Saul

Saul was the first king of Israel in the biblical account. Saul held the title of King of Israel and prophet. Saul is generally dated to 1081 BCE–1011 BCE.

He fights the Philistines and other neighbouring peoples but loses divine and political favour, becoming increasingly hostile to David before dying at Mount Gilboa. Saul was born in Gibeah and died in Mount Gilboa.

Geraldine Brooks’s The Secret Chord tells David’s rise through the testimony gathered by the prophet Nathan, and Saul is the king whose household first gives David access to royal power. David’s service as musician and warrior, Saul’s growing suspicion of his popularity and the pursuit that drives David into outlaw life make Saul both patron and persecutor. The novel uses their relationship to show how charisma, divine legitimacy and military success destabilise an existing monarchy: David’s future kingship is formed not outside Saul’s court but through intimacy with it, flight from it and the memory of the ruler he replaces.