Winchester’s Round Table
When I was 18, my first job was at an architect’s office in Winchester. I used to wander around the city in my lunch break, and one day I ventured into the Great Hall of Winchester Castle (possibly because it was raining, and I was bored).
My attitude towards history was pretty casual at this time. I was more interested in what I was going to do with my own life than what other people had done with theirs. The interior of the Great Hall was cool and dark, and there were some faded heraldic banners that looked as if they needed a good wash.
Then I turned to face the other way.
Hanging on the wall at the far end was the top of a huge circular table. It was brightly painted, with a red and white rose in the centre and radiating stripes of white and green. A portrait of an enthroned king occupied the twelve o’clock position, and there was some kind of archaic lettering round the outside.
I was rooted to the spot. No one else was there. I wanted to go back into the high street and ask the people who were rushing around in their lunch hour: “Have you seen what’s inside that place?” But instead, I went to have a closer look. This, it seemed, was the Round Table of the legendary King Arthur.
“The Rounde Table at Wynchestere beganne, and ther it ende, and ther it hangeth yet“
John Hardyng, Chronicle of England (1463)
In Arthurian legend, the Round Table was built by Uther Pendragon, King Arthur’s father, and given to Arthur on his marriage to Guinevere; designed to reflect the spirit of equality and chivalry in the court of Camelot, its circular shape made sure that the King was visible to all, and no knight had precedence over another.
Sadly, radiocarbon dating and studies of carpentry methods have proved that the table in Winchester’s Great Hall was a good 600 years too late for the ‘once and future king’. Instead, it has been attributed to King Edward I, who reigned in the late 13th century and took a great interest in Arthurian legends. Historians suggest that the table may have been built in 1290 and used as a centrepiece at a tournament to mark the betrothal of one of Edward’s daughters.
In the 1500s, King Henry VIII had the table restored and re-painted with a Tudor rose and a king who was said to resemble himself. Running around the perimeter are the names of 24 Arthurian knights. Was this Henry’s idea as well? A report from that time states that the names were ‘badly eaten away by decay’, which suggests that Henry restored names that were already there.
Constructed from English oak, the table measures 5.5 metres (18 feet) in diameter and weighs 1.32 tons. Originally, it would have had 12 outer legs and a central support. I wondered how it would have looked when Edward I used it: who sat around it, what they looked like, and how they spoke. Looking back, I think part of me fell under the spell of history that day, although I would have denied it at the time.
Reference
I didn’t carry a camera around with me in those days, so the photos here are drawn from the public domain.
18 Comments
housesandbooks
Your history blogs are fascinating! Thanks for posting.
Jo Woolf
Thank you very much, and you’re very welcome – glad to know you enjoy them! 🙂
Homestead Ramblings
Epiphany moment for sure! What an amazing place, with such detailed work everywhere, not just the roundtable. So glad that you ‘happened’ to wander into the castle hall and for what historical adventures you’ve shared with us since then. 🙂
Jo Woolf
🙂 Thank you – perhaps it was meant to be!
mandala56
Wow, I’ve got to get Winchester on my list. That is amazing.
Jo Woolf
Winchester is an amazing city – there’s a beautiful cathedral too, and plenty of wonderful old shops and houses. It was a lovely place to work!
tearoomdelights
I had no idea such a table actually existed, and it’s huge! I’m not surprised you were impressed and it made a lasting impact on you. Winchester looks a fascinating place.
Jo Woolf
It certainly did! I never forgot that, and I really enjoyed my time in Winchester. I wish I’d made more of it, looking back!
dhphotosite
Wow that is some castle! I always wondered if the “round table” was a real object or simply a tale from long ago.
Thanks for a great history lesson!
Jo Woolf
Isn’t it wonderful!? I don’t think it had even crossed my mind at the time, whether the table existed or not. Glad you enjoyed reading about it!
blosslyn
Ha Ha the times I have seen that table, when we lived in Southampton every visitor was taken on a trip to Winchester and a visit to the table and the cathedral. There use to be a wonderful secondhand book shop and lots of antique shops, lovely place to send some time, really took me back quite a few years 🙂
Jo Woolf
Glad that it brought back memories! 🙂 I’m wondering if it’s still the same. I remember a lovely crystal & mineral shop around the top of the high street, well worth a visit!
Watching Seasons
What a beautiful building! I’m always amazed at Medieval architectural achievements such as this.
Jo Woolf
It’s really lovely – I would love to see this place as it was in Edward I’s day! That would be wonderful.
Sansom Wedding Photography
Looks like an amazing place!
Jo Woolf
Certainly is! I remember we went to the Cathedral with you (when we went to the CLA at Romsey perhaps?) but not the Great Hall.
greenmackenzie
Really lovey article, I knew this existed but had never seen photos. It was built as a piece of propaganda, and reworked as propaganda…..everyone royal wanted to create a connection in people’s minds with the great legendary Arthur 🙂 much better than an ad on telly or a paper flyer!
Jo Woolf
Thank you! Arthur’s allure still persists even in the computer age, which says something for his charisma and his abilities!