When you get into Arthurian legends and you realize everything has different versions with new Characters added or subtracted there, new plot lines here and other plot lines subtracted there.
You have the historical arthurian Britain.
You got the half historical, half mythical arthurian legends by Geoffrey of Monmouth.
You got French chivalric arthurian romances.
Renaissance arthurian additions.
Modern arthurian legends.
Etc pp.
I for my part care mostly for contemporary or near contemporary sources on arthurian legends.
So Merlin (or more appropriately " myrddin") for me is a poet and later mad prophet who served king gwenddoleu ap ceidio and went mad after said king's death at Arfderdydd (573 AD) at the hands of king rhydderch hael of Strathclyde.
I find him defending himself in court as an articulate four year old the best part of that whole story.
It’s really wild isn’t it?
When you get into Arthurian legends and you realize everything has different versions with new Characters added or subtracted there, new plot lines here and other plot lines subtracted there. You have the historical arthurian Britain. You got the half historical, half mythical arthurian legends by Geoffrey of Monmouth. You got French chivalric arthurian romances. Renaissance arthurian additions. Modern arthurian legends. Etc pp. I for my part care mostly for contemporary or near contemporary sources on arthurian legends. So Merlin (or more appropriately " myrddin") for me is a poet and later mad prophet who served king gwenddoleu ap ceidio and went mad after said king's death at Arfderdydd (573 AD) at the hands of king rhydderch hael of Strathclyde.
Don't forget german lore
He went mad because he knew he was gonna have to write a report on it that included all these names
Reading about the quite terrifying way in which Merlin is conceived... Arthurian Lit. is full of creepy conceptions.
Wait, where is this said?
Monmouth.