King Arthur: The Mysteries of Merlin (Part 3)

Tom Holland (0:03)

This episode is supported by Anthropic, the team behind Claude. Now history's biggest leaps started as hard questions that people didn't want asked.

Dominic Sandbrook (0:14)

Yeah, there's a classic example of that at the end of the 15th century. And the hard question in particular was, what is out there beyond the Atlantic Ocean to the West? And as you will know, the man who found the answer to that question was the explorer Christopher Columbus. And he realizes, or rather everybody else realizes, that there is a vast continent out there. And it is, of course, the Americas. So, you know, Anthropic knows the importance of questions. And it's why Anthropic is founded on one hard question above all. How can we ensure that the AI revolution really goes well for ordinary people?

Tom Holland (0:45)

So they asked over 100,000 people. And what came back wasn't just fear, there was hope as well. People wanted to know, will cancer ever be cured? Can kids have a better future? It turns out that there is hope in hard questions.

Dominic Sandbrook (0:59)

Ask yours at claude.ai/restishistory and keep thinking.

Tom Holland (1:08)

This episode is brought to you by Mint Mobile.

Dominic Sandbrook (1:11)

Right now, all of Mint's plans are $15 per month, even unlimited.

Tom Holland (1:17)

So go to mintmobile.com/history.

Dominic Sandbrook (1:21)

Upfront payment of $45 for three months, $90 for six months or $180 for 12 months. Plan required, $15 per month equivalent. Taxes and fees extra, initial plan term only. Greater than 50 gigabytes may slow when network is busy. Includes up to 20 gigabytes of hotspot, capable device required. Availability, speed and coverage varies. See mintmobile.com.

This episode is brought to you by the Gates Foundation. We have touched on the fall of the Roman Empire a few times on this show, haven't we? But what our listeners may not know is that among the causes that historians talk about, it's not just barbarian invasions. There's also talk of a disease which people call Roman fever, which I believe we know now as malaria.

Tom Holland (2:09)

For thousands of years, humanity was defenseless against it. But thankfully, we live in a time of incredible ingenuity, and American scientists and partners around the world are fighting back with support from the Gates Foundation.

Dominic Sandbrook (2:24)

Yeah, so they're creating a new generation of bed nets that kill up to 90% of mosquitoes. That leads to a 50% drop in malaria, saving lives and protecting vulnerable communities. The Gates Foundation, partners of human potential. Search gatesfoundation.org/mosquito to learn more.

A week went by and the king's passion for Igrayn had become more than he could bear. He summoned Ulfin of Ridd Karadoc, one of his friends, and told him how desperately besotted he was with Igrayn.

If I cannot have her, then I am convinced that I shall suffer a physical breakdown. You must tell me how I can satisfy my desire for her, for otherwise I shall die of this passion which is burning me up.

What you request is impossible, answered Ulfin. We can't possibly approach Igrayn while she's inside the walls of Tintagel. The castle is built high above the sea, which surrounds it on all sides, and the only way across to it is via a narrow isthmus of rock. Three armed men could hold it against you, even were you to stand there with the entire might of Britain at your back. The only man who could possibly solve such a problem is the prophet, Merlin. With his assistance, you might, I think, be able to obtain what you want.

And so the king, recognizing the truth of what Ulfin had said, sent for Merlin.

So that's a thrillingly dramatic moment in The History of the Kings of Britain by Geoffrey of Monmouth. So, Geoffrey of Monmouth wrote that in the late 1130s. It was the British bonkbuster of the entire Middle Ages. It's the book that basically invented the legend of King Arthur. It packaged and presented him as this towering figure of European stature, as a conqueror who had ruled as the greatest and most glorious king in all British history. And the passage above is the origin story. So, Tom, remind everybody who Uther Pendragon is.

Tom Holland (4:43)

So, Uther Pendragon is the king in that passage that you were reading. He is the king of Britain. And Igraine, for whom he has the massive hots, is the wife of Goulwar, the Duke of Cornwall.

And Geoffrey describes Igraine as being the most beautiful woman in Britain.

And Uther and Goulwar had originally been allies in the fight against the Saxons who will be coming to in due course in this episode. But then Uther holds court and he gets his first glimpse of the wife of Goulwar, the beauteous Igraine, and he falls madly in love with her. And basically he can't stop gawping at her, you know, eyes wide, kind of salivating. And Goulwar takes massive umbrage at this and he leaves, he storms out of Uther's court without getting the king's permission and heads off to his Duchy of Cornwall. And Uther has a massive strop about this because he feels it's very disrespectful and he demands that Goulwar return with a grain. Goulwar refuses and so Uther invades Cornwall, torching its towns and castles, burning everything in his path. And because Goulwar knows that he can't resist the might of the King of Britain in the open field of battle, he pursues a guerrilla strategy.