Branwen
Encyclopedia
Branwen, Daughter of Llŷr is a major character in the Second Branch of the Mabinogi, which is sometimes called the Mabinogi of Branwen after her. Branwen is a daughter of Llŷr
and Penarddun
. She is married to the King of Ireland, but the marriage does not bring peace.
), King of Britain
, sitting on a rock by the sea at Harlech
and seeing the vessels of Matholwch
King of Ireland
approaching. Matholwch has come to ask for the hand of Bendigeidfran's sister Branwen in marriage. Bendigeidfran agrees to this, and a feast is held to celebrate the betrothal. While the feast is going on, Efnisien
, a half-brother of Branwen and Bendigeidgfran, arrives and ask why there are celebrations. On being told, he is furious that his half sister has been given in marriage without his consent, and vents his spleen by mutilating Matholwch's horses. Matholwch is deeply offended, but conciliated by Bendigeidfran
who gives him a magical cauldron which can bring the dead to life, but the downside is that they then are mute.
). She tames a starling
and sends it across the Irish Sea
with a message to her brother and Bendigeidfran brings a force from Wales
to Ireland
to rescue her. Some swineherds see the giant Bendigeidfrân wading the sea and reported to Matholwch who retreated beyond a river and destroyed the bridges. However, Bendigeidfran lays himself down over the river to serve as a bridge for his men, uttering the gnomic
words, "A fo ben, bid bont" ('He would be a leader, let him be a bridge"). Matholwch, fearing war, tries to reconcile with Bendigeidfran by building a house big enough for him to fit into in order to do him honour. Matholwch agrees to give the kingdom to Gwern
, his son by Branwen, to pacify Bendigeidfran. The Irish lords do not like the idea, and many hide themselves in flour bags tied to the pillars of the huge newly built house to attack the Welsh. Efnisien
, checking out the house prior to the arrival of Bendigeidfran and his men, guesses what is happening and kills the hidden men by squeezing their heads. At the subsequent feast to celebrate Gwern's investiture as King of Ireland, Efnisien in an unprovoked moment of rage throws his nephew Gwern into the fire.
in Anglesey
Branwen dies of grief that so much destruction had been caused on her account, crying "Oi, a fab Duw! Gwae fi o'm genedigaeth. Da o ddwy ynys a ddiffeithwyd o'm hachos i" ('Oh Son of God, woe to me that I was born! Two fair islands have been laid waste because of me!'). She was buried beside the river Alaw.
Bendigeidfran had commanded his men to cut off his head and to "bear it even unto the White Mount, in London, and bury it there, with the face towards France." And so for seven years his men spent feasting in Harlech, accompanied by three singing birds and Bendigeidfran's head. After the seven years they go to Gwales in Penfro, where they remain for fourscore (80) years. Eventually they go to London and bury the head of Bendigeidfran in the White Mount. Legend said that as long as the head was there, no invasion would come over the sea to Britain.
on the banks of the Alaw can be found the cairn called Bedd Branwen, her supposed grave. Now in ruins, it still has one standing stone
. It was dug up in 1800, and again in the 1960s by Frances Lynch, who found several urns with human ashes. It is believed that if the story of Branwen is based on real events, these must have taken place during the Bedd Branwen Period
of Bronze Age
British history.
In 1994 a feature film was released called Branwen. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0109329/
Llyr
Llŷr is a figure in Welsh mythology, the father of Brân, Brânwen and Manawydan by Penarddun. The Welsh Triads mention he was imprisoned by Euroswydd; the Second Branch of the Mabinogi names Euroswydd as the father of Penarddun's younger two sons, Nisien and Efnisien. Llŷr corresponds to Lir in...
and Penarddun
Penarddun
Penarddun is a figure in Welsh mythology, the wife of Llŷr. The Second Branch of the Mabinogi names Bran, Branwen, and Manawydan as her children by Llŷr, and ascribes to her two additional sons by Euroswydd: Nisien, a good man, and Efnysien, a conniving troublemaker...
. She is married to the King of Ireland, but the marriage does not bring peace.
The Story of Branwen
The story opens with Bendigeidfran (Brân the BlessedBran the Blessed
Brân the Blessed is a giant and king of Britain in Welsh mythology. He appears in several of the Welsh Triads, but his most significant role is in the Second Branch of the Mabinogi, Branwen ferch Llŷr. He is a son of Llŷr and Penarddun, and the brother of Brânwen, Manawydan, Nisien and Efnysien...
), King of Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
, sitting on a rock by the sea at Harlech
Harlech
Harlech is a town and seaside resort in Gwynedd, within the historical boundaries of Merionethshire in northwest Wales. Lying on Tremadog Bay and within the Snowdonia National Park, it has a population of 1,952, of whom 59% speak Welsh...
and seeing the vessels of Matholwch
Matholwch
Matholwch, King of Ireland, is a character in the Second Branch of the Mabinogi, the tale of Branwen ferch Llŷr.The story opens with Bran, King of Britain, sitting on a rock by the sea at Harlech and seeing the vessels of Matholwch approaching. Matholwch has come to ask for the hand of Bran's...
King of Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
approaching. Matholwch has come to ask for the hand of Bendigeidfran's sister Branwen in marriage. Bendigeidfran agrees to this, and a feast is held to celebrate the betrothal. While the feast is going on, Efnisien
Efnisien
Efnysien fab Euroswydd is a sadistic anti-hero in Welsh mythology, appearing prominently in the tale of Branwen ferch Llŷr, the second branch of the Mabinogi...
, a half-brother of Branwen and Bendigeidgfran, arrives and ask why there are celebrations. On being told, he is furious that his half sister has been given in marriage without his consent, and vents his spleen by mutilating Matholwch's horses. Matholwch is deeply offended, but conciliated by Bendigeidfran
Bran the Blessed
Brân the Blessed is a giant and king of Britain in Welsh mythology. He appears in several of the Welsh Triads, but his most significant role is in the Second Branch of the Mabinogi, Branwen ferch Llŷr. He is a son of Llŷr and Penarddun, and the brother of Brânwen, Manawydan, Nisien and Efnysien...
who gives him a magical cauldron which can bring the dead to life, but the downside is that they then are mute.
The Starling and Brân the Blessed
In Ireland, Branwen is eventually treated cruelly by her husband Matholwch as punishment for Efnisien's mutilation of the horses (though not before she gives birth to an heir, GwernGwern
; "Alder," is a minor figure in Welsh tradition, the son of Matholwch king of Ireland, and Branwen, sister to the king of Britain. He appears in the tale of Branwen, daughter of Llŷr, in which he is murdered by his sadistic uncle Efnysien which sparks a mutually destructive battle between Britain...
). She tames a starling
Starling
Starlings are small to medium-sized passerine birds in the family Sturnidae. The name "Sturnidae" comes from the Latin word for starling, sturnus. Many Asian species, particularly the larger ones, are called mynas, and many African species are known as glossy starlings because of their iridescent...
and sends it across the Irish Sea
Irish Sea
The Irish Sea separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is connected to the Celtic Sea in the south by St George's Channel, and to the Atlantic Ocean in the north by the North Channel. Anglesey is the largest island within the Irish Sea, followed by the Isle of Man...
with a message to her brother and Bendigeidfran brings a force from Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
to Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
to rescue her. Some swineherds see the giant Bendigeidfrân wading the sea and reported to Matholwch who retreated beyond a river and destroyed the bridges. However, Bendigeidfran lays himself down over the river to serve as a bridge for his men, uttering the gnomic
Gnomic
A gnomic aspect , sometimes called a neutral, generic or universal aspect or tense, is a grammatical aspect that expresses general truths or aphorisms—such as birds fly, sugar is sweet, a mother can always tell...
words, "A fo ben, bid bont" ('He would be a leader, let him be a bridge"). Matholwch, fearing war, tries to reconcile with Bendigeidfran by building a house big enough for him to fit into in order to do him honour. Matholwch agrees to give the kingdom to Gwern
Gwern
; "Alder," is a minor figure in Welsh tradition, the son of Matholwch king of Ireland, and Branwen, sister to the king of Britain. He appears in the tale of Branwen, daughter of Llŷr, in which he is murdered by his sadistic uncle Efnysien which sparks a mutually destructive battle between Britain...
, his son by Branwen, to pacify Bendigeidfran. The Irish lords do not like the idea, and many hide themselves in flour bags tied to the pillars of the huge newly built house to attack the Welsh. Efnisien
Efnisien
Efnysien fab Euroswydd is a sadistic anti-hero in Welsh mythology, appearing prominently in the tale of Branwen ferch Llŷr, the second branch of the Mabinogi...
, checking out the house prior to the arrival of Bendigeidfran and his men, guesses what is happening and kills the hidden men by squeezing their heads. At the subsequent feast to celebrate Gwern's investiture as King of Ireland, Efnisien in an unprovoked moment of rage throws his nephew Gwern into the fire.
War against Ireland
In the ensuing war, all the Irish are killed save for five pregnant women who repopulate the island, while only seven of the Welsh survive to return home with Branwen, taking with them the severed head of Bendigeidfran. On landing in Wales at Aber AlawAber Alaw
Aber Alaw is at the mouth of the Afon Alaw on Anglesey, in North Wales. According to the Mabinogion, it is here that Queen Branwen died of grief after escaping the destruction of Ireland...
in Anglesey
Anglesey
Anglesey , also known by its Welsh name Ynys Môn , is an island and, as Isle of Anglesey, a county off the north west coast of Wales...
Branwen dies of grief that so much destruction had been caused on her account, crying "Oi, a fab Duw! Gwae fi o'm genedigaeth. Da o ddwy ynys a ddiffeithwyd o'm hachos i" ('Oh Son of God, woe to me that I was born! Two fair islands have been laid waste because of me!'). She was buried beside the river Alaw.
Bendigeidfran had commanded his men to cut off his head and to "bear it even unto the White Mount, in London, and bury it there, with the face towards France." And so for seven years his men spent feasting in Harlech, accompanied by three singing birds and Bendigeidfran's head. After the seven years they go to Gwales in Penfro, where they remain for fourscore (80) years. Eventually they go to London and bury the head of Bendigeidfran in the White Mount. Legend said that as long as the head was there, no invasion would come over the sea to Britain.
Branwen's Grave
At Llanddeusant, AngleseyLlanddeusant, Anglesey
Llanddeusant is a small linear village, on Anglesey, North Wales about north east of Holyhead. The village takes it names from its parish church which is dedicated to St. Marcellus and Saint Marcellina....
on the banks of the Alaw can be found the cairn called Bedd Branwen, her supposed grave. Now in ruins, it still has one standing stone
Standing stone
Standing stones, orthostats, liths, or more commonly megaliths are solitary stones set vertically in the ground and come in many different varieties....
. It was dug up in 1800, and again in the 1960s by Frances Lynch, who found several urns with human ashes. It is believed that if the story of Branwen is based on real events, these must have taken place during the Bedd Branwen Period
Bedd Branwen Period
The Bedd Branwen Period is the name given by Colin Burgess to a division of the early Bronze Age in Britain covering the period between 1650 BC and 1400 BC...
of Bronze Age
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
British history.
Welsh text and editions
- Branwen Uerch Lyr. Ed. Derick S. Thomson. Medieval and Modern Welsh Series Vol. II. Dublin: Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, 1976. ISBN 1-85500-059-8
Secondary sources
- Ford, Patrick K. "Branwen: A Study of the Celtic Affinities," Studia Celtica 22/23 (1987/1988): 29-35.
Adaptations
See also
- MabinogionMabinogionThe Mabinogion is the title given to a collection of eleven prose stories collated from medieval Welsh manuscripts. The tales draw on pre-Christian Celtic mythology, international folktale motifs, and early medieval historical traditions...
- The Four Branches of the Mabinogi
- The Children of LlŷrThe Children of LlyrThe Children of Llyr is a fantasy novel by Evangeline Walton, the second in a series of four based on the Welsh Mabinogion. It was first published in paperback by Ballantine Books as the thirty-third volume of the celebrated Ballantine Adult Fantasy series in August, 1971...
- Medieval Welsh literatureMedieval Welsh literatureMedieval Welsh literature is the literature written in the Welsh language during the Middle Ages. This includes material from the fifth century, when Welsh was in the process of becoming distinct from the British language, to the works of the 16th century....
- Christopher WilliamsChristopher Williams (Welsh artist)Christopher David Williams was a Welsh artist.He was born in Maesteg, Wales. His father Evan Williams intended him to be a doctor, but he disliked the idea. A visit to the Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool, in 1892, where he spent some hours in front of Frederick Leighton's "Perseus and Andromeda,"...
painted three paintings from the Mabinogion. Brânwen (1915) can be viewed at the Glynn Vivian Art GalleryGlynn Vivian Art GalleryThe Glynn Vivian Art Gallery is the public art gallery of the city of Swansea, Wales. The gallery is situated in Alexandra Road, near Swansea railway station, opposite the old Swansea Central Library and near Swansea Central police station...
, Swansea.
External links
- Branwen Uerch Lŷr: The Second Branch Of The Mabinogi Translated by Lady Charlotte Guest
- Branwen uerch Lyr The original Welsh text
- Goddess Branwen
- Who was Branwen?