Arthur and the sword in the stone – reading comprehension

Name: ......................................... Date: ............................................

There are many tales about the legendary King Arthur and his adventures in Anglo-
Saxon Britain. For hundreds of years, people have read these stories of Arthur and
his knights, sometimes adding to the legend. It is difficult to separate fact from
fiction, but the story of how Arthur became king is embedded in folklore.

A deep sadness descended over Britain as news of the death of King Uther spread
throughout the land. Anger and arguments erupted about who should replace Uther to
become the next king. None of the powerful knights or nobles competing for the crown
knew Uther had a son, Arthur, who had been sent away from the kingdom for his own
safety. There were rumours Saxon armies planned to kill him.

For many months, fights raged between the warring knights with no hope of peace. One
winter’s morning as the frost glistened on the trees, a great stone suddenly appeared in
front of the ancient church of St Paul. A mighty sword was thrust deep into the stone
leaving only a small part of the blade visible. Word of the sword spread throughout the
kingdom. Curious, a banner of knights visited the site, and when they reached the
sword, they found an inscription carved into the shining metal of the blade which read,
‘Whoever pulls this sword from the stone is the rightful King of England.’

Over and over, the knights exhausted themselves as they tried to wrench the sword free.
But, try as they might, the sword remained stubbornly embedded in the stone.

Years passed and despite the efforts of many knights and noblemen, the sword remained
fixed in its place.

Arthur, now fully grown, was determined to be the one to release the sword from its
granite prison – if only he could find it. His foster brother, Kay, was due to fight in a
tourney, but he had lost his sword. While searching for a replacement, Arthur was drawn
towards the ancient church yard. His eyes fell upon the magical sword as the steel of its
blade glinted in the early morning sunlight.

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 Arthur and the sword in the stone – reading comprehension
He strode towards the sword while leaves tumbled to the ground around him. Reaching
out, he clasped the jewelled handle of the weapon between his hands and heaved. The
sword yielded to Arthur with ease.

Arthur was crowned king with Excalibur, his sword, held up to the sky in celebration.

Questions

1. What period in history is the story of ‘Arthur and the sword in the stone’ set?

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2. Why were the people arguing over who should become the next king?

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3. What does the word ‘raged’ suggest about the fights?

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4. Over and over, the knights exhausted themselves as they tried to wrench the sword
free. What does the word ‘wrench’ mean?

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5. What do the words ‘banner’, ‘inscription’ and ‘tourney’ mean?

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6. Find two words that means the same as ‘sparkling’.

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7. Find and copy the phrase that shows that it was easy for Arthur to pull out the sword.

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8. What was the name of Arthur’s sword?

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 Arthur and the sword in the stone – reading comprehension
Answers

1. The Anglo-Saxon era.

2. None of the people realised that Uther had a son named Arthur.

3. The fights were brutal and violent/The fights went on for a long time.

4. To pull or twist something hard to free it.

5. Banner (A group of knights) Inscription (Writing carved into something made of stone
or metal) Tourney (A knightly tournament).

6. Glistened, shining.

7. Yielded … with ease.

8. Excalibur.

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