by Hugh D P McArthur FSA Scot
THE ROUND Table is one of the most enduring motifs from the Arthurian legends, a design still employed by many organisations today. Although appearing somewhat later in the Arthurian saga, first described by Wace in 1155AD, the concept is grounded in very early Celtic tradition.
In contrast to the formal rectangular table where one sat at the head, and hierarchal array took pride of place on the right hand and descended to the lesser individuals at the foot of the table, Arthur designed a Round Table of equals - an early form of democratic war council.
The great hall of Winchester Castle in Wessex (the western Saxon county and cradle of Alfred’s English dream) has long held a table purported to be King Arthur’s, but dendrochronology has ascertained that the timber for this particular artefact was felled around 1250 - 1280AD, nearly seven centuries after Arthur’s passing. The table was probably commissioned by Edward I (known as The Hammer of The Scots) who was keen to rob Scotland of her treasures (including the Stone of Destiny) and adopt the power of Arthur’s mantle. The paintwork in evidence today was applied under orders from Henry VIII for Holy Roman Emperor Charles V’s state visit in 1522AD. So if the table in Winchester is a fake, which it undoubtedly is, then where does the genuine article reside?
The Round Table is exactly where it should be and always has been, far beyond the Anglo-Saxon occupied territories. About 366 miles north of Winchester to be more accurate. Our evidence comes from John Barbour’s epic poem, The Brus, written around 1375AD, sixty-one years after the north had once again halted an Anglo-Saxon invasion on the banks of the famous Bannock Burn.