elegy

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Historia III – Y Gododdin: The Last Stand of Three Hundred Britons

Hello fellow history-lovers!

Welcome back to the blog for another exciting announcement. Over the past two weeks, we’ve introduced you to Eagles and Dragons Publishing’s new non-fiction series, HISTORIA, and the first two volumes having to do with Celtic Literary Archetypes and Arthurian Romance.

This week, we want to introduce you to the third volume in the series:

Y Gododdin– The Last Stand of Three Hundred Britons: Understanding People and Events during Britain’s Heroic Age

This book introduces the reader to one of the most important and moving literary works to come out of Dark Age Britain: The Gododdin of Aneirin.

The Gododdin is not only a praise poem and elegy for three hundred British warriors who made a heroic last stand against the invaders of their island, it is also an important source for understanding the culture, people, and events of the seventh century.

In this book, the reader will learn about the poem itself, the historical background, as well as the archaeological evidence that has come to light.

The Gododdin is an inspiring, tragic tribute to ‘three hundred gold-torqued warriors’, composed by a man who was their contemporary and friend who sought to ensure their sacrifice would never be forgotten.

If you are studying The Gododdin itself, or have an interest in Celtic, Arthurian, or Dark Age studies, then you will enjoy this short study of the heroic last stand of three hundred men against thousands, an act of historical bravery worthy of the successors of Arthur himself.

Page from the Book of Aneirin – NLW Llyfr Aneirin, Cardiff MS 2.81 (Wikimedia Commons)

The poem, Y Gododdin, is perhaps one that not many of you have heard of before, unless you’ve studied early medieval Welsh poetry, Celtic or Arthurian studies.

I actually came across the poem during my graduate studies, as well as part of my research into the historical ‘Arthur’. The mention of ‘Arthur’ is what drew me to the poem in the first place, but Y Gododdin is so much more than that small reference to a Romano-British hero.

Aneirin’s poem is an amazing example of bardic praise poetry. It sounds very different read aloud, versus in one’s head. But it’s also a moving tribute, an elegy, to a group of three hundred warriors who knew, more or less, that they were riding to their deaths.

I compare the ride of the Gododdin warriors to the last stand of the 300 Spartans at Thermopylae, and I don’t believe this is an exaggeration. The poem sings of their deeds and bravery, but it also gives us an insight into Dark Age society that is invaluable to our understanding of the age.

To me, Y Gododdin is a sort of ‘swan song’ for Romano-Celtic Britain.

If you are interested in getting a copy of this third book in the HISTORIA non-fiction series, you can check it out on Amazon, iTunes and Kobo by CLICKING HERE.

You can also purchase a copy directly from Eagles and Dragons Publishing on the ‘Buy Direct from Eagles and Dragons’ tab of the website, or by CLICKING HERE.

That concludes our launch series for HISTORIA, but we will continue to add more titles over time with the fourth volume coming sometime in the autumn.

Thank you for reading!

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The Ruin – An Anglo-Saxon Poem of the Past

Ruins of the Roman Baths

Ruins of the Roman Baths

When I write about history my work is inspired by human behaviour and the people of the past, but a large part of my inspiration comes from the remains of civilizations that I have seen.

Whenever I have been fortunate enough to travel, the memories of my visits to ancient and medieval ruins have stayed with me as a sort of vivid library of information and emotion through which I can browse whenever I need to.

Often, sites will give me a particular feel or ‘vibe’ for lack of a better term. I can well imagine the voices of a crowded agora, or the cheers of a packed amphitheatre. You can’t help it. The past speaks to you in these places.

Roman Bath

Roman Bath

The other day I read a fragment of an 8th century old-English Saxon poem called ‘The Ruin’. This fragment, which survives from the Exeter Book, is a sort of elegy for the Roman city of Bath. It is incomplete, but very interesting to read, even a little sad. Here it is in translation:

 

The Ruin

Wondrous is this foundation – the fates have broken

and shattered this city; the work of giants crumbles.

The roofs are ruined, the towers toppled,

frost in the mortar has broken the gate,

torn and worn and shorn by the storm,

eaten through with age. The earth’s grasp

holds the builders, rotten, forgotten,

the hard grip of the ground, until a hundred

generations of men are gone. This wall, rust-stained

and moss-covered, has endured one kingdom after another,

stood in the storm, steep and tall, then tumbled.

The foundation remains, felled by the weather,

it fell…..

grimly ground up ….

……cleverly created….

…… a crust of mud surrounded …

….. put together a swift

and subtle system of rings; one of great wisdom

wondrously bound the braces together with wires.

Bright were the buildings, with many bath-houses,

noble gables and a great noise of armies,

many a meadhall filled with men’s joys,

until mighty fate made an end to all that.

The slain fell on all sides, plague-days came,

and death destroyed all the brave swordsmen;

the seats of their idols became empty wasteland,

the city crumbled, its re-builders collapsed

beside their shrines. So now these courts are empty,

and the rich vaults of the vermilion roofs

shed their tiles. The ruins toppled to the ground,

broken into rubble, where once many a men

glad-minded, gold-bright, bedecked in splendor,

proud, full of wine, shone in his war-gear,

gazed on treasure, on silver, on sparking gems,

on wealth, on possessions, on the precious stone,

on the bright capital of a broad kingdom.

Stone buildings stood, the wide-flowing stream

threw off its heat; a wall held it all

in its bright bosom where the baths were,

hot in its core, a great convenience.

They let them gush forth …..

the hot streams over the great stones,

under…

until the circular pool …. hot…

…..where the baths were.

Then….

….. that is a noble thing,

how …. the city ….

 

(translation by R. M. Liuzza)

The Exeter Book

The Exeter Book

I’ve often wondered what people in the Middle Ages might have thought of the Roman ruins that were all around them. They probably used the Roman roads (and we still do today!), walls, foundations, and town plans, but I had never really read a primary medieval source that lamented the ruins of Rome’s past in Britain in such a way.

Artist's reconstruction of Aquae Sulis

Artist’s reconstruction of Aquae Sulis

I have to admit that I was a little surprised to read ‘The Ruin’ and detect a hint of sadness as the poet describes what remains of the once-great town of Aqae Sulis. I feel as though he is expressing how I might have felt seeing that wondrous, crumbling city.

The poet has resuscitated Roman Bath for us at a moment in time, after the days of its glory. I can see the grass growing out of the cracks of the paving slabs, and the moss filling the spaces where mortar has crumbled from walls. I can hear ravens cawing from atop the city’s carcass as terra cotta roof tiles slither and slide from their perches to crash on the ground below.

This is yet another interesting perspective to keep in mind when visiting ancient sites – how might other people in history have viewed these places, depending on the perspective of their own age in time?

It’s something worth thinking on.

Thank you for reading!

Let us know what you think about this poem by leaving a comment below.

Anglo Saxon poet

Anglo Saxon poet

If you want to hear what the poem sounds like in old-English, here is a video of a young historian reading it. She speaks for about a minute before she starts reading the poem, but hang in there. It’s well worth the wait! What a beautiful language.

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