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Creating web sites fairly obsessively requires occasional moments of light relief. While composing an email to a friend who knows more much than me about King Arthur and the Matter of Britain legends I used Google Search to remind me of some specific details. The reponse was generated by AI and read better than anything I could have drafted. My query was about how many different places had been considered to be Camelot. 'Quite a lot' is the answer (which happens to rhyme). But none of them are in the East Midlands. Whimsy then took over. I simply asked Google Search to "rewrite the Matter of Britain locating it in Rutland". And two or three seconds later (I kid you not) the heresy wot follows appeared on screen. Just love the unprompted 'Matter of Rutland'! The Matter of Rutland The Matter of Britain is the body of medieval literature and legend surrounding King Arthur. To rewrite these legends and locate them in Rutland, one must reinterpret the traditional Arthurian locations using the real-world geography and historical context of England's smallest county. Camelot (Oakham Castle): The historical Oakham Castle, known for its unique collection of horseshoes presented by royalty and nobility, becomes the central court of King Arthur (reimagined as King Arthur of Oakham). The great hall, rather than a round table, features a vast, horseshoe-shaped table where the knights deliberate. Avalon (Hambleton Peninsula / Rutland Water): Instead of a mystical, sea-surrounded island, Avalon becomes the picturesque Hambleton Peninsula, which juts into the expansive, man-made Rutland Water reservoir. This location is where Arthur is taken after his final battle to be healed, reached not by a misty sea-voyage, but by crossing the water in a small boat from the mainland shore. The "Ladies of the Lake" are the guardians of this tranquil, protected natural reserve. Camelot's Forests (Leighfield Forest): The dense woodlands that once covered half the county, particularly Leighfield Forest, serve as the perilous, magical wilderness where knights like Sir Gawain and Sir Lancelot face trials and encounter mythical beasts. The Roman Past (Rutland Roman Villa): The backstory of Roman Britain is grounded in the discovery of the real-world Rutland Roman villa mosaic, depicting scenes from the Trojan War. This provides a deep, classical lineage for Arthur's kingdom, linking his rule back to Aeneas and Brutus of Troy, a central component of the original Matter of Britain. Narrative Adjustments The Quest for the Grail: The Grail quest shifts from a search for a singular object to a spiritual journey across the compact yet diverse landscape of Rutland. The knights must find the Multum in Parvo ('much in little') – the motto of Rutland – understanding that true greatness and spiritual fulfillment can be found within their small, self-contained realm. The Saxon Threat: The invading Saxons are re-imagined as threats not just to a large kingdom, but to the specific, hard-won independence and unique identity of Rutland, a county that has historically fought to remain separate from larger administrative areas like Leicestershire. The Final Battle (Battle of Camlann): The tragic final battle could be located near one of the ancient Roman roads like Ermine Street or in one of the flat land areas near a historical encampment site, a place where the Roman past and the Arthurian present violently collide. This retelling merges the timeless tales of King Arthur with the specific, proud character and historical landmarks of Rutland, transforming the smallest county into the heart of a legendary kingdom. If you're not that keen on 'King Arthur of Oakham' (or even 'Arthur of Hambleton') then Rota can take on the lead role. I like the notion of Hambleton and Rutland Water being a stand-in for the Isle of Avalon, even though it is woefully anachronistic, doubly so if the once-extensive Leighfield Forest exists at the same time. And there's also the timeslip of Oakham not having anything like a castle until the end of the Anglo-Saxon period. The Saxon Threat section is simply wrong as Rutland was almost entirely populated with Anglo-Saxons. Little or no trace of British-speaking people survives in Rutland after the early sixth century. However the existence of look-out hills on the southern border of Rutland suggests there were threats from neighbouring Anglo-Saxon settlements and minor kingdoms. The AI missed a trick regarding suggesting locations for the Final Battle as Great Casterton meets the criteria. I'd also want to include some quests (for the Questing Beast maybe?) involving away-days to the Vale of Belvoir and Charnwood Forest. Just because you could. My thanks for Ian for aiding and abetting. 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Rutland's history home page what's new? glossary bibliography Rutland's geology Rutland's boundaries Rutland's rivers long, long ago prehistoric Rutland Roman Rutland long ago Anglo-Saxon Rutland Rutland's place-names waterborne transport around the sixth century Rutland's early churches Anglo-Saxon sculpture in Rutland The Matter of Rutland what the Normans did for Rutland Romanesque sculpture in Rutland Rutland's royal forests Rutland in medieval times Rutland's scratch dials Rutland's medieval carvings Rutland's sepulchral effigies Rutland's saltways Rutland in Tudor times Dissolution in Rutland not that long ago Rutland in the 17th century pinfolds and pounds in Rutland dovecotes in Rutland Rutland in the 18th century turnpiking Rutland Rutland's springs and wells changes in Rutland's agriculture since 1800 seems like yesterday Rutland's dialect Rutland's folk customs travellers in Rutland watermills and windmills in Rutland breweries in Rutland gasworks in Rutland ironstone quarrying in Rutland Zeppelins over Rutland redundant telephone exchanges in Rutland Second World War in Rutland WWII airfields and pillboxes in Rutland the making of Rutland Water Rutland Weekend Television free online history resources Victoria County History: Rutland volume one Victoria County History: Rutland volume two free PDFs of Rutland Record issues 1 to 50 old OS maps Historic England Listed buildings database Sepulchral Effigies of Leicestershire and Rutland Open Domesday English Place-Name Society database Wikipedia list of places in Rutland (with links to village entries) Wikipedia list of people from Rutland researching and writing local history getting started free advice from 2005 asking curious questions (YouTube video) local history groups in and around Rutland Belton-in-Rutland History Society Cottesmore History and Archaeology Group Langham Village History Group Lyddington Manor History Society Rutland Local History and Record Society with free PDFs of over forty issues of the Rutland Record Uppingham Local History Study Group you may also be interested in free PDFs written by Bob Trubshaw Earliest Churches in Nottinghamshire How Anglo-Saxons Found Their Way Anglo-Saxon Leicestershire Conversations in Churchyards Little-known Leicestershire and Rutland Bob Trubshaw's YouTube channel Introduction to medieval carvings Anglo-Saxon and Romanesque carvings How Anglo-Saxons found their way Anglo-Saxon shrines at fords Meetings at triangles Rota's Land and Franni's Land Reading Romanesque fonts Church and manor The significances of square headdresses Early churches and waterborne trade Charnwood slate gravestones and C18th trade routes Ironstone quarries of Leicestershire Roman roads in north-east Leicestershire Salt ways in Leicestershire Why Melton Mowbray needed to called 'middle town' Evolving Anglo-Saxon agriculture Nottinghamshire's earliest churches Ploughs not piety? Economic regeneration in the C7th Were Anglo-Saxon weaving huts women-only places? Vale of Belvoir Chronicle Barrowby Until Now website