Legends and Romances of Brittany

Legends and Romances of Brittany is a book by Lewis Spence, first published in 1917. In this richly compiled collection Spence brings together Breton folk-tales, lays, and heroic romances—from the submerged-city myth of Ys and Arthurian-linked lays to the region’s saints’ lives and the darker lore of witches, fays, and the dread Ankou.

The volume pairs narrative retellings with cultural background, giving readers both the atmosphere of Breton storytelling and commentary on local customs, costumes, and beliefs. Written from the vantage of an early twentieth-century folklorist, the book surveys popular ballads, heroic tales, and supernatural traditions collected from Breton scholarship and oral tradition.

Arranged for an English-speaking audience, the work remains a useful introduction for anyone interested in Celtic folklore, regional myth, and the intersections of medieval romance and rural superstition.

It has influenced later popular retellings and continues to serve as a gateway to Brittany’s distinctive mythic world.