Wales

:For alternate meanings, see Wales (disambiguation)

History

Main article: History of Wales

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The Romans established a string of forts across what is now southern Wales, as far west as Carmarthen (Maridunum). There is evidence that they progressed even further west. They also built the legionary fortress at Caerleon (Isca), whose magnificent amphitheatre is the best preserved in Britain. The Romans were also busy in north Wales, and an old legend claims that Magnus Maximus, one of the last emperors, married Elen or Helen, the daughter of a Welsh chieftain from Segontium, near present-day Caernarfon.

Related Topics:
Romans - Carmarthen - Caerleon - Amphitheatre - Magnus Maximus - Caernarfon

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Wales was never conquered by the Anglo-Saxons, due to the fierce resistance of its people and its mountainous terrain. An Anglo-Saxon king, Offa of Mercia, is credited with having constructed a great earth wall, or dyke, along the border with his kingdom, to mark off a large part of Powys which he had conquered. Parts of Offa's Dyke can still be seen today.

Related Topics:
Offa of Mercia - Offa's Dyke

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Wales remained a Celtic region, and its people kept speaking the Welsh language, even as the Celtic elements of England and Scotland gradually disappeared. The name Wales is evidence of this, as it comes from a Germanic root word meaning stranger or foreigner, and as such is related to the names of several other European regions where Germanic peoples came into contact with non-Germanic cultures including Wallonia (Belgium), Valais (Switzerland), and Wallachia in Romania, as well as the "-wall" of Cornwall. Part of the word "Cymru" is evident in the "Cum-" of Cumberland and Cumbria.

Related Topics:
Celt - Welsh language - England - Scotland - Wallonia - Valais - Wallachia - Romania - Cornwall - Cumberland - Cumbria

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Wales continued to be Christian (see. 1904-1905 Welsh Revival and Welsh Methodist revival) when England was overrun by pagan German and Scandinavian tribes, though many older beliefs and customs survived among its people. Thus, Saint David went on a pilgrimage to Rome during the 6th century, and was serving as a bishop in Wales well before Augustine arrived to convert the king of Kent and found the diocese of Canterbury. Although the Druidic religion is alleged to have had its stronghold in Wales until the Roman invasion, many of the so-called traditions, such as the gorsedd, or assembly of bards, were the invention of eighteenth-century "historians." The traditional women's Welsh costume, incorporating a tall black hat, was devised in the nineteenth century by Lady Llanover, herself a prominent patron of the Welsh language and culture.

Related Topics:
1904-1905 Welsh Revival - Welsh Methodist revival - Saint David - 6th century - Augustine - Kent - Diocese of Canterbury - Druidic - Gorsedd

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The conquest of Wales by England did not take place in 1066, when England was conquered by the Normans, but was gradual, not being complete until 1282, when King Edward I of England defeated Llywelyn the Last, Wales's last independent prince, in battle. Edward constructed a series of great stone castles in order to keep the Welsh under control. The best known are at Caernarfon, Conwy, and Harlech. Wales was legally annexed by the Act of Union 1536, in the reign of Henry VIII of England. The Wales and Berwick Act 1746 provided that all laws that applied to England would automatically apply to Wales (and Berwick, a town located on the Anglo-Scottish border) unless the law explicitly stated otherwise. This act, with regard to Wales, was repealed in 1967.

Related Topics:
1066 - Normans - 1282 - Edward I of England - Llywelyn the Last - Castle - Caernarfon - Conwy - Harlech - Act of Union 1536 - Henry VIII of England - Wales and Berwick Act 1746 - Berwick - 1967

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

See: Annales Cambriae

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~