The Real History of the King Arthur Legend [32:12]

YouTube ^ | September 1, 2023 | History Hit

[SunkenCiv]

The familiar medieval Arthurian myths of a noble King ruling over his kingdom from Camelot, supported by his Round Table of loyal and brave knights who seek for the Holy Grail and slay dragons, is a legend that has been engaged with by English kings ever since the 13th Century. By the 14th Century, these tales provided a model for their kingship. 

What you may not know about, is the clash of cultures that occurred in the 12th Century, that led to the making, breaking and redefining of Arthur's story. 

Join author and medieval historian Matt Lewis as he delves deep into the historical context of the Arthurian legend, visiting Glastonbury Abbey and Winchester Cathedral along the way. Featuring historians Dr Cindy Wood and Dr Katherine Weikert. 

The Real History of the King Arthur Legend | 32:12
History Hit | 1.85M subscribers | 538,603 views | September 1, 2023

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TOPICS: History; Science; Travel
KEYWORDS: godsgravesglyphs; kingarthur; middleages; rhiothamus

[SunkenCiv]

[Sidebar:] From Camelot to Excalibur and the Knights of the Round Table, we all know the legend of King Arthur: but is it really just a legend? Geoffrey Ashe, who was one of the world’s leading Arthurian experts, found evidence in a rare 6th Century document that led him to a warlord called Riothamus, who’s own history shares remarkable parallels with that of Britain’s legendary King. Could this have been the real King Arthur? 

Evidence King Arthur Actually Existed | 3:15 
BBC Timestamp | 911K subscribers | 314,321 views | September 17, 2024 |

Transcript

This silence has puzzled Geoffrey Ashe, one of the world's leading Arthurian experts. He embarked on a major investigation to try and establish, once and for all, who the real Arthur might be. He found a rare 6th-century document, The Gothic History. It tells the story of the one king of the Britons that everyone agrees existed in the 5th century. Someone with close links to the Roman Empire at the time – a warlord called Riothamus.

Ashe decided to compare what The Gothic History writes about Riothamus with what Geoffrey of Monmouth said about Arthur. Both men are said to have been kings in the second half of the 5th century. One of Riothamus's campaigns is dated to be around 469 AD. Amazingly, this is the very time when, according to Geoffrey of Monmouth, King Arthur was winning his battles. Indeed, the more Ashe looked, the stronger the parallels between Arthur and Riothamus became.

Cadbury Hillfort, for example. Although there are no records of where Riothamus lived, his dates precisely matched those for the refortification of the hillfort. Riothamus was exactly at that time. He was the only documented person who could have done it. So he fitted in very well with the results of archaeology.

[Narrator] But the most intriguing parallel concerned their overseas campaigns. Riothamus was asked by the Roman emperor to lead an army into France to repel the barbarian invaders there. Geoffrey of Monmouth also had Arthur campaigning in France. History is now helping to fill the Arthur-shaped hole at the heart of 5th-century Britain.

Still, why didn't Geoffrey of Monmouth call his king Riothamus and not Arthur? Riothamus does not in the least suggest Arthur. But I think the clue here is that it doesn't appear to be a proper name. It's a Latin form of a British title, which would have been Rigothamos, which means the supreme king, the high king.

[Narrator] And that, of course, is precisely what Arthur was. So maybe the real Arthur was called Riothamus.

YouTube transcript reformatted at textformatter.ai.

Riothamus [YouTube search]

[SunkenCiv]

"The Origin and Deeds of the Goths" by active 6th century Jordanes is a historical work written in 551 AD. Claiming to summarize a lost account by Cassiodorus, it traces Gothic history from their mythical Scandinavian origins through their migrations and conflicts with Rome, ending with their defeat by Byzantine general Belisarius. The only surviving extended account of Gothic history, it blends legendary tales -- including encounters with Troy and Egyptian pharaohs -- with more credible later events, sparking ongoing debate about where mythology ends and history begins. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

The Origin and Deeds of the Goths | Jordanes
| 6th century | Project Gutenberg | English

[SunkenCiv]

There are loads of vids about this, I viewed, hmm, four? today.

[Sacajaweau]

Richard Harris as Arthur...Awesome....Fond Memory...

[SunkenCiv]

[Sidebar:] Is there any truth to the legend of King Arthur? Archaeologist Leslie Alcock, a charismatic figure, led an excavation in the 1960s in Somerset, aiming to prove Camelot's existence. Despite challenges and doubts from academics, Alcock's team discovered evidence of fortifications at Cadbury Hill, suggesting a Dark Age castle. While Alcock's work faced criticism, his legacy includes advancing understanding of Dark Age Britain and inspiring future archaeologists. 

Camelot: The Archaeologists Digging For The Real King Arthur | Myth Hunters
50:55 | Chronicle - Medieval History Documentaries
856K subscribers | 372,384 views | March 23, 2024

[SunkenCiv]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Getica

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

Once upon a cookie.....

[EvilCapitalist]

He was an expert on swallows, African and European.

[dfwgator]

And how coconuts migrate.

[odawg]

It appears the historically very powerful King Arthur myth has died out completely in England. Very sad.

[antceecee]

Just read the entire Mary Stewart fictional novels on King Arthur and now reading The Sword in the Stone by TH White. My husband Frank passed away last August and I decided to read these once again to honor his memory. The Stewart books were something we shared in the early 1970’s when we were dating. Love these stories.

[DoodleBob]

Mynd you, møøse bites Kan be pretti nasti...

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

I am reading Mary Stewart “The Wicked Day” again and one thing I found of interest is that she regretted not having done more research before writing her earlier books because if she had she would have had Mordred and Arthur dying in battle against the Saxon invaders as she thought that was more historically likely.

[Candor7]

Large Barf on this shallow attempt to explain away King Arthur.

This is something I do know about.

Norma Lorre Goodrich discovered the truth behind the Arthur mythology.

Its heavy slogging, but if you read her books, you will get the truth of it all:

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=norma+lorre+goodrich&crid=1E7R9YLAV42R8&sprefix=Norma+Lorre%2Caps%2C203&ref=nb_sb_ss_fb_1_11_p13n-expert-pd-ops-ranker

[SunkenCiv]

She claimed that Arthur spoke Old French.

“Old French (French: ancien français) was the language spoken in northern France from the late 8th century to the mid-14th century, evolving from Vulgar Latin and forming the basis for Middle French.”

[SunkenCiv]

I read the first three back when, plucking “The Crystal Cave” off a paperback stand at one of the old dime store chain stores. “The Wicked Day” I’d not heard of before.

[Dr. Franklin]

This Dr. Cyndi Wood?

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

I recommend it. She had matured as a writer and it is quite enjoyable although, as she said, it would have been better if she could have written it as she had wanted rather then under the constraints she set in the first three books.

However it is closer to the classic tale this way and I do respect the fact that she did not attempt to retcon her entire story line.

[SunkenCiv]

Doubt it, but change it to Would, I’d be for it.

[SunkenCiv]

In Mercia?