Camelot
The location of Camelot is unknown but there are at least three candidates:
Caerleon in Wales, Cadbury Castle south of Glastonbury in Somerset, and Winchester in Hampshire. Geoffrey of Monmouth described Caerleon as Arthur's Camelot. Caerleon was an important Roman legionary fortress and has one of the best ampitheatres in Britain that some have called the Round Table.
| Roman Amphitheatre, Caerleon, Wales. The amphitheatre was constructed in the 2nd century AD and could hold 6000 people. Some argue that it is the best-preserved Roman amphitheatre in Britain. It is one of three fortress settlements constructed for elite legionary troops. Sir Mortimer Wheeler excavated the stone amphitheatre in 1926. Some aspects of the Arthurian legend claim that King Arthur was crowned at Caerleon. |
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Cadbury Castle is a Neolithic and Iron Age Hill Fort that was attacked by the Romans and then left abandoned for centuries. Recent archaeological excavations found that the hillfort was refortified in the mid-5th century during the lifetime of Arthur. The structures at the fort indicate that this was a royal compound of a powerful King. Cadbury Castle is considered by many to be the most likely location for Camelot. Nevertheless, Cadbury could have been the precinct of the Dumnonian Kings and the name Cadbury means Cado's fort likely referring to an early 6th century King of Dumnonia.
Winchester has also been identified as Camelot. The legendary Round Table is displayed today in the Great Hall of Winchester Castle. This table has been dated to the reign of Edward I (1272-1307) who was probably borrowing on the Arthurian legend. The table was painted in 1522 under an order of King Henry VIII. The places at the table are divided up with alternating green and white panels with the name of each of the knights written in gold. However it is King Henry VIII's portrait that is painted at King Arthur's place and the Tudor red rose that adorns the table's centre.
