Cassell's History of England, Vol. 1 (of 8) / From the Roman Invasion to the Wars of the Roses

by Anonymous

The first expedition of Edward was directed against the Welsh, whom so many of the Anglo-Norman kings had in vain attempted to subdue. Politically considered, there is no doubt that this expedition was wisely ordered, and that the early conquest of those brave mountaineers has proved in the highest degree beneficial to this country. At the time of the accession of Edward, civilisation had made important progress in England, while in Wales it had been stationary; but if we examine the social condition of that people after the Conquest, as described in the writings of a contemporary, and one of their own countrymen, we shall find their national character depicted in colours which attract our respect and admiration. In time of war they were brave, or even fierce; but when the war was over, they showed that they could appreciate the blessings of peace, and they betook themselves to their ordinary avocations, and exchanged the rites of hospitality. In spite of the aggressive wars made upon them from time to time, any Englishman who visited them in their mountains, as a simple traveller without arms, was sure of safe conduct and a kind reception. If he arrived in the morning he was entertained until the evening by the young women, who played and sang to him with the harp. There was a harp in every cottage, and with it was to be found at least one person whose skill could bring out its sweetest sounds. The people are described as possessed of great natural dignity and freedom of speech, which gave them confidence even in replying to princes.

If we may credit this account by one of their countrymen, we find here one of those instances given in history of a people displaying many of the amenities of social life while yet in the infancy of civilisation; deriving their code of honour, laws, and manners from the influences of unwritten memorials of the past—from songs and traditions. The mountain maidens, who cheered the tired traveller with the music of the harp, had no better clothing than the skins of sheep and goats. The chiefs, whose sway over a thousand warriors was absolute, and who bore themselves with undaunted mien in the presence of kings, kept state among bare walls and benches and rode out to meet the English chivalry upon the rough ponies of the mountains. It is related that when Henry II. passed through the country, he looked with a contemptuous eye upon the poverty of the inhabitants, until he perceived among them a pride greater than his own, and based not upon gaudy trappings or outward show, but upon the consciousness of a manhood which had no need of decorations. "These people are poor," said a mountaineer to the king, "but such as they are, thou shalt never subdue them; that is reserved for God in His wrath."

EDWARD I.

During the contests between Henry III. and the De Montfort faction, Llewelyn, the chief of the north of Wales, had supported the cause of the Earl of Leicester, and, at the battle of Evesham, had fought on his side. When that final struggle was over, and the Welsh chieftain had returned to his native hills, he still retained his regard for the fallen family of De Montfort, and sent to offer his hand in marriage to Eleanor, daughter of the deceased earl. The offer was accepted, and the young lady, in company with her brother Almeric, set sail from France to reach her affianced husband; but the vessel having been intercepted by some English ships, the bride and her escort were conveyed to the court of Edward, who detained them prisoners. Exasperated by this act of oppression, Llewelyn collected together his men-at-arms, and determined to revenge himself for the insult he had sustained.

It is not certain when the first acts of hostility took place on the part of the Welsh or English; but there is no doubt that Edward had for some time past been pursuing, by various covert measures, the schemes he had in view. He administered bribes without stint among the mountain chiefs, and, profiting by long-standing feuds which existed between them, and which were insidiously fomented, he secured many of them to his side. Actuated by a feeling of jealousy, David, the brother of Llewelyn, placed himself among those who gathered round the royal standard, and with him was Rees-ap-Meredith, the chief or prince of South Wales.

The ground of quarrel which Edward preferred against Llewelyn was that the latter had refused to obey the summons to appear before the king, and render homage as one of the vassals of the Crown. On receiving that summons, Llewelyn replied that his life was in danger from the number of his enemies, who, in violation of a recent treaty between him and Edward, had been received at the court. The Welsh prince demanded that a safe conduct should be granted to him; that ten hostages, chosen from the English nobility, should be sent as security for his safe return, and that his bride should immediately be given up to him. Edward refused these conditions, with the exception of the safe conduct, and it is evident that he had no real desire that his vassal should withdraw his refusal. The king's preparations for the intended expedition were now matured; a large army was ready to take the field, and the Church had excommunicated the Welsh prince as a traitor to the Crown.

At Easter, 1277, Edward began his march to Wales, and having crossed the Dee near Chester, he entered Flintshire. A fleet, which had been dispatched for the purpose, co-operated with him, by cutting off from Llewelyn all supplies from the Isle of Anglesey. The expedition was well timed; for when these operations had been effectually carried out, and the Welsh prince driven to the mountains, the storms of winter aided the attacks of his enemies. Deprived of food and succour, the condition of Llewelyn soon became wretched in the extreme, and he was compelled to submit to such terms of peace as Edward might please to offer. Those terms were hard indeed. A payment of £50,000 was demanded, together with the cession of the whole of Llewelyn's territories, except the Isle of Anglesey, which was also to revert to the crown in case the prince died without heir male, and for which, during his life, he was to pay a yearly rent of 1,000 marks. The king afterwards remitted the enormous ransom demanded; and, had he not done so, it may be questioned whether it would have been possible to raise so much money throughout Wales. In return for these concessions of Llewelyn, Edward promised to release Eleanor de Montfort; but he showed considerable reluctance to fulfil that promise, and many months elapsed before the Welsh prince obtained his bride.

Edward spared no pains to secure the advantage he had obtained. He rewarded liberally those among the Welsh chiefs who had supported him, and bestowed what are called honours upon those traitors to their native soil. David received the order of knighthood at the king's hands, and with it the hand of the daughter of the Earl of Ferrers. But when the Welsh prince had escaped from the influence of the court, and breathed once more the free air of the hills, he regretted the folly which had induced him to sell the independence of his country, and to league himself with its oppressors. Other causes soon operated to increase this feeling. The English, not content with the large territories they had conquered, made inroads upon the land secured by treaty to the natives, cutting down the timber and committing other depredations. If the chiefs were exasperated by these proceedings, the people were unanimous in their hatred of their enemies, and in cries for vengeance. Allusion has been already made to the prophet Merlin, and to the effect exercised upon his fellow-countrymen by the predictions which bore his name. One of these, which was now remembered and repeated, was to the effect that when the English money should become circular, the Prince of Wales should be crowned in London. Edward had lately ordered a new coinage of round halfpence and farthings, and had issued a decree forbidding the penny to be divided into quarters, as had previously been done. The Welsh, therefore, thought they saw the time arrived to which the prediction referred, and, interpreting that dark saying according to their own wild wishes, believed that it foreshadowed nothing less than the subjugation of the whole island to the countrymen of the prophet.

The impetuous descendants of the ancient Britons scarcely needed such old stories as these to prompt them to vengeance. David forgot the rewards he had received at the king's hands, and having effected a reconciliation with his brother Llewelyn, agreed to act in concert with him. On the 22nd of March, 1282, David suddenly descended from the Flintshire hills with a body of troops, and surprised the strong castle of Hawarden. Roger Clifford, the justiciary, was taken in his bed and made prisoner, and on the part of the garrison little resistance was made. This success emboldened the natives, who now rose on all sides to join the standard of their chiefs. Llewelyn led his men against the castles of Flint and Rhuddlan, and, though repulsed from these fortresses, he inflicted great damage upon the English in other places, forcing them from their strongholds, and often driving them across the borders.