The Romano-British Period
After the departure of the Romans in about 410 AD, when the Emperor Honorius’ letter addressed to the “civitates” of Britain told them to look to their own defence, the area appears to have come under the control of the “Dux Brittanorum”, a Romanesque military leader, who, John Morris contends, between about 410 and about 420 AD, was one Coel Hen i.e. Coel “the Old” – the ‘Old King Cole’ of the popular imagination, and a man regarded by the Celtic warrior chiefs and kings of the “Hen Ogledd” (Old North) as a revered ancestor.
It is possible he was of Brigantian descent, although that he was of the Votadini is more likely.
The reign of Coel’s son, Ceneu, saw very little change in the West of the North, although the founding of Anglian Bernicia is placed at about this time, under a leader named Ida. The Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Deira, on the northern side of the Humber estuary, was founded by Aelle/ Aelli or his father.
The figure behind the legendary King Arthur, who reigned from the late 5th century to about 530 AD, is associated with several places in Lancashire. It is possible that Arthur engaged in battle near Bashall Eaves, and “Linnuis near Dubglass” may well be Martin Mere (formerly the largest natural lake in England, and in the vicinity of the River Asland or…. Douglas).
His great knight and champion Lancelot du Lac (the “lac” or lake possibly being Martin Mere again) is often romantically associated with the County Palatine, and some have argued that it is indeed “Lancalot’s Shire”.
He is associated with Arthur’s lieutenant Bedwyr … (“Strong Sinew”), who comes into Arthurian lore as Bedivere (who is traditionally the knight who threw Excalibur back into Linnius).
The idea of Lancelot as the lover of Queen Guinevere (or Gwenhwyfar) is most likely a distortion of an older tale, which names the lover as Medraut (Modred/ Mordred), who is given in the annals as slain along with Arthur at Camlann (although not necessarily as an enemy). This itself may be derived from the Cartimandua/Venutius/Vellocatus episode described heretofore.
Incidentally, the author has found one reference to Guinevere of Rheged, as wife to Arthur. Rheged was the British kingdom in which the Witton area was situated.
Arthur is also associated with a character called Riothamus/Roithamus, who was active in Northern Gaul about this time, hence the idea of Arthur’s movements abroad – where indeed he was in the Gwenhwyfar/ Medraut tale.
This area became part of the great kingdom of Rheged, whose name derives from that pre-Roman super state of Brigantia. Upon the death of Gwriast Ledlwm (“the Ragged”), the son of Ceneu, his kingdom was divided between his sons Cynmarch Oer (“the Dismal”), who took North Rheged (Cumbria and South-Western Scotland), whilst the other, Elidyr Llydanwyn (“the Handsome” or “the Stout and Handsome”), was granted South Rheged, i.e. Lancashire and Cheshire, with a capital either at Lancaster or Ribchester (now renamed Caer Robais), and Man (it is possible that he was only given Man and that Cynmarch was king in all of Rheged).
This king impetuously led a raiding party by sea to the Menai Straits in Gwynedd, the north-western part of Wales, which was then ruled by Rhun “the Tall” ap Maelgw(y)n, Elidyr’s brother-in-law, after the death of Maelgwn.
Elidyr was killed, and Rhun used the incursion as an excuse to raid as far as southern Scotland, where he attacked Rhydderch Hael (“the Wealthy”), a prince of Strathclyde.
The justification for the attack was probably the aim of uniting the historical “Menavian Isles” (Man and Anglesey, known in Welsh as “Ynys Môn”), probably inhabited by tribes akin to one another since pre-Roman times, and always considered as a common entity. Cynfarch, along with several other Northern princes sought to avenge Elidyr, thus necessitating Rhun’s actions.
In about 570, Cynfarch gained the territory of Caer Gwenddoleu on the Solway Firth, after returning victorious from the battle of Arderydd or Arthuret, north of Carlisle.
Gwenddoleu was a rogue prince who sought to carve out for himself a kingdom in the confused times in the wake of the events of the last half century or so.
His name is best remembered in connection with his bard – Myrddin Wyllt or Merlin.
Cynfarch died soon afterwards.
Elidyr’s son and successor, Llywarch Hen (“the Old”), described as a ‘peaceful prince’, allowed him to come through. Llywarch, who, as his name suggests, lived to an astounding age (many believed him a centagenarian), had an unhappy life. He was driven out by the invading Angles, or, possibly, went into voluntary exile, either in about 595 or possibly ultimately about the time of the battle of Chester in 613, and was present when his cousin, the forceful Urbgen or, more commonly, Urien Rheged, Cynfarch’s son and ultimate successor, was murdered, even, it is said, recovering the severed head.
Llywarch was believed to be a renowned poet, who wrote elegies for Urien, as well as Cynddylan, king of Powys, who had granted him refuge after he had left Rheged for good, first for Man, then to Powys. Even as late as the ninth century, his descendants, then kings of Gwynnedd, still laid claim to his kingdom.
Legend also gives Llywarch an enormous number of children – one source suggests about forty-two.
Urien Rheged was regarded as the greatest Romano-British war leader of his age. Territories as far south as Powys fell under his suzerainty. His was the kingdom of (North) Rheged, centred upon Cumbria, Lancashire and Galloway (Llywarch, his cousin, may have acted as his vassal to the south).
Along with his son Owain, he defeated four armies of the newly-reunified Bernicians under “Fflamddwyn” (most likely Theodoric or his successor Æthelric of Bernicia), at the battle of the Leven Forest. The Angles had come demanding hostages after the slaughter of a petty king of their region.
Celtic warriors under Urien’s leadership nearly succeeded in driving the Angles from the North of England – their only enclave being the Island of Lindisfarne (Ynys Metcaut).
He was murdered in about 590 AD at the instigation of Morcant II Bulc, king of Bryneich, probably due to jealousy – Morcant would have wanted to drive the Angles from his own kingdom.
Some sources suggest that the princes of Edinburgh were guilty, and the assassin is usually called Leven, a foreigner, in the pay of Morcant.
It is, however, interesting to note that the kings of Edinburgh were not amongst those laying siege (they were Urien, Morcant, Rhydderch of Strathclyde and Guallauc, likely of somewhere in Southern Scotland.
Irish chronicles also imply than Fiachna, king of Ulster and Aedan of DalRiada were also present, suggesting that Morcant’s ire was due to Fiachna and not him sacking the Bernician’s mainland stronghold of Bamburgh).
North Rheged continued its existence under Urien’s son, Owain (of Arthurian/Mabinogion fame), who gained glory on the field of battle in the mould of his luminary father – even killing their old enemy Fflamddwyn (if Fflamddwyn was Æthelric, this would have been in about 593AD).
However, Owain and his brothers (Elffin, Pasgen, Rhun, Rhiwallon, St. Cadell and Morfudd), were obliged to avenge their father’s death, thus necessitating internicene strife, and destroying all notion of a pan-British assault on the Angles.
In the end, the old enemy Morcant, displaced, was to invade and in the fighting Owain was killed about 595-597.
By this time, the Bernicians had conquered many territories, including neighbouring Dunoting (in 595), which encompassed the Yorkshire Dales and is sometimes called Craven.
The kingdom was probably consolidated for a time under Owain’s son or brother, Elffin (some sourses hypothesise that the king was Rhun ap Urien Rheged), before finally capitulating under Rhoedd ap Rhun ap Urien Rheged, whose daughter Rhianfelt married Oswiu, King of Northumberland, and was possibly the mother of king Ecgfrith, slain at Nechtansmere.
The Celts were decisively defeated at the battle of Chester, although their sad demise in the North had been a long time in coming.
The loss of Catraeth, a possession of Rheged perhaps, important strategically, in about 597, led to the men of the Manau Gododdin’s invading in an attempt to retake the territory. They were slaughtered to a man. Their deeds are celebrated in the bard Aneirin’s elegaic “Y Gododdin”, one of the oldest poems in a language identifiable as Welsh.
Christianity is first known in Blackburn about 596 AD, with St. Augustine and especially St. Paulinus, who preached and baptised in Lancashire and founded the church at Whalley, the first two ecclesiastic names associated with the area. Later, Sts. Wilfrid and Cuthbert were active in the North.
The Anglian king of Northumbria, was now disputed between Bernicia and Deira. This was exacerbated with the two kingdoms being forcefully conjoined by Æthelferth “the Twister” (to give the meaning of his Welsh nickname), the son of Æthelric, invading and conquering Deira, and sending her princes into exile.
The Deiran prince St. Edwin (or Eadwine), came out of exile with the aid of Rædwald of East Anglia (possibly the inhumed individual at Sutton Hoo), and killed the Bernician king.
He conquered southern Lancashire, building, it is told, twelve castles – thus implying perhaps that the population was still in the vast main British – subjugated Man, for which he surely launched a navy from the Lancashire coast, and harried the kings of Gwynedd. He was recognised as Bretwalda, the Anglo-Saxon version of a high king, and is remembered as a man who ruled wisely and magnanimously.
He was killed by the pagan Penda of Mercia and Christian Catwallun of Gwynedd, to whom the area now presumably fell, in 633.
