Lesson 1, Part 2: Geoffrey of Monmouth and the HRB

Lesson 1, Part 2:

Geoffrey of Monmouth and the HRB

(Historia Regum Britanniae)

HIstory of the Kings of Britain

Welcome back everyone.  I hope that everyone enjoyed their reading.  First of all you will notice in the title above that I used the abbreviation "HRB."  I did this deliberately to show you the commonly used shorthand for the book.  This will occur both inside the blog and you will see it used in other publications by other writers as well.

Here's some quick links to good versions of the book, in case you are coming in late.

About Geoffrey of Monmouth

Very little is recorded or known about Geoffrey's life except that which he wrote himself or that which was written about him by his contemporaries.  That in itself is next to nothing so most of what is known is supposition based on what clues are there. Geoffrey was born, it is believed, in or near Monmouth, Wales around the year 1095.  It is believed that later in life he became a secular canon (priest) at St. George's College in Oxford.  (There is no "Oxford College" at this point.)  He is thought to also have been a teacher or tutor of some kind because he signed 6 separate charters along with two others who were also church canons.  On some of these he is denoted as "magister" (teacher).  He signs these as Galfridus Arturus.  Some of scholars think this may be a patronymic, meaning the "Arturus" (Arthur) part is his fathers name.  This may be why King Arthur is shown special attention in his book, certain scholars have theorized.

His Works
Around 1135 he publishes his first known book.  This is a short work called Prophetiae Merlini (The Prophesies of Merlin) and is a series of prophecies attributed to Merlin and was supposedly translated from an unknown (and probably non-existent) source by Geoffrey.  The work seems to be politically motivated and achieved some measure of success.  The HRB was published a few years later in 1138 and also contains the Prophetiae Merlini within the Arthur section.  This book shows a history from the founding of Britain to the final British king, Cadwallader and is also supposedly a direct translation from "a certain very ancient book in the British language."  The book achieved monumental success and was even being translated into other languages during his own lifetime.  This is still his best known work and over 200 copies still exist today.  His final work Vita Merlini (The Life of Merlin) was published around 1150 and seems to be based more on the life of Myrddin Wyllt, a figure from Celtic bardic tradition, counted as chief bard in some works and may have been based a real person at one time.  [ Side note:  The "dd" in welsh words are pronounced with a soft "th" like in "this" or "the" but not hard like in "throw."]  In 1152 his political aspirations are finally met when he is ordained as a priest on February the 14th and consecrated as a bishop of St. Asaph on the 24th of the same month.  Unfortunately, he died around three years later, sometime before 1155 when he was replaced as bishop.  His grave site is unknown.

Why its important.


The HRB is a considerably important work in the huge volume of extant Arthurian literature.  Not only does it set many of the standards of the Arthurian legend, it also brings King Arthur to a wider audience that ever before.  There are quite a few "firsts" found in this work in regards to Arthur.

• It is the first full length telling of Arthurs life from conception, to birth, to death. 
• Its the first time Arthur is conceived by Uther via the magic of Merlin.  
• Its the first time Arthur conquers Rome.  
• Its the first time Arthur fights the Giant of Saint Mont Michael. 
• It is the first time we see Guinevere's adultery (initially with Mordred, not Lancelot).  
• It is the first time we see Mordred's Revolt. 
• It is the first time we see Arthur's final battle with Mordred and fatal wound, with his transport to the island of Avalon.  
• Its the first time Merlin is associated with King Arthur.

Aside for its implications to Arthurian literature, the HRB has important implications politically not only for Britain as whole but Geoffrey himself.  I want to show you that the primary function of the book had a lot more to do with politics than history.  Whether or not the HRB was a complete fabrication on Geoffrey's part or if it was truly translated from a mysteriously missing source has never been established.  Regardless of that, Geoffrey manages to create a history, in latin, the language of learned men, with a reliable pedigree of supporters.  This history shows an unbroken line of Kings from Brutus, a descendant of Aeneus of Trojan War fame all the way to the last King Cadwallader.   This simple act sends a big message to its readers:  Britain is important and relevant.  Britain is now on equal footing with the rest of the medieval world.  There are also a few other things that happen here.  Geoffrey shows a chain of good kings and bad kings and shows what good kings and bad kings do.  Good kings are generous, bad kings consort with the enemy and are greedy.  Geoffrey also has Cadwallader sacrifice his own power to ensure, through a bit of prophesy, that a ruler would return one day to remove the Anglo Saxon usurpers.

Geoffrey also included a bit of personal political boot-licking in his dedication.  It was not unusual to acknowledge a certain patron as it still is today but please read what Geoffrey had to say.  "Unto this my little work, therefore, do thou, Robert, Duke of Gloucester, show favour in such wise that it may be so corrected by thy guidance and counsel as that it may be held to have sprung, not from the poor little fountain of Geoffrey of Monmouth, but rather from thine own deep sea of knowledge, and to savour of thy salt. Let it be held to be thine own offspring, as thou thyself art offspring of the illustrious Henry, King of the English. Let it be thine, as one that hath been nurtured in the liberal arts by philosophy, and called unto the command of our armies by thine own inborn prowess of knighthood; thine, whom in these our days haileth with heart-felt affection Britain as though in thee she had been vouchsafed a second Henry."    In some manuscripts we see him write the same dedication, almost verbatim, to Roberts enemy, Stephen, King of England.  Except it is a double dedication because he goes on throw in a nice tidbit at the end for Robert.  Here Geoffrey is clearly hedging his bets.

Final Thoughts

If there is anything to take away from this, you should memorize these few facts.

• Geoffrey created 3 works: The prophecies of Merlin, The History of the Kings of Britain and the Life of Merlin, of which the HRB is most important.
• Geoffrey established a framework of plot points from which most Arthurian stories will be built.
• The HRB is first and foremost political in nature.
• The HRB spread the Arthur story to a much larger audience which spawned several translations and variations.