Gerald of Wales (also known as Giraldus Cambrensis) was a famous bishop and historian who lived in the 12th century. His father was a Norman knight and his mother was a descendant of the Prince of South Wales. Because of his hereditary ties to the Welsh and Norman nobility, Gerald found himself with great access to the highest society of his day. And as a historian, he is widely considered a reliable resource of information.

Gerald was a prolific writer, author of 17 books. One of these was entitled "Liber de Principis instructione" ("Instruction for a Ruler"), and in it was an account of perhaps the most significant event in Gerald’s life - The finding of King Arthur’s tomb!

The tomb of the mighty king was located in Avalon and found by the monks of Glastonbury. Gerald himself was present at this discovery, and wrote two accounts of it. The deceased king’s skeleton was quite a sight to behold!

"The Abbot showed me one of the shin-bones [of King Arthur]. He held it upright on the ground against the foot of the tallest man he could find, and it stretched a good three inches above the man's knee. The skull was so large that it seemed a real prodigy of nature, for the space between the eyebrows and the eye-sockets was as broad as the palm of a man's hand."

As a king and a giant of a man, one might easily imagine King Arthur to have been a very confident, even a proud sort of person - with the authority and brute strength to bow to no one, not even God. Thankfully, this was by no means the case. Fortunately for his people, King Arthur’s soul was just as impressive as his body. And it is through the bishop and historian Gerald of Wales, that we learn some lesser-known admirable qualities of this historic ruler.

"The memory of Arthur, that most renowned King of the Britons, will endure forever. In his own day, he was a generous patron of the famous Abbey at Glastonbury, giving many donations to the monks and always supporting them strongly, and he is highly praised in their records. More than any other place of worship in his kingdom he loved the Church of the Blessed Mary, Mother of God, in Glastonbury...

"When he went out to fight, he had a full-length portrait of the Blessed Virgin painted on the front of his shield, so that in the heat of battle he could always gaze upon Her; and whenever he was about to make contact with the enemy he would kiss Her feet with great devoutness."