King Arthur: The Truth Behind the Legend PDF
Preview King Arthur: The Truth Behind the Legend
King Arthur King Arthur is often written off as a medieval fantasy, the dream of those yearning for an age of strong, just rulers and a contented kingdom. Those who accept his existence at all generally discard the stories that surround him. The author’s investigation argues not only that Arthur did exist, but that many of the romantic tales – of Merlin, Camelot and Excalibur – are rooted in truth. He carefully scrutinises up-to-date archaeological and documentary sources, from which a picture emerges of Arthur as a genuine sixth-century zmilitary commander- in-chief, responsible for leading the Britons of Wales and the West Country. In his quest for the real King Arthur, Rodney Castleden reconstructs the kingdoms, frontiers and political power centres of sixth-century Britain, and recreates the royal dynasties, chronologies and life-styles of the Dark Age kings. The various theories regarding the whereabouts of Arthur’s kingdom and power base are evaluated, with the West Country seen as his most likely home territory. New evidence revives the idea that Tintagel was a royal residence, probably one of many used by Arthur on his travels. One of the most exciting aspects of the book is Rodney Castleden’s proposal of a radical new theory – that Arthur escaped alive from his final battle, to a retirement far from home. A location is even suggested for perhaps the greatest mystery, the whereabouts of Arthur’s grave. KING ARTHUR By the same author: Classic Landforms of the Sussex Coast (1982; second edition 1996) The Wilmington Giant: The Quest for a Lost Myth (1983) The Stonehenge People: An Exploration of Life in Neolithic Britain, 4700–2000 BC (1987) The Knossos Labyrinth: A New View of the ‘Palace of Minos’ at Knossos (1989) Minoans: Life in Bronze Age Crete (1990) Book of British Dates: A Comprehensive Dictionary of British Dates from Prehistoric Times to the Present Day (1991) Neolithic Britain: New Stone Age Sites of England, Scotland and Wales (1992) The Making of Stonehenge (1993) World History: A Chronological Dictionary of Dates (1994; second edition 1995) The Cerne Giant (1996) Knossos, Temple of the Goddess (1997) Atlantis Destroyed (1998) Ancient British Hill Figures (1999) K I N G A R T H U R The truth behind the legend Rodney Castleden illustrated by the author London and New York First published 2000 by Routledge 11 New Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge 29 West 35th Street, New York, NY 10001 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2001. © 2000 Rodney Castleden The right of Rodney Castleden to be identified as the Author of this Work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Castleden, Rodney. King Arthur : the truth behind the legend / Rodney Castleden. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index. 1. Arthur, King. 2. Great Britain—Antiquities, Celtic. 3. Britons—Kings and rulers— Folklore. 4. Great Britain—History—To 1066. 5. Camelot (Legendary place) I. Title. DA152.5.A7C37 1999 942.01´4—dc21 99–29051 CIP ISBN 0-415-19575-6 (Print Edition) ISBN 0-203-02216-5 Master e-book ISBN ISBN 0-203-08310-5 (Glassbook Format) For Aubrey Burl Year 72 (516): Battle of Badon, in which Arthur carried the cross of our lord Jesus Christ on his shoulders for three days and three nights, and the British were victors. Year 93 (537): Strife of Camlann, in which Arthur and Medraut fell. Easter Annals (probably contemporary, certainly before 800) As an historical figure [Arthur] should be laid to rest once more as an unwarranted and retrospective intrusion on the fifth century. Not only did Arthur himself not exist but the age which led to his invention was no less fictional. Nicholas Higham (1994) This is no time for dry as dust historical reservations. Dig, dig, dig, Dr Wainwright. Daily Telegraph (1998) CONTENTS List of figures ix List of plates xi Preface and acknowledgements xiii 1 ‘Who this Arthur was’ 1 The once and future king 3 Doubts about Arthur’s existence 5 2 The Documents 8 Constantius’ Life of Germanus 8 Writings on stones 10 Genealogies 13 Nennius’ Historical Miscellany 17 Poetry 21 The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle 24 Gildas’s Book of Complaint 25 Geoffrey of Monmouth 31 3 The Archaeology 37 Background problems 37 Strongholds of the North 41 Strongholds of Wales and the Welsh Borders 43 Dark Age Dumnonia 49 Castle Dore and other sites 69 4 Arthur’s Britain 74 St Germanus and Vortigern 78 Ambrosius Aurelianus 81 Christian missionaries 84 The Saxons 87 vii — Contents — 5 Arthur: the Man, the King and the Kingdom 107 The man 107 ‘The most powerful leader of the Britons’ 117 Arthur’s power base 122 Arthur as a Christian king 141 6 Camelot 148 Colchester, Cadbury and Caerlaverock 149 Tintagel 151 Viroconium 167 Killibury 167 The Hammerer 174 7 The Death of Arthur 178 The last battle 179 Arthur’s disappearance 189 Avalon 191 ‘The wonder of the world’ 203 Appendix A The Kings of Powys 222 Appendix B The Kings of Demetia 223 Appendix C The Arthnou Stone from Tintagel 225 Notes 227 Bibliography 244 Index 254 viii
The list of books you might like
