Nadolig Llawen everyone! Sorry this took so long, I mentioned in a comment in my last video but I've had to manage a lot of responsibilities this time of year. These should take me about 2-3 weeks at a maximum, I'll endeavour to try and be a bit quicker. Thanks for watching!
Continuation of image attributions: “Royal Arms of England” upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/97/Royal_Arms_of_England.svg licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 “King John” upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c6/King_John_from_De_Rege_Johanne.jpg licensed under CC0 1.0 “Coat of Arms of Powys Fadog” upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d0/Coat_of_arms_of_Powys_Fadog.svg licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 “Chroniques de Saint-Denis” upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/71/John_of_England_vs_Louis_VIII_of_France.jpg licensed under CC0 1.0 “Llywelyn ab Iorwerth and his sons” upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1f/Llywelyn_the_Great.JPG licensed under CC0 1.0 “Coronation of King Henry III” upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/76/HenryIII.jpg licensed under CC0 1.0 “Gruffydd ap Llywelyn ap Iorwerth” upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/28/Owain_Goch_ap_Gruffydd.jpg licensed under CC0 1.0 “Death of Llywelyn” upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/59/Death_of_Llywelyn.jpg licensed under CC0 1.0 “St Davids Cathedral - West End” upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a8/StDavids-wyrdlight-2N16.jpg - WyrdLight.com licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 “Laws of Hywel Dda - Welsh Judge” upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cf/Laws_of_Hywel_Dda_%28f.4.r%29_Judge_cropped.jpg and “Laws of Hywel Dda - Hawker” upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f2/Laws_of_Hywel_Dda_%28f.4.r%29_Hawker_cropped.jpg both licensed under CC0 1.0 “Edward I” upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cb/Edward_I_-_Westminster_Abbey_Sedilia.jpg licensed under CC0 1.0 “Arms of the Prince of Wales” upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f4/Arms_of_the_Prince_of_Wales_%28Modern%29.svg licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0
How to succeed as a welsh king: 1. Get papal approval 2. Be a skilled commander 3. Be willing to negotiate with Englishmen 4. Have a good heir -OR- 1. Be named Lywellyn
I loved this. It's criminal how few videos on Welsh history there are. It's pretty crazy how quickly they'd lose land, retake that same land, lose it again, repeat for hundreds of years. This may be a silly question but was Wales even worth it to the English? They were so unruly and the land itself isn't really the most prosperous. Did they do this to ensure that Wales never could truly unify and become a threat?
It’s an interesting question, and several historians seem to disagree on how valuable the land was to the English, and on their main reasons for conquest. As we can see during events like the first baron’s war, Wales was capable of commanding a significant force that could defeat the English army during moments of weakness. I believe to the English it was only worth it to conquer Wales in order to protect their flank. Defending themselves against a rebellious marcher lord would be a lot easier than defending against a fully autonomous king who could have the backing of somewhere like France for example. I’m going to make a video on the subject eventually, but I hope my short answer will suffice for now!
Scotland was a massive thorn on England's side while they were independent. Now imagine if England had a 2nd thorn. From England's perspective, it was certainly beneficial.
When I was taught "British" history at school it was in fact "English" history focusing on English royalty. I'm starting to find out about the Irish Kings (Dal Riada) and now the Welsh kings! P.S. Should the pronounciation of Cynan be "Kinan" rather "Sinan", I believe C is always "hard" (k) in Welsh.
I’m glad you’re starting to find out about other parts of British history! And thank you for the correction, I didn’t manage to catch it for my first two videos but the rest of them should (hopefully) be correct, thanks for watching!
Well I guess you are from England. I am from Germany and my history teacher was Scottish. She mostly knew stuff about Scottish history and didn’t study Germanys history. Therefore, our history lessons about Germany was very basic.
I wondered about that too. I am also wondering whether "Cynan" is a form of "cyning", the Anglo_saxon word for king. They look too alike not be related.
@@gunarsmiezis9321 this is an old comment but it's important as an observer of past events to understand that people don't act to win in some grand narrative long after they die. Splitting inheritance is a way to ensure a good life for your kids and should they fight each other it makes people who aren't them invested in at least one of them winning the fight. Also the people doing the splitting don't want their kings to be all-powerful living under a Welsh tyrant isn't much better than living under an English one for your average Welshman so picking the "other side" often made sense to them in ways that won't to us.
@@DragonwolfoftheSands its not good that your children kill each other over the inheritance just look at all those frankish civil wars. Latviešu inheritanve law is much better. 1 kid gets all the land, the other kids get given suff and money so they woulnt suffer from lacking the land itself. And when it comes to freedom expelling the foreigners is number one priority. Internal squables musnt get in the way.
@@gunarsmiezis9321 those secondary kids often still end up challenging for the throne or being used to contest the throne Why are you talking about "foreigners"?
I`ve enjoyed the last two years having a holiday in Gwynedd, Criccieth to be precise, the castle at Criccieth was built by Llewelyn the Great and whilst not as majestic as some of Edward`s castles around Wales it was at least built by Welsh hands plus their know how, thanks for the insight into Welsh history kind regards from Yorkshire.
Thank you! I agree, fortunately it's a bit more common now, I've had a few successful videos that I think have introduced other creators to the topic (or maybe it's just a coincidence lol)
@@CambrianChronicles You do yourself a disservice mate! Your videos have certainly had an impact on the algorithm it seems, I found your channel from YT recommendations seemingly due to my past interest in videos on Welsh, Scottish and particularly Irish history/culture/myth. On that note I would love to see you tackle some more video topics generally related to* the historical Irish-Welsh connection! My family have strong connections to the Midlands & Wales and originally come from Donegal.
Love learning about Wales. It is relatively easy to learn about the most important parts of Irish and Scottish History, but Welsh and Cornish history often gets neglected because of how long ago it was conquered and subjugated by English rule. Celtic Union must become a thing. It would be soooo beautiful.
I agree, Welsh history can be really hard to get into, scholarship for the subject only really started in the 1900s and really started to take off (in my opinion) in the 1980s
Brilliant and well researched. I've watched this and your Ceridigion videos. What a complicated line of succession Wales has! So glad I didn't study this for my O-Level history.
I'm a direct decendant of Llywelyn the great and Joan, only found out about him this way. I feel so blessed and yet sad. Amazing knowing the history. Truly a great.
Thank you for watching, I’m glad you enjoyed! There’s definitely enough to make a video on those topics, although the information we do have is a bit scarce, I’ll definitely make a video on them in the future
It's insane these lands were neighboring England for centuries and survived. It's even more crazy that Scotland preserved the independence for centuries more
The Oxford world History had under the entry for Wales "See England", but Welsh history is amazing - I'm actually having to do a lecture (my first since my degree 20 years ago) on 'the Princes of Wales'. 1100 to 1282 Maybe worth a shout out to the 12th - 13th century's wonderful Ednyfed Fychan and his wonderfully 'anti Blackadder-ish' descendants, who successfully navigated their way through wars of independence, civil wars using diplomacy, innate cunning and homicide.
Thank you for this. I would love a long documentary on Llewelyn Fawr, his marriage to King John’s illegitimate daughter Joanna, his mistress, Griffith’s mother and the drama between the sons Griffith and David.
I'd like to know more about what things were like for the average person, what production and distribution and local power was like, and what if anything much actually changed after the changeovers between these Welsh kings.
More likely the Welsh Spearman didn't give a sh*t, he needed coin to feed his family because winter was hard and crops won't grow, i'm sure there must have been a king that did rally the Welshmen from time to time like Llewelyn Fawr.
New subscriber here ,well done sir, worked alongside many Welsh NHS staff at Clatterbridge here on the wirral before Bodelwyddan was built, even worked there myself...cheers...E
After doing a DNA test and family history trace, I find my name "Hockley-Singleton-Potter" goes back directly to Gwynedd. So interesting how the history has changed hands with the lands!
At quick glance when I was scrolling through RU-vid when I came across this presentation, for a split second I thought the thumbnail was Graham Chapman from Monty Python’s holy grail.. 😂.. All due respect of course.. 😁Great historical presentation.. Thank you for this! 😎👍
bröther when I was een the dessert for fifteenth days and a third Knight I fell in luurve with the sweetest weelsh warmhen she had skin like apple and smiled like ae lamp stunning lover and gifted tambourine playerè she sang souftly about welsh keengs and qweens I crieed so much it brok miy hearth. I mees her everydae she had such lovlee welsh throat glaands.
Diolch yn fawr for making these videos. Under English rule we learn none of our own history in school we just learn theirs so it’s brilliant that people can access it told so accessibility like this
Thank you, I’m glad you’re enjoying them! But it’s also important to not just blame England, the Senedd decide the curriculum for Wales and they too choose to leave Welsh history out of it
I teach in wales and that’s not strictly true. On the history curriculum is the industrial revolution with particular reference to wales . And as a Scot living in wales I am unbiased , there is opportunity for more welsh history in the curriculum but that isn’t decided by anyone in England . Pls don’t just hate on English ppl because it’s popular to do so. Many English communities are “ ignored “ and treated very poorly . Wales or indeed my homeland of Scotland aren’t the only historically “ ignored “ areas.
@@iwanbleasdale3387 also the welsh curriculum strongly makes the point that “ Welsh History” is “ mandatory “. It’s accessible in my rucksack as I’m returning from work but also online.
@@CambrianChronicles As a history teacher, I can tell you that the new curriculum for Wales is trying to emphasise Welsh history with the new curriculum, but there are a number of factors that make it difficult to implement: - Many schools that are not in west Wales employ many English teachers who do not know a thing about Welsh history and do not value it. - There aren’t many textbooks on welsh history. - Exam units are decided on a UK wide level, so there is no chance of having Welsh history for KS4.
@@CambrianChronicles I love the content and it's sad how important it is to archive knowledge whe you compare what we know of Rome and Wales. And that knowledge of Rome is at best slightly higher in quantity and yet it just speaks volumes to how important it is to archive. If biggest nation can't even save over such time with so many resources it makes you tihnk if violence happened, how can small nation like wales save culture?
Question: Given all the latest research on the DNA of contemporary skeletal remains, can we still say that the Welsh were fighting Saxons? Could not these "Saxons" have been culturally "Saxonised" Britons? I'm having a crisis of wondering here!
You could certainly argue about it, but the fact is that we really don't know for certain when these Saxon kingdoms became culturally Saxon. The kings of Mercia for example had several Celtic names for centuries. It's a really interesting topic but it's one that we don't know much about yet unfortunately
@@CambrianChronicles Hopefully, further research will give us new insights into what was going on back then. I myself have only recently outgrown the 'Genocidal Maniac Theory' of Anglo-Saxon conquest. Your 'Last Celts in England' video was a real eye-opener for me!
Yes! I believe the Tudur family married into the royal line of Deheubarth, they also sided with Owain Glyndŵr and Owain Tudur would marry Catherine of Valois, who’s grandchild would be Henry Tudor, or Henry VII of England!
@@CambrianChronicles long before that some red haired Irish adventurers landed in south Wales settled in Llangorse married well...you know the rest...we have a descendant from the Stanley branch here on Merseyside at Knowsley hall...Lord Derby...
It is so good that the Anglo-Saxon countries were able to combine as one country, England under King Ethelstan in 927AD and Wales became part of England in 1535AD. Wales has been just a Principality since the 1300 century.
Jeez, the whole Welsh family tree feels like a 500 year rundown of Game of Thrones, maybe they would've survived a bit longer as a kingdom if they weren't fighting themselves all the time lol
Indeed, although that was a problem everywhere, like in Ireland and even England, who in the most basic terms only stopped fighting because the Vikings conquered everyone bar Wessex.
I’m watching all your videos and I’m the 27x great granddaughter of King John so seeing him come up was like hi grandpa but I’m sorry that he invaded. Like the break up of Powys, that’s not my fault.
I am born Welsh, all my family generations are PURE Welsh, so I am very proud indeed. Tell me why in the 60 s We never got taught about our Welsh History????? Instead we had other country and a English history lessons. Surely some historian can explain to my generation in our 70s and 80s why did we NOT get to have Welsh history in our secondary school???? I am not the ONLY one who experienced this. David Hughes School MenaiBridge??????
According to my family history, it was my direct ancestor, Anthony Tipton was in King Edward 1st army. Fighting the Welsh in 1282, my ancestor was the soldier that killed the Duke of Wales. King Edward was led to the site by other soldiers. Upon confirming the Duke's death and who killed him, King Edward immediately knighted my ancestor, giving him the title Sir Anthony de Tipton and awarded a Crest of Honor to him. (I have a rendering of the crest.) There are some historians that credit others with the killing of the Duke of Wales, but I believe my family has the strongest case for the truth.
Its amazing to think the only time the "tribes" of the UK weren't killing each other was during the Roman Conquest, and as soon as they leave they go right back to it and basically never stopped until modern times and the formation of the UK
In fighting and not being United like the Scots were was a major drawback. Am trying to find out whether my ancestry was involved in this. (As we were from Wales and Shropshire). P.s I met a Llewelyn from Gwynedd recently, we had a good laugh as I told him my Welsh n Norman ancestry etc. I'll be visiting this summer! (Maurice Ap Hugh💪)
There is an old kingdom in Brittany called "Gwenned" (litteraly: the withes) Jacobin's administration during the French revolutionary create on this one, "Morbihan" subdivision from Paris: 'département' (Mor:sea bihan:little in breton, little, sea... ) Gwyned/Gwenned is very similar. I don't know in fact, if this two areas have aristocracy in common?
Maelgwn Gwynedd is my Sons and Daughters fifty first great Grandfather, through their mothers lineage. The lineage then continues into Devon and close by regions with a who's who of well-known aristocracy...
This is a mighty and rich tale. Welsh language and culture should be treasured - they are the true Britons. And is it true that the people of Gwynedd were the only ones who didn't intermingle with Goidelic pirates?
Gwynedd were cunhs, and will always be cunhs. As a many x great grandaughter of Madog ap Maredudd, King of Powys, may God forgive Gwynedd, for I never will. We are still the biggest county in Wales #PowysAmByth
Nobody called themselves Lord of Snowdon because 1. Snowdon is the tallest summit NOT the region and 2. it's called Wyddfa (meaning tomb, as in the grave of Rhita Gawr) in Cymrish/Cymraeg and the word Snowdon was used by Saxons, derived from "Snow Dun" meaning snow hill. P.S. Snowdonia is Eryri
I really wish that in the future you refrain from misusing anarchy/anarchic when you clearly mean anomie; which is the condition of disorder and war resulting from the collapse of a state. Anarchy is "without rulers" meaning no hierarchy thus no kings, warlords, nobles, aristocrats, class, money, nor private property; which is to say socialism/communism from the bottom up rather than top down. Its like referring to the Princeps of Wales as the son of the king of Wales. Or insisting on the use of Prince despite the evolution of the term since then that leads to major misconceptions.
I agree with your definition of political anarchy, however The Anarchy is a defined period of English history, the civil war between Stephen and Matilda. It isn't the best name for it, but Victorians gonna Victorian
@@Theme1412 I understand that "The Anarchy" is a defined period of English history. Referencing that is one thing however I was saying the "joke" that "things were... anarchic" is simply playing into misrepresentation and feels like a slight as if "oh so this is what you think of us?" Not mentioning that even the victorians using the term to define a period is itself a misnomer. Since there were rulers and hierarchy. They were just fighting about who is legitimate/has the right to rule
okay, but this is historical objective content. it is not supposed to be entertainment. he doesnt have to listen to you, morrigan. there are plently of content that is categorized as modern fantasy in which you can be existing for some time.
Lovely learning some more northwalian history. I really like your channel, thanks for all the hard work and balanced information. I’m from Colwyn Bay, where are you from @cambrianchronicles?
Great video! Are there any records of what numbers of people were actually involved in all these constant civil wars? Not exact numbers but were these more like small battles between noble factions or was there popular support for the random nephews that kept popping up?
My bad, it was supposed to sound like that but my accent can barely manage to speak English, most of my re-recordings happen because my words just fail to form
@@CambrianChronicles maybe a scouser accent might help, considering there is a big Welsh component as much as us Irish as well as our Scottish cousins not forgetting the Norwegians who brought Lobscouse to the table..so to speak...
