This course offers an in-depth look at the first complete “historical” narrative of the reign of King Arthur, Geoffrey’s Historia Regum Britanniae. Almost a quarter of the total work, this crucial first account of Arthur includes Arthur’s magically-contrived conception, his conquest of Rome, and his overthrown and death at the hands of his nephew Mordred. This course also looks at the “battle of books” that followed in the wake of Geoffrey’s work, with some contemporaries arguing that Geoffrey simply made the whole thing up, and others rallying to Geoffrey’s (and Arthur’s) defense.

The module will follow an 8-session structure as follows:
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• Lecture 1: The “Historical” Arthur before Geoffrey
• Discussion 1: HRB, Prologue and Book VI: Britain in Chaos


• Lecture 2: Merlin the Historian: Prophesy as History and Vice-Versa
• Discussion 2: HRB, Book VIII: Death of a Tyrant; The Birth of a Hero


• Lecture 3: The Anarchy of Stephen: The Politics of Geoffrey’s Early Readership
• Discussion 3: HRB, Books IV – X: The Rise and Fall of King Arthur


• Lecture 4: The Battle of the Books: Geoffrey’s Contested History
• Discussion 4: HRB, Books XI – XII: Goodbye Britain, Hello England!