J. Eric Moore Advisor: Dr. Mary Jane Morrow 2006-2007 Senior History
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CULTURAL REBELLIONS: WELSH LITERARY OUTPOURING AFTER THE THIRTEENTH-CENTURY EDWARDIAN CONQUEST J. Eric Moore Advisor: Dr. Mary Jane Morrow 2006-2007 Senior History Honors Thesis Duke University 2 Table of Contents Acknowledgments..........................................................................................................................3 Introduction....................................................................................................................................4 Background to the Conquest................................................................................................9 Chapter 1: Wales Under Edward I............................................................................................25 Economy and Oppression..................................................................................................25 The Rise of Peace in North Wales......................................................................................44 Assimilation and Acculturation..........................................................................................49 Edwards II and III..............................................................................................................55 Chapter 2: At the Crossroads of Orality and Literacy.............................................................60 Literacy and Orality...........................................................................................................61 Literacy in Early Medieval Wales......................................................................................68 Literacy and Orality in Late Medieval Wales....................................................................75 Medieval Manuscripts........................................................................................................78 Chapter 3: Einion's Grammar and the “Poetry of the Gentry”..............................................85 Einion's Grammar..............................................................................................................85 Poetries of the Princes and Gentry....................................................................................91 Chapter 4: The Mabinogion.......................................................................................................111 The White Book of Rhydderch..........................................................................................111 “The Dream of Maxen” ..................................................................................................119 “Branwen Daughter of Llŷr”...........................................................................................124 “Culhwch and Olwen”....................................................................................................131 Conclusion..................................................................................................................................138 Bibliography...............................................................................................................................144 3 Acknowledgments First and foremost, I want to thank my advisor, Dr. Mary Jane Morrow, for giving me constant guidance over the past year and half. She has shown great patience for me and my topic and allowed the thesis to grow organically and take on new directions that neither of us had anticipated. Her thoughtful suggestions challenged me to write a paper both broad in scope and deep in coverage, and her enthusiastic encouragement has maintained my spirits in this long endeavor. I cannot thank her enough. Next, I would like to thank my thesis director, Dr. Raymond Gavins; my commentator, Erin Glunt; and my fellow thesis writers. Without the oversight and continual reassurance made possible only by a community of respectful scholars, this undertaking would not have reached its full potential. I hope that all of my classmates have been as enriched by their projects as I have been by mine. I also wish to extend my appreciation to Dr. Kristen Neuschel, whose advice aided me in formulating my thesis proposal. Meeting with a scholar of her caliber truly helped me focus my investigation and pinpoint key areas of research. In addition, I want to thank Mrs. Margaret Brill, the British Isles Subject Librarian at Duke; she has been very instrumental in finding materials necessary for my investigation. Our university is very fortunate to have such a tremendous resource on hand. Finally, I would like to thank Dean Gerald Wilson for providing a grant to fund my research trip to Wales as well as the men and women of Cadw, especially my tour guide at Caernarfon, for their careful stewardship of Wales's precious heritage. It is only through the efforts of people like these that we can be assured of future generations' access to and appreciation for our cultural past. 4 Introduction The sun on December 11, 1282 dawned bright and crisp over the green Snowdonian morning. Rising just before light first broke over his mountain encampment, Llywelyn ap Gruffydd began donning the leather jerkin, boots, and sword that his young squire had feverishly worked to assemble the night before. Supple from heavy use over the past few years, his meager cover slid effortlessly over his frame as his mind worked through the events of the past week. Only a few short days ago, it seemed, he had made the drastic decision to set out southward from his stronghold in Gwynedd in hopes that he and the small army that formed his retinue would receive succor from some of his supporters in the Powys territory. He had had no choice. The strategizing King of England had once before conducted this campaign against the Welsh Prince, but was hindered solely by a lack of provisions from taking the heartland of his native opponent, a deficiency that Edward would certainly not repeat during this incursion. Faced with his own lack of resources as the English python drew its coils tighter and tighter around northern Wales, Llywelyn chose to venture out of his fortress at great risk to himself from the many pro-Edward factions that called Powys and the Marches home. Alas, there was a tiny glimmer of hope on the dark horizon. Just two nights ago, he had received an emissary from two of his marcher enemies, Edmund de Mortimer and Hugo Le Strange, expressing their desire to join forces with the Welsh Prince. Coming as something of a surprise, the messenger entreated Llywelyn to travel only a little further into Powys and receive their homage at a small village called Cilmeri. Too desperate to allow his suspicions to get the best of him, the Prince placed his hope in the notion that Edward's own land-greed might have soured this whole affair even for his loyal supporters on the buffer between England and Wales. So, on the morning of December 11, Llywelyn and his army embarked on the small trip to the 5 rickety bridge over the River Wye, all the while praying that their endeavors would not go unrewarded. Though short, the march was a fearsome, one even for the stoutest of Welsh warriors. Every creaking branch became an English knight drawing his sword, every rustling leaf an archer fitting his bow. More than once Llywelyn halted his company to check in with the scouts that he had ordered to flank the army a quarter-mile to either side. No one had seen so much as a deer. The entire forest had quieted in anticipation. It came as something of a relief when the army drew within sight of the river crossing and cast its collective gaze on the Marcher lords that would, hopefully, become their saviors. Working to shield a slight smile, Llywelyn advanced to greet the English nobles and to thank them graciously for their support in his struggle. As he reached the apex of the wooden bridge, the soft padding of his boots quickly gave way to the clamor and clash of metal on metal and the ominous twang of a bowstring being loosed. Turning to ascertain the source of this noise, Llywelyn was greeted with a sight that had haunted his imagination: his army was under ambush. Unbeknownst to the Welsh Prince, the two traitorous Marcher lords, aided by Roger Despenser and Gruffydd ap Gwenwynwyn, who had already made an attempt on Llywelyn's life, had sent a sizable portion of their forces across the river to encircle the meager Welsh army as it grew closer to the bridge. Having already disposed of the scouts whom they found in their pathway, the English army had nothing to do but wait for the signal. At that moment, they were able to sweep in from their sylvan hiding places and deliver a fatal blow to Llywelyn's forces within a very short time. Seeing his army besieged, the Welsh Prince turned in a desperate attempt to rejoin them, but the opposing combatants were too well placed between him and his men to allow his return. 6 Across the bridge, Edmund and Hugo ordered their men forward to cut off Llywelyn's retreat while they themselves remained behind to oversee the battle. As the Welsh Prince felt the grip of the treacherous Marcher lords tighten about his neck, he drew his sword in hopes that he could fend off enough of their soldiers to buy him some time before his capture and ransom. The hours raged on as Llywelyn watched more and more of his loyal men fall upon English swords. These were some of the very men with whom he had grown up, with whom he had shared his vision of a unified Wales under his rule. Now these were the same men fighting for their lives in a last- ditch attempt to do damage to the English hordes. Llywelyn himself was