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Pendragon
Pendragon or ( wlm, pen dreic, ''pen dragon''; composed of Welsh , 'head, chief, top' and / ''dragon'', 'dragon; warrior'; borrowed from the Latin word , plural , 'dragon , br, Penn Aerouant) literally means 'chief dragon' or 'head dragon', but in a figurative sense: 'chief leader', 'chief of warriors', 'commander-in-chief', , or 'chief governor'). It is the epithet of Uther, father of King Arthur in medieval and modern Arthurian literature and occasionally applied to historical Welsh heroes in medieval Welsh poetry, such as Rhodri ab Owain Gwynedd.Bromwich, Rachel, ''Trioedd Ynys Prydein'', University of Wales Press, 4th ed., 2014, p. 513 In the , one of the earliest texts of the Arthurian legend, only Uther is given the surname ''Pendragon'', which is explained by the author Geoffrey of Monmouth as literally meaning ''dragon's head''. In the prose version of Robert de Boron's ''Merlin'', the name of Uther's elder brother Ambrosius is given as ''Pendragon'', while Uter (Uthe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Uther Pendragon
Uther Pendragon (Brittonic) (; cy, Ythyr Ben Dragwn, Uthyr Pendragon, Uthyr Bendragon), also known as King Uther, was a legendary King of the Britons in sub-Roman Britain (c. 6th century). Uther was also the father of King Arthur. A few minor references to Uther appear in Old Welsh poems, but his biography was first written down in the 12th century by Geoffrey of Monmouth in his ''Historia Regum Britanniae'' (''History of the Kings of Britain''), and Geoffrey's account of the character was used in most later versions. He is a fairly ambiguous individual throughout the literature, but is described as a strong king and a defender of his people. According to Arthurian legend, Merlin magically disguises Uther to look like his enemy Gorlois, enabling Uther to sleep with Gorlois' wife Lady Igraine. Thus Arthur, "the once and future king", is an illegitimate child (though later legend, as found in Malory, emphasises that the conception occurred after Gorlois's death and tha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Antal Szerb
Antal Szerb (1 May 1901, Budapest – 27 January 1945, Balf) was a noted Hungarian scholar and writer. He is generally considered to be one of the major Hungarian writers of the 20th century. Life and career Szerb was born in 1901 to assimilated Jewish parents in Budapest, but baptized Catholic. He studied Hungarian, German and later English, obtaining a doctorate in 1924. From 1924 to 1929 he lived in France and Italy, also spending a year in London, England, from 1929 to 1930. As a student, he published essays on Georg Trakl and Stefan George, and quickly established a formidable reputation as a scholar, writing erudite studies of William Blake and Henrik Ibsen among other works. Elected President of the Hungarian Literary Academy in 1933, aged just 32, he published his first novel, '' The Pendragon Legend'' (which draws upon his personal experience of living in Britain) the following year. His second and best-known work, (''Journey by Moonlight'') came out in 1937. He wa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Arthurian Characters
The Arthurian legend features many characters, including the Knights of the Round Table and members of King Arthur's family King Arthur's family grew throughout the centuries with King Arthur's legend. Many of the legendary members of this mythical king's family became leading characters of mythical tales in their own right. Medieval Welsh tradition In Welsh Arth .... Their names often differ from version to version and from language to language. The following is a list of characters with descriptions. : Indicates a Knight of the Round Table. See also * List of characters named Ywain in Arthurian legend References {{Arthurian Legend Arthurian, Arthurian characters ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Pendragon Legend
''The Pendragon Legend'' (Hungarian: A Pendragon-legenda) is a 1934 novel by the Hungarian writer Antal Szerb. It was published by Pushkin Press. The book is a philosophical thriller/comedy/murder-mystery/ghost story set first in London and then in Wales. A mystical element is diffused through an increasingly complex plot, as all threads converge in the final chapters. The ''Pendragon Legend'' was first translated into English by Lili Halápy in 1963, and again by Len Rix in 2006. Film adaptation In 1974, the novel was turned into a film '' The Pendragon Legend'' directed by György Révész. Historical References The novel contains many references to English and European mysticism: * Rosicrucians * Robert Fludd * Count of St. Germain * Paracelsus * Philosopher's Stone The philosopher's stone or more properly philosophers' stone (Arabic: حجر الفلاسفة, , la, lapis philosophorum), is a mythic alchemical substance capable of turning base metals such as mercu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ambrosius Aurelianus
Ambrosius Aurelianus ( cy, Emrys Wledig; Anglicised as Ambrose Aurelian and called Aurelius Ambrosius in the ''Historia Regum Britanniae'' and elsewhere) was a war leader of the Romano-British who won an important battle against the Anglo-Saxons in the 5th century, according to Gildas. He also appeared independently in the legends of the Britons, beginning with the 9th-century ''Historia Brittonum''. Eventually, he was transformed by Geoffrey of Monmouth into the uncle of King Arthur, the brother of Arthur's father Uther Pendragon, as a ruler who precedes and predeceases them both. He also appears as a young prophet who meets the tyrant Vortigern; in this guise, he was later transformed into the wizard Merlin. According to Gildas Ambrosius Aurelianus is one of the few people whom Gildas identifies by name in his sermon ''De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae'', and the only one named from the 5th century. ''De Excidio'' is considered the oldest extant British document about the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
King Arthur
King Arthur ( cy, Brenin Arthur, kw, Arthur Gernow, br, Roue Arzhur) is a legendary king of Britain, and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain. In the earliest traditions, Arthur appears as a leader of the post-Roman Britons in battles against Saxon invaders of Britain in the late 5th and early 6th centuries. He appears in two early medieval historical sources, the ''Annales Cambriae'' and the '' Historia Brittonum'', but these date to 300 years after he is supposed to have lived, and most historians who study the period do not consider him a historical figure.Tom Shippey, "So Much Smoke", ''review'' of , ''London Review of Books'', 40:24:23 (20 December 2018) His name also occurs in early Welsh poetic sources such as '' Y Gododdin''. The character developed through Welsh mythology, appearing either as a great warrior defending Britain from human and supernatural enemies or as a magical figure of folklore, sometimes associa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
That Hideous Strength
''That Hideous Strength: A Modern Fairy-Tale for Grown-Ups'' is a 1945 novel by C. S. Lewis, the final book in Lewis's theological science fiction Space Trilogy. The events of this novel follow those of ''Out of the Silent Planet'' and '' Perelandra'' (also titled ''Voyage to Venus'') and once again feature the philologist Elwin Ransom. Yet unlike the principal events of those two novels, the story takes place on Earth rather than elsewhere in the Solar System. The story involves an ostensibly scientific institute, the N.I.C.E., which is a front for sinister supernatural forces. The novel was heavily influenced by the writing of Lewis's friend and fellow Inkling Charles Williams, and is markedly dystopian in style. In the foreword, Lewis states that the novel's point is the same as that of his 1943 non-fiction work '' The Abolition of Man'', which argues that there are natural laws and objective values that education should teach children to recognise. The novel's title is t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Historia Regum Britanniae
''Historia regum Britanniae'' (''The History of the Kings of Britain''), originally called ''De gestis Britonum'' (''On the Deeds of the Britons''), is a pseudohistorical account of British history, written around 1136 by Geoffrey of Monmouth. It chronicles the lives of the kings of the Britons over the course of two thousand years, beginning with the Trojans founding the British nation and continuing until the Anglo-Saxons assumed control of much of Britain around the 7th century. It is one of the central pieces of the Matter of Britain. Although taken as historical well into the 16th century, it is now considered to have no value as history. When events described, such as Julius Caesar's invasions of Britain, can be corroborated from contemporary histories, Geoffrey's account can be seen to be wildly inaccurate. It remains, however, a valuable piece of medieval literature, which contains the earliest known version of the story of King Lear and his three daughters, and helpe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
European Dragon
The European dragon is a legendary creature in folklore and mythology among the overlapping cultures of Europe. The Roman poet Virgil in his poem ''Culex'' lines 163-201, describing a shepherd having a fight with a big constricting snake, calls it " serpens" and also "draco", showing that in his time the two words probably could mean the same thing. In and after the early Middle Ages, the European dragon is typically depicted as a large, fire-breathing, scaly, horned, lizard-like creature; the creature also has leathery, bat-like wings, four legs, and a long, muscular prehensile tail. Some depictions show dragons with one or more of: feathered wings, crests, ear frills, fiery manes, ivory spikes running down its spine, and various exotic decorations. In folktales, dragon's blood often contains unique powers, keeping them alive for longer or giving them poisonous or acidic properties. The typical dragon in Christian culture protects a cavern or castle filled with gold and tre ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Elwin Ransom
Elwin Ransom is the main character in the first two books of C.S. Lewis' ''The Space Trilogy'', namely ''Out of the Silent Planet'' and ''Perelandra''. In the final book, ''That Hideous Strength'', he is a lesser character (the main characters being Mark and Jane Studdock) in charge of a group that is resisting demons that are trying to take over Earth, and playing the role of a mentor. Ransom is a linguistics school professor at Cambridge, and a confirmed bachelor. According to several references in Perelandra, Ransom also served in the World War I, similarly to J.R.R. Tolkien, a good friend of C.S. Lewis. Ransom prefers to spend his holidays alone, hence his capture by the antagonists Weston and Devine. When he is captured, Ransom discovers his purpose is to serve as a 'ransom' for the entire human race allowing Weston and Devine to continue their explorations of the planet Malacandra (Mars). By ''That Hideous Strength,'' Ransom had been thoroughly changed by his experiences. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Welsh Dragon
The Welsh Dragon ( cy, y Ddraig Goch, meaning 'the red dragon'; ) is a heraldic symbol that represents Wales and appears on the national flag of Wales. As an emblem, the red dragon of Wales has been used since the reign of Cadwaladr, King of Gwynedd from around 655AD and is historically known as the "Red Dragon of Cadwaladr". Ancient leaders of the Celtic Britons that are personified as dragons include Maelgwn Gwynedd, Mynyddog Mwynfawr and Urien Rheged. Later Welsh "dragons" include Owain Gwynedd, Llywelyn ap Gruffydd and Owain Glyndŵr. The red dragon appears in the ancient ''Mabinogion'' story of Lludd and Llefelys where it is confined, battling with an invading white dragon, at Dinas Emrys. The story continues in the , written around AD 829, where Gwrtheyrn, King of the Britons is frustrated in attempts to build a fort at Dinas Emrys. He is told by a boy Emrys, to dig up two dragons fighting beneath the castle. He discovers the white dragon representing the Anglo-Saxon ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
A Connecticut Yankee In King Arthur's Court
''A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court'' is an 1889 novel by American humorist and writer Mark Twain. The book was originally titled ''A Yankee in King Arthur's Court''. Some early editions are titled ''A Yankee at the Court of King Arthur''. In the book, a Yankee engineer from Connecticut named Hank Morgan receives a severe blow to the head and is somehow transported in time and space to England during the reign of King Arthur. After some initial confusion and his capture by one of Arthur's knights, Hank realizes that he is actually in the past, and he uses his knowledge to make people believe that he is a powerful magician. He becomes a rival of Merlin, who appears to be little more than a fraud, and gains the trust of King Arthur. Hank attempts to modernize the past in order to make people's lives better. Hank is disgusted by how the Barons treat the commoners, and tries to implement democratic reforms, but in the end he is unable to prevent the death of Arthur. Ha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
_Uthr_Bendragon.jpg "Click for more on -> Uther Pendragon")
_Emrys_Wledig.jpg "Click for more on -> Ambrosius Aurelianus")
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