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The Quest for Arthur's Britain

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The story of Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table is the chief myth of Britain. But is it something more than myth? Solid facts have emerged through the recent work of archaeologists. This book examines the historical foundations of the Arthurian tradition, and then presents the results of excavations to date at Cadbury (reputed site of Camelot), Tintagel, Glastonbury and less-known places.

318 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1968

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Geoffrey Ashe

99 books42 followers
Geoffrey Thomas Leslie Ashe is a British cultural historian, a writer of non-fiction books and novels.

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5 stars
56 (22%)
4 stars
106 (42%)
3 stars
75 (29%)
2 stars
12 (4%)
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3 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
Profile Image for Chris.
958 reviews115 followers
June 12, 2018
The 60s saw a rapid rise in interest in all things Arthurian, spurred on by a New Age zeitgeist which embraced all forms of fantasy from Tolkien to comics and by other aspects of popular culture, including musicals like Camelot. In the middle of it all a more archaeological approach to the little-understood post-Roman period in Britain was emerging which sought to throw light on what was popularly known as the Dark Ages; and the epitome of this approach was the five-year investigation (from 1966 to 1970) of the Somerset hillfort of South Cadbury Castle by the provocatively-named Camelot Research Committee. Perhaps as a direct result of the publicity surrounding the excavations the 1967 film of Camelot actually featured a map which placed the court roughly where the hillfort was situated.

Most of the contributors to this 1968 volume were directly or tangentially associated with this Committee, and preparations for the book began as the results of the first year of excavation were being processed. The result was a compendium that was, for the time, an authoritative summary of the history, archaeology, literature and continuing cultural appeal of the Arthurian period and the Arthurian legends, plentifully illustrated with maps, line drawings and photos. After its appearance in hardback it was frequently re-issued as a paperback by Paladin, thus literally extending its shelf-life.

As a snapshot of what was known or could be surmised about the Arthurian 'reality' it was of its time, but in retrospect much of it still stands up to scrutiny four decades and more later, despite advances particularly in archaeological research. Its influence was immense, so much so that non-academic writers still ill-advisedly use it as their Arthurian bible, when Christopher Snyder's more up-to-date 2000 study The World of King Arthur would provide a better overview (though even this is very dated now).

The Quest for Arthur's Britain is particularly nostalgic for me as I spent part of one season as a volunteer digger at South Cadbury helping to excavate the southwest gate and part of the summit, and also met or knew some of the contributors to this volume; sadly most of them have since passed away. Although the text only hints at this, the dig captured the public's imagination and made archaeology very rock & roll (in much the same way as Time Team was to do in its way at the end of the century); it's difficult now to fully appreciate what an impact it made in popular culture, though it certainly made a lasting impression on me.

https://wp.me/s2oNj1-questing
Profile Image for Erik Graff.
5,172 reviews1,477 followers
October 24, 2020
I read Welch's 'Britannia', a scholarly book about Roman Britain, in order to prepare to read Ashe's Quest because anything about Arthurian legend, emotions being what they are, is unlikely to be objectively disinterested.

Ashe's collection, perhaps unlike some of the books (he's practically an industry) he wrote entirely by himself, is not bad. It's interested certainly and one imagines Ashe was careful to take material generally congruent to his own ideas, but for the most part the quality of scholarship is good and the weight of evidence substantial.
Profile Image for Elsbeth Kwant.
469 reviews24 followers
Read
January 7, 2026
Over the Christmas Holidays I made a jigsaw of the world of Arthur. I realised it was a long time ago I read anything about him. This was very satisfying - the matter of Britain (the pen) combined with the spade. And enjoyable to read about the west countries and Wales. Wonderful read!
Profile Image for Sandra.
412 reviews51 followers
April 29, 2011
I bought this book because I was interested in the history behind the Arthurian Legend, which I love. I learned a very important lesson: do NOT try to search for the truth behind a legend, because it takes away some of the magic. At least that's what it felt like for me.

The informations on the various digs mentioned in the text is very extensive. It talks in detail about any relevant place (such as Glastonbury), what was found there and what it proves. I'm sure that for some people that would be an absolutely fantastic read. But I don't belong to that group of people and this bit of information bored me out of my wits.

I liked how they traced the history of the Arthurian Legend and how they tried to trace the real Arthur. It's interesting to see what things of the Legend that we know now showed up before Geoffrey of Monmouth, who appears to have been talking both truth and nonsense. For instance, Merlin was completely his invention and that makes me a bit sad. (Okay, so technically there was an inspiration for the character of Merlin, but he could never have met the 'historical Arthur', unless a very young Merlin had happened to meet a very old Arthur, which just sort of ruins it.) I'm just sad that most of the times it was just the men that were mentioned (even Morgan Le Fay only gets one mention, and at that point we're over 200 pages in) since I love the Arthurian women so much. But given the historical period, that's probably not surprising.
Profile Image for Ron.
Author 2 books170 followers
September 4, 2008
Despite many of Ashe's conclusions being overtaken by later scholarship, Quest remains a good resource for the soil from which Arthurian legend sprouted.
Profile Image for Daniel Benshana.
Author 13 books69 followers
December 20, 2014
I read this as a teenager after years of reading the myths in various editions. this was a welcome, deeper analysis of the history in as far as there is any, of the myth and the times.
107 reviews
July 20, 2022
This book by Geoffrey Ashe (plus contributors) is a good read, if slightly unusual and a bit dated. At the time of its publication (1968) it was a very up to date overview of the then current archaeological discoveries at Cadbury and Glastonbury. However, these descriptions of the digs tend to be fussy and long winded, and take up most of the middle section of the book. (No doubt they will have lasting value as a reference guide, however).

Far better are the bookending sections: at the start, an excellent summary of the origins of the Arthurian stories, and how they have been revised (and waxed and waned in popularity) over the ages. I'm a relative newcomer to Arthurian stuff, and I found this a brilliant and readable starting point. At the end, a discussion of where we are now (well, 1968): what does the Arthur story mean now, what do we know about the historical basis, what are we likely to discover going forward?

There are some retrospectively comical observations. Ashe hopes for a regular Glastonbury Festival, which as of 1968 had a history of only a few sporadic attempts at some kind of historical/ cultural event with an Arthurian bent: funny to think that within a few years the Glastonbury Festival (as we know it today) will have been established, eventually becoming one of the biggest rock festivals in the world. Ashe also seems to think T H White's The Once And Future King the last word in straight Arthurian fiction: little would he have know of the surge of book, film and TV adaptations of Arthur to follow in the years to come. I wonder what he thought of Monty Python and the Holy Grail?

I very much like his conclusion. He neither believes too blindly in the legend nor applies too skeptical an approach in demanding absolute archaeological proof for Arthur. As he eloquently puts it, '... We go wrong if we take the legends literally... We go more wrong if we refuse to take them seriously.' The Arthur myth is important in that respect. 'Something' no doubt happened around the start of the 6th century (the 'Arthurian fact') which overturned a Saxon invasion and turned the tide at Badon Hill: it may only have delayed the subsequent Anglo Saxon integration, but this delay preserved the west of England (and Glastonbury in particular) as a spiritual and cultural centre. Ashe is very persuasive in his belief in the importance of Glastonbury and his hope for 'Arthur's return' in 'a new and acceptable patriotism, a new sense of national vocation'. Wise and welcome words in an era where nationalism can be a dangerous thing and is often abused and misinterpreted for racist objectives. Here, possibly, is the elusive Grail we need to find as a nation.
2 reviews
September 17, 2023
This book is incredible. Here we have another case of the scholarship being top notch but the subject matter being so controversial that the book and author sometimes get derided. Yes, there are have been challenges to some of the archaeological claims. That doesn't mean they've been falsified. The only real complaint I have is that in the section on clothing, there are no photos of dark age clothing at all (at least not in my edition!). That didn't take it down a full star, though. All in all, a solid history book on a little-known era.
Profile Image for Mark Moxley-Knapp.
504 reviews1 follower
February 18, 2020
An interesting, scholarly take on the legend and possible truth of King Arthur. Covers the stories, archaeology, development and origins of the legends, etc. Broken up into several essays about different topics. Out of date, but a nice foundation for where the legend came from, as well as a snapshot of how archaeology and historiography work.
618 reviews
September 29, 2025
This looks and reads like a textbook. It is going to appear dry to all but the biggest fans of Arthurian archaeology; however, the first two chapters are excellent summaries of the Arthur legend as it played out in literature and of the historical Arthur, and are worth a look.
2 reviews
October 5, 2025
I'm unable to finish this book because the editing is horrendous. Perhaps it's just the ebook version I'm reading. I'm definitely interested in the subject matter, the marrying of legend with architectural discovery and historical research. I may look for further sources to satisfy my curiosity.
967 reviews17 followers
August 29, 2020
Very interesting, full of facts and details. The only criticism is having to keep a finger in another page either ahead or back from where I was reading, due to references to the photos in the text.
Profile Image for Patrick Neylan.
Author 21 books27 followers
March 17, 2022
Somewhat dated with conclusions coloured, if not compromised, by wishful thinking. Nonetheless an interesting examination of the archaeological evidence as it stood in the early 70s.
Profile Image for The Bauchler.
564 reviews15 followers
October 2, 2024

A useful background reading book for understanding dark Ages Britain.
Profile Image for Sumer Sidhu.
4 reviews1 follower
January 18, 2023
I think this is a great book about the architecture clothes and weapons of the Arthurian era. It gives a lot of information about Arthur's Legend, and it is a very enjoyable book. Would highly recommend
Profile Image for Flint Johnson.
82 reviews5 followers
June 19, 2013
One must remember one thing when reading Geoffrey Ashe, that he ran a touring business centered around King Arthur and Somerset. With that bias in mind, a quick overview of his jointly written book is more useful. Ashe was able to acquire the best experts of the time in writing his book, and when they spoke of clothing, weaponry, and other non-geographical details they came up with some useful information. However, as Alcock even mentions in his essay, the authors were asked to make certain that all of their conclusions agreed; which is good for sales and bad for the truth. There are good points made in the book, but it is not to be trusted. Ashe had his own agenda. In all of Alcock's later works he often referred to his own materials (as the leader in the field). It is noteworthy that I have never found a single citation of his back to this book.
Profile Image for Amy Wolf.
Author 65 books89 followers
January 23, 2013
Just LOVED this book about the search for an historical Arthur. Ashe actually lives in Glastonbury so he is on-the-spot to investigate sites such as Cadbury and the River Cam. He's a great guy: I was doing some research, wrote to him, and he wrote me back with the answer! Great pictures as well. A must-have for any Arthurian fanatic!
Profile Image for Pete daPixie.
1,505 reviews3 followers
April 1, 2011
From very distant memory I've given this 3 stars. It must be going on at least 30 years since I read this. However, I think this book is a good starter for those readers on the quest for the historical Arthur. Forget Richard Harris and Vanessa Redgrave!
Profile Image for Steven Hernacki.
26 reviews9 followers
September 11, 2012


Excellent read. Good mixture of archaeology and literary history. Last section traces the influence of Arthurian legend through the ages and its impact on British cultural and political development.
Profile Image for Claire Baxter.
271 reviews12 followers
August 6, 2015
In fairness I can't really say I read it as I only got about a third of the way through. If you have a real interest in the topic or a lot of background knowledge it might be interesting but it was far too wordy and detailed for what I was looking for.
Profile Image for Roger.
Author 4 books3 followers
June 25, 2010
Re-reading this. Interesting summary of the development of the Arthurian legend and the historical facts behind it.
Profile Image for Janis.
32 reviews3 followers
June 7, 2012


I think there are some compelling arguments in this book. But then I am prone to want things to be disproven rather than proven.
Profile Image for Pat Theo.
6 reviews
Read
January 2, 2016
I cant remember! Must read it again though since then more theories are around, more archeological digs have taken place, so it is probably dated
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews

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