ENL 111: "One King, One God: Christianity in King Arthur's Court"

Jolene Brown

Dr. K. Smith

English 111

12 May 2009

One King, One God: Christianity in King Arthur’s Court

Religion is an important thread that runs through the many tales of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. The virtues that the court is said to uphold, though they include other non-Christian influences, are representative of Christian virtues, and the idea of a single God is brought up continually throughout the works. As one of the earliest works that mention King Arthur and his court, Geoffrey of Monmouth’s The History of the Kings of Britain set the standard for the integration of religion, virtue and valor into the politics and kingships of Britain. In this way, Arthur’s rise and fall as King of Britain can be seen as an attempt to advocate Christianity over paganism, specifically monotheism as superior to polytheism. By criticizing the in-fighting of Christians for power Geoffrey argues that Christians should instead turn their fighting to outer foes, spreading the word of the Christian God, thus creating a larger support network, and ultimately the expansion of both Christianity and British power.

Religion plays an important part in the virtues attributed to Arthur by Geoffrey, and those virtues are what make Arthur popular among his people. Geoffrey, in Book 9, describes Arthur as a “youth of outstanding virtue and largesse” whose “innate goodness made him exhibit such grace that he was beloved by almost all people” (163). Geoffrey also says Arthur is one who “possessed both great courage and generosity,” but it is clear that these virtues are reserved only for his people, as the line finishes by pointing out Arthur’s determination “to attack the Saxons so that he could distribute their riches among his men” (163). But even his violence towards the Saxons is justified by another virtue: “Justice spurred him on as well, since by right of inheritance he ought to have control over the entire island” (163). The listing of these virtues and the attribution to Arthur not only makes him a worthy candidate for the throne, but also allude to a higher authority that gifted such virtues to the man. It is also important that Arthur wants to protect his own people over the Saxons, choosing the “justice” of inheritance over the allowance of peace. In making this decision Arthur is choosing to not only spread his own power, but to also further reaches of his virtues, granted by God.

An early example of Arthur helping Christianity is his actions after driving out the Saxons from Britain: “Arthur then rebuilt all the churches that had been destroyed and established communities of religious men and women there” (170). Arthur restores both churches and communities while simultaneously strengthening the ties of the church to these distant realms. He also becomes a symbol for the power and virtue of Christianity establishing that God can place such a man in power, but can also give that man the strength to drive the pagans out of Britain and allow for the reestablishment of the Christian church. Arthur also shows his virtues to those people who he restores their faith by also restoring “titles and property to all those who had been driven out by the Saxon occupation” (170). This generosity of both his faith, through the restoration of the churches, and of his wealth, through the distribution of property, speaks highly of Arthur’s character and also of the God that he represents.

In the spreading of the Christian faith through all the lands of Britain Arthur comes to inspire faith in other, ever more distant, lands. The court that he creates gains renown through all of Britain, as the word spreads about the grandness of Arthur’s Round Table. By inviting “all the bravest men from the far-flung reaches of his domains” Arthur is able to “cultivate such refinement…that people far and wide sought to emulate it” (171). This act of emulation both by individuals and by other royal courts speaks as a metaphor for religion. Religious ritual is meant to be copied, reenacted by others for the sake of faith, and by copying Arthur’s court the subjects of Britain are not only showing faith in Arthur, but also faith in the religion that created him. However, religious devotion can also spread fear to those who do not know or understand the purpose for the ritual, which explains the reactions of the other European kings: “The fame of Arthur’s great generosity and prowess then spread to the furthest ends of the earth, and great fear beset the kings across the sea” (171). The kings were afraid of losing their lands to Arthur, but part of their fear one could attribute to the ritualistic fashion in which British subjects sought to copy Arthur’s court so fastidiously to the point that “Every young nobleman was tempted to hang himself unless he could dress or bear arms like the knights of King Arthur’s court” (171).

Through a combination of his virtues and warfare, Arthur wins over domains far-reaching from his inherited kingdom. Arthur’s influence spread past Britain into Europe as “There did not remain one prince of any merit on this side of Spain who did not attend his court when summoned…Arthur’s generosity was renowned all over the world and this made all men love him” (175). After several years of ruling peacefully over Britain, Arthur “rejoiced at being universally feared” and when he realizes that he “desired to submit all Europe to his rule” (171). This conflict of virtue with greed gives a clue into the downfall of Arthur: the end of the round table will come from within. It is Arthur’s decision to spread his power throughout Europe that, one could argue, ultimately leads to his downfall, and it is significant that it is the fear that others have of him that drives him to make this decision. When Arthur is compared to God, God also commands a form of fear from his followers, however it is believed that since God is a perfect being that the fear will not be manipulated for personal gain. Arthur, however, is only a man, and as a man has inherent flaws that prevent him from realizing the mistake he makes in manipulating the fear of his neighboring kingdoms for his own gain. Though it seems though Arthur is only continuing spread the Christian faith, this move is different because it is driven by his desire, and not the “right of inheritance” that was given to him by both his earthy father, Uther, and his Christian father (163).

The giant that Arthur fights can be seen as a symbol of this inner conflict of greed with virtue, as the giant represents the power hungry man that Arthur is becoming. The giant takes a young maiden, who in her fear can be compared to those kingdoms who fear Arthur, and attempts to rape her; when she dies in the attempt, the giant rapes the old woman instead. This juxtaposition between the young maiden and the old crone brings to mind the new kingdoms that Arthur has his sights on, and the old kingdoms of Britain that he is forced to settle with. By killing the young maiden in the attempt to rape her, the giant never gets his satisfaction from the maiden; Arthur never gets his satisfaction in taking Rome despite winning her because he is forced to return to Britain to defend her, his crone, instead. Another important factor in this story is that Arthur is insistent on defeating the giant himself: “For King Arthur possessed such strength and courage that he scoffed at bringing the entire army against such monsters. He wanted to impress his men by vanquishing the creature himself” (183). His insistence on going alone to defeat the giant only reinforces the inflated ego that has developed since he learned how he is feared.

The conflict that begins within Arthur ultimately destroys his kingdom, and leaves Britain in ruins after his defeat. In Book 11, Geoffrey outlines the folly of the British people:

O you hateful people of Britain…Because your kingdom was so divided against itself…because your pride did not allow you to obey a single king, you shall behold your land laid waste by impious pagans. Your houses shall indeed fall, and your descendants shall indeed mourn…they will barely ever be able to regain their former state of dignity. (202)

This lament for the people of Britain, though it is referring directly to their failure to accept Arthur as their “single king,” also speaks in religious overtones as their not accepting God as their “single king.” It is a call against polytheism, and the pagan religions that called people away from the Christian guidance provided by the church. Geoffrey also tells the reader that “the Britons thus lost the crown of Britain for many years…they did not follow a single king but instead obeyed three separate warlords who constantly ravaged the land fighting one another” (203). Instead of only one “king” or God, there were more than one, lending itself to pagan rituals and practices. By succumbing to these many gods, the Britons had lost both the crown, and the dignity that it had while under the rule of a wise, Christian king like Arthur.

In writing the history of the British people this way Geoffrey integrates religion into politics so subtly that the implications are not immediate. This view of a King as a symbol for God helped to forge the groundwork for the later Anglican religion, which places the monarch at the center of both the church and the state. By uniting the people under one religion that served the King as a representative of God, and by integrating that religion into their politics the Britons were able to create a vast world power within only a few hundred years of Geoffrey’s writings. Britain became Arthur, and through religion and warfare managed to take over most of the world, but like Arthur, they were not able to sustain it.