Through the many literary works that have effectively attempted to create the figure
Arthur, a fairly solid composite emerges. The events that shape the Arthurian
legend are a mixture of the historic chronology of Europe and the several
ficticious stories and occurences that took place only in the pages of
literature. Though there have been scholars who have theorized that Arthur
is a shadow or a tale mirroring great Celtic or Norse kings who actually
lived and of whom we have fragmented histories, the Arthur known to the
world is a character of literature more than history. The oldest known
Arthurian work is the poem Culhouch and Owlen.Through such great
authors as Geoffrey of Monmouth, Chretien, Malory, Tennyson, Wagner, and
White, Arthur has become an immortal literary phenomenon that continues
to be popular today.