View source for List of locations associated with Arthurian legend

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The following is a list and assessment of '''sites and places associated with King Arthur''' and the [[King Arthur|Arthurian]] legend in general. Given the lack of concrete historical knowledge about one of the most potent figures in British mythology, it is unlikely that any definitive conclusions about the claims for these places will ever be established; nevertheless it is both interesting and important to try to evaluate the body of evidence which does exist and examine it critically. The earliest association with Arthur of many of the places listed is often surprisingly recent, with most southern sites' association based on nothing more than the [[toponym]]ic speculations of recent authors with a local prejudice to promote.

==Burial places==

*[[Mount Etna]],<ref>Loomis, Roger Sherman ''Wales and the Arthurian Legend'', pub. University of Wales Press, Cardiff 1956 and reprinted by Folcroft Press 1973, Chapter 5 ''King Arthur and the Antipodes'', pps. 70–71.</ref> the burial place of [[King Arthur]] according to Flouriant et Florete, [[Guillem de Torroella]] and [[Gervase of Tilbury]]. 
*[[Wormelow Tump]], Herefordshire, the burial place of [[King Arthur]]'s son [[Amhar|Amr]] according to local legend; the mound was flattened to widen the road in 1896.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/herefordandworcester/content/articles/2008/12/05/graves_mordred_much_dewchurch_feature.shtml|title=Places – Arthurian Connections|last=Goodwin|first=Nicola|date=13 November 2014|website=BBC Hereford & Worcester|access-date=27 February 2018}}</ref>
*It has been suggested{{Who|date=June 2013}} that the burial place of [[Tristan]] is in [[Douarnenez]] (in the island named [[Ile Tristan]]) and that of [[Mark of Cornwall|King Marc]] on the Menez-Hom, a small hill in the parish of [[Dineault]].{{citation needed|date=June 2013}}
*Another contender for Arthur's resting place is the [[Eildon Hills]], [[Roxburghshire]].
*Amidst the ruins of [[Glastonbury Abbey]] are tombstones claiming to mark the final resting place of Arthur and Guinevere. Glastonbury, which was once surrounded by water, is believed by some to be the [[Isle of Avalon]], the place where the dying Arthur was destined to be healed; if this is the case, it follows that Arthur would be brought to the abbey to receive medical attention.  However, Arthur's wounds were fatal, and therefore he was buried near the abbey, south of the Lady Chapel.<ref>{{cite web|title=King Arthur & Avalon|url=http://www.glastonburyabbey.com/king_arthur_avalon.php?sid=2e016a1fc5bf4f7812e72f26248d398c|website=Glastonbury Abbey|publisher=Glastonbury Abbey & Happy Hare Media|access-date=22 July 2014}}</ref>  It is said that in the 12th century, monks who wanted to raise money for the abbey dug up two sets of bones (presumably Arthur's and Gwynevere's) from that location and moved them into the abbey in order to attract pilgrims.  The bones were supposedly unearthed within a large oak coffin inscribed with the words, "Here lies Arthur buried in Avalon."<ref>{{cite web|title=History and Archaeology|url=http://www.glastonburyabbey.com/history_archaeology.php?sid=2e016a1fc5bf4f7812e72f26248d398c|website=Glastonbury Abbey|publisher=Glastonbury Abbey & Happy Hare Media|access-date=22 July 2014}}</ref>
*[[Richmond Castle]]. In the tale of Potter Thompson, Arthur and his knights sleep in a hidden cavern under the castle built by [[Alan Rufus]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Legend of Richmond Castle|url=http://www.historic-uk.com/CultureUK/Legend-of-Richmond-Castle/|website=Historic UK|access-date=28 August 2016}}</ref>

==Arthur's courts==
The following are real places which are clearly identifiable in historical texts and which are mentioned in Arthurian legend and romance as being places used by Arthur to hold court. In the romances, Arthur, like all medieval monarchs, moves around his kingdom.

*[[Caerleon]]-on-Usk in [[Newport, Wales|Newport]], southern Wales. From [[Geoffrey of Monmouth]].
*[[London]], [[Geoffrey of Monmouth]].
*[[Quimper]], from the [[Lancelot-Grail]] romance.
*[[Carlisle, Cumbria|Carlisle]], [[Cumberland]], on the western edge of [[Hadrian's Wall]] (assuming Carlisle is really the ''Carduel'' of the romances).
*[[Carhaix]], ''Les premiers faits du roi Arthur''.
*[[Cardigan, Ceredigion|Cardigan]], from [[Chrétien de Troyes]].
*[[St David's]], one of Arthur's three courts in the [[Welsh Triads]].
*[[Stirling]] is named in [[Beroul]]'s 12th-century ''Romance of Tristan''.

===Unidentified sites===
*[[Celliwig]], [[Cornwall]]. Perhaps the earliest known description of a location of an Arthurian court (also in the Welsh Triads). [[Kelly Rounds]] near [[St Mabyn]], Cornwall, is cited as one of the potential sites.
*[[Pen Rhionydd]], Arthur's northern court in the Welsh Triads. Possibly near [[Stranraer]] in [[Rheged]].

====Camelot====
{{Main|Camelot}}
Various places have been identified as the location of Camelot, including many of those listed above. Others include:

* [[Tintagel Castle]], Cornwall, where there is evidence of high-status buildings in the 5th and 6th centuries.<ref name="Heritage">{{cite web|url=http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/about-us/search-news/archaeologists-secrets-of-tintagel|title=Archaeologists Unearth the Secrets of Tintagel this Summer|date=28 July 2016|website=[[English Heritage]]|access-date=3 August 2016}}</ref><ref name="KingArthur">{{cite web|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/08/03/royal-palace-discovered-in-area-believed-to-be-birthplace-of-kin/|title=Royal palace discovered in area believed to be birthplace of King Arthur|last1=Harley|first1=Nicola|date=August 3, 2016|website=[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]]|access-date=20 February 2018}}</ref> A sea cave below the castle is known as [[Merlin's Cave]].
* [[Winchester, Hampshire]], is specifically identified as Camelot by [[Thomas Malory]]. [[William Caxton]], in his preface to Malory's book, said that the Round Table itself was at Winchester Castle, and that anyone who wished to see it could go there.
* [[Camelon]], near Falkirk, which was spelled Camelo prior to the 19th century.
* [[Cadbury Castle, Somerset|Cadbury Castle]], Somerset, an Iron Age hill fort referred to as a location for Camelot by [[John Leland (antiquary)|John Leland]] in 1542. "At the very south end of the church of South-Cadbyri standeth Camallate, sometime a famous town or castle... The people can tell nothing there but that they have heard Arthur much resorted to Camalat..." A well on the ascent is known locally as Arthur's Well, and the highest part of the hill is known as Arthur's Palace, these names being recorded as early as the late 16th century.
* [[Colchester]], a town in [[Essex]] (or its Roman antecedent [[Camulodunum]]), has been cited as one of the potential sites of Camelot. Though the name "Camelot" may be derived from Camulodunum (modern Colchester), the Iron Age capital of the [[Trinovantes]], and later the provincial capital of Roman Britannia, its location close to England's east coast – and thus very close to the earliest Anglo-Saxon settlements – places it in the wrong Anglo-Saxon kingdom.
* The ex-Roman fort of [[Camboglanna]] on [[Hadrian's Wall]].
* Campus Elleti in [[Glamorgan]].
* [[Caerwent]].
** [[Llanvair Discoed|Llanmelin]] hill fort near Caerwent.
* [[Camelford]], Cornwall.
* [[Camaret-sur-Mer|Camaret]], [[Brittany]], France.
* Saltwell Park in [[Gateshead]].
* [[Viroconium Cornoviorum|Viroconium]], [[Shropshire]].
* [[Chard, Somerset]].
* Graig-Llwyn near [[Lisvane]].
* Camlet Moat near Trent Park, by [[Enfield Chase]], London.
* [[Slack, West Yorkshire|Slack]], near [[Huddersfield]]; the Romans had a fort named [[Cambodunum (Britain)|Cambodunum]] here making the kingdom [[Elmet]].
* [[Cadbury Camp]], Somerset.
* [[Roxburgh Castle]] in the Scottish Borders, proposed by Alistair Moffat in his work ''Arthur and the Lost Kingdoms''.
* [[Chester Castle]].

==Avalon==
{{Main|Avalon}}

* [[Île Aval|Isle of Aval]] in Brittany
* [[Glastonbury]] in England
* [[Sicily]]
* The [[Isle of Arran]]
* The city of [[Avallon]] in France
* The [[North Pole]] (according to the theories of [[William Fairfield Warren|William F. Warren]])<ref>{{cite book|first=William|last=Warren|title=Paradise Found: The Cradle of the Human Race at the North Pole, a Study of the Prehistoric World|year=1885|chapter=VI, part 5}}</ref>

==Reputed Arthurian battle sites==
Twelve of Arthur's battles were recorded by [[Nennius]] in ''[[Historia Brittonum]]''.
*Battle at the mouth of the river Glein (1st battle), possibly [[River Glen, Northumberland]] or [[River Glen, Lincolnshire]].
*Battles of the river Dubglas (2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th battles) in the region of [[Kingdom of Lindsey|Linnuis]]. Guesses for the river include the [[River Trent]] or the [[River Ancholme|Ancholme]]. An alternative northern site is the [[Devil's Water]] at Linnels on Hadrian's Wall or the [[River Douglas, Lancashire|River Douglas]], near [[Wigan]]. However, the strategic location of the River Douglas in Glen Douglas in [[Lennox (district)|Lennox]], near the portage at [[Arrochar, Argyll and Bute|Arrochar]] from [[Loch Long]] (''the Loch of the Ships'') to [[Loch Lomond]], overlooked by [[Ben Arthur]], make it the most likely location.
*Battle of the river of the Bassas (6th battle). Probably a reference to the [[Bass Rock]] in the [[Firth of Forth]], although possibly also relates to the middle [[River Witham]] at [[Bassingham]], the homestead of Bassa's people. An alternative northern location is at [[Bassington]] on the [[River Aln]] in Northumbria, not far from the River Glen.
*Battle of [[Cat Coit Celidon]] (7th battle), possibly [[Caledonian Forest|Caledonia]]n Woods in the Scottish Lowlands.
*Battle of Fort Guinnon (''the White Fort'') (8th battle). Possibly the [[Binchester]] Roman fort. Or [[Wedale]] in southern Scotland.
*Battle of the City of the Legion (9th battle) Hypothesized sites for this battle include:
**[[Caerleon]], also, according to Geoffrey of Monmouth, the site of Arthur's court and [[Guinevere]]'s convent
**[[Carlisle, Cumbria|Carlisle]]
**[[Chester]]
**[[York]]
*Battle of Tribruit (the 10th battle), possibly the mouth of the [[River Avon, Falkirk|river Avon]] near [[Bo'ness]], Scotland, or near [[Dumfries]].
*Battle of Agned (the 11th battle), probably near [[Edinburgh]] as ''Mount Agned'' was another term for Edinburgh, although possibly at the Roman fort [[Bremenium]], near [[Rochester, Northumberland|Rochester]], [[Northumberland]]
*Battle of [[Mons Badonicus]] c. AD 496 (12th battle). The date, location, and contestants of this battle are a matter of considerable debate. Hypothesized sites for Mons Badonicus include:
** Bowden Hill in [[Linlithgow]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.armadale.org.uk/bowden.htm|title=Bowden Hillfort|website=West Lothian Archaeology Group|access-date=20 December 2017}}</ref>
** Mynydd Baedan in South Wales
**[[Badbury Rings]], Dorset, an [[Iron Age]] hill fort
**[[Bath, Somerset|Bath]] or [[Solsbury Hill]] near Bath, suggested by Geoffrey of Monmouth
**[[Buxton]], Derbyshire, a hilltop town and the site of a Roman Bath
**[[Liddington Castle]], Wiltshire
**[[Bardon Hill]], Leicestershire
*[[Battle of Camlann]] (Arthur's last and fatal battle) possibly fought in South Somerset or at [[Camboglanna]] near the western section of Hadrian's Wall. Alternatively, it has been speculated that could have been fought at [[Camelon]] in [[Falkirk (council area)|Falkirkshire]] or Cwm Llan on [[Snowdon]].

==Places with other associations to Arthurian legend==
*[[Alderley Edge]] in Cheshire. Legend has it that beneath the hill in a cavern stretching the outcrop of sandstone, King Arthur and the knights of the round table lie sleeping.
*[[Alnwick Castle]] is a contender for [[Lancelot]]'s [[Castle Joyous Garde]] according to [[Thomas Malory| Malory]].
*The [[castle of Joyeuse Garde]] in La [[Forest-Landerneau]].
**[[Bamburgh Castle]], an alternative contender to Alnwick Castle for Lancelot's Castle Joyous Garde (according to Malory)
*[[Arthur's Seat]]
*[[Cefn Bryn|King Arthur's Stone]], Swansea
*[[Arthur's Stone, Herefordshire]]
*The convent at [[Amesbury]] in [[Wiltshire]] has been suggested as the place of banishment of Guinevere.
*[[Brocéliande]] forest is in [[Brittany]]
*The Arthur's cave, the Arthur's Castle and the Castle of Morgane in [[Huelgoat]]
*[[Tombeau de Merlin|Merlin's grave]] near Plounevez-Quintin
*Arthur's hill – the hill of Arthur's horse near [[Gourin]] in the French Black Mountains
*The lake of Viviane and Lancelot in Beaufort-en-Vallée, near [[Angers]]
*[[Carlisle, Cumbria| Carlisle]]: In Malory, Guinevere's affair with Lancelot was exposed at Carlisle and there she was sentenced to death.
*[[Carmarthen]] was the birthplace of [[Merlin (wizard) |Merlin]] according to Geoffrey of Monmouth. The name "Carmarthen" is the anglicised form of the Welsh name for the town, 'Caerfyrddin', which means "Merlin's fortress" ("Caer"-Fortress, "Myrddin"-Merlin). There are many places surrounding Carmarthen with names associating it with Merlin, such as Bryn Myrddin, "Merlin's Hill".
*[[Castle an Dinas, St Columb Major| Castle an Dinas]] in Cornwall, traditionally said to be a hunting lodge of Arthur; also said by [[William Worcester]] to be where "Tador Duke of Cornwall, husband of the mother of Arthur was slain".
*[[Castle Dore]], the [[Cornwall |Cornish]] castle where the story of [[Tristan]] is set
*[[Carhaix]], the city where Tristan got married
*[[Lake District]] in Cumbria, England is the likely location of Corbenic, the Grail Castle
*[[Dinas Emrys]] (Iron Age hill fort in [[Gwynedd]] said to have been a place of refuge of [[Vortigern]] and the site of Merlin's vision of the contest of the [[Welsh Dragon |Red]] and White dragons).
*[[Drumelzier]], Scottish Borders – purported burial site of Merlin
*[[Dumbarton Castle]], Geoffrey of Monmouth's [[Kingdom of Strathclyde|'Alclud']]
*[[King Arthur's Hall]], an enclosure or henge situated on [[Bodmin Moor]] [[Cornwall]]
*[[Montségur]] in the French Pyrenees – associated with Cathar treasure; destination for [[Otto Rahn]]'s 1930s and [[Otto Skorzeny]]'s 1944 searches for the [[Holy Grail]].<ref>
{{cite book
 |last1                = FitzGerald
 |first1               = Michael
 |year                 = 2020
 |title                = The Nazis and the Supernatural: The Occult Secrets of Hitler's Evil Empire
 |url                  = https://books.google.com/books?id=e0gAEAAAQBAJ
 |publisher            = Arcturus Publishing
 |isbn                 = 9781398805538
 |access-date          = 4 December 2022
 |quote                = [...] claims made by Howard Buechner that the SS Colonel Otto Skorzeny recovered the Ark and the Grail from the south of France in 1944.
}} 
</ref><ref>
{{cite book
 |date                 = 20 April 2010
 |title                = Otto Rahn and the Quest for the Grail: The Amazing Life of the Real Indiana Jones
 |url                  = https://books.google.com/books?id=KlUQqA8hcvgC
 |publisher            = SCB Distributors
 |isbn                 = 9781935487173
 |access-date          = 4 December 2022
 |quote                = [...] the results of Rahn's 'find' were removed to Germany by a special team of commandos, headed by Otto Skorzeny.
}} 
</ref>
*[[Stonehenge]] – said to be the burial place of [[Ambrosius Aurelianus]] and of [[Uther Pendragon]]
*The Berth, near [[Baschurch]] in [[Shropshire]], reputed to be a possible burial place
*[[Strait of Messina]] – related to [[Morgan le Fay]]
*[[Tintagel|Tintagel Castle]] in Cornwall, said to be Arthur's birthplace by [[Geoffrey of Monmouth]]. It is also said to be the stronghold of the Dukes and Duchesses of Cornwall, namely Duchess, then Queen, Igraine (Ygraine, Ygerna) and Duke Gorlois.
*[[Mount Etna]], related to [[Morgan le Fay]].<ref>Bruce, Christopher (1999). "Sicily". In [http://www.celtic-twilight.com/camelot/bruce_dictionary/index_m.htm ''The Arthurian Name Dictionary''. Taylor & Francis] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304041351/http://www.celtic-twilight.com/camelot/bruce_dictionary/index_m.htm |date=2016-03-04 }}. {{ISBN|0-8153-2865-6}}. Retrieved 24 May 2010.</ref>
* [[Lothian]] – [[King Lot]]
* [[Orkney]] – [[King Lot]]
* [[The Cobbler|Ben Arthur]]
* [[Chapelizod]] – home of [[Iseult#Iseult of Ireland|Yseult]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
*Hunt, A. (2005). [https://web.archive.org/web/20091027111354/http://geocities.com/vortigernstudies/articles/guestdan7.htm The magic of the cauldron]. ''Vortigern Studies''.
*Hunt, A. (2005). [https://web.archive.org/web/20091027111415/http://geocities.com/vortigernstudies/articles/guestdan2a.htm From Glein to Camlann: The life and death of King Arthur]. ''Vortigern Studies''.
*Lloyd, Scott, ''The Arthurian Place Names of Wales'', University of Wales Press, Cardiff, 2017 {{ISBN|978-1-78683-025-8}}
*Robert Rouse and Cory Rushton, ''The Medieval Quest for Arthur'', Tempus, Stroud, 2005 {{ISBN|0-7524-3343-1}}

==External links==
*[http://faculty.arts.ubc.ca/sechard/hrbmap.htm#l_mid_top Map of Geoffrey of Monmouth's Britain], with quotes from Geoffrey, Siân Echard, [[University of British Columbia]]

{{Arthurian Legend}}
{{Geoffrey of Monmouth}}

[[Category:Locations associated with Arthurian legend| ]]
[[Category:Geoffrey of Monmouth]]