The History of Merlin and King Arthur: The Earliest Version of the Arthurian Legend

by Geoffrey of Monmouth, Howard Pyle (Illustrator), Aaron Thompson (Translator)

Geoffrey of Monmouth wrote his Historia Regum Britanniae (History of the Kings of Britain) in about 1136 AD. His book includes the first account of the Arthurian legend that survives, apart from very brief mentions of Arthur in earlier chronicles. This edition makes Geoffrey’s history of Arthur accessible to a general audience for the first time. It includes only the parts of Geoffrey’s Historia that are about Merlin or Arthur, omitting its lengthy histories of other kings, which do not interest today’s readers. It breaks up Geoffrey’s text into shorter chapters, and it adds subheadings that make the narrative easier to follow. Geoffrey lets us see King Arthur’s place in history much more clearly than later versions of the legends, telling us that Arthur fought the Saxons after the Romans left Britain. He also includes stories of Merlin’s early life that are left out of later accounts. This edition uses Aaron Thompson’s 1718 translation of the Historia , as revised and corrected by J. A. Giles in 1842. This edition also includes drawings by the famous illustrator, Howard Pyle, making it a beautiful book as well as a book that will fascinate anyone who is interested in the stories of King Arthur and wants to learn more about them.

Genres: Arthurian, History

144 pages, Paperback

Published July 21, 2014

About the author

born perhaps 1100

Historia Regum Britanniae circa 1139 of Geoffrey of Monmouth as English chronicler, popularized Arthurian legend and contains the source material for several plays of William Shakespeare.

Geoffrey, a Welsh cleric, figured in the major development and the popularity of tales of king. Much of his work is considered to be false.

People best know Prophetiae Merlini ( Prophecies of Merlin ), his document of attributed quotations, and Vita Merlini ( Life of Merlin ), his poem.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geoffre...

Reviews

[Brianna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yes, I am well aware this is only a small excerpt from Monmouth's History of the Kings of Britain, but it was the section I needed to read right now, and I am eternally grateful to whomever separated it out into its own little volume for convenience' sake. Merlin and Arthur was a delightful read, and as (apparently) the 'earliest version of the Arthurian legend,' clearly it holds great importance in the body of Arthurian Literature. For that reason, as well as the fact that it's one of the main sources behind Lawhead's Pendragon Cycle, now seemed just the right time to read it. Alas! Between the two of them, I fear Monmouth and Lawhead have ruined my ability to appreciate any other version of the story - especially the French versions. Eh? What? What's that? Some Gaulish Propaganda?? Not in this house! I kid. Sort of. Moving on... Arthur belongs to that magical land called Wales, and always will do. Read Monmouth - and, while you're at it, The Book of Taliesin, Y Gododdin, and the Mabinogion.

[Kate Porter · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. My rating for this probably would have been higher if I was just reading it to myself rather than reading it out loud, but the number of extremely lengthy sentences with 500 commas in them was really unnecessary! Not the easiest book to read out loud when you never know if a sentence is actually going to end

[Blair · Rating 3 out of 5]

As far as I know a fairly credible translation, but could use a LOT more annotation.

[BookLovingEll · Rating 3 out of 5]

It took me a while before I started to really enjoy reading this book. The translators and editors did a wonderfull job leading the story in a chronological order. Always been a huge fan of Arthurian legends and this translation of Geoffrey Of Monmouth's Historia Regum Britanniae helped me shape my ideas and image of King Arthur better.