A Short History of Wales [11]
that he had shown his people what they ought to do, and that he had given them strength to do it.
The work of Griffith ap Conan and Griffith ap Rees was this: they set bounds to the Norman Conquest, and saved Deheubarth and Gwynedd from the stern rule of the alien. But, though the Norman was not allowed to bring his stone castle and cruel law, what good he brought with him was welcomed. The piety of the Norman, his intellectual curiosity, and his spirit of adventure, conquered in Welsh districts where his coat of mail and his castle were not seen.
CHAPTER IX--OWEN GWYNEDD AND THE LORD REES
The men who opposed the Normans left able successors--Owen Gwynedd followed his father, Griffith ap Conan; the Lord Rees followed his father Griffith ap Rees; and in Powys the sons of Bleddyn were followed by the castle builder Howel, and by the poet Owen Cyveiliog.
Owen Gwynedd ruled from 1137 to 1169; the Lord Rees from 1137 to 1197. The age was, in many respects, a great one.
It was, of course, an age of war. Up to 1154, during the reign of Stephen, the English barons were fighting against each other, and the king had very little power over them. The most important Norman barons in Wales were the Earls of Chester in the valley of the Dee, the Mortimers on the upper Wye, the Braoses on the upper Usk, and the Clares in the south. Their castles were a continual menace to the country they had so far failed to conquer, and the Lord Rees was glad to get Kidwelly, and Owen Gwynedd to get Mold and Rhuddlan.
It was, on the whole, an age of unity. It was the chief aim of Owen Gwynedd to be the ally of the Lord Rees; and in this he succeeded, though his brother Cadwaladr, in his desire for Ceredigion, had killed Rees' brother, to Owen's infinite sorrow. The princes of Powys, Madoc and Owen Cyveiliog, were in the same alliance also, and they were helped in their struggle with the Normans. Unity was never more necessary. Henry II. brought great armies into Wales. Once he came along the north coast to Rhuddlan. At another time he tried to cross the Berwyn, but was beaten back by great storms. Had he reached the upper Dee, he would have found the united forces of the Lord Rees, Owen Cyveiliog, and Owen Gwynedd at Corwen. There are many stirring episodes in these wars: the fight at Consilt, when Henry II. nearly lost his life; the scattering of his tents on the Berwyn by a storm that seemed to be the fury of fiends; the reckless exposure of life in storming a wall or in the shock of battle. But the Norman brought new cruelty into war: Henry II. took out the eyes of young children because their fathers had revolted against him; and William de Braose invited a great number of Welsh chiefs to a feast in his castle at Abergavenny, and there murdered them all.
It is a relief to turn to another feature of the age: it was an age of great men. Owen Gwynedd was probably the greatest. He disliked war, but he was an able general; he made Henry II. retire without great loss of life to his own army. He was a thoughtful prince, of a loving nature and high ideals, and his court was the home of piety and culture. He is more like our own ideal of a prince than any of the other princes of the Middle Ages. The Lord Rees was not less wise, and his life is less sorrowful and more brilliant. He also was as great as a statesman as he was as a general; and he made his peace with the English king in order to make his country quiet and rich. Owen Cyveiliog was placed in a more difficult position than either of his allies; he was nearer to very ambitious Norman barons. He was great as a warrior; often had his white steed been seen leading the rush of battle. He was greater as a statesman: friend and foe said that Owen was wise; and he was greater still as a poet.
The age was an age of poetry. A generation of great Welsh poets found an equal welcome in the courts of Gwynedd, Powys, and Deheubarth; and even the Norman barons of Morgannwg began to feel the charm of Welsh legend and song; Robert of Gloucester was a great
The work of Griffith ap Conan and Griffith ap Rees was this: they set bounds to the Norman Conquest, and saved Deheubarth and Gwynedd from the stern rule of the alien. But, though the Norman was not allowed to bring his stone castle and cruel law, what good he brought with him was welcomed. The piety of the Norman, his intellectual curiosity, and his spirit of adventure, conquered in Welsh districts where his coat of mail and his castle were not seen.
CHAPTER IX--OWEN GWYNEDD AND THE LORD REES
The men who opposed the Normans left able successors--Owen Gwynedd followed his father, Griffith ap Conan; the Lord Rees followed his father Griffith ap Rees; and in Powys the sons of Bleddyn were followed by the castle builder Howel, and by the poet Owen Cyveiliog.
Owen Gwynedd ruled from 1137 to 1169; the Lord Rees from 1137 to 1197. The age was, in many respects, a great one.
It was, of course, an age of war. Up to 1154, during the reign of Stephen, the English barons were fighting against each other, and the king had very little power over them. The most important Norman barons in Wales were the Earls of Chester in the valley of the Dee, the Mortimers on the upper Wye, the Braoses on the upper Usk, and the Clares in the south. Their castles were a continual menace to the country they had so far failed to conquer, and the Lord Rees was glad to get Kidwelly, and Owen Gwynedd to get Mold and Rhuddlan.
It was, on the whole, an age of unity. It was the chief aim of Owen Gwynedd to be the ally of the Lord Rees; and in this he succeeded, though his brother Cadwaladr, in his desire for Ceredigion, had killed Rees' brother, to Owen's infinite sorrow. The princes of Powys, Madoc and Owen Cyveiliog, were in the same alliance also, and they were helped in their struggle with the Normans. Unity was never more necessary. Henry II. brought great armies into Wales. Once he came along the north coast to Rhuddlan. At another time he tried to cross the Berwyn, but was beaten back by great storms. Had he reached the upper Dee, he would have found the united forces of the Lord Rees, Owen Cyveiliog, and Owen Gwynedd at Corwen. There are many stirring episodes in these wars: the fight at Consilt, when Henry II. nearly lost his life; the scattering of his tents on the Berwyn by a storm that seemed to be the fury of fiends; the reckless exposure of life in storming a wall or in the shock of battle. But the Norman brought new cruelty into war: Henry II. took out the eyes of young children because their fathers had revolted against him; and William de Braose invited a great number of Welsh chiefs to a feast in his castle at Abergavenny, and there murdered them all.
It is a relief to turn to another feature of the age: it was an age of great men. Owen Gwynedd was probably the greatest. He disliked war, but he was an able general; he made Henry II. retire without great loss of life to his own army. He was a thoughtful prince, of a loving nature and high ideals, and his court was the home of piety and culture. He is more like our own ideal of a prince than any of the other princes of the Middle Ages. The Lord Rees was not less wise, and his life is less sorrowful and more brilliant. He also was as great as a statesman as he was as a general; and he made his peace with the English king in order to make his country quiet and rich. Owen Cyveiliog was placed in a more difficult position than either of his allies; he was nearer to very ambitious Norman barons. He was great as a warrior; often had his white steed been seen leading the rush of battle. He was greater as a statesman: friend and foe said that Owen was wise; and he was greater still as a poet.
The age was an age of poetry. A generation of great Welsh poets found an equal welcome in the courts of Gwynedd, Powys, and Deheubarth; and even the Norman barons of Morgannwg began to feel the charm of Welsh legend and song; Robert of Gloucester was a great