The place name 'Camelot' does not occur in early versions of
the story of Arthur. However, Geoffrey of Monmouth (1133AD)
tells how Arthur held court at 'The City Of The Legions' and
leaves us in little doubt that this was Caerleon. Certainly
Caerleon would have been a most impressive location for
Arthur to hold court for important rulers, with its splendid
roman remains. Equally, we can be sure that only a professional
army could defend the Roman fortress ruins. If Caerleon was
more than just a meeting place for Arthur we must look to the
surrounding hill tops for the location of his 'castle'.
Sure enough such a site exists less than a mile North of the
village - a fortification known as 'Belinstocke'.
Caxton,
in his preface to one of the first printed books (Le Morte d'Arthur),
refers to Camelot being in Wales and describes the ruins
of a city which sounds very much like Caerleon,
"in
Camelot, the great stones and the marvellous works of iron lying
underground, and the royal vaults which many now living have
seen." The
author of this book (Mallory 1485) however locates Camelot at
Winchester. He does though make many references to Caerleon,
including stating that this is where Arthur's coronation took
place.
Cadbury
Castle
in Somerset has long been associated with the legend of Arthur
and there are good reasons for supposing that this could be
the location of Camelot. Coins minted on the site in the eleventh
century are marked 'CADANBYRIC' which does sound much
like 'Cadbury'. Excavations by Leslie Alcock revealed that the
ancient site was massively refortified around the year 500AD
by a leader of great wealth and power - Arthur maybe?
