The Gryphon of Gwydr - Alastair Macleod - E-Book

The Gryphon of Gwydr E-Book

alastair macleod

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Beschreibung

"A new age began, of Welsh rule under the Gryphon. To celebrate this new alliance, Afon, princess of the Llew married Gwalchgwyn prince of the Brynwi. The druids of the conjoined tribes said that the power of the Gryphon was in the two forces united and balanced within it; the wisdom and all seeing eye of the eagle and strength and courage of the lion. They prophesied that as long as the Gryphon remained at Gwydr, Gwydr would flourish. But in time the unseen forces of the universe weakened and threatened Gwydr, the prophecy came true, the balance was lost and the Gryphon departed. Gwydr for a while fell into decay." In The Orkney story of Assipattle, the Serpent queen suppressed by men, is finally restored to save the earth. In the final story the mystery of why the grave of King Arthur, King of The Britons, was never found, is revealed.

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Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2014

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Alastair Macleod

The Gryphon of Gwydr

And more tales of Ancient Briton

"to the medievalists, for Wales, for Orkney, and for Ancient Briton"BookRix GmbH & Co. KG81371 Munich

The Gryphon of Gwydr

 

 

Afanen, princess of Conwy walked by the river with her handmaidens. Girls were driving the geese back to the castle for night was approaching Gwydr, the Well of the Goose, stronghold of her father Llewellyn Ap Rrwst, chief of this valley.

 

Suddenly the sky darkened as a huge bird flew over. It was the gyrfalcon of the Brynwi, the neighbouring tribe. The goose girls cowered as the great bird circled them then flew round in a wide arc over the geese which honked loudly in alarm. The bird stooped, the goose girls shouted and waved their sticks but to no avail. The gyrfalcon snatched one of the smaller geese and made off with it between his talons, its huge wings flapping as it flew off upwards towards the hill top fort of the Brynwi.

 

An uneasy truce had developed between the Brynwi in the hill fort and the Llew here on the river plain beside the mighty Conwy as it flowed to the sea.

 

The Llew lived for the river. It gave them salmon, eels and good grass for the geese and grazing for their fat cattle and pigs.

The Brynwi lived off hill sheep and hunting for boar and deer in the hills. They considered themselves fierce and prided themselves on their heroic past. Their totem was the eagle and each male member of the tribe on reaching adulthood had it tatooed on his sword arm.

The Llew had from very ancient times taken the lion as their totem and bore it on their sheilds.

 

One day, from the river, invaders came. Men in metal armour with huge shields leapt from boats and attacked Gwydr. The women and children fled up into the hills for safety to the Brynwi. The Llew men under Llewellyn fought hard but had to retreat as the metal army were stronger. At last the Llew broke off and fled to join their women folk.

 

The Romans, for it was they who had come, took over Gwydr, made it their camp, fortified the walls and sent patrols out into the countryside for food.

The native tribes watched and attacked when they could but the Romans exacted a terrible vengeance and took slaves and cattle.

 

And they were after more. It was said they mined lead and copper on the coast and there they sent the slaves, women and children as well. And they sought gold and silver from the hills.

 

Many years later when the power of Rome waned the garrison declined. Till one year many of the soldiers died of illness, then, after one huge push the Welsh overcame the garrison. The Brynwi and Llew tentatively re-entered the fort of Gwydr. It was eerie and dark without the torches of the Romans.

 

 

They came on a strange sight. The standard bearer, the Aquilifer, lay with a spear through his neck. He wore the pelt of a lion, symbol of the Llew but also, gripped tightly in his death throw, he held the eagle of his legion and totem of the Brynwi. Behind his body was the door to the garrison strong room. Above the door was carved the symbol of the Gryphon, part lion, part eagle, a symbol from ancient Greece and Scythia.

Here was the gold and silver of the legion, taken from the Welsh.