All hail, the once and future battle leader!

Could this be the breakthrough us Arthurianists have been waiting for?

It seems that an historian has found proof of King Arthur's existence - but as the battle leader son of a 6th-century Scottish king named Aiden.

David Carroll, the press release explains, has spent more than 25 years researching Arthurian legend, in a quest that has taken him all over Europe delving into ancient manuscripts and records.

It's one particular text - the Dorbene manuscript, written by 7th-century monks, which had been hidden away under lock and key in the town library of Schaffhausen in Switzerland - that he says contains irrefutable proof that a 6th-century Scottish prince is the true source of the Arthurian legend.

According to David, the similarities between the Scottish battle leader documented in the manuscript, referred to as Arturius by the monks, and the legend of King Arthur cannot be ignored.

"There is no doubt in my mind that Arturius is the real King Arthur," he says. "Both were active in the 6th century, both died in battles against the Picts, both were Christian, both fought alongside Urien and other British kings, and both had a sister called Morgan - a name unheard of in 6th and 7th century records.

"To have a brother and a sister at that time called Arthur and Morgan is highly unlikely. It would be like finding another Napoleon and Josephine or Antony and Cleopatra – it’s almost impossible."

David believes the reason why, for centuries, this 6th-century prince was overlooked as being the source of Arthurian legend is because he was referred to as a battle leader by the monks, not as a king. "But had he not died in battle against the Picts, he could have eventually succeeded his father and become King Arturius – King Arthur," he points out. 

To add to David’s claims, the 9th-century Welsh monk, Nennius, also refers to Arthur as a battle leader – as per the Swiss manuscript written two centuries earlier. 

The date of the text makes it the oldest historical document in the world to mention Arthur - coming five centuries before Geoffrey of Monmouth introduced the story of Arthur into Cornish legend.

David has written a book based on his research called Arturius – A Quest for Camelot, which is now available to download for free. I'll certainly be getting myself a copy.

Exciting stuff! 

Image: Charles Ernest Butler - King Arthur