The Legend of King Arthur How a Simple Knight Rode Into History

The Legend of King Arthur

In The Beginning… Venerable Bede “The survivors collected their strength under the leadership of Ambrosius Aurelianus…he and his men challenged their previous conquerors to battle…and victory was theirs.” ~ Gildas Ambrosius Aurelianus

History of the Britons Another important detail comes in the description of the 12th battle, the Battle of Mount Badon: “…nine hundred and sixty men fell from a single attack of Arthur, and nobody put them down except him alone…” ~ Nennius

Culhwch and Olwen This is the first Arthurian tale not penned as a stand-alone story, as it is part of the compilation text Red Book of Hergest published around 1400 AD…also, it contains the first mention of Caledfwlch

Geoffrey of Monmouth History of the Kings of Britain combines history with legend in a highly imaginative form Geoffrey places Arthur’s birth and death in Cornwall, his cosmopolitan court at Caerleon, and his victory at Mount Badon on a hill in Bath

Uther Pendragon Historically, adultery was rigorously condemned and punished but usually only as a violation of the husband's rights It is only in modern times that Uther has been used as a symbol of unbridled male lust

Merlin

Wace & the Arthurian Legend First Arthurian story in Old North French Celebrated for his historical accuracy First to mention the Round Table Storytellers and minstrels as a cultural link

Arthur & the Holy Grail The Arthurian legend was very useful to the growing Christian religion, because it allowed followers to connect their faith to an already established popular tradition through the story of Joseph and the Grail

The Knight of the Cart Chrétien de Troyes does not even name the title characters until halfway through the story The end of the story is also odd, in that Lancelot finds Guinevere and then begins an adulterous relationship with her

Tristan & Isolde Chrétien’s original work revolved around King Mark and Iseult, where Tristan is a character but is not named…Béroul gives the legend its angle of unrequited love

Gawain & the Green Knight The Green Knight angle is not introduced until the 14th century by an un-named author This story is also a turning point for the Arthurian legend because it is told from the perspective of one of the characters, Morgan the Fay

Mordred & Morgana Initially an ally, Medraut would eventually evolve into Modred or Mordred and become an adversary Morgan the Fay makes her first appearance 700 years later courtesy of Nordic writer Giraldus Cambrensis

Malory’s Le Morte D’Arthur “Hic jacet sepultus inclitus rex Arthurus in insula Avalonia…” ~ Grave Inscription