King Arthur

:For the 1691 opera by Dryden and Purcell, see King Arthur (opera).

Earliest traditions of Arthur

Arthur first appears in Welsh literature. In a surviving early Welsh poem, the Gododdin (ca. 594), the poet Aneirin (ca. 535–600) writes of one of his subjects that "he fed black ravens on the ramparts, although he was no Arthur" — but this poem as it currently exists is full of interpolations, and it is not possible to decide if this passage is an interpolation from a later period. The following poems attributed to Taliesin are possibly from a similarly early date: The Chair of the Sovereign, which refers to "Arthur the Blessed"; Preiddeu Annwn ("The Treasures of Annwn"), mentions "the valour of Arthur" and states "we went with Arthur in his splendid labours"; and the poem Journey to Deganwy, which contains the passage "as at the battle of Badon with Arthur, chief giver of feasts, with his tall blades red from the battle which all men remember."

Related Topics:
Welsh literature - Welsh - Gododdin - 594 - Aneirin - 535 - 600 - Raven - Taliesin - Preiddeu Annwn - Annwn - Deganwy

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Another early reference to Arthur is in the Historia Britonum, attributed to the Welsh monk Nennius, who is said to have written this compilation of early Welsh history around the year 830. In this work, Arthur is referred to as a "leader of battles" rather than as a king. Two separate sources within this compilation list twelve battles that he fought, culminating in the battle of Mons Badonicus, where he is said to have single-handedly killed 960 men. According to the Annales Cambriae, Arthur was killed at the Battle of Camlann in 537.

Related Topics:
Historia Britonum - Monk - Nennius - 830 - Mons Badonicus - Annales Cambriae - Battle of Camlann - 537

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Arthur makes an appearance in a number of well-known Welsh vitae ("Lives") of 6th-century saints: for example, in the Life of Saint Illtud, he is said to be a cousin of that churchman. Many of these appearances portray Arthur as a fierce warrior, and not necessarily as morally impeccable as in later Romances. According to the Life of Saint Gildas (died ca. 570), written in the 11th century by Caradoc of Llancarfan, Arthur killed Gildas' brother Hueil, a pirate on the Isle of Man.

Related Topics:
Saints - Illtud - Romances - Gildas - 570 - 11th century - Caradoc of Llancarfan - Hueil - Pirate - Isle of Man

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Lifris writes in his Life of Saint Cadoc that Arthur was bettered by Cadoc: Cadoc gave protection to a man who killed three of Arthur's soldiers; Arthur was awarded a herd of cattle from Cadoc as wergeld for his men; Cadoc delivered them as demanded; but when Arthur took possession of the animals, they were transformed into bundles of ferns. The likely original purpose of this story would be to promote popular acceptance of the new Christian faith by "demonstrating" that Cadoc, the Christian leader, had magical powers traditionally ascribed to Druids and of sufficient intensity to outsmart the temporal ruler, Arthur. Similar incidents are described in the late medieval biographies of Carannog, Padern, and Goeznovius.

Related Topics:
Lifris - Cadoc - Wergeld - Christian faith - Druids - Carannog - Padern - Goeznovius

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Arthur also appears in the Welsh tale Culhwch and Olwen, a narrative that is usually associated with the Mabinogion. In that work, Culhwch visits his court to seek his help in winning the hand of Olwen. Arthur, who is described as his kinsman, agrees to the request, and fulfils the demands of Olwen's giant father Ysbaddaden, which includes his hunt for the great boar Twrch Trwyth, described at length by the author.

Related Topics:
Culhwch and Olwen - Mabinogion - Culhwch - Olwen - Giant - Ysbaddaden - Boar - Twrch Trwyth

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This may be related to legends where Arthur is depicted as the leader of the Wild Hunt, a folk motif that is also recorded in Brittany, France, and Germany; Roger S. Loomis has listed a number of these instances (Loomis 1972). Gervase of Tilbury in the 13th century and two 15th century writers assign this role to Arthur: Gervase tells that Arthur and his knights regularly hunt an ancient trackway between Cadbury Castle and Glastonbury (which is still known as King Arthur's Causeway http://www.prairienet.org/~almahu/hunt.htm), and that he with his company of riders may be seen by moonlight in the forests of Britain or Brittany or Savoy. Loomis alludes to a Scottish mention in the 16th century, and that many of these beliefs were still current in the 19th century at Cadbury Castle, and in several parts of France.

Related Topics:
Wild Hunt - Folk - Brittany - France - Germany - Roger S. Loomis - Gervase of Tilbury - 13th century - 15th century - Knight - Cadbury Castle - Glastonbury - King Arthur's Causeway - Savoy - 16th century - 19th century

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Later parts of the Trioedd Ynys Prydein, or Welsh Triads, mention Arthur and locate his court in Celliwig, which is located in Cornwall. Celliwig was identified by older Cornish antiquaries with Callington, but Rachel Bromwich, the latest editor of the Welsh Triads, matched it to Kelly Rounds, a hill fort in the Cornish parish of Egloshayle.

Related Topics:
Welsh Triads - Celliwig - Cornwall - Antiquaries - Callington - Rachel Bromwich - Kelly Rounds - Hill fort - Egloshayle

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