King Arthur
Fantastic Creatures |
Legendary Stories |
Alternative Lives |
Special Days |
|
|
Arthur, King of the Britons. Just a fictional creation of Sir Thomas Mallory? No, certainly not. His epic Le Morte d'Arthur is quite wonderful and the source of much of what we now think of as the story of King Arthur, complete with pulling the sword Excalibur out of the stone, Merlin, the Round Table and Camelot, the quest for the Grail, etc. However, he drew his inpiration from Chrétien de Troyes who actually created a lot of the story, but in turn based the central premise on the real history of British Kings by Archdeacon Geoffrey of Monmouth who in turn drew from the poetry of the Mabinogion, a collection of poetry from the previous few centuries and including what seem to be the first written tales of Arthur. And now we are already talking about stories created over a thousand years ago.
I can't find the absolute truth of these tales any more than anybody else. But I can at least give some hint as to the origins of the various parts of the Arthur story. Together with the actual reality that existed at the time - a time when the Roman Empire threatened, when magic was an everyday reality, when Mab was to be feared.
With a strangely personal touch - my father was named Arthur, though I am more like Merlin, I can tell you of legends, of some truths, perhaps of some stories and films and maybe, just maybe, a little of the real history of Britain where there lived a real Arthur, though he was not much like the legend so many now know. And he was certainly nothing like the latest Hollywood film that draws on the fanciful scribblings of a charlatan.
I would like to hear any thoughts visitors here might have on the site, the subjects, and anything else of interest. You may send me telepathic messages if you like, but if that is not one of your talents, then please e-mail me.