King Arthur

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

The Arthurian romance

A small proportion of experts state that in 1133, Geoffrey of Monmouth produced a work, Historia Regum Britanniae, that was the medieval equivalent of a best seller and helped draw the attention of other writers, such as Robert Wace and Layamon — who then expanded on the tales of Arthur; however, generally it is thought to be 1138. The following quote illustrates this.

Related Topics:
1133 - Geoffrey of Monmouth - Historia Regum Britanniae - Medieval - Robert Wace - Layamon - 1138

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Geoffrey stayed at Oxford at least until 1151 and during this period wrote his two extant works, Historia regum Britanniae (1136-1138; "History of the Kings of Britain") and Vita Merlini (ca. 1148; "The Life of Merlin").

Related Topics:
Oxford - 1151 - 1136 - 1138 - 1148

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One theory as to why this happened is that after the Norman Conquest of Britain in 1066 there was renewed interest in the Arthurian Legend as described by Edward Gibbon in The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire:

Related Topics:
Norman Conquest - 1066 - Arthurian Legend - Edward Gibbon - The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire

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During a period of five hundred years the tradition of his exploits was preserved, and rudely embellished, by the obscure bards of Wales and Armorica (otherwise known as Britany), who were odious to the Saxons, and unknown to the rest of mankind. The pride and curiosity of the Norman conquerors prompted them to inquire into the ancient history of Britain; they listened with fond credulity to the tale of Arthur, and eagerly applauded the merit of a prince who had triumphed over the Saxons, their common enemies.

Related Topics:
Wales - Armorica - Mankind - Norman conquerors

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Thus, according to Gibbon, the once obscure 500-year-old Welsh legend went mainstream (through the works of the Anglo-Norman poet Wace and others), creating a unified cultural icon under which the Norman rulers and the native Welsh could rally against their common enemy: the Saxons.

Related Topics:
Anglo-Norman - Wace

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One of the influencing factors is that William the Conqueror was a quarter Breton and the Bretons carried the legends of King Arthur as they were the escaping nobility from the Saxons. Geoffrey of Monmouth was also of Breton stock. The Bretons and other British emigrees had supported William the Conqueror at the Battle of Hastings, providing a large proportion of the knights in the battle. Since the ethnic British nobility fought against the Saxons at Hastings it was inevitable that their mythology would experience a resurgence when the crown was won.

Related Topics:
William the Conqueror - Breton - Battle of Hastings

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While many scholars believe that Geoffrey of Monmouth is the source for medieval interest in Arthur, at least one scholar, Loomis, has argued that many of the tales surrounding Arthur were independently adapted from Breton oral traditions, spread through the royal and noble courts of Europe by professional storytellers known as jongleurs. The French medieval writer, Chrétien de Troyes, recounted tales from the mythos during the mid-12th century, as did Marie de France in her narrative poems called lais. In any case, the later stories told by these two writers and by many others appear to be independent of what Geoffrey of Monmouth wrote.

Related Topics:
Breton - Oral tradition - Europe - Jongleurs - Chrétien de Troyes - 12th century - Marie de France - Lais

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In these Arthurian romances, which gained popularity beginning in the 12th century, Arthur gathered the Knights of the Round Table (Lancelot, Gawain, Galahad, and others). At his court, most often held at Camelot in the later prose romances, could sometimes be found the wizard Merlin. Arthur's knights engaged in fabulous quests, the one for the Holy Grail being perhaps the best known. Other stories from the Celtic world came to be associated with Arthur, such as the tale of Tristan and Isolde. In the late prose romances the love affair between Arthur's champion, Lancelot, and the Queen, Guinevere, becomes the central reason for the fall of the Arthurian world.

Related Topics:
Romances - Knights of the Round Table - Lancelot - Gawain - Galahad - Camelot - Merlin - Holy Grail - Celt - Tristan - Isolde - Guinevere

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Arthur was killed in his last battle, the Battle of Camlann, which he fought against the forces of Mordred. The Prose Lancelot and the later prose cyclic romances state that Mordred was also a Knight of the Round Table and the child of an incestuous union between Arthur and his sister Morgause. In almost all accounts Arthur was said to be mortally wounded, but after the battle he was taken away to Avalon (sometimes identified with Glastonbury in Somerset, England), where his wounds were healed or his body was buried in a chapel. Some texts refer to a return of Arthur in the future.

Related Topics:
Battle of Camlann - Mordred - Incestuous - Morgause - Avalon - Glastonbury - Somerset - England

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The Arthurian mythos spread far across the continent. An image of Arthur and his Knights attacking a castle was carved into an archivolt over the north doorway of Modena Cathedral in Italy sometime between 1099 and 1120. The surprising fact that these Italian images seem to have been carved more than a decade before the appearance of Geoffrey's "Historia" indicates how limited is our knowledge of the spread of Arthurian legend in the early Middle Ages. Also in Italy, a mosaic pavement in the cathedral of Otranto, near Bari, was made in 1165 with the unexplained depiction of Arturus Rex bearing a sceptre and riding a goat. 15th century merchants set up an Arthurian hall in his honour in Gda?sk, Poland.

Related Topics:
Continent - Archivolt - Modena - Italy - 1099 - 1120 - Middle Ages - Mosaic - Otranto - Bari - 1165 - Sceptre - Goat - 15th century - Gda?sk - Poland

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Retellings of the Arthurian cycle include the works of Gottfried von Strassburg, Wolfram von Eschenbach, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur and Stricker's Daniel von Blumenthal.

Related Topics:
Gottfried von Strassburg - Wolfram von Eschenbach - Sir Gawain and the Green Knight - Thomas Malory - Le Morte d'Arthur - Von Blumenthal

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In 1191, monks of Glastonbury Abbey announced that they had found the burial site of Arthur and Guinevere. Their grave was shown to many people, and the reputed remains were moved to a new tomb in 1278. The tomb was destroyed during the Reformation, and the bones lost. The antiquary John Leland reports that he saw the cross found with the remains, and transcribed its inscription as

Related Topics:
1191 - Glastonbury Abbey - Guinevere - 1278 - Reformation - John Leland

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:Hic iacet sepvltvs inclytvs rex artvrivs in insvla avalonia — "Here is buried the famous king Arthur in the Island of Avalon".

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If Leland accurately reproduced the script of this inscription, then it can be dated to the 10th century. At least one scholar has suggested that the cross was added when Arthur's remains were transferred to the Abbey.

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