Kilhwch and Olwen or the Twrch Trwyth
The following is the tale of Kilhwch and Olwen or the Twrch Trwyth as told by Lady Charlotte Guest in her 1877 translation of The Mabinogion.
Category: King Arthur
Arthur’s Stone
Arthur’s Stone is the name given to the remains of a Neolithic chambered tomb. Aged around 5000 years old (3700BC – 2700BC), the monument consists of a huge cap stone weighing over 25 tonnes and nine upright stones.
Llyn Cau
The glacial lake of Llyn Cau at Cader Idris is said to be bottomless and according to tradition it is thought to be the home of a lake monster responsible for drowning a man who went swimming in the cold waters.
Cors-y-Gedol Burial Chamber
The Cors-y-Gedol burial chamber which still has it’s capstone intact is also referred to as Arthur’s Quoit and can be found close to some ancient hut circles known as the Irishmen’s huts on the slope of Moelfre.
Eildon Hill
Eildon Hill is a triple peak that dominates the landscape around Melrose in Southern Scotland. The hillfort was occupied in pre-historic times, was used as a signal station by the Romans, and was re-occupied during the Romano-British period. It is associated with the legendary wizard Michael Scot, and the ballad of Thomas the Rhymer.
Lochmaben Stane (Stone)
The Lochmaben Stane (or Lochmabenstane, Lochmabenstone, Clochmabenstane, Old Graitney Stone, Lowmabanstane, Loughmabanestane) stands in a farmers field near where the Kirtle Water enters the Solway Firth. Made if granite, it measures 7-8 feet in height and has a girth between 18 and 21 feet (depending upon your source).
King Arthur
The legend of Arthur is one of the most popular and well known of British legends. From early brief passages to the mythic epic we know today, the story of Arthur has long been a source of inspiration to writers, poets and artists. He has become associated with hundreds of places in the British Isles and France, some of which will be listed in the gazetteer section in the coming months.
Gawain and The Green Knight
The story of Gawain and the Green Knight, follows a theme that is to be found in other Celtic myths, and is typical of the supernatural testing of warriors. The beheading challenge is a common folklore motif, and can be found in the tales of Cuchulian the hound of Ulster.
Geoffrey of Monmouth’s Arthur
A brief run through of Geoffrey of Monmouth’s version of the Arthurian legend from ‘The History of the Kings of Britain’.
Bran The Blessed
A Welsh and Irish god of giant size who was the son of the sea god Mannannan Mac Lir.
Bran had many heroic episodes, but was fatally injured during an excursion to Ireland to rescue his sister Branwen. Mortally wounded in the foot with a poisoned spear, he ordered his companions to take his severed head to the White Mount, where the Tower of London now stands.
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