Arthur, Cerdic, and the Formation of Wessex
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Arthur, Cerdic, and the Formation of Wessex By: John C. Rudmin, 864 Chicago Av, Harrisonburg, VA, 22801 VII. A Detailed Comparison of the Career of Cerdic with Geoffrey's Arthur We now compare the life of Arthur, as described by Geoffrey of Monmouth, with that of Cerdic as suggested by various sources.
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| Geoffrey's Arthur | Cerdic (Vreichvras) | Source |
| Arthur means Strength of Arm | Vreichvras means Strongarm | Harper Dict. & Morris |
| Illegitimate son of Uther and Igerna, the wife of Gorlois (Gorlois = Guor Elessa?) | Illegitimate son of Isaive. Father is Eliavres or Elessa | Legends & Genealogies |
| Involved with wizard Merlin | Father a wizard--Llyr Merini | Legends |
| Vortigern's interpreter | Nennius | |
| Campaigns against Saxons in Yorkshire, and drives Saxons into the Caledonian Wood. Then traps the Saxons in the forest, and blockades them by felling trees to make a fence. | Campaigns in northern Britain with Octha & Ebessa | Geoffrey |
| Extends the campaign to the Orkneys and all around Pictland | Nennius | |
| Geoffrey's victor at Bath. Nennius's victor at Badon Hill. Gildas says Badon Hill ca. 500. Most scholars believe Badon in Southwest Britain. | Cerdic dominated Southwest Britain ca. 500 as evidenced by the pedigrees of the kings of Glamorgan, Gwent, and Wessex. | legends and genealogies of Vreichvras |
| Returns to Dunbarton and starts to exterminate the Picts and Scots, but abandons this in the face of entreaties by the clergy. | There is an emphasis here on Dunbarton. This may have been due to a confusion of Cerdic with Ceredig of Dunbarton. | |
| Goes to York, marries Guenevere, raised in the household of Cador Duke of Cornwall. | Marries Guignier, sister of Cador, prince of Cornwall | Legend of Caradoc Vreichvras |
| Conquers Ireland and Iceland. | Someone named Ceredig gathered a fleet and ravaged the coast of Ireland around the year 450. This is about the date of the last Irish raids on Britain. | St. Patrick's Letter to the Soldiers of Coroticus |
| Spent nine years subduing Gaul and held court in Paris. Reigned at Nantes in some stories. | Spent 25? years in Gaul and ruled at Nantes and Vannes. | Legends of Cardoc Vreichvras |
| Reigned for five years in Glamorgan. | Dynastic founder of the kings of Glamorgan. | Genealogies |
| Defeated and slew the emperor of Rome | [No Roman Emperor was slain by a Briton after Magnus Maximus in 383.] | |
| Died fighting his nephew Modred, who married Guenevere and rebelled. | Medrot was Cerdic's grandson. Guenevere would have been much too old to marry him. | |
| Traditionally associated with Winchester (Malory's Camelot) | Ruled at Winchester. | |
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Little commentary is needed on the above comparison chart. Nearly every element in the
story of Arthur, which COULD be historical, was also an element of Cerdic's career.
Personal names and relationships from the legends match well. Differences generally appear
to be due to Geoffrey's purposes, such as Arthur's royal parentage. It is reasonable to
conclude that Arthur is Cerdic.
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John C. Rudmin, 864 Chicago Av, Harrisonburg, VA, 22801
Joseph W. Rudmin, Physics Dept., James Madison Univ., Harrisonburg, VA, 22807
(First submitted for publication in Oct 1993)
Copyright statement: Permission is given to copy
and distribute this essay freely provided the authors are cited and this statement
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