Dragons. Giants. Wizards. Faeries. Eryri/Snowdonia is steeped in legends and folklore that has it all, inspired by its incredible landscape.
As a landscape photographer, there is a lot that draws me to North Wales. But whilst the landscape is beautiful and dramatic, so are the stories that sit behind some of these locations. What fascinates me is how the landscape and stories are so intertwined with each other. Below I have shared some of these stories linked to the local areas I have photographed. Some are pure folklore, some history, but a lot that sit in-between. If you know anymore, do let me know in the comments.
THE RED & WHITE DRAGON
This is the first of the Arthurian legends which describes the origins of Merlin and the Welsh Dragon on the national flag.
The Celtic King, Vortigern, wanted to build a castle and was drawn to a hillside at Dinas Emrys. However, it kept falling down! A young boy, named Merlin, told the king that he was building over an underground lake, where two dragons slept, this being the reason for the soft foundations. Upon digging, they uncovered the lake and awoke the two dragons, one White and one Red. The dragons commenced in a battle, whereby the Red Dragon (or Y Ddraig Goch) eventually won.
Merlin foresaw this to be an omen, whereby the Red Dragon represented Vortigen's people in the the future battles against the Saxons. This is the beginnings of the Welsh flag.
This 'myth' was documented in the Geoffrey of Monmouth's "Historia Regum Britanniae", a 12th Century text. I refer to is as a 'myth', but it's worth mentioning that the underground lake was actually found along side the castle in an excavation in 1945.
Rhitta Gawr
Continuing with the Arthurian theme, we come to Yr Wyddfa/Snowdon, and where it's Welsh and official name "Yr Wyddfa" came from.
Rhitta Gawr (sometimes known as Rhita), an ancient Welsh giant, probably the most veracious and strongest of all the giants. The island was ruled by many kings, and Rhitta didn't like any of them. He wanted to rule, and being much stronger and, of course, bigger, he felt it was his right to. Rhitta is probably best known for his interesting fashion choice. With every king he slayed, we would rip off their beards and fashioned it, along with the other beards he had collected, into a cloak. This, of course, was a way to show off his dominance and spark fear in other kings.
Eventually, he had collected 100 hundred beards...but one was missing. Who do you think that was? King Arthur, of course. Rhitta Gawr had sent a messenger to King Arthur demanding he shave his beard off and give it to him, or he would obtain the beard by any means if refused. King Arthur was enraged and sent an army to Rhitta to what is now Yr Wyddfa. A hard battle was fought, the bloodiest of bloody. But with one final strength, King Arthur plunged his sword, Caledfwlch, deep into the skull of Rhitta, ultimately killing him. King Arthur and his men piled rocks ontop of the giant, and the place was known as Gwyddfa Rhitta (Rhitta's Tomb), and was eventually known as it is now, Yr Wyddfa.
King Idris Gawr
Let's have another giant story. This time, at the southern tip of Eryri at the mountain that is now known as Cadiar Idris.
Named after the medieval giant King, Idris, who would sit upon Cadair Idris to survey the land he ruled. Hence the name which means 'Chair of Idris'. He was also known for his study of philosophy, astrology and poetry, and was said to have spent many a time on his seat pondering at the stars...he was a deep thinker. The area surrounds a lake, Llyn Cau, and it contains many very large boulders. It is said that Idris would pluck the 'grit' out from his shoe and flick them below, and this is where these boulders came from. I guess to him it would be grit, but having seen these in person, they are pretty big!
Now, Idris was in fact a real figure in history, however the giant aspect 'gawr' may have been a confusion with the word 'awr' which means 'coarse'. Either way, he is said to have been quite a large fellow. It is not known how or where he died. Some say he died in a battle near the River Severn in the 600s AD, other said he became a hermit and retreated to the mountains where he stayed, and his grave is said to be there.
Many believe that he did in fact become a hermit and actually went a bit mad through his solitude, being very much a thinker and someone within his own head as it were. It is said that if you sleep alone upon Cadair Idris today, you will wake up either a poet...or a madman! I haven't slept up there, but have been up there in the very early hours of the morning, half asleep...and let's just say I'm no poet!
Sir Bedivere (Bedwyr) & Lady of the Lake
Back to King Arthur, and one of his Knights of the Round Table, Sir Bedivere (or Bedwyr). The great one armed warrior was by the side of King Arthur's in his many battles, but disappears from the stories until the battle that resulted in the King's death.
King Arthur's sword, Excalibur, a weapon with magical powers, was given to him by the Lady of the Lake. It is said that this lake is Llyn Ogwen in the Ogwen Valley. Upon his death, King Arthur had request that his sword, Excalibur, be returned to the Lady of the Lake, who had forged the sword for him. Sir Bedivere threw the sword into the lake (Llyn Ogwen) and a hand appeared, grabbed the sword and pulled it under the water never to be seen again.
I say never to be seen again. Although it is widely disputed that Llyn Ogwen is in fact the Lady of the Lake's home, a 6th century sword was found close to the lake back in 2017, which would date around the time of King Arthur. Amazing to think!
Sir Bedivere is said to be buried at Tryfan, the triangular peak that over looks Llyn Ogwen.
Gelert
Now, this is sad story for the dog lovers out there. Gelert was the faithful hound of hunter Llywelyn the Great. One day, Llywelyn returns from hunting to find his baby missing, the room in a mess full of blood along with Gelert's mouth soaked red. Believing Gerelt has eaten his baby, he fatally attacked the dog. After the dog yelped, he heard his baby crying underneath an overturned cot, and was found to be unharmed. Alongside the baby was a dead wolf. Gerelt was in fact the hero of this story, not the villain. So full of remorse, the buried Gerelt in an lavish ceremony was said to have never smiled again.
The legend so say happened at Beddgelert, where it allegedly gets its name from. The dog's dying yelps can still be heard to this day...
Worth saying that it is more likely Beddgelert got it's named from a Christian missionary, named Celert, who settled there in the 8th Century.
Tylwyth Teg
To a more happier story. Llyn Cwellyn is a lake found on the east side of Yr Wyddfa, by Rhyd Ddu. A beautiful part of the national park I think, that doesn't get a lot of visitors.
There are a couple of stories about this area. The lake itself is said to be home to dancing faeries (or 'Tylwyth Teg' as they are referred to in Welsh). There is one story of a shepherd getting lost in the mist of the valley and found himself caught in a circle of the dancing fairy folk. Apparently it was a hard struggle for him to get away. Must have been some serious dancing going on...
Another story relates to the north cliffs of the lake, where Castell Cidwn (or Wolf Castle) lies. It was thought to be a Celtic fort, however, it has since been confirmed it's actually just some interesting natural rock formation. Regardless, there is a story that the brother of Roman Emperor Constantine was murdered by a robber chief.
So there you have it, this is actually just a bit of a flavour for some of the stories that surround the area. There are so much more, I'd literally have to write a book. I didn't even delve into the King of the Underworld that is said to hunt around Cadair Idris with his hounds....if you hear their howls, it's basically game over!
I hope you enjoyed the stories. Remember, the above photos and many more are available to buy in print or canvas, so do visit my portfolio.
What a lovely and fascinating addition to your website. Thank you for sharing the stories behind the pictures 💕