DOCSLIB.ORG

T H E S H a R D S I N S I D E Master William T H I S Blackfox Award ISSUE: Winner, Best Special Edition, Fioled Letters 2 A.S

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
T H E S H a R D S I N S I D E Master William T H I S Blackfox Award ISSUE: Winner, Best Special Edition, Fioled Letters 2 A.S T h e S h a r d NEWSLETTER OF THE BA RONY s OF SHATTERED CRYSTAL Volume 31, Issue 4 AUGUST 2019/ AS LIV P a g e 1 T h e S h a r d s I N S I D E Master William T H I S Blackfox Award ISSUE: Winner, Best Special Edition, Fioled Letters 2 A.S. LI (51) Missives 5 Acknowledgements Onyx Oven 6 Cover art: picture by Malina an Eich Gil with rework by Tiarna Cináed Ulric Wood block print of “Orange Tree & Pantheon pg 1, Coronet Magical SCA Logo for Their Excellencies’ missive, “Toasting Gift Givers” wood block 9 Moment print page 5, “Pies” wood block print page 8, Haematite Hospice logo page 9, “Cat Sidhe” wood block print page 10, and “Celtic Cats” page 15 are from Cináed Ulric. Haematite 9 Photos of Largess in the Baroness’ Missive are by Petrona de Hospice Manciano. King & Queen wood print, page 5 , is from Caxton's Game and Book of Playe of Chesse, 1470s and is in the public domain. 10 Bards Horizontal and Vertical dividers, and woodcuts on pages 4 and 15 are from the web page Goode Cookery, and their page on Medieval Woodcuts Clip Art collection from the 15-16th centuries. Their permis- Calendar 18 sion-use statement is: “Those who wish to reduce or alter these im- ages for their own use are welcome to do so.” All articles, except “The Letters of Fioled Wathen”, are written by the folks underneath the article’s title or end. “The Letters of Fioled Wathen” is written anonymously and the author(s) wishe(s) to remain anonymous. All Creative Work, Photography, and Model release forms for every article, photo, or artistic graphic are on file with the Chronicler. Volume 31, Issue 4 P a g e 2 The Letters of Fioled Wathen To Lady Yarwood, val at this time is won- fullest. The beginning derful with the coming of the harvest season My goode friend, of Gŵyl Awst, the was always mam's fa- Aeronwyn, I cannot feast of August, vorite time of the year tell you how grateful known as Lammas day and to celebrate this and my mind and heart is locally, or as Lughna- her arrival our cook, that you had one of sadh by my new found Guiscard, is set out to your marshals accom- Irish friends. She de- make a feast overflow- pany my mam on her scribed her journey into ing with a bread for journey here to mine town as beautiful as each course: a wastel and Rhion's manor in from the outlying farms loaf, a rose petal loaf, Briar Hollow. Her she saw shocks of and lammas plait all decision to travel right sheaves standing tall served with herbed but- when Pennsic War and drying golden in ter and bilberry jam. was happening, had the sun. Along the Needless to say mam both Rhion and myself roadsides in the bram- cannot wait for this constantly at church bles and bushes, many a feast day and has set- giving intercessory young maid were busy tled in nicely in our lit- prayers to St. Chris- picking bilberries and tle guest quarters which topher. Still, her arri- filling baskets to their opens up to the back P a g e 3 T h e S h a r d s part of the courtyard folklore. He has many though, much of the garden. stories to tell about the Barony is going off to In the second full benevolent or vengeful the lands of Swordcliff week of August, the lo- Cat Sith, cat fairies, to participate in some cal bard, Cináed Ul- large black cats with a good revelry known as ric, is planning to be in spot of white on their Baroness Wars, this the town square telling chest that roam around time redubbed Duchess stories while decked out at night guarding Wars. Baronial mem- in a jester's outfit that things, taunting people, bers are of course going resembles something or even blessing homes. to support our Baron- like a house cat. He is In particular however, ess, Petrona, in the ac- practicing some stories he will warn of Cat's tivities she patrons and he hopes to tell and Night, in which a witch supports, but there will trade at the Known who had transformed be so much going on World Bardic Con- herself into a cat eight from Arts & Sciences gress and Cooks Col- times, would become a classes and competi- legium that is being cat permanently, if she tions to coursing of held in the Barony at transformed herself for hounds, discussions the end of August. a ninth time on August and advice from her- He iss warning people seventeenth. Perhaps alds, as well as armored, to beware the Cat's this is why folks say rapier, archery, and Night on August 17th, cats have nine lives? thrown weapons compe- a legend out of Irish Before that event titions, so much to do. Volume 31, Issue 4 P a g e 4 Of course there will is still towards dolls also be merchants and and play. craftsmen there, among I do so hope you which I hope to find a can come and stay for a steyner for a project visit sometime soon. next month. My days right now are I must close as tied to the manor as we mam is calling me, and continue to get it set up today we begin to teach and Rhion further sets Anest what she needs up his textile shop with to know to run a house- Gareth in tow. Hop- hold: herb garden, medi- ing to hear from you cine chest, linens and soon. clothes, as well as other tasks should her future Your friend, husband be gone for an extended time and she Lady Fioled Wathen needs to be in charge. Mabyn & Glynnis will follow behind for some of these things, but they are still young enough their attention P a g e 5 T h e S h a r d s M i s s i v e s quested drawstring bags I would like to thank all of these (Banbharun Briana Morgan of folks for participating in Lady the Valley, Azzah bint al-Badawi Malina an Eich Gil’s largesse al-Murabbiyah al-Rualliyyah, Deb competition and for giving me Speer, Margaret MacLeod, & the opportunity to share the From the Mwynwen "Strawberrie" Ysig- bounty and talent of Shattered Baroness nidd ), 13 beaded veil pins Crystal with our Royal Family. (“Vienne la Main”), 13 lavender Watch for an announcement of sachets (Banbharun Briana), 13 the competition winner soon. On Saturday, July sixth, wood burned spoons and dish- Pietro and Heather helped me washer magnets (Shannon present the baskets of largesse Mullis), and 13 assorted pater- Baronessa Petrona to the Royal Family at Simple noster, earrings, and prayer Day. We were able to give the beads (Lina Duman). The Royal . Crown; close to 250 of the re- Family sends their gratitude. de Manciano Volume 31, Issue 4 P a g e 6 The Onyx Oven E m i l i a n Ț e a p ă f i Bilberry Tart Mixed with Cinnamon & Sugar Before I get to the recipe, I suppose I may need to tell a few people what a bilberry is. Obviously it is a berry, and it is one I've come across mentioned in a number of Medieval texts and discussed on Me- dieval or Renaissance re-creation t.v. shows. Bilberries, Modernly referred to as European blueberries, bilberries are primarily an Eurasian species of low-growing shrubs, bearing edible, dark blue berries. They are originally native to Europe, heavily listed throughout the British Isles, although many a report claims that the Scandinavian countries have them growing so much over their countryside it's almost like kudzu here in the American south - except of course people like this plant. In fact it is thought that's where they name came from. The name appears to have a Scandinavian origin, possibly from as early as 1577 C.E. (A.D.), being similar to the Danish word bølle for whortleberry with the addition of "berry". It is also known by a number of other names including blaeberry in the Scots language, whortleberry in southern England, (which pleased me to find out as whortleberries are a prize mentioned in a Facebook game I play and I had no idea what they were...) and wimberry, whimberry, winberry or whinberry in south Wales. They differ from North American blueberries in the fact that they are non-climacteric fruits with a smooth, circular outline at the end opposite the stalk, whereas blueberries retain persistent sepals there, leaving a rough, star-shaped pattern of five flaps. Also bilberries grow singly or in pairs rather than in clusters, as blueberries do, and bilberries are darker in color usually appearing near black with a slight shade of purple. A curious part of their cooking descriptions is that they have an intense flavor of concen- trated blueberries, which given the fact we would know about bilberries before blueberries one would think that the blueberries’ description would be "a similar fruit that is less intense taste of bilberries." For all the mention that bilberries receive in the texts and programs, one would think that there would be a decent amount of recipes to find containing them, but alas that is not so. As it was such a common fruit, and one that was frequently described as just served with cream and sugar or made to fla- vor a wine or mead, the recipes were perhaps too simple to be considered for writing down and just passed on orally, or they were thought of being more of a peasant dish, so it didn't make the royal or no- bility's cook books, that much of our Medieval recipes come from.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Le Storie Di Re Artù E Dei Suoi Cava- Lieri – Immettono Nella Letteratura E, Prima Ancora, Nell’Immaginario Europeo Un’Eccezionale Serie Di Racconti Fantastici
    MARGHERITA LECCO ONOMASTICA ROMANZESCA MEDIEVALE. IL NOME CHAPALU FRA TESTO E IMMAGINE Abstract: The article examines the possible etymologies of the name Chapalu, a fantastic animal mentioned in the Arthurian romances, which is already in the texts of medieval Welsh Literature. After reviewing the various occurrences, the article concludes in favor of a generic name, which came to indicate a proper name, pos- sibly designating a lynx. Keywords: Chapalu, Cath Palug, Arthurian Romances, Arthurian Names, King Arthur in Cathedral of Otranto I romanzi medievali di materia bretone – le storie di re Artù e dei suoi cava- lieri – immettono nella letteratura e, prima ancora, nell’immaginario europeo un’eccezionale serie di racconti fantastici. Questi sono, per di più, accompa- gnati da un numero molto alto di nomi aggiunti ad indispensabile comple- mento: nomi che suonano strani e compresi di un proprio lontano esotismo, desunti a volte in maniera diretta dal mondo celtico da cui in genere proven- gono, più o meno debitamente ‘romanizzati’, oppure composti secondo una trafila analogica che, da parte degli autori, modella nomi nuovi su quelle anti- che sonorità.1 Con risultati che toccano talvolta un eccesso fantastico e foneti- co, e dispongono qualche autore più critico a calcare volutamente sull’impli- cita eccezionalità onomastica: come accade ad esempio al sornione autore del romanzo Les Merveilles de Rigomer (seconda metà del XIII secolo), che, nelle folta congerie delle stravaganze arturiane che evoca, e nella divertita critica alle regole
    [Show full text]
  • Resumo O Sangue É, Por Excelência, a Substância Vital E Mortífera Da Qual Se Alimenta a Escrita Épica
    «Li sens conmence contreval a filer…». Imaginaire du sang et hétérodoxies épiques dans (…) ● Carlos Clamote Carreto Revista I SSN 1646 - 740X online Número 10 | Julho - Dezembro 2011 Título: «Li sens conmence contreval a filer…». Imaginaire du sang et hétérodoxies épiques dans La Bataille Loquifer. Autor(es): Carlos F. Clamote Carreto Enquadramento Institucional: Universidade Aberta; Centro de Estudos sobre o Imaginário Literário (FCSH - UNL) Contacto: [email protected] FICHA TÉCNICA Fonte: Medievalista [Em linha]. Nº10, (Julho 2011). Direc. José Mattoso. Lisboa: IEM. Disponível em: http://www2.fcsh.unl.pt/iem/medievalista/ ISSN: 1646-740X Resumo O sangue é, por excelência, a substância vital e mortífera da qual se alimenta a escrita épica. Polissémico por natureza e reenviando a variados estratos culturais e simbólicos, este fluido tanto pode representar o princípio da continuidade ligado à memória genealógica como o sangue impuro que corre nas veias da linhagem maldita dos pagãos ou dos traidores. Marcado por interditos ancestrais que fazem estremecer o discurso (visão do sangue feminino) ou designando uma ferida que ameaça a integridade do herói épico transformado em vítima sacrificial cujo sangue, derramado sobre o campo de batalha, purifica e regenera o espaço reconquistado pelo logos cristão, o sangue recria e transmite um imaginário paradoxal no qual se projecta simultaneamente o devir da linguagem e o da própria canção de gesta. Daí se tornar tão frequentemente, em francês antigo, hipóstase do sentido (o sens) através de uma homofonia que sela os destinos de ambas as substâncias e engendra uma singular poética do sangue que procuraremos perscrutar através de um atípico poema épico composto entre finais do século XII e inícios do século XIII, La Bataille Loquifer.
    [Show full text]
  • THE TWELFTH-CENTURY NORMANS in SOUTHERN ITALY and SICILY: ROMANCES, ARCHITECTURE, and COSMOPOLITAN SPACES by Brittany A
    THE TWELFTH-CENTURY NORMANS IN SOUTHERN ITALY AND SICILY: ROMANCES, ARCHITECTURE, AND COSMOPOLITAN SPACES by Brittany A. Claytor A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of Purdue University In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of English West Lafayette, Indiana December 2018 2 THE PURDUE UNIVERSITY GRADUATE SCHOOL STATEMENT OF COMMITTEE APPROVAL Dr. Dorsey Armstrong, Chair Department of English Dr. Shaun Hughes Department of English Dr. Michael Johnston Department of English Dr. Paula Leverage Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures Approved by: Dr. Manushag Powell Head of the Graduate Program 3 To Myself: I did it! 4 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank my dissertation chair, Professor Dorsey Armstrong, and my committee: Professors Shaun Hughes, Michael Johnston, and Paula Leverage. Your thoughtful guidance and patience throughout the degree process has been invaluable. Thank you for allowing me to be part of your academic conversation and community. Thank you to Professor Marsha Dutton of Ohio University, for opening the door to medieval literature — I would never have found the way otherwise. To my husband, Dr. Jonathan Buzan: we did it! It’s been a ride, and I couldn’t imagine taking it with anyone else. Thank you so much for your love and support — here’s to a lifetime of adventures. I could never have finished this degree without the support of my family: Mom, Dad, Brianna, and Ben. Your love and generosity made it possible; I truly cannot thank you all enough. I would not be here today without you. Surviving graduate school requires amazing friends: Amanda, Arielle, Audrey, Bess, Libby, Kelly, and Wendy — thank you.
    [Show full text]
  • Geoffrey of Monmouth's Byzantine Reception
    Chapter 15 Geoffrey of Monmouth’s Byzantine Reception Thomas H. Crofts That the Matter of Britain had reached, at a relatively early date, not only the Western Mediterranean but also Asia Minor and the Middle East, we have the testimony of a (possibly pseudo-) Alan of Lille, whose commentary on the Prophetiae Merlini is found with Geoffrey’s DGB in Valenciennes, Bibliothèque Municipale, 792:1 Whither has winged fame not conveyed and published the name of Arthur the Briton even as far as Christian rule extends? Who, I say, does not speak of Arthur the Briton, when he is considered almost more fa- mous among the peoples of Asia than among the Britons, as our pilgrims returning from the East tell us? The eastern peoples speak of him, the Western peoples speak of him, with the whole world stretching between them. Egypt speaks of him; nor is the sheltered Bosporus silent. Rome, the queen of cities, sings of his deeds; nor are Arthur’s battles unknown to her former rival Carthage. Antioch, Armenia, and Palestine praise his exploits.2 While the evidence tends to bear out this wide geographical swath of early Arthurian reception, research has in fact yielded no direct proof of Geoffrey of Monmouth’s reception on “the sheltered Bosporus”. Despite the wide and immediate success of the DGB, there is no trace of this book, or of Geoffrey’s name, in the Byzantine record. This will be unsurprising if just a few things are borne in mind. First, the list of Western medieval – or classical Latin for that 1 No.
    [Show full text]
  • Legend of Sir Lancelot Du Lac, by Jessie L. Weston 1
    Legend of Sir Lancelot du Lac, by Jessie L. Weston 1 Legend of Sir Lancelot du Lac, by Jessie L. Weston Project Gutenberg's The Legend of Sir Lancelot du Lac, by Jessie L. Weston 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: The Legend of Sir Lancelot du Lac Studies upon its Origin, Development, and Position in the Arthurian Romantic Cycle Author: Jessie L. Weston Release Date: August 3, 2014 [EBook #46497] Language: English Legend of Sir Lancelot du Lac, by Jessie L. Weston 2 Character set encoding: ASCII *** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE LEGEND OF SIR LANCELOT DU LAC *** Produced by Chris Curnow, Les Galloway and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive) =Grimm Library= No. 12 THE LEGEND OF SIR LANCELOT DU LAC =The Grimm Library.= I. GEORGIAN FOLK-TALES. Translated by MARJORY WARDROP. Cr. 8vo, pp. xii+175. 5s. net. II., III., V. THE LEGEND OF PERSEUS. By EDWIN SIDNEY HARTLAND, F.S.A. 3 vols. L1, 7s. 6d. net. VOL. I. THE SUPERNATURAL BIRTH. Cr. 8vo, pp. xxxiv+228 (not sold separately). VOL. II. THE LIFE-TOKEN. Cr. 8vo, pp. viii+445. 12s. 6d. net. VOL. III. ANDROMEDA. MEDUSA. Cr. 8vo, pp. xxxvii+225. 7s. 6d. net.
    [Show full text]
  • OBINUS, Fictitious Archbishop of London. He Appears Fourth in a List Attributed to Jocelin of Furness, Succeeding Cadar and Succ
    A WELSH CLASSICAL DICTIONARY OBINUS, fictitious archbishop of London. He appears fourth in a list attributed to Jocelin of Furness, succeeding Cadar and succeeded by Conan (John Stow, The Chronicles of England, 1580, p.56). OCTAVIUS, Duke of the Gewissei. See Eudaf Hen. ODGAR ab AEDD. (Legendary). Odgar ab Aedd, king of Ireland, appears in the tale of ‘Culhwch and Olwen’. He accompanied Arthur to the west of Ireland in the search for Gwrgi Seferi, the purpose of which is never explained (RM 134). Later Arthur dispatched a message to Odgar to seek the cauldron of Diwrnach Wyddel, his overseer. Odgar, king of Ireland, besought Diwrnach to give it, but he would not (RM 135). Odgar was the only person who could pluck from the head of Ysgithyrwyn, Chief Boar, the tusk which Ysbaddaden Pencawr required in order to shave himself for the wedding of Culhwch and Olwen (WM 452, RM 122). However it was actually ‘Cadw’ [Caw] of Prydyn who ‘took’ the tusk (RM 135). Odgar was brother of Gwitard, son of Aedd king of Ireland. On the name see Patrick Sims-Williams in BBCS 29 pp.605-6 (1982). ODIAR the Frank. (Legendary). He is mentioned as Odyar franc in the romance of ‘Geraint and Enid’ as the steward of Arthur's Court (WM 412, RM 265). See further CO(2) p.227. ODWYN ap TEITHWALCH. (1040) He is mentioned in the genealogies as a descendant of Ceredig ap Cunedda, and the father of Morfydd the mother of Gwaithfoed of Ceredigion (PP §45). Here the spelling is Odwin.
    [Show full text]
  • The Death of King Arthur and the Legend of His Survival in Sir Thomas Malory's 'Le Morte Darthur' and Other Late Medieval Texts of the Fifteenth Century
    THE DEATH OF KING ARTHUR AND THE LEGEND OF HIS SURVIVAL IN SIR THOMAS MALORY'S 'LE MORTE DARTHUR' AND OTHER LATE MEDIEVAL TEXTS OF THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY by John Kenneth Brookes Withrington Thesis submitted for the degree of D. Phil Centre for Medieval Studies University of York March 1991 TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgements iv Declaration iv Abstract v Abbreviations vi INTRODUCTION 1 CHAPTER ONE: THE PASSING OF ARTHUR AND THE RETURN OF THE KING 10 The Arthur Of The Chronicles 11 The Arthur Of Romance 14 The Arthur Of Folklore 17 The Hexameter Epitaph: 20 Known Examples of the Hexameter Epitaph 21 The Hexameter Epitaph, Chronicle Accounts and the Glastonbury Exhumation 22 Glastonbury and the Epitaph for St. Joseph of Arimathea 25 The Unorthodox Tradition 27 Summary 28 CHAPTER TWO: THE CHRONICLES OF JOHN OF FORDUN AND WALTER BOWER 31 Late Medieval Scottish Attitudes To King Arthur 32 The Death Of Arthur In The Chronicle Of John Of Fordun: 34 The First Sub-Group 35 The Second Sub-Group 37 The Third Sub-Group 38 . The Death Of Arthur In Walter Bower's Scotichronicon: 40 Bower and the Death of Arthur 41 The Death Of Arthur In The Chronicles Of John Of Fordun And Walter Bower 43 CHAPTER THREE: THE CHRONICLE OF JOHN HARDYNG 47 John Hardyng: The Long And Short Versions Of The Chronicle 47 Arthurian Material In The Short Version Of Hardyng's Chronicle 49 Arthurian Material In The Long Version Of Hardyng's Chronicle 52 Hardyng And The Death Of Arthur 59 1 CHAPTER FOUR: ARTHURIAN MATERIAL IN THE WORKS OF JOHN LYDGATE 61 References To King Arthur
    [Show full text]
  • The Legend of Sir Lancelot Du Lac
    The Legend Of Sir Lancelot Du Lac By Jessie L. Weston THE LEGEND OF SIR LANCELOT DU LAC CHAPTER I INTRODUCTORY To the great majority of English readers, those who are familiar with the Arthurian legend through the pages of Malory and Tennyson, the name which occurs most readily to their minds in connection with the court and Table of King Arthur is that of Lancelot du Lac, at once the most gallant servant of the king, and the secret lover of the queen. To many the story of Lancelot and Guinevere is the most famous of all stories of unlawful love. True, of late years the popularity of Wagner's music has made their ears, at least, familiar with the names of Tristan and Iseult. Still, that Tristan and Iseult were ever as famous as Lancelot and Guinevere, few outside the ranks of professed students of mediæval literature would believe; still fewer admit that the loves of Arthur's queen and Arthur's knight were suggested by, if not imitated from, the older, more poetic, and infinitely more convincing, Celtic love-tale; that Lancelot, as Arthur's knight and Guinevere's lover, is a comparatively late addition to the Arthurian legend. Yet so it is. I doubt if any scholar of standing would now argue that Lancelot and his relation to the queen formed an integral portion of the early tradition; if any, conversant with the literature of the cycle, would reckon Lancelot among the original band of heroes who gathered round the British king. In the introduction to my studies on the Gawain legend, I remarked that, if we desired to arrive at an elucidation of the Arthurian problem as a whole, we must first begin with the elucidation of its component parts—we must severally disentangle the legends connected with the leading knights of the cycle before we can hope to understand the growth and development of that cycle.
    [Show full text]
  • A Welsh Classical Dictionary
    A WELSH CLASSICAL DICTIONARY CACAMWRI, one of Arthur's servants. He is mentioned in the tale of ‘Culhwch and Olwen’ as one of Arthur's servants. ‘Show him a barn, if there were a course for thirty ploughs therein, he would beat it with an iron flail till it was no better than the boards, the cross-pieces and the sidebeams than for the small oats in the mow at the bottom of the barn’ (WM 467, RM 111). He was brother, by the same mother, to Hygwydd, another servant of Arthur (RM 136). He took part in the hunting of the boar, Trwyth, being one of those who succeeded in throwing the boar into the Severn, but he was dragged into the water, and as he was being pulled out, two quern-stones dragged him down into the deep (RM 140-1). However he evidently survived, for he was sent with Hygwydd to fight the witch, Orddu, but was manhandled by her and nearly killed. They both had to be carried away on Llamrei, Arthur's mare (RM 141-2). CADAFAEL ap CYNFEDW. In a triad (TYP no.68) Cadauel ap Kynuedw is mentioned as one of the three kings who were sprung from ‘villeins’, his kingdom being Gwynedd. According to HB §65 Catgabail, king of Gwynedd, appears to have gone out with Penda [see Panna], king of Mercia, with many other kings of the Britons against Oswy, king of Bernicia (642 - 671). A great battle was fought at Gai Campus, and there Penda was slain with great slaughter, and the kings of the Britons with him.
    [Show full text]
  • Concepts of Arthur
    concepts of arthur Concepts of Arthur THOMAS GREEN For Frances, Evie, John, Jeannette and Vikki First published 2007 Tempus Publishing Cirencester Road, Chalford Stroud, Gloucestershire, gl6 8pe www.tempus-publishing.com Tempus Publishing is an imprint of NPI Media Group © Thomas Green, 2007 The right of Thomas Green to be identified as the Author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyrights, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without the permission in writing from the Publishers. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data. A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. isbn 0 7524 4461 1 Typesetting and origination by NPI Media Group Printed and bound in Great Britain CONTENTS Chapter The Arthur of history: the evidence and its critics Chapter The earliest stratum of the Arthurian legend Chapter The nature of Arthur: ‘a mighty defender’? Chapter The nature of Arthur’s war-band and family Chapter The origins of ‘Arthur’ Chapter The historicization of Arthur Chapter ‘The Arthur of the British’: a maximum view Notes Bibliography THE ARTHUR OF HISTORY: THE EVIDENCE AND ITS CRITICS introduction: ‘no smoke without fire’? The principle of ‘no smoke without fire’ is both popular and ancient. It is also a creed of credulity. Why, it is asked, would anyone claim a person or place existed without having a solid basis for the belief? An inability to conceive a situation in which this might happen means that any hint of history is often seized upon with a zeal that can surprise those of a more cautious or sceptical bent.
    [Show full text]
  • Geoffrey of Monmouth's Byzantine Reception
    Chapter 15 Geoffrey of Monmouth’s Byzantine Reception Thomas H. Crofts That the Matter of Britain had reached, at a relatively early date, not only the Western Mediterranean but also Asia Minor and the Middle East, we have the testimony of a (possibly pseudo-) Alan of Lille, whose commentary on the Prophetiae Merlini is found with Geoffrey’s DGB in Valenciennes, Bibliothèque Municipale, 792:1 Whither has winged fame not conveyed and published the name of Arthur the Briton even as far as Christian rule extends? Who, I say, does not speak of Arthur the Briton, when he is considered almost more fa- mous among the peoples of Asia than among the Britons, as our pilgrims returning from the East tell us? The eastern peoples speak of him, the Western peoples speak of him, with the whole world stretching between them. Egypt speaks of him; nor is the sheltered Bosporus silent. Rome, the queen of cities, sings of his deeds; nor are Arthur’s battles unknown to her former rival Carthage. Antioch, Armenia, and Palestine praise his exploits.2 While the evidence tends to bear out this wide geographical swath of early Arthurian reception, research has in fact yielded no direct proof of Geoffrey of Monmouth’s reception on “the sheltered Bosporus”. Despite the wide and immediate success of the DGB, there is no trace of this book, or of Geoffrey’s name, in the Byzantine record. This will be unsurprising if just a few things are borne in mind. First, the list of Western medieval – or classical Latin for that 1 No.
    [Show full text]