Peredurus () is a legendary king of the Britons in

Geoffrey of Monmouth Geoffrey of Monmouth (; ; ) was a Catholic cleric from Monmouth, Wales, and one of the major figures in the development of British historiography and the popularity of tales of King Arthur. He is best known for his chronicle '' The History of ...

's pseudohistorical chronicle ''

Historia Regum Britanniae (''The History of the Kings of Britain''), originally called (''On the Deeds of the Britons''), is a fictitious account of British history, written around 1136 by Geoffrey of Monmouth. It chronicles the lives of the List of legendary kings o ...

''. According to Geoffrey, he was the youngest son of King Morvidus and brother of Gorbonianus, Archgallo, Elidurus, and Ingenius. He came to power in 317 BC. Following the return of Elidurus to the kingship of

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

, Peredurus joined with his brother Ingenius and attacked their older brother. They succeeded in capturing him and locked him in a guarded tower in

Trinovantum Trinovantum is the name in medieval British legend that was given to London, according to Geoffrey of Monmouth's ''Historia Regum Britanniae'', when it was founded by the exiled Troy, Trojan Brutus of Troy, Brutus, who called it ''Troia Nova'' ("N ...

. Instead of fighting over who ruled the island, they split the island giving all land north and east of the

River Humber The Humber is a large tidal estuary on the east coast of Northern England. It is formed at Trent Falls, Faxfleet, by the confluence of the tidal rivers Ouse and Trent. From there to the North Sea, it forms part of the boundary between ...

, including

Alba ''Alba'' ( , ) is the Scottish Gaelic name for Scotland. It is also, in English-language historiography, used to refer to the polity of Picts and Scots united in the ninth century as the Kingdom of Alba, until it developed into the Kingd ...

ny, to Peredurus, and all land to the south and west to Ingenius. He ruled his portion of the island for seven years then Ingenius died and he was awarded with the entire kingdom.Sacred Texts website
''Histories of the Kings of Britain (Book II)'', by Geoffry of Monmouth, tr. by Sebastian Evans (1904) He ruled moderately and was considered better than his brothers before him. Few remembered Elidurus locked in the tower until death finally took Peredurus. Elidurus returned once more as king following Peredurus's death. His son Runo later became king of Britain.

References

{{Geoffrey of Monmouth 3rd-century BC legendary monarchs Legendary British kings

See also

References