Darnantes

Andernantes, Arnante, Arnantes, Darmauntes, Darnances, Darvances, Dornantes, La Forest Perilleuse, 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.