Chapter III - The Historical Poems

The compositions among those ascribed to Taliesin, which can lay claim to be considered historical, are few in number. In truth, if the epithet “historical” is to be restricted to poems descriptive of real events, there are only three which deserve the title, namely the Battle of Gwenystrad, the Battle of Argoed Llwyfain, and the fragment connected with the Song of the Ale, supposed to be descriptive of a combat in the Vale of Gwarant. There are, however, other pieces which, being addressed to or relating to historical personages, are also placed in this class, though in the majority of instances, nothing more than the name of the hero, or unconnected allusions to chiefly unknown places, can be obtained from them.

It has been observed that the pieces which may claim to be placed in the historical class, are nearly all addressed to, or connected with, the fortunes of Urien Rheged. There are, however, in the Myvyrian Arcliæology, poems relating to two other historical characters—Cunedda Ẅledig, and Gwallawg ab Lleenawg. The Cunedda to whom the “Elegy” refers is clearly the same as the Cunedda Wledig who lived at the close of the fourth or commencement of the fifth century, and was the founder of a line of sovereign princes in North and South Wales.

According to Mr. Williams ab Ithel,^[1] the translator of the Gododin,

“this poem is the work of one who had actually partaken of his royal munificence, who had received from him milch cows, horses, wine, oil, and a host of slaves.”

Mr. Williams places the death of Cunedda in a.d. 889, consequently he represents this poem as a composition of the fourth century.

Mr. Rees^[2] also considers it as

“perhaps the earliest specimen of Welsh poetry extant.” In form, metre, grammatical construction, and orthography, it does not differ from the ordinary character of the poems ascribed to Taliesin. It is true that the name of Taliesin occurs in it, but this diíBcultv is over-come by assuming that “it was composed by a Taliesin older than the Bard usually known by that name.”^[3]

A translation of it is given in Davies’s Claims of Ossian, with which the following version can be compared.

 

MARWNAD CUNEDDA.

Mydwyf Taliesin derydd
Gwawd goddolaf fedydd
Bedydd rhwyf rhifeddan eiddolydd
Cyfranc allt a gallt ac Echwydd
Ergrynaw Cuneddaf creisserydd
Ynghaer Weir a chaer Liwelydd
Ergrynawd cyfatwt cyfergyr
Cyfanwaneg tan tra myr ton
Llupawt glew i gilydd
Can cafas ei whel uch elfydd
Mal uchereid gwynt wrth onwydd
Hefynderrhyn y gwn ei gyfyl
Kyfachedwyn a choelyn cerenydd
Gwisgan feirdd cywrein canonhydd
Marw cuneddaf a gwynaf a gwynid
Cwynitor tewdor tavdun diarchar
Dychyfal dychyfun dyfnveis
Dyfyngleis dychyfun
Ymadrawdd cwddedawdd caledlwm
Caletach wrth elyn nog asgwrn
Ys cynyal Cuneddaf cyn cywys a thydwed
Ei wyneb a gadwed
Ganwaith cyn bu lleith dorglwyd
Duchludent wys bryneich ymmhlymnwyd
Ef caned rhag ei ofh ai arfwyd (oergerdd)
Cyn bu dayr dogyn ei dwed
Haid hafal a wydwal gwnebrwyd
Gweineu gwaith llyfredd nog addwyd
Addoed hun dimyaw a gwynaf
Am lys am grys Cuneddaf
Am ryaflaw hallt am hydyrfer mor
Am breidd aswrn a ballaf
Gwawd feirdd a ogon a ogaf
Ac eraill a refon a rifaf
Rhyfeddawr yn erflawdd a naw cant gorwydd
Cyn cymun Cunedda
Rym afei biw blith yr Haf
Hym a fei eddystrawd y gayaf
Rym a fei win gloyw ac olew
Rym a fei toraf Keith rhag untrew
Ef dyfal o gressur o gyflew gweladur
Pennadur pryd llew Uudwy uedes gywlad
Rhag mab edem cyn edyrn anaelew
Ef dywal diarchar dieding
Am ryfreu angeu dychyflng
Ef goborthi aes yman ragorawl
Gwir gwrawl oedd ei unbyn
Dymhun a chyfatcun a thal gwin
Kamda difa hun o Goeling.

 

THE ELEGY ON CUNEDDA.

I am ardent as Taliesin.^[4]
1 dedicate my poem in praise of baptism.
Baptism the most valuable thing in our worship.
There was a contest on the rocks and cliffs and in the plain.
Trembling on account of Cunedda the burner,
In Caer Weir^[5] and Caer Liwelydd,^[6]
Trembling was the opposed league.
There was a complete sea of fire beyond the sea-wave;
The hero scattered like dust the retreat;
When shall the earth obtain a better than him ?
Like the whirl of the wind (was he) against the ashen spears;
Chief of his clan, in his presence
Was complete security and trust in friendship.
The garments of the Bards were skilfully wrought in conformity with the Canons.
The death of Cunedda I bitterly lament.
Lamented is the strong one fearless in speech ;
Accustomed to harmonious accord,
Accustomed to speak with facility,
Very severe in discourse.
Harder towards his enemies than bone.
The tribe of Cunedda is the chief in the land:
They kept the front rank a hundred times before the fence of the door was destroyed;
They challenged the men of Bryneich to battle; 
They (the Bryneich) grew pale before him through fear of his arms,
Before a portion of earth was his covering.
Like a swarm of bees swiftly moving in a thicket,
His servants did not do the work of cowards.
There was here nothing more beautiful
Than the palace and the robes of Cunedda.
From the crest of the cliff to the freely flowing sea,
None were wanting in herds of cattle.^[7]
Praise of bards he obtained abundantly,
And other things in great numbers.
Wonderful was he in causing a tumult with nine hundred stately horses.
Before the encampment of Cunedda,
Thickly clustering round, were milch cows in summer,
And steeds in winter,
Bright and shining wine,
And troops of slaves before the doors.
He was diligent in showing kindness and giving a place to spectators;
A prince with the countenance of a young lion, graceful at the banquet.
In the presence of the son of Edern chieftains were terrified;
He displayed unrestrained boldness,
He was eminent in uplifting the shield here;
Valiant men were his chiefs.
I respectfully request a share of the banquet, and a recompense in wine.
This has been with difficulty restored from testimony.^[8]

As Cunedda Wledig is represented to have died a.d. 389— that is, twenty years before the final departure of the Romans from Britain, and sixty years before the reputed date of the invasion of the Saxons—we cannot admit that a poem which speaks of contests with the men of Bernicia, and mentions baptism in terms of such veneration, can have been composed by a contemporary of that famous personage. It is by no means impossible that Cunedda may have been a Christian ; but the great question on baptism, and the agitation caused by the spread of the Pelagian doctrines, did not arise till the commencement of the fifth century, and continued to create trouble in the Church down to the close of the sixth. It is, however, possible that this poem may originally have been a production of the sixth century.

There would be a reason why one of the Bards who ministered to the pleasures of the court of Maelgwn Gwynedd should have selected as a subject for his muse, the praise of the renowned ancestor of that chieftain, from whom were descended the principal houses as well of South as of North Wales.

But the line,

Gwisgan feirdd cywrein canonhydd,—

The garments of the Bards were skilfully wrought according to the canons,

must belong to a later period. Like the rest of its class, the piece exhibits no marks of antiquity in its language or sentiments ; on the contrary, it is smoother and more polished than many other pieces in the same collection. If allowed to have been written originally in the sixth century, it has evidently been rewritten as late as the twelfth; and, on the whole, it is to this latter period that it ought to be referred.

We find, in fact, that Gwalchmai, a poet of the twelfth century, addresses to his chief Owain Gwynedd a poem,^[9] in which he extols that prince as being descended from Maelgwn Gwyned, and from Caswallon Llaw Hir and Einion Yrth, the descendants of this Cunedda Wledig, to whom the principal families of Wales traced their genealogy. Cynddelw also speaks of the same chieftain as being of the line of Einion Yrth, of Maelgwn Gwynedd and of Run. The same feeling which induced these bards to introduce the names of the sons of Cunedda Wledig into their encomiastic compositions, in all probability originated the poem under consideration, an elegy on the great founder of the race himself.

The other piece referred to, relates to a person called Gwallawg ap Lleenawg, who, it is suggested by the editors of the Myvyrian Archæology, is the same as the Galgacus mentioned by Tacitus, a celebrated chief of the Caledonian tribes, in the northern campaign of Agricola, about a.d. 83. From such a suggestion with respect to this poem, we can only conclude, that the editors of the Myvyrian Archæology did not take the trouble to read the compositions which they published, nor did they refer to other sources of information for identifying the Gwallawg ap Lleenawg whose name is prefixed to this poem.

Edward Jones, “Bard to the Prince,” who published, in the year 1802, a learned treatise on the Welsh Bards,^[10] held the same opinion, and introduces the Cerdd i Wallawg ap Lleenawg as one of the most ancient poems preserved,

“addressed to an illustrious character, whose name is familiar to the enlightened historian. It celebrates the battles of Galgacus, the chief of the Northern Britons, who so eminently signalized himself in opposing the Roman legions under Agricola, about a.d. 83. Lleenog,”

he says,

“is a name which the father of Galgacus most likely acquired for his learning; which the word implies.”

It apears, however, without going back to the first century for the subject of this poem, that Gwallawg ap Lleenawg was a warrior of the sixth century, and belonged to the same cycle of heroes with Urien, Owen, and the other chieftains who belong to the great tribe or family of Coel Godebog. A Gwallawg is mentioned in the genealogies of Nennius, as having, together with Urien, Rhyderthen, and Morcant, fought against Ida in the sixth century. Gwallawg ap Lleenawg also appears in a Triad as one of the three pillars of battle, of the Isle of Britain. The Lives of the Welsh Saints, however, enable us to ascrtain the historical position of this personage.

Gwallawg ap Lleenawg was the grandson of Llyr Myrini, who, according to one pedigree, was the grandson of Cunedda Wledig, but according to another, and apparently more correct one, descended from Cenu, the son of Coel Godebog. The brothers of Gwallawg ap Lleenawg were Gwynn ap Nudd, a celebrated magician, and Caradoc Vreichvras, one of the battle-knights of Arthur. His near relations were, Iddawg Corn Prydain, who betrayed Arthur at the battle of Camlan; and Gwgan Gleddyvrudd, mentioned in the Triads as one of “the three stayers of slaughter,” and one of “the three sentinels at the battle of Bangor Orchard,” in the beginning of the seventh century.

Before presenting a translation of this poem to the reader, it is necessary to offer some remarks on the peculiarities which appear in it, and which it shares with a considerable number of these compositions. On commencing the translation with an idea that the poem contained matter in accordance with the title affixed to it, phrases presented themselves so unintelligible as almost to lead to the supposition that they must be full of Druidic mystery. It was not until another of these poems had been turned into English, that the mystery was solved. This was the piece entitled Gorchan Adebon, generally called the Incantation of Adebon.

“Among the most curious productions of the ancient British muse,” says Mr. Davies,

“we may class those little poems called Gwarchanau, charms or talismans; or else Gorchanau, incantations. In addition to the general lore of Druidism, these pieces bring forward certain mystical amulets, which were delivered to the patriotic warriors as infallible pledges of the protection of the gods, and which were evidently remains of the renowned magic of the Britons.”

The first of these incantations is a short piece entitled Gwarchan Adebon, of which Mr. Davies has given a translation which, even in his hands, presents very little of Druidic mystery. But notwithstanding his assertion, that “in this little poem the mystagogue discriminates between those probationers who duly preserved the secrets with which they were intrusted, and those who were tempted by any consideration whatever to divulge them, to which latter the talisman would be of no avail,” a literal translation of the lines discloses nothing more than a string of very harmless proverbs, which from the concluding lines it would appear were recited before an audience by some wandering minstrel. These lines may be compared with the conclusion of the Elegy on the Death of Cunedda, where the Bard prays for a share of the banquet as the reward of his song.

 

GORCHAN ADEBON.

Incantatio Adeboni.

Ny phel guyd aual o aual Ny chynnyd dyual o dyual Ny ehofn noeth yn esgal Paub pan rydyoger yt bal A garun y ef carei anreithgar Ny byd marw duyveith Nyt amsut y vut y areith Ny cheri y gyneuin gyvieith

Emis anwychwas ancuyn Am surn am gom Cuhelyn Yn adef tangdef colit Adef let buost leu yn dyd mit Rhudvyt ceissiessit ceissiadon Mein uchel medel y alon Dyuen ar Uarchan Adebon. Ac vely teruuyna Goarchon Adebon.

 

THE SONG OF ADEBON.

The apple-tree is not far from the apple.
The industrious is not akin to the spendthrift.
No one is a hero when naked among thistles.
Every one who swears strongly fails (to perform).
Do not be the friend of one who loves injustice.
We cannot die twice.
To be dumb is not an appropriate quality for an orator.
Do not love to be foremost in conversation.
Jewels are the dainties of the feeble-minded.
Savage from hoof to horn.
Peace is lost in a mansion.
Where there is a large house there will be continual entertainments.
There is always a way for him who seeks it.
Kind gentles, victorious over the foe,^[11]
Smile on the Gorchan (song) of Adebon.
And so ends the Gorchan Adebon.

Probably no literature can boast of a greater collection of proverbs than the Welsh. This concise and sententious form of presenting the “wisdom of their ancestors” appears to have been particularly congenial to the genius of the Welsh people. The third volume of the Myvyrian Archæology contains an extensive collection, some arranged in metrical Triads, others in the ordinary form. We need, therefore, feel no surprise at finding a collection of proverbs such as the above, though we cannot but be astonished at seeing the above poem (if we may so term it) still represented as anything else.

Mr. Williams ab Ithel, the translator of Áneurin, supposes this Gorchan to be a portion of the Gododin.

“That the Gorchanau were ‘incantations’ cannot be admitted; and if the word ‘gorchan’ or ‘gwarchan’ mean anything except simply ‘a canon or fundamental part of song,’ we should be inclined to consider it as synonymous with ‘gwarchan’ and to suppose that the poems in question referred to the ‘ Camps of Adebon, Maelderw and Cynvelyn.’” ^[12]

The Gorchanau of Maelderw and Cynvelyn certainly contain “Cattraeth stanzas,” but the Gorchan of Adebon as certainly does not, and we can only suppose that the learned translator of the Gododin has been misled by the title, and has never read the piece.

Even in the translation of Davies there is no allusion that can be made out to the battle of Cattraeth. The following version of Mr. Davies will serve to show how the Druidic mysteries have been eliminated from similar productions.

 

THE TALISMAN OF ADEBON.

“The apple will not fall far distant from the tree.
The sedulous cannot prosper in company with the remiss.
All those who are not intrepid, when exposed naked amongst thistles, will fail when adjured.

“Should I love him who could become the friend of the spoiler ?
The man who cannot die twice, will govern his speech as if he were dumb.
It was not thy disposition to put thy countrymen in fear.

“The fierce youth treasured up the gem of protection;
yet for a trifle, for the horn of the stranger, in disclosing the word of peace, he was lost.
Indirect was thy answer, and thou hast been brave in the day of battle.

“Concealed^[13] was that information which the inquirer sought;
the dweller amongst the high stones, the reaper of his foes, smiled upon the talisman of Adebon.”

The first part of this version by Mr. Davies evidently consists of proverbs. The remainder is as mysterious as could be desired, but is certainly not a translation of the original.

We may now give the translation of the Song of Gwallawg, which, by the carelessness of transcribers or the ignorance of singers, has also been mixed up with proverbial maxims in a manner truly surprising. From the same cause, and perhaps also from the antiquity of the original songs, fragments of which have been thus orally preserved, both this and the following piece, which may have belonged to the same composition, are evidently very corrupt, and the translation must necessarily, in many instances, be conjectural only. It is however, on the whole, sufficiently certain to enable us to ascertain the nature of the poems, and that they contain nothing that can be construed into Bardic or Druidic mystery.

 

KERDD I WALLAWG AP LLEENAWG.

Yn enw gwledig nef Goludawg Y drefynt biefydd Gyfeil foawg Eirig ei rethren rieddawg Bhieu rhyfelgar gewheruawg (next page) Oberth Maw ac Eiddin Ni chymmeryn cyferbyn Cyweith cyweithydd clydwyn Digonwyf digones i Lynges O beleidr o bleigheid prenwres Prenial yw i bawb i drachwres Anghyfrent o gadeu digones Gwallawg Gwell gwydd fwyd nog Arthes Cad yn Agathes o achles gwawd Gognaw ei brod digones Cad ymvro Vretrwyn trwy wres mawr tan Meidrawl yw y trachwres Cad ir ai cymrwy Kanhon Cad cad crynai yn Aeron Cad yn Ardunion ag Aeron Eiddywed eilywed i feibion Cat ynghoed Beid boed rou ddydd Ni meddyliaistai dy Alon

Ef diffyrth addfwyn llan lleenawg Toryd un trwch ardwyawc Hir ddychyferfyddain O Brydain gofain (next page) Cad yn rhac llydawdawl a Mabon Nid adrawdd adfrawd Achubion Cad yn Gwensteri ag estygi Lloegr Safwawr un a wner Cad yn rhos terra gan wawr Oedd hywst gwragawn egurawn Yn nechreu ynheniad y geirawr O rieu o iyfel ry ddiffawd Gwyr a ddigawn goddai gwarthegawg Haearnddur a Hyfeidd a Gwallawg Ac Owein Mon Maelgynig ddefawd Ac wnaw peithwyr gorweiddiawg Ym mhen coed cleddyfein Atfydd calanedd gwain A brain ar ddisperawd Ym Mhrydain yn Eiddin yn addefawg Ynghafran yn adfan Brycheiawg Yn ergyn yn ysgwn gaenawg Ni wyl gwr ni welas Gwallawg

THE SONG OF GWALLAWG THE SON OF LLEENAWG.

In the name of the great Ruler of Heaven,
They who inhabit its dwellings are a glorious society.
Splendid is the princely spear Of the warlike chief, swiftly moving,
He defended the fair enclosure of Lleenawg.
It was broken through when its defender fell.
Long were the contests In fair Britain
On the side of Maw and Eiddin.
Do not join in dispute.
The co-operation of many is a protection.^[14]
I am able to satisfy a fleet.
The sparks are because of the heat of the wood.
A coffin is for every body the end of ambition.
They are quiet who are satiated with strife [Gwallawg].^[15]
Better a gnat than a she bear,^[16]
Fight with a she eat from a place of shelter [a mockery],^[15]
Her activity is much to be feared.^[17]
A battle in the country of Bretrwyn through the heat [a great fire.]^[15]
Ambition has its limits.
A rule (canon) of general advantage should be kept.
Battle, battle, there is trembling in Aeron.
Battle in Ardunion and Aeron.
Jealousy is a reproach upon the children.
A battle in the wood of Beid, it was a terrible day.
Thou hast not been tender towards thy enemies.
A battle against Llydawdawl and Mabon.
Do not speak to the injury of thy deliverer.
A battle in Gwensteri and subduing of the Loegrians.
It was gained by the spearman.
A battle in the land of Rhos in the morning.
There was injury to women and men.
Flattery is the beginning of temptation.^[18]
When chiefs go to war, very unfortunate
Are the men who possess huts and cattle.
Haeamddur and Hyfeidd Hir and Gwallawg,^[19]
And Owain of Mona, and Maelgyn of great reputation,^[20]
They would prostrate the foe.
In Pen Coed there was slaughter,
Wretched white corpses,
And ravens wandering about.
In Britain, in Eiddin, it is confessed,
In Gafran^[21] and amongst the strangers of Brycheiawg,^[22]
In the assault, in rising up in his armour,
Never was seen a better man than Gwallawg.

There is another song relating to Gwallawg ap Lleenawg, very much of the same character as the preceding. There is nothing in it which can assist in fixing its date; the style and orthography are the same as in all the others of its class.

 

I WALLAWG.

Yn enw Gweledig Nef Gorchorddion Ryganant ryghwynant y Dragon Gwrthodes gogyfres gwelydon Lliaws Rhun a Nudd a Nwython Ni golychaf an gnawt Beirdd o Vrython Ryfedd hael a sywyd Sywedydd Un lle rhygethlydd rygethlig Ryddysyfaf rychanaf i wledig Yn y wlad ydd oedd ergrynnig Nim gwnel nis gwnaf ei newig Anawdd diollwng adwloedd ni diffyg I wledig ni omedd (next page) Hwyrweddawg gwallawg artebed Ni ofyn i neb a wnaeth udd Neud ym udd nac neud ycb Darwerther Tewuedd yn niwedd Haf Nis cynnydd namyn chwech Chweccach it gynan o hynnydd Chedlawg trwyddedawg traeth dydd Teyrnedd yngwedd nwys medd mad Tebyg heul haf huenydd foned gan mwyaf Cenhaf gan ddoeth y gan llu eiliassaf Bint bydi derwy biyt haf pryt mab Lleenawg lliawg hamgwrwl gwmn

O edrych awdl trwm teyrnedd Yn ei fyw nis deubydd budd bedd Ni ddigonont hoffedd o’i buchynt Caletach yr artaith hael hynt Torf pressenawl tra Phrydain Tra phryder ry gohoyw rylycirawr Rylycerer rythamawr rybarnawr Rybarn pawb y gwr banher Ac uinat yn yngnad ac elwet Nid y gwr dilaw ei ddaered Gwas greid a gwrhyd gottraed Eil eichawg Gwallawg yn llywet (next page) Gwawl gwnn gwres tarth gwres tarth Trangyunis yd engis heb warth Cleda cledifa cledifarch nidd am tyrr Y lu y ledrad nid amescud i gaw ei gywlad Tyllant tal ysgwydawr rhae taleu ei feirch O march trwst Morial rith gar riallu Gwynawg ry gwystlant gweiryd golu-dawg O gaer Glut hyd gaer Garadawg Ystadl tir penprys a Gwallawg Teyrnedd tewrn tangweddawg.

 

TO GWALLAWG.

In the name of the Ruler of the assembly of Heaven,
They sing of and bitterly deplore the Chief.
The grave disowns any difference in rank,^[23]
To the company of Rhun and Nudd and Nwython.^[24]
I will not praise after the fashion of the Bards of the Britons,
Liberal of wonders and the sta r -knowledge of the astrologers;
In the same place singing the same cuckoo-song.
I will earnestly entreat, I will sing earnestly to the Lord.
The men of the country were afraid;
I would not do it were I not acquainted with song.^[25]
Pardon obliterating the view of our defects
The Lord will not refuse.
With looking on my poem Kings shall be sad.
In their lifetime shall not the grave be victorious ?
They shall not obtain the love that they desire,
Hard-hearted, prodigal of torments.
A troop shall be hastening across Britain.
Through anxiety the most high-spirited shall be concealing themselves.^[26]
He will judge all, the Supreme Sovereign,
Coming in judgment upon falsehood,
Not the man who acknowledges his obligations.
A vehement youth renowned for courage
Ruling like the lofty Gwallawg.^[27]
A forbearing disposition was visible in the countenance of Gwallawg.^[28]
Do not ask of any one what he has done in secret;^[29]
Verily it is my secret, it is not for you to ascertain it.
Fatness comes at the end of summer.
There are only six natural qualities.
More agreeable is discourse from the old.
A talkative guest passes over the day.
In the presence of kings, grave discourse is good.^[30]
Like the sun shining in summer is the highest nobility.
I will sing a wise song with the harmonious choir.
Like the oak in summer is the countenance of the son of
Lleenawg in his brown manly robe.
Light causes heat, heat causes vapour.
Death from disgrace is a deliverance.
Do not heap together (such words as) cled, cledif, and cledifarch ;
The band of robbers did not mingle their lies at his feast.
They slay the warrior who pay before-hand for his harness.
Of the fierce horse of Morial^[31] very noble the appearance,
Full of spirit rioting in the rich hay.
From Caer Llud to Caer Caradawg,^[32]
Spread over the land are foolish and indigent persons.
Oh! King of Kings of tranquil aspect.

There are several stanzas on the death of this chieftain contained in a piece called the “Contest between Gwyddneu Garanhir and Gwyn ab Nudd,” the latter being the brother of Gwallawg. They intimate that Gwallawg ab Lleenawg was slain by a stroke of a spear or arrow, which pierced the brain of the chieftain through the eye.

Boed emend igeit ir gwydd
A dynnwys y lygad yn y wydd
Gwallawc ap Lleinawc Arglwydd.

Boet emendigeit ir gwydd du
A dynnwys i lygad oed ddu
Gwallawc ap Lleinawc penn llu.

Boet emendigeit ir gwydd gwenu
A dynnwys i lygad oi benn
Gwallawc ap Lleiniawc unben.

Boet emendigeit ir gwydd glas
A dynnwys i lygad yngwas
Gwallawc ap Lleinawc urddas.

Mi a wn lie i lias Gwallawc
Mab Goholeth teithiawc
Addwod Lloegyr mab Lleynawc.

(translation:)

Cursed be the shaft
That pierced^[33] the eye in the face
Of Gwallawg ab Lleenawg the lord.

Cursed be the black shaft
That pierced the dark eye
Of Gwallawg ab Lleenawg the chief of the host

Cursed be the white shaft
That pierced the eye in the head
Of Gwallawg ab Lleenawg the prince.

Cursed be the green shaft
That pierced the eye of the youth
Gwallawg ab Lleenawg the noble.

I know the place where Gwallawg was slain,
Son of the gifted Goholeth;
Mischievous to the Loegrians was the son of Lleenawg.

The remaining historical pieces are addressed to or celebrate the actions of the famous chieftain Urien Rheged, who, according to one set of traditions, was the chief patron of Taliesin. Two of these poems, the Battle of Gwenystrad and the Battle of Argoed Llwyfain, are, especially the latter, very spirited descriptions of what we can hardly doubt to have been real historical events, though it is, at the same time, quite certain that the poems themselves were not written, in their present form, in the sixth or even in the tenth century.

 

GWAITH GWENYSTRAD.

Arwyre gwyr Kattraeth gan dydd Am wledig gwaith fuddig gwarthegydd Urien hwn anwawd eineuydd Cyfeddeily teyrnedd ai gofyn rhyfelgar Bwysg anwar rwyf bedydd Gwyr Prydain adwythein yn lluydd Gwen ystrad Ystadl cad cynnygydd Ni ddodes na maes na choedydd Tud achles diormes pan ddyfydd Mal tonnawr tost ei gawr tros elfydd Gwelais wyr gwychr yn lluydd A gwedi boregat briwgig Gwelais i dwrf teirflin trancedig Gwaed gohoyw gofaran gowlychid Yn amwyn Gwenystrad y gwelid gofwr Hag angwyr llawr lluddedig Yn nrws rhyd gwelais i wyr lledruddion Eirf dillwng rhag blawr gofcdon

Unynt tanc gan aethant golluddion Llaw ynghroes gryd (ygro) granwynion Cyfeddwvnt y gynrhein Kywyn don Gwaneicawr gollychynt rawn y caffon Gweleis i wyr gospeithig gospylad A dulliaw diaflym dwys wrth gad Cad gwortho ni buffo pan bwylled Glyw Reged rhyfeddaf pan feiddad Gweles i ran reodig gan Urien Pan amwyth ai Alon yn llech wen Galystem Ei wythiant oedd llafn aesawr gwyr Goberthid wrth Angen Awydd cad a ddiffo Euronwy Ac yn y fallwyfi hen Ym dygyn Angheu Anghen Ni bydif yn dirwen Na molwyf fi Urien.

THE BATTLE OF GWENYSTRAD.

Extol the men of Cattraeth who went with the dawn.
My prince is the victorious leader.
To Urien this beiug without praise is new.
The upholder of the kingdom and warlike in his demands,
Gentle in rule, a chief of Baptism.
The mischievous men of Britain were assembled in arms,
Constantly proposing battle in Gwenystrad.
Neither field nor wood afforded shelter to the host,
When the molestation came.
Like the fierce roar of the wave^[34] is his shout across the land.
I have seen resolute men in battle array,
And after the morning of battle mangled flesh.
I have seen the violent struggling of the perishing,
Blood-wetting the active angry ones;
In defence of Gwenystrad a heap of wounded ones,
And of men severely fatigued.
In the pass of the ford I saw the blood-stained men loosening their armour with a cry of anguish.
They were quiet whose entrails went (out of their wounds).
With the hand on the cross, trembling on the ground the white-cheeked ones;
They are a feast for the worms rising out of the earth.
The pale birds of prey are wet with grasping the gore.
I have seen men chastising the spoiler,
With blood matted on their clothes,
And with fierce gestures earnest in fight.
Coverer of the battle, there was no retreat when he rushed on.
The hero of Rheged—wonderful was it when he desisted.
I saw the division of the spoil collected by Urien.
When his enemies were raging by the White Stone of Galystem,
His anger was like the sword of the shield-men,
Producing death.
Greedy of battle shall Euronwy be.
And till I fall into old age,
And the painful necessity of death,
May I never smile If I praise not Urien.

To the translation appended to this poem in the Myvyrian Archæology, a note is added:—“N.B. This battle was fought by Urien Rheged, Prince of Cymbria, against the Saxons.” The hero of the poem is undoubtedly Urien Rheged; but the poem itself is one of that cycle which goes to form the Gododin. The first line is a common formula in the commencement of Gododin stanzas. The name Gwenystrad, “the white or fair strand,” affords no information as to the locality of the battle; and the battle of Cattraeth, as we learn from the Gododin, took place on a strand or beach of the sea or a large river.

 

GWAITH ARGOED LLWYFAIN.

Y Bore Dduw Sadwrn Cad fawr a fu
Or pan ddwyre Haul hyd pan gynnu
Dygrysowys fflamdwyn yn bedwarllu
Goddeu a Reged i ymddullu
Dyfwy o Argoed hyd Arfynydd
Ni cheffynt eiryoes hyd yr undydd
Atorelwis fflamdwyn fawr drybestawd
A ddodynt yngwystlon a ynt parawd
Yr attebwys Owain ddwyrain ffossawd
Nid dodynt nid ydynt nid ynt parawd
A cheneu mab Coel byddai Cymwyawg lew
Cyn attalai owystl nebawd
Atorelwis Urien Udd yr echwydd
O bydd ynghyfarfod am garennydd
Dyrchafwn eidoed odduch mynydd
Ac ymporthwn wyneb odduch emyl
A drychafwn beleidr odduch ben Gwyr
A chyrchwn fflamddwyn yn ei lluydd
A lladdwn ag ef ai gyweithydd
A rhag Gwaith Argoed Llwyfain
Bu llawer Celain
Rhuddei frain rhag rhyfel Gwyr
A gwerin 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.

 

THE BATTLE OF ARGOED LLWYFAIN.

The morning of Saturday there was a great battle,
From the rising of the sun until the setting.^[35]
Fflamdwyn hastened in four divisions
With the intention of overwhelming Rheged.^[36]
They reached from Argoed to Arfynyd.
They maintained their splendour only for one day.
Fflamdwyn called out very blusteringly,
“Will they give the hostages, and are they ready ?”
Owain answered him rising up on the rampart,
“They will not give them; they are not nor shall be ready.”
And Ceneu, son of Coel, afflicted would have been the hero
Before he would give hostages to any one.
Loudly Urien the chief proclaimed his resolution,—
“Let my kinsmen assemble,
And we will raise our banner on the hills,
And will turn our faces against the soldiers,
And will lift our spears above the heads of the men,
And will seek Fflamdwyn in his army,
And will slay both him and his troop.”
And because of the battle of Argoed Llwyfain,
There were many corpses;
Red were the ravens through the strife of men.
And men hastened with the news.
And I will divine the year, that I am no longer on the increase ;
And till I fall into old age,
And the painful necessity of death,
May I never smile If I praise not Urien.

Another piece, in which the heroes of Cattraeth are mentioned, addressed to Urien, and placed by Mr. Stephens among the historical poems, as old as the sixth century, is that entitled the Spoils of Taliesin.

 

YSPEIL TALIESIN.

Canu Urien .

Yngwryd gogyfeirch yn nhrafferth gwaetwyf
A wellwyf yn Kerthwir
Gweleis i rhag neb nim gweles pob annwyl
Ef diwyl ei Neges.
Gweleis i basg am leu am lys
Gweleis i ddail o ddyfyn o dowys
Gweleis i geing gyhafal ei blodeu
Neur’r weleis udd haelaf ei ddedfau
Gweleis i lyw Catraeth tra maeau
Bid fy nar nwy lachar Cymryau
Gwerth fy nad mawr fydd ei fudd y radeu
Pen Maon milwyr amde
Preidd lydan Pren onhyt yw fy Awen gwen
Ysgawr y rhag glyw gloyw glasgwen
Glyw rybawd glewaf un yw Urien
Nim gorseif gwarthegydd
Gorddear gorddyawg gorlassawg gorlassar goraig a gorddwyre
Pob rhai sang dilew du Merwydd y Mordei
Udd tra blawdd yn ydd el oth fodd
Yared Melynawr yn neuadd maran heddawg
Diffreidiawg yn Aeron
Mawr ei wyn ei aniant ac eilon
Mawr ddyfal ial am ei Alon
Mawr gwmerth ystlyned i Frython
Mal rhod tanwhydin tros elfydd
Mai ton teithiawg Llwyfenydd
Mai catbl cyfluv Gwen a Gweithen
Val Mor Mwynfawr yw Urien
Yn y egin echangryd gwawr
Un yw rhieu rhwyfiadwr a Dwyawr
Un yw maon meirch mwth miledawr
Dechreu mei ymhywys byddinawr 
Un yw yn deuwy pan ofwy ei werin
Eryr tir tuhir tythremyn
Addunwn i ar orwydd ffysgyolyn tud ynial
Gwerth yspeil Taliesin
Un yw gwrys gwr llawr a gorwydd
Un yw breyr benffyg y Arglwydd
Un yw hyddgre hydd yn divant
Un yw blaidd banhadlawr anchwant
Un yw gwlad fab Eginyr
Ac unwedd ac unswn cadfa cedwyr
Unswn y drwg iraven (iaeran)
A Cheneu a Nudd hael a hirwlad y Danaw
Ac os it ytwydef ym gwen
Ef gwneif beirdd byd yn llawen
Cyn mynhwyf meirw meib Gwyden
Gwaladr gwaed gwenwlad Urien.

 

THE SPOILS OF TALIESIN.

A Song to Urien .

In manliness conspicuous,
In business I am not expert,
I am better in song.
I hare seen that before any one has seen all things without deception,
He is confident in his business;
I have seen the various coloured net-work of flowers,
I have seen the leaves gradually appearing of the yellow water-lily,
I have seen the branch with its blossoms of equal shape;
Have I not seen the Chief most liberal in his ordinances ?
I have seen the army of Cattraeth.
My lords^[37] are the two splendours of the Cymry.
My value is not great to him abounding in blessings.
Chief of the people surrounded by warriors.
The broad spoils of the spear are (given to) my fair song,
Delivered before the bright smiling hero.
The most resolute of chieftains is Urien;
No peaceful merchant is he;
Clamorous, loud-shouting, crying out with a shrill voice,^[38] superior, highly exalted.
Every one is aware of the extermination on the side of Merwydd and Mordei.
The chief is very swift in preparing your pleasure;
When harpers are playing in hall he is of a peaceful countenance,
A protector in Aeron;
Excellent his wine, his poets, and his musicians;
Very incessant against his enemies;
The great strength of the community of the Britons;
Like a whirling fiery meteor across the earth,
Like the wave coming from Llwyfenydd,
Like the harmonious song of Gwen and Gweithen,
Like Mor the very courteous, is Urien.
In the assembly^[39] of a hundred battle-heroes,
He is the director and leader of princes;
He is the chief of the people of swift-running horses.
In the beginning of May in perfect order of battle,

He is coming when his people send for him.
Eagle of the land, very keen is thy sight.
I have made a request for a mettled steed,^[40]
The price of the spoils of Taliesin.^[41]
One is the struggle of an ignoble man with a spirited steed,^[40]
One is a baron benefiting the Lord,^[42]
One is a herd of does when the stag is flying,
One is a wolf not desirous of carrion,^[43]
One is a land where children sprout up like young wheat;
And of one appearance and one voice the warriors on the field of battle.
And of the same sound the fault in song.
And Ceneu and Nudd the generous, and continual mildness between them;
And perchance he may be in a Bmiling mood,
And he will make the Bards joyful.
Before by my will the sons of Gwyden shall be slain,
Blood shall be scattered oyer the fair land of Urien.

 

I URIEN.

Ar un blynedd Un yn darwedd Gwin a mall a medd A gwrhyd digassedd Ac ei lewydd gorod A haid am fereu Ai phen ffuneu Ai teg wyddfaeu Ei bawb oi wyd Dyfynt ynlhymnwyd Ai farch y danaw Yngoddeu gwaith Mynaw (next page) A gran gwyarlled Am waed gwyr gonodded A gwr hewr bythig A fei feddw ei wreig Am ys gwin ffelaig Am ysgwin mynych gyttwn Am Sorth am porth am pen Cym na pbar cyfwyrein Kymaran taraw Gwas y drws gwrandaw Py drwst ai dayar a gryn Ai mor a ddugyn Dy gwyawg ychyngar wrth y pedydd Ossid uch ym mhant Neud Urien ai gwant Ossid uch ym mynydd Neud Urien a orfydd

A chwaneg anaw Budd am li am law Wyth ugein unlliw O loi a biw Biw blith ag Ychen A pob cein amgen Ni byddwn lawen Bei lleas Urien Ys cu cyn iethydd Iais cyngryn cyngryt A briger wen olched Ar elor ei dynged (next page) Ossid uch yn rhiw Neud Uried ai briw Ossid uch ynghawdd Neut Urien a blawdd Uch hynt uch as Uch ymhob Kamas Nac un tew na dau Ni nawdd y rhag eu Ni byddei ar newyn A phreiddieu yn ei gylchyn Gygoriawg gorlassawc gorlassar Ail angeu oed ei bar Yn lladd ei Esgar Ac yn y vallwyf hen Ym dygyn Angeu Angen Ni byddif ym Dyrwen Na molwyf Urien.

TO URIEN.

In this year He who is the provider Of wine and meal and mead, And is of manliness without ferocity, And of conquering valour, With his swarms of spears, And his chiefs of bands, And his fair banners,[44] With him all his followers Will be in the fight; And his horse under him, In sustaining the battle of Mynaw. There will be abundance, besides Eight score of the same colour (next page) I have wine from the chief: To me wine is most agreeable; It gives me impulse, aid, and bead, Before lifting up the spear In the face-to-faoe conflict. Door-keeper, listen! What noise is that ? Is it the earth that shakes, Or is it the sea that swells, Rolling its white heads towards thy feet ?[47] Is it above the valley, It is Urien who thrusts; Is it above the mountain, It is Urien who conquers; Is it beyond the slope of the hill, It is Urien who wounds;

Of calves and cows, Milch cows and oxen, And all good things also. We should not be joyful Were Urien slain; He is beloved of his countrymen; He terrifies the trembling Saxon,[45] Who, with his white hair wet, Is carried away on his bier, And his forehead bloody; Bloody are the feebly defended men, And the man who was always insolent ; [46] May their wives be widows. (next page) Is it high in anger, It is Urien who shouts. Above the road, above the plain, Above all the defiles, Neither on one side nor two, Is there refuge for them; But those shall not suffer hunger Who take spoil in his company, The provider of sustenance. With its long blue streamers, The child of death was his spear, In slaying his enemies. And until I fall into old age, Into the sad necessity of death, May I never smile If I praise not Urien.

CANU I URIEN REGED.

Urien yr Echwydd Haelaf Dyn bedydd Lliaws a roddydd I ddynion elfydd Mal y cynnullwyd Yd wesgerydd Llawn beirdd bedydd Tra fo du uchydd Ys mwy llawenydd Gan glodfan clodrydd Ys mwy Gogoniant Fod Urien ai blant Ac ef yn Arbennig Yn oruchel wledig Bellennig yn cyniad Cyntau Lloegrwys ai gwyddiad Yn Ninas Pellenig Yn ceiniad cynteig Lloegrwys ai gwyddant Pan ymadroddant Angeu a gawsant A mynych goddiant Losgi eu trefred (next page) Nith oes cystedlydd Pan dremher arnaw Ys helaeth y braw Gwnawd gwledd am danaw Am deyrn gognawd Am danaw gwyledd A lliaws Maranhedd

Adwyn eu lludded Ac eimwng colledd A mawr amgyffred Heb gaffel gwared Rhag Urien Reged Rheged diffreidiad Clod lor angor gwlad Fy modd y sydd arnad O bob erglywad Dwys dy beleidrat Pan erglywat cad Cad pan i cyrchud Gweniaith a wnaud Gweniaith a wneit Tan ynhai cyn dydd Rac Udd yr Echwydd Yr echwydd teccaf Ai dynion haelaf Gnawd Eingl heb waessaf Am deyrn glewaf Glewaf Eissyllydd Tydi goreu sydd Or a fu ac a fydd (next page) Eudeyrn gogledd Arbennig Teyrnedd Ac yn y y vallwyf hen Ym dygn angeu angen Ny byddiff im dirwen Na molwyf Urien.

SONG TO URIEN REGED.

Urien of the plain, Most generous of baptized men; Much has he bestowed On skilful men. Like the heaping together Of scattered com, Is the abundance of Christian bards. On account of thy greatness, There is the more rejoicing, With exalted eulogies; There is the more splendour In the abode of Urien and his children, That he should be a sovereign, A prince over the highest Distant chiefs.  In the first place, by the Loegrians he is known; In distant cities, By the principal chiefs; The Loegrians know him, When they discourse of him As the cause of death to them, And numerous afflictions, And the burning of their towns. Blessed be their oppression, And their imminent destruction, And great their incapacity Of obtaining deliverance From Urien Reged, Defender of Rheged.

Renowned Lord, sustainer of the land, My desire shall be for thee; Thou art heard of by all; Heavy is thy spear When the battle is heard; When the shock of battle comes, He gathers in the vintage. He fires their houses before daybreak; He is Lord of the plain, The fairest plain, And the most generous of men. The Eingl have no hostages From my heroic prince; A most valiant offspring To thee is given. There has not been, nor shall be, Nor is there his equal. When he is contemplated There is ample proof. He makes feasts around him; My glorious prince, Around him are seen A multitude of nobles; He is the King of the North, The supreme ruler of kings. And until I fall into old age, And the sad necessity of death, I shall never rejoice. If I praise not Urien.

DADOLWCH URIEN.

Lleu uydd echassaf Mi nyw dirmygaf Urien yd gyrchaf Iddaw yd ganaf Pan ddel fyngwaessaf Cynwys a gaffaf Or parth goreubaf Y dan eillassaf Nid mawr nim dawr Byth gweheleith a welaf Nid af attaddynt ganthynt ni byddaf Ni chyfarchaf fi gogledd Ar mei teyrnedd Cyn pei am laweredd Y gwelwn gynghwystledd Nid rhaid ym hoffedd Urien nim gommedd Llwyfenydd diredd Ys meu eu rheufedd Ys meu y gwyledd Ys meu y llaredd Ys meu y deliedeu Ai gorefrasseu

Medd o fualeu A da dieisieu Gan deyrn golau Haelaf rygigleu Teyrnedd pob Iaith It oll ydynt gaith Rhagot yt gwynir ys dir dy olaith Cydef mynnasswn Gwey helu henwn Nid oedd well a gerwn Hyd ys gwybyddwn Weithian y gwelaf Y meint a gaffaf Namyn y Duw uchaf Nis dioferaf Dy deyrn Veibon Haelaf dynedon Wy canan eu hysgyron Yn nhiredd eu galon Ac yn y vallwyf hen Ym dygyn angeu angen Ni byddaf im dirwen Na molwyf Urien.

URIEN’S RECONCILIATION.

Though the chief is angry, He wfll not despise me. I will seek Urien, To him I will sing. When he comes I will warrant, I shall receive a summons. I will sing a harmonious song. Not much do I value The tribes I continually see. I will not go to them or be with them. I will not seek the North And its princes, Though there should be to me (offered) abundance Of pledges for my return. Their love is not necessary to me, (next page) (To be until) I grow old. There is none I could love better As far as I know. I have seen his actions, I comprehend his greatness; Except God the highest, There is none more capable. Thy princely sons,

(Since) Urien does not refuse me The lands of Llwyfenydd. Mine is their wealth, Mine is the festival, Mine is joyousness, Mine are beautiful things, And excellent banquets, Mead from horns, And a superfluity of good things, With my splendid prince, The most generous ever heard of. The princes of all (other) tongues Are all slaves, Lamenting before thee for the desolation of their lands. With him I should be willing (next page) The most noble of men, The splinters of their spears resound Through the lands of their enemies. And until I shall become old, And fall into the necessity of death, 1 shall not rejoice Except in praising Urien.

 

Owain, the son of Urien Rheged, was a warrior even more famous in popular traditions than his father. He is supposed to be one of the chief heroes of the Gododin, and was introduced into the Arthurian romances as one of the mo?t noble and courteous Knights of the Court of Arthur. The following elegy on his death, treats him as a purely historical person.

 

MARWNAD OWAIN AP URIEN REGED.

Enaid Owain ap Urien Gobwyllid ei Ren       Oi Raid Reged Udd ai cudd tromlas Nid oed fas       Ei gywyddeid Isgell cerddglyd clodfawr Esgyll gwaywawr       Llifeid Cany chessir cystedlydd I Udd llewenydd       Llathreid Medel galon gefeilad Eissillud y tad       Ai taid Pan laddawdd Owen Fflamddwyn Nid oedd fwyn       Og ef cysgeid

Cysgid Lloegr llydan nifer A lleufer       Yn eu llygaid A rhai ni ffoynt hayach A oeddynt . . ach       No chaid Owain ai cospas yn ddrud Mai cnud       Yn ymlid defeid Gwr gwiw uch ei amliw seirch A roddei feirch       I eirchiaid Cyd as cronnai mal caled Ni ranned       Rhag ei Enaid Enaid Owain ap Urien, &c.

THE ELEGY ON OWAIN AP URIEN REGED.

The soul of Owain ap Urien, May the Lord provide for In its need. (next page) A corpse is the renowned protector       of bards; Splintered is the sharp spear. Where shall be sought the equal Of the brilliant prince of the West ? Soft are the hearts of his associates,[49] Children, sire, and grandsire. When Fflamddwyn slew Owain,[50] There was no advantage From his going to rest. A wide number of Lloegrians went to sleep With the light in their eyes.[51] And some could scarcely flee,

Prince of Rheged, the heavy green       sward conceals him; Not shallow was his song.   (next page) And they were . . . . [48] Than slaves. Owain valiantly chastised them Like (the leader of) a troop of wolves In pursuit of sheep. He was a worthy hero, lofty his       variegated harness. And he would give steeds To those who asked for them; What he amassed of the hard coin He shared with us. On account of his soul, The soul of Owain ap Urien, &c.

 

The following “Song to IJrien” is more corrupt and less intelligible than the preceding. It contains an allusion to the clan Gododin, or the hero or fortress of that name.

 

CANU I URIEN.

Ardwyre Reged ryfedd Rieu
Neu ti rygostais cyn bwyf teu
Gnissynt cad lafnawr
A chad fereu gnissynt wyr
Y dan gylchwyawr
Lleeu goleu gwyn gelein 
Ymathren ni mad frwydrwyd
Rhi ni mad geu
Ydd ymarmerth gwledig
Wrth Cymryau
Nis gyr neges y geissiaton
Gochawn Marchawg mwth molud gwrion
O ddreig ddylaw adnaw doethaw don
Yn i ddoeth Wlph yn dreis ar ei Alon
Hynny ddoeth Urien yn edydd yn Aeron
Ni bu cyfergyriad ni bu gynnwys
Talgynnawd Urien y rhac Powys
Ni hyfrwd brwd echen gynnwys
Hyfeidd a Gododin a lleu towys
Dewr yn enmynedd a thaith gyduwys
Difefl dyddwyn yngwaed gwyden
A weles llwyfenydd ufydd cyngryn
Yn eiddoedd cyhoedd yn eil mehyn
Cad yn rhyd Alclud Cad ym ynuer
Cad gellawr brewyn Cad hireurur
Cad Ymhrysg Cadleu, Cad yn Aber-ioed
Y ddygyfrang a dur breuer mawr
Cad gluduein Gwaith pen coed
Llwyth llithiawg Cunar ormant gwaed
Atveilaw gwyn goruchyr cyd mynan
Eingl eddyl gwrthryd
Lledrudd a gyfranc ag Wlph yn rhyd
Gwell ganher gwledig pyr y ganed y Udd
Prydain pen perchen broestlawn y Udd
Nid ymddug ddillad na glas na gawr
Na choch nag ehoeg uyg mawr llawr
Nid arddodes y forddwyd dros Voel Maelawr
Meirch o genedl vrych mor greidiawl
Haf y dan ayaf ag araf yn llaw
A Rhyd a Rhodwydd eu harwylaw
A gwest y dan geirdd ag ymdwyraw
Ac hyd orphen byd edrywyd Caw
Gosydin goyscub dyhawl am delw
Dilwfr am leufereu neu fi erthrycheis
Rhag hwyd Peleidr ar ysgwydd
Ysgwyd yn llaw Godeu a Rheged yn ymdulliaw
Neu fi a weleis wr yn buarthaw
Sarph sonedd firen Segidyd lawr
Neu fi gogwn Ryfel ydd argollawr
Er maint a gollwyf y argollaw
Neu fi neu ym gorwyth meddu meddlyn
Gan hyfeidd hywr hywest ddilyn
Neu fi neu ysgynhedais cysgawd gweithen
Dithrychwys fy rhieu radeu lawen
Gwasga gwlad dda wrth wruyn
Ac yn y vallwyf i hen
Ym dygn Angeu Angen
Na bydyf ym dirwen
Na molwyf Urien.

 

SONG TO URIEN.

Extol the glorious chiefs of Reged.
Wast not thou established before I had become strong ?
They brandish the battle-spears,
Men brandish the battle-lances,
Above the bucklers.
The light shines on the pale corpses.
Trampled down are the weak combatants.
Falsehood is not good in a king.
A feast is in preparation
For the honourable.
The inquisitive man does not hasten business.
I will sing of the swift knight, praised of heroes.
Of the chiefs owned by us the wisest (was) Don.
When Wlph^[52] came to spoil his foes,
When Urien came in the day in Aeron,
There was no combat in which he was not included.
He lifted up his head before Powys.
Not easily excited was the compact tribe.
Hyfeidd and Gododin, and the chief of Towys,
Bold, yet forbearing, and pledged to his oath;
Without reproach, condescending to those fallen into affliction.^[53]
I have seen Llwyfenydd^[54] humble and trembling,
When the banner was unfurled against the foreigner :^[55]
A battle in the ford of Alcluyd, a battle ia Inver—
A battle at Cellawr Brewyn,^[56] a battle at Hireurur;
A battle in the thicket of Cadleu, a battle in Aber-ioed;
Loud was the noise of the combat and the steel (weapons).
A battle in Cludwein, a fight at Pencoed.
The tribe enraged,^[57] the swine gorged with blood.
Decayed is the fair sovereignty of the united (tribes).^[58]
The purpose of the Angles is hostile;
Slaughtering^[59] and contest, and Wlph in the road.
Better is it for the land to contain a Chief,
The chief possessor of Britain, the harmonious Chief.
I have not worn robes neither blue nor brown,^[60]
Nor red, nor green, full of pride.
Have I not ridden upon Voel Maelawr,
The fiery horses of the spotted race ?
Summer and winter I moderated them with my hand,
And rapid and in circular course were their wheelings about.
And an entertainment both in disgrace and in self-exaltation.^[61]
Until of the end of the world was perceived the boundary.
Whirling round a besom, was one a devil in form.
Though brave, I was afraid lest I should be torn in pieces.^[62]
In front the grove of spears on the shoulders,
‘ The shield in the hand, Godeu and Reged arranged in battle array.
Have I not seen the Lord in the cattle-shed ?^[63]
May I not know a battle in which the chief shall perish,
Very much should I lose by his destruction.
I shall not be displeased with the sweet mead
In company with the manly Hyfeidd of hospitable conduct.
Have I not ascended to the shelter of battle ?
Fortunate is my King, full of grace ?
Shelter of the country, good to the oppressed.
And until I become old,
And in the sad necessity of death,
I shall not rejoice
Except in praising Urien.

The next song addressed to Urien, breathes an entirely different spirit, and contains little allusion to the favourite themes of battle and slaughter. It is a joyous song, in which the Bard represents his condition as happy and luxurious, owing to the liberal generosity of bis patron.

 

I URIEN.

Yngorphowys Can rychedwys Parch a chymrwys A medd meueddwys Mueddwys medd Ei orfoledd A chain diredd Imi yn rhyfedd A chyfedd mawr Ag eur ag Awr Ac eur a ched A chyfrifed A chyfrifiant A choddi chwant A chwant oi roddi Er fy llochi Yd ladd yd gryg Yd fag yd fyg Yd fyg yd fag Yd ladd yn rhag Rhagwedd roddid I feirdd y Byd Byd yn geugant Itti yd weddant Wrth dy ewyllis Duw ryth beris

Rhieu yngnis Rhag ofn dibris Annogiad cad Diffreiddiad gwlad Gnawd am danad Lwryf pystylad Pystylad Iwrwf Ac yfed cwrwf Cwrwf oi yfed A chein drafted A chein dudded Imi ryanllofed Llwyfenydd fan Ag eirch achlan Yn un trygan Mawr a bychan Taliessin gan Tidi ai diddan Ys tidi gore u or gigleu Ei wrdd lidau Molaf inneu dy weithredau Ac yn y vallwyf hen Ym dygn angeu angen Ni byddiff ym dirwen Na molwyf Urien.

 

TO URIEN.

In tranquil retirement I was prodigal of song; Honour I obtained, And I had abundance of mead, I had abundance of mead For praising him; And fair lands I had in excess, And great feasting, And gold and silver, And gold and gifts, (next page) Are certainly Rendering homage to thee According to thy desire. God hath subjected to thee The chiefs of the island, Through fear of thy assault Provoking battle. Protector of the land, Usual with thee Is headlong activity, And the drinking of ale, And ale for drinking, And fair houses, And beautiful raiment.

And plenty, And esteem, And gifts to my desire, And a desire of giving In my protector; It is a blessing, it is harsh, It is good, it is glorious, It is glorious, it is good, It is a blessing in the presence, The presence of the bestower.[64] The Bards of the world (next page) On me he has bestowed The estate of Llwyfenydd,[65] And all my requests, Three hundred altogether, Great and small. The song of Taliesin Is a pleasure to thee, The greatest ever heard of; It would be a source of indignation If I did not praise thy deeds. And until I become old, And in the sad necessity of death, I shall never rejoice Except in praising Urien.

The next poem, though it is not properly one of the historical series, is addressed to Urien Rheged, and may therefore be placed here.

 

ANREC URIEN.

Gogyfercheis, gogyrarchaf, gogyverchyd

Urien Reget Duallovyet       Y Leuenyd. Eur ac Aryant Mor eu divant       Eu dihenyd. Kyn noc y dau Rug y duylau       Y guesceryd, Ieuaf a wnaeth Coll ac alaeth       Am feirch peunyd. Keneu y vraut Kynnin daervaut       Ni by geluyd. Urien a wnaeth Dialynyaeth       Y gewilyd. (next page) Dufyr dyvnav Bendigwyf clav       Ac oe herwyd, Yr ae Kaffo Kynvinaul vo       Yn dragyuyd. Dydeu collet Or ymdiret       Yr ardelyd. A llau heb vaut A llavyn ar gnaut       A thlaut lûyd. Oes feibionein Nyt ymgyghein       Ymmerueryd; Nyt ymganret Nyt ymdiret       Neb oe gylyd. Dreic o Wyned Diffwys dired       Dirion drefyd. Lloegrwys yd a A lletaut yna       Harchollyd. Torrit meinueith Yn anoleith       Ar gyfhergyd. Muy a gollir Noc a geffir       O Wyndodydd. o gyt gyghor Kyvrung esgor       Mor a Mynyd. Gotriffit Brythyon Yn at poryon       Ar antyrron gyueithyd. Ef a dau byt Ny byd Kerdglyt       Ny byd Kelvyd. Alaf gar maer Arthauc yyd chuaer       Wrth y gilyd.

Kynnin vynnu Kyvarchuelu       Eu dihenyd. Deutu Aerven Diffuys dilen       Dydau lwyd. Seleu delyit Enynnyessit       Or a dybyd. Dybi y vaeth A ryd alhaeth       Oc eu herwyd. Cochliu lavneu Truy valch eiryeu       Am ffruyth eu Wy Kynnhalyant Lle peduar cant       Y peduar guyr. (next page) Llad a bodi O Eleri       Hyt chuil fynyd. Un gorvydyauc Antrugarauc       Ef a orvyd. Bychan y lu Yn ymchuelu       Or Mercherdyd. Arth or deau Kyvyt ynteu       Dychyfervyd. Lloegruys lledi Afrivedi       O Bowysyd. Guaith Cors Vochno O diango       Bydaud deduyd. Deudeng guraged Ac nyt ryved       Am un gur yyd. Oes Ieunctid Aghyvyrdelit       Y vaeth dybyd Beru ymdivant Bamauc or cant       Nys ryuelyd. Uryen o Beget hael ef syd ac a vyd Ac a vu yr Adaf letaf y gled Balch yghynted or tri Theyrn ar dec or gogled A un eu enu Aneuryn guautryd Auenyd A minneu Dalyesin o lann llyn geirionnydd Ny dalywyf yn hen Ym dygyn aghen Oni Moluyf Uryen. Amen.

Tal. Ae Dyuaut.

 

A GIFT TO URIEN.

I have addressed, I will address a salutation to

Urien Reged, Who rules over       The West. Gold and silver Quickly pass away,       They have no real source. Better than both, In both hands,       Covered over, Is union and harmony. Loss and grief       Are my daily portion. Children and brethren, Foremost in contention,       This is no falsehood. Urien would take Vengeance       On deception. First in making Reproaches       For their want of foundation. On both sides of the river Dee, Unmannered, unlearned, men       Approaching. Their eyes are blinded To the flames that are       And that shall be. There shall be evil And great sorrow       Because of them. Red are swords Through their proud words,       Violent their passion. Their supporters Are four hundred bands       Of four men. I am accustomed to sorrow, I am blessed in my grief,       And for this reason, (next page) There shall be a slaughter This year       On the slope of the hill. One a horseman Without mercy,       He shall conquer. Small the array Which shall return       On Wednesday. Arth from the south, Kyvyd with him,       Meeting. Slaughter of Lloegrians Innumerable       By the men of Powys. From the battle of Cors Vochno They who escape       Will be fortunate. Twelve women And no marvel,       Shall be to one man.

There is an attainment Which will bear fruit       In eternity. If thou resolve On moving forward       In thy duty, Hands unpolluted, And cheerfulness of disposition,       Lead unto happiness. There are (some) like children, Not agreed together       On the greensward; Neither pursuing Nor moving forward,       Nor any retreating. The chiefs of Gwyned Scattered in retreat       Through the pleasant towns. Lloegrians there are, Armoricans there,       Wounding. Broken is the fair work In the slaughtering       Of the battle shock. More is lost Than is gained       Of happiness. By the council assembled Between the ramparts       Of sea and mountain, Oppressed are Britons By the remnants       Of the associated enterprise. The world is passing away; There will be no shelter for song,       No poetic skill. The master covetous of wealth, The sister churlish,       In the corner (of the house). (next page) The period of youth Is all graceful,       But sorrow will come. Shortly disappearing, The sentence on their lusts       Not foreseen. Uryen of Reged, liberal he is and will be. And he was the protection of Adam the Armorican, Supreme in the hall of the thirteen kings of the North; And one of them was named Aneuiyn the panegyrical poet. And I also, Taliesin, from the bank of Llynn Ceirionydd, May I not fall into old age Or grievous death, Without praising Urien.

Taliesin recited this .

This poem, addressed to Urien Rheged, is evidently of a late date. At the time it was written the English or Lloegrians were engaged in warfare with the men of Powys, and it would appear with Gwynedd also. The prophecy.of the battle of CorsVochno, also contained in a predictive poem of the pseudo-Merlin, which Mr. Stephens has shown to be a production of the twelfth century, points to the same era for the date of this poem. Gwalchmai, a bard of the twelfth century, ascribes to Owain Gwynedd the honour of having been an actor in the battle of Cors Vochno, which, from the fragment preserved, would seem to have been fought by the North Welsh against the Flemish colonists of Pembrokeshire.

Ardwyreaf hael o hil Iago
A gennys dra chas dra Chors Vochno
A gyrchws glyw Flandrys a flemychws i eu bro,—

I extol the liberal chief of the race of Iago,
Who witnessed the conflagration beyond Cors Vochno,
And assaulted the chiefs of Flanders and fired their land.

We have therefore, in the “Anrhec Urien,” one instance of a poem addressed to Urien Rheged, and attributed to Taliesin, which certainly was not composed at an earlier date than the twelfth century. The latter portion has been added, either to give the piece the air of desired antiquity, and the authority of Taliesin for the prophecy, or has been accidentally transcribed with it. It contains the usual formula of the Urien ballads.

To these we might perhaps add a short fragment, which seems to have for its subject the invasion of Britain by the Romans. Its title is taken from the line referring to the story of Lludd and Llefelis, but it contains nothing of the adventures related in that tale in the Mabinogion.

 

YMARWAR LLUDD BYCHAN.

Yn enw Duw trindawd cardawd cyfrwys Llwyth lliaws anuaws eu henwerys Dy gorescynnan Prydain prif fan Ynys Gwyr gwlad yr Asia a gwlad Gafls Pobl pwyllad enwir eu tir ni wys Famen gorwyreis herwydd Maris Amlaes eu peisseu pwy ei hefelis A phwyllad dyvyner ober efnis Europin arafln arafanis. Cristiawn difryt diryd dilis

Cyn ymarwar Ludd a Lefelis Dysgogettawr perchen y wen ynys Rac pennaeth o Rufein cain ei echrys Nid rys nid cyfrwys ri rwyf ei araith A rywelei a ryweleis o anghyfiaith Dullator pedrygwern llugyrn ymdaith Rac Rhyuonig cynran baran goddeith Rytalas mab grat rwyf ei Areith Cymry yn danhyal rhyfel ar geith Pryderaf pwyllaf pwy y hymdeith Brytbonig yniwis rydderchefis.

 

THE RECONCILIATION OF LLUDD THE LESS.

In the name of God the Trinity, bestow charity on the skilful.
A numerous tribe hostile and vigorous
Ruled over Britain the chief island,
Men of the land of Asia and the region of Cafis,
A wise people certainly, their country is not known,
Their course was very devious on account of the sea.
Flowing their garments, who were equal to them ?
And skilful diviners over their enemies. 
Europin arafin arafanis.
To Christians they worked banishment and destruction,
Before the reconciliation of Lludd and Llefelis.
Agitated was the possessor of the fair island,
Because of the chief of Rome in his splendid garment.
Neither hesitating or troubled was the King, haughty his speech.
“Who has seen what I have seen of the foreigners ?
The forming of a square enclosure with lanterns moving about.
There is an appearance of fire before the Roman leader.”
Answered the son of Grat, haughty was his speech.
“Cymry in flames, war or captivity.”
I am anxiously considering what will be the career
Of the Britons of greatly exalted energy.

Before quitting the subject of the Historical poems, we may observe, that the conclusions at which Mr. Sharon Turner arrived in the Vindication of the Ancient British Poems have lost much of the force which appeared to belong to them at the time of the publication of that work in 1803. The greater number of the compositions on which Mr. Turner relied as ancient, and alluding to still more ancient poems, have been found to be themselves of later date than the tenth century. The internal evidence of an antiquity as remote as the sixth century, which these compositions have been supposed to afford, had not in Mr. Turner’s time been subjected to a sufficiently careful examination. The poems of Merlin the prophet, on which he placed much reliance, have been ascertained to be of modem date, attributed by their authors to the renowned magician of the sixth century; and the poems attributed to Taliesin are, as we have already stated, many of them of a like origin. The “Songs to Urien” themselves are not altogether beyond suspicion as to the genuineness of their historical character.

The poem, which of the whole series bears the most apparently genuine historical character, is that entitled “The Battle of Argoed Llwyfain.” It professes to be a description of a combat by Urien, chief of Rheged, with his son Owain, and their forces, against a Saxon chief who is called Flam-dwyn, and generally supposed to be the same with Ida, King of the Angles. The battle therefore would have been fought at some date between a.d. 537 and a.d. 560. But the poet has introduced as an ally or follower of Urien a person named Ceneu mab Coel.

It is certainly not impossible that such a person may have flourished in the time of Urien and Ida, though no other notice of him has been met. with. But Ceneu mab Coel, the son of Coel Godebog, is the great ancestor of nearly all the celebrated personages who form the subject of the Welsh romances, and constitute the splendid assembly of the Arthurian heroes.

He was the great-greatgrandfather of Urien himself, thus :—

Coel Godebog.
|
Ceneu
|
---------------------------------------------
|	|
Mor.	Gwrwst Ledlwm.
	|
	Meirchion Gul.
	|
	Cynfarch Oer.
	|
	Urien Rheged

It is difficult to suppose that any other Ceneu mab Coel than the ancestor of Urien can be intended by the person of that name introduced into this poem. Yet the son of Godebog himself can hardly be imagined to have taken part in a battle at which his descendant in the fifth degree, Owain ap Urien, was a warrior; and we cannot help entertaining the inference that the song was written at a period long subsequent to the event to which it relates, and that the name of the ancestor of Urien has been introduced by a bard not intimately acquainted with the details of his genealogy. The fact that the poem is first known to us from a MS. of the twelfth or thirteenth century adds to the weight of this circumstance, in casting a doubt upon its contemporaneity with the events which its relates.

Without, therefore, venturing to decide that these “Songs to Urien” were not rewritten in the twelfth century from materials originally of the date of the sixth, and that there are no poetical remains in the Welsh language older than the twelfth century, we may nevertheless assert that the common assumption of such remains of the date of the sixth century has been made upon very unsatisfactory grounds, and without a sufficiently careful examination of the evidence on which such assumption should be founded. Writers who claim for productions actually existing only in MSS. of the twelfth an origin in the sixth century, are called upon to demonstrate the links of evidence, either internal or external, which bridge over this great intervening period of at least five hundred years. This external evidence is altogether wanting; and the internal evidence, even of the so-called “Historical Poems” themselves, is, in some instances at least, opposed to their claims to an origin in the sixth century.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Y Gododin, Introduction, p. 1.

[2]:

Essay on the Welsh Saints , p. 114.

[3]:

Mr. Rees, ubi supra.

[4]:

“I who am Taliesin, a man of the oaks.”— Davies .

[5]:

Warwick, according to Williams.

[6]:

Carlisle.

[7]:

The construction of this and the preceding line is very doubtful.

[8]:

This last line, which Davies translates “the race of a colonial city,” appears not to belong to the poem, but to have been a note of some transcriber. I suppose the line may have been originally,

“Cam daddifa hun o coeling.”

Whether Coeling is a proper name or not, is unknown.

[9]:

Myvyr. Arch. vol. i. p. 198.

[10]:

The Bardic Museum of Primitive British Literature, and other admirable Rarities . London, 1802.

[11]:

Literally “reapers of the foe,” a complimentary formula frequently employed.

[12]:

Y Gododin , Preface, p. 5.

[13]:

Mr. Davies's copy, taken from a MS. of Mr. Theop. Jones, has “Kudvyt,” where the Myv. Archæol . has “ rhudvyt .”

[14]:

If “Clydwyn” is a proper name, it would refer to Clydwyn, son of Brychan, who conquered the territories in South Wales occupied by the Irish, or Gwyddel Ffichti; and the line might be,

Numerous is the retinue of Clydwyn.

[15]:

The words enclosed in brackets appear to be marginal notes of some former transcriber, incorporated by a later hand into the body of the piece. The second, “a mockery,” shows that the commentator was shocked at the apparent irrelevancy of this line.

[16]:

See Prov. XVII. 12. “Gwell i wr gyfarfod ag arthes,” &c. “It is better for man to meet with a she bear,” &c.

[17]:

Mr. Williams (ab Ithel) has given Gognaw as a proper name (though doubtfully) in the 57th line of the Gododin , and proposes to read the above line in this poem,

Gognaw ei brawd digones;

but there is no connection between such a reading and the rest of the piece. If Gognaw was the son of Botgad, he was not the brother of Gwallawg, and one does not see why he should be introduced here.

[18]:

Dr. Owen has, Frangible was the awful arch at the first uttering of the word.

[19]:

One of the heroes of the Gododin.

Hyveid Hir shall be celebrated while there remains a minstrel.

Haearndor is mentioned in the Elegy on Uther Pendragon ; and a person of this name is mentioned as a witness to a charter or feoffment of lands to the church of Llandaff by the sons of Beli, in the time of Bishop Nudd, in the eighth century.

[20]:

Tefawg, to rhyme with Gwallawg. Mr. Williams (ab Ithel) translates this and the next line,—

Owain of Mona of Maelgynian manner,
Would prostrate the ravagers.— Gododin, p. 91, note.

[21]:

In a Triad, Myv. Archæology, vol. ii., we find, “The three losses by disappearance of the Isle of Britain. Gavran son of Aeddan, with his men, who went to aea in search of the Green Islands of the Floods, and nothing more was heard of them.” In another the tribe of Gavran, the son of Aeddan, is mentioned as one of “The three loyal tribes of the Isle of Britain.”

[22]:

Probably Brycheiniog, or Brecknockshire, which was at one time peopled by the Irish.

[23]:

Gogyfres; cyfres—equal rank. Go-cyfres , a partial equality, something less than an equality of rank.

[24]:

Dr. Owen, in his Dictionary, has given translations of many portions of this poem, which, from its supposed historical character, has attracted much attention. His translations are :—

“In the name of the governor of the high powers of heaven they shall chiefly sing, shall chiefly complain to the prince; he who rejects the uniform column of the tribes of the numbers of Rhun and Nudd and Nwython.”

The personages here mentioned are historical; that is to say, they are named in other sources of information, and supposed to belong to the sixth century.

[25]:

Owen, Diet.—

“The station of the complete songster excellent of song I ardently desire. I will greatly sing to a sovereign, in the region where he was agitated with frailty, that he cause me not to be unable to form the lay.”

[26]:

The next line is unintelligible.

[27]:

Dr. Owen translates this:—

“A violent youth that rejects the milky food, like the herald of Gwallawg.”

[28]:

  Here the original poem seems to end, the remainder consisting of the usual detached phrases in the nature of adages.

[29]:

Owen. —

“Of a forbearing aspect is the countenance of Gwallawg; he does not inquire of any one what he has done.”

[30]:

Owen.—

“Talkative is the privileged orator of kings in the luxuriant circle of the good mead, like the sun, the warm animator of summer.”

[31]:

See note to the Song of the Horses, post.

[32]:

From Dumbarton to Shrewsbury. In the Biographical Dictionary of Eminent Welshmen, it is said, that in this poem the fame of Gwallawg is represented as extending from Caer Clud or Dumbarton, to Caer Caradawg or Salisbury. This is an example of the mode in which these poems have been treated, by taking the meaning of a single line, altogether regardless of the context.

[33]:

Literally “pulled out, dr a gged out,” the eye.

[34]:

“Mai tonnawr tost.” “Like sharp thunder” would, I believe, be the true translation: “tonnawr,” “tonnerre.”

[35]:

Or until midday.

[36]:

“To overwhelm Goddeu and Rheged.”

[37]:

That is Urien and his son Owain.

[38]:

Gorlassar means extremely blue; but, as that does not appear a possible reading, I suppose it to be an error for gorlaisar , shrill-voiced. The whole line is an example of the alliteration so much in vogue in the twelfth and following century.

[39]:

Egin, the crop, the blades of corn springing up.

[40]:

Some transcriber has added here, as a gloss apparently on the epithet ffysgyolyn “tad ynial,” a vigorous trotter, which spoils the rhyme, and is clearly an interpolation.

[41]:

The original poem appears to have ended with this line; the next seven lines are conceived in an entirely different spirit, and present a series of things which, I presume, are intended to be represented as impossibilities. “Yspeil Taliesin” is probably mistranslated “The spoils of Taliesin.”

[42]:

Benffyg, apparently a corruption of “beneficus.”

[43]:

Dr. Owen translates these two lines, —

One is the cry of the stag in its flight,
One is the wolf uncovetous of the broom .

[44]:

Gwyddfaeu. Gwyddfa means, according to Owen, a place of presence, an elevated mound.

[45]:

Iais, in this line, must be a misprint for “Sais,” the Saxon.

[46]:

Dr. Owen has a curious reading of these lines. His copy gives,—

Y gwr dewr bythig
A vei veddw ei wraig
Am ys gwin felaig,—

“The valiant persevering one, whose wife was drunk over the wine of the chieftain.”

[47]:

Cyncan , instead of cynghar.

[48]:

Or “Reaper of associated foes.”

[49]:

The ordinary construction would give

When Owain slew Fflamdwyn.

But in an elegy on Owain the circumstances of his death are more naturally mentioned; and this reading renders the following lines more intelligible. If Fflamddwyn were Ida, the bard could hardly say there was no advantage in his death; but he says that, even though Owain was slain in the battle, the army of the Lloegrians was defeated.

[50]:

That is, “lay prostrate on their backs in death on the field of battle.”

[51]:

The remainder of this line is wanting.

[52]:

Wlph or Gwlpk . The name seems to be Saxon; but I believe nothing is known of him.

[53]:

Yn gwaed gwyden.

[54]:

  Llwyfenydd. “The Elms” was the name of the estate which the Bard hopes Urien will not take from him, in the “Dadolwch Urien.”

[55]:

   Yn ellmyn ? Dr. Owen translates it “yn ail meyn” in the second place.

[56]:

These seem all to be names of places at which Urien had been present in battle.

[57]:

Llidiawg.

[58]:

Cydymun.

[59]:

Lladdrad.

[60]:

Here begins a rhapsody which has no connection with the former part.

[61]:

This line seems not to belong to the rest.

[62]:

This part, the account of his ride on the horse Voel Maelawr to the end of the world, which has been interpolated, here ceases, and the piece returns to the subject of the former part—the actions of Urien.

[63]:

This is apparently a line belonging to some other piece, and refers to Christ. The next line is unintelligible.

[64]:

This is one of those propositions in the nature of riddles which the Bards were constantly offering for solution.

[65]:

The estate given by Urien to the Bard, and frequently mentioned in these songs. See the “Dadolwch Urien.”