upon his great men that attended him. Thus, having settled the peace of
the cities and the countries there, he returned back in the beginning of
spring to Britain.

ARTHUR HOLDS A SOLEMN FESTIVAL

Upon the approach of the feast of Pentecost, Arthur, the better to
demonstrate his joy after such triumphant success, and for the more
solemn observation of that festival, and reconciling the minds of the
princes that were now subject to him, resolved, during that season, to
hold a magnificent court, to place the crown upon his head, and to
invite all the kings and dukes under his subjection to the solemnity.
And when he had communicated his design to his familiar friends, he
pitched upon the city of Legions as a proper place for his purpose. For
besides its great wealth above the other cities, its situation, which
was in Glamorganshire, upon the River Uske, near the Severn Sea, was
most pleasant and fit for so great a solemnity; for on one side it was
washed by that noble river, so that the kings and princes from the
countries beyond the seas might have the convenience of sailing up to
it. On the other side, the beauty of the meadows and groves, and
magnificence of the royal palaces, with lofty, gilded roofs that
adorned it, made it even rival the grandeur of Rome. It was also famous
for two churches: whereof one was built in honor of the martyr Julius,
and adorned with a choir of virgins, who had devoted themselves wholly
to the service of God; but the other, which was founded in memory of St.
Aaron, his companion, and maintained a convent of canons, was the third
metropolitan church of Britain. Besides, there was a college of two
hundred philosophers, who, being learned in astronomy and the other
arts, were diligent in observing the courses of the stars, and gave
Arthur true predictions of the events that would happen at that time. In
this place, therefore, which afforded such delights, were preparations
made for the ensuing festival. Ambassadors were sent into several
kingdoms to invite to court the princes both of Gaul and all the
adjacent islands ... who came with such a train of mules, horses, and
rich furniture as it is difficult to describe. Besides these, there
remained no prince of any consideration on this side of Spain, who came
not upon this invitation. And no wonder, when Arthur's munificence,
which was celebrated over the whole world, made him beloved by
all people.

When all these were assembled together