Editing King Arthur (section)

=== Pre-Galfridian traditions ===
The earliest literary references to Arthur come from Welsh and Breton sources. There have been few attempts to define the nature and character of Arthur in the pre-Galfridian tradition as a whole, rather than in a single text or text/story-type. A 2007 academic survey led by Caitlin Green has identified three key strands to the portrayal of Arthur in this earliest material.<ref>{{Harvnb|Green|2007b|pp= 45–176}}</ref> The first is that he was a peerless warrior who functioned as the monster-hunting protector of Britain from all internal and external threats. Some of these are human threats, such as the Saxons he fights in the ''Historia Brittonum'', but the majority are supernatural, including giant [[Cath Palug|cat-monsters]], destructive [[Twrch Trwyth|divine boars]], dragons, [[Cynocephaly|dogheads]], [[Giant|giants]], and [[Witchcraft|witches]].<ref>{{Harvnb|Green|2007b|pp= 93–130}}</ref> The second is that the pre-Galfridian Arthur was a figure of folklore (particularly [[Toponymy|topographic]] or [[onomastic]] folklore) and localised magical wonder-tales, the leader of a band of superhuman heroes who live in the wilds of the landscape.<ref>{{Harvnb|Padel|1994}} has a thorough discussion of this aspect of Arthur's character.</ref> The third and final strand is that the early Welsh Arthur had a close connection with the Welsh Otherworld, [[Annwn]]. On the one hand, he launches assaults on Otherworldly fortresses in search of treasure and frees their prisoners. On the other, his warband in the earliest sources includes former pagan gods, and his wife and his possessions are clearly Otherworldly in origin.<ref>{{Harvnb|Green|2007b|pp= 135–176}}. On his possessions and wife, see also {{Harvnb|Ford|1983}}.</ref>

[[File:Gododdin1.jpg|thumb|upright|A page of ''[[Y Gododdin]]'', one of the most famous early Welsh texts featuring Arthur ({{c.|lk=no|1275}})|alt=|left]]

One of the most famous Welsh poetic references to Arthur comes in the collection of heroic death-songs known as ''[[Y Gododdin]]'' (''The Gododdin''), attributed to the 6th-century poet [[Aneirin]]. One stanza from the oldest surviving manuscript<ref name=":0" /> praises the bravery of a warrior who slew 300 enemies, but says that despite this, "he was no Arthur," i.e., his feats cannot compare to Arthur.<ref>{{Harvnb|Williams|1937|p= 64}}, line 1242</ref> ''Y Gododdin'' is known only from a 13th-century manuscript,<ref name=":1" /> so it is impossible to determine whether this passage is original or a later interpolation, but John Koch's view that the passage dates from a 7th-century or earlier version is regarded as unproven; 9th- or 10th-century dates are often proposed for it.<ref>{{Harvnb|Charles-Edwards|1991|p= 15}}; {{Harvnb|Koch|1996|pp= 242–245}}; {{Harvnb|Green|2007b|pp= 13–15, 50–52}}.</ref><ref>{{Cite book |title=The Arthur of the Welsh: The Arthurian Legend in Medieval Welsh Literature |date=2008 |publisher=Univ. of Wales Press |isbn=978-0-7083-1307-7 |editor-last=Bromwich |editor-first=Rachel |edition=2nd |location=Cardiff |pages=4 |language=en |quote=it could quite probably be as old as the ninth-century redaction of the Historia Brittonum, even if it formed no part of the original Gododdin poem. |editor-last2=Jarman |editor-first2=A. O. H. |editor-last3=Roberts |editor-first3=Brynley Francis}}</ref> Several poems attributed to [[Taliesin]], a poet said to have lived in the 6th century, also refer to Arthur, although these all probably date from between the 8th and 12th centuries.<ref>See, for example, {{Harvnb|Haycock|1983–1984}} and {{Harvnb|Koch|1996|pp= 264–265}}.</ref> They include "Kadeir Teyrnon" ("The Chair of the Prince"),<ref>Online translations of this poem are out-dated and inaccurate. See {{Harvnb|Haycock|2007|pp= 293–311}} for a full translation, and {{Harvnb|Green|2007b|p= 197}} for a discussion of its Arthurian aspects.</ref> which refers to "Arthur the Blessed"; "[[Preiddeu Annwfn|Preiddeu Annwn]]" ("The Spoils of Annwn"),<ref>See, for example, {{Harvnb|Green|2007b|pp= 54–67}} and {{Harvnb|Budgey|1992}}, who includes a translation.</ref> which recounts an expedition of Arthur to the Otherworld; and "Marwnat vthyr pen[dragon]" ("The Elegy of Uther Pen[dragon]"),<ref>{{Harvnb|Koch|Carey|1994|pp= 314–15}}</ref> which refers to Arthur's valour and is suggestive of a father-son relationship for Arthur and Uther that pre-dates Geoffrey of Monmouth.

[[File:Culhwch.jpg|thumb|[[Culhwch]] entering Arthur's court in the Welsh tale ''[[Culhwch and Olwen]]''. An illustration by Alfred Fredericks for an 1881 edition of the ''[[Mabinogion]]''<ref>{{Harvnb|Lanier|1881}}</ref>|alt=]]

Other early Welsh Arthurian texts include a poem found in the ''[[Black Book of Carmarthen]]'', "[[Pa gur]] yv y porthaur?" ("What man is the gatekeeper?").<ref>{{Harvnb|Sims-Williams|1991|pp= 38–46}} has a full translation and analysis of this poem.</ref> This takes the form of a dialogue between Arthur and the gatekeeper of a fortress he wishes to enter, in which Arthur recounts the names and deeds of himself and his men, notably [[Sir Kay|Cei]] (Kay) and [[Bedwyr]] (Bedivere).

In addition to these pre-Galfridian Welsh poems and tales, Arthur appears in some other early Latin texts besides the ''Historia Brittonum'' and the ''Annales Cambriae''. In particular, Arthur features in a number of well-known ''vitae'' ("[[hagiography|Lives]]") of post-Roman [[saint]]s, none of which are now generally considered to be reliable historical sources (the earliest probably dates from the 11th century).<ref>{{Harvnb|Roberts|1991a}}</ref> According to the ''Life of Saint [[Gildas]]'', written in the early 12th century by [[Caradoc of Llancarfan]], Arthur is said to have killed Gildas's brother Hueil and to have rescued his wife [[Gwenhwyfar]] from Glastonbury.<ref>Translated in {{Harvnb|Coe|Young|1995|pp= 22–27}}. On the Glastonbury tale and its Otherworldly antecedents, see {{Harvnb|Sims-Williams|1991|pp= 58–61}}.</ref> In the ''Life of Saint [[Cadoc]]'', written around 1100 or a little before by Lifris of Llancarfan, the saint gives protection to a man who killed three of Arthur's soldiers, and Arthur demands a herd of cattle as ''[[wergeld]]'' for his men. Cadoc delivers them as demanded, but when Arthur takes possession of the animals, they turn into bundles of ferns.<ref>{{Harvnb|Coe|Young|1995|pp= 26–37}}</ref> Similar incidents are described in the medieval biographies of [[Carantoc]], [[Padarn]] and [[Efflamm|Efflamn]], probably written around the 12th century. A less legendary account of Arthur appears in the ''[[Goeznovius|Legenda Sancti Goeznovii]]'', which is often claimed to date from the early 11th century (although the earliest manuscript of this text dates from the 15th century and the text is now dated to the late 12th to early 13th century).<ref>Bourgès, André-Yves, "Guillaume le Breton et l'hagiographie bretonne aux XIIe et XIIIe siècles", in: Annales de Bretagne et des pays de l'Ouest, 1995, 102–1, pp. 35–45.; See {{Harvnb|Ashe|1985}} for an attempt to use this ''vita'' as a historical source.</ref> Also important are the references to Arthur in [[William of Malmesbury]]'s ''De Gestis Regum Anglorum'' and Herman's ''[[De miraculis sanctae Mariae Laudunensis|De Miraculis Sanctae Mariae Laudunensis]]'', which together provide the first certain evidence for a belief that Arthur was not actually dead and would at some point [[King Arthur's messianic return|return]], a theme that is often revisited in post-Galfridian folklore.<ref>{{Harvnb|Padel|1994|pp =8–12}}; {{Harvnb|Green|2007b|pp =72–75, 259, 261–262}}; {{Harvnb|Bullock-Davies|1982}}.</ref>