Editing Arvirargus

{{short description|Legendary British king of the 1st century AD}}
'''Arvirargus''' or '''Arviragus''' was a legendary British king of the 1st century AD, possibly based upon a real person. A shadowy historical Arviragus is known only from a cryptic reference in a satirical poem by [[Juvenal]], in which a giant [[turbot]] presented to the Roman emperor [[Domitian]] (81–96 AD) is said to be an omen that "you will capture some king, or Arviragus will fall from his British chariot-pole".<ref>Juvenal, [[Satires of Juvenal#Satire IV|Satire IV]], [http://www.thelatinlibrary.com/juvenal/4.shtml .126–127]</ref>

==Geoffrey of Monmouth==
[[Geoffrey of Monmouth]]'s ''[[Historia Regum Britanniae]]'' (1136) presents a legendary Arviragus who is contemporary with the emperor [[Claudius]] (41–54 AD).<ref>[[Geoffrey of Monmouth]], ''[[Historia Regum Britanniae]]'' [[Wikisource:History of the Kings of Britain/Book 4#12|4.12–17]]</ref><ref>Geoffrey of Monmouth. ''The History of the Kings of Britain.'' Translated, with introduction and index, by Lewis Thorpe. Penguin Books: London, 1966. {{ISBN|0-14-044170-0}}</ref> However, Geoffrey's work is highly romanticised and contains little trustworthy historical fact, rendering his account of Arvirargus suspect.

According to Geoffrey, Arvirargus is a son of the former king [[Cunobelinus|Kimbelinus]]. He succeeds to the throne of Britain after his elder brother, [[Guiderius]], dies fighting the invading Romans under Claudius. Arviragus puts on his brother's armour and leads the army of the Britons against the Romans. When he learns that Claudius and his commander, Hamo, have fled into the woods, Arvirargus follows him until they reach the coast. The Britons kill Hamo as he tries to flee onto a ship and the place is named [[Southampton]] after him. Claudius is able to reassemble his troops elsewhere and he [[siege|besieges]] [[Portchester]] until it falls to his forces.

Following Hamo's death, Arvirargus seeks refuge at [[Winchester, Hampshire|Winchester]], but Claudius follows him there with his army. The Britons break the siege and attack the Romans, but Claudius halts the attack and offers a treaty. In exchange for peace and tribute with Rome, Claudius offers Arvirargus his own daughter in marriage. They accept each other's terms and Arvirargus aids Claudius in subduing [[Orkney]] and other northern lands.

In the following spring, Arvirargus weds Claudius' daughter, [[Genvissa]], and names the city of [[Gloucester]] after her father. Following the wedding, Claudius leaves Britain in the control of Arvirargus. In the years following Claudius' departure, Arvirargus rebuilds the cities that have been ruined and becomes feared by his neighbours. This causes him to halt his tribute to [[Rome]], forcing Claudius to send [[Vespasian]] with an army to Britain. As Vespasian prepares to land, such a large British force stands ready that he flees to another port, [[Totnes]], where he sets up camp.

Once a base is established, he marches to [[Exeter]] and besieges the city. Arvirargus meets him in battle there and the fight is stalemated. The following morning, Queen Genvissa mediates peace between the two foes. Vespasian returns to Rome and Arvirargus rules the country peacefully for some years. When he finally dies, he is buried in Gloucester, the city he built with Claudius. He is succeeded by his son, [[Marius of Britain|Marius]].

Geoffrey's legendary Arvirargus appears to correspond to some degree to the historical [[Caratacus]], son of [[Cunobelinus]], who, along with his brother [[Togodumnus]], led the initial resistance to the [[Roman conquest of Britain|Roman invasion]] of 43 AD, and went on to be a thorn in Rome's side for nearly a decade after Togodumnus's death.<ref>[[Dio Cassius]], ''Roman History'' [https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Cassius_Dio/60*.html#19 60:19–22]; [[Tacitus]], ''[[Annals (Tacitus)|Annals]]'' [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?lookup=Tac.+Ann.+12.33 12:33–38]</ref> Welsh versions of Geoffrey's ''Historia'' call him Gweirydd and his brother Gwydr.<ref>Acton Griscom (1929), ''The Historiae Regum Britanniae of Geoffrey of Monmouth''</ref>

==Cultural legacy==
The just husband in [[Geoffrey Chaucer]]'s [[The Franklin's Tale]] (one of the [[Canterbury Tales]]) is named Arveragus; however, he appears to have little else in common with the figure of Arvirargus.

Arvirargus is a character in [[William Shakespeare]]'s play ''[[Cymbeline]]''. He and his brother Guiderius had been kidnapped in childhood by Belarius, a nobleman wrongly banished by Cymbeline, and brought up in secret in Wales, but are reunited with their father and sister [[Imogen (Shakespeare)|Imogen]] in time for the Roman invasion.<ref>[[William Shakespeare]], ''[[Cymbeline]]''.</ref>

The records of [[Henry Herbert (Master of the Revels)]] show that a play called ''Arviragus'' was performed at the Court of [[Charles_I_of_England|Charles I]] on 26 and 27 December 1636.<ref>"The dramatic records of Sir Henry Herbert, master of the Revels, 1623–1673" (p57) https://archive.org/details/dramaticrecordso00greaiala</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{s-start}}
{{s-reg | leg }}
{{s-bef | before = [[Guiderius]] }}
{{s-ttl | title  = [[List of legendary kings of Britain|King of Britain]] }}
{{s-aft | after  = [[Marius of Britain|Marius]] }}
{{s-end}}

{{Geoffrey of Monmouth}}
{{Cymbeline}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Legendary British kings]]
[[Category:Male Shakespearean characters]]