Dolon: A Man of Subtle Wit

Dolon is a character that appears in book 4 of Edmund Spenser’s The Faerie Queene. He is a villainous character that tries to capture Britomart.

In the epic poem, Dolon is described as “a man of subtle wit”. At one point, he invites Britomart to spend the night at his home, but it is a trap.

Secretly, he has rigged Britomart’s bed to collapse and throw the sleeper into a cellar. This may be a parallel with the many dangers that Queen Elizabeth faced during Edmund Spenser’s time, and the general unease surrounding the monarchy, where even the place where they sleep might not be safe.

Thankfully for Britomart, she was on to Dolon, and discovered the trick bed before it could be used on her.

See our complete list of Arthurian characters for more entries like this one.

Arthurian Bibliography

• Norris Lacy, Geoffrey Ashe, Debra Mancoff – The Arthurian Handbook (Second Edition)
• Alan Lupack – The Oxford Guide to Arthurian Literature and Legend
• Ronan Coghlan – The Illustrated Encyclopaedia of Arthurian Legends
• Anonymous – Lancelot-Grail, the French Vulgate
• Sir Thomas Malory – Le Morte d’Arthur