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diff --git a/41783-8.txt b/41783-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 6ad9134..0000000 --- a/41783-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,2166 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook, King Arthur in Cornwall, by W. Howship -(William Howship) Dickinson - - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - - - - -Title: King Arthur in Cornwall - - -Author: W. Howship (William Howship) Dickinson - - - -Release Date: January 5, 2013 [eBook #41783] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - - -***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK KING ARTHUR IN CORNWALL*** - - -E-text prepared by Chris Curnow and the Online Distributed Proofreading -Team (http://www.pgdp.net) from page images generously made available by -Internet Archive (http://archive.org) - - - -Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this - file which includes the original illustrations. - See 41783-h.htm or 41783-h.zip: - (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/41783/41783-h/41783-h.htm) - or - (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/41783/41783-h.zip) - - - Images of the original pages are available through - Internet Archive. See - http://archive.org/details/cu31924074466586 - - - - - -KING ARTHUR IN CORNWALL - -by - -W. HOWSHIP DICKINSON, M.D. - -Honorary Fellow of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge - - - - - - - -Longmans, Green, and Co. -39 Paternoster Row, London -New York and Bombay -1900 -All rights reserved - - - - -PREFACE - - -The following pages present an attempt to bring together what may be -accepted with regard to the personality and actual life of King Arthur, -while putting aside everything that is obviously or probably fabulous. I -have endeavoured to give due weight to the evidence, both positive and -negative, rather than to work up to a pre-determined conclusion. With -regard to the evidence of a positive kind, if so it may be called, I have -given especial weight to the details of topography, more particularly in -Cornwall, with the Arthurian localities of which I happen to be more -familiar than with those elsewhere. - -The fame of Arthur as expressed by the association of his name with places -is greater than that of any other personage save one who can claim this -sort of connection with our island. On this showing, Julius Cæsar and -Oliver Cromwell sink into insignificance as compared with the Cornish -Chief. Only the Devil is more often mentioned in local association than -Arthur. That name, indeed, is almost ubiquitous, since it is to be found -wherever local peculiarities exist which were not explicable to our -forefathers save by infernal agency. The Devil's Dyke, The Devil's Bridge, -the Devil's Jumps, the Devil's Frying Pan, the Devil's Post-Office, the -Devil's Punch-Bowl, are a few instances among many. Next to the Devil in -bestowing names on localities comes Arthur. But the two names are -distributed in a very different fashion: that of the Devil is scattered -impartially, being placed at random wherever thought suitable; that of -Arthur is limited to certain districts in which according to history or -tradition the hero lived or moved. This dissemination and limitation of -the name must have some origin, and may be most obviously and reasonably -explained by connecting them with an individual to whom it actually -belonged. I hold Arthur to have been as real a person as Cæsar or -Cromwell, though less advantageously circumstanced for the recording of -his deeds. The British Chief lived in the dark interval between two -civilisations, between the departure of the Romans from the island and -the establishment of the Saxon polity. The west and the north, which were -the seats of his exploits, were remote from what had been the centres of -Roman learning, and it may be presumed that Arthur's fighting men were -only less illiterate than the Saxons with whom they contended. There may -have been priests among them, for Christianity had already reached Ireland -and touched the western extremity of England, but the priests, if priests -there were, were probably more religious than literate. There was no -Xenophon in Arthur's army, and perhaps no one who could read or write. No -manuscript has come down to us from Arthur's time and place, though we -have reason to believe that among his contemporaries and immediate -successors were some who could compose and others who could learn, recite, -and remember with advantages the deeds of a leader who made an impression -on his countrymen which will probably never be obliterated. What was -crystallised in metre was easily remembered and handed down with something -approaching to verbal accuracy. The narratives not so expressed gathered -exaggeration as they went on, until in the course of time both the facts -and the fiction acquired the permanence of writing. Oral tradition is not -to be ignored; indeed, a large proportion of ancient history must have had -this origin. - -Putting aside obvious and inevitable exaggerations, the general outlines -of Arthur's story are consistent with historic probability and with his -great fame, which cannot be otherwise explained; while, as will presently -be seen, many details are strikingly confirmed by the correspondence of -the topography with the traditions. - - * * * * * - -I have not attempted to construct a biography of Arthur, nor even to -arrange in chronological sequence the deeds attributed to him and the -circumstances which, according to tradition, preceded his birth. So far as -I have used the order of time, it has had to do with the records to which -I have referred rather than with the events of which I have made mention. - - - - -CONTENTS - - - PAGE - - I. INTRODUCTORY 1 - - II. TRADITIONS AND HISTORY BEARING UPON THE LIFE OF ARTHUR 10 - - III. ARTHUR'S LAST BATTLE--THE DOUBTS WHICH SURROUND HIS PLACE - OF BURIAL 31 - - IV. TOPOGRAPHICAL ASSOCIATIONS 49 - - V. CONCLUSIONS 78 - - - - -ILLUSTRATIONS - - - FIGURE PAGE - - 1. TINTAGEL CASTLE AS REPRESENTED BY NORDEN, 1584-1600 62 - - 2. TINTAGEL CASTLE, FROM THE 25-INCH ORDNANCE MAP 63 - - 3. DAMELIOCK CASTLE, REPRODUCED FROM THE 25-INCH ORDNANCE MAP 69 - - 4. CASTLE KILLIBURY, FROM THE 25-INCH ORDNANCE MAP 73 - - 5. CARDINHAM CASTLE, FROM THE 25-INCH ORDNANCE MAP 76 - - - - -KING ARTHUR IN CORNWALL - - - - -I - -INTRODUCTORY - - -_Ex nihilo nihil fit._ For the story of King Arthur there must be some -foundation, however the primary facts may have been distorted and -exaggerated. Two rules may be safely laid down with regard to tradition: -it usually has some truth to rest upon; that truth is not accurately -presented to us, but has been altered and probably magnified by verbal -transmission. We may believe that Troy was besieged and captured by the -Greeks, though we hesitate to accept the many instances of divine -intervention which the siege afforded; we may believe that Ulysses met -with many adventures at sea, though we may have our doubts concerning the -Sirens and Polyphemus. The creative power of man's mind is small; he is -more ready to embellish than to invent. We may give to tradition a -credence as to something which has an origin in fact, though it is not -always easy or possible to separate that fact from the superstructure by -which it has been overlaid. Tradition, first oral and latterly written, -pointed to the grave of Agamemnon: a skeleton with a gold mask was found -there, after the lapse of 3,000 years, with surroundings which appeared to -indicate that it was that of the King of Men. Tradition preserved the -memory of a church at Perranzabuloe which was buried in sand and lost to -view--some say in the 8th or 9th century--certainly at a remote period of -English history. In the year 1835 a great storm shifted the sand and -exposed the minute archaic edifice where tradition had placed it, and -where it had been hidden for we cannot say how many centuries. - -A tradition came down from Druidical to recent times to the effect that -near the Cheesewring in Cornwall the Arch-Druid had his seat, and there -dispensed wine to hunters out of a gold cup, which, like the widow's -cruse, was inexhaustible. In the year 1837 a gold cup was found in -Rillaton Barrow, within a quarter of a mile of the supposed seat of the -Druid. This cup was decided by archæologists to belong to the Bronze -Age.[1] - - * * * * * - -In looking at the legend of King Arthur one is immediately struck with its -wide distribution. Originally of Celtic origin, it has taken root in -certain localities, and held its place in them notwithstanding that the -people among whom it originated have suffered admixture or even been -entirely replaced by other races. There are four groups of what are called -'Arthurian localities'--localities in which the name 'Arthur' is -frequently used in connection with places or structures, or in which some -name or tradition is retained which connects Arthur with them. Some of the -designations referred to are certainly ancient, some of doubtful -antiquity, some obviously modern. - -The four groups of 'Arthurian localities' are:-- - -1. In North Cornwall, from Boscastle to Wadebridge. This is the most -interesting, and the traditions belonging to it are the most explicit, and -relate not only to Arthur's life, but to events which preceded it. - -To mention some of the Arthurian names in Cornwall, and the names of -places with which Arthur is traditionally connected, we find King Arthur's -Castle, the famous stronghold at Tintagel, where we may believe that he -was born; Damelioc, whereby hangs a tale; and Kelly Rounds, which, if I am -correct in identifying it with Kelliwic, has also a place in Arthurian -lore. Allusive names without circumstance are numerous in the same -district. To mention some, we have King Arthur's Hall, Hunting Seat, Bed, -Quoit, Cups and Saucers, Tomb, and Grave. I may add Pentargon, which Mr. -Baring-Gould interprets as 'Arthur's Head.' Many of these designations -declare nothing more than the prevalence of the name in a certain district -and the readiness of our ancestors to apply it indiscriminately. 'Arthur's -Tomb' bears the name of Latinus, but is assigned to Arthur because he was -erroneously thought to have been killed in the vicinity, and the -inscription is difficult to be read. (See page 33). 'Arthur's Grave' is a -barrow also called the 'Giant's Grave,' of which the occupant is unknown. -'Arthur's Quoit' is the top stone of a cromlech which has no probable -relation to King Arthur, excepting that it is in Tintagel. 'Arthur's Cups -and Saucers' are excavations made by weather in Tintagel Head. These bare -names prove nothing beyond the vague retention of a memory in the district -to which they relate, but so much they may be held to indicate. The names -which are associated with traditions are more suggestive and will receive -further consideration. - -2. In Britanny, probably a mere offshoot from Cornwall--Britanny and -Cornwall being closely connected geographically and by identity of race. -As there is no reason to suppose that Arthur was ever in Gaul, I do not -propose to dwell upon the French localisation of the Arthurian legend, nor -have I the necessary local knowledge. - -3. In Wales, chiefly in the south, with Caerleon-upon-Usk as a centre, but -involving the north to a lesser extent. I may touch briefly upon the Welsh -localisations, though it is not my purpose to dwell upon them in detail. -The Welsh legends or traditions are more circumstantial than those I -shall presently refer to as Scottish or Cumbrian. Caerleon-upon-Usk was -known as the City of Legions, because in the time of the Roman supremacy a -legion (the Second Augustan) was stationed there. It was an Archiepiscopal -See, and as such was held by Dubricius, who plays a prominent part in -Arthurian mythology. According to Nennius, one of Arthur's battles was -fought here. Welsh names, local and personal, abound in Arthurian -literature, and the connection of Arthur with South Wales was accepted by -both Hume and Gibbon as sufficient to warrant them in regarding him as a -prince of the Silures. As will presently be seen, I have not adopted this -hypothesis. - -4. In Scotland and the North of England, reaching from north of Edinburgh -to south of Carlisle, and comprising the Lowlands and Cumberland. Cornwall -and Wales belong to what Sir William Harcourt once called 'the Celtic -fringe'; in the Lowlands and Cumberland the Celt has been superseded by -other races, who have taken, together with his territory, some -reminiscence of his traditions. In the north Arthurian names are more -widely scattered than anywhere else, though there is an absence of the -details which connect the Cornish localities with the personality of -Arthur. Mr. Skene in his 'Four Ancient Books of Wales,'[2] a work to which -I owe much, has discussed with learning the military career of Arthur, and -shown that there is reason to believe that many of his battles took place -in the north, including that in which he met his end. Mr. Stuart Glennie -has followed on the same side, in the endeavour to prove that the north -was 'the historical birthland of the Arthurian tradition.' I venture to -think, as will presently be seen, that there is satisfying evidence that -Scotland was the scene of the later events of Arthur's life and probably -of his death. - -The Arthurian district of the north reaches from Penrith to Strathmore, -and has supplied Mr. Skene and Mr. Stuart Glennie with a large number of -Arthurian names. Arthur's Seat occurs three times, Arthur's Round Table -twice; besides which we have Arthurstone, Arthur's O'on (oven), Arthur's -Chair, Camp, Lee, Fountain, Hill, Tomb. There are also to be found -Merlin's Fountain, Merlin's Grave, Mordred's Castle, and Camlan or -Camelon. The local association of Mordred and Camlan is of especial -interest; for Camlan, wherever it be, is the name given in Arthurian -literature to Arthur's last battle. Whether this is to be placed in -Scotland or in Cornwall is a question which will receive further -consideration. I have no doubt that this list of Scottish place-names -which refer to Arthur might be considerably increased. Ben Arthur is to be -found at the head of Loch Long, and Dumbarton Castle was known in the time -of David II. as Castrum Arthuri, near which, according to Mr. Skene's -reading, occurred Arthur's ninth battle. Many of these names may be purely -fanciful--applied, we know not how recently, to the places they denote; -but at any rate it may be regarded as probable that someone, presumably a -Celtic chieftain (for the word 'Arthur' is of Celtic origin), left the -memory of the name, if of little else, widely scattered over Scotland and -the North of England. - -In addition to the localisation of Arthurian names it will presently be -seen that many, or I may say most, of the battles attributed to Arthur, -including that in which he died, have been placed in this district. The -conclusion is not to be avoided that at some remote time, imperfectly -presented to us by history, one Arthur was a prominent person in the south -of Scotland and the north of England, left his name widely scattered in -the Lowlands, and fought many battles hereabouts. - - - - -II - -TRADITIONS AND HISTORY BEARING UPON THE LIFE OF ARTHUR - - -Apart from the evidence of names, we may inquire what is to be found in -the way of history or circumstantial tradition. - -Arthur has been regarded as a somewhat shadowy character; it has even been -doubted whether he was not wholly imaginary. Milton[3] thus expresses his -uncertainty: 'Who Arthur was, and whether any such person reigned in -Britain, hath been doubted heretofore, and may again with good reason.' It -is said that Tennyson, who has partaken of Arthur's immortality, doubted -his existence; and so much has the Arthurian story been overlaid with -romance that it is no easy matter to discover the historical facts which -are concealed under the superstructure of fiction. - -So much has the story of Arthur been magnified and embellished by the -romancers of the twelfth and subsequent centuries, so much has it been -glorified by impossible details and inflated by obvious anachronisms,[4] -that we cannot wonder that the whole tale was distrusted where there was -so much reason for rejecting the greater part. The later Arthurian story -presents conditions rather befitting the Black Prince than the British -king. To get to the foundations, we must dig below the superstructure, -which is mostly of French origin, and examine the records, scanty though -they be, which belong to Arthur's country and as nearly as may be to his -time. The ancient literature of Cornwall, if there ever was any, has -perished with its language, but there remains much of that of Wales, some -going back possibly to the time of Arthur, probably to the century in -which he lived. Some of the Triads and some of the songs of the bards are -confidently believed to have been handed down from the sixth century, -though we possess no manuscripts which have an earlier date than the -twelfth. Among these survivals are many allusions to Arthur, mentioning -him by name and referring to him as a fighting man and a leader, and more -than one associating him with Cornwall, and with a particular earthwork -which, I venture to think, can still be identified. One of these writings -is entitled 'Triads of Arthur and His Warriors,'[5] and is thus -translated: - - Arthur the chief lord at Kelliwic in Cornwall, and Bishop Betwine the - chief Bishop, and Caradawe Vreichvras the chief elder. - -This is referred to by Dr. Guest[6] as 'a poem of the sixth century, whose -genuineness no scholar has ever doubted.'[7] The Triads do not deal with -narrative; their purpose is served when three names are linked together. -The mention of Cornwall in connection with Arthur may be taken to indicate -that he was a Cornish rather than a Welsh potentate; while that of -Kelliwic, as will presently be shown, is of especial interest as -indicating the locality to which he belonged. The 'Black Book of -Caermarthen' contains a poem of somewhat uncertain date and authorship, in -which the same place is referred to in connection with Arthur: - - he killed every third person - When Celli was lost. - -Celli is evidently the place elsewhere referred to as Celliwig, another -form of the name Kelliwic. The same 'Black Book' gives a poem relating to -Geraint, who was killed in the course of it. Arthur was there, and -attracted the notice and commendation of the author:-- - - In Llongborth I saw Arthur, - And brave men who hewed with steel, - Emperor and conductor of the toil. - -I presume that Llongborth is a place elsewhere spoken of as Longporth, and -believed to be Portsmouth; and the battle referred to, one between Arthur -and Cerdric. - -The same manuscript gives a poem entitled 'The Verses of the Graves.' Many -graves are mentioned which are not to the present purpose; that of Arthur -is referred to as unknown in the following line:-- - - A mystery to the world the grave of Arthur. - -Taliessin was a Welsh bard who, among others, is assigned to the sixth -century. He refers to Arthur frequently as the Guledig--a term, according -to Skene, equivalent to Ruler or Imperator. That Arthur was not Imperator -of all Britain will presently appear; that he held some position of -supremacy in the west may well be believed. Taliessin refers to Arthur -frequently, once as 'Arthur the blessed':-- - - on the face of battle, - Upon him a restless activity. - -The same poet describes with much repetition a certain expedition, of -which one stanza may serve as a sufficient sample:-- - - And when we went with Arthur, a splendid labour, - Except seven none returned from Caer Vedwyd. - -The same poet alludes to 'the steed of Arthur' in a poem which enumerates -memorable horses. In the 'Book of Aneurin,' a Welsh poet who belonged, as -it is thought, to the sixth century, Arthur is made use of as a standard -of comparison. A certain warrior is thus referred to:-- - - He was an Arthur - In the midst of the exhausting conflict.[8] - -Further quotations from similar sources might be brought together, but -enough have been adduced to show that the name of Arthur was so widely -celebrated by the Welsh bards, and was so connected by them with place and -circumstance, that it is not possible to doubt that the traditions had -reference to a real person. Whether any of the bardic effusions which have -come down to us are correctly assigned to the sixth century, as Welsh -scholars believe, I am not competent to decide. Many of them are obviously -of later date; but if we may accept what is generally believed, we must -attribute some of these poetic remnants to a time when Arthur was a recent -memory, and give credence to them as at least founded on fact. By the -bards Arthur was represented as a military chief paramount in the country -to which their knowledge extended; as a soldier of exceptional activity, -and one who attracted the admiration of those who fought under him; as -concerned in a variety of fights in a variety of places, most of which are -not now to be exactly identified, but one of which was Kelliwic, a place -of strength which will receive further notice; and as resembling another -great leader in the invincible obscurity which shrouded his place of rest. -'In the lost battle borne down by the flying,' his sepulchre may have been -the maws of kites. - -From the time of the bards--not to limit that period to the sixth -century--until the ninth century no records concerning King Arthur have -come down to us. It is more likely that some were written, utilised, and -lost, than that the historian of the ninth century was guided only by -oral tradition. The earliest connected history of Arthur, though, as has -been seen, this by no means contains the earliest mention of him, is that -of Nennius, a Briton who, according to his own statement, wrote in the -year 858, and concludes his history in the time of the 'Heptarchy.' Thus -three centuries elapsed between the supposed death of Arthur in 542 and -any collected record of his doings which is still extant. This interval, -however, was not barren of Arthurian lore, for we have derived from it, as -I have shown, a sufficiency of fragments and allusions to certify to the -existence of Arthur, to mark his position as 'Dux Bellorum,' to present -him in his fighting character, and in more than one instance to associate -him with places which can still be identified. - - * * * * * - -As against the positive testimony of the Bards we have a certain amount of -negative evidence to which due weight must be attached, though the -negation may be held to apply not so much to the existence of Arthur as a -chieftain in the west as to the general supremacy assigned to him by -later writers and popular tradition as King of Britain, Comes Britanniæ, -lord of the whole country comprising the 'Saxon shore' as well as the -remote districts of the west and north. Proceeding in chronological order, -the first historical record (for the bardic fragments can scarcely be so -termed) relating to 'Britain's Isle and Arthur's days' is that of Gildas, -a British priest of reforming tendencies, who was born, according to his -own statement, in the year of the famous battle of Badon Hill, or Mons -Badonicus, and received in consequence the addition of Badonicus to his -name. This battle, which was fought in the year 520, or, according to -another reckoning, 516, was connected in later times with Arthur, and -regarded as his crowning victory. If Gildas was born in the year of Badon -Hill, he must, supposing we accept the date 520 for that engagement, have -been twenty-two years old at the time assigned by tradition to Arthur's -last battle. Yet Gildas makes no mention of Arthur, though he refers by -name to Ambrosius as the successful leader of the Britons against the -Saxons at this epoch. If, as there is reason to believe, Scotland was the -scene of the latter part of Arthur's career and of his death, it is the -less remarkable that he should have escaped mention by Gildas, who -apparently belonged to the south of England, for he is known to have spent -part of his time at Glastonbury. Similar negative evidence is provided by -the Venerable Bede, who lived nearer to the place of Arthur's exploits -than did Gildas, though he was more remote from them in time. Bede was a -Northumbrian priest in the time of the 'Heptarchy.' He was born in 673 and -died in 735. As a writer on ecclesiastical history, it is remarkable that -he found no place for Arthur as a Christian champion. Bede, who closely -follows Gildas, mentions only Ambrosius. I may venture to quote from the -'Ecclesiastical History' the passage which refers to Ambrosius, from which -it will be seen that this historian does not explicitly attribute the -victory of Badon Hill to Ambrosius, though his words have been thought to -bear that signification. 'Under him' (Ambrosius) 'the Britons revived and, -offering battle to the victors, by the help of God came off victorious. -From that day, sometimes the natives, and sometimes their enemies, -prevailed, till the year of the siege of Baddesdown Hill, when they made -no small slaughter of those invaders.' Putting Badon Hill aside, there -are other battles, which will be enumerated in due course, of which Arthur -has the sole credit, which might have been expected to have drawn the -attention of the priest to the hero had he been all that later chronicles -represent. - -Here is a difficulty which cannot be ignored; and which consists not so -much of conflicting testimony as of testimony conflicting with the absence -of testimony. In such a case it is probable that more weight should be -attached to positive evidence than to negative. The ignoring of Arthur by -Gildas and Bede, and as I shall presently show by the 'Saxon Chronicle,' -may imply no more than that he held no such position as would have caused -him to be mentioned by the British writers, who named no one but the -commander-in-chief, and that the field of his activity did not bring him -under the notice of the Saxon chroniclers, who took no cognizance of what -went on at this time in the west. The two British writers, whose notice of -the wars of the Saxon invasion is confined to the briefest epitome, -mention no leader on either side but Ambrosius. There must have been -others, of whom Arthur may have been one. Arthur was never, like -Vortigern, King of Britain, or, like Ambrosius, commander-in-chief of the -British forces: he had no concern with the 'Saxon shore'; he was, as we -are frequently told, Guledig, or Imperator, but his authority must have -been limited to the west and north. - - * * * * * - -Between the history of Bede and that of Nennius, the Arthurian legend -appears to have taken tangible shape, and by the later historian was -written in a connected though condensed form. If, as is probable, Nennius -was guided by earlier manuscripts, they have perished or not come to -light. Little is known of this writer. His 'Historia Britonum' is said to -have been edited by Mark the Hermit in the tenth century. According to his -own statement, Nennius, who was apparently a Briton and a priest, wrote -his history in the year 858. It concludes with the battle of Cocboy (or -Maserfield), between two kings of the 'Heptarchy' in the year 642. -Importance (as will presently be seen) is to be attached to the date of -this conclusion. Nennius in the course of his history deals with the -conflicts between the Britons and Saxons after the death of Hengist, and -introduces us to Arthur in these words:-- - -'Then it was that the magnanimous Arthur, with all the kings and military -force of Britain, fought against the Saxons. And although there were many -more noble than himself, yet he was twelve times chosen their commander -and was as often conqueror. The first battle in which he was engaged was -at the mouth of the river Gleni. The second, third, fourth and fifth were -on another river, by the Britons called Duglas, in the region Linuis. The -sixth on the river Bassas. The seventh in the wood Celidon, which the -Britons call Cat Coit Celidon. The eighth was near Gurnion Castle, where -Arthur bore the image of the Holy Virgin, mother of God, upon his -shoulders, and through the power of our Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy -Mary put the Saxons to flight, and pursued them the whole day with great -slaughter. The ninth was at the City of Legion which is called Cair Lion. -The tenth was on the banks of the river Trat Treuroit. The eleventh was in -the mountain Breguoin, which we call Cat Bregion. The twelfth was a most -severe contest, where Arthur penetrated to the hill of Badon. In this -engagement nine hundred and forty fell by his hand alone, no one but the -Lord affording him assistance.'[9] It is worth noting that a later writer, -Geoffrey of Monmouth, tells a story with regard to the battle of Badon -Hill resembling that which Nennius attaches to that of Gurnion Castle. -Arthur had a picture of the Virgin painted on his shield, and with his own -hand and his sword Caliburn slew 470 men; Giraldus Cambrensis explains -that the picture was on the inside of the shield, so that Arthur might -kiss it without inconvenience. - -These battles are indicated by Nennius only by their localities, without -mention of the chiefs to whom Arthur was opposed. It is believed that -Cerdric was prominent in this capacity: he may have been so in the south, -but we find no evidence that this commander ever got far enough north to -take part in the majority of the fights of which Nennius is the historian -and Arthur the hero. The river Gleni has been thought to be the Glen in -Ayrshire; by others to be a river of the same name, a tributary of the -Till in Northumberland. The Duglas, or Dubglass, has been supposed to be -the Dunglas, which forms the southern boundary of Lothian; by others one -of the rivers in Scotland which bears the name of Douglas; by others to be -the Duglas in Lancashire. The wood Celidon may be the Caledonian Forest or -Englewood in Cumberland. Gurnion Castle is supposed by some to have been a -Roman station near Yarmouth, by Skene to be one near Lammermoor. The City -of Legion or Cair Lion, where the ninth battle was said to have been -fought, should be Caerleon-upon-Usk, though this position does not -correspond with that of the other contests, and on this and other grounds -must be held in doubt. Giles supposes Cair Lion to have been Exeter. The -river Trat Treuroit, on which was the tenth battle, cannot be -satisfactorily located. The eleventh battle was apparently fought at -Edinburgh, not against the Saxons but the Picts. Cadbury in Somersetshire, -according to another hypothesis, has also been assigned as the place of -this battle. The famous twelfth battle, which was between the British and -Saxons, and resulted in the taking of Mons Badonicus or Badon Hill, has -been placed at Bannesdown near Bath, at Badbury in Dorsetshire, and at -Bouden Hill in Linlithgowshire. This great battle, whatever may be the -doubts as to its position, stands out as an indubitable historical fact, -though Gildas and Bede have occasioned a certain ambiguity between Arthur -and Ambrosius in regard to it. If, as is believed, Ambrosius died, whether -by sword or poison, in 508, and Mons Badonicus was fought in 520, we may -disconnect Ambrosius from this battle and give the sole credit of it to -Arthur. The opponent of Arthur on this occasion was, according to evidence -and probability, Cerdric, who had landed at the mouth of the Itchen in -495, defeated Natanleod near Netley in 508; and was himself defeated at -Badon Hill in 520.[10] If these statements be accepted, as it seems they -should be, we can scarcely place Mons Badonicus in Scotland, whither -Cerdric, so far as we know, never went. He was probably sufficiently -occupied at this time in establishing his kingdom of Wessex. It is -possible that at Badon Hill Arthur and Cerdric may have met, not for the -first time, for a bardic fragment to which I have referred (see page 14) -represents Arthur as fighting, probably with Cerdric, at Llongporth or -Portsmouth. English, as distinguished from Scottish, historians concur in -placing Badon Hill in the south. Geoffrey says that the battle was near -Bath (not that this is by any means conclusive); Bannesdown has been -generally accepted as its situation, though Dr. Guest prefers to place it -at Badbury in Dorsetshire. At any rate, we must believe that it took place -in the southwest and within stroke of Cerdric. Amid much that is obscure, -this battle, as between the British and Saxons and Arthur and Cerdric, -presents itself as a sort of anchorage in a sea of doubt. - -We may look back upon the preceding battles having regard to the -presumption that in 520 Arthur was in the south of England. Of these -battles, eleven in number, we have no exact knowledge as to either time or -place. With regard to three of them we cannot form any reasonable -conjecture. Of the remaining eight each has more than one position -hypothetically assigned to it--always one in the lowlands of Scotland, -where Arthurian names most abound, another generally in the north of -England. It would be vain to pretend that we know enough of the -particulars of the invasion to give us more than vague guidance as to the -movements of Arthur. It may be supposed that in his time the Angles were -penetrating the island by the Humber and the Forth, and it is possible -that he may have been concerned in the fighting which ensued. Manifestly -he obtained great fame in the north, though we do not know when. Between -the battle of Badon Hill in 520 and Camlan in 542 we are in absolute -darkness as to his whereabouts. We may presume that he was in the south of -England in 520 and in Scotland in 542; between the two dates there is room -for conjecture and for much fighting. If we could adapt the traditions to -probability, we should suppose that the Scotch battles took place after, -and not before, Badon Hill; that in the early part of his career Arthur -was at war with Cerdric and the Saxons of Wessex, in the later part with -the Angles of the north and possibly with the Picts. But if we accept the -list of battles as given by Nennius, and in the order in which he places -them, we must believe that Arthur went north before Badon Hill[11] and -returned to fight there, for all the little evidence we have indicates -that some at least of the battles which this historian records were in -Scotland. If this be so, Arthur must have gone north again to conclude his -career at Camlan, and thus must have made more than one Scotch campaign, -to the multiplication of Arthurian names.[12] - - * * * * * - -The 'Saxon Chronicle,' which gives a detailed account of the battles in -Kent, Sussex, and Hampshire, makes no mention of any in the west or north, -or of Arthur. The 'Saxon Chronicle' is an apparently truthful, if somewhat -bald, history. It mentions Vortigern as King of Britain and the opponent -of Hengist, it names Natanleod, Commail, Condida and Farinmail as British -kings who were defeated and slain; but neither Arthur nor Ambrosius find -place in this record. It has been supposed that Natanleod, who was killed, -together with five thousand men, by Cerdric at Netley in the year 508, -was no other than Ambrosius, but I have not been able to find the evidence -on which this theory rests; and there is another tradition with regard to -the death of Ambrosius, namely, that he was poisoned in the same year by a -Saxon monk. The silence of the Chronicle, if so it be regarded, as to -Ambrosius throws no doubt upon his existence; and as to Arthur, though it -may indicate that he had no position of national supremacy in the east and -south, it goes for nothing as touching the west and north, of which this -record takes no cognizance. - -The fame of Arthur may have been, or rather must have been, founded upon -his deeds, but the vast superstructure raised on that foundation is to be -attributed to the close association between the branches of the Celtic -race in Cornwall, Wales and Britanny. The fame of Arthur, once established -among the Welsh Bards and the Romancers of Britanny, easily lent itself to -exaggeration and attracted to itself much that was due to others or was -purely imaginary. - - * * * * * - -I have called Geoffrey of Monmouth an imaginative writer: it may admit of -question whether he should be termed imaginative or credulous. He was an -indiscriminate collector of Arthurian legends, some of which may contain a -modicum of truth, while others are wholly false. Of the latter variety -Arthur, according to Geoffrey, conquers Ireland, Iceland and the Orkneys, -subdues Norway, Dacia, Aquitaine and Gaul, bestows Normandy upon Bedver -the butler, and establishes his court in Paris. He was crossing the Alps -to attack Rome when he was recalled by the treachery of Mordred, to -conclude his career on the Camel. Such inventions savour more of the -twelfth century than the sixth, and mark Geoffrey as one whose statements -are not to be accepted without concurrent testimony. - -So overloaded is the story of Arthur with fiction or romance that it is -difficult or impossible to discern the truth that must necessarily be at -the bottom of it. The more remote are the Arthurian writings from the -Arthurian epoch, the more voluminous, the more circumstantial, and the -more obviously superadditional, they become. But there must necessarily be -a root under all this efflorescence, the presence of which is clearly -indicated, though it cannot be fully exposed to view. - - - - -III - -ARTHUR'S LAST BATTLE--THE DOUBTS WHICH SURROUND HIS PLACE OF BURIAL - - -The last battle attributed to Arthur has obtained more prominence than the -most famous battles of antiquity, has been connected with its supposed -place by geographical particulars, has been enriched with romantic detail, -made the subject of poetry, and so much glorified in English literature -from Geoffrey to Tennyson, that it seems like sacrilege to hint that the -only fight on the Camel of which we have sure information, took place long -after Arthur's death; and that if he and Mordred encountered, as there is -reason to believe they did, the place of that event was not Cornwall but -Scotland. - -The fatal battle of Camlan, as it is called, which is assigned to the year -542, in which Mordred is supposed to have been slain and Arthur mortally -wounded, is stated by Geoffrey, and generally believed, to have taken -place on the Camel. There was undoubtedly a great battle on this river, -near Camelford, at some remote time, and its position seems to be exactly -indicated by a bridge which still bears the name of Slaughter Bridge, or -Bloody Bridge. Near the bridge, close to the river, is an inscribed -sepulchral stone, obviously of great antiquity, which is held in repute in -the neighbourhood as marking the grave of King Arthur. - -The position is a likely one to have been chosen by an army on the -defensive. The stream, which was probably larger then than now, runs -through a marshy bottom with hills ascending on both sides. That a great -battle was fought here may be accepted as certain, and equally so that it -was between the Britons and the Saxons. One of the writers who attributes -it to Arthur tells us that the Camel[13] overflowed its banks with the -blood of the slain. So far we have a likely Arthurian story, and we may -look with interest at the inscription on the stone which presumably covers -(or rather _covered_, for the stone has been slightly moved from its -original situation) the bones of some one killed in the fight, perhaps of -the king himself. Carew, in his 'Survey of Cornwall,' speaks of the stone -as 'bearing Arthur's name, though now depraved to Atry.' Borlase accepts -the tradition that Arthur fought his last battle near this spot, but -denies that the stone bears reference to that warrior. The inscription, -according to Borlase, runs thus: 'Catin hic jacit[14]--filius Magari,' and -refers not to Arthur but to the son of Magarus. The letters are about six -inches high and much weatherworn. They are not easy to be made out, but -the Rev. W. Iago, of Bodmin,[15] has brought his special skill to bear -upon them, and, with the aid of casts and rubbings, has determined the -inscription to be as follows: - - Latini ic jacit filius Magarii. - -which Mr. Iago thus interprets: - - (The monument) of Latinus; here he lies; son of Magarius. - -_ic_ stands of course for _hic_. - -The use of the Latin language points to British rather than Saxon -authorship. - -Latinus was probably a Briton of Roman descent who was presumably fighting -on the British side. That his fellow soldiers had leisure to construct a -memorial on the battlefield may be accepted as an indication that they -retained their position as victors, but we seek in vain for evidence that -Arthur was here concerned. - -It is certain that a great battle was fought in this position in the time -of Egbert in the year 823. This is mentioned in the 'Saxon Chronicle,' in -'Ethelwerd's Chronicle,' and by Henry of Huntingdon, as having taken place -at Camelford between the Britons of Cornwall and the Saxons of Devonshire. -Several thousands fell on both sides according to Henry of Huntingdon, but -we are not told which was victorious. Probably the Britons, for the Saxons -do not seem to have pushed their conquests further, at least until the -time of Athelstan, nor ever to have generally replaced the former -inhabitants in the further parts of the county. - -So much for the historical battle in the year 823. Now for the traditional -battle on the same river in the year 542. Nennius makes no mention of -either. His history terminates in the year 640, and does not reach the -later battle, but his failure to mention the earlier, if it took place -when and where it is supposed, is remarkable. Another English writer, -Henry of Huntingdon, who is disposed to give much credit to Arthur, speaks -of the twelve battles, with particular reference to Badon Hill, but makes -no mention of the subsequent battle or of the death of the king. These -appear to have been entirely ignored so far as English chroniclers are -concerned until we reach Geoffrey of Monmouth, in the twelfth century, who -must be regarded as a romancer rather than a serious historian. We must -either suppose that there were two great battles on the Camel, the earlier -of which, in the sixth century, escaped the notice of chroniclers until -the twelfth, and then was recovered with ample circumstance and detail by -the highly imaginative writer to whom I have referred; or we must suppose -that there was only one great battle in this situation; that this was -fought in the ninth century; and that between the ninth century and the -twelfth it came to be confused with a battle in Scotland in which Arthur -was really engaged, and in which he met his death. - -In relation to the earlier battle on the Camel, if there was one, and the -supposed connection of Arthur with it, I must mention a scrap of -topographical evidence, which is far from conclusive, but which may be -taken for what it is worth. In this supposed battle, Cador, Duke of -Cornwall, half-brother to Arthur, or, according to another account, his -nephew, takes a traditional place among the slain. About three miles from -Camelford, between the Camel and the sea, stands a large sepulchral mound -which looks down upon the Atlantic from an elevation of over a thousand -feet. This is known as Cadõn Barrow, and the tradition is that it covers -the body of Cador. To this tumulus especial consideration and sanctity -have long been attached. If it covers the bones of Arthur's kinsman the -place consorts with his death on the Camel. At a distance of about seven -miles from the battlefield, be it Arthur's or Egbert's, stands another -sepulchral mound in which an interested person might find an Arthurian -association. This mound is known as the Giant's Grave, or King Arthur's -Grave. It lies within a gigantic double-walled enclosure which has the -name of Warbstowe Bury, one of the largest of the British camps of -Cornwall. This occupies a commanding situation, and would furnish an ideal -resting-place for a Cornish hero. But whatever be the purpose of the -mound, we have no reason to connect it with Arthur. The name is employed -somewhat at random: barrows are common in Cornwall; and we must have -consistent historical evidence before we suppose Arthur to occupy the -Giant's Grave or his kinsman Cadõn Barrow. - -The evidence which is wanting with regard to Arthur's battle on the Camel -comes to light on the Firth of Forth. There is reason to suppose that -tradition did not err in the fatal association of Arthur and Mordred, -though the place of the last scene was not Cornwall but Scotland. The name -Camlan, which has been freely given by later writers to the supposed -battle on the Camel, is not to be found there, nor, so far as I can -ascertain, in Cornwall. - -Skene and Stuart Glennie maintain with much converging evidence that -Camlan is Camelon[16] on the river Carron, in the valley of the Forth, -where it is said are the remains of a Roman town. Here, according to -Scotch tradition, Arthur and Mordred met. We have evidence which appears -to be sufficient that Mordred was King of the Picts, or, as he is -sometimes termed, King of Scotland, and the head of a confederacy of -Picts, Scots, and Saxons, or, as some authorities have it, Picts, Scots, -and renegade Britons. With this composite army he gave battle to Arthur -and his faithful British force, in which the latter were defeated and -Arthur slain. - -It is worth noting as in favour of the Scottish location of the battle -that Geoffrey, who places it on the Camel, nevertheless states Mordred's -force to have consisted of Picts and Scots. It is surely improbable that -Arthur could have been confronted in Cornwall by a great army of these -northern savages. On the Forth[17] they were numerous and much at home. -Mordred was supposed to have been the son of Llew, to whom Arthur had -given Lothian. These particulars are confirmed by the 'Chronicle of the -Scots.' It may be added that an earthwork with double lines of -circumvallation in the neighbouring valley of the Tay, now known as Barry -Hill, is designated by tradition as Mordred's Castle, not the only -instance in which testimony of this nature has been found to throw light -upon Arthurian history. - - * * * * * - -It is impossible to dissociate the place of Arthur's death from that of -his supposed burial. According to the well-known story which we owe to -Geoffrey of Monmouth, the king was desperately wounded on the Camel, and -thence conveyed to Glastonbury, where we must suppose he died; for there, -in confirmation of Geoffrey's account, was his grave found, or said to -have been found, after the lapse of 647 years. The circumstantial report -of the finding and identification of the grave on the spot indicated by -the story gives verisimilitude to the legend, and demands for it serious -criticism. In the first place, there is reason to believe, as I have -shown, that though there was a great battle on the Camel, Arthur was not -in it, and though he died in battle, it was not on the Camel. If Arthur -concluded his career, not on the Camel but the Forth, the question of -sepulture at Glastonbury may be dismissed as a fabrication. On the other -hand, if the burial in this place can be maintained, then we must abandon -the Scottish localisation of the last battle, and may accept the statement -of the unveracious Geoffrey that it was fought on the Cornish river. It -behoves us, therefore, to examine the Glastonbury story as one upon which -much turns. The tradition that Arthur, mortally wounded on the Camel, was -conveyed alive to Glastonbury may be at once discarded. Such a -transporting of a desperately wounded man must be regarded as -impracticable. He was within easy reach of his Cliff Castle at Tintagel -and of his fortified camp of Kelliwick (assuming this to have been Kelly -Rounds), and would probably, if moved at all, have been deposited in one -or the other. On the other hand, if he was killed outright the removal of -the body to Glastonbury by way of the Camel and the sea would be neither -impossible nor unlikely. - -Glastonbury was one of the earliest seats of Christianity in this island, -and no doubt was reverenced as such in the time of Arthur. The tumulus and -the churchyard were at this time competing as receptacles for the -dead--the tumulus as a heathen, the churchyard as a Christian place of -rest. A tumulus was raised over a Saxon chief in the time, and with the -permission, of Ambrosius. Christian burial was probably practised at -Glastonbury at as early a date. Giraldus Cambrensis, together with a monk -of Glastonbury quoted by Leland, professed themselves to have been -witnesses of the opening of Arthur's grave. There are two accounts as to -the finding of this--one that it was sought for by order of Henry II., who -had learned from the British Bards that Arthur was buried between two -pyramids at Glastonbury; the other that it was found accidentally in this -situation in digging to bury a monk who had selected this spot for his -interment. The pyramids undoubtedly existed before the alleged discovery -of Arthur's grave; for they were described by William of Malmesbury in the -reign of Henry I. They displayed some inscription, apparently Saxon, and -an ecclesiastical effigy, but no mention of Arthur. - -So circumstantial is the statement of Giraldus, who represents himself as -an eye-witness of the exploration, that if in any essential respect he -departed from the truth, whether by way of addition or otherwise, we can -scarcely suppose that the falsehood was unintentional. Though there are -differences, as I shall presently show, relating to the date of the -alleged exploration, preponderating evidence places it in the time of -Henry II., in whose interest it has been suspected that a fraud was -devised to gratify the king and serve a political purpose. Henry as a -Norman might, it has been thought, desire to rehabilitate Arthur as, like -himself, an enemy of the Saxons. Priests were deceivers ever: here they -may have had both the motive and the means for deception. But it must be -allowed that if the ecclesiastical explorers lied they lied so much like -truth that if any exception be taken to their report it is only that it -comes up too exactly to what might have been expected. The story, as told -by Giraldus, is as follows. On digging between the pyramids in the monks' -cemetery a leaden cross was found at a depth of seven feet, which bore -this inscription in rude letters: - - HIC JACET SEPULTUS INCLYTUS REX ARTHURIUS IN - INSULA AVALLONIA, CUM WENNEVEREIA UXORE - SUA SECUNDA - -Camden gives what professes to be a facsimile of the inscription, which -'was formerly written and preserved in the monastery of Glastonbury.' The -lettering has the appearance of great antiquity, but suspicion attaches to -the mention of the name of the place in connection with the interment. -Avallonia, or Avalon, is of course Glastonbury--probably in Arthur's time -an island in a swamp. As to its place, the body speaks for itself. It may -be necessary to say whose it is; it is not necessary to say where it is; -nor is it usual on tombstones or coffins to give their address. - -At a depth of nine feet, or two feet below the cross, was found a coffin, -consisting of a hollowed oak, in which were the bones of a man and a -woman. The man was represented as of great stature. I am indebted to the -scholarship of Mr. T. Holmes for as exact a translation of the words of -Giraldus as the Latin of that author allows. Speaking of the male occupant -of the coffin, Giraldus says: 'His tibia placed beside that of the tallest -man in the place (whom the Abbot pointed out to me), and fixed into the -earth by the side of his foot, extended fully three fingers' breadth above -the man's knee. His skull bone also was capacious and large enough for a -prodigy or a show--so much so that the interval between the eyelids and -the space between the eyes might contain the size of a man's palm fully. -And in this were seen ten or more wounds, all of which, except one larger -than the others and which had made a great gash, and which alone seemed to -have caused death, had joined into a firm cicatrix.' - -The body of the woman found in the same receptacle presented yellow hair -nicely braided, a lock of which on being handled by a monk crumbled into -dust. Here we have all we could expect--almost more. Strength and valour, -together with as much of female charm as could survive six centuries. Hair -will last and retain its colour for an indefinite time. With regard to the -male skeleton, the large recent wound on the head corresponds with the -manner of Arthur's death and the wounds of earlier infliction with the -manner of his life. In the length of the tibiæ there is nothing -impossible. But with regard to the skull the dimensions possible to -humanity are so much exceeded that it is difficult to suppose that we are -reading the honest report of an eye-witness. The palm between the eyes -savours more of imagination than observation. The space between the -orbits in an ordinary skull on a level with the eyelids, where the -distance is greatest, is at most 1-1/2 inch. One of the largest human -skeletons known is that of the Irish Giant at the College of Surgeons, -which measures 7 feet 7 inches in height. The distance between the orbits -in a level with the place of the eyelids is 2 inches. The palm between the -eyes is impossible even to procerity. Thus doubts gather round the grave: -if the king desired that this should be found attempts not wholly -ingenuous might have been made to gratify him. Apart from the inscription -and the skull, the completeness of the alleged discovery, the -appropriately wounded skeleton and the fascinating queen, are suggestive -of invention. - -A postscript or corollary was added to this story in the time of Edward I. -The skeletons, when first found, were removed, as we are told, from the -cemetery to the church; not as yet to find final repose, for in the year -1278 'Eduardus Longus' (Edward I. or Longshanks), together with Queen -Eleanor, caused the tomb to be reopened and the bones to be again buried -in front of the high altar, with the exception of the skulls, which were -kept outside for the devotion of the people.[18] The chests in which the -bones were found were painted with representations, and the arms, of the -occupants. Within the new sepulchre was placed a writing referring to the -finding of the bones by Edward and Eleanor, and attested by many witnesses -whose names are still to be read in the pages of Leland.[19] - -I think it may be credited that bones were unearthed, probably in the time -of Henry II. and the Abbot Henry de Blois, which were adopted as those of -King Arthur and provided with suitable conditions and surroundings. That -bones were re-buried as those of Arthur and found by 'long Edward' I think -admits of no doubt. But much may we doubt whether the bones were those of -Arthur, not only from the inconsistency and improbabilities of the story -of the disinterment, but from the lack of evidence that Arthur died within -practicable reach of Glastonbury. - -But perhaps the most convincing negative evidence is supplied by Gildas, -to whom I have already referred. This historian, a fellow-countryman and -contemporary of Arthur, was either ignorant of his existence or thought -him not worth mentioning. Now Gildas, as we are told by William of -Malmesbury, 'took up his abode' at Glastonbury 'for a series of years.' If -Arthur died, as was supposed, in the year 542, and Gildas was born in 520, -the historian must have been twenty-two years old when the king was buried -under the description of 'the famous King Arthur,' _inclytus Rex -Arthurius_. Gildas might have been present had this taken place as -represented, or at any rate must have heard from his friends the monks of -what could not fail to be of interest to the British historian. But -neither Arthur's death nor his life appealed to Gildas. Thus we must -discredit both the Camel and Glastonbury as connected with Arthur's death -and burial. - - - - -IV - -TOPOGRAPHICAL ASSOCIATIONS - - -I do not propose to follow in detail the romancers of the twelfth and -succeeding centuries, excepting where they may be taken in concurrence -with surviving structures and geographical peculiarities. I have said -something in this sense both of the Cornish and the Scottish localisation -of Camlan. Turning from the conclusion of Arthur's career to the beginning -of it, I must again have recourse to Geoffrey of Monmouth, a writer who -sometimes finds the corroboration which he always needs. - -Uther Pendragon, King of Britain, held a festival in London, or, according -to another account, at Winchester, at which were present Gorlois, King of -Cornwall, and his wife Igerna, 'the greatest beauty in all Britain.' Uther -was more attentive to the lady than was approved by her husband, who -abruptly left the Court and returned to Cornwall, taking his wife with -him. Uther followed. Gorlois deposited Igerna in Tintagel, 'upon the sea -shore, which he looked upon as a place of great safety. But he himself -entered the castle of Damelioc to prevent their both being involved in the -same danger if any should happen.' Damelioc is described as a strong -'castle,' having many issues out. According to the legend, Gorlois hoped -here to receive succour from Ireland. In this place Gorlois was besieged -by the superior forces of Uther, and was slain fighting outside its -ramparts. Igerna was apparently secure in Tintagel. 'For it is situated -upon the sea and on every side surrounded by it; and there is but one -entrance into it, and that through a straight rock, which three men shall -be able to defend against the whole power of the kingdom.' But though -Tintagel was impregnable, the lady was not. Uther obtained admittance into -the castle while Gorlois was in Damelioc, and Arthur was the result. -According to tradition, Uther was transformed into the likeness of Gorlois -by the arts of Merlin, and the King of Britain admitted under a -misunderstanding to the domestic privileges of the King of Cornwall. The -sceptical may hesitate to accept this explanation of the error of Igerna, -but no doubt it was furnished by the lady herself, who could scarcely fail -to have been acquainted with the facts. My purpose in alluding to the -story is rather local than personal. The description of Tintagel might -serve at the present day. Part of the castle is on a lofty and precipitous -peninsula commonly known as the Island, which has only a narrow connection -with the mainland, which few could defend against many. It is obvious that -it was on the Island that Igerna was placed and Arthur begotten. - - * * * * * - -The Castle of Tintagel is so closely connected with the Arthurian legend -that a few particulars concerning it must be introduced. At Tintagel, -according to tradition, the Kings or Dukes of Cornwall had their residence -before the coming of Cæsar. The place was formerly known as Dundagell, and -is supposed to be indicated by the name Donecheniv, which is to be found -in 'Domesday Book,' and according to Gilbert means the fort or castle with -the chain. This is the earliest reference to Tintagel, if it be one, -which I have been able to discover. The allusion to the chain is -appropriate. There is evidence that the chasm which separates the insular -part of the castle from that on the mainland was formerly crossed by a -drawbridge. This is likely enough, for the chasm was evidently once -narrower than at present, having been enlarged by the falling away of the -cliff, while the buildings on the mainland and the island are opposite and -near to each other, as if they had at one time been connected. Leland in -his 'Itinerary' describes the castle as it existed in the time of Henry -VIII. In the earlier part of his work he refers to a drawbridge as -connecting the two portions of the fortress; in a later part he states -that the island could be reached only by long elm trees laid for a bridge. -Other writers refer to the bridge. Carew in his 'Survey of Cornwall' in -1602 states that this was in existence one hundred years before he wrote, -and Norden, a writer of about the same date, says that it was there within -living memory. It is obvious that the historical bridge belonged to the -buildings parts of which still exist. The allusion in 'Domesday Book,' if -correctly interpreted, must relate to an earlier structure, for there is -reason to believe, as I shall presently show, that no part of what now -remains existed at the time of the Conquest. Nevertheless, there was -probably at that time some mechanism with a chain which gave access to the -island from the adjacent cliff. - -It is not my purpose to give a detailed description of Tintagel Castle, -such as may be found in many works relating to the locality;[20] but a few -words bearing upon the question of its hypothetical association with -Arthur seem called for. - -The site of the castle is remarkable: it is partly on the mainland and -partly on a peninsula which from time immemorial has been known as the -Island. This is separated from the mainland by a deep chasm which is -evidently in process of enlargement, or, in other words, was once narrower -than it is now. The island, which is bounded by lofty precipices, is -connected with the mainland only by a narrow ridge, which rises steeply -from the sea, traverses the chasm, and gives access to the island by a -narrow path cut in the face of the cliff, which now, as in ancient days, -might be defended by a few against many. - -To take first the insular part of the castle, which no doubt was the -original place of retreat and defence, the site may be associated with -that of many prehistoric fortifications of earth or stone, the remains of -which are to be found on the Cornish coast. The ancient engineers -habitually selected a precipitous peninsula, inaccessible from the sea, -with a narrow neck, across which they made barriers to protect against -attack from the landward side. Thus Tintagel Head was selected as a place -of defence, if not by prehistoric engineers, certainly in accordance with -prehistoric methods. The buildings at present on the island are less -extensive than those on the mainland. There is no evidence that any part -of them is anterior to the Plantagenets. An arch which forms the gateway -of the outer wall is distinctly though bluntly pointed, and must be later -than the Norman period. A bluntly pointed arch, known as the Iron Gate, is -also to be seen in a wall which protects what was apparently once a -landing place. Outside the enclosure of the castle are the wind-swept -remains of a little chapel which should be that in which Merlin vainly -sought repose. Old it undoubtedly is, but the most credulous could -scarcely attribute it to the sixth century. In construction it resembles -the rest of the insular part of the castle, being not too solidly built of -roughly quarried unsquared slates. There is nothing of architectural style -to determine the date, but the walls resemble the others and may be -presumed to be like them of the early Plantagenet time.[21] - -The buildings on the mainland give more scope for discussion. These are -placed on a high, narrow elevation which rises out of a gorge: this -elevation, which is steep on one side and precipitous on the other, rises -above the level of the buildings on the island, with which at one point -they may easily have communicated. The structures on the mainland consist -of two walled enclosures on different levels, connected by steps. The -lower and larger is supposed to be the courtyard, the higher the keep, and -indeed they do not admit of any other interpretation. The courtyard -presents towards the land the remnants of a great gateway, while towards -the sea the wall has fallen, exposing a precipice where once the wall -stood. The gateway is of especial interest: what remains of the arch is -suggestive that it once was pointed, and I have the evidence of an -intelligent mason who lives hard by, and who was familiar with its -condition twenty years ago, that though then broken it retained enough of -the curve to indicate that originally it was bluntly pointed, and -resembled in construction those still to be found on the island. I may add -that I have seen a drawing executed by Mr. Sturge, about sixteen years -ago, from which the same inference is to be drawn. I may draw attention to -a photographic reproduction of a print of the castle as it was about 300 -years ago, when the gateway was complete (see fig. 1, p. 62). The arch in -question appears to be less flat than it should be were it Norman, though -the scale of the drawing is too small to display a distinct point. It has -been supposed that the upper enclosure, known as the keep, is older than -the lower or courtyard, and the late Prebendary Kinsman thought he had -found traces of Roman methods in a projecting course of flat stones which -traverses the upper part of one of the walls; but I am inclined to agree -with my friend the mason, who considers the projection to be of English -invention, designed to protect the wall from weather and give finish to -its top.[22] The keep is connected with the courtyard by a flight of -steps, as if the two formed part of the same design, while the masonry of -the two portions is exactly of the same character, as if they were coeval. -That the upper and lower enclosures formed parts of the same design, is -sufficiently evinced by the drawing which has been reproduced. - -The insular part, though showing similar work and material, is in better -preservation; indeed, it is not easy to doubt that it is considerably -later, though belonging to the same architectural period. The pointed -arches indicate that neither the continental nor the insular part were -constructed before the introduction of this form of arch. The pointed arch -gradually superseded the round arch during the reign of Henry -II.--1154-1189--and did not become general until quite the end of this -period.[23] There are indeed pointed arches in the church of St. Cross, -near Winchester, which are supposed to date back as far as 1136, but this -appears to have been a solitary instance some 50 years earlier than the -general employment of the style. It may fairly be presumed that neither -portion of the existing buildings dates back further than the twelfth -century, while the insular portion is probably less ancient than that on -the mainland. There is evidence that there were buildings on the island at -an earlier date than can be ascribed to those now existing. - -Geoffrey of Monmouth, who was made Bishop of St. Asaph in the year 1152, -and probably wrote earlier, describes the place, in words which I have -already quoted, as he supposes it to have been in the time of Uther -Pendragon. He calls it 'the town of Tintagel, a place of great safety. For -it is situated upon the sea and on every side surrounded by it; and there -is but one entrance into it, and that through a straight rock, which three -men shall be able to defend against the whole power of the kingdom.' Not -to insist upon Uther, it is clear that Geoffrey intended to describe the -place as it was before his own time, and, by unavoidable inference, before -the buildings at present on the island were constructed. For it is almost -certain that none of them existed in the time of Geoffrey--quite certain -that none of them were built before his birth. It is to be noted that this -writer makes no allusion to the part of the castle on the mainland, which, -though probably older, was presumably not made when he wrote. We cannot -but infer that before Geoffrey's time there was some sort of fortification -on the island, which was replaced by the existing structure; and this -inference is supported by the name under which this place is referred to -in 'Domesday Book,' if Gilbert is correct in his interpretation of it as -'the fort with the chain.' The evidence that Tintagel Head was used as a -stronghold before the present buildings were made lends credibility to the -tradition which connects Arthur with Tintagel, though none of the present -walls were constructed until at least 600 years after his death. - -With the great gateway at one end and the exposed precipice at the other, -the courtyard corresponds with a description written in the thirteenth -century, and designed to present the state of the castle in the time of -Arthur.[24] Through this gateway, according to the romance, rode Uther and -Merlin, and within these walls Arthur was begotten. It is much to be -regretted that the building so adapted to the story had no existence in -the time to which it relates. It may be objected also that the romancer -has made a capital error in placing the adventure on the mainland, and a -minor error in assigning the same position to the chapel. It is to be -presumed that the story-tellers long subsequent to Arthur's time adapted -the legends relating to Tintagel somewhat loosely to the building as it -existed in their own. - -The 25-inch Ordnance Map represents the continental part of the castle as -built upon the site of a camp. It is with great diffidence that I venture -to question this interpretation of a trench which runs parallel to, and -close to, the south wall of the castle. This trench must, I think, be -accepted as having been made simultaneously with, or subsequently to, the -building, for it evidently bears relation to the great gate and to an -otherwise unprotected wall, of which it formed an outer defence. Sir -John Maclean calls this a moat. If this means no more than a defending -ditch I am of his opinion, but if a moat should hold water the term is -inapplicable, for the fosse is on such a slope that water never could have -remained in it. As to the camp theory, it may be observed that there are -undoubted remains of a camp within a quarter of a mile, close to the -church, and it is unlikely that two camps would have been constructed in -such proximity. - -[Illustration: FIG. 1.--_Tintagel Castle as represented by Norden_, -1584-1600.] - -[Illustration: FIG. 2.--_Tintagel Castle from 25-inch Ordnance Map_] - -I insert a drawing (p. 62), to which I think much interest attaches. It -represents the castle as it was about the year 1600--roughly speaking, 300 -years ago. It is a copy made by photography of a print in 'Norden's -Speculi Britanniæ Pars,' a book now in the British Museum, formerly in the -Royal Library. It is dedicated to James I., and appears to have been -written at the end of the sixteenth century. The date 1584 has been -doubtfully assigned to it: we may safely refer it to the end of the -sixteenth century. Norden was born in 1548 and died in 1626. He was -Surveyor of Woods to James I., and evidently regarded architectural -accuracy more than pictorial effect. The drawing shows the landward part -as extending further seawards than at present, while it indicates a place -where parts of the insular buildings had recently been engulfed. The great -gateway on the mainland is entire; the keep and the lower court nearly so; -while the relation of the three as parts of the same building, presumably -built at the same time, is unmistakable. The buildings on the island are -much as they are now. - - * * * * * - -I append what may also be of interest--a facsimile of as much of the -25-inch Ordnance Map as relates to Tintagel Castle. For permission to do -so I have to thank the Director of Her Majesty's Stationery Office, to -whom also I am indebted for similar permission touching the maps of -Damelioc, Kelly Rounds, and Cardinham Castle, to which I shall presently -draw attention. - - * * * * * - -So much and so little for the Castle of Tintagel and its relation to King -Arthur, who certainly never saw an arch or a stone of the existing -building, and could not have been begotten in a hall which was not made -until many centuries after his death. What took place, and where, before -the hall was built are other questions. This does not necessarily detach -Arthur from Tintagel. It is probable that Tintagel Head was a place of -strength and of retreat in prehistoric times, as were many headlands on -the Cornish coast. No earthworks were needed to secure it, as it had been -rendered impregnable by nature. The Celts in the sixth century, and in -Cornwall, though they must have had skill in stone-carving if some of the -existing crosses are correctly attributed to this period, were probably -not castle builders, unless the term 'castle' be applied to earthworks, as -is indeed still the custom. If Arthur was the lord of Tintagel, as is -indicated by an immemorial tradition, which we may, without violence to -probability, accept, nothing remains of this his dwelling-place excepting -the immortal ramparts which will be for ever associated with his name. - - * * * * * - -_Dameliock_ or _Dimilioc_ still exists as a formidable earthwork, and -retains the name.[25] It is mentioned in 'Domesday Book' under the term -Damelihoc. 'Domesday Book' is a mere rent-roll and does not deal in -descriptions, but the name is significant if Gilbert[26] is correct in -his interpretation of it as 'the place of battle.' - -Damelioc Castle is a British camp of great strength. It lies about eight -miles from Tintagel Castle by the modern roads, though in earlier time the -distance may have been as much as ten miles, which is assigned by -tradition as the distance of Damelioc from Tintagel. It is in the parish -of St. Kew, close to the road which connects Tintagel with the mouth of -the Camel, and, taking a wide scope, may be said to lie between the north -of Cornwall and the south of Ireland. The work is said to extend over an -area of twelve acres. It once consisted of three concentric ramparts, of -which two remain effective if not complete, while portions of a third and -outer are still to be seen, though much of it has yielded to the invasion -of agriculture. Outside each of the two nearly complete ramparts, of which -the outer is the higher, lies a ditch. This rampart is from 20 to 30 feet -high, measured from the bottom of the ditch;[27] it is about 11 yards -thick and the ditch 10 yards wide. The inner circle is less perfect than -the outer, or more properly the middle, little remaining except the ditch, -which is about 5 feet deep. The enclosure, measuring from the inside of -the middle rampart (the outermost is not complete enough to reckon by), -has a diameter of about 170 yards and a circumference of about 530 yards. -The enclosure formed by this rampart would, according to Colonel Mead, -whose assistance I had in examining the fortification, give comfortable -accommodation to 2,000 men, supposing them to be besieged for a week or -ten days, while under temporary pressure 5,000 people might be crowded -into it. Were the outer circle restored according to the indications -afforded by its remains, it is obvious that the camp would hold a much -larger number than that referred to as capable of being contained within -the middle defence. Like others of the Cornish earthworks, it stands on a -commanding elevation among hills which are higher than itself. - - * * * * * - -It has been seen that Tintagel and Damelioc are exactly adapted to the -story of which they are the scene. Either the story must have had some -foundation in fact, or the inventor of it must have possessed extensive -and accurate knowledge of the topographical features of this remote part -of the British Isles. - -[Illustration: FIG. 3.--_Reproduced from the 25-inch Ordnance Map._] - -The Romancers of Britanny may easily have heard of a place so well known -as Tintagel, and woven it into their fictions; but Damelioc seems to have -attracted little attention, though mentioned by Gilbert in 1838, until it -emerged from obscurity to find name and place in the last edition of the -Ordnance map. Thus unknown or disregarded, it would scarcely have been -selected as the scene of a purely imaginary romance. To me, the finding of -Damelioc where and what it should be according to the story is an -indication that this was dictated by something more substantial than -imagination, though this faculty no doubt had much to do with its -embellishment. - - * * * * * - -I have already quoted from the Welsh Triads assigned to the sixth century -a reference to Arthur as 'the chief lord at Kelliwic,' and have referred -also to other Welsh compositions, probably of little less antiquity, in -which Kelliwic or Celliwig is spoken of in the same connection. Professor -Rhys finds in the Triads an account of a raid made by Mordred[28] upon -Arthur's Court, apparently in Arthur's absence, where the intruder left -neither food nor drink unconsumed so much as would support a fly, and -where he outraged the Queen. This is said to have occurred at Kelliwic in -Cornwall, though it must be admitted that the association of the northern -king with the southern fortress is suggestive of doubt. Kelliwic is -elsewhere referred to as a place from which a certain marksman of -exceptional ability was able to hit a wren in Ireland. Dismissing this as -one of the super-additions to which tradition is liable, I revert from the -archer to the king. If there be any truth in the tradition which places -Arthur's court or camp at Kelliwic, we ought to find some trace of it. If -Kelliwic could be found as a place of defence in the Arthurian country, we -might at least say that the coincidence was remarkable, unless the -tradition had some substratum of fact. Now I venture to suggest that we -have Kelliwic still with us under the name of that remarkable earthwork -known as Kelly Rounds. - -_Kelly Rounds_ or _Castle Killibury_ is about five miles from Damelioc, to -which it bears a general resemblance, though possessing only two ramparts, -with no traces of a third. The work is situated near the road between -Camelford and Wadebridge, about 2-1/2 miles from the latter, which is a -well protected port. It consists--or rather I should say consisted--of two -concentric circles, each with rampart and ditch. It is obviously a British -camp. A road now cuts it into two nearly equal parts, of which that on the -south has been nearly obliterated, while the northern segment is -comparatively uninjured. The ramparts, of which the inner is the higher, -present a maximum height of perhaps 15 feet, judging roughly by the eye. -The diameter of the remaining semicircle is about 210 yards, measuring -from the inside of the outer rampart, while the semi-circumference in the -same position is 290 yards. On the west side are the traces of an outwork, -or partial enclosure, which was evidently designed to protect the -entrance. - -The extravagance of the archer who 'shot with a lusty longbow' from -Kelliwic to Ireland is not quite without significance, for it may be -held to show that Kelliwic, like Kelly Rounds, was opposite the Irish -coast. - -[Illustration: FIG. 4.--_From the 25-inch Ordnance Map._] - -We may with some confidence identify Kelly Rounds, or Castle Killibury, -with Kelliwic, and discern in it, as in Damelioc, a definite association -with Arthur. - - * * * * * - -A place to which the name of _Caradigan_ is given is prominent in -Arthurian lore. This has been interpreted as Cardigan, the ancient -designation of Cardiganshire being Keridigion.[29] But Mr. E. G. B. -Phillimore, who is a great authority on ancient Welsh literature, -considers that Caradigan is not Cardigan, but Cardinam, now known as -Cardinham, a considerable, though much damaged, earthwork near Bodmin. In -this interpretation Mr. Phillimore apparently has the approval of -Professor Rhys. If Caradigan is Cardinham, this was one of the places -where Arthur held his Court. It was at Caradigan that Enid was wedded to -Eric by the Archbishop of Canterbury, in the presence of Queen Guenevere. -It was to Arthur's Court at Caradigan that Lancelot brought his -newly-married wife, Iblis. - -The doings at Caradigan are obviously mingled with fiction, if not wholly -fictitious. The Archbishop of Canterbury was not yet, and Eric as a knight -of mediæval chivalry is, like the Archbishop, an anachronism; but there is -something in a name, and Caradigan associates Arthur with the Cornish -stronghold. - -Cardinham Castle, as it is called, though far inferior in size and -distinctness to Killibury and Damelioc, is worth more notice than it has -yet received. About five miles from Bodmin, on the edge of Cardinham Moor, -lies Old Cardinham, now represented by a solitary farm-house. In a field -behind the house stands an earthwork, of small extent but great natural -advantage. It is situated, like Damelioc and Kelly Rounds, on high ground -among hills which are higher than itself, but not near enough to command -it without artillery. This stronghold or place of defence displays the -remains of one rampart enclosing an ovoid or irregularly elongated space -on the side of a hill, within which the experts of the Ordnance Survey -discern a small inner circumvallation. In designing the enclosure the -natural slope has been made use of to co-operate with the rampart on the -north side, while the rampart on the south is wholly artificial, much -broken, and in places obliterated. - -[Illustration: FIG. 5.--_From the 25-inch Ordnance Map._] - -The partial destruction of the south wall makes the enclosure incomplete, -and gives it a horse-shoe shape. The entire circuit along the tops of the -existing and nearly obsolete ramparts is about 267 yards, and this -comparatively small circumference encloses a narrow and elongated space of -relatively small capacity. The surface is irregular, and may once have had -buildings upon it, of which there are now no remnants. This small but -well-protected enclosure seems to have been better fitted for a fortified -residence than a resort for an army. It may conceivably have held the -residential quarters of a Cornish chieftain in the sixth century, and its -legendary association with Arthur may not impossibly have had some -foundation in fact. - - - - -V - -CONCLUSIONS - - -To piece together the dislocated fragments which are all that remain of -the life of Arthur, they thus present themselves. Arthur, though unknown -or unrecorded by the Saxon chroniclers of the invasion, who say nothing of -what went on in the west and north, finds abundant mention among the Welsh -bards and poets assigned to the sixth century, who speak of him by name, -attribute to him great fame as a warrior, and briefly refer to certain -details which connect him with places some of which can still be -identified. This positive and detailed evidence is of more weight than the -negative evidence, if so it can be called, which lies in the omission of -Arthur's name by Gildas and Bede, two ecclesiastics who touch only -incidentally upon the wars of the sixth century and are satisfied with the -mention of Ambrosius, who preceded Arthur, and apparently occupied a -position more nearly approaching that of commander-in-chief, having regard -to the whole country, than did the later champion. - -But it is not my purpose now to recapitulate the writings to which I have -already referred, but only to put together, with their help, some -indications as to the probable biography of a personage who is at once so -famous and so obscure. - -We may look upon Tintagel as the birthplace of Arthur, and believe that he -was the son or putative son of a petty Cornish king. The exact fitness of -Tintagel and Damelioc for the story of which they are the scene lends -probability to it: not that we need accept the narrative precisely as -related. Time, verbal transmission, and Celtic imagination have to be -allowed for; but we may without undue credulity believe that Gorlois was -slain at Damelioc and Arthur born at Tintagel. We may presume that Arthur -remained in possession and occupation of the country of his nativity. -Tintagel Castle has been from time immemorial known as King Arthur's; -Kelliwic, which is mentioned in the earliest records in connection with -Arthur, may with probability be identified with Kelly Rounds and placed -near the estuary of the Camel; and Cardinam Castle, which credible though -later tradition assigns to Arthur as a palace or residence, exists near -Bodmin. Great interest, to my mind, attaches to these memorials. Military -engineering is older than the corps of Royal Engineers; and it may be said -that the most ancient history of our country is written in earth. These -memorials, together with Tintagel, a fortification constructed by the hand -of nature, indicate that King Arthur occupied the coast line from Tintagel -to the Camel, and the inland country to the vicinity of Bodmin. - -If we accept the evidence of names, that of Pentargon in particular, we -must suppose Boscastle to be included in the Arthurian country, which -would thus extend from the mouth of the Camel to the mouth of the -Vallency. The town of Camelford lies within this district, and it is -difficult not to think of Camelot as possibly on the Camel, though we have -no indication, excepting the name, to justify the assumption, and other -places compete for the distinction of supplying the site of this somewhat -hypothetical creation. - -We can speak with more confidence of Kelliwic, assuming that it is still -with us under the name of Kelly Rounds. This lies 2-1/2 miles from -Wadebridge, where the Camel forms a practicable tidal harbour, and was no -doubt used as such in the sixth century. The fortification covered the -landing-place, at a convenient distance, and commanded what must have been -the chief line of communication between Arthur's Cornish domain, Wales, -Ireland, and the north-west coast. The sea is a connection rather than a -separation, and may have provided the lord of Kelliwic with an access to -the north which would have been practically unattainable by other means. - -It may be doubted whether in Arthur's time the Saxons had reached -Tintagel: it is clear that in the ninth century they were fighting on the -Camel, apparently unsuccessfully, and that they never generally superseded -the Celtic population much further to the west than the traditional -territory of Arthur. That Arthur ever fought a great battle on this river -is improbable; nor is it likely that the Saxons in his time got far enough -to the west to assault his earthworks; but these at any rate may have -served as places of retreat, and been used by him as Torres Vedras was by -Wellington. - -We may accept the statement of Nennius, who was apparently an historian of -honest intentions, that Arthur was selected to command against the Saxons, -and that in this capacity he fought many, perhaps twelve, battles. There -must, it is certain, have been much fighting in the west and north as well -as elsewhere, and we may give Arthur the credit of much of it, though -details, if not entirely absent, are by no means explicit. It seems clear -that he entered Scotland, perhaps more than once, became a prominent -character in the Lowlands, as the dissemination of his name implies, and -finally perished at Camelon or Camlan, near the Firth of Forth, fighting -against a coalition of Saxons, or, strictly speaking, Angles, Picts, and -Scots, or, according to another tradition, against one consisting of -Picts, Scots, and revolted Britons. It is a far cry from Cornwall to -Scotland, but the feat is not impossible. Agricola marched from the south -of England to Scotland at an earlier date; but he had the resources of the -Roman Empire behind him. Arthur must have been aided by his access to the -sea, and probably found allies in the Celts of the west and north-west -along the whole front of the Teutonic encroachments. His movements in the -south and in the north were attended with a series of British victories in -which the invaders were pushed back from the western parts of the island, -and which contributed to the preservation of the Celtic race in the -regions of Cornwall and Wales, where it still survives. Such achievements -were enough to make Arthur famous from the Camel to the Forth, however -little in those days of imperfect communication his reputation extended to -the 'Saxon shore.' The places where above all others he was held in memory -and where his name was handed down as a local tradition were his little -inheritance in Cornwall, where he was born, and which we cannot doubt that -he occupied--more or less; and the northern region, where he apparently -did much fighting and where he ultimately perished. I need not repeat that -if, as seems probable, Arthur's last battle was in Scotland we must -dissociate his death with the Camel and his burial with Glastonbury. - -So much for what may be accepted as history. We might have had more had -the Cornish language survived like the Welsh. I do not propose to deal -with the superstructure of romance which in succeeding centuries -collected about Arthur's name. The magnitude of this echo, if so it may be -called, is in some sort a measure of the impression produced by Arthur in -his life time. The romance seems to have come chiefly from France. There -was little communication in Arthur's time between the west and east of -England: even between Cornwall and Devonshire there seems to have been -little. The chief connection between Cornwall and the rest of the world -was by sea, and Wales, Britanny and Ireland were the countries in the most -intimate association with this peninsula. Navigation is an ancient art, -older than the mariner's compass: in the comparatively late sixth century -crossing the Channel and the narrow seas must have been familiar to our -ancestors, whether Saxon or British. Britanny and Wales, countries within -touch of Cornwall, were, like it, occupied by Celts, a race gifted with -more imagination than has been granted to the practical and hard-headed -Saxon. The fictions of which Arthur is the centre, constructed chiefly in -France, but to a lesser extent in Wales, were brought to England in the -twelfth and later centuries, and replaced history by myth. In these -poetic regions this story attained a complicated development the like of -which is not to be found in British history, though we can discern -something like it in connection with the siege of Troy and the subsequent -adventures of some of the persons supposed to have been concerned in it. - -That Arthur was a patriot, a defender of the soil against foreign -invaders, is sufficiently obvious. That he was also a Christian must be -believed. Christianity reached Cornwall before St. Augustine preached in -Kent: Britain probably received some sprinkling of Christianity during the -Roman occupation, though we cannot suppose that much of this religion -penetrated from London to Cornwall. The western extremity of the island -was much associated with Ireland, and we have reason to believe that as -early as the fifth century the creed of St. Patrick was brought to -Cornwall, which thus became one of the earliest places in Britain to -receive the Christian religion. It is worth observing that the ancient -Cornish crosses, of which there are so many, generally present the Greek -cross rather than the Latin, and would appear to belong to the Eastern -rather than the Western Church. The oldest of these crosses are supposed -to date back to the sixth century. It is more than probable that a Cornish -chieftain at this period would have been a Christian, and possible that -Arthur himself may have knelt before some of the crosses which still -exist. - - -THE END - - - PRINTED BY - SPOTTISWOODE AND CO., NEW-STREET SQUARE - LONDON - - - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[1] I have to thank the Rev. S. Baring-Gould for supplying me with these -particulars, which are to be found in the Report of the Launceston Meeting -of the Cambrian Archæological Society, _Archæologia Cambrensis_, No. 51, -fifth series, July 1896. This relic is preserved in the royal collection -at Osborne, and is described and figured in the _Archæological Journal_, -vol. xxiv. p. 189. The vessel is represented as in excellent preservation -and of artistic design. It is of hammered gold, and is supposed to be of -Scandinavian workmanship. - -[2] See _The Four Ancient Books of Wales_, by W. F. Skene, 1868; also an -essay on Arthurian localities, by J. S. Stuart Glennie, _Merlin_, part -iii., published by the Early English Text Society, 1869. - -[3] _History of Britain_, by John Milton. - -[4] I need not refer to _La Morte d'Arthur_, a work of which Roger Ascham -disapproves as encouraging manslaughter and incontinence: 'yet I know,' -says Roger, 'when God's Bible was banished the Court, and La Morte -d'Arthur received into the prince's Chamber.' - -[5] Skene's _Four Ancient Books of Wales_, vol. ii. p. 457. - -[6] Guest's _Origines Celticæ_, vol. ii. p. 194. - -[7] Dr. Guest's opinion as that of an antiquarian scholar deservedly -carries great weight, though some at least of the bardic fragments usually -ascribed to the sixth century are held by Stephens to belong to the -twelfth. (See _Literature of the Kymry_, 1849.) This writer allows certain -of these fragments to have come down from the sixth century, and the -admission of so scrupulous a critic goes far to establish their antiquity. -I may refer to Skene's _Four Ancient Books of Wales_ for information -regarding the works in question, as well as for the text of some of them. -There appears to be no reasonable doubt that Taliessin, Llymarch Hen, and -Myrddin lived in the sixth century, though their supposed compositions are -not presented to us in any manuscripts which bear an earlier date than the -twelfth. _The Black Book of Caermarthen_, which contains some of these -remnants, of the greatest reputed antiquity, was written in the time of -Henry II. But though all intermediate writings have perished or remain -hidden, we are not to infer that none ever existed. It is clear that some -of the bardic fragments refer to the sixth century; for example, that -relating to the fight at Llongborth between Geraint and, as is supposed, -Cerdric, in which Arthur is mentioned. It is possible that this and other -poems may at first have been transmitted by word of mouth, but impossible -that they could have been so conveyed for six hundred years. Intermediate -writings there must have been; these have not survived, but they are -probably fairly represented in the _Black Book of Caermarthen_ and similar -records. It cannot be doubted that these compositions relating to the -sixth century, by whatever means and with whatever modifications they -reached the twelfth century, must have had some substantial foundation. It -would have been impossible in the twelfth century to create out of nothing -stories and allusions so suited to the sixth in historic probability and -local association. - -[8] Skene's _Four Ancient Books of Wales_, vol. i. p. 426. - -[9] Quoted from the edition by J. A. Giles in _Six Old English -Chronicles_. - -[10] See the _Chronicle of Henry of Huntingdon_. - -[11] As bearing upon Arthur's early campaigns and their connection with -Scotland, it is of interest to recall the tradition which connects Arthur -with Mordred. Arthur's sister, Anne by name, married Llew, otherwise -Lothus or Lot, King of the Picts, to whom Arthur is supposed to have given -Lothian. Of this marriage came Mordred, or Modred, Arthur's nephew and -mortal enemy. From this it would appear that the southern adventurer was -associated with the northern monarch before Mordred was born, and had -visited Scotland apparently as a conqueror in the time of Mordred's -father. - -[12] An elaborate and learned disquisition relating to Arthur and his -battles is to be found in Whitaker's _History of Manchester_, published in -the year 1775. See book ii. chapter ii. - -[13] Quoted by Camden from _Marianus Scotus_. - -[14] _Jacit_, instead of _jacet_, calls for remark. Mr. Iago assures me -that this spelling was not unusual in the time to which the inscription -belongs, and refers to Professor Hübner for instances of Christian -inscriptions in Britain in which the same spelling was employed. - -[15] See _Trigg Minor_, by Sir John Maclean, vol. i. p. 583, where is a -representation of the stone and inscription provided by Mr. Iago. - -[16] Skene's _Four Ancient Books of Wales_, vol. i. p. 60; Stuart Glennie, -_Arthurian Scotland_, Merlin Early English Text Society, part iii. p. lxi. - -[17] The Scots with whom Arthur fought were probably, like the Picts, -inhabitants of Scotland, though the term Scotti is also applied to a -portion of the inhabitants of Ireland. - -[18] Leland's _Assertio Arturii_. - -[19] There are discrepancies of date with regard to disentombment which -increase the doubts which on other grounds surround the story. The date -commonly assigned is that adopted by Camden, 1189, the last year of King -Henry's reign. Leland gives the date as 1191, in which he is followed by -Hume, in the reign of Richard I. Giraldus, who represents himself as an -eye-witness, and is necessarily the earliest authority, does not give the -year, but indicates the time within certain limits. He states that the -grave was opened by order of Henry II. during the rule of the Abbot Henry. -This Abbot was apparently Henry de Blois, the grandson of the Conqueror -and the brother of King Stephen; Henry II. was therefore his first cousin -once removed. It has been supposed that the consanguinity may have -disposed the Abbot to gratify the king by finding what he wanted. Henry de -Blois was the 37th Abbot. He was appointed in 1126, in the time of Henry -I., and died in 1171, in that of Henry II. In the year 1129, three years -after his appointment to Glastonbury, this Abbot became, according to -Leland, also Bishop of Winchester. Giraldus tells us that the discovery -took place before the Abbot became Bishop. If that were so the remains -were found not later than 1129, in the reign of Henry I., not in that of -Henry II., as Giraldus represents. Giraldus himself was not born until -1147, or 1150 (both dates are assigned); so it is evident that a large -error has come in with regard to the date of the disentombment, in -reference to the appointment of the Abbot to the bishopric. Putting aside -this contradiction as possibly due to some mistake in the ecclesiastical -records, we at any rate cannot doubt, if any credit is to be attached to -Giraldus, that the exhumation took place, if at all, in the time of Henry -de Blois, who died in 1171. This is inconsistent with the dates 1189 and -1191 which are respectively assigned to the event. Thus three Kings are -presented as contemporary with the finding of Arthur's grave, while two -Abbots and a _locum tenens_ offer themselves as immediately concerned in -the transaction. For in the last year of the reign of Henry II., in which -according to one account the grave was opened, there was no Abbot of -Glastonbury, the King from the year 1178 until his death in 1189 having -retained the Abbey in his own hands and administered it by means of a -subordinate. Thus in 1189, the date authoritatively assigned for the -concurrence of the Abbot and the King, there was no Abbot and the King was -approaching his end. In the year 1191 Richard I. and the 39th Abbot bore -sway. Like the Abbot of royal blood, he was named Henry (which may have -led to confusion), one Henry de Saliaco, but he does not supply the -requirements of the case if we are to believe that King Henry was the -instigator and his sacerdotal kinsman the agent. Thus the whole story is -beset with doubts. This much may be believed: in the time probably of -Henry II. the bones of Arthur were sought for; two skeletons were found -where skeletons most do congregate, which with judicious exaggeration and -some invention were made to come up to what was demanded of the remains of -the warrior and his beautiful consort; these were re-interred under the -names of Arthur and Guenevere, and about 100 years later were honestly -accepted as such by Edward and Eleanor. - -[20] _History of the Deanery of Trigg Minor_, by Sir John Maclean, vol. -iii. p. 194. - -[21] Among the more noticeable particulars in the buildings, both on the -island and the mainland, especially on the island, are the numerous holes -in the walls. These have given rise to much remark and speculation; by -some they have been inconsiderately interpreted as arrow holes. It is -sufficiently obvious that they once gave lodgment to the beams which -formed the scaffolding employed in the construction of the walls. The -orifices are rectangular, about 7 inches × 6 or 6 inches × 5. The passages -in connection with them are horizontal and give no scope for the -adjustment of the weapon; many of them have no exits, but come to an end -against rock or masonry. The holes are generally arranged so that several -are on the same level. Similar holes for the same purpose are not uncommon -in the neighbourhood, and may be seen in the Vicarage wall. I am indebted -to Colonel Mead, of the Royal Engineers, for the self-evident explanation -which I have adopted. - -[22] A similar projecting course is to be seen on a wall which cuts off -the neighbouring peninsula of the Willapark from the mainland. This wall, -though ancient and probably defensive, cannot be supposed to be Roman or -to show Roman methods. - -[23] Rickman's _Gothic Architecture_. - -[24] I insert the description of Tintagel Castle as given in _The High -History of the Holy Grail_, a French romance of the thirteenth century: - -'They (_i.e._ Arthur, Lancelot and Gawain) came into a very different -land, scarce inhabited of any folk, and found a little castle in a combe. -They came thitherward and saw that the enclosure of the castle was fallen -down into an abysm, so that none might approach it on that side, but it -had a right fair gateway and a door tall and wide, whereby they entered. -They beheld a chapel that was right fair and rich, and below was a great -ancient hall. They saw a priest appear in the middle of the castle, bald -and old, that had come forth of the chapel. They are come thither and -alighted, and asked the priest what the castle was, and he told them it -was the great Tintagel. "And how is the ground all caved in about the -castle?" The priest then relates the death of Gorlois and the -transfiguration of Uther, "so that he begat King Arthur in a great hall -that was next to the enclosure there, where this abysm is. And for this -sin hath the ground sunken in on this wise." He cometh then with them -toward the chapel, that was right fair and had a right rich sepulchre -therein. "Lords, in this sepulchre was placed the body of Merlin, but -never mought it be set inside the chapel, wherefore perforce it remained -outside. And know of very truth that the body lieth not within the -sepulchre, for so soon as it was set therein it was taken out and snatched -away, either in God's behalf or the Enemy's, but which we know not."' _The -High History of the Holy Grail_, by Master Blihis (1200-1250), translated -by Sebastian Evans, vol. ii., p. 75. - -If we may suppose, as probably we may, that Master Blihis describes the -castle as it was in his own time, though affecting to adapt his -description to that of King Arthur, we may infer that in the thirteenth -century when the existing castle was comparatively new it had already -begun to suffer from the encroachments of the sea. - -[25] In connection with the identification of Damelioc Castle, I have to -acknowledge my obligation to the Director-General of the Ordnance Survey, -and to Staff-Surgeon Trevan, of Bideford. - -[26] See Gilbert's _History of Cornwall_, 1838, vol. i. p. 328, vol. iv. -p. 94. - -[27] These measurements and others relating to the camps are only to be -taken as approximate, the horizontal distances were measured by pacing, -the heights by the eye. They will serve to give a generally correct -impression, though not made with the accuracy of a land-surveyor. This may -be found in the Ordnance maps which are attached. - -[28] _The Arthurian Legend_, by Professor Rhys, pp. 15 and 38. - -[29] _The Arthurian Legend_, by Professor Rhys, pp. 129 and 132. - - - -***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK KING ARTHUR IN CORNWALL*** - - -******* This file should be named 41783-8.txt or 41783-8.zip ******* - - -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: -http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/4/1/7/8/41783 - - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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