The battle of Catraeth: Y Gododdin

The heroic poem Y Gododdin is one of the longest and most famous texts in medieval Welsh. It was written down in the kingdom of Gwynedd in North Wales in a thirteenth-century manuscript, but the spellings in one of the two versions suggest that it may be several centuries older. It consists mainly of a series of elegies for warriors who feasted at the court of Din Eidyn (modern Edinburgh) before setting out to fight at a place called Catraeth where many, perhaps most, of them were killed. Where might Catraeth have been?

Evidence

The battle of Catraeth is not mentioned in the Annales Cambriae, Historia Brittonum or the Irish Annals of Ulster, Tigernach or Innisfallen, at least not in any form that I can recognise. The only sources for it are poems written down in medieval Wales. Of these, by far the most important is Y Gododdin, written down in a thirteenth-century manuscript known as the Book of Aneirin.

Y Gododdin

Y Gododdin survives only in the Book of Aneirin. The text was written by two scribes, conventionally designated A and B. The A scribe wrote using the language conventions of Middle Welsh (12th to 14th century, contemporary with the manuscript), whereas the B scribe wrote using Old Welsh (9th to early 12th century). The first part of the B scribe’s text (designated B1) has some Middle Welsh features, while the second part (designated B2) has more Old Welsh features. This may indicate that the B scribe was working from two separate sources written in different forms of the language, or that the B scribe started out by partially modernising an Old Welsh source and then stopped doing this and reverted to copying out the original. The stanza numbering scheme in this post is the one used by Koch (1997).

Y Gododdin is not a narrative describing a particular battle. It is (mostly*) a collection of heroic death songs in praise of fallen warriors. So I should start straight away with the caveat that the various heroes may not all have met their ends in the same battle, and the poem may not refer to a single event.

However, there are multiple references in the poem to a battle fought at a place called ‘Catraeth’. ‘Catraeth’ occurs 23 times in Y Gododdin, 18 times in the ‘A’ version and 5 times in the more archaic ‘B’ version (Koch 1997, p. xiii, footnote 2). So it seems reasonable to assume that this was considered a conflict of some importance.

Participants

The ‘Gododdin’ of the poem’s title refers to the area that is now south-east Scotland, which in Roman times was occupied by a tribe called by the Romans ‘Votadini’. ‘Gododdin’ is derived directly from ‘Votadini’, so (for once) there seems little doubt of its identity.

The poem refers to a hill-fort or stronghold called Eidyn as the base of the warriors. For example, in the B text:

Eidyn’s hill-fort (B2-34)

When the noblemen came from Din Eidyn’s meadow (B1-19)

fighting for the groves and mead of Eidyn (B1-21)

--Koch 1997

‘Din Eidyn’ is modern Edinburgh, simply with the ‘din’ element replaced by its Old English equivalent ‘burgh’ (both meaning ‘fortification’) and the word order changed round from the Brittonic to the English convention. The most obvious candidates for Din Eidyn are either the Castle Rock (site of the current Edinburgh Castle) or the Iron Age hill fort on Arthur’s Seat.

Another possibility might be one of the Roman fortifications in the area, such as Cramond fort, by analogy with the post-Roman occupation of Birdoswald fort further south.

Some of the heroes commemorated in the poem came from areas further afield. For example, stanza B2-27 refers to a warrior from ‘over the Firth of Forth’, and stanzas B2-39 and B2-42 refer to men from Aeron (possibly the area of modern Ayrshire in south-west Scotland) (Koch 1997).

The enemy is less clearly identified. The B text refers to Deira or Deirans, Saxons, heathen tribes of Scots and Picts, and Lloegr’s mixed hosts:

to attack Deira’s retinue (B2-28)

the driver of the Deirans (B1-14)

driver of the Deirans (B1-16)

a Saxon dirk (B2-25)

they gave no mercy to the Saxons (B1-7)

heathen tribes of Scots and Picts (B1-5)

in contention with Lloegr’s mixed hosts (B1-19)

--Koch 1997

The A text also adds two references to Bernicia (although not necessarily as opponents), and one to the descendants of Godebawg:

against the descendants of Godebawg (A-15)

there fell men of Deira and Bernicia (A-5)

the army of Gododdin and Bernicia (A-47)

--Koch 1997

‘Godebawg’ is associated with Coel Hen in the Triads and Harleian genealogies, and means ‘Protector’. Coel Hen is the founder figure of several Brittonic genealogies associated with early medieval kingdoms in what is now northern England/southern Scotland (see post on Coel Hen for more information). ‘The descendants of Godebawg’ could therefore make sense as a term for one or more of these kingdoms.

Deira was located in the approximate area of modern Yorkshire, and Bernicia was located further north in the approximate area of modern Northumberland. Both were ruled by English kings in the late sixth century. The term ‘Lloegr’ is used to refer to lowland Britain and/or the areas that later became England. So the term ‘Saxons’ and ‘Lloegr’ in Y Gododdin could refer to either or both of Deira and Bernicia, or to one or more of the other English kingdoms of the time.

The reference to ‘heathen tribes of Scots and Picts’ is difficult to make much sense of, unless it refers to the hero’s earlier career.

The two references to Bernicia are also somewhat puzzling. John Koch considers that the line referring to Bernicia in stanza A-5 may be extraneous, because it contains no internal rhyme or alliteration (Koch 1997, p. 181). The reference to Bernicia in stanza A-47 seems to me to bracket Gododdin and Bernicia together as allies, rather than as enemies, although this may depend on the translation.

Dating

The first stanza of the A text begins, ‘This is The Gododdin. Aneirin sang it’.

Historia Brittonum mentions a major bard called Aneirin or Neirin:

Neirin, and Taliesin and Bluchbard, and Cian, who is called Guenith Guaut, were all famous at the same time in British poetry.

--Historia Brittonum chapter 62, available online 

Taliesin wrote poetry praising Urien, who was a king of Rheged somewhere in what is now northern England or southern Scotland in the late sixth century (see post on Urien for more information). This list of famous Brittonic poets also follows immediately after Historia Brittonum describes the reign of Ida of Bernicia, whose 12-year reign is said by Bede to have begun in 547.

One of the heroes named in Y Gododdin is Cynan son of Clyddno. The same name appears in the Welsh Triads as one of the Three Lovers of the Island of Britain. The lady of his affections is named as Morfudd daughter of Urien, which would place him in the late sixth century or around the turn of the sixth/seventh centuries.

Cynon son of Clydno (for Morfudd daughter of Urien);

-- Triads, available online

I need hardly say that this is very slender dating evidence. However, at least all of these are consistent with a date in approximately the late sixth century for the events in the poem.

More on the other evidence, and my interpretation, to follow in the next post.

*The ‘Peis Dinogat’ stanza (A-87) appears to be something more like a nursery rhyme

References

Clarkson T. The Men of the North. Birlinn, 2010. ISBN 978-1-906566-18-0

English Place-Name Society, Catterick, available online

Historia Brittonum, available online 

Koch JT. The Gododdin of Aneirin. Text and context from Dark-Age North Britain. University of Wales Press, 1997. ISBN 0-7083-1374-4

Triads, available online

Map links

General map showing the approximate locations of Gododdin, Bernicia and Deira 

Catterick Bridge (Cataractonium) 

Cramond
Edinburgh 

The children of Urien Rheged

Urien (also spelled Urbgen, Uryen) was a warrior-king of the royal house of Rheged some time in the late sixth century (see post on Urien Rheged).  One son, Owain, was celebrated in the poetry attributed to Taliesin and later a hero of medieval Arthurian romance (see post on Owain son of Urien). Another son, Rhun or Rum, is mentioned in Historia Brittonum in a context that suggests he was an important figure in the Christian church (see post on Rhun son of Urien). What can we say about Urien’s other children?

Evidence

Genealogies

Both the Harleian and the Bonedd Gwyr y Gogledd (Descent of the Men of the North) genealogies end with Urien and do not mention any descendants:

[U]rbgen map Cinmarc map Merchianum map Gurgust map Coilhen

--Harleian Genealogies, available online 

Vryen uab Kynuarch m Meirchavn m Gorust Letlvm m Keneu m Coel

--Bonedd Gwyr y Gogledd, available online 

Llywarch Hen poetry

The medieval manuscript ‘The Red Book of Hergest’ contains several poems attributed to Llywarch Hen (Llywarch the Old).  According to the genealogies, Llywarch was a cousin and approximate contemporary or Urien, and the poem ‘The Death of Urien’ describes Llywarch carrying Urien’s severed head after Urien had been assassinated.  The poem also mentions warfare in the aftermath of Urien’s death:

Dunawd, the leading horseman, would drive onward,
Intent upon making a corpse,
Against the onset of Owain.

Dunawd, the chief of the age, would drive onward,
Intent upon making battle,
Against the conflict of Pasgen.

Gwallawg, the horseman of tumult, would drive onward,
Intent upon trying the sharpest edge,
Against the conflict of Elphin.

--Llywarch Hen, The Death of Urien, available online

Owain is identified as a son of Urien in the poetry attributed to Taliesin.  The similar structure of the verses suggests that Pasgen and Elphin are also to be regarded as sons of Urien in this poem.  A Pasgen son of Urien is identified in the Welsh Triads.

Triads

Three Fettered Warbands of the Island of Britain

And the second, the War-Band of Rhiwallawn son of Urien when fighting with the Saxons

Three Arrogant Men of the Island of Britain:

Sawyl High-Head, and Pasgen son of Urien, and Rhun son of Einiawn.

Three Fair Womb Burdens of the Island of Britain:

The second, Owain son of Urien and Mor(fudd) his sister who were carried together in the womb of Modron daughter of Afallach

Three Lovers of the Island of Britain:

Cynon son of Clydno (for Morfudd daughter of Urien);

and Caswallawn son of Beli (for Fflur daughter of Ugnach(?) the Dwarf);and Drystan (son of Tallwch, for Essyllt, the wife of his uncle March).

-- Triads, available online 

A variant of the Three Fair Womb-Burdens triad adds ‘Anarun archbishop of Llydaw’ to Owain and Morfudd. This may be a mention of Rum or Rhun ap Urien who appears as a churchman in Historia Brittonum.  Whether it represents an independent tradition, or just a note added by a scribe who had read Historia Brittonum, is open to interpretation (see post on Rhun son of Urien).

Interpretation

Between them, the various sources list five sons of Urien, Owain, Pasgen, Elphin, Rhiwallawn and Rhun, and a daughter, Morfudd.

Owain

Owain is celebrated in Taliesin’s poetry, where he is described as fighting alongside his father Urien and as a chief in his own right (see article on Owain son of Urien for more details). This is consistent with Owain being regarded as Urien’s second-in-command, heir and successor. In turn, this is consistent with Owain as the eldest son, although this is not definitive.

Rhun

Rhun (also spelled Run, or Rum) is the only one of Urien’s children to be named in Historia Brittonum. He is described in a context that suggests he was an important figure in the Christian church, although a verse in the Llywarch Hen poetry also describes him as a secular ruler and warrior. He may have held both roles at different times (see the post on Rhun son of Urien). If he was a king of Rheged, it is not known whether he ruled alone or jointly with one or more of Urien’s other children.

Morfudd

Morfudd appears in two Triads.  In one she is said to be the twin of Owain.  As Owain was evidently an adult of fighting age before Urien’s death, Morfudd would also have been an adult before Urien’s death.  She would therefore have been of marriageable age, and may well have been married.

The second Triad refers to a great love between Morfudd and a man named Cynan ap Clydno. A warrior called Cynan ap Clyddno appears as a hero in Y Gododdin. A man named Clyddno Eidyn appears in the Harleian and Bonedd Gwyr y Gogledd genealogies, traced back to Coel Hen (see earlier article on Coel Hen) in one, and to the king of Alt Clud, Dyfnwal, in another.  His epithet ‘Eidyn’ suggests an association with Edinburgh. Exactly how Cynan and Clyddno fitted into the plethora of kingdoms in sixth-century northern England/southern Scotland is open to interpretation.  However, if either or both were important figures in the kingdom of Gododdin and/or Alt Clud, Cynan ap Clyddno would not be an implausible candidate as a husband or lover for the daughter of Urien. The Triad may refer to a marriage between Cynan and Morfudd, perhaps to seal an alliance or agreement between Rheged and one of its northern/north-eastern neighbours. Or, given that it shares a Triad with the famous romantic tragedy of Drystan and Essyllt (better known as Tristan and Isolde), perhaps it refers to a star-crossed romance between them.  The Triad may refer to a story or poem about their relationship that was once well known but has now been lost.  More prosaically, Morfudd and Cynan may have been fictional characters from a medieval romance, who were given suitably romantic family connections by medieval scribes who thought it appropriate that a romantic hero and heroine should belong to lost sixth-century royal dynasties.

Pasgen

Pasgen is mentioned fighting against a warrior and/or king called Dunawd in the Llywarch Hen poetry. Owain is also mentioned fighting against the same adversary in the previous verse.  These verses occur after Llywarch’s lament for Urien’s death, so if this represents the order of events, the conflict with Dunawd was thought to have followed Urien’s assassination.  This is plausible; if Urien was a powerful ruler of a large territory, his sudden death may have been regarded by rivals and neighbours as an opportunity to try grabbing parts of the territory for themselves.  If Urien’s realm of Rheged was a relatively recent creation, perhaps put together in part by conquest and coercion, subordinate kings and chiefs might also see his sudden removal as an opportunity to regain their independence.  Unless Owain and Pasgen fought Dunawd in conflicts widely separated in time (which is possible), the description of them both fighting the same adversary may indicate that they were both of fighting age at the same time, and may have been approximate contemporaries.  Pasgen also appears in the Triads as one of the ‘Three Arrogant Men’, which may indicate the existence of a now-lost story about him.

Elphin

Elphin also appears as a fighter in the Llywarch Hen poetry, but his adversary is named as Gwallawg the horseman.  This may refer to Guallauc ap Lleenauc, another late sixth-century king of somewhere in what is now northern England/southern Scotland (see post on Guallauc ap Lleenauc for more information). He may be the Gwallawg who campaigned against Bernicia at the same time as Urien.  If so, and if this was the same campaign in which Urien was assassinated at the siege of Lindisfarne, this may be a context for a conflict between Elphin and Guallauc.  Or Guallauc may simply have been an ambitious neighbour looking to extend his territory at Rheged’s expense after Urien’s death.

Rhiwallawn

Rhiwallawn does not appear in the Llywarch Hen poetry.  He is mentioned in the Triads as the leader of a warband fighting the Saxons, which may indicate that he was also thought of as a warrior-hero.

Conclusion

Owain and Rhun can be accepted as historical figures on the basis of the Taliesin poetry and Historia Brittonum.  The other children of Urien appear only in the later Llywarch Hen poetry and the Triads.  These are later sources and may therefore be less reliable. However, what they say about the children of Urien is not implausible, and Morfudd, Pasgen, Elphin and Rhiwallawn could have been siblings of Owain and Rhun.

All of Urien’s sons are described as warriors (Owain in the Taliesin poetry, Rhun, Elphin and Pasgen in the Llywarch Hen poetry, and Rhiwallawn in the Triads).  This may just reflect a conventional assumption about the appropriate job description for any son of a famous warrior-king, or it may reflect lost material about their careers. 

It is not known whether any or all of Urien’s sons succeeded him as Kings of Rheged.  If they did, it is not known whether they ruled sequentially or jointly, in what order, for how long, or with what degree of success.  Owain and Rhun are both described in the poetry as rulers (chiefs), suggesting that they held some political power, at least for a time.  Pasgen, Elphin and Rhiwallawn are not so described. This may just be an arbitrary choice on the part of the poets, or it may indicate that they were not regarded as rulers in their own right. 

The different adversaries assigned to Owain/Pasgen, Elphin and Rhiwallawn would be consistent with (but do not prove) partition of the territories of Urien’s Rheged between his sons after his death.  If the sons each had a separate area of territory to rule and defend, they might be expected to face different regional enemies. Conversely, the sons could have been defending different border areas of the same territory, or fighting successive enemies at different times.

Morfudd appears in the Triads as the great love of Cynan son of Clyddno, a warrior-hero mentioned in Y Gododdin.  She was perhaps the heroine of a lost romance telling their story. This would also be consistent with her other appearance in the Triads and in the Story of King Urien and Modron, as the twin sister of the hero Owain and the daughter of Urien’s possibly-supernatural queen (see post on Owain son of Urien for more details). It is possible that Morfudd was a fictional romantic heroine, who was later given a connection to other famous figures of legend, Urien and Owain, by a scribe or poet who felt that she should have a suitably romantic origin. However, there is no obvious reason why she could not have been a genuine historical figure. If she was, a relationship with a warrior-hero of Gododdin or Alt Clud, Cynan ap Clydno, would not be implausible. The Triad may refer to a dynastic marriage between them.  Conversely, given that it is bracketed with the romantic tragedy of Tristan and Essyllt, it may refer to a doomed love affair that did not end in a successful marriage, for whatever reason.

The evidence for Morfudd, Pasgen, Elphin and Rhiwallawn as historical figures is very limited, relying on late sources (the Llywarch Hen poetry and the Triads). However, what is said about them is not implausible for children of Urien Rheged. Whether they were genuine historical figures, and what roles they may have played in sixth- and seventh-century history, is open to interpretation.

References

Bonedd Gwyr y Gogledd, available online 

Harleian genealogies, available online 

Historia Brittonum, available online

Llywarch Hen, The Death of Urien, available online 

Triads, available online