Medieval Welsh literature
Encyclopedia
Medieval Welsh literature is the literature
written in the Welsh language
during the Middle Ages
. This includes material from the fifth century, when Welsh was in the process of becoming distinct from the British language
, to the works of the 16th century.
The Welsh language became distinct from other dialects of Old British sometime between AD 400 and 700; the earliest surviving literature in Welsh is poetry
dating from this period. The poetic tradition represented in the work of Y Cynfeirdd ("The Early Poets"), as they are known, then survives for over a thousand years to the work of the Poets of the Nobility in the 16th century.
The core tradition was praise poetry and the poet Taliesin
was regarded as the first in the line. The other aspect of the tradition was the professionalism of the poets and their reliance on patronage
from kings, princes and nobles for their living. The fall of the Kingdom of Gwynedd
and the loss of any form of Welsh independence in 1282 proved a crisis in the tradition, but one that was eventually overcome. It led to the innovation of the development of the cywydd
meter
, a looser definition of praise, and a reliance on the nobility
for patronage.
The professionalism of the poetic tradition was sustained by a Guild of Poets, or Order of Bards, with its own "rule book" emphasizing the making of poetry as a craft. Under its rules poets undertook an apprenticeship
of nine years to become fully qualified. The rules also set out the payment a poet could expect for his work. These payments varied according to how long a poet had been in training and also the demand for poetry at particular times during the year.
Alongside the court poet, kings, princes and nobles patronized an official storyteller (Welsh: cyfarwydd). Like poets, the storytellers were also professionals, but unlike the poets little of their work has survived. What has survived are literary creations based on native Welsh tales which would have been told by the storytellers. The bulk of this material is found in the collection known today as the Mabinogion
. Medieval Welsh prose
was not confined to the story tradition but also included a large body of both religious and practical works in addition to a large amount translated from other languages.
until the arrival of the Normans
in Wales towards the end of the 11th century.
The oldest Welsh literature does not belong to the territory we know as Wales
today, but rather to northern England
and southern Scotland
, and so could be classified as being composed in Cumbric, a Brythonic dialect closely related to Old Welsh. Though it is dated to the 6th, 7th, and 8th centuries it has survived only in 13th and 14th century manuscript copies. Some of these early poets' names are known from the 9th century Historia Brittonum, traditionally ascribed to the historian Nennius
. The Historia lists the famous poets from the time of King Ida
, AD 547-559:
Of the poets named here it is believed that work that can be identified as Aneirin's and Taliesin's have survived.
has been preserved in a 14th century manuscript
known as Llyfr Taliesin
(Book of Taliesin). This manuscript contains a large body of later mystical poetry attributed to the poet, but scholars have recognised twelve poems that belong to the 6th century. They are all poems of praise: one for Cynan Garwyn
, king of Powys
about 580; two for Gwallawg, king of Elmet
, a kingdom based around the modern Leeds
; the other nine poems are associated with Urien Rheged
, a ruler of the kingdom of Rheged
, located around the Solway Firth
, and with his son, Owain
.
Taliesin's verse in praise of Urien and Owain became models for later poets, who turned to him for inspiration as they praised their own patrons in terms that he had used for his.
, a near-contemporary of Taliesin, wrote a series of poems to create one long epic
called Y Gododdin
. It records the Battle of Catraeth, fought between the Britons
of the kingdom of Gododdin
(centred on Eidyn, the modern Edinburgh
) and the Saxon
kingdoms of Deira and Bernicia
in the northeast of England. This battle was fought at Catterick
in about the year 598. It has survived in Llyfr Aneirin
(The Book of Aneirin), a manuscript dating from ca. 1265.
(Llywarch the Elder) and Heledd date from a somewhat later period. These poems, in the form of monologues, express the sorrow and affliction felt at the loss of the eastern portion of the Kingdom of Powys (present day Shropshire
) to the English, but they are also works where nature is an important element in the background, reflecting the main action and feelings of the poetry itself.
invaders seem to break Welsh hearts in most of the early poetry, there are some poems of encouragement and the hope of an eventual and decisive defeat that would drive them back into the sea. One such poem is the tenth-century Armes Prydein
from the Book of Taliesin which sees a coalition of Celtic and Scandinavia
n forces defeating the English and restoring Britain to the Welsh.
This period also produced religious poetry, such as the englyn
ion in praise of the Trinity
found in the ninth-century Juvencus Manuscript (Cambridge MS Ff. 4.42), which is now at Cambridge University Library
. In the Book of Taliesin we find a 9th century poem Edmyg Dinbych (In Praise of Tenby
, a town in Pembrokeshire
), probably produced by a court poet in Dyfed
to celebrate the New Year
(Welsh: Calan). The book also includes important poems which were probably not composed by Taliesin, including the Armes Prydein (The Great Prophecy of Britain) and Preiddeu Annwfn
, (The Spoils of Annwn
), and the Book of Aneirin has preserved an early Welsh nursery rhyme
, Pais Dinogad (Dinogad's Petticoat). Much of the nature poetry, gnomic poetry
, prophetic poetry, and religious poetry in the Black Book of Carmarthen
and the Red Book of Hergest
is also believed to date from this period.
, an anthology of court poetry brought together at the Cistercian Strata Florida Abbey
from about 1282 until 1350.
The poets of this period were professionals who worked in the various princely courts in Wales. They were members of a Guild of poets whose rights and responsibilities were enshrined in native Welsh law; and as such, they worked within a developed literary culture and with inflexible traditions. Bardic families were still common—the poet Meilyr Brydydd
had a poet son and at least two poet grandsons—but it was becoming more and more usual for the craft of poetry to be taught formally, in bardic schools which might only be run by the pencerdd (chief musician). The pencerdd was the top of his profession and a special chair was set aside for him in the court, in an honoured position next to the heir. When he performed he was expected to sing twice: once in honour of God, and once in honour of the king. The bardd teulu (retinue poet) was one of the 24 officers of the court and he was responsible for singing for the military retinue before going into battle, and for the queen in the privacy of her chamber. The lowest ranking poets were the cerddorion (musicians).
The poetry praises the military prowess of the prince in a language that is deliberately antiquarian and obscure, echoing the earlier praise poetry tradition of Taliesin. There is also some religious poems and poetry in praise of women.
With the death of the last native prince of Wales in 1282 the tradition gradually disappears. In fact, Gruffudd ab yr Ynad Coch's (fl.
1277-83) elegy on the death of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd
, is one of the most notable poems of the era. Other prominent poets of this period include:
A rather different poet of this period was Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd
(d. 1170) who as the son of Prince Owain Gwynedd
, was not a professional poet.
". After 1282 the poetic tradition survived by turning to the land-owning nobility to act as patrons, and these included some Norman
lords who had successfully integrated themselves with the Welsh.
Much of the poetry of this period is praise poetry praise of the patron and his family, his ancestors, his house and his generosity and the cywydd
is the most popular poetic meter used. Because of the popularity of the cywydd this period is also known as the period of the Cywyddwyr (poets who write using the cywydd meter). The poetry was very often sung to the accompaniment of the harp. Though praise was the main matter of poetry, satire
(Welsh: dychan) also thrived. The poets organised themselves into a Guild to protect their professional status, and from time to time their rules were revised and updated. Perhaps the most important being the decisions concerning patronage and poetic rank made at the Caerwys eisteddfod of 1523. The work of numerous poets of this period survives, some are anonymous, but very many are identified. Here are a few of the most prominent and influential are listed:
, Iolo Goch
bridged between the period of the Poets of the Princes and Poets of the Nobility. Early in his career he composed in the tradition of the Poets of the Princes but he was among the first to sing the praises of the nobles and others using the cywydd
meter. His main patron was Ithel ap Robert from Coedymynydd near Caerwys
. Perhaps his most famous work is a cywydd
poem in praise of Owain Glyndŵr
's home at Sycharth.
is most famous for using his poetry in the service of his Christian
beliefs and standing outside the tradition of praise of patron. He uses the cywydd
meter for his work but in order to attack the sins of this world. Perhaps his most famous poem is I wagedd ac oferedd y byd (=In praise of the vanity and wantoness of the world). He turns his back on the praise of nobles which he sees as flattery and falsehood and sets his eyes on the blessedness of heaven.
is associated with Glyn Ceiriog
, Denbighshire
, where many of his patrons lived. He also wrote poems for other patrons in the four corners of Wales whose houses he visited on his journeys. He was a master of the praise tradition in poetry. Guto was also a soldier who fought on the Yorkist side during the War of the Roses, but spent his last years as a lay guest at the Cistercian abbey of Valle Crucis
, near Llangollen
.
, born at Nanmor (or Nantmor), Gwynedd
, is one of the most significant poets of this period. It is said that he was exiled to south Wales for over-stepping the mark in his poetry and spent the rest of his life outside Gwynedd
. His work was seen to have particular significance by the twentieth-century critic Saunders Lewis
. Lewis saw him a poet of philosophy who praised the ideal ruler as he praised his patrons who saw that within the Welsh tradition all who had privilege and power also had responsibilities towards family, community and nation.
was himself a nobleman and one of the greatest of the Poets of the Nobility. Born in Llansannan, Denbighshire
, his most important patrons were the Salisbury family of Dyffryn Clwyd
. He was one of the instigators of the Caerwys eisteddfod of 1523. In his final illness he took the habit of Order of St. Francis
and died in Carmarthen
, where he was buried in the Brothers' Court. At his death the elegies his fellow poets wrote in his memory attested to his greatness as a poet. He was renowned as a praise poet of both secular and religious noblemen, and also reflects the changes at the beginning of the sixteenth century which were threatening the future of the bardic system.
, Gruffudd Hiraethog
was one of the foremost poets of the sixteenth century to use the cywydd
meter. Though he was member of the medieval guild of poets and notable upholder of that tradition, he was also closely associated with William Salesbury
, Wales' leading Renaissance scholar. In fact one of the first Welsh
to be published was Gruffudd's collection of proverbs in 1547, Oll synnwyr pen Kembero ygyd (=The sense of a Welshman's mind collected together).
.
The prophetic poetry (Welsh: canu brud) was a means of reacting to and commenting upon political situations and happenings. This poetry is intentionally ambiguous and difficult to understand. But at its heart it prophesies victory for the Welsh over their enemies, the English. This poetry looked towards a man of destiny who would free them from their oppressors. With the victory of the 'Welshman' Henry VII in 1485 at the battle of Bosworth the poets believed that the prophecies had been fulfilled and the tradition comes to an end. Satire poetry (Welsh: canu dychan) was part of the 'official' poets' repertoire and sparingly used within the praise tradition to chastise a miserly patron. But it was in private poetic bouts with fellow poets that the satire tradition flourished.
but now in the library of St. Chad's Cathedral, Lichfield
, and also known as the Lichfield Gospels
, or, The Book of St. Chad
. The marginal note, known from its opening (Latin) word as The Surexit memorandum, dates from the ninth century, or even earlier, and is a record of a legal case over land.
The native Welsh storyteller, known as the cyfarwydd ("the one who knows") was an official of the court. He was expected to know the traditional knowledge and the tales. But the storytelling tradition was basically oral, and only a few remnants suggest the wealth of that tradition. Amongst the most important are Trioedd Ynys Prydain, or the Welsh Triads
, a compendium of mnemonics for poets and storytellers. The stories that have survived are literary compositions based on oral tradition.
In the Middle Ages Welsh was used for all sorts of purposes and this is reflected in the type of prose materials that has survived from this period: original material and translations, tales and facts, religious and legal, history and medicine.
is a convenient label for a collection of tales preserved in two manuscripts known as the White book of Rhydderch
and the Red Book of Hergest
. They are written in Middle Welsh, the common literary language between the end of the eleventh century and the fourteenth century. They include the four tales that form Pedair Cainc y Mabinogi ("The Four Branches of the Mabinogi
"):
Two are native tales embodying traditions about King Arthur
:
Two more are native tales embodying traditions about the early history of Britain:
The final three are the Arthurian Welsh Romances
, showing the influence of French poet Chrétien de Troyes
:
summoned a conference at Whitland
, Carmarthenshire
, in about 945. At this conference Welsh law
was codified and set down in writing for posterity. Since the earliest manuscripts containing these legal texts date from about two hundred and fifty years after the event they are probably not a record of what was codified there, if such a conference was even convened. In fact, until the annexation of Wales in 1536, native Welsh law grew and developed organically and for that reason many more copies of it have survived than of the native tales.
The use of Welsh for legal texts shows that it had the words and the technical terms with definite and exact meanings needed in such circumstances. It also shows that reading and writing Welsh was not confined to priests and monks, but that there were also lawyers "whose skill is directed not to administrating the law (there were judges for that), but to writing it, to giving it permanence in words, to ordering words and sentences in such a way that what was stated should be quite clear" (Thomas Parry (1955), p. 68).
, both native ones like Beuno, Curig, and Gwenfrewi
and the more general such as the Mary, the mother of Jesus, Mary Magdalene
, Martin of Tours
, and Catherine of Alexandria
survive, all translations into Welsh from Latin
. Even the lives of the native saints were composed in Latin originally, and that a long time after the saint's actual life and so of little or no interest to those looking for actual historical information. Perhaps the two most important is Buchedd Dewi ("The life of Dewi
, or, David") written by Rhygyfarch in about 1094, and Buchedd Cadog (Life of Cadog
") written by Lifris of Llancarfan in ca. 1100.
, tends to stick to historical facts, the second, Brut y Brenhinedd, is the fantastic creation of Geoffrey of Monmouth
.
(Chronicle of the Princes) are variant Welsh translation of a Latin original annales telling the history of Wales from the seventh century to the death of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd in 1282. It is believed that original and its translation were produced at the Cistercian Strata Florida Abbey.
's Historia Regum Britanniae
(1136). As such they were key works in shaping how the Welsh thought of themselves and others, tracing their origins back to Brutus
, the mythical founder of the Britain. In fact the Welsh word brut is derived from Brutus's name and originally meant "a history of Brutus" and then "a chronicle history".
Medieval literature
Medieval literature is a broad subject, encompassing essentially all written works available in Europe and beyond during the Middle Ages . The literature of this time was composed of religious writings as well as secular works...
written in the Welsh language
Welsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
during the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
. This includes material from the fifth century, when Welsh was in the process of becoming distinct from the British language
British language
The British language was an ancient Celtic language spoken in Britain.British language may also refer to:* Any of the Languages of the United Kingdom.*The Welsh language or the Brythonic languages more generally* British English...
, to the works of the 16th century.
The Welsh language became distinct from other dialects of Old British sometime between AD 400 and 700; the earliest surviving literature in Welsh is poetry
Medieval poetry
Because most of what we have was written down by clerics, much of extant medieval poetry is religious. The chief exception is the work of the troubadours and the minnesänger, whose primary innovation was the ideal of courtly love. Among the most famous of secular poetry is Carmina Burana, a...
dating from this period. The poetic tradition represented in the work of Y Cynfeirdd ("The Early Poets"), as they are known, then survives for over a thousand years to the work of the Poets of the Nobility in the 16th century.
The core tradition was praise poetry and the poet Taliesin
Taliesin
Taliesin was an early British poet of the post-Roman period whose work has possibly survived in a Middle Welsh manuscript, the Book of Taliesin...
was regarded as the first in the line. The other aspect of the tradition was the professionalism of the poets and their reliance on patronage
Patronage
Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows to another. In the history of art, arts patronage refers to the support that kings or popes have provided to musicians, painters, and sculptors...
from kings, princes and nobles for their living. The fall of the Kingdom of Gwynedd
Kingdom of Gwynedd
Gwynedd was one petty kingdom of several Welsh successor states which emerged in 5th-century post-Roman Britain in the Early Middle Ages, and later evolved into a principality during the High Middle Ages. It was based on the former Brythonic tribal lands of the Ordovices, Gangani, and the...
and the loss of any form of Welsh independence in 1282 proved a crisis in the tradition, but one that was eventually overcome. It led to the innovation of the development of the cywydd
Cywydd
The cywydd is one of the most important metrical forms in Welsh traditional poetry.There are a variety of forms of the cywydd, but the word on its own is generally used to refer to the cywydd deuair hirion as it is by far the most common type.The first recorded examples of the cywydd date from the...
meter
Meter (poetry)
In poetry, metre is the basic rhythmic structure of a verse or lines in verse. Many traditional verse forms prescribe a specific verse metre, or a certain set of metres alternating in a particular order. The study of metres and forms of versification is known as prosody...
, a looser definition of praise, and a reliance on the nobility
Nobility
Nobility is a social class which possesses more acknowledged privileges or eminence than members of most other classes in a society, membership therein typically being hereditary. The privileges associated with nobility may constitute substantial advantages over or relative to non-nobles, or may be...
for patronage.
The professionalism of the poetic tradition was sustained by a Guild of Poets, or Order of Bards, with its own "rule book" emphasizing the making of poetry as a craft. Under its rules poets undertook an apprenticeship
Apprenticeship
Apprenticeship is a system of training a new generation of practitioners of a skill. Apprentices or protégés build their careers from apprenticeships...
of nine years to become fully qualified. The rules also set out the payment a poet could expect for his work. These payments varied according to how long a poet had been in training and also the demand for poetry at particular times during the year.
Alongside the court poet, kings, princes and nobles patronized an official storyteller (Welsh: cyfarwydd). Like poets, the storytellers were also professionals, but unlike the poets little of their work has survived. What has survived are literary creations based on native Welsh tales which would have been told by the storytellers. The bulk of this material is found in the collection known today as the Mabinogion
Mabinogion
The Mabinogion is the title given to a collection of eleven prose stories collated from medieval Welsh manuscripts. The tales draw on pre-Christian Celtic mythology, international folktale motifs, and early medieval historical traditions...
. Medieval Welsh prose
Prose
Prose is the most typical form of written language, applying ordinary grammatical structure and natural flow of speech rather than rhythmic structure...
was not confined to the story tradition but also included a large body of both religious and practical works in addition to a large amount translated from other languages.
Welsh poetry before 1100
In Welsh literature the period before 1100 is known as the period of Y Cynfeirdd ("The Early Poets") or Yr Hengerdd ("The Old Poetry"). It roughly dates from the birth of the Welsh languageWelsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
until the arrival of the Normans
Normans
The Normans were the people who gave their name to Normandy, a region in northern France. They were descended from Norse Viking conquerors of the territory and the native population of Frankish and Gallo-Roman stock...
in Wales towards the end of the 11th century.
The oldest Welsh literature does not belong to the territory we know as Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
today, but rather to northern England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and southern Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, and so could be classified as being composed in Cumbric, a Brythonic dialect closely related to Old Welsh. Though it is dated to the 6th, 7th, and 8th centuries it has survived only in 13th and 14th century manuscript copies. Some of these early poets' names are known from the 9th century Historia Brittonum, traditionally ascribed to the historian Nennius
Nennius
Nennius was a Welsh monk of the 9th century.He has traditionally been attributed with the authorship of the Historia Brittonum, based on the prologue affixed to that work, This attribution is widely considered a secondary tradition....
. The Historia lists the famous poets from the time of King Ida
Ida of Bernicia
Ida is the first known king of the Anglian kingdom of Bernicia, which he ruled from around 547 until his death in 559. Little is known of his life or reign, but he was regarded as the founder of a line from which later Anglo-Saxon kings in this part of northern England and southern Scotland...
, AD 547-559:
- "At that time, Talhaiarn TataguenTalhaearn Tad AwenTalhaearn Tad Awen , was, according to medieval Welsh sources, a celebrated British poet of the sub-Roman period. He ranks as one of the earliest, if not the earliest, named poets to have composed and performed in Welsh...
was famed for poetry, and Neirin [ AneirinAneirinAneirin or Neirin was a Dark Age Brythonic poet. He is believed to have been a bard or 'court poet' in one of the Cumbric kingdoms of the Old North or Hen Ogledd, probably that of Gododdin at Edinburgh, in modern Scotland...
], and TaliesinTaliesinTaliesin was an early British poet of the post-Roman period whose work has possibly survived in a Middle Welsh manuscript, the Book of Taliesin...
, and Bluchbard, and Cian, who is called Guenith Guaut, were all famous at the same time in British [that is, BrythonicBrythonic languagesThe Brythonic or Brittonic languages form one of the two branches of the Insular Celtic language family, the other being Goidelic. The name Brythonic was derived by Welsh Celticist John Rhys from the Welsh word Brython, meaning an indigenous Briton as opposed to an Anglo-Saxon or Gael...
or Welsh] poetry."
Of the poets named here it is believed that work that can be identified as Aneirin's and Taliesin's have survived.
Taliesin
The poetry of TaliesinTaliesin
Taliesin was an early British poet of the post-Roman period whose work has possibly survived in a Middle Welsh manuscript, the Book of Taliesin...
has been preserved in a 14th century manuscript
Manuscript
A manuscript or handwrite is written information that has been manually created by someone or some people, such as a hand-written letter, as opposed to being printed or reproduced some other way...
known as Llyfr Taliesin
Book of Taliesin
The Book of Taliesin is one of the most famous of Middle Welsh manuscripts, dating from the first half of the 14th century though many of the fifty-six poems it preserves are taken to originate in the 10th century. The manuscript, known as Peniarth MS 2 and kept at the National Library of Wales,...
(Book of Taliesin). This manuscript contains a large body of later mystical poetry attributed to the poet, but scholars have recognised twelve poems that belong to the 6th century. They are all poems of praise: one for Cynan Garwyn
Cynan Garwyn
Cynan Garwyn was king of Powys in the north-east and east of Wales, who flourished in the second half of the 6th century. Little reliable information exists which can be used to reconstruct the background and career of the historical figure...
, king of Powys
Powys
Powys is a local-government county and preserved county in Wales.-Geography:Powys covers the historic counties of Montgomeryshire and Radnorshire, most of Brecknockshire , and a small part of Denbighshire — an area of 5,179 km², making it the largest county in Wales by land area.It is...
about 580; two for Gwallawg, king of Elmet
Elmet
Elmet was an independent Brythonic kingdom covering a broad area of what later became the West Riding of Yorkshire during the Early Middle Ages, between approximately the 5th century and early 7th century. Although its precise boundaries are unclear, it appears to have been bordered by the River...
, a kingdom based around the modern Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
; the other nine poems are associated with Urien Rheged
Urien
Urien , often referred to as Urien Rheged, was a late 6th century king of Rheged, an early British kingdom of the Hen Ogledd . His power and his victories, including the battles of Gwen Ystrad and Alt Clut Ford, are celebrated in the praise poems to him by Taliesin, preserved in the Book of Taliesin...
, a ruler of the kingdom of Rheged
Rheged
Rheged is described in poetic sources as one of the kingdoms of the Hen Ogledd , the Brythonic-speaking region of what is now northern England and southern Scotland, during the Early Middle Ages...
, located around the Solway Firth
Solway Firth
The Solway Firth is a firth that forms part of the border between England and Scotland, between Cumbria and Dumfries and Galloway. It stretches from St Bees Head, just south of Whitehaven in Cumbria, to the Mull of Galloway, on the western end of Dumfries and Galloway. The Isle of Man is also very...
, and with his son, Owain
Owain mab Urien
Owain mab Urien was the son of Urien, king of Rheged c. 590, and fought with his father against the Angles of Bernicia. The historical figure of Owain became incorporated into the Arthurian cycle of legends where he is also known as Ywain, Yvain, Ewain or Uwain...
.
Taliesin's verse in praise of Urien and Owain became models for later poets, who turned to him for inspiration as they praised their own patrons in terms that he had used for his.
Aneirin
AneirinAneirin
Aneirin or Neirin was a Dark Age Brythonic poet. He is believed to have been a bard or 'court poet' in one of the Cumbric kingdoms of the Old North or Hen Ogledd, probably that of Gododdin at Edinburgh, in modern Scotland...
, a near-contemporary of Taliesin, wrote a series of poems to create one long epic
Epic poetry
An epic is a lengthy narrative poem, ordinarily concerning a serious subject containing details of heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation. Oral poetry may qualify as an epic, and Albert Lord and Milman Parry have argued that classical epics were fundamentally an oral poetic form...
called Y Gododdin
Y Gododdin
Y Gododdin is a medieval Welsh poem consisting of a series of elegies to the men of the Britonnic kingdom of Gododdin and its allies who, according to the conventional interpretation, died fighting the Angles of Deira and Bernicia at a place named Catraeth...
. It records the Battle of Catraeth, fought between the Britons
Britons (historical)
The Britons were the Celtic people culturally dominating Great Britain from the Iron Age through the Early Middle Ages. They spoke the Insular Celtic language known as British or Brythonic...
of the kingdom of Gododdin
Gododdin
The Gododdin were a Brittonic people of north-eastern Britain in the sub-Roman period, the area known as the Hen Ogledd or Old North...
(centred on Eidyn, the modern Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
) and the Saxon
Saxons
The Saxons were a confederation of Germanic tribes originating on the North German plain. The Saxons earliest known area of settlement is Northern Albingia, an area approximately that of modern Holstein...
kingdoms of Deira and Bernicia
Bernicia
Bernicia was an Anglo-Saxon kingdom established by Anglian settlers of the 6th century in what is now southeastern Scotland and North East England....
in the northeast of England. This battle was fought at Catterick
Catterick, North Yorkshire
Catterick , sometimes Catterick Village, to distinguish it from the nearby Catterick Garrison, is a village and civil parish in the Richmondshire district of North Yorkshire, England...
in about the year 598. It has survived in Llyfr Aneirin
Book of Aneirin
The Book of Aneirin is a late 13th century Welsh manuscript containing Old and Middle Welsh poetry attributed to the late 6th century Northern Brythonic poet, Aneirin....
(The Book of Aneirin), a manuscript dating from ca. 1265.
Llywarch Hen and Heledd
The poetry associated with Llywarch HenLlywarch Hen
Llywarch Hen was a 6th-century prince of the Brythonic kingdom of Rheged, a ruling family in the Hen Ogledd or 'Old North' of Britain...
(Llywarch the Elder) and Heledd date from a somewhat later period. These poems, in the form of monologues, express the sorrow and affliction felt at the loss of the eastern portion of the Kingdom of Powys (present day Shropshire
Shropshire
Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
) to the English, but they are also works where nature is an important element in the background, reflecting the main action and feelings of the poetry itself.
Other early poetry
Though the Anglo-SaxonAnglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxon is a term used by historians to designate the Germanic tribes who invaded and settled the south and east of Great Britain beginning in the early 5th century AD, and the period from their creation of the English nation to the Norman conquest. The Anglo-Saxon Era denotes the period of...
invaders seem to break Welsh hearts in most of the early poetry, there are some poems of encouragement and the hope of an eventual and decisive defeat that would drive them back into the sea. One such poem is the tenth-century Armes Prydein
Armes Prydein
Armes Prydein is an early 10th-century Welsh prophetic poem from the Book of Taliesin.In a rousing style characteristic of Welsh heroic poetry, it describes a future where all of Brythonic peoples are allied with the Scots, the Irish, and the Vikings of Dublin under Welsh leadership, and together...
from the Book of Taliesin which sees a coalition of Celtic and Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
n forces defeating the English and restoring Britain to the Welsh.
This period also produced religious poetry, such as the englyn
Englyn
Englyn is a traditional Welsh and Cornish short poem form. It uses quantitative metres, involving the counting of syllables, and rigid patterns of rhyme and half rhyme. Each line contains a repeating pattern of consonants and accent known as cynghanedd.- The Eight Types :There are eight types of...
ion in praise of the Trinity
Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity defines God as three divine persons : the Father, the Son , and the Holy Spirit. The three persons are distinct yet coexist in unity, and are co-equal, co-eternal and consubstantial . Put another way, the three persons of the Trinity are of one being...
found in the ninth-century Juvencus Manuscript (Cambridge MS Ff. 4.42), which is now at Cambridge University Library
Cambridge University Library
The Cambridge University Library is the centrally-administered library of Cambridge University in England. It comprises five separate libraries:* the University Library main building * the Medical Library...
. In the Book of Taliesin we find a 9th century poem Edmyg Dinbych (In Praise of Tenby
Tenby
Tenby is a walled seaside town in Pembrokeshire, South West Wales, lying on Carmarthen Bay.Notable features of Tenby include of sandy beaches; the 13th century medieval town walls, including the Five Arches barbican gatehouse ; 15th century St...
, a town in Pembrokeshire
Pembrokeshire
Pembrokeshire is a county in the south west of Wales. It borders Carmarthenshire to the east and Ceredigion to the north east. The county town is Haverfordwest where Pembrokeshire County Council is headquartered....
), probably produced by a court poet in Dyfed
Dyfed
Dyfed is a preserved county of Wales. It was created on 1 April 1974 under the terms of the Local Government Act 1972, and covered approximately the same geographic extent as the ancient Principality of Deheubarth, although excluding the Gower Peninsula and the area west of the River Tawe...
to celebrate the New Year
New Year
The New Year is the day that marks the time of the beginning of a new calendar year, and is the day on which the year count of the specific calendar used is incremented. For many cultures, the event is celebrated in some manner....
(Welsh: Calan). The book also includes important poems which were probably not composed by Taliesin, including the Armes Prydein (The Great Prophecy of Britain) and Preiddeu Annwfn
Preiddeu Annwfn
Preiddeu Annwfn or Preiddeu Annwn is a cryptic early medieval Welsh poem of sixty lines found in the Book of Taliesin. The text recounts an expedition with King Arthur to Annwfn or Annwn, a Welsh otherworld...
, (The Spoils of Annwn
Annwn
Annwn or Annwfn was the Otherworld in Welsh mythology. Ruled by Arawn, or much later by Gwyn ap Nudd, it was essentially a world of delights and eternal youth where disease is absent and food is ever-abundant. It later became Christianised and identified with the land of souls that had departed...
), and the Book of Aneirin has preserved an early Welsh nursery rhyme
Nursery rhyme
The term nursery rhyme is used for "traditional" poems for young children in Britain and many other countries, but usage only dates from the 19th century and in North America the older ‘Mother Goose Rhymes’ is still often used.-Lullabies:...
, Pais Dinogad (Dinogad's Petticoat). Much of the nature poetry, gnomic poetry
Gnomic poetry
Gnomic poetry consists of sententious maxims put into verse to aid the memory. They were known by the Greeks as gnomes, from the Greek word for "an opinion".A gnome was defined by the Elizabethan critic Henry Peacham as...
, prophetic poetry, and religious poetry in the Black Book of Carmarthen
Black Book of Carmarthen
The Black Book of Carmarthen is thought to be the earliest surviving manuscript written entirely or substantially in Welsh. Written in around 1250, the book's name comes from its association with the Priory of St. John the Evangelist and Teulyddog at Carmarthen, and is referred to as black due to...
and the Red Book of Hergest
Red Book of Hergest
The Red Book of Hergest is a large vellum manuscript written shortly after 1382, which ranks as one of the most important medieval manuscripts written in the Welsh language. It preserves a collection of Welsh prose and poetry, notably the tales of the Mabinogion, Gogynfeirdd poetry...
is also believed to date from this period.
Welsh poetry 1100 – 1600
From ca. 1100 to 1600 Welsh poetry can be divided roughly into two distinct periods: the period of the Poets of the Princes who worked before the loss of Welsh independence in 1282 and the Poets of the Nobility who worked from 1282 until the period of the English incorporation of Wales in the sixteenth century.Poets of the Princes (ca. 1100 – ca. 1300)
In Welsh this period is known as Beirdd y Tywysogion (Poets of the Princes) or Y Gogynfeirdd (The Less Early Poets). The main source for the poetry of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries is the Hendregadredd manuscriptHendregadredd manuscript
The Hendregadredd Manuscript , is a medieval Welsh manuscript containing an anthology of the poetry of the "Poets of the Princes"; it was written during the period between 1282 and 1350...
, an anthology of court poetry brought together at the Cistercian Strata Florida Abbey
Strata Florida Abbey
Strata Florida Abbey Flowers. Ystrad corrupts into Strata, while Fflur is the name of the nearby river. After the region around St. David's was firmly occupied by the Norman Marcher lordship of Pembroke by the early 12th century, with St...
from about 1282 until 1350.
The poets of this period were professionals who worked in the various princely courts in Wales. They were members of a Guild of poets whose rights and responsibilities were enshrined in native Welsh law; and as such, they worked within a developed literary culture and with inflexible traditions. Bardic families were still common—the poet Meilyr Brydydd
Meilyr Brydydd
Meilyr Brydydd is the earliest of the Welsh Poets of the Princes or Gogynfeirdd whose work has survived.Meilyr was the court poet of Gruffudd ap Cynan , king of Gwynedd...
had a poet son and at least two poet grandsons—but it was becoming more and more usual for the craft of poetry to be taught formally, in bardic schools which might only be run by the pencerdd (chief musician). The pencerdd was the top of his profession and a special chair was set aside for him in the court, in an honoured position next to the heir. When he performed he was expected to sing twice: once in honour of God, and once in honour of the king. The bardd teulu (retinue poet) was one of the 24 officers of the court and he was responsible for singing for the military retinue before going into battle, and for the queen in the privacy of her chamber. The lowest ranking poets were the cerddorion (musicians).
The poetry praises the military prowess of the prince in a language that is deliberately antiquarian and obscure, echoing the earlier praise poetry tradition of Taliesin. There is also some religious poems and poetry in praise of women.
With the death of the last native prince of Wales in 1282 the tradition gradually disappears. In fact, Gruffudd ab yr Ynad Coch's (fl.
Floruit
Floruit , abbreviated fl. , is a Latin verb meaning "flourished", denoting the period of time during which something was active...
1277-83) elegy on the death of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd
Llywelyn the Last
Llywelyn ap Gruffydd or Llywelyn Ein Llyw Olaf , sometimes rendered as Llywelyn II, was the last prince of an independent Wales before its conquest by Edward I of England....
, is one of the most notable poems of the era. Other prominent poets of this period include:
- Meilyr BrydyddMeilyr BrydyddMeilyr Brydydd is the earliest of the Welsh Poets of the Princes or Gogynfeirdd whose work has survived.Meilyr was the court poet of Gruffudd ap Cynan , king of Gwynedd...
, fl. ca. 1100-1137; the earliest of the Gogynfeirdd - Bleddyn FarddBleddyn FarddBleddyn Fardd was a Welsh-language court poet from Gwynedd.Bleddyn is noted for his elegies on the death of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, Prince of Wales, the texts of which are preserved in the Hendregadredd manuscript....
, fl. ca. 1258-1284; - Cynddelw Brydydd MawrCynddelw Brydydd MawrCynddelw Brydydd Mawr , in English also known as Kendall, was the court poet of Madog ap Maredudd, Owain Gwynedd , and Dafydd ab Owain Gwynedd, and one of the most prominent Welsh poets of the 12th century.Cynddelw began his career as court poet to Madog ap Maredudd, Prince of Powys...
; fl. ca. 1155-1200; - Dafydd BenfrasDafydd BenfrasDafydd Benfras was a Welsh language court poet regarded by Saunders Lewis and others as one of the greatest of the 'Poets of the Princes' ....
, fl. ca. 1220-58; and - Llywarch ap LlywelynLlywarch ap LlywelynLlywarch ap Llywelyn was a medieval Welsh poet. He is also known by his bardic name, "Prydydd y Moch".Llywarch was a poet in the court of Llywelyn ab Iorwerth and is known for a number of awdlau in praise of his lord...
(also known as Prydydd y Moch), fl. 1174/5-1220.
A rather different poet of this period was Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd
Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd
Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd Wales Prince of Gwynedd in 1170, a Welsh poet and military leader. Hywel was the son of Owain Gwynedd, prince of Gwynedd, and an Irishwoman named Pyfog. In recognition of this, he was also known as Hywel ap Gwyddeles...
(d. 1170) who as the son of Prince Owain Gwynedd
Owain Gwynedd
Owain Gwynedd ap Gruffydd , in English also known as Owen the Great, was King of Gwynedd from 1137 until his death in 1170. He is occasionally referred to as "Owain I of Gwynedd"; and as "Owain I of Wales" on account of his claim to be King of Wales. He is considered to be the most successful of...
, was not a professional poet.
Poets of the Nobility, or, Cywyddwyr (ca. 1300 – ca. 1600)
The poetic tradition thrived in Wales as long as there were patrons available to welcome its practitioners. The fact that, until 1282, Wales consisted of a number of 'kingdoms', each with its own independent ruler, ensured that there was no shortage of courts available to the travelling professional poet or "bardBard
In medieval Gaelic and British culture a bard was a professional poet, employed by a patron, such as a monarch or nobleman, to commemorate the patron's ancestors and to praise the patron's own activities.Originally a specific class of poet, contrasting with another class known as fili in Ireland...
". After 1282 the poetic tradition survived by turning to the land-owning nobility to act as patrons, and these included some Norman
Normans
The Normans were the people who gave their name to Normandy, a region in northern France. They were descended from Norse Viking conquerors of the territory and the native population of Frankish and Gallo-Roman stock...
lords who had successfully integrated themselves with the Welsh.
Much of the poetry of this period is praise poetry praise of the patron and his family, his ancestors, his house and his generosity and the cywydd
Cywydd
The cywydd is one of the most important metrical forms in Welsh traditional poetry.There are a variety of forms of the cywydd, but the word on its own is generally used to refer to the cywydd deuair hirion as it is by far the most common type.The first recorded examples of the cywydd date from the...
is the most popular poetic meter used. Because of the popularity of the cywydd this period is also known as the period of the Cywyddwyr (poets who write using the cywydd meter). The poetry was very often sung to the accompaniment of the harp. Though praise was the main matter of poetry, satire
Satire
Satire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement...
(Welsh: dychan) also thrived. The poets organised themselves into a Guild to protect their professional status, and from time to time their rules were revised and updated. Perhaps the most important being the decisions concerning patronage and poetic rank made at the Caerwys eisteddfod of 1523. The work of numerous poets of this period survives, some are anonymous, but very many are identified. Here are a few of the most prominent and influential are listed:
Dafydd ap Gwilym (ca. 1315/20 – ca. 1350/1370)
Wales's greatest poet worked during the period of the Poets of the Nobility. For more information about his life and work, see Dafydd ap GwilymDafydd ap Gwilym
Dafydd ap Gwilym , is regarded as one of the leading Welsh poets and amongst the great poets of Europe in the Middle Ages. Dafydd ap Gwilym (c. 1315/1320 – c. 1350/1370), is regarded as one of the leading Welsh poets and amongst the great poets of Europe in the Middle Ages. Dafydd ap Gwilym...
Iolo Goch (ca.1325 – ca.1398)
From the Vale of ClwydRiver Clwyd
The River Clwyd is a river in North Wales which rises in the Clocaenog Forest northwest of Corwen.It flows due south until at Melin-y-Wig it veers northeastwards, tracking the A494 to Ruthin. Here it leaves the relatively narrow valley and enters a broad agricultural vale, the Vale of Clwyd...
, Iolo Goch
Iolo Goch
Iolo Goch , , was a medieval Welsh poet or bard who composed poems addressed to Owain Glyndŵr, among others.- Lineage :...
bridged between the period of the Poets of the Princes and Poets of the Nobility. Early in his career he composed in the tradition of the Poets of the Princes but he was among the first to sing the praises of the nobles and others using the cywydd
Cywydd
The cywydd is one of the most important metrical forms in Welsh traditional poetry.There are a variety of forms of the cywydd, but the word on its own is generally used to refer to the cywydd deuair hirion as it is by far the most common type.The first recorded examples of the cywydd date from the...
meter. His main patron was Ithel ap Robert from Coedymynydd near Caerwys
Caerwys
Caerwys is a town in Flintshire, Wales. It is situated just under two miles from the A55 North Wales Expressway and one mile from the A541 Mold-Denbigh road. At the 2001 Census, the population of Caerwys civil parish was 1,315, with a total ward population of 2,496.Caerwys is mentioned in the...
. Perhaps his most famous work is a cywydd
Cywydd
The cywydd is one of the most important metrical forms in Welsh traditional poetry.There are a variety of forms of the cywydd, but the word on its own is generally used to refer to the cywydd deuair hirion as it is by far the most common type.The first recorded examples of the cywydd date from the...
poem in praise of Owain Glyndŵr
Owain Glyndwr
Owain Glyndŵr , or Owain Glyn Dŵr, anglicised by William Shakespeare as Owen Glendower , was a Welsh ruler and the last native Welshman to hold the title Prince of Wales...
's home at Sycharth.
Siôn Cent (ca.1400 – 1430/45)
Traditionally associated with Breconshire, Siôn CentSiôn Cent
Siôn Cent , was a Welsh language poet, and is an important figure in Medieval Welsh literature.-Similarity to other persons:...
is most famous for using his poetry in the service of his Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
beliefs and standing outside the tradition of praise of patron. He uses the cywydd
Cywydd
The cywydd is one of the most important metrical forms in Welsh traditional poetry.There are a variety of forms of the cywydd, but the word on its own is generally used to refer to the cywydd deuair hirion as it is by far the most common type.The first recorded examples of the cywydd date from the...
meter for his work but in order to attack the sins of this world. Perhaps his most famous poem is I wagedd ac oferedd y byd (=In praise of the vanity and wantoness of the world). He turns his back on the praise of nobles which he sees as flattery and falsehood and sets his eyes on the blessedness of heaven.
Guto'r Glyn (ca.1435 – ca.1493)
Guto'r GlynGuto'r Glyn
Guto'r Glyn was a Welsh language poet and soldier of the era of the Beirdd yr Uchelwyr or Cywyddwyr , the itinerant professional poets of the later Middle Ages...
is associated with Glyn Ceiriog
Glyn Ceiriog
Llansantffraid Glyn Ceiriog is a local government community, the lowest tier of local government, part of Wrexham County Borough in Wales.Glyn Ceiriog is a former slate mining village in Wrexham County Borough, in Wales...
, Denbighshire
Denbighshire
Denbighshire is a county in north-east Wales. It is named after the historic county of Denbighshire, but has substantially different borders. Denbighshire has the distinction of being the oldest inhabited part of Wales. Pontnewydd Palaeolithic site has remains of Neanderthals from 225,000 years...
, where many of his patrons lived. He also wrote poems for other patrons in the four corners of Wales whose houses he visited on his journeys. He was a master of the praise tradition in poetry. Guto was also a soldier who fought on the Yorkist side during the War of the Roses, but spent his last years as a lay guest at the Cistercian abbey of Valle Crucis
Valle Crucis
-Places:United Kingdom*Valle Crucis Abbey, WalesUnited States*Valle Crucis, North Carolina, an unincorporated community*Valle Crucis Episcopal Mission, North Carolina...
, near Llangollen
Llangollen
Llangollen is a small town and community in Denbighshire, north-east Wales, situated on the River Dee and on the edge of the Berwyn mountains. It has a population of 3,412.-History:...
.
Dafydd Nanmor (fl. 1450 – 1490)
Dafydd NanmorDafydd Nanmor
Dafydd Nanmor was a Welsh language poet born at Nanmor , in Gwynedd, north-west Wales. He is one of the most significant poets of this period....
, born at Nanmor (or Nantmor), Gwynedd
Gwynedd
Gwynedd is a county in north-west Wales, named after the old Kingdom of Gwynedd. Although the second biggest in terms of geographical area, it is also one of the most sparsely populated...
, is one of the most significant poets of this period. It is said that he was exiled to south Wales for over-stepping the mark in his poetry and spent the rest of his life outside Gwynedd
Kingdom of Gwynedd
Gwynedd was one petty kingdom of several Welsh successor states which emerged in 5th-century post-Roman Britain in the Early Middle Ages, and later evolved into a principality during the High Middle Ages. It was based on the former Brythonic tribal lands of the Ordovices, Gangani, and the...
. His work was seen to have particular significance by the twentieth-century critic Saunders Lewis
Saunders Lewis
Saunders Lewis was a Welsh poet, dramatist, historian, literary critic, and political activist. He was a prominent Welsh nationalist and a founder of the Welsh National Party...
. Lewis saw him a poet of philosophy who praised the ideal ruler as he praised his patrons who saw that within the Welsh tradition all who had privilege and power also had responsibilities towards family, community and nation.
Tudur Aled (ca.1465 – ca.1525)
Tudur AledTudur Aled
Tudur Aled was a late medieval Welsh poet, born in Llansannan, Denbighshire.He is regarded as one of the finest poets of his period and was a master of cynghanedd....
was himself a nobleman and one of the greatest of the Poets of the Nobility. Born in Llansannan, Denbighshire
Denbighshire
Denbighshire is a county in north-east Wales. It is named after the historic county of Denbighshire, but has substantially different borders. Denbighshire has the distinction of being the oldest inhabited part of Wales. Pontnewydd Palaeolithic site has remains of Neanderthals from 225,000 years...
, his most important patrons were the Salisbury family of Dyffryn Clwyd
Clwyd
Clwyd is a preserved county of Wales, situated in the north-east, bordering England with Cheshire to its east, Shropshire to the south-east, and the Welsh counties of Gwynedd to its immediate west and Powys to the south. It additionally shares a maritime border with the metropolitan county of...
. He was one of the instigators of the Caerwys eisteddfod of 1523. In his final illness he took the habit of Order of St. Francis
Franciscan
Most Franciscans are members of Roman Catholic religious orders founded by Saint Francis of Assisi. Besides Roman Catholic communities, there are also Old Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, ecumenical and Non-denominational Franciscan communities....
and died in Carmarthen
Carmarthen
Carmarthen is a community in, and the county town of, Carmarthenshire, Wales. It is sited on the River Towy north of its mouth at Carmarthen Bay. In 2001, the population was 14,648....
, where he was buried in the Brothers' Court. At his death the elegies his fellow poets wrote in his memory attested to his greatness as a poet. He was renowned as a praise poet of both secular and religious noblemen, and also reflects the changes at the beginning of the sixteenth century which were threatening the future of the bardic system.
Gruffudd Hiraethog (d.1564)
A native of LlangollenLlangollen
Llangollen is a small town and community in Denbighshire, north-east Wales, situated on the River Dee and on the edge of the Berwyn mountains. It has a population of 3,412.-History:...
, Gruffudd Hiraethog
Gruffudd Hiraethog
Gruffudd Hiraethog was a Welsh language poet, born in Llangollen, north-east Wales.Gruffudd was one of the foremost poets of the sixteenth century to use the cywydd metre. He was a prolific author and gifted scholar...
was one of the foremost poets of the sixteenth century to use the cywydd
Cywydd
The cywydd is one of the most important metrical forms in Welsh traditional poetry.There are a variety of forms of the cywydd, but the word on its own is generally used to refer to the cywydd deuair hirion as it is by far the most common type.The first recorded examples of the cywydd date from the...
meter. Though he was member of the medieval guild of poets and notable upholder of that tradition, he was also closely associated with William Salesbury
William Salesbury
William Salesbury also Salusbury was the leading Welsh scholar of the Renaissance and the principal translator of the 1567 Welsh New Testament.Salesbury was born in about 1520 in the parish of Llansannan, Conwy...
, Wales' leading Renaissance scholar. In fact one of the first Welsh
Welsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
to be published was Gruffudd's collection of proverbs in 1547, Oll synnwyr pen Kembero ygyd (=The sense of a Welshman's mind collected together).
Other voices in poetry 1300 – 1600
Not all of the poetry which survives from this period belongs to the tradition of the praise poetry of the nobility. Some groups of poets and genres of poetry stood completely outside that tradition. Women seem to be totally excluded from the Welsh poetic guild, or Order of bards. But we do know that some women did master the Welsh poetic craft and wrote poetry at this time, but only the work of one woman has survived in significant numbers, that of Gwerful MechainGwerful Mechain
Gwerful Mechain , who lived in Mechain in Powys, is perhaps the most famous female Welsh-language poet. Little is known of her life....
.
The prophetic poetry (Welsh: canu brud) was a means of reacting to and commenting upon political situations and happenings. This poetry is intentionally ambiguous and difficult to understand. But at its heart it prophesies victory for the Welsh over their enemies, the English. This poetry looked towards a man of destiny who would free them from their oppressors. With the victory of the 'Welshman' Henry VII in 1485 at the battle of Bosworth the poets believed that the prophecies had been fulfilled and the tradition comes to an end. Satire poetry (Welsh: canu dychan) was part of the 'official' poets' repertoire and sparingly used within the praise tradition to chastise a miserly patron. But it was in private poetic bouts with fellow poets that the satire tradition flourished.
Welsh prose
It is believed that the earliest written Welsh is a marginal note of some sixty-four words in Llyfr Teilo (The Book of St. Teilo), a gospel book originating in LlandeiloLlandeilo
Llandeilo is a town in Carmarthenshire, Wales, situated at the crossing of the River Towy by the A483 on a 19th century stone bridge. Its population is 1,731.The town is served by Llandeilo railway station on the Heart of Wales Line.- Early history :...
but now in the library of St. Chad's Cathedral, Lichfield
Lichfield
Lichfield is a cathedral city, civil parish and district in Staffordshire, England. One of eight civil parishes with city status in England, Lichfield is situated roughly north of Birmingham...
, and also known as the Lichfield Gospels
Lichfield Gospels
The Lichfield Gospels is an eighth century Insular Gospel Book housed in Lichfield Cathedral. There are 236 surviving folios, eight of which are illuminated. Another four contain framed text...
, or, The Book of St. Chad
Chad of Mercia
Chad was a prominent 7th century Anglo-Saxon churchman, who became abbot of several monasteries, Bishop of the Northumbrians and subsequently Bishop of the Mercians and Lindsey People. He was later canonized as a saint. He was the brother of Cedd, also a saint...
. The marginal note, known from its opening (Latin) word as The Surexit memorandum, dates from the ninth century, or even earlier, and is a record of a legal case over land.
The native Welsh storyteller, known as the cyfarwydd ("the one who knows") was an official of the court. He was expected to know the traditional knowledge and the tales. But the storytelling tradition was basically oral, and only a few remnants suggest the wealth of that tradition. Amongst the most important are Trioedd Ynys Prydain, or the Welsh Triads
Welsh Triads
The Welsh Triads are a group of related texts in medieval manuscripts which preserve fragments of Welsh folklore, mythology and traditional history in groups of three. The triad is a rhetorical form whereby objects are grouped together in threes, with a heading indicating the point of likeness...
, a compendium of mnemonics for poets and storytellers. The stories that have survived are literary compositions based on oral tradition.
In the Middle Ages Welsh was used for all sorts of purposes and this is reflected in the type of prose materials that has survived from this period: original material and translations, tales and facts, religious and legal, history and medicine.
Native Welsh tales, or, Mabinogion
The name MabinogionMabinogion
The Mabinogion is the title given to a collection of eleven prose stories collated from medieval Welsh manuscripts. The tales draw on pre-Christian Celtic mythology, international folktale motifs, and early medieval historical traditions...
is a convenient label for a collection of tales preserved in two manuscripts known as the White book of Rhydderch
White Book of Rhydderch
The White Book of Rhydderch is one of the most notable and celebrated manuscripts in Welsh. Written in the middle of the fourteenth century it is the earliest collection of Welsh prose texts, though it also contains some examples of early Welsh poetry...
and the Red Book of Hergest
Red Book of Hergest
The Red Book of Hergest is a large vellum manuscript written shortly after 1382, which ranks as one of the most important medieval manuscripts written in the Welsh language. It preserves a collection of Welsh prose and poetry, notably the tales of the Mabinogion, Gogynfeirdd poetry...
. They are written in Middle Welsh, the common literary language between the end of the eleventh century and the fourteenth century. They include the four tales that form Pedair Cainc y Mabinogi ("The Four Branches of the Mabinogi
Four Branches of the Mabinogi
The Four Branches of the Mabinogi are the best known tales from the collection of medieval Welsh prose known as the Mabinogion. The word "Mabinogi" originally designated only these four tales, which are really parts or "branches" of a single work, rather than the whole collection...
"):
- Pwyll prince of DyfedPwyllPwyll Pen Annwn is a prominent figure in Welsh mythology and literature, the lord of Dyfed, husband of Rhiannon and father of the hero Pryderi...
; - Branwen daughter of LlŷrBranwenBranwen, Daughter of Llŷr is a major character in the Second Branch of the Mabinogi, which is sometimes called the Mabinogi of Branwen after her. Branwen is a daughter of Llŷr and Penarddun...
; - Manawydan son of LlŷrManawydanManawydan fab Llŷr is a figure of Welsh mythology, the son of Llŷr and the brother of Brân the Blessed and Brânwen. The first element in his name is cognate with the stem of the name of the Irish sea god Manannán mac Lir, and likely originated from the same Celtic deity as Manannán...
; - Math son of MathonwyMath ap MathonwyIn Welsh mythology, Math fab Mathonwy, also called Math ap Mathonwy was a king of Gwynedd who needed to rest his feet in the lap of a virgin unless he was at war, or he would die...
.
Two are native tales embodying traditions about King Arthur
King Arthur
King Arthur is a legendary British leader of the late 5th and early 6th centuries, who, according to Medieval histories and romances, led the defence of Britain against Saxon invaders in the early 6th century. The details of Arthur's story are mainly composed of folklore and literary invention, and...
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- Culhwch and OlwenCulhwch and OlwenCulhwch and Olwen is a Welsh tale about a hero connected with Arthur and his warriors that survives in only two manuscripts: a complete version in the Red Book of Hergest, ca. 1400, and a fragmented version in the White Book of Rhydderch, ca. 1325. It is the longest of the surviving Welsh prose...
the earliest Arthurian tale in any language; - The Dream of RhonabwyThe Dream of RhonabwyThe Dream of Rhonabwy is a Middle Welsh prose tale. Set during the reign of Madog ap Maredudd, prince of Powys , it is dated to the late 12th or 13th century. It survives in only one manuscript, the Red Book of Hergest, and has been associated with the Mabinogion since its publication by Lady...
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Two more are native tales embodying traditions about the early history of Britain:
- Lludd and LlefelysLludd and LlefelysLludd and Llefelys is a Middle Welsh prose tale written down in the 12th or 13th century. It has been associated with the Mabinogion since it was collected by Charlotte Guest in the mid-19th century...
; - The Dream of Maxen.
The final three are the Arthurian Welsh Romances
Welsh Romances
The Three Welsh Romances are three Middle Welsh tales associated with the Mabinogion. They are versions of Arthurian tales that also appear in the work of Chrétien de Troyes. Critics have debated whether the Welsh Romances are based on Chrétien's poems or if they derive from a shared original...
, showing the influence of French poet Chrétien de Troyes
Chrétien de Troyes
Chrétien de Troyes was a French poet and trouvère who flourished in the late 12th century. Perhaps he named himself Christian of Troyes in contrast to the illustrious Rashi, also of Troyes...
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- Owain, or the Lady of the Fountain, from Yvain, the Knight of the LionYvain, the Knight of the LionYvain, the Knight with the Lion is a romance by Chrétien de Troyes. It was probably written in the 1170s simultaneously with Lancelot, the Knight of the Cart, and includes several references to the action in that poem...
; - Geraint and Enid, from Erec and EnideErec and EnideErec and Enide is the first of Chrétien de Troyes' five romance poems, completed around 1170. It is one of three completed works by the author...
; - Peredur son of Efrog, from Perceval, the Story of the GrailPerceval, the Story of the GrailPerceval, the Story of the Grail is the unfinished fifth romance of Chrétien de Troyes. Probably written between 1181 and 1191, it is dedicated to Chrétien's patron Philip, Count of Flanders...
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Native Welsh law
Tradition holds that Hywel DdaHywel Dda
Hywel Dda , was the well-thought-of king of Deheubarth in south-west Wales, who eventually came to rule Wales from Prestatyn to Pembroke. As a descendant of Rhodri Mawr, through his father Cadell, Hywel was a member of the Dinefwr branch of the dynasty and is also named Hywel ap Cadell...
summoned a conference at Whitland
Whitland
Whitland is a small town in Carmarthenshire, south-west Wales, lying on the River Tâf. Whitland is home to the elusive "Whitland Trout" noted for its eggs and oily scales.- History :...
, Carmarthenshire
Carmarthenshire
Carmarthenshire is a unitary authority in the south west of Wales and one of thirteen historic counties. It is the 3rd largest in Wales. Its three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford...
, in about 945. At this conference Welsh law
Welsh law
Welsh law was the system of law practised in Wales before the 16th century. According to tradition it was first codified by Hywel Dda during the period between 942 and 950 when he was king of most of Wales; as such it is usually called Cyfraith Hywel, the Law of Hywel, in Welsh...
was codified and set down in writing for posterity. Since the earliest manuscripts containing these legal texts date from about two hundred and fifty years after the event they are probably not a record of what was codified there, if such a conference was even convened. In fact, until the annexation of Wales in 1536, native Welsh law grew and developed organically and for that reason many more copies of it have survived than of the native tales.
The use of Welsh for legal texts shows that it had the words and the technical terms with definite and exact meanings needed in such circumstances. It also shows that reading and writing Welsh was not confined to priests and monks, but that there were also lawyers "whose skill is directed not to administrating the law (there were judges for that), but to writing it, to giving it permanence in words, to ordering words and sentences in such a way that what was stated should be quite clear" (Thomas Parry (1955), p. 68).
Religious texts
The vast majority of Welsh religious texts from the Middle Ages are translations and mostly the works of unknown monks and priests. The works themselves reflect the tastes and fashions of Christendom at the time: apocryphal narratives, dreams or visions, theological treatises and exegesis, and mystical works.Lives of the saints
About thirty lives of the saintsHagiography
Hagiography is the study of saints.From the Greek and , it refers literally to writings on the subject of such holy people, and specifically to the biographies of saints and ecclesiastical leaders. The term hagiology, the study of hagiography, is also current in English, though less common...
, both native ones like Beuno, Curig, and Gwenfrewi
Winefride
thumb|right|300px|St Winifred's Well, [[Woolston, north Shropshire|Woolston]], ShropshireSaint Winefride was a legendary 7th-century Welsh noblewoman who was canonized after dying for the sake of her chastity...
and the more general such as the Mary, the mother of Jesus, Mary Magdalene
Mary Magdalene
Mary Magdalene was one of Jesus' most celebrated disciples, and the most important woman disciple in the movement of Jesus. Jesus cleansed her of "seven demons", conventionally interpreted as referring to complex illnesses...
, Martin of Tours
Martin of Tours
Martin of Tours was a Bishop of Tours whose shrine became a famous stopping-point for pilgrims on the road to Santiago de Compostela. Around his name much legendary material accrued, and he has become one of the most familiar and recognizable Christian saints...
, and Catherine of Alexandria
Catherine of Alexandria
Saint Catherine of Alexandria, also known as Saint Catherine of the Wheel and The Great Martyr Saint Catherine is, according to tradition, a Christian saint and virgin, who was martyred in the early 4th century at the hands of the pagan emperor Maxentius...
survive, all translations into Welsh from Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
. Even the lives of the native saints were composed in Latin originally, and that a long time after the saint's actual life and so of little or no interest to those looking for actual historical information. Perhaps the two most important is Buchedd Dewi ("The life of Dewi
Saint David
Saint David was a Welsh Bishop during the 6th century; he was later regarded as a saint and as the patron saint of Wales. David was a native of Wales, and a relatively large amount of information is known about his life. However, his birth date is still uncertain, as suggestions range from 462 to...
, or, David") written by Rhygyfarch in about 1094, and Buchedd Cadog (Life of Cadog
Cadoc
Saint Cadoc , Abbot of Llancarfan, was one of the 6th century British Christian saints. His vita twice mentions King Arthur. The Abbey of Llancarfan, near Cowbridge in Glamorganshire, which he founded circa 518, became famous as a centre of learning...
") written by Lifris of Llancarfan in ca. 1100.
History texts
The Welsh medieval history texts belong to the class of literary creations, but the split into two distinct groups. While the first group, Brut y TywysogionBrut y Tywysogion
Brut y Tywysogion is one of the most important primary sources for Welsh history. It is an annalistic chronicle that serves as a continuation of Geoffrey of Monmouth’s Historia Regum Britanniae. Brut y Tywysogion has survived as several Welsh translations of an original Latin version, which has...
, tends to stick to historical facts, the second, Brut y Brenhinedd, is the fantastic creation of Geoffrey of Monmouth
Geoffrey of Monmouth
Geoffrey of Monmouth was a cleric and one of the major figures in the development of British historiography and the popularity of tales of King Arthur...
.
Brut y Tywysogion
Brut y TywysogionBrut y Tywysogion
Brut y Tywysogion is one of the most important primary sources for Welsh history. It is an annalistic chronicle that serves as a continuation of Geoffrey of Monmouth’s Historia Regum Britanniae. Brut y Tywysogion has survived as several Welsh translations of an original Latin version, which has...
(Chronicle of the Princes) are variant Welsh translation of a Latin original annales telling the history of Wales from the seventh century to the death of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd in 1282. It is believed that original and its translation were produced at the Cistercian Strata Florida Abbey.
Brut y Brenhinedd
Brut y Brenhinedd (Chronicle of the Kings) is the name given to a number of texts that ultimately trace their origins back to translations of Geoffrey of MonmouthGeoffrey of Monmouth
Geoffrey of Monmouth was a cleric and one of the major figures in the development of British historiography and the popularity of tales of King Arthur...
's Historia Regum Britanniae
Historia Regum Britanniae
The Historia Regum Britanniae is a pseudohistorical account of British history, written c. 1136 by Geoffrey of Monmouth. It chronicles the lives of the kings of the Britons in a chronological narrative spanning a time of two thousand years, beginning with the Trojans founding the British nation...
(1136). As such they were key works in shaping how the Welsh thought of themselves and others, tracing their origins back to Brutus
Brutus
Brutus is the cognomen of the Roman gens Junia, a prominent family of the Roman Republic. The plural of Brutus is Bruti, and the vocative form is Brute, as immortalized in the quotation "Et tu, Brute?", from Shakespeare's play, Julius Caesar....
, the mythical founder of the Britain. In fact the Welsh word brut is derived from Brutus's name and originally meant "a history of Brutus" and then "a chronicle history".
Welsh poetry before 1100
- General
- Jarman, A. O. H. (1981), The Cynfeirdd : early Welsh poets and poetry. Writers of Wales series. Cardiff : University of Wales Press. ISBN 0-7083-0813-9.
- Williams, Ifor (1972), The beginnings of Welsh poetry. Edited by Rachel Bromwich. Cardiff : University of Wales Press. ISBN 0-7083-0035-9.
- Taliesin
- Taliesin poems (1988). New translations by Merion Pennar. Felinfach : Llanerch Press. ISBN 0-947992-24-3.
- Williams, Ifor (Ed.) (1987), Poems of Taliesin. Translated by J. E. Caerwyn Williams. Medieval and modern Welsh series. Dublin : The Dublin Institute. ISBN 0-00-067325-0.
- The book of Taliesin at the National Library of WalesNational Library of WalesThe National Library of Wales , Aberystwyth, is the national legal deposit library of Wales; one of the Welsh Government sponsored bodies.Welsh is its main medium of communication...
. Gives access to colour images of the entire manuscript.
- Aneirin
- Jarman, A. O. H. (Ed.) (1990), Aneirin : Y Gododdin. Welsh Classics series. Llandysul: Gomer Press. ISBN 0-86383-354-3. A translation into English including notes, glossary and bibliography.
- Koch, John T (Ed.) (1997), The Gododdin of Aneirin : text and context from dark-age north Britain. Cardiff : University of Wales Press. ISBN 0-7083-1374-4. Includes translation and notes.
- Llyfr Aneirin, ca. 1265 from the Gathering the Jewels website. Gives access to colour images of the entire manuscript.
- Llywarch Hen and Heledd
- P. K. Ford (1974), The poetry of Llywarch Hen : introduction, text and translation. Berkley : University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-02601-2.
- Rowland, Jenny (1990), Early Welsh saga poetry. Woodbridge : D. S. Brewer.
- Other early poetry
- Jackson, Kenneth H. (Ed.) (1935), Early Welsh gnomic poetry. Cardiff : University of Wales Press.
- Williams, Ifor (Ed.) (1972), Armes Prydein : the prophecy of Britain, from the Book of Taliesin. English version by Rachel Bromwich. Medieval and Modern Welsh series. Dublin : The Dublin Institute.
Welsh poetry 1100-1600
- General
- McKenna, Catherine A. (Ed.) (1991), The medieval Welsh religious lyric : poems of the Gogynfeirdd, 1137-1282. Belmont : Ford & Baillie. ISBN 0-926689-02-9.
- Williams, J. E. Caerwyn (1994), The poets of the Welsh princes. Writers of Wales series. Cardiff : University of Wales Press. ISBN 0-7083-1206-3.
- Poets of the Nobility, or, Cywyddwyr
- Rowlands, Eurys I. (Ed.) (1976), Poems of the Cywyddwyr. Mediaeval and modern Welsh series. Dublin : Dublin Institute. ISBN 0-00-017108-5.
- Johnston, Dafydd (Ed.) (2001), Iolo Goch : poems. Welsh Classics series. Llandysul : Gomer Press. ISBN 0-86383-707-7. Translated into English with an introduction.
- Johnston, Dafydd (Ed.) (1998), Canu maswedd yr Oesoedd Canol = Medieval Welsh erotic poetry. Bridgend : Seren. ISBN 1-85411-234-1.
Welsh prose
- Jenkins, Dafydd & Owen, Morfydd E. (1984), 'The Welsh marginalia in the Lichfield Gospels. Part II: The "surexit" memorandum'. In Cambridge Medieval Celtic Studies 7, 91-120.
- Davies, Sioned (1993), The four branches of the Mabinogi. Llandysul : Gomer Press. ISBN 1-85902-005-4.
- Charles-Edwards, T. M.Thomas Charles-EdwardsThomas Mowbray Charles-Edwards FRHistS FLSW FBA is an academic at Oxford University. He holds the post of Jesus Professor of Celtic and is a Professorial Fellow at Jesus College....
(1989), The Welsh laws. Writers of Wales series. Cardiff : University of Wales Press. ISBN 0-7083-1032-X. - Jenkins, Dafydd (2000), Hywel Dda : the law. Welsh Classics series. Llandysul : Gomer Press. ISBN 0-86383-277-6.
- Evans, D. Simon (1986), Medieval religious literature. Writers of Wales series. Cardiff : University of Wales Press. ISBN 0-7083-0938-0.
See also
- List of Welsh language poets (6th century to c.1600).
- Welsh Prose 1350-1425 - Online searchable corpus of Medieval Welsh prose
- - A collection of translations of Welsh texts, along with links to the originals in the corpus above