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THE 
 
 Citmitni? nf tjjp litptmj; 
 
 BEING A CRITICAL ESSAY ON THE 
 
 HISTORY 
 
 THE LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE 
 
 OUnlrs. 
 
 DIKING THE TWELFTH AND TWO SUCCEEDING CENTURIES ; CONTAINING NUMEROUS 
 
 SPECIMENS OF ANCIENT WELSH POETRY IN THE ORIGINAL AND 
 
 ACCOMPANIED WITH ENGLISH TRANSLATIONS; TO 
 
 WHICH WAS AWARDED THE 
 
 PRIZE GIVKN 
 
 BY 
 
 HIS ROYAL HIGHNESS THE PKINCE OF WALES. 
 
 AT THE LATE ABERGAVENNY EISTEDDVOD. 
 
 BY THOMAS STEPHENS. 
 
 LLANDOVEKY, 
 PUBLISHED BY WILLIAM EEES; LONDON, LONGMAN * CO. 
 
 MDCCCXLI-X. 
 
n 
 
 .Si 
 
 PRINTED BY WILLIAM KEKS. LLANDOVERY, 
 
 J§§f6fl WEEffiE LIBRARY 
 
 OCT -7W\ 
 
 463739 
 
HIS ROYAL HIGHNESS 
 
 ALBERT EDWARD. PRINCE OF WALES. 
 
 IS RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED 
 
 BY PEBMISSION OF HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN, 
 
 THE FOLLOWING RECORD OF 
 
 LITEEAKY AX!) IFCELLEOTUAL 
 
 LABOURS AMONG THE 
 
 ancient anti illustrious Bare, 
 
 WHOSE 
 
 REPRESENTATIVE HE IS; 
 
 IN T!!E HOPE, 
 
 THAT WHEN FUTURE YEARS HAVE EXTENDED HIS EXPERIENCE 
 
 AND RIPENED HIS JUDGMENT, 
 
 HE MAY FEEL A REGARD FOR THE INHABITANTS 
 
 OF 
 
 W§t ^rinripaUtB, 
 
 A3 STRONG AS IS THEIR AFFECTION FOR. THJ 
 
 HEIR APPARENT 
 
 TO THE THRONE OF BRITAIN. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 On the Map of Britain, facing St. George's Chan- 
 nel, is a group of counties called Wales, inhabited 
 by a people, distinct from, and but very imperfectly 
 understood by, those who surround them. Their 
 neighbours call them Welshmen ; Welsh, or Walsch, 
 is not a proper name, but a Teutonic term signifying 
 " strangers," and was applied to all persons who were 
 not of that family ; but the proper name of these 
 people is " Kymry." They are the last remnant of 
 the Kimmeroi of Homer, and of the K) T mry (Cimbri) 
 of Germany, that great people whose arms stiuck 
 terror into the Roman legions, and whose virtues 
 Tacitus held up for the imitation of his countrymen. 
 From the Cimbric Chersonesus, (Jutland), a portion 
 of these landed on the shores of Northumberland, 
 gave their name to the county of Cumberland, 
 and in process of time followed the sea-side to their 
 present resting place, where they still call themselves 
 Kymry, and give their country a similar name. Their 
 history, clear, concise, and authentic, ascends to a 
 high antiquity; their language was embodied in 
 verse, long before the languages now spoken rose 
 into notice ; and their literature, cultivated and abun- 
 dant, lays claim to being the most ancient in modern 
 Europe. 
 
VI PREFACE. 
 
 In the history of Cambrian literature, there are 
 four marked periods. Of these, the first relates to the 
 fortunes of the Strathclyde Kymry, the wars of the 
 Ottadini in the North of England in the sixth cen- 
 tury, and the subsequent emigration of that people 
 to South Wales; the second is embraced between 
 the years 1080 and 1350; the third, thence to the 
 first half of the seventeenth century ; and the fourth 
 from 1650 to the present time. The following Essay 
 treats of the second period ; and is the work to which 
 the Ven. Archdeacon Williams awarded the Prize 
 offered by His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, 
 at the Abergavenny Eisteddvod of 1848. It has 
 since been considerably enlarged, and through the 
 liberality of Sir John Guest, Bart. M.P. is now made 
 public. It embraces a term of years among the most 
 stirring in the history of man; for in the greatness of 
 the aims, the vastness of the achievements, and the 
 prevalence of profound excitement, it can only be 
 compared to the age of the Reformation, or the late 
 European war. Activity prevailed everywhere, and 
 was as apparent in literature, philosophy, and theo- 
 logy, as it was in warfare. It is during such an era 
 of general movement, that we have to treat of the 
 literature of Wales ; and it will be found on examin- 
 ation, that the Kymry need not shrink from a com- 
 parison with any contemporaneous people. 
 
 The Essay, it will be observed, embraces a variety 
 of subjects ; and surveys all the manifestations of the 
 Cambrian intellect. My object was to give a com- 
 plete account of the mental labours of the Kymry of 
 these centuries; and to this end, Poetry, Music, His- 
 
PREFACE. Vll 
 
 tory, The Triads, and the Mabinogion, have been 
 made subsidiary. In order to embrace this variety of 
 topics, I found it necessary to divide the history of the 
 Poetry into four periods, and preferred arranging the 
 special dissertations in groups aronnd the fixed points 
 thus obtained, to interrupting a continuous narrative 
 by such a number of lengthy Episodes. By this ar- 
 rangement we gain in variety what is lost in symme- 
 try; and as the episodical sections are the most original 
 in the book, it is to be hoped that the defect they have 
 caused in the plan may be the more readily pardoned. 
 A rational account is now given of the poems so long 
 erroneously attributed to Taliesin and Merddin ; an 
 attempt is here made to develope the pregnant mean- 
 ing of" Hud a Lledrith;" and the old stories of the 
 massacre of the bards, with the burning of the books 
 by the often execrated Scolau, have been thoroughly 
 sifted with a view to their final settlement. 
 
 My own predilections were strongly in favour of 
 taking an enlarged view of the literature of the cen- 
 turies embraced between the ages of Meilir and Gwi- 
 lym Ddu ; and I have been strengthened in that de- 
 sire, by a conviction that this ought to be an Essay 
 more particularly directed to English readers. This 
 is the way in which the Kymry can best serve their 
 country, as the preponderance of England is so great, 
 that the only hope of obtaining attention to the just 
 claims of the Principality, is by appealing to the con- 
 victions and sympathies of the reading part of the 
 English population. It is full time for some of us to 
 do this ; and therefore it was my aim so to shape the 
 Essay, that, if successful, it might be published, and 
 
Vlll PREFACE. 
 
 its contents made known to the English people, that 
 they may no longer be ignorant of our real literary 
 worth. This is a knowledge of which our neighbours 
 are deficient, and one which we feel confident will 
 surely produce an effect most favourable to the inha- 
 bitants of the Principality. Past experience justifies 
 this anticipation; for Sharon Turner was not slow to 
 to exhibit his appreciation of our poetic remains; 
 and Robert Southey, the late poet laureat, lent us a 
 willing ear. Leigh Hunt, a veteran in literature, 
 exhibits the same kind regard, in these lines : — 
 
 " I used to think of thee and thine, 
 
 As one of an old faded line, 
 
 Living in his hills apart, 
 
 Whose pride I knew, but not his heart ; — 
 
 But now that I have seen thy face, 
 
 Thy fields and ever youthful race, 
 
 And women's lips of rosiest word, 
 
 (So rich they open), and have heard 
 
 The harp still leaping in thy halls, 
 
 Quenchless as the waterfalls, 
 
 I know thee full of pride, as strong 
 
 As the sea's most ancient song, 
 
 And of a sympathy as wide.'" 
 
 And it would be ingratitude not to acknowledge our 
 obligations to the poet Gray and to Mrs. Hemans. 
 These examples teach us that we have but to make 
 known the richness of our ancient literature, to earn a 
 favourable estimate of ourselves ; and I, for one, 
 will no longer bear the too just reproach, that we are 
 continually boasting of literary wealth which we ne- 
 ver produce for the public inspection, in an intelligible 
 form; for how can we reasonably expect our neigh- 
 bours to appreciate our literature, until they are made 
 acquainted with it in a form which they can under- 
 stand? But while I exhort my countrymen to addi- 
 
PREFACE. IX 
 
 tional exertions, it is not to be inferred that they have 
 hitherto made no efforts to diffuse a knowledge of 
 their ancient literature. Llwyd's account of our an- 
 cient MSS. was published in 1707; and in 17(i4, 
 Dodsley, under the designation Dissertatio de Bardis, 
 published several specimens of ancient Kymric 
 poetry, with translations, undertaken by the Rev. 
 Evan Evans, at the suggestion of Bishop Percy. 
 Mr. Lewis Morris had frequent correspondence on 
 the subject with Mr. Thomas Carte, and Dr. Samuel 
 Pe££e: Sir Walter Scott was on intimate terms with 
 Mr. William Owen, afterwards Dr. W. O. Pughe, and 
 has included in the notes to several of his poems, ex- 
 tracts from Kymric documents, furnished by the 
 Cambrian lexicographer ; and Mr. Hooper, Pall Mall 
 East, in 1834, published a small volume of transla- 
 tions by Arthur James Johnes, Esq. of the Poems of 
 Davydd ab Gwilym. 
 
 I have not thought it necessary to offer any vindi- 
 cation of the antiquity of the Cambrian Poems; a 
 large portion of the originals are lodged in the Bri- 
 tish Museum ; and may be seen on enquiry. Such 
 specimens as are here given, are accompanied by the 
 originals ; and the translation being line for line, the 
 reader may easily test my fidelity. The Cambrian 
 names of persons and places, have been rendered in 
 English equivalents; the English V has been sub- 
 stituted for the Kymric F ; and where there was any 
 probability of the C being pronounced soft, its place 
 has been supplied by the letter K : in all cases I 
 have not hesitated to alter the symbols, in order to 
 preserve the proper sounds. 
 
X PREFACE. 
 
 Throughout the volume I have been more solici- 
 tous to inform than to instruct ; to state facts than to 
 advance speculations; to allow our ancient remains to 
 make their own impression, than to make out a case 
 for them ; and to supply the reader with materials 
 wherewith to frame his own opinions, than to furnish 
 him with thoughts ready made. Of such a work, the 
 specimens must of necessity form a most important 
 part ; in adhering as closely as possible to the origi- 
 nals, I have been in most cases, compelled to give un- 
 rhymed translations ; but where metrical versions, 
 such as those of Mrs. Llewelyn, which were kindly 
 placed at my disposal, were also distinguished for 
 fidelity, they have been given in preference. In my 
 own translations, I have derived much valuable assis- 
 tance from the Dictionary of Dr. Pughe, the transla- 
 tions of the Rev. Evan Evans, and the paraphrases of 
 the Rev. Thomas Price. I am also under consider- 
 able obligations to the works of the Rev. Edward 
 Davies and the Rev. Walter Davies. Many errors 
 may naturally be expected to have crept into the 
 pages of one, whose life has been spent within the 
 shadows of his native mountains, and whose scanty 
 information has been, as chance directed, picked up 
 on the out-skirts of the empire of intelligence. For 
 the correction of many of these, I am much indebted 
 to Lady Charlotte Guest, whose suggestions, as well 
 as those of Mr. Rees, the Publisher, offered while 
 the sheets were coming through the press, have been 
 gratefully received, and generally adopted. 
 
 Merthyr Tydfil, July 2nd, 1849. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 SECTION I. — Historical Sketch of Cambrian Literature prior to the twelfth 
 century. Aneurin, Taliesin, Llywarch, Merddin, Golyddan, Cadwaladr, 
 and Howel the Good . .- . . . Page 9 
 
 SECTION II.— History of Poetry, from AD. 1080 to A.D. 1194. Meilir, 
 Gwalchmai, Owain Kyveiliog, Hywel ab Owain, Periv ab Kedivor, 
 Einion ab Gwalchmai, Llywarch Llaety . . . 19 
 
 SECTION III.— Welsh Music. Gruffydd ab Kynan. Irish teachers. Bag 
 Pipes ........ 64 
 
 SECTION IV. — Incipient Drama. Hud a Lledrith. Poetical dialogues. 
 A Miracle Play ....... 79 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 SECTION I. — Bards and Bardism. The bards, their social position, sincerity, 
 numbers, morals, distinctions, learning, and patriotism. Messengers of 
 peace ........ 94 
 
 SECTION II.— Poetry from A.D. 1194 to A.D. 1240. Kynddelw, Llywarch 
 ab Llywelyn, Prince Madoc, Einion ab Gwgan, Davydd Benvras, Elidir 
 Sais, Phylip Brydydd, Gwynvardd Brycheiniog. Other bards . 129 
 
 SECTION III. — Mythological Poems, usually attributed to Taliesin. Belong 
 to the twelfth and succeeding centuries. Resemble the Arabian Nights. 
 Are metrical Romances. Bardic Philosophy. . . . 176 
 
 SECTION IV. — Poems fictitiously attributed to Merddin and others. Identity 
 of Merddin Emrys, and Merddin ab Morvryn. Kyvoesi Merddin — its 
 age. The Avallenau and Hoianau, composed by Prydydd y Moch. The 
 Gorddodau composed by Gruffydd ab Yr Ynad Coch. Classification 
 of the Poems of Taliesin. Poems erroneously ascribed to Taliesin, 
 Golyddan, Meugant, Aneurin, and Llywarch . . . 207 
 
 SECTION V. — Prose Literature. The Chronicles. Geoffrey not the inventor 
 of all the fables in his book. Walter Mapes. Caradoc. Liber Lan- 
 davensis. Effects of Geoffrey's History. The mental idiosyncrasy of the 
 Kymry ........ 307 
 
Xll CONTENTS. 
 
 ♦CHAPTER III. 
 
 SECTION I.— Historical Survey from A.D. 1080 to 1322. Visible Improve- 
 ment in Poetry. General excitement. Formation of Languages. Posi- 
 tion of the Kymry. Personal influence of the Cambrian Princes. 
 Crusades. Massacre of the Bards disproved. The Yscolan story re- 
 futed. State of Cambrian MSS. Popular Songs. . . 332 
 
 SECTION II.— Welsh Poetry from A.D. 1194 to A.D. 1240. Llygad Gwr, 
 Einion ab Madawc Rhahawd, Y Prydydd Bychan, Hywel Voel, 
 Bleddyn Vardd. Gruffydd ab Yr Ynad Coch's Elegy on Prince Lle- 
 welyn. .'...... 361 
 
 SECTION III.— Religious Poetry of the Bards. Elidir Sais, Llewelyn Vardd. 
 Giraldus. Welsh Princes. G. ab Yr Ynad, Brother Madawc ab 
 Gwallter. ....... 392 
 
 SECTION IV. — The Mabinogion ; classified. Arthur, a creation of the Armori- 
 can Kymry. Cambrian Stories lost. Authors of the Mabinogion. Lady 
 Charlotte Guest's translation. Influence of the Normans. The Church. 
 Character of these Tales. Scarcity of copies. The Greal . 402 
 
 SECTION V.— The Triads. Character. Antiquity. Historical value . 446 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 SECTION I.— The Welsh Language . . . .449 
 
 SECTION II.— Welsh Poetry from A.D. 1280 to A.D. 1350. Gwilym Ddu. 
 Other Bards. Character of the Poetry of the succeeding era. Rhys 
 Goch. Date of his poetry. Specimens. Davydd ab Gwilym 's address 
 to the Summer ....... 472 
 
 SECTION III.— General Criticism on the Bardic Poems. . .494 
 
CHAPTER I. 
 
 Historical Sketch of Welsh Literature prior to the 
 Twelfth Century. 
 
 The facts of history, apart from the circumstances from 
 which they sprang, can afford no instruction; for our know- 
 ledge of effects is not complete, until we add to it some ac- 
 quaintance with their causes. And therefore, as the pheno- 
 mena visible in the twelfth and following centuries, are the 
 products of agents set in operation in a previous era, it be- 
 comes of importance to ascertain what those were, and what 
 the state of literature was, when Ave commence our criticism. 
 It is said that there are remaining some portions of genu- 
 ine Druidic lore; but as I am able neither to deny nor con- 
 firm that assertion, it will be wiser to abstain from giving 
 any opinion upon the subject, and proceed at once to the 
 Bards of the sixth century. The genuineness of the com- 
 positions, which go under the names of these bards, was 
 denied many years ago by Mr. Malcolm Laing, and the Cri- 
 tical Review; but as they could have known nothing of the 
 matter, their opinions were not of much value. Mr. Sharon 
 Turner 1 , an Englishman of great learning and rare imparti- 
 ality, has devoted an extensive Essay to this enquiry; 
 and as he has ratified the conclusions of Welsh critics, we 
 
 1 Vindication of the British bards by Sharon Turner, F.A.S. 
 JB 
 
10 WELSH LITERATURE 
 
 may now take it for granted, no one disputes that such per- 
 sons as Aneurin, Taliesin, and Llywarch lived at the time 
 stated. Many of the pieces imputed to Taliesin are un- 
 doubtedly not older than the twelfth century, as will be here- 
 after shown; but it is also equally evident that other pieces 
 must be referred to a much earlier date. The bards who 
 lived in the sixth century, were Aneurin, Taliesin, Lly warch, 
 Myrddin, Kian, Talhaiarn, Meugant, and Kywryd. 
 
 The poems of Lly warch Hen are undoubtedly old. and 
 in referring to an age of whose manners we have but few 
 other transcripts, are very valuable; nor are they destitute 
 of poetic excellence. Though a warrior, and treating of 
 warriors, his forte does not lie in heroic poetry; his des- 
 criptions of manners are happy, and the incidental allusions 
 are strikingly illustrative of the age; but his chief power 
 lies in pathetic lamentation, and his elegies have many 
 fine sentiments. He cannot however take a high rank in 
 bardic literature; for either from want of capacity, or in 
 compliance with a bad usage, he begins Long strings of verses 
 with the same words, such as "Eryr Pengwern," "Eiry My- 
 nydd," "Eglwysau Bassa/ 1 and with better effect, "Ystav- 
 ell Kynddylan. 11 He has some very affecting verses with 
 this commencement, many of which bring out the facts of 
 the time with great clean i 
 
 The lia.ll of Kynddylan is dark to-night 
 Without tire, without songs, 
 
 Tears afflict the cheeks. 1 
 
 From this we learn that the order of the bards existed in 
 his days. 
 
 Aneurin takes a higher position in the roll of poets, and 
 his Gododin, a poem detailing the adventures of the Otta- 
 dini, a tribe of the Kymry, before their immigration from 
 Cumberland and the adjoining country to that portion of 
 
 1 Owen's Heroic Elegies of Llywarch Hon, p. 78. The original runs thus, 
 Ystafell Cyndylan Ys tywyll heno, 
 ITeb dan. / 6 </ rdddv^ 
 Digystudd deurudd daerrau. 
 
PRIOR TO THE TWELFTH CENTURY. ]_| 
 
 this kingdom now known as Wales, justly entitles him to 
 the precedence anions; the hards of his day, the next being 
 TaliesiD. Any criticism on this poem, which did not treat 
 the subject at length, could not fail to be unsatisfactory ; 
 I shall therefore only pause to offer a few remarks on what 
 the object of the composition seems to be. The Rev. Edw. 
 Davies conceive- the Gododin to refer to the reported mas- 
 Bacre of three hundred Cambrian chiefs, by Hengist and the 
 Saxons, who invited them to a feast at Stonehenge; but the 
 \l . . Thomas Price dissents from thai view, though acknow- 
 ledging that lie has Been do satisfactory explanation of the 
 meaning of the word " Cattraeth.'" Methinks the acuteness 
 which discovered the meaning of "Dyvynaul Vrych, 11 mighi 
 easily have overcome that difficulty, for T believe the follow- 
 ing to be the key to the Gododin, We know that a tribe 
 called the "Ottadini" occupied the shores of Northumber- 
 land, from Flamborough Bead to the Frith of Forth; we 
 know further that Deivyr and Bryneich were adjacent ter- 
 ritories; and lastly we know that in the adjoining county 
 of York, there was a Roman town of note, named Catarac- 
 ton : and now called Catterick. Tin' bard says, "The men 
 of Gododin went to Cattraeth;" now Cattraeth must have 
 been somewhere near. Many phrases countenance this as- 
 sumption ; — 
 
 "liwyr a aeth Gattraeth gan ddydd." (twice repeated.) 
 
 Men went to Cattraeth ai break of day, or with the day. 
 
 and 
 
 "Gwyr a aeth Gattraeth gan wawr. (thrice repeated.) 
 
 Men went to Cattraeth with the dawn. 
 
 It therefore appears to me perfectly clear, that the sub- 
 ject of the Gododin is an expedition of the Ottadini against 
 the town of Cataracton, then held most probably by the 
 Brigantes. Taliesin says, — 
 
 "Arwyre gwyr Cattraeth gan ddydd." 
 
 I will extol the men of Cattraeth who with the day, &c. 
 
12 WELSH LITERATURE 
 
 and we cannot suppose that this is simply an allusion to 
 Aneurin's poem, and not to real personages who might with 
 propriety be said to be of "the men of Cattraeth." The 
 whole scene and actions are laid in the North ; and there 
 is not the slightest reason for believing it can have had any 
 reference to the reported massacre at Stonehenge in Wilt- 
 shire. Aneurin also makes allusions to bards existing in 
 in his time, — 
 
 "Hyfeidd hir etmygir tra vo Tcerddawr.^ 
 
 Hy veidd the tall will be known while there are minstrels. 
 
 and again, — 
 
 " Blwyddyn bu llawen llawer kerddawr." 
 
 That year many minstrels were merry. 
 
 Both Aneurin and Taliesin have been honoured with the 
 title of "king of the bards," but in my opinion the title has 
 been given with least propriety to the latter; for he has 
 no single work to compare with the Gododin, though he has 
 several small poems possessing more real poetry than any 
 portion of that poem. His life seems to have been more ex- 
 clusively devoted to the profession; and unlike Aneurin he 
 does not seem ever to have handled the spear. His poems 
 show more skill in composition, finer ideas, bolder images, 
 and more intense passion than any poet of the same age. 
 The historical value of the Gododin is greater; poetical 
 merit belongs more exclusively to Taliesin. There are nearly 
 eighty pieces attributed to him, most of which belong to a 
 much later date ; but the "Battle of Gwenystrad," "The 
 Battle of Argoed Llwyvain," " The battle of DyfFryn Gwar- 
 ant," and some of the Gorchanau seem to be genuine re- 
 mains. 
 
 Under the name of Merddin, the editors of the Myvyr- 
 ian Archaiology place "The Hoianau," "The Avallenau," 
 "Kyvoesi Merddin a Gwenddydd ei chwaer," the "Gwasgar- 
 gerdd," and " I Ysgolan." The Hoianau which were sup- 
 posed to be as old as the sixth century will with " the Aval- 
 
PRIOR TO THE TWELFTH CENTURY. J 3 
 
 enau^ be shown to belong to the thirteenth century, and the 
 " Kyvoesi" to the tenth ; the Ysgolan here alluded to 
 will be found identical with the Ysgolan, whom our poets 
 and historians have conjured up in the Tower of London to 
 destroy an imaginary heap of books ; and the real Ysgolan of 
 actual history will be produced in the third chapter to answer 
 for himself. From this it would seem that not one of the 
 poems which are attributed to Merddin, is likely to be his. 
 
 We have but few remains of the labours of other authors, 
 much too few to form any useful estimate of their poetical 
 merits. Kyhelyn, Llevoed, Elaeth, Tyssilio, Gwyddno, and 
 Gwdion ab Don, were bards who lived about the same time. 
 
 A little later lived Avan Verddig, who has left an elegy 
 on Cadwallon, of which leu an Brydydd Hir has formed a 
 favourable opinion; and still later lived Golyddan. It is 
 also said that Cadwaladr held an Eisteddfod some time 
 during his reign. The abdication of this monarch left the 
 Kymry in great difficulties; and the two succeeding centu- 
 ries are barren of literary productions. We are not however 
 to infer, that the order of bards was extinct, for on the con- 
 trary, it seems to have grown considerably. The bard 
 had, in fact, become a necessary element in Welsh society ; 
 and as we learn from the laws of Howel Dda, had obtained 
 an eminent social position. These laws throw much light 
 upon the character and office of the bard , and show him to 
 have formed an essential member of the royal household. 
 Minstrels attended the monarch whenever he went from 
 home ; but the chief minstrel should not be confounded, as 
 he sometimes is, with the Bardd Teulu, for it was the latter 
 and not the former that was a member of the household, 
 one of the twenty-four officers of the court. This expression, 
 Bardd Teulu, (The family Bard,) at once shows the estima- 
 tion in which that personage was held; and his position 
 will be still more clearly understood from the following 
 notices in the Welsh Laws. 1 
 
 1 Wotton's Leges Wallicre. 
 
14 WELSH LITERATURE 
 
 "The domestic Bard shall receive of the family, a beast out of 
 every spoil in which he shall be present ; and a man's share like 
 every domestic. 
 
 If there should be fighting, the Bard shall sing The Monarchy 
 of Britain in front of the battle. 
 
 When a bard shall ask a gift of a prince, let him sing one piece; 
 when he asks of a baron, let him sing three pieces ; should he ask 
 of a villain, let him sing until he falls asleep. 
 
 His land shall be free ; and he shall have a horse in attendance 
 from the king. 
 
 The Chief of Song shall begin the singing in the common hall. 
 
 He shall be next but one to the patron of the family. 
 
 He shall have a harp from the king, and a gold ring from the 
 queen, when his office is secured to him. The harp he shall never 
 part with. 
 
 The protection of the domestic Bard, is to conduct a person to 
 the patron of the family. 
 
 The domestic Bard, and the physician, shall be in the lodging of 
 the patron of the family. 
 
 The steward of the household, judge of the court, headgroom, 
 chief of song, master of the hawks, page for the chamber, and do- 
 mestic chaplain; the satisfaction of their insult and murder are the 
 same, and their heriots the same; and their daughters are alike in 
 rank. 
 
 In satisfaction for their insult shall be paid nine cows, and nine 
 score pence of money. 
 
 In their satisfaction for murder shall be paid nine hundred and 
 nine cows, with three advancements. 
 
 A pound is the heriot of each of them. 
 
 A pound is the maiden fee of their daughters, their covert fee is 
 three pounds, their jointure is seven pounds." 1 
 
 1 Bardd teulu a geif eidyon y gan y teulu o bop anrheith yd vo yndi, aran 
 gwr mal pob teuluwr. Enteu a ddyly canu unbenaeth prydein o byd y wlad 
 rac bron y gad. 
 
 Ban a archo bard y teyrn caned un canu; ban archo breyr caned tri chanu. 
 Od eirch ytaeawc, caned yny gysgo. 
 
 Y dir yn ryd amarch bith ossepb ygan y brenbin. 
 
 Y penkerd a dechreu canu yn y neuad kyssevin. 
 Eil nesaf ir penteulu vyd. 
 
 Telyn a geif y gan y brenbin, amodrwy eur ygan y vrenbines, pan gwystler 
 yswyd idaw. Y delyn ni ad byth gantbaw. 
 
 Nawd y bard teulu yw kanhebrwng dyn hyd ar y penteulu. 
 
 En llety ypenteulu ybydant y bard teulu a'r medic. 
 
 Dystain, ygnad llys, Pengwastrawd, Penkynyd, Penkerd, Hebogyd, Gwasys- 
 tavell, Effeiriad teulu, vn sarbaed, ac vn galanas, ac vn ebediw, ac vn vreint eu 
 merched. 
 
 En eu sarhaed ytelir naw niuw, a nawugaint aryant. 
 
 En eugalanas ytelir naw muw anaw ugaint rnuw gan dri dyrchavael. 
 
 Punt yw ebediw pob un onadunt. 
 
 Punt yw gobyr eu mercbed ; teir punt yw eu kowyll; seithpunt yw eu bag- 
 wedi. 
 
PRIOR TO THE TWELFTH CENTURY. \§ 
 
 We have here clear evidences of the high estimation in 
 which the Bardic Order was held in the tenth century; and 
 it would seem that the profession had been organized to a 
 considerable extent, so that there were at that time various 
 degrees of bards. The copies of the laws consulted by Dr. 
 Wotton, and also the one given in the first volume of the 
 Cambrian Register, are somewhat defective; and their ac- 
 count of the domestic bard, the presiding bard, and the 
 chief of song, is so confused that one might suppose them 
 to be various names for the same person. A copy of the 
 laws in the Welsh. School in London, supplies the defici- 
 ency, and enables us to see with more clearness into their 
 actual conditions ; and from this we find the differences 
 between these functionaries to be the following, — 
 
 The chief of song was not one of the twenty-four officers 
 of the court. 
 
 The chief of song and the bard president might be 
 the same person, if he should have obtained in bardic con- 
 tests the chair of presidency ; but they were frequently dif- 
 ferent persons. The being a bard president entitled the 
 bard to a seat at the royal table, though the chief of song 
 was not permitted to enter the hall. 
 
 The bardd teulu was distinct from both. At the table 
 the bardd teulu sat below the pillars with the inferior offi- 
 cers of the court, while the bard president sat above. 
 
 It is somewhat singular that the bards who lived at this 
 time, and under the guardianship of so able and accomplished 
 a prince, should have left no traces of their poetical labours. 
 It will perhaps be suggested that their poems have been 
 lost ; but I cannot countenance such an assumption. We 
 shall presently see, in the first work of Meilyr, that the 
 poetry of the bards one hundred and fifty years later was 
 very rudimental, and may therefore conclude that the age 
 was not honoured by any extraordinary intellectual exhibi- 
 tions. The greatness of the age was concentred in Howel; 
 and perhaps we shall not be far wrong, if we attribute to 
 the bards of that day no higher aims than " Englynion y 
 
1(3 WELSH LITERATURE 
 
 Cly wed," and such moral lessons as "Chwedleu y Fran," or 
 the aphorisms of Oattwg. These verses, though indicating- 
 no great intellectual capacity, are in their way exceedingly 
 curious, and instructively show how an intelligent people 
 supplied the defect felt in the want of a written literature. 
 For this purpose we subjoin the following, — 
 
 Hast thou heard what Avaon sung, 
 
 The son of Taliesin of just lay 1 
 
 The cheek will not conceal the anguish of the heart.* 
 
 That is one of the Verses of the Hearing:, and here fol- 
 lows one of the Fables of the Crows, — 
 
 A crow sang a fable on the top 
 
 Of an oak, above the junction of two rivers, — 
 
 Understanding is more powerful than strength. 2 
 
 This is one of Cattwg 1 s aphorisms, — 
 
 Make the best on all occasions 
 
 Of what you already possess: — 
 
 Better than nothing is the shelter of a rush. 3 
 
 Cattwg the Wise sang it. 
 
 Possibly some of these may be later than the time of 
 their reputed authors ; but some of them may lay claim to 
 high antiquity. 
 
 These however rather confirm than disprove the assertion, 
 that after Howel, darkness covered the land. King Alfred 
 informs us that there were but very few able to read in his 
 day, and we may thence infer that there were no exertions 
 made to cultivate literature, or diffuse information. Per- 
 haps, we have no right to expect more than the laws of 
 Howel, the life of Alfred, and the writings of Asser, from 
 
 1 A glyweisti a gant Avaon 
 Vab Taliesin, gerdd gyfion, — 
 Ni chel grudd gystudd calon. 
 a Bran a gant chwedl ar uwchder 
 Derwen uwch deufirwd aber, 
 Trech deall na grymusder. 
 3 Gwna y goreu ym mhob angen, 
 O'r petb fo'n dy berchen, 
 Gwell no dim gwasgawd brwynen. 
 
 Cattwg Ddoeth a'i cant. 
 
PRIOR TO THE TWELFTH CENTURY. ] 7 
 
 so barren an age. Some persons have, in a most uncritical 
 manner, referred the poems sometimes called mythological to 
 the time which intervened betwen the death of Howel and 
 the appearance of Meilyr; for this they assign no better 
 reason, than that a number of poems exist to which there 
 has hitherto been assigned no date, and that there is a gap 
 which ought to be filled bv something or another: — thev it 
 would seem not being cognizant of the fact, that the inter- 
 nal evidence of these poems contradicts such an assumption. 
 Their true character, and probable date, will be shown in the 
 seventh chapter. 
 
 Another part of the literature of these centuries, was 
 composed of the prose histories of Gildas, Nennius, and Ty- 
 silio, and the sources from which they derived their infor- 
 mation. I know not for certain, what class of persons 
 Gildas means by the u secular es" (men of the world,) to 
 whose fables monks and princes were so prone to listen ; but 
 there can be no mistake when Nennius speaks of " antiquis 
 libris nostrorum veteram," the old books of our ancestors. 
 Such old books there must have been. Mr. Price has advanced 
 as a proof that Nennius was less an original historian than 
 translator, that his statement of the likeness of the Virgin 
 being borne on Arthur's shoulders, is probably a transla- 
 tion of "ysgwyd" a shield, which he is supposed to have 
 found in a Welsh history, and mistaken for "ysgwyt" 
 shoulder, or "ysgwydd" as it is now written. This opinion 
 is to my thinking extremely probable, and is confirmed by 
 the occurrence in Nennius of such words as " Oat Ooet 
 Celyton," where the Welsh is not translated into Latin 
 equivalents at all. If these conjectures are correct, then it 
 would result that the Welsh had in addition to their poetry 
 valuable prose histories, in their own language, about A.D. 
 858. We also find mention of many learned men during 
 these years ; but they for the most part belonged to the 
 church. 
 
 We have not many memorials left by which to judge of 
 the fortune of the bards during the stormy period, which 
 
 C 
 
18 WELSH LITERATURE 
 
 succeeded the death of our legislator, though an occasional 
 ray darts through the gloom, and enables us to form an im- 
 perfect notion of the character of the order. There is an 
 assertion sometimes made that there was an eisteddfod held 
 in the ninth century, at which presided Geraint, usually 
 called Bardd Glas, or the Blue Bard, and at which cyng- 
 hanedd was established as a constituent part of verse. 1 
 How much truth there may be in the former statement, as 
 to the fact of an eisteddfod having been held, I am unable to 
 ascertain ; but that which relates to cynghanedd as an ele- 
 ment in, though not as yet a necessary constituent of, Welsh 
 poetry is correct. It is however pretty well ascertained that 
 Bleddyn ap Kynfyn held an eisteddfod in 1070, and issued 
 some regulations for the better government of the order. 
 
 The important truths we learn from the preceding digest of 
 facts, are that in the eleventh century, the Welsh had an an- 
 cient literature; a language which had been forming for many 
 centuries, and was always used as the vehicle for the trans- 
 mission of thought; and an order of bards possessing great 
 influence over the popular mind, very numerous, and held 
 high in public estimation. Add to these, intelligent princes, 
 a people of subtle genius, an educated priesthood, and an 
 intimate intercourse with Ireland the then favourite seat of 
 learning, and some preparation will have been made to ap- 
 preciate the facts and intellectual phenomena which will 
 be unfolded in the following pages. 
 
 Cambrian Register, p. 400. 
 
SECTION II. 
 
 Welsh Poetry from a.d. 1080 to a.d. 1194. 
 
 From the remarks in the preceding section, it would ap- 
 pear that no poems of any great merit except those of the 
 bards of the sixth century had appeared prior to the ap- 
 pearance of Meilyr, and the very inferior character of the 
 first poem we have belonging to Meilyr, will infallibly lead 
 to the conclusion that at that time bardism was at a low 
 ebb. It may therefore be safely inferred that no poems of any 
 moment, belonging to the tenth or eleventh centuries, have 
 been lost, for it was scarcely probable that any existed. The 
 tranquillity of the reign of Howel, and the stormy period 
 which succeeded, are both equally barren of literary fruit. 
 Brighter times are now about to appear. Gruffydd ab Kynan 
 returned from Ireland to claim the patrimony of his father 
 from the usurper Trahaearn, whom he at length defeated in 
 the battle of Carno ; and Meilyr, the bard of the latter 
 prince, in a lament upon his paton's fall composed soon after 
 the battle, furnishes us with the first poem demanding cri- 
 tical remark. He narrates briefly, and with evident since- 
 rity, the fall of his patron; and though the poem possesses 
 but little merit of a poetical character, it will be found useful 
 for the facts it mentions, and as an illustration of the manner 
 in which men and things were contemplated in his day. 
 Meilyr was a man of some repute, and held in considerable 
 estimation ; but this short piece affords no trace whatever 
 of the poetical capacity which he afterwards showed. — 
 
20 WELSH POETRY 
 
 I will adore my God, King of air, 
 
 The Lord knows my distress, 
 
 In trouble I grieve greatly, 
 
 For my kind lord the ruler of many. 
 
 O that they should have come across the sea a second time, 
 
 The savage people of Nanny ver, 
 
 The Gwyddelians, black devils. 
 
 And the Scots, a people half strong. 
 
 A battle there was in Carn mountain, 
 
 And Trahaearn was slain, 
 
 And the son of Rhywallawn, a spirited leader, 
 
 Came not away from the conflict, 
 
 Thursday, three weeks since, 
 
 Towards night, was he slain.i 
 
 The attentive reader will notice the orthography of the 
 original, that he may be better prepared for a dissertation 
 upon the language, which will form an introduction to the 
 fourth chapter; and also bear in mind that the "u" coming 
 before "y" and the vowels is to be read as "v," and the "t" 
 frequently is to be sounded as "dh. 11 
 
 Apart from its historical value, the most noticeable 
 feature is the metre. It does not rhyme at the ends of the 
 lines; but the last word of a line rhymes with a word to- 
 wards the middle of that which succeeds. This u awyr" 
 rhymes with "wyr," "fawr" with "llawr," and so on 
 throughout the poem. In the language of the bards this 
 recurrent rhyme is called Ban Kyrch ; and with me it has 
 ever been an especial favourite. 
 
 1 1 Drahaearn a Meilyr. 
 Meilyr Brydyt agant yr Awdyl hon yn y lluyt y lias Trahaearn uab Caradawc 
 a Meilyr uab Rhiwallawn vab Cynvyn. 
 
 Gwolychaf ym Ren rex awyr 
 
 Arglwyt a wyr uym pryder 
 
 Pryder pryderaf yn fawr 
 
 Arn fy Arglwydd llawr lliw niuer 
 
 Ny dotynt dros uor etwaith 
 
 Pobyl anhyuaeth nanhyuer 
 
 Gwytyl dieuyl duon 
 
 Ysgodogion dynion Uetfer 
 
 Cad a uyt ym naynyt Carn 
 
 A Trahaearn a later 
 
 A mab Rhywallawn rwyf raygr 
 
 O'rgyfergyr nyd aduer 
 
 Difiei ympen y teir wythno 
 
 Tu a nos yd itti later. 
 
FROM A.D. 1080 TO A.D. 1194. 
 
 21 
 
 We have two other poems by Meilyr, one an elegy on the 
 death of his second patron Gruffydd ab Kynan, and the other 
 on the near approach of his own. Meilyr must have been 
 an old man when he wrote the latter ; a wide gap of fifty- 
 seven years separates the dates of these and his former 
 poem; but as has been clearly shown by the author of 
 Hanes Cymru, there is no difficulty here presented which 
 may not be explained on the assumption that he was a 
 young man at the death of Trahaearn. The battle of Carno 
 was fought in 1080, and the death of Gruffydd ap Kynan 
 took place in 1137. Now if we assume that Meilyr was 
 twenty years old at the former period, he must have been 
 seventy-seven at the latter; and when we know that the 
 king himself was quite as old, an octogenarian poet is by no 
 means an unaccountable phenomenon. However 1 am less 
 solicitous about the age of the poet, than about the very 
 striking difference which appears between the poems of the 
 same man. What his first poem was, we have seen; the first 
 was tame and uninteresting ; the latter are full of poetic 
 traits, vigorous thought, and weighty observations. Youth 
 is impressed upon one, the others indicate maturity. We 
 shall select as an example the poem entitled the Death Bed 
 of the Bard, for we shall have elegies on monarchs in 
 abundance as we proceed. 1 
 
 The King of kings is accessible to be adored ; — 
 To my Lord supreme I will prefer a prayer, 
 
 Sovereign of the region of necessity, 
 
 The most exalted circle of bliss, 
 
 Beneficent Being, make a reconciliation 
 Betwixt thee and me ! 
 Returning memory iterates a groan, that thou should'st 
 Be contemned for my sake, yet repenting it was done ! 
 
 1 Rex Regwm rybyt rwyt i voli : — 
 Ym Arglwyt uchav archav weti. 
 
 Gwledic gwlad orvod, 
 
 Goruchel Wenrod: 
 
 Gwrda gwna gymmod 
 Ryngod a mi ! 
 Advrev advant cov dy rygoti 
 Erov, ac edivar y digoni ! 
 
22 
 
 WELSH POETRY 
 
 I deserved shame, 
 
 In the presence of God the universal Ruler, 
 
 In not serving truly 
 
 In my devotion ! 
 
 Thou wilt serve me nevertheless, my Protector and King, 
 Ere I am become an earthly clod ! 
 
 A faithful prediction 
 
 To Adam and his race, 
 
 Foretold in ancient days 
 The prophets. 
 
 The being of Jesus in the womb of martyrdom; — 
 The good Mary the burden did sustain. 
 
 A burden have I accumulated 
 
 Of tormenting sin: 
 
 Severely have I been agitated 
 By its perturbations. 
 
 Sovereign of all life, how good art thou when worshipped ! 
 May I worship thee ; may I become pure before I am tried ! 
 
 The king of all chiefs 
 
 Knows that he will not refuse me, 
 
 Of his mercy 
 
 For my evil deeds. 
 
 I have received heaps of gold and velvet, 
 From frail princes for loving them ! 
 
 Digonais geryt 
 
 Yggwyt Duw Dovyt, 
 
 Vy iawn grevyt 
 Heb i weini. 
 Grweinivi hagen, ym reen ri, 
 Cyn bwyv deierin divenyni ! 
 
 Diheu darogant, 
 
 I Adav a'i blant, 
 
 Y rydraethasant 
 Y profwydi. 
 Bod Iesu yn mm merthyri ; — 
 Mair mad ymbortbes i beicbiogi. 
 
 Baicb rygynnull.us 
 
 O bechawd annovais, 
 
 Ry dy ergrynais 
 O'i gymhelri ! 
 Rwyv pob wa mor wyd da wrtb dy ioli ! 
 A'tb iolvvy v : ry purwy v cyn nom poeni ! 
 
 Brenin boll riet, 
 
 A"m gwyr na'm gomet, 
 
 Am i drugaret 
 
 O'm drygioni. 
 
 Cevais i Haws awr aur a phali 
 
 (ran vreuawl riau am eu bom ! 
 
FROM A.D. 10S0 TO A.D. 1194. 23 
 
 But after the gifted muse I feel another impulse; 
 Faltering is my tongue, urging me to silence. 
 I Meilyr the Poet am a pilgrim to Peter, 
 A porter that regulates appropriate merits. 
 
 On that appointed day, when there shall rise up 
 Those who are in the grave, I will then look forward, 
 
 When I am in my allotted rest 
 
 There waiting for the call 
 
 To strive and win the goal 
 
 In time of need: — 
 
 And let that be a solitude, by passengers not trodden, 
 And around its walls the bosom of the briny sea ; 
 
 The fair isle of Mary; 
 
 The holy isle of saints, 
 
 The type of renovation, 
 
 There to rest in happiness. 
 
 Christ the predicted Cross, 
 Will recognize me there 
 And guard me from the rage of hell, 
 A place of exiled beings; — 
 
 The Creator who formed me, will give me room among 
 
 The community of the inhabitants of Enlii !' 
 
 Ac wedy dawn awen amgen yni: 
 Amdlawd vyn tavawd ar vyn tewi ! 
 Mi, Veilyr Brydyt, berierin i Bedyr, 
 
 Porthawr a gymedyr gymmes deitlii. 
 Pryd y bo cyvnod yn cyvodi 
 Ysawl y sy 'met, armaa vi, 
 As bwyv yn adev 
 Yn aros y llev, 
 Y Hoc a achev, 
 
 Acbes \vrthi : — 
 Ac yssi didryv, didraul ebri 
 Ac am i mynwent mynwes heli : 
 Ynys Vair Virain : 
 Ynys glan y glain, 
 Gwrthrych dadwyrain.- — 
 Ys cain yndi. 
 Crist, croes darogan, 
 A'm gwyr, a'm gwarthan, 
 Rac nfern afan, 
 Wahan westi 
 Creawdyr a'm crewys a'm eynnwys ym plith 
 Plwyv gwirin gwerin Enlli ! 
 
 1 For much of the above translation, I am indebted to the Cambrian Register. 
 "The region of necessity," 1 is a phrase from the bardic mythology ; and "the 
 circle of bliss" is a term for heaven in the doctrine of transmigration. "Enlli' 1 
 was the Welsh name for the isle of Bardsey. There was formerly a religious 
 
24 WELSH POETRY 
 
 This poem is infinitely superior to the preceding. It 
 contains poetical sentiments, a mastery of the metre, and 
 skill in the use and application of the language; and if we 
 subtract the bardic colouring, the conception of the attri- 
 butes of the Deity would not discredit a more enlightened 
 age. His chosen resting place is quite a poetfs thought ; 
 and I should like the reader to peruse the verse a second 
 time. 
 
 A very striking improvement had taken place in Welsh 
 poetry during the life of Graffydd ab Kynan; and the muse 
 which limped so lamely in 1080, after a lapse of fifty years, 
 takes such flights, that but few succeeding bards have been 
 able to equal them. Upon the causes which had a general 
 tendency towards improvement, we shall hereafter treat ; 
 but much of the excellence exhibited is owing to the indivi- 
 dual capacities of the poets themselves. Favourable circum- 
 stances may afford facilities for the exhibition of original 
 powers; but general causes cannot produce genius. Meilyr 
 in his latter poems shows great ability ; yet lie was greatly 
 distanced by his son. Few men have ever shown a greater 
 mastery over the Welsh language than Gwalchmai, and he 
 has left us fourteen pieces, most of which are excellent. 
 We shall draw attention to two of them. The poem called 
 " Gorhoffcdd Gwalchmai" shows a love of nature, which re- 
 minds one of passages in "F Allegro," and of some of the 
 sweet small poems of Wordsworth, — so natural are the 
 sentiments, so smooth and flowing the diction, and so poetic 
 the ideas. We shall quote a few of the lines, 1 — 
 
 Gwalchmai's Delights. 
 
 Thou early rising summer sun! hasten, 
 
 The melodious talk of birds — the glorious season of song. 
 
 house in it, -where it- was customary for people of note to be buried ; and the bards 
 in particular. The Celtic people seem to have had a general desire of being in- 
 terred in solitary islands; for we find similar burying grounds on the coast* of 
 Ireland and Scotland. 
 
 1 Mochddwyreawg huan ddyfe?tin 
 Maws llafar adar mygr hyar bin 
 
FROM A.D. 1080 TO A.D. 1194. 25 
 
 I am of the golden order fearless in battle, 
 
 I am a lion in the front of the army, — ardent in my advance, 
 
 Anxiously have I, at night, watched the boundary 
 
 Fords of the murmuring waters of Dygen Vreiddin, 1 
 
 Where the untrodden grass was supremely green, the water 
 
 limpid, 
 And excessively talkative the nightingale well versed in odes. 
 And where the sea mews were playing on a bed of streams, 
 In love-united groups with glittering plumage. 
 I love the nightingale of May, with its long white face, 
 At the break of day, and at evening's close ; 
 I love the sweet musicians, who so fondly dwell 
 On clear plaintive murmurs, and the accents of woe, 
 I love the birds, and their sweet voices 
 In the soothing lays of the wood. 
 
 Lines such as these have at this day a double merit, 
 that of being in themselves poetical, and of shewing that 
 occasionally the Bards turned from war and turmoil to 
 commune with the sweet choristers of the grove. Many 
 of the bards were men of good social position; and from 
 such examples as are furnished by Gwalchmai, we may in- 
 fer, that some of them were men of learning and of culti- 
 vated tastes, — men with eyes to see the beauties of nature, 
 and minds to appreciate them as objects worthy of the 
 poet's affection. There is a world of poetry and truthfulness 
 
 in that little line, — 
 
 " Cathl foddawg coed." 
 
 the epithet "soothing" as applied to the "lays of the wood" 
 
 Mi ydwyf eurddeddf diofn fy nhrin 
 Mi ydwyf Hew rag llu lluch fy ngorddin 
 Gorwyliais nos yn achadw ffin 
 Gorloes rydau dwfr Dygen Freiddin 
 Gorlas gwellt didryf dwfyr neud iesin 
 Gordyar eaws awdyl gynnefin 
 
 Gwylain yn gware ar wely lliant 
 Lleithrion eu pluawr pleidiau edrin. 
 Caraf Eos Fai, forehun ludd 
 Agolygon hwyr hirwyn ei grudd ; 
 Caraf eilon mygr maith arnadudd, — 
 Eiliwed asserw, a seirch cystudd : 
 Carafi yr ednan, a'u llarian lais 
 Cathl foddawg coed. 
 
 1 Dygen Vreiddin was not far from Shrewsbury, but within the Radnorshire 
 boundary ; and the name remains to this day attached to the Breiddin Hills. 
 
 D 
 
20 WELSH POETRY 
 
 being so beautifully descriptive, and so strictly appropriate. 
 It should however be observed, that Gwalchmai is better 
 known among Cambrian critics by his ode upon the battle 
 of Tal y Moehre. It is not clearly ascertained what battle 
 the bard alludes to, since Welsh history supplies no ac- 
 count of any engagement of sufficient magnitude at that 
 time, to justify the language of the poet. The editor of 
 the Cambro Briton (vol. i. p. 231) gives it as his opinion, 
 that the poem refers to a series of engagements ; but I am 
 of opinion with the Rev. Moses Williams, that the poet 
 treats of the defeat of the fleet entrusted by Henry the 
 second to Madoc ap Meredydd in 1157, and which attemp- 
 ted to land at Abermenai. Mr. Price, I am happy to per- 
 ceive, came to the same conclusion ; and the fact that 
 Howel ab Owain, a contemporary bard, has a poem refer- 
 ring to the same event, very clearly shows that Mr. J. 
 Humphreys Parry was wrong when he designated the en- 
 gagement as a mere skirmish. The following translation, 
 which I have altered where it did not seem sufficiently 
 literal, is by Mr. Parry. 
 
 Ode to Owain Gwynedd King of North "Wales. 1 
 
 The generous chief I sing of Rhodri's line, 
 With princely gifts endowed, whose hand 
 Hath often curbed the border land, 
 Owain, great heir of Britain's throne; 
 Whom fair ambition marks her own, 
 Who ne'er to yield to man was known : 
 
 Nor heaps he stores at Avarice's shrine. 
 
 Three mighty legions o'er the sea-flood came, 
 Three fleets intent on sudden 'fray, 
 
 1 Arwyrain i Owain. 
 
 Ardwyreav hael o hil Rodri, 
 Ajdwyad gorwlad, gwerlin teithi. 
 Teithiawc Prydein 
 Twytb avyrdwyth Ywein 
 Teyrnein ni grein 
 
 Ni grawn rei. 
 
 Teir Hong y daethant, liant lestri ; 
 Teir prav priv lynges wy bres brovi. 
 
FROM A.D. 1080 TO A.D. 1191. 27 
 
 One from Erin's verdant coast, 
 
 One with Lochlin's armed host, 
 Long burthens of the billowy way : 
 The third, from far, bore them of Norman name, 
 To fruitless labour doom'd and barren fame. 
 
 'Gainst Mona's gallant lord, where lo! he stands, 
 
 His warlike sons rang'd at his side, 
 
 Rushes the dark tumultuous tide, 
 Th' insulting tempest of the hostile bands ; 
 
 Boldly he turns the furious storm, 
 Before him wild Confusion flies, 
 
 While Havoc rears her hideous form, 
 And prostrate Rank expiring lies : 
 
 Conflict upon conflict growing, 
 
 Gore on gore in torrents flowing, 
 Shrieks answering shrieks, and slaughter raving, 
 And high o'er Moelvre's front a thousand banners waving. 
 
 IS T ow thickens still the frantic war, 
 The flashing death-strokes gleam afar, 
 Spear rings on spear, flight urges flight, 
 And drowning victims plunge to night ; 
 Till Menai's overburthened tide, 
 
 Wide-blushing with the streaming gore, 
 And choked with carnage, ebbs no more ; 
 While mail-clad warriors, on her side, 
 
 Un o Iwerton ; 
 Arall arvogion 
 O'r Llychlynigion, 
 
 Llwrw hirion Hi ; 
 
 A'r drydet dros vor o Normandi 
 A'r drafferth anverth, anvad iti, 
 A dreic Mon, mor drud i eisyllyd yn acr, 
 Y bu tervysc taer, y haer holi. 
 
 A rhacdo rewys dwys dyvysgi, 
 A re win, a tbrin, a thranc Cymri, 
 
 Ar gad gad greude ; 
 
 Ar gryd gryd graende , 
 
 Ac am dal Moelfre 
 
 Mil Vanieri ! 
 
 Ar iat lat llachar ar bar beri ; 
 Ar fwyr fvvyr fyrvgawt; ar vawt voti; 
 A menei heb drei o drallanw gwaedryar; 
 A lliw gwyar gwyr yn heli; 
 
 A llurygawr glas a gloes trychni; 
 A tbrychion ^n dut rac reitrut ri. 
 
28 WELSH POETRY 
 
 In anguish drag their deep-gash'd-wounds along, 
 And 'fore the King's Red Chiefs are heap'd the mangled 
 throng. 
 
 Thus Loegria's onset, Loegria's flight, 
 The struggle doom'd her power to tame, 
 
 Shall with her routed sons, unite, 
 
 To raise great Owain's sword to fame : 
 
 While sevenscore tongues of his exploits shall tell, 
 
 And all their high renown through future ages swell. 
 
 Before entering into a minuter criticism of this poem, it 
 might not be uninteresting for the English reader to know 
 that " The Triumphs of Owen" in Gray's poetical works is 
 a translation of the above. Of the two versions, that of 
 Mr. Parry is the more correct generally, though the finest 
 image in the poem is better, and more accurately rendered 
 by Gray. Mr. Parry's version is tame and diffuse ; Gray's 
 is nearly as nervous, terse, and bold as the original, — 
 
 " Chcck'd by the torrent tide of blood 
 BacJavard Menai rolls hisjlood." 
 
 This ode, when presented to the English public by the 
 Rev. Evan Evans, won the admiration of several literary 
 men. Gray translated it; and another critic of no less 
 taste than that poet was known to possess, has written a 
 flattering criticism upon it, which I here copy at length. 
 It occurs in a letter from the Rev. Thomas Percy, Bishop 
 of Dromore, and Editor of Percy's Reliques, to the Rev. 
 Mr. Evans already mentioned, and is as follows : — 
 
 " I admire your Welsh Ode very much; it contains a 
 large portion of the sublime. The images are very bold 
 and animated, and are poured forth with such rapidity, as 
 argues an uncommon warmth of imagination in the bard, 
 whose mind seems to have been so filled with his subject, 
 and the several scenes of the war appear to have so crowded 
 in upon him, that he has not leisure to mark the transitions 
 
 O dygyvor Lloegr a dygyvrang a hi, 
 
 Ac eu dygyvwrvv yu astrusi, 
 
 Y dygyvod clod cletyv divri, 
 
 Yn seith ugein iaith \vy veith voli. 
 
FROM A.D. 1080 TO A.D. 1194. 29 
 
 with that cool accuracy, which a feebler genius would have 
 been careful to have done. It is one continued fiery torrent 
 of poetic flame, which, like the eruptions of iEtna, bears 
 down all opposition." ***** 
 
 The writer then corrects an error respecting the charac- 
 teristics of epic and lyric poetry, and continues. " On the 
 other hand it is the essence of the ode to neglect circum- 
 stance, being more confined in its plan, and having the 
 sublime equally for its object. In order to attain this, it 
 is obliged to deal in general terms, to give only such hints 
 as will forcibly strike the imagination, from which we may 
 infer the particulars ourselves. It is no demerit or dis- 
 paragement in your bard to have neglected the minute 
 circumstances of the battle, because it would have been 
 impossible for him to have described them within the 
 narrow limits of his ode. Here lies his great merit, that 
 the hints he drops, and the images he throws out, supply 
 the absence of a more minute detail, and excite as grand 
 ideas as the best description could have done. And so far 
 I agree with your critical friend that no poet ever hit upon 
 a grander image than that of A Menai heb drat o dralla?iw, 
 fyc. nor could take a nobler method to excite our admira- 
 tion at the prodigious cause of so amazing an effect." 1 
 
 There is another feature connected with Welsh poetry, 
 with which the Bishop does not seem to have been made 
 acquainted; but which is essential to a thorough under- 
 standing of the literature of the country. In the laws of 
 Howel, we find that it was customary to have songs after 
 meals : — " The chief of sons: shall betrin the simnn^ in the 
 common hall. When a song is called for, the bard president 
 should begin ; the first song addressed to God, the next to 
 the King to whom the court belongs, or if there is not one, 
 to another King. After the bard president, the domestic 
 bard is to sing three pieces on different subjects. If the 
 Queen should desire a song, let the domestic bard go aside 
 
 1 Cambro Briton ; Vol. I. pp. 175 — 6. 
 
30 WELSH POETRY 
 
 and recite without music, and softly, so as not to disturb 
 the hall." Now we have here, as in many other places, 
 proof that singing, and singing to the harp, were established 
 customs ; there must therefore have existed many songs at 
 that period, though we have now not a single specimen, 
 unless Gwalchinai's Ode may be accounted one. I am 
 inclined to think this was sung to the harp. For such a 
 purpose condensation was an object which a judicious poet 
 would not neglect, as a heap of expletives and connectives 
 would only render the most energetic poem tame and 
 insipid, while on the contrary, the mind which could mar- 
 shal great thoughts together, giving each palpability and 
 individuality like the ghosts raised before the eyes of 
 Macbeth, and suggesting rather than describing the links 
 of connexion, would exhibit the most perfect mastery of his 
 art : — the highest art being an abandonment of the mind 
 to its natural tendency, for great ideas make their own 
 appropriate expression, and as Milton finely expresses this 
 truth, there are 
 
 " thoughts that voluntary move 
 
 Harmonious numbers." 
 
 The abrupt transitions of this Ode, when sung in accompa- 
 niment to the harp, were rather beauties than defects. 
 Every hearer would readily supply the connecting links as 
 best suited his own taste ; and when an enthusiastic people 
 had bold images presented to their minds in nervous lan- 
 guage, and in such a manner that by an easy transition each 
 auditor would find responses to the sentiments in his own 
 noble and ardent feelings, the effect must have been electric. 
 But this Ode has other merits; for not only is it poeti- 
 cal ; it is also true to nature, as all genuine poetry must be. 
 It is a reflection of the time, place, and circumstance. This 
 truthfulness to' the manners, customs, and minutiae of 
 every clay life, is a fine feature in the poems of the bards, 
 which is strikingly apparent in the line, — 
 
 tt A thrychion yu dut rac reit rut ri," 
 
FROM A.D. 1089 TO A.D. 1194. 31 
 
 which I have translated into, — 
 And 'fore the King's Bed Chiefs are heaped the mangled throng. 
 
 The learned reader will perceive that this differs from every 
 other translation yet given. The Eev. Evan Evans 
 translates " Reit rut Hi," into " the king's red lance ;" 
 Mr. Price, into " red streams of blood ;" Dr. Pughe, Mr. 
 Parry, and Mr. Ryder render it by " red stained chief ;" 
 while Mr. Gray adopts the version given by Mr. Evans. 
 To my thinking, not one of these conveys a correct idea of 
 the original meaning ; which, for the reasons which follow, 
 appears to me to be that given above. I cannot help 
 thinking that the chiefs and nobles of the country are to be 
 here understood ; and among other contemporary allusions 
 there is a line in Owain Kyveiliog's Hildas, where the words 
 reit rut occur in a connexion which confirms my view, and 
 discountenances each of the others. 
 
 " Achubeit^>o& reit rut cu harveu, 
 Echedwynt rag terfysg eii tervynau," 
 
 Each of the red chiefs was prompt to use his arms, 
 And keep their boundaries free from turmoil. 
 
 This line of itself is enough to decide the question ; but as 
 national dresses and costumes are always objects of interest, 
 I will continue the quotation of extracts of the same pur- 
 port. "Reit 11 is evidently the plural of "rei" a chief, a 
 word in popular use among the bards. In the " Avallenau 11 
 mention is made of " riau Rhydderch, 11 the chiefs of Rhydd- 
 erch ; Meilyr speaks of G-od as King of all chiefs. " Brenin 
 holl net," and in another place, 
 
 " Cefais Haws awr aur a phali, 
 Gan vreuawl riau am eu hoffi." 
 
 I have received heaps of gold and velvet 
 From various princes for my friendship. 
 
 Einion ap Grwalchmai terms Nest the daughter of Howel 
 "reid y meini, 11 the chief of the pearls, and even Grwalchmai 
 himself in this very ode savs, — 
 
32 WELSH POETRY. 
 
 " Ni grawn rci" 
 
 The king hoards no treasures. 
 
 From these it is pretty apparent that " reit" refers to per- 
 sons, and not inanimate objects, or qualities ; and if we 
 wanted express testimony on the point we have it in 
 Kynddelw, 
 
 " Gwirawd an gwrthvyn, gwrth syr a lleuad 
 Gan rwyv rad rut vyhyr." 
 
 Liquor is pressed upon us, by the light of stars and moon, 
 By the ruler of the impetuous red chieftains. 
 
 and again ; — 
 
 Ninth tribe of the red clad chiefs of battle, 
 
 Before death became their fate, 
 Tyngyriawn of triumphant destiny, 
 
 Tyngyr was no lover of peace. 1 
 
 The Tribes of Powys. 
 
 It therefore only remains for us to see if the notion of red 
 clothing is consistent with the idea of the reid being chief- 
 tains, warriors, or knights. Apart from the quotations 
 already given, in which the words reit rut three times 
 occur in the sense here expressed, there are other testi- 
 monies which clearly show that the most honourable dress 
 among the Welsh were red garments. Kynddelw in praise 
 of Howel ab Owain says, — 
 
 " Gwnawd im ri ruddfeirdd o faran, 
 A rhoddi rhuddwisg am danan." 
 
 My prince transformed us into red bards, 
 By putting red garments about us. 
 
 and leaves us to infer that this was a mark of great honour; 
 and Llywarch Hen says, — 
 
 " Gwedy meirch hywedd, a chochwedd ddillad 
 
 A phluawr melyn, 
 
 Main fy nghoes, nid oes ym dremyn." 
 
 1 Nawved eu riued rut wet yg Kyfranc 
 
 Kyn bu tranc eu trosedd 
 Tygyriawn tyngbed orvolet 
 
 Ni charws Tyngbyr tangnevet. 
 
 GWELYGORTEU PoWYS. 
 
FROM A.D. 10S0 TO A.D. 1194. 33 
 
 This verse is thus translated by Dr. Pughe. 
 
 "After delighting in the sleek tractable steeds, and 
 
 garments of ruddy hue, 
 And the waving yellow plumes, 
 Slender is my leg, my piercing look is gone." 
 
 Which thus combining the two ideas of red clothing, 
 and warrior wearers, conclusively proves that red was 
 the most honourable colour of military garments. But 
 this colour was not confined to the men, for red was 
 also in favour with the fair sex. The reader knows the 
 story about the landing at Fishguard of the French in 
 1 797, and of the army of " Red whittled" old women who 
 frightened them to submission, and it is to be presumed 
 knows that the red stripe 1 is the exclusive wear of the 
 women of Pembroke, and Carmarthenshire, — the women of 
 Pontardawe, and Cwm Tawe generally, are also noticeable 
 for the glaring red of their gowns and petticoats. Probably 
 the taste of the modern females is inherited from their an- 
 cestors; Howel ap Einion Lygliw speaks of the "scarlet 
 dresses" of Myvanwy Vechan, and Gruffydd ab Meredydd, 
 in Marwnad Gwenhwyvar, is very clear on this point. — 2 
 
 The wearer of white and green, of red and blue, 
 Is now in the painful confinement of death, 
 She whom gold so adorned, 
 The wearer of velvet, the church conceals her. 
 
 We mourn in tears that the flush of beauty's gone, 
 That the wearer of velvet and red is no more. 
 
 Whence came the red dragon of Cadwaladr ? Why was 
 the Welsh dragon in the fables of Merddin, Nennius, and 
 
 1 As female wear, there are two articles extensively used in Carmarthenshire, 
 one known as " minko" where the red predominates over the blue in the stripe, 
 and another where the blue predominates. In each stripe there are red and 
 blue, as in the poem. 
 
 2 Lie bu ra a gwyrdd, lie bu rudd a glas, 
 
 Xeud gloes angau gystudd; 
 
 Lie bu aur am eu deurudd, 
 
 Lie bu borffor cor ai cudd. 
 
 Lie bu fflwch degwch, deigr a wylir 
 A phorphor a rhudd, neud grudd grodir 
 E 
 
34 
 
 WELSH POETRY 
 
 Geoffrey described as red, while the Saxon dragon was 
 white ? Has this anything to do with the red and white 
 roses \ Whence the derivation of the red uniforms of 
 English soldiers \ Should these conjectures be founded 
 in truth, then should we have in this line the double merit 
 of being true to actual facts, and of suggesting a train of 
 reasoning, which has thrown light upon a national custom 
 of an interesting character. We think living warriors more 
 dignified than inanimate spears, or streams of blood, and 
 therefore adhere to the reading above given. 
 
 Bardism had now become an honourable calling, and ex- 
 cellence in poetical composition was thought not unworthy 
 of kings and princes; for we find persons of no less note 
 and influence than Owain Kyveiliog prince of Powys, and 
 Howel, one of the seventeen sons of Owain Gwynedd, 
 aspiring to the laurel crown. 
 
 Owain Kyveiliog took a prominent part in the military 
 and political affairs of his day. He was the son of Gruffydd 
 ab Meredydd, prince of one of the three divisions of Wales, 
 called Powys. His father died while his elder brother ruled 
 over the country, and therefore on the death of Madoc ab 
 Meredydd, we find him taking an active part in the affairs 
 of his district. There is reason to believe that his father 
 was held high in favour at the English court, as most of 
 the Powysian princes were; and that Owain may therefore 
 have thus contracted the regard for the Saxons, which he 
 sometimes showed in his after life. The first mention of 
 him occurs in the year 1162. A little before that, Cadwall- 
 awn ab Madoc ab Idnerth was apprehended by his brother 
 Einion Clud, and transferred to Owain Kyveiliog. He sent 
 him to England, and got him imprisoned at Winchester; 
 but by the assistance of some of his friends he escaped and 
 returned to his own country. This Cadwallon, on whom 
 Kynddelw has a long elegy, belonged most probably to the 
 tribe of Elystan Glodrydd, for we find in 1162, that Howel 
 ab Ievav ab Cadwgan ab Elystan Glodrydd, whose territo- 
 ries lay between the Wye and the Severn, laid siege to 
 
FROM A.D 1U30 TO A.D. 1194. 35 
 
 Walwern castle in Kyveiliog, the district which gave 
 Owain his name, and destroyed it. Owain in return led an 
 array into the territories of Howel, destroying whatever 
 came in his way, on which the country people led by their 
 chief, followed Owain to his encampment on the banks of the 
 Severn. A bloody conflict ensued in which HoweFs forces 
 were beaten, and compelled to seek safety in the woods, 
 and Owain returning to his own country, fortified his cas- 
 tle. In the following year Owain Kyveiliog, with two 
 other Welsh chieftains, took the castle of Carreghova, near 
 Oswestry, then in the possession of GrufTydd Maelor. 
 
 In consequence of an incursion in 1165 into Tegengl, 
 then in the possession of the king, by David the son of 
 Owian Gwynedd the king of North Wales, Henry the se- 
 cond determined to subjugate the principality; large pre- 
 parations were made for this purpose, and in addition to the 
 men furnished bv the barons of England, he sent for levies 
 from Normandy, Flanders, Anjou,Gascony,Guienne, and Scot- 
 land. With these he came to Oswestry, intending wdiolly to 
 destroy the people of Wales. On the other hand the Welsh 
 chieftains were not idle. The princes of the three divisions 
 of the country joined their forces to receive him. Owain 
 Gwynedd, and his brother Oadwaladr, brought the men of 
 North Wales; the lord Rhys those of South Wales ; Owain 
 Kyveiliog, Iorwerth Goch, and the sons of Madoc ab Mere- 
 dydd brought the men of Powys ; and to these were added 
 the men between the Wye and Severn led by the sons of 
 Madoc ab Idnerth. These forces having joined, marched 
 to Corwen, (Merionethshire) to meet the king. Here the 
 two armies lay in sight of each other for some time, neither 
 daring to attack. The king being at length tired of this 
 inactive life, and knowing that it was the object of the 
 Welsh princes to prevent supplies coming to his camp, mov- 
 ed his army to Aberceiriog, whence he was followed by the 
 Welshmen, and a skirmish, commenced between some strag- 
 gling parties, led to a general engagement in which the 
 king's forces were so severely handled, that he retreated to 
 
30 WELSH POETRY 
 
 the Berwyn mountain. The skirmish was commenced be- 
 tween some men who had been sent to cut down the trees 
 which grew so plentifully near Aberceiriog, as the king was 
 anxious to avoid the inconvenience which had previously be- 
 fallen him, in Eulo wood; and the Welsh knowing the advan- 
 tage it gave them determined to preserve the wood. Henry 
 was much chagrined at the result, and wantonly caused Cad- 
 wallawn and Kynwrig, two sons whom Owain Gwynedd had 
 on a previous occasion given to him as hostages, as well 
 as Meredith the son of the lord Rhys, and other young 
 princes, to have their eyes pulled out, and to be otherwise 
 maltreated! Soon after, harassed by the Welsh, and suffer- 
 ing from the heavy rains and want of provisions, he found 
 his position to be untenable, and completely discomfited re- 
 turned homeward; and it would seem as if the English chro- 
 niclers shared his discomfiture, for Matthew Paris does not 
 say a word about the expedition, and Matthew of West- 
 minster simply says, "Rex in Walliam expeditionem fecit." — 
 The king made an expedition into Wales. 
 
 It is conjectured that the poem of The Hirlas Horn was 
 composed on the occasion of this battle of Crogen, as it is 
 called ; and Mr. Price, to whose History of Wales I am in- 
 debted for the preceding facts, confirms the belief. But as 
 the poem relates only to Powysian chiefs, indicates that 
 the prince was at home at the time, and affords no trace of 
 the presence of the allied army, it appears to me to have 
 been intended for a less public occasion. 
 
 Soon after the pressure of the English forces had been 
 removed, we find the Welsh princes, in their usual manner, 
 quarrelling among themselves; for two years afterwards 
 we see Owain Kyveiliog, and his cousin Owain ab Madoc, 
 making war upon their neighbour Iorwerth Goch, driving 
 him away, and dividing his lands among themselves, Moch- 
 nant above Bliaiadr being given to Owain Kyveiliog, and 
 Mochnant below Rhaiadr to Owain ab Madoc. The princes 
 of North and South Wales being made acquainted with these 
 facts determined to punish the malefactors, and invading 
 
FROM A.D. 1080 TO A.U. 1194. 
 
 37 
 
 Powys, Owain Gwynedd and his brother Cadwaladr, with 
 the lord Rhys, compelled Owain Kyveiliog to seek refuge in 
 England, and made Owain ab Madoc leave the castle of 
 Oaereinion in the hands of Owain Gwynedd. Shortly after 
 Owain Kyveiliog returned assisted by a body of Normans, 
 and soon reconquered his lands, took Oaereinion castle, and 
 burnt it to the ground. 
 
 Three years afterwards we find a dispute between the lord 
 Rhys and Owain Kyveiliog, the reason given in the Chro- 
 nicle of Caradoc being, "for as often as Owain could op- 
 pose the lord Rhys he would do so." Rhys led an army 
 into his country, and compelling Owain to give hostages for 
 good behaviour in future, considerately retired without in- 
 flicting any injury on the property of his opponent. This 
 magnanimity it would seem had the desired effect, for we 
 hear no more of Owain for nearly eighteen years. 
 
 In 1188, archbishop Baldwin accompanied by Giraldus 
 visited the principality with the view of enlisting soldiers 
 for the Crusades. They succeeded in getting three thou- 
 sand volunteers, and were well received wherever they went. 
 Several of the Welsh princes showed them much respect, 
 and all came forth to meet them, except Owain Kyveiliog: 
 he would not come, and therefore says the ecclesiastic, "we 
 excommunicated him." Owain seems to have seen through 
 the hollowness of their pretences, and to have deemed it wiser 
 to protect his own countrymen. The other princes gave 
 them warm receptions; but refused to enlist personally in 
 the cause. The lord Rhys had some intention of going to 
 Palestine, but his wife dissuaded him from going, and there- 
 by drew upon her head the censure of the church. Owain, 
 however, would neither go himself nor induce others to go; 
 and probably was much too intelligent to be frightened by 
 the anathema of the disappointed archbishop. 
 
 Judging from the commendations bestowed upon him by 
 Kynddelw, Owain Kyveiliog must have shone conspicuously 
 among the warriors of his day, for skill and personal prow- 
 ess; and the same authority represents his court as beino- 
 distinguished for generous hospitality, — 
 
33 WELSH POETRY 
 
 "Yn y mae yved heb neued heb nag 
 Heb nebawd eisiwed " 
 
 There was drinking without regret, without refusal, 
 And without any kind of want. 
 
 Yet it seems singular that Kynddelw, who sang the 
 praises of Owain himself, and afterwards of his son Gwen- 
 wynwyn, should have left no elegy on his death. Latterly 
 he owned allegiance to Henry the second, and was on 
 friendly terms with that monarch, who admired the wit, 
 and conversational powers of the Cambrian Chieftain. He 
 died in 1197, and his son inherited his possessions. 
 
 But though Owain Ky veiliog was a prince renowned for 
 warlike achievements, his claim upon the notice of posterity 
 chiefly rests upon his poetical labours. The Hirlas is one 
 of the longest poems we have of the twelfth century, and 
 has more than ordinary merit. Its plan is eminently ori- 
 ginal and curious. The prince imagines all his warriors 
 assembled at night in his palace, after an engagement which 
 had taken place in the morning. Himself presiding, he gives 
 instructions to his cup-bearer to fill the Hirlas horn, and as 
 the cup is taken to each chief in succession, he enumerates 
 the warrior's feats. He begins each verse with " Diwallaw 
 di venestr," fill cup-bearer, and first of all ordering it to be 
 taken to a chieftain named Rhys, he narrates that chiefs 
 exploits, and in going over the names of the various chiefs 
 shows much tact in diversifying the praise bestowed upon 
 each. One of the verses thus appropriated to individual 
 praise, has a fine touch of pathos, which speaks volumes for 
 the poet's taste. In going round the circle, it became the 
 turn of a chieftain named Moreiddig to be mentioned; and 
 this the poet does in the following lines, — 
 
 Fill, cup-bearer, as you would avoid death, 
 
 Fill the horn of honour at our banquets, 
 
 The long blue horn, of high privilege, of ancient silver, 
 
 That covers it not sparingly ; 
 
 Bear to Tudyr, eagle of slaughter, 
 
 A prime beverage of florid wine. 
 
 Thy head shall be the forfeit, if there come not in 
 
 The most delicious mead. 
 
FROM A.D. 10S0 TO A.D. 1194. 39 
 
 Having thus, to enhance the compliment, threatened death 
 to his cup-bearer if he brought not in the appropriate mead, 
 he proceeds, — 
 
 To the hand of Moreiddig encourager of songs ; — 
 May they become old in fame before they leave us ! 
 Ye blameless brothers of aspiring souls, 
 Of dauntless ardour that would grasp ev'n fire; 
 Heroes, what services ye have achieved for me ! 
 Xot old, disgustingly, but old in skill ; 
 Unwearied, rushing wolves of battle; 
 First in the crimsoned ranks of bleeding pikes, 
 Brave leaders of the Mochnantians from Powys, 
 The prompt red chiefs to use their arms, 
 And keep their boundaries free from turmoil, 
 Praise is your meed, most amiable pair. 
 
 Having thus recited the merit of Tudvr and Moreiddig, 
 he turns to greet them; but their places are vacant, and sud- 
 denly he recollects they had fallen in the morning's conflict, 
 he hears their dying groans, his triumphant exultations 
 cease, his hilarity flies, and the broken tones of mournful 
 exclamations suddenly burst out, — 
 
 "Ha! the cry of death — And do I miss them, 
 
 O Christ! how I mourn their catastrophe, 
 
 lost Moreiddig — How greatly shall I needthce!"i 
 
 1 This translation, slightly altered, is taken from Turner's Vindication ; the 
 original is — 
 
 "Diwallaw di venestr na vyn angau 
 Korn can anrydet ynghyvetau 
 Hirlas buelin breint uchel hen ariant 
 Ai gortho nid gortheneu 
 A dytwg i Dudur eryr aereu 
 Gwirawd gyssevin o'r gwin gwineu 
 Oni daw i mewn or met goreu oil 
 Gwirawd o ban dy ben vateu 
 Ar Haw Voreiddig Uochiat certau 
 Kertyn hyn i glod cyn oer adnau 
 Dieithr vrodyr vryd ucheldeu 
 Diarchar arial a dan daleu 
 Cedwyr am gorug gwasanaetheu 
 Nid ym hyn dihyll nam hen deheu 
 Kynnivieid gyrthieid vleinieid vleitiau 
 Kynvaran creulawn creulyd vereu 
 Glew glyw Mochannwys o Bowys beu 
 O glew gwnet arnatunt deu 
 Achubieit pob rheid rhut eu harveu 
 Echedwynt rag tervysc eu tervynau 
 Moliant yw ei rann y rei gwynnau 
 Marwnad vu neud mi newid y dau 
 O chan Grist mor drist wyv o'r anaeleu 
 O goll Moreiddig mawr ei eisieu.'' 
 
40 
 
 WELSH POETRY 
 
 This poem affords us a curious insight into the mode of 
 living in Wales ; and in perusing the lines which follow, I 
 could almost fancy myself reading in a Scottish legend 
 of "Black Mail."— 
 
 " Llys Owain a borthwyd eirioed ar braidd 
 Porth mil a glywi — pyrth agored." 
 
 " Owain's court has ever been fed on prey ; 
 And open wide his gates are flung, 
 In Cambria's peaceful clays." 
 
 It would perhaps be well to state that the Hirlas was a 
 drinking horn — long, blue, and rimmed with silver, and is 
 thus described, — 
 
 "This hour we dedicate to joy, 
 Then fill the Hirlas horn my boy, 
 
 That shineth like the sea; 
 Whose azure handles, tipped with gold, 
 Invite the grasp of Britons bold, — 
 
 The sons of liberty." 
 
 And the poem concludes with the following apostrophe, — 1 
 
 " For Daniel fill the Horn so green, 
 
 Of haughty brow, and angry mien ; 
 
 While less'ning tapers shine 
 
 Fill it up with generous wine ; 
 
 He no quarter takes nor gives 
 
 But by spoil and rapine lives. 
 
 Comely is the youth and brave, 
 
 But obdurate as the grave. 
 
 Hadst thou seen in Maelor fight 
 
 How we put the foe to flight ! 
 
 Hadst thou seen the chiefs in arms 
 
 When the foe rush'd on in swarms! 
 
 Round about their prince they stood, 
 
 And stained their swords with hostile blood. 
 
 1 This passage in the original, runs thus, — 
 
 "Gwr ni dal ni dwng, ni bydd wrth wir 
 Daniel dreig cannerth , mor ferth hewir 
 Menestr mawr a gweith yd ioleithir. 
 Gwyr- ni oleith lleith ; oni llochir, 
 Menestr medd ancwyn a'n cydroddir, 
 Gwrth dangloyw, goleu, gwrddloyw babir 
 Menestr gwelud dy gwyth yn Llidwm dir 
 Y gwyr a barchaf wynt a berehir. 
 
FROM A.D. 10S0 TO A.D. 1194. 41 
 
 Glorious bulwarks! to their praise 
 
 Their prince devotes his latest lays. 
 
 Now, my boy, thy task is o'er ; 
 
 Thou shalt fill the Horn no more. 
 
 Long may the King of kings protect, 
 
 And crown with bliss my friends elect : 
 
 Where Liberty and Truth reside, 
 
 And virtue, Truth's immortal bride ! 
 
 There may we altogether meet, 
 
 And former times renew in converse sweet." — R. W. 
 
 This prince has left us another poem upon an interesting- 
 national custom. At this early period, the king was compelled 
 to visit his subjects in various parts of his dominions to receive 
 his revenue at stated periods, and also to hold his court. 
 Owain has finely described his circuit, and named one by one 
 the various places he was in the habit of visiting. The sub- 
 ject being novel, I insert the poem at length, in a transla- 
 tion by R. Fenton, Esq. a gentleman favourably known in 
 literature as the author of " Fenton's Pembrokeshire." 
 
 The Circuit through Powys. 1 
 
 To share the festal joy and song 
 
 Owain's train we move along; 
 
 Every passion now at rest, 
 
 That clouds the brow, or rends the breast; 
 
 But oppression's foes the same, 
 
 Quick to kindle into flame, 
 Setting off from Mortyn, say 
 Whither shall we bend our way ? 
 
 Menestr gwelud dy galchdoed Cyngrein, 
 Ynghylchyn Owain gylckwy enwir, 
 Pan breiddwyd Cawres, taerwres trwy dir, 
 Preidd ostvrag orffwng a orfolir, 
 Menestr nam didawl, nim didolir, 
 Boed ym mharadwys in eynhwysir, 
 Can pen teyrnedd, poed hir en trwydded, 
 Yn i mae gweled gwaranred gwir." 
 
 1 I Gylchau Kymry. 
 
 Teulu Ywein llary lluoet anhun treis — 
 
 Yn eu traws ai*ovun 
 Pyrt kyrt kyvetau duhun 
 Pa fort yt awn o Yortun. 
 
 F 
 
42 WELSH POETRY 
 
 Quick dispatch thee boy ; take heed 
 That thou slack not of thy speed, 
 Or with idle gossip greet 
 The loit'rer thou mays't chance to meet, 
 Onward push, and look not back ; 
 Let nought divert thee from thy track. 
 To Keri hie thee, lad, and say, 
 Thither will we bend our way. 
 
 Keri greeted, onward haste, 
 Thy time will not admit of waste, 
 With no vulgar message sent, 
 On thy duty be intent : 
 Dread our anger to excite, 
 Lest our vengeance on thee light. 
 Then announce that in our rounds, 
 We visit next Arwystli's bounds. 
 
 Thy errand told, stay not long, 
 Herald of a princely throng : 
 But onward still thy steps pursue, 
 Ceredig's confines in thy view, 
 Thither with speed increasing go, 
 Swift as arrow from a bow : 
 And to Penwedig tidings bear, 
 Of our approach and visit there. 
 
 Hence without delaying, boy, 
 To toil familiar by employ ; 
 Scorn fatigue, and unsubdued 
 Be thy painful march renewed : 
 Then with shout as hunter's loud, 
 Publish this our message proud: 
 
 That Meirion's mountains shall detaiu 
 The course of our convivial train. 
 
 Dos was yn ebrwydd heb roti — geirda 
 
 Yr gwrda y sy yndi 
 Dywan wan trywan trwydi 
 Dywed an dyvot i Geri 
 Dos was o Geri ac archwn wrthid 
 
 Rac an Hid an llochi 
 Diwet y doethem i ti 
 Dywed y down Arwystli 
 Dygychwyn gennad gan vawrrydic doryf 
 
 Y dervyn Keredic 
 Dywan ar wyllt ar wallt pic 
 Dywed y down Benwedic 
 Dos o benwedic baem ouyt — gennad 
 
 Gan ytli wna kewilyt 
 Dywan ar gynan genyt 
 Dywed y down Yeiryonnyt 
 
FROM A.D. 1080 TO A.D. 1194. 43 
 
 Quick proceed, the mountain crost, 
 That not a moment may be lost ; 
 Fast by the margins of the deep, 
 Where storms eternal uproar keep. 
 The road to shorten mend thy pace, 
 Be thy speed contracting space ; 
 
 And faithful to thy message, say 
 
 We take Ardudwy in our way. 
 
 INTo delaying, boy, push on, 
 
 Ardudwy visited, be gone, 
 
 Haste the region to survey 
 
 Which Mervyn gloried erst to sway, 
 
 To Nevyn go, inquire for JNest, 
 
 And lodging there become her guest, 
 
 By which untold it may be seen, 
 
 That we are on our road to Lleyn, 
 
 Messenger, set off again, 
 Forerunner of our gallant train, 
 Hurry at our chief's command, 
 Prince of liberal heart and hand : 
 And as through Arvon winds thy way 
 Armed knight, we charge thee stay, 
 
 That having journeyed many a mile, 
 
 We mean to visit Mona's isle. 
 
 We are Owain's princely host, 
 Spoils of foes the wealth we boast, 
 Tyrant Lloegyr overthrown 
 Gives us title to renown, 
 Then our toilsome marches o'er 
 Can we want an opening door ? 
 
 Shall we not find in Rhos a bed, 
 
 Whereon to lay the weary head? 
 
 Dygychwyn gennad gyvyl morchvy — gwynt 
 
 Gordyar y gylchwy 
 Dywan yr traean tramwy 
 Dywed y down Ardudwy 
 Dygychwyn gennad gein dervyn y wlad 
 
 A wledychwys Mervyn 
 Dos y west ar nest Nevyn 
 Dywed an dyvod Leyn 
 Dygychwyn gennad o gylch dragon — a llary 
 
 Lluossawc y galon 
 Dos varchawc arvawc Arvon 
 A dywed an dyvod Von 
 Teulu Ywein hael hawl dioleith — Lloegyr 
 
 Lluossawc am anrheith 
 A ennir wedi hirdeith 
 A annwny yn Ros nosweith 
 
44 WELSH POETRY 
 
 Thy prince commands thee to depart, 
 (Except the mistress of his heart 
 Haply thou shoud'st chance to meet,) 
 With strictest orders none to greet ; 
 But quickly mount the fleetest steed, 
 Not confiding to thy speed ; 
 To Llanerch tidings to convey 
 That we shall stop there on our way. 
 
 Off again, that region face, 
 Nurse of a renowned race, 
 Who, for many a gallant deed, 
 Deserve the horn, the hero's meed ; 
 Thither haste with our commands, 
 Quitting Tyno Bedwal's lands, 
 And say we purpose to regale, 
 And taste of social joys at lal, 
 
 But tarry not, no respite take, 
 This witching region quick forsake, 
 Howe'er her sons to charm thy stay, 
 May throw temptation in thy way; 
 We forbid thy lingering there 
 Beyond the opening of the year, 
 To Maelor then thy steps direct, 
 That she our coming may expect. 
 
 This performed, yet loiter not, 
 Be thy very food forgot : 
 Every hind'rance put away, 
 All that can create delay. 
 To stop at Maelor's not allow'd, 
 For further still extends thy road ; 
 To visit Kynllaith we propose, 
 Then haste the message to disclose. 
 
 Dos was y gennyf ae nac annerch — nep 
 
 Ony byt vyg gorterch 
 Dywan ar vuan Veinerch 
 Dywed an dyvod Lannerch 
 Dygychwyn gennad gadyr ardal — teulu 
 
 Teilwng met o vual 
 A dywan Dyno Bydwal 
 A dywed an dyfod lal 
 Kychwyn yw thervyn pathawr — eu hoewet 
 
 Hirvelyn eu gwaewawr 
 Dywan diw Calan Ionawr 
 Dywed an dyvod Vaelawr 
 Dos was na olut na oleith — dylwrw 
 
 Dy lutyaw nyd hawtweith 
 Dywan o Vaelawr vawrdeith 
 Dywed an dyvod Gynlleith 
 
FROM A.D. 1030 TO A.D. 1194. 45 
 
 Thy progress then, with counsel due, 
 And forms that suit our rank pursue, 
 Worthy of our commission prove, 
 For not like petty tribes we move ; 
 Prompt to discharge the duty go, 
 And borrow fleetness from the roe, 
 
 That Mechain in her turn may hear 
 
 Of our intended visit there. 
 
 What though our prince, with prosperous rounds, 
 Has measured Cambria's lovely bounds, 
 Though conquer'd realms enrich our train, 
 Heaven's kingdom yet is ours to gain, 
 Which to possess may we aspire, 
 Faith lending pinions to desire ; 
 
 Where we our earthly journies past, 
 
 May find eternal rest at last. 
 
 This mode of sending messages was practised among the 
 farmers of the counties of Carmarthen and Cardigan, during 
 the Rebecca riots ; and the reader who has read Scottfs ex- 
 hortation in "The Lady of the Lake," and followed Malise 
 over the Highland Crapjs, will not fail to relish a similar ex- 
 hortation written under actual circumstances six hundred 
 years ago. The practice of proclaiming war by sending an 
 arrow round the houses of the chiefs, which is said to have 
 been prevalent in Wales, is now found among the Indian 
 tribes, also among those whom Catlin supposes to have 
 been the Madogwys, or Madocians, — "the gentlemanly 
 Mandans." 
 
 We now come to another poet prince, Howel ab Owain. 
 He was the son of Owain Gwynedd, king of North Wales, 
 by a lady named Pyvog, the daughter of an Irish Chieftain. 
 He was distinguished in early youth for skill and ingenuity, 
 and he began his warlike career while yet a very young 
 
 Dos was a chynghor na chyngein — au toryf 
 
 Val teiluoet bychein 
 Dy wan dwc rybut liytwein 
 Dy wed an dyvod Vechein 
 Teulu Ywein rwyf rwystrassam — wladdet 
 
 Poed gwlad nef a welam 
 Kyrch kyfrwyt kyflwyt adlam 
 Kylch Kymry kymerassam. 
 
46 
 
 AVELSH POETRY 
 
 man. In 1144, we find him and his brother Kynan lead- 
 ing an army into South Wales, defeating the Flemings, and 
 taking Carmarthen castle from the Normans. This feat 
 is referred to by Kynddelw, — 
 
 Am byrth Caer Fyrddin 
 Porthes gwyr gwaedlin 
 A gwawr trin bu trechaf. 
 
 About the forts of Carmarthen 
 
 Were collected warlike men, 
 
 And the hero of battle was victorious. 
 
 In 1155, Rhys ab Gruffydd and his brothers, the princes 
 of South Wales, sent to desire his assistance to destroy 
 Tower castle, Howel having obtained great reputation for 
 engineering talents and for military skill. Not long after, 
 we find him engaged in besieging his uncle Cadwaladr in 
 Kynvael castle, wherein he was successful, as appears from 
 the ode above alluded to, which Kynddelw addressed to 
 this prince, — 
 
 Thunderlike was the sound of the generous prince's army, 
 And heavy it was to hear Kynvael's towers fall, 
 Flames crackled all around, 
 And arms were there to aid fire's destructive powers. 1 
 
 Just about the same period occurred the battle of Tod y 
 Moelvre, at which he was undoubtedly present, as appears 
 from Gwalchmai's ode, wherein he says, — 
 
 "A draig Mon, mor ddrud ei eisyllydd yn aer," 
 And the chief of Mona's son so earnest in battle. 
 
 This clearly refers to Howel. The same fact is proved by 
 one of HoweFs own poems, which could scarcely have been 
 so written had he not been on the spot; and of which I have 
 
 1 Twrwf Tonn torchawc hael — trwm oet y elvwet 
 
 TVr Kynvael yn kwytaw 
 A flameu o drim yn edrinaw 
 Ac angert ac ongyr yn Haw. 
 
FROM A.D. 10S0 TO A.D. 1194. 47 
 
 attempted a translation in Ban Gyrch metre, such as is seen 
 in the following lines, — 
 
 "Pan ruddlam ruddflam flamychei hyt 11 ef 
 Yn addef ny noddei," 
 
 where the "nef 1 at the close of the first line, rhymes with 
 the last syllable of " addef" in the second. 
 
 The Battle. 
 
 The ravens croak'd, and human blood 
 In ruddy flood, poured o'er the land; 
 Then burning houses war proclaimed, 
 Churches inflamed and palace halls ; 
 While sheets of fire scale the sky 
 And warriors cry "To Battle." 
 
 They clearly heard the conflict's roar 
 On Menai's shore, from Seiont's fort, 
 Three hundred ships, so heroes say, 
 The third of May, were set on fire. 
 Ten hundred times as many fled, 
 And not a beard staid on Menai.i 
 
 Owain Gwynedd died in 1169 after a prosperous reign of 
 fifty-two years ; and after some disputes had taken place 
 respecting the succession, Howel, being the eldest son, seized 
 the reins of government, and ruled the country for two 
 years, during which there prevailed perfect peace. At the 
 end of that time his grandfather dying, he went to Ireland 
 to take possession of the property which now became his 
 mother's. During his absence, David, a younger brother 
 
 1 Pan vei lawen vrein pan vyrysei waed 
 
 Pan wyar waryei 
 Pan ryvel pan rudit e thei 
 Pan ruddlan pan rudlys losgei 
 Pan rudlam rudflam flemychei hyt nef 
 
 Yn addef ny noddei 
 Hawdd gweled goleulosc arnei 
 O gaer wenn geir eniyl menei 
 Treghissant trydydyd o vei trichanllong 
 
 Yn llyghes vordei 
 A deckant kymant ae kilyei 
 Kyaryf neb un varyf ar venei. 
 
48 WELSH POETRY 
 
 by Owain's second wife, but who had the merit of being a 
 legitimate son, aspired to deprive Howel of the sovereign 
 power. Neither of them had in reality any legal claim to 
 rule ; but this was a period when hereditary monarchy w T as 
 very little respected, unless the son at the same time in- 
 herited the fathers ability. In this case, it would seem 
 that the children of Owain's first wife were incapable. 
 Howel, therefore, though illegitimate, having the double 
 qualification of being the eldest son, and, what was better 
 in a warlike age, being possessed of military skill, and used 
 to command, found no great difficulty in being made King 
 of North Wales. Being now from home, David, who also 
 seems to have had more daring than his elder brothers, 
 availed himself of the opportunity afforded by HoweFs 
 absence, called together the friends of his mother, and being 
 joined by some discontented spirits proclaimed himself 
 King of North Wales. Howel hearing of this, returned 
 with all possible dispatch, but meeting David with a much 
 larger army than he had been able to muster, Howel was 
 defeated and mortally wounded. 1 
 
 This young prince was not only talented himself, but 
 seems to have won the affections of many other men of 
 talent. We have alluded to Kynddelw's ode to him 
 already ; and in the My v. Archaiology there is a poem by 
 Perif ab Kedifor mourning his death, in truly elegiac 
 strains, and with all the marks of genuine feeling. From 
 this poem it w r ould seem that his body was buried in Bangor, 
 with two other sons of this Kedifor. And now, while 
 speaking of these sons of Kedifor, whose affection for this 
 young poet prince has linked them inseparably in my 
 thoughts with Howel ab Owain, perhaps I may be allowed to 
 quote another poem written upon the death of the prince. 
 The Editors of the Archaiology attribute the poem to 
 
 1 These facts are taken from an extract in Hanes Cymru, from the 
 Llyfr Aberjpcrgwm. a Manuscript, which Mr. Price thinks former historians 
 had not consulted. 
 
FROM A.D. 10S0 TO A.D. 1194. 49 
 
 Llewelyn Vardd in one place, and to Einiawn ab Gwgan 
 in another ; but the arguments urged by Mr. Price seem 
 to me to be conclusive, — there being more reason for attri- 
 buting them to one of the sons of Kedivor, than to any other 
 person. Periv the author of the Elegy already mentioned 
 was most probably the author of the following Englynion. 1 
 
 While we were seven, three sevens could not beat us, 
 
 We would not fly ; 
 Unfortunately there now remain unkilled 
 
 But three out of the seven. 
 
 Seven men we were, faultless, firm, 
 
 And irresistible in our outset, 
 Seven immovable men, who would not fly, 
 
 Nor tolerate an insult, 
 
 Since Howel suffered death 
 
 "While we were with him, 
 A great loss has befallen us, 
 
 Butheis in the better company of the family of heaven. 
 
 The sons of Kedivor, numerous children 
 
 In the hollow above Pentraeth, 
 Fought desperately in the battle, 
 
 And were slain with their foster brother.^ 
 
 The original :- 
 
 Tra vuam ein seith triseith nyn beitei 
 
 Nyn kilyei kyn an lleith 
 Nid oes yssywaeth o'r seith 
 
 Namyn tri trin dioleith. 
 
 Seithwyr y buara dinam digythrut 
 
 Digyflut eu Kyfiam, 
 Seithwyr flyryf ffo diadlam, 
 Seith gynt ny gymmerynt gam. 
 
 Can etiw Hywel hwyl diotef kad, 
 
 Kydvuam gyd ac ef, 
 Handym oil goll gyvadef 
 
 Handid tegach teulu nef. 
 
 Meibion kedivor kyd ehelaeth blant 
 
 Yny pant uch pentraeth, 
 Buant brwysgyon breisc arvaeth 
 
 Buant briw ger ei brawd maeth. 
 
 2 Kedivor was Howel's foster father, 
 G 
 
50 WELSH POETRY 
 
 There was deep treachery, and unchristian 
 
 On the part of the sons of Cristin, 1 
 There is not a man living in Mona, 
 
 Of the freckled Brochvaelians. 
 
 But little good will come even now 
 
 Of holding unjust power, 
 And woe be to the false David, for spearing 
 
 That hawk of war, Howel the tall. 
 
 Caradoc, old Kedivor's son, 
 Leader of armies of border troopers, 
 Hawk of the family, kind relation, 
 We are loath to part with thee. 
 
 The original is in very intelligible Welsh, and forms an 
 important fact to support the opinion that the language 
 of Wales, seven hundred years ago, is easily understood by 
 a Cyrnro of the present day, when, as in these Englynion, 
 it is to be had free from the refinements, technicalities, and 
 affectations of the more celebrated bards. 
 
 It is now time for us to review the poems of this poet 
 prince, for whom I have a great liking. He is the most 
 sprightly and charming poet I shall have to notice. We 
 have already seen that his talents as an engineer, his skill 
 as a commander, and his courage as a warrior, had won him 
 a great reputation among his countrymen ; and it will now 
 be seen that he shines as eminently as a poet as in any of 
 the other characters. The short poems he has left us are the 
 sweetest productions of the age; and free from verbal in- 
 tricacies, and affected images. While full to overflowing of 
 
 Yny bernid brad brython ag cristyawn 
 
 O Cristin ae meibyon 
 Ni bo dyn y myw y mon 
 
 Os Bryehvaelyeid brychvoelyon. 
 
 Yr a del o da o dala tir pressent 
 
 Preswylvod angbywir 
 Y gwaew gwae Davyt enwir 
 
 Gwan gwalcb ryvel Hywel hir. 
 
 Caradoc A T ab kedivor 
 
 Gwalcb bydyn gwerin goror 
 Hebawc teulu ku Keinmyn 
 
 Anhawd gennym dy hepcor. 
 
 1 Cristin was David's mother, Owain's Gwynedd's second wife. 
 
FROM A.D. 10S0 TO A.D. 1194. 5| 
 
 a love of natural scenery, and gay humour, they are really 
 very delicious little morsels. They could scarcely have 
 found admirers among the more pedantic bards; but they 
 will be relished by every man of taste, who looks for feeling 
 in poetry, and desires rhymed compositions to be something 
 better than jingling nonsense. 
 
 The first we shall notice is " Grwladgarwch Hywel," or 
 Howel's Patriotism, which is finely expressed in an admi- 
 ration of the many good things which existed among the 
 Welsh. And if we may judge of Wales from this poem, it 
 was rather a comfortable sort of place to live in. 
 
 bowel's delight. 1 
 
 A white foam crowned wave flows o'er the grave 
 
 Of Rhuvawn Bevyr,- chief of Rulers. 
 
 I this day hate England, a flat and inactive land, 
 
 With a people involved in every wile, 
 
 I love the land where I had the much desired gift of mead 
 
 "Where the shores extend in tedious conflict ; 
 
 I love the society and the numerous inhabitants 
 
 Therein, who obedient to their Lord, 
 
 Direct their views of peace ; 
 
 I love its sea coast and its mountains, 
 
 Its cities bordering on its forests, its fair landscapes, 
 
 Its dales, its waters, and its vales, 
 
 1 Ton wen orewyn aorwlych bedd 
 Gwyddfa Rhufawn Befyr, Ben Teymedd. 
 
 Caraf traehas Lloegyr lleudir goglet hetivv 
 
 Ac yn amgant y lliw Iliaws callet. 
 Caraf am rotes rybuched met 
 Myn y dyhaetmyr meitb gywrysset 
 Caraf y theilu ae thew anbet yndi 
 
 Ac wrth vot ri rwyfaw dyhet 
 Caraf y morfa ac mynytet 
 Ae chaer ger ei cboed ae cliaen dirit 
 Ac dolyt ae dyffrynet 
 
 2 Rhuvawn Bevyr was apparently a hero of note ; but the mast specific notice 
 of him is contained in the following Triad : — 
 
 " Tri Eurgelein ynys Prydain ; Madawc mab Brwyn, Ceugant Beilliawc, a 
 Rhufawn Befyr ab Gwyddnaw Garanhir, sef yu gelwid felly achaws rhoddi eu 
 pwys yn aur am danynto ddwylaw a'u lladdes.'' 
 
 Which translated means . — The three golden corpses of the isle of Britain — 
 Madoc the son of Brwyn, Keigant Beillioc, and Rhuvawn Bevyr son of 
 Gwyddno Garanhir, and they were so called because there was given for their 
 bodies to those who slew them, their weight in gold. 
 
52 WELSH POETRY 
 
 Its white seamews, and its beauteous women. 
 
 I love its warriors and its well-trained steeds, 
 
 Its woods, its strongholds, and its social domicile ; 
 
 I love its fields clothed with tender trefoil 
 
 Where I had the glory of a lasting triumph. 
 
 I love its cultivated regions, the prerogative of heroism, 
 
 Its far extended wilds, and its sports of the chase, 
 
 Which Son of God ! are great and wonderful. 
 
 How sleek the majestic deer, and in what plenty found. 
 
 I achieved with a push of a spear the task of honour 
 
 Between the Chief of Powys x and fair Gwynedd ; 2 
 
 And if I am pale in the rush of conflict 
 
 'Tis that I know I shall be compelled to leave my country, 
 
 For it is certain I cannot hold out till my party comes, 
 
 A dream has revealed it, and God say 'tis true. 
 
 A white foam crowned wave flows o'er the grave 
 
 A white bright foaming wave, boldly raves against the towns 
 
 Tinted the time it swells like glittering hoar, 
 
 I love the marches of Merioneth 
 
 Where my head was pillowed on a snow white arm, 
 
 I love the nightingale on the privet wood 
 
 In the famous vale of Cymmer Deuddwfr a 
 
 Lord of heaven and earth, the glory of Gwyneddians, 
 
 Ae gwylein gwynnyon ac gwymp wraget 
 Cara fy milwyr ae meirch hywet, 
 Ae choed ae chedyrn ae chyfannet 
 Caraf y meusyt ae man veillyon arnaw, 
 
 Mynyd galas ffaw ffyryf orfolet 
 Caraf y brooet breint hywret 
 Ae diffeith mawrfeith ae marannet 
 Wy a un mab Duw mawr a ryvet 
 Mor yn eilon niygyr meiut y refet 
 Gwneuthum a gwth gwaew gweith arderchet 
 Yr rwng glyw Powys a glwys wynet 
 Ac y ar welw gann gynnif rysset 
 Gorpwyf ollyngdawd o alltudet 
 Ni dalyaf diheu yny del yrnplaid 
 
 Breutwyd ae dyweid a Duw ae met 
 Tonn wenn orewyn a orwlyck bet 
 Tonn wen orewyn wychyr wrth drefyt 
 Gyfliw ac arien awr yd gynnyt 
 Caraf y morva y meiryonnyt 
 Men yd bu vreich wenn yn obennyt. 
 Caraf yr eaws ar wyrryaws wyt 
 Yg kymer Deudyfyr dyffrynt iolyt 
 Arglwyt nef a llawr gwawr gwindodyt 
 
 1 Powys comprised Radnor, Montgomery, and Merionethshire. 
 
 a Gwynedd was tbat portion of North Wales not included in Powys. 
 
 3 Cymmer Deuddwfr is in Radnorshire, and is now called Cwm Dauddwr 
 
FROM A.D. 1080 TO A.D. 1194. 53 
 
 Though it is so far from Keri 1 to Caerliwelydd, 2 
 
 I mounted the yellow steed, and from Maelienydd 3 
 
 Reached the land of Reged i between night and day. 
 
 Before I am in the grave, may I enjoy a new blessing 
 
 From the land of Tegyngyl 5 of fairest aspect ! 
 
 As long as I am courteouss and travel as a craftsman, 
 
 God will watch over my destiny. 
 
 Fair foam crowned wave of impetuous course, 
 
 I will implore the Divine Supreme, 
 
 Precious from being a King, 
 
 To create a primitive muse, 
 
 For a song of praise, such as Merddin sang, — 
 
 To the women who have so long claimed my bardic lore, 
 
 And who are so tardy in dispensing grace. 
 
 The most eminent in all the west I name, 
 
 From the gates of Chester to Portskewitt -J 
 
 Mor bell o geri gaer Lliwelyt 
 
 Esgynnais ar velyn o vaelyenyt 
 
 Hyd ynhir Reged rwng nos a dyt 
 
 Gorpwyfy kyn bwyf bet butei newyt. 
 
 Tir Tegygyl teccaf yny elfyt 
 
 Ked bwyfy karyadawc kerted ofyt 
 
 Gobwylled fy nuwy fy nibenyt. 
 
 Ton wenn orewyn wycbyr wrtb drefyt 
 
 Cyfarcbaf yr dewin gwerthefi n 
 
 Gwerthfawr wrth y f'od yn frenhin 
 
 Kyssylltu canu cyssefin 
 
 Kert folyant fal y cant mertin 
 
 Yr gwraget ae met fy martrin mor hir 
 
 Hyvyr wetawc ynt am rin 
 Pennaf oil yn y gorllewin 
 O byrth caer hyd bortb ysgewin 
 
 1 Keri is in Montgomeryshire. 
 
 2 The Rev. Evan Evans (Dissertatio de Bardis, p. 36) says Caer Lliwelydd 
 means Carlisle. I cannot say in what part of Wales it lies, but feel assured 
 it is not Carlisle in Cumberland. May it not be Llywel in Breconshire? 
 
 3 Maelienydd is the old name of a district in Radnorshire. 
 
 4 The late Rev. T. Price, whose sudden death since this work was put into 
 the Press every Welshman must deeply deplore, said that it is difficult to find 
 the geography of Rheged, and considered it to be the present county of Cum- 
 berland. (Hanes Cymru, p. 278). But this poem shows it to have been 
 within a night's ride of Maelienydd, mentioned in the preceding note, which 
 accords with the locality assigned to it in the recently published volume called 
 Iolo MSS., wherein it is stated that it was situated in the district between the 
 rivers Tawy and Towy, and comprised the territories of Gower, Kidwely, 
 Carnwyllion, Iscennen, and Cantrev Bychan. 
 
 5 A cantrev in Flintshire. 
 
 6 Artisans in Wales could travel anywhere, and had admission everywhere. 
 It is this privilege the bard alludes to; and this respect for artisans is strikingly 
 shown in the Mabinogion. A knight knocking at the gate of a castle is told, 
 " The knife is in the meat, and the drink is in the horn, and there is revelry in 
 the hall of Gwrnach the Giant; and except for a craftsman bringing his craft 
 the gate will not be opened to night." Mabinogion Vol. ii. p. 293. 
 
 7 Portskewith is near Chepstow, in Monmouthshire. 
 
54 WELSH POETRY 
 
 The first is the nymph who will be the subject of universal praise, 
 
 Gwenllian whose complexion is like the summer's day, 
 
 The second is another of high state, far from my embrace, 
 
 Adorned with golden torques, 1 
 
 Fair Gweirvyl from whom nor token nor confidence 
 
 Have I obtained, nor has any of my race ; 
 
 Though I might be slain by two lipped shafts, 
 
 She whose foster brother was a king should be my theme. 
 
 And Gwladys the young and modest virgin, 
 
 The idol of the multitude ; 
 
 I will utter the secret sigh ; 
 
 I will greet her with the yellow blossoms of the furze. 
 
 Soon may I see my vigour rouse to combat, 
 
 And my hand on my blade, — 
 
 And the bright Lleucu my sister laughing, 
 
 Though her husband laught not from anxiety. 
 
 Great anxiety oppresses me, makes me sad 
 
 And longing, alas ! is become habitual 
 
 For the fair Nest, like the apple blossom sweet, 
 
 For Perwewr, the centre of my desire, 
 
 For Generys the chaste, who will not grant me a smile,— 
 
 Un ywr fun a fyt kyssefin foliant 
 
 Gwenllian lliw hafin 
 Eil ywr Hall or pall pell vy min y wrthi 
 
 Y am ortherch eurin. 
 Gwervyl dec fy rec fy rin ni gefeis 
 
 Ni gafas neb om llin 
 Yr fy Hat a llafnau deufin 
 Rym gwalaeth y gwreic brawdfaeth brenin 
 A Gwladus wetus wyl febin vabwreic 
 
 Gofyneic y werin 
 A chenaf ucheneid gyfrin 
 Mi ae raawl a melyn eithin. 
 Moch gwelwyf am nwyf yn etein y wrthaw 
 
 Ac ym Haw am fy llain 
 Llecu glaer fy chwaer yn cbwerthin 
 Ac ni chwart y gwr hi rac gortin 
 Gortin mawr am dawr am daerhawd 
 A hiraeth yssywaeth yssy nawd 
 Am nest dec, am debic afallulawd. 
 Am berwewr bervet vymhechawd 
 Am enerys wyry ni warawd ym hoen 
 
 1 Torques were rings or chains of gold worn about the neck among the ancient 
 Welsh, as a mark of nobility. They were worn alike by males and females. 
 In 1692 one of these antique chains was found in a garden near Harlech 
 Castle ; it weighed eight ounces of solid gold, and measured four feet in length. 
 It is now in the possession of the Mostyn family in Flintshire, The lady of Sir 
 Ithys ap Thomas, in the tomb at Carmarthen, is represented with a square cap on 
 her head, and a chain round the neck ; a short gown tied at the waist by a 
 golden string, the ends of which reach her knees ; and a long mantle with 
 large sleeves covers the whole. 
 
FROM AD. 1080 TO A.D. 1194. 55 
 
 May continence not overcome her, 
 
 For Hunydd, whose fame will last till the day of doom, — 
 
 For Hawy who claims my choicest eulogy. 
 
 On a memorable day I had a nymph ; 
 
 I had a second more be their praise ; 
 
 I had a third and a fourth with prosperity ; 
 
 I had a fifth of those with a skin white and delicate, 
 
 I had a sixth, bright and fair, avoiding not the temptation, 
 
 Above the white walls, she arrested me, 
 
 I had a seventh, and this was satiety of love, 
 
 I had eight in recompense for a little of the praisewhich I sung ; 
 
 But the teeth most opportunely bar the tongue. 1 
 
 I should conjecture from several parts of this poem that 
 it was sung or composed on his return from Ireland to 
 defend his Crown. He had a presentiment of his own 
 death. It would also seem that he was travelling in dis- 
 guise. These facts would explain the melancholy tone 
 which pervades the poem, in which, though the ruling 
 passion is manifest, it yet shines with a subdued light. 
 The poem has many fine lines, and several very elegant 
 and forcible images, and cannot fail as a whole to produce a 
 favourable impression. 
 
 Most of Howel's poems are devoted to the passion of love. 
 The following has a delicacy, and gaiety which are quite 
 charming. — 2 
 
 Give me the fair, the gentle maid, 
 
 Of slender form, in mantle green ; 
 Whose woman's wit is ever staid, 
 
 Subdued by virtue's graceful mien. 
 
 1 Slightly altered, where not sufficiently literal, from the translation of Dr. 
 Pughe. 
 
 Ni orpo hi diweirdawd 
 
 Am hunyt demyt hyd dytbrawd 
 
 Am hawis vy newis devawd 
 
 Keveisy vun duun diwyrnawd 
 
 Keveis dwy handid mwy en molawd 
 
 Keveis deir a phedeir a ffawd 
 
 Keveis bymp o rei gwymp eu gwyn gnawd 
 
 Keveis chwech heb odech pechawd 
 
 Gwenglaer uwch gwengaer yt ym daerhawd 
 
 Keveisy seith ac ef gweith gordygnawd 
 
 Keveisy wyth yn hal pwyth peth or wawd yr geint 
 
 Ysda deint rac tavawd. 
 
 2 Fy newisi riain firain faindeg, 
 
 Hirwen yn y lien liiw ehoeg ; 
 A'm dewis synwyr synhyaw arwreigedd, 
 
 Ban dywed o fraidd weddaidd wofeg; 
 
56 
 
 WELSH POETRY. 
 
 Give me the maid, whose heart with mine 
 Shall blend each thought, each hope combine, 
 Then, maiden, fair as ocean's spray, 
 Gifted with Kymric wit's bright ray, 
 
 Say am I thine ? 
 
 Art thou then mine ? 
 
 What? silent now? 
 
 Thy silence makes this bosom glow. 
 I choose thee, maiden, for thy gifts divine, 
 'Tis right to choose, then fairest choose me thine. 1 
 
 This image of the water-spray, was a very great favourite 
 with the hards, and occurs in the amatory poems of most 
 of them. Howel himself has used it no less than three 
 times, once in the ahove, once in the preceding poem, and 
 once in the poem called " the Choice," in the line : — 
 " Gorewynaivg ton tynhegyl ebrwydd." 
 
 The Rev. Edward Davies, the learned author of " The 
 Mythology of the Druids," a gentleman whom I shall have 
 frequent reasons to quote in the following pages, is of opi- 
 nion that some passages in the poems called "Awdl Hoffder 
 Hywel, 1 ' and " Y Dewis," countenance the assumption that 
 the worship of Druidism prevailed in the twelfth century. 
 I am sorry to be obliged to doubt the accuracy of his con- 
 clusions ; my reasons will be found stated in another place. 
 
 Hereditary talent is not an ordinary phenomenon ; yet 
 we find such a fact in the bardic history of this period. 
 Meilyr the father, Gwalchmai the son, and Einion and 
 Meilyr the grandsons, were all bards, and bards too of con- 
 siderable repute. Of Meilyr and Gwalchmai we have 
 already treated; and we will next notice the writings of 
 Einion ap Gwalchmai. Five of his poems have escaped the 
 
 A'm dewis gydran gyhyd reg a bun, 
 
 A bod yn gyfrin am rin, am reg. 
 Dewis yw genyfi harddliw gwaneg, 
 Ydoeth i'th gyfoeth, dy goeth Gymraeg. 
 • Dewis genyf y di ; 
 
 Beth y w genyt fi ? 
 
 Beth, a dewi di ? Deg y gosteg ? 
 Dewisies fun, fal nad attreg genyf; 
 lawn yw dewissaw — dewis dyn deg. 
 
 1 The above very faithful translation, is by Mrs. Llewelyn of Llangymvyd 
 Vicarage. 
 
FROM A.D. 1080 TO A.D. 1194. 57 
 
 ravages of time ; the best of which we here lay before 
 our readers, who will then have had religious musings, war- 
 like odes, didactic narratives, love songs, and elegiac strains, 
 laid before them; and when to these we add some most ex- 
 quisite Englynion, presently to be noticed, it is to be hoped 
 they will not quarrel with the selection, or complain that 
 the feast is either plain or scanty. The elegy is written 
 upon " Nest the daughter of Howel:" who the Howel is, is 
 not clear; but from her being styled " Gwynedd Anrhyd- 
 edd," GwynedcVs glory, I am led to suppose the lady Nest, 
 " Queen of pearls," to be the daughter of Howel ab Owain 
 the poet-king. It is not necessary to enter into a detailed 
 criticism of the poem ; here and there throughout the piece 
 there are a few poetical ideas, but for the most part it is a 
 series of unconnected sentiments of a common place charac- 
 ter, heaped together without any very apparent link of con- 
 nexion, and it contains nothing truly poetical except the 
 introductory lines : — 1 
 
 The spring returns, and May with its long days, 
 
 The trees are in their bloom, and the forest in its beauty, 
 
 The birds chaunt, the sea is smooth, 
 
 The gently rising tide sounds hollow, the wind is still, 
 
 The best armour against misfortune is prayer ; 
 
 But I cannot hide nor conceal my grief, 
 
 Nor can I be still and silent. 
 
 I have heard the waves raging furiously 
 
 Towards the confines of the land of the sons of Beli : 
 
 The sea flowed with force, and conveyed 
 
 A hoarse complaining noise on account of a gentle maiden. 
 
 Amser Mai maith ddydd, neud rhydd rhoddi, 
 Neud coed nad ceithiw, ceinllyw celli; 
 Neud llafar adar, neud gwar gweilgi, 
 Neud gwaeddgreg gwaneg, gwynt yn edwi, 
 Neud arfau doniau, goddau gwedi, 
 Neud argel dawel nid meu dewi, 
 Endeweis i^wenyg o Wynnofi dir, 
 I am derfyn mawr meibion Beli 
 Oedd hydreidd wychr llyr yn llenwi, 
 Oedd hydr am ddylan gwynfan genddi, 
 Hyll nid oedd er deddf hi hwyreddf holi, 
 Hallt oedd ei dagrau, digrawn heli, 
 Ar helw bun araf uch bannieri ton, 
 
 H 
 
58 WELSH POETRY 
 
 I have passed the deep waters of the Teivi with slow steps. 
 
 I sang the praise of Nest ere she died. 
 
 Thousands have resounded her name like that of Elivri. 
 
 But now I must with a pensive and sorrowful countenance, 
 
 Compose her elegy, a subject fraught with misery. 
 
 The bright luminary of Cadvan 1 when array'd in silk, 
 
 How beautiful did she shine on the banks of Dysynni ! 2 
 
 How great was her innocence and simplicity, 
 
 Joined with consummate prudence ! 
 
 She was above the base arts of dissimulation. 
 
 Now the ruddy earth covers her in silence. 
 
 How great was our grief, 
 
 When she was laid in her stony habitation. 
 
 The burying of Nest was an irreparable loss. 
 
 Her eye was as sharp as the hawk, 
 
 Which argued her descended from noble ancestors. 
 
 Virtue and goodness added to her native beauty, 
 
 She was Gwynedd's ornament and pride. 
 
 She rewarded the bard generously. 
 
 Never was pain equal to what I suffer for her loss. 
 
 Oh death ! I feel thy sting, thou hast undone me, 
 
 No man upon earth regretteth her loss like me, 
 
 But hard fate regardeth not the importunity of prayers, 
 
 Whenever mankind are destined to undergo its power. 
 
 Tynhegl a gerddais i gorddwfr Teifi ; 
 Ceintum gerdd i Nest eyn noi threngi. 
 Cant cant i moliant mal Elifri, 
 Canaf gan feddwl awrddwl ercldi, 
 Caniad i marwnad, mawr drueni ! 
 Canwyll Cadfan Ian o lenn bali 
 Canneid i synnieid gar Dysynni, 
 Gwan, wargan, wyrygall, ddeall ddogni, 
 Gwreig nid oedd un frad gariad genthi, 
 Gweryd rhudd ai cudd gwedi tewi, 
 Gwael neuedd maenwedd mynwent iddi, 
 Golo Nest goleu direiddi. 
 Gohvg gwalch dwythfalch o brif deithi, 
 Gwenned gwawn ai dawn o 1 i daioni, 
 Gwynedd anrhydedd, oedd rhaid wrthi 
 Nid oedd ffawd rhy gwnawd rhin y genthi, 
 Gnawd oedd dal eur mal er i moli 
 Ni ryfu dognach er i dogni poen, 
 
 Penyd a fo mwy no"r meu hebddi, 
 Neum gorau angau anghyfnerthi, 
 Nid ymglyw dyn byw o'r byd fal mi, 
 Ni chyfeirch angen iawlwen ioli, 
 Er neb rhy barther i rhyborthi, 
 
 1 Cadvan is the saint of Towyn in Merionydd. 
 
 ' J Dysynni is the name of a river that runs by Towyn. 
 
FROM A.D. 1080 TO A.D. 1194. 59 
 
 generous Nest, thou liest in thy safe retreat, 
 
 1 am pensive, and melancholy like Pryderi. 1 
 I store up my sorrow in my breast, 
 
 And cannot discharge the heavy burden. 
 
 The dark, lonesome, dreary veil, 
 
 Which covereth thy face is ever before me. — 
 
 A face that shone like the pearly dew on Eryri? 
 
 I make my humble petition to the Great Creator of heaven 
 
 and earth, 
 And my petition will not be denied, 
 That he grant that this beautiful maid, 
 Who glitter'd like pearls, 
 May through the intercession of Holy Dewi,* 
 Be received to his mercy, 
 That she may converse with the prophets, 
 That she may come to the inheritance, 
 Of the All-wise God with Mary and the Martyrs. 
 And in her behalf I will prefer my prayer, 
 Which will fly to the throne of Heaven. 
 My love and affection knew no bounds. 
 May she never suffer. St. Peter protect her; 
 God himself will not suffer her to be an exile 
 From the mansion of bliss. Heaven be her lot. 
 
 E. Evans, 
 
 Nest yn ei haddawd, wenwawd weini, 
 Ydd'wyf pryderus fal Pryderi. 
 Prydervvawd. ceudawd, cyfnerthi ni wnn, 
 
 Nid parabl y\v hwn ni fo peri. 
 Lien argel issel y sy'm poeni, 
 Lludd Gwen lliw arien ar Eryri. 
 Archaf im Arglwydd culwydd celi, 
 Nid ef a archaf arch egregi, 
 Arch, ydd wyf un arch yn i erchi 
 Am archfein riein, reid y naeini, 
 Trwy ddiwyd eiriawl deddfawl Dewi 
 A deg cymmaint seint senedd Frefi, 
 Am fun a undydd i harnmodi, 
 A'r gysthvn pryffwn y prophwydi, 
 Ar gyfoeth Dmv doeth i detholi, 
 Ar anghyweir Meir a'r Merthyri, 
 Ac yn i goddau gweddi a doddaf. 
 
 Am dodeis nwyf im addoedi. 
 Ni bu dyn mor gu gennyf a hi 
 Ni bu poen oddef, Pedr \vy nodi, 
 Ni bu da gan Dduw i ddidoli, 
 Ni bo ddidawl Nest, nef boed eiddi. 
 
 1 One of the heroes of Romance, and son of Pwyll Prince of Dy ved. 
 
 2 Eryri : — Snowdon. 
 
 3 St. David, the patron Saint of Wales. 
 
(30 WELSH POETRY 
 
 There are in the Myv. Arch, twelve Englynion in praise 
 of Madoc ap Meredydd, prince of Powys, which, with 
 Gwalchmars Ode, and the sweet flowing sonnets of Howel 
 ap Owain, I account the most interesting pieces belonging 
 to the twelfth century. They throw much light upon the 
 military history and habits of the country, shew the influ- 
 ence of the Norman manners in their proximity to the people 
 of PowySj and of the intercourse of the Powysian princes 
 with the English court, and are capable of being turned to 
 good purpose by such as understand their real significance, 
 and can appreciate their merits. In the whole range of our 
 literature we have not as lively a portrait of a chieftain; the 
 minutest features are noticed, without the tout <P ensemble 
 being lost sight of, and Llewelyn ap Madoc stands as 
 palpable before us, as if his portrait had been painted on the 
 canvass. In the easy flow of the language, the minuteness 
 of the description, and the spirit of the whole delineation, we 
 have a collection of merits not frequently to be met with in 
 the works of the bards; and the prince described, seems so 
 deserving of being the idol of a poet's fancy, that the poet 
 and his subject share our unbounded admiration. 1 
 
 Does no one ask, — are men so unconcern'd 
 
 Before unsheathing their swords, 
 Who is yon mail-clad youth ? 
 Who is the haughty warrior before us ? 
 
 A glorious prince full of intelligence, 
 None will be allowed to lead him, 
 He is a prince, valiant, powerful, and war-loving, 
 Llewelyn, the enemy of Gwynedd. 
 
 1 Govynnwys nebun ny raen gan rei 
 
 Kyn rudaw haearngaen 
 Pa was a wisg e lasgaen 
 Pa walch yw y balch o'r blaen. 
 
 Llessiawn werennic o ranned dyall 
 
 Nid avail ae harwed 
 Llyw glyw glew anhangnyved 
 Llewelyn gelyn Gwyned. 
 
FROM A.D. 1080 TO A.D. 1194. Ql 
 
 Whose swift moving shield is that. 
 
 And bright shining spear 1 
 Who is the determined warlike chief, 
 Who holds it by its armlets ? 
 
 It is the shield of Llewelyn the brave 
 
 Protector of his country's rights ; 
 A shield with a man's shoulder behind it ; 
 A shield which carries terror before it. 
 
 Whose is the flashing sword which cuts the air, 
 
 A sure wound-inflicter ; 
 An emblem of honour it will ever be, 
 And in that right hand will destroy enemies. 
 
 He who handles it, is the defender of his country, 
 
 Renown'd for downward strokes ; 
 A courageous soldier in the day of battle, 
 Is the hero of Mechain, — his country's pride. 
 
 Whose is that red helmet of battle 
 Surmounted with a fierce wolf ? 
 Who is the rider of the fierce white steed ? 
 What is his name ? how wonderful his appearance ! 
 
 He is called long-handed Llewelyn, 
 The irresistible leader of conflict, 
 Commander of men of the terrible shout, 
 Devastator of England; faultless, and perfect is he. 
 
 Pieu yr ysgwyt egutwal kynwan 
 
 Ar kanwaew am y thai 
 Pwy'r glew Hew Hit aer ddywal 
 Ae deily kyfrwng drwy brennyal. 
 Ysgwyt Llewelyn liw kadeithi bro 
 
 Eu honno yw honni. 
 Ysgwyt ac ysgwyd yndi 
 Ysgwyt ac ysgryt recdi. 
 Pieu y cleddyf cleu a dravodir 
 
 Klwyfhir diamheu 
 Klotvawr klywitor nat geu 
 Kavas Had ar llaw deheu. 
 Yssef ae trevyt trevat amddiffyn 
 
 Am diffwys gymmynat 
 Gweilch argae yn dyd aergat 
 Gwalch mechein gorwyrein gwlat. 
 Pieu y rodawc rud varan aervle 
 
 Ae haervleid ger y ban 
 Pwy briw uwch browysvarch can 
 Pwy y henw hynot gyvrann. 
 
 Yssef y gel wir Hawhir Llewelyn - 
 
 Llyw tervyn tervysc dir 
 Llawr gawr goruchel y wir 
 Lloegr ddiva ddivevyl gywir 
 
(52 WELSH HISTOIIY 
 
 Whose is the suit of complete armour ? 
 He will not fly from the battle field. 
 Who is this hero of princely race ? 
 I ask you all, whence sprang he? 
 
 He is a renowned and valiant prince, 
 
 Famed for bravery, and slaughtering ; 
 The majestic Chief, dreadful in the fight, 
 Is the son of Madoc ap Meredydd. 
 
 Whose is the war-steed, fastest in the race, 
 
 Which so haughtily paws the ground ? 
 Who the prince so loved by his army, 
 With the spear which pierces without warning ? 
 
 He is a known, ambitious chief, 
 
 Who as long as God supports him, 
 Will be famed as conqueror, brave and glorious — 
 Worthy of the men of Tysiliaw. 
 
 We can now easily understand the feeliDg which won for 
 this young prince, the name of being the " sole hope of the 
 men of Powys," for every line of the above Englynion, 
 free from bardic affectation and stamped with sincerity, 
 clearly shews that Llewelyn was a young chief of no 
 ordinary promise. 
 
 The authorship of the verses is involved in some degree 
 of obscurity. Llywarch Llaety, the reputed author, lived 
 between 1290 and 1340 ; and therefore so long after the 
 death of Llewelyn, as to render it quite impossible for him 
 to be the author of lines which were written during this 
 prince's life time. The poet gives his name, as is shown by 
 
 Pieu yr arveu arvet heb gilyaw 
 
 Ni gylyant b.yd angeu 
 Pwy wr pennaetheid geneu 
 Rac pawb pieu y decbreu. 
 Yssef yw hwnnw honneit nud or glyw 
 
 Ef yw glew a Uofrud 
 Mygyr gawr var traolawr trablud 
 Mab Madawc vab Maredud. 
 Pieu y katvarch, catvlaen ae gorveid 
 
 Ar gorvot dihavareb 
 Ar gwr ar gwyr am y barcb 
 Ar gwaew ar gwan anghyvarch, 
 Yssef yw hwnnw hanneit gan Haw draws 
 
 Dra savo Duw gan thaw 
 Gwyr orvod gwrd glot gludaw 
 Gwr rac gwerin dyssiliaw. 
 
FROM A.D. 1080 TO A.D. 1194. ^3 
 
 the subscription to the Englynion, as Llywarch Llew Cad; 
 and therefore, as Oarnhuanawc suggests, either Llywarch 
 Llaety and Llywarch Llew Cad were different persons, or the 
 former lived a hundred years earlier than the date usually 
 given to his compositions. I therefore incline to the opinion 
 that the Author is the person called Llyicarch Llew Cad; 
 though I have no further knowledge of that personage, for 
 we know but little of the biography of most of the bards. 
 
 The last remark indicates a sad defect, which is felt by 
 every one who attempts to give anything like a correct his- 
 torical sketch of our bardic literature. Few facts are so 
 unsubstantial as the bards, like shadows they come and 
 like shadows depart. We know something of Davydd ab 
 Gwilym, Iolo Goch, and Lewis Grlyn Cothy ; but who was 
 Meilir \ Where lived his son Gwalchmai ? Llywarch ab Lly- 
 welyn, where was he born? Whose son was Kynddelw? 
 When was Davydd Benfras born ? When did Gruffydd ab 
 Yr Ynad die ? We cannot tell. Rhys Goch came from the 
 neighbourhood of Eryri; Davydd Nanmor wrote extravagant 
 panegyrics ; Tudur Aled was liked by Sir Rhys ab Thomas; 
 Guttyn Owain wrote history ; and Davydd Llwyd lived at 
 Mathraval ; but beyond these scanty hints we have no 
 materials to construct biographies. The lives of the most 
 worthy are written in their poems ; — the lower grade, or 
 clerwyr, many of them were spies, beggars, and wanderers ; 
 they lived from house to house, composed songs for wed- 
 dings, and importuned farmers for beds, cows, guns, saddles, 
 bridles, and horses; they eat and drank whatever came in 
 their way, and w T ere jealous of their rivals — the monks; but 
 beyond these facts, which hold good of all, we know 
 nothing. Particular incidents we have not ; and therefore 
 biographical sketches are impossible. 
 
 Having thus passed in review such portions of the poetry 
 of the twelfth century as seemed. most deserving of notice, 
 we now come to speak of such other employments, as com- 
 posed with poetry the intellectual life of the Welsh. Of 
 these the science of music first demands attention. 
 
SECTION III. 
 
 MUSIC. 
 
 Of literature and civilization, music has ever formed a part; 
 and in most countries, the popular sentiment has very 
 closely allied a love of music with the love of virtue. Plato 
 in one of his dialogues makes Socrates express a regret that 
 he had not paid sufficient attention to the science ; Polybius 
 attributes the advancement in civilization of an Arcadian 
 tribe, to their love of music; and Quintilian commends the 
 science of harmony to the notice of the learned. The poets 
 of Italy make frequent allusions to its civilizing tendency; 
 it has been acknowledged in other countries that " music 
 has charms to soothe the savage breast"; and Shakspere, 
 followed by Oongreve, have borne their testimony in favour 
 of the same doctrine. The poets of Wales have not been 
 behind hand, as is shown in these verses, translated from 
 the Welsh :— 
 
 The man to whom the harp is dear, 
 Who loves the sound of song and ode, 
 
 "Will cherish all that's cherished there, 
 "Where angels hold their blest abode. 
 
 But he who loves not tune or strain, 
 
 Nature to him no love has given ; 
 You'll see him while his days remain, 
 
 Hateful at once to earth and Heaven. 
 
 Nor is this affection, which greatly prevails at the present 
 day, a thing of recent origin. It is inseparably linked with 
 our literature and history ; and the first poem we have con- 
 veys the intelligence of a prevalent love of music. We 
 
music. 65 
 
 have seen these allusions to the Cerddorion in the extracts 
 from the earl y bards ; and the fact that a pencerdd, or doctor 
 of music, was recognised by the laws of Howel, is full of 
 significance. Towards A.D. 1100, we find Grufiydd ab 
 Kynan, king of North Wales, turning his attention to the 
 subject of musical regulations ; and from his paying more 
 attention to music than to poetry, we may infer that he 
 was partial to the former, and was perhaps himself a com- 
 petent judge of musical excellence. He was born and educa- 
 ted in Ireland, of Welsh parents, — his father having sought 
 a refuge there; and he had, it is probable, imbibed a taste for 
 sweet sounds in the Emerald Isle. In fact he seems to have 
 fallen in love with the pipe — the bagpipe, and when the 
 country became somewhat pacified, he made an attempt to 
 inoculate the people of North Wales with a similar taste. 
 We learn this from the account of his life by Robert ap 
 Grufiydd,--. 
 
 " Grufiydd ap Kynan, King of North Wales, held an 
 Eisteddvod, for the purpose of regulating minstrelsy, at 
 Caerwys, whither travelled all the musicians of Wales. 
 There came also some from England and Scotland. At 
 that time the Welsh disliked the pipes, and in fact 
 forbade their use ; and therefore it was a Scot that won the 
 prize, and the king gave him a silver pipe as a reward for 
 his skill. The laws then enacted, continue in force now, 
 and are binding upon, and guides to, the Welsh minstrels at 
 the present day. Grufiydd did not attempt to make these 
 regulations binding in South Wales, on account of its 
 being in the possession of strangers ; nor can the Princes 
 of South Wales lay claim to the obedience of the North 
 Welsh minstrels. " 
 
 In the 1st volume of the Cambrian Eegister, (page 386,) 
 we find a more specific statement : — 
 
 " Observe this is the book, called the Repertory of string 
 music, that is to say the harp and crwth, within the three 
 principalities of Wales, which was drawn up from the 
 science of music, at the desire of four musical performers, 
 
 I 
 
6(3 MUSIC. 
 
 on the harp and crwth, who were unanimous in opinion, 
 and desirous to render song more perfect, to preserve, to 
 play it with correctness, and to elucidate it. The names of 
 these four Doctors were Allon y Cenaw, Rhydderch Voel, 
 Matholwch the Gwyddelian, and Olav the Minstrel ; and 
 the auditors were Henri Gyveurydd, Oarsi the Harper, and 
 many others who assisted by their counsel and their art. 
 And through the advice of these teachers, and the science of 
 the doctor of music, and the four professors with their art, 
 by unanimous consent, the twenty- four musical canons were 
 made, arid to give stability to these, the twenty-four 
 measures were formed. For three causes were they made : 
 in the first place to compose music; secondly, to know 
 music, and thirdly, to preserve it ; and their names follow in 
 the language of Ireland; and Mwrclian the Gwyddelian was 
 a Sovereign in Ireland at that time, who confirmed them at 
 a place called Glynachalch, by all his power and offices, and 
 commanding all to maintain them." 
 
 At that time, Ireland was famed as the seat of learning ; 
 and though it is said that " Cadivor, Abbot of Llanveithin, 
 a wise and learned man, and of great piety, sent six young 
 men who were students with him, to instruct the Irish, 
 A.D. 883," 1 the visit of Sulien, afterwards Bishop of Saint 
 David's, to Ireland, and his having remained there ten years 
 to study, prove Archbishop Usher to have been perfectly 
 correct when he said, that "in the 11th century Ireland 
 was full of pious and learned men." (Moore's Ireland, vol. 
 2, p. 181). Considered in the light thus afforded as to the 
 intellectual state of Ireland, the above statements respecting 
 the part taken by Irish minstrels in organizing the min- 
 strelsy of Wales, become very probable ; and therefore it 
 behoves us to inquire what influence the labours of Gru- 
 ffydd ab Kynan, and the Irish teachers whom he had im- 
 ported, had upon the music of Wales \ This is a disputed 
 point; and therefore we must approach it with becoming- 
 caution , 
 
 1 Price's history of Wales, p. 164, 
 
music. 67 
 
 It was Dr. PowePs opinion that, "these musicians (i.e. the 
 Irish) framed in a manner all the instrumental music now in 
 use among the Welsh ;" while the Eev. Thomas Price most 
 positively denies, that the music of the Welsh is in any 
 way indebted to these Irish teachers. The words "in a 
 manner" are not by any means clear; while the assertion 
 that all the instrumental music of Wales is of Irish origin, 
 is evidently untrue. Mr. Price has discussed the subject 
 fairly, and at much length, in his History of Wales ; but I 
 am as unable to follow him into one extreme as I am un- 
 willing to be led into the other by the weighty name of Dr. 
 Powel. Mr. Price, however, admits that the names of 
 several of the metres are Irish ; and that the framers of our 
 musical code were guided by the principles of the Irish 
 system to some extent in framing their own. I think we 
 ought to admit more than this ; and though concurring 
 with Carnhuanawc in the belief that there was no revolution 
 effected in the musical taste of the Welsh, it appears to me 
 that we are to refer the introduction of the pipes among 
 the Welsh, to the reign of Gruffydd ab Kynan. In the 
 account of the Feast of Oadwgan ab Bleddyn in 1107, 
 we find no mention made of any but stringed instruments ; 
 nor yet in the history of the Eisteddvod held under the 
 auspices of Gruffydd ab Rhys in 11 -35. Up to that date 
 the bagpipes were unknown in South Wales ; but between 
 1135 and 1177 they had made some progress in popular 
 opinion. 
 
 The pipes were coming into use, not instead of the crwth 
 and the harp; but with those instruments; and we find harp- 
 ers, violinists, and pipers invited to the court of the Lord 
 Rhys at the latter date. I am strongly inclined to think 
 that the pipes were first introduced here, at the Oaerwys 
 Eisteddvod ; and I am further of opinion that the " Ysgo- 
 dawg" mentioned by the biographer of Gruffydd ab Kynan, 
 as having won the silver pipe, came not from Scotland, but 
 from Ireland, as a portion of the Irish people were known 
 by the name of Scots in the twelfth century. This appears 
 
(38 music. 
 
 from a poem by bishop Sulien's son, descriptive of his fa- 
 ther's visit to Ireland, — 
 
 "His ista digestis Scotorum visitat arva," 
 
 and from Meilyr's poem already quoted. — 
 
 "Gwytyl dieuvil duon 
 Ysgodogion dynion lletfer." 1 
 
 The pipe was never greatly liked among the Welsh; they 
 treated it with contempt at Caerwys, and the bards always 
 rose their voices against it; and Lewis Grlyn Cothy has left 
 ns an excellent satire upon a piper. The poem occurs at 
 page 389 of his collected works; and has been thus spiritedly 
 translated by Mrs. M. C. Llewelyn, which translation is 
 here given with her kind consent. 
 
 The Saxons of Flint. 
 
 A man, like others, formed by God, 
 On Sunday morning last I trod 
 The streets of Flint ; an ill built maze — 
 I wish the whole were in a blaze ! 
 An English marriage feast was there, 
 Which, like all English feasts, was spare. 
 Nought there revealed our mountain land. 
 The generous heart — the liberal hand — 
 No hirlas there was passed around 
 With richly foaming mead high crowned. 
 The reason why I thither came 
 Was something for my art to claim — 
 An art that oft from prince and lord 
 Had won its just — its due reward. 
 With lips inspired I then began 
 To sing an ode to this mean clan : 
 Rudely they mocked my song and me, 
 And loathed my oft praised minstrelsy. 
 Alas ! that through my cherished art 
 Boors should distress and wound my heart. 
 Fool that I was to think the muse 
 Could charm corn dealers — knavish Jews ; 
 My polished Ode forsooth they hissed, 
 And I midst laughter was dismissed. 
 For William Beisir's bag they bawl, 
 "Largess for him" they loudly squall; 
 
 1 For translation see page 20. 
 
music. 69 
 
 Each roared with throat at widest stretch 
 For Will the piper — low born wretch ! 
 Will forward steps as best he can, 
 Unlike a free ennobled man : 
 A pliant bag 'tween arm and chest, 
 While limping on he tightly prest. 
 He stares — he strives the bag to sound ; 
 He swells his maw — and ogles round ; 
 He twists and turns himself about, 
 With fetid breath his cheeks swell out. 
 What savage boors ! his hideous claws 
 And glutton's skin win their applause ! 
 With shuffling hand and clumsy mien 
 To doff his cloak he next is seen ; 
 He snorted; bridled in his face, 
 And bent it down with much grimace, 
 Like to a kite he seemed that day, 
 A kite, when feathering of his prey ! 
 The churl did blow a grating shriek, 
 The bag did swell, and harshly squeak, 
 As does a goose from nightmare crying, 
 Or dog, crushed by a chest when dying ; 
 This whistling box's changeless note 
 Is forced from turgid veins and throat ; 
 Its sound is like a crane's harsh moan, 
 Or like a gosling's latest groan; 
 Just such a noise a wounded goat 
 Sends from her hoarse and gurgling throat. 
 His unattractive screeching lay 
 Being ended, William sought for pay ; 
 Some/ee.? he had from this mean band, 
 But largess from no noble hand ; 
 Some pence were offered by a few, 
 Others gave little halfpence too. 
 Unheeded by this shabby band 
 I left their feast with empty hand. 
 A dire mischance I wish indeed 
 On slavish Flint and its mean breed, 
 Oh ! may its furnace be the place 
 Which they and piper Will may grace ! 
 For their ill luck my prayer be told, 
 My curses on them young and old ! 
 I ne'er again will venture there, 
 May death all further visits spare I 1 
 
 1 1 have ommitted Tegid's prefatory summary, as the reader will easily get at 
 the facts from the poem; and it is scarcely necessary to state that I do not parti- 
 cipate in the slander cast upon the English; for, not having shared the disappoint- 
 ment of the bard, my temper is unruffled. The furnace alluded to, is one of the 
 furnaces used in smelting lead ore, for which even in the bard's day, Flint was 
 famous. 
 
70 MUSIC. 
 
 The pipe has now disappeared from the land ; and the 
 fact is an admirable proof of an improvement in the musical 
 taste of the people ; for it really is impossible that the bag- 
 pipe could be a favoured instrument, where the clear tones 
 of the harp had once been heard. 
 
 The harp was almost the sole instrument in the tenth cen- 
 tury known to the Welsh ; and after the pipe had lingered 
 here for seven hundred years, the harp and the violin, the 
 modern representative of the crwth, are left in undisputed 
 possession of the popular will. The harp never lost its hold 
 upon the affections of the people, is now the favourite instru- 
 ment, and will probably continue to be so while " the lan- 
 guage of the soul dwells on its strings." That line, in the 
 
 original, — 
 
 " Iaith enaid ar ei thannau," 
 
 occurs in one of the Englynion which competed against 
 the Rev. Walter Davies, and is superior to any single line 
 in his Englyn, though the whole Englyn is inferior to the 
 veteran bard of Mechain's victorious verse, which ran as 
 follows, — 
 
 "Plethiadau tannau tynion — y delyn, 
 
 I'r dilesg veddylion, 
 Odlau saint yw adlais lion, 
 Llais yn vawl llys nevolion." 
 
 But the finest compliment paid to the harp, is to be found 
 in "Marwnad Sion Eos," where the poet admirably ma- 
 nages to compliment both harper and harp at the same 
 time, — 
 
 "Nid oes nac angel na dyn, 
 
 Nad wyl pan ganai delyn." 
 
 Neither angels nor men could refrain from weeping, 
 "When he (John the Nightingale) played the harp. 
 
 But we must revert to the subject of the influence of Irish 
 music. Much stress has been laid upon the language of 
 Giraldus, who being a contemporary writer, a lover of music, 
 and one intimately acquainted with the music of both coun- 
 tries, is looked upon as an authority. On the one part it is 
 
MUSIC. 71 
 
 confidently claimed that he supports Powells assertion, 
 while the defenders of the integrity of Welsh music, deny 
 that any such conclusion can fairly be drawn from his words. 
 The question is therefore one of interpretation, and easy of 
 solution when fairly entertained. His words are these : — 
 
 "Notandum vero, quod Scotia et Gwallia, hasc propagations, 
 ilia commeationis et affinitatis gratia, Hiberniam in modulis, 
 aemula imitari nitantur disciplina." 
 
 Which may be thus translated : — 
 
 "It should be observed notwithstanding, that the Scotch and 
 Welsh, this from being of the same origin, and that from inter- 
 course and relationship, are emulous to imitate the Irish in mu- 
 sical proficiency." 
 
 Now what does this passage signify ? Mr. Price states 
 that we are not justified in understanding it to mean that 
 they imitated the style of the Irish musicians ; but simply 
 that they were emulous to cope with them, in the skilful 
 practise of another style, — i. e. the native music of Wales. 
 Sorry as I am to differ from our national historian, the 
 word imitari seems to me to be positive and conclusive; for 
 at the period of Giraldus's visit, as I have already shown, the 
 pipes were spreading over the land, and the Irish doctors of 
 music had undoubtedly exercised considerable influence upon 
 the music of this country. We must therefore in my opinion 
 concede, that some of the musicians of Wales were imitators 
 of the Irish music ; but it is contrary to all experience, and 
 contrary to an express declaration made by Giraldus in this 
 very Essay on the state of Ireland, that the Welsh had a 
 native music which differed essentially from that of Ireland, 
 to suppose that the whole of a country can be described in 
 such few words, or that these words hold true of all 
 the Welsh musicians. Giraldus's language is just what 
 we might from other facts have expected. Gruffycld ab 
 Kynan, to reform, discipline, and improve the music already 
 existing, imported some teachers of Irish music. These men, 
 teachers of a science which appears to have been very per- 
 
72 music. 
 
 feet, and patronized by a powerful monarch, who was anxi- 
 ous to diffuse his own taste among his subjects, must have 
 had some influence among the Welsh ; and therefore I 
 should have anticipated that many minstrels desirous of the 
 favour of the king would have humoured his prejudices, even if 
 Giraldus had not said that they found imitators in Wales. 
 Many of the Irish then introduced never returned to their 
 own country ; and we have already noticed the Irish extrac- 
 tion of Howel ab Owain, and Cadivor Wyddel, with his 
 seven sons. They would of course be patrons of the pipes; 
 and the prevalence of these towards the close of the twelfth 
 century, and for many centuries afterwards, attests the fact, 
 that the influence of Gruffydd ab Kynan and his hired 
 teachers was by no means insignificant. 
 
 The point at issue seems to me, to be one of degree ; that 
 a taste for the music of Ireland had been introduced among 
 the Welsh appears to be an ascertained and well-authenti- 
 cated fact ; but that it became so prevalent as to displace 
 the native music in popular estimation, is an assertion quite 
 unsupported by evidence. Such a taste was prevalent, but 
 at no time did it displace or even become a formidable rival 
 of the Welsh music; for beyond the circle of Gruffydd's in- 
 fluence it commanded no respect. The bards always derided 
 it; and they are much the best criteria of public taste. 
 The disputants on both sides have omitted the consideration 
 of a fact which would have gone a long way to reconcile 
 them. In the term Wales, there must have been included 
 many districts occupied by persons not Welshmen, such as 
 the Flemings of Glamorgan and Pembroke, the Saxons of 
 the North and of Powys, the Normans, and the Irish, who 
 seemed to have remained in the principality in sufficient 
 numbers to have formed a distinct class. The musical taste 
 of this foreign population, differed essentially from that of 
 the native Cambrians; and the incautious observer might 
 be led to state, that the pipe was popular in Wales, from 
 neglecting to distinguish between the foreign and native in- 
 habitants, the uninformed reader being thereby led to be- 
 
music. 73 
 
 lleve that that instrument was in favour with the Welsh, 
 while in reality it only found admirers in the other part of 
 the population. That this was really the state of the case 
 appears from many passages in the bardic writings. We 
 have seen it exemplified in the case of the Saxons of Flint ; 
 Davydd ab Gwilym brings out this difference of taste with 
 great clearness; when deriding "the leather harp," he says, 
 
 "M luniwyd ei pharawyden, 
 Na'i chreglais ond i Sais lien." 
 
 "Its trunk was not formed, nor its hoarse sound, 
 But for an old Saxon.'''' 
 
 We have here a distinction very carefully drawn, between 
 the musical taste of the two nations; and again, in the same 
 poem he compares its tones to — 
 
 "Sain gwydd gloff, anhoff yn yd, 
 Sonfawr Wyddeles ynfyd." 
 
 " The shrill screech of a lame goose (caught) in corn, 
 Horribly noisy, mad Irishwoman !" 
 
 thereby strongly insisting upon the same point. We there- 
 fore learn that the taste for foreign music still lingered in 
 the land, though the public taste was adverse. The same 
 distinction is made by Lewis Glyn Cothy, in satirizing the 
 bands of itinerant minstrels and monks, who went begging 
 about the land, — 
 
 "By the door would be one with a crazy fiddle, 
 And another dirty chap with a hurdygurdy; 
 And close by one with a pipe, 
 And some carcase with a hautboy. ,"1 
 
 Here these various instruments are held up to ridicule ; 
 but the harp was an honoured instrument never mentioned 
 save in commendation. The real state of the case will now 
 be apparent ; there was a taste for foreign music, but it was 
 
 1 " Wrth y drws, un ai gnvth dnvg, 
 A baw arall a'i berwg; 
 O'r lie bai arall a'i bib, 
 A rhyw abwy a rhibib." 
 
 K 
 
74 music. 
 
 not the taste of the Welsh people ; nor can Giraldus be 
 fairly represented to have said so. He mentions the exis- 
 tence of a native minstrelsy among the Welsh; and we 
 ought not to assume that he either believed or asserted that 
 the taste of a nation can be easily altered, where his words 
 fall short of saying so. 
 
 There are many passages in the writings of Giraldus, and 
 those too written subsequent to his tract on Ireland, clearly 
 showing that the harp was the national instrument of 
 Wales, and leading us to infer that its music was so deeply 
 rooted in the public affection, as to render any attempt to 
 dislodge it, hopeless and impracticable. The remarks hi- 
 therto quoted from Giraldus, were written in 1187; but the 
 reader will be pleased to bear in mind that the following 
 was given to the world in 1204, subsequent to his tour 
 through Wales with archbishop Baldwin, and when he had 
 had sixteen years additional knowledge, information, and 
 experience ; — 
 
 " The strangers, who arrived in the morning, were enter- 
 tained until evening with the conversation of young wo- 
 men, and with the music of the harp; for in this country 
 (Wales) almost every house was provided with both. Hence 
 we may reasonably conclude, that the people were not much 
 inclined to jealousy. Such an influence had the habit of 
 music on their minds, and its fascinating powers, that in 
 every family, or in every tribe, they esteemed skill in play- 
 ing on the harp beyond any kind of learning." 
 
 The fair conclusion to be drawn from these facts is, that 
 Mr. Price enunciates a substantial truth when he asserts 
 the integrity, and national origin of the music of Wales; 
 while there is more foundation in fact for the other view, 
 than his warm patriotism allowed him to admit. 
 
 Having thus spoken of the instruments, it may not be 
 out of place to say a few words on the characteristic features 
 of the music of Wales. Any person in some degree ac- 
 quainted with the history of the English drama, must know 
 how the noble compositions of Shakespeare and his imita- 
 
music. 75 
 
 tors were, for a time, nearly superseded in England by the 
 rhyming tragedies, which were baser imitations of French 
 models. Nearly similar to the temporary eclipse which ob- 
 scured the genuine Shakesperean drama, was that which 
 nearly sent to oblivion the finest cathedral music of the 
 same country ; but happily for England, she can boast that 
 in respect of church music, she possesses as truly as any 
 other country in the world, what may be termed national, 
 or at least, a body of sacred melodies sufficiently character- 
 istic of the genius of her composers, to distinguish them 
 through all time from those of other countries; so may she 
 boast, but not so triumphantly, of her secular music, inas- 
 much as the sea songs, and several of the pastoral lyrics of 
 England, are sung to airs that bear no resemblance to those 
 of any other country, with which she was connected by 
 commerce or scientific intercourse. But during the years 
 in which additions were made to these national melodies, 
 many of the most popular English composers were servile 
 imitators of every thing that was foreign, while such men 
 as Purcell and Lily were forgotten. However, they were 
 forgotten only to be remembered again with deeper grati- 
 tude, and higher exultation ; and such precisely appears 
 to me to have been the fate of the music of Wales, for al- 
 though we possess but few of the most ancient (if they must 
 be recognised by the names given them in the curious 
 MSS. in the Welsh School, London,) 1 we possess very old 
 melodies, which I believe to have been composed at periods, 
 when the Welsh were less inclined to imitate the Irish, than 
 they may be supposed to have been during the reign of 
 Gruffydd ab Kynan, and as different in style and character 
 from the melodies of Ireland, as the cathedral music of 
 England is from that of Scotland. Affected as appears to 
 most men of good taste, the net-work of Welsh alliteration, 
 it cannot be denied, that the finest Welsh airs, viz. — Ar 
 
 1 Cambrian Register, volume I, page 391. 
 
7(3 music. 
 
 hyd y Nos, — Glan meddwdod mwyn, — Morva Rhuddlan, — 
 Y Gadlys, — Codiad yr Hedydd, — Dyfyrwch Gwyr Harlech, 
 &c. are specimens of such simple, pure, and unaffected melody 
 as neither Ireland nor Scotland did ever produce, though in 
 sweetness, tenderness, and voluptuousness the melodies of 
 these two countries may even excel those of Wales. Be that 
 as it may, no one who is capable of comparing the tunes of 
 the three nations, can for a moment doubt that those of 
 Cambria are distinguished by characteristics, so thoroughly 
 distinct from those of Ireland, that it would not be more 
 absurd to believe that our oaks have sprung from hips 
 and haws, than to say that our best airs are of Irish 
 origin. 
 
 It is gratifying to find that eminent English critics have 
 expressed the same opinion, with respect to the essentially 
 distinct character and beauty of Welsh music. Jones, in 
 the Relics of the Welsh Bards, quotes a highly flattering 
 opinion given in its favour by Dr. Armstrong; and I was 
 glad to perceive that so fastidious a critical authority as the 
 Athenaeum, viewed our music in the same light, — " There is 
 the same animation in its music; and though we allow the 
 excellent effect of the Scotch, and the power of the Irish in 
 noting the transitions from rage to despair, and in describ- 
 ing their irritable temperament, we must say of the Welsh 
 music, that there is in it an antique superiority which 
 adorns every thing it approaches. It breathes the spirit 
 of a people yet proud of their former pastimes, who trea- 
 sure up as precious gold the traditions of their forefa- 
 thers, and with that a coldness to strangers, and strange 
 habits: 11 
 
 But in addition to having found favour with the musical 
 authorities of England, it has elicited a response from the 
 public opinion of the musical circles of the metropolis, as 
 appears from tlie following announcement in the Examiner, 
 
 Athenajirai; November 2, 1834. 
 
music. 77 
 
 "• The Welsh air 'Strike the harp,' with its chorus, quite 
 delighted the audience, and cold must thev have been had 
 they not felt its effect." 1 
 
 It is therefore unnecessary to adduce further evidence, of 
 the sweetness, beauty, and sublimity of our national music. 
 
 The characteristics of the Scotch and Irish melodies, are 
 the frequent recurrence of leaps to thirds and fifths, and 
 often fourths and sixths above and below the key note, and 
 the prominence given to those notes; and this appears to 
 have been occasioned by the necessity under which the com- 
 poser felt himself of making the passing discord, with res- 
 pect to the drone-note of the bagpipe, as short as possible. 
 The bass consisting only of one note, made it necessary 
 that certain notes in the melody should be as transitory as 
 they could be made to be ; while on the other hand, the 
 melodies that had basses of many intervals given them, are 
 not distinguished by these faint transitions, but have notes 
 of every length on every interval of the diatonic scale, 
 while in their composition appears no avoidance of a pause 
 on one more than the other. Dr. Franklin was of opinion 
 that the superiority of the Scotch airs, was attributable to 
 this frequent recurrence of the principal notes of the com- 
 mon chords in them, but musicians of the highest eminence 
 in this as well as other European countries, could tell him 
 that the Old Hundredth, God save the King, Luther's 
 Hymn, and many of the best Welsh melodies, yea even 
 those which continue to this day to be admired by English- 
 men as well as Welshmen, are quite destitute of what he 
 deemed so essential to true melody. Although so many 
 of the airs of Ireland have the peculiarities noticed above 
 in common with those of Scotland, the Irish melodies are 
 more commonly in triple time, than either those of Scot- 
 land or Wales; and often have a wildness which is at once 
 sad and seductive. Inasmuch as it cannot be doubted that 
 
 1 Examiner, a London literary newspaper, May 13, 1848. 
 
78 music. 
 
 Ireland once possessed excellent harpers, one cannot help ask- 
 ing where are the tunes that were their favourites? for it 
 cannot be denied that the published tunes of that country 
 are more playful and pastoral in their character, than we 
 can possibly believe the gravest compositions of her harpers 
 to have been. In other words, a country whose harpers 
 were so celebrated should have preserved more of the pieces 
 in which their skill was oftenest displayed. The music of 
 Ireland and Scotland seems to have been composed express- 
 ly for the bagpipes; but that of Wales must have been 
 from its very structure intended for the harp. 
 
 In the twelfth century the inhabitants of Ireland, Scot- 
 land, and Wales seem to have attained to considerable per- 
 fection in the art of musical performance : but the following- 
 very fine descriptive criticism by Giraldus, seems to point 
 to the harp, as the difficulties could not be overcome by 
 any other instrument then in use. His words are these, — - 
 
 "By the sweetness of their musical instruments, they 
 sooth and delight the ear; they are rapid, yet delicate 
 in their modulation ; and by the astonishing execution 
 of their fingers, and their swift transitions from discord 
 to concord, produce the most pleasing harmony. This 
 cannot be better explained than by what I have said in my 
 topography of Ireland, concerning the musical instruments 
 of the three nations. It is remarkable that in all their 
 haste of performance, they never forget time and musical 
 proportion ; and such is their art that with all their inflec- 
 tion of tones, the variety of their instruments, and the in- 
 tricacy of their harmony, they attain perfection of conso- 
 nance and melody, by a sweet velocity, an equable disparity, 
 and a discordant concord; as if the strings sounded together 
 fourths or fifths, they always begin with B flat and after- 
 wards return to it, that the whole may be completed under 
 the sweetness of a grand and pleasing sound. They enter 
 into a movement and conclude in so delicate a manner, and 
 play the little notes so sportively under the blunter sound of the 
 base strings.^ enlivening with a wanton levity, or communkat- 
 
HUD A LLEDRITH. 
 
 79 
 
 ing a deeper internal sensation of pleasure, that the perfection 
 of their art appears in the concealment of it; for — 
 
 Art profits when concealed, 
 Disgraces when revealed. 
 
 From this cause those very strains, which afford deep and 
 unspeakable mental delight to those who have looked far, 
 and skilfully penetrated into the art, fatigue rather than 
 gratify the ears of others, who though they see do not per- 
 ceive, and though they hear do not understand." 1 
 
 It is asserted that the Welsh were acquainted with coun- 
 terpoint prior to Guido's supposed discovery of it, as one of 
 the twenty- four ancient games, in which Welshmen were 
 ambitious to excel, was to sing- a song in four parts with 
 accentuations. (Canu Cywydd pedwar ac acen.) 
 
 SECTION IV. 
 
 Hud a Lledrith, or an Incipient Drama ! 
 
 In the account of the feast given by Gruffydd ab Rhys in 
 1135, there occur these remarkable words, — 
 
 " A chynnal pob chwareuon Hud a Lledrith, a phob arddangos." 
 
 "And there were performed all sorts of plays of illusion and 
 phantasm, and every kind of exhibition." 
 
 I have as yet seen no attempt to explain what is meant 
 by these words; but that others may not be compelled to 
 stumble in the dark as I have done, an attempt will be here 
 made to throw a ray of light upon the subject. It seems to 
 me that these exhibitions were similar to the plays known 
 as masks and mysteries, or the still earlier miracle plays 
 
 1 Quoted in Jones , s Relics of the Welsh Bards, 
 
gQ HUD A LLEDRITH, 
 
 among other nations ; and this opinion is confirmed by the 
 facts, that in the writings of the bards, we find frequent 
 mention of "miragl" in connexions which forbid our suppos- 
 ing they refer to the miracles of Scripture. 
 
 On looking over the history of English literature, we find 
 that plays were instituted in London as early as A.D. 1180. 
 William Fitz- Stephen in his life of archbishop Becket, 
 written between 1170 and 1182, alludes to similar practices 
 among the monks. Matthew Paris, and Bulseus state, (His- 
 toria Universitatis Parisiensis,) that the miracle respecting 
 Saint Catherine was played at Dunstable as early as 1119, 
 and the latter states that there was nothing new in this; 
 while we learn from the " Annales Burtonensis'" that stroll- 
 ing players were common towards the middle of the thir- 
 teenth century. There is therefore nothing improbable in 
 the supposition that the "Hud a Lledrith a phob arddang- 
 os" here mentioned were things of this description; on the 
 contrary there are strong reasons for the belief. The lan- 
 guage of the historian is positive, and "arddangos" cannot be 
 predicated without impropriety of any thing else. Assum- 
 ing therefore this conjecture to be correct ; we shall proceed 
 to enquire how far these displays were founded in nationa- 
 lity. Did they come from the Welsh soil ? Or were they 
 borrowed from the English court I 
 
 There is nothing a priori impossible, in the assumption of 
 a native origin for these exhibitions. Monks covered the 
 surface of Wales as well as England : these miracles orisn- 
 nated among the monks in England, and as the Welsh 
 monks had hitherto shown much more literary activity 
 than the English, as witness Gildas, Nennius, Asserius, 
 Walter Mapes of Oxford, Griraldus, and Geoffrey, why 
 may not these miracles have sprung from them? The dra- 
 ma of the middle ages was a spontaneous product; 1 the 
 classic writings' had been laid aside for many centuries pre- 
 viously, and their study was not revived for centuries after 
 
 1 Muller, Hist, of the Lit. of Ancient Greece, page 287, says it sprang from 
 obscure traditions of antiquity. 
 
HUD A LLEDRITH. 
 
 81 
 
 this date; and therefore these facts, coupled with the exis- 
 tence of a rich dramatic literature among the Hindoos, tend 
 to prove, as A. W. Schlegel, a well known German critic, 
 has stated, that "we are by no means entitled to assume 
 that the invention of the drama was made once for all in the 
 world, to be afterwards borrowed by one people from an- 
 other.'" On the contrary, as that able writer very clearly 
 shows, " The invention of dramatic art, and of the theatre, 
 seems a very obvious and natural one. Man has a great 
 disposition to mimicry; when he enters vividly into the 
 situation, sentiments, and passions of others,, he involunta- 
 rily puts on a semblance to them in his gestures. Children 
 are perpetually going out of themselves ; it is one of their 
 chief amusements to represent" grown people whom they 
 have had an opportunity of observing, or whatever strikes 
 their fancy; and with the happy pliancy of their imagina- 
 tion, they can exhibit all the characteristics of any dignity 
 they may choose to assume, be it that of a father, a school- 
 master, or a king. But one step more was requisite for the 
 invention of the drama, namely, to separate and extract the 
 mimetic element from the separate parts of social life, and 
 to present them to itself again collectively in one mass; yet 
 in many nations it has not been taken." 1 Among both the 
 English and Welsh in the twelfth century the step was 
 taken; was it spontaneous in both, or did one borrow from 
 the other? 
 
 The Welsh princes had frequent intercourse with the 
 English Court, and there can be no doubt adopted some of 
 its manners ; but I confess myself inclined to believe that 
 at this period Wales had an incipient drama belonging to 
 itself. It is admitted, by the best critics of the day, that 
 Europe owes its romantic literature to the Welsh and 
 Bretons, why not the romantic drama? and particularly as 
 such dramatic remains as we have are exclusively romantic ? 
 The Mabinogion are full of dialogues ; it required no great 
 
 1 Dramatic Literature, Lecture ii. 
 L 
 
g2 HUD A LLEDRITH. 
 
 stretch of fancy to get similar dialogues put into the 
 mouths of living speakers. In every other department of 
 literature, the Welsh were in advance, and greatly too, 
 of their neighbours ; whence arises the difficulty of con- 
 ceiving that a people who could invent for themselves Ro- 
 mances, and Tales, could also imagine the possibility of 
 spoken dialogue? But, however we may decide this ques- 
 tion, it is certain that dialogues could only have originated 
 under such circumstances, and that we have such dialogues 
 among our literary remains ; and the fact that they are 
 not translations, but original compositions, goes a long 
 way to prove my view of the origin among us of a national 
 drama, or at all events of what would, with proper care, have 
 become so. If, on the contrary, the reader inclines to believe 
 the idea of representation before audiences, borrowed, he will 
 readily admit that in intellectual entertainments, the Welsh 
 Princes were not behind the Monarchs of England. 
 
 Written dialogue seems to indicate the existence of a 
 drama of some sort, and the fact that among the Welsh 
 remains there were several dialogues of undoubted antiquity 
 has always appeared to me inexplicable on any other hy- 
 pothesis. Those we have are very simple, and certainly 
 indicate a very rudimental state of the supposed drama ; 
 but I have not been able to ascertain whether in the libra- 
 ries of our old families, there may not be more of them, and 
 of a superior character. However, such as they are, they 
 are now presented to the reader. The first specimen shall 
 be the dialogue between Arthur the King, in his youth, 
 and his second wife Gwenhwyvar, who was a girl educated 
 by Melwas, King of Scotland. 1 
 
 ARTHUR. 
 
 Black is my steed, and bears me well, 
 Nor will be the water shun ; 
 And for no man will he retreat ! 
 
 Arthur. 
 1 Du yw fy march, a da clana 
 Ac er dwr nid arswyda ; 
 A rhag im gwr ni chilia, 
 
HUD A LLEDRITH. g3 
 
 GWENHWYVAR. 
 
 Green is my steed, of nature's hue, 
 May the boaster always be despised 
 He only is a man who makes good his Avord ! 
 Who will ride, and will be firm ? 
 Who will march in the front of battle ? 
 None but a hero can overcome Cai the tall, 
 the son of Sevin. 
 
 ARTHUR. 
 
 I will ride, and I will be firm, and will 
 
 March with speed along the bank of the ebbing tide ; 
 
 I am the man who will overcome Cai. 
 
 GWENHWYVAR. 
 
 Hold, youth ! It is strange to hear thee ; 
 
 Unless thou art more than thy appearance, 
 
 Thou couldst not overcome Cai with a hundred in thy train. 
 
 ARTHUR- 
 
 Gwenhwy var of beauteous look, 
 Deride me not, though small I seem ; 
 I would myself a hundred take ! 
 
 GWENHWYVAR. 
 
 Ha ! thou youth in black and yellow garb ! 
 From having steadfastly viewed thy form, 
 Methinks I have seen thee before. 
 
 GWENHWYFAR. 
 
 Glas yw fy march o liw dail ; 
 
 Llwyr ddirmygid mefl mawr air, 
 
 Nid gwr ond a gywiro ei air. 
 
 Pwy a ferchyg ac a saif ? 
 
 Ac a gerdd ymlaen y drill ? 
 
 Ni ddeil ond gwr e, Cai hir ab Sefin. 
 
 Arthur. 
 Myfi a ferchyg ac a sai 
 Ac a gerdda yn drwm geulan trai, 
 Myfi y gwr a ddaliai Gai, 
 
 GWENHWYVAR. 
 
 Dyd was ! rhyfedd yw dy glywed, 
 Onid nyd amgen no'th weled 
 Ne ddelit ti Gai ar dy ganfed. 
 
 Arthur. 
 
 Gwenhwyvar olwg eirian, 
 
 Na ddifrawd fi cyd bwyf bychan, 
 
 Mi a ddaliwn gant fy hunan. 
 
 Gwenhwyvar. 
 
 Dyd was ! a du a melyn. 
 Wrth hir edrych dy dremyn ; 
 Tybias dy weled cyn no hyn, 
 
§4 HUD A LLEDRITH. 
 
 ARTHUR. 
 
 Gwenhwyvar, with sweet looks of mildness, 
 Inform me if thou knowest, 
 Where didst thou see me before ? 
 
 GWENHWYVAR. 
 
 I saw a man of moderate stature, 
 
 At the long table of Kelliwig, in Devonshire, 
 
 Distributing his wine to his friends around him. 
 
 ARTHUR. 
 
 Gwenhwyvar, charming in discourse, 
 From woman's lips we look for idle talk, 
 There truly thou hast seen me. 
 
 Here there is very clearly implied, an audience to relish 
 
 the moralizing at the commencement ; and it is difficult to 
 
 conceive any other motive for the composition of the 
 
 dialogue, than an intended personation. The following is of 
 
 a different character : — x 
 
 Question. — Who is the Porter ? 
 
 Answer. — Glewlwyd Gavaelvawr. 
 
 Question. — Who is it that asks ? 
 
 Answer. — Arthur and the blessed Cai. 
 
 Glewlwyd. — If thou shouldst bring with thee 
 The best wine in the world, 
 Into my house thou shalt not come, 
 Unless it be by force, &c. 
 
 Arthur. 
 
 Gwenhwyfar olwg wrthroch ; 
 
 Doedwch i mi os gwyddoch, 
 
 Yn mhale, cyn hyn ym gwelsoch ? 
 
 GWENHWTVAR. 
 
 Mi welais wr graddol o faint 
 
 Ar fwrdd hir Celliwig yn Dyfnaint 
 
 Yr rhannu gwin iw geraint 
 
 Arthur. 
 
 Gwenhwyvar, barabl digri, 
 Gnawd o ben gwraig air gwegi, 
 Yno y gwelaist ti fi. 
 
 1 Pagwr yw y Porthawr I 
 Glewlwyd Gavaelvawr, 
 Pagwr ai govin ? 
 Arthur a chai gwyn 
 Pa indda genhit 
 Gwin goreu im bid 
 Yn ty ny ddoi 
 Onis gwaredy, &c s 
 
HUD A LLEDRITH. g£ 
 
 There is a very pretty play on the word "gwin" in the 
 original. When Arthur says it is, " Arthur a Chai gwyn,"" 
 Glewlwyd affects to believe that he had said, " Oai gwin," 
 or " Cai of the wine," instead of "the blessed Cai." 
 
 Mr. Davies endeavours to show, in his ingenious and 
 learned work, that there are references to Druidic worship 
 here ; and the reader will form his own judgment as to the 
 comparative merit of our widely different explanations. 
 The dialogue between Gwalchmai and Trvstan, in the 
 presence of Arthur, shows a still further stage of develop- 
 ment. Of a still different character is the following dia- 
 logue between Llewelyn and Gwrnerth, two Powysian 
 saints : — 1 
 
 LLEWELYN. ■ 
 
 Mountain snow, wind about hedges, 
 The Creator of Heaven is my strength ; 
 Does Gwrnerth sleep ? 
 
 GWRNERTH. 
 
 Mountain snow, God is greatest, 
 
 And to him I will pray, 
 
 I am not sleeping, I cannot sleep. 
 
 LLEWELYN. 
 
 Mountain snow, wind about the house, 
 
 As you speak so, 
 
 What, Gwrnerth, makes you look so ? 
 
 GWRNERTH. 
 
 Mountain snow, wind in the south, 
 I speak important words, 
 I think it is death, &c. 
 
 Llywelyn. 
 1 Eiry mynydd, guynt am berth, 
 Cany ereawdyr net' am nerth 
 Ai cysgu a wna Gwrnerth, 
 
 Gwknerth. 
 Eiry mynydd, Duw yn bennaf, 
 Canys attaw gweddiaf, 
 Nac ef, cysgu ni allaf. 
 
 Llywelyn. 
 Eiry mynyd guynt am ty 
 Kanys llevery velly 
 Beth Urnerth a wna hynny. 
 
 GWRNEETH. 
 
 Eiry mynyd guynt decheu 
 Kanys traethaf prif eiryeu 
 Tebekaf yu mae agheu. 
 
QQ HUD A LLEDRITH. 
 
 The original of the next specimen, is older than any 
 of the preceding, and purports to be a dialogue between 
 Taliesin and Myrddin ; but we know not the author or 
 authors of any of these. According to Mr. Davies, 
 Myrddin, in this dialogue, deplores the persecution of the 
 Druids : I adopt his translation. 1 
 
 MYRDDIN. 
 
 How great my sorrow ! how woful 
 Has been the treatment of Kedwy and the boat ! 
 Unanimous was the assault with gleaming swords, 
 From the piercing conflict, one shield escaped, 
 Alas, how deplorable. 
 
 TALIESIN. 
 
 It was Maelgwn whom I saw, with piercing weapons before 
 the master of the fair herd, his household will not be silent. 
 
 MYRDDIN. 
 
 Before the two personages, they had in the celestial circle, 
 before the passing form, and the fixed form, over the pale white 
 boundary. The grey stones they actually remove. Soon 
 is Elgan and his retinue discovered, for his slaughter, alas, how 
 great the vengeance that ensued ! 
 
 TALIESIN. 
 
 Thou that rushest forth, with one tooth (thou boar) thy shield 
 has overwhelmed. To thee, complete liberality had been exten- 
 ded. Excessively is the slaughter of Kyndur deplored. Slain 
 are three men who were liberal in their lives, even three eminent 
 men, highly esteemed by Elgan. 
 
 Myrddin. 
 
 1 Mor truan genhyf, mor truan 
 A dery am kedwy a chavan ! 
 Oedd llachar kyvlavar cyvlavan, 
 Oedd yscuid o Tryvrwyd, o truan ! 
 
 Taliesin. 
 Oed Maelgwn a welwn, yn ymwan, 
 Y deulu, racter y vulu, ni thawan. 
 
 Merddin. 
 Rac deuwr, yn nentur, y tiran, 
 Rac Errith a Churrith, y ar welugan 
 Meinwineu, yn ddiheu, a ddygan, 
 Moch gweler y niver gan Elgan, 
 Ock, oe laitk, mawr ateitli y deuthan ! 
 
 Taliesin. 
 Rys undant, oedd rychuant y tarian, 
 Hyd attad y daeth rhad cyflawn, 
 Lias Cyndur, tra messur, y cwynan, 
 Llaes baelon o ddynon, tia fuan 
 Trywyr nod, mawr eu clod, gan Elgan. 
 
HUD A LLEDRITH. §7 
 
 MYRDDIN. 
 
 Through and through, wide and pointed, they came advancing 
 and surrounding the only wise Bran, the son of Elgan. Dywal 
 the son of Erbin, with his retinue did they slaughter, in their 
 last assault. 
 
 TALIESIN. 
 
 The host of Maelgwn, exulting, advanced ; and severely did the 
 embattled warriors pierce in the bloody inclosnre. Even the 
 battle of Arysderydd, which is at hand, with the utmost energy 
 will they prepare. 
 
 MYRDDIN. 
 
 A host of flying darts, in the bloody plain, prepare the banquet 
 of gore. A host of warriors destroy the tottering Sidan. Many a 
 festive horn is broken ; many a horn bearer is put to flight, whilst 
 the host is forcing them back to promiscuous slaughter. 
 
 TALIESIN. 
 
 The seven sons of Eliffer, seven heroes, when put to the test, 
 shun not the seven spears, in their seven stations. 
 
 MYRDDIN. 
 
 Seven blazing fires will counteract seven battles, the seventh is 
 Kynvelyn, in the front of every mount. 
 
 Myrddin-. 
 Trwy a thrwi, vug a rug, y daethan, 
 Traw a thraw, undoeth Bran a Melgan, 
 Llad Dyvel, oe diwed cyflafan, 
 Ab Erbin, ae werin, a wnaethan, 
 
 TALIESIN. 
 
 Liu Maelgwn, bu yscwn y daethan : 
 Aerwyr cad, trybelidiad, gwaedlan, 
 Neu gwaith Arysderydd, 
 Pan fydd, y deunydd, 
 O hyd y wychydd, 
 
 Ydarparan. 
 Myrddin. 
 Lliaws peleidrad, gwaedlad gwaedlan, 
 Lliaws aerwyr bryw breuawl Sidan. 
 Lliaws ban briwher ; 
 Lliaws ban foher, 
 Lliaws eu hymchwel, 
 
 Yn eu hymwau, 
 
 TALIESIN. 
 
 Seith meib Eliffer, 
 Seith gwyr, ban broffer, 
 Seith gwayw ni ochel, 
 
 Yn ei Seithran. 
 Myrddin. 
 Seith tan ufelin 
 Seith cad cyferbin, 
 Seithfed Cynfelin, 
 
 Y pob einhvan, 
 
gg HUD A LLEDRITH. 
 
 TALIESIN. 
 
 Seven piercing spears shall fill seven rivers, with the blood of 
 leading heroes shall they fill them. 
 
 MYRDDYN. 
 
 Seven score liberal heroes are now become wandering spirits ; 
 in the forest of Caledonia they met their fate. 
 
 Since I, Merddin, am next after Taliesin, let my prophecy be 
 received in common with his. 
 
 We shall have occasion again to refer to the last verse, 
 and therefore the reader will be pleased to bear it in mind, 
 when we come to speak of the " Avallenau." 
 
 Quite as old as the preceding, i.e. as old as the 12th or 
 13th centuries, is another dialogue, between Ugnach, the 
 son of Mydno, of Oaer Seon, and Taliesin, of Caer Degan- 
 wy." All are metrical in the original. 1 
 
 TALIE9IN. 
 
 knight, who approachest the city with white dogs, and large 
 horns, I know thee not : to my eyes thou art not familiar. 
 
 UGNACH. 
 
 Thou knight, who repairest to the river's mouth, on a stout 
 warlike steed, come with me ; I take no denial. 
 
 Taliesin. 
 Seith gwaew gowanon 
 Seith loneid afon 
 
 gwaed Cinreinon, 
 
 Y dylanvvan. 
 
 Myrddin 
 Seith ugein liaelon 
 A aetban yg wllon ; 
 Ynghoed Celyddon, 
 
 Y darfuan 
 
 Canys mi Myrtin, 
 Gwedi Taliesin, 
 Bythawd cyffredin 
 
 Fy darogan. 
 
 Taliesin. 
 
 1 Marchawc, a gircb y Dinas, 
 Ae con gwinion, ae cirn bras 
 Nyth adwaen : ni rythwelas. 
 
 Ugnach. 
 Marcbawc, a circh i'r Aber, 
 Yar march cadarn, cadfer, 
 Dabre genhiw, nim gwatter. 
 
HUD A LLEDRITH. gg 
 
 TALIESIN- 
 
 At present that is not my road, abstain from an injurious act, 
 for the blessing of heaven and earth. 
 
 UGNACH. 
 
 thou who hast not often seen me, thou who resemblest one 
 of the initiated, how long wilt thou absent thyself, and when 
 wilt thou come? 
 
 TALIESIN. 
 
 "When I return from Caer Seon, from contending with Jews, 
 I will come to the city of Leu and Gwydion. 
 
 UGNACH. 
 
 Come with me into the city, thou shalt have mead which I have 
 prepared, thou with pure gold upon thy clasp. 
 
 TALIESIN. 
 
 1 know riot the confident man, with his meads under his couch 
 — fair and courteous are thy words. 
 
 UGNACH. 
 
 Come with me to my dwelling, and thou shalt have wine that 
 briskly sparkles. Ugnach is my name the son of Mydno. 
 
 TALIESIN. 
 
 Mi nid aw ina in awr : 
 Gollew gweith y godriccawr, 
 Elhid bendith nev a llawr ! 
 Ugnach. 
 
 Y gwr nim gwelas beunit, 
 
 Y tebic i gur deduit 
 
 Ba hyd ei dy, a phan delit ? 
 
 Taliesin. 
 
 Ban deuaw o Caer Seon, 
 
 imlat ac itewon, 
 
 1 tan Caer Leu a Gwydion. 
 
 Ugnach. 
 
 Dabrede genhiw i"r Dinas, 
 A thuit met ara phellas 
 Ac eur coeth, ar di wanas. 
 
 Taliesin. 
 Mi nid adwen y gur hy, 
 A meteu tan y gweli, 
 Tee a chwec y dywedi 
 
 Ugnach. 
 Debre genhiw im tino 
 A thuit gwin gorosgelho. 
 Ugnach yw fy heno, mab Mydno. 
 
 M 
 
90 HUD A LLEDRITH. 
 
 TALIESIN. 
 
 Ugnach, a blessing attend thy throne, thou teacher of liberality 
 and honour ! I am Taliesin, who will repay thy banquet. 
 
 UGNACH. 
 
 Taliesin, chief of men, thou victor in the contention of song, 
 remain here till Wednesday. 
 
 TALIESIN. 
 
 Ugnach, the most affluent in riches, on thee may the supreme 
 Ruler bestow his bounty ! I merit not the booth. I may not 
 stay. 
 
 There are several other dialogues among the Welsh, be- 
 tween Myrddin and Ysgolan, between Myrddin and his 
 sister, between Arthur and Trystan, and between Arthur 
 and Madoc ab Uthr. 
 
 But whatever we might consider the object of these dia- 
 logues to have been, the frequent occurrence of the word 
 "Miragl" in the writings of the bards, very clearly shows 
 that dramatic exhibitions were in existence among the 
 Welsh. Of this we have positive proof in an old Welsh 
 poem, addressed to some Sir Walter, vicar of Bryn Buga, 
 (Usk) to which is appended the following explanation, — 
 " Composed by Meredydd ab Rhosser, to the miracle per- 
 formed by Sir Walter, at Bryn Buga, (Usk) which miracle 
 is in Welsh called Hud a Lledrith." We are told by Mr. 
 Taliesin Williams, that among his fathers papers is the fol- 
 lowing entry, — " In many manuscript tracts on musicians 
 and minstrels, or reciters, Ohware Hud a Lledrith, is ex- 
 pressly said to be the same thing as anterluwt (interludes.)" 
 
 Ugnach, bendith ith orset, 
 
 Athrod rad ac enrydet ! 
 
 Taliesin viw inheu, talaw iti dy gulet. 
 
 Ugnach. 
 Taliesin, penhav or gwir 
 Beitat yng kort kyvrgir, 
 Trie yma hyd dyw Merchir. 
 
 Taliesin. 
 Ugnach, moihav y alaw, 
 Ath ro rad y gulad penhaw ; 
 Ni liaetaw Kabit, ny thrigiaw. 
 
HUD A LLEDRITH. 
 
 91 
 
 The "miragl" was a step in advance of these; and we are 
 informed on the same authority, that the "poem above allud- 
 ed to displays a considerable degree of imaginative energy; 
 blended however throughout with strong superstition. Sir 
 Walter's miracle consisted, according to this poem, in the 
 exercise of that degree of extreme magic, which ultimately 
 reduced the prince of darkness himself to strict bondage. 
 The rampancy of the evil spirit, who it is said had most in- 
 veterately laid siege to the town and neighbourhood, and 
 the awful spells practised by Sir Walter, to counteract his 
 operations, are mentioned in the poem with fear and trem- 
 bling." 1 A few extracts will show more clearly the nature of 
 this composition. The poet asks, — 
 
 Who of virtuous conduct, 
 
 By strength of learning, can bind the devil? 2 
 
 and Sir Walter replies, — 
 
 What an exertion of gift ! to exhibit a miracle ! 
 Ten thousand crimes, and their causes, all in flames . 
 Have I seen through its means; and to the very bottom, 
 The circle of the depravities and error that exist ; 
 And also their fate. Woe betide the knowledge. 3 
 
 The poet in wonder remarks, — 
 
 Fully manifested to my view appeared, 
 The intuitive genius of devils. 4 
 
 Ab Iolo gives it as his opinion, that the plays of Hud and 
 Lledrith, " were Dramatic Representations, rather in imita- 
 tion of the Roman Dramas, that must have been familiar 
 to the Britons ;" and should this conjecture turn out to be 
 
 1 Williams's Colyn Dolpbyn, page 126. 
 
 2 " Pwy, wrth fuchedd rinweddol, 
 O rym Dysg, a rwyrn y Diawl?"' 
 
 3 " Dawngais mawr, dangos miragl ; 
 Drygau myrdd, a'u flyrdd yn ffagl? 
 Gwelais yn hem. i*r gwaelod, 
 Gylch drygau beiau sy'n bod; 
 A'u diwedd. Gwae ! o'u deall." 
 
 4 "Amhvg i"m golwg fe gaid 
 Athrylitb y Cytbreuliaid." 
 
92 HU]D A LLEDRITH. 
 
 founded in truth, we shall have discovered a link of connex- 
 ion between modern and ancient Europe, hitherto unsus- 
 pected. 
 
 In the meantime, we shall be content with having shown 
 the strong probability of our having had in the twelfth cen- 
 tury, such miracle plays as were known to other nations. 
 Compared with contemporaneous princes, the Welsh kings 
 were intellectually superior, the country was more civilized, 
 their literature abundant, and their bards in high estima- 
 tion ; may we not therefore conclude that Hud a Lledrith a 
 phob arddangos are striking proofs of their being as far ad- 
 vanced in the appreciation of dramatic displays, as were 
 their most intelligent neighbours. The miracle plays of 
 England have been published, and ably edited by Hone and 
 others ; and possibly there may be compositions of this 
 class still lingering in the libraries of Wales. The Comus 
 of Milton, is a well known mask, or a drama in a much 
 higher stage of development. 
 
 Since the above was wrtten, the Iolo MSS. have been 
 published ; and in that volume, I find the terms Hud a 
 Lledrith thus explained, on the authority of Ieuan Vawr ap 
 y Diwlith's treatise on the Welsh metres, which according 
 to Mr. Edward Willams must have been written about 
 A.D. 1180. "Hud a Lledrith, (Illusion and phantasm) a 
 poetical composition, in which a number of persons, assum- 
 ing characters different, with regard to rights, grades, and 
 condition, from those which really belong to them, carry on 
 contentions and consultations, is called a poem of Illusion 
 and Phantasm. In such representations, persons, under 
 disguise, dispute with each other, either for or against the 
 subject submitted to their consideration; so as to develope 
 its just and unjust, — its cheering and its disconsolate ten- 
 encies, with regard either to chance, congeniality, and ne- 
 cessity, — or their opposites; so as eventually to confer 
 honour and reward on virtue, and reflect disgrace, loss, and 
 punishment on vice ; and thus to portray the misery of all 
 persons of evil habits, actions, and dispositions, — and the 
 
HUD A LLEDRITH. 
 
 93 
 
 prosperity of the good. A poem of this description, is car- 
 ried on by question and answer ; for and against ; for and 
 for ; opposition and co-opposition ; that the subject or event 
 under discussion, may appear in its true form and semblance; 
 and that the persons attracted thereby, may, from first to 
 last, perceive things in their real characters, and be led to 
 acknowledge that the whole of the disguised representation 
 tended to unfold the truth. For these reasons compositions 
 of this sort were variously called poems, plays, and argu- 
 ments of Illusion and Phantasm, in older times ; but now 
 the place of performance, including the actors, is called, — 
 the Hillock of Illusion and Phantasm, and the representa- 
 tion, — a Play of Miracles." 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 Bards and Bardism. 
 
 In going through the preceding pages, the reader cannot 
 fail to have noticed the striking difference which exists be- 
 tween the position of the poets of the past, and those of the 
 present time. Now the patronage of kings, lords, and com- 
 mons sinks into insignificance by the side of public approba- 
 tion ; then the nobles were the chief patrons of literature, 
 and the stern castle was the seat of poesy. Now, the ex- 
 alted by birth are frequently outstripped in the race of intel- 
 ligence; then, they led the way. Now, the popular author 
 may laugh to scorn the frowns of the great; then, the poet 
 was an appendage to the lord of a small domain. Strange 
 things have taken place in the interval; but all tend to the 
 same point; the substitution of intelligence and moral worth 
 for rank and wealth, in public estimation. This is the 
 strange eventful phenomenon which future years will more 
 fully develope : .the history of authorship in modern Europe 
 begins with the bards. By and bye, when the author, as such, 
 takes a firmer hold of public regard, the history of the class 
 will become more and more interesting ; and the bards, — the 
 pioneers of intellectual dominion, will I trust become objects 
 
BARDS AND BARDISM. 95 
 
 of profound interest and respect. In order therefore to faci- . 
 litate in some measure the development of auctorial histo- 
 ry, I shall detain my reader for a little time, and turn his 
 attention from the work to the worker, from bardism to the 
 bard. 
 
 The respect shown to men of letters is a fair test of civi- 
 lization. In Sparta, where "Captain Sword 11 was high in 
 the ascendant, it was accounted unworthy of a freeman to 
 learn a mechanical art — the helots or slaves being the arti- 
 zans; and at a much later date in the history of the w r orld^ 
 the same feeling prevailed, and may to some extent be said 
 to prevail even at the present day. We can therefore credit 
 the statement, that Sir Walter Scott enunciated a striking- 
 historical truth, when he put in the mouth of Douglas 
 these lines, — 
 
 " A letter forged ! Saint Jude to speed, 
 Did ever knight so foul a deed ! 
 At first in heart it liked me ill 
 When the king praised his clerkly skill. 
 Thanks to Saint Bothan, son of mine, 
 Save Gawain, ne'er could pen a line, 
 So swore I, and so swear I still, 
 Let my boy bishop fret his fill." 
 
 In Wales a better spirit seems to have prevailed ; and in 
 direct contrast, it was here penal for a slaw to assume the 
 profession of a scholar, a smith, or a bard. This respect for 
 artizans enforced by the laws of Wales, was also a popular 
 sentiment which has found a prominent place in the lighter 
 literature of the country. In the Mabinogi of Kilhwch and 
 Olwen, 11 the hero knocking at the gate of Arthur's palace, 
 bids the porter, "Open the portal." " I will not," replies 
 Glewlwyd Gavaelvawr. " Wherefore not?" " The knife is in 
 the meat, and the drink is in the horn, and there is revelry 
 in Arthur's hall ; and none may enter therein but the son of 
 a king of a privileged country, or a Craftsman bringing his 
 Craft" And we find it was reduced to practice in com- 
 mon life, for Howel ab Owain, when his person was in dan- 
 ger, relies upon this sentiment for protection, — 
 
96 
 
 BARDS AND BARDISM. 
 
 "As long as I am courteous and travel as a craftsman, 
 God will watch over my destiny." 1 
 
 From the same laws we learn that the hard was in repute at 
 the king's court, and ranked next to the judge in the royal hall. 
 We have seen that from a very early period, the bards were 
 much respected, and at the time of which this Essay treats, it 
 would appear that they were numerous. It is certain the 
 profession was considered reputable, for we find king Gru- 
 ffydd ab Kynan- framing laws for the government of the 
 poets, and among them we find many influential names. 
 Meilyr mentions his having been sent on important mis- 
 sions; and both Meilyr and Kynddelw speak of their having 
 figured among the warriors and chieftains of the various 
 provinces. Howel ab Owain, and Owain Kyveiliog, shed 
 lustre on the profession ; and bardism must have been of 
 importance, when princes thought the art worthy of their 
 ambition. If additional names were wanting to prove this 
 position, we might cite the case of Iolo Goch and Rhys 
 Goch o Eryri, two able and accomplished bards; and men 
 who though independent, thought it not unbecoming 
 in them to shine among the bards of Owain Glyndwr. By 
 the Laws of Howel the Good it was the duty of the bard to 
 sing the national anthem on going forth to battle, for which 
 service he was to have an extra share of the spoil which 
 might be taken ; and perhaps Gwalchmai and Kynddelw 
 were present at the engagements they mention, in discharge 
 of this professional duty. These facts show that the poet 
 was a man of note ; the respect shown to the professors of 
 bardism, indicates worth in the bards and refinement among 
 the ruling powers ; and this exalted appreciation of the im- 
 portance of The Author s civilizing mission, reflects infinite 
 credit on the character of the ancient Welsh. 
 
 The domestic Bard had the care of the historical docu- 
 ments pertaining to the tribe and its chief, and was the 
 
 See page 35. 
 
BARDS AND BARDISM. 
 
 97 
 
 historiographer of his patron, as well as his laureate. It 
 also very frequently happened that the Bard was the 
 teacher of the Chieftains' children, in fact this was one of 
 the Bard's duties ; and the reader will at once bring to 
 mind the unfortunate attachment of the bard Davydd ab 
 G-wilym, for Morvydd the daughter of Ivor Hael, who had 
 imprudently honoured the bard, by entrusting to him the 
 education of his heiress. This relationship will account for 
 the more than friendly feeling which frequently connected 
 the bards with the young chieftains, and is so frequently 
 shown by the occurrence of poems addressed to young prin- 
 ces, who would not have been otherwise known to posterity. 
 Kynddelw was warmly attached to the young prince Howel 
 ab Owain ; and Llywarch ab Llywelyn has several poems 
 addressed to Prince Rodri, another of the sons of Owain 
 Gwynedd. We have already quoted the verses of Llywarch 
 Llew Cad, to his patron Llywelyn ab Madoc ; and we find 
 again that that gallant young chieftain has elicited the 
 approbation of the old bard Kynddelw, by an act of liber- 
 ality, indicating at the same time the generosity of Lly- 
 welyn, and the respect generally entertained for the bardic 
 profession. Happening to be hunting one day, Llywelyn 
 ordered his huntsman to give Kynddelw a stag which they 
 had slain close by the poet's house ; in gratitude for which 
 he sang the praises of the Chieftain's horn. 
 
 The bards, besides being the teachers of the young 
 princes, were also their companions. Llywarch ab Llewelyn 
 gives an account of a quarrel between the sons of Owain 
 Gwynedd of which there would seem to have been no other 
 witness ; and Philip Brydydd in his remonstrance to his 
 patron Rhys Gryg, says, — 
 
 Hate me not, be patient— passionate chief, refrain 
 
 Rhys of Rhos and Eppynt ; 
 I have been thy bard, and many know it, 
 And a hundred times thy companion formerly . 
 
 At the court of Masaleg, 
 
 " Bounteous Ivor made the Bard, 
 Steward o'er his wealth to guard ;" 
 
 N 
 
9g BARDS AND BARDISM. 
 
 and further, that chieftain seems to have given Davydd 
 many other privileges, which are recorded in verse, strikingly 
 illustrative of the manners of the times, — 
 
 " Honours great for me are stored 
 
 (If I live) from Ivor's hand, 
 
 Hound and huntsman at command, 
 
 Daily banquet at his board, 
 
 Princely baron ! at the game 
 
 "With his piercing shafts to aim ; 
 
 And to let his falcons fly 
 
 On the breezes of the sky. 
 
 Every melody that rings 
 
 From the harp's sweet treble strings, 
 
 Every ' solo' that is sung, 
 
 His Maesaleg's halls among, 
 
 Dice and draughts, and every sport 
 
 Of Maesaleg's joyous court, 
 
 Will the host who governs there, 
 
 Freely with the poet share." 1 — Johnes. 
 
 But great as were these honours, Lewis Grlyn Cothy con- 
 tends that still greater were shown to himself. 
 
 In the earlier stages of Bardism there was an evident and 
 close connexion, between the poems of which some have 
 come down to us, and the feasts of princes, and chieftains. 
 A very large majority of the poems which have been passed 
 in review for the first three chapters of this Essay, are 
 panegyrics upon living chieftains, and the remainder except- 
 ing religious poems, a few love songs, and a single satire, 
 are elegies upon those who had died. The first class were 
 evidently calculated to produce effect, and were therefore in 
 all probability recited at the public feasts. We should easily 
 have arrived at this conclusion from the difficulty of assign- 
 ing any other origin to these poems, had we no other data 
 to guide us in forming an opinion than the express enact- 
 
 1 Mawr anrbydedd am deddyw 
 Mi a gaf, o byddaf byw, 
 Hel a chwn, nid haelach ior 
 Ac yfed gydag Ifor. 
 Saethu ei geirw saethynt, 
 A bwrw ei weilch i'r wybr wynt ; 
 A eherddau cildannau'n deg 
 A solos ym Maesaleg, 
 Chwarau ffristial a thawlbwrdd, 
 Yn un gyfiwr a'rgwr gwrdd. — D. ab Gwilym 
 
BARDS AND BARDISM. 99 
 
 ments in the laws of Howelthe Good (see p. 21) ; but when 
 in addition we have the direct testimony of an eye-witness, 
 there need be no doubt as to the correctness of the conclu- 
 sion. The words of Giraldus are clear and specific, — " One 
 day when Llewelyn prince of Gwynedd held a full court, 
 there came forward before all, at the conclusion of the 
 dinner, a certain man of fluent speech, such as those who 
 in the British language are called bards, of whom Lucan 
 says, 
 
 The bards poured forth many songs. 1 " 
 
 On the same authority we learn, that there were written 
 records among the Welsh as well as historical singing. 
 When at a meeting of the British Princes, for the purpose 
 of supporting Giraldus's ecclesiastical claims to the Bishopric 
 of St. David's, Gwenwynwyn Prince of Powys spoke strongly 
 in favour of Giraldus' s long struggle against king John, and 
 said of his exertions in favour of the independence of the 
 see of St. David's, that " as long as Wales shall stand, 
 this noble deed will be transmitted with deserved praises 
 and applauses by historical writings, and by the mouths of 
 those singing.'" 2 
 
 The elegies were, we may readily infer, composed at the 
 request of the surviving relations ; and the only bards who 
 seem to have been under the influence of pure inspiration, 
 are Owain Kyveiliog and Howel ab Owain. 
 
 But in addition to having fixed patrons and places of 
 abode, the bards had a practice of making the tour of the 
 country once in three years ; this was called " Olera." In 
 the process of time they framed regulations for the main- 
 tenance of these circuits, by which a chief bard or pencerdd 
 
 1 Processit in fine prandii coram omnibus vir quidam linguse dicacis cujus- 
 modi lingua britannica sicut et latina Bardi dicuntur unde Lucanus: — 
 " Plurima concreti (securi :) fuderunt (fudistis) carmina Bardi," 
 
 Giraldus de jure et statu Menev. Ecc. ap. Wharton's Anglia Sacra, vol II 
 p. 559. 
 
 a " Quod, quamdiu Wallia stabit, nobile factum bujus et perbistorias scrip- 
 tas et per ora canentium dignis per tempora cuncta laudibus atque preconiis 
 efferetur." — Girald. Ibid. 
 
100 BARDS AND BARDISM. 
 
 had the range of the houses of the chieftains, but was allowed 
 to enter no house of less note ; and the lower grade of bards 
 debarred from entering the mansions of the nobility, were 
 equally jealous of the visits of the superior grade to the 
 domiciles of the common people. Originally the practice 
 was not much objected to ; but by degrees it became a 
 burden to poor people ; and this offensive view of it has 
 survived to the present day, for we not unfrequently find 
 old people saying of some worthless person, " Clera wyv 
 yn ei chovio hi y vaiden ddiffaeth." " It is as a beggar I re- 
 collect seeing the worthless creature ." On leaving the halls 
 of his patron, the bard did not usually forfeit his place ; 
 for his chair was generally kept for him until his return. 
 Rhys Gryg it would seem objected to this practice, thinking 
 Philip Brydydd, his bard, should have but one master ; 
 but the bard stands upon his privileges, and almost defies 
 his patron to give the chair to another. Wherever he went 
 the bard was a welcome visitor, and he had by virtue of his 
 office free admission into the palaces of the chieftains of the 
 country. We find Kynddelw and Llywarch ab Llywelyn 
 eulogizing South Welsh, as well as North Welsh and 
 Powysian Princes ; and on the other hand, the bards of 
 South Wales used to visit North Wales. This migratory 
 custom bears considerable resemblance to the practices of 
 the Trouveres of the North, and the Troubadours of the 
 South of France ; and the bards, clerwyr, and minstrels of 
 Wales correspond pretty closely to the Bards, Rhymers, and 
 Jongleurs of the age of Chivalry. 
 
 The bards were also the frequent bearers of messages 
 from one chieftain to another, the bard being in fact 
 looked upon as the agent or representative of his patron. 
 Meilyr describes in glowing terms his reception by King 
 Gruffydd ab Kynan when sent on an errand to his court, — 1 
 
 From the hand of the prince I drank in golden horns, 
 (His ministering hand dared the boars) 
 
 1 Yfais gan deyrn o gym eurawc 
 Arfod faet feisiad anghad weiniawc 
 
- BARDS AND BARDISM. \Q\ 
 
 In the Court of Aberffraw, for the glory of the prosperous, 
 
 I went there on the part of an enthroned ruler ! 
 
 A second time I went as a messenger, 
 
 From the splendid leader of battle — a righteous Prince, 
 
 With fingers encircled with golden rings. 
 
 It must however be admitted that the relative position of 
 chieftain and bard, were unfavourable to the growth of truth- 
 fulness and mental independence in the latter; and we ac- 
 cordingly have much reason to doubt the sincerity of the 
 professions made by the bards on some occasions. There 
 occur to my mind one or two instances of this want of sin- 
 cerity. Grwalchmai and Kynddelw have both sung the praise 
 of Madoc ap Meredydd, prince of Powys; and also with 
 equal if not greater zeal, that of his enemy Owain G-wynedd, 
 king of North Wales. Now the question arises, how could 
 they do this in consistency, or in candour \ Mr. Price, who 
 is usually candid, has given answers in both cases, the 
 highest praise that can be given to which is that they are 
 plausible. Of Kynddelw, he has stated that his praises of 
 Madoc may be attributed to the favour shown to the bards 
 by that prince, and also to the fact that Kynddelw was a 
 native of Powys ; but this is not the question to be discussed. 
 How came Kynddelw to sing the praise of Owain Gwynedd 
 with much greater fervour ? This is the real matter at issue. 
 It cannot be said that Mr. Price has evaded the question, 
 for his remarks give it more significance, than it previously 
 possessed ; but having raised this point, and stated it with 
 fairness and candour, he seems to have forgotten to give 
 the explanation. As regards Gwalchmai, his words are more 
 definite and complete; and he attributes the apparent in- 
 sincerity to a supposed relationship between the bard and 
 Madoc; but here again the reply is unsatisfactory, for 
 
 Yn Llys Aberffraw yn ffaw ffodiawc 
 Bum o du gwledig yn lleithiawc 
 Eilweith yt aethum yn negessawc 
 O leufer llyw camawn iawn dywysawc 
 Bysedd anrgyliehvvy yn fodmyang. 
 
 Marwnad (rruffycld ab Oynan. 
 
102 BARDS AND BARDISM/ 
 
 supposing the relationship to exist, and admitting that the 
 bard was thereby biassed to do, what he would not other- 
 wise have done, that would form an admission of the charge 
 rather than a justification of the offence. We may there- 
 fore, notwithstanding Mr. Price's defence, 1 consider these 
 bards obnoxious to the accusation of insincerity ; and it re- 
 mains for us to show the grounds, upon which such appar- 
 ent treachery was then held to be justifiable. These will be 
 found in the code of bardic morality. A bard by right of 
 his profession had free egress and ingress to the palaces of 
 the great ; and it is to be feared that the bardic code per- 
 mitted the bard to become the advocate of whoever paid 
 him. He stood in the same relation to his chieftain as a 
 lawyer does to his client; and seems to have been the will- 
 ing advocate of whoever honoured him with his patronage. 
 We may almost go the length of saying this, from a peru- 
 sal of Meilyr's ode already quoted. — 
 
 "Cevais i liaws awr aur a phali, 
 Gan vreuawl riau, er ei hofi." 
 
 "I had heaps of gold and velvet, 
 From frail princes, for loving them." 
 
 and if there were room for doubt, the venal conduct of 
 Gwalchmai and Kynddelw prevents any more charitable 
 conclusion. In all countries, and at all times, the standard 
 of moral principle has ever been higher than the practice; 
 but it is to be regretted that such sophistry as profess- 
 ional privileges, is used to stifle the voice of duty, block 
 up the path of morality, and supply subtitutes for faithful- 
 ness, and sincerity. 
 
 From their positions, the bards had much power for good 
 or evil. They might have raised the standard of moral 
 and intellectual greatness among their countrymen, and 
 have pointed out more becoming pursuits than those in which 
 they indulged; but instead of preaching peace, they were 
 
 Hanes Cymru, page 56-i — 6. 
 
BARDS AND BARDISM. JQ3 
 
 too frequently the abettors of war; instead of healing dissen- 
 sions, they were prone to widen the breaches already made; 
 and instead of leading the way to grander views, and princi- 
 ples of conduct, they have on too many occasions been the 
 echoes of popular prejudices, and the tools of ambitious 
 chieftains. This is a light in which their conduct is seldom 
 presented; it is nevertheless the truth. It should not how- 
 ever be concealed that as in the case of Iolo Goch, they 
 have occasionally given the chieftains good advice, though 
 these cases unfortunately form the exceptions rather than 
 the rule. Now, and then, they also had the courage to re- 
 monstrate with the princes, as appears from the following 
 lines imputing blame to Llywelyn ap GrufFydd, for impri- 
 soning his brother, — 
 
 A man is bound by the Chief of Snowdon ; 
 
 A man, if free, like Rhun the son of Beli ; 
 
 A man that would not suffer England to burn his frontier, 
 
 A man of the race of Mervyn, magnanimous like Benlli.i 
 
 But I am sorry that the rarity of such occurrences, prevents 
 my forming a more favourable estimate of the truthfulness 
 of the bards. 
 
 It would appear that they were much more numerous, 
 than the scanty remains of poetry would lead us to expect; 
 for we sometimes find mention of bards as being celebrated 
 in their day, of whose works not a vestige has escaped the 
 ravages of time. In 1157, we are told that " Gwrgant ap 
 Rhys ap Iestyn, the best and most learned bard of his time, 
 was slain by Ivor ap Meurig of Sainghenydd;" and in re- 
 lating this fact, Mr. Price adds the following comment, 
 " Where is the work of Gwrgant ap Rhys, — the best poet 
 of his day? We do not find as much as a line of it. And 
 there can be no doubt that many other excellent composi- 
 tions have been lost ; for it is scarcely credible, that from 
 
 1 " Gwr yn rhwym gan Rwyf Eryri 
 Gwr pe rhydn, fal Rhun fab Beli, 
 Gwr ni adai Loegr losgi ei derfyn 
 Gwr o hil Mervyn, mawrfryd Benlli," 
 
JQ4 BARDS AND BARDISM. 
 
 1080, the time when Meilyr first sang, to 1157, the date of 
 his son Gwalchraai's ode to Owain Gwynedd, the brilliant 
 deeds that were performed, should have elicited no more 
 bardic compositions, than the few which have descended to 
 us." 1 The same historian again relates another fact of a 
 similar character. " Madoc ap Iddon, king of Gwent, was 
 killed by a blow given by his brother Thomas, during a fit 
 of intoxication, A.D. 1084. Madoc was a man who knew 
 many arts and sciences, and there was not found his equal 
 in his time ; and he was the best Poet and Wit of any 
 in Wales." The fact can scarcely be doubted, and yet not 
 a vestige remains, wherewith to test the justice of the criti- 
 cism. During these periods, the bards continued to increase 
 in number ; and had become so numerous towards the time 
 of Edward the First, that on the submission of the Welsh, 
 that monarch found it necessary to order " that the West- 
 ours, Bards, Rhymers, and other idlers and vagabonds, who 
 lived upon the gifts called Oymmortha, be not supported, 
 nor sanctioned in the country, lest by their invectives and 
 lies they lead the people to mischief, and burden the com- 
 mon people with their impositions." It is to be observed 
 that this really salutary prohibition is directed against the 
 irregular and wandering bards, and not against those who 
 were more orderly ; and in the assertion made by Sir John 
 Wynne, in the history of the Gwedir Family, and repeated 
 by Carte, in his History of England, that many bards were 
 put to death by this monarch, there does not seem to be a 
 word of truth ; for we find many bards of note living at the 
 date of the alleged massacre, A.D. 1294 — 1300. Similar 
 proclamations were issued by Henry the Fourth, Henry 
 the Eighth, and Elizabeth ; but all concur in making a dis- 
 tinction between the orderly and the disorderly bards, cen- 
 suring the oppressive exactions of the latter, and proving 
 the lower grade of bards to have been a numerous, and not 
 very conscientious class of persons ; and unfortunately for 
 
 1 Hanes Cymru, page 560. 
 
BARDS AND BARDISM. 105 
 
 the account of the massacre, the friendly proclamations of 
 Elizabeth and her father, are as harsh against the wander- 
 ing minstrels, as the reported inimical ones of Edward 
 and Henry the Fourth. 
 
 Of the numbers of the bards at these periods, some idea 
 may be formed from the following list, of such as have 
 left poems behind them, to attest their existence. 
 
 
 FIRST PERIOD, A.D. 510 TO A.D. 1080. 
 
 510 
 
 560 
 
 Aneurin, one long heroic poem, and some 
 moral verses 
 
 520 
 
 570 
 
 Taliesin, 77 poems, of which the larger por- 
 tion belong to later periods. 
 
 550 
 
 640 
 
 Llywarch Hen, 12 poems, all apparently 
 genuine 
 
 530 
 
 600 
 
 Myrddin 6, most of them doubtful 
 
 520 
 
 
 Gwdion ab Don 
 
 520 
 
 
 Gwyddno 
 
 560 
 
 630 
 
 Golyddan 
 
 600 
 
 650 
 
 Meigant 
 
 640 
 
 700 
 
 Elaeth 
 
 660 
 
 720 
 
 Tysilio 
 
 770 
 
 800 
 
 Culielyn 
 
 900 
 
 940 
 
 Llevoed 
 
 Anonymous pieces 15 in number 
 
 
 SECOND PERIOD, A.D. 1080 TO 1400. 
 
 1080 
 
 1160 
 
 Meilyr 3 poems 
 
 1090 
 
 
 Bleddyn Ddu 2 poems 
 
 1150 
 
 1900 
 
 Gwalchmai 12 do. 
 
 1150 
 
 1200 
 
 Kynddelw 49 do. most of them long 
 
 1150 
 
 1197 
 
 Owain Kyveiliog 2 do. 
 
 1150 
 
 1200 
 
 Daniel ab Llosgwrn Mew 2 short poems 
 
 1157 
 
 
 Gwrgant ab Rhys 
 Madawc ab Iddon 
 
 1160 
 
 1220 
 
 Gwynvardd Brycheiniog 2 long poems 
 
 1160 
 
 1220 
 
 Gwilym Ryvel 2 short do. 
 
 .1 140 
 
 1172 
 
 Howel ab Owain Gwynedd 8 do. 
 
 1160 
 
 1220 
 
 Llywarch ab Llewelyn 32 long do. 
 
 1170 
 
 1240 
 
 Davydd Benvras 12 
 
 1170 
 
 1220 
 
 Meilyr ab Gwalchmai 8 short 
 
 1170 
 
 1220 
 
 Einiawn ab Gwalchmai 5 ditto 
 
 1170 
 
 
 Periv ab Cadivor 2 ditto 
 
 1170 
 
 
 Gwgawn 1 ditto 
 
 1170 
 
 
 Llywarch Llew Cad 1 ditto 
 
 1170 
 
 1210 
 
 Seisyll BrhTwrch 3 ditto 
 
 1170 
 
 1220 
 
 Elidyr Sais 11 ditto 
 
 1170 
 
 1210 
 
 Dewi Mynyw 1 ditto 
 O 
 
10(3 BARDS AND BARDISM. 
 
 1200 
 
 1260 
 
 1200 
 
 1250 
 
 1220 
 
 1270 
 
 1230 
 
 1280 
 
 1250 
 
 1290 
 
 1210 
 
 1260 
 
 1200 
 
 1250 
 
 1210 
 
 1260 
 
 1230 
 
 1270 
 
 1240 
 
 
 1240 
 
 1280 
 
 1250 
 
 1300 
 
 1260 
 
 1300 
 
 1270 
 
 
 1270 
 
 
 1280 
 
 
 1280 
 
 1320 
 
 1290 
 
 
 1280 
 
 
 1280 
 
 
 1280 
 
 
 1290 
 
 1340 
 
 1290 
 
 1340 
 
 1290 
 
 1340 
 
 1290 
 
 1340 
 
 1290 
 
 1340 
 
 1290 
 
 1340 
 
 1290 
 
 1340 
 
 1290 
 
 1340 
 
 1290 
 
 1340 
 
 1290 
 
 1340 
 
 1300 
 
 1350 
 
 1300 
 
 1350 
 
 1300 
 
 1360 
 
 1310 
 
 1360 
 
 1320 
 
 1360 
 
 1320 
 
 1370 
 
 1310 
 
 1360 
 
 1310 
 
 1360 
 
 1310 
 
 1360 
 
 1320 
 
 1370 
 
 1330 
 
 1370 
 
 1330 
 
 1370 
 
 1330 
 
 1370' 
 
 1330 
 
 1370 
 
 1340 
 
 1380 
 
 1340 
 
 
 1350 
 
 
 Einiawn ab Gwgawn 1 ditto 
 
 Einiawn Wann 6 ditto 
 
 Llygad Gwr 5 long 
 
 Llywelyn Vardd 7 ditto 
 
 Bleddyn Vardd 13 short 
 
 Gruffydd ab Gwrgeneu 2 short poems 
 
 Phylip Brydydd 6 ditto 
 
 Prydydd Bychan 21 ditto 
 
 Einiawn ab Madawg Rhahawd 1 ditto 
 
 Adda Vras 
 
 Hywel Voel ab Grifri 1 ditto 
 
 Madawc ab Gwallter 3 ditto 
 
 Gruffydd ab yr Ynad Coch 9 long ditto 
 
 Gwerneg ab Clydno, moral verses 
 
 Ednyved Vychan 
 
 Cadwgan ab CyDvrig 
 
 Gwilym Ddu 3 long poems 
 
 Cadwgan ab Ednyved 
 
 Llywelyn Brydydd Hodnant 2 short 
 
 Hillyn 2 ditto 
 
 Heilyn Ddu 
 
 Iorwerth Vychan 2 ditto 
 
 Llewelyn Ddu 1 ditto 
 
 Casnodyn 5 long 
 
 Rhisserdyn 1 ditto 
 
 Rhys Goch ab Rhicert 20 ditto 
 
 Gruffydd ab Meredydd 26 (a.d. 1400, Llwyd) 
 
 Iorweth Beli 1 ditto 
 
 Gruffydd ab D. Tudyr 5 ditto 
 
 Madawg Dwygraig 10 ditto 
 
 Prydydd Breuan 1 ditto 
 
 Y Proth 1 ditto 
 
 Davydd y Coed 7 short 
 
 Trahaiarn Brydydd Mawr 2 ditto 
 
 Goronwy Gyriawg 2 ditto 
 
 Iorwerth Gyriawg 2 ditto 
 
 Sefnyn 3 ditto 
 
 Llywarch y Nam 1 ditto 
 
 Iorwerth Llwyd 1 ditto 
 
 Meurig ab Iorwerth 1 ditto 
 
 Goronwy Ddu 2 ditto 
 
 Mab y Clochyddun 1 ditto 
 
 Howel ab Einion Lygliw 1 long 
 
 Llywelyn Goch ab Meurig 6 ditto 
 
 Howel Ystoryn 1 ditto 
 
 Tudur Ddall 
 
 Davydd Ddu o Hiraddug 1 ditto 
 
 Gruffydd ab Llywelyn Llwyd 
 
BARD AND BARDISM. |07 
 
 1362 Y mab Cryg 3 short 
 
 1362 Bergam o Vaelor 1 ditto 
 
 1362 Ieuan Trwch y Daran 1 ditto 
 
 1380 Y Justus Llwyd 2 ditto 
 
 1380 Tudyr ab y Gwyn Hagr 
 
 1380 Cadwgan Henvoel 
 
 1380 Jokyn Ddu ab Ithel Grach 
 
 1380 Mab Clav ab Llywarcli 
 
 1390 Rhys Meigen 
 
 1390 Gruffydd ab Adda ab Davydd 
 
 By a natural transition we are led to look more closely 
 
 into their manners ; and we find the picture drawn to be 
 
 anything but favourable. The language of the proclamations 
 
 is strong, explicit, and condemnatory of the lower grade of 
 
 bards and minstrels ; but coming from strangers, they 
 
 may be looked as upon prejudgments, we will borrow a 
 
 description, from the satire of Taliesin, on the bards of 
 
 Maelgwn Gwynedd *, — 
 
 Minstrels persevere in their false custom, 
 Immoral ditties are their delight, 
 Vain and tasteless praise they recite, 
 Falsehood at all times do they utter, 
 Innocent persons do they ridicule ; 
 Married women by their flattery, 
 Through mischievous intent they deceive ; 
 The pure white virgins of Mary they corrupt, 
 Those who believe them they bring to shame, 
 They cause uneasiness to moral men 
 As they pass their lives away in vanity ; 
 At night they get drunk, they sleep the day, 
 In idleness without work they feed themselves, 
 
 1 " Cler o gam arfer a ymarferant 
 Cathlau anneddfol fydd eu moliant 
 Clod orwas diflas a ddatcanant 
 Celwydd bob amser a ymarferant 
 Gorchmynau ddedfau Duw a dorant 
 Gwragedd priodol wrth ei moliant 
 Drwy feddwl drygbwyll a fawr dwyllant 
 Morwynion gwynion mair a lygrant 
 A goelio iddynt a gywilyddiant 
 A gwirion ddynion a ddyfalant 
 Ai hoes ai hamser yn ofer treuliant 
 Y nos y meddwant y dydd y cysgant 
 Segur heb lafur yr ymborthiant 
 Yr eglwvs a gashant ar Dafarn a gyrchant 
 A lladron ffeiision y cydsyniant 
 
108 BARD AND BARDISM. 
 
 At courts they inquire after feasts, 
 
 Every senseless word they bring forward, 
 
 Every deadly sin they praise, 
 
 Every vile course of life they lead, 
 
 Concerning the days of death they think not, 
 
 Neither lodging nor charity do they give, 
 
 And from no sensuality do they refrain. 
 
 Tithes and other proper offerings they do not pay 
 
 And righteous people they delude, 
 
 Indulging in victuals to excess. 
 
 The birds do fly, the fish do swim, 
 
 The bees collect honey, worms do crawl, 
 
 Everything travels to obtain its food 
 
 Except minstrels, and useless idlers. 
 
 I deride nor learning, nor minstrelsy, 
 
 For they are given by heaven to lighten thought, 
 
 Be silent then ye unlucky rhyming bards, 
 
 For you cannot judge between truth and falsehood. 
 
 The scene of this poem is laid in the sixth century ; and 
 the bards mentioned are those of Maelgwn Gwynedd, king 
 of North Wales ; but it was composed in the thirteenth 
 century, and is intended to satirize the bards of the writer's 
 own day. It was usual to attribute this poem to Taliesin ; 
 but it is now known to be the production of a later author. 
 A monk, Jonas Mynyw, being the reputed author, would 
 scarcely paint flattering potraits of the bards, for they were 
 sworn enemies; but I cannot help" thinking that there is 
 
 Llysoedd a gwleddoedd a ymofynant 
 
 Pob parabl dibwyll a grybwyllant 
 
 Pob pechod marwol a ganmolant 
 
 Pob pentre pob tre pob tir a dreiglant 
 
 Pob salwedd ofer a ymarferant 
 
 Gorchmynau y Drindod a ddifrodant 
 
 Grwiliau na Suliau nis addolant 
 
 Am ddyddiau angeu nis gofalant 
 
 A phob glothineb nis arbedant 
 
 Gormod o fwydydd i ddiodydd a fynant 
 
 Degwm ag offrwn teilwng, nis talant 
 
 Deddfolion ddynion a ddyfalant 
 
 Adar a hedant gwenyn a felant 
 
 Pysgod a nofiant bryfed 'mlysgant 
 
 Pob beth a ymdaith i gynnull i borthiant 
 
 Ond cler ac oedion, a lladron difwyniant 
 
 Ni chabla ich mysg dysg na cherddwriaetb 
 
 Cans Duw ai rhoes gloes argyllaeth 
 
 Ond sawl syn arfer o gam arfaeth 
 
 Am watwar Iesu ai wasanaeth 
 
 Tewch chi Bosfeirddion ffeilsion anhylwydd, 
 
 Niwydochi farnurhwng gwir a chelwydd,' 1 '' 
 
BARD AND BARDISM. 
 
 109 
 
 much truth in what is here said. And this is confirmed by 
 Madoc Dwygraig, a poet who lived between 1290 and 1840, 
 and who, speaking of the rewards bestowed by his patron 
 upon the bards, says, — 
 
 In the wooden town honour was awarded to us, 
 Whilst uniustituted bards were pursuing vanity, 
 Swifter than the sudden gale, that sweeps the valley.i 
 
 But it should in candour be admitted that these remarks 
 were not intended to apply to the regular bards, and have 
 a pointed reference only to the disorderly, and less reputa- 
 ble poets and minstrels. 
 
 The more respectable bards were at all times anxious, to 
 mark the distinction between their less orderly brethren 
 and themselves; and there was a perpetual feud between 
 the bards and the minstrels. Both laid claim to much po- 
 pular respect, and we can believe that the chieftains were 
 occasionally thrown into some perplexities by their rival 
 claims. In this sort of conflict, the bards seem to have had 
 the advantage, and there is an amusing story told, and pro- 
 bably invented by the bards, of Maelgwn Gwynedd, who 
 one day when pestered by the rival candidates, hit upon a 
 very original method of settling the dispute, — 
 
 When Maelgwn went to Ceredigion, 
 
 He bade the whole of the number 
 
 To swim the river. 
 
 When they landed on the opposite bank, 
 
 The Harps were not worth a half-penny, 
 
 In consequence of the strings being wetted ; 
 
 But the bards could sing and poetise 
 
 As well as before, and therefore were they declared 
 
 Entitled to the pre-eminence.2 
 
 The bards used to relate this story with a peculiar gusto, 
 and with willing auditors, the logic seems generally to 
 have been convincing. 
 
 1 " Yn nhrevgoed i'n rhoed anrhydedd a — Digeirdd 
 Ym ac virein Veirdd am overedd 
 Yn gynt na'r llechwynt arllechwedd — Ystrad. 
 2 Iorwerth BeJi, Myvyrian Archchaiology, volume i. page 476. 
 
HO BARDS AND BARDISM. 
 
 In the monks, the bards found bitter, and much more 
 powerful enemies ; and a most angry war of words seems to 
 have been carried on between them. We have seen that 
 the bards received but few compliments from the clergy ; 
 and it will now appear that the former were quite as ready 
 to pick out the faults of " the grey brothers." Their greedi- 
 ness is the standing topic for abuse, and the author of the 
 Avallenau in one sweeping line describes them as — 
 
 " False, luxurious, and gluttonous monks." 
 
 Myneich geuawg, gwydawg, gwydus. 
 
 Kynddelw was on very bad terms with them ; and Davydd 
 
 ab Gwilym relates an encounter he had with a monk, which 
 
 ended in the consignment of the bard, to the bigots' ready 
 
 receptacle for all troublesome censors. Davydd's opinion of 
 
 the monk was not much more complimentary, — 
 
 "With a false form of holy life, 
 
 O'er all the wide world they are rife — 
 
 Dull Friars." 
 
 Sion Kent, half monk half bard, had no very high opinion 
 of his brethren. He was like Iorwerth Vynglwyd, Twm 
 Ivan Prys, and many of their contemporary bards, tainted 
 with Lollardism. Indeed the bard was generally a heretic, 
 and much given to looking through the deeds of the clergy; 
 and therefore we need not much wonder that Sion Kent 
 tells his brethren in very intelligible Welsh, that they must 
 either forsake their luxurious living, or give up all hope of 
 the kingdom of heaven ; but then, as since, those gentlemen 
 seem to have preferred the former alternative. As monks 
 and bards increased in number, they became more and more 
 enraged against each other ; they were rival beggars, and 
 therefore in each other's way. Lewis Glyn Cothy has a 
 graphic description of one of these begging exhibitions, — 1 
 
 One Friar sells little glass images, 
 
 Another carves a garbless relic from a piece of alder wood, 
 
 1 "Un a bryn er na bai'r wedd 
 Delw o wydr er dvvy lodwedd ; 
 Arall a wnai, o'r lie noeth, 
 O gwr gwernen grair gwarnoeth 
 
BARDS AND BARDISM. m 
 
 One has a grey Curig (St. Curig) beneath his cloak, 
 
 And another carries Seiriol (St. Seiriol), 
 
 With nine cheeses under his arm; 
 
 And by impressing unity upon the Trinity 
 
 A load of wool, or perhaps a bag of meal. 
 
 In these encounters the monks were overmatched, for the 
 wit of the bards was aided by the popular contempt into 
 which the mendicant friars had fallen. The reader of 
 Chaucer, will perceive that the same sentiments prevailed on 
 the other side of the Severn. 
 
 Another fact merits attention. Not only were the bards 
 numerous, but they were divided into classes, and seem to 
 have attained to complete organization. The Rev. Evan 
 Evans states, 1 that by the law of Gruffydd ap Kynan, the 
 bards were classified as Prydydd, Teuluwr, and Olerwr. 
 The "Teuluwr," was the family bard; the " Clerwr," was 
 the wandering bard ; but the Prydydd took a higher rank 
 than either. The " Clerwr" was the vagabond bard, who 
 went from house to house, and subsisted upon the charity 
 of the chieftains, whose praises he sang for the bread he 
 ate. Generally speaking this was the lowest grade of the 
 bardic profession,, though we find bards of considerable re- 
 pute, and who had a local habitation, travelling from place 
 to place ; but as in the case of Davydd ab Gwilym, more 
 for pleasure than from necessity ; the "Clerwr" corresponded 
 nearly to the modern wandering vocalist, and considered 
 with reference to him, bardism was truly an " idle trade." 
 
 The " Teuluwr" was the family bard kept by the princes, 
 in their palaces, and is well described by Giraldus ; — " This 
 also appears to me worthy of notice, that the Welsh bards, 
 and singers, or reciters, have the genealogy of the above 
 
 Un a arwain, yn oriog, 
 GrURiG lwyd dan gwr ei glog ; 
 Grwas arall a ddwg Seiriol 
 A naw o gaws yn ei gol ; 
 Drwy undeb erchir Drindawd 
 Cnuv o wlan acw, neu flawd." 
 
 Works, page 280. 
 1 Dissertatio de Bardis, page 81. 
 
1\2 BARDS AND BARDISM. 
 
 mentioned princes in their most ancient and authentic 
 books, and that too written in Welsh." 1 It is therefore to 
 be inferred, that this bardd was a local functionary, and an 
 appendage to the court, or castle. 
 
 Distinct from these, and holding a more honourable title 
 and position, was the Prydydd. We have seen what he 
 was in the time of Gruffydd ab Kynan ; and Lewis Glyn 
 Cothy shows that the Prydydd held the same superiority 
 in his day. — 
 
 "Tri ffrwythlawn gerddor a ragorant, 
 Un yw Bardd ei hun ac a henwant; 
 Ail j w Storiawr ac a el want ; 
 Trydydd Teuluwr cywydd os cant. 
 
 Here we see the "Teuluwr" still occupying his former 
 place ; but Lewis being himself a Cler, with much tact 
 omits that offensive distinction, and insinuates that there 
 was no distinction between him and the more honourable 
 Prydydd, here designated by the more comprehensive term 
 Bardd. We also here find another class making its appear- 
 ance, viz. the Storiawr or the fabler, which corresponds 
 with the second class, described by Sion Kent as liars, or 
 writers of tales, — 
 
 "Awen arall, nid call cant, 
 Ar gelwydd, vudr argoeliant." 
 
 Among the class Prydydd, may be ranked Meilyr, Gwalch- 
 mai, Howel ab Owain, and Owain Kyveiliog ; and I am 
 inclined to think that when they wished to distinguish 
 themselves from the Cler, and the Storiawr, the family 
 bards classed themselves as Prydyddion, as in the case of 
 Kynddelw, and most of the other bards, who had talent 
 enough to vindicate their position. 
 
 But even among the Beirdd, properly so called, there was 
 another distinction set up during the period embraced by 
 this chapter — that of Priv-vardd. In the contest between 
 
 1 Schulz's Essay on Welsh Tradition, page 29, 
 
BARDS AND BARDISM. 
 
 113 
 
 Seisyllt and Kynddelw for the chair of Powys, the former 
 claims a superiority on account of an alleged descent from 
 the primitive bards, — 
 
 It is my right to be master of song, 
 
 Being in the right line, of the true tribe, a Bard of the inclosure; 
 
 But Kynddelw the great, the giant of song, 
 
 Is of a race which has produced no Bards. 1 
 
 Mr. Davies 2 is of opinion that the Priv-veirdd, or chief 
 bards, here and in other places alluded to, were the Druids; 
 but to me it appears that they were the three chief bards of 
 Britain, Myrddin ab Morvryn, Myrddin Emrys, and Tal- 
 iesin Ben Beirdd. But to proceed, we find the same dis- 
 tinction urged in the " Awdl Vraith," — 
 
 Puny bards, crows of the district, 
 Why do you not take to flight? 
 
 •55- * -55- 
 
 If you be primary bards, formed by heaven, 
 Tell your king what his fate will be. 3 
 
 and again by Phylip Brydydd, — 
 
 The chair of Maelgwn was prepared for bards, 
 
 And it was not intended for poetasters ; 
 
 And if they aspired to the chair this day, 
 
 They would be proved by truth and privilege to be unfit; 
 
 The grave Druids of Britain would be there, 
 
 And those would not attain it, though their wings ached. 4 
 
 From the supposition that the chair of Maelgwn was 
 
 1 " Mi biau bod yn Bencerd-d, 
 
 iawnllin o iawnllwytb Culvardd ; 
 A byn Cynddelw vawr, cawr cyrdd, 
 O bon ni henyw beirdd." 
 
 2 Mythology of tbe Druids, page 12. 
 
 3 "Beirdd bychain, brain bro, 
 Py nad ewcb ar ffo ? 
 
 * * * 
 
 Od ych brif-feirdd ffydd o waith Dofydd, 
 Gwedwcbi'eh breninpaei dramgwydd. 1 ' 
 
 4 " Cadair Faelgwn hir a huberid — i Veirdd 
 Ac nid Pr goveirdd yd gyvercbid ; 
 
 Ac am y gadair honno heddy w bei heiddid 
 Bod se ynt herwydd gwir a braint yd ymbrovid 
 Byddynt Derwyddon pruddion Prydain 
 Nis gwayw yn adain nid attygid. 1 ' 
 
 P 
 
114 BARDS AND BARDISM. 
 
 filled by Taliesin ; and from the mention in the same poem 
 of " the three chief fountains," we derive confirmations of 
 the opinion above advanced respecting the chief bards ; 
 though it is probable that they were said, and believed to 
 be Druids as well. 
 
 Those who could claim a descent from the chief bards, 
 set up for themselves another distinction — that of being 
 Druids. It is possible that some of them might really 
 claim a descent from the Druids ; and it is certain that the 
 influence of Druidic ideas is observable in the poetry of 
 these centuries ; but the facts which in Davies's opinion 
 prove the existence of Druidic worship in the twelfth centu- 
 ry, admit of a different, and more probable explanation. In 
 a careful analysis of the mental phenomena of this period, 
 we everywhere see in full activity the influence of tradition; 
 and we accordingly find in this fact, the explanation of 
 what puzzled the acute author of the " Mythology of the 
 Druids," — the peculiarity of the Druidism which now pre- 
 sented itself. It was not the real Druidism of history ; 
 but that of tradition purified, modified, and altered to suit 
 the taste of a more refined age, and superior intelligence ; 
 there was probably as much difference between the moody, 
 and tyrannical Druid of reality, and the gentlemanly Druid 
 of the age of chivalry, as there was between the latter and 
 the democratic Druid of Iolo Morganwg. Both the latter 
 were fictitious ; they were psychological — not historical 
 truths. I find it difficult to believe, that Druidism had con- 
 tinued to be practised as a form of worship to the twelfth 
 century; though the ideas which formed the theology of 
 the bards, lingered for a long time after the introduction of 
 Christianity, just as the cries "Hey Bull Biger" and "Hey 
 Jack and Lantern" have come down to the present day, 
 though the controversies between John Calvin and his " in- 
 ward light," and the church of Rome, which gave rise to these 
 party cries, are nearly forgotten. Druidism in the twelfth 
 century, only survived in the bardic theology; and mytholo- 
 gy with romance had appropriated to their respective uses, 
 
BARDS AND BARDISM. 11 5 
 
 the facts of history, and the stories of tradition. It was re- 
 vived for the purposes of a class, and used to give additional 
 dignity to those who were admitted to the fraternity of priv- 
 veirdd, or primitive hards. Some passages in the poets, seem 
 to warrant a belief in the celebration of mysteries ; and it 
 is certain the bards encouraged such a belief. They attri- 
 buted to the primitive bards what did not belong to them ; 
 and " pair XCeridwen," is not much older than the eleventh 
 century. 
 
 The perusal of the bardic remains, have led me to the 
 following conclusions : — 
 
 First, that the Druidism of the twelfth century was con- 
 fined to the bards. 
 
 Secondly, that the institution was of recent origin ; and 
 if the reader will look over the proofs which will be here 
 produced, I think he will adopt the same views. 
 
 I. From a variety of evidences, we conclude that the 
 bards were desirous of forming some exclusive distinction 
 for themselves, and the traditional veneration of Druidism 
 was suited to their purpose. They seized upon this, and 
 breathed new life into the old belief, and threw a halo of 
 mystery round their own persons. At the period now under 
 consideration, it would seem that the order was pretty nu- 
 merous, or what is more probable, that the bards wished to 
 make that appear to be so; and we learn this from 
 Kynddelw, — 
 
 Excepting God and the divines of the land, 
 
 And sedulous Druids 
 
 Of the splendid race, wearers of gold rings, — there is 
 
 none who know 
 Our numbers in the billows of the stream. 1 
 
 There would have been no such doubt and uncertainty, if 
 they were known and had been long established, nor among 
 princes favourable to their cause, need there have been any 
 
 1 " Nis gwyr nainyn Duw a dewinion — byd 
 
 A diwyd Dervvyddon 
 
 O eurdorv, eurdorehogion 
 
 Ein rhiv yn rhyveirth avon/'' 
 
11(3 BARDS AND BARDISM. 
 
 concealment ; we therefore must look upon this declaration, 
 not as the result of fear, for the bard avows himself one of 
 the Druids, but as a systematic attempt at mystification. 
 " Pair Kyridwen" in the language of the bards, is equiva- 
 lent to our phrase "the fount of inspiration,' 1 '' and is in 
 fact the bardic name for the muse. This will appear from 
 innumerable passages in their writings, — Llywarch ap 
 Llywelyn desires, — 
 
 " Duw Dofydd dyn rydd reitun Awen, — ber 
 Val o bair Ceridwen." 
 
 God the Ruler, gives me a ray of melodious song, 
 As if from the cauldron of Keridwen; 
 
 and in another poem, the same bard terms Keridwen, " the 
 
 Ruler of Bardism." Elidir Sais attributes the melody of 
 
 his lines to this source, — 
 
 " Llethraid vy marddair wedi Merddin 
 Llethrid a berid o bair Awen." 
 
 Flowing is my bardic lay after the model of Merddin, 
 A smoothness produced from the cauldron of the Awen. 
 
 Here we have "pair Awen," having the same signification 
 as, and supplying the place of " pair Ceridwen." In another 
 passage, allusion is made by Kynddelw to "cyrdd Kerid- 
 wen,"— the songs of Keridwen. This is also the sense in 
 which we are to understand, the allusion to Keridwen by 
 other bards ; and there is not a shadow of a valid reason, for 
 the belief that Keridwen was an object of worship. One 
 peculiarity of the new Druidism, is the fact that the charac- 
 ters of the bard and Druid are united, and the bards, i. e. 
 the priv-veirdd, are always members of the order. Llywarch 
 ab Llywelyn is very careful to certify this, and stoutly as- 
 serts his being one of the fraternity, — 
 
 My tongue pronounces judgment upon Britons, 
 
 From the British Channel to the Irish Sea, 
 
 To my institute, I am (entitled) without contention, (being) 
 
 Of the chief bards, my principal companions. 
 
 1 " Vy nhavawd yn vrawd ar Vrython 
 
 O vor Ut hyd vor Iwerddon, 
 
 Mi i'm deddv wyv diamryson 
 
 O'r priv-veirdd, vy mhriv gyfeillion." 
 
BARDS AND BARDISM. ^17 
 
 Kynddelw speaks of Druids and bards, as praising Owain 
 Kyveiliog, and in another passage, shows that the two cha- 
 racters were identical, — 
 
 Bards are constituted the judges of excellence, 
 
 And bards will praise thee, even Druids of the circle, 
 
 Of four dialects, from four regions. 
 
 A bard of the steep mount will celebrate thee, 
 
 Even Kynddelw the first object in the gate. 1 
 
 From these facts we may see, that this new Druidism was 
 a thing of limited significance, and so obscure as to require 
 explanations ; and a little reflection will show that it was 
 instituted by, and maintained for, those who wished to dis- 
 tinguish themselves from the less gifted bards. We further 
 learn from the last extract, that Kynddelw was the high 
 priest of the new hierarchy ; and this perhaps may, if borne 
 in mind, throw light upon those poems which are rendered 
 so obscure by the druidic allusions. 
 
 2. Two fallacies pervade Mr. Davies's very ingenious 
 work. Of these, the first is the assumption that Druidism 
 existed as a form of worship in the twelfth century ; and 
 the second, the assumption that the mythological poems are 
 the productions of Taliesin. We shall by and bye show, that 
 these poems cannot be older than the twelfth century; and 
 had he looked upon them as the completion of a system of 
 mythology, which time had gradually developed, his work 
 would have assumed a more coherent character, and his 
 theory would have been much more correct and valuable. 
 Our present business has reference to the former assump- 
 tion. In the preceding pages an attempt has been made to 
 show, that the Druidism of the twelfth century was a bardic 
 fiction ; and we shall here follow up that view by endea- 
 vouring to show, that the fiction was of recent origin. This 
 view of the matter derives its chief support from one of the 
 
 1 " Beimaid amrhegydd Beirdd am ragor, 
 Ath volant Veirddkm, Derwyddon dor, 
 O bedeiriaith dyvyn, o beder or 
 Ath gyvarwyre bardd bre breudor, 
 Cynddelw, cynhelw yn y cynnor."" 
 
118 
 
 BARDS AND BARDISM. 
 
 poems of Kynddelw, being a conciliatory address to Rhys 
 ab Gruffydd, the prince of South Wales ; — 
 
 thou consolidator of the comely tribe ! since I am re- 
 turned home into thy dominion, 
 
 To celebrate thee under heaven, 
 
 O thou with the golden protecting spear, hear my 
 Bardic petition ! 
 
 In peace let us taste the cauldron of Prydain's tranquillity, 
 
 Round the sanctuary of the uneven number, thy sove- 
 reign power extend. 
 
 It (the bardic sanctuary) loves not vehement loquacity ; 
 
 It is no cherisher of useless sloth, 
 
 It opposes no precious concealed mysteries (Christianity.) 
 
 Disgrace alone is excluded from Bardic worship. 
 
 It is the guardian bulwark of the breaker of shields, 
 
 It is wise and zealous for the defence of the country, and 
 for decent manners, 
 
 A foe to hostile aggression, but the supporter of the 
 faint in battle. 1 
 
 We find here the same anxiety to distinguish between 
 the bards proper, and the less reputable class ; and the 
 poem has been termed " a general intercession for the cause, 
 the mysteries, and the worship of the bards." It is more 
 than that ; it is an answer to calumnies heaped upon it by 
 some person or persons — an attempt to disabuse the Prince's 
 mind of some prejudices he seemed to have against the 
 cause, or an answer to certain questions he seemed to have 
 asked — and an exposition of what the bardic ceremony teas 
 not. Now, if it were Druidism, a thing known by every 
 Cyniro, and instilled into the Cymry with their mother's 
 
 1 Corv eurdorv can do hwyv i adrev 
 
 Ith edryd ith adrawdd is nev 
 
 Par eurglawr erglyw vy marddlev ! 
 
 Pair Prydain provwn yn nhangnev 
 
 Tangnefedd am nawdd amniverweh — riv: 
 
 Riallu dyheiddweh. 
 
 Nid acbar llachar'llavarwch, 
 
 Nid achles avles aravweh, 
 
 Nid achludd eurgudd argelwch 
 
 Argel earth cerddorion wolweh ; 
 
 Dor ysgor ysgwyddeu amdrweh, 
 
 Doeth a drud am dud am degweh, 
 
 Tarv aergawdd aergwl gadarnweh. 
 
BARDS AND BARDISM. HQ 
 
 milk, what need was there for such an epxlanation ? If it 
 were not new, and its principles utterly unknown to the 
 Prince, what need of such assurances that it did not clash 
 with Christianity ? And if it was already recognised and 
 established, what need could there have been for the Prince's 
 sanction ? Any explanation other than the above, involves 
 us in endless perplexities. 
 
 Mr. Davies lays much stress upon several of the poems 
 of Howel ab Owain, which, in his opinion, clearly prove that 
 Druidism existed as a form of worship in the twelfth cen- 
 tury. I am unable to draw the same conclusion from them, 
 but as they are not destitute of poetic merit, the poems are 
 here given in the translations of iDr. Owen Pughe, 1 
 
 I love the white glittering walls near the pleasant shore, 
 Where bashfulness loves to observe the seamew's course ; 
 It would be my delight, though I have met with no great 
 
 return of love, 
 In my much desired visit on the sleek white steed, 
 To behold my sister of flippant smile ; 
 To talk of love since it has come to my lot, 
 To restore my ease of mind, 
 
 And to renew her slighted troth with the nymph, 
 As fair as the hue of the shore-beating wave. 
 From the country of her, who is bright, 
 As the coldly drifted snow upon the lofty hill, 
 A censure has come to us, 
 That I should have been treated disdainfully in the hall of 
 
 Ogyrvan. 
 Playful, from her promise was now torn expectation : 
 She has taken away my soul, and I am wretched ! 
 
 1 Carafi gaer wennglaer o du gwenylan 
 Mynydd gar gwyldec gweled gwylan 
 Ydgarwny vyned kenym kared yn rwy 
 Ry eitun ovwy y ar Veingann 
 
 Y edrych vy chwaer chwerthin egwan 
 
 Y adrawt cam can doeth ym ran 
 
 Y edryt vy lledvryd ae llet ovrwy 
 
 Y edryt llywy lliw tonn dylann. 
 Llifyant oe chyfoeth a doeth atann 
 Lliw eiry llathyr oervel ar uchel vann 
 R-ac val ym cotidy yn llys Ogyrvann 
 Chweris oe hadaw hi adoed kynrann 
 Ethy w am eneidy athwyv yn wann 
 
120 BARDS AND BARDISM. 
 
 Am I not become like Garwy Hir, 1 
 
 For love of the fair one, of whom I am debarred in the halls 
 of Ogyrven V- 
 
 This differs slightly from the translation given in " the 
 
 Mythology of the Druids," where Llywy, here translated 
 
 " fair", is made, in the face of scores of passages which 
 
 contradict the assumption, to be a proper name. That 
 
 author also translates Ogyrvan into " the mysterious God"; 
 
 but in the passage, 
 
 Gwrdd i gwnaeth uch Deudraeth Dryvan, 
 
 Gwr hydwf gwrhydri Ogyrvan. 
 He bravely achieved above Deudraeth Dryvan, 
 The feats of the renowned Ogyrvan, 
 
 Llywarch ab Llywelyn, evidently compares Llywelyn ab 
 IoTwerth , s valour, to that of a renowned and real warrior : 
 therefore, as far as it depends on this poem, his conclusion 
 is not supported. The next poem from which he attempts 
 to prove his assertion, is the following, — 
 
 I love the fort of proud workmanship in the Kyvylchi, 
 Where my own assuming form is wont to intrude ; 
 The high of renown, eagerly seek admittance there, 
 And near it speaks the mad resounding wave, 
 It is the chosen place of a luminary of splendid qualities, and 
 fair. 
 
 Neud athwyv o nwy v yn eil garwy hir 
 Y wenn am llutir yn llys Ogyrvann. 
 
 1 Garwy was one of the most courteous knights of the court of Arthur. In 
 a poem, addressed by Howel ab Einion Lygliw to Myvanwy Vechan, he says, 
 Neud wyf ddihunwyv, hoen Creirwy hoywdeg, 
 Am hudodd mal Garwy. 
 
 I am without spirit, O thou that hast enchanted me, 
 As Creirwy enchanted Garwy. 
 
 1 am not aware that the story of this enchantment of Garwy by Creirwy , 
 " one of the three immaculate ladies of the Isle of Britain," is now in existence ; 
 but it was evidently well known to this bard, and also two hundred years 
 earlier to Howel ab Owain, for it is to that he refers. 
 
 2 Ogyrvan was contemporary with Arthur, and father of one of his wives; and 
 the Halls of Ogyrvan were probably the residence of an earthly damsel. 
 
 3 Carafi gaer valchweith or Gyvylchi 
 Yny bylcha balchlun vy hun yndi 
 Enwawc draff erthawc a dreit iddi 
 Anwar don lavar levawr wrthi 
 Dewisle lywy loyw gydteithi 
 
BARDS AND BARDISM. 121 
 
 Glorious, her rising from the verge of the torrent, 
 And the fair one shines upon the now progressing year, 
 In the wilds of Arvon, among the Snowdonian hills. 
 The tent does not attract, the glossy silk is not looked on 
 By her I love, with passing tenderness ; 
 If her conquest could be wrought by the muse's aid, 
 Ere the coming night, I should next to her be found, i 
 
 There is certainly nothing mystical in this ; and instead 
 
 of there being any propriety in supposing " the proud 
 
 wrought Caer of the Gyvylchi" to have been a Druidic 
 
 sanctuary, we find in the very spot indicated in the poem — 
 
 in the wilds of Arvon, among the Snowdonian Hills, and on 
 
 the sea shore, a fortification of great extent, of which a 
 
 warrior like Howel might have felt proud, and which proved 
 
 of immense service to his countrymen after his death 2 . 
 
 His other proof was drawn from a single word, in the last 
 
 of HoweFs poems, — 3 
 
 I love the time of summer, when the steed 
 Of the exulting chief, prances in the presence of a gallant lord, 
 When the nimbly moving wave is covered with foam, 
 When the apple tree wears another aspect, 
 And when the white shield is borne on my shoulder to the 
 conflict. 
 
 1 Glaer gloew y dvvyre o du gweilgi 
 
 Ar wreic a lewyrch ar eleni 
 
 Vlwyddyn yn ynyal Arvon yn Eryri 
 
 Ni dirper pebyll ni syll pali 
 
 Nep a rwy garv/y yn vwy noti 
 
 Pei chwaerei y but yr barddoni 
 
 Nebawd nossweith y byddwn nessaf iddi. 
 2 Dwygy vylchi, is the name of a parish in the upper part of Carnarvonshire. 
 It is also the name of a place, near which on a hill called Braich-y dinas, 
 rising out of Penmaen Mawr, are the ruins of a castle, the fortifications of 
 which were capable of containing 20,000 men. The remains of walls are still 
 standing, and a well that supplied the garrison is full of constant water, 
 furnished by the condensed vapour of the mountain. (Gibson's Camden, Vol. 
 II. p. 804). This was considered the strongest post possessed by the Welsh in 
 the district of Snowdon ; it was of great magnitude, and so strong by its 
 natural position, that a hundred men might have defended themselves against 
 an army ; in that age it was deemed impregnable, and here it was that the 
 remains of the Welsh army were posted, pending the negotiation between 
 Edward and Llewelyn. (Evans's Tour in North Wales, p. 244.) 
 
 3 Carafy amser haf amsathr gorwyt 
 Gorawenus glyw rac glew Arglwyt 
 Gorewynawg tonn tynhegyl ebrwyt 
 Gorwisgwys avail arall arwyt. 
 Gorwenn vy ysgwyd ar vy ysgwyt y dreis 
 
 Q 
 
122 BARDS AND BARDISM. 
 
 I have loved, ardently, but unsuccessfully, 
 
 A tall and white-necked fair, of slowly languid gait; 
 
 Her complexion vies with the mild light of the evening hour, 
 
 Bright, slightly formed, feebly bending, white-lined knowing 
 
 one. 
 In stepping over a rush she would nearly fall, 
 The small and delicate one of feeble step ; 
 But though small, she is older than a ten-year old man, 
 And though child-like in appearance, is full of propriety; 
 From her childhood she has learned to give freely, 
 And the virgin would rather impede her own prosperity, 
 Than utter one sentence of unseemly import. 
 I will be a pilgrim worshipper at the place of meeting ; 
 How long shall I worship thee ? stop, and think of thine 
 
 office, 
 If I am unskilful through the dotage of love, 
 Jesus, the well-informed, will not rebuke me. 
 
 The Druidism in this poem is said to be in the seventh 
 line. In the original it will be observed, that the line 
 begins with the word " Kecidwen," whitenecked. But our 
 mythologist reads " Keridwen,"" the Druidical mother of 
 all created things, whose mysteries were the supposed 
 objects of Howel's love. We have already shown that if 
 the word had been "Keridwen, 1 '' his hypothesis would not 
 have been much benefited thereby ; but it is of importance 
 to ascertain the proper reading of the passage. I do not 
 know whether our author has MSS. authority for his 
 reading ; but as that name frequently occurs in the poems 
 
 Kereis ny gefeis gefeiawyt 
 Kecidwen birsven hwyrwann ogwyt 
 Kyfeiliw gwenn wawr yu awr echwyt 
 Klaer wanllun wenlletyf wynlliw kywyt 
 Wrth gamu brwynen breit na dygwyt 
 Bechannigen wenn wann y gogwyt 
 Bychan y mae hyn no dyn degmlwyt 
 Mabineit lunyeit lawn gweteitruyt 
 Mabdysc oet iti roti yn ruyt 
 Mabwreic mwy yd feic fennedic rwyt ar 
 No pharabl oe phenn anghymhenrwyt 
 Petestric iolyt am byt y eilwyt 
 Pa hyd yth iolaf saf rac dy swy t 
 Adwyfy yn anvedret o ynvydrwyt cam 
 Nym cent yessu y cyfarwyt. 
 
BARDS AND BARDISM. |23 
 
 of this period, and as Mr. T. L. Jones in " Ceinion A wen 
 y Cymry," Dr. Pughe in his translation of this line, and 
 Mr. Davies, who is generally scrupulously accurate in 
 his quotations, have all written the word " Keridwen," it 
 is but fair to assume that there is such authority. Yet 
 as the Editors of the Archaiology saw nearly every 
 Welsh Manuscript in existence, and therefore this par- 
 ticular one, if such existed, the adoption by them of a 
 different reading is conclusive of the question. Besides, 
 " Kecidwen" is much more in unison with the tenor of the 
 poem, and therefore deserves the preference. 
 
 Having gone thus minutely over this ground, we have 
 now no other alternative than to believe, that the Druidism 
 of the 12th century was simply a name, and not a reality. 
 The bards undoubtedly did call themselves Druid-bards, 
 have done so from that time to this, and do at the present 
 day; the late Mr. Edward Williams used to say, that he 
 was the only living personage of genuine Druidic descent ; 
 his son claimed the same privilege after his death ; and if I 
 may judge from a Welsh placard which lately came under 
 my notice, in which he is termed " Y diweddar Dderwydd- 
 fardd Dvsowlis; Ab Iolo," the late learned Druid-bard ab 
 lolo, the claim was allowed; but in neither the 12th cen- 
 tury, nor in this, did they pretend to restore Druidism as a 
 form of religious worship. There are societies of men who 
 call themselves Druids in our large towns ; but they are 
 Druids in nothing but the name. It was something similar 
 that prevailed among the early bards, who might have 
 been, as Kynddelw asserts they were, very good Christians, 
 notwithstanding this politic profession. 
 
 Kynddelw, if not the originator of this distinctive char- 
 acteristic of the chief bard, had certainly much to do with 
 its propagation. We find him seeking the countenance of 
 Prince Rhys in the preceding lines, and the enmity of the 
 monks of Ystrad Marchell, has been with much plausibility 
 attributed, to the prominent part he took in supporting and 
 extending this cause. That theological objections had been 
 
224 BARDS AND BARDISM. 
 
 urged against renovated Druidism, clearly appears from 
 Kynddelw's defence. 
 
 At a subsequent period, the bards introduced another 
 species of exclusiveness, as appears from the following 
 regulation : — 
 
 Whoever says he is an heraldic poet should know the genea- 
 alogies of Kings and Princes, and have received instructions from 
 the three chief bards of the Isle of Britain, viz. Myrddin ap 
 Morvryn, Myrddin Emrys, and Taliesin chief of bards. 1 
 
 This very idle and foolish regulation, must soon have 
 been seen to be practically inoperative ; but it is useful as 
 serving to show the exclusive spirit, by which the leading 
 bards were actuated. 
 
 With the regulations of the Bardic chair of (xlamoro-an, 
 I shall not have much to do ; but it would be improper for 
 me to close this sketch of the bards, without entering a 
 protest, against the pacific character claimed for them by 
 lolo Morganwg and Dr. Pughe. Such an assumption is 
 at variance with the ordained functions of the bards, with 
 the tenor of their conduct, and with their own works and 
 declarations. 
 
 In the social constitution of Wales, the bard was an im- 
 portant and a necessary element. The bards were the depo- 
 sitaries of the knowledge of the country ; and as each family 
 of any note had a domestic bard, whose business it was to 
 keep the family records, praise his patron, and instruct the 
 children, they must have formed a very useful and almost 
 indispensable class of persons. Many of them were for their 
 age learned men. Whatever was known they knew; their 
 theology was evidently in advance of that of the church; 
 and though their speculations about " The four elements, " 
 and upon matters pertaining to the natural sciences, were 
 crude, undigested, and of but little value, yet were they as 
 
 1 Pwy bynag a ddywetto ei fod yn arwyddfardd gwybydded achoedd Bren- 
 hinedd a thywysogion, a chyfarwyddyd oddiwrth y tri Plirifardd Ynys 
 Prydain, nid amgen, Myrddin ap Morvryn, a Myrddin Emrys, a Thaliesin ben 
 Beirdd. 
 
BARDS AND BARDISM. 125 
 
 far advanced in knowledge as any contemporaneous class of 
 persons. They were exceedingly anxious to acquire know- 
 ledge ; and when acquired, they possessed much skill in the 
 art of imparting it to others. One of them, has a~graphie 
 description of the manner in which he picked up his know- 
 ledge j— 
 
 Lewis Glyn Cothy to David ab Rhys of Tre'r Delyn, 
 Radnorshire. 
 
 " Reading both of us, the bard and a learned chieftain, 
 
 Carefully through the books, we spent the time; 
 
 Suppressing all noise, we had sensible conversation, 
 
 And where there was a verse that I did not understand, 
 
 Davydd with the poem of Gwion, (Taliesin) 
 
 Would explain to me its proper signification." — Works, p. 235. 
 
 There is also a strong probability that the Welsh bards, 
 were many of them classical scholars. Gwilym Ddu men- 
 tions one bard as being reputed for writing Latin verses, 
 and takes upon himself to pass a critical opinion upon their 
 merits, pronouncing them to be correct in prosody, and 
 compact in sense; and Davydd ab Gwilym inviting the 
 Nun to, — 
 
 " the knotted birchen tree 
 
 To learn Cuckoo and woodland piety, 
 
 There in the green bush will thy mind 
 
 A path to heaven, lady find ; 
 
 There Ovid's volume shalt thou read, 
 
 And there a spotless life we'll lead." — Works, p. 19. 
 
 appears to imply, that Ovid's being in Latin was no obstacle 
 to its perusal. Many of the poems attributed to Taliesin, 
 are thickly sprinkled with Latin words ; and as that was 
 the language of the age, there seems to be no difficulty in 
 the way of assuming, that some of the bards had added a 
 knowledge of Latin to that of their native tongue. In the 
 use of their parent language, the bards of the twelfth and 
 succeeding centuries, exhibit a proficiency which is quite 
 extraordinary; for at a time when all the languages now 
 spoken in Europe, were beginning to be formed, the people of 
 Wales had not only a copious language fully developed, but 
 also a class of men enriching its literature with poetical 
 
|26 WELSH POETRY 
 
 compositions, exhibiting a classical severity of style, and 
 developing in the diction, the wonderful etymological rich- 
 ness of the Cambrian speech. These poets prided them- 
 selves upon the smoothness of their lines, the correctness 
 of their syntax, and the strength of their language. A pre- 
 tended standard of perfection was raised in the names of 
 the early bards; and though their own verses were much 
 superior, the later bards feigned to tread in the footsteps of 
 their predecessors. Howel ab Owain pretends to follow 
 Merddin ; Elidir Sais in a line already quoted does the 
 same; Kynddelw says, — 
 
 "I particularly, shall be called the powerful — the quick 
 Of blithsome course in the joy inciting dispute, 
 In the ways of songs of the plaintive muse, 
 A poet, a primary bard of learning." 
 
 And again, addressing Madoc ab Meredydd, Prince of 
 
 Powys, he says, — 
 
 "My Bardic voice 'neath heaven has not been faltering; 
 My bardic word od thy behalf is neither feeble nor dishonour- 
 able." 
 
 Llywarch ab Llywelyn, very frequently boasts of his ver- 
 sification, and not without cause. In addressing Davydd 
 ap Owain Gwynedd, he says, — 
 
 " I am engaged upon a wise and precious song." 
 
 and again, — 
 
 "Base men will not consider the polish of my song." 
 
 The same feeling peeps out in their disputations, and 
 doubtless prevailed to a considerable extent in their day; 
 and therefore, as pride in literary composition is of necessity 
 an evidence of refinement, we must award to these Cam- 
 brian poets, a respectable position among civilized com- 
 munities. 
 
 The influence of the earlier bards among their contempo- 
 raries must have been very great. Their poems were nearly 
 always incentives to war; frequently they uttered their ex- 
 hortations at the instigation of the Welsh princes; but there 
 
FROM A. D. 1194 TO A. D. 1240. 
 
 127 
 
 is no reason to doubt their readiness at all times to hurl de- 
 fiance at the Saxons. We have abundant evidences of their 
 hatred of the English ; but though the chieftains frequently 
 betrayed their country, and allowed the kings of England 
 to direct their enmities against each other to the advantage 
 of the common enemy, there is not a single instance of a bard 
 having betrayed his native land. On all occasions they fan- 
 ned the flame of national hatred, and considered no man a 
 hero who was not " a killer of Lloegrians," llofrudd Lloeg- 
 ncys. A better spirit now prevails ; and at the present 
 day, the inhabitants of the principality, yield in loyalty to 
 no people owning the supremacy of our gracious Queen. 
 Then the case was different. England was then inferior in 
 intelligence, in literature, and in refinement, — superior in 
 numbers alone. Patriotism was then the highest wisdom; 
 and while the superiority in comfort, personal freedom, and 
 literary recreations was on their side, the Welsh would 
 have been culpable not to have resisted the agressions of the 
 English. Of this patriotic spirit, the bards were the chief 
 supporters; by the directions of their chieftains they pro- 
 phesied in the name of Taliesin and Merddin, the coming 
 again of Arthur, Cadwaladr, and Kynan; and as it is dif- 
 ficult to conceive of a people at once intellectual and en- 
 slaved, they found it an easy task to inoculate their country- 
 men with their own fervent love of home and hatred of 
 the stranger. In this respect they were of inestimable ser- 
 vice to their countrymen, during their arduous struggle for 
 independence. During the revolt of Owain Glendower, and 
 the wars of the Roses, the bards played a very conspicuous 
 part ; and Lewis Grlyn Oothy, who was in the pay of the 
 Lancastrian party, with his brethren are known to have 
 been of signal service to their friends, and to have done 
 much to influence the result. We therefore owe an im- 
 mense obligation to the bardic order, both for having de- 
 fended their country while it was possible, and for having, 
 when resistancewas no longer advisable, been instrumental 
 in forming so high and honourable a national character, as 
 
1 28 WELSH POETRY 
 
 to have earned the privilege of being united on terms of 
 perfect equality, to the English crown. The Welsh have 
 a proverb, — 
 
 " Cas gwr na charo y wlad a'i maco." 
 Hateful is the man who loves not the land of his birth; 
 
 the late poet laureat, in the Doctor, said he never knew a 
 good man who had not a taproot in the love of his native 
 land ; and in conclusion, I will add, that he who does not feel 
 and promptly acknowledge a debt of gratitude to the bards 
 of Wales, is unworthy of the name of Kymro. I have freely 
 pointed out their faults, and attempted to portray their 
 virtues ; but notwithstanding all their demerits, I can, after 
 communing with the finer and greater minds of England, 
 and the Continent in modern days, and of Greece and Rome 
 in the past, still feel a pleasure in running over their la- 
 bours, and be proud as ever of these " old men eloquent." 
 And when it shall have been shown that before Gower suno- 
 Chaucer wrote, or England had a literature of her own, 
 there were poets in Wales, who left behind them in the 
 course of two hundred years, upwards of four hundred 
 poems, many of which are more than three hundred and 
 fifty lines in length, it is hoped that some little will have 
 been done towards obtaining for the early literature of the 
 principality, the respect and sympathy of a larger circle 
 of admirers. 
 
 This sketch of the bards will form an appropriate intro- 
 duction to a critical review of the poetry of the reign of 
 Llywelyn ap Iorwerth. 
 
SECTION II. 
 
 Welsh Poetry from A.D. 1194 to A.D. 1240. 
 
 Many bards of note nourished during the agitated period 
 embraced by this chapter : and among the literary remains, 
 we have twelve poems by Davydd Benvras, one poem by 
 Einion the son of Gwgan, five odes by Einion the son of 
 Grwalchmai, six by Einion Wan, two by Gwilym Ryvel, two 
 by GrutTydd the son of Gwrgeneu, two by Gwynvardd Brych- 
 einiog, seven pieces by Llywclyn Vardd, three by Seisyll, and 
 six by Phylip Brydydd. Llywarch ab Llywelyu, commonly 
 called " Prydydd y Modi," has left thirty-two poems; and 
 Kynddelw Brydydd Mawr, or the Great Poet, has enriched 
 our mediaeval literature with nearly fifty meritorious produc- 
 tions. Each of these would merit a separate notice ; but as 
 the plan of the Essay admits such only as reveal traits of 
 national character, many of them must be left without fur- 
 ther remarks. No practical purpose can be served by an 
 indiscriminate collection ; we shall therefore confine our 
 attention to such as, on the grounds of literary merit, and 
 historic truthfulness, appear most worthy of perusal. 
 
 The frequent mention of Kynddelw in the preceding 
 sketch of bards and bardism, must have created a desire to 
 know more of him ; and truly he is the bard whose merit 
 claims precedence. He was a man of note and influence in his 
 own day, and was possessed of great and varied powers. His 
 compositions as well as his conduct are distinguished by a 
 vigour of thought, independence of mind, and profundity of 
 reasoning, which reflect much credit upon himself, and upon 
 the order of which he was an influential and illustrious 
 member. Indeed, this seems to be characteristic of the 
 bards ; for we not unfrequently find very original ideas in 
 their poems ; and their theological notions soar far above 
 the dark and bigotted age in which they lived. All else 
 
 R 
 
|30 WELSH POETRY 
 
 had been enslaved by the Romish priesthood; but these 
 choice spirits would have no such instructors. The bard 
 and the priest were sworn enemies ; and the productions of 
 the former teem with sneers at the monks, while the latter 
 not unfrequently show their petty malignity against their 
 rivals in popular estimation. One instance of this is men- 
 tioned by Kynddelw. The monks of the abbey of Ystrad 
 Marchell had sent to tell him, that his body should not be 
 buried in their abbey ; and in reply the bard sent the fol- 
 lowing Englyn, — 
 
 If he had not promised to come against me, 
 And the blessed God knew it ; 
 It were more becoming in a monk 
 To demand, than to refuse my body.i 
 We have here a consciousness of intellectual worth, and 
 a dignified self-reliance which rises into heroism, and tran- 
 scends all feelings of dislike, and hatred; and some lines, 
 wrongly attributed to Merddin, in strength of moral indig- 
 nation, and elevated theological conception, reach absolute 
 sublimity, — 
 
 I will not receive the sacrament, 
 From excommunicated monks 
 "With their togas on their knees ;— 
 I ivitt commune ivith God himself! 2 
 
 Kynddelw has a poem addressed to the Deity, which I 
 here quote, as a specimen of the prevalent theology of the 
 
 bards -- ToGod.3 
 
 One God prosperous, and righteous — A sovereign, 
 
 Who rules without fear ; 
 One son of Mary, a dauntless being, 
 
 1 Cen ni bai ammod dyfod — i'm herbyn 
 
 A Duw Gwyn yn gwybod ; 
 Oedd iawnach i fynach fod, 
 I'm gwrthfyn nac i'm gwrthod. 
 
 2 Ni chymeraf gymmun, 
 Gan ysgymmun fyneich 
 A'u twygau ar eu glin, 
 A'm cymmuno Duw ei hun. 
 
 3 1 Dduw. 
 
 Un Duw cyfrwydd cyfreithgar, — wledig 
 
 A wledych heb afar ; 
 Un mab Mair, meidrawl diarchar, 
 
FROM A. D. 1194 TO A. D. 1240. l^\ 
 
 One eternal, and merciful Deity, 
 One King, Ruler of heaven and earth ; 
 
 Before weakness, the condition of happy age, overtakes me, 
 I will be God's servant, in a banqueting house without complaint, 
 Before I become needy, with a mild necessity, 
 And life, age, and complexion, give place to inanimation, 
 Before the necessity of a merciful death, 
 And the mention of the azure hue of dissolution, 
 Before the time for the great covering of the sky, 
 Before I am brought to the last prison, 
 Before the cold closing up, and the frigid funeral, 
 And the confinement in a dress of oak and gore, 
 
 I will devote my tongue to wise conversation, 
 And to unlimited, and unceasing praise ; 
 I am a praiser of vigour in the garb of sadness, 
 I will praise God, the impartial in judgment, 
 The joy of the heavenly angels will enliven me, 
 
 In thy blessed state, and thy blessed habitation. 
 
 Several of the preceding lines have in them much beauty; 
 the metaphors "frigid funeral, 11 and "oaken dress 11 are 
 very striking ; the description of death as a state in which 
 he will have no warmer covering, than " the great sky 
 above 11 is exceedingly happy ; and the epithets, " prosper- 
 ous, righteous, fearless, 11 and "impartial,' 1 applied to the 
 Deity, bespeak an enlightened theology. 
 
 The language of this bard is exceedingly intricate, and 
 difficult to be understood ; and though he wrote on a vari- 
 ety of topics, to unravel his meaning, in the very involved 
 
 Un Dofydd tragywydd tnigar 
 Un Rien rwyf nef a daear: 
 
 Cyn bwyf gwan esgus gwyn esgar 
 Bwyf gwas Duw, gwesti dialar 
 Cyn bwyf angenawg angenwar, 
 Hoedl hoedran hoen eban abar 
 Cyn angen ange\i athrugar, 
 Arglywed gloes glaswedd glar, 
 Cyn dirfawr gyfwawr gyfysgar, 
 Cyn no'm dwyn i'm diwedd garchar, 
 Cyn oergawdd angladd angblaear, 
 Yn ngwasg yn ngwisg derw a gwyar: 
 
 lawn o'm dawn, doeth arlafar, 
 Iawl heb dawl, beb doli arwar, 
 Iolydd wyf o nwyf yn afar, 
 Iolafi Dduw y difwyn ei far, 
 Llawenydd llu nef llawena fy mryd 
 
 Yth wynfyd yth wynfa. — Myv. Arch. ii. page 249. 
 
132 
 
 WELSH POETRY 
 
 diction of his poems, is not an easy task. It is therefore 
 difficult to form a right estimate of his abilities ; certain it 
 is however, that this very complicated verbiage, has pre- 
 vented him from succeeding in all he undertook; and we 
 dismiss such lighter portions of his poetry, as his address 
 " I verch," as harsh, clumsy, and pedantic. He succeeds 
 better on weightier subjects, as may be seen by his elegy 
 on Owain Gwynedd, a portion of which here follows. It 
 would be well, perhaps, to premise, that when the bards 
 wished to compare their princes to well known heroes, they 
 called their rulers by the names of those heroes. Here our 
 bard calls Owain Gwynedd by the name of Gwalchmai, and 
 by the names of several other celebrated warriors. — 1 
 
 The lion made numbers perish in the encampment of thick hosts, 
 
 Like an intrepid warrior Gwalchmais withstood the shock, 
 
 The numerous host of Gwrvan 3 triumphed. 
 
 He was impatient for the signal of battle, 
 
 Which like the shout of Erov 4 would collect warriors together, 
 
 It was a glorious victory, and the golden treasures lay exposed. 
 
 There was wasteful work, the warriors were energetic, and their 
 
 arms glittering. 
 The impetuosity of the attack broke the foremost ranks, 
 And the rushing swords, making fresh carnage, 
 
 Hewed down whatever they met. 
 The green flood of Teivi* was thickened, 
 The river was filled with the blood of men, 
 The blood-stained waterfowl called aloud for a glut of gore, 
 And swam with toil on waves of blood. 
 
 1 Gwersyll torfoedd tew Hew lladdai, 
 Gorsaf tarf, taerfalch fal Gwalchmai, 
 Gorfaran Gwrfan gorfyddai, 
 Gwr yn aer yn aros gwaeddfai, 
 Bryd Erof gryd , arf greu a ddodai, 
 Brwydr eurgrwydr, eurgrawn ni guddiai 
 Bradog waith gwynniaith gwynnygai, 
 Brys Briwgad, brig bragad briwiai, 
 Brwys lafneu ynghreu ynghrai celanedd 
 
 Cymmined cymmynai. 
 Gwyrdd heli Teifi tewycbai 
 Gwaeddlan gwyr, a llyr ai llanwai 
 Gwyach rudd gorfudd goralwai, 
 Ar donniar gwyar gonofiai 
 
 1 Gwalchmai ab Gwyar, one of Arthur's knights. 
 
 2 Gwrvan Wallt Avwyn, one of the agents of Arthur in the ancient W elsh 
 romances. 3 Erov is mentioned Myv. Arch. i. page 69. as " Erov the Fierce." 
 
 4 A river in Cardiganshire, 
 
FROM A. D, 1194 TO A. D. 1240. \^3 
 
 The wooden horses of the wave, were overthrown, 
 
 By him who is as fierce as Gwythur.i 
 
 The English, men weak as woodbines, will have many funerals ; 
 
 He who used to feed the wild wood-dogs, is no more; 
 
 He who lies in a wooden bed had won my sympathies, 
 
 And might have had my possesions. 
 I lost a wise lord, who ever regarded me ; 
 Attired in gold, he used to give gold to me. 
 I am troubled by the memory of the battle's rage. He who 
 
 loved me, 
 Friend of the songster, songs have greeted him. 
 The shout of dispersion and the gleaming of arms sheltered me, 
 The obstructing strength of Dillus 3 ab Evrai, 
 
 Gwyddfeirch tonn torrynt yn ertrai, 
 
 Gwythur naws fal traws ai treisiai, 
 
 Gwyddfid Eingl ynghladd autrychai, 
 
 Gwyddgwn coed colled au porthai, 
 
 Gwyddwal dyfneual dyfnasai fy model, 
 Fy meddiant a gaffaei. 
 
 Colleis Arglwydd call ni'm collai, 
 
 Corf eurdorf , eurdal am rhoddai, 
 
 Cof cadflawd'd am cawdd, am carai 
 
 Car Cerddawr, cerddai ai cyrchai, 
 
 Gryd wasgar, Uachar, a'm llochai, 
 
 Grym dilludd Dillus fab Efrai 
 al Gwythyrab Greidiol, a warrior who served under Arthur, and the father of 
 one of his three wives called Gwenhwyvar. His grave is noticed in the Englynion 
 y Beddau, My v. Arch. i. p. 81. He is also a distinguished character in Welsh 
 romance. See the Mabinogi of Kilhwch and Olwen, ii, 305. 1 ' Extracted by 
 permission from part VI. of the Biographical Dictionary by R, Williams, B.A. 
 Llangadwaladr, a most valuable work, now in the press. 
 
 2 Dillus ab Evrai, called also Dillus Varchawc, and Dillus Varvawc. He is 
 mentioned in the Mabinogi of Kilhwch and Olwen ; and as that is the only no- 
 tice I have seen of him, I will quote it here. Before Kilhwch could marry Ol- 
 wen, it was necessary to obtain the comb, the scissors, and razor, which were 
 between the ears of the boar Trwyth ; this boar could only be successfully hunt- 
 ed, with Drudwyn the cub of Greid the son of Eri; this cub could only be held 
 by a leasb made of the beard of Dillus the bearded; and this beard must have 
 been plucked with wooden tweezers, while the owner was still living. Kai and 
 Bedwyr, two of Arthur's knights, one day espy Dillus, "the greatest robber that 
 ever fled before Arthur," asleep in a wood, dig " a pit under his feet, the largest 
 in the world," and having struck him a violent blow, squeeze him into it. 
 "There they twitched out his beard completely with the wooden tweezers, and 
 after that they slew him altogether. And from thence they both went to Gelli- 
 wic, in Cornwall, and took the leash made of Dillus Varvawc 's beard with 
 them, and they gave it into Arthur's hand. Then Arthur composed this 
 Englyn,— 
 
 Kai made a leash 
 
 Of Dillus son of Evrei's beard 
 
 Were he alive, thy death he'd be. 
 
 And thereupon Kai was wroth, so that the warriors of the Island could scarce 
 make peace between Kai and Arthur. And thenceforth, neither in Arthur's 
 troubles, nor for the slaying of his men, would Kai come forward to his aid for 
 
134 
 
 WELSH POETRY 
 
 And the friendly disposition of Greidwyr,* Kywyr,2 and Kai.3 
 It was the worthy practice of the leader of those who delight in 
 
 broken shields, 
 To resort to the pleasant, and enthusiastic banquets. 
 
 Happy was he who enjoyed them. 
 The fierce fort beyond the sea, beyond Menai, 
 Is in a wild region from which I have profited, 
 While lived Owain the Great who owned it ; 
 Mead, and wine, and liquor were there, in 
 Gwynedd the white, with its intelligent inhabitants. 
 After the hero, who fought a great battle in its defence, 
 What patriot — hero of the houses of excessive whiteness, 
 What sovereign will rule over it? 
 
 This poem regarded as an elegiac composition is a sad 
 failure, and is utterly destitute of pathos. It displays a 
 perfect mastery over words and skill in versification ; but 
 the perpetual straining to make each line terminate alike, 
 has led to the introduction of many words which serve no 
 useful purpose, though they confuse the meaning. Indeed 
 the whole of the poetic merit of this extract, is comprised 
 in the four lines descriptive of the battle of Aberteivi, 
 fought on the banks of the river Teivi, near Cardigan; but 
 it must be confessed that these four lines beginning, " The 
 green flood of Teivi, &c," set forth a very vivid picture. Here 
 the bard is perpetually aiming at effect, and evidently stag- 
 
 ever after." Mabinogion, ii. p. 305. From this collective mention of so many 
 romantic names found in the tale, I should infer that the Mabinogi of " Kil- 
 hwch and Olwen" was familiarly known in A.D. 1169 — the date of Owain 
 Gwynedd's death. 
 
 Greddf Greidwyr, a Chy wyr, a Chai, 
 
 Glew ddefawd glyw oesdrawd aesdrai 
 
 Ystre hynt, wastad, westei gwynfydig 
 Gwyn ei fyd bieufei. 
 
 Gwyth ysgor tra mor, tra Menai, 
 
 Gwlydd elfydd elwais o bonai 
 
 Tra fu Owain mawr ai meddai 
 
 Medd a gwin, "a gwirawd fyddai 
 
 Gwynedd wen Gwyndyd len ledpar, 
 
 Gwedi gwawr, cadfawr ai cadwai, 
 
 Pa wladwr, arwr arwyndai, 
 
 Pa wledig a wledych arnai? — Myv. Arch. i. p. 208. 
 
 1 Greidwyr probably means Greidiol, one of Arthur's warriors, or Gwrhir 
 Gwalstawd Ieithoedd, another of those chiefs. 
 
 2 Most likely this is Kynyr Keinvarvawc mentioned in " Kilhwch and Olwen." 
 
 3 One of the " Coronetted chiefs of battle," and chief of Arthur's cooks. 
 
FROM A. D. 1134 TO A. D. 1210. 135 
 
 gers under the weight of his subject ; but his verses to Rhys 
 ab GrufFydd, lord of South Wales, flow with more ease, 
 and are much more readable. A few of these are here 
 subjoined, — 1 
 
 I invoke the protection of God! undoubted are thy talents, 
 
 And I am thy talented bard, 
 On thy men — the eagles of battle, 
 On thy land — discreet ruler. 
 
 I invoke, and make great supplication to the Cause 
 
 Who caused heaven and earth, 
 Protection from thy anger, friend of the songster, 
 On thy halls, and on thy porters. 
 
 I invoke, and supplicate, for I am called The Asker, 
 
 Sincere and permanent protection, 
 On thy gold adorned portals, 
 
 And on thy door-keeper; thou in whom the beauty of the 
 land is reflected. 
 
 I invoke your protection, that your favour may not be denied 
 
 As it is not becoming to withhold, 
 Officers of the palace ! procure silence, 
 Bards ! be silent ; It is a bard you hear. 
 
 I invoke the ready protection of the southern chieftains, 
 
 For thee, judicious patron of bards, 
 And for thy troops of shield-bearers, 
 And thy hosts, and thy royal sons. 
 
 1 Asswynaf nawdd Duw diamheu dy ddawn 
 
 Ath ddoniawg wyf finnau 
 Ar dy wyr eryr aerau 
 Ar dy wlad wledig deheu. 
 
 Asswynaf archaf arch fawr i beryf 
 
 A Deris- nef a llawr 
 Nawdd rac dy var car cerddawr 
 Ar dy byrth ar dy borthawr. 
 
 Asswynaf archaf eirchiad ym gelwir 
 
 Nawdd cywir cyngwastad 
 Ar dy ddryseu aur drwsiad 
 Ar dy ddrysawr gwawr gwenwlad 
 
 Asswynaf awch nawdd na chelwch awch porth 
 
 Can perthyn attregwch 
 Gostegwyr llys gostegwch 
 Gosteg beirdd bardd a glywch. 
 
 Asswynaf nawdd hawdd haelion Deheubarth 
 
 Diheuborth cerddorion 
 Ath dwrf oth dariannogion 
 Ath dorf ath deyrnfeibion 
 
\26 WELSH POETRY 
 
 I invoke ready protection, liberal justiciary, 
 
 Whom kings will not withstand, 
 On thy army, thou impersonated contention ! 
 On thy family, who are worthy of possessions. 
 
 Clear mead is their drink, mead-horns they circulate, 
 
 They will be golden rulers. 
 Thou wilt be illustrious in government, — 
 A valiant leader, and a bold ruler. 
 
 Royal scions of Britain, I will compose your eulogy, 
 
 And will celebrate your virtues, 
 I will be your bard and counsellor, 
 And will merit your patronage. 
 
 These Englynion, though possessing but little poetical 
 merit, are favourable specimens of smooth versification, and 
 flowing language ; as well as being plain evidences of the 
 manners of the people, the state of the country, and the re- 
 lative positions of bard and chieftain. One other poem shall 
 conclude our selection from this poet. It is addressed to 
 Owain Kyveiliog, refers to his banquets, and is a companion 
 sketch to Owain's own Hirlas. Like the preceding it con- 
 sists of a series of Englynion ; the lines read smoothly, the 
 language is unusually simple for this bard, and the descrip- 
 tion is both animated and striking. — 1 
 
 The liquor of Owain, yonder beyond mount Digoll, 2 
 How frequently it cheers us ; 
 
 Asswynaf nawdd hawdd haeloned worsaf 
 
 Nith orseif teyrnedd 
 Ar dy dorf corf cywrysedd 
 Ar dy deulu teilwng roedd. 
 Meddgyrn eu gwirawd meddgyrn au gw 
 
 Au gwarcheidw yn eurdyrn 
 A gloyw y fed yn edyrn 
 A glyw dewr a glew deyrn. 
 Teyrnweilch Prydain prydaf awch prif gerdd 
 
 Awch prifglod a ddygaf 
 Awch bardd awch beirniad fyddaf 
 Awch porth pertbyn y w attaf. — My v. Arch. i. p. 2o4 
 1 Gwirawd Owain, draw dra Digoll vynyt, 
 Mor vynych i harvoll : 
 2 Mynydd Digoll is not far from the town of Montgomery. " On this moun- 
 tain may be said to have expired the liberties of Wales ; for here was the last 
 contest against the power of the Conqueror/' Pennant's North Wales, Vol. 
 iii. page 208. 
 
FROM A.D. 1194 TO A.D. 1210. \^J 
 
 Of clear sparkling wine without lacking, 
 Of mead, all from the buffalo's horn. 
 
 The liquor to me shall be appropriated, it shall come from a patron, 
 
 Who gives it me out of his white hand ; 
 The chief of battle distributing treasures, 
 He is the head of the circle : T am chief bard to him. 
 
 Liquor will be brought to us plenteously, 
 Wine out of the goblet, a gracious gift ; 
 In the court of the lord of Lleision, 1 the benefactor of chieftains, 
 In the hand of the lion of conflict, are the overflowing horns of 
 liberality. 
 
 The liquor of Owain the mild, is joyfully distributed 
 
 In the land by the side of the Severn, — 
 With a truly amiable profusion ; 
 And yonder are they bringing it. 
 
 The liquor of Owain the mild, whose tumult 
 
 Is a gleaming flame on the borders of his foe; 
 Proudly it comes in the wrath-dealing hand, 
 Whose host is exhilarated, and whose circling wave is mead. 
 
 Liquor is pressed upon us by the light of moon and stars, 
 
 By the ruler of the impetuous red chieftains ; 
 About Hirvryn 2 the eagle is great and stately, 
 About Severn happy is the smile of men. 
 
 O win cyvrgain, nid cyvyrgoll, 
 O vet: o vuelin oil. 
 
 Gwirawd am daerawd, a'm daw gan rebut, 
 
 Am rybuch o'i wenllaw ; 
 Peniadur cad, ced wallaw, 
 Pen cor; pencerd wyv idaw. 
 
 Gwirawd a dygyr a digawn atan ; 
 
 Gwin o ban, ran radlawn ; 
 Yn llys, lies glyw, llyw Lleisiawn, 
 Yn Haw Hew cad cyrn Had llawn. 
 
 Gwirawd Ywain llary, llawen yd rotir 
 
 Yn y tir tu Havren, 
 A thraul hygar yw hagen 
 A thraw y daw a dygen 
 
 Gwirawd Ywain llary, Hachar i dervysgc 
 
 Ai dervyn i esgar 
 Balch y daw yn Haw lluchvar, 
 Metw i thoryv, met a tboniar. 
 
 Gwirawd am gwrthvyn, gwrth syr a lleuad, 
 
 Gan rwyf rad rut vyhyr; 
 Am Hirvryn birvraisc eryr; 
 Am Havren hyvryd gwen gwyr. 
 
 1 " The palace of the princes of Powys in the county of Montgomery , now called 
 Llysin-Park, the patrimony of lord Powys." Dissertatio de Bardis, page 20, 
 2 Another name for Mynydd Digoll. 
 
138 
 
 WELSH POETRY 
 
 In the hand of Owain the generous, who manfully asserts his 
 claims, 
 Is the golden flagon ; 
 Splendid is the honour of bearing wine, 
 A sovereign's prime and precious gift. 
 
 Behold my prince this day mounted on his cars, 
 
 Not a lion beneath the moon will dare to assail him ; 
 With couched lance in the day of trial, will he lead the assault 
 Of the impetuous thrust, in his golden mail. 1 
 
 Llywarch ab Llywelyn, was a bard of a very superior 
 order. His compositions are neither so numerous, nor so 
 various as the writings of Kynddelw, but in depth of feel- 
 ing, power of delineation, and beauty of conception, they are 
 mucli superior. His address to Llywelyn ap Iorwerth, 
 prince of North Wales, is too long to copy entire ; but the 
 reader will be presented with an extract. The invocation 
 contains sentiments, which, familiar then, strike us now as 
 being very strange, — 2 
 
 May Christ, the Creator and Governor of the hosts of heaven and 
 
 earth, 
 Defend me from all disasters; 
 
 May I through his assistance be prudent and discreet, 
 Ere I come to my narrow habitation. 
 Christ, the Son of God, will give me the gift of song, 
 To extol my prince, who giveth the warlike shout with joy; 
 
 Ar Haw Ywain hael, hawl dilin gwrvalch 
 
 Y mae gorvlwch eurin; 
 Anrydet gwymp arwet gwin; 
 Anrec brivdec breyenin. 
 
 Ut yssim etiw ar geir, 
 
 Nis arvait Hew o dan lloer 
 
 Gwaew crwm yn dyt trwm, trwy fwyr 
 
 Gwan fysc, yn eurwysc yn aer. — My v. Arch. i. p. 234. 
 
 1 In this, as in preceding translations, I have availed myself of those inserted 
 in the Cambrian Register, making only such alterations as seemed to be neces- 
 sary; thus in the second lines of verses the first and sixtb, I have been compelled 
 to differ widely from Dr. Pughe, whose translations are generally very faithful, 
 
 2 Crist Greawdr, llywiawdr llu daear a nef, 
 
 Am noddwy rhag afar, 
 Crist celi bwyf celfydd a gwar, 
 Cyn diwedd gyfyngwedd gyfar 
 
 Crist fab Duw am rhydd arllafar. 
 I foli fy rhwyf rhwysg o ddyar 
 
FROM A.D. 1194 TO A.D. 1240. ^39 
 
 Christ who hath formed me of the four elements, 
 
 And hath endowed me with the deep and wonderful gift of poetry: 
 
 Llywelyn is the ruler of Britain and her armour. 
 
 The bard then proceeds to give his hero's pedigree, and 
 afterwards gives the following vivid description of the battle 
 of Porth Aethwy. — * 
 
 Llywelyn was our prince ere the furious contest happened, 
 
 And the spoils were eagerly amassed, 
 
 Purple gore ran over the snoiv ivhite breast of the warriors, 
 
 And after the shout the havock and carnage was general ; 
 
 The particoloured waves flowed over the broken spear, 
 
 And the warriors were silent ; 
 
 The briny ivave came with force, 
 
 And met on its way one mixed with blood. 
 
 When we went to Porthaethwy 2 on the steeds of the main, 
 
 Over the great roaring of the floods, 
 
 The spear raged with relentless fury, 
 
 And the tide of blood rushed with force ; 
 
 Our attack was sudden and fierce, 
 
 Death displayed itself in all its terrors, 
 
 So that ive doubted ivhether any of us would die of old age. 
 
 An enumeration of the battles which Llywelyn fought 
 follows, and the poem concludes with these sentiments, — 3 
 
 Happy was the mother who bore thee, 
 Who art wise and noble, 
 
 Crist fab Mail* am pair o'r pedwar defnydd, 
 
 Dofn awen ddiarchar, 
 Llywelyn llyw Prydain ai phar. 
 
 1 Ef yn llyw cyn Hid gyfysgar, 
 Ysglyfion ysglyfiynt llwrw bar, 
 Oedd rynn rudd ebyr or gwyr gwar, 
 Oedd ran feirw fwyaf o'r drydar, 
 Oedd amliw tonnau, twnn amhar eu neid, 
 
 Neud oeddynt dilafar, 
 Ton heli ehelaeth i bar, 
 Ton arall guall, gocb gwyar, 
 Porth aethwy pan aetham ni ar feirch mordwy. 
 
 Ueh mowrdwrf tonniar, 
 Oedd ongyr, oedd engir ei bar, 
 Oedd angudd godrudd gwaedryar, 
 Oedd enghyrtb ein hynt, oedd angar, 
 Oedd ing, oedd angau anghymar 
 Oedd ammau ir byd bod abar o honam, 
 
 O henaint lleithiar. 
 
 2 Porthaethwy is in Anglesea. 
 
 :i Mad yth ymddug dy fam, wyd doeth, 
 Wyd ai dnm, wyddidawl, bob chwant, 
 
140 WELSH POETRY 
 
 And freely distributest rich suits of garments, 
 
 With gold and silver. 
 
 And the bards celebrate thee 
 
 For presenting thy bred steeds, when they sit at thy tables ; 
 
 And I myself am rewarded for my gift of poetry, 
 
 With gold and distinguished respect ; 
 
 And should I desire of my prince the moon as a present, 
 
 He would certainly bestow it on me. 
 
 Thy praise reacheth to Lliwelydd, 1 
 
 And Llywarch is the man who celebrates thee in songs ; 
 
 My praises are not extravagant, 
 
 To thee the prodigy of the age : 
 
 Thou art firm in battle like the elephant, 
 
 When thou arrivest at the period of thy glory, 
 
 When thy praises no longer employ the bard and the harp, 
 
 My brave prince ere thou comest, 
 
 When the last hour approaches to confess thy sins, 
 
 After thou hast vanquished thy enemies, 
 
 Mayest thou at last become a glorious saint ! 
 
 Of his address to Davydd ab Owain, whom lie praised as 
 highly while tyranizing over his nephew, the above men- 
 tioned Llywelyn, as he afterwards praised the nephew for 
 displacing his uncle, we shall treat when the " Avallenau" 
 come under consideration. 
 
 O borffor o bryffwn fliant, 
 
 O bali ag aur ag aryant, 
 
 O emys gochwys gochanant dy feirdd, 
 
 Yn fyrddoedd i caffant. 
 Minnau om rhadau rhymfuant, 
 Yw rliuddaur yn rhwydd ardduniant : 
 O bob rhif im Rhwyf im doniant, 
 O bob rhyw im rhodded yn gant 
 Cyd archwyf im llyw y lloergant yn rhodd, 
 Ef am rhydd yn geugant. 
 Lliwelydd dy foliant 
 Llywelyn, a Llywarch rwy cant. 
 Munerawd ym marw fy mwyniant fal yn byw 
 
 Lleissiawn ry w Run blant 
 Nyd gormod fy ngair it gormant ! 
 Teyrn wyd tebyg Eliphant, 
 Can orfod pob rhod yw rhamant, 
 Can folawd a thavawd a thant, 
 Cein deyrn, cyn bych yngreifiant, 
 Can difwyn o ysgwn esgarant, 
 Can Aduw ren yw ran westifiant, 
 
 Can ddiwedd pob bucbedd, bych sant. — Myv. Arch. i. p. 297, 
 See note to Howel ab Owain's Delight, p. 45. 
 
FROM A.D. 1194 TO A.D. 1240. 14^ 
 
 In a poem addressed to Rodri the son of Owain Gwynedd, 
 there is a passage said to refer to the departure of Madoc 
 ap Owain Gwynedd for America. It runs thus, — 
 
 Two princes of strong passion broke off in wrath, 
 
 The multitude of the earth did love them ; 
 
 One on land in Arvon allaying ambition ; 
 
 And another, a placid one, on the bosom of the vast ocean 
 
 In trouble great and immeasureable, 
 
 Prowling after a possession easy to be guarded, 
 
 Estranged from every one for a country. 
 
 These two princes most probably were Howel and Madoc. 
 I have not paid sufficient attention to the evidence, to form 
 any opinion as to the credibility of the popular story of 
 Madoc's emigration ; but Mr. Catlin, in the second volume 
 of his American Indians, has imparted renewed interest to 
 the subject. He believes the tradition, and is firmly con- 
 vinced that the Man dans, whose manners differ so widely 
 from the other tribes of Indians, are the remnants of 
 Madoc's emigrants. The late Lieut. Ruxton, author of the 
 spirited sketches of " Life in the far west/' which lately ap- 
 peared in Blackwood's Magazine, is said to have fallen a 
 victim to this seductive theory, and to have firmly believed 
 that he would be able to prove the Mowqua Indians, to be 
 the descendants of those who accompanied the Cambrian 
 Prince. How much of truth there may be in this, I am 
 unable to determine ; but that Madoc disappeared from his 
 native country is proved beyond a doubt, by some allusions 
 in another poem by this Bard. It is addressed to " The 
 Hot Iron," and exhibits an extraordinary alternation of 
 belief and scepticism, which appears to imply the recent 
 introduction into Wales of that ordeal. In some places he 
 seems to consider the hot iron as a manifestation of Christ ; 
 and yet, no sooner has he said that, than doubts again recur 
 to his mind, which, in thus wavering, shows us in an in- 
 teresting manner, how the ordeal was looked upon in the 
 twelfth century, by a shrewd and sensible man, — 
 
|42 WELSH POETRY 
 
 To the Hot Iron.i 
 
 Creator of Heaven ! thy servant is a believer, 
 
 Shall we believe in this, as we believe in Jonas 1 
 
 Steel magistrate ! of cheap ordinances, blessed by the God of 
 
 Heaven, 
 Subdued I am before the transfixed One. 
 Consecrated truth, glowing hot! 
 My song delights in thy blessedness. 
 Reflect when thou judgest, the number of my kindred, 
 Hot wounding creature, who created thee ? 
 I will ask advice through Peter, of Christ 
 Who was appointed to bear the cross ; 
 And of the fair interceders Thomas and Phylip, 
 And Paul and Andrew, 
 Lest my hand be misplaced, and I be slain by the bright sword, 
 And my kinsmen pay the retribution fee for murder. 
 Good iron ! exonerate me 
 From the charge of having slain Madoc, 
 And show that he who slew the fair prince, 
 Shall have no part of heaven, nor its nine kingdoms ; 
 But that I shall obtain the society of God, 
 And escape his enmity. 
 
 From this it would seem that Madoc had gone away the 
 first time by stealth, and that the bard, from being perhaps 
 the last person seen in his company, was suspected of having 
 murdered him. The passage first quoted appears to have 
 been written after this, and looks as if it had been written 
 
 1 Creawdyr nef crededun y was 
 Credwn y hwn val y credwn yonas 
 Dur ynad detyf rad ry swynas douyt 
 
 Dof wyf yt yn wanas. 
 Dywynnyc dy wir dy wynnyas 
 Dy wynnryd yn kywyd nyd kas 
 Edrych pan vernych veint vyn tras 
 Creadur poeth gur path greas. 
 Archaf arch y bedyr o berthynas Crist 
 
 A dug crog yn urtas 
 Trwy eirawl ymyawl tomas a phylip 
 A phawl ayr andras, 
 O aflen fy llaw a llavyn wyn las 
 O afeith goleith galanas 
 Da haearn diheura pan lias 
 Lleith madawc nad om llaw y cavas 
 Noc ae ceif cain ae glas 
 Rann o nef ae naw teyrnas 
 A minheu mynnaf gyweithas 
 Bot duw ym a dianc oe gas. 
 
FROM A.D. 1194 TO A.D. 1240. 143 
 
 after Madocs return, for it describes the newly found ter- 
 ritory as " easily guarded." The line, 
 
 " Yn esguraw hawl hawt adnes" 
 Prowling after a possession easily guarded, 
 
 seems more decisive of the question than any other evi- 
 dence that can be adduced, as the description seems appli- 
 cable to a new and thinly populated country. Too much 
 stress has been laid upon the poem of Davy dd ap Meredydd 
 ap Rhys, both by the opponents, and the advocates of this 
 story ; for after all, it simply states the fondness of Madoc 
 for the sea, and leaves the question of his discovery of 
 America just where it was before. That Madoc left the 
 country, is quite clear from the concurrent testimony of the 
 bards, and the following triad, — 
 
 " The three missing ones of the Isle of Britain, Third, 
 Madoc ab Owain Gwynedd who went to sea with three 
 hundred men in ten vessels, and it is not known whither they 
 went;" for the annals of the country leave his landing 
 place unknown. We must therefore look elsewhere for 
 proofs of his discovery of the American continent. There 
 are abundant evidences that the Welsh had numerous 
 ships, and frequently went back and fore to Ireland ; as 
 the passage from America to this country has been made in 
 a boat, there is no insuperable difficulty interposed by the 
 distance between the two continents; and as late researches 
 tend to show, that the American continent was discovered 
 by the Northmen, three or four hundred years before the 
 voyage of Columbus, the tale is not improbable. The argu- 
 ments in favour of the Cambrian story, are forcibly, and inge- 
 niously urged by an old traveller, who shall speak in his 
 own quaint language. The passage, though principally 
 devoted to Madoc, also illustrates the political history of 
 Wales during this period with tolerable accuracy; but Sir 
 Thomas Herbert is slightly in error, in making Howel ab 
 Owain fall in contending for the succession. Howel succeeded 
 in obtaining the crown, and kept it for two years ; and the 
 cause of his death has been already (p. 48.) more fully 
 related. 
 
144 WELSH POETRY. 
 
 He first quotes Seneca's predictions, as given in the Medea 
 of that philosopher, — 
 
 "Venient annis 
 Secula seris, quibus Oeeanus 
 Vincula rerum laxet et ingens 
 Pateat Tellus, Typhisque Novas 
 Detegat Orbes, Nee sit Terris 
 Ultima Tlmle." 
 
 Which he thus translates, — 
 
 The time shall one day be, 
 Guided by Providence when man shall see 
 The liquid ocean to enlarge her bounds, 
 And pay the earth a tribute of more grounds 
 In ample measure. For the sea Gods then, 
 Will show new worlds and rarities to men, 
 Yea by his leave who everything commands, 
 See Thule far less North than other lands. 
 
 And then he proceeds to say, that these words are, 
 "Dim lights to show the way to the western world. So 
 that upon the whole it may be granted, the discovery of 
 that vast continent was reserved for a succeeding genera- 
 tion. The first we meet with is Madoc son of Prince 
 Owen Gwynedd, who for SO years ruled Wales after his 
 father Griffith ab Oynan had at St. David's done homage 
 to William the Conqueror, for lands he held on the other 
 side of the Severn. The annals of those times acquaint us, 
 that Owen was no sooner dead, but that the custom of gavel 
 kind induced the numerous sons of that Prince to claim 
 a division of his dominions among them. Iorwerth Drwyn- 
 dwn, or Edward the brokennosed, the eldest son of Owen, 
 was set aside, and denied the right of succeeding to his 
 father's throne on account of that blemish and other imper- 
 fections, when Howel claimed the throne, but was objected 
 to on account of his illegitimacy, being the son of Owen by 
 an Irish concubine. David opposed the pretensions of Howel, 
 and in the war that followed between them, the latter was 
 killed. David having married Emma Plantagenet, the 
 sister of Henry the II. was supported in his usurpation by 
 the arms of England, in addition to those of his own ad- 
 herents. However, as soon as Llewelyn the son of the 
 
FROM A.D. 1194 TO A.D. 1240. 145 
 
 unfortunate Iorwerth arrived at the age of manhood, he 
 dethroned his uncle David, and became with the general 
 consent of the country, Sovereign Prince of Wales. These 
 intestine broils were no way pleasing to Madoc, another of 
 the sons of Owain, who seems to have foreseen that the 
 ruin of their country would be the consequence of their 
 discord and fraternal rage. Therefore, to avoid the storm 
 and provide for himself, he resolves upon a sea adventure, 
 hoping to find some place abroad, where he might fix him- 
 self securely and not be liable to invasion. Thus says tra- 
 dition. It is not unlikely but that Madoc was acquainted 
 with the prophecy or 4 dim lights' which led to the dis- 
 covery of the western world. Madoc having provided ships, 
 men, and provision, put to sea from Abergwilley, in the year 
 1170. Wind and sea favouring his design, after some 
 weeks sailing due west he descried land, probably New- 
 foundland ; but whatever it was it overjoyed him. Madoc 
 then ranging the coast, so soon as he found a convenient 
 place sat down to plant, meaning, fixt on a spot to form 
 his intended settlement. After he had stayed there awhile 
 to recruit the health of his men, he fortified his settlement 
 and left 120 men there to protect it. And by providence 
 (the best compass) he returned in safety to his own country. 
 Having recounted his voyage, the fruitfulness of the soil, 
 the simplicity of the savages, the wealth abounding there 
 and facility of enlargement, after some months' refreshment 
 in ten barques loaden with necessary provisions they put to 
 sea again, and happily recovered their settlement. They 
 found but few of those whom they had left remaining, their 
 death it is conjectured being by an incautious indulgence 
 in the produce of a novel climate and country, or the 
 treachery of the natives. Madoc, with the assistance of his 
 brothers Eineon and Edwal, put things once more in 
 comparative good order, and remained there some time, 
 expecting the arrival of more of their countrymen from 
 Wales, for which they had made arrangements previous to 
 their departure ; but they never came, and caused grievous 
 
 T 
 
]46 WELSH POETRY. 
 
 disappointment. The cause of this failure is said to have 
 been the wars which ensued, and which called for the service 
 of every man for the defence of his country, but which 
 ended in the subjugation of Wales by the English. 
 
 " But though Madoc and his Cambrian crew be dead, and 
 their memory moth-eaten, yet are their footsteps plainly 
 traceable, which the language they left, the religion they 
 taught, and the reliques they found do clearly evidence. 
 Otherwise how are we to account for the British words, not 
 much altered from the dialect used at this day, among the 
 Mexicans. Whence had they the uses of beads, crucifixes, 
 &c. \ All which the Spaniards, as we read in Lopez de 
 Gomeza and others, found amongst those, Acusano and Cal- 
 huaean at their first landing in America. Yea, whence 
 comes that tradition amongst the Mexicans, that a strange 
 people came thither in corraugles who taught them the 
 knowledge of God, and by whose instruction they became 
 civilized \ as is related by Columbus, Postellus, Francus, 
 Lopez, Cortes, and other Castilians. 
 
 "That of Herniando Cortes, who Anno Dom. 1519 was 
 Ambassador and General for Ferdinand and Isabella, is 
 most remarkable. In some discourse between him and 
 Montezuma, the second son of Antzol, and father of Qua- 
 butimoc, the last King of Mexico, Cortes, observing the 
 Indians to have many ceremonies which the Spaniards 
 used, demanded who instructed them. The answer was, 
 that many years before, a strange nation landed there, who 
 were such a people as induced his ancestors to afford them 
 a civil reception. But how they were called, or whence 
 they came, he could not satisfy. Another time, in a pane- 
 gyrick which Montezuma returned them, he had this 
 expression. One chief cause of my affection to your nation 
 is, I have heard my father say, how that he had heard his 
 grandfather affirm, that some generations before, his proge- 
 nitors came thither as strangers in company of a nobleman 
 who abode there awhile, and then departed, but left many 
 of his people behind. That upon his return, most of those 
 
FROM A.D. 1194 TO A.D. 1240. \£J 
 
 he left there died ; and that from him or some of them they 
 supposed themselves to be descended. By which narrative 
 it may be presumed, the people he meant were Welsh rather 
 than Spaniards. And the records of that voyager writ by 
 many bards and genealogists confirm as much, as may 
 appear by the learned poems of Cynwric ab Grono, Guttyn 
 Owain who lived in Edward IVth's time ; and Sir Mere- 
 dith ab Rees, who lived in 1477, of Madoc had this 
 eulogy. 
 
 Madoc ab Owen called was I 
 Strong, comely, brave, of stature high, 
 No home-bred pleasures proved my aim 
 By land and sea I won high fame. 1 
 
 By their language also, Welsh names being given to birds, 
 and beasts, rivers, and nooks, &c, &c, as Pengwyn, a bird 
 that has a white head ; craigwen, a white rock ; Gwyn- 
 ddwr, white water ; nev, heaven ; llwynog, a fox ; wy, an 
 Ggg ; calaf, a quill ; bara, bread ; trwyn, a nose ; mam, 
 a mother ; tad, father ; dwr, water ; pryd, time, and many 
 others. There are islands called corrhoeso, and a cape 
 Britain. Buwch, a cow ; and clugar, a heathcock, &c. 
 Nor is it a phansie of yesterday. Since learned men both 
 of late and former times have taken notice. Such are 
 Cynwric ab Grono, Meredyddab Rees, Guttyn Owain, Lloyd, 
 Howel, Prys, Hackluit, Broughton, Purchas, Davy, and 
 others, whose learning and integrity have credit, and abun- 
 dantly convince the ingenious, so as no doubt had it been 
 known and inherited, then had not Columbus, Americus 
 Vespasius, Magellan, nor others carried away the honour of 
 so great a discovery, Nor had Madoc been defrauded of his 
 memory, nor our Kings of their just title to a portion of 
 the West Indies; 1 2 
 
 1 Madoc wif mwydic wedd 
 
 lawn genau Owain Gwynedd 
 
 Ni ftmnwn dyr fy enaid oedd 
 
 Na da mawr ond y moroedd. 
 2 From Travels into Africa and Asia the Great, especially desmbing the 
 famous empires of Persia and Industan, as also divers other Kingdoms in the 
 Oriental Indies, and the isles adjacent. The 3rd edition further enlarged by Sir 
 Thomas Herbert, Bart. London, printed in the year 1677. Pawb yn y arver. 
 
148 
 
 WELSH POETRY. 
 
 I have already pointed out the looseness of logic, in the 
 supposition that the words of Davydd ab Meredydd ab 
 Rhys, prove anything more than Madocs departure ; and 
 now it only remains to correct the quotation made from that 
 poem. In Theophilus Evans's Drych y Prif Oesoedd, the 
 lines are said to haw been found upon Modoc's tombstone. 
 The assertion was too flagrantly untrue to receive credit ; 
 and therefore Herbert rejected the statement, but copied 
 the lines. Originally, they formed part of a poem composed 
 in acknowledgement of a fishing net, which the bard re- 
 ceived as a gift, and stood thus, — 
 
 Let Evan of generous growth, 
 
 Hunt upon the fair land, like his father ; 
 
 With kind consent, at proper hours, 
 
 I will be a hunter upon the waters. 
 
 Madoe the brave of the weather-beaten countenance, 
 
 The rightful issue of Owain Gwynedd, 
 
 Would have no land, (man of my own soul !) 
 
 Nor great wealth, except the seas. 1 
 
 When the bards were out on their circuits, they used to 
 stay for a month or two at a time in the same house, their 
 stay being in proportion to the hospitality shown them; 
 and when they took their leave, they generally left behind 
 them, an ode, or some verses in praise of their host. Our 
 bard has left us a favourable specimen of this class of poems, 
 which is here translated. Llywarch was a Northwallian ; 
 and the lines are addressed — 2 
 
 To Rhys Gryg, Prince of South Wales. 
 
 Christ Creator, Emperor, who owns us, 
 Christ the mysterious, pillar of peace, 
 
 1 Helied Ifan, tiael dyfiad 
 Ar y tir teg, wedir tad ; 
 Mewn awr dda minnau ar ddwr, 
 O fodd hael a fydd heliwr 
 Madog wych, mwyedig wedd, 
 lawn genau Owain Gwynedd 
 Ni fynnai dir f ' enaid oedd 
 
 Na da mawr, ond y moroedd. 
 
 2 Crist creawdyr ymerawdyr an met 
 Crist keli kolofyn tangnevet 
 
FROM A. D. 1194 TO A. D. 1240. |49 
 
 Christ son of Mary, who causest our pure nobility, 
 
 Sensible in the detection of untruth, 
 
 Crowned Jesus watch over me ! 
 
 From Keirionydd 1 I have bent my steps, 
 
 And first I will go to the palace of the South, 
 
 To the skilful ruler of kingdoms, 
 Rhys the son of Rhys of violent course; 
 The assaulter of battle, of the race of Cadell, 2 
 The travelling bards resort to his assembly, 
 Which is as gentle, as it is a frequent resort. 
 Thou wentest to the barren covert of Rhos, 3 
 And to Pembroke in the height of triumph, 
 Thou brokest Carmarthen, and its hosts from France, 4 
 
 And many a Frenchman was slain on the return. 
 And Swansea, a tranquil town, 
 
 "Was broken in heaps, and then we made peace with the people; 
 And Saint Clears 5 with its bright white lands 
 It is not Saxons who possess it. 
 In Swansea, the strong key of Lloegria, 
 We made widows of all the wives. 
 The Eagle of men, loves not to lie, nor sleep. 
 
 Nor an idle retinue. 
 There was a raising and shaking of swords, 
 At the fortified breastplate of royalty. 
 
 Crist mab meir am peir pur vonhet 
 Synwyr — kyn synhwyaw enwiret 
 Caranhawc yessu car ym wet 
 Keirionnyt kyrcheis vym buchet 
 Kyrcbaf yn gyntaf kyntet deheubarth 
 
 Diheubenn teyrnet 
 Kyrchaf Rys vab Rhys om rysset 
 Kyrchyad cad Cadell edivet 
 Kyrchynveirt kyrchant wy orset 
 Kyrchvawr llawr ys kyrchu llaryet 
 Kyrcheist ros ditos divaet 
 A phenvro a phen gorvolet, 
 Torreist gaer vyrtin torvoet ar freinc 
 
 Llawer franc an adwet 
 Ac abertawy tref dyhet 
 Tyryoet briw a hetiw neud het 
 A seint Cler ar claer wyndiret 
 Nyd Saeson y maon ae met 
 Yn Abertawy terwyn allwet Lloegyr 
 
 Neud llwyr wetw y gwraget 
 Ny char eryr gwyr gorwet na chysgu 
 
 Na chosgort heb wnet 
 Gnawd ysgyn ac ysgwyd ar glet 
 Yn ysgor brondor brenhinet 
 
 1 In the upper part of Carnarvonshire. 
 
 2 Cadell, the son of Roderick the Great, was the father of Howel the Good, 
 
 3 Rhos is in Pembrokeshire. 
 
 4 By French, the bards mean Normans. 
 
 5 Saint Clears is in Carmarthenshire. 
 
|50 WELSH POETRY 
 
 We accustomed the spear of valorous enthusiasm, 
 
 To pierce through them in a twinkling. 
 
 His hand taught the bloody-stained blades, 
 
 To make the Germans move to exile; 
 
 His army slew till they were satiated, — 
 
 The grey whelps had circumspection. 
 
 The dreaded eagle is accustomed to lay bodies in rows, 
 
 And to feast with the leader of wolves, 
 
 And with hovering ravens glutted with flesh, — 
 
 Butchers with keen bodings for carcases. 
 
 Three days he feasted, with bards 
 
 At his board at his residence, 
 
 With his prey, delicious wine, and his feast, 
 
 This greatly beloved ravager, 
 
 His red gold, his good fortune, and his wealth, 
 
 And his sleek stallions of well trained restlesness ; 
 
 And I of my talents had no peace, 
 
 But was obliged to sing an infinity of songs. 
 
 This is a fair region for a bard to meet with splendid gifts, 
 
 Prince-like he will not let me experience one want, 
 
 Chief of elegance, I will tell when I return to Gwynedd, 
 
 How in a court name, and wonderful grandeur, 
 
 I go with the chief. 
 
 Chief of rulers, thou excellest in daring, 
 
 The bold riders of thy proud saddles ; 
 
 On a rising course free from obstruction, 
 
 Gnawd gwaewawr gwryawr gwythlonet 
 Gwan trwywan trwydun gythrymet 
 Gnawd oe law y lavur cochwet 
 
 Y gychwyn allmyn i alltudet 
 Gnawd y lu y lat eu tachwet 
 
 Y Iwydyon canaon callet 
 
 Gnawd eryr ebyr abar gwet bangnaw 
 
 Y bencnud wy gyvet 
 A chicvrein kyvwyrein kicwlet 
 Kicytyon coelyon kalanet 
 Trydyt gnawd cannvrawd Kynrawet o veirt 
 
 Am y vwrt kyvannhet 
 Ae breitin ae wlytwyn ae wlet 
 Ae breityawr gorvawr gorhoffet 
 Ae eur rut ae vut ae veuet 
 Ae emys bywetvrys hy wet 
 A minheu om donyeu dym het 
 Gnawd ym daw anaw anvedret 
 Or deheu yrdanc haelonet 
 Ardal hart y vart am verthet 
 Por eissor un eissyeu nym gwet 
 Penn elyf pan elwyf wynet 
 Un llysenw a run nyd ryvet vy moci 
 
 Yn mudaw am reuet 
 Reuet teyrnet ti bieu y dreis 
 
 Ar draws valch gyfrieu 
 Rysva dygyn dugost wy goteu 
 
FROM A. D. 1194 TO A, D. 1240. |5| 
 
 When once determinedly started, thou art not easily inter- 
 rupted. 
 Princes who are thy opponents, 
 Fall before thee like the stars of creation. 
 Rhos was destroyed and Pembroke, — the people, 
 A baptized people fond of meat l were pardoned. 
 The court of Haverfords of the surge, and its houses, 
 Was also burned to the ground. 
 The whole of what the inhabitants had was taken, 
 
 And divided among the followers. 
 The castle of Gwys^ thou didst quickly humble, 
 And Arberth 4 of the light gossamer. 
 Death is the natural consequence of thy enmity, 
 
 And of that of thy retinue — best of rulers. 
 Rhys the Little 5 art thou called, but falsely, 
 For thou art Rhys the proudly great, towering in arms in the 
 
 battle. 
 Rhys the Hoarse 6 they call him — pillar of state, 
 Not Rhys the harsh attempting oppressions. 
 Rhys that not ten thousand nor double will drive back, 
 
 Rusgleth gwrt nyd ymhwrt amheu 
 Riuet syr syrthiasant yg creu 
 Oth gynnygyn oth gynnevodeu 
 Ros divro Penvro penn vateu pybyl 
 Pobyl vedyt rwy kigleu 
 Llys hawrfort y berw fyrt neud ten 
 Lhvyr Uosged y thud wet hitheu 
 Llutwyd kymynwyd kwbyl yn eu pobed 
 
 Pob kenveint yn ychreu 
 Kastell gwis kystyngeist yn gleu 
 Ac Arberth gosymerth goleu 
 Anghen yn aghen yn angheu oth gas 
 
 Ath osgort rwy goreu 
 Rys Vychan y galwant ys geu 
 Rys vawr valch yg calch yg cadeu 
 Rys Gryg y galwant golofyn peu 
 Nyd Rhys Gryg yn kynnyc kameu 
 Rys nys kil na deng mil na deu 
 
 1 This expression might amuse a stranger; and yet it affords an interesting in- 
 sight into the manners of the Welsh. Their diet was of rather a pastoral cha- 
 racter, being bread and milk, without meat ; the want of the latter article pre- 
 vented the earl of Leicester from keeping an army of Englishmen in Wales, 
 when Llewelyn ap Gruffydd and himself were confederates. AVarrington is 
 wrong when he says (volume ii. page 179,) it was want of bread; for of that as 
 Giraldus shows they had plenty. 
 
 2 Haverfordwest in Pembrokeshire. 
 a In Pembrokeshire. 
 
 4 Narberth in Pembrokeshire. 
 
 5 When father and son were of the same name, the son was called the "Little," 
 Vychan* 
 
 6 This is a pun, as in the preceding case, upon the word " Gryg/' which may 
 signify either hoarse or harsh. 
 
152 WELSH POETRY 
 
 A warrior that does not give his warriors, 
 
 A destiny of idleness. 
 A hero before whose bloody wide spreading sword, 
 Chieftains fall like shooting stars. 
 Hero of Dynevor, 1 with the hand unused to except, 
 By seeing thee am I not become, 
 The first chief of the faith, 
 Of a Cambrian from a Cambrian multitude. 
 From every kingdom tribute comes to our sovereign, 
 
 And he protects those who give it. 
 His favours are scattered among suitors, 
 His red gold, his bounty, and his society. 
 I being anxious to return home, 
 The liberal prince was so pressing, 
 
 That to stay he offered me gold and silver in abundance, 
 And stallions of headlong haste pampered with corn, 
 Men and land, and an extensive township, 
 And frequent admission to his society, 
 With a lordship well known and fruitful; 
 Without limit and enough for the wisest 
 Were given to me by the potent ruler; 
 A golden mirror, and three hundred garments. 
 He is the best prince ever born, 
 Since the meek Arthur the leader of the nation; 
 He pours his gold into the lap of the agitated bard, 
 
 Pan el Rys yn rwysc y arveu 
 Arvawc kymynawg kymened osswyt 
 
 Oes vdut nyd tynghed 
 Aerwr syr syrthyws eu riued 
 Ar y law ae lafyn wyarlled 
 Arwr dinevwr dinamhed adaf 
 
 Neud athvvyf ath weled 
 Ynbennaf yn bennaetk or gred 
 O gymro o gymry giwed 
 O bob teyrnas teyrnged yn rwyf 
 
 Nwy rotwy gogeled 
 Y eirchion y eirchyeid ar lied 
 Ae eur rut ae vut ae vynwed 
 A minheu ked mynbwyf vyned 
 Am radeu ryeu 17 daenred 
 Yssym eur ac aryant nyd fled 
 Ac emys grawhurys grawnvyged 
 Yssym wyr a thir a tbrefred ehang 
 
 Ac ehofyn ystlyned 
 Yssym ut digut digaled 
 Digryno digawn y doetbed 
 Am rotes ryodres riued 
 A drych eur ar dry cb ant tuted 
 Ef goreu rieu ry aned 
 Er Arthur llary modur lliwed 
 Ef dihytyl y eur yn arfed frawt feirt 
 
 1 The Royal seat of the princes of South Wales. It is in Carmarthenshire. 
 
PROM A. D. 119 4 TO A. D. 1240. J53 
 
 As ripe fruit falls from the trees. 
 
 Llywelyn ruler of baptism and belief, 
 
 Son of Iorwerth, my strength and protection, 
 
 Thou too should'st come to the South, 
 
 The renowned meek one would give thee permission : 
 
 Thou would'st meet with abundant honour, 
 
 And live on terms of equality, an age of generosity. 
 
 Thou art like Mordav 1 and Nudd, givers of red gold, 
 
 And Rhydderch of equal fame. 
 And thy stature and powerful frame, 
 Is like Erculf 2 the dreaded 
 And Samson, wood dogs of the most glorious cause, 
 
 And Hector when the trial came ; 
 And from the time thou hast proved thy courage, 
 Jesus has not left thee to want. 
 In the communion of the three, in a band so fair, 
 
 Have I not left thy support ? 
 Grand consociate of the respected Kymry, 
 Terrible opposing leader — give me thy hand. 
 Rhys the son of Rhys, to whom Britain is certainly indebted, 
 
 Is the favourite of the poets ; 
 Rhys of Derllys 3 1 should deserve his reward, 
 
 Val frwyth coed llawii adved 
 Llywelyn llyw bedyt a chred 
 Vab Iorwerth vy nerth vy noted 
 Y titheu ut deheu dyred 
 Clod wr llary om 11 wry yth drwyted 
 Ny bytud wrthut vut vyged 
 Yth eissor yth oes haelhed 
 Wrth vordaf a nut pan roted ruteur 
 
 A ryterch afneved 
 Yth wrth yd yth wrt gadarnhed 
 Mai gwrhyd Ercwlff ergrynhed 
 A Samswn gwytgwn gogonet achaws 
 
 Ac echdor pan broved 
 Ac or pryd y provaf nad fled 
 Nath adws Yessu eissywed 
 Yn hygant y tri yn tecced adaf 
 Neud adwyf yth ganred 
 Run gymrawt gymry ovyged 
 Rynn wrthyd llyw ryd Haw roted 
 Rys vab rys dilys dylyed prydein 
 
 Prydytyon eituned 
 Rys derllys dyrllytwn y ged 
 
 1 Mordav, Nudd, and Rhydderch were the three generous princes of the Isle 
 of Britain. Their courteous dispositions were such, that they did not fail to 
 grant anything whatever to any person who solicited it of them, if they had it 
 in possession, or could obtain it by gift, loan, or present, whether the applicants 
 were friends or foes, relatives or strangers. Triad 30. 2 Hercules. 
 
 D There is a farm house of this name about five miles from the town of Carmar- 
 then. 
 
 U 
 
^54 WELSH POETRY 
 
 Rhys the Protector deserves Dy ved j 1 
 
 Ruler of Dyved ! thy ravages, thy praise, thy enemies, 
 
 Thy progress is wonderful ; 
 Thy sword of which we have heard so much, 
 And thy red spear always ready for conflict; 
 Thy crest, the pervading spirit above, 
 Is easily seen on the field of battle ; 
 The protector of the orderly pleasant places, 
 Is thoroughly known to the men of England; 
 Three hundred times has thy shield been fractured, 
 
 In three hundred hostile encounters. 
 Thy red gold lying uncounted in thy palace, 
 
 And thy prancing stallions, 
 And thy flocks playfully skipping along, 
 And thy herds, and thy wide domains: 
 Thus wert thou when I found thee, 
 And I am voluntarily impelled to sing thy praise. 
 How energetic the man who overcomes 
 
 All the unruly people ; 
 May God protect thee, 
 And assist thee to prepare for thy end, 
 Since there is no promise to tarry here. 
 Dragon of Britain look before thee ; 
 And when thou shalt have run thy life of fair converse, 
 
 Rys rebyt ef dyrllyt dyved 
 
 Dyved rwyf dy glwyf dy glod dy gynygyn 
 
 Dy gynnif ys hynod 
 Dy gletyf ry glywssam arvod 
 Ath waew rut yn rynn ym wossod 
 Dy arwyt ech awyt uchod 
 Ys ar grad y gad y ganvod 
 Canhorthwy gordwy gordirod 
 Can wyr lloegyr ys llwyr adnabod 
 Dy ysgwyd rwygwyd ragod trychanweith 
 Trychangwyth gyvarvod 
 Ath eur rut diiut divyth od yth lys 
 
 Ath emys amgyrvod 
 Ath breityawr yn dyrawr dyvod 
 Ath preitin ath braf dy ofod 
 Mai y t wytt yt wyf yth ganvod 
 Yth ganmawl ny gannwf gorvod 
 Mor huysgwr gwr yn gorvod ar bawb 
 
 Or bobloet anghydvod 
 Cynnhyad Duw ys diheu y vod 
 Yth gannerth cyn darmerth d arvod 
 Canyd oes yma ammod y drygiaw 
 
 Dreic prydein syll ragod 
 Pan vyttych oth vyd hart gydvod 
 
 1 The district of Dyved latterly comprised all South Wales except Glamor- 
 ganshire. 
 
FROM A. D. 1194 TO A.D. 1240. \ 55 
 
 Of which I would not have concern without thee; 
 
 In heaven may thy permanent mansion he, and thy summer 
 
 dwelling, — 
 A prince of the kingdom of God above. 
 
 Eineon ap G-wgan does not seem to have gained much 
 renown in his own age ; but he has contributed one fine 
 poem to the store of Cambrian literature. This is a long 
 heroic address to Llywelyn ap Iorwerth, the commence- 
 ment and conclusion of which are really fine specimens of 
 poetry,— 1 
 
 I invoke the assistance of my Lord, the God of Heaven, 
 Christ the mysterious love promoter, whom to neglect is 
 
 impious, 
 (The gift is true which descendeth from above, 
 The gifts that are given me are immortal,) 
 According to the words of Paul, 
 To prove all things, 
 
 And to celebrate my prince, the ardent ruler, 
 Who avoids not the battle, nor its danger ; — 
 Llewelyn the generous, the maintainer of bards. 
 He is the dispenser of happiness to his subjects, 
 His noble deeds cannot be sufficiently extolled, 
 His spear flashes in a hand accustom d to martial deeds. 
 
 His numerous battles are then related, and the poem 
 concludes with the following summary of the hero's cha- 
 racter : — 2 
 
 Protector of our country, may God protect thee ! 
 Britain, fearless of her enemies, glories in being ruled by 
 
 Or bythwn ny hebwn hebod 
 Boed yn nef ath bendref atb havod teyrn 
 Teyrnas dnw uchod. — Myv. Arch. i. p. 294. 
 
 1 Cyfarchaf om naf, am nefawl Arglwydd, 
 Crist celi culwydd, cwl i ddidawl, 
 Celfydd leferydd o le gweddawl, 
 Celfyddydau mau ni fo marwawl 
 I brofi pob peth o bregeth Bawl, 
 
 1 foli fy rhi, rhwyf angerddavvl 
 Rhyfel ddiochel, ddiochwyth hawl, 
 Llywelyn heilyn hwylfeirdd waddawl 
 Llawenydd y dydd, deddyf ai mawl, 
 Llewychedig 11am yn Haw reddfawl. 
 
 2 Rhy chyngein Prydein yn ddibryder, 
 I Briodawr llawr yn 11a wn nifer, 
 
X56 WELSH POETRY 
 
 A chief who has numerous troops to defend her, 
 
 By Llewelyn who defies his enemies from shore to shore, 
 
 He is the joy of armies, and like a lion in danger, 
 
 He is the emperor and sovereign of sea and land. 
 
 He is a warrior that may be compared to a deluge, 
 
 To the surge on the beach which covereth the wild salmons. 
 
 The sound of his approach is like that of the roaring wave that 
 
 rusheth to the shore, 
 That can neither be stopped nor appeased; 
 He puts numerous troops of his enemies to flight, 
 Like a mighty wind. 
 
 Warriors crowded about him zealous to defend his cause, 
 Their shields shone bright on their arms, 
 His bards make the vales resound with his praises; 
 The justice of his cause, and his bravery in maintainiDg it, 
 Are deservedly celebrated; 
 His valour is the theme of every tongue, 
 The glory of his victories is heard in distant climes ; 
 His men exult about their eagle, — 
 To yield or die is the fate of his enemies. 
 They have experienced his force by the shivering of his 
 
 lance ; 
 In the day of battle, when no danger can change his purpose, 
 He is conspicuous above the rest, 
 With a large, strong, crimson lance. 
 He is the honour of his country, great is his generosity, 
 
 Llewelyn gelyn yn i galwer 
 
 I gelwir am dir am dud tymer. 
 
 Llawenydd lluoedd Hew ynbryder, 
 
 Llywiawdyr ymmerawdr mor a lleufer, 
 
 I ddylif cynnif cynhebyecer 
 
 I ddylan am lann, am leissiaid ffer. 
 
 Terfysc tonn dilysc dyleinw aber ; 
 
 Dylad anwasdad ny osteccer, 
 
 Terwynt twrwf rhywynt yn rhyw amser, 
 
 A rhialluoedd lluoedd llawer. 
 
 Torfoedd ynghyhoedd ynghyflawnder 
 
 Tariannau golau wal i gweler : 
 
 Ry folant anant, anaw cymer, 
 
 Ry molir i wir i orober 
 
 I wryd yn rhyd yn rheid nifer, 
 
 I orofn gwraf yn ydd eler, 
 
 I orfod gorfod glod a glywer, 
 
 I wyr am eryr ni amharer 
 
 1 warae orau pan waraer 
 
 I wayw a orau yn ddau banner, 
 
 Dinidr yn nydd brwydr ynyd brofer, 
 
 Dinodyng perging, pargoch hydrfer, 
 
 Dinas dreig urddas, eurddawn baelder 
 
FROM A.D. 1194 TO A.D 1240. |57 
 
 And he is never sued in vain. 
 
 Llewelyn is a tender-hearted prince; 
 
 He is wise, witty, and ingenious, 
 
 And diffuses happiness as he circulates his wine. 
 
 May he that bestowed on us a share of his heavenly revela- 
 tion, 
 
 Grant him the blessed habitation of the saints above the 
 stars. 
 
 Next in point of literary merit is Davydd Benvras, who 
 has also composed a fine poem in honour of this Prince. In 
 the preceding portions, I have contented myself with present- 
 ing literal prose versions ; but in order to afford a little 
 variety, I will give Davydd Benvras"^ ode, in a very faithful 
 metrical version by Mr. Maurice Eoberts of Llanrhudol, — 1 
 
 Creator of that glorious light, 
 
 Which sheds around his vivid rays, 
 
 And the pale moon which rules the night, 
 
 deign to animate my lays ! 
 
 O may my verse like Merddin's flow ! 
 
 And with poetic visions glow. 
 
 Great Aneurin, string my lyre, 
 
 Grant a portion of thy fire ! 
 
 That fire, which made thy verse record 
 
 Those chiefs, who fell beneath the sword 
 
 On Cattraeth's 2 bloody field : 
 
 O ! may the muse her vigour bring 
 
 While I Llewelyn's praises sing, 
 
 His country's strongest shield. 
 
 Dinac efynag pan ofynner. 
 
 Dyn yw Llewelyn Uywiawdr tyner, 
 
 Doeth coeth cy wrenn, gwin a gwener 
 
 Ar gwr ai rhoddes in ran or pader, 
 
 Ai rhoddo ef gwenfro gwynfryn uch ser. 
 
 1 Gwr a wnaeth llewych o'r gorllewin, 
 Haul a Uoer addoer, addefiessin 
 Am gwnel radd uchel rwyf cyfychwyn 
 Cyfiawn Awen, awydd fyrddin 
 I ganu moliant mal Aneirin gynt 
 
 Dydd y cant Ododin 
 I foli gwyndawd gwyndyd werin 
 Gwynedd bendefig flynnedig ffin 
 Gwanas deyrnas deg cywrennin 
 Gwreidd teyrneidd taer ymrwydrin 
 
 2 See Chap. 1. p. 3. 
 
|58 WELSH POETRY 
 
 Ne'er was such a warrior seen, 
 With heart so brave and gallant mien ; 
 From a regal race descended, 
 Bravely he the land defended, 
 Kings have learnt his pow'r to dread, 
 Kings have felt his arm and fled. 
 Loegria's king with conquest flush'd 
 Boldly to the battle rush'd, 
 Then was heard the warlike shout, 
 (Signal of the approaching rout) 
 Great Llywelyn raged around, 
 Bravest Chieftains press'd the ground, 
 None his valour could withstand, 
 None could stem his furious hand, 
 Like a whirlwind on the deep, 
 See him through their Squadrons sweep. 
 Then was seen the crimson flood, 
 Then was Offa * bathed in blood, 
 Then the Saxons fled with fright, 
 Then they felt the Monarch's might. 
 Far is heard Llywelyn's name, 
 Resounded by the trump of fame ; 
 Oft the hero chased his foes 
 Where Sabrina 2 smoothly flows. 
 Could I poetic heights attain, 
 Yet still unequal were my strain 
 Thy wondrous deeds to grace. 
 
 Gwrawl ei fflamdo am fro freiddin 
 Er pan oreu Duw dyn gyssefin 
 Ni wnaeth ei gystal traws arial trin 
 Gorug Llywelyn orllin — teyrnedd 
 Ar y brenhinhedd braw a gorddin 
 Pan fu yn ymbrofi a brenin Lloegyr 
 
 Yn llygru swydd erbin 
 Oedd breisc weisc ei fyddin, 
 Oedd brwys rwysc rhag y godorin 
 Oedd balch gwalch, golchiad ei lain, 
 Oedd beilcb gweilch, gweled ei werin, 
 Oedd clywed cleddyfau finfin 
 Oedd clybod clwyf ym mhob elin 
 Oedd briw rhiw yn nhrabludd odrin 
 Oedd braw saw saeson clawdd y Cnwccin 
 Oedd bwlcb llafn yn Haw gynnefin, 
 Oedd gwaedlyd pennau, gwedi gwaedlin rhy w 
 
 Yn rhedeg am ddeulin. 
 Llywelyn, ein llyw cyffredin 
 Llywiawdr bertb hyd bortb ysgewin 
 
 1 Offa's Dyke. 
 
 2 The river Severn. 
 
FROM A.D. 1194 TO A.D. 1240. 159 
 
 E'en Taliesin, bardic King, 
 
 Unequal were thy praise to sing, 
 
 The glories to retrace. 
 
 Long and happy may he live ! 
 
 And his hours to pleasure give. 
 
 Ere his earthly course is sped, 
 
 And he lies number'd with the dead ; 
 
 And, ere upon his honoured tomb, 
 
 Herbs shall rise, and flowers shall bloom. 
 
 May the Redeemer intercede, 
 
 And unto God for mercy plead ! 
 
 And when the judgment day shall come, 
 
 When all attending to their doom, 
 
 Then may Llywelyn, warrior brave, 
 
 In glory live beyond the grave, 
 
 may the hero's sins be then forgiven, 
 
 And have a seat with blessed saints in heaven ! 
 
 The diction here is dignified, well-sustained, and ap- 
 propriate ; but in the original of this, as in many compo- 
 sitions of the same, and later ages, the versification is 
 elaborated at the expense of sentiment, and a jingling of 
 similar sounds is made to conceal a poverty of ideas; yet 
 Davydd Benvras is more coherent and concise than most of 
 his contemporaries. What he has to say, he puts into a 
 few nervous words ; and if his thoughts fall short of sub- 
 limity, they must be admitted to be less trite, and common 
 place, than those which pervade many of the bardic remains. 
 Twelve of his poems have been preserved ; most of them 
 are addressed to Llywelyn the Great, but there a few moral 
 
 Ni ryfu gystal Gwstennin ag ef 
 
 I gyfaill pob gorllin 
 Mi i'm byw be bydchvn ddewin 
 Ym marddair ym marddawn gyssefin 
 Adrawdd ei ddaed aerdrin ni allwn, 
 
 Ni allai Daliesin. 
 Cyn adaw y byd gyd gyfrin 
 Gan hoedyl hir ar dir daierin 
 Cyn dyfynfedd escyrnwedd yscrin 
 Cyn daer dyfnlas arlessin 
 Gwr a wnaeth or dwfr y gwin 
 Gan fodd Duw a diwedd gwirin 
 Nog a wnaetbbwyd treis anwyd trin 
 Ymhresent ymbrysur orllin 
 Ni warthaer hael am werthefin nos, 
 
 A nawdd saint boed cyfrin. 
 
1(30 WELSH POETRY 
 
 verses, which if they have no other merit, are smooth, 
 
 flowing, and suited to the subject. 
 
 Moral Verses. 
 
 All will come to the earthen ship, 
 Poor, little people will perish : 
 Who owns great wealth will cease to be, 
 And in one hour he swallowed up. 
 
 The hosts of earth will have an end, 
 
 And all we loved or followed ; 
 Do we not pass to a cold tenement ? 
 
 There is no life to man. 
 
 Every man will have a cold habitation, 
 
 With death for his companion, 
 And though he owns the land above, 
 
 He'll end his days in that beneath. 
 
 Elidir Sais has left eleven poems, of which many are 
 
 on religious subjects. Of those which relate to temporal 
 
 matters, we will take the first on the list in the Archaioloo-y. 
 
 An Atonement to Llywellyn ab Iorwerth. 2 
 
 Natural is the quaffing of the clear bright wine, 
 
 From the horn of the buffalo, 
 
 From the fold of the bugle, 
 
 Natural is the singing of the cuckoo in the beginning 
 
 of summer, 
 Natural is the increasing growth of the springing blade, 
 Natural to the wise is his intellectual wealth, 
 
 1 Pawb a ddaw yr ddaear long 
 Pobyl vychein druhein a dreing 
 A vacco treul gywro trang 
 Yn auawr y llawr ae llwng. 
 
 Llyngvawr daearawr dervyn a garaf 
 A gereis ych hanlyn 
 Neut eddwyf yn oer dyddyn 
 Nid oes dim enioes y ddyn. 
 
 Pob dyn oer dyddyn neied eiddaw angheu 
 Anghyveilliwr iddaw 
 
 Y veddu dayar arnaw 
 
 Y vedd or diwedd y daw. 
 
 2 Dadolwch i Llywelyn ab Iorwerth. 
 
 Gwnawd yr ysawdd glyw gloyw win o fual 
 
 O fuarth buelin. 
 Gnawd cathleu cogeu cyntefin 
 Gnawd y tyf ty wys o egin 
 Gnawd y doeth cyfoeth cyfyewin 
 
FROM A.D. 1194 TO A.D. 1240, ](^[ 
 
 But not natural, not tranquil is it to be sorrowful. 
 Regret has done me great injury, 
 For the brothers of dignity, the best men of the west ; 
 Brothers separated in lamentable terror by foes, 
 
 God, and Mary, and the sisters ! can I smile ? 
 Can I rejoice with a mind full of anxiety ? 
 
 He came as a lion with lightning impelling, 
 The excelling hawk, the victorious hawk of enterprise, 
 Llywelyn the gentle sovereign, 
 
 Of courteous manners ; the director of the banquet, (or the 
 filling of the circulating glass,) 
 
 1 am not accustomed to the habit of soaring, (or whirling- 
 round,) 
 
 I have not been roaming, 
 
 To view the paths of the songs of Taliesin, 
 
 Lo ! I am not so sprightly 
 
 As prior to the end of the frail conflict of Breiddin, l 
 
 To express myself in the bardic strains of Merddin. 
 
 I will give thee counsel; who art most excellent in disposition, 
 
 AVhose dread spreads beyond -the sea ! 
 
 Consider, when you oppress beyond the borders, 
 
 To make every one extend his head to his knees, 
 
 Be to the weak an equal distributor of the spoil ; 
 
 Be tndi/ mild to the songs of the right line; 
 
 Be of ardent courage in the slaughter, adhere to thy labour ; 
 
 Destroy England, and plunder its multitudes ; 
 
 Ni nawd nid llonydd a llwyfin 
 
 Hiraeth am ry wnaetb rewin 
 
 Braint brodyr gwellwyr gollewin 
 
 Broder de braw aele elin 
 
 Duw a ruair a chwair yn cliwertbin 
 
 Chwerthid bryd o bryder cbweurin 
 
 Dotbyw Hew a lluchig gorddin 
 
 Detholwalch buddugfalch byddin 
 
 Llewelyn llyerw freyenbin 
 
 Llary ddefawd llyw gwyrddrawd gwydrin 
 
 Xid wyf gynnefawd gynneSn amchwyf 
 
 Ni rybum gerddenin 
 Edrych cyrdd cerddau Taliesia 
 Edryeb ni mor wyf eddein 
 Ry ddarfod brau gyfnod Breiddin 
 Ry ddywawd oi farddwawd Ferddin 
 Cyssil atb roddaf oth rin wyd goreu 
 
 Gorofn tra nierin 
 Ystyrych pan dreisych dros ffin 
 Ystwng pawb byd ben ei ddeulin 
 Bydd wrtb wann gyfran gy wrenin 
 Bydd iawn llary wrth gerddau iownllin 
 Bydd wrddrud aer ddylnd ddilin 
 Dilein Lloegr allwgr oi gwerin 
 
 1 The same place as the Breiddin mentioned by Gwalchmai in the first chapter, 
 
 X 
 
]Q2 WELSH POETRY 
 
 Mercy be to thee in thy stony fortress 
 For loving the prophetic Deity ! 
 
 The Same Subject in a different Metre. 
 
 Llywelyn the affable, permit me to remain in the country 
 
 Of the obstructors of the great Ca-esar x 
 And honour me, thou whose course is like the fiery flame, 
 With thy gift, and thy favour, but not thy anger, 
 Thy anger Llywelyn has been heavy, 
 
 And nearly annihilated me. 
 Thou whose golden tributes are wrung from every land, 
 Hast nearly exterminated a youth in his manhood. 
 Manliest of men, supporter of the tents of Avarwy, § 
 
 His anger is dreadful. 
 
 Trugaredd ath fo oth feinin gaerwedd 
 O garu Duw Ddewin 
 
 Kyngogion or Dadolwch. 
 
 Llywelyn hyddyn haedd am par cywlad 
 
 Cyfluddion Udd Kessar 
 Om rhoddud rwysg ufeliar 
 Da rodd dy fodd heb dy far 
 
 Dy far Llywelyn a fu fawr i drwni 
 
 Ei drymed am diddawr 
 Eurdreth o drymyn pob 11a wr 
 Aer drangc gwr ieuangc gwriawr. 
 
 Gwr gwraf gorsaf gwersyll Afarwy 
 Ei fareu am erchyll 
 
 1 Welsh Literature furnishes additional proofs of the propriety of sounding 
 the C hard in Latin Avords. The Bards, who usually adhered strictly to 
 sounds, always say Kesar. It sounds strange to say Kikero, and yet that seems 
 to be the proper pronunciation. 
 
 2 In the Biographical Dictionary of the Rev. Robert Williams, Avarwy, upon 
 the authority of the Triads, is represented to have been the same person as the 
 Androgeus of the Chronicles ; but though doubtful of the soundness of that 
 view, I cannot stay to enquire into its correctness. It is however certain that 
 the Avarwy to whom Llywelyn is compared, was not Androgeus but Arviragus; 
 for a Welsh bard would scarcely think it a compliment, to compare Llywelyn 
 ab Iorwerth to one of " three arrant-traitors of the Isle of Britain." He was 
 the son of Kynvelyn (Kymbelinus, — the Cymbeline of Shakspeare) King of 
 Britain. Arviragus is placed by Geoffrey in the Reign of the Emperor 
 Claudius. His brother Gwiderius (Gwydyr) and Arviragus (Avarwy) having 
 refused to pay tribute to the Romans, Claudius came against him with a large 
 army. In the battle that ensued, Gwiderius was slain treacherously by Hamo, a 
 Roman General ; but Arviragus having put on his brother's armour continued 
 the conflict, and defeated the Romans. He subsequently married the daughter 
 of Claudius, and gave his assistance to the Emperor in reducing the Orkneys. 
 He afterwards rebelled against the Romans, and acquired great fame as a 
 warrior ; but after fighting an indecisive battle against Vespasian, who had 
 been sent to oppose him ; he, through the good offices of his wife, made peace 
 with that General. Afterwards, when he grew old, he began to show much 
 
FROM A. D. 1194 TO A. D. 1240. \QS 
 
 Nimble slaughterer of the hosts of Loegria, * 
 
 Though the red-armed chief accuses he will not lose me. 
 
 Than be sent away by him who pays me from his riches, 
 It is more likely far ; 
 
 That he will leave me to want nothing, 
 
 But make me like Gwgan, live an age of prosperous gene- 
 rosity. 
 
 Most generous were Mordav 2 and thy honoured father, 
 They would not bid me seek another land ; 
 
 Impeller of armies, hero of slaughterers, 
 
 Eagle of warriors, send me not away. 
 
 Let me not be exiled, without having deserved thy hatred. 
 From thy large and wide domain, 
 
 respect to the senate, and to govern his kingdom in peace and tranquillity. 
 He confirmed the old laws of his ancestors, and enacted some new ones, and 
 made very ample presents to all persons of merit. So that his fame spread 
 over all Europe, and he was both loved and feared by the Romans, and became 
 the object of their discourse more than any King in his time. Hence Juvenal 
 relates how a certain blind man speaking of a turbot that was taken, said . — 
 
 " Omen habes, inquit, magni clarique triumphi, 
 Regem ali quern capies, aut de temone Britanno 
 Excidet Arviragus." 
 
 Thou hast here an Omen, of a victory great and glorious ; 
 Arviragus shall from his British chariot fall, 
 Or thee his lord, some captive king shall call. 
 In war none was more fierce than he, in peace none more mild, none more 
 pleasing, or in his presents more magnificent. When he had finished his 
 course of life, he was buried at Gloucester, in a certain temple which he had 
 built and dedicated to the honour of Claudius. Such is Geoffrey's story, 
 which though some of it may be imaginary, is evidently that to which the bard 
 refers. 
 
 Aerflawdd Lloegr lluoedd erfyll 
 
 Arfrudd er cyhudd nim cyll. 
 
 No cholled alaf elw freuner om tal 
 
 Tebygach ym lawer 
 Heb eisieu neb neuom ner 
 Oes wogawn hwyldawn haelder 
 Haelaf oedd Fordaf ath fawrdad am ged 
 
 Nym gedynt arallwlad 
 Eryf llu arwr lleiddiad 
 Eryr ar gedwyr nam gad 
 Nam gad i wybraw eb obryn dy far 
 Oth fawr ehang derfyn 
 
 1 Lloegria is the "Welsh name for England. 
 
 2 " Gwgan Gwron, the son of Peredur vab Eiiver, distinguished with Llywarch 
 Hen and Manywyddan, as the three unambitious princes of Britain; who 
 having devoted themselves to bardism, refused to accept of regal power when 
 offered them. He was also one of the three heralds who regulated the laws of 
 war ; the other two were Greidiol and Trystan. He flourished about the close 
 of the sixth century." Owen's Cambrian Biography, p. 161. 
 
 a One of the three generous princes of the Isle of Britain. 
 
Ig4 WELSH POETRY 
 
 Brave leader of the great tribe of Mervyn, 
 Llywelyn hero of Lliwelydd. 
 
 We shall speak of the religious poems of this bard here- 
 after. Of the cause of this anger on the part of Llywelyn 
 there seems to be no information ; but it is possible that 
 the Prince was suspicious of his integrity, for as the name 
 Elidir Sais (Heliodorus the Englishman) indicates, the bard 
 either was not of Welsh parentage, though he had acquired 
 a pretty complete knowledge of the language, or he had 
 spent much of his life in England, 
 
 Grwynvardd Brycheiniog, another bard of this age, has 
 
 left us two long poems, one addressed to the Lord Rhys of 
 
 Dinevor, and the other to the memory of St. David. The 
 
 latter is a curiosity, and a good specimen of an historical 
 
 poem. In the following lines the poet shows much skill in 
 
 his enumeration of the churches dedicated to this saint in 
 
 his day : — 
 
 Dewi (or David) the great of Menevia, the wise sage, 
 
 And Dewi of Brevi l near the plains, 
 
 And Dewi is the owner of the superb church of Ky velach,2 
 
 Where there is joy and great piety. 
 
 And Dewi owns the choir that is 
 
 At Meidryn, 3 a place affording sepulture to multitudes ; 
 
 And Bangor Esgor ; and the choir of Henllan, 
 
 Which is a place of fame for sheltering yews, 
 
 And Maenor Deivy,* void of steep declivities ; 
 
 And Abergwily, 3 containing mildness and modesty ; 
 
 And fair Henvyny w, 1 by the side of the Glen of Aeron, 
 
 Glew llawr cenedl fawr Ferfyn 
 Glyw Lliwelydd Llywelyn. 
 
 Dewi mawr Mynyw, syw sywedydd, 
 A Dewi Brefi, gar ei broydd 
 A Dewi bieu balch Ian Gyfelach, 
 Llemae moraach a mawr grefydd. 
 A Dewi bieu Bangeibyr y sydd 
 Meidrym, le a'i mynwent i luossydd, 
 A Bangor Esgor ; a Bangeibyr Henllan, 
 Y sydd Tr clodfan y clyd ywydd 
 Maenawr Deifi cH orfynydd ; 
 Abergwyli bieu gwylwlydd ; 
 Henfynyw deg o du glennydd Aeron, 
 
 1 In Cardiganshire. 2 Glamorganshire, near Swansea. a Carmarthenshire. 
 4 Pembrokeshire. 
 
FROM A.D. 1194 TO A.D. 1240. \Q^ 
 
 Fields prolific in trefoil, and oaks productive of acorns. 
 
 Llanarth, Llanarthney, 1 churches of the patron saint ; 
 
 Llangadog,! a privileged place, enriched by chiefs ; 
 
 Llanvaes 2 , a lofty place, shall not suffer by war ; 
 
 Nor the church in Lly wel 2 from any hostile band, 
 
 Garthbrengi, 2 the hill of Dewi, void of disgrace 
 
 And Trail wng Cynvyn 2 by the dales ; 
 
 And Llanddewi 3 of the Cross, with a new chancel ; 
 
 And Glascwm, 3 and its church by Glas Vynydd (the green 
 
 mountain) 
 A lofty sylvan retreat, where sanctuary fails not ; 
 Craigvuruna 3 fair is here, and fair its hilly prospects ; 
 And Ystradvynydd, 3 and its uncontrouled liberty." 
 
 The translation is taken from * 'Williams's Dissertation on 
 the Pelagian Heresy." 
 
 Next on the list stands the name of Pliylip Brydydd, or 
 Phylip the poet. We have six poems by him on various 
 topics, none possessing any great degree of poetical merit, 
 and yet each possessing some feature of sufficient interest 
 to deserve notice. He seems to have been considered in 
 his own day to possess considerable talent ; and though he 
 will not now bear comparison with the great luminaries of 
 the world, yet has he in him something more than the run of 
 common men. He was the family bard of that turbulent 
 chieftain Rhys Gryg, Lord of South Wales, and seems to 
 have given offence to his patron by his leaving the court of 
 Rhys to travel the regular bardic circuit, the chieftain 
 objecting to the celebration of any praise but his own ; the 
 following poem contains a species of remonstrance on the 
 part of the bard, — 
 
 1 Carmarthenshire. 2 Brecknockshire 3 Radnorshire. 
 
 Hyfaes ei mellion, hyfes goedydd ; 
 Llanarth, Llanadneu, llanau llywydd ; 
 Llangadawg, lie breiniawg rannawg rihydd ; 
 Nis arfeidd rhyfel Llanfaes, lie uchel ; 
 Na'r Han yn Llywel, gan neb lluydd ; 
 Garthbrengi, bryn Dewi, digywilydd ; 
 A Thrallwng Cynfyn ger y dolydd, 
 A Llandewi y Crwys, Llogawd newydd. 
 A Glascwm ai eglwys ger glas fynydd 
 Gwyddelfod aruchel, nawdd ni achwydd, 
 Craig Furuna deg yma, teg ym mynydd, 
 Ac ystradfynydd, ai ryddid rydd. 
 
 Myv. Arch. v. 1. p. 127. 
 
166 
 
 WELSH POETRY 
 
 Atonement to Rhys Gryg. 1 
 
 Why seekest thou, bloodstained rallying point of the 
 Blood-soiled spear, that I should leave thee % 
 
 Why patron of bards, wolf of the Lord, 
 
 What fault foundest thou in me % 
 
 I will take upon me, eloquent Rhys, to answer ; 
 
 It is rendering to him in his own court, 
 
 Ready and certain services, 
 
 And singing the great praises of the Lord Rhys. 
 
 Rhys the honoured of England, and gentle host of the ban- 
 queting house of numbers, 
 
 The shield of Ystrad Towy; 
 
 From thy fury, loving patron of song, 
 
 May God protect me as if I were helpless. 
 
 I have been thy supporter, thou maintainer of armies, 
 
 It cannot be denied, 
 
 When, well known ruler, lion of battle, 
 
 Thou wert involved in all sorts of wars. 
 
 For thy fame, great hero, dishonour me not, 
 
 Nor treat me with contempt ; 
 
 Radiant Eagle, sheltering hand, 
 
 Let me not feel thy ire. 
 
 I cannot continue to eat the bread of Rhys, 
 
 The crimson spotted one of battles : 
 
 For pleasureless to me is all good, 
 
 1 Kynghorion Dadolwch a gant Phylip Prydyt y Rhys Grvg gwedi 
 sorri wrthaw am brydu y neb namyn 1taw ef. 
 
 Pa gessidy vi vodrydaf kreugar 
 
 Kroewgoch gwaew otli adaf 
 Pa ham veirt adlam vleit naf 
 Pa gam a gefeisty arnaf. 
 Arnaf kymeraf kymhennrys atteb 
 
 Hyd attaw yny lys 
 Myned dylyed dilys 
 A mawrglod ym arglwyt rys, 
 Rys vyg Loegyr westyng lary westi torvoet 
 
 Taryan ystrad Tywi 
 Rac dy var kar kert lochi 
 Mai gwiryon gwared dduw vi 
 Mi ath fum borthwr borthyad riallu 
 
 Ni ellir y ddiwad 
 Pan oed lyw kyhoet lew cad 
 Ym pob riw ryvel arnad. 
 Ar dy vawlvar par pymllyg nam gwartlia 
 
 Nam gwrthod yn ddurvyg 
 Eryr llewyr Haw bergyng 
 Erreityeisty ehang o yng 
 Ys yng yn ystwng ystic vara rye 
 
 Rutvoawc cadurva 
 Ys amlys im ddim da 
 
FROM A.D. 1194 TO A.D. 1240, 
 
 167 
 
 While disliked by him ivho used to love me. 
 
 Hate me not, be patient passionate one, refrain 
 
 Rhys of Rhos and Eppynt, l 
 
 I have been thy bard, and many know it, 
 
 And a hundred times thy companion formerly. 
 
 First I will save my important privileges from the rage, 
 
 Of the descendant of Casnar 2 of the dreaded thrust ; 
 
 The protection of the great God of the ten shades of midnight, 
 
 Be given me, and that of nine thousand saints ! 
 
 And beware heroic ruler, blood furious Rhys, 
 
 Who ragest like the great sea monster, 
 
 That thou givest coronal greeting to thy minstrel, 
 
 When in the course of song , he comes on the eve of January $ 
 
 More than the relics of the faith, I believe thee, 
 
 Supporter and the pillar of battle ; 
 
 He is one who ivill keep my chair for me, 
 
 I know he will not break his word. 
 
 If in a vain mood I heedlessly said a word, to cause 
 
 Offence to the golden pillar of the Kymry, 
 
 I can easily alter that ; 
 
 God above will take the unkind. 
 
 This bard in his own day was a distinguished champion 
 
 Os am carwys am cassa. 
 
 Nam cassa pwylla pyllyawd edvynt rys 
 
 Y rwng ros ac eppynt 
 Bart vum itt trimud tremynt 
 A chedymddeith kanweith kynt 
 Kyntaf achubaf echel vreint rac bar 
 
 Hil casnar cas wytheint 
 Nawt duw mawr dengwawr deweint 
 Gyda nawt naw mil o seint. 
 Synnya di roti rwyf gwawr carannawc 
 
 Kerennhyt yth gerddawr 
 Rysva kyrt kalan yonawr 
 Rys rut bar rwysc morvar mawr 
 Mawr fwy y credaf nc chreir ked 
 Nerthyad echel kad ked adneir 
 Gwr yssy ym kadw ym kadeir 
 Gwn itaw goreuraw geir 
 O dywedeisy eir ar wekrei heb porth 
 
 Parth eurgolofn Kymry 
 Diwygaf bonnaf hynny 
 Difwyn a gymer duw vry. 
 i.. Carmarthenshire. 
 
 2 Casnar is in the Mabinogion called prince Kasnar, and in other places Kas- 
 nar Wledig. He is mentioned in a poem attributed to the pseudo-Taliesin, 
 called "Marwnad Uthr Pendragon," with Gorlaix and other romantic heroes; 
 and was the father of Llary, one of Arthui's warriors. 
 
 3 On the first day of every new year, each prince held a feast, after which, on 
 the departure of the guests, there was a general distribution of presents. On 
 these occasions the bards and other officials received px'esents of new garments, 
 harps, and money; and accordingly the first day of January was anxiously 
 expected. Children still run about Wales for new year's gifts. 
 
168 
 
 WELSH POETRY 
 
 of the privileges and pretensions of the chief bards. A por- 
 tion of one of his invectives against the inferior grade, or 
 poetasters, has been already given ; and it is hoped that 
 the interest of the next poem will atone for its insertion. The 
 object of the poem is to state, that he would, at Christmas, 
 meet the poetasters at the court of Llywelyn, when he en- 
 gages to expose their incapacities, and bring them into 
 utter discredit. It would appear that he had been twitted 
 with the statement, that the bard Golyddan had given a 
 blow with the hand to Oadwaladr the Blessed. The fact is 
 stated in this Triad, — 2 
 
 The three accursed battle-axe strokes of the Isle of Britain ; the 
 stroke of Eiddyn ab Enygan on the head of Aneurin Gwawdrydd ; 
 the stroke of Cadavael the Wild on the head of Iago ab Beli; and 
 the stroke on the head of Golyddan the Bard, for the palmstroke 
 he had given to Cadwaladr the Blessed." 
 
 We find the same fact stated in another Triad at greater 
 length. It appears from the Triads that this palmstroke 
 was fatal, — 2 
 
 " The three fatal palmstrokes of the Isle of Britain ; the palm- 
 stroke of Matholwch the Irishman, on Bronwen the daughter of 
 Llyr; the palmstroke which Gwenhwyvach gave Gwenhwyvar, 
 and which caused the battle of Carman ; and the palmstroke which 
 Golyddan the Bard gave Cadwaladr the blessed." 
 
 The passage in the poem, is a reply to an accusation of this 
 
 want of respect, shown by a bard for that monarch, — 3 
 
 Lord of heaven and earth, great and wonderful 
 
 Like the Ca-esars, the causes of all mischief; 
 
 List ! red-speared hero of sovereignty, 
 
 To the dispute between the bards and the poetasters. 
 
 Since the time that Elphin was in the contention of Maelg^vn, 
 
 1 Tair Anfad Fwyellawd Ynys Prydain; — Bwyellawd Eiddyn ab Enygan ym 
 mhen Aneurin Gwawdrydd, a bwyellawd a roddes Cadafael Wyllt ym mhen 
 Iago ab Beli, ar Fwyellawd ym mhen Golyddan Fardd achaws y balfawd a 
 roddes efe ar Gadwaladr Fendigaid. — Triad 78. 
 
 a Probert's Ancient Laws of Cambria, page 393. 
 
 3 Arglwydd nef a llawr rnawr a ry ved 
 
 Val y Keissyr cam pob camwedd. 
 
 Andawt ud gwaywrud gwawr teyrned 
 
 Y goveird ar beird yn kywryssed 
 
 Yr pan vu Elffin ynghywryssed Maelgwn 
 
FROM A. D. 1194 TO A. D. 1240. \QQ 
 
 Babbling has not produced such extensive woe ; 
 Many a wise and simple story, should have trickled in the speech 
 Of the snow white women of Gwynedd, 
 Before this should have come, from the carols 
 Of lying bards, ignorant of the Creator and his honours. 
 If Golyddan did the mischievous act, 
 Strike Cadwaladr the pillar of war — 
 One who was capable of making similes, — 
 And already suffering anguish, — 
 On his soul be the iniquity. 
 
 To disqualify the talents given by God is not in man ; 
 Yet how severely is discord experienced, 
 Since the presidency of Cambrian song is fallen to false su- 
 perfluity. 
 The lord of truth, Prince of Gwynedd, 
 And descendant of Madoc 1 of abundant riches ; 
 Llywelyn, the glorious long sworded lion of war, 
 Whose fame is known in distant parts, 
 Will not give false judgment; he will speak firmly, 
 He is one whose name will be popularly known, 
 One who owns the taxes of the port of London, — 
 The worthless land of Britain and its residences, 
 One who knows the sense of the senate of Saints, 
 One who uses the privilege of sovereignty ; 
 I love best of all things, to recline in the halls, 
 
 Neus porthes pepprwn pell dyfryded 
 Llavar merinnyeu gwynnyeu gwraged 
 Llawer chwedel annoeth a doeth Wyned. 
 Kyny deley hwn o achened 
 Geuveird anghyfrwys y beryf ae henryded 
 O gwnaeth Golyddan gyflavan diryeit 
 
 Bit ar ei eneit yr enwired 
 Taraw Kadwaladyr colofn elyflu 
 
 Gwr oed yn gallu y dyvalied 
 Ac eissoes eissoes yny dygned 
 Divreiniaw dawn duw nyd dyn ae med 
 Mor dygawn y mae digymroded 
 Wedi penkeyrdeth kymry ynghamryssed 
 O byd arglwyd gwir gwyned dywyssawc 
 Eissyllyd Madawc ry wyawc reuved 
 Llewelyn Hew gwawr clodvawr cleddyfin 
 
 Pell yd etmyger y atchwedled. 
 Gwr ny varn kanivarn kadarn yt ved 
 Gwr a vyd y enw yn edryssed 
 Gwr biheu tretheu trathoed Llundein 
 
 Diffeithdir prydein ae chyvanbed 
 Gwr yn llwyr a wyr synnwyr sened Seint 
 Gwr a wys y vreint o vreninhed 
 Goreu yw gennyfy gorwed neuadawr 
 1 Madoc Brwyn, a chieftain who lived in the middle of the sixth century. — 
 Cambrian Biography, p. 230. For further information, see note on Rhuvawn 
 Bevyr, p. 43. 
 
 Y 
 
170 
 
 WELSH POETRY 
 
 Of the lion of the tribe of Tewdwr 1 the Great — the heroic pro- 
 tector. 
 I am competent to sing, 
 A song for support and rich patronage, 
 The old song of Taliesin, the elementary sovereign. 
 It was new nine times seven years, 
 
 And if death does not consign me to the fated earthy mansion, 
 Before the ungentle meeting of parleying, 
 The muse shall not cease from lavishly flowing, 
 While sun and moon keep their places in the circle; 
 And if lies do not overpower truth, 
 Or a cessation of the talents of God before the end, 
 I will bring disgrace in the contest, 
 Upon the raw and false-bards and their vain affectations. 
 
 This bard has left among his poems, an Elegy on Rhys 
 Ieuanc, in which there occurs a striking thought. On see- 
 ing the body he exclaims, Can this be real, — 2 
 
 "Is it not an image in a mirror that I see? 
 
 Was it not to-day that I saw him at the head of his army ? 
 
 (Life is but grass) now I support the body of a lifeless king!'. 
 
 Einion Wann, described by one of his contemporaries as 
 " Einion of unexceptionable talents," is the author of several 
 small poems of a pleasing character. They are principally 
 addresses to, and elegies on warriors ; and among them oc- 
 curs an elegy on Madoc ab Gruffydd Maelor, of Powys, 
 which is here translated. — 2 
 
 Will not the tribes weep for the loss of Madoc, 
 Hawk of battles, bold and powerful chieftain ? 
 
 Llyw llwyth Tewdwr mavvr gwawr gwaradret 
 Kynnedyf yw gennyf y k — derganed 
 Kanu kerd am borth am byrth neued 
 Hengerd Talyessin y teyrned elvyd 
 
 Hi a vu newyd naw Seith mlyned 
 Ac onym agheu y anghenved daear 
 
 Kyn anwar kyfar kyflavared 
 Ny dervyd awen ty ar darwed treul 
 Tra vo lloer a heul ar y rodwed 
 Ac onyt trech kelwyd na gwiryoned 
 Neu darvot dawn duw yn y diwed 
 Ys my a veflawr or gyngheused 
 Gweryt yr gwagveird y gwaghoffed 
 1 Tewdwr was father to Rhys ab Tewdwr, and grandson to Howell the Good. 
 He was slain when fighting under his uncle, Meredydd prince of South Wales, 
 against Idwal king of North Wales, in the year 997. 
 
 2 Neud rhaid am Fadawg trengi ciwdodoedd 
 Gwalch cadoedd cadrfalch ri 
 
FROM A. D. 1194 TO A. D. 1240. \*J\ 
 
 Have not my heart's tears ebbed completely aivay, 
 And is not my heart bursting through his loss % 
 The loss of Madoc, sorrowful recollection, 
 Makes the heart wither from regret. 
 Hero of the earth, prosperous chieftain ; 
 Miserable is his valley, and his foster brother; 
 Cherished Madoc, wilful, but courteous to his leader, 
 And swelling with rage like a lion ; 
 
 A warrior who scared the enemy from extensive boundaries, 
 The best of warriors, though an hundred years old. 
 Being a hundred years old, it became him — 
 To preserve beneficial peace ; 
 Hawk of the hill of the king of the wilderness, 1 
 Pity he is not alive, — is not the world about to be wrecked 1 
 Blunt is the man, the hero, and regulator of the people, 
 Best of a father's son ; 
 
 He was the lion of war in the path of battle, 
 He was in the front rank of the land of the fifteen. 2 
 Madoc used to be, unlike the ehiefs 
 Of other countries of the world ; 
 Parted from his region, he no longer exists, 
 Guardian of the bulwark with his worn and broken shield. 
 Broken is the harness of his shield from the tempests of 
 battle. 
 
 Neud trai calon donn dug fi 
 Ac neud trwydoll o'i golli. 
 
 O golli Madawg edgyllaeth cofion 
 
 Gwyw calon gan hiraeth 
 Gwawr llawr llwyddedig bennaetli 
 Gwae ei fro ai frodyr maeth 
 
 Maelh Madawg mynawg mynudrwydd wyrthlyw 
 
 Ac wrth lew ymorchwydd 
 Arf tarf terfyn ehangrwydd 
 Aerwr oreu pei canmlwydd 
 
 Canmlwydd ydd oedd raid ruddelwch i fod 
 
 I fad gynnal heddwch 
 Gwalch brynn brenin ynialwch 
 Gwael nad by w byd neud amdrwch 
 
 Trwch yw'r gwr arwr ardwyad gwerin 
 
 A goreu o fab tad 
 Ef oedd aerllew arllwybr cad 
 Ef oedd arlleng pumthengwlad 
 
 Gwladoedd ni debyg glud oeddliw ym myd 
 
 Madawc oedd cyn heddiw 
 
 Esgor oi dud nad ydiw 
 
 Ysgor gadw ysgwyd fradw friw 
 
 1 A knight templar I should presume. 
 
 2 The fifteen tribes of Powys.— See Kynddelw's Privileges of the Men of 
 Powys, a poem. 
 
172 WELSH POETRY 
 
 He lies in a bed cold and unshapely, 
 
 One who will be made like Gwair the son of Gwestl, 1 
 
 Heroic men on the floor of Llan Egwestl. 2 
 
 We mourn our defender is not raging, — the generous chief 
 
 I loved, is not living; 
 
 Daring wolf, active in the violent tumult, 
 
 Three terms of existence he lived. 
 
 I entertain much heavy grief, and enduring indignation, 
 
 For the slaughterer — the hero of the tribe, 
 
 For the eagle of the men of victorious work, 
 
 For the aged elected guardian of war. 
 
 Elected prince of the kingdom of the red arms of battle, 
 
 He was fond of war while he had strength, 
 
 And the world regrets that he has been obstructed ; 
 
 The angry, the gentle Madoc, son of Gruffydd. 
 
 For the son of Gruffydd, the gentle encourager of justices, 
 
 I know that no smile is seen on my face ; 
 
 Is not the end of every prince accustomed to prosperity, 
 
 Ordained to be in a ruddy grave 1 
 
 In this rapid survey of the works of the numerous Bards, 
 who flourished under the powerful and genial sway of Lly- 
 welyn the Great, we have been compelled to leave many of 
 
 Briw galch ei rodawg o ryw tymhestl cad 
 
 Cynnoer wely diddestl 
 Gwr a wnair fal Gwair fab Gwestl 
 Gwyr wawr yn llawr llynn Egwestl 
 
 Diwestl ei ysgor yscwynais nad byw 
 
 Hael or rhyw rygollais 
 Blaidd blaengar blawdd trydar trais 
 Trei hoeddyl ei hoed yr borthais 
 
 Porthais alar trwm tramawr odrig gw\ th 
 
 Am wawr llwyth a lleithig 
 Am eryr gwyr gwaith fuddig 
 Am ior aerddor urddedig 
 
 Arddas teyrnas teyrn arfrudd cad 
 
 Tringyrchiad tra fu fudd 
 Trymfryd byd bod yn achludd 
 Traws maws Madawg mab Gruffydd 
 
 Am fab Gruffydd lary lawch ynaid i'm ken 
 
 Nid mau wen wedd honnaid 
 I bob rhwyf rhwysg orddyfnaid 
 Diwedd nod rhuddfedd neud rhaid. — Myv. Arch. i. p. 334. 
 
 1 Gwair was one of the three coronetted warriors of the Isle of Britain, re- 
 nowned for being of a dismal disposition. — Guest's Mabinogion, Vol. ii. p. 140. 
 and Myv. Arch. ii. p. 12. 
 
 2 Llanegwest, is Valle Cruris Abbey, near Llangollen, in Denbighshire. — 
 Arehceologia Cambrensis, vol. i. p. 13. 
 
FROM A. D. 1194 TO A.D. 1240. \Jg 
 
 the minor poets without a special notice; and can now do 
 no more, than offer a few remarks upon them collectively. 
 Daniel ap Llosgwrn Mew has a short elegy on Owain 
 Gwynedd ; Gwily m Ry vel, who appears to have been more 
 highly thought of by his contemporaries than the existing 
 remains seem to warrant, has two odes to David the son 
 and successor to that prince ; Gwgan Brydydd has a short 
 ode to Llywelyn ab Iorwerth ; and Seisyll Bryffwrch, has 
 three poems of rather an ordinary character. It is difficult 
 to conceive, judging from the specimens we now have of his 
 poetry, how Seisyll could have defeated Kynddelw in a Bar- 
 dic contest for the chair of Powys ; and we can scarcely 
 avoid concluding, either that the decision was partial, or 
 that the story is unfounded. Notwithstanding the claim to 
 superiority — that of being a chief-bard, set up by Seisyll, I 
 am inclined to adopt the latter alternative ; for if he had 
 competed for, and obtained the chair of Madoc ab Mered- 
 ydd, we should surely have found some allusions to Powys 
 and its prince in his poems. One of his poems being an 
 elegy on Owain Gwynedd, another an elegy on Iorwerth ab 
 Owain, and the other being addressed to the Lord Rhys, of 
 South Wales, are facts which countenance that conclusion. 
 Gruffydd ab Gwrgeneu has two small poems, one addressed 
 to Gruffydd ab Kynan, son to Owain Gwynedd, and the 
 other a lament on the loss of his companions. The latter 
 is not unworthy of quotation, — x 
 
 The death of the ever mild Merwydd, 2 incessantly wets my 
 
 cheeks, 
 With tears which flow fast and frequent ; 
 It is not the age of man ivhich causes them, 
 For man is no longer lived than a shadow. 
 
 1 Marw nierwyd hirwlyd am hirwlych dagreu 
 
 Digrawn ynt a mynych 
 Nyt heneint gwr ae gwrthrych 
 Nyt hyn oes dyn noc oes drych 
 
 2 I know not who Merwydd was. 
 
174 WELSH POETRY 
 
 Let us consider and condole; we shall share the entertainment 
 
 of the Lord, 
 For God will not let us be lost ; 
 
 Tens of thousands die, and the majesty of song will be unheeded, 
 Merwydd is dead — dead we shall all be. 
 Far from Powys, lifeless and concealed is the man, 
 We should avenge his heart's blood; 
 In a house floored with silent sand, 
 Is the ruddy bed of Gwilym Byvel. 1 
 I saw a place to-day, and sorry am I in consequence, 
 I can easily weep ; 
 
 A red grave of precious appearance was by, 
 And a bier under a body. 
 Death will be the lot of greatness and power, 
 The death of Griffri 2 is saddening ; 
 And Einion* of faultless muse being gone, 
 There is nothing of any good remaining. 
 
 Three Englynion Lave been left by Gwernec ab Clydno; 
 but they possess no merit. 
 
 Towards the close of this period, we find a newer and 
 freer species of verse starting into existence. The involved, 
 and frequently obscure diction of the more pedantic bards, 
 was but little in unison with the buoyant and bustling 
 spirit of the times. Llywelyn's courage and ability had 
 restored confidence to his subjects, and the contest between 
 
 Ystyrywn kvvynwn ketwyr arvoll naf 
 
 Ny ad duw yghyvrgoll 
 Marw myrd mawred kyrd kardgoll 
 Marw merwyd meirw vyddwn oil 
 
 Pell yw o Bowys pwyll argel y dyn 
 
 Ymddial gwaed avel 
 Gwaelawt ty ty wawt tawel 
 Gwely rud gwilym ry vel 
 
 Gweleis le am de am danaw heddiw 
 
 Hawdd y gallaf wylaw 
 Rudved werthvawr wed wrthaw 
 Ac edenawc y danaw 
 
 Kanys marw mawred agrym 
 Griffri y treughi oet trwm 
 Marw vyd Einiawn dawn dinam 
 
 dyn a ni byd da dim. 
 
 1 The Bard of that name. 
 
 2 Either Howell ab Griffri, or his father. 
 
 3 Einion Wann I presume. 
 
FROM A.D. 1194 TO A.D. 1240. 175 
 
 him and the Kings of England developed the talents of his 
 
 countrymen, and impelled the literary men of the day to 
 
 keep pace with other forms of activity in an age of progress 
 
 and animation. I allude to those loose rhymes which the 
 
 Prydydd Moch, and Davydd Benvras, introduced among 
 
 their countrymen, who soon got so enamoured of them, that 
 
 they formed the nuclei of the versified tales of a later day. 
 
 Literary merit, these rhymes have none ; but they have 
 
 the property of elasticity, and could not fail to have been 
 
 popular. That, by Llywarch ab Llywelyn, is called " Y 
 
 Canu Bychan," — the little Song; it is dedicated to the 
 
 praise of Llywelyn ab Iorwerth, and begins thus, — * 
 
 I will address my Lord, 
 With the great greeting muse, 
 With the dowry of Cefidwen, 
 The ruler of Bardism, 
 
 In the manner of Taliesin, 
 
 When he liberated Elphin, 
 
 When he overshaded the bardic mystery, 
 
 With the banners of the bards. 
 
 Then follows a rhymed Chronicle of the Prince's exploits, 
 — things of no present interest. Seisyll Bryffwrch has 
 verses in a similar metre, but in neither of these cases do 
 the verses possess any poetic merit; nor yet those of 
 Davydd Benvras. His poem is addressed to the last Prince 
 of Wales, and as it enumerates twenty-one of his military 
 excursions, makes up in historical worth, for poetic demerits. 
 A few of the verses are here subjoined: — 2 
 
 Fifth Glamorgan, 
 A perpetual conflict ; 
 
 1 Cyvarchav i'm Rhen 
 Cyvarchvawr Awen, 
 Cyvreu Cyrridwen 
 
 Rwyv Barddoni 
 
 Yn dull Taliesin, 
 Yn dillwng Elphin, 
 Yn dyllest Barddrin, 
 Beirdd vanieri. 
 
 2 Pummed Forganwg 
 Parhaus gilwg; 
 
176 WELSH POETRY 
 
 And though he did much harm, 
 He has not finished. 
 
 Sixth journey, 
 Sixth place of conflict 
 At Swansea, — 
 A pleasant place. 
 
 Seventh, Kidwelly, 
 Burnt on this seventh excursion, 
 And Ystrad Towy 
 Saw hard fighting. 
 
 Eighth, cruel journey, 
 To Carnwyllion ; 
 From Ceredigion 
 We came hence. 
 
 SECTION III. 
 
 Mythological Poems. 
 
 Although the easy rhymes last noticed, exhibit but little 
 poetic merit, they contain many historical facts; and are 
 extremely useful as showing in the persons of known bards, 
 the existence of a mental tendency, which will explain the 
 origin of other poems of doubtful parentage. The Mytho- 
 logical Poems, the "Awdl Vraith" and the " Avallenau" are 
 the offsprings of the same state of mind, as that which gave 
 
 Er a wnel o ddrwg 
 Nis diwedda. 
 
 Chwechecl i dramwy 
 Chwechad yn Adwy 
 Yn Aber Tawy 
 Teg esgorva. 
 
 Seithved, Gedweli 
 Seithgad i'w llosgi 
 
 Ystrad Tywi 
 Tew ei haerva. 
 
 Wythved, hynt greulawn 
 
 1 Grarnewilliawn 
 O Geredigiawn 
 
 Y dug yma. 
 
MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. ] ff 
 
 rise to the flowing rhymes of Llywarch ab Llywelyn, and 
 Davydd Benvras. Some of them may be earlier than this 
 period ; but most of the poems classed as Mythological, be- 
 long to the age of Llywelyn ab Iorwerth and his successors; 
 and a large number of the poems assigned to Taliesin in the 
 Myvyrian Archaiology, will come under this designation. 
 
 Presently we will speak of the Romances, and the Mabi- 
 nogion : These poems belong to the same era, and sprang 
 from the same cause. The Romance treated of external 
 actions, and the popular manners; in the Mythological 
 Poems we see the same mental impulse, operating upon the 
 theological belief of a lively and imaginative people. Of 
 this we have satisfactory evidence, in the fact that the 
 chief characters in both are the same. In the Romance, 
 Arthur is the prime mover; in the Poems, there is a fervent 
 admiration of the same personage. The Geography of the 
 Romance is very confused, and sometimes there is no place 
 mentioned; the same iudefiniteness belongs to the Poems. 
 The language of the Mabinogion is free and flowing; that 
 of these Poems is much clearer and smoother than any of 
 the bardic remains of the same age. The Mythological 
 Poems are also conversant about the same things, and 
 treat of the same topics as the Mabinogion, — in a similar 
 romantic strain; and in the Mabinogi of Taliesin, we 
 see the characteristics of both, combined in one poem. 
 
 The matter, of course, was of older date, and of gradual 
 growth. Every age had added new ideas to its mythology, 
 clothed in statelier garb its ghastly forms, and added new 
 features to the tales of tradition. There was nothing want- 
 ing to give them embodiment in the national literature, but 
 the aid and countenance of the more skilful bards. But 
 this was possible at no time previous to the twelfth century, 
 when there was a great movement, in art, science, and lite- 
 rature. Mental activity showed itself in a variety of ways; 
 old traditions were revived, chastened, and adorned; super- 
 stition was called upon for liberal contributions to the 
 national literature ; and to supply the popular demand for in- 
 
 z 
 
] 78 MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. 
 
 tellectual food, magic, and the remains of Druidic theology, 
 were made the subjects of songs and tales. These appear 
 to have been considered as light exercises by the bards, 
 who were their undoubted composers, as appears from the 
 perpetual jealousy of inferior artists, which finds expression 
 in them. In nearly every one of these poems, this distinc- 
 tion is studiously drawn ; and this feeling corresponding 
 with the position of the priv-veirdd, and with the mention of 
 Arthur as the hero of romance, compels us to refer their 
 origin to the twelfth and succeeding centuries. The ana- 
 chronisms in several are most glaring, and in one we find 
 the following boast, — 
 
 " I am a Bard, and I am a harper ; 
 I am a Piper, and play the Crwth." 
 
 It does not appear that there were Pipes here before the 
 time of Gruffydd ab Kynan ; and if so, this alone, to say 
 nothing of smooth versification, allusions to the Arthur of 
 Romance, and easily intelligible diction, settles the question 
 of age. Simplicity is a quality that may be predicated of 
 the diction of these poems ; the meaning of the passages 
 may not always be clear, and the allusions may be obscure, 
 but the language is much plainer, than that of any bard 
 earlier than the end of the fourteenth century. Some of 
 them, I am satisfied, were composed as late as the time of 
 Sion Kent, (1350,) and from his remarks, I should imagine 
 them to have been those which celebrate the praises of Hu 
 the Mighty. We hear nothing of Hu until after the fall 
 of Llywelyn ap Gruffydd; but soon after "Hu" sprang into 
 notice. The bards of this period frequently mention him; 
 Iolo Goch is loud in his praise ; and we may infer from the 
 following lines by Sion Kent, that this admiration of "Hu" 
 was at its height in his day: — 
 
 Two active impulses truiy 
 
 There are in the world, and their course is manifest ; 
 
 An impulse from Christ — joyful is the theme, 
 
 Of a right tendency — an energetic principle. 
 
 Another impulse there is — indiscreetly sung, 
 
MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. X79 
 
 Of falsehood, and base omens ; 
 
 This has been obtained by the men of Hit, 
 
 The usurping bards of Wales. 
 
 It will not be necessary to advance further arguments to 
 settle the date of these poems, and thereby in fact point 
 out their true signification. One needs but to compare 
 them with the Mabinogion to see at once their meaning. 
 Mr. Turner was quite right when he supposed that the 
 Mabinogion would throw light upon the poems falsely attri- 
 buted to Taliesin ; but he does not seem to have suspected 
 that the bardic mythology was romanticized, and the vulgar 
 belief in conjuration symbolized, in the surprising narra- 
 tives of TaliesnTs transmigrations, and transmutations. 
 
 Many of these poems seem to be nothing else than the 
 narrated wonders of magic, which, among persons unac- 
 quainted with science, have always found believers. The 
 story of Gwion the little, (the poet Taliesin,) who suc- 
 cessively transformed himself into a hare, a fish, a bird, and 
 a grain of wheat, has its counterpart in the tale of " the 
 second royal calender," in the Arabian Nights. Gwion, a 
 male conjuror, was pursued by Kyrridwen, a female magi- 
 cian; and in the Indian tale, the male magician assumes 
 the form of a lion, a scorpion, a cat, a fish, a worm, and a 
 seed, to escape the vengeance of a female persecutor. The 
 resemblance is very striking; and in both we see the play of 
 rich and imaginative minds. Some persons may see more, but 
 I cannot. Mr. Davies sees in everything an allusion to the 
 ark. In many Welsh Triads there are evident references 
 to Noah and the ark, and the allusions are not unfrequent; 
 but they are by no means so numerous as that ingenious 
 author imagined. A theorist may see concealed meanings 
 in " Little Red Riding Hood," and " Jack the Giant 
 Killer;" several of the poems called Mythological, are in no 
 respect more mysterious than those favourites of childhood; 
 and it is to be feared that they are not more worthy of 
 notice, than the common stories of conjuration; but lest we 
 should be too sceptical, let the reader judge for himself: — 
 
IgQ MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. 
 
 " Gwion perceiving her at a distance transformed himself into a 
 hare, and doubled his speed; but Kerridwen instantly becoming a 
 greyhound bitch, turned him, and chased him towards a river. 
 
 " Leaping into the stream, he assumed the form of a fish ; but his 
 resentful enemy, who was now become an otter bitch, traced him 
 through the stream, so that he was obliged to take the form of a 
 bird, and mount into the air. 
 
 "That element afforded him no refuge; for the lady in the form 
 of a sparrow hawk was gaining upon him — she was just in the 
 act of pouncing upon him, when shuddering with the dread of 
 death, he perceived a heap of clean wheat upon the floor, dropped 
 into the midst of it, and assumed the form of a single grain. 
 
 "Kerridwen took the form of a black high crested hen, descended 
 into the wheat, scratched him out, distinguished and swallowed 
 him. And as the history relates she was pregnant of him nine 
 months, and when delivered of him she found him so lovely a 
 babe, that she had not resolution to put him to death. 
 
 "She placed him, however, in a Coracle, covered with a skin, and 
 by the instigation of her husband, cast him into the sea, on the 
 twenty ninth of April." 
 
 This was he who afterwards became the great Taliesin. 
 
 The Mabinogi of Taliesin is the most interesting of the 
 Welsh metrical romances ; and the story, taken np where 
 we have now left him, will justify a little delay. — 
 
 Gwyddno Garanhir, a prince, part of whose dominions 
 was an extensive tract of land, on the sea coast of Meri- 
 oneth and Cardigan, had a profligate son named Elphin. On 
 part of this property was a fishing weir, in which was usu- 
 ally taken on the night preceding every May-day, a draught 
 of fish equal in value to one hundred pounds. Elphin being 
 in want of funds, obtained from his father, by the advice of 
 his council, the draught of this weir for one May-day Eve. 
 The eventful hour having arrived, Elphin approached the 
 weir, which was found to be empty, — on seeing which one 
 of the weir-keepers remarked, "Elphin, thou hast never 
 been thoroughly unfortunate till this night ; for thou hast 
 destroyed even the virtues of this weir, which has hitherto 
 ever produced the worth of one hundred pounds every May- 
 day Eve." " What now V said Elphin, pointing to a skin 
 bag on one of the poles of the weir, " perhaps there is equi- 
 
MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. IgJ 
 
 valent to one hundred pounds there." The bag was opened, 
 
 and he who opened it seeing a child, exclaimed, " Here is 
 
 a fair forehead." " Fair Forehead (Tal-Iesin) be his name 
 
 then," replied Elphin, and took up the child, carrying him 
 
 homeward towards his father's house. Seeing the young 
 
 prince depressed by failing to capture any fish, the child 
 
 addressed him in the following words, — * 
 
 Oh Elphin fair ! lament no more, 
 No man should e'er his lot deplore ; 
 Despair no earthly good can bring. 
 We see not whence our blessings spring ; 
 Kynllo's 1 prayer deem not unheard, 
 God will maintain his sacred word ; 
 In Gwyddno's weir, was never seen, 
 As good as there to-night has been. 
 Fair Elphin, dry thy tearful face, 
 No evil hence can sorrow chase ; 
 Tho' deeming thou hast had no gain, 
 Grief cannot ease the bosom's pain; 
 Doubt not the great Jehovah's power, 
 Tho' frail I own a gifted dower. 
 
 1 Elphin deg taw ath wylo 
 Na enabled neb yr eiddo 
 Ni wna les drwg obeithio 
 Ni wyl dyn dim ai portbo 
 Ni fydd goeg gweddi Cynllo 
 Ni thyrr Duw ar addawo 
 Ni chad yngored Wyddno 
 Erioed gystal a heno. 
 
 Elphin deg sych dy ddeurudd 
 Ni weryd bod yn rhy brudd 
 Cyt tybiaist na chefaist fudd 
 Nith wna da gormod cystudd 
 Nag ammau wyrthiau Dofydd 
 Cyt bwyf bychan wyf gelfydd 
 
 1 "Kynllo was the tutelar saint of the three churches of extensive endowments 
 in Radnorshire, viz. Nantmel, Llangynllo, and Llanbister. He was also the 
 founder of Llangynllo and Llangoedmor, in Cardiganshire; to the latter of 
 which, the neighbouring churches of Mount and Llechryd, both dedicated to 
 the Holy Cross, were formerly subject. Kynllo is commemorated in the Calen- 
 dar, July 17, under the name of Kynllo Frenhin, or the king ; and as he be- 
 longed to a powerful family, it is probable that he was originally a chieftain, 
 and might afterwards, according to the practice of the age, have embraced a 
 life of religion. The Pseudo-Taliesin says of him, — 
 
 ' The prayer of Kynllo shall not be in vain,' 
 
 a proof that in after times his intercession was considered efficacious."— Rees's 
 Welsh Saints, p. 133. 
 
182 MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. 
 
 From rivers, seas, and mountains high. 
 
 Good to the good will God supply. 
 
 Fair Elphin blest with genius gay, 
 
 Unmanly thoughts thy bosom sway; 
 
 Thou should'st dispel this pensive mood, 
 
 The future fear not — God is good. 
 
 Tho' weak, and fragile, now I'm found 
 
 With foaming ocean's waves around, 
 
 In retribution's hour I'll be 
 
 Three hundred salmons' worth to thee. 
 
 Oh, Elphin ! prince of talents rare, 
 
 My capture without anger bear, 
 
 Tho' low within my net I rest, 
 
 My tongue with gifted power is blest. 
 
 So long as I to thee am near, 
 
 Thou never wilt have cause to fear, — 
 
 Bear thou the triune God in mind 
 
 And fear no earthly foe to find." 
 
 This elegant translation is from the able pen of Mrs. 
 
 Llewelyn ; and the conclusion of the second verse, — 
 
 "0 Voroedd ac oVynydd 
 
 Ac o eigion avonydd 
 
 Y daw Duw a da i ^dedwydd," 
 
 which I would translate thus, — 
 
 From the seas, and from the mountains, 
 And from the depths of rivers, 
 God brings good to the cheerful, 
 
 contains a psychological truth, in addition to much poetical 
 
 O foroedd ac o fynydd 
 
 Ac o eigion afonydd 
 
 Y daw Duw a da i ddedwydd. 
 
 Elphin gyneddfau diddan 
 Anfilwraidd yw d'amcan 
 Nid rhaid yt ddirfawr gwynfan 
 Gwell Duw na drwg ddarogan 
 Cyd bwyv eiddil a bychan 
 Ar fin gorferw mor dylan 
 Mi a wnaf yn nydd cyfrdan 
 Yt well no thrychan raaran 
 
 Elphin gynneddfau hynod 
 Na sorr ar dy gaffaelod 
 Cyt bwyf gwan ar lawr fy nghod 
 Mae rhinwedd ar fy nhafod 
 Tra fwyf fi yth gyfragod 
 Nid rhaid yt ddirfawr ofnod 
 Drwy goffhau enwau'r Drindod. 
 Ni ddichon neb dy orfod. 
 
MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. ] g3 
 
 beauty. All things are coloured by the imagination ; and 
 
 objects are pleasing or painful, as the mind is cheerful or 
 
 depressed. Shakspeare's expression of the same sentiment 
 
 has elicited world-wide admiration, — 
 
 " Books in the running brooks, sermons in stones, and good in 
 every thing," 
 
 as has the "Thanatopsis" of Bryant, the American poet; 
 and Wordsworth's whole works are but various expressions 
 of similar grand, ennobling, and profound truths. A love 
 of the beautiful was prevalent among the ancient Welsh ; 
 and I shall be glad to see the day when their descendants 
 show as great a love of nature as is found in this poem, and 
 in those of Gwalchmai, Howel ab Owain, and Davydd 
 ab Grwilym. It was a pity, that the narrow spirit of bardism, 
 crushed the buoyant and elastic spirit of romance. This 
 love of nature is eminently characteristic of romance liter- 
 ature ; for the waving woods, the grass of excessive green- 
 ness, the limpid streams, and opening blossoms, have often 
 made the hearts of Trouveres bound as joyously as did 
 those of some of our bards, or as does the heart of Words- 
 worth, when it "dances with the daffodil." 
 
 Some time after this, Elphin was taken prisoner by his 
 uncle Maelgwn Grwynedd; on hearing of which misfortune, 
 Taliesin, as in duty bound, flew to his patron's assistance. 
 No sooner had he arrived than he commences a diatribe 
 against the bards of Maelgwn, and in order to show his vast 
 superiority, commences a narrative of his casualties, — l 
 
 First, I have been formed a comely person, 
 
 In the court of Keridwen I have done penance ; 
 
 Though little I was seen, placidly received, 
 
 I was great on the floor of the place to where I was led ; 
 
 I have been a prized defence, the sweet muse the cause, 
 
 And by law without speech I have been liberated 
 
 1 Cyntav ym llunwiwyd ar lun dyn glwys : 
 Yn llys Ceridwen ym penydiwys; 
 Cyd bach ym gwelid, gwyl vy ngbynnwys, 
 Oeddwn vawr uch llawr llan jm tywys; 
 Prid bum parwyden per awen parwys, 
 Ac o gyvraith heb iaith ym rhyddawys 
 
X84 MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. 
 
 By a smiling black old hag, when irritated, 
 
 Dreadful her claim when pursued: 
 
 I have fled with vigour, I have fled as a frog, 
 
 I have fled in the semblance of a crow, scarcely finding rest ; 
 
 I have fled vehemently, I have fled as a chain, 
 
 I have fled as a roe into an entangled thicket ; 
 
 I have fled as a wolf cub, I have fled as a wolf in a wilderness, 
 
 I have fled as a thrush of portending language ; 
 
 I have fled as a fox, used to concurrent bounds of quirks ; 
 
 I have fled as a martin, which did not avail : 
 
 I have fled as a squirrel, that vainly hides, 
 
 I have fled as a stag's antler, of ruddy course, 
 
 I have fled as iron in a glowing fire, 
 
 I have fled as a spear-head, of woe to such as has a wish for it ; 
 
 I have fled as a fierce bull bitterly fighting, 
 
 I have fled as a bristly boar seen in a ravine, 
 
 I have fled as a white grain of pure wheat, 
 
 On the skirt of a hempen sheet entangled, 
 
 That seemed of the size of a mare's foal, 
 
 That is filling like a ship on the waters ; 
 
 Into a dark leathern bag I was thrown, 
 
 And on a boundless sea I was sent adrift ; 
 
 Which was to me an omen of being tenderly nursed,, 
 
 And the Lord of heaven then set me at liberty. 
 
 Having thus stated the changes he had undergone, he in 
 the next place sets forth his grandest pretensions, — 
 
 Hen widdon ddulon, pan lidiwys 
 Engiriawl ei hawl pan hwyliwys ; 
 Foais yn gadarn, foais yn llyfan 
 Foais yn rhith bran braidd orphowys ; 
 Foais yn derwyn, foais yn gadwyn, 
 Foai's yn iyrchwyn, mewn llwyn llychwys ; 
 Foais yn vleiddyn, foais vleiddawr yn nifaith, 
 Foais yn vronvraith, cyviaith coelwys; 
 Foais yn gadno, cydnaid ystumiau, 
 Foais yn velau, mal na thyciwys; 
 Foais yn wiwair, ni chynnydd celwys, 
 Foais yn gern hydd, rbudd ym rhwyvwys, 
 Foais yn haiarn mewn tan tywys, 
 Foais yn ben gwaew, gwae ei puchwys; 
 Foais yn darw taer chwerw ymladdwys, 
 Foais yn vaedd gwrych mewn rhych rithwys, 
 Foais yn ronyn gwyn gwenith glwys : 
 Ar ael lien earthen ym carvaglwys 
 Cymaint oedd ei gweled a chyveb rhewys, 
 A yw yn llenwi val Hong ar ddyvrwys; 
 Mewn boly tywyll lie ym tywalltwys, 
 Ac mewn mor dylan ym dychwelwys ; 
 Bu goelvain im' pan ym cain vagwys, 
 Arglwydd nev yn rhydd ym ryddygwys. 
 
MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. ] ^5 
 
 Primary chief bard 
 
 Am I to Elphin, 
 
 And my original country 
 
 Is the region of the summer stars, 
 
 Joannes the diviner 
 
 Called me Merddin, 
 
 At length every king 
 
 Will call me Taliesin. 
 
 I was with my Lord 
 
 In the highest sphere, 
 
 On the fall of Lucifer 
 
 Into the depth of hell ; 
 
 I have borne a banner 
 
 Before Alexander; 
 
 I know the names of the stars 
 
 Of the North and the-South. 
 
 I have been on the galaxy 
 
 At the throne of the Distributor ; 
 
 I was in Canaan 
 
 When Absalom was slain ; 
 
 I conveyed the divine Spirit 
 
 To the level of the vale of Hebron ; 
 
 I was in the court of Don [ 
 
 Before the birth of Gwdion. 
 
 I was instructor 
 
 Priv vardd cyssevin 
 Wyv vi i Elfin, 
 A'm gwlad gynnevin 
 Yw bro ser hevin ; 
 Ioannes ddewin 
 Ym gelwis Merddin, 
 Bellach pob brenin 
 Ym geilw Taliesin. 
 Bum gyda vy Ner 
 Yn ngoruchelder, 
 Ar gwymp Lucifer 
 I ufern ddy vnder ; 
 Bum yn dwyn baner 
 Rhag Alexander; 
 Mi wn enwau ser 
 Gogledd ac awster 
 Bum yn nghaer Gwdion 
 Gan orsedd Deon; 
 Bum mi yn Nghanon 
 Pan las Absalon; 
 Mi dygum Heon 
 I lawr glyn Hebron ; 
 Bum mi yn llys Don, 
 Cyn geni Gwdion. 
 Bum mi baderog 
 
 1 Llys Don is the bardic appellation of the constellation Cassiopeia ; and 
 Caer Gwdion is the galaxy. 
 
 2 A 
 
;| QQ MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS, 
 
 To Eli and Enoc ; 
 
 I was at the place of crucifixion 
 
 Of the merciful Son of God ; 
 
 I have been loquacious 
 
 Prior to being gifted with speech ; 
 
 I have been winged by the 
 
 Genius of the splendid crosier ; 
 
 I have been for three periods 
 
 In the court of Arianrod ; l 
 
 I have been the chief director 
 
 Of the work of the tower of Nimrod ; 
 
 I am a wonder 
 
 Whose origin is not known. 
 
 I have been in the ark, 
 
 With Noah and Alpha ; 
 
 I have seen the destruction of 
 
 Sodom and Gomorra ; 
 
 I was in Africa 
 
 Before the foundation of Rome ; 
 
 I am now come here 
 
 To the remains of Troia. 
 
 I have been with my Lord 
 
 In the manger of the ass ; 
 
 I strengthened Moses 
 
 Through the waters of Jordan ; 
 
 Eli ac Enog ; 
 Bum mi ar van crog 
 Mab Duw trugarog; 
 Bum mi lavarog 
 Cyn bod tavodog ; 
 Bum mi adeiniog 
 Awen ceinvaglog ; 
 Bum mi dri chyvnod 
 Yn llys Arianrod ; 
 Bum mi ben ciwdod 
 Ar waith twr Nimrod ; 
 Mi wyv ryveddod, 
 Ni wyddis vy hanvod. 
 Bum mi yn area, 
 Gan Noah ac Alpha : 
 Mi gwelais ddiva 
 Sodom a Gomorra ; 
 Bum yn Africa 
 Cyn seiliad Roma ; 
 Mi ddaetlrym yma 
 At weddillion Troia. 
 Bum gyda vy Rhen 
 Yn mhreseb asen ; 
 Mi nerthais Moesen 
 Drwy ddwvr Iorddonen; 
 
 1 The constellation called the northern crown, literally the court of the silver 
 circle. 
 
MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS, Jgy 
 
 I have been in the firmament 
 
 "With Mary Magdalene ; 
 
 I have suffered hunger 
 
 For the Son of the Virgin. 
 
 I have obtained the muse 
 
 From the cauldron of Keridwen ; 
 
 I have been bard of the harp 
 
 To Lleon of Lochlin. 
 
 I have been on the White Hill, 
 
 In the court of Kynvelyn, 
 
 In stocks and fetters 
 
 For a day and a year. 
 
 I have been a teacher 
 
 To the whole universe ; 
 
 I shall be until the day of doom 
 
 On the face of the earth ; 
 
 My body it will not be known 
 
 Whether flesh or fish. 
 
 I have been in an easy chair 
 
 Above the ecliptic, 
 
 And this revolves 
 
 Between three elements ; 
 
 Then I was for nine months 
 
 In the womb of the hag Keridwen ; 
 
 I was originally little Gwion, * 
 
 And at length I am Taliesin. 1 
 
 Bum ar yr wybren 
 Gyda Mair Vadlen ; 
 Mi cevais ne\vyn 
 Am Tab y Vorwyn. 
 Mi cevais awen 
 
 bair Ceridwen ; 
 Bum mi vardd telyn 
 
 1 Leon Llychlyn ; 
 Bum yny Gwynvryn, 
 Yn llys Cynvelyn, 
 Mewn cyf a gevyn, 
 Un dydd a blwyddyn. 
 Mi a vum dysgawd 
 Yr holl vedysawd ; 
 Byddav hyd ddydd brawd 
 Ar byd daiarawd ; 
 
 Xi wyddis vy nghnawd 
 Ai cig ai pysgawd. 
 Bum yn ngbadair vlydd, 
 Goruwcb caer sidydd 
 Hon yn troi y sydd 
 Cyvrwng tri elvydd ; 
 Bum naw mis haiacb 5 
 Yn nghrotb Ceridwe: 
 Bum gynt Wion bach, 
 Taliesin bellach. 
 1 This and the preceding translation were writtei \ Cambrian and Ca_ 
 
|gg MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. 
 
 A question here arises as to the meaning of these muta- 
 tions. The Druids undoubtedly believed in the transmigra- 
 tion of souls, as do the Jews at the present time; 1 and there 
 is no reason to doubt that the belief lingered among the 
 bards. In the thirteenth century it must however have 
 been faint, and the language of the Mabinogi is less that 
 of a believing professor, than of one who infuses new life into 
 old traditions, playing with known opinions, and alluding to 
 persons, and names of places which still found favour in the 
 popular mind. We do not require that Virgil should have 
 believed the whole of the Eneid to be historically correct, 
 nor that Milton should swear, that Paradise Lost contains 
 no statement not founded in fact; and I must protest 
 against the system adopted by Davies, and subsequently by 
 the Rev. Vernon Harcourt, 2 of allowing no play for 
 the imagination of the Welsh poets, and assuming every 
 word to be true to actual phenomena. Even if we could 
 believe, as with a singular want of critical discernment they 
 do, that the writer of this Mabinogi lived in the sixth 
 century, it would be inconsistent with our knowledge of 
 human nature, to suppose that the poet had simply reflected 
 the opinions of others, without impressing them with his own 
 individuality; but when we feel certain that this poem be- 
 longs to the thirteenth century, when Druidism was a 
 thing of tradition and not of actual belief, we should not too 
 literally interpret its meaning. The changes said to have 
 been undergone by the Taliesin of the tale, it is very pos- 
 sible, may have reference to the doctrine of transmigration; 
 but we shall certainly fall into an error, if the fact be over- 
 looked that we have here the romance of the metempsycho- 
 sis, and not an exposition of the doctrine itself. This must 
 be evident from the fact that the changes are not forced on 
 the person by some superior power; but are, quite voluntary, 
 
 ledonian Quarterly Review, by the late lamented Dr. Pughe, and occur at 
 pages 370 — 2, volume V. 
 
 1 Blackwood's Magazine, Vol. xxxiii. p. 628. 
 2 Doctrine of the Deluge, Vol. i. p. 397. 
 
MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. 
 
 189 
 
 as was seen in the case of Gwion and Keridwen; and we 
 also find from frequent instances in the Mabinogion, that 
 the assumption of shapes was a matter of choice, and not a 
 compulsory act. Menw ab y Teirgwaedd, and Gwrhyr 
 Gwalstawt Ieithoedd, voluntarily assume the forms of birds 
 in order to get close to the boar Twrch Trwyth; and the 
 latter gets into conversation with the young boars! We 
 therefore miss the solemnity which accompanies theological 
 belief. 
 
 The poet then states the object of his journey, — 1 
 
 Puny bards, I am trying 
 
 To secure the prize, if I can ; 
 
 By a gentle prophetic strain 
 
 I am endeavouring to retrieve 
 
 The loss I may have suffered ; 
 
 Complete the attempt, I hope, 
 
 Since Elphin endures trouble 
 
 In the fortress of Teganwy, 2 
 
 His confinement may not be over much, 
 
 Strengthened by my muse I am powerful ; 
 
 Mighty on my part is what I seek ; 
 
 For three hundred songs and more, 
 
 Are combined in the spell I sing. 
 
 There ought to stand where I am 
 
 Neither stone and neither ring ; 
 
 There ought not to be about me, 
 
 Any bard who may not know 
 
 1 Culveirdd, ceisiaw yr wyv 
 Cadw y gamp neus gall wyv ; 
 Darogan dawelwyv 
 Ei rygeisiaw yr wyv 
 Y golled a gafwy v ; 
 Cwbl geisydd rhygoelwyv, 
 Neud Elfin yn nghystwy 
 Sydd o gaer Teganwy, 
 Arno na ddoded rwy, 
 Cadr vy ngorawen wyv. 
 Cadarn ym a geiswyv ; 
 Sev tri chant cerdd a mwy 
 Yw y a wawd a ganwyv 
 Nis dyl sav lie ydd wyv 
 Na maen ac na modrwy ; 
 Na bydd i vy nghylchwy 
 Nebun bardd nas gwypo 
 
 a The ruins of the fort of Teganwy; there are still some remains of it on the 
 northern side of the estuary of the Conwy river. 
 
190 MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS, 
 
 That Elphin son of Gwyddno 
 Is in the land of Artro, 1 
 Secured by thirteen locks, 
 For praising his instructor : 
 And then I Taliesin, 
 Chief of the bards of the west, 
 Shall loosen Elphin 
 Out of a golden fetter. 
 
 And he eventually obtains his patron's release. 
 It was this occasion that gave rise to the folio wing very 
 fine apostrophe to the Deity, — 2 
 
 The Mead Song. 
 
 To him who rules supreme ; Our Sovereign Lord, 
 Creation's Chief — by all that lives adored, 
 Who made the waters, and sustains the skies, 
 Who gives and prospers all that's good and wise, — 
 To him I'll pray that Maelgwn 3 ne'er may need 
 Exhaustless stores of sparkling, nec'trous mead, 
 Such as with mirth our hours has often crown'd, 
 When from his horns the foaming draught went round. 
 The bee, whose toils produce it, never sips 
 The juice ordained by Heaven for human lips. 
 Delicious mead ! Man's solace, and his pride, 
 Who finds in thee his every want supplied, 
 
 Mae Elphin ab Gwyddno 
 Sydd yn naiar Artro, 
 Tan dri-ar-ddeg do, 
 Am gannmawl ei athro; 
 A minnau Taliesin, 
 Pen beirdd y gorllewin, 
 A ollyngav Ellin 
 O hual goreurin. 
 1 A small estuary, two miles south of Harlech, in Meii 
 
 2 Canu y Medd. 
 
 Gwolychaf wledig pendefig pob fa, 
 Gwr gynnail y nef, Arglwydd pob tra ; 
 Gwr a w T naeth y dwfr i bawb yn dda, 
 Gwr a wnaeth pob Had ac ai llvvydda ; 
 Meddwer Maelgwn Mon, ac an meddwa, 
 Ai feddgorn, ewyri gwirlyw gwymha. 
 Ai gynnull gwenyn ac nis mwynha 
 Medd hidlaidd, molaid molud i bob tra, 
 
 3 Maelgwn Gwynedd, the son of Caswalion Law Hir, a celebrated king of 
 the Britons, who reigned over North of Wales from A.D. 517 till about 546 ; 
 and as sovereign over the Britons from the last mentioned date to the year 560, 
 when he died of the Mad Velen, or Yellow Plague. — Owen's Cambrian 
 Biography, page 235= 
 
MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. igi 
 
 The wants of every creature God supplies, 
 And earth's vast progeny his goodness praise ; 
 Both the grave and the gay, the wild and tame, 
 To choral strains attune his mighty name ; 
 And man, for life and raiment, meat and drink, 
 Will of his gracious Maker ever think. 
 Power Supreme ! Prince of the realms of peace, 
 Let Elphin's bondage I beseech thee cease ; 
 Who to the beauteous steeds given heretofore, 
 And wine and ale, would also give me more ; 
 He in the paths of fame, if Heaven so will, 
 Myriads of feasts shall give with honour still. 
 Elphinian knight of mead ! Thou'lt yet be free, 
 And Heaven will grant thee life, and liberty. 
 
 The original of this poem is here and there adulterated 
 with Latin words ; but generally the language is pure, and 
 so smooth, lucid, and copious, as to make it a matter of surprise 
 that an acute critic could believe it to be an ancient poem. 
 Of the sentiments, I need scarcely say, that they reflect the 
 highest credit upon their age, their author, and his country. 
 
 In a poem called " Angar Kyvyndawd," the bard enu- 
 merates twenty one of his transmutations. Mr. Da vies 
 looks upon this as the circle of transmigration, or the stages 
 of initiation. To me they seem to indicate an imaginative 
 mind revelling in the marvellous. Men invent fictions in 
 the present day ; why may they not have done so in the 
 past? At the time when romances were in demand, we 
 can conceive that such tales would have been produced ; 
 but if they were such recondite matters as he supposes 
 
 Lleaws ereadur a fag terra ; 
 
 A wnaeth Duw i ddyn er ei ddonha ; 
 
 Rhai drud, rhai mud, ef ai mwynha, 
 
 Rhai gwyllt, rhai dof, Dofydd ai gwna, 
 
 Yn dillig iddynt yn ddillad ydd a, 
 
 Yn fwyd yn ddiod hyd frawd barha. 
 
 Golychaf i wledig pendeflg gwlad hedd, 
 
 I ddillwng Elphin o alltudedd 
 
 Ygwr am rhoddes y gwin, a'r cwrwf, a'r medd. 
 
 A'r meirch mawr modur mirain eu gwedd ; 
 
 Am rhothwy etwa mal diwedd, 
 
 Trsvy fodd Duw, rhydd trwy enrhydedd, 
 
 Pum penhunt calan ynghaman hedd, 
 
 Elphinawg farchawg medd, hv/yr dy ogledd ! 
 
]92 MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. 
 
 them to be, for what purpose were they written ? The 
 Druids were not allowed to reveal their mysteries to the 
 world ; among themselves there was no need of revelation. 
 They would not have been intended to teach Druidism 
 indirectly; for the lessons could not have been understood. 
 There were chieftains to reward the Bards for their heroic 
 odes ; but if we reject the notion that these are Mabinogion 
 embodying superstition, and gratifying credulity, there 
 remains no conceivable motive for the composition of these 
 poems. 
 
 One of the least intelligible of the mythological poems, 
 is the one called " Preiddeu Annwii," or the victims of 
 Annwn. 1 
 
 1 Praise to the Lord, Supreme Ruler of the high region, 
 Who hath extended his dominion to the shore of the world, 
 Complete was the prison of Gwair in Caer Sidi. 
 Through the permission of Pwyll and Pryderi 
 
 JNo one before him went to it; 
 A heavy blue chain firmly held the youth, 
 And for the spoils of Annwn gloomily he sings, 
 And till doom shall he continue his lay. 
 Thrice the fulness of Pridiuen ive went into it, 
 Except seven, none returned from Caer Sidi. 
 
 2 Am I not a candidate for fame, to be heard in the song, 
 In Caer Pedryvan four times revolving ! 
 
 It will be my first word from the cauldron when it expresses; 
 By the breath of nine damsels it is gently warmed. 
 Is it not the cauldron of the chief of Annwn in its fashion ? 
 With a ridge round its edge of pearls ! 
 
 1 1 Golychaf wledig, pendefig, gwlad ri 
 Pe ledas y pennacth, tros draetk Mundi 
 Bu cywair carchar Gwair ynghaer Sidi 
 Trwy ebostol Pwyll a Phryderi 
 Neb cyn nog ef nid aeth iddi 
 Y" gadwyn drom las cywirwas ai cedwi 
 A rhag Preiddeu Annwn tost yd geni 
 Ac yd frawd, parhawd yn barddweddi, 
 Tri lloneid Prydwen ydd aeth'am ni iddi 
 Namyn saitb, ni dyrraith o Gaer Sidi. 
 
 2 Neud wyf glod geymyn cerdd, o eblywid, 
 Ynghaer Pendryfan pedyr y chwelid, 
 Ynghynueir or pair pan leferid 
 O anadl naw morwyn gochynesid, 
 Neu pair pen annwfn pwy y vynud ? 
 Gwrym am ei oror a mererid, 
 
MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. 193 
 
 It will not boil the food of a coward not sworn, 
 
 A sword bright flashing to him will be brought, 
 
 And left in the hand of Llemynawg, 1 
 
 And before the portals of hell, the horns of light shall be 
 
 burning. 
 And when we went with Arthur in his splendid labours, 
 Except seven, none returned from Caer Vediwid, (or the in- 
 
 closure of the perfect ones.) 
 
 Am I not a candidate for fame, to be heard in the song, 
 In the quadrangular inclosure, in the island of the strong door, 
 Where the twilight and the jet of night moved together. 
 Bright wine was the beverage of the host, 
 Three times the fulness of Prydwen, we went on sea, 
 Except seven, none returned from Caer Rigor, (or the in- 
 closure of the Royal party.) - 
 
 I will not have merit, with the multitude in relating the 
 
 hero's deeds, 
 Beyond Caer TVydr they beheld not the prowess of Arthur 1 
 Three times twenty-hundred men stood on the wall, 
 It was difficult to converse with their centinel. 
 Three times the fulness of Prydwen, we went with Arthur, 
 Except seven, none returned, from Caer Colur, (or the 
 
 gloomy inclosure.) 
 
 I will not have merit from the multitude with trailing 
 
 shields, 
 They know not on what day, or who caused it, 
 
 3 Ni beirw bwyd llwfr, ni rydyngid, 
 Cleddyf lluch, lleawc, iddaw ryddychid 
 Ac yn Haw Llemynawg ydd edewid 
 
 A rhag drws porth Uffern llugyrn lloscid 
 
 A phan aethom ni gan Arthur trafferth llethrid 
 
 Namyn saith, ni ddyrraith o Gaer Vendiuid 
 
 4 Neud wyfglod geimyn cerdd glywanawr 
 Ynghaer Pedryfan, ynys Pybyrddor 
 Eckwydd a muchedd cymysgettor, 
 Gwin gloyw eu gwirawd rhag eu gosgor 
 Tri lloneid Prydwen ydd aetham ni ar for 
 Namyn saith, ni ddyrraith o Gaer Rigor. 
 
 5 Ni obrynaf lawyr Hen Hywiadur 
 
 Tra ehaer wydr, ni welsynt wrhyd Arthur 
 Tri ugeint canhwr a sefi ar mur ; 
 Oedd anawdd ymadrawd ai gwiliadur 
 Tri lloneid Prydwen ydd aeth gan Arthur, 
 Namyn saith, ni ddyrraith o Gaer Golur. 
 
 6 Ni obrynaf i lawyr ilaes eu cylchwy 
 
 Ni wyddant hwy py ddydd peridydd pwy, 
 
 1 This was one of Arthur's Knights. 
 2 B 
 
|94 MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. 
 
 Nor what hour in the splendid day Cwy was born, 
 
 Nor who prevented him from going to the meanders of 
 
 Devwy. 
 They know not the brindled ox, with his thick head band, 
 And seven score knobs in his collar. 
 And when we went with Arthur of mournful memory, 
 Except seven, none returned from Caer Vandwy, (or the 
 
 inclosure resting on the height.) 
 
 7 I will not have merit from men of drooping courage, 
 They knew not what day the chief was caused, 
 
 Nor what hour in the splendid day the owner was born ; 
 What animal they keep of silver head. 
 When we went with Arthur of mournful contention, 
 Except seven, none returned from Caer Ochren, (or the in- 
 closure of the shelving side.) 
 
 8 Monks pack together like dogs in the choir 
 From their meetings with their witches ; 
 
 Is there but one course to the wind, one to the water of the sea, 
 
 Is there but one spark to the fire of unbounded tumult ? 
 
 Monks pack together like wolves, 
 
 From their meetings with their witches, 
 
 They know not when the twilight and the dawn divide, 
 
 Nor what the course of the wind, nor who agitates it, 
 
 In what place it dies, on what region it roars. 
 
 The grave of the saint is vanishing from the foot of the altar 
 
 I will pray to the Lord, the great Supreme, 
 
 That I be not wretched — may Christ be my portion. 
 
 Py awr, yn meinddydd, y ganed Cwy, 
 
 Pwy gwnaeth ar nid aeth dolau Devwy 
 
 Ni wddant hwy yr ych brych, bras ei benrhwy 
 
 Seith ugein cygwn yn ei aerwy 
 
 A phan aetharn ni gan Arthur afrddwl gofwy 
 
 Namyn saith, ni ddyrraith o Gaer Vandwy. 
 
 ij Ni obrynaf i Uawer llaes eu gehen , 
 Ni wddant py ddydd peridydd pen 
 Py awr ym meinddydd y ganed perchen 
 Py fil a gadwant ariant y pen 
 Pan aetham ni gan Arthur, afrddwl gynhen 
 Namyn saith, ni ddyrraith o Gaer Ochren 
 
 8 Mynaich dychnud, fal cunin cor 
 O gyfranc uddud ai gwyddanhor 
 Ai un hynt gwynt, ai un dwfr mor, 
 Ai un ufel tan, twrwf diachor ! 
 Myneich dychnud fab bleiddawr 
 Na bwyf trist Crist am gwaddawl. 
 O gyfranc uddud ai gwyddyanhawr 
 Ni wddant pan ysgar deweint a gwawr 
 Neu wynt pwy hynt, pwy ei rynnawr 
 Py va ddifa, py dir y plawr 
 Bed Sant yn ddifant o bet allawr 
 Golychaf i wledig pendevig mawr. 
 
MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. 195 
 
 Mr. Davies does not believe the last line to be genuine ; 
 but though it differs in final rhyme from the others, it is 
 connected by the sense with the two lines which precede it. 
 
 This poem has hitherto remained, without any satis- 
 factory explanation of its contents, or its object. Mr. 
 Turner abandons it in despair with the question, 
 
 " Could Lycophron, or the Sibyls, or any ancient oracle 
 be more elaborately incomprehensible V x and the author of 
 the Mythology, with more courage has attempted an ex- 
 planation, which exhibits much of the ingenuity with which 
 his laborious work abounds, yet leaves the object of the 
 poem in as much obscurity as before. He states, that, 
 
 " The subject of the poem is the mythology of the deluge, 
 and the mysteries which were celebrated in commemoration 
 of it." 2 
 
 In the course of his criticisms he endeavours to show, 
 that the Arthur mentioned is another name for Noah, and 
 that the adventure of Arthur and his men, is the entrance 
 of Noah and his children into the Ark. But we need go no 
 further than the first verse to explode the whole theory. 
 The entrance to the place to which Arthur and his men 
 were going was in the keeping of Pwyll and Pryderi. 
 Now Pwyll was prince of Dyved, and Pryderi was his son ; 
 and as neither the garden of Eden, nor Mount Ararat is in 
 Pembrokeshire, this Prince and his son must have been 
 guardians of something nearer here than the Ark. 
 
 It seems more reasonable to conclude, that the Arthur 
 here mentioned is the hero of romance ; and that the ex- 
 pedition which he and his men had undertaken in this 
 large ship, had for its object the exploration of the infernal 
 regions. Among the Greeks and Romans, it seems to have 
 been a necessary portion of a heroes character, that he 
 should have braved the dangers of a journey to the lower 
 world; and as we know the bards were acquainted, by name 
 at least, with the Odyssey and the Eneid, and with the 
 
 1 Vindication, p. 243. 2 Mythology of Druids, p. 514. 
 
IQQ MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. 
 
 expeditions of Ulysses and Eneas, there is an a priori pro- 
 bability in favour of the above assumption. And there 
 are other features in the literature of this period, which go 
 far to confirm it ; Davydd Benvras dwells delightingly on 
 the supposed sufferings of Christ in those regions, and 
 Gruffydd ab yr Ynad Ooch gives a minute description of the 
 scene presented to the Saviour's sight on his descent into hell. 
 The theological opinions of that day, had in them no- 
 thing that would discountenance the belief of the possibility 
 of Arthur's successfully attempting this feat, as must be 
 abundantly evident to the reader of the Divina Comedia of 
 Dante, and of the religious poetry of the bards. There are 
 therefore no reasons of any moment against this supposition, 
 while the arguments in its favour are numerous, and cogent; 
 as we find from the romance of St. Brandan, and other 
 poems of the same age, that heroes were required to visit 
 the Stygian shores. Pwyll Prince of Dyved, was King 
 of Annwn, the world unknown or hell ; and we learn from 
 the Mabinogion x that he was at his death succeeded in this 
 office by his son Pryderi. We discern this in the romance 
 of Pwyll, in which there is an account of that Prince's 
 visit to the lower regions. The larger portion of the ro- 
 mance has long been before the public in the translation of 
 Dr. Owen Pughe 2 ; on this occasion therefore we shall 
 quote the description of the place, in the later and more 
 elegant translation of Lady Charlotte Guest. Pwyll being 
 out hunting in the vale of Cuch, between Pembroke and 
 Carmarthenshires, met Arawn King of Annwn, or Hell. 
 A conversation ensues, and Arawn proposes that they 
 should change places for twelve months, Pwyll taking his 
 place in Annwn, Arawn ruling in Dyved instead of Pwyll, 
 and each of the kings exchanging his own for the other's 
 form. Pwyll, having accepted the proposal, is led from 
 the vale of Cuch without any delay into Annwn ; — 
 
 Mabinogion, Vol. II. p. 71. a Cambrian Register, Vol. 1. p. 17< 
 
MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. ][ 9 7 
 
 " So he [Arawii] conducted him [Pwyll] until he came in 
 sight of the palace and its dwellings. 'Behold, 1 said he, 'the 
 Court and the Kingdom is in thy power. Enter the Court, 
 there is no one there who will know thee, and when thou 
 seest what service is done there, thou wilt know the cus- 
 toms of the Court.' 
 
 " So he went forward to the Court, and when he came 
 there, he beheld sleeping rooms, and halls, and chambers, 
 and the most beautiful buildings ever seen. And he went 
 into the hall to disarray, and there came youths and pages 
 and disarrayed him, and all as they entered saluted him. 
 And two knights came and drew his hunting dress from 
 about him, and clothed him in a vesture of silk and gold. 
 And the hall was prepared, and behold he saw the household 
 and the host enter in, and the host was the most comely 
 and best equipped that he had ever seen. And with them 
 came likewise the Queen, who was the finest woman that 
 he ever yet beheld, and she had on a yellow robe of shining- 
 satin ; and they washed and went to the table, and they 
 sat the Queen upon one side of him, and one who seemed 
 to be an Earl on the other side. 
 
 " And he began to speak to the Queen, and he thought 
 from her speech, that she was the seemliest, and most 
 noble lady of converse and of cheer that ever was. And 
 they partook of meat, and drink, with songs, and with 
 feasting ; and of all the courts upon the earth, behold this 
 was the best supplied with food and drink, and vessels of 
 gold, and royal jewels. 
 
 "And the year he spent in hunting, and minstrelsy, 
 and feasting, and diversions, and discourse with his com- 
 panions." 1 
 
 We thus perceive that the journey to the lower regions 
 was not considered impossible. The story goes on to state 
 that on returning home " Pwyll was ever after called Chief 
 of Annwn." Being chief of Annwn, it was the entrance 
 
 1 Mabinogion, Vol. II. p. 41. 
 
198 
 
 MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. 
 
 thither that was in the keeping of Pwyll and Pryderi ; and 
 therefore the permission which they had previously a given to 
 no one hut the prisoner Gwair, was a permission to enter 
 into Annwn. Arthur and his men sought admission to 
 the same place. Gwair ab Geirion had attempted the 
 journey, and failed to make his escape ; and of the number 
 who accompanied Arthur, only seven succeeded in returning 
 home. The body of the poem is taken up in describing 
 the objects which the adventurers saw on their way ; and it 
 must be confessed that the two pictures of the inferior world 
 given in the Mabinogi of Pwyll, and in the poem differ 
 materially, though this difference need not affect the ex- 
 planation. There appears to have been a story in circu- 
 lation that Arthur did attempt such feat, as we may learn 
 from the following Triad, — 
 
 " The three supreme prisoners of the Island of Britain, 
 Llyr Llediaith, in the prison of Euroswydd Wledig, (pro- 
 bably Ostorius), and Madoc, or Mabon, son of Medron, 
 and Geyr the son of Geyrybed, or Geiryoed ; [arid one'more 
 exalted than the three, and that was Arthur, who was for 
 three nights in the Castle of Oeth and Anoeth, and three 
 nights in the prison of Wen Pendragon, and three nights 
 in the dark prison under the stone of Echemeint, and one 
 youth released him from these three prisons ; that youth 
 was Goreu, the son of Constantine, his cousin.]" 2 
 
 That portion which is inclosed in brackets, if not the 
 whole of the Triad, may be pronounced to be not genuine ; 
 it has evidently been composed from the following, — 
 
 t; Three Royal Families were taken prisoners from great- 
 grandfathers to great-grandsons, and not one of them es- 
 caped. First, the family of Llyr Llediaith who were taken 
 
 a Tri goruchel garcharawr Y. P. Llyr Lledieith yng Carchar Oeuroswydd 
 Wledig, ar eil Madog mab Medron, ar trydydd Geyr mab Geyrybet, ac un oedd 
 orucbelach nar tri sef oedd hwnnw Arthur a fu deirnos yng Caer Oeth ac 
 Annoeth. A theirnos y gen Wen Bendragon, a theirnos ygcarchar kudd 
 dan y lleeh achymmreint ag un gwas ae dillyngwys or tri charehar hynny, 
 sef oedd y gwas Goreu vav Cystenin, y gefhderw. Trioedd 50. 
 
MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. J 99 
 
 prisoners to Rome by the Caesars. Second, the family of 
 Madawg ab Medron, who were in the custody of the Picts 
 in Scotland. Third, the family of Gair the son of 
 Geirion, Lord of Geirionydd, by the verdict of the country 
 and the nation, confined in the prison of Oeth and Annoeth ; 
 and of these neither the one nor the other escaped; and 
 the closest imprisonment that ever was known, was the 
 imprisonment of these families." Triad 61. * 
 
 The composer of the first triad either condensed this 
 triad himself, or wrote at a period when such a condensation 
 had taken place in the popular tradition, and added to it 
 the portion relating to Arthur, which, as is apparent, 
 makes the prisoners four instead of three ; but though the 
 triad is clumsily framed, it indicates that in the tradition 
 of the country, the fortunes of Arthur and Grwair were as in 
 the poem connected together. It now only remains for 
 us to enquire what the prison of Oeth and Annoeth was, 
 to conclude the proofs in favour of the above interpretation 
 of the poem. This is comparatively easy, as we find it 
 described in the Iolo MSS., as having been made of the 
 bones of the numerous Romans slain by Caractacus and his 
 men, which were collected by Manawyddan ab Llyr. 
 " It was of a circular form and wonderful magnitude, 
 and the larger bones were on the outer face of the walls, 
 and within the circle many prisons of lesser bones, and 
 other cells under the ground, as places for traitors to their 
 country ; this was called the prison of Oeth and Annoeth 
 (open or concealed.) in memorial of what the Kymry and 
 Caradoc their king had done for their country and race, 
 in defeating the Romans as easily when the trees from the 
 shores of the Severn to the banks of Towy were so com- 
 
 1 Tri Theulu Teyrnedd a ddyged yng ngharchar o'r gorhendaid i'r gorwyron, 
 heb adu yn nianc un honynt ; Cyntaf, Teulu Llyr Llediaith a ddyged yng 
 ngharchar hyd yn Rhufain y gan y Caisariaid : Ail, Teulu Madawg ab 
 Medron, a fuant yngharchar y gan y Gwyddyl Ffiehti yn yr Alban ; Trydydd 
 Teulu Gair ap Geirion arglwydd Geirionydd y gan Raith Gwlad a Chenedl yng 
 ngharchar Oeth ac Anoeth ; ac o'r rhai hynny nag un nag arrall o honynt yn 
 nianc ; a Uwyraf carcharu a wybuwyd erioed a fu ar y Teuluoedd hynnv. 
 Trioedd 61.'' 
 
200 MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. 
 
 pletely burnt down, that there was not a sprig left standing 
 large enough for a gnat to stand upon — as when the Bri- 
 tons were protected by their woods. And in that prison 
 were confined those, who were taken in war as enemies to 
 the race of the Cymry, until the judgment of a court should 
 be obtained upon them, and if it should be found that any 
 one of those foreigners was practising treachery, he would 
 be burned ; if he was taken in open battle, and it should 
 be found true by the judgment of the court, he would be 
 returned to his country in exchange for a Briton ; and 
 after that, they imprisoned there every one who should be 
 found a traitor to his country, and were not burned by 
 judgment of the Court. They were kept there during 
 their lives ; and that prison was demolished several times 
 by the Csesarians, and the Cymry would afterwards re- 
 construct it stronger than before. And in the course of a 
 long time, the bones became decayed, so that there was no 
 strength in them, and they were reduced to dust, then 
 they carried the remains and put it on the surface of the 
 ploughed land ; and from that time they had astonishing 
 crops of wheat and barley, and of every other grain for 
 many years. Thus it ends." l 
 
 This was evidently the " Oeth ac Anoeth" in which 
 Gwair was imprisoned ; but the romantic spirit soon over- 
 stepped the literal accuracy of the Triadic story, and 
 instead of being a prison easy of access, and used for the 
 retention of criminals, made it nearly if not wholly syno- 
 nymous with Annwn. It would be glaringly improper to 
 make the hero Arthur a traitor to his country, nor could 
 there be any glory in forcing a passage into that prison, 
 since ordinary mortals such as the Romans, two of whom in 
 the words of the above story were not equal to one Welsh- 
 
 1 Here is an interesting fact for Agricultural Chemists ; the ancient Welsh- 
 man who wrote the tale, I feel assured, had never heard of Liebig ; yet the 
 experience of the Kymry justifies the hypotheses of the German philosopher. 
 This story in the Iolo MSS. p. 597 — 600 is admirably told, and is a fine specimen 
 of national bravado. 
 
MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. 201 
 
 man, several times destroyed it. Therefore the Oeth ac 
 Annoeth of the Romances was something very different ; 
 and to have been there was the highest heroism, for we find 
 Glewlwyd Gavaelawr boasting of it at Arthurs table. 
 (Kilhwch and Olwen, p. 256.) From these facts, coupled with 
 the names and offices of Pwyll and Pryderi, and the des- 
 cription of Hell in the poem itself, we cannot well draw 
 any other conclusion, than that the poem is a Romance 
 descriptive of Arthur's descent into Annwn, or the unknown 
 world. The title of the poem, had not mistaken learning 
 covered it with obscurity, would have been sufficient to 
 indicate its object ; for Preiddeu Annwn means not " Spoils 
 of the Deep," but " the prey or victims of Annwn.*" 
 
 The vessel in which he and his party went, does not ap- 
 pear to have been Prydweu, Arthur's favourite ship, forthe 
 poem expressly states that this vessel contained three times 
 as many persons as Prydwen would hold ; we must there- 
 fore conclude that the vessel was one of glass, constructed 
 for the occasion, for the poet says, he " will not have merit 
 with the multitude in relating the hero's deeds, because 
 they could not see his prowess after he had entered Caer 
 Wydr, or the vessel of glass. " Glass vessels, with Romance 
 writers, were things very easily constructed. Merddin 
 went to sea with nine bards in a vessel of glass ; and 
 Juan Lorenza Segura de Astorga, in the Spanish Romance 
 of Alexander, which as we learn from Sismondi was written 
 in the thirteenth century, 1 has a long passage, the import 
 of which is, that — 
 
 " Alexander being desirous of seeing how the fish lived, 
 and in what manner the great fish behaved to the little 
 ones, ordered a vessel of glass to be made, and fastened with 
 long chains, to his ships, that it might not sink too deep. 
 He entered it with two chosen servants, leaving orders that 
 the ships should continue their course, and draw him up 
 at the end of fifteen days." 2 
 
 1 History of the Literature of the South of Europe, Vol. II. p. 126. 
 2 Southey's Madoc, Vol. 1, p. 276. 
 2C 
 
2Q2 MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. 
 
 This Romance seems to have been known to the 
 Bards, for among the poems attributed to Taliesin, is 
 one referring to this very event, — * 
 
 The Not-Wonders of Alexander. 
 
 I wonder that there is no acknowledgment, 
 
 From Heaven to Earth, 
 
 Of the coming of the ruler of conflict;, 
 
 Alexander the Great ! 
 
 Alexander the Nourisher, 
 
 Passionate, and iron-talented, 
 
 Celebrated for sword strokes, 
 
 Went beneath the sea. 
 
 Under the sea he went, 
 
 In searching for science ; 
 
 In the pursuit of knowledge, 
 
 His mind was greatly disturbed, 
 
 He went, with the wind above him, 
 
 On an adventure among the spawns of frogs, 
 
 To look for sights ! 
 
 (That which was) present did not satisfy him, 
 
 Yet no sights did he see. 
 
 He saw, wonderful to say, 
 
 Classes among fish ! 
 
 What his mind desired, 
 
 1 Anrhyfeddodau Alexander. 
 
 Rhyfeddaf na chiawr 
 Addef nef i lawr 
 Addyfod rhwyfgawr 
 Alexander Mawr. 
 Alexander Magidawr, 
 Hewys haiarnddawn 
 Cleddyfal enwogawn 
 Aeth dan eigiawn 
 Dan eigiawn eithyd 
 I geisiaw celfyddyd 
 
 geisio celfyddyd 
 Bid o iewin ei fryd 
 Eithyd odduch gwynt 
 Rwng deu grifft ar hynt 
 
 1 v/eled dremynt 
 Dremynt ni weles 
 Present ni chymhes 
 Gweles ryfeddawd 
 Gorllin gan bysgawd 
 
 I eiddunwys yn ei fryd 
 
MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. 203 
 
 He obtained from the world, 
 And at his death, 
 Mercy from God. 
 
 It seems to have been intended for a satire. 
 
 There does not appear to be any other part of the poem 
 requiring explanation, except perhaps the proper names at 
 the close of each verse. Lady Charlotte Guest 1 considers 
 that Arthur made separate expeditions to several distinct 
 places ; but the greatness of the undertaking, the unifor- 
 mity of the result, and the fact that the words are but 
 various descriptions of the same place 2 render more than 
 one journey improbable. Caer Sidi, sometimes meaning 
 the Zodiac, seems to have occasionally borne other signi- 
 fications ; the pseudo Taliesin says he has a bardic chair in 
 Caer Sidi, which is perfect, with the currents of the sea 
 flowing round its borders ; 3 and the composer of Preiddeu 
 Annwn evidently considers Caer Sidi, in which the prison of 
 Gwair was also perfect, to have been in Annwn, if it was 
 not the same place as Annwn. In giving it this signifi- 
 cation, the poet wrested it from its general meaning ; but 
 this is not the only liberty he has taken with the facts, for 
 Gwair who in the triad is punished for treason, and "by 
 the verdict of the country and the -nation," is in the poem 
 represented to have been a just man. In thus violating 
 the tradition, the poet has fallen into grievous error, for he 
 commits the absurdity of representing a just man to be 
 unjustly imprisoned by just powers; yet the error may 
 have arisen from a misconstruction. In Davies's transla- 
 tion, the word "Cywir/' just, perfect, or correct, is predicated 
 of " gwas" — the youth ; but if we translate the line thus, 
 " Y gadwyn dromlas cywir was ai cedwi." 
 
 The heavy blue chain (firmly or perfectly) held fast the youth, 
 
 A gafas or byd 
 A hefyd oi ddiwedd 
 Gan Dduw drugaredd. 
 iMabinogion, Vol. II., p. 321. 2 Davies' Myth. p. 516. 
 
 3 " Yscyweir fy nghadeir ynghaer Sidi. 
 Ac am ei bannau ffrydiau gweilgi." 
 
204 MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. 
 
 making the word " cywir" to be predicated of the imprison- 
 ment, we reconcile the poem with the triad, and save the 
 consistency of the poet. 
 
 Having thus shown some reasons, for believing this chosen 
 specimen of Mythology to be a romance, it will not be ne- 
 cessary to dwell at much length upon others of a similar 
 character. The so called " Mythological poems," 5 '' are, 
 exclusive of the twenty-five which form the Mabinogi 
 of Taliesin, twenty-eight in number. Many of them con- 
 tain allusions which are now unintelligible, though a large 
 portion of them, and the intentions of the whole, may be 
 understood. They were written when the language was in 
 an advanced stage of development, as most of the words 
 are in use at the present day ; and as will be seen, they 
 cannot be supposed to have been prior to the twelfth and 
 succeeding centuries. " A song concerning the sons of 
 Llyr 1 ' has the following lines, — 
 
 " Gwyddyl, a Brython, a Romani 
 
 A wahan dyhedd a dyvysgi." 
 The Gwyddelians, the Britons, and Romans 
 Disturb our tranquillity with their tumults ; 
 
 and the same lines occur in the Hoianau, falsely attributed 
 to Merddin, in a connexion which shows, that they refer to 
 the ecclesiastic dispute between Giraldus and king John, 
 respecting the see of St. David's. If that fact were not 
 enough to show its comparatively modern date, there is 
 another proof afforded in the lines, 
 
 Bum i gan Vran yn Iwerddon, 
 
 Gweleis pan laddwyd Morddwyd Tyllon. 
 
 I was with Bran in Ireland, 
 
 I saw when Morddwyd Tyllon was slain. 
 
 This refers to the Mabinogi of Bronwen, the daughter of 
 Llyr ; and the allusion to the tale as a thing well known, 
 fixes the date of the poem within the Komance era. 
 The poem called Myg Dinbych, (the prospect of Tenby,) 
 must also be modern ; as the form of the verse, the senti- 
 ments, and the smoothness of the language, indicate a more 
 recent author than Taliesin. 
 
MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. 205 
 
 In Cadeir Teym On, the repeated mention of "the Blessed 
 Arthur," and the allusion to the loosening of Elphin, show it to 
 have been written after those tales had come into circulation. 
 The mention in Canuy March, of " the horse of Gwythur," 
 " the horse of Gwarddur," and " the horse of Arthur," 
 renders minuter examination unnecessary. The writer of 
 Marwnad Uthr Pendragon speaks of being a piper, and of 
 Casnar, Gorlais, and other romantic characters, and must 
 therefore have been written after the reign of Gruffydd ab 
 Kynan ; and the sneer at "the loquacious bards" in Buarth 
 Beirdd, points unerringly to the quarrels which prevailed in 
 the thirteenth century. In Cad Goddeu we meet again with 
 the name of the national hero, and Druids are exhorted to 
 " predict to Arthur." In Marwnad Aeddon o Von, there 
 prevails the same mixture of Welsh and monkish Latin, 
 which has been already seen in the verses of the pseudo- 
 Taliesin. The Gicawd Lludd Mawr repeats the prophecy 
 of the coming again of Cadwaladr and Kynan, with which 
 the predictions attributed to Merddin, the Mabinogi of 
 Taliesin, and the poems of Gwalchmai are studded ; and 
 Angar Kyvyndawd is only a repetition of the transmigrations 
 already noticed, prefaced by a string of questions, such as 
 we find asked by the pseudo-Taliesin to the Bards of 
 Maelgwn. 
 
 These questions form one of the singular features of these 
 metrical Mabinogion, and indicate much more clearly than 
 any other portion of the ancient literature of Wales, the 
 nature of the speculations of the Bards upon philosophical 
 subjects. 
 
 In these the bard may adroitly manage, where he has 
 that desire, to bring others to the discredit of being igno- 
 rant, without exposing the smallness of his own knowledge. 
 He puts the questions very pompously, insinuating at the 
 same time his own competency to solve the questions pro- 
 posed ; and if his audience fail to answer, he acquires a 
 reputation for learning. The philosophy of the Bards, 
 being of this interrogative character is not very satisfactory, 
 
200 MYTHOLOGICAL POEMS. 
 
 and at this day we can only learn that they were not idle ; 
 since the important problems which inductive science solved 
 centuries after, occupied their thoughts. And the reader 
 who recollects the anxiety with which Virgil sought to 
 discern the laws of natural phenomena, (Georg II.,) or has 
 smiled goodnaturedly at the eagerness of the enquiring 
 spirits of the middle ages, will find no difficulty in believing 
 that the zeal of the bards for a knowledge of natural phi- 
 losophy was very great. The questions they proposed to 
 themselves, were these, — * 
 
 " skilful son of harmony, 
 
 Why wilt thou not answer me 1 
 
 Knowest thou where the night awaits 
 
 The passing of the day ? 
 
 Knowest thou the token (mark or character) 
 
 Of every leaf which grows 2 
 
 "What is it which heaves up the mountain, 
 
 Before the concussion of elements ? 
 
 Or what supports the fabric 
 
 Of the habitable earth 1 
 
 Who is the illuminator of the soul, 
 
 Who has seen — who knows him ?" 
 
 " What is the extent of the earth ? 
 
 What is the diameter of the earth 1 
 
 Who is the regulator between heaven and earth ? 
 
 Where do the cuckoos which visit us in the summer, 
 
 Retire during the winter ? 
 
 1 Eilywydd eelvydd 
 Py'r nam dywedd ? 
 Awyddosti cwddrydd 
 Nos yn aros dydd ? 
 Awyddosti arwydd 
 Pet deilen y sydd ? 
 Py drychevis mynydd 
 Cyn rhewiniaw elvydd ? 
 Py gynneil magwyr 
 Daear yn breswyl. 
 Enaid pwy gwynawr 
 Pwy gwelas ev — Pwy gwyr 
 
 2 Daear pwy ei lied, 
 Nen pwy ei thewed ? 
 Gagawr attrevnawr 
 Rhwng nev a llawr ? 
 Goguv gegan Haf, 
 A fyddant y gauaf ? 
 
POEMS FICTITIOUSLY ATTRIBUTED, ETC. 207 
 
 Who carried the measuring line of the Lord of Causes ? 
 What ladder ivas used zuhen the heavens were reared aloft? 
 And ivho supported the curtain, from the earth to the skies f" 
 
 These old poems merit a more minute discussion, than 
 the number of other topics demanding attention permitted 
 me to give ; but the key to their signification has been 
 supplied. They stand to Mythology and philosophy 
 in the same relation, as romance stands to history ; and if 
 regarded in that light, more meaning may be extracted out 
 of them than they have hitherto furnished. They are con- 
 versant with the same subjects as the romances, and it is 
 to the romantic ideas of these a^es that we are to look for 
 explanations. In both the mystic and the military romance 
 the animus is the same, the difference being merely exter- 
 nal, and arising from the operation of the same mental 
 tendency upon varying materials. 
 
 SECTION IV. 
 
 Poems fictitiously attributed to Merddin,Taliesin, Aneurin, 
 Llywarch, Meugant, and Golyddan. 
 
 Reader ! Be attentive to what I am about to write, and 
 keep a watchful eye upon the sentences as they rise be- 
 fore you; for the daring spirit of modern criticism, is about 
 to lay violent hands upon the old household furniture of 
 venerable tradition. 
 
 Pwy dyddwg rwynnon 
 Baran achwysson ? 
 Pa ysgawl oddev 
 Pan ddyrchavwyd nev ? 
 Pwy fu fforch Hwyl 
 O ddaear hyd Awyr ? 
 
20g POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 Among Welshmen, there is a very prevalent miscon- 
 ception respecting Merddin; and I perceive that a French 
 writer 1 on Welsh traditions has been misled by it. It is 
 commonly asserted that the Merddin, the son of Morvryn, 
 or Merddin the Wild of the Welsh bards, is a different 
 person from the Merddin Emrys, or Merlin Ambrosius of 
 Nennius, Geoffrey, and the Romances ; but there are many 
 reasons for rejecting this assumption. Both Merddin ab 
 Morvryn, and Merddin Emrys lived about the same 
 time ; both lived in the same locality, the North of 
 England ; both are conversant with the same facts — 
 the doings of the Strathclyde Britons, and their subse- 
 quent fortunes ; both were diviners ; both had more 
 than ordinary attributes ; both predict the same events, 
 in nearly the same order ; and most probably both names 
 represent but one person. In the predictions of Merddin 
 Emrys there is no allusion to Merddin ab Morvryn, nor on 
 the other hand, does the latter seem to have been aware of 
 the existence of any such person as the former. The ar- 
 guments in favour of this conclusion are numerous. I. 
 Merddin Emrys appears as a boy before Vortigern about 
 the year 480 f and Merddin ab Morvryn at the court of 
 Rhydderch Hael in 570 3 is an old man, whose "hair is 
 white as winter hoar," 4 and who is on the point of death. 5 
 It is therefore much more probable, that both names belong- 
 to the same person, than that there should be two persons en- 
 dowed with supernatural powers, living in the same locality, 
 at the same time. And there is nothing improbable in the 
 supposition that he might have lived to be ninety years 
 old, when the average age in the vale of Glamorgan was a 
 hundred and twenty years. 6 II. Merddin ab Morvryn, 
 
 1 The Comte de Villemarque's Barzaz Breiz, Introduction, p. XII. Vol. 1 . 
 
 2 Llwyd, p. 263. a Ibid. p. 263. 4 Kyvoesi, v. 13. 5 Ibid. v. 138. 
 
 6 Morgan the Great was 129 at death, Howel ab Rhys 124, another son of 
 Rhys 120, Howel ab Morgan 130, Jestin ab Gwrgant 129, Ivan Yorath, 180, 
 John Sherry 104, Thomas Watkin 100, Elizabeth Yorath 177, Cicill Llewelyn 
 107, Peter Meare 103, Anna Richman 120, Kate Butler 106, Thomas French 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 209 
 
 is apparently the person, whose character formed the nu- 
 cleus from which the other was developed. In the appellation 
 u ab Morvryn," we evidently have a fact ; but he soon 
 loses his reality. At the court of Rhydderch Hael, he 
 was called laloiken or the twin ; and that appellation, though 
 at the present day the Welsh predicate nothing of twin 
 births but good fortune, evidently had considerable signi- 
 ficance; for in the dialogue between Merddin and his 
 sister, Gwenddydd perpetually calls him, my world-famed 
 twin-brother. Castor and Pollux, llomulus and Remus, 
 Esau and Jacob, all famous, are cases in point. In that 
 poem, Merddin ab Morvryn, is invested with all the attri- 
 butes which were afterwards centred in the person of Merlin 
 the enchanter ; but as the ancient Welsh would scarcely 
 invest two men of the same name, with supernatural power, 
 we are compelled to conclude that the Merddin who has a 
 parent is the only real personage. This is clearly the 
 germ of the latter creation ; and as the bards of the twelfth 
 and succeeding centuries, put the predictions which Merddin 
 Emrys utters in Geoffrey's book, into the mouth of Merddin 
 ab Morvryn, and this more than a century after that His- 
 tory had been given to the world; they would appear to have 
 considered them to be identical. Further, the " white lady" 
 who is mentioned as the companion of Merddin Emrys, 
 in both the verses of the graves (Myv. Arch. v. 1. p. 78), 
 and in the later romance, is the same person as Gwenddydd, 
 the lady of the day, the sister of the son of Morvryn. III. 
 Merddin Emrys, is evidently a mythic personage, the 
 substratum of fact, being the name Merddin, and the sur- 
 name Emrys derived from his patron Ambrosius Aureli- 
 anus. Nennius's account of him contains several very gross 
 blunders. A boy without a father is brought before Vorti- 
 gern, and on being asked, " What is your origin V replies, 
 
 100, John Roberts 118, Matthew Voss 129, "William Edwards^ 168, Vaughan 
 Edwards, Gent. 83, Thomas ab Jevan Prys the prophet 141, Elizabeth Davies 
 111, Rev. Edward Davies 108, and Henry Jenkins 169. Malkin's South 
 Wales, Vol. 1. p. 55, and Vol. 11. pp. 545—551. 
 
 2D 
 
210 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 " My father was a Koman Consul;" and again, the boy 
 being askedjiis name, said it was Embresguletic (Emrys 
 Wledig.) In both these cases, the chronicler has fallen 
 into the error of confounding Merddin Ambrosius, with 
 Ambrosius the King ; for Emrys Wledig means Emrys 
 or Ambrose the Ruler, and Ambrosius was of Roman 
 descent. His narrative is also slightly at variance with 
 that of Geoffrey. It was a popular belief among the Jews, 
 propagated, say writers more candid than polite, to cover 
 the indulgences of the priesthood, that children born of 
 virgins, or rather without acknowledged fathers, were 
 destined to be illustrious. Subsequently this opinion 
 prevailed in these islands ; Sir Walter Scott gives two 
 instances of such occurrences in Scotland, attended with 
 superstitious associations; and it is with an evident refer- 
 ence to these examples that Merddin was brought to the 
 world without a father. The fiction is certainly ecclesi- 
 astical, as for many centuries after Nennius had slept with 
 his fathers, Welsh tradition clung to a less marvellous 
 version of Merddms birth ; but it appears in Nennius, in 
 a ruder form than it afterwards assumed in Geoffrey. In 
 the earlier writer, the lady does not know how she became 
 pregnant; this accords nearly with the account given by 
 the mother of Bryan the Hermit, in the Lady of the Lake ; 
 but Geoffrey adorns the story, introduces a vision of " a 
 beautiful young man," and confirms the whole narrative, 
 by causing the bard Meugant to state, that " in the books of 
 our philosophers, and in a great many histories, I have 
 found that several men have had a like original." The ac- 
 count given of St. Samson, bishop of Llandaff, in the Liber 
 Landavensis, is a similar instance of scriptural plagiarism 
 among Welsh monks; his mother had long been barren; 
 but an angel visits her, and promises a son ; and that son 
 then turns out to be a prodigy of talent and piety ! Mer- 
 ddin's end corresponds to his birth, as he went to sea in a 
 glass vessel, and was never afterwards heard of. Merddin 
 Emrys therefore is only a mythological character engrafted 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 9 1 -[ 
 
 on, or rather prefixed to Merddin ab Morvryn, who in his 
 youth might perhaps have been in attendance on Ambro- 
 sius. IV. The only obstacle that remains to be removed, 
 is the mention in the triads of two Merddins, and of the 
 voyage of Merddin Einrys and his nine bards in the vessel 
 of glass ; but as these triads were not composed until a late 
 period, and are simply echoes of the romances, they are of no 
 weight. None of the middle age Bards give any counte- 
 nance to the assertion ; and therefore we may safely con- 
 clude, that Merddin ab Morvryn, Merddin Wyllt, Merddin 
 Sylvester, or the Wild, Merddin Emrys, and Merlin the 
 Enchanter, are but various names for one person. 
 
 It is somewhat strange that Nennius should make no 
 mention of Merddin among the Bards of the sixth century. 
 His words are, " At that time, Talhaiarn Cataguen was 
 famed for poetry, and Neirin, and Taliesin, and Bluchbard, 
 and Kian, who is called Guenith Guaut, were all famous at 
 the same time in British poetry." Talhaiarn (Tad Tangwn,) 
 was the Bard of Coel Godebog, and also of Urien Bheged, 
 and the three next are Aneurin, Taliesin, and Llywarch; but 
 Kian, in other MSS. called Gweinchgwant, was not otherwise 
 known than by this notice, an allusion in Aneurin, and some 
 lines in the Angar Kyvyndawd of the pseudo-Taliesin. No 
 mention at all is made of Merddin as a bard, and perhaps that 
 was a character subsequently added. It is not improbable 
 that Merddin and Kian may have gone to Britanny, since we 
 have no authentic remains of either ; Merddin re-appears 
 in Breton poetry, and thanks to the intelligence and in- 
 dustry of De. Villemarque, what our own literature had 
 failed to furnish, is now supplied from thence; for the 
 Gwenchlan of the Bretons, is evidently the same person, 
 as the Gweinchgwant of Nennius. 
 
 It is generally believed by Welsh critics, that we have 
 several poems really composed by Merlin, the great Magi- 
 cian, so well known to the readers of Romances; and there 
 are in the Myvyrian Archaiology, six poems attributed to 
 this important personage, viz : — A dialogue betweeen Mer- 
 
212 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 ddin and Yscolan; 1 Predictions delivered when in his grave; 
 A dialogue between Merddin and Gwenddydd his sister; 
 The Apple Trees; The songs of The Pigs; and The Burrow- 
 ings. In addition to these, Llwyd, in his account of the 
 MS. called " Y Kwtta Kyvarwydd o Vorganwg," says it 
 contained a prediction uttered by Merddin before Arthur; 
 but this does not seem to have been published. We shall have 
 occasion to quote the first of these, in the third chapter, 
 and therefore will here only state, that its spuriousness is 
 admitted. Several of the others, and particularly the fourth 
 and fifth, are supposed to be genuine; but as their antiquity 
 admits of doubt, we shall enter minutely into the question, 
 and discuss it at some length. First in the order of 
 time, is the dialogue between Merddin and his sister. It 
 evidently contains all that tradition had preserved respect- 
 ing Merddin, though the details are much less full than 
 they subsequently became. It commences with a diatribe 
 against Rhydderch Hael, the reasons for which will be pre- 
 sently unfolded; and the poem then proceeds thus : — 2 
 
 GWENDDYDD. 
 
 I will ask my fame-proclaimed twin-brother, 
 
 The fierce in battle ; 
 After Rhydderch who will be ? 
 
 MERDDIN. 
 
 As Gwenddoleu was slain in the battle of Arderydd, 
 And I have come from among furze, — 
 Morgan the Great, son of Sadurnin. 
 
 1 The titles in Welsh are, I Yscolan, Gwasgargerdd Vyrdin yn y Ved, Hoi- 
 anau neu Borchellanau Myrddin ah Morvryn, Kyvoesi Myrdin a Gwendyd y 
 Chuaer, Avallenau Myrddin, Gorddodau Myrddin. 
 
 GWENDDYDD. 
 
 3 Cyvarchaf ym Klotleu llallauc 
 
 Anuynauc yn lluyd 
 
 Neu wedi Ryderch puy vyd 
 
 MYRDDIN. 
 
 O leas Gwendoleu y guaetffreu Arderyd 
 
 Handuf o eithin 
 
 Morgant vaur vah Sadurnin 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 213 
 
 GWENDDYDD. 
 
 I will ask my famous twin-brother. 
 
 Bardic president about the waters of the Clyde, 
 
 Who will rule after Morgant 1 
 
 MERDDIN. 
 
 As Gwenddoleu was slain in the bloodfray of Arderydd, 
 
 The voice of the country 
 
 Will dispose of the power to Urien. 
 
 GWENDDYDD. 
 
 Thy head is of the colour of winter hoar, 
 May God relieve thy necessities, — 
 Who will rule after Urien ? 
 
 MERDDIN. 
 
 Heaven has pressed heavily upon me, 
 
 And I am ill at last, — 
 
 Maelgwn Hir will rule over Gwynedd. 
 
 This is a pleasant enough plan of teaching history, and in 
 this manner the poem proceeds, until Merddin has named in 
 their historical order, Khun, Beli, Iago, Cadvan, Cadwallon, 
 and Cadwaladr, kings of Britain; and also, Idwal, Howel ab 
 Cadwal, Eodri, Kynan, Mervryn Vrych, Rodri the Great, 
 
 GWENDDYDD. 
 
 Kyvarchaf yni Klotleu llalluc 
 
 Kerdglyt Klyt lliant 
 
 Puy wledych uedy Morgant 
 
 MYRDDIN. 
 
 O leas Gwendoleu y guaetffreu Arderyd 
 A synnu paham ym ken gualadyr 
 Gwaet gwlat y Uryen. 
 
 GWENDDYDD. 
 
 Kyvliu dy ben ac aryen gaeaf 
 Gwares Dyv dy anghen 
 Puy wledych wedi Uryen 
 
 Digones Dofyd dicned aruaf 
 Klaf wyf o'r diued 
 Maelgwn Hir ar dir Gwyned 
 
2|4 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 Anarawd, and Howel the Good, princes of Wales. So 
 far the list is in unison with history ; hut from Howel the 
 Good downwards, the account becomes obscure, if not con- 
 fused; and the rulers are no longer mentioned by their proper 
 names. After Howel comes Bargodyein, (literally, a man 
 from the borders,) Brehyryeit, (of Baronial descent,) Kynan 
 of the Dogs, Brenin o Vreyr, (a king from among barons,) 
 Serven Wynn, White shouldered Beli, Gruffydd, Gwyn 
 Gwarther, (the blessed chevalier,) Two Iddas, Gylmin, Two 
 halved Macwy, A Lord of eight chief fortresses, Owain from 
 Manaw, (Isle of Man,) A ruler of good qualities, Beli Hir, 
 and Cadwaladr. The last mentioned, was to appear in 
 Carmarthenshire. 1 
 
 GWENDDYDD. 
 
 Do not separate from me abruptly, 
 Without speaking about the conference, 
 In what part will Kadwaladr alight % 
 
 MERDDIN. 
 
 When Kadwaladr shall alight 
 
 In the vale of the Towy, 
 
 Fords will be heavily burdened, 
 
 And he will scatter with his tumult the striped Britons. 
 
 It also appears that he was to make a pretty long stay, — 2 
 
 GWENDDYDD. 
 
 Do not separate abruptly from me, 
 Without speaking about the Conference ; 
 How long will Cadwaladr rule. 
 
 GWENDDYDD. 
 
 1 Nac ysgar yn antruyadyl 
 
 A mi o anguarth yn gynnadyl 
 Pa du i disgyn Cadwaladyr 
 
 MYRDDIN. 
 
 Pan ddescynno Cadwaladyr 
 
 Yn nyffryn Tywi 
 
 Biawt tra thrwm ebyr 
 
 Gwascarawdd ai brythawd Brython brithwyr. 
 
 GWENDDYDD. 
 
 2 Nac ysgar yn antruyadl a mi 
 O anguarth i'r gynnadyl 
 
 Pa hyt y guledych Kadawladyr. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN, 215 
 
 MERDDIN* 
 
 Three months, and three years, 
 And three hundred years complete, — 
 And light will be his rule. 
 
 After Cadwaladr, were to come Kynclav, and Catrav; and 
 then the heavens would fall to the earth, there would be no 
 more kings, and the end of the world would be at hand. 
 
 The learned Llwyd, believing the latter names to be 
 purely imaginary, concludes that the poem was written by 
 an unknown author, living about 948, 1 or during the 
 reign of Howel the Good ; but as those names clearly re- 
 fer to historical persons, his opinion is not quite satisfac- 
 tory. The Bargodyein, were Ievan and Iago, the sons of 
 Edwal Voel, king of north Wales ; the rightful heir was 
 their brother Meyrick, and their claim to the throne which 
 they usurped, only bordered on a rightful title. The Bre- 
 hyrieit were Howel and Oadwallon, the sons of the above 
 named Ievav ; and as their father's right was disallowed, 
 they were only barons. Macwy the two halved was a king 
 of the Danes of Anglesey; he is called Maccus by Mathevv 
 of Westminster, and Macht ab Harallt in the Welsh Chro- 
 nicles. Serven Wyn must be the Sivnerth king of Dyved, 
 who lived about the same time ; and Gilmyn was probably 
 " Glumayn son of Abioic," a small potentate mentioned in 
 Hanes Cymru, (p. 423.) Kynan of the dogs was probably 
 Kynan ab Iago, who made two attempts on north Wales in 
 1042 and 1050; and the celebrated Gruffydd, was that fa- 
 mous prince Gruffydd ab Llywelyn ab Seisyllt. Gwynn 
 Gwarther means probably Bleddyn ab Kynvyn, and Beli 
 Hir was perhaps his nephew Trahaearn, for they claimed a 
 descent from Beli the Great ; Owain of Manaw, was Owain 
 the son of Edwin, a descendant from Howel the Good. 
 
 Tri mis teir blyned teithyon 
 A thrichant mlynedd kyflawn 
 Kadeu gweitheu guledychant. 
 
 1 Arch. Brit. p. 257, 
 
21(3 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 Thus most of the names are traced to real persons ; and I 
 doubt not, if time permitted, the remainder could be as com- 
 pletely and satisfactorily ascertained. We must therefore 
 place the author of these verses, a hundred and thirty 
 years later, or about A.D. 1077. The celebrated anti- 
 quarian, Vaughan of Hengwrt, 1 has fixed a still later date 
 for this poem ; but in asserting that the author lived in the 
 reign of Henry II., his reasoning was based upon, and he 
 was probably misled by, the fourteen verses preceding verse 
 85, which seem to be interpolations. The Owain of those 
 verses, is certainly Owain Gwynedd ab Gruffyddab Kynan; 
 but the Owain of the subsequent verses, 85 and 86, was evi- 
 dently Owain ab Edwin, a prince who had lived seventy 
 years before. "We must therefore reject his conclusion, 
 and place the poem earlier by more than half a century. 
 There is a little confusion in the order in which the names are 
 placed, which bespeaks that the writer was not living in 
 Wales at the time of writing. This is very evident in one of 
 the later notices ; Owain it is said will bring an army from 
 the Isle of Man ; but though Owain fled to the Isle of Man, 
 he seems to have died there, for it was Rhys his son who 
 brought an army from thence in 1172 ; and therefore from 
 this fact, and from the erroneous statement that Kynan, 
 who made the unsuccessful attempts on north Wales, be- 
 came king, it seems as if he knew more of what was doing 
 externally than internally. He must however have been 
 situated at a considerable distance from Wales, where he 
 was dependent upon rumour for intelligence ; he could 
 
 1 " The prophecies attributed to Merddin Sylvester, alluded to in this argument 
 as foretelling the accession of Anarawd, are evidently the production of some 
 person in the reign of Henry II. The succession of the Princes of North 
 Wales are detailed by name in the form of a dialogue, in the precise manner in 
 which they reigned, down to Owen Gwynedd ; from which time the narrative is 
 too mysterious to admit of exemplification, for the plain reason that the com- 
 piler's powers of penetrating futurity were not more acute than those of other 
 people." British Antiquities Revived, p. 79. The assertion in the first part of the 
 second sentence is incorrect ; for as. will be seen in the list given in the text, the 
 proper names are only clearly distinguishable as far as Howel the Good ; but 
 most of the mysterious names have now been identified. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 217 
 
 scarcely have been in Ireland without knowing more about 
 Kynan ; in the Isle of Man he would have been more 
 accurately informed respecting the movements of Owain ab 
 Edwin and his sons ; and therefore must we conclude that 
 he was in the distant province of Brittany. 
 
 In Brittany, just at this time, there was a man who 
 watched most intently the motions of factions in Wales, 
 and soon afterwards made his appearance among his coun- 
 trymen. He was lineally descended from Howel the Good ; 
 he had fled to Brittany in 993, at the death of his father ; 
 and in 1077, after an absence of eighty-four years, he re- 
 turned to the land of his ancestors, to claim the throne of 
 South Wales. He brought with him an immense reputa- 
 tion for wisdom and learning; he brought more than that, 
 for he brought with him, the marvellous history of Arthur and 
 the Round Table. I do not mean to assert, that that prince 
 was the author of this dialogue; but I will assert, that it 
 was written to further his interests, and that the people of 
 Wales first heard predictions of the speedy re-appearance of 
 Cadwaladr in the vale of Towy, when a rightful and po- 
 pular claimant to the throne of Deheubarth was announced 
 in the person of Rhys ab Tewdwk. It will be observed that 
 the dialogue has a special reference to him ; for Cadwaladr 
 was to come, at the very time that he came, to the very 
 place where he landed, and for the very purpose which he 
 had in view. 
 
 The germs of most of the predictions contained in " The 
 Apple Trees," and " The Songs of the Pigs," are to be 
 found here ; the prediction at the close of the twenty-third 
 verse of the latter, occurs in the sixty-fourth verse of this 
 dialogue ; the mention of the Sibyl occurs in the sixty- 
 third; and the allusions to the falling of the sky, the son of 
 Henry, and the bridges on the Taff and Towy, in the 
 Hoianau, are borrowed from the seventy-fourth, and the 
 hundred and nineteenth verses of this poem. It will also 
 be observed, that the prediction respecting Cadwaladr, ap- 
 pears here in a much simpler form than it afterwards as- 
 
 2 E 
 
218 
 
 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 sumed ; here, the last king of Britain is to come alone; but 
 soon afterwards, Kynan was given to him as a companion. 
 This is the form, in which it is seen in Geoffrey's History, 
 1157, and subsequently in the Avallenau and Hoianau. 
 We also learn from this dialogue, how the idea of the con- 
 ference originated ;— * 
 
 GWENDDYDD. 
 
 On seeing thy cheek so care-worn, 
 
 If I were not concerned, I would not ask, 
 
 Who will rule after Cadwallon ? 
 
 MERDDIN. 
 
 A tall man holding a conference, 
 
 And Britain under one ruler, — 
 
 The best of a Cambrian's son Cadwaladr. 
 
 There is a tradition that he held a Bardic Congress; but 
 if this verse represents history correctly, the meeting was 
 a political conference; and Cadwaladr the first having held 
 a conference in the seventh century, the second Cadwaladr 
 would, it was thought advisable to state, do likewise. In 
 this poem, the place of meeting is not named, neither is it in 
 Geoffrey ; and the fixing of it at Rhyd Elieon, was an after- 
 thought of the North Welsh bards. 
 
 For the student, this dialogue is the most valuable poem 
 of the series; as it undoubtedly is the earliest existing record 
 of the Welsh tradition respecting Merddin. Merddin is here 
 termed, Supreme Judge of the North, Syw, or diviner of every 
 region, Bardic President about the waters of the Clyde, and 
 Interpreter of the Army of the God of Victory. Through- 
 out the poem, there is a constant reference to some speedy 
 
 GWENDDYDD. 
 
 1 O ueled dy rud mor greulaun 
 Y dau ym bryt neut annogaun 
 Puy wledych uedy Katwallaun 
 
 Myrddin. 
 Gwr hir yn cadu Kynnadyl 
 A Phrydain yn un Paladyr 
 Goreu mab Kymro Katwalatyr. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 219 
 
 separation which was to take place ; and towards the close 
 we learn what this was, — * 
 
 GWENDDYDD. 
 
 Alas ! dearest, the cold separation, 
 When comes the day of tumult ; 
 ^ Thy imprisonment beneath the earth, 
 
 By a monarch valiant and fearless, v. 126. 
 
 Here it would appear, that he was shortly to be confined; 
 but the legend subsequently assumed another form. Accord- 
 ing to the latter, as it appears in Spenser, at a place, — 
 
 " That is by change of name 
 
 Cayr Merdin called." 
 "There the wise Merlin whylonie wont, they say, 
 To make his wonne, low underneath the ground, 
 By a deep delve, far from the view of day, 
 That of no living wight he mote he found, 
 When so he counsell'd with his sprights encompast round." 
 
 He had a mistress, the Lady of the Lake, whom he was 
 accustomed to call the White Serpent, and who treacher- 
 ously converted this cave into his tomb, after he had im- 
 parted to her some of his secrets. Sir Thomas Maelor, and 
 Ariosto, have also repeated this story; which in this dialogue 
 is much simpler. It is not however always consistent with 
 itself; for after having regretted the imprisonment by a 
 powerful monarch, she bids him, — 2 
 
 Arise from thy prison, and unfold the books 
 
 Of the A wen without fear ; 
 
 And the speech of Bun, and the visions of sleep, v. 129. 
 
 And yet after this, she says, — 3 
 
 While I live I will not be unmindful of thee, 
 And to the day of judgment will bear in mind 
 Thy intrenchment,— heavy misfortune, v. 136. 
 
 GWENDDYDD. 
 
 1 Och anwyl or oer escar 
 Guedi dyvot yn trydar 
 Gan unben dewr diarchar 
 Dy olo di y dan dayar 
 
 2 olochuyt kyvot a thravot llyvreu 
 Awen heb arsuyt 
 
 A ehuedyl Bun a hun breuduyt 
 
 3 Ym byu nyth diovrydaf 
 A hyt vraut yth goffaaf 
 
 Dy ffosaut trallaut trymmaf. 
 
220 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 The germ of the latter legend appears here ; but the im- 
 prisonment is not brought about by the Lady's agency. 
 Gwenddydd, in another place called — 
 
 "Gwenddydd Wen adlam Cerddeu," v. 133. 
 White Lady of day, the refuge of songs, 
 
 is evidently to be here understood as his sister, for she, in 
 the dialogue, calls him her llallogan (Laloiken,) or twin- 
 brother. I do not know, whether the assertion in the life of 
 St. Kentigern, written about 1180, by Jocelyn, of Fur- 
 ness Abbey, that at the court of Rhydderch Hael, there 
 was a maniac named Laloiken, is, or is not founded on 
 this dialogue; if not, we have another proof that the dialogue 
 contains a few facts of authentic biography; for since the 
 Scotochronichon's identification of this Laloiken with Mer- 
 ddin the Wild, and Mr. Price's ingenious proof, 1 that 
 Laloiken is another form of the Welsh word Llallogan, 
 there can be no doubt that we are here on safe ground. At 
 the close of this poem, there seems to be an interpolation of 
 several verses, or an attempt to reconcile two different tradi- 
 ditions; and in the Avallenau and Hoiannau we find several 
 facts, not mentioned here, and different attributes are given 
 to the sister. In the Avallenau, we are told that "Gwen- 
 ddydd does not love him," since "her son was slain by his 
 accursed hand;" but in the dialogue, there is not the slightest 
 hint of this want of love on the part of the sister, nor any 
 mention of her having a son. There is either death, or im- 
 prisonment, alluded to in the dialogue ; but in the others, 
 his motions are free ; and yet the story of the White Ser- 
 pent is shadowed forth in the Hoianau, for the word pierce, 
 in the line, — 
 
 "(A) grey (wolf?) is my protection, Gwenddydd will not 
 pierce me." 
 
 implies other than feminine attributes. Throughout the 
 whole, although there is much of fact, there is also much of 
 fiction. 
 
 1 Hanes Cymru, p. 209. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 22 1 
 
 Next in chronological order, should come "The Predic- 
 tions uttered by Merddin out of his grave." This poem 
 either originated in the hundred and twenty-ninth verse of the 
 preceding, which has just been quoted, or that verse is an 
 interpolation, as they both appear to be closely connected; 
 and perhaps we ought, by the grave, to understand the above 
 named prison. It is clearly posterior in date, for it refers 
 to Cock o JVormandi, meaning William the II., the Bed 
 king from Normandy; there is also an allusion to Henry 
 the I., but the poem contains no striking features. A few 
 of the predictions may not however be uninteresting: 1 — 
 
 The world shall come towards the end, 
 When from adversity men shall die young, 
 And cuckoos die of cold in the month of May. 
 
 The world shall be, when men shall delight in hounds, 
 
 And build cottages in the wilderness ; 
 
 And shirts without great cost cannot be obtained. 
 
 Truth shall disappear, and error spread, 
 
 Men shall be weak of faith, and disputing on alternate days,-— 
 
 And they shall delight in fine garments. 
 
 Lords shall be litigious, and agents vagabonds, 
 Bards empty-handed, and priests gay ; 
 Truth shall vanish, and denials be frequent. 
 
 The world will be, without too many storms, 
 
 Much ploughing will not be required, nor railings on the 
 
 sea shore ; 
 And an acre shall be land enough for nine. 
 
 1 Byd a vyd a gorphen byd 
 Pallant ieuainc rac advyt 
 Mei marw cogeu rhac annuyt 
 
 Byt a vyd byt wrth erchuys 
 
 Y adeilaur yn dyrys 
 
 Heb werth maur ni chaffaur crys 
 
 Eu divanuaut gwir lledaut geu 
 Guann fiyd bob eildyd datleu 
 Byt a vyd bryt wrth dillad 
 
 Kyghaus argluyd Maer chuiviat 
 Guaclau Bard hard offeiriat 
 Difannawr e wir lledawr gwad 
 
 Byt a vyd heb wynt heblau 
 
 Heb ormod eredic heb drathreuiyau 
 
 Tir digaun vid un erw y nau 
 
222 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 When men grow, they shall grow up without virility, 
 And corn-fields take the place of trees ; 
 Feasts will be prevalent in peaceful districts. 
 
 When the cubit shall be held in estimation, 
 
 The man who has it, will not regret, 
 
 That corn springs up on the sides of mountains. 
 
 As printed in the Archaiology, this poem consists of forty 
 four verses ; but the twelve last refer to the injuries done 
 by the Danes to the monastery of Llandudoch in 987, and 
 were not in the MSS. of Mr. Lewis Morris or Mr. Edward 
 Llwyd. They therefore seem to be subsequent additions; 
 as the fourteen verses, from the seventy first to the eighty- 
 fifth of the Kyvoesi, undoubtedly are; for they refer to the 
 reign of Owain G-wynedd, and to the son of Henry, and 
 are not in the MS. of Mr. D. Jones, of Llanvair. 
 
 The Avallenau. 
 
 On reading these verses some years ago, I was much 
 pleased with their quaint simplicity, with the fine vein of 
 sentiment which runs through them, and with the diction, 
 which is much superior to that of poets who have written 
 at a later period, and obtained great repute. But repeated 
 perusals led me to doubt their antiquity ; the allusions to 
 historical characters in the shape of prophecies could not 
 have been Merddin's ; and the composition, so clear, in- 
 telligible, and elegant, as compared with the genuine poems 
 of Aneurin, Taliesin, and Llywarch, wore an air by no 
 means ancient. With the view of enabling the reader to 
 estimate the value of my criticism, I will first quote the 
 verses, — 
 
 Pan dyvo yr gwyr heb wryt 
 Ac yn lie coet cael yr yt 
 Ymhob hedd guled a gyvyt 
 
 Pan fo cyfelin gymyrredd 
 Y gwr ai gweryd ni ommedd 
 Grwrthfyd yd ym mynyddedd 
 
 Myv. Arch. Vol. I. p. 133. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 223 
 
 The Apple Trees. 1 
 
 1 Was there such a gift given to any one, as at the dawn of day 
 Was given to Merddin ere age had overtaken him ? 
 
 Seven score and seven sweet apple trees, 
 
 Of equal height, age, and magnitude, 
 
 They are a mark of a sovereign's benevolence, 
 
 And are overshadowed by lovely foliage. 
 
 A maid with beauteous ringlets watches over them, 
 
 Gloywedd by name, with teeth of pearly whiteness. 
 
 2 Sweet and excellent apple tree ! 
 
 Thou wilt be heavy when laden with fruit, 
 
 And I am full of care and trouble for thy safety, 
 
 Lest the woodmen 
 
 Should destroy thy root, and injure thy seed, 
 
 And prevent any more apples from growing on thee ; 
 
 And I tear myself wildly with anxiety ; 
 
 Anguish pains me, and no clothes protect my body; 
 
 These were the gift of Gwenddolau the free giver, 
 
 Who is now, as he was not. 
 
 3 Sweet apple tree of delicate growth, 
 Thy shade is celebrated, profitable, and comely, 
 Princes will combine upon false pretences, 
 With false, luxurious, and gluttonous monks, 
 And idle talkative youths, to get thy fruit; 
 They all prophesy warlike exploits to the Prince. 
 
 1 1 A rodded i neb yn un plygeint 
 A roid i Ferddin cyn no henaint 
 Saith afallen beren a saith ugaint 
 Yn gyfoed gyfuch gyhyd gymmaint 
 Trwy fron teyrnedd y tyfeddaint 
 Un ddoled ucbed ai gorthoaint 
 Un forvvyn bengrech ai gorchedwaint 
 Gloywedd ei benw gloy w wyn ei daint 
 
 2 Afallen beren, bren y sydd fad 
 
 Nid bychan dylwyth sydd ffrwyth arnad 
 
 Aminnau wyf ofnawg am gelawg am danad 
 
 Rhag dyfod y coedwyr goed gymmynnad 
 
 I gladdu dy wraidd a llygru dy had, 
 
 Fal na thyfo byth afal arnad 
 
 A minnau wyf gwyllt gwrthrychiad 
 
 I'm cathrudd cythrudd nim cudd dillad. 
 
 Neum rhoddes Gwenddolau gorthlysau yn rhad 
 
 Ac yntau heddyw fal na buad. 
 
 3 Afallen beren bren addfeinus 
 Gwasgadfod glodfawr buddfawr brydus 
 Cyd wnant benaethau gan gyf esgus 
 
 A myneich geuawg bwydiawg gwydus 
 
 A gweisionain ffraeth bid arfaethus 
 
 Yd fyddant wyr rhamant rhidd rhwyfanas. 
 
224 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 4 Sweet apple tree of vigorous growth, and verdant foliage, 
 Large are thy branches, and beautiful thy form, 
 
 It was beautiful to see thee in a robe of vivid green, 
 
 Ere war had caused my heart to grieve ; 
 
 But my wrongs shall yet be avenged, 
 
 And the legions of Pengwern shall revel on mead. 
 
 5 Sweet apple tree growing in the lonely glade ! 
 
 Valour shall still secure thee from the lords of Rhydderch, 
 
 Bare is the ground around thee, trodden by mighty warriors, 
 
 Their heroic forms strike their foes with terror. 
 
 Alas ! Gwendydd loves me not, greets me not, 
 
 T am hated by the chiefs of Rhydderch, 
 
 I have ruined his son, and his daughter, 
 
 Death relieves all, why does he not visit me ? 
 
 For after Gwenddolau no princes honour me. 
 
 I am not soothed with diversion, 
 
 I am no longer visited by the fair, 
 
 Yet in the battle of Arderydd I wore golden torques, 
 
 Though I am now despised by her who is fair as snowy swan. 
 
 6 Sweet apple tree ! covered with delicate bloom, 
 Growing unseen in the sequestered wood ; 
 
 At break of day the tale was told me, 
 
 That the high commissioned chief of Menwydd is offended 
 
 with me ; 
 Twice, thrice, yea four times in one day, 
 
 4 Afallen beren bren hydwf glas 
 Purfawr ei cbangeu iw chain wanaa 
 Canpid cain arwel yn mhrid gorlas 
 Cyn berw bryd cymmrwyn ffwyr alanas 
 A mi ddysgoganaf cad am dias 
 Pengwern cyfeddgrudd medd ei haddas. 
 
 5 Afallen beren bren a dyf yn Llannerch 
 Angerdd ei hargel rhag rhieu Rhydderch 
 Amsather yn ei bon maon yn ei chylch 
 Aedd aeleu iddudd dulloed dihefeirch 
 Mi nim car Gwenddydd ac nim hennyrch 
 Wyf gas gan wasawg gwaesaf Rhydderch 
 Ry rewiniais ei fab ef ai ferch 
 
 Angeu a ddwg pawb pa rag nam cyfeirch 
 A gwedy Gwenddolau neb rhiau nim peirch 
 Nim gogawn gwarwy nim gofwy gorddyrch 
 Ac yngwaith Arderydd oed aur fy ngorddyrch 
 Cyd bwyf aeleu heddyw gan eiliw elieirch. 
 
 6 Afallen beren blodau esplydd 
 A dyf yn argel yn argoedydd 
 Chwedleu a gigleu yn nechreuddydd 
 Rysori gwasawg gwaesaf Menwydd 
 Dwywaith a theirgwaith pedeirgwaith yn undydd 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 225 
 
 It rung in my ears ere the sun had marked the hour of noon; 
 
 Oh Jesus J why had I not been destroyed, 
 
 Before I had the misfortune to slay the son of Gwenddydd ? 
 
 7 Sweet apple tree, which formest a stately grove, 
 
 The wild dogs of the wood seek shelter about thy roots, 
 
 Yet shall my prophetic song announce the re-coming 
 
 Of Medrawd, and Arthur [ leader of hosts ; 
 
 Again shall they rush to the battle of Camlan, 
 
 And only seven escape from the two days' conflict. 
 
 Let Gwenhwyvar remember her crimes, 
 
 When Cadwaladr resumes possession of his throne, 
 
 And the religious hero leads his armies. 
 
 Alas my lamentable destiny ! hope affords no refuge, 
 
 Gwenddydd 's son is slain, and by my accurstd hand. 
 
 8 Sweet apple tree, of richest fruit, 
 Growing in the lonely woods of Celyddon; 
 All seek thee for the sake of thy fruit, 
 
 But in vain until Cadwaladr comes to the conference of 
 
 Rhyd Rheon, 
 And Kynan advances to oppose the Saxons; 
 Then shall Britons be again victorious, 
 Led by their graceful and majestic chief; 
 
 Amglyw o'm dargau cyn haul nawnnydd 
 
 Och^Iesu ! na ddyfu fy nihenydd 
 
 Cyn dyfod ar fy Haw llaith mab Gwenddydd. 
 
 7 Afallen beren bren ailwyddfa 
 
 Cwn coed cylch ei gwraidd dywasgodfa 
 A mi ddysgoganaf dyddaw etwa 
 Medrawd ac Arthur modur tyrfa 
 Camlan darwerthin difiau yna 
 Namyn saith ni ddyrraith o'r gymmanfa 
 Edryched Gwenhwyfar wedi ei thraha 
 Ban at fedd Cadwaladyr 
 Eglwysig bendefig ai tywysa 
 Gwaith imi a dderfydd heb esgorfa 
 Lleas mab Gwenddydd, fy Haw ai gwna. 
 
 8 Afallen beren beraf ei haeron 
 
 A dyf yn argel yn Argoed Celyddon 
 Cyt ceisier ofer fydd herwydd ei hafon 
 Yn y ddel Kadwaladr i gynadl Rhyd Rheon 
 Kynan yn erbyn cychwyn ar Saeson 
 Kymry a orvydd kain vydd e dragon 
 
 1 The Arthur here mentioned is the hero of romance. Modred was his nephew, 
 he conspired against his uncle, and at the battle of Camlan gave the wound, of 
 which Arthur afterwards died, not however before he himself had been slain. 
 The crime of Gwenhwyvar was unfaithfulness to Arthur's bed ; she having 
 deserted her husband, and fled with Modred. Cadwaladr and Kynan will be 
 noticed hereafter. 
 
 2F 
 
226 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 Then shall be restored to every one his own, 
 And the sounder of the horn of gladness, proclaim 
 The song of peace, and days of happiness. 1 
 
 9 Delicious apple tree with blossoms purely white, 
 To those who eat them, sweet are the apples 
 That have always grown on trees 
 "Which grow apart, with wide-spreading branches. 
 The nymph who appears and disappears, prophesies explicitly 
 In signs, of troublesome times which will surely come ; 
 A fleet with anchors shall come on the sea, 
 Seven ships, with seven hundred sailing over the waves ; 
 They will descend on the shore under flights of arrows, 
 And of those who come, there shall not return, 
 More than seven to their former home. 2 
 
 10 Delicious apple tree of splendid growth ! 
 Its root has fed both it and me, 
 
 When with shield on my shoulder, and sword on my thigh, 
 I slept all alone in the woods of Celyddon. 
 Hear little pig ! rouse from thy sleep 
 
 And list to the diverting birds expressing their mutual wishes, 
 A sovereign across the sea will come on Monday, 
 Blessed will Wales be, from that design." 3 
 
 Kaffant pawb ei deithi llawen fi brython 
 Kaintor Cyrnelwchkathlheddwch a binon 
 
 9 Afallen beren burwen o flodeu 
 Ir ai hys melys ei bafalau 
 A dyfant eirioed a choed 
 A dyf ar wahan yn llydan ei changau 
 Dysgogan Chwibleian cyfan chwedlau 
 Dyddiau arwyddion brithfyd diau 
 A llynges dros for ag angorau 
 Seithlong a ddeuant a seithgant dros donau 
 Descynnant ar draeth y dan saethau 
 Ar sawl a ddeuant ni atter yn neu 
 Namyn saitb eilwaith og eu ben adreu. 
 
 10 Afallen beren a dyf dra run 
 
 Cymeythuleis yn ei bon yr bodd y wun 
 
 Ac yscwyd ar fy yscwydd am cledd ar fy ngblun 
 
 Ac ynghoed Celyddon i cysgais i fy bun 
 
 Hoian Borchellan pwyllud dy hun 
 
 Andaw di adar difyrr yn ei bymeutun 
 
 Teyrnedd dros for a ddaw dduwllun 
 
 Gwyn eu byd Cymru or arofun 
 
 1 The first eight verses were translated by the late Mr. Edward Williams, 
 (Iolo Morganwg.) 
 
 2 The allusion here is to the battle of Tal y Moelvre in 1157, which has been 
 already noticed. 
 
 3 The address to the little pig seems to be out of place here. The blessed 
 King is Cadwaladr ; and the event alluded to is a prediction in Geoffrey of 
 Monmouth's History of Britain. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 227 
 
 11 Apple tree of pure white sprigs growing cleverly to a mo- 
 
 derate height, 
 I am more accustomed to the saddle and ashen spear of 
 
 royalty, 
 Than to see rustics of raven hue on the branches, 
 And a prayer from the lady of commanding aspect, 
 For I am not destitute of either talent or emulation. 
 
 12 Apple tree growing by a brook side, 
 
 With greatly desired leaves and yellow apples ; 
 I have been beloved by Gwnem l and Kutum, 
 But my complexion is faded from long weeping; 
 Am I not neglected by my former friends, 
 Wandering among spectres, who know me not 1 
 
 13 Delicious apple tree, that avoidest attack, 
 
 Growing at the junction of streams, without being protected 
 
 by vegetation ; 
 I will prophesy a battle, between the Britons 
 Defending their boundaries, and the men of Dublin. 
 Seven ships will come across the wide lake, 
 And seven hundred over the sea to subdue ; 
 Of those who come, they shall take with them, 
 But seven empty vessels after the contest. 2 
 
 14 Delicious apple trees, teeming with buds; 
 
 Yellow its fruit, not to be chewed by the multitude, 
 
 11 Afallen burwen ei brig a dyf ygymes yn fessig 
 Gnodach im onnwy gyfrwy gwledig 
 
 No gwyr bro bran lliw ar riw ei trig 
 A gweddi gan riain ran parhedig 
 Nid wyf diddawn a dieiddig. 
 
 12 Afallen a dyf ynglan nant 
 
 Ei hafalau melyn ai deil yn chwant 
 Am gwnem am kutum am carassant 
 Ni ethyw fy hoen o hir lifiant 
 Neut wyf ddigariat gan fy ngharant 
 A minneu gan wyllyon nim adwaenant. 
 
 13 Afallen beren bren diletcyn 
 
 A dyf yn Haber beb ardyfu cylchyn 
 A mi disgoganaf cad ym Mhrydyn 
 Yn amwyn ei terfyn a gwyr Dulyn 
 Seithlong i deuant dros lydan lyn 
 A seithgant dros for i orescyn 
 Or sawl a ddeuant nid ant y genhyn 
 Namyn seith letwag wedi lletcynn. 
 
 14 Afallen beren biborig 
 
 Melyn ei haeron nid maon ei messig. 
 
 1 1 know not what Gwnem and Kutum mean, 
 2 See note to verse 9. 
 
228 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 I was nourished at its base with choice men, 
 And when Devon shall be called " the stony city," 
 The minstrel will be paid his new year's gifts. 
 
 15 Delicious apple tree that will not wither : 
 Four hundred years it will be in peace, 
 Growing apart, and widely outspreading, 1 
 
 Its root is oftener surrounded by the wolf which violates 
 
 Than by the youth who can enjoy its fruit. 
 
 And I will prophesy that a youth shall come 
 
 From the flowers of Cad van, who when he grows up, 
 
 Will be known as Gruffydd of the line of Iago, — 2 
 
 There will be no tyrauny when he comes. 
 
 16 Delicious apple tree, that will be known, 
 
 Until water impregnates the ducks' fluttering feather: — 
 
 I will prophesy that the time is near, 
 
 And that I am in fear of it, 
 
 When God the Supreme will take me from trouble, 
 
 To become the confidant of his Son. 
 
 17 Delicious apple tree of luxuriant green growth, 
 Large are thy branches, and beautiful thy form ; 
 And I will prophesy that in a clamorous battle, 
 PengwernScelebrated for mead and carousals, will be despoiled, 
 
 Cymathyleis yn ei bon a dynion dewissig 
 Aphan alwer Dyfnaint dinas cerrig 
 I talawr gerddawr ei galennig. 
 
 15 Afallen beren bren ni grino 
 
 Pedwarcant mlynedd yn hedd i bo 
 A dyf ar wahan ys llydan ei gortho 
 Gnodoch yn ei gwraidd y blaidd ai treissio 
 Na maban mynych a mwynhao 
 A mi a ddysgoganaf maban a fo 
 O flodau Cadvan pan gynyddo 
 Gruffydd ei enw o hil Iago 
 Ni wna annoes pan pseudo. 
 
 1 5 Afallen beren bren a honneit 
 
 Neus gorwlych dwfyr rynn pluyn hwyeit 
 A mi a ddysgoganaf ei bod yn nessaf 
 Ac i mae arnaf ei harynneig, 
 Pan fo Duw Dewinym diffryt i rhag trin 
 Hyd na bwyf gyfrin ag eissifleit. 
 
 17 Afallen beren hydwf glas 
 
 Plu fawr ei changeu ai chain wanas 
 A mi ddysgoganaf cad am dias 
 Pengwern cyfeddgrud medd eu hadlas 
 1 Wide-spreading trees are part of the stock in trade of romance writers. 
 a Gruffydd ab Kynan, the grandson of Owain Gwynedd, I should presume, is 
 the person here described. 
 
 3 Pengwern was a royal palace in Powys. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 229 
 
 And in the conflict many will be slain, 
 By the Chief of Eryri, hated challenger. 
 
 18 Delicious apple tree growing on a river's bank, 
 
 The provost of an army would not thrive on the splendid 
 
 fruit, 
 Which I enjoyed from its trunk while my reason was entire, 
 In company with an elegantly pleasing, delicate, and beauti- 
 ful maid ; 
 Ten years and forty with my treasures., 
 Have I been sojourning among ghosts and sprites 
 After having enjoyed abundant riches, and the pleasant so- 
 ciety of the tuneful tribe. 
 I have been here so long that sprites do not shock me, 
 And I tremble not at the dragon sprites, 
 Of the princes Gwenddoleu and his brethren, 1 
 Who have bred a pestilence in the woods of Celyddon; 
 May I become a blessed servant of the sovereign of splendid 
 retinues. 
 
 19 Delicious apple tree of delicate blossoms, 
 Which grows on the sward amid the trees ; 
 
 The Sibyl prophesies — words which will come to pass, — 
 "Mental design shall cover the green assemblies, 
 From the princes in the beginning of the tempestuous hour ; 
 The Darter of Rays shall vanquish the profane man, 
 
 Ac amgylch cymminawd cyniyn leas 
 Gan pendefig Eryri eri atgas 
 
 18 Afallen beren a dyf ar Ian afon 
 
 Yn llwry ny lluydd maer ar ei chlaer aeron 
 
 Tra fo om pwyll wastat am bwyat yn ei bon 
 
 A bun wenwarwys feinwys fanon 
 
 Deg mlynedd a deugein my gein anetwon 
 
 Ydd wyf yn ymdeith gan wylleitb a gwillon 
 
 Gwedi da ddigawn a diddan cerddorion 
 
 Mi feum nam gwiw gwall gan wyliion 
 
 A gwyllieit rwyfeu na chrynaf y dragon 
 
 Fy arglwydd Gwenddoleu am browy frodorion 
 
 Gwedi porthi heint a hoet amgylcb Celyddon 
 
 Bwyf was gwynfydig gan wledig orchorddion. 
 
 19 Afallen beren blodau ysplydd 
 A dyf y gweryd a hyt y gwit 
 Dysgogeu Chwimleian chwedleu o ddyfyd 
 Yd cychennawr gan fryd gwyrdd erfit 
 Rbag rhieiu ar ddechreu origieu tewydd 
 Gorwyt grat wehyn dyn digrefydd 
 
 1 This story also occurs in Geoffrey's History of Arthur. A party of Saxons 
 flying before him, halted at the wood of Celidon, and made a brave defence 
 under the protection of the trees; but Arthur seeing this, ordered the trees to be 
 cut down, and surrounding them with a rampart of timber, caused them when 
 nearly dying of hunger, to sue for release on condition of leaving the Island, 
 
230 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 Before the Child of the sun, bold in his courses, 
 Saxons shall be eradicated, and Bards shall nourish." 
 
 20 Delicious apple tree of crimson hue ; 
 Growing concealed in the woods of Celyddon, 
 
 The attempts to discover it, by its seed, will be all in vain, 
 
 Till Cadwaladr, the supreme ruler of battle, 
 
 Comes to the conference of Cadvaon, 
 
 With the Eagle of Towy and Teivi rivers, 
 
 Till ranks be formed of the long-shanked ones, 
 
 And the wearers of long hair be divided into gentle and fierce. 
 
 21 Delicious apple tree of pure white flowers, 
 Thy sweet fruits are the prisoners of words. 
 The ass will arise to remove men out of office; 1 
 And this I know from the best authority, 
 
 That an eagle from the sky will play with his men, 
 And bitter will be the sound of wain's arms; 
 Numerous are his men, but he cannot converse, 
 With those who are coming across the seas. 
 
 22 A veil covers the tree with green branches, 
 
 There will be treason in sovereignty, and mead in cities, 
 When Burgundy 2 comes with the men of Arras ; 
 
 Rhag maban huan heolydd arfeidd 
 Saeson ar ddiwreidd beirdd ar gynnydd. 
 
 20 Afallen beren a prenn ffion 
 
 A dyf dan gel ynghoed Celyddon 
 
 Cyt ceissier ofer fydd herwydd y haton 
 
 Yny ddel Cadwaladyr y gynnadyl cadvaon 
 
 Eryr Tywi a Theifi afon 
 
 A dyfod grande o aranwynion 
 
 A gwneuthur gwar a gwyllt a gwallbirion. 
 
 21 Afellen beren burwen o flodeu 
 Melus ei haeron carcharorion geireu 
 Yr assen a gyfyd i symmud swyddeu 
 Y fineu au gwyr ny synnwyr goreu 
 Eryr or wybyr au wyr whareu 
 Wherw bydd sein Ywein arveu 
 Amyl i wyr ni wyr ddadleu 
 Cynnedloedd dros foroedd a fordwyeu 
 
 22 Afallen beren Hen ar bren briglas 
 Bradawg teyrnedd medd yn ninas 
 Pyn ddaw Byrgwyn a gwyr Aras 
 
 1 This is a reference to the Prediction of Merddin, as reported in Geoffrey, 
 
 2 It may appear strange that I should translate Byrgwyn into Burgundy, and 
 yet it seems quite correct. Arras is an important town in France, situated within 
 the province of Artois ; and the Dukes of Burgundy being also counts of Artois, 
 would be the natural leaders of the men of Arras. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. £3 1 
 
 And I will foretel the harvest when the green corn shall be 
 
 cropped; 
 When the he eagle and she eagle shall arrive from France, 
 They will scarcely return without having done good. 
 
 23 Delicious apple tree of delightful branches, 
 
 Budding luxuriantly, and shooting forth renowned scions, 
 
 I will predict that the owner of Machreu, 
 
 Will in Machawy on Wednesday create, 
 
 Joy to Lloegria with blood-red blades. 
 
 Hear little pig ! There shall come on Thursday 
 
 Joy to Kymru of great suffering; 
 
 There will be swords swiftly plying in the conflict, 
 
 And in the battle, Saxons will be slain in such numbers, 
 
 That their heads will be used as balls to play with. 
 
 I prophesy truth without guile, 
 
 The elevation of the son of the eminently beneficial South. 
 
 It will be observed that verses 4 and 1 7, with verses 8 
 and 20 bear a considerable resemblance to each other. 
 
 These verses give us an insight into the political move- 
 ment of the time, and exhibit a surprising amount of skill, 
 capacity, and daring on the part of the Welsh princes ; for 
 not only was Owain Grwynedd not content with withstand- 
 ing the attacks of England, but he must needs entertain a 
 grand scheme of policy, place himself in diplomatic relations 
 with France, and with the assistance of the French king 
 strike a mortal blow at the English crown. The project 
 failed ; but the attempt was worthy of success, and must 
 exalt that prince in public estimation. Mr. Davies sup- 
 
 A mi ddysgoganaf cynhaeaf cneifir yr yd £ 
 
 Pan ddel yr Eryr ar Eryres 
 
 O Ffreinc odyt a dieinc yn ddiles. 
 
 23 Afallen beren per ei changeu 
 
 Puwawr mawr weiriawg enwawg inveu 
 
 A mi ddysgoganaf rhag perchen Machreu 
 
 Yn nyffryn Machawy Mercherddydd creu 
 
 Gorfoledd i Loegyr gorgoch lafneu 
 
 Oian a pharchellan dyddaw dy wieu 
 
 Gorfoledd i Gymru gorfawr godeu 
 
 Yn amwyn Cymminawd cleddyfawd cleu 
 
 Aer o Saeson ar onn fereu 
 
 A gwaryawr pelre ar eu peneu 
 
 A mi ddisgoganaf gwir heb geu 
 
 Dyrchafawd Maban madfan y Deheu. 
 
232 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 poses that " Merddin in tliese verses is foreboding the re- 
 storation of his lord Gwenddolau's cannibal eagles ; ,n but a 
 different, and perhaps more instructive explanation, may be 
 found in the following extract, — 
 
 "After the rupture of the peace of Montmirail, (A.D. 1165 — 1170.) 
 Louis VII. received from a country with which, until then, he had 
 had no sort of relations, and of which he was hardly aware of the 
 existence, a (Latin) despatch conceived in these terms ; — ' To the 
 most excellent the king of the French ; Owen prince of Wales, his 
 liege-man and faithful friend, sends greeting, obedience, and de- 
 votion. 
 
 " The war which the king of England had long meditated against 
 me, broke out this last summer without any provocation on my 
 part ; but thanks to God and to you, who then occupied his forces 
 abroad, there perished on the fields of battle more of his people 
 than of mine. In his spite, he has wickedly mutilated the host- 
 ages he held from me ; and retiring without concluding either 
 peace or truce, has ordered his soldiers to be ready to march 
 against me next Easter. I therefore beg of you, through your 
 royal clemency, to announce to me by the bearer of these presents 
 if it be your intention to make war upon him at that time ; in 
 order that I, on my side, may serve you by doing all the mischief 
 that you shall wish. Let me know what you advise me to do, and 
 also what succours you will furnish me ; for without aid and 
 counsel from you, I doubt that I shall be sufficiently strong against 
 our common enemy." 
 
 "This letter was brought by a Welsh priest, who presented it to 
 the king of France in solemn audience. But the king, having 
 scarcely ever heard of Wales, suspected that the messenger was 
 some impostor, and would recognize neither him nor the des- 
 patches of Owen. The Welsh prince was therefore obliged to write 
 a second missive, to confirm the contents of the first, 'You thought' 
 said he 'that my letter was not really mine. However, I assure 
 it was truly so, and I call God to witness thereof!' The Cambrian 
 chief persisted in calling himself the faithful servant and vassal 
 of the king of France. This trait is worthy of citation, principally 
 because it may serve to teach us not to interpret literally, with- 
 out serious examination, the formulas and mode of speech of the 
 middle ages. The words vassal and lord often really denoted a 
 relative condition of subordination and dependence ; but often, 
 too, they are merely a polite form of expression, especially when 
 the feeble claimed the alliance of the more powerful." Thierry's 
 History of the Norman Conquest, Book VII. 
 
 Mythology of the Druids, p. 489. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 233 
 
 The passages in verses 21, 22, and 23 have an evident 
 reference to this embassy; but if M. Thierry had not sup- 
 plied the above account, we should not have so easily un- 
 derstood their real signification. 
 
 What are the subject and object of these sonnets? I co- 
 incide with Mr.Davies in believing them to be to some extent 
 mythological, or more properly speaking allegorical ; but I 
 cannot believe that the " Avallenau" are the work of Mer- 
 ddin; and totally dissent from his assertion that Mr. Turner 
 had proved their authenticity. 
 
 It appears to me that the "Avallenau" are as late as even 
 the latter part of the reign of Owain Gwynedd. The verses 
 state the trees to be one hundred and forty-seven in num- 
 ber ; and their antiquity is rationally questioned when we 
 find this to be one of the mystic numbers. We have The Seven 
 Sleepers, The Seven Wise Men, The Seven Champions, and, 
 not to wander into Revelations, The Seven Stars. Again 
 we find mention of "the seven score knobs in the collar 
 of the brindled ox, the seven score and seven poems to Mor- 
 vyddby D.ap Gwilym, the seven score stones at Stonehenge, 
 the seven score languages alluded to by Gwalchmai, and the 
 seven score mystical personages" of the pseudo-Taliesin in 
 " Angar Kyvyndawd." We must therefore be pardoned 
 for our scepticism, as to the historical value of the state- 
 ments ; and if, contrary to CarahuanawcV plan of proving 
 facts by the evidence of the poem, we use facts to test the 
 poem itself, every vestige of antiquity will disappear. There 
 is much reason to believe that the bard, whoever he was, has 
 made use of an old tradition, which he has modified and 
 extended ; and if this conjecture be correct, as I think it is, 
 Merddin will have but little claim to the poem. This tra- 
 dition is found in one of the dialogues — the one between 
 Merddin and Taliesin, wherein Merddin says, — 
 
 1 This word has been used once before. It would perhaps be well to in- 
 form the English reader, that it is the bardic name of the late Rev. T. Price of 
 Crickhowel. 
 
 2 G 
 
234 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 Seven score chiefs, 
 Were changed to sprites ; 
 In the wood of Celyddon, 
 Were they transformed.! 
 
 We have here one of the elements from which the poem was 
 composed; and as Prydydd y Moch alludes to the tradition 
 in this form at his day, — 
 
 "The next contest where noble feats were achieved, 
 Was on the hill of Bryn yr Erw, where they saw thee, 
 Like a lion foremost in piercing thy enemies, 
 Like a strong eagle a safeguard to thy people, 
 Upon this account they will not dispute with thee, 
 They vanish before thee like (he ghosts of Celyddon;"" 
 
 these lines of authentic poetry go far to settle the question ; 
 and when, in addition to the words of the dialogue, we find 
 such expressions as, — 
 
 "Can wyllon Celyddon cerddant," 
 
 in a bard of the twelfth century, we become convinced of 
 two things, — 
 
 1. That the tradition, whatever it originally was, had 
 at that time assumed no other form, and 
 
 2. That therefore the Avallenau must be as recent 
 as the time of Llywarch ab Llywelyn. It should also 
 be noticed as a fact illustrative of traditional growth, that 
 in the Avallenau, the seven-score aud seven (whatever they 
 might be) are consequents of the battle of Arderydd, while 
 in the earlier dialogue (see Hud a Lledrith, 1st Chapter,) 
 they are shown to haw existed previously? 
 
 Having gone thus far it becomes necessary to fix its date 
 as nearly as possible. This can only be ascertained from in- 
 ternal evidence, which teaches that the orchard consisted of 
 
 " Saith avallen beren, a saith ugaint, 
 Yn gyvoed, gyvuwch, gyhyd, gymmaint." 
 
 1 Seith ugein haelon, 
 A aethau ygwyllion; 
 Ynghoed Celyddon, 
 Y darfuon. 
 3 See also, note p. 229. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 235 
 
 " Seven-score and seven apple trees, 
 Of equal age, height, and magnitude." 
 
 These lines, and many more might be quoted from the 
 same poem, are fine specimens of mastery over words, and 
 of fertility in language ; and lead to the conclusion, from the 
 connected train of thought here and in other places, that 
 they could not have been written until prose literature be- 
 came known. In the poems of even Gwalchmai there is an 
 abruptness, not of ideas but of words, arising from the im- 
 perfect formation of the language ; in the historical pieces 
 of Aneurin, Taliesin, and Llywarch, the want of conjunc- 
 tions is painfully evident; but we have nothing in the 
 language more smooth, flowing, and complete than the 
 Avallenau. I would however direct attention to the line, — 
 
 Yn gyvc-ed, gyvuwch, gyhyd, gymmaint, 
 
 with a view to show, that if a taste for such rhythm, at any 
 time coincided with such command of language as is here 
 indicated, and was characteristic of any period of our lite- 
 rary history, we should refer the composition of the Avall- 
 enau to that period. To be still more precise, let us en- 
 deavour to find a date beyond which we cannot go in the 
 direction of modern days ; and fortunately this is not dif- 
 ficult. 
 
 Our literary history, from the death of Llywelyn to the 
 time of Davydd ab Gwilym, shows, in the department of 
 poetry, a most striking feature. A complete revolution had 
 taken place ; and a period usually considered to be barren, 
 was one of earnest cogitation, zealous reforms, and diligent 
 cultivation. In this interval was born the incubus of Welsh 
 poetry ; those days of silent gloom, and impenetrable dark- 
 ness, were pregnant with Cynghanedd (alliteration.) This 
 portion of the literary history of Wales does not come within 
 the scope of the Essay ; and we must therefore content our- 
 selves with stating that the introduction of Cynghanedd 
 forms the boundary line, beyond which we need not go. 
 The " Avallenau" has no Cynghanedd ; we must therefore 
 
230 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 fix their production somewhere between the years 1240 and 
 1350. 
 
 Between these periods, there is a bard whose poems are 
 full of such lines. Llywarch ab Llywelyn, whom we have 
 already quoted, flourished during the reigns of Owain 
 Gwynedd and the first Llywelyn, and has in his poems 
 many such lines as the following, — 
 
 " Gogy varch teym, gogwyr toz/mvardd, 
 Gogy vwrdd torment, gogyvr&wr torvoedd, 
 Gog&wn teymYeirdd, ^awn teyrmro.'" 
 
 Again, we have the word " teyrn , ' > frequently repeated, 
 
 " TeyrnWvLj teyrnedd, teyrnllaw, teyrnllm, 
 Teyrrillyw teyrn&s, tervysg torment/' 
 
 In Davydd Benvras^s ode to Llywelyn ab Iorwerth, there 
 is a long passage of a similar structure, beginning with, 
 
 Oedd breisg vreisg ei vyddin." 
 And just prior to this time we find in Hywel ab Owain 
 this line, — 
 
 " Claer wanlluxi, werillyty v, wynlliw Kywyt." 
 
 We may therefore conclude, that these lines in the 
 Avallenau must have been written when the public taste 
 required such rhythms ; and in addition to the above 
 extracts, we have the authority of Griraldus, for the 
 statement, that the bards of the age, " took pride in repeat- 
 ing the first syllable of words, and thought nothing perfect 
 
 The resources of criticism are not yet exhausted ; and 
 not only does the language betray the poem, but the ideas 
 expressed, are also such as were prevalent during the 
 romance era. In the notion of the beautiful entertained 
 among the Welsh of those days, trees of equal growth were 
 essential elements. This appears from Iarlles y Ffynnawn 
 (p. 40) where Kynon, relating his adventures, says, — 
 
 " And it chanced at length, that I came to the fairest valley in 
 the world, wherein were trees of equal growth ." 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 237 
 
 Again, in another tale by Gruffydd ab Adda, a bard 
 who was killed at Dolgellau about 1370, we are told, — 
 
 "In the furthermost end of this forest, he saw a level green 
 valley, and trees of equal growth." 
 
 Chaucer has similar sentiments. He describes a bower, 
 as,— 
 
 " Wrethen in fere so well and cunningly. 
 That every branch and leafe grew by measure, 
 Plain as a bord, of an height by and by." 
 
 And speaking of an avenue of ' okes' he says, 
 
 "And an eight foot or nine 
 
 Every tree well fro his fellow grew." 
 
 We have thus located the diction ; and now fix the ideas 
 in their appropriate age. It only remains for us to treat of 
 the historical incidents mentioned. 
 
 In the seventh verse, we are told that Medrawd and 
 Arthur would re-appear, and fight over again the battle of 
 Camlan. Cadwaladr too, was to revisit Britain, and Gwen- 
 hwyvar to repent of her sins. In no contemporary writer 
 do we read of Gwenhwyvar, and Medrawd ; and even the 
 mention of Amherawdwyr, in one of Llywarch Hen's 
 englynion, is suspicious. Here we see very clearly that 
 Arthur had been the hero of romance long before this was 
 written. The names of Geraint, Urien, and Owen authen- 
 ticate the poems of the early bards ; their absence from the 
 " Avallenau" throws discredit on that poem. Every one of 
 Mr. Turner's arguments in favour of Aneurin, Taliesin, 
 and Llywarch are against the claim of these verses to 
 antiquity. 
 
 The mention of Cadwaladr and Kynan invites a closer 
 examination. We have three distinct accounts of Cad- 
 waladr's death, each differing from, and opposed to the 
 other. Nennius states that, 
 
 " During his reign (i. e. Oswy) there was a dreadful 
 mortality among his subjects, when Cadwaladr was king 
 among the Britons, succeeding his father, and he himself 
 died anions the rest." 
 
238 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 I give this in Dr. Gileses translation, and though the 
 
 passage is so obscure as to make it a matter of doubt 
 
 whether the person who died was Cadwaladr or Oswy ; the 
 
 balance of evidence seems to show that it was the former. 
 
 In speaking of Phylip Brydydd, I quoted two triads in 
 
 which Cadwaladr" s death was distinctly attributed to the 
 
 blow given to him by Golyddan the bard, with the palm of his 
 
 hand. Generally it may be assumed, that the Triads are 
 
 fair exponents of pure Cambrian tradition ; and in this case 
 
 we find from the language of Phylip (p. 169,) that among his 
 
 countrymen this was the received account of Cadwaladr 1 s 
 
 death. There is no inconsistency between the version in 
 
 the Triads and that of Nennius ; indeed they may be said 
 
 to confirm each other. The Triads speak positively of the 
 
 cause of the King's death ; and Nennius, though he says 
 
 Cadwaladr died " among the rest," does not necessarily 
 
 imply that the plague was the cause of his death. But in 
 
 the twelfth century we meet with another tradition, varying 
 
 most widely from both the preceding. This occurs in 
 
 Geoffrey of Monmouth's history of the British Kings, where 
 
 it is said 
 
 "Cadwaladr fled to Britanny out of the way of the plague, 
 which having subsided, he applied to Alan, King of the Bretons, 
 for aid to recover his kingdom from the Saxons, who had taken 
 possession of it during his absence. While he was preparing a 
 fleet for this purpose, an angel deterred him from his enterprise, 
 ordered him to go to Rome to Pope Sergius, and said that when 
 he should have died and been enrolled among the saints, his bones 
 with those of other saints would be brought from Rome to Britain, 
 and the Welsh would recover their lost supremacy in that country. 
 Cadwaladr accordingly went to Rome, and having been 
 confirmed by Sergius, died on the twelfth before the Kalends of 
 May, in the year 688." 
 
 The latter part of this story is ably shown by Professor 
 Rees 1 to be a blunder, arising from the mistaking or mis- 
 stating by Geoffrey, of the History of Ceadwalla King of 
 Wessex, for that of Cadwaladr. The Saxon King did go 
 
 1 Welsh Saints, p. 300. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 239 
 
 to Rome, and actually did die on the twelfth of the Kalends 
 of May 688; but the flight to Armorica and promised 
 return of Cadwaladr's bones has yet to be accounted for. 
 This probably arose from the same confusion of narratives, 
 and may have prevailed as a popular sentiment among the 
 Kymry who emigrated to Britanny; but whence the extended 
 prophecy of Merlin sprang, except it be attributed to the 
 exaggeration of similar general traditions by Geoffrey, I 
 know not. It is however evident that the prophecy of the 
 return of Cadwaladr, and recovery of their supremacy by 
 the Kymry must have come from Britanny ; for we per- 
 ceive from the Triads, that the Cambrians had accepted 
 Cadwaladr's death as an actual fact, from which no 
 such expectations could have been formed ; and this argu- 
 ment becomes particularly forcible, when it is considered, 
 that he had proved himself to have been but a very sorry 
 ruler. The conclusion therefore, that the hope was gene- 
 rated, and encouraged among the descendants of persons, 
 who had left this country when the Britons were an united 
 people, and who, neglecting subsequent events, had only 
 retained a lively recollection of the glory of that period, be- 
 comes highly probable. In Britanny, refugees might have 
 dreamt of British supremacy ; but in Wales the stern reality 
 of their condition was too apparent. 
 
 Geoffrey's book joining Conant II. of Brittany to Cadwa- 
 ladr, and flattering these ambitious expectations of the exiled 
 Kymry, produced a very powerful influence upon the public 
 mind ; and having given a classic form to the popular ex- 
 pectations of the country, impregnated even the genuine 
 bardic literature with ^visions of recovered greatness. In 
 the prophecy of Merlin, as it is there given, it is said, (in 
 Dr. Giles's translation,) 
 
 "Cadwaladr shall call upon Conan, and take Albania into 
 alliance ; then there shall be a slaughter of foreigners ; then shall 
 the rivers run with blood. There shall break forth the foundations 
 of Armorica, and they shall be crowned with the diadem of Brutus. 
 Cambria shall be filled with joy, and the oaks of Cornwall shall 
 
240 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 flourish. The island shall be called by the name of Brutus ; and 
 the name given it by foreigners shall be abolished. From Conan 
 shall proceed a warlike boar that shall exercise the sharpness of 
 his tusks upon the Gallic woods. For he shall cut down all the 
 larger oaks, and shall be a defence to the smaller. The Arabians 
 and Africans shall dread him ; for he shall pursue his furious 
 course to the farther part of Spain. There shall succeed the goat 
 of the Venereal castle, having golden horns and a silver beard, who 
 shall breathe such a cloud out of his nostrils, as shall darken the 
 whole surface of the island. There shall be peace in his time, 
 and corn shall abound by reason of the fruitfulness of the soil." 
 
 Now this prediction of the coming of Cadwaladr and Ky- 
 nan finds place in the Avallenau ; and in the Hoianau we 
 meet it afterwards, as well as in the poems of the pseudo- 
 Taliesin. Whence arises this coincidence? Did Geoffrey 
 borrow the prediction from Merlin ? Or did the writer or 
 writers of the Avallenau take it from the Kyvoesi and Geo- 
 ffrey ? Mr. Turner has entertained the first question, and 
 answered in the affirmative. Let us therefore lay aside the 
 suspicions of their modernity excited by the smoothness of 
 the verses, and the various other reasons for scepticism, and 
 see what it is that he assumes in that reply. The predic- 
 tion states that " Cadwaladr and Kynan shall come to the 
 conference of Rhyd Rheon." Now it is implied that Cad- 
 waladr had gone to Brittany, about A.D. 668; from thence 
 he would come again ; therefore the prophecy implies a 
 knowledge of that event. But if we enquire a little mi- 
 nutely, we shall find a small inconsistency in the matter of 
 dates. The Avallenau, assuming their genuineness, must 
 have been written long after the battle of Arderydd, which 
 occurred in 577, as Merddinis made to say that he had been 
 in the woods of Celyddon fifty years in consequence ; that 
 would make the date of the poem to be 627; but such was 
 not the fact. Everywhere throughout both the Avallenau 
 and Hoianau, the poet speaks of Rhydderch Hael as being 
 still living, and it is therefore a warrantable supposition 
 that the bard died before him ; that prince died in 601, and 
 therefore the prophecy must have been uttered previously. 
 It will therefore now appear, that a prediction uttered in 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 241 
 
 A.D. 600 to persons then living, assumed their possession 
 at that time, of a knowledge which could not have been ac- 
 quired for at least sixty-eight years afterwards ! Here I 
 make the supporters of the genuineness of these verses, a 
 gift of the assumption that Merddin could predict events at 
 all, though, in common with most of my contemporaries, I 
 am a little sceptical. There are in Wales men who believe 
 in the " wise man" of Cwrtycadno ; and there are people in 
 England who have faith in " Raphael"; but in neither coun- 
 try, are these the intelligent classes. It is possible that some 
 persons may still attribute these predictions to Merddin, 
 and continue to assert the antiquity of the Avallenau and 
 Hoianau; I must with all respect hold a different opinion. 
 
 But if they are not to be attributed to the age of Mer- 
 ddin, may they not have been written soon after the death 
 of Cadwaladr? No, it would not have been said then, that 
 he would come from Brittany ; for the men of that age knew 
 he had not gone there. And it would not have been said that 
 he would assist the Britons to recover their supremacy, for 
 they knew that he was a coward, and that Golyddan had 
 killed him. To what age then are they to be attributed ? 
 
 The publication of Geoffrey's book produced an extraor- 
 dinary sensation throughout the civilized world. We be- 
 hold traces of its influence in the literature of every country 
 in Europe ; but unless the sanction given to these prophe- 
 cies by their adoption in his book, was the chief cause which 
 inspired the production of the Avallenau and Hoianau, we 
 shall have to recognize as a fact, what would be ten times 
 more strange than any difficulty involved in this hypothesis, 
 that a book which put every other country into a ferment, 
 produced no effect at home ! Prior to the appearance of 
 Geoffrey's history, the more intelligent portion of his coun- 
 trymen had no notion of calling Cadwaladr from the dead, 
 that expectation existing only among the vulgar; but soon 
 after we find Prydydd y Moch saying that the Druids were 
 prophesying the coming of a great king to the Kymry, and 
 pointing to Llywelyn ab Iorwerth. We also find Gwalch- 
 
 2 H 
 
242 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 mai (1160) saying of Madoc ab Meredydd, that there shall 
 be no one like him, 
 
 " Hyd pan ddel Cynan cain addfwyndawd 
 A Chadwalaclr mawr mur pob ciwdawd." 
 
 Until Kynan the kindly courteous shall come, 
 And Cadwaladr the great, the pillar of all armies. 
 
 This expectation was general in Wales, soon after the ap- 
 pearance of the Historia Britonum; and unless we believe the 
 Kymry had two Cadwaladr fevers, there seems no other al- 
 ternative than to refer these verses to this period. 
 
 Another argument in support of the same conclusion, 
 may be drawn from a source, which had I time to investi- 
 gate it carefully, would most probably throw much light 
 upon this part of our literary history. I refer to the tra- 
 ditions of Brittany. It will have been observed that most 
 of the facts mentioned in the Avallenau are to be found 
 in Cambrian History. The battle of Arderydd, the seven- 
 score chiefs who perished in the Caledonian woods, Gwen- 
 ddoleu, Rhydderch Hael, Cadwaladr, Kynan, and Arthur, 
 are mentioned elsewhere; but neither in the other pieces 
 attributed to Merddin, such as "the Kyvoesi," and the 
 " Gwasgargerdd," nor in the historical documents, is there 
 any allusion to the apple trees given to him. But in the 
 Brut of Geoffrey, we find Merlin prophesying that, — 
 
 " The renowned city shall be rebuilt by Eric, loaden with apples, 
 to the smell whereof the birds of several woods shall flock together. 
 Eric shall hide his apples within it, and shall make subterraneous 
 passages" 
 
 And among the Breton popular songs lately given to the 
 world by the Comte de la Villemarque, I find two poems 
 connected with the name of Merddin, in one of which oc- 
 curs this passage, — * 
 
 "Merlin Loq. 
 
 Silence, my Son, lest your steps frighten him ; 
 He is fast asleep in the dormitory. 
 
 1 The original in the Cornish dialect, — 
 
 " Tevet ma mab, na sponted ket 
 Gand ann mourgousk e' ma dalc'het ; 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERRDIN. 243 
 
 He has swallowed three of my apples, 
 Which with him who bakes them turn to ashes. 
 And those who eat my apples, 
 Behold ! follow me everywhere." 
 
 In both these cases the name of Merddinis connected with 
 apples ; and it is therefore probable that the author of the 
 Avallenau, added this portion of the Armorican tradition, 
 to such other traits of Merddin's history as he found among 
 his own countrymen. The date of the Breton lay, furnished 
 to De Villemarque by a lady living in the environs of 
 Morlaix, 1 is uncertain ; but the date of Geoffrey^s work 
 would show, that this amalgamation was not likely to have 
 occurred prior to the 12th century. 
 
 Another, and the last, argument is derived from the 
 structure of the verses, each of which it will have been 
 observed commences with " Avallen beren." This of itself 
 does not prove their recent origin; for Aneurin in the 
 sixth century begins many of his verses with, " Men went 
 to Cattraeth," and " Men went to Gododin ;" Llywarch Hen 
 does this so frequently as to have provoked our critical 
 censure ; and such anonymous verses, as the series com- 
 mencing " Eiry Mynydd," with the " A glyweisti a gant, 
 fee," of the Verses of the Hearing, have the same peculiarity. 
 The simple fact of the repetition of the initial line, is not 
 therefore a sufficient proof of their late composition ; for 
 on the contrary, all other things overlooked, the presump- 
 tion would rather be in favour of the antiquity of those 
 verses. But the same practice prevailed in the twelfth 
 century, with an additional peculiarity. Gwalchmai begins 
 several verses with " Llachar vy nghleddyv, fee." ; Kynddelw 
 has the line, " Gorvynawd drythyll, &c." at the commence- 
 
 Lonket en deuz tri aval ru. 
 Meuz pohaet dean touez al ludu ; 
 Lonket eu deuz ma avalou 
 Cketu hen d'hon heul e'peb-brou." 
 
 Cte. de la Villemarque 's Barzas Breiz torn i. page 80. 
 1 " Nous avons ete mis sur la trace de ce chant, et du morceau precedent 
 par une dame des environs de Morlaix."' Barzas Breiz, torn. 1, p. 92. 
 
244 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 ment of each verse in the address to Eva, the daughter of 
 Madawc ab Meredycld ; Owain K yveiliog begins each verse of 
 The HirlasHom with " Diwallaw di venestr," or " Diwallaw 
 di'r corn" ; and Hy wel ab Owain frequently repeats the line 
 " Tonn wenn orewyn." In the anonymous poems we find the 
 same rule prevailing ; each verse of the Hoianau begins with 
 "Oian a parchellan;" in thepoem called " Myg Dinbych," the 
 verses begin with " Addvwyn gaer ;" and in " Preiddeu An- 
 nwn" several begin with " Neud wyv glod geymyn cerdd." 
 Now the distinction between the poems of the two periods is 
 this, — in the bards of the 6th century the line is connected 
 with, and forms necessarily a part of what follows ; but by 
 the twelfth century the practice had become so hackneyed, 
 that the initial line had no connexion with what came 
 after. This is seen very clearly in Howel ab Owain's 
 Delight, where the " Fair foamed crowned wave" has no 
 relation whatever to the succeeding lines ; and if the initial 
 lines in the Avallenau were struck out, the sense would 
 suffer but little thereby. These verses also resemble the 
 mythological poems. In verse 7, we meet the line " Namyn 
 saith ni ddyraith o'r gymmanva;" and this identical line 
 ends each verse of " Preiddeu Annwn," the last words being 
 varied. Another resemblance between the Avallenau, and 
 the poems called mythological, is found in the prediction of 
 universal peace. In the last line of the eighth stanza, it is 
 said, that after Kynan should come to the conference of 
 Rhyd Rheon, 
 " The sounder of the horn of gladness should sing of happiness 
 and peace;" 
 and the poems called " Cadair Taliesin," and " CadairKerid- 
 wen," have similar closing sentiments. They also resemble 
 each other in another respect; in both the " Preiddeu 
 Annwn," and the " Avallenau," the monks are the objects 
 of bitter, and especial hostility. A reason why apple trees 
 were chosen as the subjects for celebration, may also be 
 inferred from the fact, that Fairyland went among the 
 bards, since the appearance of Geoffrey's History, by the 
 name of " Ynys vr Avallon," — the island of the apple trees, 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 245 
 
 which English romancists, not knowing the meaning of 
 Avallon, call " the woody isle of Avalon ;" and this fur- 
 nishes another link in the chain of evidence which proves 
 to my complete satisfaction that the Avallenau belong to the 
 age of Eomances, or in other words to the latter part of the 
 reign of Owain Gwynedd. Orchards exist in great abundance 
 and luxuriance between Lanark and Glasgow ; and it was 
 probably the recollection of these among the Kymry, who 
 had been compelled to abandon that country, " distance 
 lending enchantment to the view," that led to the invention 
 of " the woody isle of Avalon." If this reasoning should 
 be thought to be conclusive, the speculations of Davies as 
 to the object of the verses, will not require a lengthened 
 discussion. He supposes the apple trees to have been used 
 by Merddin to signify the principles of Druidism, which 
 are, according to his view, celebrated under the name of 
 apples ; but as the chief force of his arguments, depends 
 upon the assumption, that the verses were written soon 
 after the subversion of Druidism by the introduction of 
 Christianity, his reasonings become nearly pointless when 
 this supposition is shown to be erroneous. But independent 
 of the arguments furnished by the lateness of the compo- 
 sition, against his hypothesis, there is another argument 
 which ought to be conclusive. It will be admitted that a 
 bard of considerable repute in the 13th century must be a 
 much better expositor of the meaning of these verses, than 
 persons living in the nineteenth can be supposed to be ; and 
 therefore the evidence of Madawg Dwygraig must carry 
 with it much weight. He has a satire upon some " Mallt 
 the daughter of David" who had robbed his orchard of 
 apples, and thereby excited the ire of the poet; and this 
 poem is exceedingly curious as being a parody, upon the 
 very verses now under consideration ! In this, he says, — 1 
 
 Three delicious apple trees were eaten of against the will, — 
 They would not be given freely, nor would they be given at all; 
 
 1 Teir afallen per pored o anfodd 
 Ni roddid o fodd ai ni roddid 
 
240 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 One was born among the trees in Paradise, 
 
 To the injury of old and young ; 
 
 The second bearing green leaves was given to Merddin, 
 
 To be protected from the common populace ; 
 
 The third handsome one was in my own garden. 
 
 We learn from these lines that the Avallenau were un- 
 derstood and interpreted literally in the 13th century; 
 therefore, the mystical and far-fetched explanation of a 
 later date must be abandoned. It may also be inferred 
 from the fact that the verses were parodied, that the bard 
 did not consider them to be the sacred writings of Merddin; 
 for on the contrary he seems to have looked upon them as 
 forming a Mabinogi. He begins each verse with " Avallen 
 beren ;" and having described Mallt to be a lady of easy 
 virtue, he furnishes us with a counterpart to the seven score 
 apple trees, by charging her with having bestowed her 
 favours upon seven score lovers. Such liberties would not 
 have been taken with the Avallenau, had they been con- 
 sidered to have been the works of Merddin, by the intelli- 
 gent men of that age. They knew better ; and the name 
 of Merddin was only used to influence the multitude. 
 
 What then is the object of the verses \ It is probably an 
 address to the tree of liberty, 1 to which as many biographical 
 details have been added, as would make it appear to be a 
 Romance of Merddin, and obtain the sanction of his name 
 for the predictions of universal peace and happiness, with the 
 speedy triumph of the Welsh arms, and restoration of 
 British supremacy. 
 
 The Hoianau. 
 These resemble the Avallenau, in style, structure, and 
 object; and differ from them only in variation of the initial 
 line. We have already stated that the line "Avallen 
 
 Un yw Mharadwys a aned yngwydd 
 Rhwng hen a newydd yn eniwed 
 Ail yn dwyn rhyddail rhodded i Fyrddin 
 Buchedd gyffredin werin wared 
 Trydedd hardd i'm gardd, &c." 
 1 This view is fully supported by verses 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 19, and others. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 247 
 
 beren," forms no essential part of the verse, — the sense be- 
 ing complete without it ; and this is proved to be the case, by 
 the occurrence of other verses, with different initial lines, 
 though similar in age, language, and ideas. They are a 
 little later than the preceding; those refer to events in the 
 reign of Owain Gwynedd, and these were composed in that 
 of his grandson, Llywelyn ab Iorwerth. 
 
 In the Archaiology, they are called " Hoianau, neu 
 Borchellanau Merddin;" i.e. The Listenings, or the Piglings 
 of Merddin; but popularly they were called " The Songs of 
 the Pigs.'" All the arguments in the preceding disserta- 
 tion as to the date of the Avallenau, apply with equal force 
 to these ; it will not therefore be necessary to go again 
 over the same ground, and I will only offer such special re- 
 marks as seem to be required. 
 
 The Songs of the Pigs, i 
 
 1 Listen little pig ! happy little pig! 
 Burrow not in sight on the mountain tops, 
 Burrow in secret in the woods, 
 Lest Rhydderch Hael, the Christian Prince, should see 
 
 thee. 
 And I will predict, and it shall be true, 
 In Britain, a daring prince shall ride as far as Abertaradr, 
 And Cambrians shall be prosperous ; 
 His name is Llewelyn of the line of Gwynedd, 
 One who shall not be overcome. 
 
 Rhydderch Hael, as we have already seen, was one of the 
 three generous princes of the Isle of Britain. He was king of 
 the Strathclyde Kymry, and having been converted by St. 
 Oolumba, from Druidism to Christianity, became the ardent 
 advocate of the latter; and in its defence fought the battle of 
 
 1 Oian a Phorchellan a pharehell dedwydd 
 
 Na chladd dy red kyr ym mhen mynydcl 
 
 Cladd yn lie argel yn argoedydd 
 
 Nac erwys Rydderch Hael rwyfadwr ffydd 
 
 Ami ddysgoganaf fi a gwyr fydd 
 
 Hyd yn Abertaradr rhag traws eu Prydein 
 
 Cymru oil yn eu cyflwydd 
 
 Llywelyn ei enw o eissillydd 
 
 Gwynedd gwr dygorbydd. 
 
248 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY. 
 
 Arderydd, against Gwenddoleu ab Keidiaw, an upholder of 
 the ancient faith, who was assisted by Aeddan ab Gavran, 
 king of the Scots. This battle was fought in A.D. 577, and 
 Gwenddoleu, with seven score chiefs, perished it is said 
 in the woods of Caledonia. In consequence of Rhydderch's 
 success, Merddin, according to the tradition, was compelled 
 to hide himself in the forests, — where he was accompanied 
 by a little pig. Mr. Davies is of opinion that the pig in 
 these verses, is a symbol of Druidism ; but it appears to 
 me, that the pig in these verses, allegorically represents 
 the Kymry who inhabited the principality. The popu- 
 lar opinion of all countries, has assigned to magicians and 
 sages, familiar spirits, and Merddin has been no less fortu- 
 nate than others; but he has different companions in 
 different places. In Wales, he has his mother (the nun 1 ) 
 for an associate, a grey wolf, his sister Gwenddydd, and 
 a little pig; and in Brittany his companions are his " poor 
 grandmother," 2 his " poor little boy," 3 his daughter/ his 
 harp, 5 and his black dog. The poem in which this last oc- 
 curs is very interesting; and as we shall again have reason 
 to refer to it, it is here translated. De Villemarque sup- 
 poses it to be intended for a dialogue between St. Columba 
 and the Sage ; there is such a dialogue in the Welsh, which 
 shall be given hereafter, — 
 
 1 Bed an ap llian ymnewais The grave of the son of the nun, 
 Vynydd lluagor Hew Emreis The Companion of the lion of Ernrys, 
 Prif ddewin Merddin Emreis The chief diviner Merddin Ernrys is 
 
 Myv. Arch. Vol. I. p. 78. in Newys mountain. 
 
 Breton original (Cornish dialect.) 
 
 2 My poor grandmother, — do you Na mann gouz paour m'ar em c'heret, 
 
 love me, 
 
 Or my poor heart will break. Rag ma c'halonik zo rannet. 
 
 3 My poor little boy, do not weep, Ma mabik paour na welet ket, 
 Because your harp is unstrung. Ann de'len a vo distaget. 
 
 4 If thou wilt give the ring to me. Mar gasez he 1 vijou d'ime' 
 I to thee will give my daughter. Te po ma merc'h diganime. 
 
 5 If thou wilt bring Merlin's harp Mar gasez d'in, te'len Merlin 
 Which is held by four chains of fine Dalc'het gant pider sugaour fin. 
 
 gold. Barzas Breiz, torn I. p. 70. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 249 
 
 Merlin the Diviner. 
 
 Merlin ! Merlin where art thou going 
 So early in the day, with thy black dog ? 
 Oi! oi! oi! oi! oi! oi! oi! oi! oi! oi! 
 Ioi ! oi ! oi ! ioi ! oi ! 
 
 I have come here to search for the way, 
 
 To find the red egg ; l 
 
 The red egg of the marine serpent, 
 
 By the sea side in the hollow of the stone. 
 
 I am going to seek in the valley, 
 
 The green water cress, and the golden grass, 
 
 And the top branch of the oak, 
 
 In the wood by the side of the fountain. 
 
 Merlin ! Merlin ! retrace your steps ; 
 
 Leave the branch on the oak, 
 
 And the green water cress in the valley, 
 
 As well as the golden grass ; 
 
 And leave the red egg of the marine serpent, 
 
 In the foam by the hollow of the stone. 
 
 Merlin ! Merlin ! retrace thy steps, 
 
 There is no diviner but God. 2 
 
 1 The red egg is probably the Anguineus said by Pliny, lib. xxix. to have 
 been in so much favour with the Druids. 
 
 2 The Breton original, in the Cornish dialect, — 
 
 Merlin-Diwinour. 
 
 (Jas Kerne.) 
 
 Merlin, Merlin, pelec'h et-hu, 
 
 Ken beure'-ze, gand ho ki du ? 
 
 Ou ! ou ! ou ! ou ! ou ! ou ! ou ! ou ! ou ! ou ! 
 
 Iou ! ou ! ou ! iou ! ou ! 
 
 Bed onn bet kas kahout ann tu, 
 Da gahont treiman ann wi ru, 
 Ann wi ru ann aer vorek, 
 War lez ann od toull aun garrek. 
 Mont a ran da glask d'ar flouren, 
 Ar beler glaz ha 'nn'aour geoten, 
 Hag ar war-huel ann derwen, 
 E'kreiz ar c'hoad lez ar feunten. 
 
 Merlin ! Merlin ! distroet eun drou ; 
 Losket ar war gand ann de'rou, 
 Hag ar be'ler gand ar floren, 
 Kerkoulz hag ann aour-geoten, 
 Hag ann wi ru ann aer- vorek, 
 Touez ann oen toull ar garrek. 
 Merlin ! Merlin ! distroet enn-drou, 
 Ne deuz diwinour nemed Dou. 
 
 Villemarque's Barzas Breiz, torn 1. p. 60. 
 
 21 
 
250 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 This last line is found in Llywarch Hen 1 ; and as that 
 coincidence, coupled with the character of the sentiment, 
 indicates considerable antiquity, we may presume that this 
 alliance of the magician with a black dog represents cor- 
 rectly an old tradition, perhaps an actual occurrence. We 
 shall presently see, that in the Druidic mythology, the pig 
 occupies a prominent position ; but whatever constituted 
 the link of connexion between Druidism, and the swinish 
 tribe, it must be evident that the pig in the text typifies the 
 Welsh people. In the first part of the verse, the author 
 connects with Merddin, that which was attributed to him 
 in the popular tradition, and was well understood among the 
 Welsh ; but as the mythology of Merddin was only used 
 as a medium for the introduction of something more im- 
 portant, he developes his purpose in the prediction of the 
 greatness of Llywelyn ab Iorwerth, who became King of 
 North Wales, A.D, 1194. 
 
 2 Hear little pig ! it is necessary to flee 
 
 From the hunters of Mordai, lest we should, 
 
 If our place be suspected, be pursued and discovered ; 
 
 And if we escape I shall not complain of fatigue. 
 
 And I will predict in the presence of the ninth wave, 
 
 In the presence of the single white beard of exhausted 
 Dyved ; 
 
 There shall be exalted an apartment, not in the lodging- 
 house of faith, 
 
 In a house which shall be long in the uplands amid wild 
 animals. 
 
 But until Kynan comes to it, to see it, 
 
 The plough shall not go over its townships (i. e. those of 
 Dyved). 
 
 1 Namyn Duw nid oes dewin." — Myv. Arch. Vol. 1, p. 124. 
 2 Oian a phorchellan oedd raid myned 
 Rhag cynyddion Mordai pei llafased 
 Rhag dyfod erlid arnam ni an gweled 
 Ac or diagwn i ni chwynwn i ein lludded 
 A mi ddysgoganafi rhag ton nawfed 
 Rhag unig bariffwyn gwehyn hyfed 
 Dyrchafwyd llogawd nid ir lleticred 
 Yn ty yn hir gwrthdir a gwystfiled 
 Yn y del Cynan iti oe chyn gweled 
 Ni bydd atcor byth ar ei threfred. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 251 
 
 In the introductory lines, the bard, assuming the truth of 
 the story about Merddin's flight from the persecution of 
 Rhydderch, elicits from the magician some very natural 
 expressions. Does Mordai signify sea houses, or does it re- 
 fer to Mordav Hael? At this distance of time it is difficult to 
 ascertain what ideas the men of the twelfth century con- 
 nected with the ninth wave ; but at the present day it is a 
 frequent custom to watch the waves, and it is said that the 
 ninth wave is larger, and stronger than the others, and 
 comes further ashore. The bards frequently mention it 
 with respect ; Rhys Groch ab Rhikert, calls the gull, 
 
 " Queen of the Ocean, 
 
 Whose throne is on the ninth wave of the sea ;" 
 
 and in one of the anonymous poems, belonging to the era 
 
 now under consideration, it is said, 
 
 " Addfwyn gaer y sydd ar don nawfed." 
 A holy city there is above the ninth wave. 
 
 The number nine, the square of three, was held in con- 
 siderable estimation by the Kymry; the ninth descendant 
 of a foreigner became a free man; the legal fines were eX- 
 tended through nine degrees of relationship; Bedo Brwyn- 
 Uys promises to fast for nine days; and Lewis Glyn Oothi, 
 as a mark of great honour, describes a patron as " ninth 
 Lord of Dinevor." 
 
 What " the single white beard of Dyved" means, I 
 know not, unless its meaning can be found in Geoffrey, who 
 says,— 
 
 " A hoary old man, sitting upon a snow white horse, shall turn 
 the course of the river Perion, and shall measure out a mill upon 
 it with a white rod ;" and again, 
 
 " (After Cynon) there shall succeed the goat of the venereal 
 castle, having golden horns, and a silver beard." 
 
 The latter part may be understood by a reference to the 
 
 last lines of the 18th verse, where it is said that " Kynan 
 
 shall create dolorous music in Dyved;" and the words 
 
 " exhausted Dyved"" may be considered to be anticipatory. 
 
 The other allusions may possibly refer, to what is prominently 
 
 noticed in Merlin's predictions — the removal of the see from 
 
 Caerleon to St. David's. 
 
252 POEMS FICTITIOULSY 
 
 3 Hear little pig ! I cannot easily sleep, 
 On account of the tumult of grief which is on me ; 
 Ten years and forty have I endured pain; 
 Therefore the joy I now have is an evil. 
 Life will be given to me by Jesus, the most trustworthy, 
 Of the kings of Heaven, of highest lineage. 
 It will not be well with the female descendants of Adam, 
 If they believe not in God in the latter day. 
 I have seen Gwenddoleu, with the precious gifts of princes, 
 Gathering prey from every extremity of the land; 
 Beneath the red turf is he now resting, 
 The most gentle of Northern Sovereigns. 
 
 Here it will only be necessary, to point out the anachro- 
 nism which the poet has committed by making the druid a 
 devout christian. Gwenddoleu was Merddin's patron ; and 
 it was in consequence of this chieftain^s defeat in the battle 
 of Arderydd, that the story makes the sage a wanderer. 
 
 4 Hear little pig ! it was necessary to pray, 
 For fear of five chiefs from Normandy ; 
 And the fifth going across the salt sea, 
 To conquer Ireland of gentle towns, 
 There to create war and confusion, 
 
 And a fighting of son against father — the country knows it, 
 (They will) also be going to the Lloegrians of falling cities, 
 And they will never go back to Normandy. 
 
 3 Oian a pharchellan ni hawdd cysgaf 
 Rhag godwrdd y galar yssydd arnaf 
 Deng mlynedd a deugain yd borthais i boen 
 Ys drwg o arhoen yssydd arnaf 
 
 Oes imi gan Iesu gaffu gwaesaf 
 Brenhinoedd nefoedd achoedd uchaf 
 Ni mad rhianedd o blant Addaf 
 Ar ni cbredo i ddofydd y dydd diweddaf 
 Yd weleis Wenddoleu ym nierthic rhiau 
 Yn cynnull preiddiau o bob eithaf 
 Y dan fy ngweryd rbudd nu neud araf 
 Pen teyrnedd Gogledd Uaredd muyhaf. 
 
 4 Oian a pharchellan oedd raid gweddi 
 Rhag ofn pump pennaeth o Normandi 
 Ar pumed yn myned dros for heli 
 
 I oresgyn Iwerddon dirion drefi 
 Ef gnawhawdd rhyfel a dyvysgi 
 O ymladd mab a thad gwlad ai gwybi 
 A myned i Loegrwys diffwys drefi 
 Ac na bo gvvared byth i Norddmandi. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 253 
 
 This verse alludes to the conquest of Ireland by the 
 Normans; and the singular accuracy of the historical 
 detail must afford the reader much pleasure, as it shows the 
 verse to have been written at that very time. Our poet, 
 it will be seen, only makes the fifth Norman chieftain go 
 to conquer Ireland ; and this accords with the actual facts. 
 When Dermot Mac-Morrogh quarrelled with Roderic, 
 king of Leinster, he came over to Pembroke, and invoked 
 the assistance of the Normans, who had recently settled in 
 that district. They agreed with him for the rate of pay, 
 and time of service ; and embarked to the number of four 
 hundred, knights, esquires, and archers, under the command 
 of Robert Fitzstephens, Maurice Fitzgerald, Herve de 
 Montmarais, and David Barry. 1 These four went over 
 A.D. 1169, to assist Dermot in' subjugating Leinster. In 
 gratitude for their services, he gave them allotments of land 
 larger than they had elsewhere; but having been thus 
 induced to stay, they sent for Richard Strongbow, Earl of 
 Pembroke, to become their leader. Richard, the fifth Nor- 
 man chief, went to Ireland, A.D. 1170, and commenced 
 the work of conquest. 2 
 
 5 Hear little pig ! sleep not too long, 
 There comes to us a lamentable report, 
 Of little chieftains full of perjury, 
 And husbandmen that are close-fisted of the penny. 
 When there shall come across the seas, men encased in ar- 
 mour, 
 With horses under them having two faces, 
 And two points to their spears of unsparing havoc, 
 Fields will he lying unrecvped in the country oficar, 
 
 1 Thierry's Norman Conquest, Book X. Hume's History of England, chap. 
 IX. gives different names to the two last adventurers, and also a version of the 
 whole affair, slightly differing from the above. 
 
 a Thierry, Book X. 
 
 5 Oian a pharchellan na vyt hunawc ryd 
 Dybyt attam ny chwedyl dyvrydauc 
 Pennaetheu bychein anudonauc 
 Meiri mangaled am pen keiniauc 
 Pan dyffon dros for gwyr eneirchiawc 
 Cad veirch y danunt deu wynebawc 
 Deu vlaen ar eu gwaew anothleithyawe 
 Erddi heb vedi vmvd diheddawc 
 
254 P0EM8. FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 And the grave will be better than the life of him who sighs, 
 When the horns call men to the squares of conflict; 
 And when the sons of Eidog shall be travellers on the seas, 
 There will be a severe morning in Caer Sallawc. 
 
 In this very interesting verse there are several striking- 
 features; the allusion to the close-fistedness of the husband- 
 men, reveals the feeling of disappointed bards; the suc- 
 ceeding lines show the actual impression produced upon the 
 popular mind, by the coats of mail, great Flemish horses, 
 and lances eight cubits long, of the Norman knights; and 
 the latter portion, describes in language powerful and poe- 
 tical, the miseries of war. What the two last lines refer to, 
 I have not been able to ascertain. 
 
 6 Hear little pig ! thou tranquil pig, 
 A Sibyl has told me a story, of what is not wonderful, 
 And I will predict an angry summer, 
 Between brothers treachery in Gwynedd. 
 When the Gwyndodians shall long have withheld tribute, 
 There shall come seven hundred ships with a northern wind, 
 And at Milford shall they assemble. 
 
 The first part is a just rebuke of the petty quarrels so 
 prevalent among Welsh chieftains, and at this time so 
 frequent in North Wales between the sons of Owain 
 Gwynedd ; and the latter refers to the invasion of Menai 
 A.D. 1157. 
 
 7 Hear O little pig ! thou blessed little pig, 
 A Sibyl has told a tale which frightens me ; 
 
 Gwell bedd no buchet pob ochenauc 
 Kyrn ar y gwr a get pedrifannau, 
 A phan von gorforyon meibion Eidawc 
 Y byt bore taer rac Caer Sallawc. 
 
 6 Oian a pharcbellan a parchell dyhed 
 
 Rym dyweid chwimbleian chwedyl anrhyfed 
 A mi ddysgoganaf haf gwytbloned 
 Kyfrwng brodoryon brad o Wyned 
 Ban diboler tagwystyl yn bir o tir Gwynedd 
 Dybyt seith ggnllong o hynt gan wynt gogledd 
 Ac yn Aber deugleddeu eu Kynadlet. 
 
 7 Oian a pharcbellan a pbarcbell gwynn 
 
 Rym dywot chwimbleian chwedyl am dechryn 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 255 
 
 When Lloegria shall encamp in the land of Ethlyn, 
 
 And the city of Dyganwy shall be made to wake, 
 
 By the conflict of Lloegr and Llywelyn, 
 
 There shall be a moving of sons, sisters, and wives ; 
 
 When Deiniol the son of Dunawd Deinwyn becomes 
 
 enraged, 
 Franks shall fly the way they do not seek ; 
 In Aberdulais there shall be spearing to exhaustion, 
 And a reddening of the appearance of their white garments. 
 
 These verses were composed at different times ; the fourth 
 and fifth verses were most probably written in or about the 
 year 1170 ; but the above could not have been written 
 prior to the year 1211, as it refers to the following 
 event. Numerous complaints having been made to king 
 John of the depredations of Llywelyn ab Iorwerth, who 
 attacked the English subjects in the marches, and carried 
 fire and destruction wherever he went, that monarch de- 
 termined to punish him for his audacity. For this purpose 
 he collected all the forces of England, and with them 
 brought Gwenwynwyn the exiled Prince of Powys, Howel 
 ab Gruffydd, a grandson to Owain Gwynedd, Madawc ab 
 Gruffydd Maelawr, Meredyddab Rhotpert of Kedewain, and 
 Maelgwn and Rhys Gryg, the sons of the Lord Rhys of 
 South Wales. With this army he marched to Chester, 
 with the full intention of exterminating all the people of 
 Wales. Unable to resist a force composed both of a foreign 
 enemy, aud of his own vassals who had basely deserted their 
 late engagements, Llywelyn prudently retreated, after 
 having ordered the inhabitants of what are now called 
 Denbigh and Flintshires, to remove with their goods and 
 cattle to the vicinities of Snowdon. The English army 
 marched without any obstruction, as far as Rhuddlan 
 
 Pan bebyllo Lloegr yn tir Ethlyn 
 A gwneuthur Dyganwy Dinas dehyn 
 O gyfranc Lloegr a Llywelyn 
 Ad vyd mab ar war a char a chychwyn 
 Pan sorro Deinoel mab Dunawd Deinwyn 
 Ad vyd franc ar fo fort ny ovyn 
 Yn Aberdulas gwanas gwenyn 
 Cochwet yn eu cylchwet yn en cylcbwyn, 
 
256 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 Castle, and from thence to the castle of Dyganwy, opposite 
 to the country of Snowdon, where they remained for some 
 time. But while the English forces lay there, the policy 
 of Llywelyn began to be felt. The Welsh Prince cut off 
 their communication with England ; and infesting the road 
 with his light parties, reduced John and his forces to the 
 greatest difficulties. If the soldiers stirred from the camp 
 they were liable to be cut to pieces ; the Welsh being- 
 posted on the eminences saw their every movement ; and 
 from the suddenness of their attacks, and their better 
 knowledge of the country, Llewelyn's men had the advan- 
 tage in nearly every skirmish. John's situation thus 
 became day by day more and more intolerable ; eggs in the 
 camp, sold for three half pence each, in a year when four 
 hens could be had for two pence, and a sheep for six ; and so 
 scarce had provisions become, that the flesh of horses was 
 deemed a luxury. Cooped up in this way, and reduced to 
 a miserable plight, the king had no alternative but to 
 retreat ; and accordingly he returned to England, stung to 
 the heart by the disgrace, and vowing most bitterly that 
 he would be revenged. * The verse refers to this expedition, 
 the defeat of which was of course hailed as a national 
 triumph. According to the concurrent testimony of all 
 the authorities, the celebrated military tactician was Dun- 
 awd the father; and not Deiniol the son, who was Bishop of 
 Bangor. Llywarch Hen mentions his prowess and courage, 
 
 "Fiercely was it said, in the passage of Lech, 
 Dunawd the son of Pabo never flies;" 
 
 Elegy on Urien, 
 
 and therefore the poet has either made a mistake, or used a 
 poetic license, in comparing Llywelyn to Deiniol ap Du- 
 nawd; but if he intended the father, the comparison is ex- 
 ceedingly happy, as that personage was renowned for his 
 bravery, and famed for his knowledge of military tactics. 
 
 1 Warrington's History of Wales, Vol. II., p. 22, and Price's Hanes Cymr 
 p. 626. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 257 
 
 8 Attend little pig, listen to the Oi ! oi ! 
 
 For the crime of the necessitous God would make remissions. 
 
 (The two other lines are imperfect.) 
 
 As this verse calls for no other remark, this will be the 
 best place to consider a question which demands an an- 
 swer. Mr. Davies asserts that " Oian" is an Irish word ; 
 but in a discussion which took place many years ago, 
 between him and the late Mr. Price, Dr. Pughe denies 
 that ; and there certainly seems no great reason to go out 
 of the Welsh language to look for it. The cries Hey, Hoi, 
 Hai, Ha, seem to pertain to many languages; and as the 
 Welsh termination " an 11 corresponds to the English par- 
 ticiple "ing," it may be very easily understood how the 
 words " Hoian," and " Oian," would be naturally formed. 
 There seems, however, to be some propriety in the applica- 
 tion of this call of oi ! oi ! here ; but whether it was a 
 general cry to bring swine together is not clear. We have 
 seen in the Breton lay, given in a preceding page, that the 
 cry of 
 
 " Ou ! ou ! ou ! ou ! ou ! ou ! ou ! ou ! ou ! ou ! 
 Iou ! ou ! ou ! iou ! ou ! ou !" 
 
 is applied to Merddin himself; but De Villemarque says 
 he can give no explanation of it ; * and as I am no wiser 
 than himself, it must be left an open question, whether it 
 was the cry used by the Druids to call their congregations 
 together, or simply a common cry having no definite signi- 
 fication. In Wales at this time, it does not appear to have 
 borne any peculiar meaning ; but though Davydd ab 
 Gwilym uses it thus, — 
 
 " Gyr y gwartheg or egin, 
 
 Oi ! oi ! tro y lloi o'r llin," 
 
 Drive the cattle out of the corn, 
 
 Oi ! oi ! drive the calves out of the flax, 
 
 8 Oian a parchellan hoian hoiau 
 
 Bei ychenawg Duw gwnai ymckwelau 
 Y . . . llyssy wyf byddawd mau 
 Yn hwn yssy . . . ceissed yntau. 
 
 1 " Nous ne saurions expliquer le refrain Ou ! ou ! ou ! ou ! ou ! ou ! ou ! 
 C'est aujourd'hui un cri de joie. Les latins criaient io ! io ! ou ! evohe 1" 
 Barzaz Breiz, torn 1, p. 63. 
 
258 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 there must have been some signification attached to it 
 originally. In the verse under consideration, it seems 
 only to refer to the pig ; and there is reason to believe that 
 some such cry was used to call swine together; for Welsh pig 
 drovers even now say ow ! ow ! Many persons have been 
 captivated by the pretty chant called " Hob y deri dando," 
 which was an especial favourite with Mr. Braham ; but 
 until Parry threw out the suggestion, no one thought of 
 enquiring the meaning of these words. " Hob" now only 
 survives in hanner-ob, a flitch of bacon ; is a word which is 
 quite obsolete; and we learn from the Mabinogi of Kilhwch, 
 that it was out of use even in the 12th century, for it is 
 there said, — 
 
 " Hobau y gelwid hwynt, ac weithian moch eu gelwir ;" 
 Formerly pigs were called Hobau ; but now they are called 
 moch. 
 
 There are therefore reasons for believing, that the words 
 " Hob ir deri dando" are as old as the Druidic era. The 
 words translated mean, " Pig (go or come) to the oaks 
 under cover," and may possibly be a portion of a species of 
 song used in calling the herds together at night, to which 
 the cry of Oi, Oi, was probably attached. Some idea of 
 the air which is attached to those words, may be formed 
 from the following, — 
 
 Duett. l 
 
 She — " Men are false, and oft ungrateful, 
 Derry derry dando. 
 
 He — Maids are coy, and oft deceitful, 
 Derry derry dando. 
 
 She — Few there are who love sincerely, 
 Down a derry derry down. 
 
 He — Say not so — I love thee dearly, 
 Derry derry down, &c." 
 
 The popular English ditty of "Derry Down," is supposed 
 by Mr. Parry to have been derived from this quaint and 
 early chant. 
 
 1 Parry's Welsh Melodies, p. 40. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN, 259 
 
 9 List little pig ! (it is broad daylight), 
 
 To the song of the birds, of diverting voices ; 
 
 They say that for many years, 
 
 Hoar frost will surely destroy the fruit ; 
 
 Bishops will encourage dastard thieves in churches, 
 
 And Monks will compensate for loads of sins. 
 
 There is a peculiar propriety in this exhortation, which 
 the student of natural history will not be slow to appreciate. 
 Swine have a singular propensity to listen. They will 
 stand still for a considerable length of time, listening most 
 intently to every passing sound ; and the observation of 
 this habit by the Kymry, has given rise to a proverb, " Y 
 mae yn gwrandaw fel mochyn mewn son," i.e. he listens like 
 a pig in stubble. In Carmarthenshire the proverb is dif- 
 ferently worded, and they say, " Y mae mor sifil a hwch 
 mewn sony i.e. she is as civil as a sow in stubble. Our bard 
 was therefore evidently a close observer of the habits of 
 these animals. Another feature in this verse calls for a 
 word of comment; the sage not only listens to the "birds 
 of diverting voices, 1 ' but he also understands their lan- 
 guage. In former times this was a frequent accomplish- 
 ment, and we repeatedly find persons mentioned in the 
 Mabinogion, who were invested with this knowledge; 
 Gwrhyr Gwalstawd Ieithoedd and Menw ap y Teirgwaedd, 
 could both understand the language of birds, and speak it ; 
 and when Gwrhyr took the form of a bird to converse with 
 the boar Trwyth, the genius of romance, to which all things 
 were possible, enables the young boars to understand the 
 language, and carry on the conversation. This knowledge, 
 according to a most interesting note which I met with in 
 the French annotations, on the Breton lay already quoted, 
 was thus acquired. 
 
 9 Oian a pbarchellan neu dyt goleu 
 Andaw di lleis adar deivyr leisseu 
 An byt ny blwynydet a hir dieu 
 Arien enwir edwir ffrwytheu 
 Ac escyp llawch lladron diffaeth llannen 
 A myneich a obrum beich o pechodau. 
 
260 
 
 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 "This (the Herbe d'or, golden grass,) is a medicinal plant, which 
 the peasant Bretons hold in great estimation. They pretend that 
 at a distance it shines like gold ; and it is for this they give it the 
 name. If one should happen to tread upon it, he will fall 
 asleep, and come to understand the languages of birds, dogs, and 
 wolves. It is but rarely to be met with, and then only early in 
 the morning ; to gather it, it is necessary to go barefooted and in 
 a shirt ; and it should not be cut, but plucked out from the root. 
 It is said that holy men only will be able to find it. It is no 
 other than the Selage. 1 Also, in going to gather it barefooted, and 
 in a white robe, and fasting, no iron should be employed, the 
 right hand should be passed under the left arm, and the linen 
 could only be used once." 2 
 
 Strictly speaking, this superstition is only shown to ap- 
 ply to Brittany; but it may, I think, be taken as a fair- 
 exposition of the belief of the Cambrians as well. — 
 
 10 Hear little pig ! go sharply to Gwynedd, 
 Have a bed-fellow when thou goest to rest. 
 It is but little that Rhydderch Hael, now at his nocturnal 
 
 feast, 
 Knows that last night I lay sleepless, 
 Among thistles, and knee deep in snow ; 
 With icicles dropping from my garments, sad is my fate ! 
 Shortly will come Tuesday — the day of angry contention, 
 Between the ruler of Powys and the region of Gwynedd, 
 When the meteor will rise from his long lying, 
 
 1 The word '•'Selage" is not in the Dictionary of the Academy; and if it be 
 not the name of a plant, I am not French scholar enough to know what it is. 
 
 2 " L'Herbe d'Or est une plante medicinale ; les paysans Bretons en font 
 grand cas, ils pretendent qu'elle brille de loin comme de Tor; de la, le nom 
 qu'ils lui donnent. Si quelqu'un, par hasard, la foule aux pieds, il s'endort 
 aussitot, et entend la langue des chiens, des loups et des oiseaux. On ne re- 
 contre ce simple que rarement, et au petit point du jour : pour le cueillir, il 
 faut etre nu-pieds et en chemise; il s'arrache et nese coupe pas. II n'y a, dit-on, 
 que les saintes gens qui le trouvent. II n'est autre que le Selage. On le 
 cueillait aussi, nu-pieds, en robe blanche, a jeun, sans employer le fer, en glis- 
 sant la main droite sous le bras gauche, et dans un linge qui ne servait qu'une 
 fois." Barzas Breiz, torn I. p. 62. 
 
 10 Oian a parchellan llym i Wynedd 
 Cywely a fynnut pan elutti i orwedd 
 Bychan a wyr Rydderch hael heno y ar ei wledd 
 A bortheisi neithwyr o anhunedd 
 Eiry hyd ym hen' clun gan ran caledd 
 Pibonwy yn niblau blin fy rhysedd 
 Rhy ddybedd dydd mawrth dydd gwythlonedd 
 Cyfrwng glyw Powys a chlas Gwynedd 
 A chvfod hiriell oi hir orwedd 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 261 
 
 And defend from its enemy the boundaries of Gwynedd. 
 If the lord does not in mercy protect me, 
 Woe to me, towards the latter day. 
 
 The reference here is to one of those feuds between the 
 
 princes of Powys and Gwynedd, which, about this time, 
 
 forced Gwenwynwyn, the son of Owen Kyveiliog, to seek a 
 
 refuge at the English court, from the power of Llywelyn ab 
 
 ab Iorwerth. (See also the fourth and seventeenth verses 
 
 of the Avallenau.) 
 
 1 1 Hear little pig ! be not open-mouthed 
 When thou nearest my voice from Carmarthen, 
 (Where I shall be) skilfully training two youths, 
 Of the line of Rhys, the fierce stay of the army. 
 When Saxons are slain in the conflict of Kymmer, 
 Blessed will be the lot of the people of Cambria. 
 
 These youths were probably "Meredydd and Rhys Gryg, 
 the sons of the lord Rhys, of South Wales. 
 
 12 Hear little pig ! blessed little pig of the country, 
 Sleep not late in the mornings, 
 
 Nor burrow in the roads, 
 
 Lest Rhydderch Hael and his sagacious dogs 
 
 Should cause thee to sweat, 
 
 And get between thee and the wood. 
 
 This sage exhortation, exhibiting a prettiness of fancy on 
 
 the part of the poet, should teach us not to interpret the 
 
 poem too literally. — 
 
 13 Hear little pig ! blessed pig, 
 
 Hadst thou seen as much treachery as I have, 
 
 I amwjn ei Elyn derfyn Gwynedd 
 
 Ac oni'm cudd gan fy rhi rhan trugaredd 
 
 Gwae fi ban ym bwy tra fy niwedd. 
 
 11 Oian a parchellan ai byt cyvin 
 Ban glyw yn 11a var o Gaerfyrddin 
 
 Y ardwyaw deu geneu yn cywrhenin 
 A hil Rys aerllut aerllit byddin 
 Pan later y Saeson yn ynghymer trin 
 Gwyn eu hyd hwy gymryw werin. 
 
 12 Oian a pharcbellan a pharchell gwyngwys 
 Na chysgu hun fore 
 
 Na chladd ym mrysg rhag dyfod 
 Rhydderch Hael ai gwn cyfrwys 
 Gan gaffael o honatti y coed 
 Rhedawdd dy chwys. 
 
 13 Oian a parchellan a pharchell gwyn 
 Bei gwelud a welais o dreis deugyn 
 
9(^2 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 Thou would'st not burrow on the mountain, nor sleep long 
 
 in the morning, 
 Thou would'st not forsake the precipitous lake for the 
 
 moor; 
 When Saxons cease from their serpent cunning, 
 And the castle of Collwyn 1 comes from a distance, 
 Clothes will be nimble, and the black pool clear. 
 
 14 Hear little pig ! listen to me now; 
 
 When the men of Gwynedd lay down their work, 
 
 There will be a sharp conflict — horns will be sounded, 
 
 Armour will be broken by sharp missiles; 
 
 When Normans come over the broad lake, 
 
 There will be an opposing of armies, 
 
 Britain will be subjected to gentle squires, 
 
 And there will be an atonement for the faults of London. 
 
 I will prophesy that two rightful princes 
 
 Will produce tranquillity from Heaven to earth, 
 
 Kynan and the especial Cadwaladr of Cambria ; 
 
 Whole worlds will watch their counsels, 
 
 Reforming the land, checking the flow of blood, 
 
 And abolishing armies and theft; 
 
 And from that time forth, we shall be freed from all 
 
 our ills, 
 And from the prevalence of generosity, none shall want. 
 
 Here again we meet the prediction of the coming of 
 Cadwaladr to the conference of Rhyd Rheon, to expel 
 
 Ni chysgutti bun fore ni chladdut ar fryn 
 Ni chyrchud ddiffaith o ddiffwys lynn 
 Ban eisteddo Saeson yn eu sarffren 
 A chyrchu o bell gastell gollwyn 
 Atfydd dillad hoyw a gloyw dullin. 
 
 1 Collwyn Castle is in Radnorshire; but I am not acquainted with the story, 
 the existence of which is here implied. 
 
 14 Oian a pharchellan andaw de yn awr 
 Pan dodynt wyr gwynet eu gweith yn awr 
 Llafneu y verd drin kyrn a ganawr 
 Briwawd Llurugeu rac llym waewawr 
 Ban dyffo Nortmyn y ar lydan lyn vad 
 Ad vydd ym wrthryn yna gan vid dinawr 
 A goresgyn Prydein i wyron yswein 
 Ar wall o Lundein a diatawr 
 Ann disgoganaf deu priodawr 
 A luniont tangnefedd o nef hyd lawr 
 Kynan Kadwaladr Kymry benbaladr 
 Bydawd eu cynnadyl a edmycawr 
 A chyweiriaw gwlad a chustudyaw gwad 
 A llu a lledrad a ddewalawr 
 An bi ny ynaeth gwared gwedi gwaeth 
 Neb o haelonaeth ni di dolawr. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 263 
 
 the Saxons from the Island, and to bring peace among men; 
 and perhaps it would be well here to offer a few remarks on 
 the origin of these predictions. The bards as we have 
 shown were an important class of men, high in favour with 
 the Cambrian princes, possessed of their confidence, and fre- 
 quently their willing instruments. In the hands of the 
 princes, the knowledge they possessed, and the influence they 
 exerted over the multitude, was turned to account; and the 
 bards became their political agents. The hint having been 
 once given, of the re-appearance of Cadwaladr and the coming 
 again of Arthur, the idea was immediately put in practice, 
 of coining predictions of national restoration. Bolder than 
 Geoffrey, they made Merddin predict special events, such 
 as we have seen; and though the idea of universal peace is 
 found among the predictions in his book, the expansion and 
 filling up of his outline, in the above verse, belongs to the 
 poet. These predictions were about this time frequent, and 
 their fulfilment had been promised in the persons of both 
 Owain Gwynedd and Llywelyn ab Iorwerth ; in this verse 
 the allusion is to the latter, and in the Avallenau to the 
 former ; but those princes having died without realizing 
 the expectations thus created, the predictions were applied 
 to their successor, in whom we are positively informed by 
 Llygad Gwr, they would surely be accomplished. This as- 
 sertion occurs in the following lines of a long ode, which we 
 shall hereafter quote : — 
 
 u Parawd fydd meddiant medd Beirdd im rhi 
 Pob Cymman darogan derfi." 
 
 The bards prophesy that the sovereignty is prepared for 
 
 my king, 
 And every prediction will be completely fulfilled. 
 
 This was a master-stroke of policy on the part of the 
 Welsh princes, as must be apparent to any one who 
 knows us intimately. The Cambrian is brave, jealous of 
 his liberty, and not averse to war ; but he is a creature of 
 impulses, and acts spasmodically.— What was said of the 
 
264 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 Britons by Tacitus, 1 that " they rushed with impetuosity 
 into danger, but were timid in its presence," holds true of 
 us at the present day; and therefore we may conceive the 
 difficulty which their rulers had, in managing the Kymry 
 during prolonged contests. At the beginning of a war all 
 were ready, and full of fire, but they wanted perseverance ; 
 and therefore was there much wisdom shown, in directing 
 the bards to circulate predictions among the people, of 
 speedy national triumphs, the expulsion of the Saxon 
 race, and the establishment of perpetual peace. These pre- 
 dictions, we may conclude without much doubt, were the 
 verses now under consideration. They were made brief so as 
 to adapt them for circulation, and repetition from mouth to 
 mouth; and that the English Chroniclers asserted the truth, 
 when they said that these prophetic sayings of Merddin 
 made a profound impression on the public mind, and set on 
 fire the souls of the Kymry, may easily be believed, when 
 we know that some of the lower order still wait impatiently 
 for their accomplishment. Mr. Evan Evans tells us that 
 this practice continued until the accession of Henry the 
 VII., to the English throne. 2 That monarch possessed the 
 confidence and received the assistance of the Welsh; and 
 therefore there was no motive for further predictions. — 
 
 15 Hear little pig 1 is not the mountain green 1 
 My cloak is thin, and I am uneasy, 
 Grey is my wolf, Gwenddydd will not pierce me ; 
 And when the men of Bryneich come to bring disgrace 
 
 upon us, 
 Cambrians will conquer — bright be their day. 
 
 It will have been noticed, that in the Avallenau he charges 
 himself with having slain the son of his sister Gwenddydd, 
 
 1 " In deposcendis periculis eadem audacia, et ubi advenere in detrectandis 
 eadem formido." De Vit. Agric. 
 a Dissertatio de Bardis, p. 40. 
 
 15 Oian a pbarchellan neud glas mynydd 
 Teneu fy lien i mi nid llonydd 
 Llwyd i\v fy mlaidd nim traidd Gwenddydd 
 Ban ddyffont gwyr Bryneich in gwarth luydd 
 Cyniry a orfydd cain bydd en dydd. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 265 
 
 and it is on this account that he dreads her enmity. The 
 " men of Bryneich" were the inhabitants of Bernicia, a 
 British kingdom in the sixth century — now Northumber- 
 land. When the tribe of Kymry, prior to their immigration 
 into Wales, resided in the North of England, they were 
 frequently at war with the Bernicians ; and having carried 
 a traditional hatred with them, they applied the term 
 Bryneich to the Princes of Powys, and such of their own 
 kindred as allied themselves to the enemies of their country ; 
 the inhabitants of Deira and Bernicia, who joined them- 
 selves to the Saxons, being Britons. The word is thus used 
 by Llygad Gwr, when he says of Llywelyn ab Gruffydd, — 
 
 "Thou madest the crows rejoice, in vomiting the blood 
 Of the Bernicians, on whose bodies they feasted." 
 
 Coelfein brain Bryneich gyfogi, 
 Celennig branes, berthles borthi. 
 
 16 Attend little pig ! rude little pig, 
 
 Bury not thy snout, but if thou wilt refuse, 
 
 Love no pledge, love no play, 
 
 Covet not what I give to Gwenabwy, 
 
 Be not playful, cheerful, haughty, or delighting ; 
 
 And I will prophesy the battle of Machadwy, 
 
 When there shall be seen red biers in broad day ; 
 
 From the contention of spear points, and swelling breasts on 
 
 saddles, 
 There will befall a crimson morn; and Oh! woeful visitation, 
 A bear from the South (of Wales) shall be exalted, 
 His men shall encamp in the lands of Monmouth ; 
 Happy will be the lot of the sprightly Gwenddydd, 
 When the Prince of Dy ved comes to rule. 
 
 There is a chieftain named Gwenabwy the son of Gwen, 
 
 3 16 Oian a pharchellan a pharchell garwy 
 Na chladd dy ret kyr nag iste fynwy, 
 Nac a char waes na char warwy 
 Na chussyl a roddafi i Wenabwy 
 Na fid ieuangc serchawg syberw wawrwy 
 A mi ddysgoganaf gwaith Machadwy 
 Adfydd gelorawr rhudd yn rhiw dydmwy 
 O gyfranc y Kynfrain bronrheino cyfrwy 
 Adfydd bore coch ac och ofwy 
 Arth o ddeheubarth a dderchafwy 
 Ry Uettawdd ei wir ef tra thir Mynwy 
 Gwyn ei byd hi Gwenddydd a arhowy 
 Pan fo pendefig Dyfed ar gwledy chwy. 
 
 2L 
 
2(](3 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 who is said by Aneurin, deeply to deplore the battle of 
 Oattraeth; * and there is a Gwenavwy mentioned as one of 
 the daughters of Caw, 2 a saint who lived in the middle of 
 the sixth century ; but the allusion here, is to Gwenddydd, 
 the White Lady of Day, noticed in the Avallenau, and in 
 the Kyvoesi. What the latter part of the verse refers to 
 is not clear, nor who is the Prince of Dyved here men- 
 tioned j but in the prophecy of the Eagle at the building of 
 Winchester, 3 times of prosperity are promised, during the 
 advent of a bear. 4 
 
 17 Attend little pig ! are not the buds of thorns 
 
 Excessively green, and the mountains exquisitely bright ? 
 
 I will predict the battle of Llwyvain wood, 
 
 With ruddy biers from the rush of Owain, 
 
 When there shall be short disputing among stewards, 
 
 False swearing and treachery among the children of the 
 
 land ; 
 And when Cadwaladr comes to the subjugation of Mona, 
 The Saxons shall be destroyed from gentle Britain. 
 
 The battle of Llwyvain wood was fought by Urien Rheged 
 
 and his son Owain against Ida king of the Northumbrians. 
 
 It is celebrated by Taliesin, in one of the few poems which I 
 
 consider to be properly attributed to him ; and as it is 
 
 probable that the reader, having seen his name mentioned so 
 
 often, would be glad to see some of this bard's real works, 
 
 I have quoted this poem, — 
 
 On the Battle of Argoed Llwyvain.* 5 
 
 On the morning of Saturday ensued a great battle, 
 Which lasted from the rising to the setting of the sun, 
 
 1 Myvyrian Arch, i, p. 14. 2 Owen's Cambrian Biography, p. 156. 
 
 'Geoffrey in his History rejected this prediction. 
 4 Price's Hanes Cymru, p. 318. 
 
 17 Oian a pharchellan neud blodau drain 
 
 Gorlas can fynydd elfydd neud cain 
 
 A mi ddisgoganaf Cad Coed Llwyfain 
 
 A gelorawr rhuddion rhac rhuthr Owain 
 
 Pan gwnelont meiriau dad leu by chain 
 
 Anudon a brad gwlad feibionain 
 
 A phan ddel Cadwaladr i oresgyn Mon 
 
 Dileawr Saeson o dirion Brydain. 
 5 Y bore Dduw Sadwrn cad fawr a fu 
 
 Or pan ddwyre Haul hyd pan gynnu 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 267 
 
 Flamddwyn hastened in four divisions, 
 
 To fight the forces of Goddeu 1 and Rheged ; 2 
 
 They reached from Argoed 3 to Arvynydd, 
 
 But they lived only one day. 
 
 Flamddwyn boastfully called aloud, 
 
 " Will you give pledges, are you ready?" 
 
 Owen, 5 brandishing his spear, replied, 
 
 " We have not been, ive are not, ive will not be ready !" 
 
 And Kynane the son of Coel, would be a raging lion, 
 
 Before he would give hostages to any one. 
 
 Then shouted Urien, 7 lord of the plain, 
 
 "We relations will unite our forces, 
 
 And will erect our banner on the hills, 
 
 And will assist, and turn our faces to the opposing ranks, 
 
 And will raise our shafts above men's heads, 
 
 And will oppose Flamddwyn and his army, 
 
 And kill (fight) with him and his auxiliaries." 
 
 And because of the battle of Argoed 8 LI wy vain. 
 
 Dygrysowys fflamddwyn yn bedwarllu 
 
 Goddeu a Rheged i ymddullu 
 
 Dyfwy o Argoed hyd Arvynydd 
 
 Ni cheffynt eiryoes hyd yr undydd 
 
 Attorelwys fflamddwyn fawr drybestawd 
 
 A ddodynt yngwystlon a ynt parawd 
 
 Yr attebwys Owain ddwyrain ffossawd 
 
 Nid dodynt nid ydynt nid ynt parawd 
 
 A Chenau mab Coel fyddai cymwyawg lew 
 
 Cyn attalai owystl nebawd 
 
 Attorelwis Urien Udd yr echwydd 
 
 O bydd ynghyfarfod aur garennydd 
 
 Dyrchafwn eidoed odduch mynydd 
 
 Ac ymporthwn wyneb odduch emyl 
 
 A dyrchafwn beleidr odduch ben gwyr 
 
 A chyrchwn fflamddwyn yn ei luydd 
 
 A lladdwn ag ef ai gyweithydd 
 
 A rhag gwaith Argoed Llwyfain 
 
 1 Goddeu was the name of a country in North Britain ; and the scene of the 
 battle of Goddeu mentioned in the Triads. — Mr. Lewis Morris's note. 
 
 2 Rheged is supposed to be Cumbria, now Cumberland. — L. M. 
 
 3 Argoed and Arvynydd are places somewhere in that neighbourhood. — L. M, 
 
 4 Fflamddwyn is supposed to be Ida king of Northumberland. The word 
 means flame-bearer. — L. M. 
 
 5 Owain was the son Urien king of Rheged. This is the Ywaine of Ro- 
 mance. — L. M. 
 
 e Kynan ap Coel w T as, probably, the general of the Goddeu men. — L. M. 
 
 7 Urien was king of Rheged or Cumbria, a district which reached as far as 
 the Clyde, to the northward of which were the men of Goddeu whom I take to 
 be the Godini of Ptolemy. — L. M. Rheged is also a district in Gower. 
 
 8 Argoed Llwyvain was the country of Llywarch Hen before he was driven 
 out of it by the Saxons; and from another passage in Taliesin, we learn it was 
 a district of considerable magnitude. — L. M. There is an Argoed in Powys. 
 
2Qg POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 There happened many a dead corpse, 
 And the ravens were reddened with the war of men, 
 And the common people ran about hastily with the news. 
 I will remember this year to the end of my days; 1 
 And till I grow old, and meet inevitable death, 
 May I never smile if I praise not Urien. 
 
 The allusion to the conquest of Mon, is the consequence of 
 the settlement there of several Danish and Irish families. 2 
 
 18 Attend little pig! great wonders 
 
 Shall be in Britain, and I shall be unconcerned ; 
 
 When the inhabitants of the lands about Mon 
 
 Come to question the Britons, there will be troublesome times ; 
 
 A radiant dragon shall appear causing prosperity, 
 
 Stout Kynan from the banks of Teivi, 
 
 Will cause confusion in Dyved, 
 
 And create within it most dolorous music. 
 
 Here the poet evidently means that portion of Dyved which 
 was inhabited by the Flemings and Normans. The verses 
 were apparently composed by the bards of North Wales, who 
 called the South "exhausted Dyved," in consequence of 
 the settlement of those foreigners on its borders. 
 
 19 Attend little pig! how wonderful it is, 
 
 That the world is never long in the same condition! 
 
 Bu llawer Celain 
 
 Rhuddei frain rhag rhyfel Gwyr 
 
 Agwerin a grysswys gan einewydd 
 
 Arinaf y blwyddyn nad wyf kynnydd 
 
 Ac yn y fallwyf hen 
 
 Ym dygn angeu angen 
 
 Ni byddif ym dyrwen 
 
 No molwyf Urien. 
 1 1 have adopted Mr. Price's reading in this line, (Hanes Cymru, p. 280) in* 
 stead of that of Mr. Morris, (My v. Arch. i. p. 54.) which has been followed in 
 the translation of the other lines. 
 
 2 Hanes Cymru, page 415. 
 18 Oian a pharchellan mawr eryssi 
 
 A fydd ym mhrydain ac nim dorbi 
 
 Ban ddyffon Brodorion o amdiredd Mon 
 
 I holi Brython brithfyd dybi 
 
 Dyrchafawd draig ffawd ffawu peri 
 
 Gwrdd Cynan faran o Ian Teifi 
 
 Gwnahawd am Ddyfed dygyvysgi 
 
 Bid iddaw yn aelau eilon ynddi. 
 19 Oian a pharchellan morenrhyfedd 
 
 Na bydd un ennyd y Byd yn unwedd 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 269 
 
 How far the Saxons, proclaim the cause of strife 
 
 With the generous Britons, the sons of trouble ! 
 
 And I will prophesy before my end, 
 
 That the Britons will conquer the Saxons, a Pict says it ; 
 
 And that then we shall hear the sound of joyfulness, 
 
 After having been for a long time depressed. 
 
 The singular question put to the pig, sounds strange to 
 those who may not be acquainted with the almost eastern 
 boldness of personification frequent among the Welsh bards; 
 but among them it is quite usual to hold converse with va- 
 rious animals. With the Kymry the pig had a reputation 
 for wisdom, as may be inferred from the sayings attributed 
 to that animal. — 
 
 Hast thou heard the saying of the pig, — 
 
 Recoiling from dirty actions 1 
 
 There is none so abominable as the drunkard. 
 
 Also in reference to this saying, — 
 
 " Happy is the man who is as wise as the pig"" 1 
 
 20 Listen little pig ! hearest thou the melody, 
 
 Which the feathered tribes 2 are making by Caer Rheon? 
 
 Pelled son Saeson sail cywrysedd 
 Ar brithwn haelon hil cyruwyedd 
 A mi a ddisgoganaf cyn fy niwedd 
 Brython dros Saeson brithwyr ai medd 
 Ac yna in dawni ddawn gorfoledd 
 Gwedi bod yn hir yn hwyr frydedd. 
 
 1 Iolo Manuscripts, page 667. 
 
 2 During the romance era, we find very frequent notices of spreading trees, 
 covered with birds. Geoffrey mentions a wide spreading tree ; and St. Bran- 
 dan, in his voyage in search of Paradise, saw a wide spreading tree, with leaves 
 speckled red, and covered with beautiful birds, — 
 
 rt — So purely white 
 No man ere saw a fairer sight. ** 
 In the middle ages, the superstition of endeavouring to pry into futurity, was 
 very prevalent, and much dependence was placed on lots, and omens. Bernard 
 deVentadour, the celebrated Provencal poet, says, — 
 " I shall never trust again 
 To an omen or lot." 
 and among Welsh Bards, the author of the line, — 
 
 " The Ravens bespeak a coming plague," 
 in the Gorddodau, shows that among his countrymen birds were used for the 
 purpose of divination. 
 
 20 Oian a parchellan andaw di yr eilon 
 A gread adar gyr Caer Rheon 
 
270 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 One I have that I would place on the hill of the multitude, 
 
 To view the sprightly forms of the loving ones. 
 
 I will predict a battle on the sea, 
 
 The battle of Machawy, and a battle on a river. 
 
 The battle of Cors Vochno, and a battle in Anglesea, 
 
 A battle of mutual thrusting, and the battle of Caerlleon, 
 
 The battle of Abergwaith, and the battle of Iaethon, 
 
 And when at the land's end there shall be an end of roebucks, 
 
 An endearing child shall be exalted among the Britons. 
 
 We have already seen in the Avallenau, that the conference 
 between Cadwaladr and Kynan was to be held at the ford 
 of RheoD. It is here referred to again, but I can offer no 
 explanation of the selection of this spot, unless it was made 
 on account of its being the burying place of Kynan, and 
 therefore the place where he was most likely to re-appear. 
 This notice is found among the "Englynion Beddau, r> 
 Verses of the Graves, — 
 
 " Bet Kinon in Reon Rid," 
 
 The grave of Kynon is in the ford of Rheon. 
 
 And we learn from Gwilym Ddu, — 
 
 " Neud gweigion Arfon is Reon Ryd." 
 
 Are not the people of Arvon become insignificant below the 
 ford of Rheon ? 
 
 that this place was in Carnarvonshire; but Mr. Evan 
 Evans, who ought to have known that country well, said 
 he knew of no river so called in his day. 1 Of the battles 
 here predicted, I cannot give much account ; the reference 
 to Caerlleon is intelligible, Llywelyn ap Iorwerth having 
 taken that town in one of his expeditions ; the battle of 
 
 Un yssym a rovvn mynydd Maon 
 1 edrych drychynnawg drych serchogion 
 A mi ddisgoganaf fi cad ar y don 
 A chad Machawy a chad afon 
 A chad Cors Fochno a chad ym mon 
 A chad cymiriand a chad Caerlleon 
 A chad Abergwaith" a chad Iaethon 
 A phan fo diwedd tir terfyn i eilon 
 Maban dyrchafawd mad i frython 
 1 Dissertatio de Bardis, p. 50. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 271 
 
 Machawy, is most probably the same as that of Machadwy, 
 mentioned in a previous verse, and it is referred to in one of 
 Llywarch ab Llywelyn's Odes to that prince, — 
 
 "Priffwn y digreit praff y ddirwy 
 Ger elvyt Mechydd a Machawy ;" 
 
 Oors Vochno is in Cardiganshire, 1 but I can find no other 
 notice of this battle, than another prediction. This occurs 
 in one of the poems wrongly attributed to Taliesin, called 
 Anrheg Urien, Urien's Gift, — 
 
 From the battle of Cors Vochno 
 
 Whoever escapes, 
 
 Will be fortunate ; 
 
 Twelve wives, 
 
 And it will not be wonderful, 
 
 Shall cling to' one husband. 
 
 The age of youth, — 
 
 Ungentle in coming time 
 
 Shall be its nursing ; 
 
 Spear-thrusts shall cause bereavement, 
 
 And in a hundred persons, 
 
 There will scarce be one bearded warrior ! 2 
 
 Of the others I have no information, though it is probable 
 that all occurred during the reign of the great Llywelyn. 
 The last line, like that in the last of the Avallenau, con- 
 tains a prediction of the advent of a crowned babe, which 
 was frequently repeated in succeeding years. — 
 
 21 Listen little pig ! a period will come, 
 that it should come ! yet come it will ; 
 
 1 Iolo Manuscripts, page 602. 
 2 Gwaith Cors Vochno 
 O diango 
 
 Bydaud deduyd 
 Deudeng gwraged 
 Ac nyt ryved 
 
 Am un gwr vyd 
 Oes Ieunctid 
 Anghyvyrdelit 
 
 Y Vaeth dybyd 
 Beru ymdivant 
 Barvawc or cant 
 
 Nysryuelyd. My v. Arch. i. 51, 
 21 Oian a pharchellan by dan a fydd 
 Mor druan ei ddyfod ac ef a ddyfydd 
 
272 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 Wives shall be wantons, and fair maids bald ; 
 Relations will not love their kindred, 
 Freemen will not be friendly to each other, 
 And bishops will be worthless, faithless, and of a different 
 language. 
 
 The first part embodies a prediction which appears in Geoff- 
 rey; and the latter, in common with the verse which fol- 
 lows, refers to the dispute, which about this time made a 
 profound impression upon the Welsh mind, respecting the 
 appointment of Giraldus, a man born in Wales, to the see 
 of St. David. King John strongly opposed this, well 
 knowing that that personage would not be as pliant a tool 
 in his hands, as English bishops had been and would be, in 
 making the solemnities of religion subservient to political 
 intrigues. After a long and determined struggle, the king 
 succeeded in his object, and left our bard no other consola- 
 tion than the expression of his hatred of English bishops. 
 We will again recur to this topic, when we come to speak 
 of the religious poetry of the bards. 
 
 22 List O little pig ; little speckled one, 
 
 Listen to the voice of the birds of great intellectual energy ; 
 
 Minstrels shall be out, and meet no encouragement, 
 
 And though they stand in the door shall have no rewards; 
 
 I was told by a sea-mew that had come from afar, 
 
 That strange sovereignties will make their appearance: 
 
 Gwyddelians, Britons, and Romans, 
 
 Will dispel peace, and create confusion, 
 
 And in the names of Gods will come, 
 
 And perseveringly contend on both banks of the Towy. 
 
 Morwynion moelion gwragedd rhewydd 
 Carant ni pharchant eu carennydd 
 Rhwydd ni bydd digyfrwydd wrth i gilydd 
 Esgyb anghyfiaith diffaith diffydd. 
 
 22 Oian a pharchellan bychan brychni 
 Andaw di lais adar myr mawr eu hynni 
 Cerddorion allan heb ran teithi 
 Cyn safont yn y drws tlws nis deupi 
 Rym dywod wylan o bell ynni 
 Teyrnedd enrbyfedd eu cynyfeddi 
 Gwyddyl a Brytbon a Rhomani 
 A wnabont dyhedd a dyvysgi 
 Ac ynghyfenw duwiau dyfod iddi 
 Ac ymladd yn daer am ddwylan tywi. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 
 
 273 
 
 The river Towy is in Carmarthenshire, and the allusion is 
 to the ecclesiastical dispute mentioned in the note on the 
 preceding verse. 
 
 23 Listen little pig ! stout-armed little pig, 
 
 Listen to the voice of birds clamorous as a great sea ; 
 Minstrels will be going about unrewarded, 
 Deformity will prevail, and boys will be presumptuous, 
 Without raising the face, and without being elected; 
 Then two brothers, two Iddas in the land, 
 Shall by their sincerity nourish a lasting feud. 
 The spleen of the older bards, against the younger aspi- 
 rants for poetic honours, peeps out at the commencement ; 
 and the allusion at the close is to Iddawc Cordd Prydain. 
 Many persons may not know what is meant thereby, and 
 therefore will we take the story from Iddawc's own mouth, 
 " I was one of the messengers between Arthur and 
 Medrawd his Nephew, at the battle of Camlan ; and I was 
 then a reckless youth, and through my desire for battle, I 
 kindled strife between them, and stirred up wrath, when I 
 was sent by Arthur the Emperor to reason with Medrawd, 
 and to show him, that he was his foster-father and his 
 uncle, and to seek for peace, lest the sons of the kings of 
 the Island of Britain, and of the nobles should be slain. 
 And whereas Arthur charged me with the fairest sayings 
 he could think of, I uttered to Medrawd the harshest I 
 could devise. And therefore am I called Iddawc Cordd 
 Prydain, for from this did the battle of Camlan ensue. 
 And three nights before the end of the battle of Camlan I 
 left them, and went to the Llech Las in North Britain to 
 do penance. And there I remained doing penance seven 
 years, and after that I gained pardoD." 1 
 
 The reference is probably to the quarrels of the sons of 
 Owain Gwynedd. 
 
 23 Oian a pharchellan bychan breichfras 
 Andaw di lais adar mor mawr eu dias 
 Kerddorion allan heb ran urddas 
 Gwrthunawd esspyd a bryd gan was 
 Heb godwyd wyiieb heb ran urddas 
 Pan vo dau froder dan Iddas am dir 
 Megittor oi gwir hwy hir alanas. 
 x The Dream of Rhonabwy, Mabinogion, Vol. II. p. 398. 
 2 M 
 
274 
 
 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 24 Listen little pig ! I shall not be afflicted, 
 
 By hearing the voice of birds, so void of trembling, 
 Thin is the hair of my head, my covering is not warm, 
 My barn in the dales does not abound with corn, 
 My summer collection has not been plentiful, 
 Before parting from God of the unbounded knowledge; 
 And I will prophesy before the end of the world, 
 Women without modesty, and men without manliness. 
 
 These last lines, like the first lines of the twenty-first verse, 
 are repetitions of the following prediction in Geoffrey,— 
 
 " Women shall become serpents in their gait, and all 
 their motions shall be full of pride. The camp of Venus 
 shall be restored ; nor shall the arrows of Cupid cease to 
 wound. Luxury shall overspread the whole ground ; and 
 fornication not cease to debauch mankind." Gileses trans- 
 lation, p. 199. 
 
 In the original, the antithesis of the last line is very 
 forcibly expressed. 
 
 25 Listen little pig ! trembling little pig, 
 
 Thin is my covering, for me there is no quietness ; 
 
 For the battle of Arderydd I shall not be concerned, 
 
 Nor when the sky falls down, and channels are flooded ; 
 
 And I will prophesy that after Henry, 
 
 A supreme king shall rule in troublesome times ; 
 
 When there shall be a bridge on Taff and another on Towy, 
 
 There will be an end of all war. 
 
 Of the battle of Arderydd we have already spoken ; the 
 proverb about the falling of the sky, may, it would seem, 
 
 24 Oian a parchellan nim daw y cyngyd 
 O glybad llais adar mor ddiergyd 
 Teneu gwallt fy mhen fy lien nid clyd 
 Dolydd fy esgubawr nid mawr ei hyd 
 Fyngrawn haf a mi nyd ymweryd 
 Cyn ysgar a Duw didawl cywyd 
 
 A mi ddisgoganaf cyn diwedd byd 
 Gwragedd heb wyledd a gwyr beb wrhyd 
 
 25 Oian a pharcheUan a phorcbell ryni 
 Teneu yw fy Hen nyd llonydd imi 
 Er gwaith Arderydd mi nym dorbi 
 Cyn syrtbiai awyr i lawr a llyr yn Hi 
 A mi ddisgoganaf wedi Henri 
 Breenbin na frenbin britb fyd dybi 
 Pan fo pont ar Daf ac arall ar Dywi 
 Y daw diwedd rhyfel iddi. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 275 
 
 boast a very respectable antiquity ; but war has not ceased, 
 though there are many bridges on the Taff in Glamorgan, 
 and the Towy in Caermarthenshire. The Henry mentioned 
 I should presume to be Henry the third of England ; and 
 as he ascended the throne in 1216, we may assume that 
 to be the date of this verse. 
 
 Having thus passed these verses minutely in review, it 
 will not be necessary to make any special remarks here, 
 further than to point out their value, as being what may 
 be termed the literature of the common people of Wales. 
 The odes were addressed to the chieftains, and recited on 
 the occasion of regular feasts, and other special gatherings ; 
 but these were evidently intended to circulate among the 
 peasantry, in order to be repeated and discussed at their 
 firesides. As remnants of popular prejudices and su- 
 perstition, they cannot fail to prove interesting; and though 
 many of them possess but little literary merit, there are 
 a few very excellent verses. 
 
 We now come to treat of a question, which has very 
 probably long since forced itself upon the reader's attention ; 
 as Merddin is not the author, who is ? There can now be 
 but little doubt, that the Avallenau and Hoianau have been 
 here located in their appropriate age ; and therefore we 
 must seek their author among the bards of the reigns of 
 Owain Gwynedd and Llywelyn ab Iorwerth. The Hoianau 
 were, as we learn from a contemporary poem, called 
 Ceiniadon Mock, 1 — songs of Swine ; and as one of the first 
 bards of this era was called in his own day Prydydd y Mock 
 — the poet of the pigs, the authorship of those verses, unless 
 there should be strong counter testimony, must be attri- 
 buted to Llywarch ab Llywelyn. A wit alluding to this 
 fact, said that " the swine of Wales in the 12th century 
 had better poets than the English Princes of the eighteenth ." 2 
 
 1 " Cywrysedd Gwynedd a Deheubarth," one of the poems of the pseudo- 
 Taliesin. 
 2 Rev. Walter Davies's Essay on the Welsh Metres, p. 23. 
 
276 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 There must have been some reason, for the application 
 of this epithet to that bard ; but hitherto there has 
 been no satisfactory explanation of the reason of his 
 being so called. Several Welsh critics have attempted 
 this, and unwilling to admit the literal application, 
 have endeavoured to show, that the words ought to 
 be differently translated. The word " Modi" has three 
 different meanings. It may, in addition to the popular 
 acceptation, be translated quick, or brilliant ; or it may 
 be understood to mean the men of Mochnant, in Mont- 
 gomeryshire; and the epithet " prydydd y moeh" is most 
 frequently rendered in one of these two last senses. But 
 this bard cannot without impropriety be called, " the poet 
 of the Mochnantians," because, with one single exception, 
 the address to Rhys Gryg of South Wales, all his poems 
 are addressed to the Royal Family of Grwynedd. He was 
 the family Bard of Llywelyn ab Iorwerth; and there is 
 not one poem addressed to the Princes of Powys, or their 
 subjects — the men of Mochnant. Nor can we suppose that 
 he was known among his contemporaries as the " brilliant 
 poet ;" for it was quite unusual with the Welsh to convert 
 judgments upon the literary merit of the bards into des- 
 criptive epithets ; besides, if this view were correct, he 
 would have been called y Prydydd Mock and not Prydydd 
 y Moch. The words must therefore be taken in their 
 more popular, but less agreeable acceptation. The Hoianau 
 were written during the reign of Llywelyn the Great ; 
 they were called at that time, by the bards, who knew that 
 they were not the productions of Merddin, " The songs of 
 the Swine," and therefore we may safely conclude, that 
 " The Poet of the Pigs," Llywarch ab Llywelyn, one of 
 the leading bards of the day, was their author. They 
 were intended to pass among the vulgar, as the real predic- 
 tions of Merddin ; and strange to say, have up to the pre- 
 sent time been so considered ; but henceforth they should 
 be attributed to the real author. 
 
 I was at one time inclined to attribute the Avallenau to 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 277 
 
 the same bard on account of the occurence of the line " Oian 
 a pharchellan,'" in the tenth and twenty-third verses ; but 
 on reconsideration, it seemed more consistent with other 
 facts, to conclude that those verses are out of their appro- 
 priate place. The latter were undoubtedly ranked among 
 the Hoianau, in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries; for 
 the poem in which the Hoianau are called the " Songs of 
 the Pigs," contains a repetition of the interpolated part of 
 the twenty-third verse of the Avallenau ; and these were 
 probably the productions of Llywarch. The Avallenau 
 were composed at an earlier date ; the words " the Sibyl" 
 in the Hoianau, presuppose an acquaintance with the de- 
 scription of that personage, in the first verse of the Avall- 
 enau ; and some of the latest of these, alluding to events 
 which took place during the lifetime of Owain Gwynedd, 
 must have been composed prior to A. D. 1169 — the date of 
 his death. Llywarch wrote after the death of that prince, 
 and therefore the author of the Avallenau was most proba- 
 bly either Gwalchmai or Kynddelw. 
 
 Having thus fixed upon the authors, it remains for us to 
 decide, how far the verses are original. Mr. Davies and Mr. 
 Price suppose some portions, such as the commencements, 
 to be the real productions of Merddin ; but as these are 
 not distinguishable in language, or metre, from the other 
 portions, there seems to be no good reason for the belief. 
 My own opinion is that not a syllable of either the Avall- 
 enau or Hoianau can be attributed to any other persons 
 than Gwalchmai or Kynddelw, and Llywarch ab Llywelyn ; 
 nor of the Gorddodau, to any other than GrufFydd ab yr 
 Ynad Ooch. But for the predictions, the verses would never 
 have been written; for without these, the initial lines 
 could have been called forth by no conceivable situation 
 in the sixth century, and would have had no meaning. 
 
 The Gorddodau. 
 
 We now come to the Gorddodau. Like the preceding, these 
 are attributed to Merddin ab Morvyn, but with as little 
 
278 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 propriety. They consist of nine verses. It will not be ne- 
 cessary to offer any comment upon them, as they are so 
 clearly modern, that nothing but the name of Merddin at 
 the close, would for one moment lead one to suppose they 
 were the productions of the sixth century. The first verse 
 runs thus, — * 
 
 The Burrowing is nearly triumphant, I cannot easily 
 
 sleep; 
 "When comes the babe of British race, he will make a 
 troubled world. 
 
 A Hero who in that hour, 
 
 Will he no regarder of Lloegrians, 
 
 Whom he will completely destroy. 
 
 A Briton will arise, 
 
 Large, and powerful, 
 
 Active, and without haughtiness. 
 
 The Bryneich, the greatness of the Island, 
 
 Will promise to aid the Saxons ; 
 
 Multitudes will cover every hill, 
 
 Seeking no good, 
 
 They shall have their wish, 
 
 The land cries out, 
 
 The borders will have the worst. 
 Britain will arise, even the oldest priests, 
 And nimbly brandish reddened blades; 
 From our fortresses I sing no songs, 
 For the flight of ravens bespeaks a coming plague. 
 
 Hasten to destroy them, 
 
 1 Gorddod bron gorvod nid hawdd gysgaf 
 Pan ddel maban o hil Bryton brithvyd a wna 
 Gwr o fewn awr 
 O Loegrwys nim dawr 
 A llwyr ddiva 
 Kyvyd Bryton 
 Braise gowyddon 
 Brys di draba 
 Kyfyd Bryneich mawredd ynys 
 
 Y fo ad daw y Saeson 
 Lliaws pob bron 
 Lees ni wedda 
 Kaman i boodd 
 
 Y tir a waeddodd 
 
 Y terfyn gwaethaf 
 
 Kyfyd Prydyn y menych henaf 
 A rhuddion lafneu yn rhywyllt 
 O'n Caerau gan nis traethaf 
 Ac ar ervin brain pla a welir 
 Brysia iw diva 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 279 
 
 Thou concealed Babe, 
 
 Who wilt be a counsellor 
 
 To the lower ranks, 
 
 A free donor to those who are active, 
 
 A fair divider of crops, 
 
 One who will not warp 
 
 The profound and perfect law, 
 
 And will not learn pomposity; 
 
 A son of man, 
 
 Whom, though blamed, men admire. 
 
 I love him greatly; 
 
 The pride of the Nobility, 
 
 Of the whole land of Gwynedd, 
 Will he draw from their exile; 
 
 Strangers will hate him, and refuse to join in his praise, 
 They will not co-operate, nor assist; 
 
 Concord with Saxons, 
 
 That unlovely work, 
 
 Will cease. 
 I will give thanks, I will sincerely pray 
 To the most generous protector, 
 
 Of the chiefest lineage; — 
 
 Blessed are the Britons, 
 
 Large is the Crown, 
 
 O heavenly God, 
 
 Beneficent Preserver ! 
 
 Y maban o gudd 
 
 Kyffreddiwr y budd 
 
 I'r blaid issa 
 Yn rhwydd y rhydd ef y rhai esgud 
 
 Mewn cnaif cymwys 
 
 Gwr ni wna ymwys 
 
 Yn y gyfraith ddwys 
 
 Ni ddysg draha 
 
 Maban o dad 
 
 Er a veiont wy ai mad 
 
 Mawr yr hoffaf 
 
 Glendid Bonedd 
 
 Gwlad holl Wynedd 
 A dynn ef oil ou halltudedd 
 Aillt ai casa ef ni chyd ganan 
 Ni chyd arehan gorchwil nis gwnan 
 
 Cydfod Saeson 
 
 Gwaith anhyron 
 
 A derfyna 
 Diolchaf archaf arch ddi drahaf 
 
 Cadwr haelaf 
 
 O'r hil penna 
 
 Gwyn eu byd Bryton 
 
 Braise yw'r goron 
 
 O Dduw nefol 
 
 Cadwr cedol 
 
2g0 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 It is pleasing to praise him, 
 Lion of the red handed work ; 
 His occupation is war, 
 I will loudly laud him. 
 
 In poetic merit, these excel every other composition at- 
 tributed to Merddin. They are, in fact, verses of a very 
 superior order, and such as would do no discredit to some 
 of the distinguished poets of the day ; and 1 am only de- 
 terred by their extreme length, from giving them entire. 
 We have seen these predictions successively applied to 
 Rhys ab Tewdwr, to Owain Gwynedd, and to Llywelyn 
 the Great ; and now we find them referred to Llywelyn ab 
 GrufTydd, the last prince of Wales. Throughout this Essay, 
 I have rather courted than shunned, 'such passages as re- 
 vealed the intense hatred entertained by the ancient Welsh 
 against the Saxons ; but in so doing, I had no wish to re- 
 vive those traditionary enmities. I am the historian of the 
 past; these feelings were prevalent and sincere ; and as 
 more than any other, they reveal the breadth and depth of 
 the national character, I should have been wanting in both 
 duty, and sound judgment, were not the past with all its 
 faults and its virtues, faithfully reproduced. This senti- 
 ment stands forth very boldly, in the course of this verse,; 
 and in describing concord with Saxons, as " unlovely work," 
 the bard refers to a part of our last prince's career, which 
 gave rise to much dissatisfaction at home. Eleanor de 
 Montford, daughter of Simon de Montford, earl of Leices- 
 ter, having been betrothed to Llywelyn, was intercepted by 
 order of Edward on her passage from France to Wales, and 
 taken to the English Court; from thence she would not be 
 permitted to depart except on conditions somewhat disho- 
 nourable to the Welsh prince; and he thus compelled to de- 
 cide between love and patriotism, after much reluctance, 
 and a fierce war, chose the former alternative. He was 
 
 Mwyn ei ganmol 
 
 Llew Haw ruddwaith 
 
 Milwr ei waith 
 
 Maith y molaf. — Myv. Arch. Vol. I. p. 5-7. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MERDDIN. 281 
 
 blamed for this ; but as our Bard shows, the fidelity of the 
 lover formed an apology for the weakness of the man. The 
 marriage took place on the 13th of October, 1278 ; the bride 
 being given away, and the expenses of the feast defrayed, 
 by the English monarch. We have in these facts, a clue 
 to the date of the verses, which must havejjeen written 
 about the end of 1278 ; and, as metre, taste, and poetic 
 fire testify, by the only bard of that age who could have 
 written them, — Gruffydd ab yr Ynad Coch. 
 
 In speaking of the Hoianau, I ventured to suggest that 
 the pig typified the Kymric race; and the fact that in each 
 of the Grorddodau, the epithet "burrowing" is applied to the 
 condition of that people, coupled with^the prediction that 
 the burrowing would soon be triumphant, strikingly con- 
 firms the correctness of that opinion. 
 
 This completes our survey of the poems attributed to 
 Merddin, from which it results, that none of them can be 
 with propriety, after this examination, considered to be his. 
 The succeeding portions of this section must be more 
 meagre ; but not it is hoped less satisfactory. 
 
 It has long been suspected that many of the poems attri- 
 buted to Taliesin could not have been produced in the sixth 
 century. These conjectures, as we have already shown in 
 the preceding section, were undoubtedly correct ; but as 
 many of the poems, may upon most substantial grounds be 
 shown to be genuine, it becomes of importance to distin- 
 guish between those which are, and those which may not 
 be of his production. I have carefully read them; but as a 
 minute examination of seventy-seven poems would require 
 a volume for itself, I shall here only present the result. 
 The classification, in the absence of the data on which it is 
 based, can have no strong claims to attention, apart from 
 the weight attached to the opinion of the critic ; my con- 
 clusions with respect to the poems of Taliesin, are as satis- 
 factory to myself as are those embodied in the analysis of 
 the verses attributed to Merddin ; but the actual value of 
 that opinion, in either case, must be determined by the 
 
 2 N 
 
282 
 
 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 reader. I have, as the result of ray examination, classed 
 those poems, thus, — 
 
 Historical, and as old as the Sixth Century. 
 
 Gwaith Gwenystrad 
 Gwaith Argoed Llwyvain 
 Gwaith Dyffryn Gwarant 
 I Urien 
 I Urien 
 Caim i Urien 
 Yspail Taliesin 
 Canu i Urien Rheged 
 Dadolwch Urien Rheged 
 I Wallawg 
 
 Dadolwch i Urien 
 Marwnad Owain ap Urien 
 
 The Battle of Gweny strad 
 The Battle of Argoed Llwyvain 
 The Battle of Dyffryn Gwarant 
 To Urien 
 To Urien 
 A song to Urien 
 The Spoils of Taliesin 
 A Song to Urien Rheged 
 Reconciliation to Urien 
 To Gwallawg (The Galgacus of Ta- 
 citus) 
 Reconciliation to Urien 
 The Elegy of Owain ab Urien 
 
 Doubtful. 
 
 Cerdd i Wallawg ab Lleenawg 
 Marwnad Cunedda 
 Gwarchan Tutvwlch 
 Gwarchan Adebon 
 Gwarchan Kynvelyn 
 Gwarchan Maelderw 
 Kerdd Daronwy 
 Trawsganu Cynan Garwyn 
 
 A song to Gwallawg ab Lleenawg 
 
 The Elegy of Cunedda 
 
 The Incantation of Tutvwlch 
 
 The Incantation of Adebon 
 
 The Incantation of Kynvelyn 1 
 
 The Incantation of Maelderw 
 
 The Song to Daronwy 
 
 The Satire on Kynan Garwyn. 
 
 Romances belonging to the Twelfth and Thirteenth 
 Centuries. 
 
 Canu Kyntaf Taliesin 
 Dihuddiant Elphin 
 Hanes Taliesin 
 Canu y Medd 
 Canu y Gwynt 
 Canu y Byd Mawr 
 Canu y Byd Bach 
 Bustl y Beirdd 
 Buarth Beirdd 
 Cad Goddeu 
 Cadeir Taliesin 
 Cadeir Teyrn On 
 
 Taliesin's First Song 
 
 The Consolation of Elphin 2 
 
 The History of Taliesin 
 
 The Mead Song 
 
 The Song to the Wind 
 
 The Song of the Great World 
 
 The Song of the Little World 
 
 The Gall of the Bards 
 
 The Circle of the Bards 
 
 The Battle of the Trees 
 
 The Chair of Taliesin 
 
 The Chair of the Sovereign On 
 
 1 The three Incantations, Gorchan Kynvelyn, Gorchan Tutvwlch, and Gor- 
 chan Adebon, are attributed, on stronger evidence, to Aneurin. See Rev. T. 
 Price's Address, delivered at the Brecon Eisteddvod, in 1822. 
 
 a The Poem printed in the Myv. Arch. i. page 21, under this name, contains 
 also the Gorchan Tutvwlch attributed to Aneurin. It is the former part only 
 that is referred to Taliesin. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO TALIESIN. 
 
 283 
 
 Canu y Cwrwv 
 Canu y Meirch 
 Addvwyneu Taliesin 
 
 Angar Kyvyndawd 
 Priv Gyvarch 
 Dihuddiant Elphin 
 Arynies Dydd Brawd 
 Awdl Vraith 
 Glaswawd Taliesin 
 Divregawd Taliesin 
 Mabgyvreu Taliesin 
 
 Awdl Etto Taliesin 
 Kyffes Taliesin 
 
 The Song of the Alei 
 
 The Song of the War Horses. 
 
 The beautiful Things (liked by) 
 Taliesin 
 
 The inimical Confederacy 
 
 The Primary Gratulation 
 
 Elphin's Consolation 
 
 The Day of Judgment 
 
 The Ode of Varieties 
 
 The Encomiums of Taliesin 
 
 Past and Future Ages 
 
 Taliesin's Juvenile Accomplish- 
 ments 
 
 Another Ode by Taliesin 
 
 The Confession of Taliesin 
 
 These seem to form portions of the Mabinogi of Taliesin, 
 which was composed by Thomas ab Einion Offeiriad. 2 
 
 The Chair of Keridwen 3 
 
 The Elegy of Uther Pendragon 
 
 The Victims of Annwn (Hell) 
 
 The Elegy of Hercules 
 
 The Elegy of Madoc the TJold,*and 
 
 Erov the Fierce 
 The Elegy of Aeddon of Mon 
 The Not- wonders of Alexander 
 
 Cadair Keridwen 
 
 Marwnad Uthr Bendragon 
 
 Preiddeu Annwn 
 
 Marwnad Ercwlf 
 
 Marwnad Mad. Ddrud, ac Erov 
 
 greulawn 
 Marwnad Aeddon o Von 
 Anrhyveddodau Alecsander 
 
 1 The first part only of the poem thus called in the Myvyrian Archaiology, i. 
 page 39, forms the Canu y Cwrwv ; the rest, beginning with " Teithi edmygant," 
 and ending with the finely descriptive lines, — 
 
 I saw mighty men 
 
 Who thronged together at the shout ; 
 
 I saw blood on the ground, 
 
 From the assault of swords ; 
 
 When they poured forth their radiating lances, 
 
 They tinged with blue the wings of the morning; 
 
 In three hundred festivals, will be sung the high fame 
 
 Of Ynyr, whose feats are seen on the crimson tinted earth. 
 
 Gweleis wyr gorfawr 
 A ddygyrchynt awr 
 Gweleis waed ar llawr 
 Rhag rhuthr cleddyfawr 
 Glesynt esgyll gwawr 
 Esgorynt yn waewawr 
 Trichant calan cyman clodfawr 
 Ynyr ar dir yn wir cochwawr. 
 constitute " The Battle of Dyffryn Gwarant.,' 
 
 2 See The Iolo Manuscripts, page 459. 
 
 3 This is the Mabinogi of " Math the son of Mathonwy,'" Versified and Epi- 
 tomised. 
 
284 
 
 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 Y gofeisws Byd 
 Lluryg Alecsander. 
 
 A Sketch of the World 
 The Lorica of Alexander.? 
 
 Predictive Poems, Twelfth and Succeeding Centuries. 
 
 Ymarwar Lludd Mawr 
 Ymarwar Lludd Bychan 
 Gwawd Lludd Mawr 
 Kerdd am Yeib Llyr 
 
 Marwnad Corroi ab Dairy 
 
 Mic or Myg Dinbych 
 
 Arymes Brydain 
 
 Arymes 
 
 Arymes 
 
 Kywrysedd Gwynedd a De« 
 
 heubarth 
 Awdl 
 
 Marwnad y Milveib 
 Y maen Gwyrth 
 Can y Gwynt 
 
 Anrhec Urien 
 
 The Appeasing of the Great Lludd 
 The Appeasing of Lludd the Little 
 The Praise of Lludd the Great 
 Song to the Sons of Llyr 2 ab Bro- 
 
 chwel 
 Elegy on Corroi the Son of Dairy 
 The Prospect of Tenby 
 The Destiny of Britain 3 
 The Oracle 1 
 The Oracle 5 
 The Contention of North and 
 
 South Wales** 
 A Moral Ode 
 
 Elegy on the Thousand Saints 
 The Miraculous Stone 
 The Song of the Wind; subject, 
 
 Owen Gwynedd 
 The Gift of Urien. 7 
 
 Theological. Same Date. 
 Plaeu yr Aipht The Plagues of Egypt 
 
 Llath Moesen The Rod of Moses 
 
 Llath Yoesen The Hod of Moses 
 
 Gwawd Gwyr Israel Eulogy of the Men of Israel. 
 
 Some of the reasons for this classification, will have been 
 seen in the preceding section ; and others are here given 
 in the remarks appended to the several poems. The Rev. 
 Thomas Price, was the only writer who had previously at- 
 tempted to distinguish, between the poems which are really 
 genuine and those which are not; it is to be regretted that 
 he had not done more in this direction, than he has; but as 
 far as they extend, the few hints afforded in the earlier por- 
 tions of " Hanes Gymm," are in perfect accordance with my 
 own conclusions. The predictions attributed to Taliesin, 
 were, among the bards, held in higher estimation than those 
 
 1 Alludes to the Romance of Alexander. 
 
 2 Llyr is the king Lear of Shakspere ; the subjects of these seem to be taken 
 
 from Geoffrey's History. 
 
 3 Mentions the coming of Kynan and Cadwaladr. 
 5 Speaks of Normans. 6 See Avallenau 23. 
 
 4 Similar Sentiments. 
 7 See Hoianau 20. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO TALIESIN. 285 
 
 of Merddin. Of the latter, that on which they placed the 
 most value, was the rude though earlier Ky voesi ; it was to 
 this that the bards of these centuries referred. Howel ab 
 Owain speaks of the early or " primitive song of Merddin," 
 Rhisserdyn of his "memorials," Sevnyn of "his cave," 
 Iorwerth Llwyd of his " questions," and Iorwerth Vychan 
 alludes to verse 133, where Merddin speaks of the " great 
 knowledge of Gwenddydd," — all referring to the dialogue ; 
 Elidir Sais speaks of "the bardic strains of Merddin," and 
 of his "polished style," — Davydd Benvras of his "glowing 
 music," and Gwilvm Ddu, strengthening our argument 
 respecting Merddin, simply terms him one "of the line of 
 Meirchion;" but Kynddelw and Llywarch, the supposed 
 authors of the Avallenau and Hoianau, and Gwynvardd Bry- 
 cheiniog only, allude to the contents of those poems, or attach 
 any value to the predictions of Merddin. These soon fell into 
 disrepute, and the predictions of the pseudo-Tali esin alone 
 enjoy ed^the bardic favour. This appears from the lines of 
 Meredydd ab Rhys, who, addressing an old book of predic- 
 tions, says, — 1 
 
 I would not give a rotten straw 
 
 For thousands of the words of Merddin, — 
 
 In thee there is a springing sermon, 
 
 Some of the mystery of little Gwion (Taliesin). 
 
 But if the bards treated him contemptuously, he has been 
 amply avenged; for the popular mind of Wales now knows 
 no diviner but Merddin. 
 
 Of the predictive poems, that which next to the Gorddo- 
 dau excels in poetic fire, descriptive power, and elegance of 
 diction, is Arymes Prydain Vatvr, " The Destiny of Great 
 Britain." It is a poem of considerable length, treating (with 
 considerable knowledge of the subject) of the wars between 
 the Saxons and the Kymry, and predicting the final expul- 
 
 1 Cred vi na rown welltyn crin, 
 Er myrdd o eiriau Myrddin, — 
 Mae ynod, bragawd bregeth, 
 O gyvrinach Gwiawn Bach beth. 
 
2%Q POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 sion of the former from these islands. At this day, the 
 subject has no novelty, and therefore I will only give as a 
 specimen, a few of the concluding lines. — * 
 
 Cadwaladr and Kynan, mighty men in battle, 
 
 Whom prosperity attend, will be famed until the judgment day ; 
 
 Two tenacious sovereigns, profound men in council, 
 
 Two who under Providence will conquer Saxons, 
 
 Two generous men, two treasurers of the merchants' country, 
 
 Two fearless and ready men, of one faith, and one object, 
 
 Two overwhelming protectors of Britain's comely armies, 
 
 Two bears whose perpetual barking will not displease. 
 
 Druids predict the greatness of what will come to pass ; 
 
 In their hands will be all the land from Brittany to the Isle 
 
 of Man ; 
 From South Wales to the Isle of Thanet will they possess ; 
 And their word shall extend from the celestial radiance to the 
 
 surface of the earth. 
 Their chief will partly pay for the land, 
 Kynon will denude them, Saxons will cease to be ; 
 The Gwyddelians (Irish) will return to their original stock, 
 And the Kymry will raise up a powerful supporter. 
 Armies will be disciplined, and warriors clamorous, 
 To the kingdom of God, which kept its faith, 
 The fleets of all countries shall be invited, tribulation shall cease, 
 And Kynon will induce people to live in friendship. 
 Kynon will not call in as combatants, 
 Any but the Kechmyn of Cadwaladr and his merchants ; 
 
 1 Cynan a Chadwaladr cadr yn lluydd 
 Edmyccawr hyd frawd ffawd ai deubydd 
 Deu unben dengyn dwys eu cussyl 
 Dan oresgyn Saeson o blaid Dofydd 
 Deu hael dau gedawl gwlad warthegydd 
 Deu diarchar barawd un ffawd un ffydd 
 Deu orchwy nawd Prydain mirain luydd 
 Deu arth nis gwna gwarth cyfarth beunydd 
 Dysgogan Derwyddon maint a dderfydd 
 O Fynaw hyd Lydaw yn ei Haw a fydd 
 O Ddyfed hyd Ddanet hwy bieufydd 
 O wawl hyd wery d hyd eu hebyr 
 Lettalawt eu pennaeth tros yr echwydd 
 Attor ar Gynon Saeson ni bydd 
 Atchwelwynt Wyddyl at eu heunydd 
 Ryddyrchwynt Cymry cadr Gyweithydd 
 Byddinoedd am gwrf orthrwyf milwyr 
 A theyrnedd Dews ry gedwys eu ffydd 
 A wis i bob llynges- tres a dderfydd 
 A chymmod Cynhon gan ei gilydd 
 Ni alwawr Gynhon yn gynnifwyr 
 Nam Kechmyn Cadwaladr ai gyfnewidwyr. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO TALIESIN. 287 
 
 And every Kymro will be cheerful in his discourse; 
 
 In the troubled Island swarms will cease to be, 
 
 When their bodies shall perish in their native place; 
 
 It will be rumoured as far as Aber Santwic, 
 
 That the Germans are moving out of the land, 
 
 Back again to the place of their birth ; 
 
 And Saxons with anchors will be perpetually seen. 
 
 The venerable Kymry will prevail until the day of doom; 
 
 They will not want books, nor the songs of bards, — 
 
 For their destiny will be none other than this, 
 
 We will praise him who created Heaven and the elements ; 
 
 May St. David be the Prince of the warriors. 
 
 In the day of trouble, God will be with Gelligaer 
 
 He will not die, nor run away, nor be exhausted, 
 
 He will not fade, nor fail, nor bend, nor tremble. 
 
 This poem is now commonly attributed to Golyddan, a 
 bard who is said to have lived towards the close of the seventh 
 century; formerly it was ascribed to Taliesin. E. Llwyd at- 
 tributes it to the latter, as does Dr. Pughe in the earlier part 
 of his Dictionary ; but as that bard had gone "to the tomb 
 of all the Capulets" long before Cadwaladr reigned, the poem, 
 on the authority of the Rev. E.Davies, is now ascribed to Go- 
 lyddan, that monarch's bard. That author's opinion, appears 
 to be erroneous. The poem was thought to be historical; 
 but as all its main features relate to the future, and not either 
 to the past, or the present, it is not so; Cadwaladr here, 
 is not the last monarch of Britain, but the mythological hero, 
 and future deliverer of the Kymry ; and if our reasoning at 
 the commencement of this section be valid, it must be classed 
 
 Eil Cymro llawen llafar a fydd 
 
 Am ynys gymwyeid heid a dderfydd 
 
 Pan syrthwynt galanedd wrth eu hexmydd 
 
 Hyt yn Aber Santwic swynedig fydd 
 
 Allmyn ar gychwyn i alltudydd 
 
 01 wrthol attor ar eu heunydd 
 
 Saesson wrth angor ar fordd beunydd 
 
 Cymry Gwenerawl hyd frawd gorfydd 
 
 Na cheisswynt lyfrawr nag angawr brydydd 
 
 Arymes yr Ynys honn namyn hyn ni bydd 
 
 Iolwn ni a grewys nef ac elfydd 
 
 Poed Tywyssawg Dewi i'r cynnifwyr 
 
 Yn yr ing Gelli Kaer am Duw y sydd 
 
 Ni threinc ni ddieinc nid Arddispydd 
 
 Ni wiw ny wellyg ny phlyg ni cbryd. 
 
288 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 among the predictive poems of the middle ages. Style, and 
 internal evidence support this assumption ; and so conclu- 
 sive do I deem the proof of its late origin, that Mr. Tur- 
 ner's ingenious defence of its antiquity, alone induces me to 
 dwell at greater length upon the subject. I regret being 
 compelled to differ in opinion, respecting this and the poems 
 of Merddin, from the eminent historian and critic, to whose 
 learning, intelligence, and candour, the literature of my 
 native land is so greatly indebted ; but it is a source of sin- 
 cere gratification to reflect, that in nearly every other essen- 
 tial point, my own researches have tended to ratify his 
 conclusions, as to the genuineness of most of the poems at- 
 tributed to the early bards, Aneurin, and Llywarch, and 
 many of those of Taliesin. This poem, which is evidently 
 the production of an able and learned man, calls the Saxons, 
 or more correctly speaking the German tribes who invaded 
 Britain, by the name of Allmyn. At the present day, the 
 Kymry call Germany, Yr Almaen; Germans, singular All- 
 myn, plural Ellmyn; and the German language, Yr Ell- 
 mynaeg. This word appears to be derived from the name 
 of the Alamanni, which among the present inhabitants of 
 Germany survives in Algemeine, and though it originally 
 only indicated a single tribe, the word was ultimately used 
 to designate the whole German people ; but as this was not 
 the case much prior to the twelfth century, the antiquity of 
 the poem in which the Saxons are designated by this gene- 
 ral term, may rationally be doubted, and a later date be 
 assigned to it than the seventh century. To avoid this 
 conclusion, which if established destroys the claim of Goly- 
 ddan to be considered its author, Mr. Turner, who clearly 
 saw its force, endeavoured to give the word another mean- 
 ing. He supposed it to mean All-man, another place ; but 
 as there was manifestly no propriety, in designating a Saxon 
 by a term denoting " another place," a noun and a preposi- 
 tion, neither contained in the word nor implied by it, were 
 added, so that the translation became " men from another 
 place," or strangers. This procedure is not warranted by 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO GOLYDDAN. 289 
 
 either the genius of the language, or by the usage of the 
 word ; Dr. Pughe, indeed, under the word " Allman/ 1 says, 
 it means " a stranger, one of another place, a German;" but 
 as he cites no document in support of these readings, and 
 I have met with no authority for such interpretations, they 
 are inadmissible. Yet if the word All-man could be shown 
 to mean a stranger, there would be nothing gained ; for 
 there would still remain a much greater difficulty in the 
 question, what peculiar propriety is there, in applying the 
 term strangers to the Saxons, and withholding it from the 
 Picts, Scots, Danes, and Normans? We have here con- 
 ceded for the moment, the assumption to be correct, that 
 Alhnan could by any process be converted into Allmyn 
 without losing its signification ; but I know of no rule of 
 Kymric Grammar which would permit this to be done: ac- 
 cording to strict etymological construction, "Allman," 
 means another place, and " Allmyn," another desire ; " All- 
 myn/' therefore, is a proper name derived from the Nor- 
 mans, and not a compound word regularly formed from 
 Cambrian roots. This is the sense in which it is now used; 
 it is thus used in the poems of the thirteenth century ; and 
 as there is no authority for the supposition, that it was ever 
 used in any other sense than as descriptive of Germans, 
 the resemblance between Allmyn and Alleman, and parti- 
 cularly Algemeine, amounts to identity. This designa- 
 tion of the German people prevailed in the twelfth century. 
 Geoffrey of Monmouth repeatedly calls the Saxons by this 
 name, — 
 
 "Six of his (Arthur's) posterity shall sway the sceptre, but after 
 them shall arise a German worm." "The white dragon shall 
 rise again, and invite over a daughter of Germany." "After that 
 shall the German priuce be crowned." "The German dragon 
 shall hardly get to his holes, because the revenge of his treason, 
 (Harold's treachery to the Duke of Normandy) shall overtake him. 
 At last he shall flourish for a little time, but the decimation of 
 Neustria (Normandy) shall hurt him. For a people in wood and 
 iron coats (the Normans) shall come, and revenge upon him his 
 wickedness." 
 
 In the Welsh copies however, the word is written Ger- 
 
 20 
 
290 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 mania, and not Allmyn; but this is no insuperable difficulty. 
 The Kymry have to each of the letters of the Alphabet, one 
 single and definite sound- the letter g they pronounce hard, 
 as g in get; and if pronounced by a Cambrian, as above 
 written, it would sound more like Kermania than Jer- 
 mania. Germania in a Kymric work is therefore an intru- 
 der; and as the bards very studiously avoided the introduc- 
 tion of foreign sounds, we need not wonder that they pre- 
 ferred the more popular term Allmyn. This is the form in 
 which the word occurs, in the address of Llywarch ab Lly- 
 wellyn to Rhys Gryg, which must have been composed 
 about A.D. 1194. 
 
 " Gnawd oe law y Uavur cochwet 
 Y gychwyn allmyn alltudedd." 
 
 His hand was accustomed to bloody toils, 
 And move Germans to exile. 
 
 It is singular that this same idea of driving " the Germans 
 (i.e. Saxons) to exile," should be the thought which pre- 
 dominates in the poem under consideration ; and unless we 
 admit, that this expectation was prevalent among the 
 South Welsh, when the bard visited Ehys Gryg, and that 
 Llywarch had seen this poem, it will be still more surpri- 
 sing that the above line should be identical, in words 
 and sentiments, with several lines of "The Destiny of 
 Great Britain." On comparing the line, — 
 
 " Allmyn ar gychwyn i alltudedd" 
 
 with the above, it must be apparent that Llywarch has 
 copied it from this poem ; for in order to accommodate this 
 line, which, like the poem, is composed of nine syllables, to 
 the octosyllabic metre of his address, he transposes the 
 words, and suppresses a syllable which is absolutely neces- 
 sary to make the line intelligible. As he has it, the literal 
 translation would be "to move Germans exile;" the prepo- 
 sition "i" of the original, which makes it "to exile," 
 having to be supplied by the reader; and if, as is extremely 
 probable, he borrowed the idea from this poem, it must have 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO GOLYDDAN. 291 
 
 been popular in South Wales, and therefore, most probably 
 of recent origin. From this variety of arguments, the con- 
 clusion seems to be fairly deducible, that the poem belongs 
 to the latter part of the twelfth century. 
 
 Another singular feature in this poem, is the frequent oc- 
 currence of the word Kechmyn. Mr. Price 1 conjectures the 
 people thus designated to be the Chauci, or as the word 
 should be written to be correctly pronounced by English 
 readers, Chauki, or Kauchi ; and after much consideration 
 I am led to adopt the same view. The difficulties in the 
 way are the required transposition of the "ch" and "c," and 
 the appearance of the second syllable " myn." The explana- 
 tion of the first appears to be this ; — there are several words 
 in the Kymraeg beginning with "cliw," but none with " ch" 
 alone ; therefore if the Kymry were asked to pronounce 
 Chauki, they would immediately transpose the consonants 
 and say Kauchi, which would correspond to the first sylla- 
 ble of Kechmyn. Of the second difficulty, the explanation 
 seems to be that the word is composed of kauchi and men, 
 Germanic races have a tendency very frequently to append 
 this termination to proper names; thus English^?* call 
 others Frenchmen, Irishmen, and Scotchmen ; Allemann is 
 thus formed from alle, all, and mann, 2 man, plural men ; 
 and our neighbours call us Welshmen, although we, in the 
 Latin manner, denote the relative meanings of Wales, 
 Welshman, Welshmen, by simply altering the terminations 
 of the words, and saying Kymru, Kymro, Kymry. Having 
 thus arrived at Kauchmen, we easily trace the conversion of 
 men into myn; in Glamorganshire, the people have a strong 
 tendency to end words with yn, and frequently say hunyn 
 for hunain, Scotchmyn, Coachmyn, Porthmyn, Hwsmyn, 
 
 1 Hanes Cymru, p. 225. 
 2 The writer of the article Allemanni, in the Penny Cyclopedia, though ap- 
 parently right in the above derivation, was wrong when he asserted that Ellmyn 
 is the Welsh plural of Alltud. Mr. Turner said it was the plural of Allman; 
 but this writer has misunderstood him. There are other errors in the same 
 paragraph. 
 
292 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 and the like; and therefore the dialect of Morgan wg, which 
 in Allmyn and Kechmyn, converts men into myn, also seems 
 to indicate the district in which the poem was produced. 
 On looking at the map of ancient Germany, we find the 
 Kauchi, Kymry, Teutons, Angles, Jutes, Saxons, and 
 Frisians, occupying the same sea coast; the Kymry left 
 the Kymric Kersonesus to come hither; Sir Francis Pal- 
 grave has demonstrated that the Saxon invaders of Britain, 
 consisted of Angles, Jutes, and Frisians, as well as Saxons; 
 and unless we are mistaken in identifying them, with " the 
 Kechmyn of Thanet," mentioned in this poem, the Chauci, 
 will, upon this authority, have to be added to the number. 
 They might easily have come, and while the neighbouring 
 tribes were emigrating, it is more probable than otherwise 
 that some of these came with them; according to the poem 
 they did so ; but whence the information was derived I 
 know not. 
 
 We have not yet discovered the author of the poem. If 
 the assumptions in the preceding paragraphs be true, the 
 poem was composed in the Glamorgan dialect, and seen by 
 Llywarch ab Llywelyn, during his visit to South Wales, 
 in 1214. Several passages in the poem countenance this 
 view ; the names of places all refer to the South ; the poet 
 bids both "Dyved and Glewysig (Monmouthshire,) not to 
 fear;" and ends by imploring the blessing of God on 
 Gelligaer, a district between Caerfilly and Rhymney, in 
 Glamorganshire. Madoc ap Iddon, king of the district in- 
 dicated by Gwent, Glewysig, and Gelligaer, was "a man 
 who knew many arts and sciences, and there was not 
 found his equal in his time," and died in 1184 ;* 
 "he was the best poet and wit of any in Wales;" and as 
 this poem indicates much more than ordinary ability, and 
 was evidently composed in his district, towards the close of 
 the twelfth century, may he not be its author \ 
 
 1 At page 104, Madoc ab Iddon's death is erroneously said to have occurred 
 in 1084, instead of 11S4. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO GOLYDDAN. 293 
 
 It has been remarked that the bards of North Wales, 
 during the centuries embraced by this Essay, had produced 
 more poems than those of South Wales ; and Mr. Price 
 reproaches the South Welsh with having been less careful 
 of their manuscripts, than their brethren of the North ; but 
 this reproach is not altogether deserved. There was un- 
 questionably less poetry produced in the South, and that 
 too of an inferior character; and this arose perhaps, partly, 
 because the more turbulent character of the petty chieftains 
 of that district was less favourable to the development of 
 literary talent, than the dignified sway of the brilliant series 
 of North Welsh kings, Grufiydd ab Kynan, Owain Gwy- 
 nedd, Howel ab Owain, Llywelyn the Great, and Llywelyn 
 ab Grutfydd, who ruled during that period. But though the 
 North bore away the palm in poetry, the South was most 
 distinguished for Bardic Congresses, and Historians ; it pro- 
 duced the Brut Tysilio, the Chronicles of Caradoc, and the 
 British History of Geoffrey; the book of the Cwtta Kyvar- 
 wydd of Glamorgan, the Book of Llandaff, and the Black 
 Book of Carmarthen, may also be cited to the same purport. 
 Many of the poems attributed to Taliesin are written in the 
 dialect of Gwent, 1 and several appear to have been written 
 in Pembroke, and the western portions of Glamorganshires; 
 the poem called Mic or Myg Dinbt/ch, The Prospect of 
 Tenby, belongs to the former ; and the lines, — 
 
 "Ckwaryeis yn Llychwr, 
 Cysgais ym mhorphor," 
 
 I have played at Loughor 
 And slept in purple, 
 
 in " Kad Goddeu," indicate a place within six miles of 
 Swansea. The Amies, or Oracle given at page 71 of the 
 Archaiology, belongs to that district; and the first four lines 
 are exactly the same as those at the commencement of 
 "Arymes Prydein Vawr." The Oracle of Britain, must 
 
 1 lolo Manuscripts, page 466. 
 
294 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 be referred to the same parentage, as will be seen in these 
 
 lines 
 
 " Spears shall he launched forth, 
 And an armed band 
 Around Cogawn Penarth, — 
 An army collected from afar, 
 Led by the Cross of Christ, 
 And a flame from Bethlehem, 
 And Jerusalem." 1 
 
 The allusion here, is to the persons collected together at 
 the instigation of archbishop Baldwyn, (A.D. 1188,) who 
 was eminently successful at Llandaff, 2 in enlisting soldiers 
 for the Crusades ; and probably these embarked for Pales- 
 tine, from the Penarth Roads, near Cardiff. Penarth is a 
 locality well known ; and there is a place called Cogan 
 Penarth in that vicinity. Glamorgan seems to have been 
 the hotbed of predictions, and Geoffrey probably adorned 
 his narrative with many of the traditional stories of the men 
 of M organ wg. 
 
 There are two poems attributed to Meugant, a bard who 
 lived about the commencement of the seventh century. 
 One of them, mourning the death of prince Kynddylan, has 
 the marks of genuineness: but the other forms a connecting 
 link between the " Kyvoesi" of Merddin, and the " Avall- 
 enau," with the later predictive poems ; and this was pro- 
 bably composed in the early part of the reign of Owain 
 Gwynedd, for the language is modern, and that monarch is 
 mentioned by name. The poem is valuable, as supplying 
 the link of connection between Cadwaladr and Kynan; 
 Cadwaladr was the hero of the South, and Kynan that of 
 the North, as is shown by the promises here given of tri- 
 
 1 A phelydr yn rhydd 
 Agosgordd 
 Am cogawn permardd 
 A llu digyfor o bell 
 A chroes Crist yn Cymhell 
 A fflam o Feddlem 
 A chaersalem. 
 2 Hanes Cymru, page 601. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO MEUGANT. 
 
 295 
 
 umphs for Kynan in Arvon, and by the express words 
 " Cynan yngwynedd," Kynan in North Wales, of the Ora- 
 cle of Britain above cited. There is a Kynan honourably 
 mentioned in the Gododin; and it is clear that the Kynan 
 of the later bards, is the person buried at Khyd Rheon; but 
 the original " Conan" of these predictions was a differ- 
 ent person. The author of the Hoiannau, in the line (verse 
 114,) 
 
 "Kynan and the especial Cadwaladr of Cambria," 
 
 implies that the first was not a native of Wales; and 
 Gwalchmai distinguishes " Kynan the kindly courteous," 
 from " Cadwaladr the pillar of armies." An immense im- 
 pulse was given to these ambitious hopes of the Kymry, and 
 the predictions of their realization, by the preparations 
 made in Normandy for the conquest of England; this 
 event took place in the reign of Conant the second of Brit- 
 tany; and " Normans, Bretons, French, Flemings, Poite- 
 vins, Burgundians, and other Cisalpine people flocked to 
 the transmarine war." 1 The kin£ of the Bretons was the 
 original Kynan. The author of the Vita Merlini, 2 distinctly 
 says so, 3 — 
 
 " The Britons, their noble kingdom, 
 
 Shall for a long time lose through weakness; 
 Until from Armorica Conan shall come in his car, 
 And Cadwaladr the honoured leader of the Kymry." 
 
 And the prediction in Geoffrey's history, — 
 
 "Cadwaladr (coming from Rome,) shall call upon Conan (in 
 Brittany,) and take Albania into alliance," 
 
 1 TV. Gemetensis, 286; and Orderic Vitalis, 494; quoted in Schulz's Essay' 
 p. 36. 
 
 2 The author of the Vita Merlin, is said to have been Geoffrey of Monmouth ; 
 but Dr. Giles says that internal evidence (not specified) contradicts that view. 
 
 3 " Britones at nobile regnum 
 
 Temporibus multis amittant debilitate 
 Donee ab Armorico, veniet temone Conarus 
 Et Cadwadrus Cambrorum dux venerandus.'' 
 Vita Merlini, p. 129, MS. in the Cotton Library, Vespasian E. 4. Turner's 
 Vindication, p. 120. 
 
296 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 both receives light from this fact, and proves the correctness 
 of the positions here laid down. Conant reigned about 
 A.D. 1066; the poem attributed to Meugant is therefore 
 not older than the Norman conquest. The " Ky voesi" men- 
 tions Oadwaladr without Kynan; and this names Kynan 
 without Oadwaladr; but in later poems the two names 
 are always mentioned together. In the Archaiology, there are 
 two copies of this poem, the concluding part being exactly 
 the same as the fragment from the Book of Gogerthan. 
 
 When numerous poems were wrongly attributed to 
 Merddin and Taliesin, it would have been strange if none 
 had been allotted to Aneurin, "the king of bards, and 
 poet of the flowing muse." In the Iolo MSS., lately pub- 
 lished, there is a predictive poem, attributed by its monk- 
 ish author to the author of the Gododin. The late Mr. 
 Edward Williams, pleads warmly for its antiquity; but with 
 all becoming deference for so renowned an authority, I 
 must be permitted to assert, that the metre, diction, and 
 sentiments, belong less to the sixth century than to the 
 sixteenth. The verses of the months, Englynion y Misoedd, 
 have clung with remarkable tenacity to the name of Aneu- 
 rin ; his fame must nevertheless rest wholly and solely upon 
 the earliest of modern heroic poems — the Gododin; for 
 these verses are not his. I do not know, when they 
 were first attributed to him, — for they are not included in 
 the earliest collections of his poems. Llwyd, sub voce Aneu- 
 rin Gwawddrydd, does not mention them ; in enumerating 
 the contents of the MS., known as The Book of Aneurin, 1 
 to be, The Gododin, The Incantation of Adebon, The In- 
 cantation of Kynvelyn, and the Incantation of Maelderw, 2 
 
 1 The description of the MS. is, verbatim et literatim, as follows : — " Llyvyr 
 Aneyryn; ne Lyvyr y Gododhynne a'r Guarxane. Vaugh. Membr. 8vo. modv. o 
 drux. Hun a gynwys, 1. Y Gododyn. (An lec/endum gydodhyn?) o uaith Aneyryn 
 AVaudrydh Myxdeyrn Beirdh. 2, kaniad a eluir Guarxan Adhebon. 3, 
 Guarxan Kynvelyn. 4. Guarxan Maelderu guedi i geady yn Llynden gan R. V. 
 Llau hen dros ben. W. M." Lluyd's Arch. Brittan. p. 261. 
 
 2 In the ancient MS. of the poems of Aneurin, belonging to the late Rev. T. 
 Price, and which was once in the possession of Gwilym Tew and Davydd Nan- 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO ANEURIN. 297 
 
 he states that it is written in a hand remarkably old ; but 
 in neither case is there any allusion to these verses. Yet if 
 the following statement be founded in fact, they were attri- 
 buted to him as early as the fifteenth century. The Editors 
 of the Myvyrian Archaiology say, but on what authority 
 does not appear, that " Aneurin Gwawdrydd was the first 
 who sang verses of the Months ; and being good they be- 
 came so common, that no one thought of writing them, until 
 they could scarcely be distinguished, so that the twelve verses 
 could not be had complete in Gwynedd and Powys, — four 
 of them being lost. Guttyn Owain composed the four last 
 instead of those wanting; but after that, the missing verses 
 were found in South Wales, so that they are here all from 
 the Green book." 1 The verses seem calculated to have ob- 
 tained popularity, from their adaptation to fireside circles, 
 and the moralizing tone, which conversation assumed, when 
 at the close of the evening, men assembled in small parties 
 around fire-places, and crowded the spacious hobs, for 
 which the chimney places in Welsh country houses are dis- 
 tinguished. In cities, men have numerous objects attract- 
 ing attention, and from the variety of the causes which 
 excite them, the talk becomes free and easy, sometimes 
 frivolous and insipid ; but among a people so shrewd and 
 intelligent as the Kymry of country districts are and 
 have been, when domiciles were scattered, and men collected 
 together from distant places, their conversation must have 
 been of a moral cast, and of a graver character than sage 
 reflections upon the frost of yesterday and the snow of to- 
 day. Science was unknown, but human life, to the observant 
 
 mor, who flourished from 1430 to 1470, — Gwarchan Tydvwlch, Gwarchan 
 Adebon, and Gwarchan Kynvelyn, are given immediately following the Godo- 
 din. Mr. Price was of opinion that Gwarchan Maelderw was written by 
 Taliesin. 
 
 1 "Aneurin Gwawdrydd a gant Englynion y Misoedd gyntaf ac rhag daed 
 oedynt hwy aethant mor gyffredin, ag na cheisiod neb eu hysgrifennu, oni bu 
 agos idynt a cholli haiachen fel na fedrid cael y deudeg Englyn yn gwbl ym 
 Mhywys a Gwynedd heb fod pedwar ar goll : a Guttyn Owain a wnaeth y ped- 
 war olaf yn lie y Uaill ; ac wedi hynny y caed yn Neheubarth y pedwar oed. ar 
 goll fel y maent i gyd ynia rhag Haw allan o'r Lyfr Gwyrdd. 1 ' My v. Arch. 
 Vol. I. p. 14. 
 
 2 P 
 
298 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 mind, furnished ample food for reflection ; and there- 
 fore when this was the prevailing topic, moral apothegms, 
 adorned with the poetry of the Seasons, in compact verses, 
 were likely to have given satisfaction. 
 
 Though not Aneurin's, these verses have considerable 
 merit, — 
 
 1 January ! The vale is smoky, 
 The butler weary, and the bard (cler) abroad; 
 The crow is thin, and seldom is heard the hum of the bee ; 
 The cow is lean, and the kiln is cold ; 
 The horse is slender, and the bird silent ; 
 The morning is long, and short the afternoon ; 
 Truly was it said by Kynvelyn, — 
 "The best candle for man is Prudence." 
 
 The Kymric Princes and chieftains held their feasts on the 
 first day of January, when the hards of the district were 
 sure to be in attendance; and as there were open houses for 
 all comers, butlers, under the circumstances, might well be 
 weary. Among my countrymen, the candle is the favour- 
 ite figure for mental guidance; and the most popular of all 
 Cambrian authors, the Vicar of Llandovery, entitled his 
 book " The Candle of the Kymry." 
 
 2 February ! Dainties are scarce, 
 And busy are the spade and the wheel ; 
 Reproach is the usual result of too frequent intercourse ; 
 The hired ox is unable to complain ; 
 Three things produce injurious venom, 
 
 1 Mis Ionawr myglyd Dyffryn, 
 Blin Trulliad, treiglad Clerddyn; 
 Cul Bran, anaml llais gwenyn; 
 Gwag Buches, diwres Odyn; 
 Cynnwy march, distaw aderyn; 
 Hir i blygain, byr brydnhawn ; 
 Gwir a ddywaid Cynfelyn, 
 Gorau canwyll Pwyll i ddyn. 
 
 2 Mis Chwefror anaml Ancwyn ; 
 Llafurus Pal ac Olwyn ; 
 Gnawd gwarth, o fynych gysswyn, 
 Yr ych Hog ni fedr achwyn, 
 Tri pheth a dry drwg wenwyn 
 Cyngor Gwraig, Mum, a Chynllwyn, 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO ANEURIN. 299 
 
 Best is the dog in the morning, when the lambs are weak, 
 And miserable is he who has slain his servant-maid ! 
 
 The seventh line has been variously translated, but with- 
 out the least success iu eliciting any sense out of the 
 words. Mr. Probert renders it, 
 
 " Best is the dog's head on a spring morning ;" 
 and if Gwanwyn had no other signification than spring, 
 though these words are meaningless, the line would have 
 been correctly translated ; but as it may also mean gwan, 
 weak, and wyn, lambs, some poetry, and much truthfulness 
 may be evoked out of the sentence. It is a fact well 
 known to shepherds, and to. persons acquainted with 
 farming life, that the lambs thrown in February, are, as 
 the poet says, really much weaker than those thrown in the 
 succeeding month. In the morning when snow covers the 
 ground, the shepherd, whose first duty it is to collect the 
 sheep together, frequently hears the bleating of lambs, 
 which, they being unable to walk, he cannot find. On such 
 occasions, I have heard it said, that a sagacious sheep-dog 
 is worth a dozen men. Another argument in favour of the 
 same reading, may be deduced from the fact, that among 
 the bards the first day of spring was the 10th of March ; x 
 the poet could not therefore have alluded to spring, as 
 pertaining to the month of February. The poet was 
 true to nature, — and alluded to one of the most pleasing 
 features in rural life. The somewhat flippant mention of 
 murder is due to the facts, that according to the Cambrian 
 Laws murder might be compensated for by heavy fees, and 
 also that when Villeinage prevailed in Britain, the servants 
 were taken from among the slaves. 
 
 2 March ! Birds are full of audacity, 
 Bitter blows the cold blast o'er the furrows, 
 
 Pen ci ar fore gwanwyn 
 Gwae a laddodd ei Forwyn. 
 
 1 Iolo MSS. p. 434. 
 2 Mis Mawrth, mawr ryfyg adar 
 Chwerw oerwynt, ar dalar ; 
 
300 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 The fair weather will outlive the foul, 
 
 Anger lasts longer than grief, 
 
 But every terror will disappear, 
 
 Every bird knows its mate, 
 
 And all things will come through the earth, 
 
 Save the dead — long is his imprisonment. 
 
 1 April ! Mist covers the high grounds, 
 The oxen are fatigued, and the land naked, 
 Feasts are common, but not invitations; 
 Lean is the playful and long-eared stag; 
 Numerous faults are found where there is no love; 
 Happy is he who is righteous; 
 Destruction is the lot of the children of untruth; 
 After extravagance follows lasting destitution. 
 
 May ! The caller of the oxen is relieved from care, 
 And the hedge affords comfort to the friendless ; 
 The old are cheerful though their garments be torn, 
 The cuckoo sings, and loud bays the hound; 
 Girls are proud from having numerous lovers, 
 Lovers are happy, and the trees covered with leaves ; 
 And the skin of the lamb comes to market, 
 As often as that of the sheep. 
 
 Cattle are turned out to grass in May ; the allusion in 
 he first line of the above, will thence be intelligible. 
 
 Hwy fydd Hinon na Heiniar 
 Hwy peru Llid na Galar 
 Pob rhyw Arynnaig a ysgar 
 Pob edn a edwyn ei gymmar 
 Pob beth a ddaw trwy'r ddaear, 
 Ond y marw, raawr ei Garchar. 
 
 1 Mis Ebrill, wybraidd gorthir, 
 Lluddedig ychen, llwm tir, 
 Gnawd osb, er nas gwahoddir ; 
 Gwael hydd chwareus clusthir 
 Ami bai He nis cerir 
 Gwyn ei fyd a fo cywir 
 Gnawd difrod ar blant enwir 
 Gnawd gwedi traha, tranc hir. 
 
 Mis Mai difrodus geilwad, 
 Clyd clawdd i bob di gariad 
 Llawen hen di Archenad 
 Llafar cog, a Bytheiad 
 Balch merch o ami gariad 
 Hyddail coed, hyfryd anllad 
 Nid hwyrach daw ir Farchnad 
 Groen yn Oen, na chroen y ddafad. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO ANEURIN. 3 01 
 
 1 June ! The fields are beautiful, 
 
 The sea smooth, and the fish sportive ; 
 
 The genial day is long, and women full of activity ; 
 
 The lawns are dewy, and the bogs passable ; 
 
 God ever loves tranquillity, 
 
 But the devil is the cause of all the mischief ; 
 
 All men desire to he honoured, 
 
 But every potentate will be powerless at last. 
 
 July ! Perspiration is becoming, 
 
 The hay is scattered, and all are bustling ; 
 
 Ants rush about, and strawberries are red ; 
 
 Greyhounds lie inactive in every court ; 
 
 Thin is the cheek of the spiteful, 
 
 But blessed is he who is courteous, 
 
 Though none shall be free from care, 
 
 August ! Foam whitens the seashore, 
 
 Bees are merry, and the hives are full ; 
 
 More useful is the reaping-hook than the (warrior's) bow, 
 
 And ricks are more numerous than play-grounds ; 
 
 Whoever this month is idle, 
 
 "Will suffer poverty in the depth of winter ; 
 
 For it was truth that St. Breda (Brenda, in the Llyfr Hir) declared, 
 
 " Evil comes not less frequently than good." 
 
 September ! The planets are wayward, 
 
 And enjoyment pervades both sea and township ; 
 
 1 Mis Mehefin hardd tiredd; 
 Llyfn mor, Uawen maranedd, 
 Hirgain ddydd, heini gwragedd ; 
 Gwlithog Uwybrau hyffordd mignedd; 
 Duw a gar bob Tangnefedd; 
 Diawl a bar bob Cynddrygedd ; 
 Pawb a chwennych. anrhydedd; 
 Pob cadarn gwan ei ddiwedd. 
 Mis Gorphenaf teilwng chwys; 
 Gweiriau ar dan, pawb mewn brys; 
 Chwimwth morgrug, rhuddion mefus; 
 Segur milgwn ymhob llys ; 
 Llwm yw grudd dyn eiddigus; 
 Gwyn ei fyd o fo cariadus ; 
 Ni bydd byth ddihelbulus. 
 Mis Awst molwynog morfa; 
 Lion Gwenyn llawn modryda; 
 Gwell gwaith crymman na bwa; 
 Amlach das na chwareufa; 
 A fo diog y mis yma, 
 A ddwg eisiau drymder gauaf ; 
 Gwir a ddywaid Saint Breda, 
 Nid llai cyrchir drwg na da. 
 Mis Medi mynawc planed 
 Mwynieithus mor a threufred 
 
302 POEMS FICTITIOUSLY 
 
 Men and horses know fatigue ; 
 
 Every species of fruit becomes ripe ; 
 
 A royal daughter was born, 
 
 Who will deliver us from our grievous captivity ; 
 
 Truly did Saint Bernard say, 
 
 " God sleeps not when he relieves." 
 
 As this verse affords cogent reasons for rejecting the asser- 
 tion of the antiquity of the poem, it may be well here to 
 attempt assigning to it its true date. Mr. Humphreys Parry 
 was the first to question its parentage. He said, " This 
 poem obviously wants those innate evidences of genuineness, 
 which belong to the Gododin. The popular voice, however, 
 has for centuries ascribed both productions to the same au- 
 thor, and it is now too late to dispute the decree." 1 The 
 language, which is modern, and the allusions to historical 
 facts scattered throughout, abundantly prove the correctness 
 of his conclusion; and therefore we have here to do, what he 
 declined to undertake. In the first verse, the poet terms 
 the class of bards, described in the first section of this 
 chapter, Clerwyr, or wanderers ; but as this distinction was 
 not known to the laws of Howel, and first appears in the 
 time of Gruffydd ab Kynan (1080 to 1137,) we may doubt 
 its being known in the sixth century. The customs inci- 
 dentally alluded to, were principally prevalent during the 
 middle and subsequent ages; and the mention of Saints 
 Breda and Bernard must set the question at rest. There 
 is no saint of the name of Breda; this must therefore be 
 either Brenda, or Beda ; the first was three generations re- 
 moved from Gwgan ab Caradoc Vreichvras, a man who 
 was at the battle of Bangor Iscoed in 607, being Brenda ab 
 Helig Yoel ab Glanog ab Gwgan Gleddyv Ehudd f and the 
 second died, according to the best authorities, A.D. 735; but 
 
 Gnawd gwyr a,meirch yn lludded 
 Gnawd pob ffrwyth yn addved 
 Merch frenhinawl a aned 
 An due o'n dygn gaethiwed 
 Gwir a ddywed Saint Berned 
 Ni chwsg Duw pan ro wared. 
 3 Cambrian Plutarch, page 39. 2 Rees's Welsh Saints, page 298. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO ANEURIN. 3Q3 
 
 whichever it was, neither of them was sainted in the time 
 of Aneurin. Saint Bernard was born in 1091, died in 
 1153, and was canonised by Pope Alexander III. in 1174. 
 This brings ns down to the twelfth century, and the 
 internal evidence of the verses, takes us still lower. It 
 will be observed that the poem, unlike those which we have 
 recently perused, not only does not breathe the spirit of 
 war, but condemns it. We shall presently see, that this 
 was a characteristic of nearly all the Welsh poetry, from 
 the fall of Llywelyn to the revolt of Owain Glyndwr ; and 
 therefore must we refer this poem to the beginning of 
 the fourteenth century. The above verse speaks of grievous 
 captivity ; but as the Welsh experienced no captivity, ex- 
 cept the submission to Edward the First and his successors, 
 the poem could not have been written much prior to 1300. 
 The "royal daughter" was probably Gwenllian, 1 the offspring 
 of Llywelyn and Eleanor de Montford. The last lines of the 
 next verse would scarcely be written by one of the Bardic 
 Order; and the author of all these verses was probably a monk. 
 
 2 October ! Men seek sheltering places, 
 
 The birch leaves turn yellow, and the summer seat is 
 
 widowed, 
 Birds and fish are plump and fat, 
 The milk of cow and goat becomes less and less, 
 Woe be to him who lays in sin the root of discreditable 
 
 eruptions, 
 For death is better than frequent disgrace ; 
 Three things will melt every sin, 
 Fast, prayer, and alms. 
 
 November ! Swine become greatly fat, 
 Shepherds go and minstrels come, 
 
 1 Hanes Cymru, p. 707. 
 2 Mis Hydref hydraid hydod 
 Melyn blaen bedw, gwedw Havod 
 Llawnvras adar a physgod 
 Lleilai laeth buwch a gafrod 
 Gwae a haed mefl er pechod 
 Gwell marw na mynych difrod 
 Tri pheth a dawdd pob pechod 
 Ympryd, a gwedi, a chardod. 
 
 Mis Tachwedd moch mehinfawr, 
 Aed bugail, delid cerdawr 
 
3Q4 POEMS FICTITIOULSY 
 
 Butcher's blades are bloody, and the barns full; 
 
 The sea is joyous, and marrowy the contents of every cauldron; 
 
 Long are the nights to prisoners of lively dispositions ; 
 
 All who have treasures are respected; 
 
 Three men who are not often satisfied, 
 
 Are the sorrowful, the angry, and the miserly. 
 
 December ! garments get soiled, 
 
 The land is heavy, and the sun drowsy ; 
 
 The vicious is poor, and the muscle quiet, 
 
 The cock is happy, and the feathered owl; 
 
 For twelve days we may rejoice, 
 
 Because of the birth of the destroyer of Satan ; 
 
 It was truth that Scolan said, 
 
 " God is better than wicked predictions." 
 
 The last line is probably a sneer, at the partiality shown 
 by the people for the predictions of Merddin and Taliesin. 
 
 We have already seen it stated, that Guttyn Owain, a 
 bard who lived about 1450, composed four verses instead of 
 the last four of the preceding. The structure of Guttyn's 
 sentences is superior to that of these ; but in all other 
 respects, the merit of both is about equal. However, as 
 some persons may wish to institute a comparison, and 
 judge for themselves, we will quote the last, — 
 
 1 December ! days are short, and nights are long ; 
 Crows seek the germinating corn, and rushes are on the 
 moors, 
 
 Gwaedlyd llafn llawn escubawr 
 Lion mor merllyd pob callawr 
 Hirnos heinus carcharawr, 
 Parchus pawb a fed drysawr 
 Tri dun nid ami au didawr 
 Trist, Blwng, a chybyd angawr. 
 
 Mis Rhagfyr tomlyd archan, 
 Trwm tir trymluoc huan 
 Llwm gwyd llonyd llywethan 
 Lion ceiliog a thwyllhuan, 
 Au deudeng-nyd yn hoean, 
 Am eni yspeiliwr Satan, 
 Gwir a ddywed Yscolan 
 Orwell Duw na drwg darogan. 
 
 1 Mis Rhagfyr byrddydd, hirnos, 
 Brain yn egin, brwyn ar ros. 
 
ATTRIBUTED TO ANEURIN. 395 
 
 Silent are the bees and the nightingale, 
 
 There is bustling at feasts at the close of night, 
 
 The house of the prudent is comfortable, 
 
 The reckless is unfortunate through his own fault, 
 
 And life, though it be long, 
 
 Will end in day and night. 
 
 There is another set of a dozen verses, attributed to 
 Aneurin in the MS. of Mr. Davies of Bangor, and also 
 in another old MS., though Mr. Rhys Jones, the collector 
 of the specimens of British bards, called Gorchestion y 
 Beirdd, ascribes them to Llywarch the aged, without how- 
 ever giving his authority ; but, it is probable, judging from 
 the smoothness of the language, and the nature of the 
 sentiments, that they were composed by neither, and that 
 they were the products of the same age, as that which gave 
 birth to the Verses of the Months. In poetic merit the last 
 set is decidedly superior, the sentences are more compact, 
 the language more fluent, and the aphorisms seem to spring 
 more naturally from the subject. Some lines in the last 
 verse, are finely descriptive of many a youthful career, 
 
 " The youth who heeds not counsel, 
 Is like a ship on a swelling sea, 
 Without rope, sail, or anchor." 1 
 
 I have already expressed a doubt as to the antiquity of 
 the Gorchanau attributed to Aneurin. Some verses in the 
 Myvyrian Archaiology, p. 541, taken from the MS. of 
 Mr. William Maurice, are also ascribed to him, as appears 
 from a note to the lyric poems of Mr. Edward Williams; 
 but a moment's consideration would have suggested, that 
 Aneurin could not have written in the language of the 
 fifteenth century, or known much about divisions of the 
 
 Tawel gwenyn, ac eos 
 Trin ynghyfedd diweddnos 
 Adail dedwydd yn ddiddos, 
 Adwyth diriad heb achos 
 Yr hoedl er hyd ei haros 
 A dderfydd yn nydd a nos. 
 1 Unfodd a llong ar gefnfor 
 Heb raff heb hwyl heb angor 
 Ydyw'r ieuangc digyngor. 
 
 2Q 
 
3Q(3 POEMS ATTRIBUTED TO LLYWARCH HEN. 
 
 country made several centuries after his death. A dialogue 
 between Saints David and Kybi, is also erroneously attri- 
 buted to "the king of Bards." 
 
 Another set of triplets, ascribed by the collector of the 
 Gorchestion to Llywarch Hen, belong probably to the 
 same era ; as also do two sets of moral verses attributed by 
 the Editors of the Myvyrian Archaiology to the Mab Clav, 
 or the Maer Glas, the son of that aged Bard. L 
 
 This unique manner of inculcating precepts, is very 
 agreeable; and had Dr. Johnson lived among the Kymry of 
 those centuries, his desire for an aphoristic literature could 
 have been easily gratified. Under these circumstances, con- 
 versational talents must have had a fine field for develop- 
 ment ; and perhaps we ought to attribute partly to 
 these fire-side gatherings, the fluency of speech noticed 
 as remarkable among the common people, and the wit which 
 struck Giraldus so forcibly, of the Cambrian princes, Rhys 
 ab Gruffydd and Owain Kyveiliog. The Kymry gene- 
 rally, though they have no knowledge of Rhetoric, are ex- 
 ceedingly metaphorical in their conversation, and use 
 figures of speech with quite as much propriety, and much 
 more naturally, than many very distinguished orators; their 
 irony is perfect, and their sarcasm terrible; but they are 
 more impulsive than persevering; and their mental qualities 
 are more brilliant than profound. The didactic verses of 
 the bards are smooth, graceful, and mellifluous; and in their 
 hands, as in those of the Hebrews, moral science was per- 
 fectly reconciled to popular poetry. 
 
 I must now bring this section to a close ; the results ar- 
 rived at will probably startle many of my countrymen; but 
 the reasons in each case have been fully stated; and a can- 
 did perusal will most probably show that my conclusions 
 are uniformly correct. Our attention in the next place will 
 be occupied by the Chroniclers and Historians of the cen- 
 turies here considered. 
 
 1 Myv. Arch. vol. i. p. 545. 
 
SECTION V. 
 
 Prose Literature, — the Chronicles. 
 
 We must not suppose that poetry was the only form in 
 which the national mind made itself manifest ; for there 
 were the prose romances, which shall be noticed hereafter, 
 and the Triads. In addition to these there were Chronicles 
 and Genealogical records, of which Giraldus makes mention. 
 Of the former, Gildas, Nennius, Geoffrey, and Caradoc 
 may be cited as examples ; but as Gildas and Nennius had 
 lived previous to the time included in this Essay, our notice 
 will be devoted to Geoffrey and Caradoc. Asser may justly 
 be claimed for the literature of Wales, though he wrote in 
 Latin; and there are several other historical records, now 
 slumbering in MSS. 
 
 Of a work so well known as Geoffrey's Chronicle, it is 
 unnecessary to give examples ; and our principal efforts will 
 be devoted to solve the questio vexata, is it a translation, or 
 an original work? The critics of Wales, England, and 
 France, have come to the decided conviction that it is full of 
 fables; but it is still a matter of doubt, who was the inventor 
 of these fables. His own account is as follows : — That while 
 studying the History of the Kings of Britain, and wonder- 
 ing why Gildas and Bede had not made mention of the 
 kings who lived in Britain prior to the Christian era, nor of 
 Arthur, and many others, he was agreeably surprised by a 
 request from Walter, Archdeacon of Oxford, a man of great 
 eloquence, and learned in foreign histories, to translate a 
 book in the British tongue, which Walter had brought from 
 Brittany, — and which related the actions of all the kings 
 of Britain, from Brutus the first king, down to Cadwaladr 
 
30g PROSE LITERATURE. 
 
 the son of Cadwallo. Now is the story about the book 
 being brought from Brittany true, or not ? On the negative 
 side we have Dr. Giles, who thus states his objections; — 
 
 " There are lamentable defects of a grave character, attending 
 upon this British Volume : — 
 
 I. It was first made known six hundred years after the events 
 which it relates. 
 
 II. No MS. copy is now in existence, nor any record of its ever 
 having been multiplied by transcription. 
 
 III. It relates stories utterly at variance with acknowledged 
 history. 
 
 IV. It abounds in miraculous stories, which, like leaven, fer- 
 ment and corrupt the whole mass. 
 
 V. It labours under great suspicion from the mendacious cha- 
 acter of the people, whose credit it was written to support." 
 Bonn's Edition, 1848, p. 292. 
 
 On the affirmative side we have the names of Ellis, 
 Turner, and the older names of Archbishop Usher, Leland, 
 and several Kymric writers of note. Professor Rees, a most 
 careful and acute critic, speaks positively upon the subject, 
 and states that " a Welsh version of the original is pre- 
 served, which shows that (Geoffrey) merely made a free 
 translation, inserting occasionally interpolations of his own." 
 A foreigner of note, the Abbe de la Rue, in a work contain- 
 ing the results of forty years of study, called an " Historical 
 Essay on the Bards, Jongleurs, and Trouveres, Norman 
 and Anglo-Norman," takes the same view of this matter. 
 Living in Brittany, the Abbe had the means of forming an 
 opinion upon the subject, and much importance should be at- 
 tached to the conclusion at which he has arrived, — that the 
 British history of Geoffrey is in reality a translation of a col- 
 lection of the ancient traditions of Bretagne. To prove the 
 truth of this opinion, the author shows that Geoffrey's most 
 bitter contemporary opponents charge him with collecting 
 fables, not with inventing them. William of Newburgh 
 expressly allows this ; and Malmsbury merely says, that 
 Arthur was a monarch whose fame deserved rather to be 
 set forth by the historian than by the fabulist. It must be 
 borne in mind too as the Abbe says, — 
 
THE CHRONICLES. 3Q9 
 
 "That Geffry was a learned man, and his Latin poems prove 
 him to have been well acquainted with the classical authors then 
 in use. Now, if this writer having learning and talent, had ac- 
 tually fabricated the works attributed to him; is it believable 
 that he would not have endeavoured to give them an air of proba- 
 bility which they do not possess ? Would he, as Mr. Ellis has well 
 remarked, represent Italy as menaced with her Breton knights, at 
 a period when the splendid and authentic exploits of Belisarius 
 had filled the whole empire with his glory ? Would he above all, 
 Welsh as he was, have made LToel, an Armorican prince, act the 
 chief part in the continental wars of Arthur, and represent him as 
 but auxiliary to the first? Besides, how can it be said that Geff- 
 ry invented these tales, when many of them may be read in 
 the works of Nennius and the pseudo-Gildas, who wrote three 
 hundred years earlier 1 It appears to me further, that if Geffry of 
 Monmouth had wished to have imposed upon his readers, and to 
 have given his marvels the appearance of truth, he might have 
 supported himself upon an authority, which at this period would 
 have given the greatest weight to his statements, — I mean the 
 lives of the saints. In truth, we find in the middle age legends, 
 many tales relating to Arthur and his knights. Thus the exploits 
 of Arthur are incorporated with the life of St. Dubritius, and were 
 sung in the cathedral of Llandaff centuries before Geffry transla- 
 ted his British History. In the life of St. Gildas, the seduction of 
 Arthur's wife, by Melvas, Earl of Somerset, and the peace sub- 
 sequently made through the mediation of the saint is to be found. 
 The life of St. Pair, Bishop of Vannes, bears testimony to Arthur's 
 deeds on the continent, and the ravages committed in Armorica 
 by Karadoc. In the life of St. Paul of Leon, the conversion of 
 King Mark, husband of Yseult la Blonde, is met with ; and in the 
 life of St. Kentigern, we find how the Jongleurs altered the names 
 of the heroes of the Round Table. None of these are once altered 
 by Geffry ; and to the victorious argument of Mr. Ellis, I will add 
 a last which is unanswerable. We have seen how Gaiman stood 
 in need of books and how his patroness sent to Walter l'Espec to 
 obtain from the Earl of Gloucester, the history which he had 
 caused to be translated from the Welsh. This proves that a his- 
 tory of the British kings existed in Wales in the twelfth century ; 
 and the same Trouvere attests that he had also to aid him in 
 his work, the Brut brought from Bretagne, by Walter, Archdeacon 
 of Oxford, and that this second book had suggested several advan- 
 tageous corrections of the first. This testimony suffices to repel 
 the charge of imposture, which is attempted to be cast upon Geffry 
 of Monmouth." 1 
 
 We do not often find English writers favourable to the 
 
 1 Quoted from a translation in the Athenaeum, No. 425. 
 
310 PROSE LITERATURE. 
 
 pretensions of Kymric literature; it is therefore pleasing to 
 see so profound a critical authority as the Athenceum lean- 
 ing to the same side, — 
 
 " We have always thought that the circumstance of a Welshman 
 being called upon to translate a Breton History, is another corro- 
 boration of Geffrey's statement. Archdeacon Walter Calenius 
 might have sought in vain among the English and Norman learned 
 men, for one who would condescend to learn a mere dialect of a 
 French province; but to the scholar who was a Welshman, the 
 Breton was almost as familiar as his native tongue. And it is re- 
 ported, that even during the late war, those prisoners confined at 
 Brest who understood Welsh, had no difficulty in making them- 
 selves intelligible to the people around them." 1 
 
 Again, we have the authority of the Rev. T. Price, in an 
 excellent digest of the authentic history of Arthur, in sup- 
 port of the same conclusion. This accumulated testimony, 
 makes out a very strong case; and an opinion so firmly 
 founded upon a variety of cogent arguments, cannot be de- 
 void of truth. 
 
 According to the ignoratio elenchi, contained in Dr. Giles's 
 more candid than courteous fifth proposition, I ought to 
 take the affirmative side ; but my views on this long agi- 
 tated question, differ from all that I have yet seen. Geoff- 
 rey's statement appears to be partially, but not wholly true. 
 In the earlier portions, he has probably extended, and perhaps 
 invented some of the narratives ; but still there appears 
 sufficient reason to believe, that the greater part cannot be 
 purely imaginary. It would be well to enquire in the first 
 place, whether there are any statements in the book which 
 may not have been obtained at home. From the words of Nen- 
 nius it is abundantly evident that there were historical re- 
 cords among the Kymry as early as A.D. 796, that being 
 the earliest date assigned to his history. His words, as 
 translated by Dr. Giles, are, — " I have presumed to deliver 
 these things in the Latin -tongue, not trusting to my own 
 learning, which is little or none at all, but partly from turn- 
 ings and monuments of the ancient inhabitants of Britain.' 1 '' 
 
 1 Athenaeum, No. 425. page 939. 
 
THE CHRONICLES. 
 
 311 
 
 Afterwards he says, that he "had derived information from 
 our ancient traditions ;*" and in a subsequent place writes, 
 " I have learned another account of this Brutus, from the 
 ancient books of our ancestors." There are many internal 
 evidences that Nennius w r as indebted to Kymric documents; 
 and it is clearly apparent, that there were histories extant 
 of the actions of the British kings. The " Kyvoesi of Mer- 
 ddin," noticed in the preceding section, gives a list of Bri- 
 tish kings and princes, from Rhydderch Hael A.D. 570, (the 
 Rhydderthan of Nennius) to Rhys ab Tewdwr, A.D. 1077; 
 this must have been compiled from some existing history; 
 and as the list accords exactly with the authentic history 
 2,'iven in the p-eneaWical records of the British kin^s, 
 written by the bards, whose duty it w r as to keep such re- 
 cords, there is no necessity for any further proof that the 
 poem was drawn up from trustworthy documents. Coming 
 down later, we find, on the authority of Geoffrey himself, 
 that prior to being shown the Breton Chronicle, his mind 
 had been fixed upon " the histories of the kings of the Isle 
 of Britain," whose " atchievements were deserving of praise, 
 and were preserved in writing by a great many people, who 
 found it a pleasure to speak of them, and to bear them in 
 remembrance. ^ Another fact of considerable significance, is 
 the date at which Caradoc begins his Chronicle ; for if there 
 were not in existence, a satisfactory history of the kings 
 preceding Cadwaladr, it is strange that he should have con- 
 tented himself with beginning his Chronicle at the time of 
 that monarch's death. We may therefore set at rest the 
 charge brought against Geoffrey of having invented the 
 stories wdiich he relates ; for the quantity of material in exist- 
 ence, rendered much exercise of the inventive faculties un- 
 necessary. The story of the Trojan descent was ready; it is so 
 full in Nennius that but little else is added in Geoffrey ; 
 and it must have been fuller in the former's day than he 
 has represented it ; for as it is absolutely incredible that 
 
 1 Translated from the copy given in the first volume of the Camhrian Register. 
 
312 PROSE LITERATURE. 
 
 public curiosity would have been content with such a skele- 
 ton of a recital, his version is more likely to be an epitome, 
 than a story at full length. Much of the history of Britain 
 under the Romans, is written by Nennius, and might have 
 been easily expanded to the length we find it, without 
 Geoffrey's assistance, for the germs of all the facts stated 
 may be found elsewhere; but the florid colouring and scho- 
 lastic illustrations are undoubtedly his. 
 
 Geoffrey might have written a history of the British 
 kings, from native sources of information, and it therefore 
 becomes of importance to determine whether he did or did 
 not avail himself of these. The hypothesis of his being a 
 historian and not simply a translator, is opposed to the 
 affirmative supposition, but Geoffrey's own work supports it. 
 At the beginning of the seventh book he says, — " I had 
 not got thus far in my history, when the subject of public 
 discourse, happening to be concerning Merlin, I was obliged 
 to publish his prophecies at the request of my acquaintance, 
 but especially of Alexander, bishop of Lincoln, a prelate of 
 the greatest piety and wisdom." Here our author is not 
 a translator, but an original historian. The letter to Alex- 
 ander brings out this fact still more clearly. In that he 
 writes, — " The regard which I owe to your great worth, 
 most noble prelate, has obliged me to undertake the trans- 
 lation of Merlin's prophecies out of British into Latin, 
 before I had made an end of the history which I had begun 
 concerning the acts of the British kings. For my design was 
 to have finished that first, and afterwards to have taken this 
 work in hand ; lest by being engaged on both at once, I 
 should be less capable of attending with any exactness to 
 either." Again he says, in the eleventh book, " Of the 
 matter now to be treated of, most noble consul, Geoffrey of 
 Monmouth shall be silent; but will nevertheless, though in 
 a mean style, briefly relate what he found in the British 
 book above mentioned, and heard from that most learned 
 historian, Walter, Archdeacon of Oxford, concerning the 
 wars which this renowned king, upon his return to Britain 
 
THE CHRONICLES. 31 3 
 
 after this victory, waged against his nephew." From these 
 extracts we deduce several inferences, each utterly irrecon- 
 cileable with the notion of his being simply a translator ; — 
 1, He has evidently admitted having written an original 
 history. 2, He has done so with authorities independent 
 of the Breton Chronicle. 3, In embodying supplementary 
 information from others, he implies, that the said book was 
 not as complete, as in the preface it is asserted to have been. 
 4, And, he gives us clearly to understand that the Breton 
 history, was only followed in the latter part, the rest being 
 Geoffrey's own work. There are other facts tending to the 
 same conclusion. In speaking of king Hudibras, he says, — 
 "At this place an eagle spoke," while the wall of the town 
 was being built ; and indeed I should have transmitted the 
 speech to posterity had I thought it true, as the rest of the 
 history."" This prediction still exists; it is published in 
 the second volume of the My vyrian Archaiology, and a por- 
 tion may be seen in Price's Hanes Cymru, (page 318;) it 
 contains allusions to the Normans, and could not therefore 
 have been found in any book, that was very old in Geoff- 
 rey's day; it is not contained in the Kymric MSS. of his 
 history ; and therefore it is much more probable that he met 
 with it in collecting materials for this work, than that it had 
 been woven into any digested narrative. Again, in writing 
 of Cadwaladr, he alludes to a prediction uttered by Merddin 
 in the presence of Arthur; in his account of Arthur, there is 
 no mention made of such an occurrence; but as, according to 
 Llwyd's account, " a prediction of Myrdhyn before Arthyr," 
 occurs in a MS. called " Y Kwtta Kyvarwydd o Vorganwg," 
 which belonged to the cathedral of Llandaff, he probably 
 met with this also under similar circumstances. The ac- 
 count of the Flamens and Archiflamens, looks like an ec- 
 clesiastical fiction; and the description of Oaerlleon, so 
 graphic and circumstantial, must have been written much 
 nearer home than Brittany. Numerous other facts counte- 
 nance the same conclusion; and not the least important, is 
 the history of the book given by Mr. Aaron Thompson, of 
 
 2R 
 
314 PROSE LITERATURE. 
 
 Queen's College, Oxford, a gentleman who, in 1718, pub- 
 lished an English translation of Geoffrey's work. After 
 stating that Geoffrey was over-joyed when he received the 
 Breton MS., he states, that, "At first he divided it into 
 four books, written in a plain simple style, and dedicated it 
 to Robert, Earl of Gloucester, a copy whereof is said to be 
 at Bennet College, in Cambridge, which was never yet pub- 
 lished; but afterwards he made some alterations, and divi- 
 ded it into eight books, to which he added the book of Mer- 
 lin's Prophecies, which he had also translated from British 
 verse into Latin prose, prefixing to it a preface, and a 
 letter to Alexander, bishop of Lincoln ." The assertion 
 of the translation of the prophecies from British verse, 
 can scarcely be correct, for no other prophetic verses exist 
 among the Kymry than those given in the preceding section ; 
 and the prediction, as it appears in Geoffrey, exists only in 
 one Cambrian MS. of his history. But passing that by, 
 we still find that our Author is an historian ; for the 
 making of new divisions, alterations, and additions in the 
 text of a work, is utterly inconsistent with the duties of a 
 translator. These statements as to first and second editions, 
 are strikingly confirmed by the state of the Cambrian MSS. 
 of this history, three of which have neither the dedicatory 
 epistle nor the description of Britain, now prefixed to the later 
 copies of Geoffrey; one, The Med Book of Hergest, in Jesus 
 College, Oxford, has only the descriptive chapter; and one 
 alone, a copy known to have been written in 1613, has 
 both. We also find the historian continually interrupting 
 the narrative with his own reflections. In the account of 
 Arthur's continental wars, he says that it was a prevailing 
 fault of the Britons to be eager to assault, but not persevering 
 in following up the attack; and at the death of king Careti- 
 cus he introduces a bitter invective against them. In the 
 English translation, this chapter is marked, " the author 
 upbraids the Britons," but in the older Kymric MSS. the 
 remarks are very short ; in another they are expanded ; 
 and in the latest they assume their present form; but in 
 
THE CHRONICLES. ^15 
 
 none of these, is there any mark to denote an intended in- 
 terruption of the narrative. 
 
 These facts, revealing more of the original author than 
 of the translator, tend to throw discredit upon the relation 
 respecting the Breton book ; and there are other facts, 
 which strongly confirm our suspicions as to its truth. It is 
 highly improbable that a book so complete in all respects 
 could have been written by an author without a name. 
 The force of this objection has hitherto been evaded by the 
 assertion that the author was Tysilio ; but Tysilio is not 
 known to have written any such work, and if he had written 
 a British history, we should not. have had to go to Brittany 
 for it. And this argument becomes still more forcible, 
 when the prediction of the eagle, omitted in translating the 
 Breton work, but which was said to be delivered long before 
 the advent of Christ, anticipated, and was therefore really 
 consequent to, the Norman Conquest. Another argument 
 agaiust accepting the story as being literally true, is rather 
 analogical than direct. In Geoffrey's day, and for many 
 centuries afterwards, indeed as late as the time of the 
 Wizard of the North with Jedediah Cleisbotham, it was a 
 very usual practice for writers to give extraordinary ac- 
 counts of their originals, thus not only blunting the edge 
 of criticism, but also creating a fictitious interest. Romance 
 writers did this very frequently; one Trouvere speaking 
 of his book says, — 
 
 " Much was altered, much was lost, a long, long time ago, 
 But blessings on a learned clerk, who sought it out with 
 
 care, 
 And wrote it out, ay verse by verse, until this story rare 
 Was saved complete, and then in book, 'twas straightway 
 
 written fair, 
 And ken ye where I found it ? 'Twas in an Abbey stored, 
 So well I wot, no lie is here, nor foolish deed or word." 2 
 
 Hugh de Rotelande thus begins his " Ypemedon," — 
 
 1 I am indebted for this and the succeeding extract to the No. of the 
 Athenseum already quoted. 
 
31 § PROSE LITERATURE, 
 
 " Marvel, strange it is I trow- 
 That learned clerks, who mickle know 
 Of divers tongues, should ne'er have sougtit 
 This goodly history out, and brought 
 It forth to light, for soothly we 
 Have almost lost its memory, 
 And, therefore ye that are unlearned, 
 Know that from Latin I have turned 
 This goodly story, that ye well 
 May understand it." 
 
 And when this was so common a practice, that a book was 
 scarcely considered to be properly ushered to the reading 
 world without it, it is not going beyond the limits of fair 
 deduction, to say that Geoffrey would probably be influenced 
 thereby. In support of this opinion, there are several 
 facts of considerable significance. We have seen that 
 three out of five Cambrian MSS. have neither preface, nor 
 descriptive chapter at the commencement ; one has only 
 the account of Britain ; and as that is distinctly termed 
 " Y Ragarawd," the prefatory discourse, we may clearly 
 infer that at the date of what appears to be one of the 
 earlier of these MSS. no other preface was known to exist. 
 The Breton story was not therefore as yet in existence. At 
 the end of the earliest of our Manuscript copies of Geoffrey's 
 work, is this entry, " I Walter Archdeacon of Oxford 
 turned this book from Kymraeg to Latin, and in my old age 
 retranslated it from Latin to Kymraeg f 1 at the end of one 
 that appears to be later, the first translation from Kymraeg 
 to Latin is omitted, and it is only said, that, " Walter 
 Archdeacon of Oxford translated it from Latin to Kymraeg, 
 and I (Geoffrey) turned it back again into Latin ;" 2 and 
 in its latest form the story is, that Walter Archdeacon of 
 
 1 Myfi Gwallter Archiagon Rydychen, a droes y llyfr hwnn o Gymraeg yr 
 Lladin. Ac yn vy henaint y troes i ef yr ailwaith o ladin ynghymraec. Myv. 
 Arch. vol. ii. p. 390. 
 
 2 Y llyvyr Kymraec hwnw yr hwn a emchweles Gwallter Archdiaon Ryt 
 Ychein o Ladin eg Kymraec, ac ef ae traethws yn wir ac yn gwbl o istoria e 
 rac dywedigion Gymry, a henny oil a dateinchweleis inheu o Gymraee *n 
 Lladin, ac evelly y tervyna istoria Brut. Myv. Arch. p. 389 — 90. 
 
THE CHRONICLES. 317 
 
 Oxford brought a book from Brittany written in the British 
 language, which could only be translated by one who knew 
 Kymraeg and Latin. 3 Hitherto antiquarians have only had 
 to deal with the last and more perfect form of the story ; 
 but now that we have its infancy, youth, and manhood, we 
 may hope for greater results. The first story is clumsy 
 indeed, and it will be observed clashes in two important 
 points with the last ; in the first Walter Mapes is endowed 
 with such a knowledge of Kymraeg, that for want of some- 
 thing else to do, he translates a book into Kymraeg, when 
 such a work according to the story already existed, while 
 in the second he knows no Kymraeg at all; and in the 
 second point, the first story gives the book a Cambrian 
 original, having no reference made to Brittany, while 
 the latter brings the book from Armorica, and implies 
 that it could not have been produced at home. We might 
 also make a remark on the word " old age." Walter 
 out-lived Geoffrey. The second story clashes with the 
 last in the latter respect, as well as in the former; but 
 differs in giving less prominence to the Kymric acquire- 
 ments of the Oxford Archdeacon. These facts, coupled 
 with the fact above noted respecting the preface, show 
 that various origins had been assigned to the book pre- 
 viously; and these gradated assertions, ending in the 
 assignment of an Armorican source, must show very 
 clearly, that Geoffrey was not unskilled in the art of 
 advertising, and that no dependence can be placed upon 
 the last version he had been pleased to give the world, 
 as to the antecedents of his history. 
 
 Yet does there appear to be something more than 
 the artifice of the Trouvere, in the allusion to this 
 Breton Volume ; for several weighty considerations yet 
 require to be satisfied. These are the following. The 
 narrative of Geoffrey, particularly when it treats of 
 
 1 Cambrian Register, vol. i. p. 27, and Giles's translation of Geoffrey in 
 Bonn's Edition of six old English Chronicles, p. 292. 
 
313 PROSE LITERATURE. 
 
 Arthur, his immediate predecessors, and successors, 
 differs most materially in its facts, and names, from 
 Nennius and the more authentic Kymric Chronicles, 
 by being both more diffuse in some parts, palpably 
 defective in others, and less minute in all. A portion 
 of these discrepancies has been ably exhibited by Pro- 
 fessor Rees. In the preface to his most careful, and 
 valuable work, he says, "It is remarkable that in all 
 the records of the Britons, both in Welsh and Latin, 
 before the twelfth century, historical allusions abound, 
 which are at variance with the narrative of the Armo- 
 rican Chronicle : even the most extravagant tales of 
 Nennius are more limited than those of the late fabulist ; 
 and the various ways in which the same tales are related 
 by the former, prove that in his time they had not reached 
 the consistency of history, whereas in the latter there is 
 no hesitation, but every story is told as positively as if the 
 writer were an eye witness. "- 1 So far the discrepancies may 
 be explained by Dr. Dunham's ingenious principle for the 
 interpretation of fables : 2 — Fables being in their character 
 progressive from a short and simple, to an expanded and com- 
 plex form, acquire additional particulars when ever related. 
 This fact will explain many historical phenomena, and demon- 
 strate clearly that many of the legends in Geoffrey are exten- 
 sions of those of Nennius, and those of Nennius only amplifi- 
 cations of the older Gildas ; but in Geoffrey's work, there 
 are difficulties which cannot be thus explained. Some of 
 these are also well stated by Professor Rees, in a passage full 
 of pointed reasoning and admirable criticism. His words 
 are, " Localities are very powerful auxiliaries in forming 
 a constructive history. In this respect the Armorican 
 Chronicle is exceedingly deficient; for the few localities 
 mentioned in it are certain towns and places which were 
 well known and flourished at a late period, proving not 
 
 1 Rees *s Welsh Saints, preface, viii. 
 2 Dunham's Europe in the Middle ages, vol. iv. p. 67. 
 
THE CHRONICLES. 3X9 
 
 only that the record was recent, but also that it was com- 
 piled in a distant country. The scene of the fable is laid 
 down in Britain, but the places introduced are such as 
 were of sufficient celebrity to be known abroad. The 
 events of history do not always occur at distinguished 
 towns, and it might be expected that places which were 
 celebrated in past ages, had afterwards become obscure.'" 1 
 These remarks apply with peculiar force to the prominence 
 given to Caerlleon in the Arthurian Romance in Geoffrey ; 
 such an assertion could not have originated at home ; and 
 the fact, that long after Arthur became the hero of Cambrian 
 Romance, his palace was fixed in Cornwall, shows most 
 clearly that it did not. Many of the Kymric Romances or 
 Mabinogion make no mention of Arthur, and it is evident 
 that some of those in which his name appears are much earlier 
 than the age of this Chronicler ; the earlier and shorter 
 romances, The dream of Rhonabwy, St. Greal, and Kil- 
 hwch and Olwen, fix the seat of Arthur at Gelliwic in 
 Cornwall ; in the dialogue between Arthur and the Eagle, 
 Arthur describes the Ea°4e as one who traverses the vales 
 of Cornwall, and the Eagle terms Arthur, leader of the 
 Battles of Cornwall ; in the dialogue between Arthur and 
 Gwenhwyvar, the lady says she had seen him at the long 
 table of Gelliwic ; and in the longest and latest only, such 
 as Owain, Peredur, and Geraint, do we find Arthur seated 
 at Caerlleon. These are not referred to by any bard, 
 prior to the appearance of Geoffrey's work, and were I 
 believe written subsequently. We may therefore infer, from 
 a comparison of the earlier romances with Geoffrey's 
 Chronicle, that the Arthurian portion of the latter was 
 composed in Brittany. Arthur's history is much fuller in 
 some respects in Geoffrey than elsewhere, and singularly 
 deficient in others. The Roman wars of that hero, so full 
 in his work, are altogether unknown to the native legends ; 
 and describing Paris, Burgundy, the Alps, Italy, and other 
 
 1 Rees's Welsh Saints, preface, xi. 
 
320 
 
 PROSE LITERATURE. 
 
 places unknown to the Kymry, must have been composed by 
 some person or persons abroad. The same conclusion is 
 supported by the ignorance shown by the author, of Ar- 
 thur's Kymric history. In the days of Nennius, or more 
 probably of Mark the Hermit his Editor in the tenth cen- 
 tury, Arthur was reported to have fought twelve important 
 battles against the Saxons ; but only five of these are 
 mentioned by Geoffrey, and only seven if we include two 
 skirmishes in which Arthur was not present. This will 
 appear more forcible from a comparison of the two lists of 
 the battles, — 
 
 Nennius. Geoffrey. 
 
 1 River Glendi or Glem 1 Camlan (Camelford) 
 
 2 Duglas region of Linuis 2 Duglas 
 
 3 do. 3 Skirmish (Cador Duke of 
 
 Cornwall in command) 
 
 4 do. 4 Province of Lindisior (Lin- 
 
 coln) 
 
 5 do. 
 
 6 River Bassa 
 
 7 Celydon 5 The Wood of Caledon 
 
 8 Gurnion Castle 
 
 9 Caerlleon 
 
 10 Traeth Trevroit 6 Skirmish (Cador in com- 
 
 mand) 
 
 11 Breguin (Berwyn) 
 
 1 2 Badan 7 Battle of Bath. 
 
 Kespecting the battle of Badon, Nennius, or we should, I 
 think, say his Editor, states that Arthur bore on his shield 
 the image of the virgin, and that he slew with his own hand 
 nine hundred and forty men. Geoffrey states the same res- 
 pecting the shield; but reduces the number of Arthur's 
 victims to exactly one half, or four hundred and seventy. 
 We have seen that, in relating the story of Arthur and 
 Medrod in Britain, he has recourse to other authorities, than 
 that which had sufficed for the account of the hero's conti- 
 nental wars. In most Kymric copies there is no remark to 
 this effect ; in the last the authority is said to be Walter, 
 the Archdeacon; but in the earliest Cambrian MS. the truth 
 
THE CHRONICLES. 321 
 
 seems to peep out in the words, a Here ends the story of 
 Arthur and Medrod," thus by the admission of an extra 
 story implying that some other authority had been used pre- 
 viously. This ignorance of true Kymric history, again ap- 
 pears, still more distinctly as we proceed. In the following 
 table, where the list of kings given by Geoffrey, is compared 
 with the much more perfect one given in the poem called 
 the Kyvoesi of Merddin, the discrepancy is most surprising. 
 Of the three first in Geoffrey's list, Kymric writers know 
 nothing, while our traditions, triads, and historical docu- 
 ments are shown to be more authentic, by the fact that 
 Nennius names the same persons as the native authorities, — 
 
 Geoffrey. The " Kyvoesi" of Merddin. 
 
 Constantine Rhyddercli Hael 
 
 Aurelius Conan Morgan ab Sadurnin 
 
 Wortiphorius Urieu Rheged 
 
 Malgo Maelgwn 
 
 Careticus Rhun, son of Maelgwn 
 
 Beli, son of Rhun 
 
 Iago, son of Beli 
 Cad van Cadvan, son of Iago 
 
 Cadwallo Cadwallon, son of Cadvan 
 
 Cadwaladr Cadwaladr, son of Cadwallon 
 
 There is no Cereticus known to Kymric history, except 
 Caredig the son of Cunedda Wledig, who gave his name 
 to Ceredigion, (Cardiganshire,) and who lived a hundred 
 and fifty years before Maelgwn's death; there is therefore a 
 hiatus of three reigns of which Geoffrey's authority gives 
 only a most confused account ; and as Nennius had given a 
 better history of that era, we have no alternative but 
 to admit that our author was here led astray by some 
 Breton document. Another trait of foreign origin is the 
 legend of Cadwaladr 1 s death and canonization ; Nennius had 
 given an account of his death, and the triads relate, with 
 considerable distinctness, and minute fidelity, his death and 
 its cause ; and therefore, as the story could not have origi- 
 nated at home, it must have sprung up among the Kymric 
 fugitives in Armorica. 
 
 2S 
 
322 PROSE LITERATURE. 
 
 The explanation of all these facts seems to be a Breton 
 book. In all the varied stories, as to the origin of the 
 history, one fact continually appears — the name of Walter, 
 Archdeacon of Oxford ; he was a student of antiquities; it is 
 probable he may have been in Brittany, and there collected 
 the story of Arthur's continental exploits, for he was among 
 the first to introduce the Kymric romances in a Norman 
 French dress; it is strange that his name should have been se- 
 lected, if there were not some truth in the story; and it would 
 have been still more strange if he had permitted his name 
 to be so freely used without making any remonstrance, un- 
 less the assertion was to some extent correct. We may there- 
 fore, I think, safely conclude, that Geoffrey was less a trans- 
 lator than original author, that the ecclesiastical and scho- 
 lastic flourishes are his own, that a great part of the work 
 was derived from Kymric sources, and that in the wars of 
 Arthur and the concluding portions, he has borrowed from 
 Armorican traditions, or probably translated some Breton 
 Manuscript. 
 
 At this distance of time, when the facts on which opi- 
 nions should be based are so very few, we cannot hope to es- 
 tablish anything further than a considerable degree of 
 probability; but if the views advanced above be correct, 
 there could have been no complete Kymric original of Geoff- 
 rey. The earliest of our MSS., one of which was translated 
 into English in 1811 by the Rev. Peter Roberts, are, I 
 should imagine, translations of the first Latin copy of the 
 history of the British kings. 
 
 The proper name of Geoffrey, was Gruffydd ab Arthur. 
 He is supposed to have received his education at the Bene- 
 dictine monastery, near Monmouth, where tradition still 
 points out a small apartment as his study. He received 
 the designation Geoffrey of Monmouth, from being Arch- 
 deacon of that place. After the above lengthened discus- 
 sion of his history, it were needless to say that he was 
 distinguished for literary attainments. The first of his 
 compositions in point of time, is said to have been a Latin 
 
THE CHRONICLES. 393 
 
 translation of the Prophecies of Merlin, which he undertook 
 at the request of Alexander bishop of Lincoln ; yet this 
 must be an error, for he expressly states that he was previ- 
 ously engaged upon his history; but though it was not the 
 first written, it may have been the first published. It is 
 possible that it was this which obtained for him the regard 
 of Walter Mapes. The Historia Britonum came next, a 
 work, says Dr. Giles, " from which nearly all our great ver- 
 nacular poets have drawn the materials for some of their 
 noblest works of fiction, and characters of romance." It 
 was dedicated to Robert, Earl of Gloucester; and as he died 
 in 1147, must have been written before that year. A third 
 composition has also been ascribed to him, the Vita Merlini 
 in Latin hexameter verse; but the same author asserts that 
 "internal evidence plainly proves it to be the work of a 
 different author." Geoffrey's fame therefore rests upon the 
 British history. It is commonly asserted by English 
 authors, that he was consecrated bishop of St. Asaph, Feb. 
 24th, 1152; but that is an error, the detection of which is 
 due to the author of the Biographical Dictionary of Emi- 
 nent Welshmen. The correct account is given by the 
 old chronicler Oaradoc, who speaks of him in these terms, 
 — "In the year 1152, Galfrai ab Arthur, the domestic 
 chaplain of William ab Robert, (Earl of Gloucester,) was 
 made bishop (of Llandaff,) but before he entered on his 
 office he died at his house at Llandaff, and was buried in 
 the church there. He was a man whose equal was not to 
 be found for learning and science, and every godly quality. 
 He was the foster son of Uchtryd, Archbishop of Llandaff, 
 and his nephew, being his brother's son ; and on account of 
 his learning and science, an Archdeaconry was bestowed 
 upon him in the church of Teilo, at Llandaff, where he was 
 the instructor of many learned men and nobles. 1 " 
 
 The frequent occurrence of the name of Walter Mapes, 
 in the preceding pages, may possible have created a desire 
 
 1 Myv. Arch. Vol. II. p. 566. 
 
324 PROSE LITERATURE. 
 
 to know more of him. He was the son of Blondil de Mapes, 
 who came with Robert Fitzhamon to Glamorgan; and ob- 
 tained the lands of Gweirydd ab Seisyllt, lord of Llancar- 
 van ; but he had the generosity to marry Flur the only 
 living child of Gweirydd. By her Blondil had two sons, 
 Herbert, and Walter. Herbert dying without heirs, Wal- 
 ter inherited after his brother, and built the village of Tre- 
 walter, with a mansion for himself. He restored most of the 
 lands of which he became possessed, to the original proprie- 
 tors; and he built the church of Llancarvan at it now stands. 
 He is said to have translated a British Chronicle into Latin; 
 but the truth of the story is doubtful. Dr. Pughe also 
 asserts, that he wrote a treatise on agriculture in Welsh, 
 which is extant in several manuscripts 1 . He is known to 
 have written, about 1170, his " Roman des diverses quetes 
 du St. Graal," in which the chief heroes of romance, Lance- 
 lot, Ywain, Gawain, Caradoc, Galaad, Bort, and Percival, 
 that most worthy of knights who alone was honoured with 
 success in the search, appear. This romance was also 
 written in prose ; a singular circumstance, for Walter 
 Mapes wrote verse, and it was put into metre by Chretien 
 de Troyes. Plantagenet, to whom this work was dedicated, 
 was so pleased with it that he requested a continuation; and 
 then Walter Mapes wrote La mort d'Arthur, as a conclu- 
 sion of the history of the Round Table. Another favourite 
 romance is also attributed to the prolific pen of this writer, 
 the "Lancelot du Lac." 2 Mr. Leigh Hunt has prettily 
 versified some lines composed by him. 
 
 Caradoc of Llancarvan is the Chronicler most in repute. 
 He belonged to this age, as we learn from the conclusion of 
 Geoffrey's History, where he is styled " my contemporary." 
 His Chronicle commences where the other leaves off, at the 
 abdication of Cadwaladr; and both writers seem to have 
 been on intimate terms; " Of this work," as Mr. Malkin re- 
 
 1 Cambrian Biography, p. 341. 
 
 2 I am indebted for these particulars to the Athenscum, No. 426. 
 
THE CHRONICLES. 325 
 
 marks, "there were several copies preserved in the abbeys of 
 Conway and Ystradffiur, which generally agreed in matter, 
 but differed in their phraseology and the period of their ter- 
 minations. This apparent variance may be reconciled by 
 supposing, that such copies were so many different editions 
 written by him, and distributed in the course of his life, 
 which terminated according to some accounts in the year 
 1156; but probably the time of his death is taken for 
 granted, because he ended his collections with that year. 
 One of his works, printed in the, Welsh Archaiology, comes 
 down to the year 1196; but David Powel, who corrected, 
 augmented, and continued Humphrey Lloyd's translation, 
 accounts for this circumstance by informing us, that these 
 successions and acts of the British princes were afterwards 
 augmented yearly, and compared together every third year 
 by the bards in their progress from one abbey to the other, at 
 the time of their triennial visitation. This species of re- 
 gister was continued in those abbeys till the year 1280, 
 two years before the death of the last Llewelyn. There is 
 another copy extant which contains the whole down to this 
 latest period, but still without distinction of Caradoc 
 from his continuator. In David Powel's time, which was 
 that of queen Elizabeth, there were at least one hundred 
 copies dispersed over Wales ; and when we consider that 
 all these agreed in every thing, but in form and literal 
 phrase, and that Humphrey Lloyd inserted what was de- 
 fective and corrected what was discordant from the autho- 
 rities of Matthew Paris, and Nicholas Trivet, we may 
 reasonably believe that the present translation, improved as 
 it is from records and authors consulted by David Powel, 
 forms a sufficiently authentic compendium of Welsh anti- 
 quities. 1 " 
 
 After Caradoc's Chronicles, the most important docu- 
 ment pertaining to this era, is the Liber Landavensis, or 
 Book of Teilo. The able historical sketch prefixed to it, 
 
 1 South Wales, volume i. p. 194, and Owen's Cambrian Biography, p. 40. 
 
320 PROSE LITERATURE. 
 
 by the learned Editor, renders it unnecessary for me to do 
 more, than offer a few general remarks on its contents. It 
 gives a minute account of the lives and fortunes of the 
 bishops of Llandaff, for nearly five hundred years, ending 
 about 1132. As might have been anticipated, it is full of 
 monastic legends, many of them puerile, but all instructive 
 when rightly considered. The document is evidently au- 
 thentic, as the writer narrates some singular facts, strik- 
 ingly illustrative of the age, but reflecting no great credit 
 on the honesty and disinterestedness of the order, without 
 the least consciousness that they would be censured by less 
 reverent readers. It portrays in graphic sentences, the man- 
 ners of the times, the abject superstition of the people, the 
 complete subjugation of princes and chieftains to clerical 
 despotism, and the extraordinary ascendancy which the 
 papal clergy had obtained over the minds of men. It is a 
 book which the student of history should read ; his opinion 
 of the dignity of the human nature may perhaps be lowered 
 by observing how abject it had become; but his aspirations 
 for human perfectibility will be encouraged, by seeing that 
 men emerged out of even that chaos; and in any case, he 
 cannot rise from its perusal, without being a wiser, and may- 
 hap a better man. This volume has lately been published 
 by the Welsh MSS. Society, and is graced by the beautiful 
 typography, which has earned a deserved celebrity for the 
 Llandovery Press. 
 
 Pertaining to the same period is the Chronicle called 
 Brut y Saeson, which, say the Editors of the Myvyrian 
 Archaiology, was so termed, " not because that it was pecu- 
 liarly a history of the Saxons, but from its connecting with 
 the affairs of Wales, a general review of the transactions of 
 all Britain. 1 " Llwyd mentions a MS. giving an account of 
 " the wonderful times from the reign of Vortigern, to that 
 of Llywelyn ab Gruffydd;" and another " Chronicle from 
 the beginning of the world, to the year 1200." 
 
 1 Myv. Arch. Vol. ii. p. 7. 
 
PROSE LITERATURE. 327 
 
 Edeyrn Dafod Aur, or Edeyrn the golden tongued, 
 lived during the thirteenth century, and wrote a work on 
 British prosody. This ancient Cambrian Grammar, was 
 written at the injunction and desire of Llywelyn ab Gruff- 
 ydd (prince of Wales from 1254 to 1282,) Rhys Vychan, 
 lord of Dynevor and Ystrad Towy, and Morgan Vychan, 
 lord paramount of Glamorgan. Among the contents of the 
 MS. called Y Kwtta Kyvarwydd, is or was an old treatise 
 on Geometry. Ivan ap y Dewlith is said 1 to have written a 
 treatise on the Kymric metres. Besides these, the Welsh 
 MSS. Society has been recommended to publish the follow- 
 ing :— 
 
 Llyfr Coch Llanelwy, or the red book of St. Asaph. 
 
 Chronicles of Wales, in the Lambeth Library. 
 
 Chronicles of Wales in the thirteenth century, compiled in 
 the Abbey of Strata Florida; in the Record Office. 
 
 The inedited matter of the Llyfr Coch o Hergest, in the 
 Library of Jesus College, Oxford. 
 
 .^EGISTRUM PRIORATUS DE BRECKNOCK. 
 
 Ancient Records from the time of Edward III., belonging to 
 the Manor Court of Ruthin. 
 
 Meddygon Myddfai, or a compendium of the Medical prac- 
 tice of the celebrated Rhiwallon and his sons, Cadwgan, Gmffydd, 
 and Einion, of Myddfai, Carmarthenshire, Physicians to Rhys 
 Gryg, lord of Dynevor and Ystrad Towy, son of Rhys ap Gruffydd, 
 A.D. 1230. 
 
 The last Volume promises to be a treat ; for if the whole be 
 as full of good sense as the last sentence, quoted by Llwyd, 
 the work of these Cambrian Esculapii embodies much 
 shrewd observation. Besides these, there is now in the 
 press, edited by the Rev. W. J. Rees, compiled from an- 
 cient Manuscripts, The Lives of the Welsh Saints. 
 
 The preceding pages will have exhibited great mental ac- 
 tivity among the Kymry In the poetical department, the 
 remains are numerous; but the scarcity of prose literature, 
 leaves room for doubt, that in a period of so much intellec- 
 tual labour there must have been other prose compositions 
 
 1 Iolo Manuscripts, p. 88. 
 
328 PROSE LITERATURE. 
 
 than have come down to us. The proofs of this are by no 
 means scanty; and it is clear from Llwyd's catalogue of 
 Cambrian MSS. that many valuable relics have either been 
 lost, or have not yet seen the light. Through the instru- 
 mentality of the Welsh MSS. Society, we trust that many 
 of the documents known to exist, may be made public. 
 
 Having now shown the existence, nature, and extent of 
 the prose literature of Wales, our attention will next be 
 profitably given to the influence it exerted over that of other 
 countries. It is not here intended to treat at length of the 
 influence of Kymric tradition — the full consideration of that 
 being left until we come to speak of the Mabinogion ; but 
 only of the immediate influence of Geoffrey's work, upon 
 his contemporaries. It is pretty generally known that the 
 Brut cTAngleterre of Maister Wace, is a translation of Geoff- 
 rey's history; but it has not until recently been surmised 
 that many English Authors drew largely from Cambrian 
 sources. Now, it is conceded, that Layamon in his Brut, a 
 work of great power, has drawn liberally from Geoffrey, and 
 also from other sources. The admission has recently been 
 made by an English Author ; whom it would be but fair 
 to quote in his own words. — After stating that Layamon 
 had borrowed from Geoffrey he goes on to say, — 
 
 "That Layamon was indebted for some of these legends to 
 Welsh sources not recorded in Geoffrey of Monmouth, or Wace, 
 is scarcely to be questioned ; and they supply an additional argu- 
 ment in support of the opinion that the former was not a mere in- 
 ventor. Many circumstances incidentally mentioned by Layamon 
 are to be traced to British origin, — as for instance, the notice of 
 Queen Judon's death, the mention of Taliesin, and his conference 
 with Kimbelin ; the traditionary legends relative to Arthur, the 
 allusions to several prophecies of Merlin ; and the names of 
 various personages who do not appear in the Latin or French. 
 References are occasionally made to Works extant in the time of 
 Layamon, but which are not'now to be recognized. 1 " 
 
 From this fact we are of course justified in concluding 
 that the Kymric literature of this period, was much more 
 
 1 Sir Frederick Madden's Edition of Layamon, Preface, Vol. I. p. xii. 
 
PROSE LITERATURE. 329 
 
 copious and valuable, than our scanty remarks would have 
 led us to anticipate. But Sir Frederick Madden is not the 
 only English critic who has recently shown a disposition to 
 do justice to the early literature of the Kymry; for I lately 
 had the pleasure of reading the following paragraph, in the 
 pages of the profound and erudite Quarterly. I make no 
 apology for quoting the opinions of these eminent critics ; 
 for circulating only among the higher ranks, and literary 
 circles, they can only be rendered accessible to the general 
 reader by quotation. In the Article on " Antiquarian Club 
 Books," the writer states, — 
 
 " We cannot conclude our remarks, without a few words on the 
 obligations of our literature and that of all Western Europe to a 
 writer whom it has been greatly the fashion to abuse — Geoffrey of 
 Monmouth. We leave entirely out of question the truth, or false- 
 hood of his narrative. Scarcely a Welshman of the old school 
 could now be found to vouch for Brutus' colonization of Britain ; 
 though we dare say it is to the full as true as the settlement of 
 Italy by iEneas, and many other things gravely recorded by Livy 
 and Dionysius of Halicarnassus. The merit of Geoffrey consists 
 in having collected a body of legends highly susceptible of poetic 
 embellishment, which, without his intervention, might have 
 utterly perished, and interwoven them in a narrative calculated 
 to exercise a wonderful influence on national feelings, and na- 
 tional literature. The popularity of the work is proved by the 
 successive adaptation of Waee, Layamon, Robert of Gloucester, 
 Mannyng and others; and its influence on the literature of Europe 
 is too notorious to be dwelt upon. It became as Mr. Ellis well ob- 
 serves, one of the corner stones of romance; and there is scarcely 
 a tale of chivalry down to the sixteenth century, which has not 
 directly, or indirectly, received from it much of its colouring. 
 Some matter of fact people, who would have mercilessly committed 
 the whole of Don Quixote's Library to the flames, Palmerin of 
 England included, may perhaps think, this particular effect of its 
 influence rather mischievous than beneficial. We are far from sym- 
 pathizing with such a feeling. Whatever might be the blemishes 
 of this species of literature, it was suited to the taste and acquire- 
 ments of the age, and teuded to keep up a high and honourable 
 tone of feeling that often manifested itself in corresponding ac- 
 tions. Above all, we must not forget, that it is to the previous ex- 
 istence of this class of compositions that we are indebted for some 
 of the noblest productions of human intellect. If it were to be 
 conceded that Wace, Layamon, and the whole cycle of romances 
 of the Round Table, might have been consigned to oblivion with- 
 
 2T 
 
330 PROSE LITERATURE. 
 
 out any serious injury to the cause of literature, we may be re- 
 minded that Don Quixote certainly, and Ariosto's Orlando most 
 probably, arose out of them. Perhaps Gorboduc, and Ferrex and 
 Porrex, might not be much missed from the dramatic literature of 
 Europe; but what should we think of the loss of Lear and Cymbe- 
 line? Let us then thankfully remember Geoffrey of Monmouth, 
 to whom Shakespeare was indebted for the groundwork of those 
 marvellous productions, and without whose " Historia Britonum," 
 we should probably never have had them. A spark is but a small 
 matter in itself ; but it may serve to kindle a " light for all na- 
 tions." 1 
 
 Leaving Geoffrey, now that justice has been done to him, 
 to rest in peace, I shall conclude this section with a short 
 sketch of the intellectual characteristics and habits of the 
 Kymry, as drawn by the graphic and not unfriendly hand of 
 Giraldus. Pictures of national manners are always interest- 
 ing; and become much more so, when the manners are those 
 of a remote age, portrayed by the hand of a contemporary, 
 intimately acquainted with the people, and with opportuni- 
 ties in abundance to form just estimates. The description 
 is lengthy, graphic, and complete; but on account of having 
 already quoted so freely, I shall confine the extracts to 
 what has reference to the intellectual condition of the 
 Kymry at the end of the twelfth and beginning of the 
 thirteenth century. The description is to the following 
 purport : — 
 
 "They were a people of acute and subtle genius. In civil 
 causes and actions they exerted all the powers of Rhetoric ; and 
 in the conduct of these, their talents for insinuation, invention, 
 and refutation were conspicuous. In rhythmical songs, and in ex- 
 temporary effusions, they are said to be excellent, both in respect to 
 invention, and elegance of style; and for these purposes bards 
 were appointed; but beyond all other rhetorical ornaments, they 
 preferred the use of alliteration; and that kind, more especially, 
 which repeats the first letters, or syllables of words. They made 
 so much use of this ornament in every finished discourse, that 
 they thought nothing elegantly spoken without it. 
 
 " In private company, or in seasons of public festivity, they 
 were very facetious in their conversation, with a view of enter- 
 
 1 Quarterly Review, for March, 1848, p. 230. 
 
PROSE LITERATURE. 231 
 
 taining the company, and displaying their own wit. And persons 
 of lively parts, sometimes in wild, and sometimes in sarcastic 
 terms, under the cover of a double meaning, by a peculiar turn 
 of voice, or by the transposition of words, were continually utter- 
 ing humorous or satirical expressions. 
 
 " The lowest of the people, as well as the chieftains, were in- 
 debted to nature for a certain boldness of speech, and an honest 
 confidence in giving answers to great men on matters of business, 
 or in the presence of princes." 1 
 
 These facts, coupled with the literature which we have 
 already passed in review, give us an elevated conception 
 of the Kymric character of the time of Llywelyn ab Ior- 
 werth; and fully justify the conclusion arrived at by M. 
 Augustin Thierry, 2 that the Welsh were the most civilized 
 and intellectual people of that age. 
 
 1 Warrington's Translation, History of Wales, p. 166 — 7, Vol. I. 
 
 2 History of the Norman Conquest, Wlrittaker's Edition, p. 159. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 History of Literature from A. D. 1080 to 1322. 
 
 Upon casting a cursory glance over what we have written, 
 the reader is invited to consider two facts: — First, The 
 number of compositions produced within the time included 
 between the arrival of Gruffydd ah Kynan, and the death of 
 Sir Gruffydd Llwyd, as compared with preceding peri- 
 ods ; and secondly, Their marked superiority. The sixth 
 century formed one striking era in our literary history; but 
 from the abdication of Cadwaladr towards the middle of the 
 seventh century, to the recovery of his patrimony by Gru- 
 ffydd ab Kynan in the year 1080, we have only a few poems 
 to show, and those of no great merit ; nor have we much 
 reason to believe that there were many poems produced 
 during that period. But towards the commencement of the 
 twelfth century a host of bards make their appearance, the 
 compositions are of a superior character, literature becomes 
 an honourable calling, and princes enter the arena of poetic 
 contests. Such are the facts ; what are their causes ? 
 
 Not the least perplexing problem which offers itself, and 
 demands solution at the -hands of the historian, is the very 
 striking change sometimes observable in the characters of 
 nations ; and the reader of Kymric history in the eleventh 
 century, without having examined the tendencies of the 
 agents then at work, will be but ill prepared for the pheno- 
 mena exhibited in the succeeding century. The discord of 
 
HISTORY OF LITERATURE, ETC. 333 
 
 centuries had been healed, — the lassitude of ages had been 
 replaced by activity and energy, petty animosities had been 
 quelled, rulers of ability overawed the turbulence of their 
 subjects, and all seemed eager to forget personal enmities to 
 further the national good. Great occasions develope great 
 actors; and never was the influence of commanding talent 
 and individual magnanimity more wonderfully exemplified, 
 or more generally beneficial, than in the destinies of Wales 
 during the two hundred and fifty years which we here pass 
 in review. Never had Wales been placed in more imminent 
 peril, never had the power of England been so united, and 
 so overwhelming, never had it been directed by so much 
 ability ; but with the danger, rose the capacities of the 
 Kymry, and the successive, and successful repulses of the 
 vast armaments of England afford undeniable proofs of 
 skill and valour. An insignificant nation, an obscure people, 
 and a scorned race in a few years carved out for itself an 
 honourable position among the nations of Europe. It rose 
 above itself, and rivalled the cherished glories of ancient 
 Greece; — alas that it should have been the transient glare 
 of the setting sun ! Laws w T ere cheerfully obeyed, the call 
 to arms was readily responded to, industry was promoted, 
 and order reigned over the whole principality. Progress in 
 one department generally betokens improvement in others; 
 and the same age which witnessed the military prowess of 
 the Kymry formed what has been termed, without regard 
 to strict propriety, the second Augustan Era of their 
 Literature. 
 
 The causes of these changes may be divided into two 
 classes, — General causes affecting the civilized world gene- 
 rally, and special causes in the personal characters of the 
 Kymric princes. 
 
 When Gruffydd ab Kynan returned from Ireland, the 
 old world was beginning to awake, from what Heeren pithily 
 terms the sleep which threatened to be its last ; and Europe 
 was about to assume another aspect. Such periods are not un- 
 frequent in human history; for we find there periods of rest, 
 
334 HISTORY OF LITERATURE 
 
 and periods of activity. For some time the world will be 
 full of vitality, then comes the night at the close of day, — 
 the hour of rest ; which again in its turn gives place to the 
 renewed toil of the morrow. Our Essay opens with one 
 of these morrows. Europe had long been asleep ; there 
 were no evidences of energy, and greatness, but on all 
 sides there lay laziness and littleness. Parvanimity had 
 set its mark on every thing. Men were idle, books were 
 unknown, and the wars of no account ; but the morrow 
 morn appears, and Gregory the Seventh announces the 
 coming of a new era. Hildebrand infused his own energy 
 into the great minds of Europe; and contemporary with him 
 we find the names of Scotus, Roscelin, and Abelard, stand- 
 ing up for the liberty of thought, and speech. At the 
 same time there was a movement on foot to establish 
 boroughs, and diffuse public political power. 
 
 In all things we find movement. The arts flourished, 
 sciences were studied, knowledge became more diffused, and 
 a spirit was evoked whose beneficial labours have come down 
 to the present day, and pervade the whole of our social 
 constitution. 
 
 When once the potent spirit of revolution is set at work, 
 it is impossible to define the limits of its operations; it 
 seizes hold of everything that comes within its reach ; and 
 employs all things to accomplish new ends. Our know- 
 ledge is multiplied, new facts come to light, and the vast 
 capacities of human nature are developed to their fullest ex- 
 tent. The enlightened reader is aware that at this period 
 Europe was studded with numerous nations of different 
 origin, whose presence became more and more known as the 
 decline of the Roman Empire became more and more appa- 
 rent. At this period the Latin language was the medium of 
 communication between the learned men of various countries; 
 but we now perceive the languages of the common people 
 forcing themselves into the literature of the day. "Another 
 epoch," says Ranke, " soon proclaimed itself in the national 
 tongues, almost everywhere rising into importance at the 
 
FROM A.D. 1080 TO A.D. 1322. 335 
 
 same period. The idiom of the church gradually gave 
 place to them, as they slowly, but steadily forced their way 
 into the manifold departments of intellectual activity. The 
 common ties that bound nations together began to be dis- 
 solved, and there followed a separation in a higher sense 
 than before. Up to this time the ecclesiastical element had 
 overpowered the nationalities ; it had altered their charac- 
 ter and position; but now, that they again assumed each its 
 own distinct place, they entered upon a new career. 1 " And 
 the necessary consequence of the protrusion of new langua- 
 ges, was the formation of a new literature more consonant 
 with the spirit of the age, than "that of the church. The 
 literary history of England, France, Italy, Spain, and 
 Portugal date from this period ; the Romance Provencal, 
 and the Romance Wallon, as M. de Sismondi terms the 
 languages of the South and North of France, originated in 
 these centuries; and if we except Spain, no other European 
 nation had previous to the twelfth century anything deserv- 
 ing the name of literature. 
 
 The Kymry were better prepared than most other Euro- 
 pean nations, for the impulse which was now being given to 
 every species of intellectual effort. They had among them 
 an order of bards already numerous and well disciplined, and 
 a language which was in use in all its fulness and richness, 
 among all classes of the people; and as a necessary conse- 
 quence their literature became superior, more copious, and 
 richer than that of any contemporaneous nation. In Eng- 
 land, and on the continent, the chief literature is composed 
 of Chronicles and Romances ; while in Wales the fabulous 
 literature so prized by others was in no great repute, but 
 gave way to the public preference for the more laboured and 
 artistic productions of the bards. But besides Chronicles, 
 Romances, Poems of various characters, and Mabinogion, 
 they had a large collection of moral and historical triads, 
 and were in the habit of holding periodical Eisteddvods, 
 
 1 Ranke"s History of the Popes, Vol. 1. p. 34. 
 
330 HISTORY OF LITERATURE 
 
 where the bards and musicians displayed their skill to ad- 
 miring critics. The Kymric princes busied themselves to 
 reform the laws, improve the popular manners, patronize 
 literary meetings, build castles, and discipline their armies, 
 and were in no respect, with regard to knowledge, or neces- 
 sary art, inferior to their neighbours. Not only were they 
 equal to other princes in these acquirements; but they have 
 also claims to superiority, which are forcibly stated by the 
 Rev. Thomas Price : — 
 
 "But while the Kymry were as far advanced in these respects as 
 their neighbours, they excelled them in other things — particularly 
 in the composition of their poetry, and in the cultivation of their 
 language. For while other nations were nearly destitute of regu- 
 lar languages, and struggling to form new tongues under excessive 
 difficulties, the Kymry were possessed of a copious and expressive 
 language, which had been polished by the intelligence of many 
 centuries, and was now the treasury of a rich bardic literature, 
 which had taken root among them from time immemorial. Con- 
 sequently when this stimulus came, instead of having to frame a 
 new language, they had one ready formed ; and that now found 
 embodiment in the polished diction of a classic literature.""! 
 
 The age was one of general activity; and not the least in- 
 teresting feature manifested among the Kymry, was the 
 frequent occurrence of feasts, fetes, and congresses. We 
 have already noticed the Eisteddvodau said to have been 
 held by Cadwaladr, Asserius Menevensis, and Bleddyn ab 
 Kynvyn. These occurred prior to the time treated of here; 
 but subsequently a considerable impetus had been given to 
 such meetings by Rhys ab Tewdwr, who assumed the 
 sovereignty of South Wales in 1077. On his return to 
 Wales from Brittany, "he brought with him the system 
 of the Round Table, which, at home, had become quite for- 
 gotten, and he restored it as it is with regard to minstrels 
 and bards, as it had been at Caerlleon upon Usk, under the 
 Emperor Arthur, in the time of the sovereignty of the race 
 of the Kymry over the Island of Britain, and its adjacent 
 Islands; and it was placed under the protection of the 
 church of Cattwg in the Vale of Neath, in Glamorgan, 
 
 1 Hanes Cymru, p. 536. 
 
FROM A.D. 1080 TO. A.D. 1322. 337 
 
 which was from the time of St. Teilo possessed of the privi- 
 lege, ecclesiastically confirmed, that neither war nor weapons 
 of slaughter could be brought into the parish of Cattwg, 
 neither by the people of the adjacent country, or any other 
 whatever, under bond and pledged hand throughout all the 
 districts of the Isle of Britain. And then, after placing the 
 system under the protection of the church, an honourable 
 Eisteddvod was held by proclamation of a year and a day, 
 to which an invitation was given under the protection of the 
 state, to all bards to assemble in the hall of the church; 
 where, according to the royal institution of the Round 
 Table, degrees were conferred on the chiefs of song, and gifts 
 and presents made them, as in the time of the Emperor 
 Arthur. And after being there forty days, all returned to 
 their houses." 1 
 
 The splendid Eisteddvod held in 1100, at Caerwys, 
 (North Wales,) under the auspices of king Gruffydd ab 
 Kynan, has been already described, (p. 65.) 
 
 Soon after, in 1107, we find it stated that "Cadwgan ab 
 Bleddyn, prince of South Wales, had a great feast in Cardi- 
 gan Castle during the Christmas holidays, to which he invi- 
 ted the princes and chieftains of all parts of Wales, and by 
 way of showing every respect to his guests, he invited the 
 best bards, singers, and musicians in all Wales, and set 
 chairs for them, and instituted contests between them, as was 
 the practice at the feasts of king Arthur. And having 
 given them laws and privileges, and honourable gifts, they 
 all departed for their respective homes. And each one 
 who had been there returned laden with honours." 2 Not 
 long after that, we find another Eisteddvod in South 
 Wales, and indeed it would seem that there was more res- 
 pect paid to the bards in the South than in the North, since 
 most of these congresses were held under the auspices 
 of the South Wallian princes. The next statement runs 
 thus : — 
 
 1 Iolo Manuscripts, page 630. 
 
 3 Caradoc, Myv. Arch. Vol. II. p. 53/ 
 
 2U 
 
338 HISTORY OF LITERATURE 
 
 "After recovering his lands (in 1135,) Gruffydd ab Rhys had a 
 large feast prepared in Ystrad Tywi, whither he invited all to 
 come in peace from North Wales, Powys, South Wales, Gla- 
 morgan, and the Marches. And he prepared everything that was 
 good in meat and drink, Wise conversations, Songs, and Music; and 
 welcomed all poets and musicians; and instituted various plays, il- 
 lusions and appearances, and manly exercises. And to that feast 
 there came Gruffydd ab Kynan and his sons, and many chieftains 
 of various parts of Wales; and the feast was kept up for forty days, 
 when all were allowed to depart, and the bards, musicians, learned 
 men, and performers of every sort were honourably rewarded." l 
 
 This however is not the only admirable trait that we find 
 mentioned of these times : for the old chronicler goes on to 
 mention another fact, strongly illustrative of the preva- 
 lent intelligence, and creditable to both the Welsh princes, 
 Gruffydd ab Kynan, and Gruffydd ab Rhys. — 
 
 " After the feast, Gruffydd ab Rhys invited the wise men, and 
 scholars, and consulting them instituted Rule and Law on every 
 person within his dominions; and fixed a Court in every Cantrev, 
 and an inferior Court in every Commot. Gruffydd ab Kynan did 
 the same thing in North Wales; and the Normans and Saxons, 
 sorry to see this, made complaint against these princes to King 
 Stephen, who, stating that he knew not where the blame lay, de- 
 clined to interfere." 
 
 In connexion with the Roll of Rhys ab Tewdwr, there 
 is a somewhat singular story told in the Iolo MSS. ; and as 
 it is countenanced by Iorwerth Vynglwyd's Elegy on the ce- 
 lebrated bard Llawdden, it probably contains some truth : — 
 " And Iestyn, the son of Gwrgan, prince of Glamorgan, 
 took the Roll of the Round Table with him to his new 
 castle in Cardiff, under a claim that he was prince of the 
 territory, namely that of the church and parish of Cattwg, 
 in his dominion ; and that the custody of the Roll belonged 
 to him. And because the court of Caerlleon upon Usk, 
 which was the court of -Arthur, was within his dominions, 
 he asserted that his court was that of Arthur continued 
 down to his time ; and so he took the Roll by fraud, and by 
 force to Cardiff castle ; and he suffered for that ; for Rhys 
 
 1 Caradoc's Chronicle, My v. Arch. Vol. II. p. 558. 
 
FROM A.D. 1080 TO A.D. 1322. 339 
 
 made a hostile expedition against Iestyn, the son of G-wrgan, 
 and defeated him in the battle of Cadlas. Upon which 
 Iestyn, the son of Gwrgan, sent to Robert Fitzhamon, and 
 the Normans, for assistance against Rhys, and slew him in 
 the battle of Cynllwyn Du (the black treachery.) But the 
 foreigners having heard what Iestyn had. done of violence 
 and devastation, took from him his castle and his territory, 
 and expelled him. After that, Robert Earl of Gloucester, 
 the son of Henry, the son of the Red. King, (William 
 Rufus,) married Mabli, the daughter of Robert Fitzhamon, 
 and received the Lordship of Glamorgan in right of his wife. 
 He gave presents to the bards in Tir Iarll ; and in a hall of 
 his there he placed the Roll of the Round Table, in the 
 custody of the bards of the Island of Britain ; and from 
 that the two systems were united, namely that of the White 
 Stones, and that of the Round Table, as they exist there at 
 present; so that with the bards of the chair of Tir Iarll, 
 more especially than any of the poets of Wales, are the 
 principal systems preserved in their completeness to this 
 
 day-" 1 
 
 Forty years afterwards we find mention of another great 
 feast which took place in South Wales ; and it is scarcely 
 necessary to inform the reader of the preceding pages that 
 the interval is by no means destitute of intellectual wealth. 
 This was held in 1177 under the auspices of the Lord 
 Rhys, the son of the Grunydd ab Rhys ab Tewdwr already 
 mentioned, and who died 1136. It is described as follows, 1 — 
 
 " And the Lord Rhys made a great feast at the Castle of Cardi- 
 gan, when he instituted two species of Contests ; one between the 
 Bards and Poets, and another between the harpers, pipers, and 
 those who played upon the Crwtli. There were also vocal contests. 
 And he placed two chairs for the successful competitors, whom he 
 enriched with honourable gifts. And it appeared that in this con- 
 test the Bards of North Wales got the prize for poetry, while a 
 young man belonging to Rhys's own household was adjudged to 
 have excelled in the powers of harmony. The others were liber- 
 ally rewarded, so that no one went away with any cause of com- 
 
 1 Iolo MSS. ; p. 631. 2 Caradoc's Chronicle, Myv. Arch. ii. p. 574. 
 
340 HISTORY OF LITERATURE 
 
 plaint. And this feast was announced a full year before it took 
 place, in Wales, England, Scotland, and Ireland, and many other 
 countries." 
 
 Much of the excellence of the native literature, is un- 
 doubtedly due to this enlightened patronage on the part of 
 the Cambrian princes ; and this will be still more apparent 
 when we reflect on the intimacy which subsisted between 
 the princes and some of the abler bards. We find this fre- 
 quently in the poems' of Kynddelw, in his address to Howel 
 ab Owain, and in the poem addressed to the Lord Rhys ; 
 and particularly in the poem where Meilir describes his in- 
 terviews with Grruffydd ab Kynan, — 
 
 " Yfais gan deym o gym eurawc." 
 
 I drank in golden horns from the hands of the king. 
 
 Another portion of this poem leads to the belief that the 
 bards were numerous at that period, and that the kiug was 
 popular among them, — 
 
 " Gan gerddau cyhoedd oedd ardderchawc 
 ysgewin barth hyd borth Efrawc." 
 
 In public songs he was honoured 
 From Portskewitt to the gate of York. 
 
 They were it would seem numerous, and somewhat dis- 
 orderly, for we find that Gruffydd took in hand the work 
 of prescribing rules for their observance. He formed a code 
 of rewards and punishments, and he divided the bards into 
 three classes, — Poets, Family Bards, and Migratory Bards. 
 He also fixed the scale of enumeration for their labours, 
 which was as follows, — three shillings and fourpence to 
 every disciple for a poem, and six shillings and nine pence 
 to every master of song for a poem. He also was the first 
 to order the formation of chairs, for the victors in bardic 
 contests, who were ever afterwards honourably distinguished 
 as Chair Bards. These regulations were made at the Eis- 
 teddvod held at Caerwys, A.D. 1100, for the purpose of 
 making rules and regulations for the government of Welsh 
 minstrelsy. Carnhuanawc disputes the propriety of this 
 
FROM A.D. 1080 TO A.D. 1322. 34^ 
 
 date, yet gives no more probable one himself ; but however 
 the date may be fixed, it is pretty certain that such an 
 Eisteddvod did take place, and that the bards and musicians 
 were thenceforth placed under more efficient controul. 
 
 At the period we treat of, Wales possessed a series of 
 great men in Gruffydd ab Kynan, Owain Gwynedd, Owain 
 Ky veiliog, Gruffydd ab Rhys, Rhys ab Gruffydd, Llywelyn 
 ab Iorwerth, and Llywelyn ab Gruffydd. Indeed the world 
 at this time seems to have been unusually favoured with 
 distinguished characters ; for the Henries and Edward the 
 L, kings of England, were also .men of much more than 
 average ability. Of the Cambrian princes, Llywelyn ab Ior- 
 werth deserves especial mention, as the stability of the 
 country during his reign (from 1194 to 1240,) was essen- 
 tially conducive to its literary eminence. The reins of 
 government were no longer in the hands of incapable rulers, 
 turbulent vassals learned their true position with respect 
 to a sovereign of commanding talent, and the power of 
 Llywelyn was acknowledged even by the refractory princes 
 of Powys. When rebellion reigned throughout the land, 
 and when the throne was the prize of daring, the social 
 ties which bind communities together were loosened ; men 
 had not the consciousness of security essential to literary 
 exertions ; and the moral influence of superior minds was 
 unfelt, because it did not exist. But now that a succession of 
 great men had restored stability and order, strengthened the 
 regal authority, and established a prestige of power, the 
 elements of convulsion subsided, anarchy ceased, and men 
 conscious of personal security could listen with pleasure to 
 the songs of the bards, who flourished, increased, and im- 
 proved under the genial influence of regal dominion, and 
 public intelligence. 
 
 Llywelyn ab Gruffydd, his successor, and the last prince 
 of Wales, though apparently less energetic, was a man of 
 great intelligence, and ability. He ascended the throne in 
 1246, and is said to have composed some Englynion him- 
 self; his correspondence with the Archbishop of Can- 
 
342 HISTORY OF LITERATURE 
 
 terbury, and Edward the I., must give all who read it an 
 exalted conception of his mental capacity. The bards who 
 flourished during his reign are not numerous ; though we 
 do not in him find any lack of administrative talent. The 
 standing army of Llywelyn ab Iorwerth, described by Kyn- 
 ddelw, was an indication of power and stability ; and the 
 following statement of the character of the Cambrian army, 
 by Matthew of Westminster, in no less illustrative of ability 
 in Llywelyn ab Gruffydd, — 
 
 " The Welsh Army consisted of twelve thousand armed cavalry, 
 and a far greater number of infantry, all confederated, and having 
 sworn upon the Gospel to fight courageously, and faithfully even 
 unto death, for the liberty of their country, and the preservation 
 of their own laws, and that an honourable death was preferable to 
 an unhappy and dishonourable existence." 
 
 This chivalrous feeling prevailed among the people, and 
 has found an embodiment in both their lighter and more 
 elaborate literature. 
 
 In addition to the special influence of the Kymric rulers, 
 there came in at this period, the religious sentiment, which 
 precipitated so many thousands of men into the Crusades. 
 This sentiment is not very apparent in the more classic 
 poetry of Wales ; though we find from Elidir Sais, that it 
 had taken deep root in the public mind, — 
 
 " Respecting the grave of Christ, there is sorrow, 
 
 The infidels have taken possession of it, 
 
 And ravage the land ; 
 
 The Saracen oppressors under Saladin ;" 
 
 and it is inconsistent with the knowledge of the influence of 
 these wars upon the literature of other countries, to suppose 
 that the poetry of the Kymry was not affected thereby. 
 
 The death of Llewelyn, damped the ardour of the Cambrian 
 poets, who had no longer the exalted theme of national 
 independence to give them inspiration. Two poets only 
 have left elegies on his death ; and the bards are equally 
 silent upon other topics, so that the period which will be em- 
 braced by this chapter, is somewhat barren of literary fruit. 
 
FROM A.D. 1080 TO A.D. 1322. 343 
 
 This fact has been explained in two ways. — First, by sup- 
 posing that many of the bards were hanged by order of Ed- 
 ward the First ; and second, by the supposition that many 
 Welsh MSS. were sent to the Tower of London for the 
 use of the Cambrian princes there imprisoned, and there des- 
 troyed by one Scolan. We shall briefly examine both these 
 statements. 
 
 I. The belief that Edward massacred the bards, on account 
 of the great influence they possessed among their country- 
 men, is founded on a statement by Sir John Wynne, of 
 Gwedir, which runs as follows : — 
 
 " This is the most ancient song (i. e. one of Rhys Goch of Eryri's, 
 a bard who flourished A.D. 1400,) I can find extant of my ances- 
 tors since Edward the I., who caused all our bards to be hanged 
 by Martial law, as stirrers of the people to sedition, whose exam- 
 ple being followed by the Governers of Wales, until Henry the 
 IV.'s time, was the utter destruction of that sort of men ; and 
 sithence that kind of people were at some further liberty to sing, 
 and to keep pedigrees as in ancient times they were wont ; since 
 which time we have light of antiquity by their songs, and writ- 
 ings." l 
 
 This paragraph is full of mistakes. The poem of Rhys 
 Goch is stated to be the most ancient after the time of Lle- 
 welyn; and yet I shall presently introduce the reader to 
 several of the following, — Gruffydd ab yr Ynad Ooch, Ble- 
 ddyn Vardd, Madawg Dwygraig, Casnodyn, Hywel ap 
 Einion Lygliw, Davydd ab Gwilym, Iolo Goch, Gruffydd 
 Llwyd, Gruffydd Gryg, and particularly Gwilym Ddu ; this 
 order of men could not therefore have been destroyed. The 
 statement that Edward caused all the bards to be hanged, 
 does not appear to be supported by a single contemporary 
 historian ; and it is probable that the worthy Baronet was 
 led to form this conclusion, from knowing that Edward had 
 issued an edict against the bards. Aware of this fact, and 
 not having met with many poems belonging to that period, 
 
 1 Barrington's Edition of Sir John "Wynne's History of the Gwedir Family, 
 p. 386. 
 
344 HISTORY OF LITERATURE 
 
 he ranged the two facts as cause and effect, or rather as the 
 major and minor premises of a syllogism, and inferred that 
 all the bards had been hanged. The facts that all the poets 
 were not hanged, that the poems are not so scarce as he 
 fancied, and that the law issued by Edward ordains no such 
 punishment, go very far to invalidate this conclusion. In 
 the introduction to the second chapter, I have enumerated 
 the various laws passed by Edward the L, Henry the IV., 
 Henry the VIII., and Elizabeth, all of which were passed 
 not to injure the orderly bards, but to protect them from 
 the excesses of the wandering vagabonds who plundered the 
 people by their demands for " Oymmortha.'" All these 
 edicts are discriminative; the bardd teulu, and the prydydd, 
 the men from whom we have received all our specimens of 
 orthodox bardism, are not censured at all ; and the whole 
 weight falls upon the idle and wandering portion. The laws 
 were indulgent even to these, as witness Tegid's edition of 
 Lewis Glyn Cothi. Mr. Price has an acute discussion of this 
 matter 1 in his history, and concludes that if any were 
 hanged, they must have been the " Clerwyr.' 1 '' I am not 
 convinced that any were executed ; on the contrary, as the 
 sole authority bases his conclusion upon a premiss known 
 to be false, we may safely conclude that there were none. 
 
 There are other mis-statements in this paragraph : The 
 government of Edward was not as oppressive as is assumed ; 
 and instead of being " followed in cruelty by the governors 
 of Wales," those very governors were objects of regard. 
 Oppressions there probably were, but Edward II., and 
 Edward III., were not disliked by the Kymric chieftains ; 
 and in the interval of eighty years between Sir Gruffydd 
 Llwyd and Owain Glyndwr, we find no popular revolts 
 among them. We all know that Davydd ab Gwilym wan- 
 dered through the country whenever it pleased him, from 
 North to South ; neither his poems, nor those of any bard 
 after Gwilym Ddu, contain any complaints ; and the 
 
 1 Hanes Cymru, pp. 753— -4. 
 
FROM A.D. 1080 TO A.D. 1322. 345 
 
 bards whom he names as having met, and contended against, 
 could have had no dread of this law. Besides, the proclama- 
 tion itself soon got to he a dead letter ; the surviving hards 
 make no allusion to it ; and the fact that on Owain Glyn- 
 dwr's revolting, Henry the IV. issued a new edict against 
 the bards, proves that Edward's proclamation had long been 
 forgotten. I cannot therefore trust either the logic, or the 
 history of the patriotic Baronet, as regards this statement, 
 which Carte has repeated, upon which Warrington has mo- 
 ralized, and which has inspired one of Gray's finest Odes. 
 The language of G-wilym Ddu ought to set this question at 
 rest for ever; for in a poem written during the time of the 
 alleged massacre, he has this line, — 
 
 " Are not the bards prohibited their usual entertainments?" 
 The fact of prohibition we are prepared to anticipate ; but 
 Gwilym Ddu has not a word about executions. 
 
 II. The statement respecting Scolan and the MSS. is 
 thus condensed in Warrington, — 
 
 " a The most eminent of the Welsh nobility were confined in dif- 
 ferent Castles of England, where they remained some years, du- 
 ring the wars of Edward in Scotland ; that prince no doubt re- 
 garding their confinement as the only sure pledge of their fidelity. 15 
 The greater number of these chieftains were imprisoned in the 
 Tower of London. To soothe their minds during their solitary 
 confinement, banished from their country, and their friends, the 
 Welsh chieftains solicited the favour that their manuscripts might 
 be sent to them out of Wales. d They were indulged in this reason- 
 able request, and as it is natural to conclude, that they made a 
 free use of this indulgence, in process of time the Tower of Lon- 
 don became the principal repository of Welsh literature. 6 This 
 valuable collection is said to have been committed to the flames 
 by one Scolan, a person who is only known to the world by 
 having perpetrated so infamous an action, and who might have 
 been instigated to do it by the same motive, which impelled He- 
 rostratus to set on fire the temple of Diana." 1 
 
 I have marked the sentences contained in this extract 
 by the letters a, b, c, d, and e ; and the reader will perhaps be 
 surprised to learn, that there is not the slightest historical 
 authority for any one of them, except the first. 
 
 1 Warrington's History of Wales, Vol. II. p. 341. 
 2X 
 
346 HISTORY OF LITERATURE 
 
 Mr. Price states that the story has been impugned as in- 
 credible, on account of its having no historical foundation ; 
 but adds his belief, that it contains some truth with much 
 exaggeration. 1 
 
 The story as given by Warrington, is quoted from 
 Jones's Relics, who borrowed it from a statement made by 
 "William Salisbury, that the belief was current in his day, 2 
 (A.D. 1560;) and the whole are based upon the following 
 lines, written by Gutto'r Glyn, A.D. 1450, — 
 
 " Llyfrau Cymru au llofrudd 
 I'r Twr Gwyn aethant ar gudd ; 
 Ysgeler oedd i Yscolan 
 Fwrw'r twr llyfrau i'r tan." 
 
 Now what do we learn from this \ And first of all, who 
 was Yscolan ? In the reign of Edward I., there is no ac- 
 count of any such person ; but there is such a person men- 
 tioned in the early literature of Wales, and that in such a 
 connexion, as will explain these lines. 
 
 Instead of being, as is asserted, unknown, there was to 
 the Kymry of the middle ages, no person better known than 
 Yscolan. He is frequently mentioned by the bards ; in the 
 last of the Verses of the Months, the author quotes one of 
 the aphorisms of Ys., or St. Colan ; and among the poems 
 attributed to Merddin, is a dialogue said to have taken 
 place between him and this personage. To have conversed 
 with that diviner, Ys Colan must have lived in the sixtli 
 century; and upon looking over the distinguished charac- 
 ters of that age, we find no difficulty in recognizing the ob- 
 ject of our search in the celebrated Irish priest, St. Colum- 
 ba. He was one of the most zealous of the Christian 
 missionaries, and greatly exerted himself to dispel paganism 
 and druidism from the Islands, and substitute in their place 
 the Gospel of Jesus. It is possible that Merddin and him- 
 self might have met ; but the following dialogue, which is 
 of the utmost importance to the elucidation of this tale of 
 
 1 Hanes Cymru, p. 756. 2 Dissertatio de Bardis, p. 60. 
 
FROM A.D. 1080 TO A.D. 1322. 347 
 
 incendiarism, cannot be anything like so old : — Merddin 
 
 speaks, — 1 
 
 Black is thy horse, and black thy cap, 
 Black thy head, and black thyself ; 
 Black headed man, art thou Yscolan ? 
 
 And Yscolan answers, — 2 
 
 I am Yscolan the scholar, 
 Light is my Scottish knowledge, 
 My grief is incurable, for making the ruler take offence 
 at thee. 
 
 For having burnt a church, hindered school instruc- 
 tion, 
 And caused a book to be drowned, 
 I feel my penance to be "heavy. 
 
 Creator of all creatures, 
 
 And greatest of all supporters, 
 
 Forgive me my fault. 
 
 A full year I have been 
 
 At Bangor on the pole of a weir, 
 
 Consider thou my sufferings from sea worms. 
 
 If I had known as well as I now do, 
 
 How clearly the wind blows upon the sprigs of the 
 
 waving wood, 
 I should not have done what I did. 
 
 Here the Christian priest expresses his regret, that he 
 had burnt a church, and drowned a book ; and as in the last 
 verse he says, that had he known of certain proofs of druidic 
 
 1 Du dy farcb, du dy gappan, 
 Du dy benn, du dy hunan, 
 lad du, ai ti Yscolan ? 
 
 2 Mi Yscolan Ysgolheic 
 Ysgafn ei bwyll ysgodic 
 Gwae ai bawt a gawt gwledic. 
 
 O losci Eglwys a lludd buch yscol 
 
 A llyfr rod i foddi 
 
 Fy mhenyd ys trwm genni. 
 
 Creadir y Creadureu 
 
 Porthidon mwyaf 
 
 Maddeu di imi fy ngbeu, 
 
 Blwyddyn llawn ym rhyddoded 
 
 Ym Mangor ar bawl cored 
 
 Edrych di poen imi gan mop bryfed. 
 
 Bei ysgwypwn ar y wnn 
 
 Mor amluc gwynt y flaen brig gwydd ffalvvn 
 
 Ar y wnaethum nis gwnawn, 
 
348 HISTORY OP LITERATURE 
 
 excellence, he would not have done so, we can easily account 
 for the fact, that the bards had a tradition, that this mis- 
 sionary had destroyed a heap of British, or Druidic books. 1 
 There was also a belief, that Merddin was persecuted by 
 Ehydderch Hael, at the instance of Yscolan ; it is to this 
 that the second verse alludes ; and I think it will be found 
 that this dialogue will throw light upon the reported burn- 
 ing of the books in the Tower. 
 
 We have here all that is essential to understand the 
 origin of the^story. This dialogue, which is evidently older 
 than the time of Edward, shows the existence at an early date 
 of the tradition, that St. Columba had, in his zeal for the 
 propagation of Christianity, destroyed some druidic books. 
 It had grown considerably ere it reached Gutto'r Glyn's 
 time, and been changed in its character; or, what is not 
 improbable, Gutto himself sought to gloss over the enmity 
 which it indicated between the bardic and ecclesiastic cha- 
 racter, by connecting with it the name and story of the Twr 
 Gwijn (The White Tower.) In its original form, the tra- 
 dition of the bards evidently sought to enlist in its behalf 
 a feeling inimical to monachism ; and it is therefore rea- 
 sonable to assume, that to keep out of sight the appearance 
 of persecution on the part of the church, some ecclesiastic 
 thought proper to fix a different time, motive, and place for 
 the deed. Gutto, who was a Monk's domestic bard, was not 
 an unlikely person to do this; but whoever did it, the fact is 
 certain that the statement, as insinuated by this poet, dif- 
 fers essentially from the original tradition. The old tradi- 
 tion was superseded, and is no more heard of. By the time 
 it reached William Salisbury, the tradition had grown 
 again ; and it is amusing to see the process of still further 
 development under the hands of Warrington. In sentences 
 a and &, he confines himself to what had been previously 
 said ; but in c, he assumes the probability of the collection 
 of many MSS. in the Tower, and in d, the hypothetical 
 
 1 Davies's Mythology of the Druids, p. 472. 
 
PROM A.D. 1080 TO A.D. 1322. 349 
 
 library — that which " it was natural to conclude" had been 
 formed, — loses all uncertainty, and becomes an ascertained 
 fact, — it becomes " This valuable collection, &c." 
 
 It is also worthy of remark, that there is a striking dif- 
 ference between the tradition, or rather assertion, in Grutto's 
 poem, and the form afterwards assumed by the story. In 
 A.D. 1450, the tale, as commonly understood, was, — 
 
 The books of Cambria and their destroyer, 
 To the "White Tower went concealed, 
 It was cruel in Ysgolan 
 To throw the heap of books into the fire. 
 
 But in 1567, we find William Salisbury, stating that the 
 books were taken to the Tower at the request of the Cambrian 
 princes, and with the consent of Edward. Gutto's story is 
 artfully constructed. It states a fact, and then weaves with 
 it a tradition. He does not, as has been generally supposed, 
 charge Yscolan with destroying the books taken to the 
 Tower, for here two facts are distinctly stated; but he insi- 
 nuates it. He well knew it would never do to assert that 
 Yscolan, who lived in the sixth century, had destroyed 
 books in the thirteenth ; but he skilfully placed the name of 
 Yscolan and the fact of books taken to the Tower together, 
 and implied rather than stated that they were connected. 
 Another proof of skill is shown in the idea of concealment 
 here introduced ; and in this his story differs essentially 
 from that of his copyists. They never understood the whole 
 of this passage; their versions are sad blunders, and impute 
 no motive for the deed ; but if they had studied Grutto's 
 lines more closely, they would have seen that by stating 
 that the books were stealthily introduced into the Tower by 
 the princes, he makes the discovery of this concealed transac- 
 tion the motive for the destruction of the books. 
 
 There is another, and still more probable explanation ; 
 and if it were satisfactorily ascertained how the books went 
 to the tower, this would admit of no doubt. Sir John 
 Wynne states, that the Kymric documents were taken, 
 probably by Edward the First, from the Exchequer at Caer- 
 
350 HISTORY OF LITERATURE 
 
 narvon to the tower ; but he does not say a word about the 
 beliei story of the Cambrian princes, or seem to be aware 
 of a belief that any of the MSS. had been destroyed. As- 
 suming therefore, that Edward took with him some docu- 
 ments that he found at Caernarvon, the two first lines are 
 intelligible, — 
 
 The books of Cambria, and their destroyer, 
 To the White Tower went concealed. 
 
 These show however very clearly, that in the opinion of 
 the bard, the destroyer of the books, was the person who 
 took them, — Edward himself; and therefore we must not 
 interpret the two last lines too literally. The bard has 
 told his story in the two first ; the books had been taken 
 away ; and either the bard feared that Edward had de- 
 stroyed them ; or he chose with more of patriotism, than of 
 integrity, to blacken the character of the monarch in the 
 eyes of his countrymen by saying so. When afterwards in 
 moralizing on the supposed act, he mentions the name of 
 Yscolan, he does not mean that the books were actually 
 burnt by a man named Scolan, but that the deed was Ys- 
 colan-like. This metaphorical personation is very frequent 
 in the writing of the bards ; when they wished to compare 
 one man to some other, they called him by the other's 
 name, the comparison being understood, though not expres- 
 sed; and therefore we should read the lines, — 
 
 It was cruel, Ys Colan-like, 
 
 To throw the heap of books into the fire. 
 
 It must now be evident, that there is no ground for con- 
 necting the name of Yscolan with any books taken from 
 Wales to the White Tower ; the burden, unless it should 
 appear that Edward has been unjustly execrated, must 
 therefore fall upon the shoulders of the English monarch ; 
 but before we proceed further, it would be well to ascertain, 
 whether these books be not still in existence. 
 
 Upon this subject, we have the following information in 
 the History of the Grwedir Family ; — 
 
FROM A. D. 1080 TO 1322. 
 
 351 
 
 " From the reigne of Edward the First to Henry the Fourth, 
 there is therefore no certainty, or very little of things done, other 
 than what is to be found in the Princes records, which now by 
 tossinge the same from the Exchequer at Carnarvon to the Tower, 
 and to the offices in the Exchequer at London, as also by ill keep- 
 ing and ordering of late dayes, are become a chaos and confusion 
 from a total neglect of method and order, as would be needful, for 
 him who would be ascertained of the truth of things done from 
 time to time. I have to my chardge, done what I could, but for 
 my travell have reaped little or nothing as you see." 1 
 
 From this interesting extract, we learn that there were 
 some Cambrian manuscripts taken to the Tower, and to the 
 Exchequer office; and we learn further, that in the time of 
 Sir John Wynne, A.D. 1626, one hundred and seventy 
 years after Gutto'r Grlyn, insinuated that they were de- 
 stroyed, these records were in existence in the Tower, and 
 some of them were as he states copied for him by J. Brough- 
 ton, Esq. then Justice of North Wales. About the same 
 time, or probably a little later, Vaughan of Hengwrt, who 
 died in 1666, also copied some of these Tower MSS. ; and 
 Mr. Yorke, who relates this fact, expresses his disbelief of 
 their reported destruction. 2 Edward the First has also been 
 charged with having destroyed the ancient records and 
 writings of Scotland, after his conquest of that kingdom. 
 Sir David Dalrymple has ably refuted the latter accusa- 
 tion ; and I think that this examination ought for ever to 
 set aside the other : let St. Colan henceforth rest in peace. 
 
 It must now be apparent, that the " unknown Sconm," 
 is the well known St. Columba; that the books destroyed, or 
 reported to have been destroyed by him, were originally 
 understood to have been druidic ; that the tradition respect- 
 ing him is older than the time of Edward the First ; that 
 Gutto'r Grlyn has taken a poetic licence with the story ; that 
 the legend, though not apprehended in the light Grutto in- 
 tended it to have been, has been subsequently modified, al- 
 
 1 Sir John Wynne's History of the Gwedir Family, in the Hon. Daines Bar- 
 rington's Miscellanies, page 387. 
 
 2 Yorke's Royal Tribes of Wales, page 127. 
 
352 HISTORY OF LITERATURE 
 
 tered, and enlarged; and that though Kymric MSS. might 
 under the circumstances stated, have been taken to the 
 Tower, we have no evidence to sustain the belief that any 
 were there destroyed ; — the evidence being the other way. 
 In William Salisbury's letter, there is an assertion of 
 other ravages made among Cambrian MSS. It is to the fol- 
 lowing purport : — 1 
 
 " And that in the common answer of the Welsh Bardes, (for so 
 they call their country poets,) when a man shall object or cast in 
 their teeth the foolysh uncertainty and the phantasticall vanities 
 of their prophecies (which they call Bruts) or the doubtful race 
 and kinde of their uncanonized Saynctes ; whom that notwith- 
 standing they both invocate and worship wyth the most higglie 
 honoure and lowliest reverence. Adding and allegyng in excuse 
 thereof, that the reliques and residue of the books and monuments, 
 as well as the Saynctes lyves, as of their Britysh prophecies and 
 other sciences, (which perished not in the tower, for there, they 
 say, certain were burned) at the commotion of Owain Glyndwr, 
 were in like manner destroyed, and utterly devastat, or at the 
 least wyse that there escaped not one, that was not uncurablye 
 maymed, and irrecuperably torn and mangled." 
 
 Mr. Edward Llwyd had collected together one hundred 
 and eighty volumes of MSS., and at his death bequeathed 
 them to Sir John Seabright. They were afterwards trans- 
 ferred to the Havod library, but I have no means of know- 
 ing how far they were affected by the great fire, by which 
 that fine library was partially destroyed. The Rev. Moses 
 Williams's collection came into the hands of the Earl of 
 Macclesfield, and still remains in that family. The MSS. 
 collected by Mr. Lewis Morris, consisting of eighty volumes, 
 are now deposited in the library of the Welsh School, Lon- 
 don. Mr. Evan Evans's MSS. subsequently became the 
 property of Paul Panton, Esq. of Anglesey ; and the Rev. 
 Richard Davies of Bangor was said to own many valuable 
 documents. These facts are taken from the preface to the 
 first volume of the Myvyrian Archaiology, written by the 
 late lolo Morganwg, who furnishes the reader with the fol- 
 lowing list of places, where valuable MSS. are deosited, — 
 
 1 Evans's Dissertatio de Bardis, page 60. 
 
FROM A.D. 1080 TO A. D. 1322. 353 
 
 North Wales.— The collection of 
 
 Sir W. W. Wynne, at Wynnstay: Sir Thomas Mostyn, at Glodd- 
 aith ; G. H. Vaughan, Esq. Hengwrt ; Paul Panton, Esq. Plas 
 Gwyn • — Leo, Esq. at Llanerch ; Griffith Roberts, M.D. at Dol- 
 gellau ; Mr. Rice Jones, at Blaenau, near Dolgellau; Rev. Richard 
 Davies, Bangor ; Davydd Thomas, Y Bardd ; Thomas Edwards, 
 Y Bardd. 
 
 South Wales. — The collection of 
 
 Thomas Johnes, Esq. at Havod ; Herbert Hurst, Esq. Gabalva, 
 near Llandaff ; David Thomas, Esq. at Trev Groes, Cowbridge ; 
 — Tuberville, Esq. Llanharan ; Mrs. Bevan, Tre'r Bryn, Cow- 
 bridge ; Rev. Josiah Rees, Gelli Gron ; Henry Williams, Esq. 
 Crickhowell ; Mr. Edward Williams, Flimston, afterwards in the 
 possession of the late Ab Iolo, and now with his widow. 
 
 Oxford. — The collection of 
 
 Jesus College ; the Rev. Mr. Price, Bodleian Library ; the Earl 
 of Macclesfield, in Oxfordshire. 
 
 London. — The collection of 
 
 The British Museum ; the Welsh School ; (the late) Mr. Owen 
 Jones ; (the late) Mr. EdAvard Jones. 
 
 The above list was published in 1801, since which period 
 many of the MSS. have been lost by fire or otherwise, par- 
 ticularly a large portion of the Wynnstay collection, which 
 had been sent to London to be bound. The state of the 
 North Wales MSS. has since been more accurately ascer- 
 tained from Catalogues prepared by Miss Angharad Llwyd, 
 and Aneurin Owen, Esq., which were published in 1828 
 and 1843, in the Cymmrodorion Transactions, Parts 3 and 4. 
 Some of the collections consist of only a few Volumes, 
 whilst others comprise several hundreds. They were, when 
 the Catalogues were made, preserved at the f olio win g 
 places : — 
 
 Actyn Bach, Bangor Iscoed, Bodrhyddan, Bodysgallen, Caerwys, 
 Ceri, Chester, Chirk Castle, Coed Coch, Coed Llai, Denbigh, Down- 
 ing, Galltfaenan, Glan y Wern, Gloddaith, Gwasanau, Gwerclas, 
 Halston, Hengwrt, Llanasa, Llannerch, LlanrhaiadrymMoclmant, 
 Llansilin, Mostyn, Nantclwyd, Pale, Pant Avon, Penbedw, Pen- 
 gwern, Ruthyn, Wrexham, and Wynnstay. 
 
 It is much to be regretted that similar Catalogues have 
 not been made of the MSS. in South Wales, as there are 
 
 2 Y 
 
354 HISTORY OF LITERATURE. 
 
 many valuable documents scattered throughout the country, 
 and suffered to remain in oblivion and obscurity, not being 
 preserved in any large collection. Those once belonging to 
 the author of the " Celtic Researches," are, however, preser- 
 ved at Cascob, Radnorshire ; others are known to exist at 
 Aberdare, Orickhowel, Cowbridge, Coedriglan, Llandovery, 
 Llanharan, Stackpole Court, Merthyr Tydvil, and some 
 other places in Glamorganshire; the possessors of which 
 would do well to send catalogues of their contents to the 
 Secretary of the Welsh MSS. Society, at Abergavenny. 
 The late Iolo Morganwg's large collection, was bequeathed 
 by the will of his son, the late Ab Iolo, to be sold to the 
 British. Museum, but the managers having declined the pur- 
 chase, it remains with his widow, at Merthyr Tydvil ; and 
 unless some measures are adopted towards its rescue and pre- 
 servation, it is not improbable that the public may have ere 
 long to lament its dispersion, if not its destruction. Such 
 a collection ought most certainly to be preserved in some 
 public repository, as was wisely done to the Myvyrian col- 
 lection of the late Mr. Owen Jones, which has been trans- 
 ferred by the Cymmrodorion Society, to the British Mu- 
 seum. Sir Thomas Phillipps, Bart., of Middle Hill, deserves 
 honourable mention as a collector and preserver of ancient 
 Kymric MSS. and has in his possession many of those once 
 belonging to the late Mr. Edward Jones, of London. 
 
 From this examination, we learn that neither of the 
 suggestions already offered, will account for the scarcity of 
 poetry during the reign of the last Lly welyn ; we have 
 therefore no other alternative than to conclude, that the 
 less energetic character of our last prince, was not so favour- 
 able to its development; and that his age did not, in reality, 
 produce a much greater amount of written literature than 
 we now possess. After his death, matters became worse, 
 the fountain of inspiration was stopped on the cessation 
 of their National existence; and the bards could frequently 
 find no loftier topics than the praise of petty chieftains. 
 
 But I cannot help thinking, that the poems which have 
 
FROM A.D. 1080 TO A.D. 1322. 355 
 
 come down to us, form but an imperfect reflection of the in- 
 tellectual activity of this period. Every where we find 
 mention of " Cerddorion," " Oerddau cyhoedd," and "Cerdcl 
 Dafawd;" but of these songs — a species of literature, which 
 must have been, from its nature, more intensely national 
 than the bardic remains — we have no remnants. The 
 Kymry carried the art of singing to perfection, as appears 
 from Giraldus, — 
 
 " They do not sing in unison like the inhabitants of other coun- 
 tries, but in different parts ; so that in a company of singers 
 which one frequently meets with in Wales, as many different 
 parts are heard as there are of performers, who at length unite 
 with organic melody in one consonance, and the soft sweetness of 
 B. In the northern parts of Britain beyond the Humber, and on 
 the borders of York, the inhabitants use in singing the same kind 
 of symphonious harmony, but with less variety, singing only in two 
 parts, one murmuring in the base, the other warbling in the treble, 
 or acute. Neither of the two nations has acquired this peculiar 
 property by art, but by long habit, which has rendered it familiar 
 and natural; and the practice is now so firmly rooted in them that 
 it is unusual to hear a simple and single melody well sung. Their 
 children from their infancy sing in the same manner." 
 
 Now it is evident, that these troops of singers "whom one 
 frequently meets with in Wales;" — The " Clerwyr" of tradi- 
 tion, and " Rymours, minstrels, and vagabondes," of the pro- 
 clamations, must have had words set to music ; and it is 
 equally evident, that these songs which must then have ex- 
 isted in numbers, are not the poems which have come down 
 to us. They were a distinct, and must have been a more 
 popular literature than the more finished productions of the 
 bards. How then comes it that they are not preserved \ 
 Methinks, the answer will be found in the cost of parch- 
 ment, the scarcity of men able to write, and the cost of 
 copying— circumstances which we know to have existed, 
 which restricted the historians to one line for the events of 
 every year, and which may therefore be reasonably supposed 
 to have prevented the perpetuation of a literature, which 
 was most probably looked upon as evanescent, and of little 
 permanent value. The fact I allude to, is mentioned by 
 M. de Sismondi. — 
 
356 HISTORY OF LITERATURE 
 
 "The price of parchment compelled our ancestors to observe a 
 singular economy of words ; and in the archives of the Tower of 
 London, we see, in the Rolls of Fines, that each contract for sale of 
 lands is always comprised in a single line; and from the eighth to 
 the tenth century, all annals of the Franks, written in the convents, 
 followed the same rule; whatever the number or importance of 
 events, the same annalist was bound not to exceed the line for 
 each year. It is easy to be conceived that men so chary of their 
 parchment could find little room for poetry." 1 
 
 This was, I apprehend, equally true in the twelfth cen- 
 tury, when parchment, if not so scarce, was yet so much 
 so, as to be used only for such purposes as were deemed 
 greatly important. Popular songs were seldom looked 
 upon in that light ; and wanting a knowledge of the art of 
 printing and of paper making, most of the light productions 
 of Wales have been lost for ever ; but the candid reader 
 will see in the fact of their non-existence, no very cogent 
 proof, that none such were ever know T n. I am quite con- 
 vinced that there were many, among a people so fond of 
 songs as the Kymry are and have ever been. 
 
 The only compositions of this character, which have 
 come under my notice, are two songs said to have been 
 written by Rhys Groch, of Tir Iarll, Glamorganshire. And 
 are published in the Iolo MSS. They are peculiar composi- 
 tions, and are here translated, as nearly as possible in the 
 metre, and structure of the originals, — 2 
 
 Song to the Summer. 
 1. 
 
 Summer I sing and its sway o'er the poet, 
 
 Sing to its beauty where best we may view it ; 
 
 View the sweet blossoms w r here love's feet would wander, 
 
 Down in the woodlands of green growth so tender ; 
 
 Tender's the sight, where its verdure extendeth, 
 
 1 History of the Literature of the South of Europe, Vol. 1. p. 37. 
 1. 
 2 Canaf yd haf wyd hoywfeirdd Bennaeth 
 Canhewydd llwyn drain gain ganiadaeth, 
 Caniadau adar gwar gwydd irion 
 Cynnadl cerddoriaeth cain dderw Coedfron, 
 Coedfron blagurlawn dawn dadeni 
 
FROM A. D. 1080 TO A. D. 1322. 
 
 To every wide branch that over it bendeth ; 
 Bendeth for loved ones to form in their bowers, 
 And hide with wild elves from sun gleams and showers. 
 Strike the brook-note-strings of nine hill brows sheeny, 
 Til de rum, tal de rum, now sings Tom Teeny. 
 
 2. 
 
 Bowers that the elves, the more love the more laden, 
 And love with their gambols at moonlight to gladden ; 
 Glad is the bard when 'tis hardest to reckon, 
 Beauties that aye for his frenzied glance beckon ; 
 Beckon from hillock and green mead so seemly, 
 All hailing the season that reigneth supremely ; 
 Supreme in its richness, its love, and its ardour, 
 And of each disciple of song the rewarder. 
 Strike the brook-note-strings of nine hill brows sheeny, 
 Til de rum, tal de rum, now sings Tom Teeny. 
 
 Come all the charms for which poesy sigheth, 
 Out in the green walk these nature supplieth ; 
 Supplieth from branches the kindly heat quickens, 
 The hazels on which the full-nut-cluster thickens ; 
 Thick is the foliage which song-birds make vocal, 
 And warm is the wish which there would be local ; 
 Local as man's, and free from commotion, 
 
 Caeadfrig addien gwyrdd Hen llwyni 
 Llwyni liawn gwiail gwelir beunydd 
 Llennyrch lie i dygyrch Degau elfydd. 
 Taro tant alaw nant ael y naw twyni, 
 Til dy rwm tal dy rwm canu twm teini. 
 
 2. 
 
 Eliyddem geimiad ceidwad coedydd, 
 Elfy w dail meillion Hon llawenydd. 
 Llawen Bardd awen ewybr enau, 
 Llywy maes arlwy ar lawr bryniau, 
 Bryn a phant tyfant tewfawr waneg 
 Brenin bin hoenus hynaws adeg, 
 Adeg serchogion dynion dawngar, 
 Ydwyd haf irlas ar lwyn adar. 
 Taro tant alaw nant ael y naw twyni, 
 Til dy rwm tal dy rwm canu Twm Teini. 
 
 3. 
 
 Adar bydafau beidiau hedant, 
 
 A daw cain gogau dolau deilbant, 
 
 Dail bawrlwytb garddlwyth amgylcb gwyrddlwybr. 
 
 Deiliad gwlad gaead gywen loyw-wybr, 
 
 Gloywybr mandes cynnes ceiniadanterth, 
 
 Glas barlas berwlith blith blawd glynberth, 
 
 Glyn, bryn, brwyn llwyn llawn llewycb gwenhaul, 
 
 357 
 
358 HISTORY OF LITERATURE 
 
 The green church where feathered tribes practice devotion. 
 Strike the brook-note-strings of nine hill brows sheeny, 
 Til de rum, tal de rum, now sings Tom Teeny. 1 
 
 There are eight verses in the original song ; but these 
 will be sufficient to indicate its character; as the remainder 
 afford no peculiarities not exhibited here. Many of the 
 verses are however exceedingly beautiful: the description 
 of " the birch tree with its green blue hair," is very line ; 
 and where the bard says, — 
 
 " Beautiful are thy notes, thou fair proud nightingale, 
 Come, the woods are pining, at thy long delay" 
 
 he needs no praise of mine. The chorus is both original, 
 and unique ; and it will be observed, that in the translation, 
 which in that respect is a close copy of the Kymric origi- 
 nal, each couplet begins with the last word of the preceding. 
 This artistic structure of the verses renders translation 
 difficult; and in the next song it becomes more so; for the 
 verses are triplets, the first word of each being the last of 
 the chorus, and the last word of each choral strain, corres- 
 ponding to the triple rhyme of the antecedent verse. It is 
 entitled, — 
 
 A Song to Her for whom I am Dying. 2 
 
 Flora's hues at Spring's renewal, 
 Maid in dalliance never cruel, 
 Brightness hers that blurs the jewel ; 
 
 Alas the jewels, 
 
 Alas the jewels. 
 
 Glan bryd yn diffryd dyffryn araul. 
 Taro tant alaw nant ael y naw twyni 
 Til dy rwm tal dy rwm canu Twm Teini. 
 
 1 I am indebted for the translation of this, and the next song to my friend Mr. 
 John Thomas, (Ieuan Ddu,) the author of a work well known, and highly ap- 
 preciated, — The Cambrian Minstrel ; which is a collection of national airs, with 
 spirited and appropriate songs in English and Welsh. The above versions are 
 not strictly literal ; but they well reflect the spirit of the originals. 
 
 2 Deuliw blodau meinion aelau 
 Mwyn ei champau wrth gydchwarau 
 Serw yng ngolau dan aur dlysau, 
 
 Gwae fi tlysau 
 
 Gwae fi tlysau. 
 
FROM A.D. 1080 TO A.D. 1322. 359 
 
 Jewels she'd have despite expences, 
 
 Where saw the flocks no village fences, 
 
 Her charms well nigh have stolen my senses ; 
 
 Alas my senses, 
 
 Alas my senses. 
 Of sense bereft in greenwood meeting, 
 And ! my life she makes more fleeting 
 My heart quite full is of her greeting ; 
 
 Alas the greeting, 
 
 Alas the greeting, 
 Greeting Gwenddydd where I left her 
 In lays still milder, sweeter, softer, 
 And repulsed the first day after ; 
 
 Alas day after, 
 
 Alas day after. 
 After seek, but as I knew it, 
 See her not, and dying rue it, 
 Shall I yet be summer's poet 1 
 
 Alas the poet, 
 
 Alas the poet. 
 Poet now I'll be of satire, 
 I who lov'd would be a hater, 
 But of love I'm still narrator ; 
 
 Alas narrator, 
 
 Alas narrator. 
 
 Tlysau oedd rhaid im dyn gannaid 
 
 Pentre nis caid wrth droi'r defaid, 
 
 A gwenn ni phaid a dwyn fenaid, 
 Gwae fi fenaid 
 Gwae fi fenaid. 
 Fenaid yw'r ferch ar gwr llannercli 
 Ac am wenferch marw o draserch 
 A mi'n llawn serch yn ei kannerch 
 
 Gwae fi annerch 
 
 Gwae fi annerch. 
 Annerch Wenddydd gan ei phrydydd 
 Annerch beunydd ar don newydd 
 A mwy ni bydd lleddaf trennydd 
 
 Gwae fi trennydd 
 
 Gwae fi trennydd. 
 Trennydd ydd af gwenddydd ni chaf 
 Gwae fi ddwy'n glaf a marw fyddaf 
 Ai chlod liw'r haf mwy ni chanaf, 
 
 Gwae fi canaf 
 
 Gwae fi canaf. 
 Canaf ogan im Bum eirian 
 draws amcan He bum druan 
 Mwyn fy nghwynfan wrth ymddiddan, 
 
 Gwae fi 'mddiddan 
 
 Gwae fi 'mddiddan. 
 
 Iolo MSS. p. 250. 
 
g@0 HISTORY OF LITERATURE 
 
 And thus the poet proceeds through as many more verses, 
 all of which, a musical friend informs me, may be sung to 
 the Kymric air of " Yr hen wr o*r coed." 
 
 The vale of Glamorgan has long been celebrated for song 
 writers, and the songs of William Hopkin, David Llywelyn, 
 and James Turberville, are frequently sung about the coun- 
 try, being orally transmitted from one to another ; but as 
 yet, they have never been collected. In our own days the 
 popular songs are treated with the same neglect ; a few have 
 been saved from oblivion by the late Mr. J. Howell, of Llan- 
 dovery; by Miss Williams, of Aberpergwm; Mr. J. Davies, 
 Brychan; and Mrs. Llewelyn, of Llangynwyd ; but if these 
 last now give over their most laudable exertions, many songs 
 at present sung by the young men and maidens of Morgan wg, 
 will be lost for ever. We derive from these facts, cogent argu- 
 ments in favour of the opinion above advanced ; for if such 
 gems as Yr Aderyn Pur ; The Maid of Cevn-ydva ; The 
 Maid of Sker, and other songs of recent origin, have only 
 found a place in our written literature through the industry 
 and good taste of the ladies and gentlemen here named, we 
 may safely conclude that many have been lost ; as it is 
 much more probable that numbers of popular songs were al- 
 lowed to be forgotten, when the public taste was less refined 
 and more pedantic, and when facilities for publication ex- 
 isted to a much smaller extent, than that the Kymry should 
 have ceased to be true to their national character. 
 
SECTION II. 
 
 Welsh Poetry from A. D. 1240 to A. D. 1284. 
 
 We here take up the history of our bardic literature, from 
 the date at which we left off in the preceding chapter. At 
 the death of Llywelyn ab Iorweth, the sovereignty was 
 given to David his second son, by his second wife Joan the 
 daughter of kino- John. David ingratiated himself in the 
 favour of the nobles, and caused his elder brother Gruffydd 
 to be imprisoned. We have seen a similar fact occurring in 
 the previous reign. The rightful heir of Owain Gwynedd 
 was his eldest son lorwerth, but having a personal defect, 
 and wanting the warlike qualities indispensable to a prince 
 of that age, he was superseded by a younger brother. In 
 the present case, we see the father deliberately setting aside 
 his eldest son on account probably of his unruly temper, and 
 preferring the second, who promised to show more prudence; 
 but though the Kymry were reluctant to accept princes who 
 wanted the capacity to rule, and the personal qualities 
 which kings should have, the preference was uniformly 
 given to such of the lineal heirs as had the vigour to vindi- 
 cate their title ; thus Llywelyn the Great ascended the 
 throne which had been withheld from Edward the broken- 
 nosed, his father; and after David the son of Llywelyn had 
 reigned for several years, Llywelyn, the son of the deposed 
 Gruffydd, vindicated the claim of his father, and for nearly 
 thirty years reigned sole king of North Wales. 
 
 The number of the poets who lived during his reign was 
 not great, nor are the poems which we shall here have to 
 
 2Z 
 
3(32 WELSH POETRY 
 
 pass in review generally distinguished for merit. In the 
 early part of this period, they with difficulty attain to me- 
 diocrity; but towards the close of this monarch's reign, 
 when the curtain fell upon the independent existence of the 
 Kymry, we meet with several very fine compositions. This 
 scarcity of good poems in the earlier part, arose partly from 
 the false taste which was creeping in among the bards, and 
 which led them to give words for thoughts, and sonorous 
 sentences for brilliant ideas, passion, and poetic fire ; and 
 partly from our being compelled to pass over the works of 
 several bards, who lived during this reign as well as the 
 last, on account of their having been already noticed. 
 Among these were Davydd Benvras, Elidir Sais, Einion 
 Wann, and Llewelyn Vardd. 
 
 The poems peculiarly belonging to this era, are fifty 
 in number; of which the Prydydd Bychan wrote twenty 
 one ; Hywel the Bald, son of Griffri, two ; Llygad Gwr 
 left five poems ; Gruffydd ab Yr Ynad Coch is the author 
 of eight extant productions, seven of which are on religious 
 subjects ; Bleddyn Vardd is the author of thirteen short 
 poems ; and the moral verses of Gwernec ab Clydno, mis- 
 placed in the last chapter, should have been placed here. 
 Of these, among the earliest in point of time, is Llygad 
 Gwr, whose Ode to Llywelyn ab Gruffydd is dated, by the 
 Rev. Evan Evans, at A.D. 1270. It is a long poem, but as 
 we shall not have many poems to discuss in this section, we 
 shall quote it entire in Ieuan Brydydd Hir's translation. 
 An Ode, 
 
 In five parts, to Llywelyn the son of Gruffydd, last 
 
 prince of Wales of the British line, composed by Llygad 
 
 Gwr about the year 1270 : — 1 
 
 I. 
 
 I address myself to God the source of joy, 
 
 The fountain of all good gifts of transcendent majesty, 
 
 1 Awdlau Llygad Gwr i Lywelyn ab Gruffydd. 
 Cyfarchaf i Dduw ddawn orfoledd, 
 Cynnechreu doniau, dinam fawredd, 
 
FROM A.D. 1240 TO A.D. 1284. ^63 
 
 Let the song proceed to pay its tribute of praise, 
 
 To extol my hero the prince of Arllechwedd, 1 
 
 Who is stained with blood, a prince descended from re- 
 nowned kings. 
 
 Like the great Caesar renowned for warlike deeds, 
 
 Is the rapid progress of the arms of Gruffydd's heir, 
 
 His valour and bravery are matchless, 
 
 His crimson lance is stained with gore. 
 
 It is natural and customary with him to invade the lands of 
 his enemies. 
 
 He is generous, the pillar of princes ; 
 
 I never return empty handed from the North. 
 
 My successful and glorious prince, I would not exchange on 
 any conditions, 
 
 I have a renowned prince, who ravages England, 
 
 He is descended from noble ancestors, Lly welyn the destroy- 
 er of his foes, 
 
 The mild and prosperous governor of Gwynedd, 
 
 Britain's honour in the field, 
 
 With his sceptered hand extended on the throne, 
 
 And a golden sword by his side, 
 
 The lion of Cemais 2 , fierce in the onset, 
 
 When the army rusheth to be bathed in red, 
 
 Our defence, who slightest alliance with strangers. 
 
 Cynyddu canu, can nid rhyfedd dreth, 
 
 O draethawd gyfannedd, 
 I foli fy rhi Rhwyf Arllechwedd, 
 Rhuddfaawg freiniawg o frenhinedd, 
 Rhyfyg udd Caissar, treisfar trosedd, 
 Rhythrlym, grym Gruffydd etifedd, 
 Rhwysg, frwysg, freisg, o freint a dewredd, 
 Rhudd baran o beri cochwedd, 
 Rhyw iddaw diriaw eraill diredd, 
 Rhwydd galon, golofn teyrnedd. 
 Nid wyf wr gwaglaw \vrth y Gogledd, 
 O Arglwydd gwladlwydd, glod edryssedd, 
 Nid newidiaf naf un awrvedd a neb, 
 
 Anebrwydd dangnefedd. 
 Llyw y sy ym ys ami anrhydedd, 
 Lloegr ddifa o ddifefl fonedd, 
 Lly welyn gelyn, galon dachwedd 
 Llary wledig gwynfydig Gwynedd, 
 Llofrudd brwydr, Brydein gywrysedd, 
 Llawhir falch. gwreiddfalch gorsedd, 
 Llary hylwydd, hael Arglwydd eurgledd, 
 Llew Cemmais, llym dreis drachywedd, 
 Lie bo cad fragad, friwgocb ryssedd, 
 Llwyr orborth byborth heb gymwedd, 
 
 1 Arllechwedd, a part of Caernarvonshire. 
 
 2 Cemais, the name of several places in Wales. The bard here means a can- 
 tred of that name in Anglesea. 
 
364 
 
 WELSH POETRY 
 
 He impetuously ranges through his enemies' country. 
 
 His just cause will be prosperous at last. 
 
 About Tyganwy 1 he has extended his dominions, 
 
 And his enemies fly from him with maimed limbs. 
 
 And the blood flows over the soles of men's feet. 
 
 Thou dragon of Arvon 2 of resistless fury, 
 
 With thy beautiful, skilfully trained, and well made steeds, 
 
 No Englishman will get one foot of thy country. 
 
 There is no Kymro thy equal. 
 
 II. 
 
 There is none equal to my prince, 
 
 With his numerous troops in the conflict of war. 
 
 He is a generous Kymro descended from Beli Hir,3 
 
 If you enquire about his lineage. 
 
 He generously distributed gold and riches, 
 
 The heroic war-wolf from Eryri. 4 
 
 An eagle among his nobles of matchless prowess ; 
 
 It is our duty to extol him, 
 
 Gnaws mawrdraws am ardal dyhedd, 
 Gnawd iddaw dreiddiaw drwyddi berfe dd 
 Am i wir bydd dir o'r diwedd, 
 Amgylchwy Dyganwy mwyfwy i medd, 
 A chiliaw rhagddaw a chalanedd creu, 
 Ag odduch gwadneu gwaed ar ddarwedd. 
 Dreig Arfon orfod wythlonedd 
 Dragon diheufeirch heirddfeirch harddedd, 
 Ni chaiff sais i drais y droedfedd o'i fro 
 Nid oes o Gymro i Gymrodedd. 
 
 II. 
 
 Gymrodedd fy llyw lluoedd beri, 
 Nid oes rwyf eirioes, aer dyfysgi, 
 Cymro y w haelryw o hil Beli Hir, 
 
 Yn herwydd i brofi. 
 Eurfudd ni oludd, olud roddi. 
 Aerfieidd arwreidd o Eryri, 
 Eryr ar geinwyr gamwri dinam, 
 
 Neud einym i foil. 
 
 1 Tyganwy, tbe name of an old castle near the mouth of the river Conway, 
 to the east ; it was formerly one of the royal palaces of Maelgwn Gwynedd, king 
 of Britain, and was, as our old annals relate, burnt by lightning Anno 811, but 
 was afterwards rebuilt, and \von by the earl of Chester, who held it for a long 
 time, but was at last retaken by the princes of North Wales. 
 
 a Arvon, the county now called Caernarvonshire. 
 
 3 Beli, this was probably Beli Mawr, to whom our bards generally traced 
 the pedigrees of their great men. 
 
 4 Eryri, Snowdon, which some suppose derrived from Mynydd Eryrod, the 
 hill of the Eagles; but more probably from Mynydd yr Eiry; the hill of Snow, 
 — Snow-down. 
 
FROM A.D. 1240 TO A.D. 1284. 3^5 
 
 Clad in golden vesture, 
 
 With his army he setteth castles on fire, 
 
 He is the bulwark of the battle with Greidiawl's 1 courage. 
 
 He is a hero that with fury breaketh whole ranks, 
 
 And fighteth manfully. 
 
 His war march is rapid, 
 
 His generosity overflowing. 
 
 He is the strength of armies arrayed in gold. 
 
 He is a brave prince whose territories extend to the Teifi. 2 
 
 Whom no one dares to punish, 
 
 Llywelyn the vanquisher of England, 
 
 Is a noble lion descended from a race of kings. 
 
 Thou art the king of the mighty, 
 
 The entertainer and encourager of bards. 
 
 Omen to the crows that they shall feast on the bodies of the 
 
 Bryneich. 3 
 He never avoids danger in the storm of battle, 
 He is undaunted in the midst of hardships. 
 The bards 4 prophesy that he shall have the government and 
 
 sovereign power ; 
 
 Eurgorf torf tyroedd olosci, 
 Argae gryd, Greidiawl wrhydri, 
 Arwr bar, taerfar, yn torri cadau, 
 
 Cadarnfrwydr ystofi. 
 Aer dalmithyr, hylithr haelioni, 
 Arf lluoedd eurwisgoedd wisgi 
 Arwymp Ner, hyder, hyd Teifi feddiant, 
 
 Ni faidd neb i gospi. 
 LJywelyn Lloegrwys feistrioli, 
 Llyw breiniawl, brenhinedd teithi, 
 Llary deyrn cedyrn, yn cadw gwesti cyrdd, 
 
 Cerddorion gyflochi. 
 Coelfein brein Bryneich gyfogi, 
 Celennig branes, berthless borthi. 
 Ciliaw ni orug er caledi gawr, 
 
 Gwr eofn ynghyni. 
 Parawd fydd meddiant medd Beirdd im Rhi, 
 
 1 Greidiawl is the name of a hero mentioned in Aneurin's Gododin. 
 
 2 Teifi, a river in Cardiganshire. 
 
 3 Bryneich, the men of Bernicia, a province of the old Saxons in the North 
 of England. The inhabitants of Deira and Bernicia, are called by our ancient 
 historians Gwyr Deifyr a Bryneich. The men of Powys. 
 
 4 "It was the policy of the British princes to make the bards foretell their suc- 
 cess in war, in order to spirit up their people to brave action. Upon which ac- 
 count the vulgar supposed them to be real prophets. Hence their great vene- 
 ration for the prophetical bard Taliesin ; and the two Merddins. This accounts 
 for what the English writers say of the Welsh relying so much upon the pro- 
 phecies of Merddin. There are many of these pretended prophecies still extant. 
 The custom of prophesying did not cease till Henry the VII. 's time, and the 
 reason is obvious." — Rev. E. Evans's Dissertatio de Bardis, p. 40. Some re- 
 marks have been already made (p. 263.) upon this subject, and the following 
 
2QQ WELSH POETRY 
 
 Every prediction is at last to be fulfilled. 
 
 The shields of his men were stained with red in brave actions, 
 
 From Pulford 1 to the furthest bounds of Kidwelly. 2 
 
 May he find endless joys, and be reconciled to the son of God, 
 
 And enjoy heaven by his side. 
 
 III. 
 
 We have a prince possessed of great intelligence, 
 
 His lance is crimson, his shield is shivered to pieces; 
 
 A prince furious in action, his palace is open to his friends, 
 
 But woe is the lot of his enemies. 
 
 Llywelyn, the vanquisher of his adversaries, 
 Is furious in battle like an outrageous dragon. 
 To be guarded against him availeth not, 
 When he cometh hand to hand to dispute the hardy contest. 
 May he that made him the happy governor of Gwynedd, 
 And its towns of excessive whiteness, 
 Strengthen him for length of years, 
 
 Pob cymman darogan derfi, 
 
 O Bwlffordd osgordd ysgwyd gochi hydr, 
 
 Hyd eithaf Cydweli. 
 Can gaffael yn dda dra heb drengi, 
 Gan fab Duw didwyll gymmodi, 
 Ys bo i ddiwedd ddawn berchi ar nef, 
 Ar neillaw Crist Geli. 
 
 III. 
 Llyw y sy'n synhwyrfawr riydd, 
 Lliwgoch i lafnawr, aesawr uswydd, 
 Lliw deifniawg, llidiawg, lledled fydd ei bias, 
 
 Llwyr waeth y w ei gas noi gorennydd. 
 Llewelyn gelyn, galofydd. 
 Llwyrgyrch d darogan cymman celfydd, 
 Ni thyccia rbybudd hael rebydd rhagddaw, 
 
 Llaw drallaw drin wychydd, 
 Y gwr a'i rhoddes yn rhwyf dedwydd, 
 Ar Wynedd arwynawl drefydd, 
 A'i cadarnhao, ced hyhvydd yn Mr, 
 
 may be with propriety added thereto. Important successes having been gained 
 over the English "the hopes of the Kymry," says Warrington, " began to revive, 
 and their views to extend, which were heightened still more by a prophecy of 
 Merlin, long cherished among the Welsh, that Llywelyn (ab Gruffydd) should 
 one day wield the sceptre of Brutus, the supposed founder of their empire. It 
 is possible, too, that the Welsh prince himself might indulge the same hopes, 
 from a like delusive source, the- prediction of a soothsayer. When he first began 
 the revolt, he consulted an aged woman, who was a reputed prophetess, respect- 
 ing the issue of the war, who advised him to pursue the enterprize with spirit, 
 and assured him also, that in the event he would ride through Cheapside in 
 London with a crown upon his head. ,, — Warrington's History of Wales, Yol. 
 II. p. 258. 
 
 1 Pwlffordd, is the name of a place in Shropshire. There is a bridge of the 
 name still in that county. 
 
 2 Cydweli, the name of a town, and a commot, in Carmarthenshire. 
 
FROM A.D. 1240 TO A.D. 1284. 3^7 
 
 To defend his country from hostile invasion. 
 
 It is our joy and happiness, 
 
 That we have a brave warrior with prancing steeds. 
 
 That we have a noble Kymro descended from Cambrian an- 
 cestors, 
 
 To rule our country, and its borders. 
 
 He is the best prince that the Almighty made of the four 
 elements. 
 
 He is the best of governors, and the most generous. 
 
 The eagle of Snowdon, and the bulwark of battle. 
 
 He pitched a battle where there was a furious contest, 
 
 To obtain his patrimony on Cevn Gelorwydd ; l 
 
 Such a battle never happened since the celebrated action of 
 Arderydd. 2 
 
 He is the brave lion of Mona, the kind hearted Venedotian, 
 
 The valiant supporter of his troops in Bryn Derwyn. 
 
 He did not repent of the day in which he assaulted his ad- 
 versaries, 
 
 Like a hero descended from undaunted warriors. 
 
 I saw a hero disputing with hosts of men, 
 
 Like a man of honour in avoiding disgrace. 
 
 He that saw Llywelyn like an ardent dragon, 
 
 In the conflict of Arvon, and Eiddionydd,3 
 
 I amddeffyn tir rkag torf oswydd. 
 
 Nid anwiw, nid anhoff gynnydd, 
 
 Neud enwawg farchawg, feirch gorewydd, 
 
 I fod yn hynod hynefydd Gymro, 
 
 A'r Gymry a'u helfydd. 
 
 Ef difeiaf Naf rhy wnaeth Dofydd, 
 
 Yn y byd o bedwar defnydd, 
 
 Ef goreu riau reg ofydd a wnn, 
 
 Eryr Snawtwn aer gyfludwydd. 
 
 Cad a wnaeth, cadarn ymgerydd, 
 Am gyfoeth, am Gefn Gelorwydd, 
 Ni bu gad, hwyliad hefelydd gyfred, 
 Er pan fu weitbred waith Arderydd. 
 
 Breisclew Mon, mwynfawr Wyndodydd, 
 Bryn Derwyn clo byddin clodrydd, 
 Ni bu edifar y dydd i cyrchawdd, 
 
 Cyrch ebofn essillydd. 
 Gwelais wawr ar wyr lluosydd, 
 Fal gwr yn gwrthladd cywilydd, 
 A welei Lywelyn, lawenydd dragon 
 
 Yngbymysc Arfon ac Eiddionydd, 
 
 1 Cevn Gelorwydd, the name of a mountain ; but where it is situated I know not. 
 
 2 Arderydd, Airdree near Glasgow, or Atterith, about six miles from Solway 
 Frith, Scotland. This battle is mentioned in the Triads, and was fought by 
 Gwenddolau ap Ceidiaw, and Aeddan Fradawg, petty princes of the North, 
 against Rhydderch Hael, king of Cumbria, who got the battle. Myrddin Wyllt, 
 or Merddin the Caledonian, was severely handled by Rhydderch Hael, for siding 
 with Gwenddolau his patron, of which he complains in his "Avallenau."" 
 
 3 Eiddionydd, the name of a Comot, or district in Caernarvonshire. 
 
ogg WELSH POETltY 
 
 Would have observed that it was a difficult task, 
 To withstand his furious attack by Drws Dauvynydd. 1 
 No man has ever compelled him to submit : 
 May the Son of God never put him to confusion. 
 
 IV. 
 
 Like the roaring of a lion in search of prey, is thy thirst of 
 
 praise, 
 Like the sound of a mighty hurricane over the desert main, 
 Thou profoundly learned and accomplished prince of Aber- 
 
 ffraw. 2 
 Thy ravage is furious, thy impetuosity irresistible. 
 Thy troops are enterprizing in brave actions, 
 They are fierce and furious like a conflagration. 
 Thou art the warlike and slaughtering prince of Dinevwr, 3 
 The defence of the people, the divider of spoils. 
 Thy forces are comely, neat, and of one language. 
 Thy proud Toledo sword is gilt with gold, 
 Thou prince of Mathraval, 4 extensive are thy boundaries, 
 Lord Llywelyn, ruler of people of four languages. 
 He fought undauntedly against a foreign nation of strange 
 
 language. 
 
 Nid hawdd oedd Hew aerflawdd lliiydd, 
 I dreissiaw gar Drws Daufynydd, 
 Nis plygodd Mab dyn bu doniawg ffydd, 
 Nis plycco Mab Duw yn dragy wydd. 
 
 IV. 
 
 Terfysc taerllew glew, glod gynhymdaith, 
 Twrf torredwynt niawr uch mor diffaith, 
 Taleitbawg deifniawg dyfniaith Aberfiraw, 
 
 Terwyn anrheithiaw, rhuthar anolaith. 
 Tylwyth, fFrwytb, ffraethlyni eu niawrwaith, 
 Teilwng bhvng, blaengar fal goddaitb, 
 Taleithawg arfawg aerbeith Dinefwr, 
 Teulu hysgwr, ysgwfl anrhaitb. 
 Telediw gad gywiw gyfiaith, 
 Toledo balcb a bylchlafn eurwaith, 
 Taleithawg Mathrafal, maitb yw dy derfyn, 
 Arglwydd Lywelyn, lyw pedeiriaith, 
 Sefis yn rhyfel, dymgel daith, 
 Rhag estrawn genedl, gwyn anghyfiaith, 
 
 1 Drws Dauvynydd signifies a pass between two mountains, as Drws Ardudwy, 
 Drws y Coed, Bwlch Oerddrws, &c. ; but where it lies is unknown. 
 
 2 Aberfiraw, the name of the prince's chief palace in Anglesey. 
 
 3 Dinevwr, the name of the prince of South Wales' palace, pleasantly situated 
 upon a hill above the river Towy, in Carmarthenshire, now in the possession of 
 George Rice, of Newton, Esquire, member of parliament for that county. (At 
 present it is in the hands of Lord Dynevor.) 
 
 4 Mathraval, the seat of the prince of Powys, not far from Pool, in Montgome- 
 ryshire, now in the possession of the earl of Powys. 
 
FROM A. D. 1240 TO A. D. 1284. QQQ 
 
 May the great King of Heaven, defend the just cause 
 Of the warlike prince of the three provinces. 
 
 I make my address to God in commencing an eulogy, 
 
 In the best manner I am able, 
 
 That I may extol with truth in suitable words, 
 
 My Lord the chief of men, 
 
 Who rageth like fire from the flashes of lightning, 
 
 Who exchangeth thrusts with burnished steel. 
 
 I am armed like my prince with the red spear of conflict. 
 
 He is a brave fighter, and the foremost in action. 
 
 Llywelyn, thy qualities are noble and energetic, 
 
 Making broad thy path with the edge of the sword. 
 
 The hoof prints of my prince's steeds extend to Cornwall. 
 
 Numbers congratulate him upon" his success, who is a sure 
 
 friend, 
 The lion of Gwynedd and its extensive white territories, 
 The governor of the men of Powys, and the South, 
 Who has a general assembly of his armed troops at Chester, 
 Who ravages Lloegria to amass spoils. 
 In battle his success is certain, 
 In killing, burning, and in overthrowing castles. 
 In Rhos 1 and Penvro, and in contests with the Normans, 
 His impetuosity uniformly prevails. 
 The offspring of Gruffydd, of worthy qualities, 
 
 Sefid Brenin nef, breiniawl gyfraith, 
 Gan eurwawr aerbeir v teir taleith. 
 
 Cyfarchaf i Dduw o ddechrau moliant, 
 
 Mai i gallwyf orau, 
 Clodfori o'r gwyr a geiriau 
 I'm pen, y pennaf a giglau, 
 Cynnwrf tan, lluch faran lleehau, 
 Cyfnewid newydd las ferau, 
 Cyfarf wyf a rhwyf, rkudd lafnau yngnif, 
 
 Cyfoethawg gynnif cynflaen cadau. 
 Llywelyn nid llesg ddefodau, 
 Llwybr ehang, ehofn fydd mau, 
 Llyw yw hyd Gernyw aed garnedd i feirch, 
 
 Lliaws ai cyfeirch, cyfaill nid gau, 
 Llew Gwynedd gwynfeith ardalau, 
 Llywiawdr pobl, Powys ar Dehau, 
 Llwyrwys caer, yn aer, yn arfau , 
 Lloegr breiddiaw am brudd anrbeithiau, 
 Yn rhyfel, ffrwythlawn, dawn diammau, 
 Yn lladd yn llosci yn torri tyrau, 
 Yn Rhos a Phenfro, yn rbysfaau Ffraine, 
 Llwyddedig i ainc yn lliiyddau, 
 Hil Gruffydd, grymmus gynneddfau, 
 
 1 Rhos and Penvro, the names of two cantrevs in Pembrokeshire. 
 
 3 A 
 
370 WELSH POETRY 
 
 Is generous in distributing rewards for songs, 
 
 His shield shines, and the strong lances 
 
 Quickly meet the streams of rushing gore. 
 
 He extorteth taxes from his enemies, 
 
 And claimeth another country, as a sovereign prince. 
 
 Adorned by noble birth he besieged fortified towns, 
 
 And his furious attacks like those of Flamddwyn 1 reach far. 
 
 He is a prosperous chief with princely qualities, 
 
 His Bards are comely about his tables. 
 
 I have seen him generously distributing his wealth, 
 
 And his meadhorns filled with generous liquors. 
 
 Long may he live with his sharp sword, 
 
 To defend his borders like Arthur with the lance of steel. 
 
 May he who is lawful king of Cambria endued with princely 
 
 qualities, 
 Have his share of happiness at the right hand of God." 
 
 This poem, full of gossip and flattery, is of no great 
 poetic value. It is useful as an historical document ; and 
 the names of places, persons, and battles will greatly faci- 
 litate the business of the historian. But it has no imagery, 
 no strong link of connexion, nor much descriptive power ; 
 and wanting these it is only a long string of uncon- 
 nected sentences, which though they occasionally give us 
 glimpses of contemporaneous manners, evince no great ca- 
 pacity in the artist. The allusion to the "four elements," 
 show us something of the bardic philosophy, and of their 
 speculations upon the composition of the universe ; and the 
 statement that Llywelyn ruled over a people of four lan- 
 
 Hael gyngor, gyngyd wrth gerddau, 
 Hylathr i ysgwyd, escud barau gwrdd, 
 
 Hylym yn cyhwrdd cyhoedd waedffrau, 
 Hylwrw fwrw far, gymmell trethau, 
 Hawlwr gwlad arall gwledig riau, 
 Harddedd o fonedd, faen gaerau dreisddwyn, 
 Hirbell fal Ffianiddwyn i fflamgyrchau. 
 Hwylfawr ddreig, ddragon cyfeddau, 
 Heirdd i feirdd ynghylch ei fyrddau, 
 Hylithr i gwelais ddydd golau i fudd, 
 
 Ai feddgyrn wirodau. 
 Iddaw i gynnal cleddyfal clau, 
 Mai Arthur wayw dur i derfynau, 
 Gwir frenin Cymru cymmreisc ddoniau, 
 Gwrawl hawl boed liwyl o ddehau. 
 
 1 Fflamddwyn, the name of a Saxon prince, against whom Urien king of 
 Cumbria, and his son Owain, fought the battle of Argoed Llwyvain. 
 
FROM A. D. 1240 TO A. D. 1284. 37 \ 
 
 guages, refers most probably to the Kymry, the English, the 
 Normans or French, and the Flemish settlers on the bor- 
 ders of Wales. 
 
 Einion ab Madawc ab Rhahawd, a poet who lived between 
 1230 and 1270, and the author of some verses addressed to 
 prince Gruffydd, the eldest son of Llywelyn the Great, 
 ought in strict propriety to have taken precedence of Llygad 
 Gwr, as the latter addresses the son, while the former sang 
 when the father was a youth. His poem has merit, and will 
 bear perusal. — 1 
 
 I will extol a generous prince, increasing in fame, 
 
 The honoured of multitudes, the favourite of the army ; 
 
 The season is suitable to circulate the goblet, 
 
 The arms are piled, and the three colours of three armies 
 
 wave aloft. 
 The eagle of the men of Gwynedd, I know he is not near, 
 Though he may be appeased, he will not take an affront, 
 Though a youth, my ruler made an impression 
 On the strangers by his bold horsemanship. 
 Lord of wide Crugkaeth, dignified and steady, 
 Monarch of Britain worthy of the muse, 
 Gruffydd is the chief prince between the two seas, 
 Chief golden breastplate of privilege, and sociability ; 
 Foes will shrink from a hero so sternly fierce, 
 When there shall arrive a day of battle and depredation. 
 Leader of all mirth ; the crows will flock 
 Around the warrior who is so easily served, 
 And who is accustomed to drive his foes before him, 
 As flames of fire rush through dry reeds. 
 
 1 Arddwyreafy hael hwylglod ellwng 
 Arddunyant torvoedd tyrva eitwng 
 Arvod ysgymmod gorvod gorflwng 
 Arveu briw trilliw trillu gyhwng 
 Eryr gwyr Gwynet gwn nad echwng 
 Ked ef ddigoner ni chymmer vlwng 
 Yr yn vab ym rwyfy ry gwnaeth ystwng 
 Ar y estronyon ys drud echwng 
 Pendevic Crukyeith meith mygyr ddivwg 
 Pennyadur prydein prydest deilwng 
 Pennaf y w Gruffyt pennaeth rwng — deu vor 
 Pen eurddor bronddor breint a hebrwng 
 Pannu a vyt dir rac dewr gorvlwng 
 Pan vo dyt gorwlad a chad yn wng 
 Pennyal pob aryal crev allwng — branes 
 Amgylch lliw didres dwydreul gyfrwng 
 Gnawd yd gyrch cynnygyn oe gynnif pwng 
 Mai pan gyrch fflamdan fflamdo yspwng 
 
372 WELSH POETRY 
 
 He is accustomed to redden his bold sword and his horse's 
 mane, 
 
 To strew his war-path with blood, and enforce silence by 
 his voice, 
 
 He is accustomed to triumph over all treachery ; 
 
 But his district is not accustomed to taxes and oaths of sub- 
 mission. 
 
 Through his bravery he made dreadful havoc among the 
 Franks, 
 
 Whom he filled with fear, terror, and dismay. 
 
 He caused torrents of blood to flow at Trail wng Elvael, 1 
 
 "Where there was a fierce and confused conflict ; 
 
 May God enable him to live without reproach, 
 
 And when he dies, end his days in honour ; 
 
 And when — invincible dragon — he is forty or sixty years old, 
 
 Receive the protection of bounteous heaven. 
 
 This short poem very strikingly portrays the prevalent 
 sentiments among the Kymry, at a time when the armies 
 of England, scouring over the plains, frequently compelled 
 them to fall back upon those palladia of Cambrian liberty — 
 their mountain fastnesses. Our early literature breathes 
 not a word of despair, not a hint at compromise, not a 
 thought of submission; on the contrary, the national spirit 
 gaining strength from adversity, kept pace with the occa- 
 sion, and mounted highest when the danger was greatest ; 
 and true to the Spartan character, which made them think 
 
 Gnawd yd goch a glew gleif gan vwng — gorwydd 
 
 Gnawd gocbes rodwyt ruat ostwng 
 Gnawd taw treissiaw tros bob etbwng 
 Nyd gnawd oe ardal na thai na thwng 
 Gwnaeth drwy einc ar freinc frawt anheilwng 
 Ac ergryd a cbryd a chreu dillwng 
 Gwnaeth drallif gwyar uwch trallwng — Elvael 
 
 Pan fu ymdravael drud ac erdrwng 
 Gwnaed dduw y ddiwet ef ddifefyl hebrwng 
 Yny vo y orffen ar ffort deilwng 
 Yn dygant trigyant dreic diystwng 
 Yn tec adef net' nawt orddillwng. 
 
 Myv. Arch. Vol. i. p. 391 
 
 1 Elvael is on the borders of Radnorshire ; an old bard says, — 
 
 " Gnawd yn Elvael haelioni 
 A march a merch a mynych roddi,'" 
 Elvael is distinguished for generosity, 
 For horses, and maids, and frequent gifts. 
 
 but it has not retained this character. 
 
FROM A.D. 1240 TO A.D. 1284. 373 
 
 it "a disgrace to die in their beds, but an honour to fall 
 in the field," preferred dying as freemen to living as slaves. 
 In none of the poems which have been perused for the pur- 
 poses of the Essay, have there appeared the least traces of 
 despondency; but the same fierce defiance of Saxons, and 
 Normans, or " French" as they are called, and the same ex- 
 ultation in successes whether great or small, are as evident 
 in those which remain, as in those selected. In the Kymric 
 camps, there were too frequently treachery and intrigue ; 
 but fear and cowardice were alike unknown. 
 
 Y Prydydd Bychan, or The Little Poet, has contributed 
 twenty one short poems to the literature of his country. 
 He lived between the years 1210 and 1260. His verses 
 are nearly all addressed to the princes of South Wales; and 
 it thence seems that he lived in Deheubarth ; but the sub- 
 ject of the following, and longest of his poems, is the bro- 
 ther of prince Llywelyn, — 
 
 Englynion sung by the Prydydd Bychan, of South 
 Wales, to Owen the Red, son of Gruffydd ab Llywelyn, 1 — 
 
 Gwynedd famed for kind princes and abundant songs, 
 Thou wilt suffer no injury from the beautiful sou of Gru- 
 ffydd ; 
 The hawk, stern in armour in the battle, 
 Is the glory of the Perveddwlad. 2 
 
 A resolute ruler, and a bold inhabitant, — is Owen, 
 
 Whose sword attracts the ravens, — the eulogized of num- 
 bers ; 
 He is a valiant governor bold in the conflict, 
 And descended from a line x)f kings. 
 
 1 Gwynet kein reuet cann rad — nyth arllut 
 Mab Gruffyt mawrvut mad 
 Gorvlwng walch yg calch yg cad 
 Goruolet y beruetwlad. 
 
 Gwledic gwychyr hydric gwychnaws — yw Ywein 
 
 Clet lith brein clod Haws 
 O lyw glyw glewddrud gynghaws 
 O lin breyennin trin traws. 
 
 The Perveddwlad, means the central land; and the district so named, com- 
 
 prised the present counties of Flint and Denbigh. 
 
374 WELSH POETRY 
 
 In the tumult daring, in the trial — unperplexed. 
 
 The son of Gruffydd is the strength of his valley ; 
 Kymric hawk, ardent, strong and persevering, 
 They will bring thee all that is thine. 
 
 The hawk of the valley shall have the privilege of the so- 
 vereignty, 
 Through the grace of the ruler, who dislikes not war, 
 Fearless, and bold lord of a spacious palace, 
 Which his golden sword has won. 
 
 You have seen the surpassing and destructive heroism 
 
 Of the impetuous sons of Beli ;* 
 Courteous hawks, proud frequenters of the feasts 
 Of Mon ; Eagles of Snowdon. 
 
 Eagle of golden tribute, spreader of carnage is Owen, 
 
 The omen of hawks, the hawk of conflict ; 
 Fond of arms from his youth, 
 The dragon of the Court of Fraw, 2 does no good to the Frank. 
 
 The Frank dares not approach the camp of the crafty warrior, 
 Whose tents are bound up in five pieces ; 
 
 Trawsvar yn trydar yn tro — dygythrut 
 
 Mab Gruffut breiscut bro 
 Caer daer trwynwalch Gymro 
 Dygant yth vetyant atb vo. 
 
 Bo gwalch bro breint teyrnas 
 
 Drwy rad y rwyf cad nyd cas 
 Yn ddiofyn ehofyn ehangblas arglwyt 
 O eurglet ry cafas. 
 
 Kawssawch goruvawch gwrhydri angut 
 
 Angert veibyon Beli 
 Mwynvawr weilch beilch balch westi 
 Mon eryron eryri. 
 
 Eryr eurdretb myr aerdranc — yw Ywein 
 
 Gweilch goelvein gwalch gyfranc 
 Drud yn arveu yn yeuanc 
 Dreic llys fraw drwc ar lies franc. 
 
 Franc nyth veit kyfranc kyfrwysgar — gwersyll 
 Rwym pebyll bumddryll bar 
 
 1 Beli the Great son of Manogan, the 64th king of Britain. In the books of 
 pedigrees, Beli is the stock from which the descents of the subsequent sovereigns 
 of the Britons are traced out. He is distinguished for having exterminated 
 one of the three molestations of the Island, which was a civil war that broke out 
 in his time; and also for being the father of the celebrated Caswallon. Dr. W. 
 Owen Pughe's Cambrian Biography, p. 21. 
 
 2 The royal palace of Aberffraw in Anglesea. 
 
PROM A.D. 1240 TO A.D. 1284. 375 
 
 Nimble slaughterer, furious in battle as a raging sea, 
 Strong and active against the enemy. 
 
 Well known to the enemy is the quick witted Owen, 
 
 Hero of London, 1 having a lion's war shout ; 
 The hawk, bold from childhood, is greatly popular, 
 The supporter of weakness, the hope of Gwyneddians. 
 
 The life of this Owain, affords striking illustrations of the 
 character of the times, and tempts me to relate a few of its 
 particulars. David the son of Llywelyn ab Iorwerth, hav- 
 ing the will of his father, the friendship of his uncle, Henry 
 the III., king of England, and the sanction of his nobles, 
 ascended the throne of North Wales, and imprisoned his 
 elder brother. The bishop of Bangor, through whose 
 agency Gruffydd and his son Owain were imprisoned, after 
 the lapse of some time desired that he should be released ; 
 but David refusing to comply he excommunicated him, and 
 then w r ent to England, where he desired the king to obtain 
 the release of that prince^ lest the fact being mentioned at 
 Rome might bring the king into discredit. Henry sent to 
 David to demand his brother's liberty ; and the Cambrian 
 prince replied, that if he were to set Gruffydd at liberty, 
 the country would soon be embroiled in civil war. The 
 prisoner being apprised of this, sent to inform the king that 
 if he would release him, he would consent to hold his land 
 under him, pay him two hundred marks annually, and as- 
 sist that monarch to subjugate the refractory portions of 
 the country. In the meantime the bishop of Bangor had 
 gone to Rome, and prevailed on the pope also to excommu- 
 nicate the Cambrian prince; and Gruffydd Maelawr, the 
 subject of the Ode of Einion Wann, and a man renowned 
 for bravery and wisdom, had also sent to desire the king to 
 
 Cad aervlawt morgymlawt var 
 Cadarn ddilesc wrth esgar. 
 Hyddysc y esgar escudvryd — Ywein 
 
 Gwawr llundein Hew yg gryd 
 Hydoryf walch hydyr or mebyd 
 Hyder gwendud ner gwendyd. 
 
 1 Owen had long been a resident at the English court. 
 
376 
 
 WELSH POETRY 
 
 release Gruffydd. Seduced by these representations, the 
 king came to Shrewsbury, and was there joined by the lords 
 of the Marches, and many Cambrian chieftains ; and David 
 standing alone, and doubtful of the fidelity of his vassals, 
 made peace with the king, and consented to set free his 
 brother. The king had previously entered into a contract 
 with Gruffydd, in which the latter stipulated through his 
 wife Senena, that on the release of himself and his son 
 Owain, he would pay the king six hundred marks for his 
 land, and an annual rent of three hundred more ; but David 
 having made his uncle acquainted with his brother's restless 
 disposition, Henry took Gruffydd with him to London, and 
 kept his wife, and his son honourable captives in the Tower. 
 Despairing of release, Gruffydd projected an escape. He 
 tore up his bedclothes, and made them with what other 
 materials he could obtain into a rope, with which one dark 
 nip-lit he let himself down through a window, but being; a 
 stout and heavy man, his weight broke the rope, and he was 
 killed by the fall. His son was in consequence watched 
 more closely; but on the death of David in 1246, Owain 
 thinking there was a chance to push his fortune,, succeeded 
 in making his way to his own country. He had received 
 respectful treatment from the English monarch, and had 
 acquired some knowledge of the art of war. Accordingly 
 on his arrival he found partisans, and the kingdom of North 
 Wales was divided between him and his brother Llywelyn, 
 the latter retaining the cantrevs of Rhos, Rhuvonioc, the 
 vale of Clwyd, and Tegengl, being all the land between 
 Chester and Conway, and Owain having what forms the 
 present counties of Anglesey and Caernarvon, as appears from 
 the allusion to Aberffraw in the preceding poem. The 
 reason must also be now apparent, why Owain is termed the 
 " hero of London." For about eight years the two princes 
 ruled their respective districts in peace ; and it was proba- 
 bly during this period, (1246 — 1254) that the above Eng- 
 lynion were composed. The restless spirit of his father 
 survived it would seem in the son ; for about this latter 
 
FROM A. D. 1240 TO A. D. 1284. 377 
 
 date he plotted with their younger brother David, to rob 
 Llywelyn of his possessions. For this purpose they collected 
 their forces together; and Llywelyn prepared to oppose 
 them. A bloody conflict ensued at a place called Bryn 
 Dencyn; within an hour Owain was taken prisoner; on 
 hearing which the allied forces fled, and were slain in great 
 numbers. Owain was thrown into prison, where he was 
 kept for twenty-three years, while Llywelyn reigned sole 
 king of Gwynedd. It was during this confinement in the 
 castle of Dolbadarn, near Llanberis, that the bard Hywel 
 Voel ab Griffri wrote the two poems to Owain Goch, which 
 bear his name. Owain was released in 1277, in conse- 
 quence of a covenant between Llywelyn and Edward the 
 First, and received back a portion of his land, the cantrev 
 of Lleyn. His subsequent fortunes are unknown, also the 
 date of his death. Bleddyn Vardd has an elegy to his me- 
 mory, from which it would appear that he lived, and died, 
 a warrior. He is twice mentioned by Bleddyn as lord of 
 Mercyniawn. 
 
 The Prydydd Bychan is known to bardic critics, for 
 having made frequent use of the metre called Proest Kyv- 
 newidiog, and on account of his being the only bard of these 
 centuries, who has used the Proest Cadwynawdl. Meilir, 
 and Elidir Sais, had used the first of these, and the Proest 
 Kyvnewidiog, ' (combined vowel alternity) was a favourite ; 
 but no one made such frequent use of it as The Little Poet. 
 I am not acquainted with any English verse in this metre, 
 and must therefore use a Kymric example, — 
 
 Hart llys rys ros geithiwed 
 Rwyf llu tra vu y vyw«/d 
 Balchgrye barabyl bolchglet drwd 
 Bar dwys aghynnwys yg gad. 
 
 The peculiarity, it will be observed, is that the vowel 
 in the last syllable of the lines, is different in each. It is 
 said that the following verse, is the only specimen of the 
 combined alternate rhyme, belonging to this era, — 
 
 3B 
 
378 WELSH POETRY 
 
 Raeadyr gwaed am draed am drwyn 
 Kyw rac vy llyw Hew aryem 
 Rwym bryneich branhes terrwyn 
 Rwyf gawr awytvawr Ywem. 1 
 
 The next instance occurs two centuries later, in one of 
 the poems of Guttyn Owain. At first this appears to be 
 the alternate rhyme, so frequently used by English poets; 
 but on examiDation it will be found to differ in this, that 
 the alternation is not in the rhymes of the final feet, or 
 syllables, for all end with the same letter, but in the vowels 
 composing them. 
 
 Hywel Voel, the author of the poem which we shall next 
 notice, was a man of Irish extraction. The Kymry were 
 perfectly aristocratic in their laws and usages, particularly 
 with regard to persons of foreign origin, the slightest 
 flaw in whose title to nobility, or citizenship, was instantly 
 detected ; and thus, in speaking of Hywel Voel, they took 
 care to indicate his position in the scale of naturalization, 
 by describing him as " the son of Griffri the son of Pwyll 
 the Gwyddelian." This scale is an interesting feature in 
 the manners of the people and the time. It was as follows, — 
 
 "The ninth degree in ascent will stand in the same privileged 
 position, as the ninth degree in genealogical descent ; but upon 
 a principle different from that of lineal pedigree ; its regulating 
 law being as follows : 
 
 The first degree of the nine ascents, is the son of an alien, that 
 is the son of a foreigner, but a person of sworn allegiance to the 
 British nation and its Lords. A person of this degree is called an 
 alien by descent. 
 
 The second degree in ascent is attained by the marriage of an 
 alien's son with a Welsh lady of genuine descent. 
 
 The third degree in ascent, is a son born from that marriage. 
 
 The fourth degree in ascent is a marriage of that son with a 
 Welsh lady of genuine descent. 
 
 The fifth degree in ascent, is a son born from that marriage. 
 
 The sixth, is the marriage of that son with a Welsh lady. 
 
 The seventh, is a son born of that marriage. 
 
 The eighth, is the marriage of that son to a Welsh lady. 
 
 The ninth, is a son born of that marriage. He has established 
 his claim to the rights of a Welshman." 2 
 
 1 Rev. Walter Davies's Essay on the twenty-four metres, page 33. 
 2 Iolo MSS. page 462. 
 
FROM A.D. 1240 TO A.D. 1284. 379 
 
 But if there was a flaw in Hywel's title to be called a 
 Cambrian bard, he had more talent than many of the fra- 
 ternity. The following has throughout many indications 
 of ability ; the first part displays the affectation which pre- 
 vailed at this time among the bards ; but the conclusion is 
 both fine, and forcible. It is also remarkable as being a 
 bold remonstrance, against the imprisonment of Owain ab 
 Gruffydd by his brother, the king Lly welyn ab Gruffydd, — 
 
 1 The man in the tower, has long been imprisoned, 
 Manly sovereign, princely hawk of royalty, 
 One whose loss from among them, the active regret, 
 One who was a bold leader, and- ruler worthy to be praised, 
 One who was a protector of families, 
 One whom families think deserving of eulogy, 
 One who shone in war like Roderick the Great. 
 One who wore golden armour is wanting, 
 One there is bound by the ruler of Snowdon, 
 Who if free, like Rhun the son of Beli, 2 
 "Would not let Lloegria burn his borders. 
 A man of the race of Mervyn 3 and the magnanimous 
 Benlli,* 
 
 1 Gwr yssyt yn twr yn hir westi 
 Gwreit teyrneit teyrnwalch ri 
 Gwr am dotyw gwall oe golli o vyw 
 Gwreitly w a glyw y glodvori 
 Gwr teleid teiluoedd lochi 
 Gwr teilu teilwng y voli 
 Gwr y gryd yn ryd gwr val rodri mawr 
 Gwr eurglawr aessawr ysswyt lioli 
 Gwr yn rwym gan rwyf Eryri 
 Gwr pei ryt val Run vab Beli 
 Gwr ny adei loegyr y losgi ei dervyn 
 Gwr o hil Mervryn mawrvryd benlli 
 
 3 The bard seems to have been mistaken. Beli was the son of Rhun, and Rhun 
 the son of Maelgwn Gwynedd. 
 
 3 Mervyn was one of the sons of Rhodri the Great. 
 
 4 Benlli Gawr, or the giant, was the lord of an extensive district, forming por- 
 tions of the present counties of Flint and Denbigh. He lived about the middle 
 of the fifth century. In connection with him tbe following circumstance is de- 
 serving of record. An ancient lorica or British corslet of gold, was lately dis- 
 covered near Mold in Flintshire, under a mound of stones, called Bryn yr 
 Ellyllon; when the workmen were removing the mound they came upon a 
 skeleton, the skull of which was of gigantic proportion, and the thigh bones 
 those of a man of a great stature. Lying on the chest, was found the corslet, 
 studded over with two or three hundred beautiful amber beads, and crossed with 
 a kind of filagree work of fine gold giving somewhat the appearance of the an- 
 gels found on the old Saxon arch, the whole based on pure gold. Its extreme 
 
380 WELSH POETRY 
 
 One who led multitudes, one active in arms, 
 
 One who supported the people and was fond of war, 
 
 One who knew well how to regulate battles, 
 
 One who distributed his gold without stint, 
 
 One who was distinguished for generosity, 
 
 One impartial according to the primary precepts of Pryderi, 1 
 
 Owain the generous would not question bails, 
 
 Owain was not less active than Elivri, 2 
 
 One who bid the moon give us light, 
 
 One who bid the sun not to halt in his course ; 
 
 I will make my appeal to the true God, 
 
 Heaven knows the sincerity of my prayer, 
 
 That he may die shortly if he is to be cut off young. 
 
 Since, Llywelyn, thou art Lord of Kidwelly, 3 
 
 Gwr torvoet gwr gwisgoedd gwisgi 
 
 Gwr gwasgawd kiwdawd kad weini 
 
 Gwr cadarn cadoedd reoli 
 
 Gwr cadwent kedwis haelyoni 
 
 Gwr eurfut dilut heb doli 
 
 Gwr diletyf prifddeddf Pryderi 
 
 Gwr oet ewein kael ni wnei holi rnach 
 
 Gwr nyd oet lyfrach noc elifri 
 Gwr a beris lloer 11 wry goleuni 
 Gwr a beris heul nyd treul tregi 
 Y gwir Ddirw yt wyf yn ercbi 
 Yr gwyr nef om nevawl weti 
 Ar oed byrr os tyrrr torri glas ewyn 
 
 Gan vot Llywelyn llyw Kedwli 
 
 length is three feet seven inches, being made apparently to pass under the arms 
 and to meet in the centre of the back; and its width in front, where it is hol- 
 lowed out to receive the neck, eight inches. The weight of this most interesting 
 relic is seventeen ounces, and its intrinsic value about £60. It is now preserved 
 in the British Museum. Dr. Owen Pughe has made the following ingenious re- 
 marks on the subject, and every circumstance seems to corroborate the idea of 
 Benlli Gawr having been interred in that identical spot. "It is probable that 
 this being must have existed since the Romans left our country, otherwise, it 
 is likely that the body would have been burnt; and if he had lived about the 
 year 600, or after, he would have been deposited in one of our churches. 
 Under these circumstances we cannot be far away in attributing the period of 
 the existence of this extraordinary being to the year 500 : but then, who would 
 he be ? Who was the high personage, that at his funeral his retainers should 
 throw such a mass of earth and stones upon his grave, and for whose memory 
 there should be such a remarkable tribute of respect ? No other, we believe, 
 than Benlli Gawr himself, who had his friends about him at his din, on the sum- 
 mit called after him Moel Benlli, and in sight of his residence called Wydd- 
 grug, now called Mold, as well as in view of Dyffryn Clwyd on the other side. 
 The grave of this powerful man's son Beli, is about eight miles off, for the Eng- 
 lynion Milwyr, (Warriors' Triplets) say that Beli lies in Llanarmon yn Ial." — 
 Williams's Biographical Dictionary of Eminent Welshmen, Part I. pp. 38 — 9. 
 
 1 The allusion is not intelligible. 
 
 2 We frequently find Elivri mentioned, but his history is lost. 
 
 3 If I have translated Kedwli rightly, this is Kidwelly in Carmarthenshire. 
 
FROM A.D. 1240 TO A.D. 1284. ggj^ 
 
 Since there has long been a covenant without fault in him, 
 
 Since there is a disposition to treat without deception, 
 
 Since God suffered his Son to be placed on the cross, 
 
 Since the mysterious one went to the grave ; 
 
 And as thou believest that the Lord of Hosts rose again, 
 
 And fully redeemed the world by his five wounds, 
 
 Why wilt thou not forgive thy brother, and show to others 
 
 "Who can understand, the injustice of imprisonment ? 
 
 Prudent Llywelyn, a lion raging like the sea, 
 
 Valiant dragon, the supporter of chiefs, 
 
 Armed dragon of the satin tents, (do this,) 
 
 None but God can dispossess man. 
 
 Bleddyn Vardd, or Bleddyn the Poet, also flourished 
 about this time. He is the author .of thirteen short poems, 
 among which are an elegy on Llywelyn ab GrufFydd, two 
 eulogies of his younger brother, and an elegy on the three bro- 
 thers, Owain, Llywelyn, and David. All possess consider- 
 able merit, though it is not wholly of a poetical character. 
 We shall here quote the first of these, as a fair specimen of 
 the whole. It is inferior in imagery and passion, to the 
 fine composition of Ab yr Ynad Coch, though it may be 
 said to be much more truthful ; and as it seems to portray 
 Llywelyn, not as an ideal hero, but as he actually was, it is 
 well worthy of attention. This forms its distinctive merit, 
 which is certainly great. The description is very elaborate, 
 careful, and apparently correct ; much pains have therefore 
 been taken, to render the literal meaning of each epithet. — L 
 
 Great Cambria has lost her manliest hero, 
 His bold and nimble sword was the bravest of the bright 
 raging blades. 
 
 Gan vod hir gymmod beb gam ynni 
 Gan ddiddwyll gymwyll gymodi 
 Gan vadeu o Dduw y dodi yg croc wet 
 
 Gan vynet yr bet bu bot keli 
 Gan gredu penn llu llwry kyvodi 
 Gan boll ddifryd byd oe bym weli 
 Pan na vadeu brawd y brovi arall 
 A vyt wrth ddeall guall gospi 
 Ny vet nainyn duw digyvoethi dyn 
 Digart Llywelyn lew tra gweilgi 
 Dewr dragon berywon bortbi 
 
 Dreic arveu pebylleu pali. — My v. Arch. Vol. I. 393. 
 1 Colles Gymra fawr, gwawr gwreiddiaf, 
 Gwreiddllafn esgud gloywddrud glewaf, 
 
3g2 WELSH POETRY. 
 
 The manly complexion ed is not living ; what shall I do for 
 
 his loss 1 
 The bold and bounteous lion, most ready with rewards. 
 
 A hero who slew for us, one who was most daring, 
 
 One who devoted himself to his country, confidently I name 
 
 him, 
 The manly Llywelyn, manliest of Kymry, 
 Who loved not to fly by the nearest road. 
 
 Ardent hero, leader of a numerous host, 
 Of green coloured tents, and fixed encampments, 
 Gruffydd's manly son; the most reckless of givers, 
 After the transcendent maxims of ]S T udd and Mordav. 1 
 
 Hero of the red-spear, he was a serious man like Priam, 
 A good man, king of a joyous army, 
 Fortunate in obtaining praise ; the freest in giving, 
 That the sun sees in his longest course. 
 
 Man whose anger was destructive, most courteous prince, 
 A man sincere in grief, true in loving, 
 Perfect in knowledge, wise, and the choicest of men, 
 From Mon to that fairest of places, Caerlleon. 
 
 Llywelyn, was on the banks of the impetuous Taffs 
 Celebrated as a hero, freest distributor of garments ; 
 He was confessedly the first of warriors, 
 Ardent Eagle, as far as Port Wegyr. 
 
 Gwreiddlyw nid byw, ba wnaf o'i golled ? 
 
 Gwreiddllew hyged, roddged rwyddaf ; 
 Gwr a las drosom, gwr oedd drosaf 
 Gwr oedd dros Gymru, hyf yr henwaf, 
 Gwrawl Lewelyn, gwraf o Gymro ; 
 
 Gwr ni charai ffo i'r ffordd nesaf ; 
 Gwr gwrdd yn cyrchu llu lledeithaf ; 
 Gwr gwyrddliw bebyll^ gwersyll gorsaf 
 Gwreiddfab Gruflydd, digraflaf, am reg, 
 
 Yn neddfau mawr deg Nudd a Mordaf. 
 Gwr gwayw rudd, gwr prudd megys Priaf, 
 Gwr gwiw yn frenin fyddin falchaf 
 Gwr hylwydd y glod, gwr haelaf, am draul, 
 
 Hyd y cerdda haul ei hwyl bellaf. 
 Gwr dig ei ddistryw, llyw llyseiddiaf, 
 Gwr dygn ei alar, car cywiraf; 
 Gwt cywirgoeth, doeth, detholedig, o Fon 
 
 Hyd yn Nghaerlleon, y He teccaf. 
 Gwr vu Lywelyn ger terfyn taf 
 Gwawr kyhoet wisgoet wasgaroccaf 
 Gwr oed arbennic bennaf o vilwyr 
 
 Hyd ym portli Wegyr eryr araf. 
 
 1 See note to p. 153. 
 
 2 The river Taff is in Glamorganshire. 
 
FROM A.D. 1240 TO A.D. 1284. 3^3 
 
 May he who took upon himself the sins of the world, 
 
 And suffered the severest of punishment, 
 
 Take my ruler, the most virtuous of princes, 
 
 And make him partaker of the great joys of Heaven. 
 
 This portraiture makes the last prince of Wales appear 
 to have been an estimable man, in addition to having the 
 necessary qualifications, in being warlike, valiant, and dar- 
 ing ; and the poem very clearly proves one of two things ; 
 for we must either believe that Llywelyn actually possessed 
 these fine attributes, or that the bard had refinement 
 enough to perceive that they were qualities which greatly 
 became a prince. In either case it indicates the prevalence 
 of good taste, and right feeling; and as such the poem is a 
 valuable remnant. Two other portraits of this prince have 
 been drawn by different authors; and as they reflect some 
 of the spirit of the age, we shall here quote them as in 
 the edition of the Pohjchronicion printed by Caxton in 1460, 
 with the English translation annexed, — 
 
 " Of this Lewelin two men of relygyon wrote verses in metre; 
 of the Walshmen in this maner. 
 
 Hie jacet Anglorum tortor, tutor Yenedorum ; 
 Princeps Wallorum Lewelinus regula morum ; 
 Gemma cosevorum, flos regum prreteritorum ; 
 Forma futurorum; dux, laus, lex, lux populorum. 
 
 Here lyeth the tormentour of Englyshemen wardeyn and tutor of 
 Walshemen ; Prince of Welshemen. Lewelyn, ruler of good 
 thewes. Cheyf precyous stone of them that were in his tyme. 
 Floure of kynges that were before. Ensample of them that shall 
 be after this time. Leder praysynge ; law and lyght of people. 
 
 But the Englisheman said in this manere, 
 
 Hie jacet error princeps, prcedo virorum ; 
 Prodi tor Anglorum, fax livida, secta reorum ; 
 Numen Wallorum, trux dux, homicida piorum ; 
 Fsex Trojanorum, stirps mendax, causa malorum. 
 
 Y gwr a gymyrth enghyrth ynghaf 
 Anghen dros bymhoes drymloes drymaf 
 A gymero vy rwyf rywoccaf vonhet 
 Yn rami trugaret vawret vwyhaf. 
 
 Myv. Arch. Vol. I. p. 368. 
 
3 §4 WELSH POETRY 
 
 That is ; here lyeth the Prynce of errours, Theyf and robber of 
 men. Traytour of Englyshemen. A dyinme bronde ; and set of 
 euyll doers, God of Walsh emen ; a cruell duke ; a sleer of good 
 men. Drastes of Troyanes ; a false rote cause of euyll dedes." 
 
 The allusions to Priam, to Ul Kaissar, and other Latin 
 names, show that the taste for classic literature, which so 
 eminently distinguished this and the succeeding centuries, 
 was beginning to make itself apparent in the works of the 
 bards ; it becomes more apparent as we advance, and in the 
 fifteenth century, we find that the revival of Roman litera- 
 ture by Petrarch and Bocaccio, exercised a very powerful 
 influence upon the more learned of the bardic writers. 
 
 This bard has three short verses on the death of Davydd 
 Benvras, which form an interesting sketch of that bard, — 1 
 
 The good men of Gwynedd, the more is the pity 
 For us indigent men, are perishing ; 
 Two at a time worthy people die; 
 Every hour, painful tale, there die three. 
 
 Death has been officious with our friends — a new recollection 
 Causes me profound and lasting regret ; 
 There was mourning for the taking of the reproachless David; 
 He was a witty man, and in his day wise. 
 
 While lived David, his course was blameless, 
 
 He was powerful in the conflict of battle, 
 
 He was liberal and stout-hearted in distress, 
 
 He was witty without pedantry, wise, and humorous. 
 
 The bard named Sevnyn, also appears to have been living 
 at this time. Two of his poems have no cynghanedd% the 
 
 1 Mae gwyrda gwynet gwae ni yr eissywed 
 Yssywaeth yn trenghi 
 Pob deu pobyl dygyn eu colli 
 Pob awr poen dramawr pob dri. 
 
 Oet tringar an' car cof newyt am peir 
 
 Perygyl hiraeth peunyt 
 Oet cwyn dwyn difefyl davyt 
 Oet coeth gwr a doetb y dyd. 
 
 Tra vu ddyt davyt difefyl ddylif cad 
 
 Oet cadarn y gynnif 
 Oet kedawl oet cadyr yg grif 
 Oet koeth digrawn doetb digrif. 
 
FROM A. D. 1240 TO A. D. 1248. 285 
 
 third has. We might thence infer that he flourished be- 
 tween 1280 and 1370. One of these poems describes the 
 exploits of prince Llywelyn. 
 
 We have now passed in review several poems of various 
 degrees of merit, but the best and greatest which chal- 
 lenges our critical attention during this stage, is the Elegy 
 of Gruffydd ab Yr Ynad Coch upon prince Llywelyn, which 
 is really a very fine composition. The occasion is one to 
 which no Kymro can be indifferent ; and I trust it has suf- 
 ficient interest to justify a brief recapitulation of the cir- 
 cumstances attending Llywelyn's death. He had marched 
 to South Wales, to meet some Cambrian partisans, and 
 English lords, who had entered into a confederacy against 
 Edward the First. The place of meeting was near Builth 
 in Breconshire. He posted his army on a mountain in the 
 neighbourhood, and went alone and unarmed to the appointed 
 spot ; but the design having been betrayed, apparently by 
 the persons implicated in the plot, instead of meeting with 
 his confederates, the outposts were attacked by hostile 
 forces. These made no impression, until a ford was shown 
 where the river might be crossed, when a party of English 
 horse surrounded the place where the prince stood. He in 
 endeavouring to get back to his own army was followed by 
 an English knight named Adam de Francton ; who know- 
 ing only that he was a Welshman, ran his spear through 
 his body, which he left where it lay, and then joined the 
 English troops under Sir Edmund Mortimer, in the attack 
 on the Cambrian army. The battle which occurred on the 
 tenth of December, 1282, lasted three hours, and after a 
 severe conflict, the Kymry were compelled to give way. All 
 this time Llywelyn had lain upon the ground, faint and ex- 
 piring. He had just life enough remaining to ask for a 
 priest; and a white friar, who chanced to be present, admi- 
 nistered to the dying prince the last sacred duties of his 
 office. 1 After the battle, De Francton returned into the 
 
 1 Warrington, vol. ii, p. 269. 
 3 C 
 
386 WELSH POETRY 
 
 valley to strip the person he had wounded. On viewing 
 the body, which was still breathing, it was found, to the 
 great joy of the English army, that the dying person was 
 no other than the prince of Wales. Soon as Llywelyn was 
 dead, De Francton cut off the head, which as a gift of high 
 value he presented to the king at Conway. The body lay 
 unburied for some time, though the prince's friends were so- 
 licitous that he might be interred in consecrated ground. 
 The lady Matilda Longespec also, among others, interested 
 herself for a decent interment ; but this indulgence, small 
 as it was, was not allowed. As soon as the head was brought 
 to him, the English king sent it to London; and in order 
 to feast the eyes of his subjects with a novel and savage 
 spectacle, it was ornamented with a silver circle, and placed 
 in the pillory in Cheapside, in ridicule of the prophecy of 
 Merlin, that Llywelyn would one day wear the crown of 
 Brutus. In contempt also of the late prediction of the 
 soothsayer, that this prince would ride through Cheapside 
 crowned with a silver diadem, his head was encircled with 
 a wreath of ivy, and being fixed on the point of a spear, 
 was carried through the streets by a horseman ; it was then 
 placed upon the highest turret in the Tower of London, 
 where it remained for a long time. 1 
 
 These facts will render the allusions in the poem intelli- 
 gible, and fully justify the observations of Warrington, 2 
 that " To insult the remains of a fallen enemy, and a sove- 
 reign prince, by devices which were mean and vindictive, 
 was more suited to the leader of a tribe of Arabs, than a 
 great monarch." 
 
 3 Cold is my heart beneath a breast stricken with sorrow, 
 For the Royal diviner of the court of Aberffraw ; 
 Gold that was not 'smooth was paid from his hand, 
 He was worthy of a golden diadem. 
 
 1 Warrington, vol. ii, page 277. 2 Ibid. vol. ii. page 278. 
 
 3 Oer galon dan fron o fraw — allwynin 
 Am frenin dewin dor Aberffraw 
 Aur dilyfn a delid oi law 
 Aur dalaeth oedd deilwng iddaw. 
 
FROM A. D. 1240 TO 1284. 3§7 
 
 Golden horns of a golden monarch, I shall have no joy, 
 
 Llywelyn is not living, gracefully to enrobe me ; 
 
 Woe is me for a lordly hawk, free from reproach, 
 
 Woe is me of the misfortune which has befallen him. 
 
 Woe is me of losing him, woe is me of his destiny, 
 
 Woe is me of hearing that he was wounded ; 
 
 Woe ye tents of Cadwaladr, that the obstructor of the flood is 
 
 pierced, 
 Golden handed prince, hero of the red-stained spear, 
 Every winter he distributed rich apparel, 
 And clothed me with garments from his own person. 
 Lord of plenteous flocks, our right hand has not prospered, 
 But he shall enjoy life eternal. 
 It is my lot to complain of Saxon treachery, 
 It is mine to complain of the necessity of dying, 
 It is mine to despise myself because God 
 Has left me without him, 
 
 It is mine to praise him Avithout interruption or silence, 
 It is mine henceforth to meditate on him, 
 It is mine while life lasts for him to mourn, 
 It is mine to grieve, mine to weep. 
 A lord I have lost, well may I mourn, 
 A lord of a royal palace, slain by a human hand, 
 A lord, righteous, and truthful, listen to me ! 
 I soar to complain, Oh ! that I should have cause. 
 A lord, victorious until the eighteen l were slain, 
 
 Eurgyrn aur deyrn nim daw — llawenydd 
 Llywelyn nid rhydd i'm rhwydd wisgaw 
 Gwae fi am Arglwydd gwalch diwradwydd 
 Gwae fi o'r aflwydd ei dramgwyddaw. 
 Gwae fi or golled gwae fi or dynged 
 Gwae fi or clywed fod clwyf arnaw 
 Gwersyll Cadwaladr gwae saf llif daradr 
 Gwas rhudd ei baladr balawg eurllaw 
 Gwasgaroedd alaf gwisgoedd bob gauaf 
 Gwisgoedd am danaf oddi am danaw 
 Bucheslawn arglwydd min llwydd yn Haw 
 Buchedd dragywydd a drig iddaw 
 Ys mau bid wrth Sais am fy nhreisiaw 
 Ys mau rhag angau angen gwynaw 
 Ys mau gan ddemydd ymddifanw a Duw 
 Am edewis hebddaw 
 Ys mau eu ganmawl heb dawl heb daw 
 Ys mau fyth bellach ei faith bwyllaw 
 Ys mau im dyn hoedl am danaw afar 
 Canys mau alar ys mau wylaw 
 Arglwydd a gollais gallaf hirfraw 
 Arglwydd teyrnblas a las o law 
 Arglwydd cywir gwir gwarandaw arnaf 
 Uched y cwynaf ocb or cwynaw 
 Arglwydd llwydd cyn lladd y deunaw 
 1 Here apparently we have an historical fact not hitherto noticed ; the num- 
 ber of the persons he took with him, appears to have been eighteen. 
 
338 WELSH POETRY 
 
 A lord who was gentle, whose possession is now the silent earth, 
 
 A lord, who was like a lion, ruling the elements, 
 
 A lord, whose disfigurement makes us most uneasy, 
 
 A lord, who was praised in songs as Emrys predicted, 
 
 No Saxon would dare to touch him ; 
 
 A lord, the admired of the Kymry ; is he not held in a se- 
 pulchre, 
 
 Who ought rightly to hold (the sceptre of) Aberffraw ? 
 
 Lord Christ, how seriously I grieve for him, 
 
 Lord of truth, grant him salvation. 
 
 O the heavy sword stroke which slew him, 
 
 the long-swords which caused his ruin, 
 
 the wound inflicted by the loss of our ruling prince, 
 
 O that we should have heard that his army was obstructed. 
 
 The heroic chief was slain by the hand of a stranger, 
 
 And the privilege of his age was not respected. 
 
 Candle of sovereignty, powerful lion of Gwynedd, 
 
 Whom the chair of honour so greatly became ! 
 
 Alas his death ! Wide Britain mourns the fall of her sup- 
 porter, 
 
 O that the lion was slain, who was our talisman and armour. 
 
 Many a slippery tear sails down the cheek, 
 
 Many a wounded side is red with gore, 
 
 Many a foot is bathed in blood, 
 
 Many a widow mourns her partner lost, 
 
 Many a mind is heavily troubled, 
 
 Many a son grieves over a father slain, 
 
 Arglwydd llary neud Hawr ei ystaw eiddaw 
 Arglwydd glew fal Hew yn Uywiaw elfydd 
 Arglwydd aflonydd eu afluniaw 
 Arglwydd cannadlwydd cyn adaw Emrais 
 Ni lyfasai Sais ei ogleisiaw 
 Arglwydd neud maendo ymandaw Cymry 
 Or llin a ddyly ddal Aberffraw 
 Arglwydd Crist mor wyf drist drostaw 
 Arglwydd gwir gwared y ganthaw 
 O gleddyfawd trwm tramgwydd arnaw 
 O gleddyfau hir yn ei ddiriaw 
 O glwyf am fy rhwyf y sy'm rhwyfaw 
 O gly wed lludded llu bod faeaw 
 Cwbl o was alas o law ysgeraint 
 Cwbl braint ei henaint oedd o honaw 
 Canwyll teyrnedd cadarn Hew Gwynedd 
 Cadair anrbydedd rhaid oedd wrthaw 
 O laith Prydain faith cwynllaith canllaw 
 O ladd Hew o an coel lluryg na'ncaw 
 Llawer deigr bylithr yn hwylaw ar rudd 
 Llawer ystlys rudd a rhwyg arnaw 
 Llawer gwaed am draed wedi ymdreiddia^ 
 Llawer gweddw a gwaedd y amdanaw 
 Llawer meddwl trwm yn omrwyaw 
 Llawer mab heb dad gwedi ei adaw 
 
FROM A.D. 1240 TO 1284. 339 
 
 Many an old grey town is deserted, 
 Many will be ruined by yonder deed. 
 
 A portion of this Elegy which succeeds these lines, has been 
 already rendered into English verse. The translation occurs 
 in Jones^ Relics of the Welsh Bards ; and as they very 
 faithfully represent in a pleasing form the sublimity of the 
 original, the lines are here inserted, — 1 
 
 Frequent is heard the voice of woe, 
 
 Frequent the tears of sorrow flow; 
 
 Such sounds as erst in Camlan heard, 
 
 Rous'd to wrath old Arthur's bard, 
 
 Cambria's warrior we deplore ; 
 
 Our Llywelyn is no more. 
 
 Who like Llywelyn now remains, 
 
 To shield from wrong his native plains ? 
 
 My soul with piercing grief is fill'd; 
 
 My vital blood with horror chill'd : 
 
 Nature herself is changed, and lo ! 
 
 Now all things sympathize below ! 
 
 Hark ! how the howling wind and rain, 
 
 In loudest symphony complain ! 
 
 Hark ! how the consecrated oaks, 
 
 Unconscious of the woodman's strokes, 
 
 With thundering crash proclaim he's gone ; 
 
 Fall in each other's arms and groan ! 
 
 Hark ! how the sullen tempests roar ! 
 
 See ! how the white waves lash the shore ! 
 
 See ! how eclipsed the sun appears, 
 
 See ! how the stars fall from their spheres ! 
 
 Each awful Heaven sent prodigy, 
 
 Ye sons of infidelity, 
 
 Llawer hendref fraith gwedi llwybr godaith 
 Llawer diffaith drwy anrhaith draw 
 
 1 Llawer lief druan fal ban fu'r Gamlan 
 Llawer deigr dros ran wedi'r greiniaw 
 O leas gwanas gwanar eurllaw 
 O laith Llywelyn cof dyn ni'm daw 
 Oerfelawg calon dan fron o fraw 
 Rewydd fal crinwydd y sy'n crinaw 
 Poni welwchwi hynt y gwynt ar glaw 
 Poni welwchwi'r deri yn ymdaraw 
 Poni welwchwi'r mor yn merwinaw'r tir 
 Poni welwchwi'r gwynt yn ymgyweiriaw 
 Poni welwchwi'r haul yn hwylaw'r awyr 
 Poni welwchwi'r syr wedi syrthiaw 
 Poni chredwchwi Dduw dyniadon ynfyd 
 
390 WELSH POETRY 
 
 Believe and tremble. Guilty land, 
 Lo ! thy destruction is at hand ! 
 Thou great Creator of the world, 
 "Why are not thy red lightnings hurl'd ? 
 Will not the sea at thy command, 
 Swallow up this guilty land ? 
 Why are we left to mourn in vain, 
 The Guardian of our country slain 1 
 No place, no refuge for us left, 
 Of homes, of liberty, bereft ; 
 Where shall we flee 1 to whom complain, 
 Since our dear Llywelyn's slain? 
 
 The verse translation ending here, it becomes necessary 
 to resume our literal version. — * 
 
 Every member of his worthy family, 
 
 Every tenant who lived under him, 
 
 Every chieftain, every land that was his, 
 
 Every cantrev, and every town — all are pierced with 
 
 grief. 
 Every family, every tribe, are sorrowing, 
 Every weak, and every powerful maintained by his 
 
 hand, 
 Every son in the land groans in anguish. 
 It was small gain to deceive me, 
 By leaving my head and taking his; 
 
 A head which when severed was not avenged by Kymry, 
 A head, which, when slain, had better have been preserved, 
 
 Poni welwchwi'r byd wedi bydiaw 
 
 Och hyd attad Dduw na ddaw — mor dros dir 
 
 Pa beth i"n gedir i ohiriaw 
 Nid oes le y cyrcher rhag caarcbar braw 
 Nid oes le y triger och o'r trigaw 
 Nid oes na cbyngbor na chlo nae egor 
 
 TJnffordd i esgor brwyngyngor braw. 
 1 Pob teulu teilwng oedd iddaw 
 Pob cedwyr cedwynt y danaw 
 Pob dengyn a dyngynt o'i law 
 Pob gwledig pob gwlad oedd iddaw 
 Pob cantref pob tref ynt yn treiddiaw 
 Pob tylwyth pob llwyth y sy'n llithraw 
 Pob gwan pob cadarn cadwedd o'i law 
 Pob mab yn ei gryd y sy^ udaw 
 Bychan lies oedd ym am ry nhwyllaw 
 
 Gadael pen arnaf beb ben arnaw 
 Pen pan las ni bu gas gyraraw 
 Pen pan las oedd lesacb peidiaw 
 
FROM A.D. 1240 TO A.D. 1294. 39 ^ 
 
 The head of a warrior, a ruler of highest celebrity, 
 
 The head was that of a dragon, and on his crest a dragon's 
 
 head. 
 Head of Llywelyn the fair, profoundly feared, 
 O that there should be an iron spear through it! 
 Head of a lord after -whom we severely grieve, 
 Head that was owner of nine hundred lands, 
 
 Having nine hundred feasts ; 
 Head of sovereigns, from whose hand the spear swiftly flew, 
 Head of proud princes, of the blunted sword, 
 Head of wolf-like rulers loving the battle's front, 
 Head of Christian sovereigns — may heaven be his lot. 
 Blessed sovereign, leader of a splendid army, 
 A blessed host conquering as far as Brittany, 
 True and rightful king of Aberffraw, 
 May he inherit the blessed land of Heaven ! 
 
 This bard was the ablest of his day, and this elegy is a 
 fine specimen of his ability. He was strongly inspired with 
 the true spirit of poetry, and seems to have been greatly af- 
 fected by the fate of his beloved prince. The figures are 
 beautiful, and unusually bold ; and were they not justified 
 by the bard's Hebrew models, and by the subsequent exam- 
 ples of the greatest names in modern poetry, an ample de- 
 fence would be furnished in their own intrinsic force and 
 sublimity. I wish such flights of fancy were more frequent 
 among other bards; their poems would then have taken 
 a firmer hold than they have upon the public mind. This 
 poem is worthy of the occasion which called it forth, and 
 forms a fitting wail on a hero's fall. 
 
 Pen niilwr pen moliant rbagllaw 
 Pen dragon pen draig oedd arnaw 
 Pen Llewelyn deg dygn fraw — i'r byd 
 
 Bod pawl haiarn drwyddaw 
 Pen Arglwydd poen dygngwydd amdaw 
 Pen fenaid heb fanag arnaw 
 Pen a fu berchen ar barch naw Canwlad 
 
 A naw canwledd iddo 
 Pen teyrn heyrn heid o'i law 
 Penteyrnwalch balch bwlcb ei ddeifhiaw 
 Penteyrnaidd flaidd flaengar ganthaw 
 Penteyrnef nef ei nawdd arnaw 
 Gwyndeyrn ortbeyrn wrthaw 
 Gwendorf gorf gorfynt hynt hyd Lydaw 
 Gwir freiniol frenbin Aberffraw 
 Gwenwlad nef boed addef iddaw. 
 
 Myv. Arch. Vol. p. 397. 
 
SECTION III. 
 
 The Religious Poetry of the Bards. 
 
 It is a fact now satisfactorily established by the concurrent 
 researches of Blount, Hughes, Rees, and Stebbing,that there 
 was a British church in these Islands prior to the arrival of 
 Augustine. This church then had, and continued among the 
 Ky mry for many centuries to have, a separate and indepen- 
 dent existence. Wide differences of opinion on matters 
 pertaining to doctrine and church goverment, existed be- 
 tween the two churches, and until members of the church of 
 Home, in the course of time, insinuated themselves into the 
 British churches, these differences continued. And even 
 then the fusion was not complete ; for the Kymry ever 
 looked with a jealous eye upon foreign ecclesiastics. 
 
 This fact will go far to account for the appearance during 
 the middle ages, of a mass of religious poetry in the Cam- 
 brian language. I was not a little surprised in perusing 
 these, to find the bards, almost to a man, exerciisng their 
 talents in the composition of a species of literature which 
 seemed so inconsistent with their practices and professions; 
 but on examination, it soon appeared that they had been 
 judged both harshly and unfairly. The Kymry have ever 
 been a religious people ; and the profession of Christianity 
 seems now to be a necessary part of their constitution. It 
 will have been observed that scarcely one of their poems be- 
 gins without an invocation to the Deity, and none end with- 
 out aspirations for eternal joy hereafter; and it is both inter- 
 esting and instructive, to mark the effect of the principles of 
 Christianity, upon men who were by no means favourably 
 
RELIGIOUS POETRY 393 
 
 disposed towards its teachers. The bards had the discrimi- 
 nation to distinguish between the truth of religion, and the 
 mixture of truth and error then usually presented under 
 that name. In the bardic poems, we frequently meet with 
 wholesale denunciations of the clergy, but in the whole 
 range of Kymric poetry, there is not, I confidently venture 
 to assert, a line of impiety. The professors of a religion, 
 whose precepts they did not practise, were satirized, and 
 justly too; but that censure was never indiscriminate, and 
 co-existed with sincere and unaffected belief. In the lapse 
 of centuries, the independence of the Kymry became greatly 
 compromised ; but the people kept to themselves the 
 right of private judgment, and a disposition to put that 
 right in practice. We have already quoted Meilyr's Ode 
 upon his death bed. Kynddelw has a long poem in ten 
 parts, addressed to the Deity, a part of which has been 
 already given ; and he has another, supposed to have been 
 his last literary effort, of much greater merit, in which 
 he endeavours, with much success, to show that the bardic 
 profession was not inconsistent with piety. Prydydd y 
 Moch has an address to the Deity, as has Davydd Benvras ; 
 Meilyr ab Gwalchmai has eight small poems on devoti- 
 onal subjects, without much merit ; and Einion his brother 
 is not more fortunate in the three long addresses to God, 
 which bear his name. Elidir Sais has several religious 
 poems of much more than ordinary merit. One of them 
 has excellence enough to justify quotation. 1 — 
 
 A Divine Ode. 
 
 Consider thy errors, for it is written, 
 
 " With God there will be no contention, 
 
 But truth, and mild tranquillity, 
 
 And true mercy," as he has said. 
 
 Examine thy conduct ere thou goest to the grave ! 
 
 1 Ystyr di enuir heruyd a treithir 
 Gan dduu ny cheffir dim cynirha 
 Eithr gwiryoned a gwar tangneved 
 A gwir drugared val y gueda 
 Edrych dy vuched kyn myn'd i'th ved 
 
 3 D 
 
394 RELIGIOUS POETRY. 
 
 If thou hast done wrong, be not surprised. 
 
 Should there be extreme payment before Jesus ; 
 
 Where the three hosts see the evils he has done, 
 
 Woe to the believer who has sinned ; 
 
 The deception will not be mercifully passed away, 
 
 And though he thinks not of it, there will be prepared 
 
 To meet the sinner — the record of his sins. 
 
 Who have done well will be esteemed, 
 
 And honoured at the feast of the blessed. 
 
 I have seen Llywelyn with armies numerous as Mervyn's, 
 
 And the Kymry of the land thronging around him ; 
 
 I have seen the chiefs of North and South Cambria, 
 
 Pillars of battle, sitting on their thrones ; 
 
 I have seen men in battle upon prancing warsteeds, 
 
 I have seen wine flowing, hosts of men, and play-places ; 
 
 I have seen numbers perpetually drinking, 
 
 And the world increasing in good men ; 
 
 All these passed away like contracting shadows, 
 
 And yet men dream of never ending days ! 
 
 The rich shall not have longer life 
 
 Than the disturbed, or the contentious. 
 
 Let man consider ere he is overtaken by death and the grave, 
 
 What he will ask, what he will hate ; 
 
 Let him ask every virtue, and the feast will never end, — 
 
 And the joyfulness and peace of faith will be perpetual ; 
 
 But let him not ask to cheat, and falsely charge 
 
 O gunaethost gamued na ryveda 
 
 Bot yn dir talu ger bron Iesu 
 
 Lie y guelo trillu y trallaut a wna 
 
 Yr tuyll nyt truan a divlannu 
 
 Ac ny meddylio a rwy dirpero 
 
 Y ruyf a gaffo nyt ymgoffha 
 
 Cyt boed gyvanned bydaul gymmyrred 
 
 Guledd guneir enrhydedd lined a wna 
 
 Gweleis Lywelyn luoed eil Mervyn 
 
 A chymry tervyn yn y tyrva 
 
 Guelais bennaetheu guyned a deheu 
 
 Colofynnau cadeu cyd orsedfa 
 
 Guelais uyr yn trin a meirch mysterin 
 
 A guin a guerin a gwaruyva 
 
 Guelais liossyd a chyved beunyd 
 
 A byd ar gynnyd gynnif gwyrda 
 
 Hynny aeth heibiaw mal ymcboel dylau 
 
 Mae pawb yn adaw oed dibarha 
 
 Ni cheiff cyvoethauc vot yn bir hoedlauc 
 
 Vuy no chynwinauc na chynbenna 
 
 Ystyryeit pan vo rac poeneu a gro 
 
 Ba beth a geisso betb a gassa 
 
 Keisset pob detuyd y wled ny dcrvyd 
 
 Lleuenyd llonyd ffyd a ftynna 
 
 Na cheisset hocket truy gam gylmdet 
 
RELIGIOUS POETRY. 395 
 
 With injustice, Heaven in its beauty. 
 
 When attentively considered, penance becomes a serious duty, 
 
 On account of the triumph over Eva ; 
 
 It was not for sins of his own that the Lord of Heaven, 
 
 Symmetrical sacrifice ! suffered on the tree ; 
 
 Woe be to him whose original sin is unforgiveu, 
 
 Sad will it be to see him, when with downcast look, 
 
 Showing the gashes, and all his wounds, 
 
 The nailmarks, the blood, and the cross, 
 
 Christ the mysterious, king of kings, shall say, 
 
 " This did I, what hast thou done ?" 
 
 For the good, holiness is prepared in the presence of the 
 
 Deity, 
 For the sinful, there will be total destruction. 
 Woe to the miserly, and the cheat, - 
 And those who from false notions do not worship ; 
 They will be seen atoning for their sins, 
 And repenting, in the pains of hell ; 
 And there will be seen in the glory of heaven, 
 Those who walked in the paths of righteousness ; 
 The excess of joy will not end, 
 And the free and open feast will last for ever. 
 
 Lly welyn Vardd has also several poems of considerable 
 merit, addressed to the Cambrian princes, and particularly 
 one to Owain Gwynedd ; but considering that the repeti- 
 tion of the same topics, and ideas, was likely to weary the 
 reader, 1 thought it imprudent to give another of the same 
 
 Nef yn y thecket kan ny tkycka 
 
 Pan luyr veddylier penyt pryt pryder 
 
 Pan gam edyllder over Eva 
 
 Nat oe gammoed ef yd aeth Arglwyd nef 
 
 Y pren diodef edyl traha 
 
 Gwae nyt mat anet bechodaul ueithret 
 
 Tosted vyd guelet goluc lyvrdra 
 
 Dangos ffrowylleu ae holl archolleu 
 
 Ae gethreu ac gren ae groc a una 
 
 Hynn a wnaethum i beth a wuaethost di 
 
 Med Crist Celi rhi rheid oed yna 
 
 Bod gleindyt puraud yn erbyn Duydaut 
 
 Rac trallaut pechaut devaut diva 
 
 Gwae wynt y kebydyon ar hocket dynion 
 
 Ac camvedylyon ynt adola 
 
 Gweled en madeu dros eu camwedeu 
 
 Yn uffern boeneu benyt gudva 
 
 A guelet mynet i nef ogonet 
 
 Y saul a gaffet ar gyffurfda 
 
 Y gan leuenyd y uled ni dervyt 
 Yn dragywyd ryd rat gymanva. 
 
390 RELIGIOUS POETRY. 
 
 class as those already quoted, and therefore selected a poem, 
 in which the bard has attempted to realize the preparatory 
 stages of the last awful judgment. The merit of the poem 
 is not very great; but as the sublimity of the subject would 
 be enough to keep it free from commonplaces, it may be 
 readable, — l 
 
 The Signs before the Day of Judgment. 
 
 Friend ! listen thou to the sense, 
 
 Which the books so fully express ; 
 
 Miracles will be evident to the observer, 
 
 And the sea will be raised to the sky ! 
 
 The British channel is not measureless, 
 
 For God has unfolded 
 
 The magnitude of the signs which will be, 
 
 On the fifteenth day before judgment ; 
 
 The fourteenth day, 
 
 The course of the great sea will be stopped, 
 
 And in the depth of the earth such a spectacle, 
 
 That the wind cannot reach the billows ; 
 
 Thirteenth day, men of science 
 
 Will be greatly astonished to see the ocean, 
 
 Which when it comes to be noticed, 
 
 Will be seen to be, not where it was. 
 
 Twelfth day, God is enough, 
 
 The animals of the sea, of great qualities, 
 
 And every kind of fish, from its incontinence, 
 
 Will be thrown on the surface of the deep. 
 
 1 Gwyn gwarandaw di ar synhwyr 
 A draetha y llyfrau mor llwyr 
 Gwyrthau golau gwelhator 
 Dyrchavael mor hyd awyr 
 Morudd nieidrawl ei ddefawd 
 Oblegid Duw a'i dywawd 
 Maint yr arwyddion a fydd 
 Pumthegfed dydd cyn dydd brawd 
 
 Y pedwerydd dydd ar ddeg 
 Ydgyrch mor mawr attreg 
 Yn nyfnder daiar dremynt 
 
 Fal nas cyrraedd gwynt gwaneg 
 Trydydd ar ddeg trwy deithi 
 Mawr uthredd gweled gweilgi 
 Pryd pan eler i'w sylli 
 Nad ym men yd fu yd fi 
 Denddegfed dydd Duw digawn 
 Anifeiliaid mor mawr ddawn 
 
 Y daw pob pysg oi odeb 
 Hyd ar wyneb yr eigiawn 
 
RELIGIOUS POETRY. 397 
 
 Eleventh day, the circle of danger is closing up, 
 
 Created beings tremble, 
 
 From fear of an unrestrained flood, — 
 
 The birds of the earth abstain (from singing?) 
 
 Tenth day, in consequence of the elements 
 
 Men cannot converse; 
 
 And the sea will cease its motions, 
 
 From the action of the streams of fire. 
 
 After the tenth will come the ninth, 
 
 God himself planning the events; 
 
 Showers of fire will fall from the stars. 
 
 Eighth day, there will be heard 
 
 Edicts certain and uncontrollable, 
 
 Sternly showing what would shortly come, 
 
 So that man and earth shall tremble. 
 
 Seventh day, the day of prophecy, 
 
 The greatest rocks will be split asunder, 
 
 For they break from the terror of judgment. 
 
 Sixth day, bitter will be the signs, 
 
 Blood will come from straw and wood, 
 
 And the Lord our protector. 
 
 Will give us belief and baptism. 
 
 Fifth day, the elements will wage unsuccessful war, 
 
 The Lord will not be hidden, 
 
 When there shall be breaking of rushes, 
 
 Undegfed dydd cerdd ceugant 
 Creaduriau yd grynant 
 Rhac ofn diliw diarcha<r 
 Adar daiar dirwestant 
 Degfed dydd herwydd anian 
 Ni aill dyniadon diddan 
 Mor diffaith nis ryddifawdd 
 Rhag maint ffrawdd ffrydiau tan 
 Nawfed wedi degfed daw 
 Duw ei hun yn ei luniaw 
 Ufeliar tan drwy ysgyr ergyr 
 Or syr yn syrthiaw 
 Wythfed dydd dybydd dyar 
 Deddfau diau diarchar 
 Dygn ddangos aros erfyn 
 Fal yd gryn dyn a daear 
 Seithfed dydd dydd darogan 
 Main mwyaf oil a holldan 
 Gwyrthiau Duw a ddangosan 
 Rhag arynaig brawd briwan 
 Arwyddon chwerw ehweched dydd 
 Y daw gwaed or gwellt ar gwydd 
 An Arglwydd ein Argledrydd 
 An rhoddes ni cred a bedydd 
 Pumhed dydd elfydd aflwydd 
 Rhyfel nid argel Arglwydd 
 Pan fo briwa brwynan 
 
398 RELIGIOUS POETRY. 
 
 And when churches shall be falling down. 
 
 Fourth day, it will be serious, 
 
 For the animals of the w T orld, 
 
 They wildly rush about in Yiew, 
 
 Knowing that they will not all go. 
 
 Third and pitiful day ; 
 
 Of the terror of judgment there is fear, 
 
 And men part from all they love on earth. 
 
 Second day, before the day of the deluge, 
 
 The serious people of Christ know him, 
 
 Palpable ghosts they walk about, 
 
 Knowing that they shall not live. 
 
 One day ; God will bring all 
 
 The children of Adam from a distance; 
 
 And the dumb, the insane, and the passionate 
 
 Will be in full possession of their faculties. 
 
 The pseudo-Taliesin has a poem on the same subject. 
 
 It was at the beginning of the thirteenth century, that 
 that quarrel, so important to the interests of the Kymry, 
 took place between the English monarch, and Giraldus 
 Cambrensis. The kings of England had, for a long period, 
 aided, and countenanced the attempts of the archbishop of 
 Canterbury, to break down the independence of the Cam- 
 brian church ; and for this purpose, they assisted him in 
 forcing English bishops into Kymric sees. The position of 
 the Cambrian church at this time was somewhat anoma- 
 lous ; the bishops appointed by the kings of England, with 
 the sanction of the archbishops, were received, and allowed 
 
 Eglwysau diau digwydd 
 Pedwerydd dydd trwy dristyd 
 Arnaid anifeiliaid byd 
 Yngwylltoedd cyhoedd i cerddant 
 Can gwyddant nad ant y gyd 
 Trydydd dydd drueni 
 Rhag arynaig brawd braw fi 
 A rygollo pawb o gar 
 Ar wyneb daear Dyfi 
 Eildydd cyn no dydd dilyw 
 Pobloedd drist Crist al cennyw 
 Yngwylloedd cyhoedd cerddant 
 Can gwddant na byddant byw 
 Undydd Dofydd dybydd oil 
 Pobloedd plant Addaf o bell 
 A mud a drud a drythyll 
 Yn llwyr yn eu llawn ddeall. 
 
 Myv. Arch, vol. I. p. 363. 
 
RELIGIOUS POETRY. 399 
 
 to continue unless they made themselves obnoxious by ty- 
 rannical conduct; in which case they were unceremoniously 
 expelled, and others elected in their place ; and these elected 
 bishops in many cases, were allowed to remain undisturbed. 
 Giraldus was less fortunate; he had been elected to the see 
 of St. David ; but king Henry, and afterwards king John, 
 were determined that the see of St. David should not 
 have a bishop from among the Kymry. The contest was 
 continued with doubtful success for many years, the arch- 
 bishop of Canterbury named another person to that see, and 
 the pope after much equivocation, when he had extracted 
 from both the kings of England and the Cambrian princes, 
 all the money that he was likely to have, annulled both ap- 
 pointments, and left them to settle their own quarrel. Gi- 
 raldus was ultimately superseded. We make these remarks 
 in order to introduce a few extracts as specimens of prose 
 composition, from the very powerfully written petition of 
 the Kymric princes in favour of Giraldus. Addressing the 
 pope they say, — 
 
 " The Archbishops of Canterbury, as if it were a matter of course, 
 send among us, English Bishops, ignorant alike of both our cus- 
 toms and language, and who can neither preach the word of God 
 to the people, nor receive their confessions except through the 
 mediation of interpreters. 
 
 These Bishops arriving from England in this manner, love nei- 
 ther ourselves nor our country ; but on the contrary vex and per- 
 secute us with a hatred rooted, and national ; they seek not the 
 good of our souls ; but only aspire to rule over, and not to benefit 
 us. For which reason, they do not often labour among us in dis- 
 charge of their ministerial functions, but whatever they can lay 
 hold of, or obtain from us, whether justly or unjustly, they take 
 away to England, and there live luxuriantly, and wastefully upon 
 wealth derived from the monasteries, and lands given to them by 
 the kings of England. From thence, like the Parthians who dis- 
 charge their arrows while flying, and at a distance, they excom- 
 municate us as often as they are desired so to do. 
 
 Whenever an expedition is preparing against us in England, 
 the primate of Canterbury suddenly lays under an interdict that 
 part of the country which it is proposed to invade. Our Bishops, 
 who are his creatures, hurl their anathemas against the people 
 collectively, and by name against the chiefs who take up arms to 
 lead them to combat. So that whenever we take up arms to de- 
 
400 RELIGIOUS POETRY. 
 
 fend our native land against a foreign enemy, such of us as fall in 
 battle die under the ban of excommunication." 
 
 I cite these only as specimens of vigorous composition ; 
 and they will be generally admitted to be so, though much 
 of their force is of course due to the cases of glaring injus- 
 tice they expose. 
 
 There are pertaining to this period several series of docu- 
 ments which possess considerable literary merit, and are 
 creditable to their authors. These are the letters from and 
 to the Kymric princes, and the archbishops of Canterbury as 
 the agents of the English monarchs. I would call attention to 
 the Letters which passed between archbishop Peckham, and 
 the princes Llywelyn and David ab Gruffydd, and the men 
 of Snowdon. Had they not been already published in Eng- 
 lish by Warrington, and in Welsh by the Rev. T. Price, 
 they would have been inserted here, as I think highly of 
 their merit ; but if the reader will take the trouble to per- 
 use them in either " The History of Wales," or "Hanes 
 Cymru,' n he cannot fail to coincide with me in the belief, 
 that in manly reasoning, eloquent indignation, and combined 
 wit and logic, the letters of prince Llywelyn, the men of 
 Snowdon, and prince David, far excel those of the arch- 
 bishop. It ought however to be conceded, that the latter 
 had the worst side ; but neither the wit nor the reasoning 
 of the Kymry was of any avail; war was predetermined, and 
 negotiations were but a pretence to veil the preparations 
 which were being made, and lull the Cambrian princes into 
 a false sense of security. 
 
 We do not find many religious poems in the early part 
 of the reign of Llywelyn ab Gruffydd. Llygad Gwr's poems 
 are all heroic, and among those of the Prydydd Bychan, 
 and Bleddyn Vardd, there is not one on a devotional topic. 
 Towards the close of the thirteenth century, poems of this 
 class become more numerous, and religious poems assume 
 importance. But while upon this subject, I do not think, 
 I can do it greater justice than in quoting the Rev. T. 
 Price, at some length, — 
 
RELIGIOUS POETRY. 4Q1 
 
 " But although their proud, and luxurious enemies accuse the 
 Kymry of disrespect to Church matters, I am quite* convinced 
 that at this period, they possessed religious feelings full as warm, 
 and knowledge quite as extensive, as the same class of men in any 
 portion of the world. As an example of their religious character, 
 I will take a few extracts from the works of contemporary Bards, 
 which methinks show the religious tendencies of "Wales better 
 than if we had numerous theological treatises to lay before the 
 reader. 
 
 The following is from Gruffydd ap yr Ynad Coch, of whom we 
 have already spoken. The Bard expresses his regret that sinners 
 will not believe of the sufferings of Christ ; and shows an intimate 
 acquaintance with Christian doctrine, and Scripture history. He 
 
 2 Alas ! Thou King who rulest above, 
 The generous Father who lightens eye and hand ! 
 That the sinner will not believe he has been saved, 
 From going to a pit, to remain afar ; 
 Nor that Christ was pained and broken-hearted ; 
 Nor that he went to the cross for him ; 
 Alas ! that he knows not well the slaying of the Lord., 
 And that he was left in mockery. 
 If man would but set his mind to consider, 
 The pain he suffered, 
 When his flesh was pierced by nails — 
 He would not commit sin, nor desire it, 
 Even if there were not a day when God shall come 
 And pass judgment upon us. 
 
 And the blood is as fresh 
 
 As the day he was crucified, 
 
 1 Hanes Cymru, p. 758, &c. 
 
 Och hyd ar frenin freint ucheldaw 
 
 Haeldad goleuad llygad a Haw 
 
 Na chred pechadur ei ddifuriaw 
 
 Yny el i bwll i bell drigaw 
 
 Na phoeni gau galon dreuliaw 
 
 Na myned o Grist ir grog erddaw 
 
 Ac na wyr yn llwyr llabyddiaw — 'n harglwydd 
 
 A thrwy waradwydd ei wir ad aw 
 
 Bei meddyliai ddyn ai feddyliaw 
 
 A f u o ddolur ar ei ddwylaw 
 
 Gan gethri parawd yn cythruddaw — cnawd 
 
 Ef ni wnai bechawd nai rybuchaw 
 Be na bai undydd dofydd an daw 
 Dyddbrawd yn barawd Tn diburaw 
 
 Ar gvvaed gyn ired 
 
 Ar dydd y croged 
 
 3E 
 
402 RELIGIOUS POETRY. 
 
 And his hands were spread out 
 
 When the deed was done. 
 And the blood was in streams 
 About his breast, 
 And his wounds 
 
 Are unhealed. 
 And the crown of thorns, 
 And his lifeless body, 
 And his head encircled, 
 
 With the thorny ring. 
 And the mark on his side, 
 Of the scourges 
 Which took away his life, 
 
 And gave him pain. 
 And all to purchase the son of man 
 From the everlasting fire, 
 By the enemy 
 
 In whose hands he was. 
 
 We have here an acknowledgment of the doctrine of the salva- 
 tion of man through the blood of Christ, as clearly as it would be 
 laid down by any divine of a more enlightened age. In the fol- 
 lowing lines from another ode by the same bard, the same doctrine 
 is contained; but we have in addition the doctrine of the interces- 
 sion of the saints, 
 
 The protection of Father and Son, freely give to my heart, 
 The protection of the Holy Ghost, in memory of the passion, l 
 
 Ai ddwylaw ar lied 
 
 Wedi'r llidiaw 
 Ar gwaed yn ffrydiau 
 Ynghylch ei fronneu 
 Ai holl weliau 
 
 Heb eliaw 
 Ai goron yn d drain 
 Ac yntau'n gelain 
 Ai ben yn anghrain 
 
 Wedi'r greiniaw 
 Ac ol ffrewyllau 
 Ar ei ystlysau 
 Er gwneuthur angau 
 
 A phoen iddaw 
 Er prynu mab dyn 
 Or tan ufelyn 
 Y gan ei elyn 
 
 Oedd yn aelaw. 
 
 1 Nawdd y tad ar mab rhad rhof am galon 
 Nawdd y glan yspryd cywyd cofion 
 
RELIGIOUS POETRY. 4Q3 
 
 The protection of Jesus, loving the crown of mercy, 
 
 Lover of discipline and disciples. 
 The protection of the Cross, of beneficial attributes, 
 "Which thou God tookest for the sake of thy men, 
 Lest they should fall into the infernal pit, 
 
 And among its infidel inhabitants. 
 The protection of Mercy, between me and my enemies, 
 The protection of Maria and Mary, and her maids, 
 And the protection of the great Archangels, 
 
 Lord of Heaven and earth, that we may prosper. 
 
 And then he proceeds to claim, after the usual fashion, the pro- 
 tection of numerous other saints. 
 
 The next extract, from the same writer, displays an intimate 
 acquaintance with the theology of that period, — 
 
 Seven deadly sins, are the sins of the people, 
 
 They are enumerated in the Bible. 
 
 For the seven deadly sins — not fictitious sins, 
 
 The seven prayers of the Pater are the best remedy. 
 
 Seven kind endowments, I know their beginning, 
 
 Seven splendours, let their names be repeated, 
 
 Seven blessed verses, before the pain of the cross, 
 
 Christ sang with his lips. 
 Let the five ages of the world consider, that these verses 
 
 pardon. 
 When the only Son of God, on the best of days, 
 Went to the portals of hell, and its captive fiends, 1 
 
 Nawdd y Iesu caru coron tangnefedd 
 Caredd disgybledd a'i ddysgyblion. 
 Nawdd y grog ddehau ddoniau ddanfon 
 A gymmeraist Dduw er dy ddynion 
 Rliag uffern gethern geithaw anffyddlawn 
 
 A'i chreulawn ddigawn ddigasogion. 
 Nawdd y cariad rhad rhof am galon 
 Nawdd myr ar Mair ai morwynion 
 A nawdd a archaf arcbengylion — mawr 
 Arglwydd nef a llawr fal y llwyddon, &c. 
 
 1 Saith brifwyd pecbawd yw pechodau'r bobl 
 
 Mae yn y Bibl eu henwau 
 Am saitb briwyd nid gwyd gau 
 Saith weddi y pader arfer oreu 
 Seithrad mad medrwyf eu dechreu 
 Saitb lleufer enwer eu henwau 
 Saith wers cymman glan cyn gloes angeu crog 
 
 A gant Crist ai enau 
 Ystyrieint pumoes byd eu bod ym maddeu 
 Pan aeth unmab Duw y dydd goreu 
 I ddrws porth uffern gethern gaetbau 
 
404 RELIGIOUS POETRY. 
 
 To pierce, with his cross, and his blood, 
 The unhappy serpent in his mouth, 
 There were boiling, horrid the screaming ! 
 Seven hundred thousand cauldrons of souls. 
 
 And cold rain and snow, 
 And serpents and lions, 
 And all without cessation, 
 
 Enduring punishment. 
 And the branching fiends, 
 And the horned devil, 
 With sharp hoofs 
 
 On his heels. 
 And the hard headed mice 
 With horned beaks, 
 And the blue iron tablets, 
 
 And the arrows strewed around 
 And the long wicked places, 
 And the murky furnaces, 
 And all crawling 
 
 With their eyes on their paws ; 
 And wicked long spits, 
 And every contrivance, 
 And all sorts of creeping things 
 
 Upon ancient doors. 
 
 I wan heb annog ai grog oi grau 
 Y sarph aflawen yn eu enau 
 Ydd oedd yn berwi wb o'r barau 
 Saith canmil peiriad o eneidiau 
 
 A glaweir ac ot 
 A seirph a llewod 
 A phawb heb ammod 
 
 Yn ei boenau 
 Arcethri osglawg 
 Ar cythraul corniawg 
 Ar cyrn llym sodlawg 
 
 Ar ei sodlau 
 Ar llygod pengarn 
 Ar gylfinau earn 
 Ar Uech las haiarn 
 
 Ar sarn saethau 
 Ar ffair yn hirddrwg 
 Ar ffwrn dywyllwg 
 A phawb ai olwg 
 
 Ar ei balfau 
 A phob rliyw hirddrwg 
 A phob cyfriwg 
 A phob eiddiorwg 
 
 Ar hen doreu 
 
RELIGIOUS POETRY. 4Q5 
 
 And every contrivance to wound the flesh, 
 And every flesh wounder with his flesh-hooks ; 
 
 And all howling, 
 
 And all wailing. 
 
 And all crying, 
 For death to kill them, &c. 
 
 This poem concludes with a prayer, in which the poet asks 
 for, — 
 
 Communion and confession, 
 And the pleasure of books, 
 And what is good and necessary, 
 And fitting, Amen. 
 Communion with the Lord 
 
 As is best. 
 That I be not a lazy glutton, 
 That I be not languid and timid, 
 That I be not a worker 
 
 Of evil deeds ; 
 That I be not vituperative, 
 That I be not pugnacious, 
 That I be not unkind, 
 
 Harbouring deceit; 
 That my life be not unfortunate, 
 
 Through other's doing; 
 And that when death arrives 
 
 I be not unwise, Amen. 1 
 
 A phob rhyw ddefawd 
 Er doluriaw cnawd 
 A phob cigweiuawd 
 
 Ar cigweinau 
 A phawb yn ubain 
 A phawb yn germain 
 A phawb yn llefain 
 
 Nas lladd angeu, &c, 
 1 Cymmun a chyffes 
 
 A lies llyfrau 
 O lew ac angen 
 A chymuyll Amen 
 A chymmod am rhen 
 
 Yr hyn goreu 
 Ni bwyf lwth diawg 
 Ni bwyf lesg ofnawg 
 Ni bwyf weithredawg 
 
 Camweithredau 
 Ni bwyf gyhuddgar 
 Ni bwyf ymladdgar 
 Ni bwyf anhygar 
 
 Yn hogi gau 
 Ni bwyf hoedyl gywall 
 O weithred arall 
 Ni bwyf wr angall 
 
 Erbyn angeu, amen, 
 
406 RELIGIOUS POETRY. 
 
 Mad awe ab Gwallter, was another religious bard who wrote 
 about 1250. He was the author of the following lines, to Christy 
 which, though they contain some obscure words, are pretty intel- 
 ligible, when we consider that six hundred years have elapsed 
 since they were written. JSTo other nation can produce such 
 another specimen of old literature so intelligible in the present 
 day,- 1 
 
 A son has been given us, 
 A kind son is born 
 
 With great privileges ; 
 A son of glory, 
 A son to save us ; 
 
 The best of sons ; 
 Son of a virgin mother, — 
 With a merciful religion, 
 
 Full of good precepts ; 
 Without an incarnate father, 
 This is the free Son, 
 
 The gift of gifts; 
 We will wisely consider, 
 And wonder 
 
 Wonders ; 
 Nothing more wonderful 
 Will again demand 
 
 Praise from our lips; 
 God growing, 
 Man creating, 
 
 Creatures : 
 
 1 Mab an rhodded 
 Mab mad aned 
 
 Dan ei freiniau 
 Mab gogonedd 
 Mab i'n gwared 
 
 Y mab goreu 
 Mab mam forwyn 
 Grefydd aeddfwvn 
 
 Aeddfed eiriau 
 Heb gnawdol Dad 
 Hwn yw'r mab rhad 
 
 Rhoddiad rhadau 
 Doeth ystyriwn 
 A rbyfeddwn 
 
 Rhyfeddodau 
 Dim rhyfeddach^ 
 Ni bydd bellach 
 Ni bwyll enau 
 Duw in dyfu 
 Dyn yn creu 
 
 Creaduriau 
 
RELIGIOUS POETRY. 4Q7 
 
 A God, a man, 
 And the God a man, 
 
 With the same faculties; 
 A great little giant, 
 A strong puny potentate, 
 
 Of pale cheeks. 
 Richly poor, 
 Our father and brother, 
 
 Author of being ; 
 Jesus, he whom 
 We expect, 
 
 King of kings ; 
 Exalted, lowly, 
 Emmanuel, 
 
 Honey of minds ; 
 With the ox and the ass, 
 The Lord of Life, 
 
 Lies in a manger ; 
 And a heap of straw, 
 As a chair, 
 
 Clothed in tatters ; 
 Velvet he wants not, 
 Nor white ermine, 
 
 To cover him ; 
 Around his couch, 
 Rags were seen, 
 
 Instead of fine linen, &c. 
 
 Yn Dduw yn ddyn 
 Ar Duw yn ddyn 
 
 Ynun ddoniau 
 Cawr ma\vr bychan 
 Cryf cadarn gwan 
 
 Gwynion ruddiau 
 Cyfoethawg tlawd 
 An tad an brawd, 
 
 Awdur brodiau 
 Iesu yw hwn 
 A erlyniwn 
 
 Yn ben rhiau 
 Uchel issel 
 Emmanuel 
 
 Mel meddyliau 
 Ueh ac Assen 
 Arglwydd presen 
 
 Preseb piau 
 A soppen wair 
 Yn lie cadair 
 
 Yn llwycadau 
 Pali ni myn 
 Nid urael gwyn 
 
 Ei gynhiniau 
 Yn lie syndal 
 Ynghylch ei wal 
 
 Gwelid carpiau, &c." 
 
4()8 RELIGIOUS POETRY. 
 
 He then proceeds to mention other incidents connected with 
 the infancy of our Lord, and concludes by stating that he was 
 born — 
 
 Of a lady, 
 
 "Who will do us good 
 
 Beneath our burdens. 
 And will find us room 
 In the fairest place 
 
 Among the happy, ' 
 
 We will take one extract more from the brother, Madawc ab 
 Gwallter. The Ode to God is written in a flowing style, and shows 
 much splendour of imagery and language, 2 
 
 Save me, Lord, and protect me, 
 
 I am weak, want strength ; be thou my Supporter ; 
 
 Thou deliverer of many, deliver me ; 
 
 Deliverer of the weak, woe to him whom thou lovest not. 
 
 And thou Soul ! abstain from making me sin, 
 Turn from the ways of error, while thou mayest, 
 Guard the mind's feet, while thou possessest prudence, 
 From among the webs of deceit, and their dark trench. 
 
 The Perfect ; fairer than the gold of the gold-worker, 
 Designed and created thee, as thou mayest easily believe ; 
 His own form he impressed upon thee, 
 And thou ownest his fair imasre. 
 
 1 O arglwyddes 
 Awna ynn lies 
 
 An lludd penau 
 Ac an gwna lie 
 Yn nhecca bre 
 
 Yngobrwyau. Amen. 
 
 2 1 Dduw. 
 
 Gwared arnaf Naf, nawdd a'm rhoddych, 
 Gwan wyf, i'm nerthwyf ; fy neirthiad fych, 
 Gwareder llawer, lie gwaredych raid, 
 Gwaredwr gweiniaid, gwae ni gerych. 
 
 Tithau yr enaid, paid ! na'm pedych : 
 Tro o ffyrdd didro, yd tra geffych ; 
 Tyn droed dy feddwl, tra feddych dy bwyll, 
 O blith maglau twyll, tywyll eu rhych. 
 
 Gloy w, deccach no'r aui' yn ngwaith eurych, 
 A th luniawdd, creawdd, hawdd y crettych, 
 Ei eilun ei hun honnych ei arddelw 
 Ac oi deg wirddelw yr arddelwych. 
 
RELIGIOUS POETRY. 409 
 
 To a hundred covenants he adds one more. 
 From his great love lest thou becomest embarrassed, 
 "Watch the hour that thou partest from the flesh, 
 That thou be not unready. 
 
 The blood of Jesus, the dear blood of the sufferer, 
 His story is truly good, when considered ; 
 He groaned, and wept, like an ox bellowing, 
 When in pain, — woe is his fellow ox. 
 
 Jesus, fair Jesus, show me thy face, 
 Conceal it not from me ; 
 Veil not thy features, look down 
 Upon thy servant, and hate him not, 
 
 "While I live, mysterious Ruler ! encourage me, 
 
 To thee I turn, turn not from me,. 
 
 Do not let me slip into evil courses, 
 
 Nor end my days in the pursuit of vanity. 
 
 Emperor, Creator, strengthen me, 
 
 My faith, my religion strengthen ; 
 
 Take my hand in thine, and guide me rightly, 
 
 Lead me along the paths of rectitude. 
 
 I will praise thee, kind Ruler of the Heavens, 
 
 "Who will not praise, who know thee ? 
 
 Bells and books shall sound thy praise, 
 
 And harp melodies from sharp and twanging strings 
 
 Gwedi cant cymmod cymnrydyeh unwaith, 
 
 Herwydd cariad niaith hyd na methlych ; 
 
 Disgwyliaw yr awr elych o'r cnawd, 
 
 Na fydd ammharawd pan ammherych. 
 
 Gvvaed Iesu a fu, gwaed cu cwynych 
 
 Gwirdda ystoria pan ystyrych ; 
 
 Griddfana, ocha, fal ych yn beichiaw 
 
 Pan fo yn cwynaw gwae eich gydych. 
 
 Iesu! deg Iesu! im dangosych — 
 
 Dy wyneb, ni heb o obebych ; 
 
 Na chudd dy ddeurudd, diddorych o'th was, 
 
 Gwae neb a gas a gasych. 
 
 Tro fi Rbwyf Celi ! a'm calonych ; 
 
 Attad y troaf, attaf troych ! 
 
 Nad fi i wrthyd i wrthyeh maswedd, 
 
 Gwagedd breuoledd a ddiweddych. 
 
 Amerhawdwr ! Creawdwr ! cryf i'm gwnelych, 
 
 Y'm ffydd, y'm crefydd, i'm cryfheych, 
 
 Daly fy Haw i'th law a lywych yn iawn, 
 
 Ar hyd ffyrdd uniawn i'm harweddych, 
 
 A'th folaf Duw, Naf nefoedd lewych : 
 
 Pwy nith fawl or sawl a ry seilych, 
 
 I'th foliant soniant son clych a llyfrau, 
 
 Cerddau telynau, eras dannau crych. 
 
 3F 
 
4|0 RELIGIOUS POETRY. 
 
 When thou judgest Heaven, Earth, and Hell, 
 
 Give me a mark by which I may be known, 
 
 Thou wouldst not wish to place me among the damned, 
 
 Therefore let me be by the side of the Lamb. 
 
 When the three hosts come, and the time of tribulation 
 To whole hosts of sinners, who will be sorely punished, 
 Among the happy, faultless choir, clothed in finest white, 
 Place me on thy right hand. 
 
 " On contemplating this and similar remains, I think we can 
 fairly conclude that our ancestors at this period were not behind 
 their contemporaries in religious knowledge ; and even at the 
 present day, we cannot look back upon them without their pro- 
 ducing a feeling of respect. Much as there might have been of 
 chaff, there was some wheat." 1 
 
 To these extracts, I will only add that these poems give 
 us an exalted opinion of "brother Madawc ab Gwallter," 
 and strengthen the favourable estimate already expressed of 
 Gruffydd ab yr Ynad Coch. He was the best poet of his 
 day ; and deserves to be ranked with Gwalchmai, and Hy- 
 wel ap Owain, as the best poets of this era. These were not 
 perhaps as deeply versed in bardic lore as others ; but they 
 possessed infinitely more of the true spirit of poetry — they 
 felt a passion, and clothed it in words — they were some- 
 thing much nobler than skilful versifiers. 
 
 Casnodyn, Gruffydd Grug, and Davydd Ddu also wrote 
 poems on religious topics. 
 
 Nef, Daear, Uffern, pany bernych, 
 Dod nod i'ni hwyneb a'm hadneppych, 
 Parth clet i minnau ni mynnych fy mod, 
 Parth yr Oen gorfod i'm gosodych. 
 
 Pan ddel y trillu trallawd berych 
 I leaws yn draws a drais boenych, 
 rth lu di difri, difrycb, gwynoleu 
 Ar y Haw ddehen i'm lleheyeh. 
 
 1 Hanes Cymru, page 761. 
 
SECTION III. 
 
 The Mabinogion. 
 
 We should however form but an imperfect estimate of the 
 literature of Wales, if we confined our notice to the bards 
 alone. The Kymry had in the middle ages two literatures, 
 essentially distinct from each other ; which though spring- 
 ing from the soil had different features. The bardic liter- 
 ature, taken singly, forms but a faint reflection of the nati- 
 onal character, as it is described by contemporaneous writers, 
 and observers of Cambrian manners. The bards, properly so 
 called, were a despotic and exclusive order, and had created 
 an artificial taste, from which standard no one was allowed 
 to depart. This had therefore the defect of narrowness; 
 the poetry was the literature of the few, and found no great 
 favour among the body of the people. Giraldus tells us 
 the Kymry were a free, merry, and witty people, and pas- 
 sionately fond of music; but the latter characteristic only 
 is found in their poetry. It was therefore in the nature of 
 events, that the bulk of the people should have found some 
 intellectual recreation more consonant with their character. 
 There had been for hundreds of years traditions floating 
 among them ; and therefore when the general awakening, 
 of which we have already spoken, took place, it was a natu- 
 ral desire that these should be connected, arranged, and 
 written. This was the origin of the Mabinogion — tales 
 written to wile away the time of young chieftains, to be re- 
 peated at the fire side, and ultimately to react very power- 
 fully upon the national literature, and character. 
 
412 THE MABINOGION. 
 
 It is utterly inconsistent with our knowledge of human 
 history, to suppose that the national mind of Wales could 
 have been for any lengthened period inactive ; we may 
 therefore conclude that the long and barren period, which 
 intervenes between the death of Cadwaladr, and the ar- 
 rival of Gruffydd ab Kynan, could not have been wholly 
 unproductive. The bards were engaged in recording the 
 actions of their countrymen, which becoming more and 
 more known, became more and more glorious. Plain facts 
 were embellished into glorious fictions, brine warriors be- 
 came great heroes; and Arthur, an insignificant chieftain in 
 the sixth century, grew into a valorous warrior in the 
 eighth, and by the twelfth had become emperor of the 
 whole civilized world. This growth of traditions is plainly 
 evident in the works of Nennius, Geoffrey, and Alanus de 
 Insulis; and as has been well remarked, there is as much 
 difference between Gildas and Nennius, as there is between 
 Nennius and Geoffrey, — fable had grown in the interval-. 
 There is an evident growth of fable among the Kymry 
 themselves, between the ages of Gildas and Nennius; and 
 this becomes more apparent if we admit Mr. Price's happy 
 conjecture, that Nennius translated his work, or at least a 
 part of it, from Cambrian originals. We have in his work 
 many of the elements of the greater romance. His work 
 mentions Arthur as a "Magnanimous hero;" and unless the 
 passage be interpolated, he alludes to a visit paid by that 
 " Emperor," to Jerusalem. In the Mabmogi of Kilhwch 
 and Olwen, the combing of another's hair implies relation- 
 ship ; Arthur combed the hair of Kilhwch with "a golden 
 comb, and a scissors the loops whereof were of silver ;" and 
 the boar Trwyth is hunted for nothing else than the comb, 
 scissors, and razor which were between its ears. Now we 
 find this same statement in the history of Nennius, where 
 St. Germanus being charged with the paternity of a boy, 
 takes the child and says, "I will be a father to you my 
 son ; nor will I dismiss you till a razor, scissors, and comb 
 are given to me, and it is allowed you to give them to your 
 
THE MABINOGION. 413 
 
 carnal father.'" A very large portion of the romantic inci- 
 dents in Geoffrey were most probably found in the home 
 traditions ; and the Dream of Rhonabwy, the Mabinogi of 
 Kilhwch and Olwen, and the tale of Gwgan the poet, show 
 that the Kymry were in the habit of writing- tales, and that 
 they knew wed how to do so; for the second of these is 
 very ingeniously constructed. We may therefore safely 
 conclude, that the Mabinogion could have been produced 
 here; and there is sufficient evidence to show that the 
 Kymry did so produce them. Lady Charlotte Guest, in her 
 preface, speaking of the lied book of Hergest, says, — 
 
 "It comprises, among other things, a collection of Mabinogion; 
 some, like the present Story, (The Lady of the Fountain) having 
 the character of Chivalric Romances, and others bearing the im- 
 press of far higher antiquity, both as regards the manners they 
 depict, and the language in which they arc composed. So greatly 
 do these Mabinogion differ in character, that they may be con- 
 sidered as forming two distinct classes, one of which generally 
 celebrates heroes of the Arthurian Cyclus, while the other refers to 
 personages and events of an earlier period." 
 
 Those of the second class appear to be the earliest in 
 point of time; they make no mention of Arthur at all, and 
 treat of personages who lived much earlier; these are the 
 Mabinogion of Pwyll Prince of Dywed, Branwcn the daugh- 
 ter of Llyr, Manawyddan the Son of Llyr, Math the Son 
 of Mathonwy, The Dream of Maxcn Wledig, The Tale of 
 Lludd and Llevelis, and the Mabinogi of Talicsin. The 
 second class, Kilhwch and 01 wen, The Dream of Rhonabwy, 
 Owain and the Lion, Geraint ab Erbin, Peredur ab Efrawc, 
 and The Story of St. Greal, are Arthurian Romances of a 
 later date. 
 
 In the Arthurian group, there are however marked dis- 
 tinctions. The Hengwrt romance of St. Greal fixes the palace 
 of that hero at Oamelot, Cornwall. The Dream of Rhonabwy, i 
 with Kilhwch and Olwen, agree in placing it at Gelliwig in ' 
 Cornwall ; and the stories of Owain, Geraint, and Peredur 
 mention Caerlleon. The second two also differ from the 
 latter three, in several other respects. Arthur in the for- 
 
414 
 
 THE MABINOGION. 
 
 mer is surrounded by an immense number. of knights, while 
 in the latter the number of his attendants is not so great, 
 the prominence being given to individual and not collective 
 achievements; and the confusion of the first gives place to 
 order and regularity in the latter. In Kilhwch, and Rhon- 
 abwy, Arthur hunts the Twrch Trwyth with his knights, 
 and is preparing to fight personally against Ossa Gyllell- 
 vawr ; but in Owain and the others he is the emperor re- 
 posing on his laurels. In the former the knights act 
 collectively ; but in the latter, the knight errantry of the 
 riper romance is fully developed. These facts warrant us 
 in concluding that Kilhwch and Khonabwy are the earliest 
 of the Arthurian group. They seem to have emanated 
 from sources purely Kymric, and bear out Geoffrey's asser- 
 tion, that prior to the appearance of his history, the exploits 
 of Arthur were very commonly related in a pleasing manner ; 
 the others appear to be later. This conclusion is also sup- 
 ported by the bardic writings ; the earlier bards attach no 
 importance to Caerlleon, but the latter do ; and Bleddyn 
 Vardd towards the close of the thirteenth century calls it 
 " that best of places Caerlleon. 1,) 
 
 It is not easy to fix a date for these tales ; perhaps they 
 are not in their present form older than the twelfth century; 
 but they were evidently in circulation years, if not centuries 
 before. In the Ystori of Peredur, it is said, "And 
 Peredur was entertained by the empress fourteen years, as 
 the story relates ,•"" and again, " The story relates nothing 
 further of Gwalchmai respecting this adventure." At the 
 end of the Dream of Rhonabwy, it is said, " And this is the 
 reason that no one knows the dream without a book, 
 neither bard, nor gifted seer; because of the various colours 
 that were upon the horses, and the many wondrous colours 
 of the arms, and of the panoply, and of the precious scarfs, 
 and of the virtue-bearing stones." In that remark we have 
 a sufficient proof that these stories were being frequently 
 related without reference to written memorials ; and Lewis 
 Glyn Cothi's designation of a class of bards as story-tellers 
 
THE MABINOGION, 415 
 
 (storiawr.) makes the probability certain. While so related, 
 they, in accordance with the known laws of the develop- 
 ment of fable, ascended from a brief to an expanded, from 
 a simple to a complex and artistic form. A case of this na- 
 ture occurs in connexion with Owain ab Urien. At the end 
 of the thirteenth century it existed as it appears in Rhon- 
 abwy, for Bleddyn Vardd alludes to nothing more romantic 
 than " Owen and his ravens;" but at the commencement of 
 the fifteenth century, in Gruffydcl Llwyd's Ode to Owain 
 Glyndwr, we find Owain described as the knight errant of 
 " The lady of the Fountain." But though these stories 
 grew with time, there were limits to their development 
 imposed by the character of the national mind; and though 
 the operation may be delicate, it is still possible to define 
 what is of foreign, and what of native addition. In the 
 earlier tales of Kymric origin, the machinery is invariably 
 supernatural. The Mabinogion of Pwyll, Branwen, Math, 
 and Manawyddan, are evidences of this; the marvellous 
 and moving power, is seldom, indeed we may say never, per- 
 sonal courage, but invariably magic ; and the same fact ap- 
 pears in the verse as well as prose legends. Nothing could 
 be more remote from the Kymric conception than knight ( 
 errantry; the spirit of adventure has no place even in our 
 national character ; and wherever that appears in our lite- 
 rature, we shall not greatly err in assigning to it a foreign 
 origin. It only occurs in the stories of Owain, Geraint, 
 and Peredur, and is, I think, clearly post- Norman. The 
 existence of an earlier class of tales of a purely Cambrian 
 origin, demonstrates satisfactorily that tale-telling was a 
 natural attribute of the Kymry, and is a sufficient proof, 
 were there not an abundance of others, to show that our 
 Mabinogion are of Kymric origin ; yet the source of some of 
 the elements of the Arthurian group is more doubtful : the 
 knight errantry is clearly Norman ; but whence came 
 Arthur \ 
 
 Arthur is confessedly a Kymric hero; but a question 
 having been raised as to whether he receives his romantic 
 
416 
 
 THE MABINOGION. 
 
 character from the Kymry of Wales, or those of Brittany, 
 it is our duty to throw upon the point all the light we 
 possess. His name is mentioned by Nennius, hut as the 
 passage occurs at various places in the different manuscript 
 copies of that historian, there is reason, if not to doubt its 
 genuineness, to consider it as an addition by his editor 
 Mark the Hermit. I have thought that the discrepancy 
 between the dates assigned to this history, might be ex- 
 plained in a similar way; but of that let riper scholars 
 judge. Yet, though the name assumes a heroic garb in this 
 historian, it did not take hold of the popular mind : there 
 is no trace of the hero in the early poetry of Wales. It 
 has been so frequently shown that the earlier bards make 
 no distinction between Arthur, and the other warriors of 
 his day, that it is not necessary for me to travel over 
 ground already trod by Turner, and Schulz ; but the same 
 fact is observable in the writings of later bards. Arthur is 
 very reluctantly admitted, and even as late as the twelfth 
 century, the bards showed much greater partiality to Cad- 
 waladr. Indeed, strange as the assertion may appear, there 
 is reason to believe that they discountenanced the Arthurian 
 stories. Kynddelw mentions the battle of Badon twice, but 
 we seldom find the name of Arthur introduced in his poems 
 with any great degree of prominence ; and until the force of 
 public opinion forced them to give way, the bards continued 
 to set their faces against him. They persisted in confining 
 him to Cornwall, long after the rest of the world had turned 
 their eyes to Oaerlleon ; and Kynddelw, twenty-nine years 
 at least after Geoffrey's history had become well known, 
 hints at the former glories of Gelliwig. Llywarch ab Lly- 
 welyn when from home compares EhysGryg to Arthur; but 
 when at home he does not compare a much greater man, 
 his patron Llywelyn ab Iorwerth, to that hero : and al- 
 though the bards were well acquainted with the story, the 
 name of Arthur is not freely used for at least half a cen- 
 tury after that time, and even then, he is simply the most 
 renowned of warriors. There is therefore a strong presump- 
 
THE MABINOGION. 
 
 417 
 
 tion, that the heroic character did not originate, where be- 
 ing planted it found so much difficulty to grow. This ano- 
 malous position of the Kymry of the Principality, leads 
 infallibly to one of two conclusions. Either they did really 
 consider the Arthurian stories to be fabulous, or deeming 
 them true, they were too apathetic to embrace them. The 
 latter inference is utterly inadmissible ; we have therefore 
 no alternative but to fall back upon the other, and to con- 
 clude that at that time Wales was so raised above the 
 civilization of the rest of Britain and the Continent, that it 
 presented the Mabinogion and Romances as Tales for chil- 
 dren, and Fabulous Stories. Professor Schulz asserts that 
 this was not the case ; but when we consider that he terms 
 the age of Meilir, Gwalchmai, Kynddelw, Hywel ab Owain, 
 Llywarch ab Llywelyn, and Davydd Benvras, as " a period 
 of decay in Welsh poetry, " we need not wonder that his 
 speculations on the Mabinogion are not quite correct. 
 These tales were certainly so considered by the bards ; but 
 there is a slight modification required in the Cambrian ac- 
 count. The term Mabinogion is applied indifferently to all 
 the tales ; but that is not strictly proper. Originally they 
 appear to have been thus classified, — 
 
 Mabinogion, or Juvenile Tales. 
 
 Mabinogi Pwyll Pendevig Dy- Pwyll Prince of Dyved 
 
 ved. 
 
 Mabinogi Branwen Verch Llyr Branwen the daughter of Llyr 
 
 Mabinogi Math ab Mathonwy Math the son of Mathonwy 
 
 Mabinogi Manawyddan ab Llyr Manawyddan the son of Llyr 
 
 Mabinogi Taliesin The Mabinogi of Taliesin 
 
 Breuddwydion, or Dreams. 
 Breuddwyd Macsen Wledig The Dream of the Emperor 
 
 Maximus 
 Breuddwyd Rhonabwy The Dream of Rhonabwy 
 
 Kyvranc Lmdd a Llevelis The quarrel of Lludd and Lle- 
 
 velis 
 
 Ystoriau, or Stories. 
 
 Ystori Boun o Hamtun The Story of Bowen of Hamp- 
 
 ton 
 Ystori Dared The Story of Dared 
 
 3 G 
 
418 THE MABINOGION. 
 
 Ystori Saint Greal The Story of St. Greal 
 
 Ystori Gwlad Ievan Vendigaed The Story of the Land of John 
 
 the Blessed 
 
 Ystori Idrian Amherawdyr The Story of the Emperor Ha- 
 
 drian 
 
 Ystori Kilhwch ag Olwen The Story of Kilhwch and Ol- 
 
 wen 
 
 Ystori Owen ab Urien, neu The Story of Owen the son of 
 
 Chwedyl Iarlles y Ffynnon Urien, or the Tale of the 
 
 Lady of the Fountain 
 
 Ystori Pcredur vab Evrog The Story of Peredur the son 
 
 of Evrawc 
 
 Ystori y draethy mal yd aeth A Story relating how Mary 
 Mair i'r nev went to Heaven 
 
 Ystori Geraint Tab Erbyn. The Story of Geraint the son of 
 
 Erbyn. 
 
 This classification is taken from LlwycTs Archaeologia 
 Britannica, (pp. 255 — 265.) He there professes to give 
 the titles of the various MSS. ; and as we know that the 
 relaters of the larger tales were called Story-tellers, the 
 names are probably strictly accurate. It hence results that 
 Schulz is partially correct in his conjecture as to the actual 
 facts ; but the conclusion deduced therefrom is as unwar- 
 ranted as before ; for Ystoriau, and Storiaivr, indicate with 
 quite as much clearness as Mabinogion, the limited extent 
 of the bardic credulity. Nothing can be more apparent to 
 the student of Cambrian literature, than that the bards 
 were among the last persons in Europe to admit the credi- 
 bility of the Arthurian tales. We must therefore seek the 
 first traces of the Arthur of Romance, among the Kymry of 
 Armorica. 
 
 The people of Armorica, and of ancient Gaul generally, 
 are supposed to have been the same people as the colonists 
 of Britain ; and this would seem to be the reason why du- 
 ring times of distress • the Britons fled there for refuse. 
 Besides this connexion there were others of which history 
 takes note. In the triads we are told of " three combined 
 expeditions that went from the Isle of Britain." — 
 
 " The first went with Ur the son of Erin, and became Greeks." 
 " The second combined expedition was conducted by Caswallon, 
 
THE MABINOGION. 4^9 
 
 son of Belij the son of Manogan, and Gwenwynwyn and Gwa- 
 nar, the sons of Lliaws, sons of Nwyvre, with Arianrod the 
 daughter of Beli, their mother. Their origin was from the border 
 declivity of Galedin and Essyllwg (Siluria,) and of the combined 
 tribes of the Bylwenny; and their number was three score and one 
 thousand. They went after the Kaisarians over the sea to the land of 
 the Geli Lydaw (Gauls of Letavia,) that were descended from the 
 original stock of the Kymry. And none of them, or of their pro- 
 geny, returned to this Island, but remained among the Romans 
 in the country of the Gwasgwynion (Gascony) where they are at 
 this time. And it was in revenge for this expedition that the 
 Romans first came to this Island. 
 
 " The third combined expedition, was conducted out of the 
 Island by Elen the armipotent, and Kynan her brother, lord of 
 Meiriadoc, into Armorica, where they obtained land and domin- 
 ion, and royalty from Macsen Wledig (the emperor Maximus,) for 
 supporting him against the Romans. These people were originally 
 from the land of Meiriadog, and from the lands of Seisyllwg (in 
 Carmarthenshire) and from the land of Gwyr (Gower,) and Gor- 
 wennydd (in Glamorganshire,) and none of them returned, but they 
 settled in Armorica and Ystre Gyvaelawg (Neustria and Yalais,) 1 
 by forming a commonwealth there. By reason of this combined 
 expedition the nation of the Kymry was so weakened and defici- 
 ent in armed men, that they fell under the oppression of the Irish 
 Picts ; and therefore Gwrtheyrn Gwrthenau (Vortigern) was 
 compelled to procure the Saxons to expel that oppression. And 
 the Saxons, observing the weakness of the Kymry, formed an op- 
 pression of treachery, by combining with the Irish Picts, and with 
 traitors, and then took from the Kymry their land, and also their 
 privileges and their crown."? 
 
 The truth of the third part of the Triad, is proved by 
 the occurrence of the same story in Gildas, Nennius, and 
 Geoffrey ; and these facts afford a strong presumptive proof 
 of the correctness of the others. The oppressions of the 
 Picts, led many more to leave this Island ; and after the 
 Anglo-Saxons had entered Anno 513, fresh bodies fled to Ar- 
 morica, and settled in the country of Vannes and Quimper, 3 
 then called Lectavia, Littau, or Llydaw. If Geoffrey may 
 be trusted, there was a close connexion between the Britons 
 
 1 According to the happy conjecture of the Rev. T. Price. 
 
 2 My v. Arch. Vol. II, p. 60. and Mr. J. H. Parry in the Carabro-Briton, Vol. 
 I. p. 87. 
 
 3 Continental authorities quoted in Schulz's valuable Essay on "Welsh Tra- 
 ditions, p. 23. 
 
420 THE MABINOGION. 
 
 and Armoricans in the time of Arthur; and from the 
 Liber Landavensis, we learn that the bishops Samson and 
 Teilo went to and fro between the two countries. Again, 
 there must be some authority for Geoffrey's assertion, that 
 at the close of the reign of Careticus, a great rieet of Britons 
 went over to Brittany; and there is most probably some 
 truth in the statement, that there was a considerable emi- 
 gration at the death of Cadwaladr. 
 
 The Kymry who left their native land on these occasions 
 carried with them the histories of their ancestors ; and as 
 many, perhaps, intended to return at more favourable junc- 
 tures, for the Kymro never forgets his native land, they 
 would naturally magnify their own actions and those of 
 their forefathers, and foster grand hopes of national resto- 
 ration. Many of these were the Kymry of Cornwall, which, 
 next to Wales, formed their last resting point ; and these 
 would very naturally exalt the actions of their countryman 
 Arthur. It is also to be observed, that the dialect of the 
 Bretons bears a closer resemblance to that of Cornwall, than 
 to the language of the Principality. These seem to be the 
 only conditions under which Arthur could have been singled 
 out for distinction, from men whom the Cambrian bards 
 praise quite as highly. How the conception was generated 
 will best be explained by a partisan of the Breton hypothesis, 
 the writer of a very able critique on the Essays of the 
 learned Abbe de la Rue : — 
 
 " If it be allowed that a mass of floating tradition was car- 
 ried by the South British exiles, when in the sixth century they 
 passed over to Armorica, that these traditions were fondly cher- 
 ished among them, because they told of the former glory of that 
 land to which they could never return, that the imagination of 
 their descendants invested .them with a halo of poetic beauty, be- 
 cause these fond recollections were their only heritage, we shall 
 discover not merely the reason why every British tradition up to 
 the sixth century was preserved among them, but a reason, too, 
 why Arthur, merely one of the many brave warriors, in the enu- 
 meration of the Welsh Bards, is the all powerful monarch and 
 
 1 Athenteum for 1S35, p. 842. 
 
THE MABINOGION. 421 
 
 hero of the Breton lay. Arthur, although known in Wales as the 
 monarch of the Silures, and the valiant opponent of Cerdic, was 
 but one of the many kings, and warriors, who fought, though in 
 vain, against the Saxon ; but to the Breton exiles he was their own 
 king, who had led them to battle, and whose death was the cause 
 of their flight. Thus the tales of Caerlleon and Camelot gather- 
 ed splendour from each Breton bard, for they were visionary recol- 
 lections of another land ; but the Welsh bard saw Caerlleon in 
 ruins, and Camelot in the power of the Saxons, and he left them 
 unsung. The " Woody Isle of Avalon," too, that brightest spot in 
 the realms of romance, was to the Welsh bard but " one of the per- 
 petual choirs of Britain," and he well knew that tonsured priests 
 alone wonned there; but the Breton, separated for centuries from 
 his fatherland, showered upon this Island to which his forefathers 
 saw their monarch borne, every imagined beauty, and peopled it 
 with Morgan le Fay, and her attendant damsels, watching in 
 hushed silence the tranced slumber of Arthur." 
 
 These remarks appear to be, in the main, just; but there 
 is no sufficient warrant for making Arthur the king of the 
 Silures ; and the location of that hero at Caerlleon appears 
 to be due to Geoffrey of Monmouth. The chief argument 
 is not however greatly affected thereby ; and there are other 
 reasons in favour of that conclusion. Alanus de Insulis re- 
 lates, towards the end of the twelfth century, that the Bre- 
 ton people would have stoned any one, who dared to deny 
 the fact that Arthur lived: 1 his words are most significant, — 
 
 "What place is there within the bounds of the empire of Chris- 
 tianity, to which has not extended the winged praise of the Arthur 
 of the Britons ? Who is there I ask who does not speak of the Brit- 
 tanic Arthur, who is but little less known to the people of Asia 
 than to the Britons, as we are informed by our pilgrims who re- 
 turn from the countries of the east. The Easterns speak of him, 
 as also do the Westerns, though the breadth of the whole earth lies 
 between them. Egypt speaks of his name, and the Bosphorus is not 
 silent; Rome the Queen of the cities sings his deeds, and his wars 
 are not unknown to her former competitor Carthage. His exploits 
 are praised in Antioch, Armenia, and Palestine. He will be celebra- 
 ted in the mouths of the people, and his acts shall be food to those 
 who relate them?" 2 
 
 1 Schulz's Essay, page 32. 
 
 2 Quo enim Arturi Britonis nomen fama volans non pertulit et vulgavit : 
 quousque Christianum pertingit imperinm ? Quis, inquam, Arturum Briton em 
 non loquatur, cum pene uotior habeatur Asiaticis gentibus, quam Britannis ; 
 sicut nobis referunt Palmigeri nostri de orientis partibus redeuntes? Loquuntur 
 
422 THE MABINOGION. 
 
 These remarks cannot be applied to the state of opinion 
 in Wales ; and therefore may we derive from this extract 
 a cogent argument in favour of the Breton theory. Ho- 
 nourable mention of the chivalry of Llydaw, is made in the 
 poem attributed to Golyddan, GreofFrey refers the origin of 
 portions of his history to that country, and the romancists 
 unanimously point out Brittany as the source of their 
 legends ; and therefore was there much point in the questi- 
 on of M. de la Rue, how could there be this uniformity of 
 testimony, if there were no truth in the allegations ? The 
 most striking argument in favour of the same conclusion, 
 has however yet to be adduced. We have said that Rhys 
 ab Tewdwr, (A.D. 1077,) is reported to have brought from 
 Brittany the bardic system of the Round Table to Wales, 
 " where," it is naively admitted, "it had become forgotten." 1 
 A bard named Iorwerth Vynglwyd, living about 1450, 
 alludes to the bardic Roll of Rhys ab Tewdwr, in the 
 words, — 2 
 
 The regulations are faultless 
 
 Of Rhys the son of Tewdwr, a good man who lived formerly, 
 
 And the much respected Roll of Arthur, 
 
 Which is also good and spirited. 
 
 Caradoc in speaking of Rhys says, " great was the fame 
 he had obtained for wisdom, and knowledge of the principles 
 of government," 3 though he makes no allusion to the Roll 
 of Arthur ; but as we find him, in giving an account of a 
 bardic festival held by Cadwgan ab Bleddyn, Rhys' succes- 
 sor, stating that it was conducted according to the rules ob- 
 served at the feasts of king Arthur, 4 we may conclude that 
 
 ilium orientales, loquuntur occidui, toto terrarum orbe divisi. Loquitur ilium 
 iEgyptus; Bosforus exclusa non tacet. Cantat gesta ejus domina civitatum 
 Roma, nee emulam quondam ejus Carthaginem, Arturi prrelia latent. Celebrat 
 actus ejus Antiochia, Armenia, Palsestina. [In ore pojpulorum celebrabitur, et 
 actus ejus cious erit narrantihusy] Quoted in Hanes Cymru, p. 258. 
 1 Iolo MSS. page 630. 
 2 Defodau difai ydynt 
 Rhys vab Tewdwr, da'r gwr gynt 
 A Rhol Arthur o bur barch 
 Da hefyd a dihafarch.— Iolo MSS. p. 391. 
 a Myv. Arch. ii. p. 538. i Myv. Arch. ii. p. 521. 
 
THE MABIXOGION. 423 
 
 the above statement is historically true. From these nu- 
 merous and various facts, the conclusion is both legitimate 
 and irresistible, that the romantic Arthur is a creation of 
 the Armorican Kymry. 
 
 There were several ways in which such a creation may have 
 been, and probably was brought to this country, in which it 
 only at first found favour among the clergy. Alain the Second 
 of Brittany, reigned about 690; his sons Ivor and Ynyr, be- 
 came princes of Wales in 683 j 1 Ivor reigned twenty-eight 
 years with much glory; 2 in commemoration of successes 
 over the Saxons, he in 712 3 built the abbey of Glastonbury 
 (Ynys Afallen ;) and soon after went to Rome. These 
 princes brought with them two powerful fleets, and recovered 
 Cornwall, Devon, and Somersetshire. Mathnidoc, Count of 
 Poher, with many nobles and Breton families, are said to 
 have in their turn sought refuge in Britain, at the begin- 
 ning of the tenth century, from the devastation of Rollo 
 and the Normans. 4 There was probably an intercourse 
 kept up between the two countries, such as we see in the 
 case of Rhys ab Tewdwr, who resided in Brittany for eighty- 
 four years ; and therefore we need experience no difficulty 
 in accounting for the transmission of their traditions to this 
 country. Yet it is strange, that the Bretons should have 
 no romantic remains ; the Tales published in French by 
 the Comte de Villemarque, are translations from Lady 
 Charlotte Guest's English version of the Romances of the 
 Kymry of the Principality. 
 
 Several of the Kymric romances seem to have been lost; 
 that of Creirwy and Garwy is frequently mentioned by 
 the bards, yet we have it not ; Cambrian ladies are fre- 
 quently compared to Eliwri, but we know no more of her, 
 than that she was the daughter of Urien Rheged; 5 and 
 Kymric warriors are repeatedly compared to a now un- 
 known Elivri. The bards were also acquainted with the 
 
 1 Caradoc, Myv. Arch. ii. p. 470. 2 Ibid. p. 471. 
 
 . 3 Brut Ieuan Brechva. — Myv. Arch. ii. p. 471. 
 
 4 Schulz's Essay, p. 25. 5 Iolo MSS. p. 458. 
 
424 THE MABINOGION. 
 
 most celebrated romances of other nations ; and frequently 
 allude to Tristan, Roland, Charlemagne, Sir Fulke, and 
 Alexander. 
 
 Of the Authors of the Kymric Mabinogion and other 
 Stories, but little is known. Indeed it may reasonably be 
 doubted whether the earlier portion ever had recognised au- 
 thors ; most probably the tales were orally transmitted for 
 centuries before they were reduced to writing; and as they 
 increased by being repeated it would be difficult to discover 
 their paternity. No date can be well assigned to the tale 
 of Kilhwch and Olwen ; it was well known in 1169, as ap- 
 pears from Kynddelw's Elegy to Owain Gwynedd ; an al- 
 lusion is made to the hunting of the boar Trwyth in 
 The Incantation of Kynvelyn, attributed to Aneurin; Lady 
 Charlotte Guest, in her most interesting note, 1 shows that 
 this event is mentioned in a MS. which Mr. Stevenson, the 
 Editor of Nennius, pronounces to be as old as the tenth 
 century ; and whatever may be the age of the tale of Kil- 
 hwch and Olwen, one of its chief incidents is impressed 
 upon the coins of Cunobelinus. The Dream of Rhonabwy, 
 is of necessity posterior to the time of Madawc ab Mere- 
 dydd, prince of Powys, whose name is mentioned at the 
 commencement, and who died in 1159. That tale was prob- 
 ably written in Powys, as Owain, Geraint, and Peredur 
 were the products of Glamorgan, and the remainder of Dy- 
 ved. Gruffydd ab Adda ab Davydd, a poet who flourished 
 about A.D. 1340 to A.D. 1370, was the author of a chival- 
 ric tale of much interest; several of his pieces are preserved; 
 he was killed at Dolgellau, and buried at the same place. 
 Ievan Vawr ap y Diwlith, was another writer of tales in his 
 day. The following notice of him occurs in the Iolo MSS., 
 
 " The bards of Tir Iarll haying gone to the Dewless Hillock, on 
 one of St. John's Midsummer festivals, to hold there a chair of 
 vocal song, found a new born child, half alive, on it. Rhys the 
 son of Rhiccert ab Einion ab Colhvyn, took it home with him, and 
 
 1 Mabinogion Vol. II. p. 359. 
 
THE MABIXOGION. 425 
 
 placed it under the care of a foster-mother. The child lived, was 
 put to school, and brought up to a learned profession. He imbibed 
 knowledge with all the avidity that a child would suck its mother's 
 milk ; and early in life he took the lead of all preceptors in Wales. 
 He wrote several books : — one of which was called the ' Preserva- 
 tion of the Welsh language, the Art of Vocal Song, and all 
 that appertained to them, according to the rights and usages of 
 the Welsh Nation, and judicial decisions of wise men ; others 
 were called ' The Greals,' ' The Mabinogion,' ' The nine tropes, 
 and twenty four embellishments of diction,' 'The book of Fables,' 
 and many more. He also composed a work for the preserva- 
 tion of the moral maxims and laws of the Welsh nation. He re- 
 ceived the name of John, the son of the Dewless, because he Avas 
 found, as already mentioned, on the Dewless Hillock, on St. John's 
 midsummer festival; and because he- was a large man, he was 
 called Big John, the son of the Dewless. He lived and died at 
 Llangynwyd, where he was buried with the family of Llwydarth. 
 It was currently reported, that, in all probability, he was the son 
 of Rhys ab Rhiccert, by a lady of high rank ; and when it was so 
 asserted in his presence, he merely held his tongue, allowing that 
 belief to continue." 1 
 
 Mr. Edward Williams states that Ievan lived between 
 1160 and 1180; 2 this date was a necessary consequence of 
 his being the son of Rhys ab Rhiccert, whom the same an- 
 tiquarian had previously placed about 1140; but as we shall 
 presently show that Rhys lived two hundred years later, we 
 must, assuming the paternity to be correct, conclude that 
 Ievan lived nearer 1380. The authorship of the Mabinogi of 
 Taliesin is attributed to two persons. In the lolo MSS., 
 at the close of an epitome of the history of Taliesin and El- 
 phin, from the book of Anthony Powel, occur these words: — 
 
 "It was from this account that Thomas, the son of Einion 
 Offeiriad, descended from Gruffydd Gwyr, formed his romance of 
 Taliesin, the son of Cerridwen ; Elphin, the son of Gwyddno; Rhun, 
 the son of Maelgwn Gwynedd; and the operations of the Cauldron 
 of Cerridwen." 3 
 
 This Thomas ab Einion must have lived about 1260, as 
 a work on Grammar, written by his father, was copied be- 
 
 1 lolo MSS. p. 479, on the authority of the memoranda of Mr. John Bradford, 
 extracted from Anthony Powel's MS., then (circ ann. 1760) at Goettrehen, near 
 Bridgend. 
 
 2 lolo MSS. p. 88. . 3 lolo MSS. p. 459. 
 
 3 H 
 
426 THE MABINOGION. 
 
 tween 1254 and 1280, by Edeyrn Davod Aur; and as, in ad- 
 dition to that fact, Gwilym Ddu, about 1320, terms Talies- 
 in "Gwion Bach," as if that romantic name was well known, 
 we may safely conclude that this Mabinogi probably belono\s 
 to the beginning of the reign of Llywelyn ab Gruflydd. 
 The second person who is the supposed composer, is Hopkin 
 Thomas Phylip, also of Glamorgan ; Dr. Pughe supposes 
 that he wrote the connecting prose passages, but that the 
 poetical passages, were what he professes his book to be, 
 collected from other works. In one place 1 , Dr. Pughe says 
 this person lived about 1370; but if we take another and 
 more probable date given by the same author, and place him 
 from 1590 to 1630 2 , the two accounts may be reconciled, 
 Thomas ab Einion being the author, and Hopkin Thomas 
 Phylip the copyist. These are all the facts that I have 
 been able to glean, concerning the authors or rather compil- 
 ers of the Mabinogion ; and now it only remains to speak of 
 the noble lady who has translated, and edited the English 
 version of these antique tales. 
 
 The Mabinogion combine dignity of expression with a 
 fine easy flow of language, and are remarkable for their 
 quaintness and simplicity. They contain many passages of 
 exquisite beauty, and a poetical colouring, enriching the 
 whole, prevails throughout: such being their character, they 
 demanded in a translator, qualities which are not of fre- 
 quent occurrence. A knowledge of two languages is far 
 from being the only quality required; for the spirit of 
 the original should be as fully as possible transferred, in 
 addition to the literal meaning. I have in many parts com- 
 pared the translation of the Mabinogion with the original ; 
 and have uniformly found reason to think, that our ancient 
 tales have been exceedingly fortunate in being translated by 
 Lady Charlotte Guest. Her version correctly mirrors forth 
 the spirit of these antique stories, and is as much distin- 
 guished for elegance as fidelity. Her ladyship's good taste, 
 
 1 Cambrian and Caledonian Quarterly, Vol. V. p. 381. 
 
 2 Cambrian Biography, p. 178. 
 
THE MABINOGION. 427 
 
 led her fully to appreciate the charm contained in the sim- 
 plicity of the original ; and she has been eminently success- 
 ful in producing a version at once simple, animated, and accu- 
 rate. It is not necessary to enter into an analysis of com- 
 positions, which, thanks to the munificence of that noble 
 lady, must now be well known; and therefore it will 
 suffice to cite one or two extracts, in illustration of both the 
 ability of the translator, and the character of the Mabinog- 
 ion. The following describes the heroine, 01 wen : — 
 " So a message was sent, and she came. 
 
 " The maiden was clothed in a robe of flame-coloured silk, and 
 about her neck was a collar of ruddy gold, on which were preci- 
 ous emeralds and rubies. More yellow was her head than the flower 
 of the broom, and her skin was whiter than the foam of the wave, 
 and fairer were her hands and her fingers than the blossoms of the 
 wood anemone amidst the spray of the meadow fountain. The 
 eye of the trained hawk, the glance of the three-mewed falcon was 
 not brighter than hers. Her bosom was more snowy than the 
 breast of the white swan, her cheek was redder than the reddest 
 roses. AYhoso beheld her was filled with her love. Four white 
 trefoils sprang up wherever she trod." 1 
 
 We will add to this beautiful portrait, the description of 
 
 her lover, prince Kilhwch, setting forth on his journey 
 
 towards the court of Arthur, — 
 
 "And the youth pricked forth upon a steed with head dappled 
 gray, of four winters old, firm of limb, with shell-formed hoofs, 
 having a bridle of linked gold on his head, and upon him a saddle 
 of costly gold. And in the youth's hand were two spears of silver, 
 sharp, well tempered, headed with steel, three ells in length, of an 
 edge to wound the wind, and cause blood to flow, and swifter than 
 the fall of the dewdrop from the blade of reed grass upon the 
 earth, when the dew of June is at the heaviest. A gold-hilted 
 sword was upon his thigh, the blade of which was of gold, bear- 
 ing a cross of inlaid gold of the hue of the lightning of heaven ; 
 his war-horn was of ivory. Before him were two brindled white 
 breasted greyhounds, having strong collars of rubies about their 
 necks, reaching from the shoulder to the ear. And the one that 
 was on the left side bounded across to the right side, and the one 
 on the right to the left, and like two sea swallows sported around 
 him. And his courser cast up four sods with his four hoofs, like 
 four swallows in the air, about his head, now above, now below. 
 
 1 Mabinogion, Vol. II. p. 276. 
 
428 THE MABINOGION. 
 
 About him was a four cornered cloth of purple, and an apple of 
 gold was at each corner, and every one of the apples was of the 
 value of an hundred kine. And there was precious gold of the 
 value of three hundred kine upon his shoes, and upon his stirrups, 
 from the knee to the tip of his toe. And the blade of grass bent 
 not beneath him, so light was his courser's tread as he journeyed 
 towards the gate of Arthur's Palace." 1 
 
 The notes contain a mass of very interesting information, 
 and I have derived from them much valuable assistance, 
 They bring the past vividly to mind; very clearly elucidate 
 the text; and are only defective in being too brief. 
 
 It is now generally admitted that Romance originated 
 from these traditions of the Armorican Kymry, which had 
 a most important influence upon the literature of other 
 European nations, by the publication of the " Historia Bri- 
 tonum." All the names of the heroes in the Arthurian 
 Cycle of Romances are of Kymric origin, so that no doubt 
 can be entertained of their paternity. But in Wales the Ro- 
 mance was never developed to the extent it assumed among 
 other nations. Among them romances presented features 
 which were not in the Mabinogion ; and this arose from the 
 following circumstances: — The Normans infused into them 
 an adventurous spirit, and the monks, or Catholic clergy 
 chastened and refined their tone. We will offer a few re- 
 marks in elucidation of both these positions. 
 
 M. Sismondi is of opinion that the Normans were the 
 inventors of the Romance literature, though he admits that 
 the names of the Arthurian cycle belonging to a differ- 
 ent race, present a difficulty not easily overcome; and he 
 bases his opinion upon the fact that " of all the people of 
 ancient Europe, the Normans showed themselves during the 
 period which preceded the rise of the romance literature, to 
 be the most adventurous and intrepid.'" 2 But the learned 
 historian has overlooked an important fact. It is with na- 
 tions as with men; there are some who can invent, but can- 
 not improve ; and there are some who can improve what 
 
 1 Mabinogion, Vol. II. p. 253. 
 2 Sismondi 's Hist, of Literature, Vol. I. p. 108. 
 
THE MABINOGION. 429 
 
 they could not invent. To the first class belong the Kyinry; 
 to the second the Normans. The path had been already 
 discovered, the frame work had been already formed, and it 
 only remained to carry out what had been previously de- 
 signed. The Kyinry failed to do this ; but it was done ; 
 the Mabinogi was pushed up into a romance; and a brief re- 
 view of their character, will show that the Norman Trou- 
 veres were the persons who carried this into effect. They 
 were on the spot, and happened to possess the very qualities 
 necessary to bring about the changes we witness. Their 
 faculties were illustrative ; not creative. Behold their 
 character, drawn by an able hand : — 
 
 " Above all men, the Norman -was an imitator, and therefore an 
 improver ; and it was precisely because he was the least rigid, 
 most supple, plastic, and accommodating of mortals — that he be- 
 came the civilizer, and ruler wherever he was thrown. In France 
 he became French, in England English, in Italy Italian, in Nov- 
 gorod Russian ; in Norway only, where he remained Norwegian, 
 he failed to accomplish his elevated mission. Wherever his 
 neighbours invented or possessed anything worthy of admiration, 
 the sharp, inquisitive Norman poked his aquiline nose. Did Sicily 
 invent a better kind of helmet, instantly the Norman clapped it 
 on his head. Did the Moor, or the Breton breathe sentiment into a 
 ballad, the Norman lay forthwith adopted the humanizing music. From 
 a Frank castle or a Lombard church, to a law by Canute, or a witan 
 under Athelstan, the Norman was always a practical plagiarist. 
 Wherever what we now call the march of intellect advanced, there 
 was the sharp eager face of the Norman in the van. All that he 
 retained, in his more genial settlement, of his ancestral attributes, 
 were the characters of a seaman. He was essentially commercial; 
 he liked adventure, and he liked gain; he was also a creature so- 
 cial and gregarious. He always intermarried with the people 
 among whom he settled, borrowed its language, adopted its cus- 
 toms, reconciled himself to its laws ; and confirmed the aristo- 
 cracy of conquest, by representing, while elevating, the character 
 of the people with whom he closely identified himself. This re- 
 markable race exercised an astonishing influence for good, espe- 
 cially in their noblest settlement, England. No one who has not 
 paid some attention to our Saxon poetry, with its most artificial 
 structure, its meretricious alliterations, its tedious unanimated 
 tone, relieved it is true by some descriptions, and an ethical allego- 
 rical spirit (as in the songs of the Phoenix,) can be aware how 
 thoroughly it differs from the genius of our existing muse — and 
 how much immediately from the Anglo Norman, and his kinsman, 
 
430 THE MABINOGION. 
 
 the Anglo-Dane, (and the Welsh and Bretons,) though perhaps re- 
 motely from the Saracen, we derive of sentiment, vivacity, character 
 passion, simple construction, easy humour, and true pathos ; — all 
 in short, that now especially distinguish the poetic and popular 
 literature of England. But for the JS T orman and the Dane, we think 
 it probable that we might have writers like Thomson, Young, and 
 Wordsworth, but we feel a strong conviction that we should have 
 wanted a Chaucer, Spenser, and Shakespeare. No one who has 
 not made himself familiar with the wretched decrepitude of the 
 Saxon church, its prostrate superstition and gross ignorance, at 
 the age preceding the conquest, can appreciate the impetus given 
 to learning by the Norman Ecclesiastics ; and no one who has not 
 studied the half disorganized empire of disconnected provinces 
 and rebellious earldoms under the confessor, with laws of succes- 
 sion both to throne and to lordship, most irrregular, can com- 
 prehend all the advantages derived from the introduction of an 
 hereditary aristocracy, singularly independent and high-spirited, 
 quickly infusing its blood, and its character into the native popu- 
 lation — leaguing its own interests with those of the whole subject 
 community — and headed by a line of monarchs who, whatever their 
 vices and crimes, had at least the power to defend the land from 
 all other invaders, and the wisdom to encourage the trade and the 
 commerce which have ultimately secured to England at once its 
 fame and its freedom." 1 
 
 Cambrian history furnishes numerous proofs of this 
 strongly assimilative character of the Normans. Between 
 them and the Kymry there were frequent intermarriages. 
 On the one hand we find Nest the daughter of Rhvs ab 
 Tewdwr married to Gerald de Windsor, Nest the daughter 
 of Trahaearn ab Caradoc to Bernard de Newmarch, Nest 
 the daughter of Iestyn ab Gwrgant to Robert Fitzhamon, 
 Marred, or Margaret daughter of Llywelyn ap Iorwerth 
 to John de Breos, and another of that prince's daughters to 
 Reynold de Bruce. While on the other hand, David ab 
 Owain Gwynedd married a sister to Henry II., Llywelyn 
 ap Iorwerth, Joan the sister of king John, and Llywelyn ap 
 Gruffydd, Eleanor de Montford. Gruftydd the eldest son of 
 the lord Rhys, took to wife, Mallt, or Matilda, a daughter of 
 William de Breos, and his brother Rhys Gryg married a 
 daughter of the Earl of Clare. We therefore, from a know- 
 ledge of these facts, soon perceive that the Normans must 
 
 1 The Examiner, April 1, 1 848. 
 
THE MABINOGION. 
 
 431 
 
 have exercised an extensive and very important influence 
 upon our literature, as well as been influenced by it in return. 
 
 The above finely drawn sketch of the Norman character 
 shows us both what they were, and what they were not; and 
 we thence learn that M. de Sismondi's conjecture contains a 
 truth, though it is not the truth. The Normans did not in- 
 vent the romance literature; but they greatly improved, and 
 extended what they found already invented in Brittany and 
 Wales. At first the Norman Trouveres confined themselves 
 to embellishing the Keltic traditions ; but they soon dragg'ed 
 in the kings of France with Charlemagne at their head; and 
 ultimately enlisted in their service the classic names of an- 
 cient Greece. 
 
 The influence of the religious element, is next to be deve- 
 loped. At, and preceding the period of which this section 
 treats, the church had become powerful in Wales, as well as 
 over the rest of the civilized world. It exercised a very 
 considerable influence over the moral and intellectual order 
 in modern Europe, and upon public ideas, sentiments, and 
 manners, as is shown by the essentially theological charac- 
 ter of the works developed at this time. Papal theology 
 possessed and directed the human understanding, and gave 
 its impress to all opinions ; philosophical, political, and his- 
 torical questions, were all considered under a theological 
 point of view. 1 In the twelfth and thirteenth centuries the 
 order had increased ; monks and friars were abundant; and 
 there was no department of intellectual activity, in which 
 they did not bear part. We have in the case of Geoffrey, 
 a monk embellishing old traditions ; and adding fabulous 
 genealogies, and imaginary agents, — the products of his own 
 brain. And coupling this with the fact, that Layamon, the 
 author of the Brut known by his name, was a priest, we 
 easily arrive at the conclusion, that the monks had not left 
 romances to be exclusively produced by laymen. We have 
 one striking proof of this in the " Awdl Vraith," which is 
 
 1 Guizot's Lectures on Civilization, — The Church. 
 
432 THE MABINOGION. 
 
 evidently an ecclesiastical production, of the romance era : — 
 This might have been inferred, from the tone of the compo- 
 sition, its allusion to the consecrated wafer, its Latinized 
 diction, and the fable of Trojan descent. This last fa- 
 ble, is evidently of monkish origin. There is also a very- 
 striking difference between the same facts when treated of 
 by the bards and the priests; the poets speak of Arthur as a 
 warrior only, while the monks, from Nennius downwards, 
 continually endeavour to clothe him in an air of sanctity. 
 Nennius, w r ho states him to have borne the image of the 
 Virgin on his shield, appears to have drawn upon an eccle- 
 siast's imagination, rather than upon authentic history; and 
 knowing this with many similar facts, can we doubt that 
 Arthur, the religious hero, the greater part of whose me- 
 morials were found in convents, is partly at least, a being 
 of monastic creation ! If, after the consideration of all these 
 facts, there should remain any doubt upon the subject, it 
 would be dispelled by the fact, that Edward 1 prohibited the 
 monks from being rhymers and raconteurs, — a sufficient 
 proof that they frequently appeared as such. This fact 
 would go far to explain the enmity which subsisted between 
 the priests and the bards. Lewis Glyn Cothi openly as- 
 sails them ; but when the writer of the Avallenau spoke of 
 them as " Myneich geuawg, gwydawg, gwydus," he thought 
 it prudent to place the words in the mouth of Merddin. 
 This enmity appears to have sprung from their being rival 
 candidates for popular suffrages ; it was in fact jealousy, 
 and is therefore of itself a proof of the position here laid 
 down. It being now manifest that the monks cultivated 
 romantic literature, — we shall proceed to estimate the influ- 
 ence they exercised upon it. 
 
 There is an erroneous opinion prevalent, that religious as- 
 cendency is inimical to, and incompatible with, mental deve- 
 lopment, — 
 
 "Opinions formed less from a knowledge of actual facts, and 
 ascertained influences of religion upon civilized society, than from 
 an infidel antipathy to religion itself, would deserve but little at 
 
THE MABINOGION. 430 
 
 tention, were they not widely spread, and their upholders nume- 
 rous. Religion, of all principles the most fruitful, multiform, and 
 unconfined, does not express itself in a few unchanging modes of 
 writing; it not only becomes the vehicle for knowledge, but it 
 clothes it in the most attractive, noble, and dignified forms ; it has 
 the variety and bold contrasts of nature, which at the feet of rug- 
 ged mountains scoops out the freshest, sweetest valleys, and em- 
 bosoms in the wild troubled ocean, Islands, whose vernal airs, 
 loveliness, and teeming fruitfulness, almost breathe the joys of 
 Paradise." 1 
 
 We have now to develope the influence of this princi- 
 ple upon our romantic literature. The Catholic Church was 
 now in its glory, and at the height of its power; and now, as at 
 all times, was most studious to conform itself to the im- 
 provements of society f it mingled with all things without 
 excluding any ; 3 and in Wales, as in other European coun- 
 tries at the period we now treat of, theological modes of 
 thought, feeling, and expression are every where displayed. 
 The Mabinogi of Taliesin is replete with theological expres- 
 ions ; and its conception proves that the tendency of the- 
 ology was to mental expansion. Indeed the very word shows 
 that romance must have found more favour with the priests, 
 than among the poets. The Bardic maxim, Y Gwir yn erbyn 
 y byd, Truth against the world, was essentially unfavourable 
 to fictitious literature — the Bards were authors already, and 
 possessed of much repute; they might therefore be naturally 
 expected to look with contempt, and distrust upon any litera- 
 ture less authentic, studied, and laboured than their own. — 
 The very name Mabinogion (Juvenile Tales,) and Ystoriau 
 (Stories,) are indicative of this contemptuous feeling, — bard- 
 ism they insinuated was the occupation of superior minds. 
 The bards w r ere the salt of the earth, the talented men of 
 the country. They were men themselves, and provided men- 
 tal food, for the adult intellect; but the romances were 
 Mabinogion and Ystoriau, tales for young men, and 
 
 1 Channing's Works, Vol. I. p. 109. 
 
 2 Robertson's Scotland. Book II. 
 
 3 Guizot : — "Dansle monde moderne. l'esprit religieux s'est inele a tout, 
 mais sans rien exclure." 
 
 3 1 
 
434 THE MABINOGION. 
 
 stories. Even the writers of thein were spoken of in the same 
 derisive language, as the reader might have seen in Lewis 
 Glyn Oothi's classification of the bards, as Bardd, Teuluwr, 
 and Storiawr, "story-teller." But I am not disposed to 
 form so low an estimate of these stories; for if I were 
 compelled to decide between the Bards and the Storiwyr, the 
 choice would most unhesitatingly be in favour of the Mabi- 
 nogion. The bardic poems are more valuable as contemporary 
 records, they are more strictly accurate, and in one word, 
 are more " useful ;" but the tales show most of the thought, 
 and feeling of the times, and are at this day more readable, 
 and interesting. Artificial systems, which impose upon the 
 mind, the decrees of individuals, and associations, which 
 prescribe rules for taste, and criticism, and which claim for 
 themselves every imaginable perfection, cannot reflect the 
 spirit of the times, must be at variance with the dictates of 
 nature, and tend to sink man below, rather than to elevate 
 him above mediocrity. Such was bardism ; which, dis- 
 sociated from, and in opposition to natural promptings, de- 
 generated for the most part into a tame representation of 
 the more tangible, and transient thoughts of the day ; and 
 measured intellectual capacities by rule and compass : — it 
 wanted life, elasticity, and truthfulness. From all our 
 bardic remains we learn but three facts — that the Kymry 
 loved war, mead, and music ; but we learn from the Mabi- 
 nogi, that they had great regard for chastity, that women 
 were held in high estimation among them, that their 
 chieftains were fond of literary associates, and devoted their 
 time and talents to improve, instruct, and civilize their 
 subjects. The laws of Howel show how the court was con- 
 ducted; Giraldus describes the more obvious popular habits; 
 and the Mabinogion supply many traits of natural manners, 
 not noticed in either. The latter are more really poetic, the 
 life is more life-like, and the warriors more heroic, than the 
 portraitures of the bards ; the bardic heroes are at the best 
 but exaggerations of warriors, while those of romance are 
 reallv sublime creations. Of the fine and hi^h-toned senti- 
 
THE MABINOGION. 435 
 
 ments which breathe through the Mabinogion, we have no 
 traces in the works of the bards, and no counter-parts in 
 the civilization of the period; they must therefore have 
 emanated from the clergy. Abstracting a warrior from the 
 province of history, — making him feel the impulses, and 
 speak the language of a more civilized age, — revealed in 
 studies of the classics, and enriching him with all that cul- 
 tivated minds deemed to be good, great, and gorgeous, was 
 an idea which could only have found favour among eccles- 
 iastics. It never appears to have entered the minds of the 
 bards; the tumult of conflict, the excitement of warlike life, 
 and the contemplation of actual every day scenes, were all 
 that could interest those matter of fact personages ; and they 
 never attempted to analyze their own minds and feelings, to 
 endow a sublime creation with the ardent promptings of 
 their own nature, and to represent as actual existences — 
 beings which the ambitious minds of able men had alone con- 
 sidered possible to exist, and hoped themselves to be. Pictures 
 of immutable truth, and of the deep -workings of the soul, 
 were things too pure and sublime, ever to have subsisted in 
 a literary atmosphere contaminated by the arbitrary rules 
 and conventional regulations of the bards, and could onlv 
 have been developed where the vivacity of the people had 
 been heightened by the contemplation of Divine attributes, 
 and their feelings chastened by God's goodness and loving- 
 mercy. Here all the pent up and cherished feelings of the 
 nation found vent; and the fact that Arthur was reported 
 to have worn the image of the Virgin Mary upon his 
 shield, affords us proof that religion possessed great influ- 
 ence over men's minds, that the monks gave a religious co- 
 louring to popular traditions, and, that, setting aside the 
 question of the accuracy of the statement, it is obvious that 
 the assertion was consonant with the spirit of the time. 
 
 The influence of the church was two fold ; — immediate 
 and mediate. Its immediate influence is shown in its posi- 
 tive teachings ; its mediate in the movements it originated. 
 The church was the great civilizing element of the twelfth 
 
436 THE MABINOGION. 
 
 and thirteenth centuries; it ameliorated the social condition 
 of the people, and was greatly instrumental in bringing 
 about the abolition of slavery in Europe ; it laboured for the 
 suppression of many barbarous practices ; and framed a 
 penal code upon principles elevated, and enlightened, and 
 strikingly coincident with those enunciated by Jeremy 
 Bentham, and his followers, Mill, Molesworth, Bowring, 
 Grote, and others who are accounted, — the profoundest 
 thinkers of the present day. It looked upon continual wars 
 as being inconsistent with the spirit of Christianity, and in 
 all these various ways, it rendered productive the intellec- 
 tual movement which at this time prevailed among most 
 European nations. The system of doctrine and precepts, 
 under which it imparted the movement, was very superior 
 to anything that the ancient world had known ; and con- 
 tained within itself tendencies to both exertion and advance- 
 ment. 1 As regard the romance, the clerical influence is 
 very apparent in the tales of the Greal, which, according 
 to Schulz, date their origin from Provence. 2 The romance 
 of St. Greal, which was written in verse, by Chrestien de 
 Troyes, in the twelfth century, id a mixture of Breton chi- 
 valry and sacred history. The cup out of which the Mes- 
 siah is said to have drunk during his crucifixion, or which 
 contained his blood, was known to the romance writers un- 
 der the name of St. Greal, 3 and this fact indicating a Chris- 
 tian tendency in the romancists, shows the statement made 
 by Tegid, 4 of the Greal being connected with druidic and 
 anti-Christian tenets, to be altogether erroneous. The 
 "Greal 11 of Chrestien de Troyes, may be found, according to 
 the translator of Sismondi, in the Royal Library, Paris, 
 No. 7523. His account of it is as follows, — 
 
 "It is a very large MSS. Volume, in 4to, written in double co- 
 hims, and containing nearly the whole history of the Knights of 
 the Round Table." 
 
 1 Gruizot *s Lectures on Civilization — The Church. 
 
 2 Schulz on Welsh Traditions, p. 48. 
 
 3 Sismondi's History of South European Literature, Vol. I. p. 197. Bonn's 
 Edition. 4 Lewis Glyn Cothi., p. 259, note. 
 
THE MABIXOGION. 437 
 
 Now it is very evident from the description given by 
 
 Llwyd of " Ystori Saint Greal," and by Gutto'r Glyn in 
 
 these lines, — 
 
 " Am un lly vr y mae'n lie vain, 
 A gar mwy nag aur a main ; 
 Y Greal teg i'r wlad hon — 
 Llyvr o enwog varchogion ; 
 Llyvr o greft yr hott Vord Gron" 
 
 that the Greal, so much desired, was substantially the same as 
 this very MS. which, as its contents show, was a Christian 
 document, — being in fact nothing more than the adventures 
 of the kniffhts of the round table, in search of the Greal 
 or blessed cup, which, it was stated, was carried to England, 
 and ultimately possessed by Launcelot, Peredur, and the 
 other knights. There is a further account of this cup given 
 in the notes to Colyn Dolphyn, by the late lamented Ab 
 Iolo. In 1450, this Cambrian MS. was in the possession of a 
 Glamorgan chieftain. 1 About 1500, we find the loan of a 
 Greal asked of Lewis ab Davydd, the abbot of Neath; 2 and 
 in 1707, Llwyd states that there were copies in both the 
 Mostyn and the Hengwrt libraries. His description of one 
 MS. is as follows : — 
 
 " Ystorife Saint Greal : Historice Gregoriana?. M & Vaugh. 
 Membr. nitid. Charact. Farias fabulas eochibet de Arthuro rege, fy 
 militibus suis, kc. Init. Megys ydoedd Arthur yn y Llys a eluid 
 kamalot, nos Sadurn, Sulgwyn oed yr Arglwydh Iesu Grist, pedair 
 blynedli ar dkeg a deugaint, a pheduar kant. Fin. Ag velli y ter- 
 vyna Historic St. Greal. Const, p. 560 in Ato. Consule Lexicon 
 Davisianum sub voce Greal." 3 
 
 The Stories of Saint Greal : Gregorian Histories. M(ostyn & 
 Vaugh (an of Hengwrt.) Vellum neat character. Various fabulous 
 tales of king Arthur and his knights, &c. Beginning, — "As Arthur 
 was in his court called Camelot, on the night of Whitsaturday, in 
 the year of our Lord Jesus Christ, four hundred and fifty four." 
 Ending, — " So ends the History of Saint Greal." It contains 560 
 pages 4to. Consult Davies's Lexicon under the word Greal. 
 
 The Editor of Lewis Glyn Cothi's Works, states that 
 the MSS. copies of the Greal are lost ; but it is gratifying 
 
 1 Iolo MSS. page 704. 2 Ibid, page 706. a Liwyd's Arch. Brit. p. 265. 
 
438 THE MABINOGION. 
 
 to find that such is not the case. In the catalogue of the 
 MSS. in the Gloddaith collection, published by Mr. Aneu- 
 rin Owen, occurs the following notice, — 
 
 " 5. Sang Royal ae cavas, ac ae due y nev : nyt amgen Galaath 
 vab Lawnselot de Lac, Peredur vab Evrauc, Iarll Bwrt vab Brenin 
 Bwrt. Y copi cyntav a ysgrivenodd Mastir Philyp Davydd o unic 
 lyvj r J urddedig ewythyr, Traliaearn ab Ieuan ap Meuric, ae ys- 
 grivenodd Siancyn vab John, vab Siencyn, vab Ieuan Vychan, vab 
 Ieuan, vab Einion, vab Rhys, vab Madoc, vab Llywelyn, vab Ca- 
 dwgan, vab Elystan Glodrydd. Vellum Folio." 1 
 
 Sang Royal, who had if, and who took it to heaven; being none 
 other than Galaad the son of Launcelot du Lac, Peredur the son 
 of Evrawc, Earl Bort, the son of King Bort. The first copy written 
 by Master Philyp David from the sole book of his knighted uncle, 
 Trahaearn ab Ievan ap Meiric, which was written by Siancyn 
 the son of John, the son of Siencyn, the son of Ievan Vychan, the 
 son of Ievan, the son of Einion, the son of Rhys, the son of Madoc, 
 the son of Llewelyn, the son of Cadwgan, the son of Athelstan 
 Glodrydd. Vellum, folio. 
 
 The Gloddaith MS. is probably the Mostyn MS. menti- 
 oned by E. Lhwyd. 
 
 The next notice is in the catalogue of the Hengwrt 
 library, given in the same work, — 
 
 "49. Y Greal; the Exploits of Arthur and his warriors; written 
 in the sixth year of Henry I. in a beautiful hand. Vellum, Quarto, 
 five inches thick." 2 
 
 The latter is evidently the MS. noticed by Lhwyd ; and 
 possibly may be the identical MS. of Trahaearn ab Ievan 
 ap Meuric. It is a most interesting document ; and if the 
 date A.D. 1106 be correct, it must be the first of the Ar- 
 thurian cyclus ; and it is hoped, that Lady Charlotte Guest 
 will not allow her work to remain incomplete, while this 
 important MS. remains unpublished. We shall then 
 know more of the work ; have additional light thrown upon 
 the question of the origin of the romances ; and probably 
 be able to place Siancyn ab John, the descendant of Athel- 
 stan Glodrydd, at the head of our list of the authors of 
 Cambrian Stories. 
 
 1 Transactions of the Cymrodorion, iv. p. 402. 2 Ibid. iv. p. 407, 
 
THE MABINOGION. 
 
 439 
 
 The mediate influence of the church was manifested 
 through such movements as the Crusades. These form an 
 historical problem of much interest ; and Gibbon alone of 
 all our historians, doubts their having had a most important 
 influence upon European civilization. Since he wrote, the 
 historians of the continent have studied the subject; and we 
 now learn from the elaborate treatises of Heeren, and Vil- 
 liers, Michaud, and Guizot, that they created quite a revo- 
 lution in the thoughts and feelings of the time. It is im- 
 possible to believe that Europe should have been convulsed 
 to its centre, that millions of its best, bravest, and most in- 
 telligent inhabitants should have poured themselves out up- 
 on the deserts of Arabia, and that the minds of whole na- 
 tions could have been put upon the stretch, without the ac- 
 quisition of much additional knowledge, the generation of 
 novel sentiments, and the elaboration of grander and juster 
 ideas of manners, history, politics, literature, and geography. 
 Their effect is very concisely stated by M. Guizot, in the 
 following words : 
 
 " Here was the first and main result of the Crusades, a great step 
 towards the enfranchisement of the mind, and a considerable ad- 
 vance towards more extended and unprejudiced ideas. Commenced 
 in the name, and under the influence of religious principles, the 
 Crusades took from religious ideas, I will not say their legitimate 
 share of influence, but the exclusive and despotic possession of the 
 human mind. The same fact happened to those travelling popu- 
 lations who have been called Crusaders, as usually happens to 
 travellers ; their minds were opened and elevated by the mere cir- 
 cumstance of witnessing a multitude of different things, and by be- 
 coming acquainted with manners distinct from their own. Besides, 
 they came into relations with two civilizations, not only different, 
 but more advanced, namely the Greek society on the one hand, 
 and Mussulman on the other. There can be no doubt but that the 
 Greek society, although its civilization was emasculated, corrupted, 
 and expiring, had on the Crusaders the operation of a society in a 
 more advanced state, more polished and enlightened than theirs. 
 The Mussulman society, offered to them a spectacle of the same 
 nature." 
 
 Now we cannot believe that these new feelings should 
 have left no traces in literature — in fact, we see the effect of 
 
440 TIIE MABINOGION. 
 
 the Crusades in both the chronicles and romances. In their 
 journeys towards the holy land, the Cambrian knights mixed 
 on terms of intimacy and equality with those of other coun- 
 tries, and effected of course an interchange of literatures, as 
 plainly appears from the frequent mention in Kymric litera- 
 ture of Orlando, Charlemagne, sir Fulke, and Gruy of 
 Warwick. Petrarch and Boccaccio had meanwhile revived 
 a taste for classic literature ; and we see the influence of the 
 church in disseminating a knowledge of the " great of old" 
 in the mention by the bards of Hector, Achilles, Priam, 
 Alexander, and Caesar. 
 
 Having thus analyzed the agents at work in the produc- 
 tion of the romance literature, the reader will be the better 
 able to appreciate the following remarks, on the scope and 
 tendency of the Mabinogion. Here we see depth of passion 
 breathing in rapid transitions, and fiery tones; imagery, 
 brilliant, glaring, and redundant to a fault ; a sublime spirit 
 of pure and uncreeded devotion — enlivening not darkening, 
 elevating not depressing, and serving to show life, not as 
 shaded by secluded ascetics, but irradiated by celestial 
 light, with happy and perhaps unconscious allusions to con- 
 temporary transactions, national customs, and every day 
 habits. These show that a daring and frank, a refined and 
 generous, and a religious though lively people had freely, 
 almost recklessly, poured out their souls into their roman- 
 tic literature, and have had their peculiar habits of thought, 
 passion, and sentiment faithfully portrayed by their Stori- 
 wyr. Pictures of external life, of the hidden workings of 
 the passions, and of scenery, are drawn with a glow, anima- 
 tion, and truth, equal to the best efforts of Crabbe, " nature's 
 sternest painter, but her best." The same force of expres- 
 sion, and unaffected, yet refined morality ; the same gene- 
 rosity towards friends, and haughty defiance of Saxon foes, 
 is visible in both its poetry, and history ; but this sublimity 
 of conception, is shown to the greatest advantage in the 
 Mabinogion. From its early Chivalry, which furnished 
 the first example for similar institutions, and awoke in 
 
THE MABINOGION. 441 
 
 other nations a similar feeling ; from the restless aspiration 
 after ideal greatness which became afterwards infused into 
 he chivalry of Europe ; from these, and the Kymry its 
 founders, romance derives its origin. No modern people seem 
 previously to have been able to surmount the cold reality 
 of fact, nowhere does mind appear to have so readily re- 
 nounced controul, and ascended on daring pinions to such 
 lofty heights. In no other country, among no other people, 
 does mind appear to have been so early employed in con- 
 templating as actual realities, things which found no paral- 
 lels in actual instances, no companions in ordinary life, and 
 which possess no tangibility, save as the embodiment of 
 man's most cherished hopes, and highest wishes. Here 
 man is raised far above himself, clothed with every attribute 
 of power which men wish to possess, performing feats re- 
 quiring superhuman strength, and slaying Saxon enemies 
 in such numbers as harassed Kymry alone could desire. 
 Life is decked out in the grandest colours ; the most ex- 
 traordinary acts are performed ; the most simple, yet digni- 
 fied sentiments are uttered; the most exquisite sensibilities 
 are shown by the genius of romance, and its sublime crea- 
 tions. Its Arthurs, Tristrams, and Peredurs, revel in the 
 most gorgeous scenes ; they live in an atmosphere of their 
 own ; and though these beautiful pictures of imaginary per- 
 fection, are sometimes obscured by mystic allusions; the 
 desire for happiness, the craving after ideal perfection, the 
 irrepressible instinct to paint the future in the most 
 illusory colours, soar transcendently over all. 
 
 This undoubtedly had its origin in the sanguine tempe- 
 rament of the Kymry ; and other nations have derived their 
 plots, actors, and acts from Kymric models. The round 
 table is a fiction, though as we have seen as old as A.D. 11 70, 
 the age of Oadwgan ap Bleddyn ap Kynvyn ; but Wales 
 had always possessed a chivalric order, who have been 
 praised by contemporary bards, and have been themselves 
 rhymers. The cavalry of Bretagne, introduced the ro- 
 mances of the Kymry into France and Germany, — thence 
 
 3K 
 
442 
 
 THE MABINOGION. 
 
 they spread among the civilized nations of Europe. Great 
 principles, wherever they flash, have in an eminent degree 
 this universality, and diffusiveness. They find a response 
 in every bosom, they touch the finest chords of the soul, 
 and at whatever door they knock are readily admitted. Ma- 
 hometanism spread over the Eastern world with a rapidity 
 not astonishing only when compared with the wonderful 
 dissemination of Christianity over the Western; second 
 only to these was the progress of the Kymric romance. Like 
 an electric current, it made its presence known by a series of 
 brilliant flashes ; with every clime it claimed affinity, and 
 from every nation the brotherhood was acknowledged. 
 Hence our English neighbours have derived the most bril- 
 liant gems in their early literature. Had the Kymric ro- 
 mance not made itself known to them, would Spenser have 
 given birth to the Faery Queen \ That fine piece of ima- 
 gery was produced at a time when chivalry, as an institu- 
 tion, had become extinct, — when the feelings in which it 
 originated, had in a measure subsided, — when they glowed 
 with less intensity, and had been chastened by improved 
 taste, — when, in fact, it could not have been produced with- 
 out the previous preparation of public opinion, by the vivid 
 and energetic description of heroic feats, which Kymric tra- 
 dition had linked with the names of Arthur, and his com- 
 panions. English history furnished no such brilliant 
 achievements, no such ardent feelings; and one of England's 
 sweetest poets was necessitated to borrow from a people 
 whom his countrymen now affect to despise, the conception 
 of his characters, and the description of the scenes amid 
 which they existed, with the influence which such a being 
 as Arthur was thought to have exercised upon surrounding 
 people, in raising up a race of warriors only less noble than 
 himself. The Kymry have therefore much reason to be 
 proud of their Mabinogion. 
 
 Romances were during these and succeeding centuries ob- 
 jects of lively curiosity; and in an age when large libraries 
 abound, the astonishing exertions made to obtain copies 
 
THE MABINOGION. 443 
 
 through loan or purchase will scarcely be credible. Of the 
 stories of the Greal, it appears as if there was at that time 
 but one copy known to exist throughout Wales ; for the 
 bard Gatto'r Glyn was sent all the way from Denbighshire, 
 in North Wales, to the extreme bounds of Glamorgan to 
 borrow it. It was then in the possession of Tryhaearn ap 
 Ievan ap Meyric ap Howel Gam, of Waunllwg, Glamorgan- 
 shire ; and the bard addresses a poem to the chieftain, in 
 which he describes the book he wished to borrow, for David, 
 Abbot of Valle Crucis Abbey. At that time it was custo- 
 mary to send the bards on important messages ; and when- 
 ever an important favour was asked, the request was uniform- 
 ly couched in verse. In the fifteenth century, this fashion 
 became very common, and we owe to the custom some scores 
 of very admirable compositions. The poem composed on this 
 occasion, is very interesting; as, in addition to indicating the 
 prevalent practice, it describes the book; throws light on 
 the nature of the Greal, and shows the intense interest 
 which the stories had at last excited, in even very intelli- 
 gent minds ; since a dignitary of the church was so exceed- 
 ingly curious as he is here described, to peruse the adven- 
 tures of the Arthurian knights. It is a picture of the time, 
 and runs thus : — 
 
 " The ages of three men be to thee Tryhaearn, 
 
 Patron of the bards in giving judgment, 
 
 Son of Ieuan, the chief of Penrhos, 
 
 The son of Meyric, the object of my address. 
 
 The second from Howel Gam, 
 
 And the third of the race of Adam.i 
 
 A royal race of the kingly stock 
 
 Of Kynvyn and Bleddyn and Blaidd, 
 
 Is thy lineage, from the Usk to the vale of Neath ; 
 
 The kindred is of South and North Wales. 
 
 Noble is thy blood, Tryhaearn, 
 
 May thy end in this world be the day of judgment. 
 
 Strong as the yoked ox, thy fame has 
 
 Traversed the Gwents and Southern lands. 
 
 The eye of Gwaunllwg art thou entirely, 
 
 The hand and the book of others also; 
 
 1 Howel's father. 
 
444 l t he mabinogion. 
 
 The offerings of science hast thou 
 
 Truly distributed, as Arthur did. 
 
 The hand of Nudd to Caerlleon wast thou, 
 
 And its people assemble where thou art. 
 
 The mouth of the learning of the bards of Glamorgan ; 
 
 The mouth of the literature of the land of Gwaunllwg. 
 
 The mouth of all the excellencies of Gwynedd, 
 
 From Edeyrnion to the land of Neath. 
 
 And the skilful tongue of our language; 
 
 The father who cherishes it, art thou that knowest it. 
 
 Let us go to the court, there shall we find thee, 
 
 At Haverford, like in a high fair. 
 
 Eight hundred thousand extol thee, 
 
 From Aberffraw to the vale of Pembroke. 
 
 "Well art thou styled the wise countenance 
 
 Of all the sciences of Dyved, 
 
 From the fair harbour where boils the wave 
 
 Of Daugleddau 1 to Caledonia ; 
 
 One of the heroes of Earl Herbert of Narberth, 
 
 Art thou, and his lance and his might, 
 
 Possessing a name above that 
 
 In the dwelling of thy own eight territories ; 2 
 
 The name of teacher and director of every learning, 
 
 In a measure like unto the name of Moses. 
 
 The Abbot of Valle Crucis will make our land 
 Altogether one entire feast ; 
 At his own charge shall wine and meat be free, 
 For the entertainment of you and Davydd, 3 
 In the same manner as thou in the Dwyallt, 
 Excepting his vestments and his tonsure. 
 Like as all Cambrians assemble in thy house, 
 From all the Gwents, so shall it be with him. 
 He by his order is distinguished, 
 You by the sciences of the world. 
 All Gwynedd shall assemble here, 
 Like as the eight districts of Gwent at thy fair mansion. 
 
 The sciences and endowments of knowledge 
 Assuredly does Davydd love, 
 For one book he does call out, 
 That he loves more than gold and gems, 
 And implores you to send 
 The goodly Greal to this land. 
 The book of the blood — the book of the heroes, 
 Where they fell in the court of Arthur ; 
 The book of the renowned knights, 
 The book of the fair order of the Round Table. 
 A book still in the Briton's hand, 
 
 1 Milford Haven. 2 Gwent. 3 The Abbot of Valle Crucis. 
 
THE MABINOGION. 445 
 
 Which the race of Horsa cannot read. 
 
 The loan of this does Davydd, Principal of the Choir, 
 
 Request from the bountiful Ivor, 
 
 The kingly book, which should the venerable chief obtain, 
 
 He would be content to live without other food. 
 
 The holy monks also do desire to have 
 
 The sacred Greal in yonder land of Yale. 
 
 Nevertheless it will not tarry there ; 
 
 From the land of Yale it will return again, 
 
 Your old blind Gytto, he and his chattels, 
 
 Will be your surety for its return, 
 
 And gracious Providence, as from the dwelling of St David, 
 
 Will doubtless grant thee thy reward." 1 
 
 In the Kymric lines quoted p. 437, the book is differently 
 described ; for instead of "a book of the fair order of the 
 Round Table," it is more pointedly termed, — 
 Llyfr grefft yr ho 11 fort gronn, 
 A book of the doings of the whole Round Table. 
 
 The curiosity of the abbot is well described by the blind 
 old bard ; and it would appear to have been real ; for Black 
 Ievan of the Billhook, another bard, describes the antici- 
 pated gratitude of a different aspirant for the perusal of 
 " the truthful grey book," in terms quite as forcible. Ad- 
 dressing Lewis ab Davydd Ddu, the abbot of Glyn Neath, 
 he says, — 
 
 " Let this book therefore be courteously sent 
 
 To us from the court of Neath by the worthy Lewis, 
 
 Who is exemplary in rebuking the ungodly, 
 
 And of true propriety in prayer to God. 
 
 And if I shall obtain from Davydd's son 
 
 The book of the Greal without delay, 
 
 And readily against Lent, 
 
 Its proud leaves will be worth its weight (in gold.) 
 
 We will observe the supreme law of St. Gregory, 
 
 We shall have Matins in the Choir, 
 
 And after Vesper manifold will be 
 
 The uttering of praise to Mary." 2 
 
 Proceed we now to notice another curious species of liter- 
 ature, pertaining to and truly characteristic of the ancient 
 Kymry. 
 
 1 Iolo Mauuscripts, p. 706. 2 Ibid. p. 703. 
 
SECTION IV. 
 
 The Triads. 
 
 These form an exceedingly interesting collection of docu- 
 ments ; and have been found eminently useful in illustrat- 
 ing national history, manners, and language. They bespeak 
 a singular state of society, and such as could have no ex- 
 istence in modern times. I have been much interested in 
 considering the allusions to the social state found in the 
 works of the early bards ; the poems of Llywarch Hen, and 
 Aneurin, seem to show a higher state of civilization than 
 prevailed many centuries later ; and clearly show the con- 
 dition of Britain at the close of the Roman domination, 
 when the civilized practices of their conquerors had won 
 their admiration, and elicited their sympathy. In such 
 circumstances, when the alarms, and excitements of war 
 had ceased, and when the British youth, whose mental ca- 
 pacities have been favourably noticed by several Latin His- 
 torians, strove to excel in a knowledge of Roman literature, 
 there must of necessity have been much intellectual activity. 
 Then must have arisen the necessity for some medium of 
 communication, and for the transmission of thought ; and 
 if we bear in mind the' assertion of Csesar, that the Druids 
 cultivated the art of memory, we arrive easily at the origin 
 of the Triads. By these remarks I do not mean to assert 
 that the Triad is as old as the time of the Druids ; but in- 
 tend more particularly to show that at this period it was in 
 existence, or had it not been previously in use, must now 
 have been developed. The Kymry were a communicative, 
 
THE TRIADS. 447 
 
 and intellectual people, and wanting writing materials, must 
 of necessity have had recourse to a system of artificial me- 
 mory. Some of the Triads may be as old as the time of 
 the Druids ; there must have been a collection of them in 
 the time of Hywel Dda, before he could have consulted 
 those attributed to Dyvnwal Moelmud; but the collections 
 we have, are as late as the twelfth, thirteenth, fourteenth, 
 and fifteenth centuries. 
 
 They may be divided into Triads of history, bardism, 
 theology, ethics, and jurisprudence. We have advanced 
 one reason why they seem, some of them, to have been col- 
 lected as far back as the tenth century. The Triadic form 
 is frequently seen in the poems of Aneurin, and Llywarch 
 Hen ; and Mr. Vaughan of Hengwrt was of opinion that 
 some of them had been collected as far back as the seventh 
 century. In the time of Hywel, they were very com- 
 mon, as "the collective wisdom 11 of his day, have either 
 framed or copied a great number of legislative Triads ; and 
 we have unquestionable proof in the following Englyn by 
 Kynddelw, that one at least of the Historical Class is as 
 old as the twelfth century, — 
 
 Godwryf a glywaf am glawr fagu glyw 
 Glew Fadawc bieufu 
 Trinfa cryf a cynyddu 
 Trydydd Tir Dkveir Deulu. 
 
 This alludes to a well known triad of the three blessed 
 families of Bran Vendigaid, Cunedda Wledig, and Brychan 
 Brycheiniog. 
 
 I had, in sketching out the plan of this Essay, intended 
 to introduce a dissertation upon the value of the triads as 
 historical documents ; but the shortness of the time at my 
 disposal, and the quantity of matter yet to be introduced, 
 compel me to leave it out, and content myself with briefly 
 stating the probable conclusions. Many of the Triads refer to 
 events, of which there remains no other record ; and many 
 are evidently fabulous, and mythological. Again many of 
 them relate in different words, and from evidently distinct 
 sources, to events commemorated bv Roman and Saxon his- 
 
44g THE TRIADS. 
 
 torians, and the monkish chroniclers. The accounts are 
 very similar, and so nearly coincident, that in other cases, 
 where there is no corroborative evidence, and where there is 
 no admixture of fabulous matter apparent, the triads may, 
 with a little caution, be without risk of impropriety used as 
 authentic historical documents. They are only traditions 
 it is true, for the habit of writing once introduced would 
 render these brief memorials unnecessary and less satisfac- 
 tory than full and circumstantial reports ; but they are tra- 
 ditions of a peculiar and trustworthy character. The bards 
 are said to have recited these triads at their Congresses ; 
 and if such was really the case, the difficulty of introducing 
 fictitious matter under such circumstances would be very 
 great ; we are therefore justified in forming a favourable es- 
 timate of their historical trustworthiness. 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 The Welsh Language. 
 
 It is my business to write the history of the language as 
 well as of the literature of the Kyrary ; and however imper- 
 fect the following pages may be, they will throw a little light 
 upon the subject, and materially assist such of my readers, 
 as wish to study the original poems. The Kymraeg is a 
 language which lays claim to very remote antiquity ; but 
 at a time when almost every scientific discovery tends to 
 unsettle our notions of the primary state of society, it would 
 scarcely savour of wisdom, to speak of a primitive language. 
 Suffice it that the language is old ; perhaps the Keltic is the 
 oldest class of European languages. 
 
 It is of more importance to know upon the present occa- 
 sion, that the Kymraeg is an original language, corres- 
 ponding to the wants of the people, indicative of their 
 deficiencies, and elaborated with much care from original 
 roots, upon principles really philosophical. The language 
 of a people must always correspond to the requirements of 
 the nation ; and from its copiousness in some respects and 
 scantiness in others, will always furnish a tolerably correct 
 notion of the place of that people in the scale of civilization. 
 Languages at all times answer the demand made upon them, 
 either from their own resources, or by the admixture of 
 words from other tongues ; and therefore it is an index of 
 both the purity, and richness of the Kymraeg, that from its 
 
 3L 
 
450 THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 
 
 own elements, it has been found capable of meeting all the 
 requirements hitherto made of it, without being in the 
 slightest degree indebted for foreign aid; and the fact that 
 in the march of intellect many branches of knowledge have 
 been formed, for which the Kyrary have as yet no adequate 
 expressions, is no proof whatever, that its capacities have 
 been exhausted. Science has not hitherto domesticated it- 
 self at the Cambrian hearth; but when it does visit our 
 mountaineers, and the time for that is I trust approaching, 1 
 there is not much room for doubt, that this time-honoured 
 language will, like the Greek, be as well adapted for the 
 most abstruse sciences, as for common conversation. 
 
 The originality of the language, is a fact which has not 
 been fully recognised by most of our grammarians ; but it is 
 less my intention to give an outline of the principles of the 
 language, than to trace the progress of its growth, or develop- 
 ment during the two hundred and forty years embraced by 
 by this Essay. My observations will principally be directed 
 to the mutation of consonants ; but I would make a passing- 
 remark upon the conjugation of verbs. The past, present, 
 and future terminations of verbs are a little confused in our 
 earlier poets. This topic cannot be satisfactorily treated 
 unless we had the actual words of the sixth century poets 
 before us in their original orthography ; but we cannot I 
 fear, with any degree of certainty, refer their present ortho- 
 graphy to as early an age as the sixth century, though our 
 present version is evidently early. Taliesin says, in giving 
 Owain ab Urien's reply to Fflamddwyn's demand for hos- 
 tages, — 
 
 Ni ddodynt, nid ydynt, nid ynt parawd, 
 
 They have not been, they are not, they will not be ready. 
 
 1 It is a source of sincere gratification to reflect that an attempt is being made 
 to render Chambers's Information for the People, known to the Kyrnry in their 
 own language. The translator, Mr. Ebenezer Thomas, is fully competent to his 
 task, the work is of all others the best adapted, from its excellence and cheap- 
 ness, for the purpose of bringing scientific knowledge within the reach of 1m 
 countrymen, and I trust, that Mr. Edwards, the publisher, will not have to re- 
 gret that his spirited undertaking meets with a cold reception. 
 
THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 45 1 
 
 Here we have all the three tenses with the same termi- 
 nation. Again in that very beautiful description of a flight 
 
 of arrows 
 
 Gwelais wyr gorvawr, 
 A dygyrchynt awr ; 
 Gwelais waed ar lawr 
 Rac ruthyr cletyvawr 
 Glesynt esgyll gwawr 
 Esgorynt yn waewawr ; 
 
 we notice the same want of a discriminative mark be- 
 tween the tenses ; but it is singular that this defect, only 
 pervades the writings of Taliesin, and Llywarch. Instances 
 in abundance may be produced from the Elegies of the lat- 
 ter bard. The termination " ynt," is used in the past tense 
 in the following lines, — 
 
 Yn Llongborth lias i Arthur 
 Gwyr dewr, cymmym/tt£ a dur 
 Ammherawdwyr, llywiawdwyr llafur ; 
 
 while it is here used in the present (the proper) tense, — 
 
 Eglwysau Bassa ynt dirion heno, 
 Ys gwaedlyd eu melllion ; 
 Rhudd ynt hwy, rhwy fy nghalon. 
 
 Aneurin, who exhibits traces of Latin influence in other 
 respects also, uses this termination as do modern writers; 
 and in the following passage the past, the present, and fu- 
 ture terminations, are such as are now commonly used, — 
 
 O vreithell Gattraeth pan adrotir, 
 Maon djchxirant eu hoed bu hir, 
 Edyrn diedyrn, a mygyn dir, 
 A meibion Godebawc, gwerin enwir 
 Dyphorthynt gowysawr gelorawr hir ! 
 Bu truan dyngedven, angen gywir 
 A dyngud i Dudvwlch a Chyvwlch hir 
 Aed jvent vet gloew wrth liw babir 
 Cyd vel da ei vlas, ei gas bu hir. 
 
 At Cattraeth's deed of blood, when told by fame, 
 
 Humanity will long deplore the loss ; 
 
 A throne with nought to sway, a murky soil ; 
 
452 THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 
 
 Godeboc's progeny, a faithful band, 
 
 On biers are borne to glut the yawning grave ? 
 
 Their fate was wretched, yet true the destiny 
 
 Sworn to Tudvolch, and to Cyvolch proud — 
 
 That though by blaze of torch they quaff d clear mead ; 
 
 Tho' good its taste, its curse would long be felt. 
 
 Here we have "ent," for the past tense, " ynt" in the 
 present, and "ant" in the future; whether this arose 
 from the greater skill of Aneurin, or from the alterations 
 of the copyist, I know not ; but that alterations have been 
 made is evident, from the fact that in other places Tal- 
 iesin is made to use the future termination ant in both the 
 past and present tenses. Perhaps the only safe conclusion 
 would be, that the usage at that period was confused, and 
 unsettled ; and that the use of the terminations " ant 1 ' and 
 " ent," has been introduced since that of " ynt." "Ynt," is 
 sometimes improperly used in the past tense by the bards 
 of the twelfth and subsequent centuries ; and even at the 
 present day " ant" is as frequently used in the past as in 
 the future tense, by writers careless of elegant diction. 
 
 Mr. Humphreys Parry, preceded by Dr. Pughe, has in 
 a series of able articles upon the Welsh language, given ex- 
 pression to some sentiments respecting the mutation of con- 
 sonants, which require examination. He seems to consider 
 that the consonants are not changed for the sake of eu- 
 phony ; but only in accordance with grammatical rules. 
 Such an assertion is utterly at variance with the state of 
 the language as we find it in the twelfth century ; as is also 
 the assumption that the mutation of the initial consonants 
 dates back from a very remote antiquity. It is easy to 
 trace the steps of its growth ; and the poems of the twelfth 
 century show that many mutations now used were not then 
 known. The mutation of initial consonants is as old as our 
 oldest poems ; but all the mutations now known were not 
 then used. They were gradually introduced. Meilir in one 
 of his poems says, — 
 
 " Amdlawd vyn favawd ar vyn fewi 
 
THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 453 
 
 Had the whole of the mutations been then known, he would 
 have written thus, — 
 
 " Amdlawd vy wfozvawd, &c. 
 At that time, if the language was pronounced as it is writ- 
 ten, it must have sounded harsh indeed, as will be seen 
 from the following instances, — 
 
 Digonais gvzvyt 
 Ysgwyt Duw Dav^ 
 Vy iawn grexyt 
 
 Heb i weini. — Meilyr. 
 
 Un Iwerfon. — Gwalchmai. 
 
 Pencor, pencer£ wyti itavr. — Cynddelw. 
 
 Un ar dir, ar dorvoe£ rydres. — Prydydd Moch. 
 
 Ban dywaid wait vscttit wovec. — Hywel ab Owain. 
 
 Diwallaw di vcnestr na vyn angau, 
 
 Korn can anrydd anghyve/au. — Owain Cyveiliog. 
 
 Mareduf, llofru* lloegnvys. — Prydydd Moch. 
 
 Now in each of these, and hundreds of similar cases, the 
 t would be now written dd or dh ; but this mutation was 
 not at that time in existence. 
 
 The Dh was introduced to express this sound, about the 
 year 1400, and in the time of Henry the VIII., the h was 
 omitted, and the d written with a point at the top or un- 
 derneath, and Irish Antiquarians still retain the D. This 
 was the form used by H. Llwyd and W. Salisbury at 
 home ; and by Dr. Gruffydd Roberts and Roger Smyth, in 
 the Welsh books they printed beyond the sea. Dr. J. D. 
 Rhys, Dr. D. Powel, Thomas Jones, Tregaron, and others 
 who wrote during the reign of Queen Elizabeth, revived the 
 old form dh ; but Dr. Davies afterwards rejected both the 
 preceding, and introduced the dd, which prevails at this 
 day. 1 This alteration is far from being judicious ; it wants 
 the sanction of analogy, and has no valid support. In the 
 case of tt, rr, mm, nn, &c. the single letters are doubled 
 in order to harden the sound ; but the doubled d is intended 
 to be softer than the single ; it is therefore against analogy. 
 Dr. Owen Pughe wished to revive the d with the dot at 
 
 1 Llwyd's Arch. Brit. p. 226. 
 
454 THE WEL SH LANGUAGE. 
 
 the top, and Lynch in his Irish Grammar (pub. 1821,) re- 
 commended the Kymry to adopt the Irish notation ; but the 
 dh, as used by Edward Llwyd, J. D. Rhys, Powel, and 
 Thomas Jones, appears to be the best exponent of the aspi- 
 rated sound of D. 
 
 The letter F very anciently had two pronunciations. 
 Llwyd gives an interesting illustration of the most unusual 
 of them, — 
 
 " On a mountain called Gelli Gaer, in Glamorganshire, we find 
 the British name Divrod inscribed on a stone Tefravti. In the 
 notes on Glamorganshire in Cambden, I have read this inscription, 
 supposing it might have been Welsh, Deffro it ti, i. e. mayest 
 thou awake ; but having found afterwards that the names anci- 
 ently inscribed on monuments in our country are very often in 
 the genitive case, as Conbelini, Severini, Amilini, &c, and 
 most if not all in Latin, I now conclude it a proper name, and the 
 very same that is otherwise called Dubritius. 1 " 
 
 Here it is sounded as 0; but the same writer remarks that 
 generally, and in the oldest MSS. it has the sound given to 
 it in the English Alphabet. Perhaps it would have been 
 more strictly accurate to have stated that in early ages, the 
 usage was not fixed ; as no rule appears to be observed 
 by the poets, who sometimes use the one, and sometimes 
 the other character, to express the same sound. A line 
 from Kynddelw will show the fact clearly, — 
 
 "Sevis e/seint duw genhyn." 
 Here we have the same sound represented by both V and 
 F. In the twelfth century, or perhaps sooner, another rule 
 was adopted by which the V was superseded by F, and the 
 doubled F used to represent the English sound of that 
 letter, thus, — 
 
 " Uffern earn ffurf y henneint ;" 
 but still considerable laxity prevailed ; for in reading in the 
 Meddygon Myddvai, " Ef a geif," the first F would be pro- 
 nounced soft and the second hard. 
 
 In old MSS. we find the letter C where we now use G ; 
 and in reading most of the specimens given in this work, 
 
 1 Llwyd's Arch. Brit. p. 226. 
 
THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 
 
 455 
 
 the C at the end of a word should be sounded as G. Thus 
 Aneurin has caeawc cynhorawo, for caeawg cynhorawg ; — 
 
 Guledic gwlad orvod. — Meilyr. 
 Teithiawc Prydein. — Gwalchmai. 
 Twrwf ton torchawc. — Kynddelw. 
 Hartliw guanec — .Hywel ab Owain. 
 
 It should also be observed that the modern compound ng 
 is generally represented by a single letter; which in print- 
 ing has been displaced by the simple G ; thus, — 
 
 " Gwaethylwann yg kyman yg kymelri/' — Llywarch abLlywelyn. 
 
 would now be written, — Grwaethylvann y^hyman yng- 
 hymelri. 
 
 Formerly the words eog, baedd, &c. were written eftauc, 
 bahedd, the H being used to prolong the sounds of the vowels. 
 
 In the oldest MSS. the letter / supplied not only its 
 English pronunciation in the words hmi, thm, &c, and 
 the double ee, but also both y and y j and Llwyd remarks 
 that in an ancient Welsh Manuscript, written five hundred 
 years before his time, this letter was constantly omitted, 
 and its place supplied by y. 
 
 Llwyd remarks that the letter K, never occurs in our 
 oldest British Manuscripts, but was afterwards introduced 
 by the Normans, who made frequent use of it in their old 
 French. About the year 1200, it is constantly used in the 
 initial syllables, and the C in the terminations. Thus. 
 
 A deckant kyman ae kilyei. — Hywel ab Owain. 
 
 Y korn yn Haw Rys, &c. — Owain Kyveiliog. 
 Am fecld Krist, <fcc. — Elidir Sais. 
 
 Y neb a liolo penkynyd keisyed, &c. — Cyfreithieu Hywel, 
 (a MS. of the twelfth century.) 
 
 It continued to be used until about 1500, since which time 
 most Welsh writers have omitted it, and used the C instead. 
 As at present used among the Kymry, the C is always 
 hard. 
 
 The letter L has two pronunciations ; but in the oldest 
 British MSS. Llwyd says that there is no distinction to 
 
456 THE WEL SH LANGUAGE. 
 
 denote when it has its simple sound, and when it is to be 
 sounded as 11, or Ih. The double L " was introduced in the 
 twelfth century; which Dr. Gruffydd Roberts author of the 
 first printed Welsh Grammar, in the reign of king Henry 
 the VIII. not approving of, altered for an L with a point 
 underneath, and William Salisbury for one marked at the 
 top. Afterwards Dr. Davies, the Physician, observing that 
 H had been the auxiliary in the ancient Roman orthography 
 as Ch, Pk, and Th introduced Lh ; and this practice ob- 
 tained, till Dr. Davies rejected it and used Ll'm his Gram- 
 mar printed an. 1621, and in his Dictionary. 1 " 
 
 In addition to its usual sound, the m sometimes in the 
 most ancient manuscripts had that of V ; thus in the Liber 
 Landavensis, the word Cyvraith, is written Cymreith. 
 
 There are two pronunciations to the B in the oldest 
 manuscripts. When used in its primary form, as in the 
 beginning of words in Dictionaries, it is always pronounced 
 as in the Greek, aspirated. Thus, in the words " Kyn 
 rudaw, &c," it would be pronounced as if written Rh; but 
 in the poems of this era, there is no mark to denote 
 when the aspirate should be used or omitted. About 
 1500, in North Wales the initial R was doubled as in "rri- 
 allon," for Rhiwallon ; the Rh was introduced afterwards. 
 Old bards of this era began to double the S, just as Gla- 
 morgan writers doubled the N ; but the wisdom of, or the 
 necessity for either, is alike problematical. U, was vari- 
 ously used for U, F, and W. The W does not appear in 
 very old manuscripts ; it was used as F, and Y ; but its 
 usage is now fixed. 
 
 The letter X is not known among the Kymry, though 
 Caesar states that one of the chief of the Edui was called Dum- 
 norix. Lhwyd argues with much ingenuity that the name 
 was ended with the Greek X, the Ch of the Keltic dialects. 
 
 Many of the bards, who lived during the twelfth and suc- 
 ceeding centuries, took much pride in the art of literary 
 
 1 Llwyd's Arch. Britt. p. 228. 
 
THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 457 
 
 composition, and many therein display considerable skill. 
 The lansfuasfe of the Kyinrv is rich in native roots, and se- 
 veral of these men have done much to develope its capabi- 
 lities ; they wisely determined to cultivate their own tongue, 
 rather than borrow words 'from others ; and as they had 
 clear preceptions of the philosophy of language, the service 
 rendered to their parent speech by the writers of these cen- 
 turies, will ever give them a strong claim upon the respect, 
 and admiration of their countrymen. They formed their 
 compound words upon principles really philosophical ; and 
 when the number of Kymric roots was so great, it will 
 scarcely excite surprise, that men proud of their language, 
 and with intelligence enough to develope its capacities, 
 should have produced lasting monuments of their own skill, 
 and of the inherent wealth of the Cambrian tongue. In their 
 position, and surrounded by the social atmosphere of the 
 age, we naturally conclude that they must have excelled in 
 those things, by which they were most strongly affected. 
 War was the ruling passion of the era, and battles, war- 
 riors, and princes, were the objects, which most frequently 
 tasked their descriptive powers. It is here, therefore, that 
 we shall find the best specimens of composition. For battle 
 they had no less than nine words, — 
 
 Brwydyr, 
 
 Ymladdfa, 
 
 Aer, 
 
 Cad, 
 -( Trin, 
 
 Breithell, 
 
 Camawn, 
 
 Gwaith, 
 ^Rhyfel; 
 
 and from one of these words we meet with the following 
 compounds, — 
 
 Aer, plural Aerau, Battle. 
 
 Aeraesawr, Battle-shielded, (D. ap Gwilym.) 
 
 Aerawd, pi. Aerodydd, A slaughtering, (Prydydd y Moch,) 
 
 Aerawg, Slaughtering, (D. ap Emwnt.) 
 
458 SHE WELSH LANGUAGE, 
 
 Aerawl, Warring. 
 
 Aer-bair, Causing slaughter, (Llygad Gwr.) 
 
 Aer-baith, Wasted by slaughter, (Llygad Gwr.) 
 
 Aer-baladr, The spear of battle, (G. ab Meredydd.) 
 
 Aer-bar,j>/. Aerbarau, The spear of war, (Kynddelw.) 
 
 Aer-bar, Preparing for slaughter, (Kynddelw.) 
 
 Aer-bost,jo/. Aerbyst, Pillar of battle, (Prydydd y Moch.) 
 
 Aer-darf, Battle- frightening, (Kynddelw.) 
 
 Aer-dawelwch, Battle-silence, (Prydydd y Moch.) 
 
 Aer-dew, The Thick of battle, (Kynddelw.) 
 
 Aer-dorf, pi. Aerdorfaoedd, Battle-troop, (Kynddelw.) 
 
 Aer-dranc, pi. Aer-drancau, Battle-extermination, (Prydydd 
 
 Bychan.) 
 Aer-drawd, pi. Aer-drodion, Battle-tread, 
 Aer-drin, Managing of battle, (Davydd Benvras.) 
 Aer-ddar, The din of battle, (Gwilym Ddu.) 
 Aer-drodi, To march to battle. 
 Aer-dwr, The tower of battle, (Prydydd y Moch.) 
 Aer-dwrch, The boar of battle, (G. ab Meredydd.) 
 Aer-dwrf, pi. Aer-dyrfoedd, The sound of battle, (Kynddelw.) 
 Aer-ddraig, The dragon of battle, (Prydydd Bychan.) 
 Aer-ddor, The guardian of battle, (Einion Wann.) 
 Aer-ddryd, Skilful in war, (Davydd Benvras.) 
 Aer-dduriawg, Battle-steeled, (Prydydd Bychan.) 
 Aerfa, pi. Aerfaod, Place of battle, (G. ab Arthur.) 
 Aer-fab,/>/. Aerfeib, Son of slaughter, (Bleddyn Vardd.) 
 Aer-faidd, pi. Aer-feiddiau, Battle-daring, (Aneurin.) 
 Aer-fan, Aer-fannau, Field of battle, (Kynddelw.) 
 Aer-falch, Proud of battle, (Llygad Gwr.) 
 Aer-far,pl. Aer-faroedd, Battle rage, (Einion ab Gwgan.) 
 Aer-fathyru, To trample in battle, (Rhisierdyn.) 
 Aer-fawr, Greatly-slaughtering, (Kynddehv.) 
 Aer-feddawc, Entombed in slaughter, (Prydydd y Moch.) 
 Aer-fen, Place of battle, (Kynddelw.) 
 Aer-flaidd, pi. Aerneiddiau, War-wolf, (Prydydd Bychan.) 
 Aer-nawdd, Nimble-slaughterer, (Prydydd Bychan.) 
 Aer-ne, A field of slaughter. 
 
 Aer-frad, Battle-treachery, (G. ab Meredydd ab Davydd.) 
 Aer-frau, Breaking in battle, (Kynddelw.) 
 Aer-fraw, The terror of battle, (Prydydd Bychan.) 
 Aer-fryd, Battle-loving.. 
 Aer-fur, The fortress of battle, (Kynddelw.) 
 Aer-frwyd, The sting of battle, (G. ab Meredydd.) 
 Aer-frys, The haste of battle. 
 Aer-fwrw, Dealing slaughter, (Prydydd j Moch.) 
 Aer-ffysg, pi. Aer-ffysgau, Battle-hastening. 
 Aer-gad, pi. Aer-gadoedd, A skirmish, (Kynddelw.) 
 Aergawdd,^/. Aer-goddau, The rage of slaughter, (Kynddelw,) 
 Aer-g[,pl. Aer-gwn, Dog or Dogs of war, (Aneurin.) 
 
THE WELSH LANGUAGE, 459 
 
 Aer-glais, pi. Aer-gleisia,u, Battle-marked, (Prydydd Bychan.) 
 
 Aer-glau, Active in battle, (Prydyd y Moch.) 
 
 Aer-gledd, The sword of battle, (Casnodyn.) 
 
 Aer-glwyf, pi, Aerglwyfau, Battle- wound, (Philyp Brydydd) 
 
 Aer-gol, Battle-sting, (Taliesin.) 
 
 Aer-gorf, pi. Aer-gyrf, The strength of battle, (Gwalchmai.) 
 
 Aer-grain, pi. Aergreiniau, The wallowing of slaughter, (Kyn- 
 
 ddelw.) 
 Aer-gre, pi. Aergreon, The impulse of slaughter, (Llywarch 
 
 Hen.) 
 Aer-greu, The gore of battle, (Kynddelw.) 
 Aer-grwydr, pi. Aergrwydrau, Battle-scattering, (Seisyll Bry- 
 
 ffwrch.) 
 Aer-gryd, pi. Aergrydau, Battle-tremor, (Kynddelw.) 
 Aer-gun, The chief of the battle, (Prydydd Bychan.) 
 Aer-gur, Battle-paining, (G. ab M. ab Davydd.) 
 Aer-gwl, pi. Aergylion, Battle-mischief, (Davydd Benvras.) 
 Aer-gwyn, pi. Aergwynion, Battle-complaint, (Einion Offeiriad.) 
 Aer-gwys, pi. Aergwysi, Battle-furrows, (Llygad Gwr.) 
 Aer-gyfrain, pi. Aergyfreinion, Meeting of battle spears, (Kyn- 
 ddelw.) 
 Aer-laith, pi. Aerleithiau, The havoc of battle, (Elidir Sais.) 
 Aer-llary, Generous in fight, (Prydydd y Moch.) 
 Aer-lew,jo/. Aerlewod, The lion of battle, (Llygad Gwr.) 
 Aer-lew, Brave in battle, (Kynddelw.) 
 Aer-lid, The anger of battle, (author of the Hoianau.) 
 Aer-ludd, pi. Aerluddiau, The hindrance of battle, (Kynddelw.) 
 Aer-]yw,ju/. Aerlywion, The ruler of battle, (Seisyll Bryffwrch.) 
 Aer-llafn, The blade of battle, (G. ab Meredydd.) 
 Aer-llin, A warlike race, (Kynddelw.) 
 Aer-llu, The army of battle, (Casnodyn.) 
 Aer-ner, The lord of battle, (Prydydd y Moch.) 
 Aer-nerth, Strength of battle, (Prydydd y Moch.) 
 Aer-walch,^/. Aerweilch, The hawk of battle, (Bleddyn Vardd.) 
 Aer-wan, Opening the battle, (Kynddelw.) 
 Aer-was, pi. Aerweision, A young warrior, (Elidir Sais.) 
 Aer-wib, pt. Aerwibiau, The course of slaughter. 
 Aerwawr, The hero of battle, (G. ab Meredydd.) 
 Aer-wosgryn, pi. Aerwosgrynion, The shaker of battle, (Kyn- 
 ddelw.) 
 Aer-wr, pi. Aerwyr, A warrior, (Kynddelw) 
 Aer-wy, pi. Aerwyon, Battle-torques, (G. ab Ieuan Hen.) 
 Aer-wyad, Battle-torque-wearing. 
 Aer-wyaw, To put on a battle-torque. 
 Aer-wyawg, Having torques. 
 Aer-wyawl, Like battle torques. 
 Aer-wyll, The fiend of war, (Kynddelw.) 
 Aer-wymp, Smart in battle, (G. ab Meredydd.) 
 Aer-wywr, A maker of battle-torques. 
 
400 THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 
 
 The same fecundity may be observed in other roots, 
 though not perhaps to so great an extent. 
 
 In the arrangement of words, the Bards also showed a de- 
 gree of skill, but little, if any, inferior to that exhibited in the 
 formation of new ones ; but generally, in this respect, they 
 proposed for themselves too low a standard of excellence. 
 Kynddelw frequently contents himself with such displays 
 as, — 
 
 " Ae balchlann rwng y balchneint 
 Ae balchvur ae balchwyr testeint 
 Ae balchlwys eglwys eglurveint 
 Ae balch rad ae balchrot trameint 
 Ae balch wawr yn awr yn deweint 
 Ae balchgor heb achor echvreint 
 Ae balch offeiryat ae hoffeirient;" 
 
 but he has many passages indicative of greater ability; 
 among these may be cited, — 
 
 " Dysgogan derwyton dewrwlad — y esgar 
 
 Y wysgwyd weinivyad 
 Dysgweinid kyrt kydneid kydnad 
 Kyd volyant gwr gormant gormeissyad 
 Dysgweyd keinyeid kyva enadeu rwyf 
 
 Eu rwytvod yn amhad 
 Dy brydeich brwydyr daer aer aerurad 
 Dybriw dreic dragon beleidryad ; 
 
 and in the same poem, addressed to Owain Kyveiliog, — 
 
 Mwyn ouyt y veirt y ueith goelvein — rann 
 Meirch mygyruann kynkan kein 
 
 Yn rith rynn ysgwyd 
 
 Eac ysgwnn blyinnhywd 
 Ar ysgwyt yn arwein 
 Yn rith llew rac llyw goradein 
 Yn rith llauyn an war llachar llein 
 Yn rith cletyf claer clod ysgein — yn aer 
 
 Yn aroloet kyngrein 
 Yn rith dreic rac dragon prydein 
 Yn rith bleit blaengar vu Ywein. 
 
 Llywarch ab Llywelyn prided himself upon the polish of 
 his verses ; and would probably not have objected to the 
 citation of his address to Davydd ab Owain, as a fair speci- 
 men of his best style, — 
 
THE WELSH LANGUAGE. ^Q^ 
 
 Hanbych well dauyt handid o deuawd 
 Gogyuarch teyrn gogwyr teyrnuart 
 Gogyufurt torment gogyfyaw tonioet 
 Gogawn teyrnueirt gogawn teyrnuro 
 
 Termud torment terrwyn deyrn 
 Eryres ormes eryron dyrrva 
 Eryr teyrnon yr yn deyrngein 
 Eryr dreic ormant ardunyant prif veeirt 
 Eurdwrn prydytyon arwynawl pryduar 
 
 Ar wyneb prydein 
 Hud wyth yth edryt hud wyf yth eduryd 
 Hydrueirt oth edrych hud ynt yth adrawi 
 Eiryoed dy ang car aerawd dyt angkeu 
 Eurawc dy aghad eiryt ym anghen 
 Teyrnllu teyrnet teyrnllawteyrnllin 
 Teyrnlly w teyrnas teruysc torment 
 
 Teruyn tir gadw terrwyn 
 Teyrn ar gedyrn eur gedawl daeyt 
 O devawd angertawl 
 Rwyn kynnygyn kynnogyn ditawl 
 Rwyf prydein pry dyt ath yawl. 
 
 It would be impossible to convey a clear notion of the skill 
 here displayed, by translation ; and therefore I have not 
 made the attempt. But neither of these bards possessed 
 such mastery over the language as Gwalchmai. In his cele- 
 brated ode, he displays a remarkable degree of skill in deve- 
 loping its capacities, as will appear from the various combi- 
 nations of the word " dygyfocT in the following lines, — 
 
 A dygyiov Lloegr, a dygyfrang a hi ; 
 Ac ei dygyfwriv yn astrussi, 
 A dygyfod clod cleddyf difri ; 
 Yn saith ugein iaith wy faith foli ! 
 
 The richness of the Cambrian tongue, is also shown in 
 the second line of the Avallenau, where a number of words, 
 are ably developed from the root " gy" — 
 
 " Saith afallen beren a saith ugaint 
 Yn gy tfoed, gyfuwch, gyhjd, ^mmaint." 
 
 I have already quoted, in treating of this poem, some 
 lines from Davydd Benvras, which exhibit the same mas- 
 tery over words, and the exhaustless wealth of a language, 
 whose roots were numerous enough to enter into every re- 
 
462 
 
 WELSH LANGUAGE. 
 
 quisite combination. Instances of this fecundity might be 
 cited from all the bards, from Aneurin down to Davydd ab 
 Gwilym ; but those already quoted show the truth of the 
 assertion in the most clear, and satisfactory manner. The 
 improvement which took place during this period, is also 
 shown by the discarding of such Latin phrases as " Rex 
 Regum," " Rex Rexedd," and " Rex awyr," which pre- 
 vailed in the time of Meilir. 
 
 The Welsh language has evidently grown in the hands 
 of its literati ; new wants have revealed new capabilities to 
 supply them. Evans, in the Dissertatio de Bardis, com- 
 plains that the language of the early bards is unintelligible ; 
 but it is much more intelligible than he seems to have con- 
 sidered it to be ; and in the bards of the twelfth century, 
 making allowance for words, which designate manners not 
 now prevalent, is not difficult to be understood. 
 
 SECTION II. 
 
 Poetry from A.D. 1280 to AD. 1322. 
 
 It is now time that we should cast a cursory glance over 
 the literature of Wales, from the death of Llywelyn ap 
 Gruffydd to that of Sir Gruffydd Llwyd. The fall of Lly- 
 welyn, and the capture of David his brother, seem, as it is 
 natural to expect, to have paralyzed the mind of the na- 
 tion, and rendered it incapable of great exertion. Besides, 
 the period between 1280 and 1322, when Sir Gruffydd 
 Llwyd was taken prisoner, was one of petty insurrections, 
 and local wars; these irritate, but do not stimulate the in- 
 
FROM A. D. 1280 TO A. D. 1322. 4^33 
 
 tellect, and probably gave rise to many paltry poems, which 
 have left no traces in the literature of the country. Such a 
 state of political servitude, and grumbling obedience, is 
 essentially unfavourable to intellectual labour ; the Kymry 
 could not make up their minds cheerfully to submit to the 
 English usurper, and yet they appear to have wanted both 
 ability in their leaders, and zeal on their behalf; for the 
 insurrections were very petty, had no lofty aims, and 
 springing from local grievances, found no response in nati- 
 onal sympathy. The state of feeling and opinion at this 
 time, may be inferred from the poems of the bards; and 
 one of the best bards in the whole course of Cambrian liter- 
 ature, gives the feeling very clear expression, — 
 
 " Mynych iawn y dymunais, 
 
 Cael Arghvydd llawn arwydd llain 
 
 O hono'm'iimau'n hunain." — Iolo Goch. 
 
 Oftentimes have I wished 
 
 To have a Lord of ability — glorious portent 
 
 From among us ourselves. 
 
 Carefully considered, these facts will leave no room for 
 wonder that the literature of these forty years, is not more 
 plentiful, and valuable. The age however was not alto- 
 gether barren ; it was a period of gestation, as appeared in 
 the general revival of the age of Owain Glyndwr, and the 
 wars of the Roses; and there are strong reasons for referring 
 some of the Mabinogion to this date. 
 
 About this time there nourished, Gwilym Ddu, Lly- 
 welyn Brydydd Hodnant, Hillyn, or Heilyn, Iorwerth 
 Vychan, Llywelyn Ddu, Rhys Goch, Casnodyn, Rhisser- 
 dyn, Gruffydd ab D. ab Tudor, and Madawg Dwygraig. 
 Llywarch Llaety is also referred to this date by the Edi- 
 tors of the Myvyrian Archaiology, but for reasons already 
 stated without propriety. Several of these bards have been 
 incidentally noticed already, and some passing remarks may 
 again be made upon others ; but we shall only notice at 
 any length a few of the more distinguished. 
 
 Gwilym Ddu has two Odes addressed to Sir Gruffydd Llwyd 
 
464 POETRY 
 
 the causes of which were the following circumstances. — 
 " Sir GruiTydd Llwyd, knight, the son of Rhys ap Grufiydd 
 ap Ednyved Fychan, was a valiant gentleman, but unfor- 
 tunate, 'Magnse quidem, sed calamitosse virtutis, 1 as Lucius 
 Florus saith of Sertorius. He was knighted by king Ed- 
 ward, when he brought him the first news of his queen's 
 safe delivery of a son at Caernarvon castle ; the king was 
 then at Rhuddlan, at his parliament held there. This Sir 
 Grufiydd afterwards taking notice of the extreme oppres- 
 sion, and tyranny exercised by the English officers, especi- 
 ally Sir Roger Mortimer, lord of Chirk and justice of North 
 Wales, towards his countrymen the Welsh, became so far 
 discontented, that he broke into open rebellion, verifying 
 that saying of Solomon, ' Oppression maketh a wise man 
 mad. 1 He treated with Sir Edward Bruce, brother to Ro- 
 bert, then king of Scotland, who had conquered Ireland, to 
 bring or send over men to assist him in his design against 
 the English ; but Bruce' s terms being conceived too unrea- 
 sonable, the treaty came to nought ; however being despe- 
 rate he gathered all the forces he could, and in an instant, 
 like a candle that gives a sudden blaze before it is out, over- 
 ran all North Wales, and the marches, taking all the castles 
 and holds ; but to little purpose, for soon after he was met 
 with, his party discomfited, and himself taken prisoner." 1 
 What became of him ultimately, is not known ; but our 
 bard has paid two tributes to his gallantry, one of which, 
 composed while he was imprisoned, we here extract. He 
 has given it the singular title of "Odes of the Months ;" 
 "why," says the Rev. E. Evans, " I cannot guess, but 
 by what he intimates in the poem, which is, that when all 
 nature revives, and the whole animal and vegetable creation 
 are in their full bloom and vigour, (in the months of May 
 and June,) he mourned and pined for the decayed state of 
 his country." — 
 
 1 Mr. Vaughan of Hengwrfs notes on Dr. Powel's History of Wales, printed 
 at Oxford, 1663, and quoted in the "Dissertatio de Bardis/' page 46. 
 
FROM A. D. 1280 TO A. D. 1322. 4(55 
 
 The Odes of the Months.* 
 
 Is it not true, that at the beginning of May I was honoured ? 
 
 Is it not true that I had protection, meat, and mead 1 
 
 Is it not true that a time so disastrous has not occurred, 
 
 Since Christ was taken and betrayed — disconsolate condition ? 
 
 Is it not care that makes me weep 1 
 
 Is it not the Lord's punishment, that the red sword is sheathed ? 
 
 Is it not in my memory how large it was, 
 
 And how frequently it made dreadful havoc 1 
 
 Are there not many captives uttering indignant groans ? 
 
 Are not the one-languaged bards straitened on account of their 
 
 feasts ? 
 Is not generosity imprisoned with one munificent as Nudd ? 
 Gruffydd the valorous hawk, renowned for destroying his enemies, 
 Is he not mourned by the bards who have proved his hospitality? 
 Is it not a vexation to me, that the host of a hundred feasts, 
 Is cruelly imprisoned by the false men of England, 
 The war-dragon of Llan Rhystud — the picture of nobility ? 
 Am I not unappeased by benefits — I have been eloquent ? 
 Shall I not be afflicted with wrath, for a number of years ? 
 Am I not concerned, Great God, Ruler of the hosts of heaven, 
 That my chief is not free, the Lion of Trevgarnedd 1 
 Are not two unfeasted, pensive that he is wanting 1 
 Do not the bards of a hundred countries want his protection ? 
 Is this not a certain, but sad truth, though the vulgar reflected 
 
 not, 
 When they saw my eagle shine in his majesty ? 
 
 1 Odlac'r Misoedd. 
 Neud cynnechrau Mai mau anrhydedd, 
 Neud aeth ysgwaeth a maeth a medd, 
 Neud cynhebig, ddig, ddygn adrossedd drist, 
 Er pan ddelid Crist, weddw athrist wedd ! 
 Neud cur a lafur im wylofedd, 
 Neud cerydd Dofydd, nad rhydd rhuddgledd. 
 Neud cof sy ynof, ys anwedd ei faint, 
 Neud cywala haint, hynt diryfedd. 
 Neud caeth im dilyd Hid llaweredd, 
 Neud caith Beirdd cyfiaeth am eu cyfedd. 
 Neud caethiwed ced, nad rhydd cydwedd Nudd 
 Cadrwalch Ruffudd, brudd, breiddin tachwedd, 
 Neud cwyn Beirdd trylwyn, meddir ancwyn medd, 
 Neud eawdd im anawdd, menestr canwledd, 
 Neud carchar anwar enwiredd Eingl dud, 
 Aerddraig Llan Rhystud funud fonedd. 
 Neud nim dyhudd budd, bum arygledd, 
 Neud nam dilyd Hid, lliaws blynedd. 
 Neud nam dawr, Duw Mawr, maranedd, Nef glyw, 
 Neud nad rhydd fy llyw, Hew Trefgarnedd, 
 Neud trwm oi eisiau dan digyfedd. 
 Neu'r wyr Beirdd canwlad, nad rhad rheufedd, 
 Neud ef arwydd gwir, neud oferedd gwyr, 
 Wrth weled f 'eryr yn ei fawredd ; 
 3 N 
 
466 
 
 POETRY 
 
 Am I not pierced by the lance of despair ? 
 
 Is the fate of my protector not hard ? 
 
 Is Gwynedd not in a heavy melancholy mood ? 
 
 Are its people not punished for their transgressions 1 
 
 Is it not long since the bright torchlike sword was laid aside, 
 
 And the brave courage of Achilles obstructed % 
 
 Is it not spent in sorrow, the whole pleasant season of May ? 
 
 Is not June comfortless and cheerless ? 
 
 Am I not sorrowful the whole month of June, 
 
 That he is not free, Gruffydd with the red lance 1 
 
 Am I not covered with chilly damps 1 
 
 Does not my whole fabric shake for the loss of my chief ? 
 
 May I not sink, Christ, into a quiet grave, for 
 
 Is not the office of the bard a vain and empty name ? 
 
 I am surprised that my despair has not burst my heart, 
 
 And that it is not rent through the midst in twain ; 
 
 The heavy stroke of care assails my memory, when I think 
 
 Of one valorous as Urien 1 being confined; 
 
 My meditation on past misfortunes 
 
 Is like that of Cywryd, 2 the skilful bard of Dunawd. 3 
 
 My praise to the worthy hero is without vicious flattery, 
 
 My panegyric is like the fruitful genius of Avan Verddig. 4 
 
 Neud truan im gwan gwayw lledfrydedd, 
 Neud trwydded galed im amgeledd. 
 Neud trymfryd Gwynedd, gwander dyedd braw : 
 Neud hvvy eu treisiaw am eu trosedd. 
 Neud trahir gohir gloyw babir gledd, 
 Oedd trablwng echwng Acbel ddewredd. 
 Neud trai Cwbl or Mai, mawredd allwynyn, 
 Neud mis Mehefin weddw orllin wedd 
 
 Neud mis Mehefin, mau hefyd gystudd. 
 Neud nam rhydd Gruffydd wayw rhudd yn rhyd, 
 Neum rhywan im gwan gwayw cryd engeiriawl, 
 Neud am Ddraig urddwal didawl im dyd. 
 Neum erwyr om gwyr im gweryd Crist Ner. 
 Neud arfer ofer, Beirdd nifer byd. 
 Neud arwydd nam llwydd lledfryd im calon, 
 Neud eres nad tonn honn ar ei hyd. 
 Mau ynnof mawrgof am ergyd gofal. 
 Am attal arial Urien yngryd. 
 Mai cofain cywrain Cywryd, fardd Dunawd. 
 Meu im Dreig priawd gwawd ni bo gwyd. 
 Mau gwawdgan Afan, ufuddfryd ffrwythlawn, 
 
 1 Urien Rheged, a Cumbrian Chief frequently mentioned by Anenrin, Tal- 
 iesin, and Llywarch, as an undaunted warrior. 
 
 2 Cywryd is not mentioned by either Dr. Davies, or Mr. Edward Llwyd, in 
 their lists of British writers ; but from his being named as the bard of Dunawd, 
 it would seem that he lived in the sixth century. 
 
 3 Dunawd was the son of Pabo Post Prydain, one of the heroes of the sixth 
 century, who fought valiantly against the Saxons. See p. 256. 
 
 4 Avan Verddig was the bard of Cadwallon ab Cadvan king of Britain. The 
 Rev. Evan Evans states, that he had in his possession a poem of Avan Verddig "s 
 on the death of Cadwallon, which, as far as he understood it, possessed much 
 merit. 
 
FROM A. D. 1280 TO A. D. 1322. 4(37 
 
 In celebrating Cadwallon 1 of royal enterprizes, 
 
 I can no more sing of the lance in well laboured verse, 
 
 For since thou comest not, what avails it to exist ? 
 
 Every region proclaims thy generosity, 
 
 And the world droops since thou art lost. 
 
 There are no entertainments, or mirth, nor honoured bards, 
 
 The palaces are no longer open, strangers are neglected, 
 
 There are no caparizoned steeds, no endearing friendships, 
 
 Our country mourns, and wears the aspect of Lent; 
 
 There is no virtue, goodness, or anything commendable, 
 
 But vice, cowardice, and dissoluteness bear the sway. 
 
 The great strength of Mon 1 is become an empty shadow, 
 
 And the inhabitants of Arvon are become insignificant beneath 
 
 the ford of Rheon. 2 
 Is not the lofty Gwynedd become weak ? 
 Is she not struck down by the heavy blow of care 1 
 Is it not a sad year for the vigorous patriot ? 
 Is it not presumptuous to imprison him, who loved the shout of 
 
 war, and the piercing spear ? 
 
 In the original of the above there are sixty-three lines, 
 forty-three of which have the peculiarity of commencing 
 with the word " Neud," in English " is it not". This fea- 
 ture has been rendered in the translation as often as the 
 idioms of the English language permitted, so that the 
 
 O gof Cadwallawn, brenhinddawn bryd. 
 
 Ni wn waith gwayw dwn, gwawd ddihewyd clod, 
 
 A thi beb ddyfod pa dda bod byd ? 
 
 Neud wyr pawb yn llwyr, lleyrfryd gynnal, 
 
 Na bylithr aur mal mal oddiwrthyd. 
 
 Nid oes nerth madfertb ym myd, oth eisiau, 
 
 Gwleddau na byrddau na Beirdd ynghlyd. 
 
 Nid oes lys yspys, esbyd neud dibeirch 
 
 Nid oes meirch na seirch na sercb byfryd. 
 
 Nid oes wledd na moes, massw ynyd y vv'n gwlad, 
 
 Nid oes mad eithr gwad agwyd , 
 
 Neud gwagedd trossedd, traws gadernyd Mon, 
 
 Neud gweigion Arfon is Reon ryd. 
 
 Neud gwann Wynedd fann, fenn ydd ergyd cur, 
 
 Neud gwael am fodur eglur oglyd. 
 
 Neud blwyddyn i ddyn ddiofryd a gar, 
 
 Neud blaengar carchar, grym aerbar gryd. 
 
 Gwilym Ddu o Arfon ai cant yn y flwyddyn 1322. 
 
 1 The Cadwallon, above mentioned, fought many battles against the Saxons, 
 in one of which, by the assistance of the men of Powys, he slew Edward king of 
 Mercia. For this he conferred on these certain privileges, which have ever since 
 gone by the name of Breiniau Gwyr Powys. 
 
 2 An allusion to the fall of Llywelyn the last Prince of Wales, and the royal 
 palace of Aberffraw, in Anglesea. 
 
 3 Rheon, a brook in Caernarvonshire; precise locality not known. 
 
4(38 POETRY 
 
 reader might have as nearly perfect an idea of the poem as 
 could be conveyed in a translation. Mr. Evan Evans, in 
 whose translation there are several whole lines omitted, 
 thinks the poem " has such touches as none but a person in 
 the bard's condition could have expressed so naturally," and 
 in another place styles it "a monument of the bard's 
 genius." It is very valuable as a picture of the state of the 
 country at that time, and also as a proof of the view already 
 advanced respecting the reported massacre of the bards. 
 There is not the slightest countenance given to any such 
 opinions here ; but on the contrary, the language of the 
 poem comes in as a corroboration of the historical account 
 of prohibition. The bards were prohibited by Edward from 
 wandering about the country, and this poem states substan- 
 tially the same thing, — 
 
 "The one-languaged bards, are they not straitened on ac- 
 count of their entertainments or feasts 1 
 
 but there is here nothing more than prohibition. The poeti- 
 cal merits of the poem are not great ; though its closing por- 
 tion forms a vivid and powerfully drawn picture of the dis- 
 tresses of the country — both real and sentimental. This 
 poem has one peculiarity in the affected beginnings with 
 " Neud;" and it has also another in the adoption of the se- 
 milineal rhyme, which is found so frequently to grace our 
 lyric poetry. I can never sufficiently admire this feature in 
 Kymric poems; the dropping of the voice before the close of 
 the line, has a fine and very musical effect ; and therefore I 
 was pleased to find, that the whole of the second verse in 
 this poem beginning, — 
 
 " Neud mis Mehefin, man hefyd gystudd 
 
 Neud nam rhydd Gruffydd wayw rhudd yn rhyd, 
 
 is in this metre, and not in the regular and monotonous rhyme 
 of many of the bardic compositions. This rhyme is also 
 used eight times in the first of the two verses ; and though 
 not invented byGwilymDdu, seems to have been more libe- 
 rally used by him than by any preceding bard. 
 
 Gwilym Ddu addressed another poem to Sir Gruffydd 
 
FROM A.D. 1280 TO A.D. 1322. 4^9 
 
 Llwyd j but as its tone resembles that of the preceding, we 
 shall quote his only other production, an elegy on a brother 
 bard. The Marwnad to the poet Trahaiarn is very inter- 
 esting ; as it is well written, is skilfully constructed, and 
 embodies a contemporaneous criticism, on several of the 
 bards whose works we have already reviewed. 
 
 An Elegy on Trahaiarn the Poet, the son of Gronwy. 1 
 
 Fruitful, righteous, and the treasure of song, 
 
 Is the stout-hearted, and witty-worded Trahaiarn : — 2 
 
 He was the fortune of men, and protector of the needy, 
 
 He was free-spoken, but in eulogy wise — and discriminative. 
 
 Wise he was, we mourn his taking away, while his talents 
 
 were increasing. 
 Freely discriminating poet, and sincere brother in faith, 
 Was the sapient son of Gronwy, of the just and courteous word, 
 Who is famed as far as Merioneth, for wise and genial conver- 
 sation. 
 The sun of song introduced no worthless arrangements ; 
 But as death is inevitable — tears should not accumulate. 
 The Muse's favour was good to Gwion 3 the magician; 
 Good was Merddin, 4 and his line of the tribe of Meirchion ; 
 Good was Llevoed, 5 ever of courteous avouchment ; 
 Good was the pattern a voucher, brightly endowed Kynddelw; 
 Good Elidir (Sais) of true statement and right canon, 
 
 1 Ffrwythlawn a chyfiawn a chvfoeth y gerdd 
 
 Gwrdd Drahaiarn eirgoeth 
 Ffawd gwyr oed nawd gwared noeth 
 Ffraeth dafawd detholwawd doeth 
 Doeth ynn gwynn o'i ddwyn o'i ddawn gynnydd 
 Detholydd brydydd brawd ffydd ffyddlawn 
 Doethfab rwy Goronwy gair uniawn syberw 
 Doeth dichwerw ei ferw hyd wlad Feiriawn 
 Dyhir na welir waladr nawn cerddau 
 Dihau Tw angb.au dagrau digrawn 
 Da fu ffawd y wawd i Wiawn ddewin 
 Da Fyrddin a'i lin o lwyth Meirchiawn 
 Da Lefoed erioed da radlawn arddelw 
 Da arddelw cynnelw Kynddelw cein ddawn 
 Da Elidir gwir gwarant iawn ganon 
 
 2 Trahaiarn was an eminent poet who flourished from about A.D. 1290 to 
 1350. He presided in the Gorsedd M organ wg in 1300. He is supposed to 
 have been the same person, as the one who distinguished himself under the as- 
 sumed name of Casnodyn. Owen's Cambrian Biography, p. 330. 
 
 3 Gwion is a name given to Taliesin in one of the Mabinogion. 
 
 4 Here Merddin has not only a father but a tribe. 
 
 5 Llevoed Wyneb-glawr, or Flat-faced-Llevoed, was a bard who lived be- 
 tween A.D. 900 and 940. Cambrian Biography, p, 214. 
 
470 POETRY 
 
 One of the wise men of sea-bosom'd Mona ; 
 
 Good the greeting of Lly warch (ab Llywelyn,) a cognomen of 
 
 the right order ; 
 Good Davydd Benvras famed for kindness of disposition ; 
 Good in Dyved the name of Cadwgan Gruffydd; 1 
 Good in unambiguous language the speech of Gwgan ; 
 Good among the castles of Cardigan, 
 The strength of Phylip, and William 2 of pungent anger ; 
 Well entwined was Einion ab Gwalchmai's single song, 
 Which sparkled as a bubbling spring ; 
 Good the shame opposing Kneppyn, 3 from the district of 
 
 Gwerthryniawn, 
 Who sings fluently and accurately in compact Latin ; 
 Llygad Gwr was the tower of Edeyrnion land, — i 
 We shall scarce find his equal, in energy and correctness, 
 On the face of the wide land, from the full sea of the Wye, 
 To where the Gawrnwy flows over the grave of Rhuvawn f 
 And Trahaiarn in my judgment was indispensable to song, 
 He was the friend of chief bards when they travelled on the 
 
 road; 
 
 Gwr o ddoethion Mon mymveseigiawn 
 
 Da Lywarch cyfarch cyfenw iawn urddas 
 
 Da Dafydd Benfras digas digawn 
 
 Da o Ddyfed ced Cadwgan Ruffydd 
 
 Da o'r iaith ddigudd araith Wgawn. 
 
 Da oedd rhwng caeroedd Ceredigiawnrym 
 
 Phylip a Gwilym aethlym wytklawn 
 
 Da gyfnun un Einion ab Gwalchmai 
 
 A ganau flynai fal berw ffynawn 
 
 Da Gneppyn wartkrym o Werthryniawn-dud 
 
 Oedd gerdd esgud lud Ladin gyfiawn 
 
 Llygad Gwr oedd dwr Edeyrniawn artal 
 
 Odid ei gystal ynial uniawn 
 
 O dudwedd fawr lied byd for llawn yngwy 
 
 Hyd Gawrnwy fudd rbwy ar fedd Rhuvawn 
 
 Trabaiarn o'm barn em berniawn cerddraid 
 
 Oedd blaid pencerddiaid ceiniaid cammawn 
 
 1 There were three Cadwgans living about this time. Cadwgan ab Cynvrig, 
 a bard who lived about 1280 ; Cadwgan ab Ednyved, another bard, who lived 
 about 1280; and Cadwgan Henvoel, also a bard, who lived about 13S0; but the 
 latter, most probably, is the one here indicated. 
 
 3 I know not who this person is, unless Mr. Owen, who places him between 
 1460 and 1490, has post-dated William Egwad, who was a celebrated poet in 
 the locality here mentioned. 
 
 3 Kneppyn Gwerthryniawn was one of the fictitious names assumed by Davydd 
 Bach ab Madog Wladaidd, who also called himself Y Crach, and Syppyn Ky- 
 veiliog. Mr. Owen states that he nourished between 1400 and 1450; but as we 
 find him described (Iolo MSS. p. 681,) as being famous for poetry in 1390, we 
 must place him further back. 
 
 4 Edeyrnion land is in Merionethshire. 
 
 5 The grave of Rhuvawn is unknown; but if Gawrnwy be that which survives 
 in Llanfairynghornwy, it is at the extreme end of Anglesea. 
 
FROM A.D. 1280 TO A.D. 1322. 47 \ 
 
 May the Trinity approve of the song we devote to thy praise ! 
 Through the intercession of the saints, who love carols, 
 May his soul be put into the straight path, 
 And he become a free-spoken and fruitful occupant of Para- 
 dise. 
 
 Llywelyn Brydydd Hodnant has contributed two sets of 
 Englynion, as also has a bard named Hilly n ; Llywelyn 
 Ddu has one set of verses; and there are in pages 418, 419, 
 and 420 of the Myvyrian Archaiology, several small poems 
 pertaining to this period, by unknown authors. Iorwerth 
 Vychan has also two poems treating of love, the first of a 
 class which afterwards became numerous. They are superior 
 compositions, and would have been inserted here, did we 
 not meditate copious quotations from the abler works of 
 another bard. 
 
 The poetry we have hitherto perused, has been of a cha- 
 racter uniform almost to monotony ; but we are about to 
 enter upon a period when the subjects become more nume- 
 rous and varied, when poetry assumes more of the aspect of 
 spontaneity, and when strenuous exertions were made to re- 
 concile sound to sense, and combine in versification poetical 
 ideas with intricate musical cadence. A wide interval di- 
 vides the stiff amble of Meilir's first effort, from the stately 
 strides, and full resounding march of Ap yr Ynad Coch ; 
 it was an interval of desperate struggles, when many men of 
 brilliant capacities produced much intellectual wealth ; but 
 still one which leaves us much to desire. War was the ru- 
 ling passion of the men, and the prevailing feature in the 
 literature of that era ; the best poems of the ablest bards 
 are addressed to the potentates of the hour, and were has- 
 tily composed for set occasions ; and as warlike princes, 
 and daring chieftains are the only figures which appear 
 upon the scene, the want of more humble and homely ac- 
 
 Trindawd tros folawd fal y gwnawn ith fraint 
 Trwy eirioled saint ceraint carawn 
 Tro raid i'w enaid i uniawn gymwys 
 Trefred Baradwys ffraethlwys ffrwythlawn. 
 
472 POETRY 
 
 cessaries, gives the pageantry an unreal character, and 
 makes us pant for less exceptional society and more genial 
 companionship. We cannot refuse to those brave and pa- 
 triotic men our respect and esteem ; and did our strong 
 national prejudices, and profound sympathy with the glori- 
 ous cause in which they were engaged, permit us to be in- 
 different spectators of their arduous struggles for liberty and 
 independence, it were impossible to withhold our tribute of 
 admiration, for the heroic constancy with which they fought 
 and bled for their rights and privileges, their mountain 
 homes and native land; but when the excitement has sub- 
 sided during the calm of centuries of peace, the mere records 
 of war and bloodshed, leave in the mind "an aching void" 
 unsatisfied, and we gladly hail the appearance of more quiet 
 scenes, and a stiller atmosphere. In the period embraced by 
 the first chapters, we find one devotional poem by Meilir; 1 
 Gwalchmai has one poem dedicated to the love of nature, and 
 one to his wife; Hywel ab Owain divided his favour between 
 love, war, and external nature ; but all the rest are occupied 
 with the sword and spear. During the period contained in 
 the second, we find a few devotional poems ; but Cupid has 
 not a single votary; though all the bards have offered sacri- 
 fices at the blood-stained fane of the God of war. Towards 
 the close of the third era, we meet several religious poems 
 of considerable merit ; but with these exceptions, Mars 
 reigns supreme ; and the little God of love has fled the field. 
 
 The fall of Llywelyn, paralyzed for a time the intellect of 
 the Kymry; but the people soon regained their buoyancy; 
 and when war had given way to peace, and turbulence been 
 
 1 In treating of Meilir, I neglected to state that there is reason to believe that 
 he had composed more poems than have come down to us. In an ode to Owain 
 Gwynedd, Gwalchmai, Meilir's son, says, — 
 
 " Ardwyrews fy nhad 
 
 Ei fraisg frenhindawd -: ' 
 
 My father extolled 
 
 His stout kingly father. 
 An "Arddwyread," appears to imply an heroic address to a living person ; and 
 as none of Meilir's poems are of that character, we may conclude, as is from 
 other reasons extremely probable, that some of his poems are lost. 
 
FROM A.D. 1280 TO A.D. 1322. 473 
 
 kept in abeyance by the firm hands of the English monarcha, 
 the bards again resumed their calling; and sang in strains, 
 which, if less bold and animated, were superior in sweetness 
 and polish, to any that their predecessors had produced. 
 The latter had, what the others had not, — leisure ; and ac- 
 cordingly we find it bearing rich fruit. We now find that 
 the Kymry resembled other portions of the human family ; 
 they had pruning hooks as well as swords ; and we occa- 
 sionally find that they had plough-shares as well as spears. 
 The clang of arms in the royal halls gave place to the dul- 
 cet tone of woman's lips ; skipping lambs made populous the 
 solitudes which war had created ; ' and when the pawing 
 war-steed neighed no more, the groves were vocal with the 
 cuckoo's cry, and with the evening notes of the white-faced 
 nightingale. We were out of our element while dwelling 
 among the eagles of war, and the hawks of battle, for we are 
 no admirers of the hunters of men ; and therefore are glad 
 to find, that the land had more pleasing objects of contem- 
 plation, than mail clad-warriors, dexterous spearmen, and 
 keen-sighted benders of the twanging bow ; for it is pleasing 
 to find ourselves still among the comforts of ordinary life, 
 and to enjoy the sweet companionship of human hearts. 
 
 The distinctive character of the poetry, of the last severity 
 years of the fourteenth century, is love. Other subjects also 
 occupied the attention of the Bards ; and the era is remark- 
 able for the variety of the topics embraced, as well as for the 
 sweetness of the poems, and the elegance of the versification; 
 for the country being at peace, they were no longer compel- 
 led to dedicate their talents to the service of war, and were 
 consequently allowed greater latitude in the selection of 
 their subjects. But the fair sex quite monopolized the favour 
 of the poets, and there is scarcely one of them who has not 
 written amatory verses. We have already stated that 
 Iorwerth Vychan has two love poems ; Casnodyn has one ; 
 Gruffydd ab Meredydd, six; Gronwy ab Davydd, three; 
 Gronwy Gyrriog, one; Iorwerth Gyrriog, one ; Sevnyn, one; 
 Gronwy Ddu, one; Mab y Olochyddyn, one; and the cele- 
 
 3 o 
 
474 POETRY 
 
 brated Ode to Myvanwy Vechan, of Hywel ab Einion Lyg- 
 liw. Davydd ab Gwilym, the Cambrian Petrarch, who ad- 
 dressed seven score and seven poems to his lady love, also 
 lived during this period ; but we shall on this occasion con- 
 fine our attention to the less known labours of Ehys Goch. 
 
 Rhys Goch ab Rhiccert lived at Tir Iarll in Glamorgan- 
 shire. Rhiccert his father is said by Mr. Taliesin Williams, 
 upon the authority apparently of John Bradford, to have 
 been the son of Einion ab Collwyn, a man who figures in 
 the history of the Norman conquest of Glamorgan, about 
 A.D. 1090; 1 and it was probably this consideration, that 
 led to the dating of Rhys Goch's poems at "about 1140." 2 
 Whether this reasoning be that of John Bradford, Mr. 
 Edward Williams, or of Mr. Taliesin Williams, I am un- 
 able to determine ; but as it will devolve upon me to show 
 that the period assigned for the life of our poet, is at least 
 two hundred years too early, the presumed genealogy must 
 be called in question. Rhys Goch may have been descen- 
 ded from Einion ab Collwyn ; but he certainly was not the 
 second in descent. The data, from which we arrive at 
 that conclusion are the following : — 
 
 Rhys Brydydd, the son of Rhys Goch, was famed as a poet in 
 A. D. 1390. 
 
 In a poem written during the reign of king Richard 3 the 
 
 Second, who ascended the throne in 1377, and was deposed 
 
 in 1399, we find Rhys Brydydd recommended as a fit and 
 
 proper person to sit upon a jury ; 
 
 "Let Rhys Brydydd he counted; well known his claims, 
 To the composition of legitimate verse." 
 
 We are informed that Ievan ab Rhys was his son. 4 
 
 Rhys Brydydd is also called Rhys Llwyd; and if Ievan 
 
 Llwyd Brydydd 5 be his son, he lived about 1480. Ievan ab 
 
 Rhys had two sons, named Thomas and Grufiydd. Of the 
 
 last but little is known; Dr. Owen Pughe, says that he 
 
 i Hanes Cymru. p. 483. a Iolo MSS. p. 229. 3 Iolo MSS. p. 680. 
 
 4 Iolo MSS. p. 615. 5 Llwyd's Arch. Brit. p. 257. 
 
FROM A.D. 1280 TO A.D. 132: 
 
 475 
 
 flourished between 1560 and 1590 j 1 and the Rev. Roger 
 Williams, 2 writing between 1600 and 1620, states that he 
 was living at that time. The other son was the personage 
 so well known as Twm Ivan Prys, a bard and reputed con- 
 juror; the learned Edward Llwyd, writing in 1707, terms him 
 poeta recensf and Dr. Pughe says he died in 1510, two hun- 
 dred years old. 4 It is impossible to reconcile the last state- 
 ment with any of the other facts, or with other assertions of 
 the same author's; but fortunately it is not difficult to show, 
 that his account is either an error of the press, or a mistake; 
 for if Thomas ab Ievan was two hundred years old in 1510, 
 his brother who was living about 1620, must have been three 
 hundred and ten. In Thomas ab levants works, we meet 
 with some lines, which set forth his age with considerable 
 accuracy, — 
 
 " In one thousand six hundred exactly. 
 And four years complete, 
 The beginning of January, (fair computation,) 
 I am one hundred and thirty." 5 
 
 Therefore, if in 1604 he was 130 years old, he must have 
 been born in 1474 ; and as Malkin asserts, that " it can 
 be satisfactorily proved that he was living in 1615," 6 he 
 must have been at least 141 years old at his death. In con- 
 sonance with these facts, we find that Ievan ab Rhys was 
 driven from Kynffig by Sir Matthew Cradock of Swansea, 
 and that Thomas ab Ievan was imprisoned in Kynffig cas- 
 tle for his attachment to Lollard opinions. Sir Matthew 
 was born somewhere about 1460, was made Steward of 
 Gower in 1491, and died between June the 6th, and Aug. 
 16th, 15317 These dates harmonize with the preceding 
 facts ; Ievan ab Rhys, flourishing as a poet about 1480, 
 might have been driven from his home on account of the 
 
 1 Cambrian Biography, p. 146. a lolo MSS. p. 613. 
 
 3 Arch. Brit. p. 264. 4 Cambrian Biography, p. 327. 
 
 5 lolo MSS. p. 615. 6 Malkin's South Wales, Vol. II. p. 549. 
 
 7 Rev. J. M. Treharne's life of Sir Matthew Cradock. p. 6. 
 
476 POETRY 
 
 Lollard taint by Sir Matthew in or after 1491 ; Thomas his 
 son, who, in 1531, would have been in his 57th year, might 
 also have suffered from his enmity ; and therefore we have 
 here a mass of consistent facts large enough to convince us 
 that we are on safe ground. Let us now retrace our steps. 
 Thomas ab Ievan ab Rhys was born in 1474 ; his father 
 was the son of Rhys Brydydd, who lived in or about 1390; 
 and therefore as Llwyd has shown that Rhys Brydydd was 
 the same person as Rhys Llwyd, 4 and that Rhys Llwyd was 
 the son of Rhys (Goch) ab Rhiccert, the latter should not be 
 placed further back than the year 1350. The internal 
 evidence of the poems also countenances this conclu- 
 sion ; the absence of Cynghanedd, which soon became the 
 sine qua non of Cambrian poetry, proves that they could not 
 have beeen much later than 1350 ; and the structure, lan- 
 guage, and allusions, show that they were not much earlier. 
 The Poems, twenty in number, have lately been given to 
 the world from the MSS. of his father, by the late Mr. Tal- 
 iesin Williams ; they treat principally of love ; and breathe 
 the same spirit of profound peace, as most of the bardic 
 effusions of the fourteenth century. After the submission of 
 the principality to the first Edward, an entire change came 
 over the poetry of the bards ; in consequence of the prohibi- 
 tions they no longer breathe defiance against the English 
 Monarchs; seldom speak of national feelings, and never 
 hazard political allusions. But the national spirit was not 
 broken ; for the poets, whose attention had hitherto been divi- 
 ded between love and war, now gave themselves wholly up to 
 the former passion ; and in the service of " the rosy god," 
 Rhys Goch and Davydd ab Gwilym display such exuberance 
 of fancy, elegance of taste, and fertility of invention, as a 
 perusal of the works of their predecessors would not have led 
 us to anticipate. These qualities, characteristic alike of 
 both these bards, connect Rhys Goch with the age of the 
 Cambrian Petrarch, " the nightingale of Dyved f but the 
 absence of Cynghanedd from the poems of the former, while 
 
 1 Arch. Brit. p. 231, col. 2. s Arch. Brit. p. 231, col. 3. 
 
FROM A.D. 1280 TO A.D. 1322. 
 
 477 
 
 it pervades those of the latter, compels us to place Rhys ab 
 
 Rhiccert in the first half of the fourteenth century. We will 
 
 select his — 
 
 Song to a Maiden's Hair. 1 
 
 On the head of Gwen there's a growth of loveliest hue, 
 
 Loose, flowing, and worthy of a countess ; 
 
 It hangs down to her heels, 
 
 As a flaxen bush, — wine coloured and willow-like ; 
 
 (How) beautiful are the long golden ringlets, 
 
 Drooping from the temples of a lovely woman ! 
 
 Her forehead is smooth, clear, and as purely white 
 
 As the spray of waters dashing over rugged rocks ; 
 
 And it is encircled by a broad band of precious gold. 
 
 Beneath the tall and glistening white veil, 
 
 (Peep out) two tender eyes, joyous and cheerful, 
 
 Two stars of love gladdening to the sight, 
 
 In the head of the elegantly formed, second Lunette; 2 
 
 Her cheeks were redder than the red wine of raspberries ; 
 
 As the colour of wild roses in leafy woods, 
 
 Is the coral hue of her buoyant health. 
 
 Between two cheeks 
 
 Of splendid tint, 
 
 (Rises) a neat sharp nose 
 
 Of small proportions ; 
 
 1 Can i Wallt Merch. 
 Mae twf ar benn Gwenn gain eiliw, 
 Modd llaes hirllaes Iarlles odliw, 
 Llwyn Uin lliw g\vin gwiail dyfiad 
 Hyd ei sawdl dyw ei osodiad, 
 Gwiail aur arian glan glwys waneg, 
 Uwch dwyael feinion gloywion glandeg, 
 Talcen gwastodloyw hoyw hardd hyfryd 
 Lliw ffrwd geirw garw garregryd, 
 Tan y tal grisial gryswyn lewych 
 Tirion olygon Hon Uawenwych, 
 Dwy seren serch seirian ei gweled 
 Ymhen Gwenn feingan Ian ail Luned. 
 Gorlliw ei grudd gwin rudd rhaspi 
 Lledawd aur addawd wedi'i roddi 
 Cyfliw rhos gwylltion gelltydd deilog 
 Cwrel iachusder sy wber serchog, 
 A rhwng deurudd 
 Gwawr ysblennydd 
 Trwyn main moddus 
 Bychan gweddus. 
 2 Lunette, or Luned, is a character well known to readers of romances. She is 
 thus described in the Lady of the Fountain : — " He beheld a maiden with yellow 
 curling hair, and a frontlet of gold on her head; and she was clad in a dress of 
 yellow satin, and on her feet were shoes of variegated leather." — Mabinogion, 
 Vol. I. p. 55. 
 
478 POETRY 
 
 A mouth distilling honey- 
 Belonged to the silent fair, 
 And an elegant lip of the lovely hue of coral ; 
 Small teeth, and an expression of shrewd vivacity, 
 Were evident in the mouth of the witty Gwen ; 
 And her small round chin appeared as wonderful, 
 As mountain peaks seen by day, when wrapt in gowns of 
 snow. 
 
 Her neck as whitely shone 
 
 As the spray of the ocean wave ; 
 
 And two budding heights 
 
 Revealed through whitest linen, 
 
 Form the beautiful bust, 
 
 Of my gentle fair; 
 
 "Whose charms, second only to Enid, 1 
 
 Will, if compared, 
 Appear in propriety, purity, and comeliness. 
 The maid is fair, reserved, and so light and nimble, 
 That the smallest trefoils bend not beneath her. 
 
 A min fel mel 
 
 I'm dyn dawel 
 Gwefus mirain liw cain cwrel. 
 A man ddannedd a gwedd hoy wgoeth 
 Amhvg ymmhenn gwenn gymhenddoeth, 
 Gen bychan crwn a hwn mor hynod, 
 Ag yn nydd mynydd mewn gwn manod. 
 
 Mwnwgl claerwyn 
 
 Deuliw'r ewyn, 
 
 Hardd ei dwyfron 
 
 Fy mun dirion, 
 
 O fewn meingrys 
 
 Dau bed ysbys. 
 
 Hardd ail Enid 
 
 Pei mesurid 
 Gan gynnwysder glwysder glendid, 
 Bun deg dawel ddawn ysgavvn wisgi, 
 Ni phlyg manfeillion ar donn dani, 
 
 1 Enid was one of the three fair and illustrious ladies of the court of Arthur; she 
 became the wife of Geraint ab Erbin ; and was mentioned with respect by Davydd 
 ab Gwilym and other bards. She has drawn from the noble translator of her 
 story, an elegant tribute of admiration : — " Throughout the broad and varied re- 
 gion of Romance, it would be difficult to find a character of greater simplicity 
 and truth than that of Enid the daughter of Earl Ynywl. Conspicuous for her 
 beauty and noble bearing, we are at a loss whether most to admire, the untiring 
 patience with which she bore all the hardships she was destined to undergo, or 
 the unshaken constancy and devoted affection which finally achieved the 
 triumph she so richly deserved. The character of Enid (in the Romance of Ge- 
 raint ab Erbin) is admirably sustained throughout the whole Tale : and as it is 
 more natural, because less overstrained, so, perhaps, it is even more touching 
 than that of Griselda, over which, however, Chaucer has thrown a charm that 
 leads us to forget the improbability of her story.'" — Mabinog. Vol. II. p. 165. 
 
FROM A.D. 1280 TO A.D. 1322. 479 
 
 Swan ! sea mew ! lovely is her pure aspect, 
 Slight, straight, sprightly, and handsome. 
 
 Her hands are white, 
 
 And her slender fingers 
 
 Swiftly move 
 
 While weaving silk; 
 
 And her nails 
 
 Are ruddy tinted. 
 Skilful and alert she waits at the wine feast. 
 My becoming charmer is slender and tall, 
 Having a pretty small waist, and an erect form, 
 
 Short round shanks, 
 
 And a round white leg, 
 With, (chaste maid !) a foot of faultless outline. 
 If there were given to me the power to dispose — 
 Of the world's wealth, the ^vhite maid should have it all, 
 For one hour, fair one of passing beauty, 
 On a green sward, in the arms of Gwenhonwy.* 
 
 Our bard has drawn another portrait of a beautiful wo- 
 man, in which he repeats several of the images which oc- 
 cur in this ; but by introducing new attributes, he brings 
 the other to a better close. After expatiating on her beauty, 
 
 Alarch Wylan. glan ei glwysbryd, 
 Meindwf, iawndwf hoywdwf hyfryd. 
 
 Dwylaw gwynion 
 
 Bysedd meinion 
 
 Ymmod buan 
 
 Ar we sidan, 
 
 Ag ewinedd 
 
 Gwridog ei gwedd. 
 Medrus hwylus heiliaw gwinwledd 
 Hir ei hystlys weddus wiwddyn 
 A chanol main gain gymhwysddyn. 
 
 Bergron esgair 
 
 Wengron iawngrair 
 A throed da i lun i'm bun ddiwair 
 Pe cawn i'm byd ennyd annercb 
 Dda'r byd o'i benn fe'i cae'r wenferch, 
 Er cael un awr lliw gwawr lywy, 
 Ym mreichiau honn tonn Gwenhonwy. 
 
 Iolo MSS. p. 230. 
 
 1 Of Gwenhonwy but little appears to be known. Dr. Pugbe says, " Gwen- 
 honwy, was a beautiful woman whose history is lost, but is often mentioned by the 
 poets." (Cambrian Biography, p. 159.) Davydd ab Gwilym uses the term in de- 
 scribing the daughter of Ivor Hael, (Works, p. 14.) but whether this was a pro- 
 per or applied name is not clear; though the same authority (Works of Davydd 
 ab Gwilym, p. 538,) asserts that it was the proper name of Ivor's daughter. 
 
480 
 
 POETRY 
 
 and minutely detailing her many perfections, he conti- 
 nues, — 
 
 The kindness of Gwen, and her shrewd remark, 
 
 Her wise conversation (wit inspired Moon !), 
 
 The mildness of her notes when she sings, 
 
 And her melodious tones of nine score nightingales, 
 
 Have completely deprived me of all my senses, 
 
 Robbed me as if deceitfully of all my prudence, 
 
 And put strong madness into me. 
 
 I shall be laid in the grave — that will be my end, 
 
 If I obtain not the idol of my heart, 
 
 To become a sister to me, 
 
 Before the end of the summer. 
 
 Let her hasten, my heart to cure, 
 
 Or if she does not, I very well know, 
 
 That love of her will be my death. 1 
 
 Some of the images in these sketches are very fine. The 
 
 lines, — 
 
 " Cerddai dyn war wyneb daiar 
 Yn hardd baunes drwy'r melyndes, 
 Ag ni phlygai man y cerddai, 
 Dan wyn dracd lion un o'r meillion," 
 
 remind one of Scott's description of Ellen Douglas, — 
 
 " A foot more light, a step more true, 
 Ne'er from the heath-flower dashed the dew; 
 E'en the slight hare-bell raised its head, 
 Elastic from her airy tread ;" 
 
 and the Cambrian bard loses nothing by the comparison. 
 Indeed, Rhys Goch's image is the finest ; Sir Walter's he- 
 
 1 Ei mwynder Gwenn a'i gair cynimen, 
 
 Ai llafar doeth Lloer awengoeth 
 
 Ai goslef gwar lie can nieinwar, 
 
 Ai goslef maws naw can eaws,. 
 
 Am dettry'n llwyr o'm holl synwyr, 
 
 Am dwg mal twyll o'm holl ymbwyll 
 
 A ddod wallcof cadarn ynof 
 
 Am rhy mewn bedd llyna'r diwedd, 
 
 Onis caf hon claf fy nghalon, 
 
 Onis caf hi yn chwaer immi, 
 
 Cyn diwedd haf marw a fyddaf, 
 
 Meddylied honn iachau nghalon 
 
 Ag onis gwna ys gwn yn dda, 
 
 Ei serch a fydd fy nihenydd.— Iolo MS. p. 245. 
 
FROM A.D. 1280 TO A.D. 1322. 43 ]_ 
 
 roine does bend the harebell ; but the footstep of the Cam- 
 brian beauty is more airy still ; — 
 
 As peahens stride in sun-ray heat, 
 
 See her the earth elastic tread, 
 
 And where she walks, 'neath snow-white feet, 
 
 Not e'en a trefoil bends its head. 
 
 Our next extract shall be a picture of the bard and his 
 lady-love, just at the moment when a jealous lover inter- 
 rupted their joys, — 
 
 About us streamed the rays of the summer sun, 
 
 And long green grass covered the fields, 
 
 Trefoils in great numbers and leafy trees adorned the scene. 
 
 There lay I and Gwenn in perfect bliss, 
 
 Reclining both among the flowers, 
 
 Surrounded by troops of trefoils ; 
 
 Lip to lip we spent the time : 
 
 From the lips of the maid I obtained a feast, 
 
 Like that of saintly David in the choir of Hodnant, 
 
 Or Taliesin at the court of Elphin, 
 
 Or the Round Table feasts at Oaerlleon, 
 
 Or Angel joys in paradise ; 
 
 And we both feasted thus, 
 
 Without a care for what had been, 
 
 Without a thought of what would be. 
 
 This height of bliss was never ending, 
 
 For we were both of one intent, 
 
 And all that clay we only sang, 
 
 That we would live and love together. 
 
 Living sweetly upon kisses, 
 
 And both dying on the same. 1 
 
 1 O'n amgylch haf haul gorphenaf 
 Ac ar glawr maes glas dwf hirllaes. 
 Meillion yn frith manddail cymmhlith, 
 Minnau a gwen yncTri llawen. 
 Gorwedd ein dau ym mysg blodau, 
 Gorwedd ar doim ymhlith meillion, 
 Finfin a gwen om holl awen, 
 Gwledd a gefais ar fin meinais, 
 Gwledd Dewi Sant Ynghor Hodnant, 
 Gwledd Taliesin yn Llys Elphin, 
 Gwledd y fort gronn yng Nghaerllion, 
 Gwledd angel glwys ym Mharadwys. 
 Ninnan'n deuddyn ar wledd fal hynn 
 Heb ofalu am ddim a fu 
 Heb fyfyriaw am ddim a ddaw, 
 Gwynfyd y sydd byth ni dderfydd. 
 Yn eyfymnaywdd yn un ansawdd. 
 Hyn ar ein can oedd y cyfan 
 Felly nynni cydfoddloni 
 I fyw yn Ian ar wledd cusan 
 T farw ein dau gusanau. — Iolo MSS. p. 247 — 8. 
 3P 
 
432 POETRY 
 
 A few of the Cambrian poets, were enthusiastic lovers of 
 nature, of fields, and flowers, and of the songs of birds. 
 Burns, Chaucer, and Wordsworth, soared to eulogize the 
 daisy; but the favourite of the bards, was the trefoil. This 
 finds a place in all their descriptions of flowers; princes 
 eulogize it; light-footed women are careful of its fragile form; 
 and when the bard wishes to recline on summer noon, he 
 surely se lects a bed of tender trefoils. This feeling ap- 
 pears in the following, among many other verses, — * 
 
 1. I am weary, heavy, and sad ; 
 
 I'll court no more of the girls, for 'tis winter, 
 Till May with verdure covers the hedges, 
 And crowns the woods with foliage green ; 
 For there is a propriety in growing trees, 
 Which gives the heart a joyful feeling. 
 
 2. In a bush among the paths of the green wood, 
 I have a beautiful circular retreat ; 
 
 Men and their hateful habitations come not near, 
 And it is only accessible to the adventurous fair ; 
 It is pleasant to see, when covered with foliage, 
 My sky-capped palace in the woodland green. 
 
 3. The charming residence among the small wood, 
 Is floor'd with trefoils of the loveliest verdure ; 
 A cheerful, attractive, and eloquent cuckoo, 
 
 Is singing delightfully in a loving voice ; 
 
 And the chickthrush, (beautiful bard of summer !) 
 
 Sings most sweetly in clear and pure language. 
 
 1 1. Gorthrwm a thrwm a thrist fyddaf, 
 Ni charaf un tro tra fo gauaf, 
 Oni ddel mai glasai glosydd. 
 A gwyrddlen penn pob glwys irwydd 
 Mai immi glasurddas gwyrddail, 
 Calon hoywfron hyfryd adail. 
 
 2. Mewn llwyn ffyrdd duwyrdd difiad, 
 Harddgrwn yw hwn hynaws gaead, 
 Ni ddaw ai annedd y cas ddynion, 
 
 Na neb ond medrus nioddus mwynfron, 
 Hyfryd ei bryd clyd pan ddeilio. 
 Ty glas parlas purlen arno. 
 
 3. Cyntedd tirion mwynion manwydd, 
 Ar lawrmeillion gleision glosydd 
 A chog serchog ddoniog ddenus 
 Yn canu'n hvys lais cariadus, 
 
 A chiw bronfraith buriaith beraidd 
 
 Yn canu'n hardd loyw hoywfardd hafaidd, 
 
FROM A. D.-.12S0.TO A. D. 1322. 433 
 
 4. The nightingale from its bush, kindly joins 
 
 The harmonious concert 'mid the greenwood leaves; 
 
 And the clear voiced lark, delightfully sings 
 
 Most charming verses at the break of day ; 
 
 And we only want thy presence Gwen, 
 
 To complete the joys of my woodland house. 
 
 . The song to the Leaf House, " Can y Deildy," is a poem 
 of the same class, and contains many very felicitous pas- 
 sages. 
 
 The bards were also powerfully attached to all the song- 
 birds ; and the cuckoo, nightingale, lark, and thrush, were 
 held in especial regard. No happiness could be complete 
 without them ; if the poet walked forth with his lady-love, 
 the birds must supply the musical accompaniment to his 
 tale of enduring love; and when, on the Lord's Day, he 
 wandered to the woods alone, — 
 
 " The thrush in brilliant language 
 Prophesied without ceasing, 
 And read to the parish 
 The gospel without stammering ;" 
 
 and the nightingale, — 
 
 " Priest of the dingle ! 
 
 Sang stanzas to our Lord and Creator, 
 
 With sylvan extacy and love." 
 
 Of all poetry, that of Rhys Goch, and Davydd ab Gwi- 
 lym, is the most purely pastoral I know ; it contains the 
 real sentiments of intelligent countrymen ; and is free from 
 the impertinent common-places of town-made eclogues. The 
 partiality for birds, which we have here noted, is seen in the 
 " Song to send the Birds with messages to a maid. ,, He 
 commences by stating, — 3 
 
 I placed my affection 
 
 Upon a slender waisted maid, 
 
 4. Eos o'r llwyn yn fwyn gyfanedd. 
 
 Arail mewn gwyrddail gerddi maswedd. 
 A chyda'r dydd ehedydd hoywdon 
 A gan yn drylwyn fwyn bennillion. 
 A phob llawenydd hirddydd hyfryd 
 O'th gaf wenno yno ennyd. — Iolo MSS. p. 228. 
 1 Serch y rhoddais, 
 Ar ddyn feinais, 
 
484 POETRY 
 
 One who is a second Essyllt, 1 
 
 Of the hue of the stags ( i. e. waves) of the raging sea; 
 
 The beauty which adorned her, 
 
 Became to me an arrow, 
 
 For she shot me 
 
 With her glances. 
 
 Failing to obtain an interview, he desires the birds to ac- 
 quaint her with his love, — 2 
 
 Go thou Blackbird 
 
 To the j>roud and slender maid, 
 
 And unto her show 
 
 How much for her I grieve ; 
 
 And thou thrush, 
 
 Singing on beautiful branches, 
 
 Take all my plaint 
 
 To the brilliant fair ; 
 
 And thou lark, 
 
 Bard of morning dawn ! 
 
 Show to this maid 
 
 My broken heart; 
 
 And place thou cuckoo, 
 
 "With thy affectionate tones, 
 
 The burden of my love 
 
 In the maiden's ears. 
 
 Hoen geirw mor gwyllt 
 
 Bun ail Essyllt 
 
 Ei thegwch hi 
 
 Bu'n saeth i mi, 
 
 Em saethes honn 
 
 O'i golygon." 
 1 There were three ladies of this name. Of the one here alluded to, "Yseult le 
 Blonde," it is said, that " her complexion was fairer than the purest snow, the 
 plumage of the swan, or the bone of the sea horse. ,, — Williams"s Biographical 
 Dictionary of Eminent Welshmen, page 146. 
 2 Dos dir fwyalch, 
 
 At ddyn feinfalch, 
 
 Dangos iddi, 
 
 Mhoen am dani. 
 
 Bronfraith a gan 
 
 Ar wydd eirian, 
 
 Dwg oil om cwyn 
 
 At loyw forwyn, 
 
 Tithau'r hedydd, 
 
 Bardd Boreuddydd 
 
 Dangos i honn 
 
 Fy nhorr calon. 
 
 Dod tithau'r gog 
 
 A'th don serchog 
 
 Yng nghlust y ferch 
 
 Fy nghwyn traserch. 
 
PROM A. D. 1280 TO A. D. 1322. 435 
 
 A nightly companion 
 
 Am I to the nightingale, 
 
 Let her quickly go 
 
 With my vocal song, 
 
 To the lime-white blessed one 
 
 At the side of Dyffryn, — 
 
 And there say 
 
 To my dearest maid, 
 
 That if she comes not 
 
 To comfort me 
 
 To the greenwood bushes, 
 
 Of the love, ere Summer's o'er, 
 
 Of the charming fair, 
 
 I'll surely die. 
 
 The pretty Spanish Song, beginning with " Rio verde, 
 rio verde," has been much admired, and an English song 
 commencing, " Gentle river, gentle river, 1 ' deserves to be so; 
 but such apostrophes to natural objects are singularly fre- 
 quent in the poems of this bard, and Davydd ab Gwilym. 
 Dr. Puo-he claims the merit of the introduction of this verv 
 beautiful species of poetry for the Cambrian Petrarch ; 
 but there is reason to suspend that opinion ; for Rhys Goch 
 appears to have used it before him. However that may be, 
 the idea is very beautiful; and though Davydd has shown 
 much greater mastery in its application, it elicited several 
 admirable poems from the subject of our present remarks. 
 The plan of these poems is very simple ; the bard fixes upon 
 the object to which he intends entrusting the message; de- 
 scribes its attributes, and therefrom deduces the qualities 
 
 Cyfaill cyfnos 
 
 "Wyf ir Eos. 
 
 Aed hon yn ffest 
 
 Am cerdd arwest. 
 
 At liw calch gwynn 
 
 Yn ael y Dyffryn. 
 
 Yna d'wedyd 
 
 Wrth f anwylyd 
 
 Os hi ni ddaw 
 
 I'm cysuraw 
 
 I goedlwyn ir 
 
 F'atiwyl feinir, 
 
 O'i sereh lliw'r haf 
 
 Marw a fyddaf.— Iolo MSS. page 233. 
 
486 
 
 POETRY 
 
 which fit it to become a messenger ; and then entrusts it 
 with the important charge. To this class belongs the 
 following, — * 
 
 Song to the Sea Gull. 
 
 Fair gull, on the surface of the billows 
 
 Amid the foam of the rippling wave; 
 
 "White Queen of the stags (i. e. waves) of the Severn sea, 
 
 "With thy kingdom on the ninth wave of the ocean, 
 
 And living upon the bodies of fish ! 
 
 Thou art a delicately fair one, swift of wing, 
 
 And it is for this I want thee ; 
 
 Take from me a song of cold complaint, 
 
 To a maid of slender growth in fair greeting ; 
 
 I am sick for one of the whiteness of driven snow, 
 
 "Who has placed an arrow in my bosom, 
 
 "Which as I bear it about me gives me great pain, — 
 
 Say Gull to the hue of snow-flakes, 
 
 That, amiable Gwen, I love her ; 
 
 Go to the castle of the bright-eyed maid, 
 
 And sing from my mouth the fair one's praise ; 
 
 If I made a song of the five metrical excellencies, 
 
 I should not fittingly sing her praise, 
 
 Or the hundredth part of the beauty's merit. 
 
 If I have not this one, my heart will break; 
 
 Into some brake I'll go to grieve ; 
 
 1 Can i trru'r Wflan ra Llattai. 
 
 Yr wylan cleg ar fol gwaneg, 
 Ymhlitb dystrycb yr heli crych, 
 Brenhines wenn geirw mor Hafren 
 A'th deyrnas di nawton gweilgi. 
 Ymborth ydd wyd ar bysgodfwyd, 
 Gwisgi meimven wyd ar aden, 
 Ag er mwyn hynn wyf yn d'ofyn. 
 Dwg erof gan o'm oer gwynfan 
 At feindwf ferch yn deg annerch. 
 Claf wyf am wenn hoen 6d gaenen 
 Fe ddodes hon saeth i'm dwyfron, 
 A'u dwyn ydd wyf gloesion irnwyf, 
 Dywed wylan wrth liw'r od man, 
 Fy mod wen gu yn ei charu, 
 Cyrch hyd ei chaer Bun oleuglaer, 
 A chan om pen ei mawl, meinwen, 
 Pei gwnawn arwest o'r pum gorchest 
 Ni thraethwn fawl a fai moddawl, 
 Na chanfed rhan clod bun eirian, 
 Oni chaf bonn tyrr fy ngbalon, 
 Af i boeni dan wyddeli. 
 
FROM A.D. 1280 TO A.D. 1322. 437 
 
 And hid in the woods, far from sight, 
 I'll die because of this gentle maid. 
 
 The next, a better specimen of the same class, will form 
 the last of our quotations from this poet. It is called, 
 
 The Song of the Thrush. 
 
 I was on the margin of a plain, 
 
 Under a green branch'd tree, 
 
 Hearing the tunes 
 
 Of the wild birds ; 
 
 Listening to the language 
 
 Of the thrush cock, 
 
 Who from the wood of the valley 
 
 Poured forth an Englyn, 2 
 
 And from the wood of the steep 
 
 Exquisitely sang. 
 
 Speckled was his breast 
 
 Among the green leaves, 
 
 (Appearing) on the branches 
 
 As a thousand flowers. 
 
 On the edge of a brook, 
 
 All hear him, 
 
 Singing with the dawn 
 
 Yno'n draphell yng nghudd coedgell 
 Meinwar a fydd fy nihenydd. 
 
 Iolo MSS. p. 239. 
 
 1 Can y Fwyalch. 
 
 Bum yn ael maes 
 Dan bren briglaes 
 Yn clywed ton 
 Adar gwylltion. 
 Yn gwrandaw iaith, 
 Ceiliog bronfraith, 
 O goed y glynn 
 Prydai englyn, 
 O goed y rhiw 
 Canai'n gywiw, 
 Britb oedd ei fronn 
 Mewn dail gleision 
 Mai ar gangau 
 Mil o flodau, 
 Yn ymyl nant 
 Pawb ai clywant; 
 
 3 An englyn is a species of Welsh verse, requiring considerable skill in its 
 construction. — See next Section. 
 
488 
 
 POETRY 
 
 As a silver bell ;* 
 
 Performing a sacrifice, 
 
 Until the hour of forenoon ; 
 
 Upon a green altar 
 
 Ministering Bardism. 
 
 From the branches of the hazel 
 
 Of broad green leaves. 
 
 He sings an ode 
 
 To God the Creator; 
 
 With a carol of love 
 
 From the green glade, 
 
 To all in the hollow 
 
 Of the glen, who love him ; 
 
 Balm of the heart 
 
 To those who love. 
 
 I had from his beak 
 
 The voice of inspiration, 
 
 A song of metres 
 
 That gratified me, 
 
 Gan wawr y can 
 Mai cloch arian, 
 Cynnal aberth 
 Hyd awr anterth 
 Ar allawr las 
 Heiliaw Barddas 
 
 gangau cyll 
 Gwyrddion defyll 
 Y can gywydd 
 
 1 Dduw Dofydd 
 A charol serch 
 
 las lannerch, 
 
 1 bawb ar bant 
 G-lyn ai carant, 
 Eli calon 
 
 I'r serch ogion, 
 Cefais o'i ben 
 Cyflais awen, 
 Cerdd o fitres 
 Am boddlones. 
 
 1 When falconry was held in estimation, as we learn from the poems of Da- 
 vydd ab Gwilym, it was at this time, in Glamorganshire, a portion of silver was 
 introduced into the hawk-bells to improve their tone. (Strutt's Sports and Pas- 
 times, p. 33.) The reader of poetical taste, will be reminded of a line in Dry- 
 den's paraphrase of Chaucer's Palamon and Arcite, and of the passage in 
 Shakespeare, where Juliet says, — 
 
 " How silver-sweet sound lovers' tongues by night, 
 Like softest music to attending ears." 
 
 The words in the text, highly descriptive, and conveying a very pretty compli- 
 ment, also allude to the sweet tones of those Milan bells. 
 
FROM A.D. 12S0 TO A.D. 1322. 4$0, 
 
 Glad -was I made 
 
 By his minstrelsy. 
 
 Then respectfully 
 
 Uttered I an address 
 
 From the stream of the valley, 
 
 To the bird. 
 
 I requested urgently 
 
 His undertaking a message, 
 
 To the fair one 
 
 "Where dwells my affection. 
 
 Gone is the bard of the leaves, 
 
 From the small twigs 
 
 To the second Lunet, 
 
 The sun of the maidens ! 
 
 To the side of the vale 
 
 St. Mary prosper him, • 
 
 To bring to me, 
 
 Under the green woods, 
 
 The hue of one night's snow, 
 
 "Without delay. 1 
 
 Thus closes our survey of the second important era of 
 Cambrian Literature. 
 
 We have already stated that the latter part of the four- 
 teenth century, was a period of considerable activity among 
 the bards, and productive of a very large number of valu- 
 
 Llawen am gwnaeth 
 Ei ganiadaeth. 
 
 Yna drwy barch 
 Dodais gyfarch 
 
 glais y glynn 
 I'r aderyn, 
 Erchais yn ffraeth 
 Ei Latteiaeth 
 
 At y wenferch 
 Lie mae'ni traserch 
 Aeth bardd y dail 
 O'r man wiail 
 At ail Luned ' 
 Haul y merched. 
 
 1 glais y fro 
 Mair ai llwyddo 
 Er dwyn immi 
 Dan ir lwyni 
 Hoen 6d unnos 
 
 Yn ddiaros.— Iolo MSS. p. 238. 
 
 1 This translation, for the most part, is that of the last Editors of the Iolo 
 MSS. 
 
 3Q 
 
490 
 
 POETRY 
 
 able poems ; but in the present volume, we can only advert 
 to the existence, without entering into an examination of 
 these. The rhythmical consonancy, termed Cynghanedd, was 
 introduced at that time, and has ever since formed an essen- 
 tial feature in Kymric poetry. Opinions are divided as 
 to its merit ; and therefore it would not be fair to pass any 
 judgment, without a complete discussion of the subject. 
 Of the poems however, it may truly be said that several 
 hundreds of them are of a superior character, and that few 
 would sink below the level of mediocrity ; there are, it is 
 true, but few, except those addressed to Owen Glyndwr, by 
 Iolo Goch and Gruffydd Llwyd, that can be compared with 
 the greatest efforts of Meilir, Kynddelw, and Llywarch ab 
 Llywelyn ; but there is a greater number of small poems, 
 having respectable merit, and making up an era of consi- 
 derable literary interest. The bards who flourished during 
 this period were numerous, and active. Casnodyn, whose 
 poems, five in number, are, with respect to versification, what 
 would now be deemed regular, is the first of this era; 
 Gruffydd ab Meredydd has twenty eight long poems ; Gru- 
 ffydd ab Davydd ab Tudur, five short ones ; Prydydd Bre- 
 uan, one ; Y Proth, one ; Davydd y Coed, six ; Trahaiarn 
 Brydydd Mawr, two ; Goronwy Gyrriog, one ; Iorwerth 
 Gyrriog, one; Sevnyn, three; Llywarch y Nam, one; Ior- 
 werth Lwyd, one; Meurig ab Iorwerth, one; Goronwy 
 Ddu, two; Mab y Olochyddyn, one ; Llywelyn Goch, six ; 
 Iorwerth Beli, one; Madawg Dwygraig ten; Hywel Ys- 
 oryn, one ; Madawc ab Iorwerth, one ; three satires by the 
 Mab Cryg ; two by the Iustus Llwyd ; and some predic- 
 tions attributed to Y Bergam o Vaelor, and Ieuan Twrch 
 y Daran. Davydd Ddu o Hiraddug, an honoured poet, also 
 lived about this time, as well as Gruffydd Gryg. All these 
 lived between 1350 and 1400 ; and have been already enu- 
 merated ; and at, or subsequent to the year 1400, during the 
 revolt of Owen Glyndwr, and the Wars of the Eoses, in 
 which events several of the bards took an active part, there 
 lived several hundreds of these gentlemen. The order flou- 
 
FROM A.D. 1232 TO A.D, 1322. 49 J 
 
 rished with such extraordinary luxuriance, that stringent 
 laws were enacted to curb their extravagance. 
 
 The period between 1350 and 1600 is considered to 
 form the third important era of Kymric literature ; and 
 the fourth, beginning with Huw Morus, the author of three 
 hundred poems, and a strong royal partisan during the civil 
 war, extends to the present time. During the third era, 
 lived several bards of note and ability. Davydd ab Gwilym 
 alone has contributed to our literature two hundred and sixty 
 tw T o poems, and Lewis Glyn Cothi, one hundred and fifty 
 seven poems ; and these with the poems of Iolo Goch, Gru- 
 ffydd Llwyd, Guttyn Owain, Davydd ab Emwnt, Tudur 
 Aled, William Lleyn, and others, make up nearly six hun- 
 dred compositions. These for the most part are published ; 
 many more are known to exist in MSS., and probably some 
 may be lost. It would therefore have been exceedingly im- 
 prudent in me to have introduced notices of these at the 
 close of this work ; they demand a volume for themselves ; 
 and should this attempt be favourably received, I may pos- 
 sibly bring down the history to the present time, as well as 
 give a full account of the poems of the sixth century, — the 
 literature of the Kymry of Strath Clyde. At present I can 
 only give place to a single specimen. It shall be Davydd 
 ab Gwilym's address to the summer, requesting it to visit 
 Glamorganshire with its choicest blessings, — 
 
 Thou summer ! father of delight, 
 
 With thy dense spray and thickets deep ; 
 
 Gemmed monarch, with thy rapt'rous iight ; 
 
 Rousing thy subject glens from sleep ! 
 
 Proud has thy march of triumph been, 
 
 Thou prophet, prince of forest green ! 
 
 Artificer of wood and tree, 
 
 Thou painter of unrivalled skill, 
 
 Who ever scattered gems like thee, 
 
 And gorgeous webs on park and hill ? 
 
 Till vale and hall with radiant dyes, 
 
 Became another Paradise ! 
 
 And thou hast sprinkled leaves and flow'rs, 
 
 And goodly chains of leafy bow'rs ? 
 
492 POETRY 
 
 And bid thy youthful warblers sing 
 
 On oak and knoll the song of spring, 
 
 And blackbird's note of ecstasy 
 
 Burst loudly from the woodbine tree, 
 
 Till all the world is thronged with gladness 
 
 Her multitudes have done with sadness ! 
 
 O summer, do I ask in vain ? 
 
 Thus in thy glory wilt thou deign 
 
 My messenger to be 1 
 
 Hence from the bowels of the land 
 
 Of wild, wild Gwyneth to the strand 
 
 Of fair Glamorgan — ocean's band — 
 
 Sweet margin of the sea ! 
 
 To dear Glamorgan, when we part, 
 
 Oh, bear a thousand times my heart ! 
 
 My blessing give a thousand times, 
 
 And crown with joy her glowing climes ! 
 
 Take on her lovely vales thy stand, 
 
 And tread and trample round the land, 
 
 The beauteous shore whose harvest lies 
 
 All sheltered from inclement skies ! 
 
 Radiant with corn and vineyards sweet, 
 
 And lakes of fish and mansions neat, 
 
 With halls of stone where kindness dwells 
 
 And where each hospitable lord 
 
 Heaps for the stranger guest his board ! 
 
 And where the gen'rous winecup swells ; 
 
 With trees that bear the luscious pear, 
 
 So thickly clustering every where, 
 
 That the fair country of my love 
 
 Looks dense as one continuous grove ! — 
 
 Her lofty woods with warblers teem, 
 
 Her fields with iiow'rs that love the stream, 
 
 Her vallies varied crops display, 
 
 Eight kinds of corn, and three of hay ; 
 
 Bright parlour, with her trefoiled floor ! 
 
 Sweet garden spread on ocean's shore ! 
 
 Glamorgan's bounteous knights award 
 
 Bright mead and burnished gold to me ; 
 
 Glamorgan boasts of many a bard, 
 
 Well skilled in harp and vocal glee ; 
 
 The districts round her border spread, 
 
 From her have drawn their daily bread; 
 
 Her milk, her wheat, her varied stores, 
 
 Have been the life of distant shores ! 
 
 And court and hamlet food have found 
 
 From the rich soil of Britain's Southern bound. 
 
 And wilt thou then obey my power. 
 Thou Summer, in thy brightest hour ? 
 
FROM A. D. 1280 TO A. D. 1322. 493 
 
 To her thy glorious hues unfold 
 
 In one rich embassy of gold ! 
 
 Her morns with bliss and splendour light 
 
 And fondly kiss her mansions white ; 
 
 Fling wealth and verdure o'er her bow'rs ! 
 
 And for her gather all thy flow'rs ! 
 
 Glance o'er her castles, white with lime, 
 
 "With genial glimmering sublime ; 
 
 Plant on the verdant coast thy feet, 
 
 Her lofty hills, her woodlands sweet ; 
 
 Oh ! lavish blossoms with thy hand 
 
 Oe'r all the forests of the land. 
 
 And let thy gifts like floods descending 
 
 O'er every hill and glen be blending ; 
 
 Let orchard, garden, vine express 
 
 Thy fulness and thy fruitfulness, 
 
 O'er all the land of beauty fling 
 
 The costly traces of thy wing ! 
 
 And thus mid all thy radiant flowers, 
 Thy thick'ning leaves and glossy bowers, 
 The poet's task shall be to glean 
 Roses and flowers that softly bloom, 
 (The jewels of the forest's gloom !) 
 And trefoils wove in pavement green, 
 With sad humility to grace 
 His golden Ivor's resting place. 1 
 
 This will afford the reader some conception of what these 
 poems are ; though the notion derived therefrom can nei- 
 ther be accurate nor complete ; for being only of one class, it 
 can give no very definite idea of others belonging to different 
 classes. It is a poem of very considerable merit ; there are 
 perhaps none that excel it ; but many may be found 
 among the bardic compositions that will bear comparison 
 without discredit. We have now gone through the special 
 examination of the mediaeval literature of the Kymry ; and 
 the next section will terminate the volume. 
 
 1 The translation is taken from a most interesting volume, of very admirable 
 translations from the Kymric of Davydd ab Gwilym, by A. J. Johnes, Esq, 
 
SECTION III. 
 
 General Criticism. 
 
 Our special survey of the poetic literature of Wales, from the 
 time of Meilir in the eleventh century, to that of Gwilym 
 Ddu in the fourteenth, is now brought to a close. Every 
 poem could not of course be noticed ; but in the se- 
 lection, I have been guided by a wish to give such as were 
 possessed of intrinsic merit, and poetic beauty, and such as 
 revealed either plainly or incidentally, any pointed illus- 
 tration of national character. I might have quoted a much 
 greater number of poems ; but as it did not appear that I 
 should thereby do anything else than tire my reader, it 
 seemed best, to adopt the course which has been here fol- 
 lowed. I have given special criticisms on each poem; and 
 now offer a few remarks as a general criticism on the 
 whole. 
 
 There was much truth in the statement of Mr. Sharon 
 Turner, that the bardic poems did not possess the merit 
 which was sometimes claimed for them. He who approaches 
 the bards in the hope of finding companion spirits to the 
 great poets of other countries, will surely be disappointed; 
 for as we have already remarked, the merits of their poems are 
 rather historical than poetical. The poems of the bards here 
 passed in review are of a peculiar character ; their lyrics, ex- 
 cept Gwalchmafs ode, want fire and animation; and their ele- 
 gies too frequently substitute petty conceits for genuine ten- 
 derness. The bulk of the poems of this era treat of war; and 
 there are a few dedicated to the service of love. The exhorta- 
 
GENERAL CRITICISM. 495 
 
 tions to warlike exploits are very frequent, and give us a more 
 favourable opinion of their writers, than any other portion 
 of their labours ; though many of them are as far below the 
 war-songs of most other nations in poetic fire, as they are 
 above in versification. With this deficiency of really poetical 
 thought, fire, and sentiment, the conventionality of bardism 
 had much to do ; and by fixing an artificial standard of ver- 
 sified perfection, they concentrated attention upon the 
 words, and neglected the spirit of their poems. This is an 
 inherent vice of system making. Systems are only admea- 
 surements of the mental capacities of their founders ; and 
 ought not to be made binding upon men of greater abilities. 
 Criticism may point out the perfections of genius ; but it 
 cannot create them. There were good reasoners before Aris- 
 totle wrote his Logic ; and had Homer not lived, Longinus 
 would have wanted a subject. Colleges and Universities 
 are subject to the same defect ; Alfred and Cromwell might 
 have made and patronized universities, but all the colleges 
 in the universe could not have made either of them. Had 
 no collegiate institutions been in existence, we should still 
 have had Shakespeare, Milton, Newton, and all our great 
 men; such conventional institutions are however not only de- 
 positaries of great knowledge, but are themselves evidences 
 of intelligence. There was intelligence shown in their es- 
 tablishment, and there must be knowledge used to keep 
 them up and discharge the duties attached to the various 
 offices ; but after all, the standard of talent must of neces- 
 sity be the standard of mediocrity, for nature's noble 
 minds require no cabalistic letters at their hands, — the truly 
 great man has already received his degrees from the hand 
 of Omnipotence ! This thought is finely expressed in the 
 following stanza, addressed to Tasso, — 
 
 " Peace to Torquato's injured shade ! 'twas his 
 In life and death to be the mark where wrong 
 Aim'd with her poison'd arrows ; but to miss. 
 Oh ! victor unsurpassed in modern song ! 
 Each year brings forth its millions ; but how lone 
 
496 GENERAL CRITICISM. 
 
 The tide of generations shall roll on, 
 And not the whole combined, and countless throng 
 Compose a mind like thine ? though all in one 
 Condensed their scattered rays, they ivould not form a sun.'' 1 
 
 In like manner bardism might have been itself an evidence 
 of intelligence, and numbered in its ranks many able men; 
 yet upon the whole it was unfavourable to extraordinary 
 merit, and true poetic excellence. 
 
 The historical value of their poems is however very great, 
 for the bards seem generally to have adhered very closely to 
 their professed maxim, "Y gwir. yn erbyn y Byd ;" and if 
 their poems contain but few beautiful thoughts, they are 
 full of correct statements of facts, descriptions of manners, 
 and natural allusions to the habits of the people and their 
 traditions. Even the minutiae of military decorations are 
 mentioned, as appears from many passages in the works of 
 the bards, and as is shown in a very interesting note to 
 Hanes Cymru, — 
 
 " The king of France aided Owain Glyndwr with an army of 
 men, and presented him with handsome arms. Among other 
 things there was a beautiful helmet, "uu beau basinet," as it is de- 
 scribed, says Sir Samuel Meyrick, in an old French author ; and 
 I have no doubt that it is this, Gruffydd Llwycl alludes to, when 
 speaking of Owain he says, — 
 
 Eryr digrif afrifed 
 
 Owain helm gain, hael am ged." 
 
 This confirms me in a belief which I have long held, that the 
 Bards did not crowd their lines with unmeaning phrases, and that 
 those passages which are now obscure, and are read without pro- 
 ducing any benefit, are really apposite and instructive allusions to 
 things of which we have no cognizance ; for the merit of the 
 Bards consisted in skilfully weaving such minutiae into their 
 poetry."? 2 
 
 And therefore viewed in this light, the bardic remains de- 
 serve to be diligently studied. 
 
 As might naturally have been expected, the regulations 
 of the bards have acted as dead weights upon imagination, 
 
 1 Byron, Childe Harold, Canto iv. - Hanes Cymru, page 771, 
 
GENERAL CRITICISM. 497 
 
 and the metaphors and images of many of the Kymric 
 poets display either a want of taste or of originality. There is 
 a sameness about the whole of them ; and they not unfre- 
 quently borrow each other's images. Several instances of 
 this occur in the poems already noticed. Grwalchmai had 
 described the loss of blood at the Battle of Tal y Moelvre, 
 that streaming seaward, it checked the progress of the in- 
 coming tide ; and we find Kynddelw soon after making use 
 of the very same idea, in the following forcible passage, — 1 
 
 The green flood of Teivi was thickened, 
 
 The water and the blood of men filled it. 
 
 The bloodstained grebe' 2 called aloud for a glut of gore, 
 
 And swam with toil on waves of blood. 
 
 And a similar idea is used by Llywarch ab Llywelyn. 
 
 The standing images for warriors are lions, hawks, and 
 eagles, which Ave meet with everywhere in these poems ; 
 occasionally we find these conceits varied with comparisons 
 to historical names. In the love songs of the earlier bards, 
 where one would have thought originality both easy and 
 abundant, we find nothing but repetitions of each other ; 
 and a happy idea when once penned, is appropriated by 
 every successive writer, and worn to tatters. Kynddelw in 
 a poem addresed to Eva, the daughter of Madawc ap Mere- 
 dydd, prince of Powys, describes her thus, — 3 
 
 Thou art as white as the spray of water scattered by the wind, 
 Thou fair Cambrian, of the court of Dyffrynt. 
 Thou shinest as brightly as the rising sun, 
 And art as purely white as the mountain snow. 
 
 And these very images have been reproduced by Hywel 
 ap Einion. The "Cherry bloom" and "hawthorn flowers" 
 
 1 Gwyrdd heli Teifi tewychai 
 Gwaedlan gwyr a llyr ai llanwai 
 Gwyach rud gorfud goralwai 
 Ar doniar gwyar gonofiai. 
 2 The grebe is a waterfowl (gwyach.) 
 3 Cymrawd ewyn dwfr, ai difriw gwynt, 
 Cymraeg laesdeg o lys dyffrynt, 
 Cyfleuer gwawr dydd, pan dwyre hynt 
 Cyfliw eira gorwyn gorwydd epynt, 
 
 3 R 
 
498 GENERAL CRITICISM. 
 
 may be accounted his own, — as also " the waves of Caswen- 
 nan ;" but " the whiteness of the curling wave," "the flakes 
 of driven snow," and "the meridian sun," seem to be repro- 
 ductions of the images of Kynddelw. This image of the 
 water spray is also used by Hywel ab Owain, who is usually 
 very original, — 
 
 " Gorewynawg ton tynhegyl ebrwydd," 
 and by many others. 
 
 One of two things is very apparent from these facts; either 
 these images had been authorized as appropriate to such and 
 such subjects, just as Bossu and his school gave recipes for 
 Epic poems, or the minds of the Bards were incapable of fram- 
 ing original comparisons. The last conclusion becomes quite 
 inadmissible when we reflect upon the appropriateness of the 
 images used; and therefore, as will appear from the following 
 list of the figures which were considered to be legitimate by 
 the bardic critics, we must adopt the former alternative : — 
 
 1. The three embellishing names of poetic genius ; light of the 
 understanding, amusement of reason, and preceptor of knowledge. 
 
 2. The three embellishing names of reason ; candle of the soul, 
 might of wisdom, and transparency of knowledge. 
 
 3. The three embellishing names of wisdom ; beauty of the hea- 
 vens, strength of amusement, and the word of God. 
 
 4. The three embellishing names of the understanding; eye of 
 genius, ear of reason, and right hand of meditation. 
 
 5. The three embellishing names of knowledge ; might of the 
 Avorld, joy of the wise, and grace of God. 
 
 6. The three embellishing names of God ; King of the Heavens, 
 (soul of worlds), Father of animation, and immensity of love. 
 
 7. The three embellishing names of Heaven ; life, blessedness, 
 aud heavenly tranquillity. 
 
 8. The three embellishing names of the sun ; torch of the 
 worlds, eye of day, and sprightliness of the heavens. 
 
 9. The three embellishing names of the moon ; sun of night, 
 the beautiful, and sun of the fairies. 
 
 10. The three embellishing names of the stars ; eyes of serenity, 
 candles of heaven, (God), and gems of the sky. 
 
 11. The three embellishing names of the sea ; field of Gwen- 
 hidwy, court of Neivion, and fountain of Venus (and glutton of 
 the world). 
 
GENERAL CRITICISM. 499 
 
 12. The three embellishing names of the waves; sheep of Gwen- 
 hidwy, dragons of the salt deep, and blossoms of ocean. 
 
 13. The three embellishing names of summer; chevalier of love, 
 father of vigour, and keeper of ardour. 
 
 14. The three embellishing names of the wind ; hero of the 
 world, architect of bad weather, and assaulter of the hills. 
 
 15. The three embellishing names of flowers ; gems of shrubs, 
 beauties of summer, and eyes of zephyrs. 
 
 16. The three embellishing names of herbs ; mantle of summer, 
 aspect of beauty, and hallfloor of love. 
 
 17. The three embellishing names of zephyrs ; countenance 
 (smile) of joy, salve of heaven, and smile (face) of love. 
 
 18. The three embellishing names of genius ; life of knowledge, 
 soul of reason, and gift of God. 
 
 19. The three embellishing names of conscience ; light of hea- 
 ven, eye of truth, and voice of God. 
 
 20. The three embellishing names of knowledge ; paths of truth, 
 hand of reason, and strength of genius. — Iolo MSS. p. 480. 
 
 Rhys Goch, Davydd ab Grwilym, and subsequent writers, 
 it should be admitted, are favourable exceptions. 
 
 We have stated the facts as they exist ; but there are 
 several considerations, which ought in fairness to be urged 
 in defence of the Cambrian bards. Their works should not 
 be judged by the critical principles which uow prevail; for 
 though it be admissible to apply that rule in order to esti- 
 mate their value as specimens of the art of composition ; to 
 criticise the productions of dark ages by the light of the 
 present, is to apply a test as much too severe, as it is im- 
 perfect and unfair. This I am aware is the rule most fre- 
 quently employed ; for men generally believe nothing good, 
 except that with which they happen to be acquainted ; and 
 the first impulses of all men, verify the correctness of that 
 faithful representation of the narrowness of human judg- 
 ments — the allegorical bed of Procrustes. In reviewing 
 the bardic poems, the time at which they were sung, and 
 the circumstances under which they were produced, should 
 be taken into account. The subjects were not the sugges- 
 tions of happy moments, nor were the poems the fruits of 
 untrammelled meditation; but on the contrary, the themes 
 were prescribed, and the treatment of the subjects, not what 
 welled up spontaneously in the poet's mind, but what cus- 
 
500 GENERAL CRITICISM. 
 
 torn had ordained to be appropriate. Of the bardic canon 
 of criticism we must say, that it has much to recommend 
 it ; the images sanctioned are frequently very beautiful; and 
 being drawn less from books than from external objects, 
 have a freshness which none others can supply. We do not 
 quarrel with it on this account ; perhaps it was well to fix a 
 standard of excellence, to which the inferior class of bards 
 should aspire ; but it erred in cramping the talents of those 
 who were really able men. The mind has laws and moods of 
 its own; it may drink inspiration from the pealing thunder, 
 suck honeyed thoughts from opening flowers, or see pro- 
 foundest meanings in pearly drops of dew ; but it is reluc- 
 tant to obey another's command, and bows submissively to 
 no secondary laws : " Poets," it has been well said, " sel- 
 dom succeed on given themes. " The times were not favour- 
 able to originality ; the minds of the able men were not al- 
 lowed sufficient room to be developed still further ; so that 
 when bardism had prescribed the metaphors, and images 
 appropriate to each occasion, we should rather wonder at 
 finding so many good passages in the poems of the greater 
 bards, than at seeing the minor poets ringing the changes on 
 a few ideas and set phrases. 
 
 We are also liable to do the bards less than justice, from 
 viewing their poems in a collective form. A sense of weari- 
 ness and monotony is thus produced, which could not have 
 been felt when the poems were first composed. No severer 
 test can be applied to a writer addicted to mannerism, than a 
 comparison of his collected works ; and as a peculiarity of 
 mental constitution, though not inconsistent with greatness 
 of certain kinds, is an indication of narrowness, none but 
 the choicest spirits can pass unscathed through such an 
 ordeal. Some of the ablest of living writers have been 
 weighed in this balance, and found wanting ; when we have 
 seen their writings on one class of subjects, we may predict 
 with considerable certainty what their treatment of others 
 is likely to be ; and therefore we should not pronounce too 
 hasty a judgment upon the Cambrian bards. Their poems 
 
GENERAL CRITICISM. 5Q| 
 
 are not members of a series. Each composition was intended 
 to be complete in itself, and should be viewed accordingly. 
 If the poems be taken singly, and at intervals of time, as 
 they were produced, they will be found readable enough ; 
 the thoughts are appropriate to the subject ; the imagery, 
 which is sometimes rich, can seldom be said to want beauty; 
 and the metaphors, frequently forcible, are never far-fetch- 
 ed or out of place : they only become wearisome when read 
 in quick succession. Much of the monotony is also to be 
 attributed to the paucity of subjects. The age had but one 
 idea — war; and most of the bardic poems being addressed to 
 the warlike princes of the Kymry, were composed for set 
 occasions. Princes, wars, and raids were the great features 
 of the time ; and as one Prince, or one war was as like as 
 possible to another, the writers of successive addresses to 
 different, or the same persons, must have repeated them- 
 selves very frequently. The inferior bards could not break 
 through this narrow circle. The poems of Einion Wan, 
 Prydydd Bychan, and Bleddyn, are neither good nor bad ; 
 tried by the Horatian rule they must be condemned ; but 
 viewed in connexion with the bardic school, they will appear 
 less liable to censure. Gwalchmai, Kynddelw, Llywarch, 
 Davydd Benvras, and Ap yr Ynad, were however men of 
 a different stamp; they had capacity enough to soar above 
 that which was immediately present, — to leave the beaten 
 path of custom, and to adorn their works with graces pecu- 
 liarly their own. 
 
 The bardic poetry is frequently sententious, and inter- 
 woven with moral reflections. Sometimes this has a pleas- 
 ing effect : but it is most commonly otherwise. In the poems 
 of Gwalchmai we have several specimens of very pure lyric 
 forms, free from any admixture of irrelevant matter. All 
 the poetry of the Kymry of these centuries, would come un- 
 der the designation lyric ; for though they sometimes assume 
 an epic character, the whole treatment is that of the lyrist. 
 The pure forms of Gwalchmai were however thought not to 
 display a sufficient degree of mastery ; and instead of con- 
 
£02 GENERAL CRITICISM. 
 
 fining themselves to the proper limits of lyric poetry, the 
 bards frequently interrupt the full flow of passion, to intro- 
 duce commonplace and unnecessary reflections. Paren- 
 thetical sentences impertinently intrude themselves into 
 some of the finest poems of Kynddelw ; some of the others 
 are in this respect less faulty ; but in most of the bardic 
 poems, the anxiety of the authors to remind the hearer or 
 reader of their personal presence, is frequently a source of 
 annoyance. There are however numerous instances where 
 these reflections are both strictly appropriate, and produc- 
 tive of very pleasing effects ; the invocations at the com- 
 mencement of some of the greatest poems of Meilir, Kyn- 
 ddelw, Llywarch, and Davydd Benvras are really sublime ; 
 and the religious tone of the closing lines of many, give 
 their chief compositions a highly poetic character. 
 
 Another feature in their poems, is strongly indicative of 
 the circumstances under which they were produced. We 
 frequently find the subjects of their odes spoken of in 
 different degrees of relationship; the persons to whom 
 the poems are composed, are generally addressed in the 
 second person singular, but frequently in the third ; and 
 the explanation appears to be, that the poems were com- 
 posed for, and recited in public assemblies. The early 
 poetry of all nations appears to be connected with feasts, 
 and populous gatherings ; the lyrics of the Hebrews, as ap- 
 pears from the admirable lectures of Lowth, have the pecu- 
 liarity here noticed ; and the same observation holds good 
 of the epic and lyric poetry of Greece. Most of the poems 
 of the mediaeval bards, were undoubtedly composed for such 
 occasions; this appears from Lewis Glyn Cothi's account of 
 the wedding in Flint, and from the words of Kynddelw, — 
 
 " Canaf wawd yr priawd ae pryu," 
 
 I will sing an eulogy to the prince who will buy it ; 
 
 and the poet recited his composition after dinner in the 
 presence of the assembled guests. When the bard speaks 
 of the host in the second person, he probably addressed that 
 
GENERAL CRITICISM. 5Q3 
 
 personage directly ; and when the hero of the piece is 
 spoken of in the third person, the remarks are parentheti- 
 cal, and were probably addressed to the bystanders. On 
 such occasions, the introduction of matter not strictly rele- 
 vant was excusable; and it should be observed, that the 
 poems of the bards were intended to be listened to, rather 
 than read. 
 
 We have already shown the skill of the bards in forming 
 compound words; their works exhibit a similar feature 
 in the compound epithets with which they abound. This 
 has been well described by the Rev. Thomas Price : — 
 
 "I have passed some time in studying the writings of the bards, 
 and can say of them that they are in the highest degree original 
 in their character. One mark of their excellence was, that they 
 could not be accurately translated into any other tongue; the dic- 
 tion was highly wrought, and the imagery striking; and altogether 
 the poetry of the bards is so superior to the general run of colloquial 
 writing, that it is impossible to give it adequate expression in any 
 other language. If I was asked what is the style in which the 
 bards wrote, I would say that it was lyric; if I were to name any 
 classic poet of antiquity that resembled them, I would name 
 Pindar ; there was the same originality, the same richness of ex- 
 pression, and the same transient kind of imagery, so suddenly 
 produced, and so rapidly withdrawn. I know of no other poet 
 of antiquity to compare to them. If I were called upon to explain 
 by any English work, the nature of this combined expression, I 
 should certainly fix upon the poems of Gray, in which we find 
 such lines as, — 
 
 ' The breezy call of incense-breathing morn/ 
 Gwalchmai invokes, — 
 
 ' The early-rising summer-sun,' 
 
 And such passages are frequent in the poems of the bards." 
 
 On becoming more intimate with the bards, the principles 
 of the order become more and more manifest; and we find that 
 in order to give more eclat to themselves, and make poetry 
 a difficult art, they raised an artificial standard of a some- 
 what vicious character, and required all reputable poems to 
 be of a given affected form. This consisted of like commence- 
 
504 GENERAL CRITICISM. 
 
 ments to their lines, such as we saw in the Avallenau and 
 in Davydd Benvras. It was the prevalent taste during the 
 last period treated of here; and had been introduced as 
 early as the time of Llywelyn ab Iorwerth. This appears 
 from Giraldus ; but as the reader might not have particular- 
 ly noticed the allusion, we here quote it a second time, — 
 
 " Beyond all rhetorical ornaments, they preferred the use of al- 
 literation ; and that kind more especially, which repeats the first 
 letters or syllables of words. They made so much use of this orna- 
 ment in every finished discourse, that they thought nothing ele- 
 gantly spoken without it." 
 
 We have given some specimens of this already, such as, — 
 
 Gogyfurdd torment ^q^ofiaw forfoedd," 
 and — 
 
 " TeymWn, teymedd, teyrn\\&-\v, tcyrnWiw " 
 
 and these lines in the Avallenau, furnish a specimen both 
 of the beauties, and the faults of the practice. They have 
 been already twice quoted, and will bear quotation again. — 
 
 Saith Afallen beren a saith ugaint, 
 ^ n 9yf 0Q ^i yyf 11 ^^} $^hyd, ^mmaint. 
 
 This when sparingly introduced has a pleasing effect; but 
 we here observe a drawback, " gyfuwch" and " gyhyd" 
 mean precisely the same thing, for there can be no differ- 
 ence between "as high" and "as long/ 1 when applied to 
 trees. Davydd Benvras was proud of this affected orna- 
 ment, and has a long passage full of repeated phrases, 
 
 Oedd breisg freiscj ei fyddin, 
 Oedd brivysg rwysg rhag y godorin, 
 Oedd batch givalch golchiad ei lain, 
 Oedd gweilch beilch gweled ei werin, 
 Oedd c/?/wed cfeddyfau finfin ; 
 Oedd clybod chvyf ym mhob elin ; 
 Oedd briiv rhiw yn nhrabludd odrin; 
 Oedd braw saw Saeson Clawdd y Cnwccin ; 
 Oedd bwlch llafn yn Haw gynnefin, 
 Oedd givaedljd pennau givedj givaedlin. 
 
 Now this has no great merit as poetry ; yet if that has but 
 
GENERAL CRITICISM. 5Q5 
 
 the single merit of beino- alliterative, the following has the 
 double merit of being alliterative and good poetry as well, — 
 
 Llaicer deigr hylithr yn hwylaw ar rudd ; 
 
 Llawer ystlys rhudd a rhwyg arnaw ; 
 Llawer gwaed am draed wedi ymdreiddiaw; 
 Llaicer gweddw a gwaedd am danaw ; 
 Llawer meddwl trwm yn tramwyaw; 
 Llawer mab heb dad wedi ei adaw; 
 Llaiuer hendref fraitli, gwedi llwybr godaitb ; 
 Llawer diffaith trwy anrhaitli draw ; 
 Llawer lief druan 
 Fal ban fu'n Gamlan ; 
 Llawer deigr dros ran, . 
 
 Wedir greiniaw, 
 las gwanas gwanar eurllaw 
 laith Llywelyn, cof ni'm daw. 1 
 
 Here the repetition is appropriate, and rises naturally 
 
 from the subject; but we can only say this of a very few. Gwi- 
 
 lym Ddu has forty three lines, out of the sixty three forming 
 
 his Odlau'r Misoedd, beo-innin?; in " Neud ," much of which 
 
 is pure affectation, and bad taste. Casnodyn, who lived a 
 
 little later, inclined to the same practice, as may be here 
 
 seen, — 
 
 Pan wnel Duw ddangos ei faran, 
 Ztyddwyre dy daerad arnan ; 
 Dychrjn twryf torfoedd yn eban, 
 Dygyrch hynt, dychre gwynt gwaeddfan; 
 Hychymnvnvr ton amliw amlan, 
 Dychymmen ufeliar bar ban, 
 Dychvjs gwrys gwres tandde allan. 
 
 The same taste or rather want of taste is shown in the 
 poems of Gruffydd Gryg, Iolo Goch, and Madog Benvras ; 
 and Davydd ab Gwilym very frequently has whole poems 
 commencing with the same letter. It should however be ad- 
 mitted that the poets of other countries, have put forth 
 similar conceits. Arnaud de Marveil, a well known 
 Proven c.al poet, or Troubadour, in a poem addressed to his 
 mistress, has the following lines, — 
 
 Vos sahida; e vostra lauzor, 
 Vostra beautat, vostra valor, 
 
 1 For translation of these extracts, see pp. 151 and 388. 
 3S 
 
506 
 
 GENERAL CRITICISM. 
 
 Vostre solatz, vostre parlar, 
 Vostr' aculhir e vostr' onvar, 
 Vostre pretz, vostr' essenhawen, 
 Vostre saber, e vostre sen, 
 Vostre gen cors, vostre dos riz, 
 Vostra terra, vostre pays, 
 
 and what is still more surprising, this affectation prevailed 
 over the mind of Dante. We find it in the inscription 
 over the gate of hell. 
 
 Per me si va nella citta dolente, 
 Per me si va nell' eterno dolore; 
 Per me si va tra la perdita gente. 
 
 Through me you pass unto the city of woe, 
 Through me you pass into eternal pain ; 
 Through me among the people lost for aye. 
 
 This was the root from which Oynghanedd subsequently 
 sprang. 
 
 Again, I have another quarrel with the bards ; for not 
 only do they display affectation in the " beginnings" of their 
 lines, but they also display it in their " endings"; the 
 effect of both practices being the depreciation of the poetry, 
 and filling up of the lines with unmeaning words. It dates 
 from an early period : — 
 
 Aneurin has 
 
 
 11 lines ending in aivr, an 
 
 
 
 18 
 
 en. 
 
 Taliesin has 
 
 
 31 
 
 ant. 
 
 Meilyr has 
 
 
 38 
 
 awd, 
 
 
 .. 
 
 52 
 
 awe, 
 
 
 
 64 
 
 yt, and 
 
 
 
 16 
 
 ed. 
 
 Gwalchmaihas 
 
 
 21 
 
 i. 
 
 Einion his son 
 
 
 56 
 
 i. 
 
 Cynddelw has 
 
 
 60 
 
 eith. 
 
 Prydydd Moch 
 
 
 66 
 
 ar. 
 
 
 
 36 
 
 an. 
 
 
 , . 
 
 42 
 
 o, ami 
 
 
 
 64 
 
 int. 
 
 Davydd Benvras 1 
 
 las 
 
 41 
 
 n. 
 
 Einiawn ab Gwga~ 
 
 wn has 
 
 28 
 
 aid, 
 
 
 
 44 
 
 ein, 
 
 
 
 36 
 
 ad, and 
 
 
 . 
 
 30 
 
 er. 
 
GENERAL CRITICISM. 5Q7 
 
 Llygad Gwr has ... 36 lines ending in ed, 
 
 32 ... i, 
 
 36 ... dd, 
 
 16 ... dith, and 
 
 45 ... an. 
 
 Owain Cyveiliog has 24 lines rhyming in en, 
 
 [in theHirlas] ... 24 ... ed, 
 
 20 ... eid, 
 
 18 ... an, 
 
 16 ... ir, 
 
 16 ... yr, 
 
 16 ... ant, and 
 
 14 ... yn. 
 
 G wily m Ddu has ... 32 ... edd, and 
 
 3o ... yd. 
 
 and Ap yr Ynad, in Marwnad Llywelyn, ends 104 lines in 
 aw. This species of affectation seems to have belonged pe- 
 culiarly to this period; for to their credit be it said, it was 
 not adopted by the bards of the succeeding centuries. 
 
 Much however of this monotony arose from the simpli- 
 city of their metres. From time to time these were great- 
 ly improved ; and even during the period under considera- 
 tion, many new metres were invented. Those in use prior 
 to the time of Meilir were the following : — 
 
 1. " Gorchan y Gyhydedd Fer." This requires the line to consist 
 of no more than four syllables, and the lines to he no more than 
 eight in each verse. Each of the lines must have the same rhyme; 
 and the poet has the privilege of choosing the number of lines 
 from four to eight. 
 
 2. " Y Gyhydedd Gaeth." This is the same as the short uietri- 
 city,in all respects, except in the length of the lines, which should 
 consist of five syllables. 
 
 3. " Y Gyhydedd Drosgl," (Rugged.) The same as the two pre- 
 ceding, except in the length of the lines being six syllables. 
 
 4. "Y Gyhydedd Lefn," (Smooth,) has seven syllables in each 
 line, and is privileged to range from four to twelve lines in each 
 verse. 
 
 5. "Y Gyhydedd Wastad," (Regular,) has Octosyllabic lines, 
 and verses ranging from four to sixteen lines each. 
 
 6. "Y Gyhydedd Draws, 1 ' (Cross,) is the same as the last, only 
 that there are nine syllables in each line. 
 
 7. "Y Gyhydedd Wen," (Flowing.) Ten syllables; in other 
 respects the same. 
 
 8. " Y Gyhydedd Laes," (Heavy.) Eleven syllables, &c. 
 
 9. " Y Gyhydedd Hir," (Long,) is privileged to have as many 
 
508 GENERAL CRITICISM. 
 
 as twenty lines ; the length of each line be : ng twelve syllables. 
 These are what are termed the nine canons of metricity ; 
 the other metres are combinations of these, — 
 
 10. " Clogyrnach," (Rugosity,) resembles the Pindaric odes. 
 
 11. "Ban Cyrch," (Recurrent verse.) Very pleasing rhymes. 
 
 12. "Forchawd]," (Furcated Transition.) Gwalchmai's ode is 
 in this metre ; and the Rev. Walter Davies (to whose Essay I am 
 indebted for much information) gives the following as a speci- 
 men of one of its many varieties : — 
 
 " Fountains of wine shall pour along, 
 
 And melting from the hollow tree, 
 
 The golden treasures of the bee, 
 
 And streams of milk shall fill my song." — Francis' Horace. 
 
 13. " Warrior's Triplet." A very old metre — old perhaps as the 
 time of the Druids, consisting of three lines, and having the pri- 
 vilege of ranging from seven to ten syllables in the line. 
 
 14. "Huppynt," (Vaulting strain,) — An example; — 
 
 " Cysgid Lloegr 
 Llydan nifer 
 A lleufer 
 
 Yn eu llygaid." 
 
 Wordsworth's verses to the Daisy, are written in this 
 metre. They are not so simple as the preceding example; 
 but belong to the variety known as y ffordd hwyaf, The 
 Huppynt, the Longest way : — 
 
 When smitten by the morning's ray, 
 I see thee rise alert and gay, 
 Then cheerful Flower ! my spirits play 
 With kindred motion; 
 
 At dusk I've seldom mark'd thee press 
 The ground as if in thankfulness, 
 Without some feeling more or less, 
 Of true devotion. 
 
 15. " Cynghawg," (Complexity.) There are many varieties. 
 
 16. "Toddaid." (Connuency.) Example:— 
 
 " Gorvoledd gwinwledd gwenwlad — tragywydd 
 Lie bydd hael Llywydd haul a lleuaO." — Casnodyn. 
 
 To these were added, during this era, — 
 
 "Proest Cymewidiawg," (Combined vowel alternity,) — 
 
 " Gwyr riv y syr yssut yn y gad 
 Gwrthrudd Veredydd vur gryd, 
 
GENERAL CRITICISM. 5Q9 
 
 Twn y bar dreig anwar drud, 
 
 Di dwn y eir vel creir cred." — Prydydd Bychan. 
 
 18. "Ynglyn." The verses of Kynddehv to Owain Kyveiliog and 
 the Lord Rhys, are specimens of this. 
 
 The Englyn is much simpler in its form in the poems of 
 these centuries, than it afterwards became on the introduc- 
 tion of Cynghanedd, or consonancy. The old form of this 
 metre was, — 
 
 Nid oes ym Davyt dawn orvod — ar bawb 
 
 Arbennigyawl hebod 
 Cadyr rwyf cadarn glwyf glybod 
 Can llonyt byw yn dyt bod — Gwilym Ryvel. 
 
 Here the only peculiarities are that the four lines have 
 the same final rhyme, and that the consonants, r, b, in "ar 
 bawb, 11 are repeated in "arbennigyawl. 1 ' But in the more mo- 
 dern Englyn, this correspondence of consonants is required 
 in every line. For example, we will take the prize Englyn 
 to the Goat, at the Liverpool Eisteddvod of 1840, — ■ 
 
 .Bervain yvr'r avr a b&rvog, — arccavlais, 
 
 Un hirvlew a chorniog; 
 ]S T aid hyd ]\ethvau creigiau crog 
 A'i wawcW yw'r graig ddnneddog. — Rob. Thomas. 
 
 The peculiarity here, is indicated by the italics ; and there 
 are numerous other nice distinctions which we cannot stay 
 to notice. 
 
 19. "Triban Cyrch," (Recurring triplet,) better known as Tri- 
 ban Morganwg. Example : 
 
 " Anhyfryd beth i'w methu, 
 A ffwyl ar ddyn i'w ffaelu, 
 
 IN T i wel fwynder glwysber glan 
 Nag un awr can a gwenu." 
 
 20. " Cywydd," (Recitative.) The merit of inventing this is 
 claimed for Iolo Goch, Trahaiarn, and Davydd ab Gwilym. It is 
 considered the finest and sweetest of all the metres. Most of D. 
 ap Gwilym's poems are written in it. 
 
 21. "Proest Cadwynodl," (Combined alternate Rhyme.) We 
 have an early example in Guttyn Owain, — 
 
 Y vendith drwy gyviawnder 
 A gavas Nudd ac Ivor 
 Ar Ddavydd riv sydd o ser 
 Ac a roi'r mwy na gro'r mor. 
 
510 
 
 GENERAL CRITICISM. 
 
 22. "Cadwyn Gyrch," (Recurrent catenation,) says one critic, 
 " crowds the ear too much with its Cuckoo-like repetitions.'' 
 
 23. " Traethawdl," (Narrative.) "Its mark of inherence is that 
 the rhythm be changed every couplet like a Cywydd, and its pri- 
 vilege is choice of metricity, from seven to twelve syllables." 
 
 24. " Dyri," (Vocal Song,) a free flowing metre, and of endless 
 varieties, adapted to Lyric Songs. 
 
 These four last were invented subsequent to the time em- 
 braced by this Essay, — and some changes were made at the 
 Carmarthen Eistecldvod in 1451; but these alterations were 
 afterwards done away with at another Carmarthen Eistedd- 
 vod in 1819. The miserable affectation of writing verses on 
 all the metres has now been abandoned, and the poet is 
 very properly allowed to use such of the metres as suit his 
 taste. 
 
 The influence of such an order of men as the bards in 
 stirring up the patriotism of the Kymry, and in"stimulating 
 the latent intellect, courage, and daring which slumber in all 
 bosoms until called forth by strong excitement, is very 
 clearly shown by the proclamations, and hostile edicts of the 
 English monarchs, and can scarcely be over-rated. Much 
 that was good and great would not but for their exhorta- 
 tions have seen the light ; and many a brilliant conception 
 that the world now glories in the possession of, would have 
 been evaporated in apathy, or perished in indifference, but 
 for the stimulus given to the patriotic cause by these wander- 
 ing minstrels. 
 
 We have already adverted to the historical value of the 
 bardic remains ; but there is one aspect under which their 
 historical worth deserves a more special notice. They 
 throw light not only on Kymric literature, but also on 
 English history; and it cannot but be interesting for 
 candid Saxons to learn how their countrymen were regard- 
 ed at this period by their more civilized opponents. The 
 wars of the English kings against the Kymry, form a most 
 important portion of English history, though it is admitted 
 to be imperfect; and it must ever remain imperfect as it now 
 
GENERAL CRITICISM. 5] | 
 
 is, until English scholars cultivate a knowledge of our lite- 
 rature, or some Cambrian supplies the deficiency from the 
 rich stores of Kymric poetry; for the bardic writings 
 throw a flood of light upon cou temporary history of a 
 most faithful and trustworthy character. Mr. Turner was 
 not slow to appreciate the value of the early poems of Tal- 
 iesin, Aneurin, and Llywarch, in illustrating and complet- 
 ing the history of the Anglo Saxons. These bards intro- 
 duce the reader into a new country, new thoughts, new 
 habits, and to a new people. They mention battles of which 
 there are no other records, and describe with graphic fide- 
 lity, engagements of which the Saxon reader has never 
 heard ; and how could it be otherwise than interesting, and 
 instructive to peruse the records of the only literary people 
 then existing? The same facts are apparent as we descend 
 from the sixth century ; descriptions of battles, pictures of 
 manners and dresses, and eulogies of brave warriors, are of 
 frequent occurrence ; and even where we have authentic his- 
 tory on the English side, it must be interesting to peruse 
 the counter accounts current among their opponents. How 
 faint the traces which Owain Glyndwr has left on the Eng- 
 lish page ; and how unimportant compared with the vast 
 importance he is known to have possessed ! And yet how 
 full the details in Iolo Goch, and Gruftydd Llwyd. During 
 the Wars of the Roses, Wales was the scene of incessant 
 conflicts, plots, and intrigues, and yet of this period so ob- 
 scurely described by English historians, the Kymry have a 
 fund of lively and authentic contemporary history in the 
 poems of Lewis Glyn Cothi, Tudur Aled, Gutyn Owain, 
 and the galaxy of bards who flourished during that period. 
 To come down still lower, who, after reading Huw Morus's 
 spirited pictures of the movements, passions, and persons 
 of the day, would think the present history of the civil war 
 anything like complete ? 
 
 These characteristics of Cambrian literature, give us no 
 small claim upon the attention of the English public ; who, 
 if they wish thoroughly to learn the history of their own 
 
5]2 GENERAL CRITICISM. 
 
 country, must see their character reflected in Kymric 
 mirrors, and diligently study the literature of the Princi- 
 pality. It will repay the labour. 
 
 I believe, I have now gone over as much ground as 
 the reader can reasonably be expected to travel ; and at 
 parting, take leave to ask, if at the period under considera- 
 tion, the Kymry were not among the most intelligent and 
 intellectual of the inhabitants of Europe I We wait the 
 answer in perfect confidence. 
 
 WILLIAM REES, TRINTER, LLANDOVERY. 
 
--T- 
 
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