Geraint

Geraint is a figure between legend and history: our sources speak of a valiant warrior of Welsh folklore and Arthurian legend and, besides, of a saintly king of Dumnonia (south-⁠west Britain) in the 6th century, known from Breton hagiographies. The Welsh name Geraint comes from the Latin Gerontius. We cannot say with certainty whether the man of legend and the saintly king are one and the same.

The earliest mentions are a "Geraint of the South" in the poem Y Gododdin (around 600) and the poem "Geraint son of Erbin", probably written in the 10th or 11th century, which celebrates his deeds at the battle of Llongborth. The Welsh Triads number him among the three seafarers of the Isle of Britain. Some scholars connect the poem with a later Geraint, king of Dumnonia, who died in 710. In the Welsh tale "Geraint and Enid" he is the hero.

Local legends tell of a king Geraint, patron of Gerrans near Falmouth, who is said to be buried at Carne Beacon near Veryan. He is remembered on 10 August. The death date in our record cannot be supported by the sources, and his rank as a righteous ruler rests only on local tradition.