Kingswood

The Kingswood is a vast forest in the stormlands, stretching south of King's Landing. It is a place of dense trees and hidden paths, notorious as a refuge for outlaws and brigands.

History and Reputation

A generation before the War of the Five Kings, the Kingswood was the domain of the Kingswood Brotherhood, a notorious band of outlaws that included Simon Toyne, Big Belly Ben, and Wenda the White Fawn. The brotherhood preyed on travelers and highborn captives, leaving a legacy of fear and legend. Ulmer of the Kingswood, a former member of that brotherhood, later took the black and became a ranger at Castle Black, where he was known for his skill with a bow and his tales of those days.

Role in the Narrative

During the events of A Dance with Dragons, the Kingswood is mentioned as a place where outlaws still operate. It is also the site of a planned ambush: Prince Doran Martell reveals that Queen Cersei Lannister intends to have his son Trystane murdered by outlaws in the Kingswood on the road back from Dorne, with the attackers shouting the name "Halfman" to implicate Tyrion Lannister. This plot is foiled when Prince Doran refuses to send his son to King's Landing by land.

The Kingswood also serves as a setting for the outlaw activities of Sandor Clegane, who, according to rumors heard in White Harbor, has turned outlaw and is plundering and killing in the lands along the Trident, which borders the Kingswood.