The first book to present the true identity of the mythic figure Merlin * Uncovers historical evidence that the legend of Merlin was based on the life of a real man * Reveals that Avalon, Merlin's final resting place, was an island in the United States The legendary figure Merlin is known throughout the world as the wizard of Camelot who was counselor to King Arthur and helped that monarch create the Round Table. Through the course of a 20-year investigation Graham Phillips has uncovered evidence that this famous story was based on the life of an actual historical figure: the son of a Roman consul who became the last of the Romans to rule Britain in the fifth century A.D. Furthermore, the evidence reveals that he died and was buried in what is now the United States. According to legend, Merlin ended his life on the mystical island of Avalon. A 1500-year-old saga tells how Merlin left Britain on a boat bound for a mysterious island to the west. The places described in Merlin's voyage, Phillips argues, would only have been seen by someone who had journeyed to the New World. For example, the island where boiling fountains bubble from the ground could be the geysers of Iceland, and the island with rivers of ice, the glaciers of Greenland. During his research Phillips discovered that a site believed to be Merlin's grave was found by the first British settlers in North America: a secret location said to have been preserved in the works of William Shakespeare and the coded writings of the Freemasons. Phillips follows a trail of historical clues that leads ultimately to a mysterious New England tomb. Here a final encrypted message not only reveals the whereabouts of Merlin's grave but contains evidence that Merlin's descendants still survive and, through a merger with the Spencer family of Princess Diana, may once again ascend the British throne.