The full, ancient text: Historia Regum Britanniae.Historia regum Britanniae (or The History of the Kings of Britain) is a supposedly historical account written by Geoffrey of Monmouth in 1136. Though much of the text is largely considered fiction, it does pull from several ancient texts and true historical events/personas.It is notable for being the first, major blockbuster-like success of the Arthurian legends, bringing the character to widespread popularity for the first time. Many of our modern myths (and ancient ones) have drawn from this text.

Written in the 1130s, Geoffrey's imaginative history of the Britons from Brutus to Cadwallader, and the first to recount the woes of Lear and the glittering career of Arthur, rapidly became a bestseller. An ideal text for scholars, this is a reprint of the Latin text with a facing English translation.

A fresh look at the text which introduced for the first time some of the key figures in British myth and legend.

First Published in 1996. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

Geoffrey of Monmouth wrote his "Historia Regum Britanniae" (History of the Kings of Britain) in about 1136 AD. His book includes the first account of the Arthurian legend that survives, apart from very brief mentions of Arthur in earlier chronicles. This edition makes Geoffrey's history of Arthur accessible to a general audience for the first time. It includes only the parts of Geoffrey's "Historia" that are about Merlin or Arthur, omitting its lengthy histories of other kings, which do not interest today's readers. It breaks up Geoffrey's text into shorter chapters, and it adds subheadings that make the narrative easier to follow. Geoffrey lets us see King Arthur's place in history much more clearly than later versions of the legends, telling us that Arthur fought the Saxons after the Romans left Britain. He also includes stories of Merlin's early life that are left out of later accounts. This edition uses Aaron Thompson's 1718 translation of the "Historia," as revised and corrected by J. A. Giles in 1842. This edition also includes drawings by the famous illustrator, Howard Pyle, making it a beautiful book as well as a book that will fascinate anyone who is interested in the stories of King Arthur and wants to learn more about them.

Geoffrey of Monmouth's History of the Kings of Britain--the earliest book to detail the legendary foundation of Britain and life of King Arthur--was widely read during the Middle Ages. This volume presents the first English translation of what may have been his source, the anonymous First Variant Version, attested in just a handful of manuscripts.