, quick to love and to grieve. He befriends the disguised Fidele with an openness that surprises even Belarius, treating the exhausted traveler as a brother almost at once. His warmth gives the play its emotional counterweight, showing what these lost princes might become if restored to a world that values tenderness as much as steel.

## Relationships

### [Belarius](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/cymbeline_se/characters/belarius)

_family_

Arviragus is Belarius's adoptive son, raised with love and loyalty in the forest, believing Belarius is his father.

### [Guiderius](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/cymbeline_se/characters/guiderius)

_family_

Arviragus and Guiderius are brothers, raised together in the wild, sharing a close and loyal sibling bond.

### [Belarius](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/cymbeline_se/characters/belarius)

_family_

Arviragus is Belarius's adoptive son, raised with love and loyalty in the forest, believing Belarius is his father.

### [Guiderius](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/cymbeline_se/characters/guiderius)

_family_

Arviragus and Guiderius are brothers, raised together in the wild, sharing a close and loyal sibling bond.

### [Belarius](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/cymbeline_se/characters/belarius)

_family_

Arviragus is Belarius's adoptive son, raised with love and loyalty in the forest, believing Belarius is his father.

### [Guiderius](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/cymbeline_se/characters/guiderius)

_family_

Arviragus and Guiderius are brothers, raised together in the wild, sharing a close and loyal sibling bond.

## In the story

### [Scene III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/cymbeline_se/chapters/act-iii-scene-iii)

Cymbeline's younger son, raised as Cadwal, shares his brother's restlessness and curiosity about the outside world.

### [Scene VI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/cymbeline_se/chapters/act-iii-scene-vi)

He is weak with toil but strong in appetite. He welcomes Imogen as a brother and offers comfort.

### [Scene II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/cymbeline_se/chapters/act-iv-scene-ii)

Expresses deep affection for Fidele, mourns her death, and plans to sing at her grave.

### [Scene IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/cymbeline_se/chapters/act-iv-scene-iv)

Shares his brother's desire for adventure and is ashamed of their obscure life, pressing to fight.

### [Scene II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/cymbeline_se/chapters/act-v-scene-ii)

Joins Belarius and Guiderius in the rescue of Cymbeline.

### [Scene III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/cymbeline_se/chapters/act-v-scene-iii)

The other 'stripling' in the heroic stand; present with Cymbeline.

### [Scene V](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/cymbeline_se/chapters/act-v-scene-v)

Knighted alongside Guiderius, later revealed as one of Cymbeline's lost sons.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/cymbeline_se/characters/arviragus
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/cymbeline_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/cymbeline_se/characters