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King Arthur
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Attempts to separate truth from myth regarding King Arthur. Emphasis on creating a picture of Arthur and his court that is as historically accurate, while also exposing flaws in popular and common perceptions.... More...
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Paper Abstract:
Attempts to separate truth from myth regarding King Arthur. Emphasis on creating a picture of Arthur and his court that is as historically accurate, while also exposing flaws in popular and common perceptions.
Paper Introduction:
KING ARTHUR
Western civilization has been entranced by the legend of King Arthur and his knights of the round table for almost a thousand years. Medieval and Victorian people alike were enthralled by the tale of a king and his men who fought for justice and created a golden period of peace and chivalry. An age that was destroyed by the personal betrayal of his wife, his best friend, and his illegitimate son. And yet the legend says he was borne away to Avalon, with the unspoken, but clearly implied promise that one day he would return, hence "the once and future king."
Searching for the truth behind the myth, one finds very few hard facts to tell the story. In searching through reliable records of the time, historians have found scarcely more than the bare bones of a story. By carefully arranging these bones and fleshing them out with what
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Thebottom coffin was said to have had a lead cross placed on it, face down, onwhich was inscribed "Here lies the famous King Arthur, buried in the isleof Avalon." Much has been made of the fact that aval was another word for apple,and that at one time Glastonbury had been surrounded by marsh and thatapples abounded there, and hence The Isle of Apples, though to many othersAvalon was an Otherworld site. The Cambrian Annals provide the only account of Arthur's death, sayingmerely, "the Battle of Camlann, where Arthur and Medraut fell" and isindicated as being twenty-one years after Badon, which would be about 515(Morris, 1973, 14 ). Wasevidence tampered with by the monks, or were the written accountsunreliable? But the golden era he had created died with him,though the glow survived strongly enough to keep the Saxons at bay untilthe mid sixth century when they took the land once again. Furthermore, according to the legend,Arthur's grave will not be found, for he is not dead, and someday he willreturn. H. The bards composed poems and told stories of the hero Arthur, andfragments of these survive, though historians seem rather skeptical ofaccepting these too literally. By the middle of the fifth century the Roman superstructurehad disappeared and small factions were fighting with one another andunable to offer any significant resistance to the invaders. Martins.Miller, Helen H. The discoveries that are pertinent to theissue at hand indicate that the hill was inhabited during the appropriateperiod of time as relates to Arthur, and the remains indicate, more thanlikely, a person of high rank. One account, written by a visitor to the site not long after theinitial announcement by the monks, states that the inscription on the crossincludes Guenevere's name, though this had not been noted earlier. Evidence suggests that many Saxons left the country followingthis time. Various placesvie for the location of Badon, some say it must have been Bath but othershave other notions, and no one seems to be able to prove anything forcertain in regards to any one of several suggested sites. King Arthur's Avalon New York: E.P. Chivalry became a more pronouncedaspect of Arthur and his knights, the round table was introduced into thetale by Wace, and the love triangle involving Guenevere and Lancelot waswoven into the story, along with the quest for the Grail. While a few deridedGeoffrey's lack of historical veracity, most accepted the contents of thebook as fact. New York: Scribner. Gildasrecounts that Ambrosius Aurelianus had some success with organizingresistance against the Saxons, although it seems that he was no longer theleader at the siege of Badon, a decisive battle fought around 495. The wallwas clearly not Saxon, and from at least the middle of the seventh centurythis area of Somerset was held by the Saxons. New York: Scribner.Morris, John (1973). But then the Otherworld was also referredto as the Glass Tower, and in early times Glastonbury was called YnisWitrin, the island of glass (Miller, 1969, 172). Not all of Cadbury Castle had been uncovered when theCamelot Research Committee ended their work after five seasons. The valueof this particular pottery is that it is one of very few things that can bedated to the approximate time of Arthur. During the second half of the fourth centuryRoman forces gradually withdrew from Britain, and by 41 the Britons weretold that Rome would no longer offer aid against the invading Saxonbarbarians. Close examination revealed openings in thewall, thought to have held posts about six feet apart. New York: St. And yet, the fortress seems to have been far moreelaborate than anything else of its time, and who but Arthur could havewarranted or accomplished such an undertaking? Andnothing had come to light that proved that this had been Arthur's citadel(Ashe, 1971, 77). The book was soon translated into French, and authors of the Continentadded their own romantic flourishes. Medievaland Victorian people alike were enthralled by the tale of a king and hismen who fought for justice and created a golden period of peace andchivalry. Tintagle ware, imported from the easternMediterranean, was found in a number of locations on the hill. Martins.Barber, Richard. Additionally, its presenceindicates wealth, since it had to be imported from a great distance (Ashe,1971, 75). It was almost too advantageous thatthe monks should discover the bodies of Arthur, Guenevere and Mordred, at atime when they desperately needed money to rebuild their abbey. This is supported by the fact that Saxon population and placenames occur in Belgium and France at the time that their numbers dwindle inBritain. In 1191,following the destruction of the Abbey by fire, the monks discovered acoffin, with another coffin below the first, and a third below that. An age that was destroyed by the personal betrayal of his wife,his best friend, and his illegitimate son. On the back of the wall apiece of Tintagel pottery was found which offered further proof that thewall was built in a period roughly concurrent with Arthur's reign. Tintagel is often cited in the romance versions as Arthur'sbirthplace, Geoffrey described the castle situated on the rocky crag there,but archaeology has shown this to be at odds with history. New York: St. Buildings inside the enclosure were not easily identified, buteventually the foundations of a hall were perceived, and Tintagel potteryprovided dating. King Arthur: Hero and Legend. Theconstruction involved would have required a wealth of resources, and thoseinvolved in the dig were inclined to believe that the undertaking of such aproject would have to have been by someone of Arthur's stature (Ashe, 1971,76). The Age of Arthur. BIBLIOGRAPHYAshe, Geoffrey. Bycarefully arranging these bones and fleshing them out with what is knownabout the period, a slightly fuller picture can be created, though it isnot one that resembles the Broadway production of Camelot. These materials arebelieved to have come from a Roman temple of the late fourth century, andso the wall must have been constructed after the Roman period. Also,in his own time Arthur was not known as a "king." There are certain earlyreferences to him as an emperor, but only later was he called "KingArthur." These discrepancies don't preclude the possibility that thebodies discovered at Glastonbury were who the monks claimed them to be, butit casts a strong shadow of doubt. The strongest claim to Camelot is South Cadbury Hill, not far fromQueen's Camel in Somerset. (1986). White,Mary Stewert, and Lerner and Loew C even Wagner was tantalized by it. Dutton.Ashe, Geoffrey. Arthur had united most of Britain, and while he livedpeace had prevailed. Those Saxons who remained in Britain were confined to small areasin the southeast -- this is evidenced by the fact that only in these areasfor the period of the early sixth century is there archaeological evidenceof Saxon graves, but for the same period are not found elsewhere in Britain (Morris, 1973, 136). Foundations ofwooden towers were discernable. It is interesting that prior to this time there is no recordof any Arthurs in Britain, likely the name was a derivation of Artorius,but in the sixth century there was a sudden and widespread use of the nameArthur, and it would certainly seem that Arthur the commander and warrior,the great hero, spawned such a trend (Morris, 1973, 116). In 1485 Sir Thomas Malory repatriated the story in Morte Darthur, anEnglish translation of the French tales. In 1136 Geoffrey of Monmouth combined factwith liberal embellishments in History of the Kings of Britain. The wall was fortified in pre-Roman style,but could not have been pre-Roman since the rubble enclosed within the wallincluded Roman tiles and other Roman materials. Over the last one thousand years there are those who have attempted toprove, and sometimes disprove, various aspects of the Arthurian myth.Place names abound in Wales, England, and Scotland that local people haveassociated with Arthur's name C Arthur's Cairn in the Prescelly Mountainsin Wales, Arthur's Chair and Arthur's Oven in the area near Bodmin, butthese are generally regarded as nothing more than folklore. This playing with words and their possible meanings aside, there ismuch to contradict the monks' story. In many areas the wall had slid and lost its shape, but on the east sideit was more or less intact. Glastonbury Abbey has laid claim to Arthur's resting place, but therewas almost too much hype around the discovery to take it as fact. (1957). (1969). KING ARTHUR Western civilization has been entranced by the legend of King Arthurand his knights of the round table for almost a thousand years. And yet the legend says he wasborne away to Avalon, with the unspoken, but clearly implied promise thatone day he would return, hence "the once and future king." Searching for the truth behind the myth, one finds very few hard factsto tell the story. A sizeableportion of the book details the story of Arthur, and it was apparently avery popular book C two hundred copies survive. In 124 a writer said that the entire cemetery had been dug upin the search, but an archaeological excavation in 1962 revealed that onlya small excavation had taken place earlier (Barber, 1986, 134-5). Excavation ofthe site revealed that the promontory had hosted a farmstead in the latterhalf of the fourth century, and sometime around 5 St. Numerous scholars have culled the scanty records available, supportedadditionally in some cases by archaeological excavation, and they seem toagree on the basic facts. Folklore had long associated the Iron Age hillfort with Camelot, and an archaeological investigation begun in 1966uncovered artifacts which indicated that the site had been inhabited fromNeolithic to medieval times. And the sameholds true for most other locations affiliated with the story. The castle ruinspresently on view are from the mid-13th century, with the earliest castleon the site dating from the 11 's (Miller, 1969, 139, 14 ). Camelot and the Vision of Albion. The most significant source for historians researching the Dark Agesis Gildas' The Loss and Conquest of Britain, written about 54 . The general populace were entranced by the tale of Arthur. (1971). Gildasdoes not mention Arthur's name in connection with this important event, butabout 83 a Welsh monk Nennius compiled a history and he does say thatArthur is responsible for the victory at Badon that turned the tide againstthe Saxons. These medievalwriters put Arthur and his knights in medieval attire and abodes C the kingand his queen were assigned a properly resplendent castle, and the knightswore shining armor. It seems clear that Arthur's defeat of the Saxons at Badon secured apeace for Britain that lasted during his lifetime and for a while beyond,and so he was perceived as a hero by his contemporaries and the next fewgenerations. Subsequent authors have producedtheir own versions of the legend, and these include Tennyson, T. Cross-sections of the rampartrevealed multiple layers of Iron Age reconstructions, and above those alayer of soil, and then another wall twenty feet thick of unmortared stone. In searching through reliable records of the time,historians have found scarcely more than the bare bones of a story. Accountsof the incident at the time differ, almost as if the monks could not quitemake up their minds as to which was the best story to tell regarding thefind. The site has four rings of rampart and ditch, with the top rampartrevealing promising evidence for those hopeful to prove that the hill hadonce upon a time been Arthur's Camelot. Julian built asmall church on what was then an abandoned site. The Realms of Arthur.
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