Geoffrey of Monmouth

Geoffrey of Monmouth
Geoffrey of Monmouth
• Abbot of St. Alban's, d. at St. Alban's, 26 Feb., 1146

Catholic Encyclopedia. . 2006.

Geoffrey of Monmouth
    Geoffrey of Monmouth
    † Catholic_Encyclopedia ► Geoffrey of Monmouth
    (GAUFRIDUS ARTURUS, GALFRIDUS MONEMETENSIS, GALFFRAI or GRUFFYD AB ARTHUR).
    Bishop of St. Asaph and chronicler; b. at Monmouth about 1100, d. at Llandaff, 1154. He was the son of Arthur, a priest, and was educated by his uncle Uchtryd, afterwards Bishop of Llandaff. It has been surmised that he became a Benedictine monk, but this is uncertain. At Oxford he met Walter the Archdeacon, who suggested to him the idea of his great work, "Historia Regum Britanniae". About 1140 he accompanied Uchtryd to Llandaff, where he became archdeacon of St.Teilo's, and opened schools in which many clerics and chieftains were educated. This "Historia" had appeared before 1139, but Geoffrey continued to work at it, and in 1147 he completed it in its final form. In 1151-2 he was elected bishop of St. Asaph and was consecrated at Lambeth by Theobald Archbishop of Canterbury, on 24 Feb., having been ordained priest a week before, but he died without having entered his diocese. Geoffrey's "History" has been one of the great influences in English literature, making itself especially felt in the national romance from Layamon to Tennyson. Shakespeare, Milton, Dryden, Pope, and Wordsworth have all used his legends, while many of the earlier chroniclers followed him as an historian. But the twelve books of his "History", recounting how Brut, great-grandson of Aeneas, founded the kingdom, and narrating the adventures of subsequent kings, are in truth not history at all but the beginning of English story-telling. Among his legends is that of King Arthur, which became the most famous of the great cycles of romance so popular in the Middle Ages. Geoffrey's legend having received a new form from Sir Thomas Malory in the fifteenth century has again been given fresh life by Tennyson in the "Idylls of the Kings". Geoffrey claimed that his work was founded on a "most ancient book" — probably a collection of British legends no longer extant. Geoffrey also wrote a Latin version of the Cymric "Prophecies of Merlin" and a life of Merlin is attributed to him. His stories exercised a wide influence in Germany, France, and Italy, while England they furthered the unification of the English people by spreading belief in a common origin of Briton, Saxon, and Norman. The "Historia Britonum" was first printed at Paris, 1508; the latest editions being those of Giles (London, 1844) and Schulz (Halle, 1854).
    EDWIN BURTON
    Transcribed by Joseph P. Thomas

The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume VIII. — New York: Robert Appleton Company. . 1910.


Catholic encyclopedia.

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  • Geoffrey de Monmouth — Geoffrey von Monmouth (wal.: Gruffudd ap Arthur, auch Sieffre o Fynwy; lat. Galfridus Monemutensis) (* um 1100 in Monmouth; † um 1154 in Cardiff) war ein britischer Geistlicher und Gelehrter, der zu einem der ersten Historiker Britanniens wurde.… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Geoffrey of Monmouth — Geoffrey von Monmouth (wal.: Gruffudd ap Arthur, auch Sieffre o Fynwy; lat. Galfridus Monemutensis) (* um 1100 in Monmouth; † um 1154 in Cardiff) war ein britischer Geistlicher und Gelehrter, der zu einem der ersten Historiker Britanniens wurde.… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Geoffrey von Monmouth — (wal.: Gruffudd ap Arthur, auch Sieffre o Fynwy; lat. Galfridus Monemutensis) (* um 1100 in Monmouth; † um 1154 in Cardiff) war ein britischer Geistlicher und Gelehrter, der zu einem der ersten Historiker Britanniens wurde. Geoffrey verfasste die …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Geoffrey of Monmouth — ( cy. Gruffudd ap Arthur or Sieffre o Fynwy) (c. 1100 ndash; c. 1155) was a clergyman and one of the major figures in the development of British history and the popularity of tales of King Arthur.BiographyGeoffrey s birthplace is unknown, but he… …   Wikipedia

  • Geoffrey of Monmouth — 1100? 54; Brit. bishop & chronicler: preserver of the Arthurian legend …   English World dictionary

  • Geoffrey of Monmouth — (ca. 1100–1155)    Geoffrey of Monmouth was the author of the 12th century HISTORIA REGUM BRITANNIAE (History of the Kings of Britain), a pseudo history in Latin prose that popularized the legendary monarchs of pre Saxon Britain. Geoffrey’s… …   Encyclopedia of medieval literature

  • Geoffrey of Monmouth — noun Welsh chronicler who wrote an account of the kings of Britain which is now believed to contain little historical fact but it is a source of the Arthurian legend (circa 1100 1154) • Instance Hypernyms: ↑chronicler * * * Geoffrey of Monmouth… …   Useful english dictionary

  • Geoffrey of Monmouth — 1100? 1154, English chronicler. * * * died 1155 Medieval British chronicler. He was probably an Oxford cleric for most of his life. His mostly fictional History of the Kings of Britain (с 1135–39) traced the descent of British princes from the… …   Universalium

  • Geoffrey de Monmouth — Geoffroy de Monmouth Pour les articles homonymes, voir Monmouth. Geoffroy de Monmouth (Monmouth, vers 1100 St Asaph, 1155), est un évêque et historien anglo normand, écrivant en langue latine et familier du monastère de Glastonbury. Le lieu de sa …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Geoffrey of Monmouth — (?1100 55)    A Benedictine monk attached to the household of Robert, Earl of Gloucester; in 1152 he became Bishop of St Asaph. His Historia Regum Britan niae, written c.1136, claims to be a history of all the kings of Britain from Brutus, the… …   A Dictionary of English folklore

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