Castell Dinas
“Castell Dinas” in Welsh means “City Castle”, making the name in a way reflective of what is known about the place–which is not much! That said, the castle was once an impressive edifice, so the name is in no way a reflection of its worth, at least at one time. Though attributed to the Normans, the castle is situated much more like a Welsh castle, as it is located on the top of a hill, with wide views of the surrounding countryside. In fact, the castle is notable for being the highest castle in Wales! It seems to have been built to defend the Rhiangoll pass between Talgarth and Crickhowell. The site was originally an iron age hillfort, which makes sense given its location, and was originally occupied by native Britons between 600 BC and 50 AD. The stone castle Read more…
The Danes
Danes, otherwise known as Vikings, raided the shores of Europe for centuries. A few years ago, a story came out about 51 headless Vikings unearthed at a site in Weymouth, England. http://www.cnn.com/2010/TECH/science/03/12/viking.olympics/index.html “On Friday, officials revealed that analysis of the men’s teeth shows they were Vikings, executed with sharp blows to the head around a thousand years ago. They were killed during the Dark Ages, when Vikings frequently invaded the region.” Researchers have dated the remaines to the period between 890 and 1030 AD, postulating that it was a raiding party that was executed once it was caught too far from its boats. During this period, the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms were well established in England. Weymouth would have been in Wessex, one of the primary and most powerful kingdoms at the time. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1257333/Decapitated-Viking-skeletons-Weymouth-ditch.html Kings of the period include Alfred the Great (871-899), Read more…
The Normans in Wales
The leader of the Normans, William the Bastard (William the Conquerer, William the Norman), won his first battle for the conquest of England at Hastings in October of 1066. He defeated the army of King Harold Godwinson, who’d force-marched his men from Stamford Bridge after defeating an invasion by King Hardrada of Norway. Harold’s forces almost held, but in the end, his discipline did not and he himself died on the battlefield. http://www.middle-ages.org.uk/william-the-conqueror.htm That was only the beginning, however, and it would be another six years before England was truly conquered. Wales, however, took a bit longer. The Welsh fought what amounted to a guerilla war for over 150 years against the Norman/French aggressors. Although the documentation of this war is mostly on the English side, it is interesting reading from the perspective of the Welsh. In the Chroncile of Read more…
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