A couple of years ago on a visit to Normandy, we explored Lassay-les-Chateaux and its links with Lancelot du Lac, or Lancelot of the Cart as he is called locally. Until this point I hadn’t realised that the French, or more precisely the Normans, had claimed the legend of King Arthur and his knights for their own.
On this trip we have discovered two more Arthur related places close to Champsecret. The first is Fosse Arthour, which is a limestone gorge with a river - the Sonce, and a small lake.
Legend has it that King Arthur and Queen Guinevere lived here after Arthur’s final battle with Mordred. They each lived in a cave, which are easy to find - the “cave du roi” and the “cave de la reine”. According to the local story, they could only meet after sunset, but Arthur, desperate to meet up with his Queen, fell to his death in the ravine, pushed by the spirit of the pit. Guinevere, mourning the death of Arthur, threw herself into the pit.
We thoroughly enjoyed exploring the area. The lake is so pretty, and the geology is very similar to places closer to home such as Warton Crag and Farleton Fell.
Fascinating as this story is, I’m still certain that King Arthur and his knights were really from Cumbria!
