King Arthur
King Arthur appears to be the trace of an historical person in the sixth century C.E. This person was not so much a King as a warrior, and leader (dux bellorum) of warriors, among the British (Celtic) people who were resisting the Anglo-Saxons. He has been identified by some with Ambrosius Aurelianus, an equally obscure Briton of the time who may or may not have existed.
- Nennius, a 9th century writer, lists Arthur's battles in his Historia Brittonum, a not entirely reliable chronicle, "[Arthur] was twelve times chosen [as] commander [of the British], and was as often conqueror. The first ... was at the mouth of the river Gleni [perhaps in Northumberland]. The second, third, fourth, and fifth, were on another river, by the Britons called Duglas,[perhaps the Lothians; perhaps Lancashire] in the region Linuis. The sixth, on the river Bassas [perhaps the Bass Rock, in the Firth of Forth. The seventh in the wood Celidon, which the Britons call Cat Coit Celidon [the Caledonian Forest].) The eighth was near Gurnion castle [Cornwall, Norfolk and County Durham have been suggested]. where Arthur bore the image of the Holy Virgin, mother of God, upon his shoulders, and through the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the holy Mary, put the Saxons to flight, and pursued them the whole day with great slaughter.(7) The ninth was at the City of Legion,(8) which is called Cair Lion [Caerleon, Monmouthshire, or Exeter]. The tenth was on the banks of the river Trat Treuroit [Brue, Somerset, or Ribble, Lancashire]. The eleventh was on the mountain Breguoin, which we call Cat Bregion [Cadbury, Somerset, or Edinburgh]. The twelfth was a most severe contest, when Arthur penetrated to the hill of Badon [Badbury Rings in Dorset; Bathampton Down near Bath, Somerset; or Bowden Hill, Linlithgow]."
- The Annales Cambriae give the date of Mons Badonicus as 516, and Arthur's death as occurring in 537 at the Battle of Camlann
- On the other hand, 'Arthur' may be a decayed deity from pre-Christian times, or a legendary memory.
- Nennius, a 9th century writer, lists Arthur's battles in his Historia Brittonum, a not entirely reliable chronicle, "[Arthur] was twelve times chosen [as] commander [of the British], and was as often conqueror. The first ... was at the mouth of the river Gleni [perhaps in Northumberland]. The second, third, fourth, and fifth, were on another river, by the Britons called Duglas,[perhaps the Lothians; perhaps Lancashire] in the region Linuis. The sixth, on the river Bassas [perhaps the Bass Rock, in the Firth of Forth. The seventh in the wood Celidon, which the Britons call Cat Coit Celidon [the Caledonian Forest].) The eighth was near Gurnion castle [Cornwall, Norfolk and County Durham have been suggested]. where Arthur bore the image of the Holy Virgin, mother of God, upon his shoulders, and through the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the holy Mary, put the Saxons to flight, and pursued them the whole day with great slaughter.(7) The ninth was at the City of Legion,(8) which is called Cair Lion [Caerleon, Monmouthshire, or Exeter]. The tenth was on the banks of the river Trat Treuroit [Brue, Somerset, or Ribble, Lancashire]. The eleventh was on the mountain Breguoin, which we call Cat Bregion [Cadbury, Somerset, or Edinburgh]. The twelfth was a most severe contest, when Arthur penetrated to the hill of Badon [Badbury Rings in Dorset; Bathampton Down near Bath, Somerset; or Bowden Hill, Linlithgow]."
King Arthur is the central and ruling character in the Matter of Britain, along with his Knights of the Round Table. This was, in the myth, a table constructed for the King in order that no individual should have precedence over (higher status than) any other, in accordance with the chivalric code that developed in the myth of King Arthur. A table-top is still shown in Winchester as Arthur's: it was made in the thirteenth century, in the reign of Edward I or Edward III, perhaps on the occasion of a tournament he held to further contemporary ideas of chivalry. It was painted on the order of Henry VIII with the names of 24 knights of King Arthur and the king himself, whose 'portrait' thereon has a striking resemblance to Henry. (Early accounts say that it seated 150 knights.) It was preserved, it has been speculated, to attract tourists to Winchester, where many relics of Arthur were shown.
- Malory, Sir Thomas Morte dArthur
- [Milton]
- Tennyson Idylls of the King
- T.H.White
- Camelot
- Alcock, Leslie Arthur of the Britons
