King Arthur is one of the most controversial topics of early British history. Are the legends based on a real historical figure or pure mythological invention? Ilkka Syvannes study breaks new ground, adopting a novel approach to the sources by starting with the assumption that Arthur existed and that Geoffrey of Monmouths account has preserved details of his career that are based on real events. He then interprets these by using common sense and the perspective of a specialist in late Roman military history to form a probable picture of what really happened during the period (roughly AD 400-550). This approach allows the author to test the entire literary evidence for the existence of Arthur to see if the supposed events of his career match what is known of the events of the period, the conclusion being that in general they do. Arthurs military career is set in the context of the wider military history of Britain and Europe in this period and along the way describes the nature of armies and warfare of the period.
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vii | |
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| Acknowledgements |
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xi | |
| Introduction |
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xii | |
| Abbreviations |
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xiii | |
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Chapter 1 A Bit of Polemics |
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1 | (9) |
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Chapter 2 The Introduction |
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10 | (41) |
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Chapter 3 The Main Narrative with Geoffrey of Monmouth Included: The Creation of the British Commonwealth, 406--445 |
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51 | (25) |
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Chapter 4 Vortigern and the Rise of the Saxons |
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76 | (6) |
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Chapter 5 Ambrosius Aurelius/Aurelianus, the Dux Bellorum and the Boar of Cornwall in 451/452--462 |
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82 | (14) |
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Chapter 6 Ambrosius Aurelius/Aurelianus, the Utherpendragon (A Dragon's Head/The Dragon Pennon Head) in 462-464 |
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96 | (8) |
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Chapter 7 Aurelius/Aurelianus Ambrosius, the Arthur/Arthurus (The Bear) 464--466 |
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104 | (16) |
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Chapter 8 The Reorganization of the Realm in 465/466 |
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120 | (2) |
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Chapter 9 Ireland, the Orkneys, Iceland and Gothland/Gotaland in 466/467 |
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122 | (3) |
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Chapter 10 Norway and Jutland/Denmark in 468 |
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125 | (6) |
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Chapter 11 Campaigns in Gaul in 469/470 (Geoffrey 9.1 Iff.) |
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131 | (9) |
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Chapter 12 The Crowning as High King/Augustus in 471 (Geoffrey 9.12--15) |
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140 | (3) |
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Chapter 13 The War in Gaul in 471/472 (Geoffrey 9.15ff.) |
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143 | (26) |
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Chapter 14 The Revolt of Mordred and Arthur's Last Campaign in 472 |
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169 | (10) |
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Chapter 15 Arthur's Immediate Successors |
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179 | (3) |
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Chapter 16 Arthur the Once and Future King |
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182 | (2) |
| Appendix I The Reign of Frothi III the Magnificent |
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184 | (30) |
| Appendix II Swedish Rock Carvings and Naval Tactics |
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214 | (2) |
| Appendix III Odin the Man |
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216 | (13) |
| Appendix IV Saint Patrick and the `Spiritual' Conquest of Ireland |
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229 | (13) |
| Bibliography |
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242 | (3) |
| Notes |
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245 | (14) |
| Index |
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259 | |
Dr Ilkka Syvanne gained his doctorate in history in 2004 from Tampere University in his native Finland. His doctoral thesis was published as The Age of Hippotoxotai, Art of War in Roman Military Revival and Disaster 491-636 (Tampere University Press, Tampere 2004). He has also written numerous articles on late Roman/Byzantine warfare, and contributed seven entries for Blackwell's Encyclopaedia of the Roman Army (2011). From 2007 to 2016 he was Vice Chairman of the Finnish Society for Byzantine Studies. Dr Syvanne is An Affiliated Professor of the University of Haifa and lives in Kangasala, Finland.
