King Arthur's
Labyrinth

Introduction

King Arthur's Labyrinth is situated in the former workings of the Braich Goch Slate Mines at Corris. Here a visit underground by boat along a subterranean river takes you through the great waterfall into the Labyrinth. A walk then through the caverns takes you back in time to see spectacular audiovisual tableau of the Arthurian legends and a narrator introduces stories from the Mabinogion and the Tales of Taliesin.

The boy Myrddin talks to a king called Gwrtheyrn whom the Saxons call Vortigern and tells him – Beneath the mountains of Dinas Emrys I have seen two dragons, one red and one white. The white dragon represents the Saxons and the red dragon the Britons. The white dragon is the stronger but the red dragon will have his day…There shall be a king after you who will drive out the Saxons and bring a time of peace and his name will be Arthur. It turns out to be Taliesin himself who tells you about Merlin at Dinas Emrys and the battle between the red and the white dragons, the battle with the giant Rhitta, the legend of Bran's head, the battle of Camlan and the voyage to Avalon. The narrator also talks of the lost land of Cantre'r Gwaelod and the legend that Arthur himself still sleeps in a cave in the Welsh hills waiting for the call to rescue the Cymru when in danger again.

These stories specifically relate to Key Stage 2 of the National Curriculum "Invaders and Settlers: The Celts" and they are designed to stimulate discussion and promote follow-up work, aided by an available activity pack and a booklet with more detailed histoprical background to the Arthurian legends.