Arthurian Name Dictionary

Dacia

The region of southern Europe that is now primarily Romania. Geoffrey mentions that Arthur conquered Dacia after pacifying Britain. [GeoffHR, Boccaccio]

Dadweir Blind Head

One of King Arthur’s warriors in Welsh legend. [Culhwch]

Daere

Father of Arthur’s warrior Cubert, from the Irish folk character Dáire. [Culhwch]

Dagon

A demon who gave powers of enchantment to King Pelles’ magician. When Galahad was in the magician’s presence, the powers were ineffective. Eventually, the demon consumed the magician. [PostQuest]

Daguenet [Dagenet, Dagonet, Danguenes]

A witless knight introduced in the Prose Lancelot. He becomes Arthur’s beloved court jester in Malory and Tennyson. His epithets include “the Coward,” “the Fool,” and “the Craven.” Palamedes says that Daguenet went insane after his wife was abducted by Helior of the Thorn, whom Daguenet eventually killed. Daguenet was a somewhat Walter Mittyish knight, imagining and presenting himself as a fearless warrior when in fact he was prone to flee at the slightest provocation. He would damage his own shield so that it looked as if he had been in combat. Other knights used him to play jokes on their enemies. Kay arranged for Daguenet to face Sir Brunor on Brunor’s first joust, thus depriving Brunor of the honor of defeating a true knight in his first combat. In another episode, some of Arthur’s knights identified Daguenet as Lancelot to King Mark. Daguenet performed some comical blustering which caused Mark to flee, screaming, into the forest. Lancelot once found himself dubbed “Daguenet’s Prisoner” after Daguenet approached Lancelot, who was in a deep reverie, “captured” him by taking hold of his bridle, and led him to Guinevere as his “prisoner.” The poor fool was thrashed by Tristan when the latter went insane and was living like a madman in Cornwall. Gawain adopted Daguenet’s name as an alias during one of his adventures. In the Prophecies de Merlin, Daguenet assumes administration of Arthur’s court during the False Guinevere episode, and the place falls apart. Daguenet kills Fole, Arthur’s treasurer, when the latter reproves Daguenet for expending all of the funds in the royal treasury. [LancLac, VulgLanc, VulgMer, Livre, Palamedes, ProsTris, Prophecies, Malory, TennIK]

Dahamorht

A knight killed by Gawain in a tournament at the city of Baldac in Babylonia. Dahamorht’s brother, Angaras of Karamphi, tried to slay Gawain for the incident, but was himself defeated. [Heinrich]

Daire¹

Father of Yvain of the White Hands in Palamedes. The Good Knight Without Fear freed him from a prison in North Wales. [Palamedes]

Daire²

A fairy king. In an Irish tale, his daughter, the Grey-Hammed Lady, married Arthur. He becomes Daere in Welsh legend. [IrishL]

Dalam

Lord of the Castle of the Mountain. Dinadan rescued Dalam from Sir Breus the Pitliess. When Sir Dalan learned that his rescuer was Dinadan, he alleged that Dinadan had killed his father and attacked him. Dinadan, however, won the battle. [ProsTris, Malory]

Dalides

A good knight and friend of Gawain. Galahad and Yvain the Bastard lodged at his father’s house during the Grail Quest. Dalides arrogantly and rashly attacked Galahad and was defeated. In shame, he killed himself with his own sword, prompting his father to likewise commit suicide. His body was taken to the Strange Castle, owned by Dalides’ paramour. Gawain, learning of the incident, tried to take revenge on Galahad, but failed. [PostQuest, ProsTris]

Dalldaf

Son of Cunyn Cof and one of Arthur’s warriors. [Culhwch]

Dalon

A kng of Larise who joined his ally, Emperor Thereus of Rome, in a war against Arthur. [Claris]

Damas¹ [*Domas]

A castellan who engaged his brother, Sir Ontzlake, in a land dispute, but avoided personal combat because he lacked confidence in his own fighting skill. He asked every knight who passed his castle to fight as his champion, but none would do so, so he threw all who refused into prison. He eventually made an alliance with Morgan le Fay, who transported Arthur to Damas’s dungeon. Damas secured Arthur’s promise to champion him against Ontzlake. Meanwhile, Morgan arranged for Sir Accalon of Gaul, with Excalibur, to fight at Ontzlake’s champion. With the assistance of Ninniane or Nimue, Arthur defeated Accalon and exposed Morgan’s scheme. The Vulgate Lancelot says that Damas was reconciled with his brother, but in Malory’s version Arthur orders Damas to yield all his lands to Ontzlake, and to repay all the imprisoned knights. Damas was slain fighting Lancelot and his men when Lancelot rescued Guinevere from the stake. [PostMer, Malory]

Damas² of Desert

A Knight of the Round Table and brother of Damcab and Caradan. Damas hated Lancelot’s family because of their fame and skill. With four knights of similar opinions, he attacked Galahad and Bleoberis during the Grail Quest, and was slain by Bleoberis. [PostQuest, ProsTris]

Damascus [Damaske]

The present capital of Syria features in Wolfram von Eschenbach’s Parzival as a location where Perceval’s father Gahmuret traveled, and in Wirnt von Grafenberg’s Wigalois as a location of a battle fought by several of Wigalois’s companions. In the Alliterative Morte Arthure and Malory, the city is allied to Lucius the Roman. [Wolfram, Wirnt, Allit, Malory]

Damatal of Desert [Damadas]

A Knight of the Round Table who hated Lancelot’s family for their fame and skill. With four cousins, he attacked Galahad and Bleoberis during the Grail Quest. He was badly wounded by Galahad. [PostQuest, ProsTris]

Damcab

Knight of the Round Table and brother of Damas and Caradan. He participated in the Grail Quest. [PostQuest]

Dame d’Amore

In Thomas Chestre’s Lybeaus Desconus, the fairy of the Golden Isle who loved Guinglain, Gawain’s son. She broke with Guinglain when he refused to give up worldly life for her, and he eventually married a princess. In Renaut de Bâgé’s Le Bel Inconnu, she is called the Maiden of the White Hands. [ChestreLyb]

Damen [Thamer]

A mountain in northern Britain where Uther Pendragon defeated the Saxons Octa and Eosa in his second battle against them. The battle went poorly for Uther, until he and his warriors, in a small, force, descended upon the Saxon camp in the middle of the night. He captured and imprisoned the two Saxon leaders, temporarily ending the Saxon threat. [GeoffHR]

Damietta [Damiet]

A seaport in north Egypt, on the east Nile delta. According to the Alliterative Morte Arthure, it was allied to Lucius the Roman, Arthur’s enemy. [Allit, Malory]

Damon the Good Jouster

An Arthurian knight who was the son of Amant, possibly related to Amant the Good Jouster. [Palamedes]

Damsel of the White Heath

A maiden loved by Gareth, Gawain’s brother. [VulgLanc]

Damsel Savage [Damsel of the Wilds]

An obscure woman who appears in Chrétien’s Yvain and the Middle English poem Ywain and Gawain. She sends a message to the Lady of the Fountain, warning her that Arthur is approaching the Lady’s lands. The message prompts the Lady to marry Yvain for protection. [ChretienY, Ywain]

Danador

A vassal of Emperor Filimenis of Constantinople, father of Sir Floriant. [Floriant]

Danaim [Daname]

A knight and nephew of Sir Daras. He guarded Daras’s castle against interlopers. They lodged several renowned knights of Arthur’s court, including Lancelot, Palamedes, and Tristan. Danaim hated Lucan the Butler and challenged him twice, but Lucan was victorious on both occasions. [ProsTris, Malory]

Danain the Red

Friend of Guiron the Courteous in Palamedes. He was married to the Lady of Malehaut, who loved Guiron. Danain’s wife and friend nearly engaged in an affair, and Danain nearly slew them for it. Instead, he abducted Bloie, Guiron’s damsel. They clashed in combat over the woman, and Guiron was victorious. The two knights reconciled when Danain saved Guiron from a murderous knight named Helain. Danain fell in love with a maiden named Albe and became involved in a complicated feud between Albe’s family and the clan of Helyom. Eventually, he participated in a tournament at Camelot, received a mortal wound, and died at Malehaut. [Palamedes]

Dandrane

Daughter of Alain the Large and Yglais, and sister of Perceval in Perlesvaus. She sought her brother to save her castle, Camelot, from a siege by Cahot the Red and the Lord of the Fens. She was kidnapped by Aristor of Amorave, who intended to marry and behead her, but she was rescued by Perceval. She lived out her days as a maiden in the Grail Castle. She is not the same sister of Perceval who appears, unnamed, in the Vulgate Queste del Saint Graal and as Agresizia in La Tavola Ritonda. [Perlesvaus]

Dane Hill

In John Hardyng’s chronicle, the location of Arthur’s first victory against the Saxons led by Octa and Eosa. This occurs at the river Glein in Nennius’s chronicle. [Hardyng]

Danemon

A knight who joined King Tallas of Denmark in a siege on King Urien. [Claris]

Daned

One of Arthur’s warriors. He was the son of Oth. [Dream]

Dangis

The count of Caleque Castle. He pledged himself to Lancelot when the latter saved Guinevere from the stake and fled with her to Joyous Guard. [PostMort]

Daniaus

A knight in Arthur’s service. [Contin2]

Danidain the Proud

A knight from Lyonesse. He was the cousin of Breus the Pitiless, whose evil disposition he shared. Lancelot killed him. [Palamedes]

Daniel¹ of the Blossoming Valley

Hero of Der Stricker’s Daniel von dem blühenden Tal. Equal in prowess to the likes of Gawain and Perceval, he stands out among other French and German heroes for his cunning, which when paired with his valor made him a potent foe. The son of King Mandogran, Daniel took service with Arthur just before King Matur of Cluse demanded Arthur’s fealty. Matur had two giants with impenetrable skin, but Daniel nonetheless set out ahead of Arthur’s own army to reconnoiter Matur’s lands. Along the way, he liberated the Dark Mountain from an evil dwarf named Juram, and he freed the Bright Fountain from the terror of a demon. In the former adventure, he won a sword capable of slaying Matur’s giants, which he employed to that end. Arthur killed Matur, and Daniel fought bravely in the ensuing battles with the armies of Cluse, defeating the majority of them by turning their own magical weapon against them. Later, he saved the Green Meadow from a monster and rescued Arthur from the father of the slain giants. Arthur crowned him the King of Cluse, and Daniel married Queen Danise, Matur’s widow. His character is adapted liberally by Der Pleier as Garel. [Stricker]

Daniel² the Believer

A Knight of the Round Table who embarked with the others on the Grail Quest. [PostQuest]

Daniello

The Italian romance La Tavola Ritonda makes an interesting departure from the traditional Arthurian story when it places the discovery of the affair between Lancelot and Guinevere near the beginning or middle of Arthur’s reign, rather than at the end. Here, their betrayer is not Mordred or Agravain, but Daniello, the cowardly brother of Dinadan and Brunor the Black. Daniello conspired to expose the affair, and roused thirty knights to capture Lancelot in Guinevere’s bedchamber. Lancelot slew Daniello and eight others, sparking a feud between Lancelot and Daniello’s brother, Brunor the Black. [Tavola]

Danise

The Queen of Cluse in Der Stricker’s Daniel. Her husband, King Matur, challenged Arthur and was slain. Arthur then took over Cluse. Danise mourned for Matur but agreed to marry Daniel of the Blossoming Valley, a noble knight of Arthur’s who had made the conquest possible. M. Resler suggests that Der Stricker chose her name because it corresponds phonetically with “Daniel.” Der Stricker may also have derived it from Dyonise of Durmart le Gallois. [Stricker]

Danius

According to Geoffrey of Monmouth, king of Britain in the fourth or third century BC. He was the son of King Sisillius and the brother of King Kimar, who he succeeded. Danius took a concubine named Tangustela and had a son named Morvid, who became king of Britain after Danius’s death. [GeoffHR]

Danor

A good knight whose sister gave birth to Arthur’s son, Arthur the Less. Danor’s father, Tanas, lusted for Danor’s wife. Tanas eventually killed Danor and took her. Tamas then disposed of the rest of his family to conceal the murder. [PostQuest]

Danubre the Brave [Darubre]

A Knight of the Round Table and brother of Acorant the Agile. He was related in some way to Lancelot. Danubre and Acorant were attacked by Agamenor, Arpian, and Amatin—three knights who hated Lancelot’s family—during the Grail Quest. All five knights were killed or mortally wounded in the brawl. [PostQuest, ProsTris]

Daras

An old knight who lived with his nephew, Danaim, and harbored sick and injured knights in his castle, including Tristan, Mordred, and Palamedes. While Tristan was healing there, Daras discovered that Tristan had slain three of his sons at the Castle of Maidens tournament, and had maimed his other two. Enraged, he threw Tristan, Palamedes, and Dinadan into his prison. When Tristan grew deathly ill, Daras relented and released him on Tristan’s pledge of friendship. He later became a Knight of the Round Table. [Malory]

Darel

A prince of Medarie and Belakun; companion of princes Gamer and Ariun. His lord, Schaffilun, was killed by Wigalois (Gawain’s son), to whom Darel transferred his fealty. He accompanied Wigalois in a campaign against King Lion of Namur. [Wirnt]

Darenth [Darent, Dereuent, Derwent]

A river in Britain that was the site of the first battle between Vortimer’s Britons and Hengist’s Saxons. Nennius says that Vortimer won the battle, and pushed on to fight the second at Ryhd yr afael. Layamon claims that all three of Vortigern’s sons—Vortimer, Pascentius, and Catigern—fought Vortigern, Hengist, and Horsa, and pushed the Saxons back to Thanet. Darenth is an actual stream that gives its name to Dartford. [Nennius, GeoffHR, Wace, Layamon]

Darian

A Saxon warrior slain by Arthur’s Sir Galescalain at the battle of Diana Bridge. [Arthour]

Daril

A Saxon warrior. He was the son of King Bramangue and the brother of Haram and Orient. He assisted his brother Haram with the siege of Arundel in the early days of Arthur’s reign. [Arthour]

Dark Castle [*Chastel Tenebreus]

A castle where Lancelot completed an unspecified adventure. At his wish, the inhabitants of the castle changed its name. [PostQuest]

Dark Mountain

A land terrorized by the evil dwarf Juran, who had slain its lord and wanted to marry the lord’s daughter. Daniel of the Blossoming Valley, one of Arthur’s knights, slew the dwarf and freed the land. The lady of the Dark Mountain later marred Arthur’s Sir Belamis. [Stricker]

Dark River [*Tembre]

A broad, deep, muddy river that formed the border between Wales and the perilous land of Gorre. [VulgLanc]

Dark Valley [*Valle Scura]

A valley visited by Tristan and Lancelot during the Grail Quest. There, they slew the pagan lord Fellone. [Tavola]

Darnantes [Andernantes, Arnante(s), Darvances, Dornantes, Nerlantes]

A British forest that appears in several French romances. The name may be simply an extension of Nantes. The Vulgate Lancelot puts it on the border between Sorelois and the sea of Cornwall, and says that it was the forest where the Lady of the Lake entrapped Merlin. The Prose Tristan names its location as the border of Logres and North Wales. The Italian La Tavola Ritonda places the forest near Camelot, and says that it served as the proving grounds for the Knights of the Round Table. In Tavola, it is a savage wilderness, full of robbers and enchantments. Lancelot, Bors, and Hector retired to a hermitage there after Arthur’s death. [VulgLanc, VulgEst, ProsTris, Tavola]

Darsenois

A knight who Arthur freed from the castle Causuel when he defeated the Merciless Lion, Darsenois’s jailer. In return, Darsenois gave Arthur a charger. [ChevPap]

Datis¹

King of Tuscany who joined Emperor Thereus of Rome’s war against Arthur. He was killed during the war by Sir Gaheris. [Claris]

Datis²

A knight who joined Arthur’s Sir Claris and Sir Laris in their adventures. [Claris]

Datois

King of Babylon who joined Emperor Thereus of Rome in a war against Arthur. He was slain in battle by Sir Claris. [Claris]

Daton

A knight who joined his cousin, Nador, in an attack on Queen Blanche. The besiegers were driven away by Claris and Laris. [Claris]

Dauphine [Dalfindede]

A city in France. In the Alliterative Morte Arthure, it is ruled by the Duke of Lorraine, an opponent of Arthur during the Roman War. [Allit, Malory]

Davalon the Proud

One of Arthur’s knights in Heinrich von dem Türlin’s Diu Crône. The name is corrupted and split from Guigomar d’Avalon, found in Chrétien’s Erec. [Heinrich]

David¹

The patron saint of Wales, glorified in legend. Among many churches that he established in Wales was a monestary in the city of Mynyw or Menevia. The city was later re-named St. Davids, and his shrine became a popular destination for pilgrims in the Middle Ages. St. David is connected to Arthur in the Welsh Life of St. Cadoc and in Geoffrey of Monmouth’s Historia. In the former, he joins St. Teilo and St. Cadoc in mediating a dispute between Arthur and a warrior named Ligessauc. The saints successfully convinced Arthur to accept 100 cows in return for the lives of three knights slain by Ligessauc. Geoffrey of Monmouth says that he was Arthur’s uncle and that Arthur appointed him to the arcbishopric at Caerleon after St. Dubricius, the former archbishop, retired. [SaintsC, GeoffHR, Giraldus]

David²

The biblical king of Israel and Judah; son of Saul and father of Solomon. The Vulgate romances purport that Lancelot, through his maternal grandmother, was David’s descendant. David’s sword, enhanced by Solomon, was later called the Sword of the Strange Hangings and was owned by Galahad. [VulgQuest, VulgEst]

David³ of Tintagel [Davit]

One of Arthur’s noblemen who was present at the wedding of Erec and Enide. Apparently, David had an excellent control over his temper and emotions. [ChretienE, Heinrich]

Davis

A knight who fought with his brother, Alain. Claris, Laris, and Bedivere found them fighting and forced them to reconcile. [Claris]

Dawn

A forest through which Galahad and Perceval traveled during the Grail Quest. [VulgQuest]

Dean

A Welsh forest, north of Caerleon and south of Hereford. In Welsh legend, Arthur’s chief forester in Dean was Madawg son of Twrgadarn. The Welsh story of Geraint begins with a great hunt for a magnificent stag in the forest. In Tennyson, it is named as a forest through which Pelleas rode during his adventures. [Geraint, TennIK]

Dechtire

In Irish legend, the sister of Conchobar, the king of Ulster. With the god Lug, she had a son named Cuchulainn. Cuchulainn is often considered Gawain’s Irish counterpart, and Lug may be the origin of Lot. Dechtire, therefore, is, loosely, the counterpart of Anna or Morgause.

Dedyne

One of Arthur’s knights, mentioned in the medieval romance Ywain and Gawain. The name is probably a corruption of Dodinel, mentioned by Chrétien in Yvain. [ChretienP]

Deep Valley

The lord of the Deep Valley was one of the kings who fought against the Saxons in the early days of Arthur’s reign. He was defeated in the battle of Clarence. [VulgMer]

Degrane without Villany

A Knight of the Round Table present at the healing of Sir Urry in Malory’s Le Morte Darthur. Malory notes that he once fought the Giant of the Black Lowe, an adventure not recounted in existing legend. [Malory]

Degrevant [Degreevant, Degrevance, Degrevans, Degrevuaund, Degrivaunce, Degrivaunce, Degrivuant, Degryvaunt, Egrivaunt]

A Knight of the Round Table who is the hero of the Middle English Sir Degrevant. Described as Arthur’s nephew, his name may derive from a corruption of Agravain. While Degrevant participated in a crusade, his neighbor, Earl Sere, invaded and ravaged his lands. Upon receiving word of this invasion, Degrevant returned and defeated the earl in combat. At the earl’s castle, Degrevant met and fell in love with Melidor, the earl’s daughter. He defeated the Duke of Gerle, one of Melidor’s suitors. Degrevant and Melidor enjoyed a year-long secret romance before the earl learned of the affair and tried to ambush Degrevant. The plot failed, and in the aftermath the earl decided to reconcile with the knight. Degrevant and Melidor married and had thirty years together before Melidor died. Degrevant then returned to the crusades, in which he perished. Malory mentions him among the knights present at Lancelot’s healing of Sir Urry. [SirDeg, Malory]

Delamore

A country where Arthur had a castle called Flatting. It may be the region of Delamere north of Chester (Hahn, 331). [Grene]

Delectable Isle [*Isle Delitable]

An island off the east coast of England. It contained the Red City, where Palamedes avenged the death of a king. [ProsTris, Malory]

Delekors

A courageous and chivalrous knight in Arthur’s court who was defeated in joust by Sir Tristan. [Eilhart]

Deleyn Fitzdavid

A knight present at one of Arthur’s Easter feasts in the English Arthur. [Arthur]

Delice [Dalis]

Galehaut’s sister in the Prose Tristan. She lived in the Castle of Tears with her parents, Brunor the Brown and the Beautiful Giantess, or Bagotta. Tristan slew Delice’s parents, conquered the castle, and allowed Delice to leave with the corpses of her father and mother. In I Due Tristani, the sister of Galehaut is named Riccarda. [ProsTris, Tavola]

Delimaz the Poor

A Knight of the Round Table and brother of Anseliam the Poor and Caligante the Poor. He participated in the Grail Quest. [PostQuest]

Delis

A Spanish knight defeated in combat by Laris. [Claris]

Delvelin [Develin]

The town in Ireland where, in the Middle-English Sir Tristrem, Tristan landed on his first visit. It is probably Dublin. [SirTris]

Demagul

Named as the King of Logres in the Serbo-Russian Povest’ O Tryshchane. [Povest]

Demedy

An Irish land visited by Lancelot on his way to Rigomer Castle. Its viscount was terrorized by a neighbor, who Lancelot defeated. Its capital city was called Pavingay. [Merveil]

Demetia [Dimetia]

A country in South Wales on the river Teifi. According to Geoffrey, Merlin’s grandfather was the king of Demetia. Vortigern built the fortress of Vortigern here, and retreated here after the Saxons invaded eastern Britain. After four days at the fortress, a holy fire engulfed it and killed Vortigern. It was later ruled, under Arthur, by Stater. The Welsh call the region Dyfed. In non-Arthurian Welsh legend, it is ruled by Pwyll and, later, his son Pryderi. [Nennius, GeoffHR]

Demetius

Merlin’s grandfather in Thomas Heywood’s The Life of Merlin. Demetius’s daughter was impregnated by an incubus, Merlin’s father. Heywood has created a personal name—whether deliberately or accidentall—out of Demetia, the country which Merlin’s grandfather was said to rule. [Heywood]

Denis

A hermit who baptized the survivors of the heathen Trial Castle, after Perceval destroyed the castle’s Copper Tower and freed the inhabitants from the grip of paganism. [Perlesvaus]

Denmark [Danemarc(h)e, Danmark, Denmarch, Denmarke]

During the Arthurian period, Denmark was populated by collections of Scandinavian clans. The united country of Denmark (Dane-marche, “borderland of the Danes”) did not exist until the ninth century. No such history prevents the “kingdom of Denmark” from appearing in the Arthurian legends, however. According to Geoffrey of Monmouth, Arthur conquered Denmark and gave it to Aschil, one of his noblemen. In Wace, Aschil is the ruler of Denmark already, but subjugates himself to Arthur’s rule in order to avoid a hopeless war. Geoffrey Gaimar’s chronicle has Arthur conquer Denmark by killing King Gunter, whose brother, Odulf, subsequently claimed the throne. Welsh legend also makes Arthur ruler of Denmark, naming Yder as one of his Danish warriors. The Didot-Perceval names its king as Guillac, who assists Arthur in the Roman War. In the Vulgate Merlin, on the other hand, Denmark is ruled by the Saxon kings Aminaduc, Rions, and Bramangue, who are defeated by Arthur. In the Post-Vulgate Merlin continuation and in Malory, an unnamed King of Denmark (who is the brother of the King of Ireland) invades Britain with four other rulers, and is killed at the battle of the Humber. In the Welsh Triads, the King of Denmark is the father of Arthur’s warrior Nasiens. In Claris et Laris, Denmark’s king, Tallas, besieges King Urien but is defeated by Arthur’s knights. A Queen of Denmark, who hates the Round Table, is the ruler of the Castle of Maidens in the Livre d’Artus. [GeoffHR, Wace, Didot, VulgMer, Livre, PostMer, Dream, Malory]

Denoalen

An evil baron who served King Mark of Cornwall. He knew of the affair between Tristan and Isolde, and he conspired with two other barons to expose it to Mark. For a long time, Mark wavered between believing the barons and believing Tristan—and alternately banishing from his court one or the other. Finally, while laying another trap for the lovers, Denoalen was attacked and slain by Tristan. [Beroul]

Deorthach [Dewrarth, Dorath]

Father of Arthur’s warrior Rhufawn Bebyr. [Culhwch, Dream]

Der Kal (“The Torment”)

A river which flowed around the Schatel le Mort, the castle owned by Mabuz the enchanter. [UlrichZ]

Derudicanoro

The fortress ruled by the pagan lord Fellone, a knight defeated by Tristan. [Tavola]

Desert

A city in Logres that was the home of five Knights of the Round Table: Taulat, Senela, Baradam, Damas, and Damatal. [PostQuest]

Deserted Forest

A wood where Galahad, Palamedes, and Perceval encountered the Questing Beast during Grail Quest. They began pursuit of it, and Palamedes soon slew it. [PostQuest]

Desixtus

A knight slain by Kalegras, Tristan’s father, after Desixtus and his brother Seran invaded Spain, Kalegras’s country. [SagaTI]

Desolate City

The name given to Snowdon, Queen Esmeree the Blonde’s capital in Wales, after it was ruined by two sorcerers named Mabon and Evrain. Once the sorcerers were defeated by Gawain’s son Guinglain, the city was restored. [Renaut]

Despair

An evil monster who inhabited a cave in Fairy Land. He talked visiting knights into killing themselves by convincing them that their lives were too miserable to go on living. One knight, Trevisan, escaped from Despair and encountered the Red Cross Knight. Seeking to slay the monster, the Red Cross Knight visited Despair’s cave. Despair reminded the Red Cross Knight of his failures and nearly lured him into suicide, but Una, the Red Cross Knight’s amie, intervened and took him to safety. [Spenser]

Dessemoume

An Irish kingdom composed of Cork and Kerry. It was ruled by King Frion, whose daughter was saved from kidnappers by Lancelot. [Merveil]

Destrigales [(D)estregales, Testregeis]

Literally, “Right Wales,” probably indicating South Wales. Chrétien de Troyes names it as the land of Erec and his father, Lac. It’s capital was Carnant, which may be Caruent in South Wales. In later romances, Erec’s land is Nantes. [ChretienE, HartmannE]

Detors

The king of Northumberland. He served Arthur. [Claris]

Deu Gleddyf (“Two Swords”)

Arthur’s hunt for the boar Twrch Trwyth took him through this town in Wales, where the boar and it’s piglets slew the town’s men and animals. [Culhwch]

Devil’s Road [*Chemins au Deable]

A road which led through the Forest of Misadventure and into the Valley of No Return. Galescalain, Arthur’s duke of Clarence, traveled the road despite various warnings, and later had to be rescued by Lancelot. [VulgLanc]

Devon

An area of southwest England, between the Bristol Channel and the English Channel, abutting Cornwall. It is usually included within Arthur’s realm. In Welsh legend, Gwynn Hyfar is given as steward of Devon and Cornwall for Arthur. Geraint is also named as its king. Layamon says it was conquered in the early days of Arthur’s reign by Cheldric the Saxon, but Arthur liberated it. In Tennyson, it is the homeland of Geraint. [Culhwch, Layamon, TennIK]

Dewi

Arthur’s chief bishop in the city of St. David’s (Mynyw) in Wales, according to an annotation in the Welsh Triads. [Triads]

Dialetes [Devlites, Dialantes, Dialicies]

A pagan giant who ruled in the Distant Isles in the time of Joseph of Arimathea. His sons all converted to Christianity, so Dialetes killed them and every other Christian he could find. He built the Castle of Tears on the Giant’s Isle as a stronghold against Christianity, which retained its evil customs until destroyed by Tristan. This account first appears in the Prose Tristan; La Tavola Ritonda expands on it and asserts that Dialetes slew Joseph of Arimathea himself. [ProsTris, Tavola]

Diana [Dyan(n)e]

The Roman goddess of the hunt. According to the Vulgate Merlin, it was her enchantment, given to Dyonas, that caused Viviane (the Lady of the Lake) to be so alluring to Merlin. The Vulgate Lancelot tells us that she was the Queen of Sicily, but considered a goddess by her foolish pagan subjects. The Post-Vulgate Merlin continuation describes how she murdered her lover in order to be with another man, but then was beheaded by this man for being a murderess. This occurred at a lake in France, and was thereafter called the Lake of Diana. This lake was the home of the Lady of the Lake, and was the place where Lancelot was raised, giving him his epithet. Diana is mentioned several times in Spenser’s The Faerie Queene. She raised the huntress Belphoebe, who became the paramour of Arthur’s squire, Timias. [LancLac, VulgLanc, VulgMer, PostMer, Spenser]

Diana Bridge [Drian, Drien]

A bridge spanning the lake of Diana. It was the site of a battle between a group of Arthur’s young warriors, led by Gawain and Yvain, and the Saxons, led by King Soriondes. Arthur’s forces were victorious. Although the Lake of Diana is mentioned elsewhere as lying in France, this battle seems to occur in Britain. [VulgMer, Arthour]

Dianfer

A fortress in the waste land of Lionferfo, ruled by a giant named Lucano the Great, whom Tristan killed. [Tavola]

Diarmaid

Tristan’s counterpart in Irish legend. Diarmaid, under the influence of a love potion, fell in love with Grainne, the wife of his uncle Finn. Diarmaid and Grainne eventually fled from Finn’s court. Finn pursued them. They remained celibate at first, but eventually succumbed to their desires.

Diasbad (“Outcry”)

Wife of Arthur’s warrior Syfwlch. [Culhwch]

Digon (“Enough”)

One of Arthur’s warriors who was the son of Alar. [Culhwch]

Dilianfer [Rilanfer]

The king of Ireland during Uther Pendragon’s reign. He attacked Felix, the king of Cornwall and Lyonesse, and sacked the fortress of Tintagel. Through his victory, he established the custom by which Cornwall paid an annual tribute to Ireland. This custom ended when Tristan slew Morholt, Dilianfer’s son. [Tavola]

Dillus the Bearded

A bearded man whose whiskers were needed by the warrior Culhwch to make a leash to hold the pups Aned and Aethlem during the hunting of the boar Twrch Trwyth. According to the giant Ysbaddaden, who assigned Culhwch this task, the beard had to be plucked while Dillus was alive, and Dillus naturally would likely not take kindly to the procedure. Arthur’s warriors Cei and Bedwyr found Dillus in Pumlumon. They waited for him to eat his fill of a pig and to go to sleep. When he was asleep, the two warriors plucked his beard and then killed him. [Culhwch]

Dimilioc

A castle in Cornwall ruled by Gorlois, duke of Cornwall. When King Uther Pendragon declared war against Gorlois over Igerne, Gorlois’ wife, Gorlois sheltered her in Tintagel, his strongest castle, while Gorlois himself holed up in Dimilioc. Gorlois was eventually slain in a battle outside the castle. Malory changes the castle’s name to Tarabel. [GeoffHR]

Din Tywi

A location in western England through which Arthur’s warriors hunted a piglet named Grugyn Silver Bristle. [Culhwch]

Dinabuc [Dynabrok, Dynabus]

The name give by Wace to the giant of Mont St. Michel slain by Arthur. The English ballad known as “The Legend of King Arthur” says that Dinabuc inhabited St. Bernard’s Mount instead. [Wace, Mannyng, Legend]

Dinabutius [Dabutius, Dinaburt, Dinabus]

A royal youth who lived in Carmarthen. Envoys from King Vortigern—searching for a boy without a father—rode through Carmarthen and overheard Dinabutius chiding another boy for having no father. This other boy was Merlin, and he was soon summoned to Vortigern’s court. [GeoffHR, Wace]

Dinadan [Dinadam, Dinadano, Dinadeira, Divdan, Dynadan]

A Knight of the Round Table who appears first in  the Post-Vulgate Queste del Saint Graal as one of the knights embarking on the Grail Quest. His first significant appearance is in the Prose Tristan. Reputed as a humorist and a practical joker, Dinadan questioned the conventions of knighthood, including the idea of courtly love and the notion of knights battling for no reason other than one challenging the other or insulting his honor (“Shame is a bad thing, but a wound is worse,” he says in La Tavola Ritonda). Nevertheless, he was known as a noble and courageous warrior who did not hesitate to use his sword to right wrongs and to uphold the values of the Round Table.
   His brother, Brunor the Black, was the famous Good Knight Without Fear; and his brother, also called Brunor the Black, was known as the Knight of the Ill-Fitting Coat. The Italian La Tavola Ritonda assigns him another brother named Daniello, who betrays Guinevere and Lancelot to Arthur. While Tristan and Malory tend to use Dinadan for comic relief, in Tavola, he is darkly critical of his companions’ behavior and struggles bitterly against love of any kind.
   Most of his adventures are had in the company of Tristan. Though the latter’s actions did not escape Dinadan’s ridicule, Dinadan recognized him as one of the noblest knights. He had few enemies, though he was contemptuous of King Mark of Cornwall, and in fact wrote a popular song insulting the monarch. A victorious encounter with Mordred and Agravain sparked a resentment that led to Dinadan’s murder by these brothers during the Grail Quest. Palamedes buried him in Camelot. [PostQuest, Palamedes, ProsTris, Girart, Tavola, Malory]

Dinadas [Dinados]

A Knight of the Round Table from Garlot. He participated in the Grail Quest. [PostQuest]

Dinal [Dinaus]

One of Arthur’s knights. [Renaut]

Dinan [Dinas]

A land ruled in Arthur’s time by Lord Dinas, a vassal of Mark of Cornwall. Eilhart von Oberge calls it Litan. [Beroul]

Dinas¹ [Dinasso, Dynas, Tinas]

In the Tristan legends, the lord of Dinan and the seneschal of Cornwall under King Mark. He was a good and loyal friend of Tristan, and counseled Mark to ignore the rumors of Tristan and Isolde’s affair and to keep his friendship with the knight. When Tristan was banished, he assisted the lovers by frequently arranging trysts. His son, Liaz, was a count of Cornwall.
   The Prose Tristan and Malory have him playing a very active role against Mark, defecting and organizing a resistance when Tristan is thrown into prison, and eventually freeing Tristan and imprisoning Mark, allowing Tristan and Isolde to flee Cornwall together. Later, when Tristan received a poisoned wound from Mark, he found succor, until he expired, in Dinas’s castle. Dinas organized a second revolt against Mark, which successfully unseated the evil king. La Tavola Ritonda says that he became lord of Cornwall after Mark’s death, but in the Prose Tristan he refuses the position.
   According to Malory, Dinas traveled to Camelot and became a Knight of the Round Table, although he left Arthur when Arthur went to war with Lancelot. He fought for Lancelot at the sieges of Joyous Guard and Benoic. For his support, Lancelot made him the Duke of Anjou.
   The Italian La Vendetta Che Fe Messer Lanzelloto de la Morte di Miser Tristano, uniquely, names Dinas as the brother of Sir Sagremor. Dinas’s name may have originally been a place name; dinas is the Welsh word for “fortress.” [Beroul, Eilhart, Wolfram, ProsTris, Tavola, Vendetta, Malory]

Dinas²

A Knight of the Round Table; brother of Meles the Tall. [PostQuest]

Dinas Emrys (“Fort of Ambrosius”) [Dinas Emreis]

The mountain in the Snowdon mountain range (North Wales) where King Vortigern sought to build a fortress to stand against the Saxons, only to find that each day’s construction kept disappearing overnight. The king’s advisors told him to locate a fatherless boy, sacrifice him, and wet the castle’s foundation with his blood. Vortigern’s messengers turned up such a child. Nennius calls the child Ambrosius (Welsh: Emrys), but Geoffrey of Monmouth replaces him with Merlin. The child managed to prevent his own execution by showing Vortigern the true reason for the tower’s collapse: a pool hidden beneath the mountain. Draining the lake revealed a red and white dragon, whose subsequent battle portended Vortigern’s eventual defeat. Vortigern gave the castle to Ambrosius and fled to the north. The Welsh called the mountain Eryri, and legends of Merlin’s treasure, buried deep within the mountain, survive to this day. Archaeology has shown occupation of Dinas Emrys in the fifth century, including a household that actually did contain a pool. [Nennius, GeoffHR]

Dinasdarés

An enemy of Gawain in the first Perceval continuation. He accused Gawain of killing his father. After an indecisive duel in the forest, they agreed to postpone their combat until they met at a court. They encountered each other at the castle of Escavalon, where Gawain was already slated to fight a knight named Guigambresil. The king of Escavalon decreed that Gawain would have to fight Dinasdarés and Guigambresil together, but Arthur intervened and stopped the battle, and Gawain and Dinasdarés made peace. Dinasdarés married the lady Beatris, the niece of the King of Escavalon. [Contin1, Contin4]

Dinasdaron [Di(a)nazarun, Disnadaron]

One of Arthur’s courts. Chrétien de Troyes places it in Wales, while Wolfram von Eschenbach locates it in the country of Löver. It was the site of Sir Urjans’ rape of a maiden and Gawain’s capture of Urjans. It is probably a conflation of Dinas d’Aron, dinas being the Welsh word for “Castle.” Aron is either Aaron, the patron saint of Caerleon, or the river Arun in West Sussex. [ChretienP, Wolfram, VulgLanc, PleierG]

Dindraithof

Arthur’s residence along the Severn river, according to the Life of St. Cadoc. [SaintsCad]

Dinifogar

A queen who threw a tournament in which Wigamur, one of Arthur’s knights, excelled. [Wigamur]

Dinisordres

Son of Salandres and brother of Menastide, Nastor, Gogonne, and Aristes. Dinisordres, his father, and all of his brothers were defeated in combat by Perceval. They went to Arthur’s court as prisoners. [Contin3]

Diocenar

An unfortunate knight who was cuckholded by Galehaut the Brown. Having lost his lovely wife, Diocenar died from heartbreak. [Palamedes]

Diodicias

King of Syria in ancient times. With his four wives, he had thirty-three daughters and three sons. One of his daughters, Albine, first populated and gave her name to Albion (Britain). [Palamedes]

Dion [Dyonz]

The nephew of Duke Calles and brother of Alibel, Dyonis, and Casibilant. His six cousins revolted against their father, Duke Calles. Dion and his brothers assisted their uncle in the war, in which they were joined by Agravain, Gaheris, and Gareth. [VulgLanc]

Dionido

Named in La Tavola Ritonda as the Pope during Arthur’s reign. When he heard of Tristan’s death, he offered indulgences to anyone who would pray for Tristan and his country. The text notes that he was succeeded by Pope Agabito. No known Popes correspond with these names, except perhaps Pope Donus and Pope Agatho, who ascended to the papacy in 676 and 678, respectively. [Tavola]

Dionise

The Queen of Rigomer Castle. She was bound to marry the knight who eventually conquered her kingdom. Gawain achieved this feat but declined to wed her, promising instead to match her with another worthy knight. [Merveil]

Dionotus

Brother of the Cornish king Caradoc. Dionotus assumed the kingship of Cornwall upon his brother’s death. Maximus made him the ruler of Britain in his place when he went to conquer Gaul. Dionotus became an ally of Conan Meriadoc—ruler of Brittany—when Conan married his daughter Ursula. Dionotus helped Conan import thousands of British woman to “Other Britain” to help spread British influence throughout Gaul. [GeoffHR]

Dirac

Uncle of Erec, son of Canan, and brother of Lac. Canan was assassinated, so Dirac and Lac had to flee their ancestral land of Aloliqui for Britain. Arthur found them and eventually knighted them. Dirac later became a king, and his sons murdered Lac. Erec and Meraugis killed Dirac’s sons. [PostQuest]

Dirlantes

A Cornish forest surrounding the Tower of Enchantments, where the Wise Maiden imprisoned Tristan’s father, King Meliadus. It may be a variation of Darnantes. [Tavola]

Dirmyg (“Contempt”)

Son of Caw, one of twenty brothers, and one of Arthur’s warriors. [Culhwch]

Dissethach

A Welsh poem indicates that Arthur once “pierced the cudgel-head in the halls of Dissethach.” [WelshPG]

Distant Isles [Far Isles, Foreign Isles, *Lontai(g)nes Iles, Remote Isles, Strange Isles]

An archipelago near the country of Sorelois, mentioned several times in the Vulgate romances. Galahad, Joseph of Arimathea’s son, married the daughter of their king. Later, in Arthur’s time, they was ruled by Clamadeu, and were conquered by Galehaut. One of Distant Isles was the Giant’s Isle, which held the Castle of Tears and was conquered by Tristan. In the Post-Vulgate Merlin continuation and in Malory, the King of the Distant Isles was one five kings who invaded Britain, and who were slain by Arthur’s men at the battle of the Humber. The Distant Isles were also the home of a Knight of the Round Table named Balynor. Some have attempted to identify the Distant Isles with the Hebrides or the Isles of Scilly. [VulgLanc, VulgEst, PostMer, ProsTris]

Distant Knight

In La Tavola Ritonda, Tristan’s alias during his stay in Ireland. In most versions, he uses the name Tantrist. [Tavola]

Disus

A bodyguard of Queen Flúrant of Ireland. He told Tristan about the dragon of Sukstía mountain, prompting Tristan to travel there and slay the creature. [SagaTI]

Ditas

King of Hungary in Claris et Laris. He joined Emperor Thereus of Rome in a war against Arthur and was killed. [Claris]

Diwrnach [Dyrnwch]

A Irish giant. He was steward of Odgar of Ireland. Diwrnach owned a magic cauldron, which would only boil if the meat placed in it was intended for a brave man. It was listed in Welsh lore among the “Thirteen Treasures of the Island of Britain.” As one of his tasks, Culhwch had to obtain this cauldron from Diwrnach for boiling meat at Olwen’s wedding feast. When Arthur, on the behalf of Culhwch, requested the cauldron, Diwrnach refused. At this refusal, Arthur’s warrior Llenlleawg killed Diwrnach and took the cauldron, which Arthur’s warriors filled with Ireland’s treasure before returning to Britain. [Culhwch, Triads]

Do [Deon, D(i)eu, Does, Doon, Due]

The son of Ares and the father of Arthur’s Sir Girflet. He served as Arthur’s castellan of Cardueil and, later, London. He fought against the Saxon invasion at the beginning of Arthur’s reign. Malory calls him “Cardol,” confusing his home with his name. [ChretienE, Contin1, VulgMer, Arthour, Malory]

Dochel

In Heinrich von dem Türlin’s Diu Crône, Gawain, in a list of his greatest exploits, mentions that he “took many a drink from the Fountain of Youth” in the Garden of Dochel. This episode is not found in any existing romance. [Heinrich]

Dodalis

A Saxon king who participated in the Saxon invasion of northern Britain in the early days of Arthur’s reign. He was killed by Agravain at the battle of Cambenic. [VulgMer]

Dodinel [Dedinet, Didoine, Didones, Dinodes, Dodinal, Dodin(i)aus, Dodine(i)s, Dodynas, Dondanix, Dondi(j)el, Dondinax, Dondinel, Dondinello, Dondonello, Oddinello]

A Knight of the Round Table, first mentioned by Chrétien de Troyes, and given the epithet “the Savage,” “the Wild,” “the Wildman,” or “the Fierce,” due to a love of hunting or because, in some stories, he lives in the wilds (in Ulrich’s Lanzelet, he has a home near the perilous Shrieking Marsh). In the Didot-Perceval, he is called the son of the Lady of Malehaut. In Wolfram von Eschenbach’s Parzival, Dodinel has a brother named Taurian the Wild.
   The Vulgate Merlin and Lancelot gives him a full biography: He was the son of King Belinant of South Wales and Belinant’s niece. He participated in the wars against the Saxons in the early days of Arthur’s reign, joining the young warriors Gawain and Yvain. He was knighted by Arthur for his service, and became one of the Queen’s Knights before he was eventually promoted to the Round Table. His adventures consist primarily of various imprisonments: in Dolorous Guard, the Castle Langree, the Forbidden Hill, and in Meleagant’s castle. He was rescued from most of these by Lancelot.
   The Prose Tristan and Malory give him an impotent role as a knight defeated by Morholt and Tristan (for making fun of him). In French romance, Dodinel perishes during the battle against Mordred’s army at Salisbury Plain.
   In the Chantari di Lancellotto, Dodinel joins Mordred and Kay in accusing Lancelot and Guinevere of treason. In Il Cantari di Carduino, he dies at the hands of Gawain’s brother, Aguerisse (Gareth or Gaheris), and his death is avenged by his son, Carduino. [ChretienE, Wolfram, Didot, LancLac, VulgLanc, VulgMer, PostQuest, PostMort, ProsTris, CantariC, Chantari, Malory]

Dodone

The castle in the forest of Beforet, inhabited by Iweret, Lancelot’s opponent in Ulrich’s Lanzelet. It was beautifully constructed, richly adorned, and masterfully situated on a mountain top. After Lancelot defeated Iweret, the castle fell under his rule. [UlrichZ]

Dog-Heads

An early Welsh Arthurian poem says that, “On the mount of Eidyn [Edinburgh], they [Arthur and presumably Cei] found with Dog-heads; by the hundred they fell.” [WelshPG]

Doged

A king who was killed by Culhwch’s father Cilydd. Cilydd then stole Doged’s wife for his own. [Culhwch]

Dol

A British city of which Samson and Teliau served as archbishops during Arthur’s time. [GeoffHR]

Dolanzie

A Scottish knight in the service of lord Galehaut. Galehaut left him as viceroy of the Giant’s Isle after Tristan conquered it and slew Galehaut’s parents. [Tavola]

Doldavius [Doldanim, Doldamer, Doldan, Doldau, Dolmad]

The King of Gothland or Jutland who surrendered to King Arthur rather than be conquered by him. He later assisted Arthur in the conquest of France and in the Roman War. [GeoffHR, Wace, Layamon]

Doldays

A count who rivaled Arthur for the affections of the Lady of the Blonde Hair. He attended a tournament at the Amorous City, at which Arthur defeated him in personal combat. [ChevPap]

Dolfin

A hunting dog which belonged to Ivor, the tutor of King Meriadoc of Wales. [Historia]

Dollallolla

Arthur’s queen in Henry Fielding’s parody The Tragedy of Tragedies. She loved the diminutive warrior Tom Thumb, and tried to prevent his marriage to her daughter Huncamunca. In the end, she is slain by Noodle, a courtier, or by Cleora, one of her maidservants. [Fielding]

Dolorous Field

The field where Erec was slain by Gawain, and where Hector and Meraugis found Erec’s body. [PostQuest]

Dolorous Guard [*Dolereuse Garde]

Castle conquered by Lancelot in the Prose Lancelot and its adaptations. It was on the river Humber. Lancelot names its original ruler as Brandin of the Isles, while La Tavola Ritonda calls him Federiel. The castle was magically enchanted so that any knight who wished to enter had to fight two sets of ten knights—one set at each of two gates—one by one until he defeated them all. He then would have to kill the ruler or stay in the castle for forty days before the enchantments could be lifted and the people freed. The names of the knights that had tried the adventure were written on gravestones within the inner wall of the castle, and their “heads” were next to the stones, but in actuality, the knights were imprisoned in the Dolorous Prison. Many knights lost their freedoms in this manner. Lancelot defeated the twenty knights through the help of some magical shields from the Lady of the Lake, but Brandin fled before Lancelot could fight him. The people of the castle became restless when Lancelot kept leaving, because he was interrupting the forty-day cycle and preventing their freedom. Finally, he went into the depths of the castle, braved a difficult adventure, and returned with the key to the enchantments, which freed the residents. Lancelot them renamed the castle Joyous Guard. He held on to the castle, lived there from time to time, hosted his companions there, and interred his friend Galehaut in its cemetery. When Lancelot rescued Guinevere from the stake, he brought her to the castle. When he was forced out of Britain by Arthur, he changed the castle’s name back to Dolorous Guard. In some versions, Lancelot is brought to Dolorous Guard after his death and is buried with Galehaut. In the Post-Vulgate Mort Artu, we are told that King Mark of Cornwall exhumed their bodies and destroyed them. [LancLac, VulgLanc, VulgMort, PostMort, ProsTris, Tavola, Malory]

Dolorous Mount [*Mount Dolereus]

An enchanted hilltop, possibly in Scotland. At the top was a pillar, adorned with 15 crosses, to which only the best knights could tie their horses. Any other knight would be driven insane. Merlin had constructed the test at the behest of Uther Pendragon in order to find worthy knights for Arthur’s table. Kahedins vowed to travel there in Chrétien’s Perceval, but it is Perceval who tests himself at the pillar and succeeds in the Second Continuation. Merlin’s daughter inhabited the mountain and explained the adventure to Perceval. [ContinP, Contin2]

Dolorous Prison [*Dolereuse Chartre]

A dungeon owned by Brandin of the Isles, lord of Dolorous Guard, but in a separate castle from Dolorous Guard. Every knight who attempted the adventure at Dolorous Guard and failed was thrown into the Dolorous Prison; their names, however, appeared on tombstones at Dolorous Guard, as if they were dead. These knights included Yder, Guivret, Yvain of Leonel, Cadoain, Kehedin, Kay of Estraus, Girflet, Dodinel, Taulas, Mador, Galegantin, and Arthur’s son Loholt. Gawain was tricked into the prison by Brandin after Lancelot liberated Dolorous Guard, but the lot of knights were eventually freed by Lancelot. Loholt and Galegantin developed serious illnesses while in the prison; Loholt later died, but Galegantin was healed by the Hermit of the Thicket. [LancLac, VulgLanc, Livre]

Dolorous Stroke [*Dolereus Coup]

The fateful blow which, in the Grail romances, created the Waste Land. The Grail Quest was needed to heal the results of the Dolorous Stroke. The term is used to describe two separate events: the slaying of King Lambor (an early Grail King) by King Varlan, and the maiming of King Pellehan by Sir Balin the Savage. The former appears in the Vulgate Queste del Saint Graal, the latter is related in the Post-Vulgate Suite du Merlin, and both appear in Malory. In both versions of the Dolorous Stroke, a Grail King is attacked with a forbidden holy weapon.
   In the Queste episode, King Lambor of Listenois, a Grail King, is at war with King Varlan of Wales. Varlan, forced to flee from Lambor, came across the Ship of Solomon, which contained the magnificent Sword with the Strange Hangings, intended for only the most pure knight. Disregarding the warning on the sheath, Varlan drew the sword and used it to slay King Lambor. This unholy blow turned both Listenois and Wales into the Waste Land, and Varlan was struck dead for his profanity when he returned the sword to the sheath.
   In the Suite story, Sir Balin the Savage arrives at King Pellehan’s court hunting Sir Garlon, an invisible marauder who was Pellehan’s brother. Balin killed Garlon in Pellehan’s hall. Pellehan, enraged, attacked Balin, shattering Balin’s sword. Balin ran from room to room in Pellehan’s castle, trying to find some other weapon, with Pellehan at his heels. In one room, he found a corpse in a bed and a long spear (the Bleeding Lance) resting on a nearby table. Balin did not know that the corpse was that of Joseph of Arimathea, and that the spear was the most holy of weapons—the very lance that pierced the side of Jesus Christ on the cross. Thus ignorant, Balin hefted the spear and struck Pellehan, which immediately caused Pellehan’s castle to crumble and the land of Listenois to become the Waste Land. Pellehan’s wound led to his identification as the Maimed King, and he remained ill until healed during the Grail Quest by Galahad.
   A Grail king maimed in combat first appears in the earliest Grail story, Chrétien de Troyes’s Perceval. Though not called the “Dolorous Stroke,” a blow has been delivered to the Fisher King, leaving him infirm. (The circumstances behind this wounding vary from text to text.) We also learn from Chrétien that the Bleeding Lance, found in the Fisher King’s castle, will one day “destroy the realm of Logres.” Also, in the first continuation of Chrétien’s Perceval, Gawain is told by the Fisher King that the Grail Sword was used to strike a blow that laid the country of Logres to waste. (In Celtic mythology, similarly, King Bran is wounded in the foot by a poisoned spear, causing his land to suffer.) Thus, the idea of a weapon’s blow, whether struck against the Fisher King or elsewhere, causing the destruction of a kingdom, appears in the earliest Grail legends, though the term “Dolorous Stroke” is not used until later.
   The Fisher King is not the only figure to be maimed through the thighs in the Grail legends. In the Vulgate Estoire del Saint Graal, the characters can barely walk from one place to another without being thrown to the ground by some heavenly blow. An angel shoves a lance through the thighs of Josephus, son of Joseph of Arimathea, when he impiously abandons the conversion of some pagans to Christianity in order to save from death a group of pagans who refuse to convert. The angel later removes the lance and heals Josephus. In another episode, Nascien is injured by a flaming sword that appears out of nowhere when Nascien is too slow to alight from the holy Ship of Solomon (God was angry with Nascien because he had previously used the Sword with the Strange Hangings to kill a giant). Finally, Joseph of Arimathea himself is wounded in the thighs by a sword, which breaks, drips blood continually from the tip, and is thereafter called the Broken Sword. [ChretienP, Contin1, Wolfram, VulgQuest, VulgEst, Livre, PostMer, Malory]

Dolorous Tower

The castle inhabited by the evil giant Caradoc. In one of the earliest stories of Guinevere’s abduction (found on the Modena Archivolt), it was ruled by Mardoc, who had Caradoc kidnap Guinevere. The castle could be entered only by two bridges, which were guarded by the warriors Burmalt and Caradoc. Gawain managed to penetrate the fortress and rescue the Queen.
   In later stories, the Dolorous Tower belongs wholly to Caradoc, Guinevere’s abduction is removed, and Lancelot becomes Caradoc’s killer. In lieu of the queen, in these stories, Caradoc kidnaps many good knights and imprisons them in his squalid, rodent-infested jail. After Lancelot conquered it, he gave it to a maiden who had been imprisoned there. Malory mentions it as the home of Sir Selyses. [Modena, VulgLanc, Malory]

Dolphin

A knight slain by Gawain during the Roman War. [Allit]

Dombart

A son of Albanact, the first king of Scotland. Dombart’s brothers were Arbrun and Embrunt. [Palamedes]

Domorot of Lokva

Father of Lancelot and Hector in the Serbo-Russian Povest’ o Tryshchane. [Povest]

Dôn

Father of Arthur’s warriors Amathaon and Gofannon. He has several other sons in non-Arthurian Welsh legend. He is originally an Irish god. [Culhwch]

Dona Avventura

A young knight baptized and dubbed by Lancelot and Tristan. He married the daughter of the vavasour of Cologia. [Tavola]

Donadix

Brother of King Bagdemagus of Gorre. He was killed by Gawain during the Grail Quest. [PostQuest]

Donadord

A heathen warrior slain by Gaheris (Gawain’s brother) at the battle of Diana Bridge. [Arthour]

Donas

A knight killed by Claris. Claris and Laris were helping Sir Caradoc protect his paramour from King Ladas, Sir Donas’s liege. [Claris]

Donaut [Donand(er), Dunwale]

In Geoffrey of Monmouth, a warrior in Arthur’s service who was the son of Papo. Geoffrey adopted his name from Welsh mythology (Fletcher, 77). [GeoffHR, Wace, Layamon]

Donísus

The Emperor of Saxony when Tristan served as the King of Spain. Donísus asked for Tristan’s help in combating a king named Amilías, who was making frequent raids in Donísus’s country. Tristan killed Amilías, and Donísus rewarded him with many lands and treasures. Later, Tristan’s son, Kalegras, married Lilja, Donísus’s daughter. [SagaTI]

Donobert

In the Elizabethan play The Birth of Merlin, a nobleman at Aurelius Ambrosius’s court. He betrothed his daughters, Constantia and Modestia, to Cador of Cornwall and Sir Edwin, but they both decided to enter a nunnery instead. [Birth]

Doodle

In Henry Fielding’s parody The Tragedy of Tragedies, one of Arthur’s several courtiers. In the chaotic ending of the play, Doodle slays Huncamunca, Arthur’s daughter, and is in turn slain by either Dollallolla, Arthur’s queen, or Mustacha, one of Dollallolla’s maidservants. [Fielding]

Doorm

In Tennyson, a lord whose lands Geraint and Enid entered during their journey. His vassals called him “the Bull.” He came across an unconscious Geraint and a destitute Enid. Bringing them to his castle, he tried to convince Enid that Geraint was dead and that she should accept his favors. When she refused, he beat her. Her screams awakened Geraint, who jumped up and slew Doorm. Doorm is known in Chrétien’s Erec as Oringle and in the Welsh Geraint as Limors. [TennIK]

Dorchin [Derquin]

A vassal of the King with a Hundred Knights. He participated in King Mark’s tournament at Lancien. [Contin4]

Dore

Atop a hill in Cornwall lie the remains of Castle Dore (possibly from d’or, or “gold”), built probably in the third century b.c., and occupied and fortified by the Britons during the post-Roman period. Nearby, the Tristan Stone is found, which is a monument to “Drustanus” (Tristan), son of “Cunomorus.” Cunomorus, a sixth-century Cornish king, may have lived in the castle. Cunomorus, furthermore, is identified with King Mark in the Life of St. Paul Aurelian. [Topography]

Dorilas¹ [Darrilas]

A Saxon warrior who participated in the Saxon invasion of Britain at the beginning of Arthur’s reign. He was slain by Arthur’s Gornain Cadrus at the battle of Carhaix. [VulgMer, Arthour]

Dorilas² [Dorilan]

A Saxon king slain by King Bors of Gannes at the battle of Aneblayse. [VulgMer, Arthour]

Dorilas³

The nephew of King Nentres of Garlot. He fought with his uncle against the Saxons at the battles of Broceliande and Clarence. [VulgMer]

Dorin [Dorens]

King Claudas’s arrogant son, and the heir to Berry and the Land Laid Waste. Claudas delayed knighting him for fear he would revolt. Dorilas ravaged his own lands and slew his own people for pure amusement. Claudas finally knighted him, and on that very night Dorin was killed by Lionel and Bors—the two sons of the slain King Bors—when they escaped from Claudas’s prison. [LancLac, VulgLanc]

Dormadat

One of seven brothers, including Ayaò and Albaò, who usurped the throne of Tristan the Stranger, ruler of Jakobsland. Tristan the Stranger sought out his famous namesake, and the two of them returned and slew the seven brothers. [SagaTI]

Dorset [Dorchester]

A county in southwest England, on the English Channel. It was conquered by Cheldric the Saxon in the early days of Arthur’s reign, but Arthur liberated it. It was later ruled in Arthur’s time by Earl Jonathal. [GeoffHR]

Douglas

A Knight of the Round Table, badly wounded by Gawain in a tournament between the Round Table and the Queen’s Knights. [VulgMer]

Dover [Do(u)vre]

A seaport in the region of Kent, on the shore of the English Channel. Dover was invaded by Saxons in the early days of Arthur’s reign. As the closest city to mainland Europe, it was the site of troop departures and arrivals in Arthur’s various wars. Arthur landed in Dover on the way back from his war with Lancelot, and Arthur’s forces encountered Mordred in the first of their various battles. Gawain was slain in the combat, and was buried, according to Malory, in a chapel in the city. [VulgMort, VulgMer, Stanz, Malory]

Doward [Cloar(d)(icus), Droac]

A mountain in the country of Archenfield in Wales. It was the site of Vortigern’s castle, Ganarew. [GeoffHR, Wace]

Dragan [Dagarius]

A Knight of the Round Table from Scotland who fell in love with Isolde while staying with Tristan and Isolde at Joyous Guard. When Dragan petitioned Isole for her love, Tristan became incensed and killed him. Dragan’s Round Table seat was taken by Helain the White. [PostQuest, ProsTris]

Dragonel the Cruel [Dragoniaus]

A malevolent knight who abducted the lady Rohais from the knight Arguisiaus of Carhaix, wounding Arguisiaus in the process. Dragonel intended to force Rohais into marriage, but Perceval encountered him, defeated him, and sent him to Arthur’s court. [Contin4]

Drem (“Sight”)

A warrior of Arthur’s court who was the son of Dremidydd. Drem shared the duties of gatekeeper in Caer Llion (Caerleon) with seven to nine other warriors. His master was the chief gatekeeper Glewlwyd Strong Grip. His name means “sight” and, according to the tales, Drem’s vision was such that he could see a fly in Scotland from Cornwall. [Culhwch, Geraint]

Dremidydd (“Sighter”)

Father of Arthur’s warrior Drem. [Culhwch, Geraint]

Driadam

A cousin of Erec who was slain by Mordred, prompting a feud between Erec and Mordred. [PostMer]

Driaigue

A location where Urien took Guinevere after he kidnapped her during the rebellion against Arthur. [Livre]

Drian¹ [Adrian, Brian, Dornar, Doryan, Drians, Driant, Durnor, Tryan]

Son of Pellinore, brother of Perceval, Lamorat, Aglovale, Alain, and Tor. The bulk of his adventures are found in the Prose Tristan. With his brother Alain, he guarded a bridge and jousted with all passers-by. He defeated King Mark of Cornwall in combat. He visited Mark’s court with his brother Lamorat and defeated all of Mark’s knights except for Tristan. An ongoing feud between Pellinore’s clan and Gawain’s family eventually led to Drian being attacked by Agravain, Mordred, and Gawain. After Drain defeated the first two, he was mortally wounded by Gawain. His brother Lamorat died trying to avenge him.
   Malory calls him “Durnor,” but includes two other knights named “Drian” and “Tryan,” to whom he gives the adventures above, seemingly unaware that they are all the same person. “Durnor” is killed by Gawain’s kin; “Drian” visits Mark’s court with Lamorat and is eventually killed when Lancelot rescues Guinevere from the stake; and “Tryan” guards the bridge with his brother Alain. [PostMer, ProsTris, Malory]

Drian² [Briant]

A knight from the Wild Forest or Perilous Forest who helped fight the Saxons and the rebellious kings in the early days of Arthur’s reign. He was called “the Merry” or “the Gay.” His father was Trahan the Gay, the lord of the Gay Castle, and his brother was Melian the Gay. He was wounded by Caradoc of the Dolorous Tower, and was imprisoned in a coffin from which only the best knight could remove him. Those who failed had to fight Caradoc, and Caradoc’s prison population thus rose dramatically. Lancelot managed to pull him from the coffin and later defeat Caradoc. [VulgLanc, VulgMer, Livre, Malory]

Driant of the Isle

A knight and friend of Tristan. [ProsTris]

Drius

An Arthurian knight. [Merveil]

Dromés

An Arthurian knight in the romance of Yder. He participated in Arthur’s war against Taulas of Rougemont, a rebelling vassal. [Yder]

Druas the Cruel

The lord of the Hill of Wretches. He slew every knight who adventured his way, but was eventually killed by Agravain. Druas’s brother, Sorneham of Newcastle, learned of the incident and, in revenge, he defeated and imprisoned Agravain. [VulgLanc]

Drudwas

Son of Tryffin, brother of Erdudfyl, and one of King Arthur’s three “Golden-Tongued Knights.” [Culhwch, Triads]

Drudwyn

A hound that belonged to Greid. As one of his tasks, the warrior Culhwch had to obtain this hound to hunt the boar Twrch Trwyth. In addition, the hound had to be managed by the houndsman Mabon, and had to be held with the leash of Cors Hundred Claws, the collar of Canhastyr Hundred Hands, and the chain of Cilydd Hundred Holds. Arthur himself obtained the hound on Culhwch’s behalf, and used him in the hunting of the boars Ysgithyrwyn and Twrch Trwyth. [Culhwch]

Druidain¹

A loathsome hunchbacked dwarf, to whom Gawain gave the false lady Ydain after she tried to leave Gawain for another knight. Druidain’s eventual possession of Ydain had been foretold by an oracle in the dwarf’s youth. Druidain’s father was named Drulias. [Vengeance]

Druidain²

A knight who joined Arthur’s forces in the battle against the Saxons at Vambieres. [Livre]

Drulias

Father of the dwarf Druidain. [Vengeance]

Druis

A priest and philosopher who counseled Arthur. [Hilton]

Drulios of the Hamlet [Drukins]

One of Arthur’s knights who fought in a tournament against the warriors of King Ban and King Bors. [VulgMer, Arthour]

Drust

A eighth-century Pictish king whose father was called Tallorc. He may be the origin of Tristan, as in Welsh legend, Tristan’s father is called “Tallwrch.” However, Drustanus, the name on the Tristan Stone, precedes Drust. In the Irish tale The Wooing of Emer, Drust appears as a companion of Cuchulainn, the Irish counterpart of Gawain. Aspects of Drusts’s adventures in Emer are echoed in the early Tristan legends.

Drustanus

The man commemorated by the Tristan Stone near the Castle Dore in Cornwall. The inscription on the stone, written probably in the sixth century, reads, “Here lies Drustanus, son of Cunomorus.” Cunomorus is identified with Mark in Wrmonoc’s Life of St. Paul Aurelian, and the Tristan legend is usually localized in Cornwall, so Drustanus may be the origin of Tristan (he precedes the Pictish king Drust). If Cunomorus is Mark, the identification of Tristan as his son is unusual, though in one Welsh Triad, “Drystan” is called the son of “March.”

Drwg (“Bad”)

Daughter of Arthur’s warrior Bwlch. [Culhwch]

Drwgddyddwg (“Evil Bringer”)

The horse belonging to Arthur’s warrior Cyfwlch. [Culhwch]

Drwst Iron Fist

One of King Arthur’s warriors in Welsh legend. [Culhwch]

Dry Island [*Ille Seche]

An island where Brandeban, the Duke of Tannings, dueled Meliadus the Black. [VulgLanc]

Dry Island with the Green Pine [*Ille Seche du Pin Vert]

A later name for the Island of Joy, where Lancelot lived for a time after a bout with insanity. Its name was changed after the formerly lush land was laid waste. [VulgLanc]

Drych

One of Arthur’s warriors, and the second handsomest man in Britain, behind Arthur himself. His father’s name was Cibddar. A Welsh Triad lists him as one of the “three enchanters of the Island of Britain.” [Culhwch, Triads]

Du (“Black”)

A horse belonging to Moro Battle Leader. As one of his tasks, the warrior Culhwch had to obtain this horse as a mount for Gwynn son of Nudd. [Culhwch]

Duach

Son of Gwawrddur Hunchback, and brother of Brathach, Nerthach, and the lady Gwenwledyr. He was one of King Arthur’s warriors. Duach and his brothers were “sprung from the Highlands of Hell.” [Culhwch]

Dubglas [D(o)uglas]

A river in Britain which was, according to Nennius, the site of Arthur’s second, third, fourth, and fifth battles against the Saxons (see Arthur’s Battles). The name means “blue-black” or “black stream.” As in all of the twelve battles, Arthur was victorious. Nennius places the river in Linnuis, which may be the province of Lindsey in Lincolnshire, though no river by this name is known there. There are scattered rivers with similar names in Scotland, including a Dunglas in Lothian, which may be meant by Linnuis, but it is unlikley that Arthur would have fought the Saxons so far north. He may have been fighting Picts. Geoffrey of Monmouth includes the fight—condensing Nennius’s four battles into one—and seems to identify it with the River Duglas in Lancashire. The Saxons fled to the nearby city of York after their defeat. [Nennius, GeoffHR, TennIK]

Dublin [Duvel(l)ine]

The present-day capital of Ireland is also given as the capital city of King Gurmun of Ireland (Isolde’s father) in Gottfried’s Tristan. Tristan traveled to Dublin to be cured of a poisoned wound received at the hand of Morholt of Ireland. In Durmart le Gallois, it is ruled by Earl Enor. [Gottfried, TrisSaga, Dumart]

Dubric [Dubricius]

A Welsh saint who lived in the late sixth and early seventh centuries. Glorified in Welsh legend, Dubric is made an archbishop and the first leader of the British Church. The Annales Cambriae say that he died in about 612. Geoffrey of Monmouth places his life nearly a century earlier and connects him with Arthur. According to Geoffrey, King Ambrosius appointed Dubric to the see of Caerleon. Later, Dubric crowned Arthur king of Britain. Dubric proved to be an important spiritual leader during Arthur’s reign, inspiring Britons to fight for their land and to accept Arthur as their true leader. Dubric was so holy that he could cure any disease. According to Tennyson, he married Arthur and Guinevere. He eventually stepped down from his position to become a hermit, and Archbhisop David was appointed as his successor. The Vulgate Merlin calls Dubric the Archbishop of Brice, misinterpreting the first syllable (“Du”) of his name for the French word meaning “of.” [Annales, GeoffHR, Wace, TennIK]

Duessa

An evil, ugly witch in Spenser’s The Faerie Queene who allegorically represents Mary Queen of Scots and Catholicism. Appearing in the guise of a beautiful maiden named Fidessa, she lured the Red Cross Knight from the quest assigned to him by Gloriana, the Fairy Queen. Just after she seduced him, however, the giant Orgoglio captured them both, threw Red Cross in a dungeon, and made Duessa his mistress. Arthur eventually stormed Orgoglio’s castle, killed the giant, and stripped Duessa, exposing her as a disgusting hag. She later became the amie of the knight Paridell. She was eventually convicted of attempting to overthrow a queen named Mercilla, and she was executed. [Spenser]

Dugum

Father of Arthur’s opponent Mil the Black. [Culhwch]

Duiche

A castle on the banks of the Targejure river, visited by Galehaut, Lionel, and Yvain on a quest to find Lancelot, after Morgan le Fay led them to believe that Lancelot was dead. [VulgLanc]

Duke de la Rouse

An enemy of Arthur whom Gareth defeated and forced to pay homage to the king. Through his fealty to Gareth, the Duke reconciled with Arthur, and he was eventually appointed to the Round Table. [Malory]

Duke of Dutchmen

A leader of a battalion of soldiers in the Duke of Lorraine’s brigade, fighting for the Roman army in Arthur’s war with Rome. The Duke of Dutchmen led his soldiers into a trap set by Sir Gawain and Sir Florence in north Italy. The soldiers were killed and the Duke fled the field. Malory alone mentions this character, which seems to correspond to Algere of the Alliterative Morte Arthure. [Malory]

Duke of the Swordpoint

A nobleman who owned property near Camelot. [PostMer]

Duke of the White Thorn

A nobleman present at a tournament in Claris et Laris. [Claris]

Dulceflur¹

A princess of Trefferin and Karedonas whose father, King Gediens, was slain by the heathen King Verangoz of Sorboreste. Her lands were saved by Meleranz, Arthur’s nephew, who later married her cousin, Tydomie. At Meleranz’s recommendation, Dulceflur was wed to King Libers of Lorgan. [PleierM]

Dulceflur²

The daughter of King Atroclas. She wed Wigamur, an Arthurian knight. [Wigamur]

Dulcemar

Father of Arthur’s Sir Tandareis. He ruled Tandernas and was married to Queen Anticoni. Arthur went to war with him, besieging Tandernas, to avenge a wrong committed by Tandareis. Dulcemar and Gawain managed to broker a peace. Through his son, Dulcemar later became overlord of Malmontan and Mermin. [PleierT]

Dumbarton

Capital of Strathclyde, also called Alclud. In Geoffrey of Monmouth’s Historia, Uther Pendragon reclaims it from the Saxons and pacifies it. In Arthur’s time, it was besieged by Picts and Scots. A very ill Hoel of Brittany had to hold off the invaders until Arthur returned from the battle of Bath. Arthur later made Eleden Archbishop of the city. In Culhwch and Olwen, Dumbarton is named as the home city of Arthur’s warrior Tarawg. [Culhwch, GeoffHR, Layamon]

Dumfries

Tristan considered seeking harbor with the King of Dumfries when he was faced with imminent banishment from Mark’s court. [Beroul]

Dumnonia

A kingdom in Britain composing the countries of Devon and Cornwall. It had been a Roman territory. In the sixth century, it was apparently ruled by a King Constantine, who becomes Arthur’s successor on Geoffrey of Monmouth. [Gildas]

Dun

A castle ruled by Patrice, a vassal of King Claudas. Later, the castle was re-named Issoudun, after Patrice’s son Issout. [VulgLanc]

Dunbar

A town in Scotland named in one chronicle as King Lot’s home. [Hardyng]

Dune

Warriors from the city of Dune, commanded by Falliers, fought for Lord Madoines in the battle against Beaudous, Gawain’s son. [RobertBlo]

Dunewall

A Welsh nobleman. With others, he tried to save the life of Meriadoc, heir to the throne of Wales, from the murderous intentions of King Griffin. His diplomacy failed, but Meriadoc escaped to Arthur’s court anyway. Dunewall later organized a revolt and helped Arthur defeat Griffin. [Historia]

Dunfremline

A city in Scotland, visited by Arthur’s Sir Fergus in his travels. [Guillaume]

Dunostre [Dunottre]

A castle in Scotland, embedded in a rock off the coast. It was approachable only by a bridge guarded by a horrible hag wielding a scythe. The castle contained an enchanted white shield, guarded by a dragon, which prevented its bearer from death. Arthur’s Sir Fergus learned of the castle from a dwarf, and he ventured there to obtain the shield. He emerged with it after slaying both the hag and the dragon. There is an actual castle called Dunottar in Kincardineshire. [Guillaume]

Dunster

Called “Dindraithof” by the Welsh, Dunster Castle, near the Bristol Channel in Somerset, is named as Arthur’s residence in the Life of St. Carannog. Arthur seems to rule the castle jointly with a ruler called Cadwy (possibly Cador). The castle was apparently occuiped by Britons in the post-Roman period. [SaintsCar]

Dunwallo Molmutius [Denewold]

An early king of Britain (c. fifth century BC) in Geoffrey of Monmouth. He was the son of King Cloten of Cornwall. When he was born, Britain was fragmented, having crumbled after the death of Porrex. Dunwallo conquered King Pinnier of England, King Ruduac of Wales, and King Stater of Scotland, unifying the island of Britain again. In his forty years on the throne, he established law, order, and justice. When he died, his sons, Belinus and Brennius, contended for the kingdom.
   According to the fourteenth-century Short Metrical Chronicle, which has a confused chronology, Merlin served Dunwallo and built Stonehenge in his honor. [GeoffHR, Short]

Durarls

A heathen warrior slain by Gawain at the battle of Diana Bridge. [Arthour]

Durham

A county of northern England, on the North Sea. In Béroul’s Tristan, Arthur seems to have a court there. [Beroul]

Durian

A priest who Arthur promoted to the archbishopric of Winton. [GeoffHR]

Durkan

A wicked giant. Durkin and his brothers, Margan and Ulian, served Lord Karedoz of Malmontan. All three of the giants were slain Sir Tandareis, one of Arthur’s knights. [PleierT]

Durmart

Hero of the French romance Durmart le Gallois. He was the son of King Jozefent of Wales and Denmark and Queen Andelise. As a youth, Durmart had an affair with the wife of his father’s steward. After realizing that the woman was too base for him, he decided to give his love to Fenise, the queen of Ireland, instead. Although he had never seen her, he had been privy to tales of her great beauty, and embarked on a quest to find her. He won a sparrowhawk tournament and bestowed the prize upon the queen without realizing who she was. His further adventures caused him to rescue Guinevere from an abductor named Brun of Morois, and to win a tournament at the Blanches Mores. Offered a place at the Round Table, he declined until he found his love. Finally, he made it to Ireland and rescued the queen from the evil Nogant, who had been besieging her castle in Limerick. Fenise and Durmart were married, and Durmart became king of Ireland. His further adventures took him to Rome, where he fought a horde of pagans attacking the city. [Durmart]

Dusbergo

A court ruled by Lord Arigie where Lancelot battled Brunor the Black, his mortal enemy. [Tavola]

Duscontemedon

A heathen land in the kingdom of Perceval’s half-brother Feirefiz. [Wolfram]

Duzabel

A princess from Turtus, kidnapped and held for ransom by a giantess named Fidegart. She was rescued by Arthur’s Sir Garel. Her parents were King Amurat and Queen Klarine. She later married Duke Klaris of Argentin. [PleierG]

Dwnn (“Brown”)

One of Arthur’s warriors in Welsh legend. He is known as “the Vigorous Chief.” [Culhwch]

Dyabiaus

A cousin of Perceval and his brothers. He served King Pelles of Corbenic. [VulgQuest]

Dyagenne

A lady loved by Uther Pendragon, although she was married to knight named Argon. She engaged in an affair with Uther and was killed by her husband when he discovered it. [ProsTris]

Dyfed

A region and former kingdom in southwest Wales, called Demetia by the Romans. It contains the cities of Cardigan, Carmarthen, and St. David’s, which have various Arthurian associations. Dyfed was settled by Irish tribes during the traditional Arthurian period (fifth and sixth centuries). See Arthur of Dyfed and Vortipore.

Dyffryn Amanw

An English valley (presumably next to the mountain Mynydd Amanw) where Arthur’s warriors fought one of their many battles against Twrch Trwyth and his piglets. Two of the piglets—Banw and Benwig—were killed before Twrch Trwyth fled on to Llwch Ewin. [Culhwch]

Dyffryn Llwchwr

A valley in England where Arthur’s warriors fought two of Twrch Trwyth’s piglets—Grugyn Silver Bristle and Llwydawg the Killer. The piglets escaped after killing many warriors. [Culhwch]

Dyfgyflwng

One of Arthur’s warriors. [Culhwch]

Dyfnwal

One of Arthur’s warriors. [Culhwch]

Dyfynarth [Dunarth]

One of Arthur’s warriors who was the son of Gwrgwst Half Naked. Dyfynarth was called “King of the North.” He was loyal to the warrior Gwythyr, and joined Gwythyr’s army when he opposed Gwynn son of Nudd. He was taken prisoner by Gwynn and was not released until Arthur intervened. [Culhwch]

Dyfyr¹

An Arthurian warrior who was the son of Alun of Dyfed. Dyfyr was an advisor to Arthur and a companion to Geraint. [Dream, Geraint]

Dyfyr² Golden hair

One of the “three splendid maidens of Arthur’s court,” according to a Welsh Triad. [Triads]

Dygynnelw

Owain’s bard, according to a Welsh Triad. [Triads]

Dynaunt

A Cornish knight who was attacked by the giant Taulurd, but was rescued by an insane, naked Tristan. His account of the story at Mark’s court led to the discovery that Tristan, who had been presumed dead, was still alive. He is probably identical to Dinas. [Malory]

Dyoglis

The seneschal of King Maglory the Saxon. In the early days of Arthur’s reign, he invaded northern Britain with other Saxons. He was killed at the battle of Clarence by Sir Eliezer, King Pelles’ son. [VulgMer]

Dyoflê

A wealthy British town. Nearby was Judgment Field, where Lot of Lothian and Gurnemans fought a tournament in Ulrich’s Lanzelet. Lancelot, who participated in the tournament, lodged in Dyoflê. [UlrichZ]

Dyonas [Dionas]

The father of Viviane, the Lady of the Lake in the Vulgate Merlin. As a youth, he befriended Diana, the Roman goddess of the hunt, who bestowed upon him a special gift: that his daughter would be loved by the most powerful magician in the world (Merlin). As an adult, he was a strong and likable knight. He served the Duke of Burgundy, whose daughter he married. As a present, the duke bestowed the forest of Briosque on Dyonas, and Viviane was born there. He later served King Ban of Benoic (Lancelot’s father), and helped him in the struggle against Claudas. He also fought in some of Arthur’s battles against the Saxons, participating in their crushing defeat at the second battle of Clarence. [VulgMer, ProsMer2]

Dyonis

Brother of Alibel, Dion, and Casibilant, and nephew of Duke Calles. His six cousins revolted against their father. Dyonis and his brothers assisted Calles in the war, in which they were joined by Agravain, Gaheris, and Gareth. [VulgLanc]

Dyonise

A lady who ruled the Castle of Ten Maidens with her lover, Sir Geogenant. Dyonise and Geogenant were friends of Sir Durmart. [Durmart]

Dywel

Son of Erbin, and brother of Geraint and Ermid. One of King Arthur’s warriors in Welsh legend, he was apparently killed in a battle against Maelgwn. [Culhwch]

Copyright Christopher Bruce. All Rights Reserved. Provided here by his kind permission. Layout of book modified to fit the Celtic Twilight format.