Was King Arthur Real?

King Arthur - Fact or Fiction?

The new Guy Ritchie movie, King Arthur: Legend of the Sword is yet another testament to the popularity and longevity of the Arthurian myth and legend. It never seems to go away, or leave the public consciousness.

But is there any truth to it? Did King Arthur exist at all?

This video covers a few popular theories that try to connect Arthur with more historical attested figures like, Riothamus, Lucius Artorius Castus and Artuir Mac Aedan.

But what's often neglected is his historical context - the anglo-saxon invasion or anglo-saxon migration, where Arthur leads the Britons in a defence against the invading Germanic horde. But is this even accurate?

What do you think? Let's continue the conversation in the comments below.

Special Thanks: Charles Evans-Gunther

Most of this video is based on the book below:

Worlds of Arthur: Facts and Fictions of the Dark Ages
By: Guy Halsall

Music:

Jimiticus is an educational channel covering science, history, linguistics and art.

[TheBankai]

Read the Brut of England, it clearly mentions that Arthur was in Britany but came back to Brittaigne his own land the next spring to be crowned King of Glamorgan in South Wales. The historian for Henry VIII and James I both mention King Arthur as being real. The issue comes with Geoffrey of Monmouth saying that Arthur fought the Romans and the Saxons so it was deemed a false history. The truth is that there were two King Arthurs. I live in Cardiff and at Llandaff cathedral there are stain glass windows of Arthur II and his grandfather Tewdrig who died fighting the Saxons at Pont y saeson. Mathern near the severn estuary was once called Merthyr Tewdrig 'Tewdrig the martyr.'

[Amreen]

For me their will always be just 1 King Arthur. Arthur Pendragon from Merlin.

[matheusmarini]

The real Lucius Artorius Castus sacrificed himself to save Wales 🗿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

[rtreadwell]

Has anyone else noticed the irony that this, one of the greatest legends in the English language, was about someone who did his level best to kick the English out of Britain.
Excellent summary and well presented.

[masteroftheassassins]

No matter what anyone says, I will always believe in the existence of King Arthur.

[trumanwoodyard]

I don't care what anybody says, King Arthur lives on in my heart and my imagination as someone who sparks a fire of hope in my heart.

[ridwanosman]

Who else searched up Lucius Artorius Castus to find this lmao

[ArchYeomans]

I have a theory. King Arthur is really a prince of Gwynedd who helped push the Irish as well Saxons out of Northern Wales. He is mentioned in the Battle of Y Gododdin fought in c.600 AD at Catterech, near York and the battle, was lost. This meant the loss of the Old Brythonic kingdoms in the north and probably resulted in the loss of ancient Cumbria. The battle of Deorham fought in 577 AD resulted in the separation of Dumnonia (West Wales/Cornwall). So Arthur is later, not earlier. In fact, Gildas does not mention Arthur at the Siege of Mons Badonicus or Badon. He only mentions figures such as Ambrosius Aurelanis and St Germanus as well another saint who arrived near Mold, Wales. This is around 460s to 470s. Arthur was not born yet. The Saxon incursions had already started in 450s but mainly in the south and east of today's England and really didn't take a stronger foothold until around 460s/470s where Vortigern regretted using them to fend off the Picts/Scots and Irish. His song, Vortimer is a strong contender for Arthur but no direct mention.

The best we can allude is Gildas stating "Rider of the Bear's Chariot" and "Bear's Den" in his Ruin of Britain piece. Bear is Arth in Welsh and it could be that Arthur indirectly mentioned by Gildas as he is castigating the kings of Gwynedd, Damnonia (Heg Ogledd), Dyfed, and Powys. The kings Gildas castigates are in power after 500 AD. Only one king (of Dyfed, not mentioned by name) is a bad son of a good King. I find that a bit intriguing and suppose this may be Riothamus as he is mentioned by Jordanes as King of the Britons. As we know Gildas is in exile in Brittany when we wrote his Ruin of Britain. Here's where Riothamus comes in. He is real, he is a king, he fought the Visigoths (a Germanic tribe) under the request of Aetius (a Roman Emperor). We have to remember that the Visigoths were in power in Toulouse at around 417 AD after sacking Rome in 410 AD. The Taifal (Sarmatians) were most prominent in this region going up the Garonne River and around Poitou/Pictones. Riothamus does win a battle against the Visigoths but where? Mons Badon? He is defeated in Deols and is only last heard about in Avallon, Burgundy. Is Ambrosius Aurelanis actually Riothamus? They are in the same time frame 470s. The Sarmatian cohorts in the region of the Pictones eventually get to Cumbria but the Draco standard would have been commonly seen in this region of today's Poitou and Toulouse regions before it was ever seen in Britain. Remember, Cumbria is actually the lost old North Wales in a sense where Sarmatian cohorts do arrive, but this would have been in the late 300s to early 400s. I believe Riothamus is the Ambrosius Aurelanis we are looking for who is the king of the Britons of which Arthur (whoever that may be) becomes affiliated with in a later period by about 100 years.

In conclusion, Arthur is real, he's later than 450 AD and more likely closer to 530 AD as he is mentioned past tense in Y Gododdin. Arthur did not fight at Mount Badon, Ambrosius Aurelanis did aka Riothamus. Arthur did not have Sarmatian knights, but being a prince of Gwynedd or a northern Welsh kingdom did have a draco standard for which Cadwallon of Gwynedd adopts as a standard/banner. The dragon we see today on the Welsh flag is the coat of arms for Gwynedd and adopted on a green and white field by the Tudor king, King Henry VII. I believe this explains Arthur's existence as the name becomes prominent in the north and not so much in the south. Arthur of the Pennines is a good example. Thank you.

[calebhowells]

Question: How long did you spend researching King Arthur to make this video?

[sadlobster]

For me, there is only ONE Arthur; Arthur Pendragon.

No supposed Roman blood flows in his veins

[nevad]

I picture a little kid pulling a sword

[kylecross]

There were two king Arthurs, both related to each other but because both are referred to just as Arthur there's been a lot of mix up. The first king Arthur was a Roman general, and the son of Magnus maximus and his grave stone has been found

[Hard_Boiled_Entertainment]

2:52 As others have pointed out, the events listed throughout the Annales Cambriae have generally been confirmed by other sources. The two dates referring to Arthur are pretty much the only citations not confirmed by valid documentation. Since it's a little...ODD that that'd be the ONLY fictional dates in an otherwise validated history book, I'd personally feel until proven otherwise that an actual Arthur WAS involved as stated in these two events.

[connorgolden]

I think that Arthur is based off of a mixture of riothamus and Ambrosius, their stories put together do bare some similarities to Arthur. I remember hearing in class that it’s possible the two were the same person.

[matthewpettipas]

I think Lucius Artorius Castus inspired the legends. I'm planning on writing a historical novel series based on the theory. I know I'm in the minority in this (and I am more than willing to admit I could be wrong), but looking at all the evidence, including the book From Scythia to Camelot by Scott Littleton and Linds Malcor, I think it's quite possible Artorius Castus and his Sarmatian horsemen began the legends. Also, a good book to read trying to prove Artuir Mac Aedan was Arthur is David Caroll's Arturius; Quest for Camelot. I don't agree with Mr. Caroll's conclusion as to who Arthur was, but nonetheless it is a fantastic book.

[zoetropo]

A king list from Domnonea (northeast Brittany) has Riotham as king during the years 460 to 510 or thereabouts.

His predecessor named Deroch must have been the Breton leader who sent archers to aid Aëtius against Attila in 451.

Aëtius was an enemy of the Britons who kept sending Alans to attack them, but Orleans was on the fringe of the British sphere of influence, so Attila had become a bigger threat to them.

During the battle of the Catalaunian Plain, the “Armorican” archers shielded the Alans from the worst of the Huns’ attacks. Attila attempted a night attack on the Roman camp but was dismayed when a hail of arrows like rain from the Britons showered down on his men. That’s when he decided to build his bonfire.

After the battle, the Alans were grateful to the Britons, settled down peacefully with them, exchanged battle tactics (“I love horses too!”) and intermarried.

[pirotess]

The Legion that Lucius Artorius Castus command in Briton is Legion VI Victrix and it stationed since early 2nd century to late 4th century. Legion VI was not tranfered to Hungary.

[Kaif]

love how he shows a picture of his possessions and he shows a doctor who sonic screwdriver

[кавказфредом]

Greetings to the Welsh brothers from the Caucasus

[protheeme]

I picture a medieval knight holding a shiny sword




Well my question is we’re there SOME remaining dinosaurs