Welsh Journals

Tro dy nerth at ryw dy nain 0 vrenin costwin Castil a gwladus du galw dy stil dyret ty hun Edwart hir i ffrwyno kyrff rai enwir wrth ddysc a chyfraith esgud lies vab Koal dyfnwal moel mud disgin Edward vrenin vry dwyll agamraint holl gymry.1 "Where is the great Bull of the Mortimers? Demand of the house of Bleddyn thy party Turn thy power to thy grandmother's race from the wine-giving king of Castile Dark Gwladys thou art called by thy style Come thyself, tall Edward, to bind the bodies of the wicked by learning and swift law, thou Lies son of Coel and Dyfnwal Moelmud Descend Edward, king, on the deceits and wrungs of Wales The language of this and other poems shows that Edward IV was accepted as a Cymric King in the true line of Brutus, and, therefore, worthy of Welsh support. So it was that the Yorkists could draw army after army from Wales and could command the allegiance of some of the most powerful of the Welsh chieftains. Even after the appearance of Henry Tudor as a candidate for the throne many of the Welsh still adhered to the house of York. This would seem to argue a nationalism diverging into different parties, according to divergent acceptations of the Brutus succession. As against this it has yet to be determined how far personal interests decided partisan- ship it seems clear, for example, that many of the North Wales clans were won over for Lancaster by the favour shown to the Tudors at the Court, and there are more than one instance of individuals transferring their sup- port from one side to the other for motives of gain or 1 Kywyld moliant Breuin Edward IV, by Gutto'r Glyn.