Coin of Constantine III
I once broached the notion that the name/epithet Uther Pendragon was a Welsh attempt to render the Roman rank of MAGISTER UTRIUSQUE MILITIAE. Surprisingly, this tentative offering to Arthurian theory was not met with derision, but rather with considerable enthusiasm. Why? Because it allowed Arthur to remain in SW Britain, which is where prevailing tradition puts him. The MVM in question, of course, was the British Gerontius of the early 5th century. This is not to say that man was Arthur's father, but rather a later Gerontius was confused with him. We have some evidence of just such a later Gerontius (Geraint/Gereint). For those who are interested in the Uther Pendragon = Magister Utriusque Militiae equation, please see the following article:
When I abandoned the idea, I was bothered by two unresolved problems. First, I had struggled with the 'eil cawyl' of the Uther Pendragon elegy. I had two choices for cawyl, and only two. In the first case, the word should be seen as an error for the personal name Sawyl. This and the fact that Arthur is said to have a son named Madog led me to my current theory, i.e. that Uther is Sawyl Benisel who appeared to rule from Ribchester in Lancashire. The second possibility fit the context of the poem perfectly, AND dovetailed nicely with Geoffrey of Monmouth's story of the dragon-star representing Uther himself. In this case cawyl was an error for canwyl, a word that meant candle, but could also be used poetically to mean STAR. The idea of canwyl for star made sense in the poem, where Uther first says 'I am a leader in darkness' and then follows with "I am like a cawyl in the gloom." Canwyl came to have the figurative meaning of leader as well. For confirmation of all this, please see the GPC entry for cannwyll.
Secondly, how to make sense of Uther stating "I am he who is called Gorlasar"? We know that this Gorlasar was used by Geoffrey of Monmouth to create his separate character Gorlois, Duke of Cornwall. I had discussed in some detail the problem of interpreting the word. In the context of the poem, it made the most sense to see it as a borrowing from the Irish:
[eDIL]
[eDIL]
forlas(s)ar
n (lassar) a great blaze ; great radiance: sruth tentide co forlasair fair, LU 2092 ( FA 16 ). ? g s. (as attrib.) leni ... co nderginliud ōir forlasrach , LU 10222 . As adj. radiant, dazzling
A man who was calling himself the 'Very Radiant One' would, quite naturally, be expected to pronounce in a few lines later that he was both 'a leader in darkness' and 'a candle/star/leader in the gloom.' If we opt for the other definition for gorlasar, the 'very blue', we are forced to accept this as a reference to enamelled arms or armor, or perhaps to woad tattooing.
Despite these issues, I dropped the Uther Pendragon as MVM proposal. It may be that I was wrong to do so. For as I continued to research the MVM Gerontius, I discovered that men of his station would have been given a honorific title that was separate from, but dependent upon, their military rank. The title in question is ILLUSTRIS (or INLUSTRIS).
I am pasting here a good scholarly discussion of the title Illustris and to whom it was regularly applied, and when. Below that I provide definitions for illustris, inlustris and the root of both words, as drawn from the Lewis and Short dictionary.
Illustris. -
We have seen that the Masters became illustres in 371, and as such they appear in a constitution of the following year. They also have this title in the Notitia. Frequently illustris was joined with clarissimus, which after this time was no longer used alone as a Master's title. Thus Stilicho is regularly entitled vir clarissimus et inlustris, and Constantinus had the same designation. This combination has bee explained by referring the clarissimus to the inherited senatorial, and the illustris to the acquired official, rank. As an alternate form for illustris, illustrissimus was sometimes employed, as in the cases of Stilicho in 398-399 and Sigisvuldus in 440. The former is also styled illustris et praeclarus vir.' In 372 the Prefects and the Masters of the Soldiers formed a class of illustres of equal rank." Upon retirement to a private station they took precedence according to the date at which they had received their appointments (codicilli). In 485 these Masters were classed below the Prefects as they are in the Notitia. But another constitution of Zeno (474-491) gives a first class of illustres composed of the Prefects and the magistri militum, just as in 372. It cannot be determined exactly when these Masters ceased to be styled illustres. In 520 a Master called Romanus still held that title and an ex-Master appears as an illustris about 525. Further, an inscription dating from between 578 and 582, if restored correctly, reads Vita[lio] mag[nifico et] inl(ustri) m[agistro] m[ilitum] Africae. However, this is the only instance of a Master having the title illustris after the first quarter of the sixth century, and, since in 535 they were gloriosissimi, it is probable that the Masters were raised above the illustrissimate between 520 and the latter date.
inlūstris (ill-) e, adj. with comp.
LVC-, lighted, bright, light, lustrous, brilliant: domicilia: caput, O.: solis candor inlustrior est quam ullius ignis.—Fig., clear, plain, distinct, evident, manifest: ad cognoscendum omnia, S.: factum inlustre notumque omnibus: inlustriora furta, more conspicuous.—Distinguished, renowned, famous, honorable, noble, illustrious: homines maxime inlustres: adulescens, Cs.: famā fatisque, V.: inlustriore loco natus, Cs.: nomen quam Solonis inlustrius: vitae ratio inlustrior.—Memorable, noteworthy: maior atque inlustrior res, Cs.
illustris (inl- ), e (
I.nom. sing. masc. illuster. Val. Max. 4, 1, 5; 4, 3, 11), adj. inlustro, lighted up, clear, bright, light, lustrous (class.; esp. freq. in the trop. signif.).
lūstrō āvī, ātus, āre
2 lustrum, to light up, illuminate, make bright : lampade terras (Aurora), V.— To review, survey, observe, examine : lumine corpus, V.: tua vestigia, search for thee , V.: omnia eundo, O.: exercitum apud Iconium.— To go around, encircle : regem choreis, V.— To go round, wander over, traverse : (terrae) tuis victoriis lustra tae sunt: latitudinem orbis: navibus aequor, V.: pede barbaro Lustrata Rhodope, H.: fugā harenam, Iu.—Fig., in religion, to make bright, purify by a propitiatory offering : in lustrandā coloniā: exercitum suovetaurilibus, L.: senem flammā, O.: Lustramur, purify ourselves , V.: se centum ovis, Iu.— To review, consider : omnia ratione animoque.
Professor Roger Tomlin has assured me that Gerontius would have born the title of vir illustris:
"My impression is that Gerontius would certainly have enjoyed the title vir illustris."
There are quite a few personages in the 5th century who bore a Master of Soldiers rank along with an Illustrious Man title:
"Sometime between 459 and 471, Ricimer underwrote a mosaic in the apse of the present-day Church of s. agata dei goti in rome. The dedicatory inscription, in gold letters, reads:
FL RICIMER VI MAG VTRIUSQ MILITIAE
Flavius Ricimer, vir inlustris, magister utriusque militiae, patricius et ex consule ordinario, pro voto suo adornavit (“flavius ricimer, an illustrious gentlemen, master of both services, patrician, and ex-ordinary consul, adorned [this church] according to his vow”)
Flavius Astyrius vir clarissimus et inlustris comes ex magistro utriusque militiae consul ordinarius.
Ralph W. Mathisen, People, Personal Expression, and Social Relations in Late Antiquity, University of Michigan Press, 2003
In 463, Gundioc the Burgundian was called vir illustris, magister militum in a letter to Pope Hilary.
The NOTITIA DIGNITATUM also supplies numerous examples of the pairing of the Master of Soldiers rank with illustris/inlustris. I would urge my readers to consult this source for that information:
What I am putting forward is that Gorlasar is a Welsh rendering of the Roman title of Illustris. This title, which meant that Gerontius the MVM was the Shining One, contributed to him being the leader in darkness and candle/star in the gloom of the elegy poem. And, ultimately, allowed for Geoffrey of Monmouth to create his story of the dragon-star.
[Alternately, if gorlassar is the 'very blue' or 'very blue-green', we might point to the blue, green or blue-green color of some aked-eye comets. In this case illustris would be out of the running. In the past, gorlassar has been described as meaning blue enamelled armor or weapons, and I have even suggested blue woad tattooing.]
Is all of this enough to allow us to settle on Uther Pendragon as a later Dumnonian Geraint, the latter having been conflated with his early 5th century MVM namesake?
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