0:00:02 > 0:00:07Over 1,000 years ago, in what we now know as Wales,
0:00:07 > 0:00:11and many neighbouring lands, storytellers would recite
0:00:11 > 0:00:16fantastical tales where the action unfolded in an enchanted landscape.
0:00:18 > 0:00:21These epic tales held moral codes
0:00:21 > 0:00:24and information to be passed from community to community,
0:00:24 > 0:00:28from generation to generation, as part of an oral tradition.
0:00:29 > 0:00:31Nobody knows who wrote them,
0:00:31 > 0:00:34and they might have been lost to the modern world were it not
0:00:34 > 0:00:38for the enthusiastic intervention of a Victorian aristocrat.
0:00:41 > 0:00:43But survive they did,
0:00:43 > 0:00:47and their influence is still to be seen today, centuries later,
0:00:47 > 0:00:51in writing like Lord Of The Rings, Harry Potter, Game Of Thrones.
0:00:54 > 0:00:58This, then, is the extraordinary story of one of the great literary
0:00:58 > 0:01:03treasures of the medieval world - The Mabinogion.
0:01:16 > 0:01:20When I was growing up I had a Mabinogion poster on my wall.
0:01:20 > 0:01:23The illustrations are almost psychedelic
0:01:23 > 0:01:26but I'd fallen in love with the unpredictable plots,
0:01:26 > 0:01:30the beautiful language and the larger-than-life characters.
0:01:33 > 0:01:36So why are these stories still enjoyed today?
0:01:37 > 0:01:42Perhaps it's because they're filled with unforgettable creations -
0:01:42 > 0:01:46goats that mysteriously turn into wild boars,
0:01:46 > 0:01:50a woman made entirely of flowers,
0:01:50 > 0:01:55and a king so huge he could stride across the Irish sea.
0:01:59 > 0:02:02These strange figures epitomise the twisting
0:02:02 > 0:02:06and unpredictable stories of The Mabinogion.
0:02:07 > 0:02:09The collection comprises of 11 tales -
0:02:09 > 0:02:12four of these being The Four Branches Of The Mabinogi
0:02:12 > 0:02:15which are named after their principal characters
0:02:15 > 0:02:18Math, Manawydan, Pwyll, Branwen.
0:02:18 > 0:02:22The rest are heroic romances set in the age of King Arthur.
0:02:28 > 0:02:32The world these colourful figures inhabit is almost unrecognisable
0:02:32 > 0:02:36and what writer WB Yeats says about the Celtic myths
0:02:36 > 0:02:39brilliantly explains what makes The Mabinogion so different.
0:02:43 > 0:02:46He described myths as a vision of a world,
0:02:46 > 0:02:49"expressed by people who believed trees to be divine,
0:02:49 > 0:02:53"who could take a human or grotesque shape and dance among the shadows."
0:02:56 > 0:03:01The tales of The Mabinogion stray into London, Cornwall and Ireland
0:03:01 > 0:03:05but most of the action takes place in what we now know of as Wales.
0:03:08 > 0:03:11In the era of The Mabinogion, Wales was made up of four
0:03:11 > 0:03:15separately-ruled kingdoms - Dyfed in the South West,
0:03:15 > 0:03:19Morganwg in the South East, Powys and in the centre
0:03:19 > 0:03:20and Gwynedd in the North.
0:03:24 > 0:03:27The tales were devised to be performed aloud
0:03:27 > 0:03:30and one of the storyteller's tricks was to use local landmarks
0:03:30 > 0:03:35like boulders or mountains to bring them alive for the audience.
0:03:38 > 0:03:42The tale of Math, son of Mathonwy, which is the fourth branch,
0:03:42 > 0:03:44is a case in point.
0:03:44 > 0:03:47It contains some of the strangest scenes in The Mabinogion,
0:03:47 > 0:03:51where magic and shape shifting are never far away
0:03:51 > 0:03:54The story takes place here in Gwynedd.
0:03:56 > 0:04:00In the beginning, we learn that Math, who is lord over these lands,
0:04:00 > 0:04:05has to keep his feet in the lap of a virgin unless he is at war.
0:04:05 > 0:04:08Then we're told that his nephew, Gilfaethyw,
0:04:08 > 0:04:10is in love with this virgin.
0:04:10 > 0:04:13And when next Math is taken away to fight,
0:04:13 > 0:04:16Gilfaethyw and his brother rape her.
0:04:16 > 0:04:21Math returns, is enraged and hell-bent on revenge.
0:04:22 > 0:04:26"Math took his magic wand and struck Gilfaethyw so that he changed
0:04:26 > 0:04:31"into a good-sized hind, and he caught Gwydio, his brother, quickly
0:04:31 > 0:04:35"and struck him with the same magic wand so that he changed into a stag."
0:04:37 > 0:04:41Then Math changed his nephews into a wild boar and wild sow,
0:04:41 > 0:04:44and finally into a wolf and a she-wolf.
0:04:44 > 0:04:50The unhappy couple went on to produce three human sons.
0:04:50 > 0:04:53Finally they are allowed to become men again
0:04:53 > 0:04:57and the narrative moves focus onto a cursed young man called Lleu
0:04:57 > 0:04:59who is unable to take on a human wife.
0:05:02 > 0:05:07So Math and Gywdion conjure up a wife made of flowers for Lleu
0:05:07 > 0:05:09and called her Blodeuedd.
0:05:09 > 0:05:11But instead of enjoying marital bliss with Lleu,
0:05:11 > 0:05:17Blodeuedd falls in love with another man, Gronw.
0:05:17 > 0:05:20The secret lovers plot to kill Lleu but they can only do that
0:05:20 > 0:05:23using a spear that it takes a whole year to make.
0:05:23 > 0:05:27And, not only that, for Lleu to die he has to be next to a river
0:05:27 > 0:05:29with one foot on a trough, which is roofed,
0:05:29 > 0:05:32and the other foot on the back of a billy goat.
0:05:33 > 0:05:37Once Gronw makes the spear, he lures Lleu to the river
0:05:37 > 0:05:40but Lleu magically escapes it by turning into an eagle.
0:05:42 > 0:05:44And this is where it gets interesting.
0:05:44 > 0:05:47Remember I said earlier that these stories were locked down with
0:05:47 > 0:05:49familiar features of the landscape?
0:05:49 > 0:05:52Well, in this very field in North Wales, there is something
0:05:52 > 0:05:55which plays an important part in the fourth branch.
0:05:58 > 0:06:02Later, when Lleu seeks revenge against Gronw for running
0:06:02 > 0:06:05off with his wife, he fires an arrow at him.
0:06:05 > 0:06:09And to protect himself, Gronw raises a large stone.
0:06:09 > 0:06:10And here it is.
0:06:10 > 0:06:16This is the stone that Gronwr uses to protect himself from Lleu's arrow
0:06:16 > 0:06:21but it doesn't work. The arrow goes right through and Gronwr is killed.
0:06:22 > 0:06:24So ends this branch of The Mabinogi.
0:06:26 > 0:06:29The stories can be very complicated.
0:06:30 > 0:06:32They don't follow the rules of modern writing.
0:06:32 > 0:06:34So why are they so different,
0:06:34 > 0:06:38what do they tell us about their times, and what was their purpose?
0:06:38 > 0:06:41Before they were written down they would have been
0:06:41 > 0:06:44narrated by an oral storyteller and even when they were
0:06:44 > 0:06:47written down they would have been read out aloud to an audience
0:06:47 > 0:06:51that was listening because not many people could read in medieval times.
0:06:51 > 0:06:55You find that they're told in episodes mainly and perhaps it
0:06:55 > 0:06:59would have been an episode a night, a bit like a soap opera these days.
0:06:59 > 0:07:01And you find that the tales are...
0:07:01 > 0:07:04they're always in a chronological order -
0:07:04 > 0:07:06this happens, and then, and then something else,
0:07:06 > 0:07:10and then something else, so this creates an awful lot of suspense.
0:07:10 > 0:07:12Do we know who would've recited them?
0:07:12 > 0:07:14We think the storyteller would've recited them.
0:07:14 > 0:07:17The name that's generally given to the medieval Welsh
0:07:17 > 0:07:19storyteller is the Cavarywyth
0:07:19 > 0:07:23and Cavarywyth means the one who knows, the one who understands.
0:07:23 > 0:07:27What do we learn about our ancestors in these stories?
0:07:27 > 0:07:28Well, we learn a great deal.
0:07:28 > 0:07:32Of course, The Mabinogion tales, there are 11 tales altogether.
0:07:32 > 0:07:35We tend to focus on The Four Branches Of The Mabinogi that tell of
0:07:35 > 0:07:40Celtic mythology, of shape-shifting, of Celtic deities, but there are
0:07:40 > 0:07:44a few of the tales that give us a glimpse of how medieval Welsh
0:07:44 > 0:07:50people saw their past, how we once owned the whole island of Britain.
0:07:50 > 0:07:52There are tales of Sheith and Shevellis,
0:07:52 > 0:07:55of the red dragon fighting the white, and the red, of course,
0:07:55 > 0:07:58is a symbol of Wales and we will eventually get the better
0:07:58 > 0:08:02of the English, the white dragon, in that particular story...
0:08:02 > 0:08:05This is the first time that the dragon appears?
0:08:05 > 0:08:07There is a mention of the dragon in a Latin text
0:08:07 > 0:08:10previous to this, but this is the first time it appears in a story
0:08:10 > 0:08:13and of course it's become so important
0:08:13 > 0:08:16as an emblem of national identity - it's on our flag.
0:08:16 > 0:08:18Tell me about the place naming as well because, you know,
0:08:18 > 0:08:21you can imagine the audience sitting there
0:08:21 > 0:08:24and the storyteller bringing them in by saying, "Well, you know that
0:08:24 > 0:08:28"place down the road, Mynachlog-ddu, it was named that because..."
0:08:28 > 0:08:33and he will tell you what part of the story gave that place the name.
0:08:33 > 0:08:36I think this is what makes, again, makes them so interesting today
0:08:36 > 0:08:41because there's very, very, very close links between the tales and the landscape.
0:08:41 > 0:08:44These are what we call onomastic tales - they explain a place name.
0:08:44 > 0:08:46Again, they're linked to memorability,
0:08:46 > 0:08:48they help you remember the story.
0:08:48 > 0:08:51"And so this is why this place is called so-and-so."
0:08:51 > 0:08:53And what about social conventions
0:08:53 > 0:08:55and any moral codes hidden in these stories?
0:08:55 > 0:08:57Well, I think all the stories vary
0:08:57 > 0:09:00but The Four Branches Of The Mabinogi, in particular, although they tell
0:09:00 > 0:09:05of Celtic deities, of shape-shifting, of giants, etc, of the other world,
0:09:05 > 0:09:08underneath all of this there's a moral code of conduct
0:09:08 > 0:09:12that the author is trying to push on the audience.
0:09:12 > 0:09:16There's talk of friendship and how important friendship is,
0:09:16 > 0:09:18and how it should be valued.
0:09:18 > 0:09:22There's references to how if you insult someone, compensation must be
0:09:22 > 0:09:26paid, but then that's the end of it, you should draw a line then.
0:09:26 > 0:09:28So I think the message, if you like, there is, you know,
0:09:28 > 0:09:32we must learn something from these tales and that is why
0:09:32 > 0:09:34these tales are still important today.
0:09:38 > 0:09:43A good example of an onomastic tale is the story of Pwyll which
0:09:43 > 0:09:46features many locations in South West Wales.
0:09:47 > 0:09:51It's near Narberth Castle that we meet one the most memorable
0:09:51 > 0:09:54characters in The Mabinogion - Rhiannon.
0:09:54 > 0:09:59A strong and elusive lady who rides a white horse.
0:10:00 > 0:10:03Pwyll is Prince of Dyfed. He's out riding on a hill and when
0:10:03 > 0:10:07chances upon this beauty and he says to her, "What are you doing here?"
0:10:07 > 0:10:11and Rhiannon, being unusually empowered, replies...
0:10:12 > 0:10:15"I am Rhiannon, the daughter of Heveydd Hen,
0:10:15 > 0:10:19"and they sought to give me a husband against my will.
0:10:19 > 0:10:23"But no husband would I have and that because of my love for thee.
0:10:23 > 0:10:27"Neither will I yet have one unless thou reject me.
0:10:27 > 0:10:30"And hither have I come to hear thy answer."
0:10:30 > 0:10:35"By heaven," said Pwyll, "behold this is my answer.
0:10:35 > 0:10:37"If I might choose among all the ladies
0:10:37 > 0:10:41"and damsels in the world, thee would I choose."
0:10:44 > 0:10:47But Rhiannon is already due to be married to another man,
0:10:47 > 0:10:51Gwawl, who will have to be dealt with.
0:10:51 > 0:10:55So she comes up with a bizarre plan to see him off.
0:10:55 > 0:10:58She tricks Gwawl into getting inside a magic bag.
0:10:58 > 0:11:02Once he's trapped inside, Pwyll's men pounce.
0:11:03 > 0:11:06"Every one of Pwyll's knights struck a blow upon the bag
0:11:06 > 0:11:08"and asked, 'What is here?'
0:11:08 > 0:11:10"'A badger', said they.
0:11:10 > 0:11:13"And in this manner they played, each of them striking the bag,
0:11:13 > 0:11:15"either with his foot or with a staff.
0:11:15 > 0:11:18"And thus played they with the bag.
0:11:18 > 0:11:22"Every one as he came in asked, 'What game are you playing at thus?'
0:11:22 > 0:11:25"'The game of the badger in the bag!' said they.
0:11:25 > 0:11:28"And then was the game of badger in the bag first played!"
0:11:29 > 0:11:31After taking a good beating,
0:11:31 > 0:11:35Gwawl is more than happy to relinquish his claim on Rhiannon.
0:11:36 > 0:11:39With Gwawl out of the way, Pwyll and Rhiannon get together
0:11:39 > 0:11:40and eventually have a son.
0:11:40 > 0:11:43But the baby is immediately spirited away
0:11:43 > 0:11:45and Rhiannon gets the blame for it.
0:11:45 > 0:11:49As punishment she is forced to wait here at the gates of Narberth Castle
0:11:49 > 0:11:52to greet visitors and tell them about her crime
0:11:52 > 0:11:56and offer to carry them on her back to the castle.
0:12:00 > 0:12:03Centuries of reciting these wondrous stories brought
0:12:03 > 0:12:07a sense of belonging, of shared culture amongst those who listened.
0:12:07 > 0:12:10And because they were only ever spoken out loud
0:12:10 > 0:12:12as part of an oral tradition,
0:12:12 > 0:12:15they would naturally change and evolve over time.
0:12:17 > 0:12:21But in the 14th century, The Mabinogion underwent a key transformation,
0:12:21 > 0:12:24one which would ensure its survival through the ages.
0:12:24 > 0:12:26It was written down.
0:12:29 > 0:12:33The tales were recorded in two ancient documents some time
0:12:33 > 0:12:35between 1350 and 1410.
0:12:37 > 0:12:42The second of these texts is held here in the Bodleian Library, Oxford.
0:12:44 > 0:12:46This book is the biggest
0:12:46 > 0:12:50and most important to survive from the Welsh medieval period.
0:12:50 > 0:12:53It is called the Red Book Of Hergest.
0:12:53 > 0:12:57This is one of Britain's most prized ancient manuscripts.
0:12:57 > 0:13:02Within its pages are collections of early poetry, writings on astrology,
0:13:02 > 0:13:07medicine and history and of course The Four Branches Of The Mabinogion.
0:13:08 > 0:13:13These were stories that were passed down as part of the oral tradition,
0:13:13 > 0:13:15so why, at that point in history,
0:13:15 > 0:13:18did someone decide to write them down?
0:13:18 > 0:13:22This is the culmination of the 14th century,
0:13:22 > 0:13:24a strong period
0:13:24 > 0:13:30for grand, local, Welsh families patronising
0:13:30 > 0:13:33literature and organising manuscripts
0:13:33 > 0:13:36and possessing manuscripts as things of pride for their family.
0:13:38 > 0:13:42This manuscript is written for a particular patron.
0:13:42 > 0:13:45He lived near Swansea, in the Towy valley.
0:13:45 > 0:13:47His name was Hopcyn ap Tomas
0:13:47 > 0:13:53and he had a wide knowledge of Welsh tradition and this manuscript
0:13:53 > 0:13:57corresponds to quite a lot of his range of interest.
0:13:57 > 0:13:59And the language, it's in Middle Welsh.
0:13:59 > 0:14:01Middle Welsh, yes.
0:14:04 > 0:14:08Most medieval documents were written in Latin.
0:14:08 > 0:14:11But at the time the Red Book was written, repeated wars with
0:14:11 > 0:14:15England had ravaged Wales and their way of life was under threat.
0:14:15 > 0:14:20It's possible, then, that writing the Red Book down in Welsh was
0:14:20 > 0:14:23an act of cultural preservation.
0:14:23 > 0:14:27And, I must say, it's so difficult to read.
0:14:27 > 0:14:30When I see it in a more modern font
0:14:30 > 0:14:33and with modern spellings it's actually quite similar
0:14:33 > 0:14:37to modern Welsh, shockingly so, actually, but I can't read any of this.
0:14:37 > 0:14:41Look, are these doodles or are they just like little faces,
0:14:41 > 0:14:43they've profiles of faces on the top there.
0:14:43 > 0:14:45- Yes, yup.- What are they doing?
0:14:45 > 0:14:48Well, it's the top line of writing
0:14:48 > 0:14:52so you have margin available and they do have fun.
0:14:54 > 0:14:58They're like little, little red-cheeked faces with horns.
0:14:58 > 0:15:00Yup, that's exactly what they are, yes.
0:15:00 > 0:15:04Will you read a little from it for me and tell me, is this...
0:15:04 > 0:15:06I do love the story of Branwen, I mean,
0:15:06 > 0:15:09it's one of the most straightforward stories.
0:15:09 > 0:15:12HE READS THE MIDDLE WELSH
0:15:17 > 0:15:21"So the next day they took council and this was
0:15:21 > 0:15:26"the result of that council, to give Branwen to Matholwch."
0:15:30 > 0:15:34The story of Branwen is a tale of political marriage.
0:15:34 > 0:15:37She's the daughter of the Celtic deity Llyr.
0:15:38 > 0:15:42If she marries Matholwch, King of Ireland, it will mean that the
0:15:42 > 0:15:45Island of Mighty, which is what they called Britain, will be
0:15:45 > 0:15:51bonded with her neighbour and both countries will become more powerful.
0:15:51 > 0:15:54When Branwen's brother, Bendigeidfran, a giant king,
0:15:54 > 0:15:55agrees to this union,
0:15:55 > 0:15:58he omits to tell their evil brother, Efnisien.
0:15:58 > 0:16:02In a fit of pique, Efnisien mutilates the Irish king's horses.
0:16:02 > 0:16:06Such brutality is bound to have consequences.
0:16:08 > 0:16:12Cut to poor Branwen, now languishing in the kitchen
0:16:12 > 0:16:13of Matholwch's Irish castle
0:16:13 > 0:16:18and beaten periodically by the bloody hands of the butcher.
0:16:18 > 0:16:22Enraged at her plight, Bendigeidfran raises an army
0:16:22 > 0:16:26and heads across the Irish sea to confront King Matholwch.
0:16:27 > 0:16:31As a giant, he need only wade across the sea.
0:16:31 > 0:16:35But on reaching the other side, he is faced with a problem.
0:16:35 > 0:16:39"Lord," said his noblemen, "You know the strange thing about this river?
0:16:39 > 0:16:43"No-one can sail across it, nor is there a bridge.
0:16:43 > 0:16:46"What shall we do for a bridge?" they said.
0:16:46 > 0:16:50"Nothing, except that he who is leader, let him be a bridge."
0:16:53 > 0:16:57With Bendigeidfran's soldiers running headlong over his back
0:16:57 > 0:17:02to meet the Irish king, a disastrous war ensues.
0:17:02 > 0:17:07Bendigeidfran emerges victorious, but he is wounded, and orders
0:17:07 > 0:17:12his surviving soldiers to cut off his head and take it to be buried
0:17:12 > 0:17:17in London, facing towards France, to ward off any future sea invaders.
0:17:19 > 0:17:22These strange accounts of decapitated giants
0:17:22 > 0:17:25and badger in the bag enthralled generations of listeners,
0:17:25 > 0:17:30until somehow these storytellers' tales began to lose their charm,
0:17:30 > 0:17:32and by the 17th century,
0:17:32 > 0:17:36The Mabinogion was all but forgotten.
0:17:37 > 0:17:40But, come the Victorian era, The Mabinogion would undergo
0:17:40 > 0:17:43its second, major transformation,
0:17:43 > 0:17:46one which would gift its tales to the world -
0:17:46 > 0:17:50it would be translated from Welsh into English.
0:17:50 > 0:17:54It was a remarkable Victorian linguist who had already
0:17:54 > 0:17:58taught herself Hebrew, Persian and Arabic who was determined
0:17:58 > 0:18:02enough to take on this mammoth task - Lady Charlotte Guest.
0:18:04 > 0:18:06After marrying a Welsh industrialist,
0:18:06 > 0:18:10the young English aristocrat moved from rural Lincolnshire
0:18:10 > 0:18:15to the white heat of the iron furnaces of Merthyr Tydfil.
0:18:15 > 0:18:20At this time, Merthyr was a centre of heavy industry in South Wales.
0:18:20 > 0:18:22Within days of her arrival,
0:18:22 > 0:18:25Charlotte began to immerse herself in her adopted country's culture
0:18:25 > 0:18:27and began to learn Welsh.
0:18:27 > 0:18:31She wrote in her diary, "Wales has become my own dear country."
0:18:32 > 0:18:35It's perhaps curious how a young Englishwoman
0:18:35 > 0:18:39living in the heart of a heavily industrialised South Wales
0:18:39 > 0:18:41would be interested in such ancient stories,
0:18:41 > 0:18:43but Charlotte was a thirsty learner,
0:18:43 > 0:18:47and Wales itself was in the midst of a cultural re-awakening.
0:18:47 > 0:18:49Nationalism was on the rise,
0:18:49 > 0:18:52there was increasing interest in the language,
0:18:52 > 0:18:55and newspapers were being published in Welsh for the first time.
0:18:56 > 0:19:00Guest steeped herself in Welsh folklore,
0:19:00 > 0:19:04joining local history societies, where she began to discuss
0:19:04 > 0:19:07the superstitions and legends of ancient Wales.
0:19:08 > 0:19:11Lady Charlotte's enthusiasm for Wales was not shared by her
0:19:11 > 0:19:14English contemporaries living alongside her.
0:19:14 > 0:19:17Many plant owners were scathing of Welsh culture
0:19:17 > 0:19:21and the language, which they saw as inferior and not worthy of study.
0:19:22 > 0:19:25Lady Charlotte was of the opposite opinion,
0:19:25 > 0:19:27and on New Year's day, 1838,
0:19:27 > 0:19:30she began translating the tales of The Mabinogion
0:19:30 > 0:19:35and diligently worked on the project for the next few years.
0:19:36 > 0:19:40All her papers are held in the National Library of Wales.
0:19:42 > 0:19:46Not even the small matter of childbirth puts Charlotte off
0:19:46 > 0:19:47her translations.
0:19:47 > 0:19:51This is from her diary in 1838. "After dinner, I worked
0:19:51 > 0:19:55"at my translation and finished all that I had received from Jones.
0:19:55 > 0:19:59"I went to bed and slept soundly till near two o'clock, when I woke,
0:19:59 > 0:20:03"and 40 minutes from which time I was confined of my fourth child" -
0:20:03 > 0:20:06she gave birth! She goes on to say,
0:20:06 > 0:20:10"Five days later, I got my permission to set to work with
0:20:10 > 0:20:13"my dictionaries on a fresh sheet of The Mabinogion,
0:20:13 > 0:20:14"which I finished."
0:20:14 > 0:20:18And if that's not enough, she also goes on to say, "I also amused
0:20:18 > 0:20:23"myself in making a calculation of prices for Great Western Rails."
0:20:23 > 0:20:25This woman is incredible!
0:20:27 > 0:20:31To assist with the translations, Guest enlisted the help of two
0:20:31 > 0:20:36respected Welsh scholars, Rev John Jones and Rev Thomas Price,
0:20:36 > 0:20:39who would proofread her early versions for any mistakes.
0:20:41 > 0:20:44Over the years, some have accused Charlotte Guest of not giving
0:20:44 > 0:20:46enough credit to these Welsh scholars,
0:20:46 > 0:20:50insinuating somehow that they had done most of the work and not her.
0:20:50 > 0:20:52But this is her deed box.
0:20:52 > 0:20:55It's jam-packed full of her handwritten notes
0:20:55 > 0:20:59and offers impressive proof of the sheer amount of hard work
0:20:59 > 0:21:03she put in in order to complete these translations.
0:21:05 > 0:21:07The box contains notes to her publishers,
0:21:07 > 0:21:12and background information she compiled on some of the stories.
0:21:12 > 0:21:161838 saw the publication of the first story,
0:21:16 > 0:21:20but it wasn't until 1849 that the whole collection was released
0:21:20 > 0:21:23in this three-volume edition, sealing the reputation
0:21:23 > 0:21:27of The Mabinogion as one of the great literary works of Europe.
0:21:30 > 0:21:35Guest's translation was soon published in both French and German.
0:21:35 > 0:21:38Its popularity was helped by the fact that it contained
0:21:38 > 0:21:42a number of stories which featured a legendary monarch with whom
0:21:42 > 0:21:45the Victorians were obsessed -
0:21:45 > 0:21:46King Arthur.
0:21:48 > 0:21:52Lady Charlotte had long been fascinated by this royal,
0:21:52 > 0:21:55whom she viewed as a romantic character, declaring him
0:21:55 > 0:21:59"the noblest creature that ever lived in fiction."
0:21:59 > 0:22:01No wonder, then, that the first translations
0:22:01 > 0:22:04she started working on were the Arthurian tales.
0:22:04 > 0:22:07Now he may not be the most perfect, chivalrous knight
0:22:07 > 0:22:11that we've all grown to love, but he does help out his friend
0:22:11 > 0:22:16in this next story of how Kilhwch met his love, Olwen.
0:22:19 > 0:22:23Kilhwch and Olwen contains one of the earliest literary
0:22:23 > 0:22:26references to King Arthur and, like many of The Mabinogion tales,
0:22:26 > 0:22:30it's a complicated love story.
0:22:30 > 0:22:34"Yellower was her hair than the flowers of the broom,
0:22:34 > 0:22:37"whiter was her flesh than the foam of the wave,
0:22:37 > 0:22:41"whiter were her palms and her fingers than moist cotton
0:22:41 > 0:22:44"grass amidst the fine gravel of a bubbling spring.
0:22:44 > 0:22:47"Neither the eye of a mewed hawk,
0:22:47 > 0:22:50"nor the eye of a thrice-mewed falcon,
0:22:50 > 0:22:53"no eye was fairer than hers."
0:22:55 > 0:23:00Compare this beauty with the grotesque figure of her father,
0:23:00 > 0:23:04the giant Ysbaddaden Pencawr, whose eyelids are so droopy
0:23:04 > 0:23:08that he has to keep them open using forks...
0:23:10 > 0:23:12He doesn't want Olwen ever to marry,
0:23:12 > 0:23:16because it will mean his instant death.
0:23:16 > 0:23:20Kilhwch is desperate to marry Olwen, so her dad sets him
0:23:20 > 0:23:24an endless list of impossible tasks that he has to surmount
0:23:24 > 0:23:27in order to win her hand in marriage.
0:23:30 > 0:23:36Kilhwch enlists King Arthur and his men to help him complete the tasks.
0:23:36 > 0:23:40They include beheading a giant, seeking out a huge cauldron,
0:23:40 > 0:23:43cutting out someone's heart and eating it,
0:23:43 > 0:23:46and freeing a dog handler from a watery dungeon.
0:23:48 > 0:23:51The story culminates with a riotous hunting of a giant
0:23:51 > 0:23:53boar known as Twrch Trwyth,
0:23:53 > 0:23:56who is pursued across the countryside of South England
0:23:56 > 0:24:00and Cornwall, before disappearing into the sea at Land's End.
0:24:01 > 0:24:05Kilhwch and King Arthur return to the giant in Wales.
0:24:05 > 0:24:07They cut off his hair and his beard
0:24:07 > 0:24:11and they shave him right down to the bone.
0:24:11 > 0:24:14"Art though shaved, man?" said Kilhwch.
0:24:14 > 0:24:15"I am shaved," answered he.
0:24:17 > 0:24:18"Is thy daughter mine now?"
0:24:19 > 0:24:21"She is thine," said he,
0:24:21 > 0:24:25"but therefore needs thou not thank me, but Arthur,
0:24:25 > 0:24:28"who hath accomplished this for thee."
0:24:31 > 0:24:34The popularity of Guest's English translations of The Mabinogion
0:24:34 > 0:24:36chimed with the times.
0:24:36 > 0:24:39This was the height of the Romantic era,
0:24:39 > 0:24:42where scholars from France, Germany, Ireland and Scotland were
0:24:42 > 0:24:47casting back through their histories in search of ancient, epic tales.
0:24:49 > 0:24:52It was during this period that many of the stories
0:24:52 > 0:24:54we now take for granted were rediscovered - Beowulf,
0:24:54 > 0:24:57The Song of Roland, The Nibelungenlied,
0:24:57 > 0:25:00the works of supposed Scots poet Ossian.
0:25:00 > 0:25:04It was into this world that Guest's Mabinogion was published.
0:25:05 > 0:25:07One of the most wonderful things about the Mabinogi is
0:25:07 > 0:25:11the fact that it actually can still speak to a modern Welsh
0:25:11 > 0:25:15speaker across time, because the language hasn't changed that much,
0:25:15 > 0:25:19and yet it brings with it such an aura of antiquity and the past.
0:25:19 > 0:25:22I think that's what appealed to... to the romantic.
0:25:22 > 0:25:25Why were the Victorians so obsessed with King Arthur?
0:25:25 > 0:25:28I think the answer's actually in the introduction to the later
0:25:28 > 0:25:33edition of the collected stories of The Mabinogion that came out,
0:25:33 > 0:25:38and Charlotte Guest herself says that she really believes
0:25:38 > 0:25:40and she really thinks that she's managed to
0:25:40 > 0:25:45prove that the Welsh Arthurian stories are in essence the
0:25:45 > 0:25:49beginnings of something which took Europe by storm in the Middle Ages
0:25:49 > 0:25:53and so Wales can think of itself as the cradle of European romance.
0:25:53 > 0:25:57What did this do to the Welsh sense of identity at the time?
0:25:57 > 0:26:00Well, I think, I mean, it was obviously a huge boost to...
0:26:00 > 0:26:05to be able to say that, and, in fact, in The Mabinogion collection,
0:26:05 > 0:26:09the story Kilhwch and Olwen is now thought to be the earliest
0:26:09 > 0:26:12appearance of Arthur in a written text in European literature.
0:26:12 > 0:26:16What matters is that, up until about the 1830s and '40s,
0:26:16 > 0:26:21the Mabinogi wasn't on the radar as an important Welsh text,
0:26:21 > 0:26:23because novels, because stories,
0:26:23 > 0:26:26because prose did not count as much as epic poetry.
0:26:26 > 0:26:30What people wanted was Homer, that's why Ossian was so popular,
0:26:30 > 0:26:33and what Wales wanted was another Ossian.
0:26:33 > 0:26:35But, actually, somewhat delayed,
0:26:35 > 0:26:39what it got was an early form of prose tales.
0:26:39 > 0:26:43And those stories just have a grip on people's imagination, I think,
0:26:43 > 0:26:47and can be endlessly reworked into modernity.
0:26:50 > 0:26:54I want to end my journey through these wonderful stories
0:26:54 > 0:26:57by revisiting one of my favourite episodes -
0:26:57 > 0:27:00the moment when Pwyll first meets Rhiannon.
0:27:02 > 0:27:06It's a delightful tale of romance and enchantment
0:27:06 > 0:27:10played out in a location we can still visit today -
0:27:10 > 0:27:12the hills around Narberth Castle.
0:27:12 > 0:27:16The Victorians loved The Mabinogion, and were particularly taken
0:27:16 > 0:27:18with the 'other' world,
0:27:18 > 0:27:21those magical places where weird things happen.
0:27:21 > 0:27:24For instance, Pwyll is told that if he sits on a certain mound,
0:27:24 > 0:27:28he might be wounded, or something wonderful might come his way.
0:27:31 > 0:27:36"And while he sat there, they saw a lady on a pure, white
0:27:36 > 0:27:40"horse of large size, with a garment of shining gold around her,
0:27:40 > 0:27:44"coming along the highway that led from the mound.
0:27:44 > 0:27:48"And the horse seemed to move at a slow and even pace,
0:27:48 > 0:27:52"and to be coming up towards the mound."
0:27:56 > 0:28:00I am continually fascinated by The Mabinogion.
0:28:00 > 0:28:04I love the humour and the ridiculous plot lines.
0:28:04 > 0:28:09But most powerful of all is knowing that these otherworldly tales
0:28:09 > 0:28:14which addressed ancient communities continue to speak so directly to us.
0:28:17 > 0:28:21It's over 1,000 years since the stories of The Mabinogion
0:28:21 > 0:28:25were first shared, yet these twisted narratives and tales of love and
0:28:25 > 0:28:29betrayal are as captivating today as when they were first conceived.
0:28:29 > 0:28:33They give you a portal into the lives of our ancestors,
0:28:33 > 0:28:36and allow us to revel in the supernatural.
0:28:36 > 0:28:39Once read, The Mabinogion stays with you.
0:28:39 > 0:28:43So be wary when next you wander into this majestic landscape,
0:28:43 > 0:28:46it may yet hold some surprises.
0:28:49 > 0:28:53To dig deeper into The Mabinogion and the other books in this series,
0:28:53 > 0:28:56a free app from the Open University is available.
0:28:56 > 0:29:02To download it, go to...
0:29:02 > 0:29:04and follow the links to the Open University.