Adam Ardey Finding Merlin - reviews

Adam Ardey's book on Merlin sounds like another attempt to find the real "Merlin" and to imposes a bunch of anachronisms on Dark Age Britain i.e it is a typical peiece of Arthurian popular history. As a SNP politican he is an accomplished publicist though and has managed to get loads of media attention for his claims.

Merlin 'from Glasgow not Camelot'

BBC News - Aug 27, 2007
But Scots advocate Adam Ardrey, who spent six years researching Merlin, claims he actually lived in what is now Ardery Street with his wife Gwendolin. ...

New book claims Merlin had Scottish roots - Telegraph.co.uk

This review from the Glasgow Herald at least points out that Ardey's claims to be innovating by exploring Arthur's Scottish connections is not true:
review of finding merlin, the truth behind the legend, by adam ardrey9 Sep 2007 by Peter Konieczny

This review from the Los Angles Times is simply lacking in the knowledge to take Ardey to task. The idea that the name Merlin comes from gaelic is just nonsense and his ideas on Dark Age religion well they seem unreliable. I would have to read the book to refute it in depth but it sounds tedious.


In search of a wizard
Los Angeles Times - Nov 23, 2008

In 'Finding Merlin: The Truth Behind the Legend of the Great Arthurian Mage,' Adam Ardrey condemns long-ago chroniclers for their motives but is like a sleuth in tracking ancient details.

King Arthur was Ossetian

Ossetia's connection to Scotland
BBC News - Nov 1, 2008

Hundreds of years ago, Ossetians roamed all over Western Europe, from the Caucasus to Scotland. As Tim Whewell reveals, the folk memories of these wanderings have lingered down the centuries, so that it can be hard to tell where myth ends and history begins.

Of course, I do not know. But my hosts do. In Ossetian, London means "standing water".

Belfast, in Ossetian, could be "broken spade".

Orleans in France is "stopping place", because the Ossetians stopped there. And England's greatest national hero, King Arthur, was Ossetian too, apparently. His name means "solar fire".

Bear scientist proclaims Arthur a Bear

What's up with the bears?
Telegraph.co.uk - Nov 10, 2008

Are bears simply at the peak of their 15 minutes of fame? Or is there something much more momentous afoot? Or, should I say, a-paw?

I am a bear scientist. My speciality is the spectacled or Andean bear, the only species that lives in South America. Paddington's clan.

I study crop raiding, livestock predation and other ways that bears interact with people. I am also fascinated by how bears loom so large in our imaginations.

While I always spend quite a lot of time thinking about the 'what is up with the bear thing' question, my speculations have recently been thrown into overdrive.

And here's what I've some up with: I think that the long-awaited reawakening of the Great Bear is now upon us and that it represents our Great Furry Hope for the future.

My theory starts with King Arthur. I know it's unorthodox, but hear me out. Now, nothing is known for sure about Arthur, the legendary hero of the British Isles, but I personally believe he was covered, head to toe, in dark fur.

The Celtic version of the ancient metacosmic bear god, he was worshipped throughout the Northern Hemisphere, known to the Romans as Arctaios, and to the Gauls as Artorius. And Arthurian legend tells us that in the hour of Britain's greatest need he will emerge from his cave, enacting the bear's seemingly miraculous emergence from the den at the end of hibernation. I think that global warming and the extinction crisis count as a pretty darned sticky situation.

No, I'm not a whacked-out druid. I really am a serious scientist. Late last year I participated in the big annual meeting of the International Association of Bear Research and Management, held this year in Monterrey, Mexico.

In the public talk I gave at the conference, I made the case that this was the big moment for bears. I spoke about the charisma of our study animals, and our opportunity and responsibility to use this charisma for their conservation.

Medieval "Best Seller" list - The popularity of Arthurian legend and Geofrey of Monmouth

We are often told that Geoffrey was one of the most popular writers of the middle ages. How do we put this in context? There are two rough rules of thumb to judge the influence of a medieval writer - how often he is referenced or quoted and the number of manuscripts that have survived of his works.

The latter method can be used to provide a sort of crude medieval best seller list which makes for very interesting reading indeed. (This list is an ongoing project which I will be updating.)

Geoffrey of Monmouth
Historia 215 manuscripts [a third of these found in continental Europe].


Historians

Martin of Opava, Chronicon pontificum et imperatorum, c. 1260 over 400 manuscripts
Bede, Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum - around 150 copies
William of Malmesbury, De gestis regum Anglorum - 35 copies c. 1125
popular and frequently quoted from both in England on the continent
Henry of Huntingdon 25 copies ms ( Later edition includes account of Geoffrey's history after 1139)
Robert de Torigni chronicle 18 copies (Quoted Henry of Huntingdon account of Geoffrey's history in his chronicle.)
William of Newburgh 9 copies (later influenced Augustian and Cisterican chroniclers)
[Geoffrey's only real critic for a long period William's criticisms of Geoffrey are frequrently quoted as if they mean something - in fact as the manuscript count shows William was in terms of influence and reputation completely irrelevant in the medieval period. His attack on Geoffrey is more to do with credulity walking dead English Bede ]
Gildas, De excidio et conquestu Britanniae. Four full manuscripts,
Pseudo, Nennius, Historia Brittonum

Placed aside these contemporary chronicles Geoffrey's success becomes even more apparent. What makes it more interesting is to compare Geoffrey to other works.

Arthurian Romances

Vulgate cycle more than 100 manuscripts
Chretien de Troyes - forty-four surviving manuscripts of his works (ten of them illuminated)
32 complete 12 fragmentary
Marie de france, Lays - 4 manuscripts 1 complete

Medieval Literature in general
[I selected works generally seen as being fairly popular in the period.]

Jacobus de Voragine, Legenda Aurea (Golden Legend) c 1267 around 900-1000 manuscripts
Dante, Divine Comedy (1308- 1321) more than 825 ms
Guillaume de Lorris (circa 1230) ‘Roman de la Rose’ over 300 manuscripts
Travels of Sir John Mandeville , eleven languages , least three hundred manuscripts in various versions (around 1371)
Navigatio Brendani around 120 manuscripts
Chaucer, Canterbury Tales - eighty manuscripts survive, of which fifty-five are complete


Conclusion

Geoffrey is not just the most successful historian of his generation, and the originator of much Arthurian tales to follow, but is perhaps the most successful British writer of the medieval period whose work was summarized in many other later historians and passed into popular thought.

Obviously chance plays a large part in the survival of medieval manuscripts it has been guessed the survival rate of manuscripts is around one in 5 or one in 7.


Data from:
Historical Writing in England by Antonia Gransden
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography

Stonehenge Book pulped

English Heritage forced to pulp its aptly titled Ghastly Book Of Book Of Stonehenge over crass errors
Daily Mail, UK - 11 Oct 2008
An entry about 5th Century king Aurelius Ambrosius – believed to be the historical basis for King Arthur – mistakenly called him Aureole Ambrosias, a spelling error that appears to have been copied from the internet.

King Arthur expedition - Rennes Brittany

Writeups on this major exhibition which has a variety of manuscripts and art on display till Jan 09.

Apollo Magazine - King Arthur: a legend in the making

On the trail of the Holy Grail in Brittany
Sunday Sun, UK - 12 Oct 2008

The Telegraph had its own take on the exhibit:

King Arthur is propaganda, say French - Telegraph

Punk Arthur in 1976

King Arthur awakes and becomes a punk in this interesting sounding novel.

Glen's first novel puts King Arthur in 1976
Leamington Spa Today, UK -9 Oct 2008

What does Celtic King Arthur have in common with bell-bottoms, Harold Wilson and Starsky and Hutch?

Absolutely nothing. Which is exactly what makes Leamington man Glen Batchelor's first novel Waking Lloegr so unusual.

The story opens when Arthur awakes after 1,500 years to find himself in the middle of the striking, inflation-ridden, punk influenced Leamington of 1976.

Displeased to find Britain over-run by his enemy the Anglo-Saxons - now known as the English - Arthur is even more disappointed to discover that his beloved sword Excalibur has been melted down and transformed into an electric guitar.

The enraged king takes it upon himself to get rid of the one of the country's most popular bands, The Sex Pistols, and forms his own punk rock group so he once again is the ruler.

Mr Batchelor said: "They say everyone has a novel in them and so I wanted to fill mine with all my passions - Celt, punk, Leamington and Wales. Even my 1968 Puch M125 is in there."

The 46-year-old Lee Road resident began writing the novel in 2005. He said: "I have always been interested in ancient British history and King Arthur in particular. But so many novels about King Arthur have been done, so I decided to make mine humorous."

Mr Batchelor, who works as an electric meter reader, enjoys reading comedy books himself, naming two of his favourite authors as Malcolm Price and Jasper Fforde.

Although he was born in Deppers Bridge and spent his first 21 years there before moving to Leamington in 1983, his great-grandfather was Welsh, and he has felt a strong connection with Wales all his life. Waking Lloegr identifies some serious issues that he feels "quite passionate" about.

He explained: "Many of the Arthurian legends were originally written in Welsh and the language was used by most of the English for a long time. The idea is that, by the 70s, I figured it was time that this language was reinstated. I think the Welsh have been bullied by the English for many years and it's about time for the worm to turn."

Waking Lloegr is available to order at www.lulu.com or by contacting Mr Batchelor on 314609 or emailing glenbatchelor@btinternet.com

BBC Merlin

The new Merlin series is moderately watchable as family entertainmnt but doesn't look like it will be a classic version of the legend. The whole idea of making the cast into squabbling teenagers is obviously aimed at a family audience and draws on Harry Potter. It would have bn more interesting if they could have turned it into a fight between Christianity and Paganism because of the series premise that magic is illegal but obviously such a serious motif was not in keeping with the idea of the series

BBC - Merlin - Keep the magic secret.

However the BBC2 Wales documentary summarized here Merlin - The Legend was fairly good summary of the legend besides deciding to drag in the Nazis for no reason. Why ? The Nazi's were fascinated by Arthurian legend but it was the knights they idolized not Merlin as far as I am aware. It was filmed in Caerleon and in Carmarthen. It fautd Dr Juliette Wood who recently wrote a new book on the Grail.

John Mcain - Arthurian enthusiast

The Books of John
Newsweek - 27 Sep 2008

He has long believed in the possibility of heroes, even imaginary ones. In "Faith of My Fathers," McCain writes of his boyhood love of tales of King Arthur's court.

Arthurian Prefabs

South London prefab estate built by German and Italian PoWs to be ...
Daily Mail, UK - 24 Sep 2008

They don't exactly qualify as stately homes. The rain patters noisily on asphalt-covered rooftops and the boxy, featureless walls are painted in various shades of pastel.

In one house the polystyrene ceiling tiles are circa 1960, and visibly feeling their age. In another, the garden boasts random displays of plastic flowers that owe more to the local Co-op than to Capability Brown.

But for many of the people who live here, their little post-war prefabs are their castles. And now they are set to be saved for the nation....

The Excalibur estate was named in a competition conducted among original residents, who adopted King Arthur's sword as their emblem and chose knight's names such as Pelinore, Baudwin and Mordred for their roads.

Thus, a large swathe of open pasture in a far from mystical land known as 'Catford' became home for scores of families - and helped to ease the housing shortage that followed the destruction of the Blitz.

Arthur as a Thug

Philip Reeve's Here Lies Arthur wins the Carnegie Medal
Telegraph.co.uk - Jun 26, 2008

Here Lies Arthur, by Philip Reeve, is a dark re-telling of the Arthurian legend and a far cry from Camelot.

Some of his characters bear more than a passing resemblance to modern-day political figures.

Merlin (here named Myrddin) is not a magician but a hard nosed, Alastair Campbell type who recognises that the Celts needs a strong leader and sets out to create a myth around Arthur, a "war-mongering, self-interested thug".

One of Merlin's PR stunts is the Lady of the Lake, who turns out to be a young servant girl made to hold her breath under the water with a sword in her hand.

The Carnegie Medal - or "the Booker of the playground", as it is sometimes known - is awarded annually for or an outstanding work of fiction for young people, and is judged by the nation's librarians.

Commentary: Philip Reeve's thuggish Arthur

Prince Valiant’s England

One of the writers on the strip gives the background and describes a visit to the UK.

Prince Valiant’s England
Atlantic Online - Jul 16, 2008

65 per cent of teenagers think Arthur lived

Winston Churchill didn't really exist, say teens
Telegraph.co.uk - Feb 4, 2008

The canvass of 3,000 under-twenties uncovered an extraordinary paucity of basic historical knowledge that older generations take for granted.

Despite his celebrated military reputation, 47 per cent of respondents dismissed the 12th-century crusading English king Richard the Lionheart as fictional....

King Arthur is the mythical figure most commonly mistaken for fact - almost two thirds of teens (65 per cent) believe that he existed and led a round table of knights at Camelot.

White Hart spotted

Elusive creature of Arthurian legend
Times Online - Feb 12, 2008

Graham Phillips and his Arthurian Shropshire are on the march again.

On Arthur’s trail . . .
shropshirestar.com - Apr 23, 2008

County tourism managers are looking to cash in on the revival of interest in English myths and legends by luring people to Shropshire in order to follow the trail of King Arthur.

A new leaflet has been published by Shropshire Tourism, encouraging visitors to follow the historic trail through Shrewsbury, Hawkstone Park, Baschurch, Oswestry and Much Wenlock.

The aim is promote the legendary king’s links with the county and dispel the myth he actually hailed from the south-west of England.

Tourism managers decided to publish On The Trail of King Arthur in Shropshire as a result of renewed interest in the legend thanks to films such as King Arthur and The Da Vinci Code.

A Shropshire Tourism spokesman said: “The national and international media come to Shropshire to research the real home of the legendary King Arthur and public interest in the legend of King Arthur is still very strong.

“So if you think King Arthur’s home was the south west of England think again. Arthur’s spiritual home was Camelot - now known as Wroxeter Roman City near Shrewsbury.

“Guinevere was an Oswestry lass, being born at the Old Oswestry Hill Fort. The Holy Grail was actually found at Hawkstone Park, and Arthur’s final resting place is Baschurch.

“King Arthur’s crown jewels are believed to have been buried in Much Wenlock by Arthur’s heir Cynddylan and are still waiting to be discovered.”

On The Trail Of King Arthur is largely based on research and on the book King Arthur: The True Story by Graham Phillips and Martin Keatman.

It features trails and walks around the county, taking in locations including Wroxeter, The Wrekin, Much Wenlock, Whittington, Hawkstone Park and Baschurch.

Manuscripts in the British Library, from much earlier than the medieval romances used for the legend, suggest King Arthur historically existed and was a king of Powys, a kingdom that once covered what is now Shropshire and Mid Wales.

Shropshire Tourism senior marketing officer Helen Edwards said: “We hope the leaflet continues to intrigue residents and attract visitors to Shropshire.”

Copies of On The Trail of King Arthur in Shropshire are available from visitor information centres or from www.shropshiretourism.co.uk/king-arthur

Stonehenge Dig

Archaeologists begin historic Stonehenge dig
Telegraph.co.uk - Apr 1, 2008
Stonehenge, on Salisbury Plain, Wiltshire, was built in different stages between ... Twelfth century historian Geoffrey of Monmouth said Merlin the wizard