Imagine: In deepest winter, the atlantic rolls in from countless miles
of surging wilderness with a remorseless power which crashes and pounds the
rocky outcrops of the Cornish coast. The cold, the dampness of the constant
mist, the roar of the waves and their ceaseless drumming as they smash and
batter the rocks where for thousands of years the sea has undermined the cliffs
creates a wild and lonely landscape. One where humans are not welcome; one
where the ghosts and spirits of the distant past can be felt.
This is Tintagel Castle in Cornwall. Only a ragged outline of buildings long
lost still survive, but it was believed to be the stronghold of local Kings
long before the arrival of the Romans. In the third and fourth centuries a
small hamlet started which grew steadily for the next few hundred years with
earth ramparts being added, when suddenly, as the Dark Ages began, it was
deserted. But in the thirteenth century it was again fortified with stone walls
and became a local centre for trade - there have been found many remains of
mediterranean pottery and glass from as far afield as modern Syria.
But the time of legends began after the Romans left when massive social
migration produced a defensive leader called King Arthur. It was at Tintagel
that Arthur was conceived so legend tells us and from that date he has moved
throughout the world of pagan Celtic myth. It was even believed that he was
born due to trickery by Merlin, who was himself born of a Christian mother and
a Demon and who regularly bridged the pagan and christian worlds. It was even
believed that Merlin caused massive stones to arrive from Ireland and that Stonehenge
was built by magic!
But Tintagel is dominated by the sea. There is a dark and black-cragged cave
below the headland where the ghost of Merlin is said to linger. This is a place
of ancient sorcery where history and legend entwine and where the Spirit of
Merlin still casts its spell.
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