Before
Arthur was crowned High King at the age of 25, he had been a warlord in the
service of the King for 7 years. In his youth, he already had a solid training
in the arts of fighting. At the same time, he had immersed himself in the
philosophy of various Roman writers. When he learned the hardships of the
reality of being a soldier, Arthur quickly developed new important competences.
Competences such as: strategic thinking, decision making, being an example for
his team, courageously fighting in the forefront, encouraging, inspiring and
comforting his men and women (indeed, the Celtic women were often also part of
the fighting force). So, before he was crowned High King, he had already become
quite a leader.
When Uther
Pendragon died, his succession had not been arranged. Arthur was his son, yet
nobody knew that (except, of course, for Arthur’s closest supporters, like
Merlin and Lucius the Bishop of Glastonbury). The secret of the ‘baby Arthur’
had also been so well kept in order to protect the young Arthur from the other
competing Celtic kings. And indeed, Arthur had been kept a secret. Now it turned
into a little problem though. Nobody was just going to take Merlin and Lucius’s
word for it, no matter how important and influential their voice was.