Kings and Queens of Early Britain is Geoffrey Ashe's history of Britain from the Celtic settlement through Roman oversight and withdrawal, then through Anglo-Saxon rule to Alfred the Great. He takes as foundation later works by Nennius, Gildas and Geoffrey of Monmouth that are known to be problematic for historians, sorting out legend from known or probably historical passages to make a pretty good history of the rulers over these diverse kingdoms.

Of course, one topic of much discussion is the possible historical basis for Arthur and the legends that grew up about him, mostly as documented by Geoffrey (not the much later version we're more familiar with). Ashe is suitably skeptical, but finds other sources to substantiate his idea that there's a real person hidden behind the legends. He goes on to explore this idea in other books.

Ashe is a bit terse at times, and all the names and places can be a bit confusing, but for the most part, this is a decent work. For me, the biggest negative was the lack insight into the archaeology that supports or negates the histories Ashe uses - he only occasionally touches on this work and a bit longer book that included more would have been better, I think. ( )