Dwarfs Of Arthurian Romance And Celtic Tradition

King Arthur was not an Englishman, but a Celtic warrior, according to Loomis, whose research into the background of the Arthurian legend reveals findings which are both illuminating and highly controversial. The author sees the vegetarian goddess as the prototype of many damsels in Arthurian romance, and Arthur's knights as the gods of sun and storm. If Loomis's arguments are accepted, where does this leave the historic Arthur?

"His most original contribution to an unravelling of a pagan Arthurian past lies in his appropriation of the fascinating evidence of standing stones and pagan cultic sites. The magical attributes of stones are exemplified in prehistoric standing stones, the real counterparts of the perrons of the French romances. This is dark and difficult territory, but certain events in the Arthurian cycle, which take place on and around Salisbury Plain, have correspondences with known prehistoric events. Building on these elusive clues, and tracing a range of sites around the river Severn and south Wales, John Darrah has added a significant new dimension to the search for the sources of England's great epic, the legends of Arthur and his court."--Jacket.

This 1981 book provides an interpretation of the five Arthurian romances of Chrétien de Troyes. It explores how this most enigmatic and influential of medieval romance-writers reveals his ideas about man, society and God. The texts range from Erec and Enide, through Cliges to Perceval or Le Conte du Graal.