has survived (10). A Norman clerk, Wace copied Geoffrey’s work closely, but added new events, including the Round Table. Arthurian literature drastically changed during the Middle Ages, when emphasis shifts quickly to Lancelot and Guenevere, to Perceval, Galahad, or Gawain, to Tristan and Isolde. In Celtic material over French romances, Arthur plays the dominant role, going to wars, hunts and quests, earning glory and territory for himself. Works like Culhqch and Olwen, Arthur is associated with the magic and supernatural, while the Welsh Arthur is based more on Celtic mythological tradition. Besides chronicles, the Celtic texts, and the Middle English works, emphasis is not put on Arthur much as a great warrior. Large-scale wars are forgotten, and Arthur becomes a wise, generous character, not a warlord of the past. Arthur was an ideal Christian hero, and in texts like Culhwch and Olwen he is shown as God’s elect. The story of the Sword of the Stone, originally from the Viking myth about the Sword of the Volsungs, has now become the act of God that shows Arthur as divine ruler.The most famous writings of Arthur would be Le Morte Darthur. Written by Thomas Malory, a knight and a prisoner who loved hunting, tournaments, and chivalry, and had read widely in Arthurian romance. Le Morte Darthur was finished between 1469 and 1470. It is a combination of nearly every Arthurian manuscript, and is a work of literary genius.The historical Arthur, although we may never find who he really is, is a major part of history and literature. For Arthur to be forgotten in literature would be impossible, as it is one of the greatest but most baffling stories in history....
