Was King Arthur a real person, can you explain the origin of the stories?
by onzanzabarsands on December 13th, 2006 Arthur appears to’ve been a real person, born around 475 AD. When his story was first told in detail in 1135 by a Welsh cleric named Geoffrey of Monmouth, it caught on like wildfire. It picked up trappings of medieval chivalry which were unknown in Arthur’s day. But other elements of the story show up in the scanty written record of the truly Dark Ages: Guinevere, Lancelot, Morgan, Merlin, Modred — Camelot, the sword, the grail. Historical detective work places Arthur in northern England. We’re still divided on many issues (like the location of Camelot). Camelot, by the way, seems to’ve meant “Castle of the Hammerer.” Arthur (the Hammerer) was born not long after the Romans abandoned Hadrian’s Wall and the Antonine Wall. Those two fortifications, 80 miles apart, had been meant to keep out the Picts, Vikings, and Saxons. A disorganized England had to regroup to survive after the Romans left, and the young prince Arthur emerged. Arthur was a shr
