Berkeley: University of California Press, 1979. The definitive, revised edition of the novel, prepared by the Mark Twain Project in Berkeley. Contains all of Dan Beard’s original illustrations, as well as extensive annotations and an elaborate editorial apparatus.

The novel is told within a frame set around 1889. During a day tour of England’s Warwick Castle, the anonymous frame-narrator meets an American— later identified as Hank Morgan—who relates how he was transported back to the sixth century. When he was a foreman in a Connecticut arms factory in 1879, an employee knocked him unconscious; he awakened in En-gland in c.e. 528. That night, Morgan leaves a manuscript containing his story with the narrator, who stays up reading it. Morgan’s own first-person account forms the novel’s main narrative.

Morgan’s narrative spans roughly ten years. After awakening in England, he is captured and taken to Camelot, where he is denounced as a monster and sentenced to be burned. He knows that a solar eclipse occurred at the very hour when he is scheduled to die, so he threatens to blot out the sun. When the eclipse begins, people conclude that he is a powerful magician. King Arthur not only frees him but also agrees to make him his prime minister. Morgan then enhances his reputation by blowing up the tower of Merlin the magician. Soon dubbed the “Boss,” Morgan reorganizes the kingdom’s administration and gradually introduces modern inventions and innovations, such as matches, factories, newspapers, the telegraph, and training schools. Although he is eager to introduce democracy and civil liberties, he proceeds cautiously to avoid offending the powerful Church.

After seven years, Morgan’s administration is so firmly established that he leaves Camelot. Wearing armor, he goes on a quest with a woman named Sandy to rescue princesses—who turn out to be hogs. During his return, he stops at a holy shrine, where King Arthur joins him. They disguise themselves as freemen in order to travel among commoners. A nobleman treacherously sells them to a slave caravan that takes them to London, where Morgan kills the slave driver while escaping. Before being recaptured, Morgan telegraphs Camelot asking for help. As he and the king are to be hanged, Sir Launcelot arrives with five hundred knights mounted on bicycles to rescue them.

Back in Camelot, Morgan wins many jousts using his lasso and kills a knight with a pistol. He then challenges all the knights at once. Five hundred knights attack, only to scatter after he starts shooting them. This triumph leaves him England’s unchallenged master, so he unveils his secret schools, mines, and factories. Finally ready to take on the Church, he has slavery abolished, taxation equalized, and all men made legally equal. Steam and electrical power proliferate, trains begin running, and Morgan prepares to send an expedition to discover America.

When Morgan visits France, the legendary tragedy of Arthur’s breach with Launcelot unfolds, plunging En-gland into civil war. Morgan returns to find that the Church has put him and his modern civilization under its Interdict. With only fifty-three trustworthy followers left, he retreats to a fortified cave that is attacked by twenty-five thousand knights. His modern weapons annihilate the knights, but the enemy corpses trap him in the cave. Merlin casts a spell to make him sleep thirteen hundred years.

A postscript to the final chapter returns the story to the present. The frame-narrator finishes reading Morgan’s manuscript and visits him in time to see him die.

*England

*England. Apart from the frame that surrounds the main narrative and a brief interlude in Gaul toward its end, the entire novel is set in southern England during a roughly ten-year period that begins in June, 528 c.e. Before selecting this time period, Mark Twain contemplated writing a novel contrasting the feudal institutions of the Hawaiian kingdom, which he had observed in the 1860’s, with those of the modern West. He decided instead to set his story in England of the sixth century after reading Sir Thomas Malory’s Le Mort d’Arthur (1485). As is typical of literary treatments of Arthurian legends, Twain’s depiction of sixth century England is far from realistic. What interested him was not the details of any specific period, but resistance of old and entrenched institutions to change. He was particularly critical of the Roman Catholic Church, which dominated England through the Middle Ages. His Yankee’s noble efforts to implant modern technology and democratic social and political institutions in medieval England meet the implacable resistance of the Church and end in apocalyptic failure.

*Warwick Castle

*Warwick Castle. Castle on the Avon River, near modern Birmingham, in which the novel begins and ends. The castle links distant past and present and may be seen as Hank’s emotional portal to the sixth century. In the book’s prelude—set around 1889—the frame narrator meets the “Yankee,” Hank Morgan, at the castle. Later, at an inn, Hank begins telling his story and lets the narrator read his manuscript, which becomes the core of the novel. The novel ends with the narrator revisiting Hank just before the latter dies. Connections between the historical Warwick Castle—which Twain visited and admired—and Arthur’s Camelot are entirely Twain’s invention. The castle’s location is several hundred miles north of the novel’s sixth century settings.

*Connecticut

*Connecticut. New England state that is home to Hank, who styles himself “a Yankee of the Yankees.” As befitting the stereotype of a no-nonsense New Englander, Hank calls himself “practical . . . and nearly barren of sentiment.” Twain was born and raised in the South but lived in Hartford, Connecticut, at the time he wrote A Connecticut Yankee, and he strongly admired New England culture and values.

*Hartford

*Hartford. Connecticut city in which Hank is head superintendent in the great Colt Arms Factory until he is sent back in time by a blow on the head he receives in a crowbar fight with a factory ruffian. Hank’s job makes him even more versatile and inventive than the typical Yankee. At the factory, he “learned to make . . . anything in the world, it didn’t make any difference what; and if there wasn’t any quick new-fangled way to make a thing, I could invent one.” These skills give him the confidence to try to make over early England’s technology.

Hank mentions Hartford several times in his narrative and has a wistful nostalgia for a young West Hartford telephone operator (a “hello-girl”) that tends to pull him emotionally back to his own time.

Camelot

Camelot. Legendary seat of England’s King Arthur’s court and principal setting for the novel’s earliest and last chapters. Though the subject of intense research, Camelot’s historical location—if it actually existed—is unknown, and Connecticut Yankee itself provides only vague clues to its location. Its Camelot appears to be about fifty or sixty miles southwest of London and nowhere near Warwick Castle. The novel depicts Camelot as a large city on a plain overlooked by a hilltop castle. In common with other renditions of Arthurian legends, the novel describes a castle with towers, turrets, and vaulted ceilings more characteristic of the architecture of the High Middle Ages than of the much earlier period in which the story is set. Under Hank Morgan’s leadership, Camelot begins to develop into a truly modern city, only to revert to its primitive condition when Hank’s new civilization collapses.

Valley of Holiness

Valley of Holiness. Home to several hundred monks and ascetic hermits who represent a concentration of early England’s most backward beliefs. After rescuing imaginary princesses from imaginary ogres, Hank arrives in the valley to find that its famous holy fountain has stopped flowing. He uses the crisis to mount his most spectacular demonstration of modern technology, when he uses a rocket display to punctuate his triumph over the magician Merlin in a competition to restart the fountain’s water flow. Modernism’s other triumphs over backwardness in the valley include the appearance of the first issue of Hank’s Camelot newspaper. However, the tenuous line between old and new belief systems is strained when Hank is nearly upstaged by a second-rate conjurer whose crude magic impresses the local monks almost as much as his own real science and technology. The incident shakes Hank’s confidence in his ability to transform England.

Abblasoure

Abblasoure (ab-lah-sewr). Village about ten miles south of the Valley of Holiness near which Hank and King Arthur—traveling incognito—visit the home of a family wiped out by smallpox and then spend several days in the home of the charcoal burner Marco. During this sojourn, Hank and the king have their first extended exposure to the everyday lives and concerns of the lowest rungs of English society. Initially, Hank is favorably impressed by the people he meets; however, careless remarks that he and the king make elicit the villagers’ deep fear of new ideas and turn the villagers savagely against them.

Cambenet

Cambenet (kam-beh-net). Village where Hank and the king are sold into slavery by the Earl Grip. From there, they begin a month-long march to London as members of a slave caravan—an experience that moves the king to begin modifying his views on the institution of slavery.

*London

*London. Little more than the small trading center founded by Romans several centuries earlier, London is the principal setting of chapters 35-38. Hank and the king arrive there as slaves but are rescued by a brigade of knights who ride in from Camelot on bicycles.

Sand Belt

Sand Belt. Site of an apocalyptic battle after the Church’s Interdict forces the collapse of Hank’s civilization. The belt is a defense perimeter around Merlin’s Cave, where Hank and his few remaining allies confront more than twenty-five thousand knights. The first knights who enter the belt are blown to bits by mines. When a second wave of knights enters the depression created by the explosions, they are drowned by a stream that Hank suddenly diverts into the new ditch. Hank’s victory is pyrrhic, however, as the immense numbers of dead bodies surrounding the cave make his stronghold a death trap from which he is the only person to escape, and he escapes only because Merlin casts a spell that makes him sleep for thirteen centuries.

Combining elements of science fiction, adventure tales, broad burlesque, and social satire, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court is a scathing commentary on injustice and oppression in all ages.

In England in 1889, a frame narrator meets an American at Warwick Castle. The curious stranger visits the narrator’s room, introduces himself as a “Yankee of the Yankees,” and tells how a blow to the head transported him to sixth century England. The visitor, later identified as Hank Morgan, becomes sleepy and leaves a yellowed manuscript detailing his story. With the exception of two postscripts, one by Clarence in the sixth century and another by the narrator, the remaining forty-three chapters are Hank’s first-person account of his ten years in the sixth century.

Hank Morgan awakens in a strange place and is captured by Sir Kay, a knight in armor, who Hank thinks is from either an insane asylum or a circus. Forced to march to Camelot, Hank learns that he is at King Arthur’s court in 528 a.d.

Condemned to death by Sir Kay, Hank uses his knowledge of an imminent eclipse to dupe his captors into believing that he has blotted out the sun. Terrified by Hank’s sorcery, King Arthur makes Hank the kingdom’s “second personage.” Hank demotes Merlin to performing mundane tasks.

With the help of page Amyas le Poulet, whom he calls “Clarence,” Hank reorganizes the kingdom. He secretly builds factories, schools, and military academies. He introduces many nineteenth century wonders, including the telephone, the telegraph, electrical generators, and firearms. He controls Merlin and others by performing additional “miracles” but remains wary of the ominous Established Church.

After devoting several years to creating his “civilization,” Hank must prove his mettle in tournaments and by traveling among the people. While touring the kingdom incognito with King Arthur, Hank becomes acutely aware of injustice and oppression. His mission now changes to social, economic, and political reform.

Hank no longer works in secret after he defeats the massed chivalry of England. Tricked by the Church into leaving England, Hank returns to find the country divided by war and the Interdict. Only a few young men remain loyal to Hank. With Arthur dead, Hank declares a republic and challenges all of the knighthood. He and fifty-three young men retreat to a cave defended by electrified fences, explosives, and machine guns. In a battle between the forces of superstition and technological progress, Hank Morgan destroys not only the age of chivalry but the “civilization” that he painstakingly built as well. An enchantment by the previously ineffectual Merlin returns the Yankee to his own time, where he dies soon after the narrator finishes reading the manuscript.

Mark Twain’s stinging social criticism was intensified by 220 drawings by Daniel Carter Beard. Often suggesting themes not found in the text, the pictures portray several notables as characters, including Alfred, Lord Tennyson, as Merlin and ruthless financier Jay Gould as a slave driver. Twain heartily approved of the added dimension that Beard’s illustrations gave the novel.

The Gilded Age

In the final third of the nineteenth century, following the conclusion of the Civil War, the United States experienced a surge in industrial production that propelled it to the forefront of the global economy. Between 1870 and 1900, the nation's consumption of bituminous coal—the primary energy source of the era—increased tenfold. Simultaneously, rolled steel production expanded twelvefold, and the overall economy grew to about six times its previous size. During this period, the workforce in manufacturing tripled, reaching 7.6 million.

During this era of growth, significant fortunes were amassed. The expansion of railroads across the continent and the invention of the telephone in 1876 facilitated the rise of nationwide corporations. These advancements in distribution and communication allowed businesses to access markets across the country. Vast wealth was generated in industries such as steel, shipping, catalog-based retail, and oil. The opulent lifestyles of the wealthy elite led to the period being dubbed the Gilded Age, a term coined by Mark Twain in his 1871 book.

Regrettably, only a small fraction of the population benefited from this wealth. Many people lived in poverty during the Gilded Age. An influx of immigrants lowered wages, and rural Americans moved to urban areas, where jobs were scarce. The manufacturing boom led to the rise of tenements, which brought unsanitary conditions and the spread of diseases. Politicians exploited the generosity of the affluent and the naivety of new voters, gaining a reputation for corruption that persisted until reforms in the early 1900s. It was during this period, characterized by the exploitation of cheap, disposable labor that enriched a few, that the American labor movement began to emerge.

Arthurian Legend

There is considerable debate about whether King Arthur, as depicted in the legends, actually existed. Most historians concur that an Arthur lived in the sixth century and ruled in Britain, but the records from that time are incomplete, leaving no definitive evidence to confirm whether this Arthur and the legendary King Arthur are the same individual.

The earliest tales of King Arthur can be traced back to Welsh origins in the seventh century. These narratives connect King Arthur to Celtic mythology, which accounts for the story's legendary and supernatural features, such as Arthur ascending to the throne when the Lady of the Lake presents him with the magical sword, Excalibur. Over the centuries, the tales of the king and his court grew, incorporating characters and settings now synonymous with the legend, including Camelot, the Round Table, Sir Lancelot, Guinevere, Merlin, and others. Concurrently, a romantic tradition developed around these figures, especially in the French adaptations of the stories, focusing on the loves, betrayals, and ethical choices faced by the knights and ladies, much like modern soap operas.

Geoffrey of Monmouth, a Welsh author, was the first to compose a continuous narrative about King Arthur and his knights, crafting the version most widely recognized today. This narrative, titled the History of the Kings of Britain (1137), paved the way for numerous references to the tale. The first significant English literary rendition was Sir Thomas Malory’s Le Morte d’Arthur (or, The Death of Arthur), published in 1485. Twain alludes to Malory’s work in A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court. For example, the conclusion of Twain’s narrative is closely derived from Malory, with a few alterations: Arthur discovers the affair between Launcelot and Guenevere, orders her execution by fire, Launcelot rescues her, leading to a conflict for the kingdom between Arthur’s forces and Launcelot’s. Over time, each generation has built upon Malory’s tale, adapting it to reflect the values of the era.

Loose Structure

Critics have often pointed out the lack of cohesive structure in Twain's A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court. On a broad level, the narrative follows a clear pattern: it begins and ends with Twain himself visiting England, introduces the Yankee character, and then delves into the Yankee's story, which dominates the majority of the book. The conclusion returns to Twain, culminating in the Yankee's death.

Within the Yankee's tale, however, consistency is lacking. Plot points start and stop abruptly, characters appear and vanish without warning, and lengthy episodes conveniently arise as others conclude. One of the most glaring inconsistencies involves the character Sandy, who vanishes from the narrative around the time of the Fountain's Restoration, only to reemerge unexpectedly over a hundred pages later as Hank Morgan's wife and the mother of his child.

The plot's irregularities and its disjointed nature are often attributed to Twain writing the novel in sections over three years. Instead of achieving a seamless unity that might have been possible with post-completion editing, the story was assembled piece by piece. The final work reflects a deepening understanding of the implications of what began as a whimsical fantasy.

Setting

In some novels, the setting is minor, but in this book, it is central to its very purpose. As an exploration of medieval customs viewed through modern perspectives, it initially seems to critique the naive beliefs of the past. Yet, because Twain writes with precision and empathy, the people of that era are portrayed as deserving of sympathy, despite their peculiar ideas. King Arthur emerges as genuinely noble and dignified, and Merlin is revealed to possess true magical power. Twain uses the skeletal framework of Arthurian legends, which often nostalgically celebrate chivalric values like loyalty, knightly bravery, and devotion, and injects them with real-world issues, such as the exploitation of peasants by the court. By cutting through the sentimental fog that has long surrounded these tales, Twain crafts a setting that feels both familiar and refreshingly new.

528: In this era, most people are not educated. Only a select few men, primarily associated with the church, have knowledge of ancient Greek and Latin languages.

1889: The King James Bible, translated into English in 1611, is present in many households and serves as a key tool for teaching children to read. School attendance is not compulsory, and only a small number of children attend regularly.

Today: In the United States, attending school has been mandatory for almost a century, with most states requiring attendance until the age of 16.

528: During the Middle Ages, there is little machinery available, so all physical labor must be performed manually.

1889: The last century has witnessed an industrial revolution, enabling mass production on a scale previously unimaginable.

Today: The United States is now in a post-industrial era, with most labor-intensive jobs outsourced to less affluent countries, resulting in a predominantly service-based economy.

528: Peasants follow the aristocracy without question, as the church assures them that such blind obedience is required.

1889: American political discussion flourishes with diversity, to the point where differing factions have led to a civil war.

Today: The United States operates under a two-party system, with political power alternating between the Democrats and Republicans.

528: There is no formal news media; information spreads by word-of-mouth, making it challenging to confirm its accuracy.

1889: Newspapers are the sole source of news, placing the truth at the discretion of newspaper proprietors.

Today: Although the ownership of newspapers, TV, and radio is increasingly concentrated due to corporate mergers, the Internet allows individuals to share their stories directly with a global audience.

528: Medical treatment is rare, and magic is often deemed as effective as scientific methods.

1889: When dealing with illness, such as when Hank's daughter contracts croup, an informed person knows the appropriate actions to take.

Today: Scientific advancements have uncovered the cellular and molecular causes of many diseases, leading to the development of advanced medicines and treatment facilities that were unimaginable a few decades ago.

The 1949 adaptation of A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court was turned into a cheerful musical featuring Bing Crosby, Rhonda Fleming, Cedric Hardwicke, and William Bendix. The musical score was composed by Jimmy Van Heusen and Johnny Burke. Universal released it on VHS in 1993.

In 1931, renowned American humorist Will Rogers starred in a film adaptation of Twain's story, titled simply A Connecticut Yankee. This version was directed by David Butler and released by Twentieth Century Fox, and it is available on VHS.

Comedian Martin Lawrence led the 2001 film Black Knight, which reimagines Twain’s original concept. In this modern take, Lawrence plays an amusement park employee who finds himself transported back to medieval times. The movie can be found on DVD through Twentieth Century Fox Home Video.

A two-CD set containing an abridged version of A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court is available from Naxos, published in 2001, with narration by Kenneth Jay.

In 1993, comedian Carl Reiner recorded an abridged version of the novel for Dove Audio’s Ultimate Classics series. This version is available on three CDs.

Blackstone Audio released an unabridged 8-cassette version of the book in 1999, read by Chris Walker.

The complete text of this novel can be accessed online at literature.org in a searchable format.

Students interested in Arthurian legend can find a wealth of cross-referenced information at the University of Rochester’s web page, The Camelot Project: Arthurian Texts, Images, Bibliographies and Basic Information. This resource is available at The Camelot Project.

Sources

Gerber, John, Mark Twain, Twayne’s United States Authors Series, No. 535, G. K. Hall, 1988, p. 115.

Mencken, H. L., “The Man Within,” in A Mencken Chrestomathy, Knopf, 1967, pp. 485–89.

Miller, Robert Keith, Mark Twain, Frederick Ungar, 1983, p. 113.

Reiss, Edmund, “Afterward,” in A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court, Signet Classic, 1990, p. 320.

Sanford, Charles L., “A Classic of Reform Literature,” in Readings on Mark Twain, Greenhaven Press, 1996, p. 170.

Further Reading

Cox, James M., “The Ironic Stranger,” in Mark Twain: The Fate of Humor, Princeton University Press, 1966, pp. 222–46. Cox examines this book’s significance in Twain’s extensive career, identifying it as the moment he began transitioning into the final, less successful phase of his literary journey.

Davis, Sara de Saussure, and Philip D. Beidler, eds, The Mythologizing of Mark Twain, University of Alabama Press, 1984. This volume is a collection of essays both by and about Twain, documenting the evolution of his legacy.

Michelson, Bruce, “The Quarrel with Romance,” in Mark Twain on the Loose: A Comic Writer and the American Self, University of Massachusetts Press, 1995, pp. 95–171. This extensive chapter from Michelson’s insightful study of Twain’s career explores the American Romantic tradition and Twain’s interactions with it.

Robinson, Douglas, “Revising the American Dream: A Connecticut Yankee,” in Mark Twain, edited by Harold Bloom, Modern Critical Views series, Chelsea House Publishers, 1986, pp. 183–206. Robinson’s exploration of the novel is deeply infused with philosophical concepts and intricate literary analysis.

Snyder, Christopher, The World of King Arthur, Thames and Hudson, 2000. Snyder has crafted a richly illustrated book brimming with countless details about the era that Twain investigated.