Soul Quest Learning Center

Arthuriana

The following articles are by Brian Edward Rise from Encyclopedia Mythica. Permission to reproduce them was obtained by the manager of Soul Quest Learning Center. Many thanks to Mr. Rise. Please note copyright below each article. For questions and/or comments concerning Arthurian legend, you can contact the editor of the articles.

Below the articles there are links to more of Mr. Rise's articles and to other sites related to Arthurian lore.

Introduction by Brian Edward Rise

Arthur. The name conjures mystical images and ideals to this day. This is evident by his continued presence in popular culture since his inception. Why exactly does the history of a 5th-7th Celtic Briton chieftain and the legend that grew up around him still fire our collective imaginations today?
To many, it is the allure of the "brief, shining moment" when the timeless ideals of chivalry were upheld and embodied as literature in ofttimes strange and beautiful prose, film and music. Perchance it is the eternal nature of the struggle and the promise of an eventual return scribed therein that still speaks to the heart or maybe it is the fact that these very human characters feel and think in the way we do now. Others are drawn to the mystical and magical elements, both Celtic and Christian, of legends like the Sword in the Stone, characters like the Lady of the Lake and noble endeavours like the Quest for the Holy Grail. Finally, to some, it is the eternal mystery, the fact that we may never know the truth about the King and his Knights of the Table Round, that drives them to forge on in study.

Excalibur
by Brian Edward Rise

The magical sword of Arthur in the romances. Its name is derived from Geoffrey of Monmouth's "Caliburn" which itself mimics the Latin chalybs, or "steel." Sometimes identified as the Sword in the Stone, usually it is not. One account states that it belonged to Gawain first. The most familiar version has Arthur break the sword drawn from the stone and Merlin arranges its replacement with a weapon of supernatural power. Together they meet the Lady of the Lake whose hand, clad in shimmering samite, holds aloft Excalibur from the water. Merlin instructs Arthur that the scabbard is actually of more value for he cannot lose blood so long as he carries it. It is Morgan's plotting that leads to the scabbard's disappearence.

After the final battle, as the King lies wounded, he orders one of the surviving Knights, Bedivere or Girflet, to cast Excalibur into the water. The Knight twice disobeys yet on the third trip throws the sword into the water where a hand rises, catches it and withdraws beneath the surface. Five places claim to be the location of this event including Dozmary Pool on Bodwin Moor and Pomparles Bridge near Glastonbury. Loe Pool in south Cornwall is Tennyson's location. Archaeology has provided evidence of a custom that this tale echoes. In ancient times a warrior's sword was considered singular to him, imbued with his spirit. Sometimes his sword would be sunk into some body of water to discourage its retrieval by an enemy or anyone else.

When the Lionheart, Richard I, presented Tancred of Sicily with a sword on a visit in 1191, he claimed the sword was Arthur's. The King was doubtless aware of the dicovery of the grave in Glastonbury since his father, Henry II, had used this story to silence Welsh rumours that the real Arthur would return. There is no clear idea where it came from. The incident would not have been at odds with any known tale since it had not yet been written in any extant text.
Article created on 06 September 1998; last modified on 15 February 2004.
� 1995-2004 Encyclopedia Mythica. All rights reserved.

Avalon
by Brian Edward Rise

According to Geoffrey of Monmouth, the enchanted isle where Arthur's sword was forged and where he is conveyed after his last battle to be healed. Geoffrey calls it Insuls Avallonis which he translates as "isle of apples," apples no doubt being a paradisal symbol in contrast to the Welsh Ynys Avallach which supposedly takes it's name from it's lord, Avallach.

Geoffrey writes more at length on Avalon in his "Vita Merlini" than in the Historia. He likens it to the Fortunate Isles of classical myth but over western waters. Presided over by Morgen (Morgan le Fay), a kind enchantress and healer who leads a sisterhood of nine. This description echoes the Welsh poem "The Spoils of Annwfn" with it's nine Otherworld maidens and real groups of island dwelling Celtic priestesses like those noted by Plutarch in the first century CE. Arthur is placed on a golden bed and can only be healed by entrusting his care to Morgen completely for a long time.

Avalon if often taken as a refuge of spirits but the point of Arthur's residence there is that he is not dead, but magically alive and awaiting the moment of his return.

In 1191, when the monks of Glastonbury uncovered the "tomb" of Arthur, they claimed that Glastonbury Tor, which resonated with an aura of pagan uneasiness, was the famed isle for it was once almost encircled by water. The association passed into Grail literature that drew on Glastonbury's ancient Christian history (It is said that this was the monastery founded by Joseph of Arimathea who, bearing the Holy Grail, allegedly came to Britain after the crucifixion).

Thus there are two meanings attached to Avalon; that of Glastonbury and that of mystical otherworld. In both examples it is the final resting place of the King but at Glastonbury it is his burial site and the other is the place of his healing and retreat from the world as well as the source of his immortality.
Article created on 16 December 1999; last modified on 05 April 2001.
� 1995-2004 Encyclopedia Mythica. All rights reserved.

Camelot
by Brian Edward Rise

The seat of Arthur's power in medieval romance. The name is of unknown origin and refers to the castle but also includes the surrounding town. The village name of Camel occurs in relation to Cadbury Castle in Somerset. Archaeology has shown that this association is no passing fancy but it's relationship with Cadbury's Arthurian lore is uncertain.

Camelot appears, most significantly, as a personal capital as opposed to a permanent or national one. It is Arthur's and Arthur's alone. There are no previous lords and Arthur's successor, Constantine, does not take up residence there. Camelot is actually said to have been demolished after Arthur and Lancelot were gone by Mark. Fazio degli Uberti, the Italian poet, claims to have seen the ruins in the 14th century.

Camelot is first named in Chretien de Troyes' Lancelot, though hinted at by Geoffrey's earlier Caerleon, but becomes prominent only in the Vulgate Cycle and after. 13th century writers describe a river, forest and surrounding plain. Camelot is also imbued with a religious aura. Not only do knights receive the sacrament of baptism there but it is also the departure point for the Grail Quest. It's location, however, continues to be vague at best. Malory eventually identifies it with Winchester, rival of London and capital of King Alfred's Wessex. He was quite possibly influenced by the existence of Winchester's "Round Table," a 13th century construction that was widely accepted as the original artifact in Malory's time. This line of thought, however, denies the uniquely Arthurian nature of the place. Malory's own editor, William Caxton, rejects it in favor of a Welsh location, possibly the Roman ruins at Caerwent.

Others have speculated that Camelford, in Cornwall and south of the location Geoffrey names as the place of Arthur's final battle, is the fabled city. No romancer, on the other hand, would have placed Arthur's headquarters that far west and within the kingdom of Mark. Camelot remains, however, a medieval utopia, a dream city that cannot be placed geographically. While Cadbury and others might have serious claims to being the prototype, none can claim to be the actual place.
Article created on 21 March 1999; last modified on 20 June 2000.
� 1995-2004 Encyclopedia Mythica. All rights reserved.

Arthurian Article Sources

Lacy, Norris (ed.) et. al., The New Arthurian Encyclopaedia - Updated
Paperback Ed., Garland Publishing, Inc., New York & London, 1996.

Lacy, Norris & Ashe, Geoffrey, The Arthurian Handbook, Garland Publishing,
Inc., New York & London, 1988.

More Arthurian legend articles by Mr. Rise

Arthurian Article Sources

Lacy, Norris (ed.) et. al., The New Arthurian Encyclopaedia - UpdatedPaperback Ed., Garland Publishing, Inc., New York & London, 1996.Lacy, Norris & Ashe, Geoffrey, The Arthurian Handbook, Garland Publishing,Inc., New York & London, 1988.

Lacy, Norris (ed.) et. al., The New Arthurian Encyclopaedia - Updated
Paperback Ed., Garland Publishing, Inc., New York & London, 1996.

Lacy, Norris & Ashe, Geoffrey, The Arthurian Handbook, Garland Publishing,
Inc., New York & London, 1988.