Geoffrey Ashe (March 29, 1923) is a British historian whose works focus on the stories about King Arthur. He studied at Cambridge as well as other schools. In his research Ashe took seriously the accounts of events in early histories and concluded that though there were several figures behind the legend of Arthur, there may well, even so, have existed a heroic person inspiring the general myth.
Some entries in Ashe's bibliography:
King Arthur's Avalon: The Story of Glastonbury, (1957)
From Caesar to Arthur (1960)
The Quest for America (1971)
The Quest for America (1971)
Do what you will: a history of anti-morality (1974)
Mythology of the British Isles (1990)
Mythology of the British Isles (1990)
Encyclopedia of Prophecy (2001)
Merlin: The Prophet and His History (2011).
Each of these volumes contains feline references. Like this, from Kings and Queens of Early Britain (1982):
Merlin: The Prophet and His History (2011).
Each of these volumes contains feline references. Like this, from Kings and Queens of Early Britain (1982):
'Few modern Acts of Parliament can match the style of a law defining the penalty for killing or stealing the cat which guards a royal barn. The thief must pay a fine which is assessed by measurement of the cat.'
A prestigious journal summarizes the importance of Geoffrey Ashe. Below is an excerpt from Project Muse, specifically from an article titled "Eminent Arthurian: Geoffrey Ashe," written by Norris J. Lacy
'Geoffrey Ashe is among our most eminent Arthurian scholars. That status has been recognized in many ways and places. Most notable were his inclusion in the Queen’s New Year’s list of Honours and his recent investiture at Buckingham Palace. The honour was an MBE, Member [of the Most Excellent Order] of the British Empire. The MBE states ‘Historian: For Services to Heritage.’
'Many Arthurian scholars and students first became acquainted with Geoffrey through his King Arthur’s Avalon and The Quest for Arthur’s Britain, the latter of which, in 1968, offered to many of us our first real information ...[H]is contributions to Arthurian history, archaeology, and literature have continued unabated. What most Arthurians may not know is that he wrote widely on subjects other than Arthur: he published books on Gandhi, the voyage of St. Brendan, Israel, labyrinths and mazes, and others, including a novel titled The Finger and the Moon.
'In 1984 Gary Kuris, Vice-President of Garland Publishing, invited me to edit an Arthurian encyclopedia....Once ...[that] was published,... Kuris invited me to undertake a volume that would become The Arthurian Handbook. ... I agreed conditionally, the condition being that Geoffrey would join me as co-author. I was again fortunate that he accepted and that, as before, he provided impeccable material that required little or no editing. ...
'Geoffrey has been an ideal collaborator, with an impressive command of his subjects—and ... he saved me from a number of errors and infelicities.
'In the interest of full disclosure, it must be said that he has had detractors. Generally, they are scholars who have reservations concerning his identification of the ‘Arthur figure’ with Riothamus. In addition, there are a few, unfortunately, who question the scholarly credentials of anyone who does not hold a permanent academic position. Still others doubtless criticize Ashe as a popularizer, to which I would offer two responses. First, his publication of a major scholarly article in Speculum, followed by his book The Discovery of King Arthur, answers some such reservations. Second, I concur that he has often been a popularizer, but in the best sense of the word. Given the breadth of interest in the Arthurian legend, there is good reason to write books that, while useful to scholars, also provide the general reading public with information that is knowledgeable and reliable, thus constituting a corrective to some of the very odd theories that regularly circulate about Arthur.'
A prestigious journal summarizes the importance of Geoffrey Ashe. Below is an excerpt from Project Muse, specifically from an article titled "Eminent Arthurian: Geoffrey Ashe," written by Norris J. Lacy
'Geoffrey Ashe is among our most eminent Arthurian scholars. That status has been recognized in many ways and places. Most notable were his inclusion in the Queen’s New Year’s list of Honours and his recent investiture at Buckingham Palace. The honour was an MBE, Member [of the Most Excellent Order] of the British Empire. The MBE states ‘Historian: For Services to Heritage.’
'Many Arthurian scholars and students first became acquainted with Geoffrey through his King Arthur’s Avalon and The Quest for Arthur’s Britain, the latter of which, in 1968, offered to many of us our first real information ...[H]is contributions to Arthurian history, archaeology, and literature have continued unabated. What most Arthurians may not know is that he wrote widely on subjects other than Arthur: he published books on Gandhi, the voyage of St. Brendan, Israel, labyrinths and mazes, and others, including a novel titled The Finger and the Moon.
'In 1984 Gary Kuris, Vice-President of Garland Publishing, invited me to edit an Arthurian encyclopedia....Once ...[that] was published,... Kuris invited me to undertake a volume that would become The Arthurian Handbook. ... I agreed conditionally, the condition being that Geoffrey would join me as co-author. I was again fortunate that he accepted and that, as before, he provided impeccable material that required little or no editing. ...
'Geoffrey has been an ideal collaborator, with an impressive command of his subjects—and ... he saved me from a number of errors and infelicities.
'In the interest of full disclosure, it must be said that he has had detractors. Generally, they are scholars who have reservations concerning his identification of the ‘Arthur figure’ with Riothamus. In addition, there are a few, unfortunately, who question the scholarly credentials of anyone who does not hold a permanent academic position. Still others doubtless criticize Ashe as a popularizer, to which I would offer two responses. First, his publication of a major scholarly article in Speculum, followed by his book The Discovery of King Arthur, answers some such reservations. Second, I concur that he has often been a popularizer, but in the best sense of the word. Given the breadth of interest in the Arthurian legend, there is good reason to write books that, while useful to scholars, also provide the general reading public with information that is knowledgeable and reliable, thus constituting a corrective to some of the very odd theories that regularly circulate about Arthur.'
No comments:
Post a Comment