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![]() ![]() The story of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table is part of British folk history. He was a powerful king with a magical sword, Excalibur, and a group of loyal soldiers, called knights. But did he really exist? Here
is a text about Arthur. Read it and then try and do the exercise. The
exercise is about the meaning of the words in bold.
Many places in England, particularly in the south and west, claim connections with King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. Yet even today, with all the tools of modern archaeology, it’s still impossible to know whether such a king existed, or whether his story is simply a legend. Certainly there are
historical references to a leader called Arthur, who lived around the
end of the fifth century. He had already become something of a folk
hero by the ninth century as a warrior king. And yet Arthur’s Round Table exists - in Winchester. It is inside the magnificent Great Hall, the only part of the former Winchester Castle that remains intact. Although the table once had twelve legs, has a diameter of 18 feet (5.4 metres) and weighs nearly one and a half tons, it has hung on the wall for centuries. It has this inscription: "This is the round table of Arthur with 24 of his named knights." Unfortunately scientific
tests have shown that is unlikely. The table was made at some time
between 1250 and 1280 - about thirty years after the Hall itself was built.
The table was painted (or, just possibly, re-painted) in 1520, on the
instructions of King Henry VIII. Indeed, there are those who say that
the face of the king painted on the table could easily be a likeness of
the young Henry - a piece of flattery by a court painter, rather
than a portrait of an Arthur who may, after all, never have existed. Use the 'Score' button to check your answers. Use the 'Reset' button if you want to start again. Use the 'Answers'
button to see the correct words.
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