Merlin is an historical figure that has captured the imagination of people across the world, writes Greg Jones.
His links with King Arthur and the scores of books, cartoons and films devoted to his adventures have propelled his status to one under the constant scrutiny of global debate.

Carmarthen is a town said by many academics to be the most closely connected to Merlin, and 2006 marked the fourth occasion the 'Merlin, Magic & Mystery' festival was held in his memory.

Ann Dorsett is a senior museums curator at Carmarthenshire Council. She said:
"Geoffrey of Monmouth wrote the History of the Kings of Britain in 1136 and he links stories about Merlin with those concerning King Arthur.
"In his story, a boy called Merlinus was found by messengers of Vortigen, King of the Britons, in a town named Kaermerdin. The boy was needed as a sacrifice to stop a new tower from mysteriously falling down. Merlin showed Vortigen that the tower stood upon an underground pool containing two dragons. When the pool was drained, the dragons awoke and began to fight. Merlin explained that the red dragon represented the British people and the white represented the Saxon invaders. Geoffrey took a lot from earlier legends and histories, and many Merlin prophecies featured in early Welsh poems."

Professor Stephen Knight is the author of Arthurian Literature and Society.
He said: "Merlin appears to have been aristocratic and fled to the woods after being traumatised by a battle that took place close to Carlisle in 573AD. He became a visionary who prophesied and represented knowledge. Geoffrey of Monmouth linked him with South Wales and, in particular, Dyfed.
"He's become especially associated with Carmarthen because of the town's name along with its standing and dignity. Merlin is a term that's still connected with power. One only has to recall the Merlin engines of the World War Two Spitfires to illustrate that."

A further link with Carmarthen is the famous oak tree that once stood on the corner of Oak Lane and Priory Street. It's estimated that a local schoolmaster planted it in 1659 to mark the accession of Charles II.
In the early nineteenth century, a local man poisoned the tree because it was a popular meeting place. It eventually decayed and the last fragments were removed in 1978 and transferred to the Civic Hall.

A branch that fell in 1951 can also be found at Carmarthenshire Museum along with a wealth of other information about Merlin.

MORE:

In Pictures: Merlin festival 2005