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Wales & King Arthur

Britain, up until and around the 6th century, had been under Roman rule and was a relatively peaceful country. When the Roman Empire started to decline, troops were withdrawn from Britain. For many years, prior to this, the Angles and Saxons had raided the south east of Britain, so much so that the Romans had built a string of watchtowers and defences along this section of the coast. In the absence of the Roman army, the Angles and Saxons successfully invaded the country, settling in the southeast and forcibly spreading west and north, despite the resistance of the indigenous population - the Celts. Historical records of this era are somewhat blurred, and this may well be a sign of the lack of social cohesion and a breakdown of law and order in the country. This situation would certainly be a natural result of war. It is not by accident that the 5th and 6th centuries were known as the 'Dark Ages'.

There was obviously a time when the Angles and Saxons 'push' westwards and northwards, was halted. Some evidence of this lies with historical records of religious activity and old manuscripts that survived in the western and northern parts of Britain. The old Celtic languages also survived in these areas, Welsh (Cymraeg), the Cornish language, Gaelic in Scotland and Breton in Brittany. In fact, the word 'Britain' comes from the Welsh 'Prydain'.

Successful, aggressive movements by these foreign invaders would have been relatively easy, over the large stretches of relatively flat and open countryside that we now know as the counties of Oxfordshire, Hampshire, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire and the Border Counties. The hills of Somerset, Devon, Cornwall, and the hills and mountains of Wales would have been a different story however. Military campaigns would have come up against a natural barrier and so the terrain of these areas would have had an adverse effect on the ambitions of the Angles and Saxons. The boundaries exist today, but there must also have been organised resistance; someone must have stopped this invasion west and north.

Until the beginning of the industrial revolution, the Cornish language was alive and well. With the development of the tin and clay mines, English (Angles) speaking workers came into the area from other parts of Britain and contributed to a decline in the use of the local language. Today, efforts are being made to revive the Cornish tongue. Another Celtic language - Gaelic, is still alive in some parts of Scotland and Ireland. Whilst in Wales, the language is alive and well.

If we take a look at place names in Cornwall, Wales and Scotland, there are very close similarities. For example: 'Aber' in Welsh means 'mouth of', as in Aberystwyth in West Wales and Aberdeen in Scotland. 'Porth' meaning 'beach', as in Porthcawl, South Wales and Porthleven, in the 'toe' of Cornwall. 'Pen' meaning 'head', as in Penarth, South Wales, and Penzance, Cornwall. The English language is a rich mixture of the languages of many invaders from the past, whereas the Celtic languages have remained much the same as they were.

It is interesting to note that the name Guinevere, as in the Arthurian legends, could well be an Anglicisation of the Welsh name Gwenhwyfar ( pronounced Gwen-wheev-ar). The change of spelling may be explained by the fact that there is no 'V' in the Welsh alphabet and the letter 'F' in Welsh is pronounced as the English 'V'. For example, Fach and Fan are pronounced Vach and Van. Hence the anglicised spelling of Caernarvon in North Wales (which should be Caernarfon). We do know that there were a number of ladies, named Gwenhwyfar who were associated with Welsh leaders.

On a darker note, in medieval times, when the Welsh princes, such as Owain Glyndwr, were defeated, Wales was ruled from England. It would have been very important, from a psychological point of view, for the English rulers to eradicate any historical evidence of a strong Welsh leader such as Arthur. It was around this time that the original Arthurian legends were written; Arthur and his knights were described as English knights in shining armour, which would have been another method of demoralising the Welsh population with propaganda. If there had been an Arthur in the 6th century, he would not have worn medieval armour.

It is thought, in some circles, that Arthur, (or Artur, or Arthwyr) was a Celtic king or warrior, who ruled the western part of Britain. There are hints that a Celtic leader was also closely associated with Scotland, Cumberland, Northumberland, Cornwall and Brittany.

We can see associations between Cornwall, Wales and Scotland with each of these areas of Britain claiming some connection with a leader or a king called Arthur. It is well know that Arthur was associated with a soothsayer called Merlin, and we also know that Merlin had connections with Carmarthen in West Wales The Welsh people gave the name to Carmarthen, Caerffryddin - Merlin's Town.

Arthur is also associated with Caerleon near Newport in Monmouthshire. There are many Welsh legends and historical records, mentioning the name Arthur, around this critical time in history - the 6th century. There is also a place name in Gower called Arthur's stone.

The Arthurian legends mention a great battle at a place called Camlan. There is a Camlan near Dolgellau in North Wales and Welsh literature also records a great battle in this area.

We know that Arthur had associations with another Celtic nation - Brittany, where there are records of a Welsh king called Howell, known as 'Pompey the Great'. At around this time, St Illtud and St. David are known to have travelled to, and preached in Brittany.

It would have made sense, when sailing from Wales to Brittany and when returning, to 'stop-over' at Tintagel where there is evidence of a religious settlement. Tintagel Castle is based upon the legends of King Arthur, but this castle wasn't built until around the 12th century, some 600 years after the death of Arthur. However, there is evidence of a monastery here, which was established (that date again) in the 6th century and is connected with a Welsh leader - Arthur, according to engraved stones that have been found on the site. This could also account for the connections with Wales and Brittany; the sea and the rivers, in those days, were major highways.

Further research about a Welsh leader or warrior, called Arthur, is being conducted at Bangor University.