King Arthur by Marco Capparoni.

 

The Early Anglo-Saxon Kings

 The book takes a new look at the archaeological and literary evidence and focuses on the fragmenting Diocese, provincial and civitas structures of post-Roman Britain. It places events in the context of increased Germanic immigration alongside evidence for significant continuation of population and land use. Using evidence from fifth century Gaul it demonstrates dynamic changes to cultural identities both within and across various groups. Covering the migration period it describes the foundation stories of Hengest and Horsa in Kent, Cerdic and Cynric, first kings of the West Saxons and Ælle founder of the kingdom of the South Saxons. Ælle is the first king Bede describes as holding imperium and the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle calls Bretwalda. Covering the figures of Ceawlin, Æthelberht and Rædwald it ends with the death of Penda, the last great pagan king. As life under Roman authority faded into history we see the emergence of a ‘warband’ culture and the emergence of petty kingdoms. The mead hall replaced crumbling villas and towns as the center of social life. These halls rang with the poems of bards and the stories of great warriors and battles. Arthur and Urien of Rheged. The famous Mons Badonicus and the doomed charge of the Gododdin at Catraeth. A chapter on weapons, armor, warfare and accounts of contemporary battles will help paint a picture of dark age warfare. From the arrival of Saxon mercenaries in the fifth century to the death of Penda, the last pagan king, at Winwaed in 655.

King Arthur's Country

 England today is a rich, complex mix of identities, cultures, and heritages. However, in the decades after Roman Britain collapsed in the fifth century, the cultures of the Angles and of the Saxons, with significant degrees of homogeneity, spread rapidly westwards across much of eastern, southern and central England.

Then it stopped. Or was stopped. For the area then still beyond Anglo-Saxon reach is characterized by a network of military and economic links across the island. Perhaps significantly, this includes parts of Britain traditionally associated with King Arthur. Later, the multi-ethnic and multi-cultural kingdom of Mercia, in alliance with British kingdoms in Wales, spread from the Midlands across England under the mysterious King Penda, dominating the earlier Anglo-Saxon kingdoms with its wealth and military power. The region that gave birth to Mercia is also a region that was a most likely base for the elusive figure of King Arthur.

The authors use historical and archaeological evidence, much of it new, to explore the link between Arthur’s kingdom and the rise of Penda’s Mercia. They seek to locate lost Arthurian battlefields and understand what happened there, with exciting, new results. This is the story of one region, two kings and two centuries that changed England forever.

From here

Wiglaf 18mm

 Have you seen the Wiglaf range of 1/100th scale Anglo-Saxon warriors?

They are rather nice, designed by Mark Copplestone for author Dan Mersey. Figure selection here in the photos painted by paint master Steve Dean.

You can buy them here:

https://www.northstarfigures.com/list.php?man=306&page=1

Website

The Mystery of King Arthur

 Picked this up for 50p. I have quite a few books on this subject from charity shops. This one is about the various interpretations through history.

Elizabeth Jenkins brings her subject alive in this unique and glowing book, doing full justice through her loving and careful research to history and mystery alike.

Glastonbury Tor by Claire Harrup

 For the book Landmark and Legends. More pics here

Was Camelot a Real Place? | Arthur: King of the Britons | BBC Timestamp

 

Here

Although most scholars regard the tales of King Arthur and Camelot as fiction, there are multiple locations that may have been linked with King Arthur’s Camelot. One potential place is in Somerset, whereby four, manmade distinct banks in a hill suggest the existence of a hillfort right next to the Camel villages. Could this be the site of King Arthur’s Camelot?