THE GREAT CAPTAINS

by Henry Treece ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 16, 1956

The Dark Island (1953), 200 years after the Romans have left it, is a thing of separate parts with only the old, blind Count of Britain, Ambrosius, the last representative of vanished power, waiting to hand on the great sword, Caliburn, to his successor-Medrodus, the low born boy he has raised, accompanies him on his wanderings in the hopes of becoming the next Count but he must stand by and witness drunken, western Artos, the Bear, acquire the sword for his own. He saves Artos' life more than once when Artos goes in search of the authority withheld by his father, Uther Pendragon, becomes his blood brother and right hand military man in his march to unify Britain and become its ruler. The battles, from defeat to success; Artos' devotion to the golden Gwenhwyfar which is not undermined by Lystra, his mistress; his escapes from wiles and stratagems which accomplish his mission; his unforgettable vengeance, after the death of Gwenhwyfar, on Lystra after she has tempted Medrodus -- and the final curtain when Medrodus is the instrument of Artos' death -- these are the germs of the Arthurian legend in all the savagery, bloody dedication and fury-doomed beginnings of a new empire. Again color and costume overshadow character but the atmosphere of the period remains.

Pub Date: March 16, 1956

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Random House

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1956

Categories: FICTION