Book of Geoffrey of Monmouth
A historical chronicle identified as Geoffrey of Monmouth’s Historia Regum Britanniae, encountered by Arthur in the House of Temperance.
Introduction#
In The Faerie Queene, Edmund Spenser places a copy of Historia Regum Britanniae in the House of Temperance, ruled by the lady Alma. Though the book is never named in the poem, it is identifiable by its contents, which recount the history of the kings of Britain as set down by Geoffrey of Monmouth.
Arthur and the Chronicle#
When Arthur encounters the volume, he reads of Britain’s legendary rulers up to the reign of Uther Pendragon. Significantly, the narrative breaks off at this point, omitting Arthur’s own life and deeds. This interruption reflects the conceit that Arthur’s history is still unfolding and has not yet passed into written record.
Spenser’s inclusion of Geoffrey’s history serves several purposes. It reinforces Arthur’s status as a figure standing between myth and history, acknowledges Geoffrey of Monmouth as the principal medieval authority on Britain’s legendary past, and situates Arthur within a moral and allegorical framework rather than a completed chronicle. The placement of the book in the House of Temperance further suggests that historical knowledge, like bodily and spiritual health, must be ordered and governed.
The episode also reflects a medieval tradition in which authoritative books are incomplete or fragmentary, awaiting fulfillment through action rather than ink. Arthur, though already a legendary figure to the reader, is here portrayed as living within history rather than reading about himself.
Sources#
The Faerie Queene | Edmund Spenser, 1590–1596
