Modern myth

Today the tale has lost none of its appeal. Camelot was 'discovered' at Cadbury, in Somerset, in the 1960s, and many books on the subject have been written in the past few decades. Films such as John Boorman´s Excalibur (1981), Robert Bresson´s Lancelot (1972) and Jerry Zucker's First Knight (1995) were pre-cursors to Antoine Fuqua's 2004 Hollywood epic King Arthur. Historians have also identified a real fifth-century Arthur - a prince and recognised warrior who died fighting the warring Scottish Picts.

But in the end it is perhaps his myth that is in any case more important than his history.

Has any of this helped verify the King Arthur of our story books? Maybe not. But in the end it is perhaps his myth that is in any case more important than his history. Over the centuries the figure of Arthur became a symbol of British history - a way of explaining the 'matter' of Britain, the relationship between the Saxons and the Celts, and a way of exorcising ghosts and healing the wounds of the past.

In such cases the dry, historical fact offers no solace, it is myth that offers real consolation, not in literal, historical fact but in poetic, imaginative truth. And a body of myth like the Arthurian tales therefore represents in some magical way the inner life of our history as Britons, over many hundreds, even thousands, of years. In this sense the fabulous myths really do serve Britain and make Arthur, perhaps, the real 'once and future king'.

Books

Arthur of Britain by EK Chambers (Speculum Historiale, 1996)

The History of the Kings of Britain by L Thorpe (Penguin Books, 1973)

Geoffrey of Monmouth by MJ Curley (Twayne Publishers, 1994)

The Holy Grail by Richard Barber (Penguin Books Ltd, 2004)

King Arthur's Round Table by Martin Biddle (The Boydell Press, 2000)

Arthur's Britain by Leslie Alcock (Penguin Books Ltd, 2002)

Britain AD by Francis Pryor (HarperCollins, 2004)

King Arthur in Antiquity by Graham Anderson (Routledge, 2003)

About the author

Michael Wood is the writer and presenter of many critically acclaimed television series, including In the Footsteps of...series. Born and educated in Manchester, Michael did postgraduate research on Anglo-Saxon history at Oxford. Since then he has made over 60 documentary films and written several best selling books. His films have centred on history, but have also included travel, politics and cultural history.