Gwenddydd facts for kids
Gwenddydd is a fascinating character from old Welsh stories. She is also known as Gwendydd or Ganieda. She first appears in ancient Welsh poems and in a Latin poem from the 1100s called Vita Merlini. In these tales, she lives in the "Old North" of Britain, which is now parts of Scotland and northern England. She is known as the sister of Myrddin, also called Merlin, and she is a prophet, meaning she can see the future.
In some stories, Gwenddydd is married to a northern king named Rhydderch Hael. People remembered her in Welsh traditions even up to the 1700s. More recently, since the late 1800s, she has appeared in stories, poems, and plays about King Arthur. Writers sometimes show her as Merlin's sister or even his lover.
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Gwenddydd in Early Welsh Poems
Gwenddydd first shows up in old Welsh poems linked to the poet and warrior Myrddin Wyllt. She also appears in Geoffrey of Monmouth's Latin poem, Vita Merlini.
Some poems, like Afallennau ("The Apple-trees") and Oianau ("The Greetings"), tell us about a wild man who makes predictions. This man was later thought to be Myrddin. In Oianau, Gwenddydd is mentioned with the words, "Gwenddydd does not come to me."
The poem Cyfoesi Myrddin a Gwenddydd ei Chwaer ("The Conversation of Myrddin and His Sister Gwenddydd") clearly states they are brother and sister. This poem is special because it shows them as friends. Myrddin predicts future events, including his own death. Gwenddydd, who can also see the future, asks him questions respectfully. She also shows she cares about Myrddin. The poem ends with them wishing each other well.
Another poem, Gwasgargedd Fyrddin yn y Bedd ("The Diffused Song of Myrddin in the Grave"), is about predictions. It is seen as a follow-up to Cyfoesi. Finally, Peirian Faban ("Commanding Youth") also contains more predictions and mentions both Myrddin and Gwenddydd.
Gwenddydd in Vita Merlini
Vita Merlini is a Latin poem written by Geoffrey of Monmouth around 1150. It tells the story of Myrddin, whom Geoffrey calls Merlin. The poem starts after a terrible battle. Merlin goes mad and runs off to live as a wild man in the Caledonian Forest.
His sister, Ganieda (Gwenddydd), and her husband, King Rodarchus, find him. They bring him back to their home. But Merlin has to be chained to stop him from running back to the woods.
One day, Merlin sees a leaf in Ganieda's hair and laughs. He won't say why unless he is set free. Once he is free, he tells Rodarchus that the leaf got into Ganieda's hair when she was with her secret lover.
Ganieda then tries to make Merlin look bad. She brings a boy to him three times, dressed differently each time. She asks Merlin how the boy will die. The first time, Merlin says he will die from falling off a rock. The second time, he says he will die in a tree. The third time, he says he will die in a river. Rodarchus then thinks Merlin can be tricked and that his predictions are not reliable. However, the author explains that later, the boy did fall from a rock. He got caught in a tree below it, and his head ended up in a river, where he drowned. So, Merlin was right all along.
Merlin goes back to the woods. After more adventures, he is caught and brought back to Rodarchus's home. There, he laughs at a beggar and then at a young man buying leather for his shoes. Rodarchus offers Merlin freedom again if he explains his laughter. Merlin says the beggar was standing over hidden treasure without knowing it. He also says the young man would drown before he could wear his fixed shoes. When Merlin's words come true, Rodarchus lets him go.
Back in the woods, Merlin watches the stars from a special place Ganieda built for him. He predicts the future of Britain. Rodarchus dies, and Ganieda is very sad. She and a visitor named Telgesinus go to see Merlin in the woods. They talk about many things. They decide to stay together in the woods, away from the busy world. The poem ends with Ganieda making a prediction about the time of King Stephen. Merlin then gives up his own gift of prophecy to her.
In Vita Merlini, Ganieda is shown as a very strong character. She is smart, practical, and can see the future, which was unusual for women in medieval stories.
Gwenddydd in Later Welsh Stories
Stories about Myrddin were collected in the 1400s by a soldier named Elis Gruffydd. In one part, Myrddin goes mad in North Wales. He makes predictions, and his sister Gwenddydd brings him food and drink. Gwenddydd has five dreams. She asks Myrddin to explain them, and he does, often talking about problems in society. A longer version of these dreams also appears in a manuscript from the late 1600s. These stories seem to come from old spoken traditions, not from Vita Merlini.
A manuscript from around 1640, now in the British Library, includes a story called Prophetic Mabinogi of Merddin and Gwenddydd.
In the 1700s, the poet Lewis Morris wrote down a folk tale from Anglesey. In this story, a young man, the woman he loves, a middle-aged woman, and a widow argue about who the man should marry. They ask Myrddin and his sister Gwenddydd to help them decide. This story has some similarities to Elis Gruffydd's account of Myrddin's madness.
Gwenddydd in Modern Stories
Gwenddydd has appeared in many modern books, plays, and poems.
In 1889, Professor John Veitch wrote a play called Merlin. It had only three characters: Merlin, his twin sister Gwendydd (called "The Dawn"), and his early love, Hwimleian. In this play, Gwendydd helps her brother recover from his madness.
The writer John Cowper Powys used the Gwenddydd from the Welsh poem Cyfoesi Myrddin a Gwenddydd for his character in his novel Porius (1951). This book is set in the year 499. His Gwendydd, Merlin's sister, is a memorable side character.
The Island of the Mighty (1972) is a play by John Arden and Margaretta D'Arcy. In this play, Gwenddydd is not Merlin's sister but his wife, from whom he is separated.
In Merlin (1988), a novel by Stephen R. Lawhead, Ganieda appears as Merlin's lover, not his sister.
In 2010, the American writer Jerry Hunter wrote a Welsh-language novel called Gwenddydd. This book takes the old story of Gwenddydd and Myrddin and sets it during World War II. Myrddin becomes a soldier with PTSD (a type of stress from very scary events). He escapes from a military hospital and meets his sister Gwen in their home village. This novel won an important award in Wales.
Artworks Featuring Gwenddydd
In 1891, the artist Hubert von Herkomer created an engraving of Gwenddydd. He was so interested in her that he named his daughter Gwenddydd in 1893.
The French sculptor Louis-Henri Nicot made a sculpture called Taliésin et Ganiéda in 1925. It was part of a larger art piece for an exhibition in Paris.
Images for kids
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Gwenddydd (1891), a drypoint engraving by Sir Hubert von Herkomer
