As mentioned, Arthur is cocky - or in Merlin's word a clotpole (or prat if he's feeling nice). When you first meet him he comes off as someone who is every inch a prince, destined for the crown. He is fiercely competitive, but fears others might go 'easy on him' since he is the heir to the throne which fuels doubts in his abilities.
As a Knight of Camelot Arthur places a huge amount of importance on the Knights Code of Honour - he'll never back out of a properly issued challenge even if the odds appear entirely against him.He also values fairness in so far as the lower classes are not taken advantage of and are protected (in the face of his father's more pragmatic approach of protecting and valuing the nobility). These views have become firmer thanks to his friendship with Merlin and his feelings for Guinevere.
Arthur carries around some guilt for being responsible (as he sees it) for his mother, Ygraine's death as she died giving birth to him. He wishes desperately that he could have known her and have at least some sort of memory about her.
He also wants to please his father, for most of his life in fact he thought he was a disappointment to King Uther, his father has told him nothing could be further from the truth but because of Uther's own personality (cold, angry and paranoid) Arthur sometimes finds it hard to believe.
Despite his gnerally prattish and snobby behaviour, Arthur cares a great deal for the people of Camelot and wants to be a king they can be proud of.
Other: - Spoilers!
Arthur is an expert warrior 'trained to kill since birth' in his own words. For a number of years he was Champion (and technically still is, even though a chap called Sir William holds the honours) and is skilled in swordfighting, archery, jousting, hand to hand combat and prides himself on his ability with a mace.
At present Arthur is unaware of his manservant/friend Merlin's magical abilities - although he does wonder from time to time how someone as clumsy as Merlin always manages to survive (and often save him in the process!). Arthur's own view of magic is convoluted, he is not as paranoid as his father, but due to an incident involving the 'ghost' of his mother he tends to believe that those who use magic do so only for evil purposes. (The jury's still out on whether he really did meet his mother or if it was a trick).
He also unaware of Morgana's abilities and the fact that she is plotting revenge against his father, he is further unaware of a great secret - that Morgana is Uther's daughter - the result of an affair, and thus his half-sister. Because of this Morgana has some claim on the throne, but only if Arthur was to die as well as Uther. She is being careful to keep up an act so as far as Arthur's concerned he and Morgana are close as ever.
Arthur Pendragon - 2/3
As mentioned, Arthur is cocky - or in Merlin's word a clotpole (or prat if he's feeling nice). When you first meet him he comes off as someone who is every inch a prince, destined for the crown. He is fiercely competitive, but fears others might go 'easy on him' since he is the heir to the throne which fuels doubts in his abilities.
As a Knight of Camelot Arthur places a huge amount of importance on the Knights Code of Honour - he'll never back out of a properly issued challenge even if the odds appear entirely against him.He also values fairness in so far as the lower classes are not taken advantage of and are protected (in the face of his father's more pragmatic approach of protecting and valuing the nobility). These views have become firmer thanks to his friendship with Merlin and his feelings for Guinevere.
Arthur carries around some guilt for being responsible (as he sees it) for his mother, Ygraine's death as she died giving birth to him. He wishes desperately that he could have known her and have at least some sort of memory about her.
He also wants to please his father, for most of his life in fact he thought he was a disappointment to King Uther, his father has told him nothing could be further from the truth but because of Uther's own personality (cold, angry and paranoid) Arthur sometimes finds it hard to believe.
Despite his gnerally prattish and snobby behaviour, Arthur cares a great deal for the people of Camelot and wants to be a king they can be proud of.
Other: - Spoilers!
Arthur is an expert warrior 'trained to kill since birth' in his own words. For a number of years he was Champion (and technically still is, even though a chap called Sir William holds the honours) and is skilled in swordfighting, archery, jousting, hand to hand combat and prides himself on his ability with a mace.
At present Arthur is unaware of his manservant/friend Merlin's magical abilities - although he does wonder from time to time how someone as clumsy as Merlin always manages to survive (and often save him in the process!). Arthur's own view of magic is convoluted, he is not as paranoid as his father, but due to an incident involving the 'ghost' of his mother he tends to believe that those who use magic do so only for evil purposes. (The jury's still out on whether he really did meet his mother or if it was a trick).
He also unaware of Morgana's abilities and the fact that she is plotting revenge against his father, he is further unaware of a great secret - that Morgana is Uther's daughter - the result of an affair, and thus his half-sister. Because of this Morgana has some claim on the throne, but only if Arthur was to die as well as Uther. She is being careful to keep up an act so as far as Arthur's concerned he and Morgana are close as ever.
Additional Links: Merlin TV Series
Entry on Arthur (specific to the TV series)