The story
The Historia Regum Britanniae, 'History of the Kings of Britain', was written in Latin around 1136 by Geoffrey of Monmouth, a cleric based at Oxford. It claims to translate an old book in the British language given to him by Walter, archdeacon of Oxford. In fact, it blends older sources such as the Welsh Historia Brittonum with imagination. It tells the history of Britain from its founding by Brutus of Troy through Roman Britain and the Saxon invasions down to the 7th century, and it includes Leir (the model for King Lear), Cymbeline, and the central figures of Arthurian legend: Uther Pendragon, Merlin, Guinevere, Arthur, the sword Caliburnus (later Excalibur), the treacherous Mordred, and Arthur's last battle at Camlann and removal to the isle of Avalon.
Geoffrey wrote in the civil war between Stephen and Matilda known as the Anarchy, for Norman and Anglo-Norman patrons. His book was extremely popular, with more than 200 manuscripts, and it was accepted as history by many, though William of Newburgh, in the late 12th century, called it a pack of lies. Arthur became a king with a kingdom, a court, a magician adviser and a tragic end. Chretien de Troyes, Thomas Malory and many later authors began from it, and so did Shakespeare for King Lear and Cymbeline.
Why it mattered
- It supplied the main outline of the Arthurian legend, with Merlin, Excalibur and Camlann, on which later romances built.
- Wace, Layamon, Chretien de Troyes and Malory all started from its story of Arthur.
- Its history of Britain from Troy influenced later English and Welsh ideas of national origins.
- Shakespeare took King Lear and Cymbeline from its chronicle tradition.
Sources
- Historia regum Britanniae Britannica
- Geoffrey of Monmouth Britannica
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