The Discovery of King Arthur

272 Pages·1985·23.3 MB·English

by  Geoffrey Ashe

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From the great medieval romances to the
works of T. H. White and Mary Stewart,
King Arthur has inspired more works of
fiction than almost any other legend. But
what about the real King Arthur.7 In this
exciting historical detective story, the
distinguished historian Geoffrey Ashe
cuts through the myths and proves
Arthur not only existed, hut was more
like the Arthur of legend than historians
ever suspected.
Ashe first traces the myth of King
Arthur to its roots in the twelfth-century
writings of Geoffrey of Monmouth and
shows how much of Geoffrey’s fifth-
century history was based on fact. Then,
by challenging scholars’ previous assump­
tions about where Arthur could he found,
Ashe identifies the real King Arthur, and
shows how his theory fits several strands
of evidence.
Finally, Ashe describes the growth of
the Arthur myth, a myth which even in
the twentieth century still holds us firmly
in its spell.
Main Selection of The History Book Club

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Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Ashe, Geoffrey.
The discovery of King Arthur.
Bibliography: p. 211
Includes index.
1. Arthur, King. 2. Geoffrey, of Monmouth, Bishop of
St. Asaph, 1100P-1154. Historia Britonum. 3. Arthurian
romances. 4. Great Britain—Kings and rulers—Biography.
I. Title.
DA152.5.A7A793 1985 942.01*4 [B] 83-45168
ISBN 0-385-19032-8
Designed by Virginia M. Soulé
Anchor Press Edition 1985
Copyright © 1985 text by Geoffrey Ashe
Copyright © 1985 illustrations and captions
by Debrett’s Peerage Ltd.
All Rights Reserved
Printed in the United States of America
Content#
Introduction ix
PART I
A LEGEND AND ITS ROOTS
1
The Kingmaker 3
As a British monarch with a supposedly authentic career, Arthur is the
creation of one man, Geoffrey of Monmouth. Writing in the twelfth century,
Geoffrey portrays him as a great warrior and ruler, reigning in the period after
Britain’s severance from the Roman Empire. How was Geoffrey’s narrative
meant to be taken? Did Geoffrey’s readers, and the romancers who followed
him, regard it as truth or fiction? And what is special about King Arthur? Does
his legend look like a medieval invention, or does it seem to belong in the age
when he is said to have lived?
2
The Unextincuished Light 19
The later Roman Empire, plagued by barbarian incursions and civil strife,
cherished a dream of a World-Restorer—a Restitutor Orbis. He was pictured as
an Emperor who would turn back the destructive forces and renovate Roman
civilization, with some sort of divine aid. The hope could persist because it had
been fulfilled, to a certain extent, by a series of able emperors. Even amid
disasters after their impact waned, the Roman ideal stayed powerful, and a
Restitutor was still a thinkable figure. One result of the disasters was that
Britain, alone among Roman lands, attained independence. Arthur’s legend is
fundamentally the legend of a Restitutor in Britain.
vi Contents
3
Arthur’s Context 40
The fifth-century “history ” which Geoffrey presents is founded on fact.
Saxons were allowed to settle in Britain as auxiliary troops, and got out of hand.
After a phase of ruin the violence ebbed and the Britons partially recovered,
even having a share in the politics of the Continent.
PART II
ARTHUR
4
The Old Welsh Trail 63
Geoffrey of Monmouth makes statements about his sources which are
partly helpful, partly baffling. He can be shown to have used an older Welsh
“history” which gives a list of Arthur’s battles. There are also other early Welsh
references. Using these, and the results of archaeology, scholars have tried to
reconstruct a “historical Arthur."
5
New Discoveries 86
By challenging an assumption which scholars have made, the original
Arthur can be identified. Several different kinds of evidence converge upon the
same conclusion.
6
The Wellsprings of Romance 112
Arthur, as identified, fits in with the Welsh matter and with archaeological
findings. The battles and the legend-making can now be better understood.
PART III
THE UNFOLDING MYTH
7
Saints, Bards, Heroes 129
The “Arthur” phase in Britain led to a long survival of small kingdoms
where the Britons’ Welsh and Cornish descendants carried on. Among these an
Arthurian saga took shape over the centuries, drawing on the traditions of
bards and churchmen, and a medley of Celtic mythology.