King Arthur

King Arthur is a fabled British leader who, according to various medieval histories and romances, led the defence of Britain against the Saxon invaders in the early 6th century. The details of Arthur's story are mainly composed of folklore and literary invention, and his historical existence is debated and disputed by modern historians. The sparse historical background to Arthur is gleaned from various histories, including those of Gildas, Nennius, and the Annales Cambriae. Arthur's name also occurs in early poetic sources such as Y Gododdin. The legendary Arthur developed as a figure of international interest largely through the popularity of Geoffrey of Monmouth's 12th century Historia Regum Britanniae (History of the Kings of England). Some Welsh and Breton tales and poems about Arthur date, however, from before Geoffrey's time. These are usually termed "pre-Galfridian" texts (from the Latin form of Geoffrey, Galfridus). In these works, Arthur appears either as a great warrior... full article at wikipedia