Tyrants and Traders
Tintagel, Arthur and the Lost Kings
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Tyrants and Traders
Narrated by:
Ed Rowe
Buy Now for $24.11
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Narrated by:
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Ed Rowe
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By:
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Ken Dark
Summary
Discover exciting new research illuminating the most mysterious centuries of British history.
How Roman Britain ended is one of the most controversial questions in British history. Unique among former Roman citizens in Western Europe, the Britons established long-lived kingdoms, resisting ‘barbarian’ political takeover for centuries. Yet so little is known of them from written records that even the names of most of their kings are effectively lost to history.
Packed with the latest discoveries and ground-breaking research, Professor Ken Dark brings the fascinating, but mysterious, world of these rulers and their kingdoms to life. Archaeological evidence, along with re-analysis of the few existing texts, reveals an unexpectedly sophisticated society, connected to a wider international network of trade and cultural contacts than might until recently have seemed imaginable. Ken Dark demonstrates through the latest archaeological discoveries that Tintagel – an eroded coastal stronghold in Cornwall, closely associated with the later legend of King Arthur – was a royal fortress and trading centre of one of the most important British kingdoms of this period.
This is a historical period filled with memorable characters and stories: from the outraged churchman Gildas, attempting to reform the corrupt rulers he thought threatened civilized life itself, to St. Patrick, who played a major part in converting Ireland to Christianity, to no less than King Arthur – whose historical existence Dark shows to be much more likely than usually supposed.©2026 Ken Dark (P)2026 Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Critic Reviews
An authoritative update on the latest findings in the archaeology of Arthur's Britain.
The book strikes a rare balance between conveying the often ambiguous and contentious nature of archaeological interpretation on the one hand, and keeping his narrative accessible to the general reader on the other.
[Contains] some startling revelations from the latest archaeology.
An intriguing new book ... Dark takes a pleasingly open-minded attitude to the mysterious figure [of King Arthur].
Authoritative, informative and brilliantly thought-provoking. An essential and insightful examination of the history, folklore, archaeology and geography of Tintagel, examining its role in the development of the post-Roman west by one of the leading experts in the field. Highly recommended.
The distillation of decades of research and scholarship by Ken Dark. Focusing on how small kingdoms emerged at the end of Roman Britain, it provides a fresh interpretation of this very difficult period by delving into the archaeological evidence, much of which is new and exciting. He argues that there was a historical King Arthur; but it is a surprising and original answer.
For dark-age Cornwall and beyond, Ken Dark is the essential guide. Using modern archaeological research, he sheds light on Celtic trading links with the Mediterranean, as at Tintagel, where cargoes of wine and spices and other luxuries were imported for British kings, and which is today famous for associations with Arthur, champion of the early Britons. On fact and fiction in the age of Arthur, Ken Dark is the expert for our times.
This exploration of the Arthurian world centred around Tintagel draws on the most recent textual and archaeological scholarship to produce an accessible and stimulating account that will be of interest to enthusiasts and specialists.
[The book] makes an entire, under-discussed era of British history feel alive … a serious, well-evidenced read.
It is overall disappointing. Why does the author insist that saying/writing DE is better than just saying Dei Exidio?
Patrick did not introduce Christianity to Ireland… it was there already and this points to the authors bias towards ‘everything British is ok ‘syndrome.
As for the penitential movement - though in Ireland during the 600s, it did not gain popularity until well into the 700s and later it was not a popular movement as the author claims in the early 600s.
The narrators mispronouncing of the simple name of Gildas is irritating…amongst many others.
I use BCE and CE. The author uses BC and AD. More and more historians are coming to view the Roman/ Christianisation of history as yet another bias.
I suggest the author who refers constantly to his previous works of decades past keep up with the times.
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