Constantine III of Britain
Encyclopedia
Constantine ˈkɒnstəntaɪn was a minor king in 6th-century sub-Roman Britain
, who was remembered in later British tradition
as a legendary King of Britain. The only contemporary information about him comes from Gildas
, who calls him king of Damnonia (probably Dumnonia
) and castigates him for his various sins, including the murder of two "royal youths" inside a church. Much later, Geoffrey of Monmouth
included the figure in his pseudohistorical chronicle Historia Regum Britanniae
, adding fictional details to Gildas' account and making Constantine the successor to King Arthur
as King of Britain. Under the influence of Geoffrey, derivative figures appeared in a number of later works.
Additionally, several churches and chapels in Southwestern Britain and elsewhere were dedicated to a "Saint Constantine
", who was generally held to have been a king. While these do not all necessarily refer to the same person, at least some of them appear to reflect back to Gildas' Constantine.
. He is one of five Brythonic
kings whom the author rebukes and compares to Biblical beasts. Constantine is called the "tyrannical whelp of the unclean lioness of Damnonia", a reference to books of Daniel
and the Revelation
, and apparently also a slur directed at his mother. This Damnonia is generally associated with the kingdom of Dumnonia
, a Brythonic kingdom in Southwestern Britain. However, it is possible that Gildas was instead referring to the territory of the Damnonii
in what was later known as the Hen Ogledd
or "Old North".
Gildas says that despite swearing an oath against deceit and tyranny, Constantine disguised himself in an abbot
's robes and attacked two "royal youths" praying before a church altar, killing them and their companions. Gildas is clear that Constantine's sins were manifold even before this, as he had committed "many adulteries" after casting off his lawfully wedded wife. Gildas encourages Constantine, whom he knows to still be alive at the time, to repent his sins lest he be damned.
, Ireland
, and Scotland
, about a Saint Constantine
who is usually said to have been a king who gave up his crown to become a monk. The Cornish and Welsh traditions especially may have been influenced by Gildas' screed, in particular his adjuration for Constantine to repent; the belief may have been that the reproach eventually worked.
The two major centers for the cult
of Saint Constantine were the church in Constantine Parish
and the Chapel of Saint Constantine in St Merryn
Parish (now Constantine Bay
), both in Cornwall. The former may once have supported a clerical community, but eventually became a local parish church. It was established by at least the 11th century, as it is mentioned in Rhygyfarch's 11th-century Life of Saint David; at this time it may have supported a clerical community, but in later centuries it became simply a parish church. The Chapel at Constantine Bay had a holy well
, and was the center of its own sub-parish.
The Annales Cambriae
(Welsh Annals) and the Annals of Ulster
record the conversion of a certain Constantine; these may be a reference to the Cornish saint and therefore to the historical figure. A number of subsequent texts refer to Constantine, generally associating him with Cornwall, often specifically as its king. The Life of Saint David says that Constantine, King of Cornwall gave up his crown and joined Saint David
's monastery at Menevia
. The Vitae Petroci includes an episode in which Saint Petroc
protects a stag being hunted by a wealthy man named Constantine, who eventually converts and becomes a monk. Here Constantine is not said to be king, but a 12th-century text referring to this story, the Miracula, specifically names him as such, further adding that he gave Petroc an ivory horn upon his conversion which became one of the saint's chief relics. These references are only a few to the various shadowy saints and kings named Constantine
attested across Britain, and suggests a confusion and conflation of various figures.
Other sites in Southwestern Britain associated with Constantine or others of that name include the church of Milton Abbot, Devon
; a chapel in nearby Dunterton, Devon, and another chapel in Illogan
, Cornwall. The two Devon sites may have been dedicated instead to Constantine the Great, as the church in nearby Abbotsham
was, like Milton Abbot, subject to Tavistock Abbey
, dedicated to Helena of Constantinople
, Constantine the Great's mother. In Wales, two churches were dedicated to Constantine: Llangystennin
(in Conwy and Welsh Bicknor
(now in Herefordshire
, England
). The church in Govan
in present-day Scotland
was also dedicated to a Saint Constantine.
includes Constantine in a section of his Historia Regum Britanniae
adapted from Gildas, in which the reproved kings are made successors, rather than contemporaries as in De Excidio. Here, Constantine is the son of King Arthur's kinsman Cador
, Duke of Cornwall
, and is made king following Arthur's death at the Battle of Camlann
. Geoffrey identifies Gildas' "royal youths" with the two sons of Mordred
, who, along with their Saxon
allies, continue their father's insurrection after his death. After "many battles" Constantine routs the rebels, and Mordred's sons flee to London
and Winchester
, where they hide in a church and a friary, respectively. Constantine hunts them down and executes them before the altars of their sanctuaries. Divine retribution for this transgression comes three years later when he is killed by his nephew Aurelius Conanus
(Gildas' Aurelius Caninus), precipitating a civil war. He is buried at Stonehenge
alongside other kings of Britain.
A figure named Custennin Gorneu (Constantine of Cornwall) appears in the genealogies of the kings of Dumnonia
. The hero Geraint
of Dumnonia is said to be the grandson of Custennin in the Bonedd y Saint
, the prose romance Geraint and Enid, and after emendation, the genealogies in Jesus College MS 20
. Geoffrey evidently knew the Dumnonian genealogy in essentially this form, though he is the first to identify Gildas' Constantine as a son of Cador, known in Welsh tradition as Cadwy mab Geraint.
Geoffrey's version of Constantine was included in the various later adaptations of the Historia, which were widely regarded as authentic in the Middle Ages. These include Wace
's Anglo-Norman Roman de Brut
and the Welsh Brut y Brenhinedd. He does not figure strongly in the romance traditions, though he does appear as Arthur's successor in the 14th-century English alliterative poem
known as the Alliterative Morte Arthure
, as well as Thomas Malory
's Le Morte d'Arthur
, in sections adapted from the Alliterative Morte. He also features in some modern treatments of the legend, such as the 1990 computer game Spirit of Excalibur
, in which he is the chief protagonist.
Sub-Roman Britain
Sub-Roman Britain is a term derived from an archaeological label for the material culture of Britain in Late Antiquity: the term "Sub-Roman" was invented to describe the potsherds in sites of the 5th century and the 6th century, initially with an implication of decay of locally-made wares from a...
, who was remembered in later British tradition
Matter of Britain
The Matter of Britain is a name given collectively to the body of literature and legendary material associated with Great Britain and its legendary kings, particularly King Arthur...
as a legendary King of Britain. The only contemporary information about him comes from Gildas
Gildas
Gildas was a 6th-century British cleric. He is one of the best-documented figures of the Christian church in the British Isles during this period. His renowned learning and literary style earned him the designation Gildas Sapiens...
, who calls him king of Damnonia (probably Dumnonia
Dumnonia
Dumnonia is the Latinised name for the Brythonic kingdom in sub-Roman Britain between the late 4th and late 8th centuries, located in the farther parts of the south-west peninsula of Great Britain...
) and castigates him for his various sins, including the murder of two "royal youths" inside a church. Much later, Geoffrey of Monmouth
Geoffrey of Monmouth
Geoffrey of Monmouth was a cleric and one of the major figures in the development of British historiography and the popularity of tales of King Arthur...
included the figure in his pseudohistorical chronicle Historia Regum Britanniae
Historia Regum Britanniae
The Historia Regum Britanniae is a pseudohistorical account of British history, written c. 1136 by Geoffrey of Monmouth. It chronicles the lives of the kings of the Britons in a chronological narrative spanning a time of two thousand years, beginning with the Trojans founding the British nation...
, adding fictional details to Gildas' account and making Constantine the successor to King Arthur
King Arthur
King Arthur is a legendary British leader of the late 5th and early 6th centuries, who, according to Medieval histories and romances, led the defence of Britain against Saxon invaders in the early 6th century. The details of Arthur's story are mainly composed of folklore and literary invention, and...
as King of Britain. Under the influence of Geoffrey, derivative figures appeared in a number of later works.
Additionally, several churches and chapels in Southwestern Britain and elsewhere were dedicated to a "Saint Constantine
Constantine (British saint)
Saint Constantine is the name of one or many British or Pictish saints.- Identification :South-west BritainA Saint Constantine is revered in Devon and Cornwall. Based purely on similarity of a common name, some have identified him with the monarch Constantine of Dumnonia, despite the latter's...
", who was generally held to have been a king. While these do not all necessarily refer to the same person, at least some of them appear to reflect back to Gildas' Constantine.
History
Gildas mentions Constantine in chapters 28 and 29 of his 6th-century work De Excidio et Conquestu BritanniaeDe Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae
De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae is a work by the 6th-century British cleric Gildas. It is a sermon in three parts condemning the acts of Gildas' contemporaries, both secular and religious, whom he blames for the dire state of affairs in sub-Roman Britain...
. He is one of five Brythonic
Britons (historical)
The Britons were the Celtic people culturally dominating Great Britain from the Iron Age through the Early Middle Ages. They spoke the Insular Celtic language known as British or Brythonic...
kings whom the author rebukes and compares to Biblical beasts. Constantine is called the "tyrannical whelp of the unclean lioness of Damnonia", a reference to books of Daniel
Book of Daniel
The Book of Daniel is a book in the Hebrew Bible. The book tells of how Daniel, and his Judean companions, were inducted into Babylon during Jewish exile, and how their positions elevated in the court of Nebuchadnezzar. The court tales span events that occur during the reigns of Nebuchadnezzar,...
and the Revelation
Book of Revelation
The Book of Revelation is the final book of the New Testament. The title came into usage from the first word of the book in Koine Greek: apokalupsis, meaning "unveiling" or "revelation"...
, and apparently also a slur directed at his mother. This Damnonia is generally associated with the kingdom of Dumnonia
Dumnonia
Dumnonia is the Latinised name for the Brythonic kingdom in sub-Roman Britain between the late 4th and late 8th centuries, located in the farther parts of the south-west peninsula of Great Britain...
, a Brythonic kingdom in Southwestern Britain. However, it is possible that Gildas was instead referring to the territory of the Damnonii
Damnonii
The Damnonii were a people of the late 2nd century who lived in what is now southern Scotland. They are mentioned briefly in Ptolemy's Geography, where he uses both of the terms "Damnonii" and "Damnii" to describe them, and there is no other historical record of them. Their cultural and...
in what was later known as the Hen Ogledd
Hen Ogledd
Yr Hen Ogledd is a Welsh term used by scholars to refer to those parts of what is now northern England and southern Scotland in the years between 500 and the Viking invasions of c. 800, with particular interest in the Brythonic-speaking peoples who lived there.The term is derived from heroic...
or "Old North".
Gildas says that despite swearing an oath against deceit and tyranny, Constantine disguised himself in an abbot
Abbot
The word abbot, meaning father, is a title given to the head of a monastery in various traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not actually the head of a monastery...
's robes and attacked two "royal youths" praying before a church altar, killing them and their companions. Gildas is clear that Constantine's sins were manifold even before this, as he had committed "many adulteries" after casting off his lawfully wedded wife. Gildas encourages Constantine, whom he knows to still be alive at the time, to repent his sins lest he be damned.
Saint Constantine
The historical Constantine of Dumnonia may have influenced later traditions, known in Southwestern Britain as well as in WalesWales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, and Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, about a Saint Constantine
Constantine (British saint)
Saint Constantine is the name of one or many British or Pictish saints.- Identification :South-west BritainA Saint Constantine is revered in Devon and Cornwall. Based purely on similarity of a common name, some have identified him with the monarch Constantine of Dumnonia, despite the latter's...
who is usually said to have been a king who gave up his crown to become a monk. The Cornish and Welsh traditions especially may have been influenced by Gildas' screed, in particular his adjuration for Constantine to repent; the belief may have been that the reproach eventually worked.
The two major centers for the cult
Cult
The word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...
of Saint Constantine were the church in Constantine Parish
Constantine, Cornwall
Constantine, Cornwall is a village and civil parish in Cornwall, England, UK.Constantine, Cornwall may also refer to:*Constantine Bay, a village in the parish of St Merryn, Cornwall-See also:* Constantine of Cornwall, an early king...
and the Chapel of Saint Constantine in St Merryn
St Merryn
St Merryn is a civil parish and village in north Cornwall, United Kingdom approximately three and a half miles south of the fishing port of Padstow and approximately 11 miles northeast of the coastal resort of Newquay....
Parish (now Constantine Bay
Constantine Bay
Constantine Bay is a village and beach on the Atlantic coast of north Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated approximately three miles west of Padstow and is in the parish of St Merryn. The beach is popular with surfers and has lifeguard patrols in the summer...
), both in Cornwall. The former may once have supported a clerical community, but eventually became a local parish church. It was established by at least the 11th century, as it is mentioned in Rhygyfarch's 11th-century Life of Saint David; at this time it may have supported a clerical community, but in later centuries it became simply a parish church. The Chapel at Constantine Bay had a holy well
Holy well
A holy well, or sacred spring, is a small body of water emerging from underground and revered either in a Pagan or Christian context, often both. Holy wells were frequently pagan sacred sites that later became Christianized. The term 'holy well' is commonly employed to refer to any water source of...
, and was the center of its own sub-parish.
The Annales Cambriae
Annales Cambriae
Annales Cambriae, or The Annals of Wales, is the name given to a complex of Cambro-Latin chronicles deriving ultimately from a text compiled from diverse sources at St David's in Dyfed, Wales, not later than the 10th century...
(Welsh Annals) and the Annals of Ulster
Annals of Ulster
The Annals of Ulster are annals of medieval Ireland. The entries span the years between AD 431 to AD 1540. The entries up to AD 1489 were compiled in the late 15th century by the scribe Ruaidhrí Ó Luinín, under his patron Cathal Óg Mac Maghnusa on the island of Belle Isle on Lough Erne in the...
record the conversion of a certain Constantine; these may be a reference to the Cornish saint and therefore to the historical figure. A number of subsequent texts refer to Constantine, generally associating him with Cornwall, often specifically as its king. The Life of Saint David says that Constantine, King of Cornwall gave up his crown and joined Saint David
Saint David
Saint David was a Welsh Bishop during the 6th century; he was later regarded as a saint and as the patron saint of Wales. David was a native of Wales, and a relatively large amount of information is known about his life. However, his birth date is still uncertain, as suggestions range from 462 to...
's monastery at Menevia
St David's
St Davids , is a city and community in Pembrokeshire, Wales. Lying on the River Alun on St David's Peninsula, it is Britain's smallest city in terms of both size and population, the final resting place of Saint David, the country's patron saint, and the de facto ecclesiastical capital of...
. The Vitae Petroci includes an episode in which Saint Petroc
Saint Petroc
Saint Petroc is a 6th century Celtic Christian saint. He was born in Wales but primarily ministered to the Britons of Dumnonia which included the modern counties of Devon , Cornwall , and parts of Somerset and Dorset...
protects a stag being hunted by a wealthy man named Constantine, who eventually converts and becomes a monk. Here Constantine is not said to be king, but a 12th-century text referring to this story, the Miracula, specifically names him as such, further adding that he gave Petroc an ivory horn upon his conversion which became one of the saint's chief relics. These references are only a few to the various shadowy saints and kings named Constantine
Constantine (British saint)
Saint Constantine is the name of one or many British or Pictish saints.- Identification :South-west BritainA Saint Constantine is revered in Devon and Cornwall. Based purely on similarity of a common name, some have identified him with the monarch Constantine of Dumnonia, despite the latter's...
attested across Britain, and suggests a confusion and conflation of various figures.
Other sites in Southwestern Britain associated with Constantine or others of that name include the church of Milton Abbot, Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
; a chapel in nearby Dunterton, Devon, and another chapel in Illogan
Illogan
Illogan is a village and civil parish in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated two miles northwest of Redruth.Originally a rural area supporting itself by farming and agriculture, Illogan shared in the general leap into prosperity brought about by the mining boom, which was experienced by the...
, Cornwall. The two Devon sites may have been dedicated instead to Constantine the Great, as the church in nearby Abbotsham
Abbotsham
Abbotsham is a village in the English county of Devon. In 2001 its population was 434.-Amenities:Abbotsham has one Post Office and General Store. There is a primary school, a church and a pub. There is also a village hall. Private business include a pre-natal scanning clinic. One bus service serves...
was, like Milton Abbot, subject to Tavistock Abbey
Tavistock Abbey
Tavistock Abbey, also known as the Abbey of Saint Mary and Saint Rumon, is a ruined Benedictine abbey in Tavistock, Devon. Nothing remains of the abbey except the refectory, two gateways and a porch. The abbey church, dedicated to Our Lady and St Rumon, was destroyed by Danish raiders in 997 and...
, dedicated to Helena of Constantinople
Helena of Constantinople
Saint Helena also known as Saint Helen, Helena Augusta or Helena of Constantinople was the consort of Emperor Constantius, and the mother of Emperor Constantine I...
, Constantine the Great's mother. In Wales, two churches were dedicated to Constantine: Llangystennin
Llangystennin
Llangystennin is a rural parish to the south-east of Llandudno and Llanrhos in Conwy County Borough, north Wales....
(in Conwy and Welsh Bicknor
Welsh Bicknor
Welsh Bicknor is an area of Herefordshire, England. Despite its name, it is not currently in Wales, but was historically a detached parish of the county of Monmouthshire....
(now in Herefordshire
Herefordshire
Herefordshire is a historic and ceremonial county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire" NUTS 2 region. It also forms a unitary district known as the...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
). The church in Govan
Govan
Govan is a district and former burgh now part of southwest City of Glasgow, Scotland. It is situated west of Glasgow city centre, on the south bank of the River Clyde, opposite the mouth of the River Kelvin and the district of Partick....
in present-day Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
was also dedicated to a Saint Constantine.
Later traditions
Geoffrey of MonmouthGeoffrey of Monmouth
Geoffrey of Monmouth was a cleric and one of the major figures in the development of British historiography and the popularity of tales of King Arthur...
includes Constantine in a section of his Historia Regum Britanniae
Historia Regum Britanniae
The Historia Regum Britanniae is a pseudohistorical account of British history, written c. 1136 by Geoffrey of Monmouth. It chronicles the lives of the kings of the Britons in a chronological narrative spanning a time of two thousand years, beginning with the Trojans founding the British nation...
adapted from Gildas, in which the reproved kings are made successors, rather than contemporaries as in De Excidio. Here, Constantine is the son of King Arthur's kinsman Cador
Cador
Cador was a legendary Duke of Cornwall, known chiefly through Geoffrey of Monmouth's pseudo-historical History of the Kings of Britain and previous manuscript sources such as Vita Sanctus Carantoci circa 1100 from Cotton Vespasian xiv...
, Duke of Cornwall
Duke of Cornwall
The Duchy of Cornwall was the first duchy created in the peerage of England.The present Duke of Cornwall is The Prince of Wales, the eldest son of Queen Elizabeth II, the reigning British monarch .-History:...
, and is made king following Arthur's death at the Battle of Camlann
Battle of Camlann
The Battle of Camlann is best known as the final battle of King Arthur, where he either died in battle, or was fatally wounded fighting his enemy Mordred.-Historicity:...
. Geoffrey identifies Gildas' "royal youths" with the two sons of Mordred
Sons of Mordred
The sons of Mordred appear in several works of Arthurian literature. The stories always number them as two, though they are usually not named. They generally figure as the heirs to their father's traitorous aims and enemies of King Arthur's successors...
, who, along with their Saxon
Saxons
The Saxons were a confederation of Germanic tribes originating on the North German plain. The Saxons earliest known area of settlement is Northern Albingia, an area approximately that of modern Holstein...
allies, continue their father's insurrection after his death. After "many battles" Constantine routs the rebels, and Mordred's sons flee to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and Winchester
Winchester
Winchester is a historic cathedral city and former capital city of England. It is the county town of Hampshire, in South East England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government district, and is located at the western end of the South Downs, along the course of...
, where they hide in a church and a friary, respectively. Constantine hunts them down and executes them before the altars of their sanctuaries. Divine retribution for this transgression comes three years later when he is killed by his nephew Aurelius Conanus
Aurelius Conanus
Aurelius Conanus or Aurelius Caninus was a Brythonic king in 6th-century sub-Roman Britain. The only certain historical record of him is in the writings of his contemporary Gildas, who excoriates him as a tyrant. However, he may be identified with one of the several similarly named figures active...
(Gildas' Aurelius Caninus), precipitating a civil war. He is buried at Stonehenge
Stonehenge
Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument located in the English county of Wiltshire, about west of Amesbury and north of Salisbury. One of the most famous sites in the world, Stonehenge is composed of a circular setting of large standing stones set within earthworks...
alongside other kings of Britain.
A figure named Custennin Gorneu (Constantine of Cornwall) appears in the genealogies of the kings of Dumnonia
Dumnonia
Dumnonia is the Latinised name for the Brythonic kingdom in sub-Roman Britain between the late 4th and late 8th centuries, located in the farther parts of the south-west peninsula of Great Britain...
. The hero Geraint
Geraint
Geraint is a character from Welsh folklore and Arthurian legend, a king of Dumnonia and a valiant warrior. He may have lived during or shortly prior to the reign of the historical Arthur, but some scholars doubt he ever existed...
of Dumnonia is said to be the grandson of Custennin in the Bonedd y Saint
Bonedd y Saint
The Bonedd y Saint is a Welsh genealogical tract detailing the lineages of the early Brythonic saints. There are a number of different manuscripts in existence dating from the early 13th to the late 17th century, although the material is much older in origin.-External links:***...
, the prose romance Geraint and Enid, and after emendation, the genealogies in Jesus College MS 20
Genealogies from Jesus College MS 20
The genealogies from Jesus College MS 20 are a medieval Welsh collection of genealogies preserved in a single manuscript, Oxford, Bodleian Library, Jesus College, MS 20, folios 33r–41r...
. Geoffrey evidently knew the Dumnonian genealogy in essentially this form, though he is the first to identify Gildas' Constantine as a son of Cador, known in Welsh tradition as Cadwy mab Geraint.
Geoffrey's version of Constantine was included in the various later adaptations of the Historia, which were widely regarded as authentic in the Middle Ages. These include Wace
Wace
Wace was a Norman poet, who was born in Jersey and brought up in mainland Normandy , ending his career as Canon of Bayeux.-Life:...
's Anglo-Norman Roman de Brut
Roman de Brut
Roman de Brut or Brut is a verse literary history of Britain by the poet Wace. Written in the Norman language, it consists of 14,866 lines....
and the Welsh Brut y Brenhinedd. He does not figure strongly in the romance traditions, though he does appear as Arthur's successor in the 14th-century English alliterative poem
Alliterative verse
In prosody, alliterative verse is a form of verse that uses alliteration as the principal structuring device to unify lines of poetry, as opposed to other devices such as rhyme. The most commonly studied traditions of alliterative verse are those found in the oldest literature of many Germanic...
known as the Alliterative Morte Arthure
Alliterative Morte Arthure
The Alliterative Morte Arthure is a 4346-line Middle English alliterative poem, retelling the latter part of the legend of King Arthur. It is preserved in a single copy, in the early fifteenth-century Lincoln Thornton Manuscript.-History:...
, as well as Thomas Malory
Thomas Malory
Sir Thomas Malory was an English writer, the author or compiler of Le Morte d'Arthur. The antiquary John Leland as well as John Bale believed him to be Welsh, but most modern scholars, beginning with G. L...
's Le Morte d'Arthur
Le Morte d'Arthur
Le Morte d'Arthur is a compilation by Sir Thomas Malory of Romance tales about the legendary King Arthur, Guinevere, Lancelot, and the Knights of the Round Table...
, in sections adapted from the Alliterative Morte. He also features in some modern treatments of the legend, such as the 1990 computer game Spirit of Excalibur
Spirit of Excalibur
Spirit of Excalibur is a 1990 computer game developed by Synergistic Software for PC, Amiga, Atari ST, Apple IIGS and Apple Macintosh, and distributed by Virgin Mastertronic, Inc.....
, in which he is the chief protagonist.