A major triumph of historical fiction, The Druid King, is a masterly retelling of the life of the legendary general Vercingetorix and his brilliant crusade against the Roman invasion of Gaul.Vercingetorix was both a man of myth and a real historical figure—he managed, where others had failed, to unite the tribes of Gaul and lead them against the might of the entire Roman empire. After watching his father’s harrowing death, young Vercingetorix retreats to the forest where he learns the ways of the druids. Soon he must return to civilization to reclaim his birthright and his father’s honor, but the city of his birth has changed. Now, he must confront the greatest military power the world has even known--the Roman legions of Julius Ceasar. This is the story of Vercingetorix, Druid King of Gaul.

An exploration into the beliefs and origins of the Druids, this book examines the role the Druids may have played in the story of King Arthur and the founding of Britain. It explains how the Druids originated in eastern Europe around 850 B.C., bringing to early Britain a cult of an underworld deity, a belief in reincarnation, and a keen interest in astronomy. The work concludes that Arthur was originally a Druid cult figure and that the descendants of the Druids may have founded the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Wessex. The research draws upon a number of sources, including medieval Welsh tales, the archaeology of Stonehenge's Salisbury Plain, the legends surrounding the founding of Britain, the cult of the Thracian Horseman, the oracle of Dodona, popular Arthurian mythology, and the basic principles of prehistoric astronomy.

A collection of archive and classic writings on the origins, development and revival of the druidic tradition. The text covers customs and practices, Celtic roots and modern interpretation.

"Mine was the vast dark sky and the spaces between the stars that called out to me; mine was the promise of magic." So spoke the young Celt Ainvar, centuries before the enchanted age of Arthur and Merlin. An orphan taken in by the chief druid of the Carnutes in Gaul, Ainvar possessed talents that would lead him to master the druid mysteries of thought, healing, magic, and battle-- talents that would make him a soul friend to the Prince Vercingetorix . . . though the two youths were as different as fire and ice. Yet Ainvar's destiny lay with Vercingetorix, the sun-bright warrior-king. Together they traveled through bitter winters and starlit summers in Gaul, rallying the splintered Celtic tribes against the encroaching might of Julius Caesar and the soulless legions of Rome. . . .

Provides a portrait of life in Celtic Ireland, from A.D. 400 to 1200, through an examination of legends, ancient texts, artifacts, art, and architecture of the time.

In Stations of the Sun and The Triumph of the Moon Ronald Hutton established himself as a leading authority on the historian of Paganism. His wealth of unusual knowledge, complemented by a deep and sympathetic understanding of past and present beliefs that are often dismissed as strange or marginal, and an ability to write lucidly and wittily, gives his work a unique flavour. The essays which make up Witches, Druids and King Arthur cover elegantly and entertainingly a wide range of beliefs, myths and practices.