King Arthur in the Legend
Merlin raised Arthur by himself for several years before handing him over to a knight called Ector. Arthur grew up believing that Ector was his Father.
When Uther died, there was a lot of debate and confusion on who would take the thrown.
Merlin took a sword and placed it in a stone, and proclaimed that only the true King of Camelot could retrieve it. Many tried and failed until Arthur came. He went to fetch the sword for another knight to use in a tournament, but instead, after drawing the blade from the stone, he was crowned King of Camelot!
He married Lady Guinevere, and received the round table as a dowry (the money or present given to a man in exchange for marriage) from her father.
He had man knights including sir Lancelot, Sir Gwain, Sir Percival, and Sir Tristan.
Morgan Le Fay, Arthur's sister, was one of Camelot's most dangerous enemies. She wanted Arthur dead, and to rule Camelot herself.
Arthur faced many dangers, such as Griffins, Dragons, and Beasts. These were defeated using a sword called Excalibur given to Arthur by the Lady of the Lake. This sword was not the sword in the stone.
Arthur's final Battle was on the plane of Camlann against Morgan Le Fay and the Saxons, as well as his treacherous nephew, Mordred. Arthur and Mordred were both mortally wounded in this battle, but the Saxons made a full retreat.
Arthur's body was put on a boat, and sent to Avalon, the land of Eternal youth, where his wounds were healed, and he could live in immortality.
The Legend goes on to say that one day, at the time of Albion's greatest need, Arthur will return...
Is King Arthur Real?
There is no real proof that Arthur does exist, although there are many people in history who he might have been based on. I will not go through the history of everyone he might of been as it would be to time consuming. Instead I will study just one version.
There was a Leader of a Celtic tribe, a mighty warrior, who was said to have killed over 40 men in one battle, who Arthur might have been based on.
One thing for sure: this warrior wasn't called Arthur. Arthur was a Celtic word meaning "Bear". This could have been the warrior's nickname, meaning he was as fierce as a bear.
His real name is not known.
This warrior lead forces against the invading Saxons in a battle which in legend was named the Battle of Camlann.
Did Magic Exist?
Back in the medieval times, people used to be burned for witchcraft and sorcery, their trials usually being some ridiculous method such as: throw suspect into rapids, wait. If she sinks, she is innocent - and dead. If she survives, she has obviously used magic, and is killed.
But did magic exist, or was it something else?
Celts used to be mainly pagan. Some among them, mainly women, used alternative methods of medicine, such as herbs, aromatherapy, crystal healing etc... and people called the druids were in charge of performing "magical" rituals. These pagan methods would have been shunned by the authorities, and they would have been accused of magic, and ultimately killed.
In this way, Celts were slowly converted from pagan to christian.
Do the places in the legend exist?
You could look at this Wikipedia page, although that is hardly a reliable source.
Many of the places in the legend are said to exist, most of these places in Wales.
Take a look at this 300 mile road trip that Bradley James and Colin Morgan went on to find out more!
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Conclusion
So to sum up, there is no proof that the Legend of King Arthur exists - but no proof that it doesn't! And all legends begin somewhere, or came from some inspiration.
Maybe there was some great leader, warrior of King, maybe there was a land of myth and a time of magic... or maybe it was just created so that we can keep re-creating it, and coming up with brilliant TV shows like Merlin!
