The Mabinogion The Secret Life of Books

Over 1,000 years ago, in what we now know as Wales,

and many neighbouring lands, storytellers would recite

fantastical tales where the action unfolded in an enchanted landscape.

These epic tales held moral codes

and information to be passed from community to community,

from generation to generation, as part of an oral tradition.

Nobody knows who wrote them,

and they might have been lost to the modern world were it not

for the enthusiastic intervention of a Victorian aristocrat.

But survive they did,

and their influence is still to be seen today, centuries later,

in writing like Lord Of The Rings, Harry Potter, Game Of Thrones.

This, then, is the extraordinary story of one of the great literary

treasures of the medieval world - The Mabinogion.

When I was growing up I had a Mabinogion poster on my wall.

The illustrations are almost psychedelic

but I'd fallen in love with the unpredictable plots,

the beautiful language and the larger-than-life characters.

So why are these stories still enjoyed today?

Perhaps it's because they're filled with unforgettable creations -

goats that mysteriously turn into wild boars,

a woman made entirely of flowers,

and a king so huge he could stride across the Irish sea.

These strange figures epitomise the twisting

and unpredictable stories of The Mabinogion.

The collection comprises of 11 tales -

four of these being The Four Branches Of The Mabinogi

which are named after their principal characters

Math, Manawydan, Pwyll, Branwen.

The rest are heroic romances set in the age of King Arthur.

The world these colourful figures inhabit is almost unrecognisable

and what writer WB Yeats says about the Celtic myths

brilliantly explains what makes The Mabinogion so different.

He described myths as a vision of a world,

"expressed by people who believed trees to be divine,

"who could take a human or grotesque shape and dance among the shadows."

The tales of The Mabinogion stray into London, Cornwall and Ireland

but most of the action takes place in what we now know of as Wales.

In the era of The Mabinogion, Wales was made up of four

separately-ruled kingdoms - Dyfed in the South West,

Morganwg in the South East, Powys and in the centre

and Gwynedd in the North.

The tales were devised to be performed aloud

and one of the storyteller's tricks was to use local landmarks

like boulders or mountains to bring them alive for the audience.

The tale of Math, son of Mathonwy, which is the fourth branch,

is a case in point.

It contains some of the strangest scenes in The Mabinogion,

where magic and shape shifting are never far away

The story takes place here in Gwynedd.

In the beginning, we learn that Math, who is lord over these lands,

has to keep his feet in the lap of a virgin unless he is at war.

Then we're told that his nephew, Gilfaethyw,

is in love with this virgin.

And when next Math is taken away to fight,

Gilfaethyw and his brother rape her.

Math returns, is enraged and hell-bent on revenge.

"Math took his magic wand and struck Gilfaethyw so that he changed

"into a good-sized hind, and he caught Gwydio, his brother, quickly

"and struck him with the same magic wand so that he changed into a stag."

Then Math changed his nephews into a wild boar and wild sow,

and finally into a wolf and a she-wolf.

The unhappy couple went on to produce three human sons.

Finally they are allowed to become men again

and the narrative moves focus onto a cursed young man called Lleu

who is unable to take on a human wife.

So Math and Gywdion conjure up a wife made of flowers for Lleu

and called her Blodeuedd.

But instead of enjoying marital bliss with Lleu,

Blodeuedd falls in love with another man, Gronw.

The secret lovers plot to kill Lleu but they can only do that

using a spear that it takes a whole year to make.

And, not only that, for Lleu to die he has to be next to a river

with one foot on a trough, which is roofed,

and the other foot on the back of a billy goat.

Once Gronw makes the spear, he lures Lleu to the river

but Lleu magically escapes it by turning into an eagle.

And this is where it gets interesting.

Remember I said earlier that these stories were locked down with

familiar features of the landscape?

Well, in this very field in North Wales, there is something

which plays an important part in the fourth branch.

Later, when Lleu seeks revenge against Gronw for running

off with his wife, he fires an arrow at him.

And to protect himself, Gronw raises a large stone.

And here it is.

This is the stone that Gronwr uses to protect himself from Lleu's arrow

but it doesn't work. The arrow goes right through and Gronwr is killed.

So ends this branch of The Mabinogi.

The stories can be very complicated.

They don't follow the rules of modern writing.

So why are they so different,

what do they tell us about their times, and what was their purpose?

Before they were written down they would have been

narrated by an oral storyteller and even when they were

written down they would have been read out aloud to an audience

that was listening because not many people could read in medieval times.

You find that they're told in episodes mainly and perhaps it

would have been an episode a night, a bit like a soap opera these days.

And you find that the tales are...

they're always in a chronological order -

this happens, and then, and then something else,

and then something else, so this creates an awful lot of suspense.

Do we know who would've recited them?

We think the storyteller would've recited them.

The name that's generally given to the medieval Welsh

storyteller is the Cavarywyth

and Cavarywyth means the one who knows, the one who understands.

What do we learn about our ancestors in these stories?

Well, we learn a great deal.

Of course, The Mabinogion tales, there are 11 tales altogether.

We tend to focus on The Four Branches Of The Mabinogi that tell of

Celtic mythology, of shape-shifting, of Celtic deities, but there are

a few of the tales that give us a glimpse of how medieval Welsh

people saw their past, how we once owned the whole island of Britain.

There are tales of Sheith and Shevellis,

of the red dragon fighting the white, and the red, of course,

is a symbol of Wales and we will eventually get the better

of the English, the white dragon, in that particular story...

This is the first time that the dragon appears?

There is a mention of the dragon in a Latin text

previous to this, but this is the first time it appears in a story

and of course it's become so important

as an emblem of national identity - it's on our flag.

Tell me about the place naming as well because, you know,

you can imagine the audience sitting there

and the storyteller bringing them in by saying, "Well, you know that

"place down the road, Mynachlog-ddu, it was named that because..."

and he will tell you what part of the story gave that place the name.

I think this is what makes, again, makes them so interesting today

because there's very, very, very close links between the tales and the landscape.

These are what we call onomastic tales - they explain a place name.

Again, they're linked to memorability,

they help you remember the story.

"And so this is why this place is called so-and-so."

And what about social conventions

and any moral codes hidden in these stories?

Well, I think all the stories vary

but The Four Branches Of The Mabinogi, in particular, although they tell

of Celtic deities, of shape-shifting, of giants, etc, of the other world,

underneath all of this there's a moral code of conduct

that the author is trying to push on the audience.

There's talk of friendship and how important friendship is,

and how it should be valued.

There's references to how if you insult someone, compensation must be

paid, but then that's the end of it, you should draw a line then.

So I think the message, if you like, there is, you know,

we must learn something from these tales and that is why

these tales are still important today.

A good example of an onomastic tale is the story of Pwyll which

features many locations in South West Wales.

It's near Narberth Castle that we meet one the most memorable

characters in The Mabinogion - Rhiannon.

A strong and elusive lady who rides a white horse.

Pwyll is Prince of Dyfed. He's out riding on a hill and when

chances upon this beauty and he says to her, "What are you doing here?"

and Rhiannon, being unusually empowered, replies...

"I am Rhiannon, the daughter of Heveydd Hen,

"and they sought to give me a husband against my will.

"But no husband would I have and that because of my love for thee.

"Neither will I yet have one unless thou reject me.

"And hither have I come to hear thy answer."

"By heaven," said Pwyll, "behold this is my answer.

"If I might choose among all the ladies

"and damsels in the world, thee would I choose."

But Rhiannon is already due to be married to another man,

Gwawl, who will have to be dealt with.

So she comes up with a bizarre plan to see him off.

She tricks Gwawl into getting inside a magic bag.

Once he's trapped inside, Pwyll's men pounce.

"Every one of Pwyll's knights struck a blow upon the bag

"and asked, 'What is here?'

"'A badger', said they.

"And in this manner they played, each of them striking the bag,

"either with his foot or with a staff.

"And thus played they with the bag.

"Every one as he came in asked, 'What game are you playing at thus?'

"'The game of the badger in the bag!' said they.

"And then was the game of badger in the bag first played!"

After taking a good beating,

Gwawl is more than happy to relinquish his claim on Rhiannon.

With Gwawl out of the way, Pwyll and Rhiannon get together

and eventually have a son.

But the baby is immediately spirited away

and Rhiannon gets the blame for it.

As punishment she is forced to wait here at the gates of Narberth Castle

to greet visitors and tell them about her crime

and offer to carry them on her back to the castle.

Centuries of reciting these wondrous stories brought

a sense of belonging, of shared culture amongst those who listened.

And because they were only ever spoken out loud

as part of an oral tradition,

they would naturally change and evolve over time.

But in the 14th century, The Mabinogion underwent a key transformation,

one which would ensure its survival through the ages.

It was written down.

The tales were recorded in two ancient documents some time

between 1350 and 1410.

The second of these texts is held here in the Bodleian Library, Oxford.

This book is the biggest

and most important to survive from the Welsh medieval period.

It is called the Red Book Of Hergest.

This is one of Britain's most prized ancient manuscripts.

Within its pages are collections of early poetry, writings on astrology,

medicine and history and of course The Four Branches Of The Mabinogion.

These were stories that were passed down as part of the oral tradition,

so why, at that point in history,

did someone decide to write them down?

This is the culmination of the 14th century,

a strong period

for grand, local, Welsh families patronising

literature and organising manuscripts

and possessing manuscripts as things of pride for their family.

This manuscript is written for a particular patron.

He lived near Swansea, in the Towy valley.

His name was Hopcyn ap Tomas

and he had a wide knowledge of Welsh tradition and this manuscript

corresponds to quite a lot of his range of interest.

And the language, it's in Middle Welsh.

Middle Welsh, yes.

Most medieval documents were written in Latin.

But at the time the Red Book was written, repeated wars with

England had ravaged Wales and their way of life was under threat.

It's possible, then, that writing the Red Book down in Welsh was

an act of cultural preservation.

And, I must say, it's so difficult to read.

When I see it in a more modern font

and with modern spellings it's actually quite similar

to modern Welsh, shockingly so, actually, but I can't read any of this.

Look, are these doodles or are they just like little faces,

they've profiles of faces on the top there.

-Yes, yup.

-What are they doing?

Well, it's the top line of writing

so you have margin available and they do have fun.

They're like little, little red-cheeked faces with horns.

Yup, that's exactly what they are, yes.

Will you read a little from it for me and tell me, is this...

I do love the story of Branwen, I mean,

it's one of the most straightforward stories.

HE READS THE MIDDLE WELSH

"So the next day they took council and this was

"the result of that council, to give Branwen to Matholwch."

The story of Branwen is a tale of political marriage.

She's the daughter of the Celtic deity Llyr.

If she marries Matholwch, King of Ireland, it will mean that the

Island of Mighty, which is what they called Britain, will be

bonded with her neighbour and both countries will become more powerful.

When Branwen's brother, Bendigeidfran, a giant king,

agrees to this union,

he omits to tell their evil brother, Efnisien.

In a fit of pique, Efnisien mutilates the Irish king's horses.

Such brutality is bound to have consequences.

Cut to poor Branwen, now languishing in the kitchen

of Matholwch's Irish castle

and beaten periodically by the bloody hands of the butcher.

Enraged at her plight, Bendigeidfran raises an army

and heads across the Irish sea to confront King Matholwch.

As a giant, he need only wade across the sea.

But on reaching the other side, he is faced with a problem.

"Lord," said his noblemen, "You know the strange thing about this river?

"No-one can sail across it, nor is there a bridge.

"What shall we do for a bridge?" they said.

"Nothing, except that he who is leader, let him be a bridge."

With Bendigeidfran's soldiers running headlong over his back

to meet the Irish king, a disastrous war ensues.

Bendigeidfran emerges victorious, but he is wounded, and orders

his surviving soldiers to cut off his head and take it to be buried

in London, facing towards France, to ward off any future sea invaders.

These strange accounts of decapitated giants

and badger in the bag enthralled generations of listeners,

until somehow these storytellers' tales began to lose their charm,

and by the 17th century,

The Mabinogion was all but forgotten.

But, come the Victorian era, The Mabinogion would undergo

its second, major transformation,

one which would gift its tales to the world -

it would be translated from Welsh into English.

It was a remarkable Victorian linguist who had already

taught herself Hebrew, Persian and Arabic who was determined

enough to take on this mammoth task - Lady Charlotte Guest.

After marrying a Welsh industrialist,

the young English aristocrat moved from rural Lincolnshire

to the white heat of the iron furnaces of Merthyr Tydfil.

At this time, Merthyr was a centre of heavy industry in South Wales.

Within days of her arrival,

Charlotte began to immerse herself in her adopted country's culture

and began to learn Welsh.

She wrote in her diary, "Wales has become my own dear country."

It's perhaps curious how a young Englishwoman

living in the heart of a heavily industrialised South Wales

would be interested in such ancient stories,

but Charlotte was a thirsty learner,

and Wales itself was in the midst of a cultural re-awakening.

Nationalism was on the rise,

there was increasing interest in the language,

and newspapers were being published in Welsh for the first time.

Guest steeped herself in Welsh folklore,

joining local history societies, where she began to discuss

the superstitions and legends of ancient Wales.

Lady Charlotte's enthusiasm for Wales was not shared by her

English contemporaries living alongside her.

Many plant owners were scathing of Welsh culture

and the language, which they saw as inferior and not worthy of study.

Lady Charlotte was of the opposite opinion,

and on New Year's day, 1838,

she began translating the tales of The Mabinogion

and diligently worked on the project for the next few years.

All her papers are held in the National Library of Wales.

Not even the small matter of childbirth puts Charlotte off

her translations.

This is from her diary in 1838. "After dinner, I worked

"at my translation and finished all that I had received from Jones.

"I went to bed and slept soundly till near two o'clock, when I woke,

"and 40 minutes from which time I was confined of my fourth child" -

she gave birth! She goes on to say,

"Five days later, I got my permission to set to work with

"my dictionaries on a fresh sheet of The Mabinogion,

"which I finished."

And if that's not enough, she also goes on to say, "I also amused

"myself in making a calculation of prices for Great Western Rails."

This woman is incredible!

To assist with the translations, Guest enlisted the help of two

respected Welsh scholars, Rev John Jones and Rev Thomas Price,

who would proofread her early versions for any mistakes.

Over the years, some have accused Charlotte Guest of not giving

enough credit to these Welsh scholars,

insinuating somehow that they had done most of the work and not her.

But this is her deed box.

It's jam-packed full of her handwritten notes

and offers impressive proof of the sheer amount of hard work

she put in in order to complete these translations.

The box contains notes to her publishers,

and background information she compiled on some of the stories.

1838 saw the publication of the first story,

but it wasn't until 1849 that the whole collection was released

in this three-volume edition, sealing the reputation

of The Mabinogion as one of the great literary works of Europe.

Guest's translation was soon published in both French and German.

Its popularity was helped by the fact that it contained

a number of stories which featured a legendary monarch with whom

the Victorians were obsessed -

King Arthur.

Lady Charlotte had long been fascinated by this royal,

whom she viewed as a romantic character, declaring him

"the noblest creature that ever lived in fiction."

No wonder, then, that the first translations

she started working on were the Arthurian tales.

Now he may not be the most perfect, chivalrous knight

that we've all grown to love, but he does help out his friend

in this next story of how Kilhwch met his love, Olwen.

Kilhwch and Olwen contains one of the earliest literary

references to King Arthur and, like many of The Mabinogion tales,

it's a complicated love story.

"Yellower was her hair than the flowers of the broom,

"whiter was her flesh than the foam of the wave,

"whiter were her palms and her fingers than moist cotton

"grass amidst the fine gravel of a bubbling spring.

"Neither the eye of a mewed hawk,

"nor the eye of a thrice-mewed falcon,

"no eye was fairer than hers."

Compare this beauty with the grotesque figure of her father,

the giant Ysbaddaden Pencawr, whose eyelids are so droopy

that he has to keep them open using forks...

He doesn't want Olwen ever to marry,

because it will mean his instant death.

Kilhwch is desperate to marry Olwen, so her dad sets him

an endless list of impossible tasks that he has to surmount

in order to win her hand in marriage.

Kilhwch enlists King Arthur and his men to help him complete the tasks.

They include beheading a giant, seeking out a huge cauldron,

cutting out someone's heart and eating it,

and freeing a dog handler from a watery dungeon.

The story culminates with a riotous hunting of a giant

boar known as Twrch Trwyth,

who is pursued across the countryside of South England

and Cornwall, before disappearing into the sea at Land's End.

Kilhwch and King Arthur return to the giant in Wales.

They cut off his hair and his beard

and they shave him right down to the bone.

"Art though shaved, man?" said Kilhwch.

"I am shaved," answered he.

"Is thy daughter mine now?"

"She is thine," said he,

"but therefore needs thou not thank me, but Arthur,

"who hath accomplished this for thee."

The popularity of Guest's English translations of The Mabinogion

chimed with the times.

This was the height of the Romantic era,

where scholars from France, Germany, Ireland and Scotland were

casting back through their histories in search of ancient, epic tales.

It was during this period that many of the stories

we now take for granted were rediscovered - Beowulf,

The Song of Roland, The Nibelungenlied,

the works of supposed Scots poet Ossian.

It was into this world that Guest's Mabinogion was published.

One of the most wonderful things about the Mabinogi is

the fact that it actually can still speak to a modern Welsh

speaker across time, because the language hasn't changed that much,

and yet it brings with it such an aura of antiquity and the past.

I think that's what appealed to... to the romantic.

Why were the Victorians so obsessed with King Arthur?

I think the answer's actually in the introduction to the later

edition of the collected stories of The Mabinogion that came out,

and Charlotte Guest herself says that she really believes

and she really thinks that she's managed to

prove that the Welsh Arthurian stories are in essence the

beginnings of something which took Europe by storm in the Middle Ages

and so Wales can think of itself as the cradle of European romance.

What did this do to the Welsh sense of identity at the time?

Well, I think, I mean, it was obviously a huge boost to...

to be able to say that, and, in fact, in The Mabinogion collection,

the story Kilhwch and Olwen is now thought to be the earliest

appearance of Arthur in a written text in European literature.

What matters is that, up until about the 1830s and '40s,

the Mabinogi wasn't on the radar as an important Welsh text,

because novels, because stories,

because prose did not count as much as epic poetry.

What people wanted was Homer, that's why Ossian was so popular,

and what Wales wanted was another Ossian.

But, actually, somewhat delayed,

what it got was an early form of prose tales.

And those stories just have a grip on people's imagination, I think,

and can be endlessly reworked into modernity.

I want to end my journey through these wonderful stories

by revisiting one of my favourite episodes -

the moment when Pwyll first meets Rhiannon.

It's a delightful tale of romance and enchantment

played out in a location we can still visit today -

the hills around Narberth Castle.

The Victorians loved The Mabinogion, and were particularly taken

with the 'other' world,

those magical places where weird things happen.

For instance, Pwyll is told that if he sits on a certain mound,

he might be wounded, or something wonderful might come his way.

"And while he sat there, they saw a lady on a pure, white

"horse of large size, with a garment of shining gold around her,

"coming along the highway that led from the mound.

"And the horse seemed to move at a slow and even pace,

"and to be coming up towards the mound."

I am continually fascinated by The Mabinogion.

I love the humour and the ridiculous plot lines.

But most powerful of all is knowing that these otherworldly tales

which addressed ancient communities continue to speak so directly to us.

It's over 1,000 years since the stories of The Mabinogion

were first shared, yet these twisted narratives and tales of love and

betrayal are as captivating today as when they were first conceived.

They give you a portal into the lives of our ancestors,

and allow us to revel in the supernatural.

Once read, The Mabinogion stays with you.

So be wary when next you wander into this majestic landscape,

it may yet hold some surprises.

To dig deeper into The Mabinogion and the other books in this series,

a free app from the Open University is available.

To download it, go to...

and follow the links to the Open University.