The Five Kingdoms is the group of kingdoms created centuries ago by Bruta. The Five Kingdoms have been united in an official alliance since the reign of Uther Pendragon.
History
Hundreds of years ago, before the birth of the five kingdoms, the land was in an endless cycle of bloodshed and war, but one man was determined to end all that. Bruta. He gathered together the elders of each tribe and drew up plans for the lands to be divided. Each would respect the others’ boundaries, and drew it over the land as they saw fit. Bruta later became Camelot’s first king. (The Sword in the Stone).
Peace in the five kingdoms did not last. Over the centuries, new Kingdoms emerged, presumably taking territories from original five.
During the reign of Uther Pendragon, the rulers of the Five Kingdoms gathered in Camelot to draft an official alliance. Never before had the rulers come together in this way. Never before had they all worked towards the same aim of peace. The peace talks were secretly opposed by King Alined, who tried to sabotage them by starting a war between Camelot and Olaf's Kingdom. His plot failed, however, and the kingdoms parted ways as allies (Sweet Dreams).
Despite peace between the Five Kingdoms, conflict still occurred in the land. Arthur attempted to maintain peace in the Five Kingdoms by pursuing an alliance with Sarrum of Amata. The alliance ultimately failed when Sarrum was assassinated during the treaty signing (The Hollow Queen).
The Five Kingdoms
For other notable kingdoms and domains see kingdoms
| Kingdom | Ruler | Crest |
|---|---|---|
| Alined's Kingdom | King Alined | 
|
| Camelot | Queen Guinevere Pendragon; previously Arthur Pendragon and Uther Pendragon | 
|
| Olaf's Kingdom | King Olaf | 
|
| Unnamed Kingdom | Unnamed King | 
|
| Unnamed Kingdom | Unnamed King | 
|
Trivia
- Hundreds of years ago the greatest city in the Five Kingdoms was Daobeth until it was destroyed by Dragons (The Darkest Hour: Deleted Scene 66)
- Arthur accuses Merlin of being the worst servant in the history of the five kingdoms (His Father's Son).
- Morgana claimed that her bracelet's healing powers were without equal in the Five Kingdoms (The Secret Sharer).
- Alator claimed to have been shunned, persecuted, and sometimes even hunted in every corner of the five kingdoms (The Secret Sharer).
- The Knights of Camelot were said to be the greatest knights in the Five Kingdoms (The Sword in the Stone).
- Sarrum of Amata was once the deadliest assassin in the five kingdoms until he was assassinated (The Hollow Queen).
- The Five Kingdoms are most likely a reference to the Five Kings condemned by the monk Gildas in his sermon "De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae". These Kings are:
- Vortiporius, king of Dyfed
- This is probably Unidentified King 2, as Gildas described him as "like... the spotted leopard...whose head now is growing grey", and UK2 has a spotted crest and is green, a possible reference the Irish origin of Dyfed's Royal Family.
- Aurelius Conanus
- This is probably Alined, as the two have similar names, and Gildas accuses Aurelius of "horrible murders, fornications, and adulteries". This seems to fit Alined pretty well
- Aurelius was also described as the "lion's whelp", and Alined's crest kind of looks like a lion if you squint, but a goat seems closer.
- Cuneglassus
- This is probably Olaf, as Gildas calls him "thou bear", an animal which appears on Olaf's crest.
- As for the name, "Olaf" might be a corruption of "Cynlas", the Welsh descendant of Cuneglassus.
- Maglocunus
- Given Gildas describes him as "Dragon of the Isle" and as the foremost of the Five Kings, this is probably none other than Uther Pendragon. Gildas claims he arose to the throne by murdering his uncle, which would explain why Uther says he conquered Camelot rather than inheriting it.
- As for the difference in names, it's possible that Maglocunus is Uther's birth name, and "Uther Pendragon" (which roughly translates to "The Most Terrifying Great Dragon") was an epithet he adopted later in life.
- Constantine, king of Damnonia (Either Strathclyde or Cornwall)
- By process of elimination, this is probably Unidentified King 1
- Vortiporius, king of Dyfed
Appearances
- Series 2
- Sweet Dreams (Mentioned only)
- Series 4
- The Darkest Hour: Part One (Deleted scene only)
- His Father's Son (Mentioned only)
- The Secret Sharer (Mentioned only)
- The Sword in the Stone: Part One (Mentioned only)
- Series 5
- The Hollow Queen (Mentioned only)
Gallery
See Also
In the Legends
According to the 12th-century Historia Regum Britanniae ("The History of The Kings of Britain") by Geoffrey of Monmouth, the exiled Brutus of Troy came to an island inhabited by giants and named it Britain after himself. On his death, he split the land between his three sons, Locrinus (Loegria/ Southern Britain), Kamber (Kambria / North and West Britain and Wales, from the Severn to the Humber) and Albanactus (Albany / Scotland).