Arthur

Arthur (fl. 6th century), semi-legendary King of the Britons who fought against the invading Anglo-Saxons. Although some historians consider him a mythical figure, there is reason to believe that a historical Arthur may have led the long resistance of the Britons against the invaders; some 7th-century texts refer to a great warrior named Arthur. According to legend, Arthur was the son of Uther Pendragon, King of Britain. Kept in obscurity during childhood, he was suddenly presented to the people as their king, and proved a wise and valiant ruler. He gathered a great company of knights in his court; problems of precedence were avoided by the use of a round table at gatherings.

With his queen, Guinevere, Arthur maintained a magnificent court at the legendary Camelot (perhaps the modern Caerleon on the southern border of Wales, or the great hill fort at South Cadbury in Somerset). His wars and victories extended to the continent of Europe, where he successfully defied the forces of the Roman Empire until he was called home because of the acts of his nephew Mordred, who had rebelled and seized his kingdom. In the final battle of Camlan, in south-western England, the king and the traitor both fell, pierced by each other’s spears. Arthur was mysteriously carried away to the mythical island of Avalon to be healed of his “grievous wound”.

The first allusion to Arthur is in the Welsh poem Y Gododdin (c. 600). He is again mentioned in Historia Britonum (c. 850) of the Welsh historian Nennius (fl. c. 800); the Annales Cambriae, in a 10th-century manuscript, mentions him, giving 537 as the date of his death; and the fully developed legend appears in the Historia Regum Britanniae (c. 1139) of the English chronicler Geoffrey of Monmouth. See also Arthurian Legend.