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Tate Modern: discover more about how mythology has inspired artwork through the ages

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Tate Modern: discover more about how mythology has inspired artwork through the ages

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The Tate Modern in London showcases a number of works inspired by mythology. Examples include, The Minotaur by George Frederic Watts (1885), Apollo and Python by Joseph Mallord William Turner (1811), and Narcissus by Lucian Freud (1948).

Visit the Tate Modern website to expore these images and their stories more:

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Tate is a family of art galleries in London, Liverpool and Cornwall, known as Tate Modern, Tate Britain, Tate St Ives and Tate Liverpool + RIBA North. Tate art museum houses the UK's collection of British art from 1500 and of international modern art

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The Last Sleep of Arthur in Avalon: a huge masterpiece depicting this iconic scene from the legend of Arthur

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The Last Sleep of Arthur in Avalon: a huge masterpiece depicting this iconic scene from the legend of Arthur

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The Last Sleep of Arthur in Avalon is a painting by Edward Burne-Jones, started in 1881 and was an impressive six and a half metres wide by the time he finished it. Burne-Jones was commissioned this work in 1881 by George Howard, who wished to decorate his personal library with an Arthurian subject.

The Last Sleep of Arthur in Avalon

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Francesca and Paolo (Dante): Arthurian legend depicted in art

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Francesca and Paolo (Dante): Arthurian legend depicted in art

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The tragic story of the adulterous lovers, Paolo and Francesca, is recounted in Canto V of Dante's Inferno, and was a popular subject with artists and sculptors from the late 18th Century onwards. The whole episode of Paolo and Francesca is set in a medieval courtly context and the references to the Arthurian legend are precise. Lancelot is the knight who loved Guinevere, wife to King Arthur, and who died for his unhappy love. In the proverbial phrase, “Galeotto fu ‘l libro”, galeotto does not derive  from galera – prison or gaol – as is sometimes thought, but it is the Italian version of the name Galehault or Galahad, another knight of the Round Table. It was Galehault who first incited Lancelot to kiss Guinevere. The analogy is clear: just as Galehault acted as a go-between, so the romance that Paolo and Francesca were reading incited them to their first kiss.

A painting of Paolo and Francesca da Rimini by Dante

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Knights of the Round Table: a symbol of equality between the knights who served with Arthur

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Knights of the Round Table: a symbol of equality between the knights who served with Arthur

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King Arthur’s round table was so that none of his knights, when seated at it, could claim precedence over the others. It provided the knights of Arthur’s court with a name and a collective personality.

Read more here and listen to the Podcast for much more detail on Arthurian legend:

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Professor Ad Putter was speaking on the HistoryExtra podcast, alongside Professor Ronald Hutton, answering questions about Arthurian legends submitted by our readers and the top online search queries. A selection of his answers have been transcribed and edited for clarity, and are shared below...
Q: When did stories about King Arthur become popular?

A: During the 12th century, the two big names that I should mention are Geoffrey of Monmouth, who was a schoolmaster in Oxford and wrote a hugely influential history of the kings of Britain [ Historia Regum Britanniae], in which he gave a very prominent part to King Arthur.

Then there is Chrétien de Troyes, the inventor of Arthurian romance. These are the stories of the Knights of the Round Table, riding out on adventure. Chrétien was from the Champagne area in France, and his romances, again, were hugely influential. These two writers helped popularise the Arthurian stories, though it might be mentioned that there was a lively oral tradition of stories too.

Q: When does the idea of the Round Table appear?

A: It is not in the chronicle by Geoffrey of Monmouth, but in a French translation by a writer called Wace, who was from Jersey. He says that Arthur founded a Round Table to avoid problems and quarrels about precedence and who could sit at the seat of honour. If you have a round table, everyone is equal.

Later writers elaborate on the idea. There is an English translation of Wace by a writer, Layamon, who tells us that the Round Table was built by a Cornish carpenter and could seat more than 1,600 men. Later traditions then ascribed the invention to Merlin.

Q: What does the Holy Grail have to do with the Knights of the Round Table?

A: It depends on which romance you read. In the first romance that mentions the Grail, by Chrétien de Troyes, the Grail is simply a serving platter - which is what the word originally meant. It's a flat dish that he later reveals contains the Eucharistic wafer.

Those religious associations of the Grail were taken up and developed by later writers. In later Arthurian literature, it is usually described as the cup with which Joseph of Arimathea, one of Christ's disciples, collected the blood of Christ after he'd been crucified. And it becomes, in 13th-century Arthurian prose romances, a kind of mystical object that you try and find in a search for perfection.

It's really important in Arthurian romance, because it signals a shift towards a more spiritual drive in which being a knight is not just about being brave and powerful or being courtly: it also becomes a matter of being spiritually pure and sometimes chaste. So you have a new generation of knights who become associated with the Grail and who achieve the quest of the Holy Grail.

Q: When does Sir Lancelot appear in the stories, and what is his role?

A: Lancelot first appears in the romance of The Knight of the Cart written by Chrétien de Troyes in about 1175. He has a very important role there: he is the lover of Queen Guinevere, wife of King Arthur.

Chrétien de Troyes, as far as we know, is the inventor of this love triangle involving King Arthur, Queen Guinevere and Lancelot. It does appear that there was another tradition of Lancelot where he is just one of King Arthur's knights, because there is a 13th-century romance by a German writer Ulrich von Zatzikhoven. And in this romance, he doesn't have an affair with Guinevere at all.

The reason why this love element is so important is that the essence of romance tries to reconcile an interest in martial prowess with an interest in a kind of romantic element - and how do you combine those two? Well, one way in which you can combine the two is by suggesting that knights become braver if they are inspired by the love of ladies. And that really is how Lancelot takes off, because it is Lancelot's love for the queen that leads him to do the marvellous deeds ascribed to him in the romances.

Q: Who was the 'best knight' in the Arthurian stories?

A: What tends to happen as you go through literary history is that once-famous heroes undergo a process that we call epic degeneration; they decline, and this you see throughout Arthurian literature.

For instance, we might think of Sir Gawain as one of the great knights. And he is certainly an exemplar of heroism in the earliest romances by Chrétien de Troyes. He becomes, in the later romances, something of a womaniser and a traitor.

It is the same with Lancelot. I have mentioned Lancelot as being one of the great knights, being driven to greatness by love of Guinevere. But in the quest of the Holy Grail, he is the person who cannot achieve the grail quest. And he is eclipsed by his son, Galahad, who is spiritually pure. Galahad is the only knight in the Arthurian legends who cannot be said to decline in any way, because he is taken up to heaven and that's the end of him.

Epic degeneration applies to King Arthur as well. I think you could well say that in the chronicle tradition, he is the great conquering king. What you see in the later romances is that his role is much more passive and in Chrétien de Troyes' late and unfinished romance, which is the story of the Grail, Arthur is even shown as nodding off; he falls asleep as he presides over the Round Table.
Professor Ad Putter was speaking on the HistoryExtra podcast about Arthurian legends, alongside Professor Ronald Hutton, as part of our 'Everything You Wanted To Know' podcast series. They were speaking with HistoryExtra content director David Musgrove. Listen below, or on Spotify or Apple Podcasts This content was first published on HistoryExtra in 2020

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Who were the Knights of the Round Table in Arthurian legend, and where does the Holy Grail fit in?

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The Knights of Round Table, the Holy Grail, the tryst between Lancelot and Guinevere - many of these famous episodes in Arthurian legend are familiar. But where do those legends come from? Professor Ad Putter of the University of Bristol explains...

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Greek Mythology and Arthurian legend: discover more about ancient influences on Arthurian legend

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Greek Mythology and Arthurian legend: discover more about ancient influences on Arthurian legend

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As we know from the story of Arthur and Excalibur, the sword was safeguarded until the right person came along. That special person happened to be Arthur, the son of Uther, who eventually became King Arthur. In Greek mythology, Aegeus, the king of Athens hid his sword under a rock at a time when he feared usurpers to his thrown. Other references between Greek mythology and Arthurian legend include the 12 Olympian Gods and Goddesses much like the Knights of the Round Table; the affair between Aphrodite and Ares which is remarkably similar to that of Guinevere and Lancelot; and the search for the Holy Grail by the knights, whereas in Greek mythology Jason and the Argonauts went on a quest to find the Golden Fleece.

Find out more similarities here:

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The legend of King Arthur, Camelot and the Knights of the Round Table have been heavily influenced by Greek mythology. Think of it this way, the myths and legends of King Arthur are simply the Greek myths retold.

Zeus would have instigated the whole King Arthur myth if it really did happen in any case. Something worthwhile had to come out of the Dark Ages and wow did it ever. Let me explain.

Consider these 10 classic acts in the legend of King Arthur:

1) A close associate of the king has magical powers.
2) One beautiful woman motivates a king to go to war.
3) Transforming appearances to sleep with a beautiful woman.
4) The sword in the stone - the rightful ruler gains a powerful weapon.
5) Superior beings rule in a very special abode.
6) Marriage unfaithfulness - betrayal by a close member of the inner circle.
7) The land perishes due to lost love.
8) Going on a heroic quest in search of a mystical object.
9) A water Goddess offers divine assistance.
10) The final destination is hopefully eternal paradise.

Let's delve a bit deeper into these 10 acts in the myth of King Arthur:

1. A close associate of the king has magical powers

A wizard named Merlin assists the king. Notice how the name "Merlin" is very closely associated with Mercury, the Roman name given to Hermes.

Both their names start with "Mer" which is purposeful due to the fact that Hermes (Mercury) is the messenger of the Gods and closely associated with Zeus, the king of the Gods.

Merlin carried a powerful staff with two serpents (dragons) shown on it. He can be seen wearing a metal cap.

The caduceus is the staff carried by Hermes in Greek Mythology.

It is entwined by two serpents (snakes), sometimes surmounted by wings. This sculpture of Hermes (Mercury) seen here shows the God carrying his staff in his left hand.

Merlin's staff didn't have wings but when he invoked his magical powers, the top of his staff on occasion did spurt out some awesome red sparks.

Hermes would often wear a hat covering his head too. Hermes is best known for wearing his winged cap (helmet) but he also seems to like this one as well.

Merlin and Hermes have another thing in common in that Hermes (Mercury) could enter different realms just as Merlin the wizard was able to do.

2. A beautiful woman motivates a king to go to war

The legend of King Arthur essentially started with Uther Pendragon falling in lust/love with the beautiful Igraine (Igrayne), wife of the Duke of Cornwall.

Even though Igraine was married to Duke Gorlois of Cornwall, it didn't stop Uther from pursuing her.

Uther Pendragon and his followers besieged the castle where Igraine lived in a desperate attempt to possess the beauty for himself.

The Trojan war is similar in that the beautiful Helen happened to be the object of a man's desire.

In the Trojan war, King Menalaus wanted his wife Helen back, so he went to war with his followers and laid siege against the city of Troy.

Uther on the other hand did the opposite since he desired someone else's wife.

These were the Dark Ages so I'm assume that some of the stuff which happened during this mysterious age had to be opposite one another.

3. Transforming appearances to sleep with a beautiful woman

Uther Pendragon transformed into the likeness of the Duke of Cornwall with the aid of the wizard Merlin so he could essentially sleep with Igraine.

When the Duke of Cornwall left the castle to take part in the battle, Uther magically entered the castle to see the beautiful Igraine.

He entered the castle by riding his horse on the sea of fog. It reminds me a little bit of Pegasus, the flying winged horse well known in Greek mythology.

Zeus is that you?

Igraine thought she had slept with her real husband since Uther looked exactly like him. As a result of the deception, Igraine unwittingly fell pregnant to Uther.

Tragically at around the same time as the conception, Igraine's husband died in battle.

Zeus is well-known for transforming himself to be with a beautiful woman. I wouldn't put it past Zeus to come up with this type of plan.

Actually this is exactly what happened when Zeus wanted to sleep with Alcmene, the mother of Hercules. Zeus took the likeness of her husband so he could sleep with the beauty which is how Hercules ended up being born.

4. The sword in the stone - the rightful ruler is given a powerful weapon

Uther plunged the magical sword Excalibur into a stone just before he died from wounds after being ambushed. It resulted in the sword Excalibur being stuck in the stone.

No one could release the sword from the rock, not even Merlin. The sword was safeguarded until the right person came along.

That special person happened to be Arthur, the son of Uther, who eventually became King Arthur.

In Greek mythology, Aegeus, the king of Athens hid his sword under a rock. He hid it at a time when he feared usurpers to his thrown. He persuaded his wife Aethra to tell their son Theseus about it only when Theseus was strong enough to lift up the enormous rock.

Remember even Zeus himself received a thunderbolt as a gift. Every powerful king has a weapon of some sort.

5. Superior beings rule in a very special abode

King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table ruled from within Camelot.

The 12 Olympian Gods and Goddesses ruled on Olympus.

6. Unfaithfulness in marriage - betrayal by a close member of the inner circle

King Arthur married Guinevere who became his Queen. This didn't stop Guinevere from having an affair with Lancelot, the champion Knight of the Round Table.

The affair that blew the Olympians away was the one between Aphrodite, the Goddess of love, and Ares, the God of war.

The two lovers ended up ingeniously caught in the act by Aphrodite's husband, Hephaestus, inside a golden net.

Hephaestus would then call all of the other Olympians to see the shamefulness for themselves. Things were obviously never quite the same after that.

7. The land perishes due to lost love

As soon as King Arthur lost out on love, the land started to perish.

Demeter, the Goddess of agriculture, had a beautiful daughter named Persephone.

Hades fell in love with Persephone and wanted the beauty to be his wife. The problem was that no one would bless a union between Hades and Persephone.

Who would want to live in the dark gloomy Underworld anyway given a choice?

Hades decided he had to have Persephone for himself so one day when he saw her picking flowers in a field he opened up the earth and carried her away to his home in the Underworld.

Demeter soon became very concerned after she had lost contact. The Goddess didn't know what had happened to her daughter so she roamed the world looking for her.

During this painful time due to her grief and anxiousness the earth started to become barren. The seasons went out of control and nothing would grow. Crops started failing and things looked very bleak.

Zeus had to step in. Once he discovered what had happened he ordered his brother Hades to return Persephone to her worried mother immediately.

Hades however wanted Persephone to stay with him forever so he cunningly came up with a plan and made her eat a pomegranate seed.

After she ate the seed it meant that Persephone would never be allowed to leave the underworld. Rules are rules.

Zeus insisted on a compromise since all living things were at stake. The compromise settled on was that Persephone could stay part the year with Hades as Queen of the Underworld, while the rest of the year could be spent with with her mother Demeter.

Demeter accepted the situation and returned the four seasons enabling crops, trees, plants and fruit to once again thrive on earth. That is why there is a part of the year which isn't so great.

The land became barren due to lost love.

8. Going on a heroic quest in search of a mystical object

Arthur sent his Knights on a quest to find the Holy Grail.

Jason and the Argonauts went on a quest to find the Golden Fleece.

The Golden Fleece and the Holy Grail represent the same thing as both have the power to heal. Notice how both of these objects are golden.

9. A water Goddess offers assistance

The immortal Lady of the Lake assisted Arthur on occasion.

Water and river Goddesses are renowned in Greek mythology, not so much in other religions.

In actual fact, many religions of today don't mention Goddesses at all. I wonder why?

King Arthur has a Goddess in the story all thanks to Greek mythology.

10. The final destination is hopefully paradise

After being mortally wounded King Arthur is taken away to Avalon, which you can assume is eternal Paradise.

In Greek mythology, Paradise is often referred to as the Elysian Fields.
Is this just a bunch of hogwash or are the Greek Myths, King Arthur and Zeus, one and the same?
All you have to do is watch the film Excalibur and consider it for yourself.

This classic fantasy adventure movie filled with romance and betrayal is one of my all-time favourite movies. I think I've seen the film close to one hundred times. It has to be one of the greatest cinematic masterpieces ever made.

Orion Pictures presents Excalibur. Remember in Greek mythology, Orion was a giant huntsman whom Zeus placed among the stars making it the constellation of Orion.

The movie obviously had to have a major connection with Zeus.

As a young kid under the age of 10, my favourite book was a children's book about King Arthur and the Sword in the Stone, which had some great pictures in it. I loved that book.

Years later I'm concluding that King Arthur and Excalibur is the ultimate Greek myth.

It's so good that if I had a choice of only one movie existing, Excalibur (1981) or Jason and the Argonauts (1963), I wouldn't know what to do. That would be one tough decision to make.

I'm super glad both of them exist, but if it came down to only one movie I think Excalibur would win.

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The Legend of King Arthur (Greek Mythology)

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The legend of King Arthur, Camelot and the Knights of the Round Table have been heavily influenced by Greek mythology. Think of it this way, the myths and legends of King Arthur are simply the Greek myths retold. Zeus would have instigated the whole King Arthur myth if it really did happen in any case.

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Excalibur: an element of the Arthurian legend which supposedly determined the true King of England

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Excalibur: an element of the Arthurian legend which supposedly determined the true King of England

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The Excalibur Sword is described as a sword thrust into a stone which only the true King of England could free. In the legend, King Arthur was the only king to do so and therefore became the rightful and true king of the Britons. This is referred to in Greek mythology too. But where does the story of the ‘sword in the stone’ originate?

Watch this short documentary to find out more

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The Holy Grail: a critical part of Arthurian literature and one which is referenced in other contexts too

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The Holy Grail: a critical part of Arthurian literature and one which is referenced in other contexts too

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The Holy Grail is a treasure that serves as an important motif in Arthurian literature. Different traditions describe it as a cup, dish or stone with miraculous powers that provide happiness, eternal youth, or sustenance in infinite abundance. The term "holy grail" is often used to denote an elusive object or goal that is sought after for its great significance.

Read this article to find out more

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From the knights of medieval legends to Indiana Jones, the holy grail has been the most sought-after Christian relic in popular culture for centuries. The grail is most commonly identified as the cup that Jesus drank from at the Last Supper and that Joseph of Arimathea used to collect Jesus's blood when he was crucified.

Given the importance of Jesus's crucifixion and the eucharist in Christian beliefs, the search for the grail became the holiest of quests as it signified the pursuit of union with God.

Possibly stemming from the presence of cauldrons and other mystical objects in Celtic mythologies, the grail became a common theme in literature related to King Arthur. French poet Chrétien de Troyes is credited with introducing the grail as a divine object in his early-12th century romance, "Perceval." Around 1200, Robert de Boron further specified its Christian significance in his poem "Joseph d'Arimathie," citing the holy grail's origins at the Last Supper and Christ's death. While Perceval was the knight destined to pursue the grail in Troyes's and de Boron's prose, it was Sir Galahad, introduced in the "Queste del Saint Graal" later in the mid-13th century, who became the most well-known knight of King Arthur's court to complete the quest.

Although it is generally accepted as mythic, some believe the holy grail is more than just a figment of medieval literature. Some Arthurian tales claimed that Joseph of Arimathea brought the grail to Glastonbury in England. One legend has it that on the spot where he buried the grail, the water runs red because it runs through Christ's blood, though scientists agree this is just the effect of red iron oxide in the soil. Others believe that the Knights Templar seized the holy grail from Temple Mount during the Crusades and secreted it away.

HISTORY Vault: Jesus: His Life

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From the knights of medieval legends to Indiana Jones, the holy grail has been the most sought-after Christian relic in popular culture for centuries. The grail is most commonly identified as the cup that Jesus drank from at the Last Supper and that Joseph of Arimathea used to collect Jesus's blood when he was crucified.

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The Arthurian Legend Today: Arthurian legend has transcended through the ages even into film culture of today

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The Arthurian Legend Today: Arthurian legend has transcended through the ages even into film culture of today

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Over the centuries, the legend of King Arthur has exercised an enduring influence on both high and popular culture, including cinema. From Disney’s animated movie The Sword in the Stone (1963) to that masterpiece of absurdist British humour, Monty Python, and the Holy Grail (1975), Arthurian legends have inspired countless films. One of the most famous remains John Boorman’s Excalibur (1981), which tells the classic tale of how the magical sword helped Arthur defeat his enemies and establish Camelot. A more realistic approach is found in King Arthur (2004), which omits supernatural elements and provides a historical context (the fall of the Roman Empire). King Arthur: Legend of the Sword (2017) instead weaves all the classic elements of the story into a high-adrenalin epic fantasy action film. Arthuriana have also inspired numerous TV series, from Merlin (2008) and Camelot (2011) to the recent Cursed (2020), described as “a re-imagining of the Arthurian legend, told through the eyes of a young heroine with a mysterious gift.”
Compare the following movie trailers

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYjUX1THmg8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=urRkGvhXc8w

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4M4D8vyK1mA

Prepare a short oral presentation for your classmates focusing on:

Historical background

Supernatural elements

General plot

Main characters

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Lancelot and Guinevere: the fated lovers whose affair caused the demise of Arthur’s great kingdom

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Lancelot and Guinevere: the fated lovers whose affair caused the demise of Arthur’s great kingdom

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Lancelot was depicted as King Arthur’s close companion and one of the Great Knights at the Round Table. He was a hero in battle and a highly skilled swordsman and jouster. His affair with King Arthur’s wife, Guinevere, however, was the undoing of Arthur’s kingdom and is the source of much literature and many films.

N. C. Wyeth's illustration for The Boy's King Arthur, abridged from Le Morte d'Arthur by Sidney Lanier (1922) of Lancelot riding away with Guinevere

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Thomas Malory: Le Morte d’Arthur: his depiction of Lancelot’s affair has been used repeatedly throughout history and film

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Thomas Malory: Le Morte d’Arthur: his depiction of Lancelot’s affair has been used repeatedly throughout history and film

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In Malory's work, Lancelot's affair with Guinevere finally destroys the unity of Arthur's Round Table of noble knights and allows the villain Mordred to take over the throne. Mordred's actions lead to the destruction of the kingdom and the deaths of most of the greatest knights while Arthur, mortally wounded, is taken away to the mystical isle of Avalon. It also includes reference to the magical sword, Excalibur and The Holy Grail.

This love story has been retold and created throughout the centuries, one example is the film, The Sword of Lancelot, in 1963:

Watch the video here:

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TRAILER - LANCELOT AND GUINEVERE - LANCELOT O CAVALEIRO DE FERRO - 1963

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Chretien de Troyes: an important writer who brought key parts of the legend to life

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Chretien de Troyes: an important writer who brought key parts of the legend to life

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Lancelot (8), also known as Sir Lancelot and Lancelot du Lac (“Lancelot of the Lake”) is the greatest knight of King Arthur's court and lover of Arthur's wife, Queen Guinevere, best known from Sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte D'Arthur (1469 CE). However, the character was first developed by the French poet Chretien de Troyes (l. c. 1130-1190 CE) in his Lancelot or the Knight of the Cart (c. 1177 CE) who introduced Lancelot's affair with Guinevere as well as his reputation as a famously skilled warrior.

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Merlin: an important character in Arthurian legend with magical powers

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Merlin: an important character in Arthurian legend with magical powers

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King Arthur’s most trusted advisor, prophet, magician, and friend, Merlin was almost certainly the creation of Geoffrey of Monmouth. Geoffrey combined tales and stories of a bard and wizard named Myrddin, who was created by a ninth century mystic named Nennius.

Merlin has inspired legend throughout the centuries, even a television series for the BBC.

Watch the trailer here:

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Uther Pendragon also known as King Uther, is a legendary king of sub-Roman Britain and the father of King Arthur.

Uther Pendragon illustrated in a 15 th century Welsh version of Historia Regum Britanniae

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Geoffrey Monmouth: History of the Kings of Britain: a key text in the mystery and legend of King Arthur

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Geoffrey Monmouth: History of the Kings of Britain: a key text in the mystery and legend of King Arthur

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Geoffrey of Monmouth was an Anglo-Norman cleric and historian, active during the mid-12th century and is principally known as the author of the Historia regum Brittaniae (History of the Kings of Britain). It includes the history of royal dynasties which were brought to an end by the Saxon invasion, most notably Uther Pendragon and Arthur. Geoffrey’s work provides one of the first substantial treatments of the legendary figure’s life and reign and it continued to be a major source for writers of Arthurian literature, centuries after his death, including characters such as Merlin.

Portrait of King Arthur at the beginning of Geoffrey Monmouth’s History of the Kings of Britain

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Nennius: a record of the earliest known reference to King Arthur

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Nennius: a record of the earliest known reference to King Arthur

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Nennius complied or revised the Historica Brittonum, a miscellaneous collection of historical and topographical information including a description of the inhabitants and invaders of Britain and providing the earliest-known reference to King Arthur.

The account of the battles of Arthur in the earliest surviving copy of the Historia Brittonum from the early 12 th century

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King Arthur: the man of legends around the globe – who was he and what is his story

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King Arthur: the man of legends around the globe – who was he and what is his story

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King Arthur, also called Arthur or Arthur Pendragon, legendary British king who appears in a number of medieval romances as the leader of the Round Table. Watch this short TedEd clip to watch the story of King Arthur unfold, which mentions keep people in the creation of its legacy including Geoffrey Monmouth, Thomas Malory, and Chretien de Troyes.

Watch the video here:

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Is there any truth to the King Arthur legends? - Alan Lupack

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England in the Middle  Ages was a fertile ground for the birth of legends, modern myths, heroic figures, and fantastic creatures. And what British legend is more famous than that of King Arthur? This era comes from a time when the Anglo-Saxons were invading Britain, and the remaining people, the Britons, were supposedly led by a valiant king named Arthur. His name is first mentioned by Nennius, a Welsh poet and monk from the 9th Century. His story emerges throughout the centuries, for example in works by Dante, Burne-Jones, Freud, Watts, and Turner.