The Ancient Mythical History Of King Arthur | Awaking Arthur | Odyssey

Treasured in folklore, as the glorious ruler of a fairy tale kingdom, King Arthur is perhaps Britain's most famous regent. In fabled Camelot, King Arthur is said to have summoned a great fellowship of heroes to sit at a magical round table. Today, King Arthur enjoys more popularity than ever. Not since the Middle Ages has his legend been more acclaimed or emulated. It seems we still yearn for the lost glory of knightly deeds and the charms of courtly love that existed in King Arthur's golden era. But the source of King Arthur's enduring power lies in a realm far deeper than that portrayed in medieval romance. The mythology of King Arthur is immeasurably old and emanates from the ancient customs of a prehistoric dream time. So who was King Arthur? Was he an historical king of the Britons? Did he ever exist? Or was he, as some believe, an ancient solar deity who has lived many times? Those who believe in King Arthur romances claim that there still exist today many places that are still haunted by King Arthur. So come join us now as we go in search for the once and future king. Located in South East Wales is the mysterious Arthur's Cave. Welsh folklore maintains that deep within this cave King Arthur is slumbering peacefully in a concealed chamber. The origin of this Welsh legend is perhaps many thousands of years old for the cave was once occupied by Neolithic people who venerated the great cave bear. Early man would have witnessed the bear's death-like hibernation during the winter and its remarkable awakening months later in the spring. It may have been from these primitive observations of the natural world that resurrecting heroes such as King Arthur gradually evolved. Throughout the ages, caves have come to be regarded as the shadowy domain of not only bears, but also fiery dragons. The ancients were awed by these fabulous beasts. Images of the bear and the dragon were even recognised in the stars which form the constellations at the centre of the northern sky. The age-old combination of these two creatures is all the more fascinating when we realise that together the bear and the dragon form King Arthur's original Welsh title Arth Pendragon. Other similar sounding Gaelic words such as Arthac, Arthlac and Arthau if you'll excuse my Gaelic pronunciation mean respectively giant, ethereal and ancestor. While giant ethereal ancestor accurately describes King Arthur his abbreviated name, Art, is an old Irish word meaning simply a rock. The ancient association of King Arthur's name with rocks, supernatural beings and ancestral giants may explain why so many of Britain's oldest landmarks have been named in his honour. Persisting from time immemorial is the belief that primeval giants had shaped various landforms and had erected huge megalithic monuments throughout the British Isles. Ancient mythology suggests that these legendary giants were the offspring of celestial beings who had descended from the starry realms. The massive standing stones, circles and tombs which these giants are said to have built are not only numerous but extremely widespread. It is now generally accepted by scholars that the original purpose of these monuments probably involved some sort of astrological function. But a grand circular temple which measured the movements of the sun and stars had long been known in folklore as the Giant's Dance. The most famous of these circles is Stonehenge on the Salisbury Plain. An Arthurian legend tells of how Merlin discovered the secret of the Giant's Dance in Ireland. Using his supernatural powers he is said to have spirited this magical ring of stones across to England where it became the focus of ancient regeneration rituals. Less than 20 miles to the north of Stonehenge lies a larger and far older megalithic site. The enormous Avebury Sun Temple, Silbury Hill and West Kennet Barrow are all located within walking distance of each other. 5,000 years ago the Giant's Dance at Avebury was indeed an elaborate affair. Little of its former glory remains today. Most of the massive standing stones were smashed in the 17th and 18th centuries to construct the village of Avebury and many of its buildings actually lie within the original outer circle. There were once four entrances to the inner temple and from the southern one a great avenue of stones led to a tomb known as West Kennet Barrow. Huge sarsen stones obscure its entrance. Of the thousands of burial mounds in Britain this is the longest and dating to 3,500 years before Christ it is also the oldest. There are stories that when barrows like this were opened the excavators were astonished to find the skeletons of giant men 8 feet tall or more. The tomb of West Kennet Barrow overlooks yet another grand enigma that of Silbury Hill. Covering over five acres Silbury Hill is the largest artificial mound in Europe. According to local tradition it is the resting place of an ancient sun king. Although excavations have shown that the hill is filled with huge layers of chalk blocks and rubble the legend persists that deep within the centre of this mound an undead king sits astride a great war horse. Clad in golden armour he, like King Arthur awaits his call to battle. The image of a solar king on horseback was central to the religions of Europe's earliest metal civilisations. The eastward spread of the Indo-Europeans saw the equestrian sun god revered across a landscape which stretched from Scandinavia to India. Often the sun was represented as a golden disc which was mounted upon a fiery chariot. It was escorted in its arc across the sky and into the underworld of night by a solar hero. A closer inspection of this 3,000 year old statue from Denmark reveals that such a sun king once sat upon the horse. The image of King Arthur as a mounted solar warrior is integral to the legend of his expected return. The equestrian concept of Arthur is linked with two of Scotland's oldest hilltop fortresses. Utilised in the Bronze Age these strongholds were built high upon hilltops that held a commanding view of the vales below. According to Scottish tradition the fortresses were built near subterranean caverns wherein King Arthur is said to lie sleeping. It's a time honoured belief that when King Arthur awakens he will descend from this high peak mounted upon a magical steed called Dun Stallion. Scholars now agree that over the centuries two separate Arthurs have been unintentionally co-mingled to form the King Arthur character that we are familiar with today. One of these Arthurs was a mythical king who was venerated from the earliest of prehistoric times. The other, an historical war leader, lived in the 5th century AD. Ten years after the death of Christ Britain was absorbed into the mighty Roman Empire. Although conquered the tribal Brits were now able to witness the marvels of Roman engineering as well as the undreamed of luxuries that civilisation provides. For almost 400 years Britain experienced the benefits of a strong centralised government and the protection of Rome's efficient armies. However, with the death of Constantine III Britain's last Roman ruler and the sudden withdrawal of all troops to defend Rome itself the British Isles were once again plunged into an age of darkness. It was a time of massive upheaval for the abandoned Romano Brits as wave after wave of marauding Picts Scots and Anglo-Saxons descended upon their shores. The disorganised Brits were powerless to halt this savage onslaught and for 15 years the mayhem continued. In 425 the Welsh leader Vortigern managed to assume an absolute power over the quarrelsome British tribes. In an effort to stop incursions into northern Wales Vortigern decided to build a fortress high in the mountains of Snowdonia. The site he chose was close to an abandoned Roman copper mine but despite all efforts the great tower of the fortress kept falling down. In desperation, Vortigern called in his druid priests. The druids suggested that the foundations of the tower should be sealed with the blood of a fatherless child. The intended victim was an unusual boy who was to grow into manhood as the famous wizard Merlin. Merlin's early prophetic powers revealed that the tower kept collapsing because in a cavern far below it two ancient dragons were constantly at war. According to Merlin the white dragon represented the invading Saxons and the red symbolised the Welsh people. He predicted that the red dragon would eventually overcome the white and to this day the red dragon flies proudly as the national flag of Wales. When Vortigern was killed the mantle of the Welsh dragon fell upon a powerful war leader called Uta Pendragon. Recalled from his exile in the French province of Brittany Uta became the High King of Britain. The focus of the Pendragon Saga now shifts to the rugged coast of Cornwall. Throughout its long history the Kingdom of Cornwall had maintained a proud cultural independence from the rest of England. This was partly due to its formidable cliffs which provided a natural protection from seaborne invasions. From the vantage point of these high cliffs the people of Cornwall were able to keep a constant surveillance of their rugged coastline. Although their coastal citadels were vulnerable to Atlantic squalls and pounding seas it was these very elements together with the wild beauty of the landscape that inspired the otherworldly magic of Cornish folklore. It's easy to understand how here in Cornwall history became infused with romance. For it was amidst this enchanted setting that legend places the curious circumstances of King Arthur's birth. To celebrate the coronation of Uta as High King a lavish feast was held in Londinium. From even the remote areas such as Cornwall the great lords and chieftains came to swear their allegiance to the new king. It was during these festivities that Uta Pendragon fell in love with a beautiful woman named Igraine. Unfortunately, Igraine was already married and to a loyal supporter Gulwaz, the Duke of Cornwall. Undaunted by this fact Uta Pendragon promptly ordered the duke off to a distant war. Fully aware of the king's desire for his wife the duke had made arrangements for Igraine's immediate return to his castle at Tintagel. Almost an island the Tintagel Headland is itself a natural fortress. Today it's connected to the mainland by this modern bridge. The original causeway that existed at the time of Arthur has long since crumbled into the sea. Given the rugged isolation Gulwaz must have believed that Igraine and their three daughters would be safe here. Yet Uta remained utterly infatuated. And so he sought from Merlin a magical intervention. The wizard consented to help but on the condition that Uta must surrender to him the child that would be born of this illicit union. Having agreed, Uta swallowed a magical potion and was transfigured into a perfect semblance of the lady's husband. In this disguise Uta Pendragon hastened to Cornwall. There he crossed the causeway and climbed the long stairway to the castle's gatehouse. Unchallenged by the guards Uta made his way to Igraine's private quarters. That night the Duke of Cornwall mysteriously died in battle and King Arthur was conceived. The following spring a strange apparition appeared upon the sea. It seemed a ship the shape thereof a dragon winged and all from stern to stern bright with shining people on the decks. And gone as soon was seen. And down the waves in flame was born a naked babe and rode to Merlin's feet who stooped and caught the babe and cried The King! Uta's secret contract with Merlin had been fulfilled. Tennyson's account of King Arthur's birth was inspired by Merlin's cave. It's located in a cove far below the towering cliffs of the Tintagel Headland. Stretching clear through the headland's base the cave is accessible only at low tide. And it's here that a young Arthur is said to have been schooled by Merlin. But these lessons held deep within a cave couldn't have been ordinary for caves were timeless otherworldly spaces. And as such Merlin's cave may once have been an ancient place of initiation. It's also possible that a boy like Arthur may have received a Christian education from the monks who built a small monastery here during the 5th century. Although these legends of Arthur's birth and upbringing are usually considered to be pure fantasy claims of his actual presence at Tintagel were given an unexpected boost in 1998. Archaeologists excavating the headland's many ruins unearthed a stone slab which appropriately dated to the 5th century and inscribed upon it was the name Arthur. Such is the power of Arthur's myth that this find not only made headlines locally but was reported all around the world. From antiquity stones have been regarded as symbols of permanence and otherworldly powers. They were thought to be receptacles of energy which could be transmitted to certain individuals who came into contact with them. Because of this special stones became an essential feature of coronation ceremonies. Even today the practice continues. The present British Queen, Elizabeth II, was crowned upon the illustrious Stone of Destiny which lay beneath the seat of the coronation throne in Westminster Abbey. This stone had previously been used by the Scottish and Irish kings and before them the biblical kings of Judea. A similar Stone of Destiny is central to the story of King Arthur's enthronement. It concerns a mighty sword embedded deeply within an enchanted megalith. Arthur proved himself to be the true-born king when he was able to free this sword from its ancient encasement. Hidden within this colourful imagery are the vestiges of an extremely old tradition. As Arthur was barely 15 years old when he withdrew the sword this feat may represent an ancient rite of passage which marked the attainment of manhood. Across the Irish Sea, another great stone stands upon the Hill of Tara. Since Neolithic times the Hill of Tara was regarded as the most sacred site in Ireland and it was here that her Celtic high kings were crowned. The ancient monolith was said to have come from the mythical city of Fallius and so was endowed with magical powers. The stone would resonate when touched by the rightful king who would then perform a symbolic mating with the goddess of the land. It was believed that this age-old ritual would ensure that the earth remained fertile. The countrysides of north-western Europe once abounded in great standing stones and fertility rings, but with the advent of Christianity they came to be reviled as pagan symbols and most of them were destroyed. A few of the huge fertility monuments survived especially in France. They'd been engraved with Christian symbols or surmounted with the Christian cross. The ancient Celts also believed that magical powers flowed through springs and lakes, but these had a feminine aspect and were mostly concerned with healing. It was from the Lady of the Lake that Arthur received yet another sword, the legendary Excalibur. Woven into its scabbard were charms that could heal the wounds of battle. Armed with his magical regalia Arthur Pendragon was inaugurated as the High King of Britain. His might was proclaimed and his destiny sealed. Having received the mantle of rulership, King Arthur is said to have undertaken a series of adventures, each brimming with supernatural marvels. One of his most famous exploits begins aboard a magical ship called Prydwen, upon which he ventures into the Celtic underworld. The other world was a dark and untamed realm, guarded by monstrous serpents and hostile demons. King Arthur's quest was to bring back the miraculous Cauldron of Immortality. Despite the terrifying forces arrayed against him and the loss of all but seven of his crew, King Arthur was eventually able to win the mystical vessel. This cauldron reputedly had the power to resurrect the dead. Arthur continued to explore the depths of his ancient Celtic heritage and strange were the contests he faced in that unearthly place. But as King Arthur was being taught the age-old traditions of solar kingship, a new way to life everlasting was taking hold in Britain. In Arthur's time, hermit monks were spreading the message that the true Son of Light had arrived and that this Christ was the King of all Kings. As sovereign of his land, it would have been Arthur's duty to consider these claims and so he also made journeys to newly Christianised sites. Located in Cornwall, the remains of St. Madden's cell are now surrounded by the overgrown ruins of a later medieval enclosure. At one end of the hermit's tiny retreat is an ancient granite slab which served as his altar. At the other end is a baptismal font into which water from an old sacred spring still bubbles. The old texts record that Arthur once visited such a monk and apparently he abode in this very area. It was during his stay with a hermit that King Arthur is said to have been inspired to have the image of the Madonna and Child emblazoned upon his shield. Medieval writers believed it was this conversion that empowered King Arthur to win his twelve decisive victories against the Saxon invaders. When peace had returned to the war-torn land, Arthur decided he needed a queen and he chose the fair Guinevere. With her dazzling beauty she seemed the very essence of spring, light and new life. And so Guinevere became Arthur's flower bride. As her dowry Guinevere brought a magnificent round table. It had long ago been fashioned by Merlin and held in safekeeping by her father. It was on the day of the King's wedding that the fellowship of the round table met for the very first time. At fabled Camelot one hundred knights swore an oath to honour a code of chivalry that was to inspire the royal courts of Europe for centuries to come. Most scholars now agree that the site of Camelot was probably an ancient hill fort which is now called Cadbury. Utilised as a stronghold since 3000 BC a substantial fortress was constructed here in the 5th century. Although this fortress was never the glittering castle that poets imagined Camelot to be it nevertheless contained a royal hall wherein large banquets were celebrated. Looking out over the little village of Camel today it is indeed difficult to understand how this grassy hilltop has for centuries been known as Arthur's Palace. Nevertheless, archaeological excavations that were undertaken in the 1960s confirm that Cadbury may well be the place where an historical King Arthur held court. Made of unmortared stone this 16 foot thick wall still surrounds the top ramp at Cadbury. Now this is quite a sophisticated defence system and it would have required a vast amount of labour to construct it. It certainly was a secure place from which a king could launch his campaigns into Britain and even further afield into Gaul. Bonjour and welcome to France. We're standing on the borders of the French provinces of Normandy and Brittany. Now Brittany is so named because of the Britons that came across here in the 5th and 6th centuries AD. This is the time of the historical King Arthur. A French monk writing in the 11th century probably within these very walls recorded the events of these 6th century migrations. The monk tells of a king of the Britons named Arthur who crossed the channel and landed in this area with 12,000 ship-borne troops. This Arthur waged war against the Germanic and Slavonic barbarians who were decimating the countryside of Gaul. Many of the Britons who had accompanied King Arthur in his campaigns remained in Brittany. These settlers cherished the legends of King Arthur's historic feats and in some instances wove them into the older traditions of local folklore. One of these stories concerns King Arthur's battle with a fearsome giant. The giant had kidnapped the king of Brittany's niece and had imprisoned her on this island which is known today as Mont Saint-Michel. Although the damsel didn't survive the ordeal, King Arthur succeeded in killing the giant. It's a tale which probably symbolises Christianity's expulsion of pagan cults from the region. But long before anything was built on this island, Mont Saint-Michel was known as Mont Tombe or Tomb on the Hill. Island hill tombs were usually the domain of Dagda. Dagda was the most ancient Celtic lord of life and death. It was believed that the great Dagda could even control the changing of the seasons. Certain Christian sources had thus alleged that in times of famine, the Druid priests would attempt to appease this agricultural giant with mass human sacrifices. If Arthur's crusades in Brittany had brought an end to such practices, then perhaps this might explain why the title Rigotamus meaning Supreme King was bestowed upon Arthur at that time. An historical British war leader had come to be regarded as more than a mere mortal. He was now a great solar king triumphant over the powers of darkness. This Arthurian ideal has since been transferred to the Archangel Michael whose image crowns the monastery's soaring cathedral spire. The island of Mont Saint-Michel is but one of many ancient pre-Christian sites that have been consecrated in the name of this mighty solar warrior. Back across the channel in England is another hilltop imbued with ancient lore. Rising steeply from the fields of Somerset, it is the atmospheric Glastonbury Tor. As the geographical centre of all Arthurian tradition the Tor is still a mecca for those who believe in a mystical king. Although the Tor looks artificially shaped, it is a natural formation. Two thousand years ago, it was surrounded by watery marshes and so the Celtic Britons called it Inishvitrin, the Isle of Glass. The old high place was once the focal point of a great Celtic sanctuary. At the Tor's base is a secluded vale. It is the popular setting for perhaps the most famous of all the Arthurian legends. The quest for the Holy Grail. King Arthur's knights had believed that just a glimpse of the Holy Vessel could heal the incurable and restore fertility to a blighted land. Since medieval times, an old druidic font in this garden grove has been known as the Chalice Well. The early Glastonbury chronicles suggest that the Holy Grail had at one time been hidden at the bottom of this ancient well shaft. Fed from the Tor's sacred spring, Chalice Well has allegedly never run dry. Grail magic still lingers here for even today, its red-tinged waters are believed to have healing powers. Overlooking the site, the empty tower of a ruined church stands at the Tor's summit. The monks who built the church had dedicated it to Saint Michael so that this whole area might be cleansed of its long pagan history. The shadows of the old religion continually surface throughout the Arthurian legends. And in this sense, Merlin was never a mere court magician. He was the guardian of the most ancient of ways. Using his deep arcane knowledge, Merlin had created a mystical round table for King Arthur and his illustrious company of knights. The table was to represent the age-old relationship between the starry realms, the king, and the land. It symbolized an ideal of the perfect earthly kingdom. The circular shape meant that no knight was more exalted than his fellow when seated or rounded. The unity of the whole was paramount. During the Middle Ages, entertainments called round tables were very popular with the nobility. Ancient circular earthworks, such as this one below Stirling Castle in Scotland, were the center of such gatherings. Dressed in Arthurian costume, the participants feasted and paraded about the mound in imitation of the stories they were reading. However, the Christian monks, who had transformed the ancient traditions into medieval romance, also felt bound to teach that earthly life has been tainted with innate or original sin, and that even the brightest and best could fall. With the exception of Galahad, every character in the Arthurian stories was thus blemished. But it was in Lancelot Dulac, the king's favorite and most trusted knight, that the point was made most clearly. Lancelot's overwhelming love for the beautiful Guinevere had set in motion the division of the round table's unity. The incessant rumors of the queen's infidelity with Lancelot created a crisis in loyalty. His acts were not only humiliating for the king, they were considered treason. A conspiracy was hatched to surprise Lancelot and Guinevere during one of their secret meetings. The exposure of the adulterous affair resulted in the death of many former companions of the round table, and Guinevere was condemned to burn at the stake. Lancelot rode in to free her, and together they escaped to a castle on the Northumbrian coast. But in the fury of the rescue, several innocents had also been slaughtered. The kingdom was irretrievably divided as civil war raged throughout Britain. Having delivered Guinevere to a nunnery, Lancelot retreated back to his native France, pursued by an enraged Arthur. The round table had been rent asunder, and Merlin's dream of the perfect earthly realm had vanished. But from the start, King Arthur had been chosen to play the role of the sacrificial sun king. He was the mythic hero who must activate the great primal wheel of life, death, and rebirth. With the news that his illegitimate son Mordred had claimed his kingdom, Arthur left off his feud with Lancelot and hastened back to Britain. On a mist-enshrouded plain, the forces of light met those of darkness, as Arthur and his army faced Mordred's vast host. An uneasy truce was formed, but fate could not be avoided. From its hiding place, a serpent slithered towards the tent's warriors. Glimpsing the snake, a startled knight raised his sword. As the serpent struck, the sun flashed briefly upon the unsheathed weapon. Seemingly, the truce had been broken, and the bloody mayhem of the final battle began. The war-horns had sounded. Son against father, brother against brother. The battle raged till near on nightfall. By then, all but a few lay dead upon the moor. A gory stillness wreathed the battlefield. It was shattered by a thunderous cry as Arthur saw that Mordred still lived. As men possessed, they charged in a crimson fury of hatred and revenge. And in the end, Arthur and Mordred fell to each other's mortal blow. In Celtic mythology, death usually took place near running water. It was a portal that swirled down into the other world. Some believe this final battle occurred on Cornwall's eerie Bodmin Moor, near the shores of the tear-shaped Dosmerey Pool. Others favour an icy pass, high in the rugged Welsh mountains of Snowdonia. The whereabouts of Camlyn, the site of Arthur's last battle, remains as obscure as the mists in which it happened. The name Camlyn means crooked bank, and Cornish tradition steadfastly pinpoints the site as here, by the River Camel. A dense canopy veils the tiny river. From the battlefield of Camlyn, a mortally wounded Arthur sought refuge amidst the thick undergrowth. Through these tangled branches, the dying king is said to have stumbled his way down to the water's edge. Today, an ancient moss-covered stone lies by the bank of the River Camel. Faint inscriptions in Latin and Druidic Ogham were once thought to commemorate the place where Arthur eventually fell. Of his knights, only Sir Bedivere had survived the slaughter. When he came upon the dying Arthur, he was commanded to return Excalibur back to the waters from whence it came. On his third reluctant attempt, Sir Bedivere hurled the sword far out over the lake, and there came a glistening arm and hand above the water to meet it. Thrice Excalibur was brandished in the air, before submerging back into the deep. As Sir Bedivere returned, he saw across the waters a gilded barge silhouetted against the setting sun. On board were nine sorrowing queens. In the lap of one of them, Arthur had laid his head. And so Morgan le Fay ferried the dying king to the island of Avalon. It was a golden land, concealed by enchantment from the grasp of mortal beings. In Geoffrey of Monmouth's twelfth-century poem, Morgan le Fay is described as High Priestess of Avalon, the Apple Isle. On this magical island she and her eight maidens tended Arthur's wounds and healed him of his earthly pain. According to the myths, King Arthur still rests beneath Avalon's fragrant apple blossoms. Cared for by the priestesses, he waits until the world has need of him again. To the poets, Avalon was a wondrous isle of joyous immortality. But it was not just poetic symbolism that saw King Arthur ferried to an island which lay in the direction of the setting sun. The practice of ferrying the dead to a blessed isle in the West was virtually universal throughout the Western world. And as a result, a vast number of islands along the European Atlantic seaboard had at some time been utilised as sacred burial places. Island tombs such as this one in Brittany were constructed about 6,000 years ago and are of major importance to archaeologists. Perhaps the most famous isle of the dead is that of Iona. The tiny island is situated off the western coast of Scotland and until the Middle Ages it was the place to which all Scottish kings were ferried for burial. Given Iona's rugged isolation, it must have been a formidable voyage. On this island there is an ancient mound. Around it there extends a remarkable cemetery which came to be known as the Royal Burial Ground. It is recorded that 48 Scottish kings including Macbeth and many Highland and Hebridean chiefs are buried here. So revered was Iona that even Irish, Norwegian and French kings chose this remote and windswept isle as their final resting place. Arthurian romance emulated the ancient custom of island burial in depicting King Arthur's final resting place as the mystical island of Avalon. Since medieval times the Glastonbury area has been traditionally accepted as the most likely site for this isle of apples. It was once surrounded by water and Avalon's mythic white flowers still blossom in a well-tended orchard which overlooks the old monastery. In 1190 the monks at Glastonbury announced that they had exhumed the skeletons of Arthur and Guinevere. Their bones were placed in a marble tomb in front of the high altar of the main abbey church and here they remained for 300 years. However, these relics disappeared during the 16th century when King Henry VIII ordered the dissolution of all British monasteries. But Cornish, Welsh and Scottish folklores insist that King Arthur did not die and therefore he had no grave. They preserve a belief that King Arthur resides upon an enchanted isle or sleeps within an ancient cavern awaiting the appointed time for his return. From the 6th century through to modern times writers have proclaimed that the return of King Arthur will occur when the world is in its darkest hour. Awakened to a land that has been ravished by insatiable greed Arthur is expected to begin a ruthless campaign of purification. The Eildon Hills of Scotland are but one of a number of sites which lay claim to this legend of an avenging Arthur. An ancient tale made famous by Sir Walter Scott asserts that under the highest of the three hills is an immense cavern. It is said that at the sounding of a great horn King Arthur shall arise from his stony chamber. Fully armoured and mounted upon a mighty battle steed Arthur is to appear over the Eildon Hills. This account of Arthur's mythical resurrection is also associated with another of Scotland's Bronze Age hill forts. A hollow between two high points of this extinct volcano provides its name Arthur's Saddle. It has long been a local tradition that it will be from here high above the city of Edinburgh that a giant Arthur will one day commence his avenging ride. The mythology of a mounted solar king who defeats the powers of darkness is immensely old and widespread. Its imagery has permeated the religions of the Medeans of Persia the Assyrians and the ancient Greeks. The concept of an equestrian avenger is also central to St John's vision of a biblical apocalypse. But at its core the legend of King Arthur is like all glorious heroic sagas. It's concerned with man's attempt to understand the mysterious cycle of life death and regeneration. From the dawning of time the great megaliths had symbolised an imperishable anchor against the transience of the material world. The massive standing stones were of fundamental importance in the life-sustaining rituals of prehistoric peoples. Writing at the time of the historical King Arthur the Welsh bard Taliazin described the celebrations at one of these ancient ceremonies. In spring the giant trilithons which formed the inner circle of Stonehenge were covered with veils and upon these the history of the Dragon King was delineated. This resurrecting Sun King was variously known as Hugh, Lou, Beli and much later Arthur Pendragon. On May Day morn the song of a cuckoo bird would herald the awakening of the Dragon King from his long winter sleep. At the precise moment of the sun's rising the King would emerge from what was known as his stone cell of tranquility. The moment was welcomed with a great din. Shouts of joy were accompanied by chants, horn blowing and the beating of drums. Each year huge crowds still gather at Stonehenge to celebrate the summer solstice. Sensitive to an ever increasing threat to the natural world some attempt to restore a balance with ancient druidic practices. But this modern day druid and his followers are denied access to the Temple of Stonehenge and so their dawn ceremony takes place in an adjacent field. Forming their own circle the group calls forth the spirit of the land and that of King Arthur. Arthur, Lou, come again as of old into this fine hand. Show us the lovely realms of the gods. Promote it be. The blessing of the flowers, the conjoining of heaven and earth. One, two, three. Whilst the nature loving druids believe that they are participating in the dawning of a new age Camelot, other more eccentric devotees are convinced that King Arthur's mysterious return from the other world will be by way of a flying saucer. Very few of us expect King Arthur to alight from a shiny UFO or to emerge from an ancient standing stone. However as we enter the 21st century there's a growing expectation, especially amongst new ages, that a return of King Arthur is imminent. Written a thousand years before Nostradamus, the 6th century book of Merlin's prophecies predicts that King Arthur's return will coincide with the awakening of the primordial dragon. The dragon's rising is to trigger massive upheavals throughout the world. The same manuscript proclaims that just before these apocalyptic events occur, King Arthur and Merlin will be reunited. Their predestined meeting is to take place at this ancient table of stones in Cornwall. Once again our search for Arthur has led us back to the great megaliths. Ultimately King Arthur represents the same giant ethereal ancestor who was evoked by the earliest of men in their times of need and uncertainty. In this sense the heroic deeds of a megalithic solar king have been able to span the vast passages of time. Even in our present day world the legend of King Arthur survives. It offers us far more than just a glimpse into the customs of medieval life or the simple enjoyment of a mere fairy tale.