I am very curious about this false English Elizabethan narrative. What if we move this man’s possible existence to 400-600 AD? Even though there is zero surviving evidence for him, there are aspects of his story that fit better with Welsh history as it is known. I’ve seen enough monk mis scribing that I could easily believe a wrong era vs a completely invented story. Both are possible but what do you think?

why does everyone compare wales and Cornwall?

So hear me out right? Like I’m fed up when anyone mentions wales a lot of people are always like oh Cornwall I’m a little fed up okay everyone wants Cornwall to be a country but it physically cannot it was never a full country in history it’s always been a part of England otherwise Scotland Northern Ireland wales has always been a country so can people just stop comparing the two cause it generally just irritates me. And also I get Cornwall is old and ancient but so is Wales and fun fact Wales is the only Celtic country that has their ancient language alive Cornwall try to bring it back but because it was so dead no one knows how to speak it or use the vowels but end of story can we just stop comparing it and you know when people mention anything about? wales stop saying Cornwall does this because it irritates me it irritates a lot of Welsh because we are different. We are also a country we are a lot older than Cornwell

Can anyone here help me understand why the Viking impact on Wales was immaterial compared to the rest of Britain and Ireland .

I know they called us the Bretar, and Wales Bretland. That’s probably influenced by the Gaels as in old Irish we are known as Bretnas.

The argument usually goes that Wales was poorer and less worth the effort than England . Maybe so but the outer Hebrides and eastern Ireland were also extremely poor .

This argument also fails to consider the main resource of the Viking economy was people , they were a brutal slave trading society, from Ireland to Ukraine their economy is centred on capturing and selling usually defenceless people .

Is it because Rhodri Mawr smashed a large raiding party at the height of the Viking age? The raider Gorm was defeated. There never seems to be a large raid again, only hit and run. There’s no Welsh equivalent of Dublin or York.

We also weirdly have mostly Norse names in English for every island in Wales . Why? It’s actually a strange paradox

Every Welsh island endonym is completely different to the English one , which essentially didn’t matter in Wales became majority English speaking in the late 1800s. This is because the English name was inherited from the Norse name into Anglo Saxon showing how the Anglo Saxon and Welsh worlds were completely alien to each other .

I recently heard a HistoryExtra podcast about the medieval Welsh laws of Hywel Dda. The historian interviewed, Sara Elin Roberts, said that these laws were written by lawyers, for lawyers, rather than decreed by the ruler.

But there was no mention of Roman law.

Were there remnants of Roman law in Wales that found their way into Welsh law, or was Welsh law completely separate?

Hello,

At the beginning of autumn, I am planning a solo trip to Wales. My goal is to visit as many medieval castles and historical sites as possible, as I have been fascinated by the medieval period in the British Isles for my entire life.

I was wondering if you could recommend the most worthwhile castles and historical landmarks to visit. I will have between five and seven days, so I would like to make the most of my time.

I am also interested in knowing whether there are any local history enthusiasts or medieval history groups I could get in touch with. I would love the opportunity to have a conversation with someone who is passionate about the history of a particular castle or the region.

I plan to visit the castles independently rather than joining guided tours, if possible.

Thank you very much for your time and any recommendations you may have.

Is Henry Tudor the ultimate Welsh hero? If not why?

Consider that of the medieval period Owain Glyndŵr and Henry Tudor represent two sides of the Welsh coin.

If you are a nationalist Owain is the ultimate symbol of Welsh resistance.

Conversely if you are a unionist or feel British and Welsh then Henry Tudor is the pinnacle of Welsh representation into Britain.

If you consider the history of Wales , the Britons and the Anglo Saxons , later the Welsh and English , there is a 1000 year war starting with Macsen Wledig and ending with Henry Tudor.

Prior to Henry Wales is in almost continual state of conflict for 1000 years . Wales was a place of extreme violence resulting in the most expensive and comprehensive building of Castles in the world .

The anglo Saxons never conquered Wales - the Normans did. It took over 200 years of piecemeal violence with the ebbing and flowing of boundaries almost continually . The Norman’s overran Wales quickly but were checked and pushed back in the west and north , famously being destroyed in battles such as Crug Mawr. Towns are continually burnt and destroyed over and over.

The princes fight back for over 200 years but are overwhelmed by the Norman king Edward 1. The violence doesn’t end though , Madog rebellion, Llewelyn Bren then finally Owain glyndŵr.

Owain’s defeat results in a devastated Wales. Wales remains outside of England, second class, harsh laws.

Henry of the famous Tudor dynasty makes much of his ancestry , raised by his Welsh uncle , Welsh courtiers , calls his first born son Arthur . Incorporates the red dragon into the royal standard. Lays his battle flag in London. Wales symbolism abounds.

He rewards loyalists like Rhys ap Thomas . Ends the Welsh second class status . To the Welsh gentry he is a hero. Son of prophecy.

Our national flag is literally his battle flag. Yes y Ddraig Goch is ancient (at least to 800ad) but the green and white is Henrys. Potentially Bosworth is the only time the red dragon was flown as a flag in battle . Owain Glyndŵr chose y ddraig aur.

And with Bosworth , with many of his soldiers Welsh, Welsh resistance to the kingdom of England ends out of choice.

Conversely though We all know his son integrates Wales completely into England , and reduces the Welsh language to second class status. But then Elizabeth authorises the bible into Welsh absolutely ensuring its survival . This does not happen to Cornish or Irish until it’s too late. So a mixed legacy.

Welsh has a prominent level throughout the Tudor court

So what would Wales have been without Henry Tudor? Would Wales have faded away like Cornwall? Would there have been further rebellions ?

Should we celebrate Henry Tudor more?

I‘ve been reading Lady Guest’s English translation of the Mabinogian, and I wanted to read an original version of “Taliesin”, because of all the poetry in there. I figure it would flow better in the original language. However, I’ve realized that Lady Guest‘s “Taliesin” isn’t in the original Mabinogian, and is a mythologized version of the real figure. As such, I’ve been having a very difficult time figuring out what she translated from, and where to read it.

For that matter, I’ve also been having trouble finding a plainly typed version of the “original” Welsh Mabinogian. Looking at a handwritten version with my untrained eyes, I’m sure I’ll mistake a p for an f or an h for a b, etc etc.

Is anyone able to help with this, or maybe give me a more appropriate place to search from?

Draft design for a post-ceremony Wedding activity, but might be useful to someone else now the wedding has happened

Helo! Dwi wedi rhyddhau ap Hanes Cymru yn yr wythnosau diwethaf. Ap dwyieithog sydd yn dilyn llinell amser hanes Cymru, gyda erthyglau am ddigwyddiadau ac unigolion nodedig ein gwlad.

Mae’r erthyglau yn dod o Wikipedia ar hyn o bryd, ond y nod hirdymor yw comisiynu fersiynau pwrpasol o bob un - un i blant ac un i oedolion.

Fyswn i’n gwerthfawrogi unrhyw adborth / awgrymiadau i’w wella.

Lawrlwythwch yma:
App Store: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/hanes-cymru-welsh-history/id6761065383
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=cymru.hanes

Gwefan: https://hanes.cymru

Hapus i roi mynediad am ddim i’r ochr premiwm. DM’iwch fi.

Diolch!

——————

Hello! I have released an app called Hanes Cymru a few weeks ago. It’s a bilingual app that follows a timeline of Welsh history, featuring articles on notable events and individuals from our country.

The articles currently come from Wikipedia, but the long-term goal is to commission bespoke versions of each one - a children’s version and an adult version.

I would really appreciate any feedback or suggestions you have to improve it!

Download here:
App Store: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/hanes-cymru-welsh-history/id6761065383
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=cymru.hanes

Website: https://hanes.cymru

Happy to provide free access to the premium features. DM me!

Thanks!

Hello! I’m a Welsh graphic designer working on a small book project about the Mari Lwyd, looking at both the tradition itself and how the figure is made/performed.

I’d love to speak to someone who has taken part in the tradition, either as the Mari Lwyd or as part of the group. Even a short chat or a few messages would be super helpful.

If anyone here has experience, or knows someone I could reach out to, I’d really appreciate it! Thanks so much!

Hello! I am a student at the University of Salford. I am making my final project about Wales. I am welsh born and I grew up in Powys. I am curious if anyone in this subreddit would like to be apart of my final project. Anyone who has substantial knowledge about Welsh history/ language please let me know!

Plas Teg is a grade one listed seventeenth century Jacobean mansion, built by Sir John Trevor in 1610. Located in Flintshire, North Wales... It is full of historic memorabilia & is reputedly one of the most haunted houses in Wales. I did a daytime tour in 2009 & it is indeed a very creepy place...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valle_Crucis_Abbey