Arthur et la Table ronde : La force d'une légende
 "Young Arthur pulling the Excalibur", cover image for French edition | |
| Author | Anne Berthelot |
|---|---|
| Original title | Arthur et la Table ronde : La force d'une légende |
| Translator | Ruth Sharman |
| Cover artist | Anonymous (FR ed.) Évrard d'Espinques (UK ed.) William Dyce (US ed.) |
| Country | France |
| Language | French |
| Series | Découvertes Gallimard●Littérature |
Release number | 298 |
| Subject | King Arthur, Arthurian Literature |
| Genre | Nonfiction monograph |
| Publisher | FR: Éditions Gallimard US: Harry N. Abrams UK: Thames & Hudson |
Publication date | 1996 |
Published in English | 1997 |
| Media type | Print (Paperback) |
| Pages | 160 pp. |
| ISBN | 978-2-070-53376-3 (first edition) |
| OCLC | 994764452 |
| Preceded by | La Danse 1/ Du ballet de cour au ballet blanc |
| Followed by | L'Art et la Science : L'esprit des chefs-d'œuvre |
| Website | www |
The historical origins of the Arthurian legend are lost in the mists of time: Roman Britain, Sarmatians, Picts or the Saxon kings? Who were Arthur's contemporaries? Archaeological findings in Wales, Cornwall and Scotland suggest the possible existence of this legendary figure. Arthurian legend is central to Anglo-Saxon culture, and by the 12th century King Arthur and his kingdom had become a national myth, elaborated by English and French writers. It owes its existence in literature to an Anglo-French rivalry: Henry II of England, for establishing his legitimacy, had the story of an Anglo-Saxon hero written that was destined to be a counterpart to Charlemagne. Thus was born the legend of Arthur. During the Middle Ages, Arthur became the absolute model of a knight, herald of courtly values and defender of Christendom.
Between myth and history, Anne Berthelot manages to unravel the threads of this great legend in a small but lavishly illustrated volume—Arthur et la Table ronde : La force d'une légende (lit. 'Arthur and the Round Table: The Power of a Legend'; UK edition – King Arthur: Chivalry and Legend; US edition – King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table)—published by Éditions Gallimard as the 298th volume in their Littérature series for the "Découvertes" collection.
The book contains a huge number of colour illustrations taken from medieval illuminated manuscripts, 16th and 19th-century engravings, Pre-Raphaelite paintings and other sources. It opens with a series of reproductions of Julia Margaret Cameron's photographic illustrations for Idylls of the King—a cycle of twelve narrative poems by Alfred Tennyson—which retells the legend of King Arthur. The body text is divided into five chapters: I, "The Historical Context" (Arthur et l'histoire); II, "The Creation of a Legend" (La Création d'une légende); III, "The Life of Arthur" (La Vie d'Arthur); IV, "Feudalism and Chivalry" (La féodalité et la chevalerie); V, "An Extraordinary Literary Flowering" (Une fantastique floraison littéraire). The following "Documents" section in British edition—which is reformulated by Thames & Hudson—contains a compilation of excerpts which is divided into six chapters: 1, Arthur in 12th-century literature; 2, Arthur in the Middle Ages; 3, The Round Table and the Holy Grail; 4, Arthur in the 19th and 20th centuries; 5, In the footsteps of King Arthur; 6, King Arthur in the cinema. The original French version has seven chapters in this section and the contents are slightly different.[note 1] At the end of the book are further reading, list of illustrations and index. It has been translated into American and British English, Japanese, Polish, and South Korean.
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