historia regum britanniae - Influence
The history of Geoffrey forms the basis for much English lore and literature as well as being a rich source of material for Welsh bards. It became tremendously popular during the High Middle Ages, revolutionising views of British history before and during the Anglo-Saxon period despite the criticism of such writers as William of Newburgh and Gerald of Wales. The prophecies of Merlin in particular were often drawn on in later periods, for instance by both sides in the issue of English influence over Scotland under Edward I and his successors.

The Historia was quickly translated into Norman French verse by Wace (the Roman de Brut ) in 1155; into Middle English verse by Layamon (the Brut ) in the early 13th century; and into three different Welsh prose versions by the end of the 13th century. ^{A. O. H. Jarman} One of these Welsh translations, the so-called Brut Tysilio , was proposed in 1917 by the archaeologist Sir William Flinders Petrie to be the ancient British book that Geoffrey translated, ¹ although the Brut itself claims to have been translated from Latin by Walter of Oxford, based on his own earlier translation from Welsh to Latin. ^{William R. Cooper}

For many centuries, the Historia was accepted at face value, and much of its material was incorporated into Holinshed's 16th century Chronicles .

Modern historians have regarded the Historia as a work of fiction with some factual information contained within. John Morris in The Age of Arthur calls it a "deliberate spoof," although this is based on misidentifying Walter, archdeacon of Oxford, as Walter Map, a satirical writer who lived a century later. ^John

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