The Romance of Arthur
Most cultures have some sort of hero who represents the best values of what its people believe in. The unusual thing about King Arthur is that legends of his heroism have persisted for several centuries and spread far beyond England, the place where they began.
The earliest stories of King Arthur represent him as a warrior who fought and subdued the invading Norsemen in the years around A D 700. This much of the Arthurian tale is probably based on fact. Whether called Arthur or not, there is a body of evidence supporting the existence of such a warrior. It is the later embellishment of the tale whose authentic city is questionable. According to these, Arthur was born in a castle in Tintagel on the stormy western coast of England and because he was the illegitimate son of King Uther Pendragon, he was spirited away by the magician Merlin and his true identity kept from him. He became king after freeing the sword Excalibur from the stone into which it was thrust. He married the beautiful Guinevere and assembled in his court all the noblest knights of the land, including Lancelot, with whom Guinevere would later be unfaithful to him. He was finally defeated in battle by his illegitimate son Mordred, and his body was spirited away to the isle of Avalon.
This romantic tale greatly appealed to the English and the French in the Middle Ages, when the code of chivalry—ideal qualities of knighthood—constituted an important part of many stories. Tales of the heroism of Galahad, Percival, Gawain, and many other of Arthur"s knights were circulated as well.
In England today, there are many sites claiming apiece of the Arthurian a legend. There is a mined castle at Tintagel. Near Glastonbury are the remains of an ancient abbey where Arthur"s and Guinevere"s bodies were supposedly
exhumed
in the 12th century. Neither of these proves that the legend is true, but they do keep its mystique alive. Which of the following is NOT the knight of Arthur