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{{Short description|King of Dumnonia and legendary King of Britain}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2019}}
{{EngvarB|date=April 2019}}
{{good article}}
'''Constantine''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|k|ɒ|n|s|t|ən|t|iː|n}}, {{langx|cy|Cystennin}}, [[floruit|fl.]] 520–523) was a 6th-century king of [[Dumnonia]] in [[sub-Roman Britain]], who was remembered in later [[Matter of Britain|British tradition]] as a [[List of legendary kings of Britain|legendary King of Britain]]. The only contemporary information about him comes from [[Gildas]], who castigated him for various sins, including the murder of two "royal youths" inside a church. The historical Constantine is also known from the genealogies of the Dumnonian kings, and possibly inspired the tradition of [[Constantine (British saint)|Saint Constantine]], a king-turned-monk venerated in southwest Britain and elsewhere.

In the 12th century, [[Geoffrey of Monmouth]] included Constantine in his pseudohistorical  chronicle ''[[Historia Regum Britanniae]]'', adding details to Gildas' account and making Constantine the successor to [[King Arthur]] as King of Britain. Under Geoffrey's influence, Constantine appeared as Arthur's heir in later chronicles. Less commonly, he also appeared in that role in medieval Arthurian romances and prose works, and in some modern versions of the legend.

==History==
[[File:Britain.circa.540.jpg|thumb|250px|Southern Britain in c. 540, the time of [[Gildas]]. Constantine's likely kingdom of [[Dumnonia]] is in the southwest; the territory of the [[Damnonii]] is in the northwest.]]
The 6th-century monk [[Gildas]] mentions Constantine in chapters 28 and 29 of work ''[[De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae]]''.<ref name=Gildas>[[s:The Ruin of Britain#28|''De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae'', ch. 28–29]].</ref> Constantine is one of five [[Britons (historical)|Brittonic]] kings whom the author rebukes and compares to Biblical beasts. Gildas calls Constantine the "tyrannical whelp of the unclean lioness of Damnonia", a reference to the books of [[Book of Daniel|Daniel]] and [[Book of Revelation|Revelation]], and apparently also a slur directed at his mother. This ''Damnonia'' is generally identified as the kingdom of [[Dumnonia]] in present-day [[South West England]].<ref>Lloyd, pp. 131–132.</ref> Scholars such as [[Lloyd Laing (archaeologist)|Lloyd Laing]] and [[Leslie Alcock]] note the possibility that Gildas may have instead intended the territory of the [[Damnonii]], a tribe in present-day [[Scotland]] mentioned by [[Ptolemy]] in the 2nd century, but others such as Thomas D. O'Sullivan consider this unlikely.<ref>O'Sullivan, p. 92 & note.</ref>

Gildas says that despite swearing an oath against deceit and tyranny, Constantine disguised himself in an [[abbot]]'s robes and attacked two "royal youths" praying before a church altar, killing them and their companions. Gildas is clear that Constantine's sins were manifold even before this, as he had committed "many adulteries" after casting off his lawfully wedded wife. Gildas encourages Constantine, whom he knows to still be alive at the time, to repent his sins lest he be damned.<ref name="Gildas"/> The murders may relate to a 6th-century cult in [[Brittany]] honoring the ''Saints Dredenau'', two young princes killed by an ambitious uncle.<ref>Wasyliw, pp. 80–81.</ref>

Scholars generally identify Gildas' Constantine with the figure ''Custennin Gorneu'' or ''Custennin Corneu'' (Constantine of Cornwall) who appears in the genealogies of the kings of Dumnonia.<ref>O'Sullivan, pp. 92–93.</ref> Custennin is mentioned as the father of [[Erbin of Dumnonia|Erbin]] and the grandfather of the hero [[Geraint]] in the ''[[Bonedd y Saint]]'', the prose romance ''[[Geraint and Enid]]'', and after emendation, the [[genealogies from Jesus College MS 20|genealogies in Jesus College MS 20]].<ref name=Bromwich>Bromwich, pp. 318–319; 356–360.</ref><ref>[[s:The Mabinogion/Geraint the Son of Erbin|''Geraint and Enid'']].</ref> Based on Custennin's placement in the genealogies, Thomas D. O'Sullivan suggests a ''[[floruit]]'' for Constantine of 520–523.<ref>O'Sullivan, p. 95.</ref>

==Saint Constantine==
{{main|Constantine (British saint)}}
[[File:Saint Constantine Church in Constantine Village Kerrier Cornwall.JPG|thumb|left|200px|Saint Constantine's Church in [[Constantine, Cornwall]], perhaps connected to the historical king of Dumnonia]]
The historical Constantine of Dumnonia may have influenced later traditions, known in southwestern Britain as well as in [[Wales]], Ireland, and [[Scotland]], about a [[Constantine (British saint)|Saint Constantine]] who is usually said to have been a king who gave up his crown to become a monk. The Cornish and Welsh traditions especially may have been influenced by Gildas, in particular his adjuration for Constantine to repent; the belief may have been that the reproach eventually worked.<ref name=Orme>Orme, pp. 95–96.</ref>

The two major centers for the ''[[Cult (religious practice)|cultus]]'' of Saint Constantine were the church in [[Constantine, Cornwall|Constantine Parish]] and the Chapel of Saint Constantine in [[St Merryn]] Parish (now [[Constantine Bay]]), both in Cornwall. The former was established by at least the 11th century, as it is mentioned in [[Rhygyfarch]]'s 11th-century ''[[Life of Saint David]]''. At this time it may have supported a clerical community, but in later centuries it was simply a parish church. The Chapel at Constantine Bay had a [[holy well]], and was the center of its own sub-parish.<ref name=Orme/>

The ''[[Annales Cambriae]]'' (''Welsh Annals'') and the ''[[Annals of Ulster]]'' record the conversion of a certain Constantine; these may be a reference to the Cornish saint and therefore to the historical figure.<ref name=Orme/> Several subsequent religious texts refer to Constantine, generally associating him with Cornwall, often specifically as its king. The ''Life of Saint David'' says that Constantine, King of Cornwall, gave up his crown and joined [[Saint David]]'s monastery at [[St Davids|Menevia]]. The ''[[Vitae Petroci]]'' includes an episode in which [[Saint Petroc]] protects a stag being hunted by a wealthy man named Constantine, who eventually converts and becomes a monk. Here Constantine is not said to be king, but a 12th-century text referring to this story, the ''Miracula'', specifically names him as such, further adding that upon his conversion he gave Petroc an ivory horn that became one of the saint's chief relics.<ref>Jankulak, p. 17.</ref> A number of other traditions attested across Britain describe saints or kings named Constantine, suggesting a confusion and conflation of various figures.<ref>Bromwich, pp. 318–319, discusses the confusion of some of these various Constantines. Notable in the context of "Saint" Constantine is ''Custennin Vendigeit'' (The Blessed), the name for the historical usurper [[Constantine III (Western Roman Emperor)|Constantine III]] in the [[Welsh Triads]].</ref>

Other sites in Southwestern Britain associated with figures named Constantine include the church of [[Milton Abbot]], Devon; a chapel in nearby [[Dunterton]], Devon; and a chapel in [[Illogan]], Cornwall. The two Devon sites may have been dedicated instead to [[Constantine the Great]], as local churches were subject to [[Tavistock Abbey]], dedicated to Constantine the Great's mother [[Helena (empress)|Helena]]. In Wales, two churches were dedicated to Constantine: [[Llangystennin]] (in [[Conwy County Borough|Conwy]]) and [[Welsh Bicknor]] (now in [[Herefordshire]], England).<ref name=Orme/> The church in [[Govan]], a parish in present-day [[Scotland]], was also dedicated to a Saint Constantine.<ref>Clarkson 1999.</ref>

==Geoffrey of Monmouth and the chronicle tradition==

===Historia Regum Britanniae===
[[File:History of the Kings (f.75.v) King Arthur.jpg|thumb|[[King Arthur]] from a 15th-century Welsh adaptation of [[Geoffrey of Monmouth]]'s ''[[Historia Regum Britanniae]]''. Geoffrey made Constantine Arthur's successor]]
[[Geoffrey of Monmouth]] includes Constantine in a section of his ''[[Historia Regum Britanniae]]'' adapted from Gildas. As he does throughout the work, Geoffrey alters his source material, recasting Gildas' reproved kings as successors, rather than contemporaries as in ''De Excidio''.<ref name=Wright>Wright, p. 10.</ref> In addition to Gildas, Geoffrey evidently knew the Dumnonian genealogy essentially as it appears in ''Geraint and Enid'' and similar sources. He further adds a number of other details not found in earlier sources, identifying Constantine as a son of [[Cador]], a Cornish ruler known in Welsh tradition as Cadwy mab Geraint. Notably, Geoffrey's Constantine is [[King Arthur]]'s kinsman and succeeds him as [[King of the Britons]].<ref name=Bromwich319>Bromwich, p. 319.</ref> [[Norris J. Lacy]] and [[Geoffrey Ashe]] suggest Geoffrey made this Arthurian connection based on an existing tradition locating Arthur's birthplace in southwest Britain.<ref>Lacy, Ashe, and Mancoff, p. 301.</ref> However, noting that the earliest references place Arthur in northern Britain rather than the southwest, [[Rachel Bromwich]] considers the connection an arbitrary invention by Geoffrey, perhaps suggested by his earlier inventions of familial ties between Arthur and [[Constantine the Great]] and the usurper [[Constantine III (Western Roman Emperor)|Constantine III]].<ref>Bromwich, p. 319, 358.</ref> Geoffrey calls Constantine Arthur's ''cognatus'', or blood relative, but does not specify the exact relation, causing much confusion for later writers.<ref>Moll, p. 166.</ref>

In Geoffrey, Arthur passes his crown to his relative Constantine after being mortally wounded by the traitor [[Mordred]] in the [[Battle of Camlann]]. Geoffrey identifies Gildas' "royal youths" as [[Mordred#Offspring|Mordred's two sons]], who, along with their [[Saxons|Saxon]] allies, continue their father's insurrection after his death. After "many battles" Constantine routs the rebels, and Mordred's sons flee to London and [[Winchester]], where they hide in a church and a friary, respectively. Constantine hunts them down and executes them before the altars of their sanctuaries. Divine retribution for this transgression comes three years later when Constantine is killed by his nephew [[Aurelius Conanus]] (Gildas' Aurelius Caninus), precipitating a civil war. He is buried at [[Stonehenge]] alongside other kings of Britain.<ref>[[s:History of the Kings of Britain/Book 11|''Historia Regum Britanniae'', Book 11, ch. 2–4.]]</ref>

Latin scholar Neil Wright considers Geoffrey's changes to Gildas to be deliberate reformulations that produce a more sympathetic picture of Constantine and his successors. For Wright, identifying the "royal youths" as traitors justifies the killing, reducing Constantine's offence from murder to sacrilege (for killing the traitors in sanctuary).<ref name=Wright/> Overall, scholars regard Geoffrey's depiction of Constantine as pessimistic, highlighting how little of Arthur's legacy survives his death.<ref name=Morris138>Morris, p. 138.</ref>

===Later chronicles===
Geoffrey returned to Constantine's struggles and untimely murder in his later work ''[[Vita Merlini]]''. The text, set during the reign of Aurelius Conanus, recounts how Constantine gave Mordred's sons a "cruel death" and ended their destructive rebellion, omitting details of the killing. According to the ''Vita'', Constantine ruled only briefly before Conanus rose up, killed him, and seized the kingdom he now governs poorly. Rosemary Morris writes that ''Vita Merlini'' reinforces the ''Historia'''s message that Constantine was unable to perpetuate the glories of Arthur's reign.<ref name=Morris138/><ref>Geoffrey of Monmouth, ''Vita Merlini'' lines 1128–1135. See: {{cite web |url= http://d.lib.rochester.edu/camelot/text/geoffrey-of-monmouth-arthur-vita-merlini-translation |title= Arthur from the Vita Merlini |author=Geoffrey of Monmouth |editor1-last  = Huber| editor1-first =  Emily Rebekah|year= 2007 |website= The Camelot Project |publisher= [[University of Rochester]] |access-date= 22 September 2014}}</ref>

Variants of Geoffrey's version of Constantine appeared in the numerous later adaptations of the ''Historia'', which were widely regarded as authentic in the Middle Ages. Such variants include [[Wace]]'s Anglo-Norman ''[[Roman de Brut]]'', the Welsh ''[[Brut y Brenhinedd]]'', and [[Layamon]]'s English ''[[Layamon's Brut|Brut]]''.<ref name=BruceConstantine>Bruce, p. 218.</ref> These typically reflect Geoffrey's cynicism about the character. Layamon, however, adds a touch of optimism, writing that Constantine successfully if briefly answered Arthur's charge to rule in his manner.<ref name=Morris138/> Following Geoffrey, many of these works do not expand upon Constantine's relation to Arthur, though others elaborate that he is Arthur's nephew. Taking hints from Geoffrey's version of Arthur's family tree, these writers make Constantine's father Cador a brother, or half-brother, of Arthur through Arthur's mother [[Igraine]].<ref>Molchan, pp. 31, 38, and notes.</ref><ref>Blaess, pp. 70–71.</ref>

==Later traditions==

===Medieval romance and prose tradition===
Constantine does not figure strongly in the Arthurian romance traditions or prose cycles. He is absent from the French [[Vulgate Cycle|Vulgate]] and [[Post-Vulgate Cycle]]s, in which [[Lancelot]] and his kin kill off Mordred's sons, and no successor to Arthur appears.<ref name=Morris139>Morris, p. 139.</ref><ref name=Trachsler>Trachsler, p. 31.</ref> Some scholars find this omission significant. Rosemary Morris suggests these versions downplay the issue of a designated heir to Arthur to heighten the stakes of Mordred's usurpation and to magnify Lancelot's role in the story.<ref name=Morris139/> Richard Trachsler writes that the exclusion of an heir adds a sense of finality to the Arthurian story after Arthur's death.<ref name=Trachsler/>

Constantine does appear in some medieval works. In [[Jean d'Outremeuse]]'s 14th-century ''Ly Myreur des Histors'', Lancelot installs Constantine on the throne after Arthur's death.<ref name=BruceConstantine/> He is king of Britain in some versions of the [[Havelok the Dane]] legend, beginning with [[Geoffrey Gaimar]]'s 12th-century ''[[Estoire des Engleis]]''.<ref>Spence, p. 55, 83–85.</ref> He is also mentioned as Arthur's successor in the 14th-century English [[alliterative poem]] known as the [[Alliterative Morte Arthure|Alliterative ''Morte Arthure'']], following Arthur's war with the Romans and his subsequent mortal battle with Mordred.<ref>Benson & Foster, ''Alliterative Morte Arthure'' line 4316.</ref> Other English romances that reference Constantine in passing include the 14th-century ''[[The Awntyrs off Arthure]]'' and ''[[Sir Gawain and the Carle of Carlisle]]'', written around 1400.<ref>Blaess, p. 76 and note.</ref> [[Jorge Ferreira de Vasconcelos]]'s 16th-century Portuguese novel ''Memorial das Proezas da Segunda Távola Redonda'' fuses Constantine with the ubiquitous [[Round Table]] knight [[Sagramore]], creating "Sagramor Constantino", Arthur's son-in-law and heir. As king, he forms a new Round Table to defeat the old enemies and continue the glory of Arthurian Britain.<ref>Vargas Díaz-Toledo 2006, pp. 233–234.</ref><ref>Vargas Díaz-Toledo 2013, para. 29–33.</ref><ref>Finazzi-Agrò, pp. 45–48.</ref> Constantine's relation to Arthur varies widely in these later works. Many works leave it unstated, while others follow the chronicles in making Constantine Arthur's nephew. Several romances, especially English works, cast him as Arthur's grand-nephew, with Cador being the son of a (generally unnamed) sister of the king.<ref>Blaess, pp. 70–71, 76.</ref>

Constantine also appears as Arthur's heir in [[Thomas Malory]]'s ''[[Le Morte d'Arthur]]'', including sections adapted from the Alliterative ''Morte Arthure''. Malory makes several changes to his source material that expand Constantine's role. Malory has Arthur designate Constantine and Baldwin of Britain as regents before going off to fight the Romans, a role that the Alliterative ''Morte'' ascribes to Mordred. [[Eugène Vinaver]] suggests that Malory modelled this change after [[Henry V of England|Henry V]]'s appointment of [[John of Lancaster, 1st Duke of Bedford|John, Duke of Bedford]] and Bishop [[Henry Beaufort]] as regents. Others finds it likelier that Malory simply wanted to replace Mordred in the Roman war narrative.<ref>Dichmann, pp. 73–74.</ref><ref>Whitaker, pp. 15–16.</ref> Malory also expands Constantine's role after Arthur's death, saying that he ruled honourably and restored the [[Bishop of Canterbury]] to his seat. Scholars note that this expansion closes the book on a much more optimistic note than Malory's sources, indicating that Arthurian ideals lived on under Constantine.<ref>Whitaker, pp. 102–103.</ref><ref>Simko, pp. 167–168.</ref><ref>Benson, p. 247.</ref>

===Modern literature and media===
Constantine features in some modern treatments of the legend. [[Katrina Trask]]'s ''Under King Constantine'', an 1892 book comprising three long romantic poems, is set in his reign.<ref>Lupack & Lupack, p. 12.</ref> He is an important [[unseen character]] in [[Henry Newbolt]]'s 1895 play ''Mordred'' in his usual role as Arthur's successor.<ref>Fisher, p. 166.</ref> He similarly appears in [[Rosemary Sutcliff]]'s 1963 novel ''[[Sword at Sunset]]'', in which the grievously wounded "Artos" voluntarily passes the crown to him.<ref>Taylor & Brewer, p. 303.</ref> In [[Parke Godwin]]'s 1984 novel ''[[Beloved Exile]]'', Constantine is one of several nobles fighting [[Guenevere]], the protagonist, in a bid to succeed Arthur.<ref>Hoburg, pp. 72–73, 75–78.</ref> He is the chief protagonist of the 1990 computer game ''[[Spirit of Excalibur]]''; players control Constantine and his allies as they defend the kingdom after Arthur's death.<ref>Thompson & Lacy, p. 590.</ref> [[Darrell Schweitzer]]'s 1995 fantasy story "The Epilogue of the Sword" features an ageing Lancelot returning to serve Constantine against the Saxons.<ref>Thompson, p. 605.</ref> Constantine elaborately figures into [[Arthur Phillips]]' 2011 novel ''[[The Tragedy of Arthur]]'', which centers on an [[Shakespeare Apocrypha|apocryphal]] Arthurian play attributed to [[William Shakespeare]] that the narrator, a fictional version of Phillips, insists is a hoax created by his father. In the play-within-the-novel, Constantine is [[Guinevere|Guenhera]]'s brother and Arthur's vassal and heir; the novel's narrator claims that Constantine is based on his father's old nemesis, prosecutor Ted Constantine.<ref>{{cite news |last= Grylls |first= David |date= 9 October 2011 |title= The play's the thing – or is it? – A new 'Shakespeare' provokes both scholarly dispute and a teasingly postmodern domestic drama|newspaper= [[The Sunday Times]] }}</ref><ref>Phillips, pp. 254, 257–259, 297.</ref>

==Notes==
{{reflist}}

==References==
*{{cite web |url= http://d.lib.rochester.edu/teams/text/alliterative-morte-arthur-part-iv |title= Alliterative Morte Arthure |editor-last1= Benson |editor-first1= Larry D.|editor-link1=Larry D. Benson| editor-last2= Foster |editor-first2= Edward E. |year= 1994 |website= d.lib.rochester.edu |publisher= University of Rochester: TEAMS Middle English Texts Series |access-date=20 February 2014}}
*{{cite book|last= Benson|first= Larry D. |title= Malory's Morte D'Arthur|publisher= Harvard University Press|year= 1976|isbn= 0674543939|url= https://archive.org/details/malorysmortedart00larr}}
*{{cite journal |last1= Blaess|first1= Madeleine |year= 1956 |title=Arthur's Sisters |journal= Bulletin Bibliographique de la Société Internationale Arthurienne|volume= 8|pages= 69–77}}
*{{cite book |last= Bromwich|first= Rachel |author-link=Rachel Bromwich |title= Trioedd Ynys Prydein: The Triads of the Island of Britain |publisher= University of Wales Press|year= 2006 |isbn= 0-7083-1386-8}}
*{{cite book |last= Bruce |first= Christopher W. |date= 1999 |title= The Arthurian Name Dictionary |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=XZFbczeMtYcC&pg=PA366 |publisher= Taylor & Francis |isbn= 0815328656 |access-date= 26 February 2014}}
*{{cite journal|last= Clarkson|first= Tim|date= Winter 1999|title= Rhydderch Hael|journal= The Heroic Age|volume= 1|issue= 2|url= https://www.mun.ca/mst/heroicage/issues/2/ha2rh.htm|access-date= 15 September 2010|url-status= dead|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100426183445/http://www.mun.ca/mst/heroicage/issues/2/ha2rh.htm|archive-date= 26 April 2010}}
*{{cite encyclopedia |last= Dichmann|first=Mary E. |editor-last= Lumiansky|editor-first=R. M. |encyclopedia= Malory's Originality: A Critical Study of Le Morte Darthur |title= The Tale of King Arthur and the Emperor Lucius |year= 1964 |publisher= Johns Hopkins University Press |isbn= 0801804035|pages= 67–90}}
*{{cite book |last1= Finazzi-Agrò |first1= Ettore |year= 1978 |title= A novelística portuguesa do século XVI |url= http://cvc.instituto-camoes.pt/conhecer/biblioteca-digital-camoes/estudos-literarios-critica-literaria/30-30/file.html |format= PDF |language= pt |publisher= Instituto de Cultura e Língua Portuguesa |pages= 45–48 |asin= B000ZQ4P8M |access-date= 4 November 2014 |archive-date= 10 October 2014 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20141010050458/http://cvc.instituto-camoes.pt/conhecer/biblioteca-digital-camoes/estudos-literarios-critica-literaria/30-30/file.html |url-status= dead }}
*{{cite journal |last= Fisher, IV |first= Benjamin Franklin |year= 1990 |title= King Arthur Plays from the 1890s |jstor= 40002298 |journal= Victorian Poetry |volume= 28 |issue= 3/4|pages= 153–176 }}
*{{cite news |last= Grylls |first= David |date= 9 October 2011 |title= The play's the thing - or is it? - A new 'Shakespeare' provokes both scholarly dispute and a teasingly postmodern domestic drama|newspaper= [[The Sunday Times]] }}
*{{cite web |url= http://d.lib.rochester.edu/camelot/text/geoffrey-of-monmouth-arthur-vita-merlini-translation |title= Arthur from the Vita Merlini |author=Geoffrey of Monmouth |editor1-last  = Huber
| editor1-first =  Emily Rebekah|year= 2007 |website= d.lib.rochester.edu/camelot-project |publisher= The Camelot Project, University of Rochester |access-date= 8 July 2014}}
*{{cite encyclopedia |last= Hoburg |first= Tom |editor-last= Slocum |editor-first= Sally K. |encyclopedia= Popular Arthurian Traditions |title= In Her Own Right: The Guenevere of Parke Godwin |year= 1992 |publisher= Bowling Green State University Popular Press  |isbn= 0879725621 |pages= 68–79 }}
*{{cite book |title=The Medieval Cult of St Petroc|last= Jankulak|first= Karen|year= 2000 |publisher= Boydell & Brewer|isbn= 0-85115-777-7|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=zY-CBHHw-lIC&q=The+medieval+cult+of+St+Petroc|access-date=6 January 2010}}
*{{cite book |last1= Lacy |first1= Norris J. |author-link1= Norris J. Lacy |last2= Ashe |first2= Geoffrey |author-link2= Geoffrey Ashe |last3= Mancoff |first3= Debra N. |date= 2014 |title= The Arthurian Handbook |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=v9isAgAAQBAJ |publisher= Routledge |isbn= 978-1317777441 |access-date= 14 July 2014}}
*{{cite book |title=A History of Wales from the Earliest Times to the Edwardian Conquest|last= Lloyd|first= John Edward|author-link= John Edward Lloyd |year= 1912|publisher= Longmans, Green, and Co.|url= https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_NYwNAAAAIAAJ|quote=Lloyd history of Wales.|access-date=6 January 2010}}
*{{cite book |last1= Lupack |first1= Alan |last2= Lupack |first2= Barbara Tepa |date= 1999 |title= Arthurian Literature by Women |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=Eki54h3V__YC&pg=PA381 |publisher= Psychology Press |isbn= 0815333056 |access-date= 3 March 2014}}
*{{cite journal |last= Molchan |first= Greg|date= Spring 2014|title=Anna and the King(s): Marriage Alliances, Ethnicity, and Succession in the ''Historia Regum Britanniae'' |journal= [[Arthuriana]] |volume= 21|issue=1 |pages= 25–48|doi=10.1353/art.2014.0004|s2cid= 162393121}}
*{{cite book|last= Moll|first= Richard James |title= Before Malory: Reading Arthur in Later Medieval England|publisher= University of Toronto Press|year= 2003 |isbn= 0802037224|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=ZUJ7Q2_0nEcC}}
*{{cite book |last= Morris |first= Rosemary |date= 1982 |title= The Character of King Arthur in Medieval Literature |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=Tznkwnb6VaMC&pg=PA139 |publisher= Boydell & Brewer  |isbn= 0815328656 |access-date= 26 February 2014}}
*{{cite book |last= O'Sullivan |first= Thomas D. |date= 1978 |title= The De Excidio of Gildas: Its Authenticity and Date |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=q2U3i1X8B50C&q=damnonia |publisher= BRILL |isbn= 9004057935 |access-date= 4 February 2014}}
*{{cite book |title= The Saints of Cornwall |last= Orme|first= Nicholas |year= 2000 |publisher= Oxford University Press|isbn= 0-19-820765-4|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=JxIjiMStTKIC|access-date=15 September 2010}}
*{{cite book |last= Phillips |first= Arthur |author-link=Arthur Phillips |date= 2011 |title= [[The Tragedy of Arthur]] |publisher= Random House |isbn=978-1400066476}}
*{{cite encyclopedia |last= Simko |first=Jan |editor-last= Noguchi |editor-first= Shunʼichi |editor-last2= Suzuki|editor-first2= Takashi |editor-last3=Mukai |editor-first3=Tsuyoshi |encyclopedia= Arthurian and Other Studies: Presented to Shunichi Noguchi|title= Modernity of the Middle English Stanzaic Romance ''Le Morte Arthur'' |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=Bk0HUmtGlEsC&pg=PA167 |year= 1993|publisher=Boydell & Brewer |isbn= 0859913805|pages= 153–168}}
*{{cite book |last=Spence |first= John |date= 2013 |title= Reimagining History in Anglo-Norman Prose Chronicles |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=VNHSsvRlLOwC&pg=PA84 |publisher= Boydell & Brewer |isbn= 978-1903153451|access-date= 11 March 2014}}
*{{cite book |last1= Taylor |first1= Beverly |last2= Brewer |first2= Elisabeth |date= 1983 |title= The Return of King Arthur |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=72P7TBEl9gcC&pg=PA303 |publisher= Boydell & Brewer|page= 303 |isbn= 0859911365 |access-date= 7 July 2014 }}
*{{cite encyclopedia |last1= Thompson|first1= Raymond H. |last2=Lacy |first2= Norris J. |editor-first= Norris K. |editor-last= Lacy |editor-link= Norris J. Lacy |encyclopedia= The New Arthurian Encyclopedia |title= Games |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=hf6zAAAAQBAJ&q=rht |access-date= 4 February 2013| 
year= 2013 |publisher= Routledge |isbn= 978-1136606335|page=590}}
*{{cite encyclopedia |last1= Thompson|first1= Raymond H. |editor-first= Norris K. |editor-last= Lacy |editor-link= Norris J. Lacy |encyclopedia= The New Arthurian Encyclopedia |title= Darrell Schweitzer |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=hf6zAAAAQBAJ&q=rht |access-date= 22 September 2014| 
year= 2013 |publisher= Routledge |isbn= 978-1136606335|page=605}}
*{{cite encyclopedia|last=Trachsler |first= Richard |editor-first= Carol |editor-last=Dover |encyclopedia= A Companion to the Lancelot-Grail |title= A Question of Time: Romance and History |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=KkBSujrlYRAC&pg=PA31|access-date= 28 February 2014 |year= 2003
|publisher= [[D.S. Brewer]] |isbn= 0859917835 |pages= 23–32}}
*{{cite journal |last= Vargas Díaz-Toledo |first= Aurelio |year= 2006 |title= Os livros de cavalarias renascentistas nas histórias da literatura portuguesa |url= http://ler.letras.up.pt/uploads/ficheiros/3762.pdf | journal= Peninsula: Revista de Estudos Ibéricos |language= pt|volume= 3 |pages= 233–247 |access-date=4 November 2014}}
*{{cite journal |last= Vargas Díaz-Toledo|first= Aurelio Vargas |year= 2013 |title= A Matéria Arturiana na literatura cavaleiresca portuguesa dos séculos XVI-XVII |url= http://e-spania.revues.org/22796?lang=en | journal= E-Spania |language= pt|volume= 3 |at= paragraphs 29–32 |access-date=4 November 2014}}
*{{cite book |last= Wasyliw |first= Patricia Healy|title= Martyrdom, Murder, and Magic: Child Saints and Their Cults in Medieval Europe |publisher= Peter Lang |year= 2008 |isbn= 9780820427645}}
*{{cite book |last= Whitaker |first= Muriel |title= Arthur's Kingdom of Adventure: The World of Malory's Morte Darthur |publisher= Boydell & Brewer |year= 1984 |isbn= 0859911659}}
*{{cite encyclopedia |last=Wright |first= Neil |editor-first=Richard |editor-last= Barber |editor-link= Richard Barber |encyclopedia= Arthurian Literature|title= Geoffrey of Monmouth and Gildas|year=1982|publisher= Boydell & Brewer
|volume= II|issn=0261-9946|pages= 1–40}}

{{s-start}}
{{s-reg | leg }}
{{s-bef | before = [[Cador]] }}
{{s-ttl | title  = [[List of legendary rulers of Cornwall|Duke of Cornwall]] }}
{{s-vac | unknown | unknnext = [[Bledric ap Custennin|Blederic]] }}
{{s-bef | before = [[King Arthur|Arthur]] }}
{{s-ttl | title  = [[List of legendary kings of Britain|King of Britain]] }}
{{s-aft | after  = [[Aurelius Conanus]] }}
{{s-end}}

{{Geoffrey of Monmouth}}
{{Arthurian Legend}}

[[Category:Arthurian characters]]
[[Category:Legendary British kings]]
[[Category:Knights of the Round Table]]
[[Category:Sub-Roman Britons]]
[[Category:6th-century English monarchs]]
[[Category:Family of King Arthur]]