Pendragon: The Definitive Account of the Origins of Arthur
The Arthur portrayed in popular literature and the romances of old is a figure far removed from the warrior remembered in the early writings and traditions of his own people. The original story of Arthur belongs to the Dark Ages, a time of chaos and war, when his people were forced to retreat to the western reaches of their territory. Their oppressors sought to strip them of everything—their lands, their lives, even their history. Tales of Arthur’s exploits were reworked to fit a new...
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This is the untold story of Arthur, the ancient hero whose life gave rise to the myth of the Once and Future King.
In sixth-century Britain there were no knights in shining armor, no jousting, and no great military organization that enabled campaigns with huge armies such as are portrayed in the pages of Geoffrey of Monmouth. Arthur belonged to a time when a war-band of 300 was considered impressive, a time when the war cries of Briton, Pict, Scot, and Saxon echoed across the West, and when the drumming of horses' hooves and the chink of chain mail heralded death and destruction. This was not a time of all-conquering Continental campaigns ... but one of civil war, invasion, and constant raiding.
AcknowledgmentsviiiList of IllustrationsixIntroduction11The Quest for Arthur52The Birth of a Legend313The Keepers of Tradition474The Genealogy of Arthur795Some Geographical Problems1116Arthur's Battles1407Arthur the Warlord1678The Lost Saga of Camlan and the Death of Arthur181Epilogue: The Untold Story of Arthur205Appendix 1The Warriors of Arthur and Other Characters Associated with him in the Earliest Welsh Sources211Appendix 2The Heartland of Arthur's Warriors225Appendix 3The Source Materials256Notes273Bibliography293About the Authors299Useful Addresses300Index302
