Branwen the Daughter of Llyr

HERE IS THE SECOND PORTION OF THE MABINOGI

Bendigeid Vran, the son of Llyr, was the crowned king of this island,and he was exalted from the crown of London. And one afternoon hewas at Harlech in Ardudwy, at his Court, and he sat upon the rock ofHarlech, looking over the sea. And with him were his brotherManawyddan the son of Llyr, and his brothers by the mother's side,Nissyen and Evnissyen, and many nobles likewise, as was fitting tosee around a king. His two brothers by the mother's side were thesons of Eurosswydd, by his mother, Penardun, the daughter of Beli sonof Manogan. And one of these youths was a good youth and of gentlenature, and would make peace between his kindred, and cause hisfamily to be friends when their wrath was at the highest; and thisone was Nissyen; but the other would cause strife between his twobrothers when they were most at peace. And as they sat thus, theybeheld thirteen ships coming from the south of Ireland, and makingtowards them, and they came with a swift motion, the wind beingbehind them, and they neared them rapidly. "I see ships afar," saidthe king, "coming swiftly towards the land. Command the men of theCourt that they equip themselves, and go and learn their intent." Sothe men equipped themselves and went down towards them. And whenthey saw the ships near, certain were they that they had never seenships better furnished. Beautiful flags of satin were upon them.And behold one of the ships outstripped the others, and they saw ashield lifted up above the side of the ship, and the point of theshield was upwards, in token of peace. And the men drew near thatthey might hold converse. Then they put out boats and came towardsthe land. And they saluted the king. Now the king could hear themfrom the place where he was, upon the rock above their heads."Heaven prosper you," said he, "and be ye welcome. To whom do theseships belong, and who is the chief amongst you?" "Lord," said they,"Matholwch, king of Ireland, is here, and these ships belong to him.""Wherefore comes he?' asked the king, "and will he come to the land?""He is a suitor unto thee, lord," said they, "and he will not landunless he have his boon." "And what may that be?" inquired the king."He desires to ally himself with thee, lord," said they, "and hecomes to ask Branwen the daughter of Llyr, that, if it seem well tothee, the Island of the Mighty may be leagued with Ireland, and bothbecome more powerful." "Verily," said he, "let him come to land, andwe will take counsel thereupon." And this answer was brought toMatholwch. "I will go willingly," said he. So he landed, and theyreceived him joyfully; and great was the throng in the palace thatnight, between his hosts and those of the Court; and next day theytook counsel, and they resolved to bestow Branwen upon Matholwch.Now she was one of the three chief ladies of this island, and she wasthe fairest damsel in the world.

And they fixed upon Aberffraw as the place where she should becomehis bride. And they went thence, and towards Aberffraw the hostsproceeded; Matholwch and his host in their ships; Bendigeid Vran andhis host by land, until they came to Aberffraw. And at Aberffrawthey began the feast and sat down. And thus sat they. The King ofthe Island of the Mighty and Manawyddan the son of Llyr on one side,and Matholwch on the other side, and Branwen the daughter of Llyrbeside him. And they were not within a house, but under tents. Nohouse could ever contain Bendigeid Vran. And they began the banquetand caroused and discoursed. And when it was more pleasing to themto sleep than to carouse, they went to rest, and that night Branwenbecame Matholwch's bride.

And next day they arose, and all they of the Court, and the officersbegan to equip and to range the horses and the attendants, and theyranged them in order as far as the sea.

And behold one day, Evnissyen, the quarrelsome man of whom it isspoken above, came by chance into the place, where the horses ofMatholwch were, and asked whose horses they might be. "They are thehorses of Matholwch king of Ireland, who is married to Branwen, thysister; his horses are they." "And is it thus they have done with amaiden such as she, and moreover my sister, bestowing her without myconsent? They could have offered no greater insult to me than this,"said he. And thereupon he rushed under the horses and cut off theirlips at the teeth, and their ears close to their heads, and theirtails close to their backs, and wherever he could clutch theireyelids, he cut them to the very bone, and he disfigured the horsesand rendered them useless.

And they came with these tidings unto Matholwch, saying that thehorses were disfigured, and injured so that not one of them couldever be of any use again. "Verily, lord," said one, "it was aninsult unto thee, and as such was it meant." "Of a truth, it is amarvel to me, that if they desire to insult me, they should havegiven me a maiden of such high rank and so much beloved of herkindred, as they have done." "Lord," said another, "thou seest thatthus it is, and there is nothing for thee to do but to go to thyships." And thereupon towards his ships he set out.

And tidings came to Bendigeid Vran that Matholwch was quitting theCourt without asking leave, and messengers were sent to inquire ofhim wherefore he did so. And the messengers that went were Iddic theson of Anarawd, and Heveydd Hir. And these overtook him and asked ofhim what he designed to do, and wherefore he went forth. "Of atruth," said he, "if I had known I had not come hither. I have beenaltogether insulted, no one had ever worse treatment than I have hadhere. But one thing surprises me above all." "What is that?" askedthey. "That Branwen the daughter of Llyr, one of the three chiefladies of this island, and the daughter of the King of the Island ofthe Mighty, should have been given me as my bride, and that afterthat I should have been insulted; and I marvel that the insult wasnot done me before they had bestowed upon me a maiden so exalted asshe." "Truly, lord, it was not the will of any that are of theCourt," said they, "nor of any that are of the council, that thoushouldest have received this insult; and as thou hast been insulted,the dishonour is greater unto Bendigeid Vran than unto thee.""Verily," said he, "I think so. Nevertheless he cannot recall theinsult." These men returned with that answer to the place whereBendigeid Vran was, and they told him what reply Matholwch had giventhem. "Truly," said he, "there are no means by which we may preventhis going away at enmity with us, that we will not take." "Well,lord," said they, "send after him another embassy." "I will do so,"said he. "Arise, Manawyddan son of Llyr, and Heveydd Hir, and UnicGlew Ysgwyd, and go after him, and tell him that he shall have asound horse for every one that has been injured. And beside that, asan atonement for the insult, he shall have a staff of silver, aslarge and as tall as himself, and a plate of gold of the breadth ofhis face. And show unto him who it was that did this, and that itwas done against my will; but that he who did it is my brother, bythe mother's side, and therefore it would be hard for me to put himto death. And let him come and meet me," said he, "and we will makepeace in any way he may desire."

The embassy went after Matholwch, and told him all these sayings in afriendly manner, and he listened thereunto. "Men," said he, "I willtake counsel." So to the council he went. And in the council theyconsidered that if they should refuse this, they were likely to havemore shame rather than to obtain so great an atonement. Theyresolved therefore to accept it, and they returned to the Court inpeace.

Then the pavilions and the tents were set in order after the fashionof a hall; and they went to meat, and as they had sat at thebeginning of the feast, so sat they there. And Matholwch andBendigeid Vran began to discourse; and behold it seemed to BendigeidVran, while they talked, that Matholwch was not so cheerful as he hadbeen before. And he thought that the chieftain might be sad, becauseof the smallness of the atonement which he had, for the wrong thathad been done him. "Oh, man," said Bendigeid Vran, "thou dost notdiscourse to-night so cheerfully as thou wast wont. And if it bebecause of the smallness of the atonement, thou shalt add thereuntowhatsoever thou mayest choose, and to-morrow I will pay thee thehorses." "Lord," said he, "Heaven reward thee." "And I will enhancethe atonement," said Bendigeid Vran, "for I will give unto thee acauldron, the property of which is, that if one of thy men be slainto-day, and be cast therein, to-morrow he will be as well as ever hewas at the best, except that he will not regain his speech." Andthereupon he gave him great thanks, and very joyful was he for thatcause.

And the next morning they paid Matholwch the horses as long as thetrained horses lasted. And then they journeyed into another commot,where they paid him with colts until the whole had been paid, andfrom thenceforth that commot was called Talebolion.

And a second night sat they together. "My lord," said Matholwch,"whence hadst thou the cauldron which thou hast given me?" "I had itof a man who had been in thy land," said he, "and I would not give itexcept to one from there." "Who was it?" asked he. "LlassarLlaesgyvnewid; he came here from Ireland with Kymideu Kymeinvoll, hiswife, who escaped from the Iron House in Ireland, when it was madered hot around them, and fled hither. And it is a marvel to me thatthou shouldst know nothing concerning the matter." "Something I doknow," said he, "and as much as I know I will tell thee. One day Iwas hunting in Ireland, and I came to the mound at the head of thelake, which is called the Lake of the Cauldron. And I beheld a hugeyellow-haired man coming from the lake with a cauldron upon his back.And he was a man of vast size, and of horrid aspect, and a womanfollowed after him. And if the man was tall, twice as large as hewas the woman, and they came towards me and greeted me. 'Verily,'asked I, 'wherefore are you journeying?' 'Behold, this,' said he tome, 'is the cause that we journey. At the end of a month and afortnight this woman will have a son; and the child that will be bornat the end of the month and the fortnight will be a warrior fullyarmed.' So I took them with me and maintained them. And they werewith me for a year. And that year I had them with me not grudgingly.But thenceforth was there murmuring, because that they were with me.For, from the beginning of the fourth month they had begun to makethemselves hated and to be disorderly in the land; committingoutrages, and molesting and harassing the nobles and ladies; andthenceforward my people rose up and besought me to part with them,and they bade me to choose between them and my dominions. And Iapplied to the council of my country to know what should be doneconcerning them; for of their own free will they would not go,neither could they be compelled against their will, through fighting.And [the people of the country] being in this strait, they caused achamber to be made all of iron. Now when the chamber was ready,there came there every smith that was in Ireland, and every one whoowned tongs and hammer. And they caused coals to be piled up as highas the top of the chamber. And they had the man, and the woman, andthe children, served with plenty of meat and drink; but when it wasknown that they were drunk, they began to put fire to the coals aboutthe chamber, and they blew it with bellows until the house was redhot all around them. Then was there a council held in the centre ofthe floor of the chamber. And the man tarried until the plates ofiron were all of a white heat; and then, by reason of the great heat,the man dashed against the plates with his shoulder and struck themout, and his wife followed him; but except him and his wife noneescaped thence. And then I suppose, lord," said Matholwch untoBendigeid Vran, "that he came over unto thee." "Doubtless he camehere," said he, "and gave unto me the cauldron." "In what mannerdidst thou receive them?" "I dispersed them through every part of mydominions, and they have become numerous and are prosperingeverywhere, and they fortify the places where they are with men andarms, of the best that were ever seen."

That night they continued to discourse as much as they would, and hadminstrelsy and carousing, and when it was more pleasant to them tosleep than to sit longer, they went to rest. And thus was thebanquet carried on with joyousness; and when it was finished,Matholwch journeyed towards Ireland, and Branwen with him, and theywent from Aber Menei with thirteen ships, and came to Ireland. Andin Ireland was there great joy because of their coming. And not onegreat man or noble lady visited Branwen unto whom she gave not eithera clasp, or a ring, or a royal jewel to keep, such as it washonourable to be seen departing with. And in these things she spentthat year in much renown, and she passed her time pleasantly,enjoying honour and friendship. And in the meanwhile it chanced thatshe became pregnant, and in due time a son was born unto her, and thename that they gave him was Gwern the son of Matholwch, and they putthe boy out to be foster-nursed, in a place where were the best menof Ireland.

And behold in the second year a tumult arose in Ireland, on accountof the insult which Matholwch had received in Cambria, and thepayment made him for his horses. And his foster-brothers, and suchas were nearest unto him, blamed him openly for that matter. And hemight have no peace by reason of the tumult until they should revengeupon him this disgrace. And the vengeance which they took was todrive away Branwen from the same chamber with him, and to make hercook for the Court; and they caused the butcher after he had cut upthe meat to come to her and give her every day a blow on the ear, andsuch they made her punishment.

"Verily, lord," said his men to Matholwch, "forbid now the ships andthe ferry boats and the coracles, that they go not into Cambria, andsuch as come over from Cambria hither, imprison them that they go notback for this thing to be known there." And he did so; and it wasthus for not less than three years.

And Branwen reared a starling in the cover of the kneading trough,and she taught it to speak, and she taught the bird what manner ofman her brother was. And she wrote a letter of her woes, and thedespite with which she was treated, and she bound the letter to theroot of the bird's wing, and sent it towards Britain. And the birdcame to this island, and one day it found Bendigeid Vran at CaerSeiont in Arvon, conferring there, and it alighted upon his shoulderand ruffled its feathers, so that the letter was seen, and they knewthat the bird had been reared in a domestic manner.

Then Bendigeid Vran took the letter and looked upon it. And when hehad read the letter he grieved exceedingly at the tidings ofBranwen's woes. And immediately he began sending messengers tosummon the island together. And he caused sevenscore and fourcountries to come unto him, and he complained to them himself of thegrief that his sister endured. So they took counsel. And in thecouncil they resolved to go to Ireland, and to leave seven men asprinces here, and Caradawc, the son of Bran, as the chief of them,and their seven knights. In Edeyrnion were these men left. And forthis reason were the seven knights placed in the town. Now the namesof these seven men were, Caradawc the son of Bran, and Heveydd Hir,and Unic Glew Ysgwyd, and Iddic the son of Anarawc Gwalltgrwn, andFodor the son of Ervyll, and Gwlch Minascwrn, and Llassar the son ofLlaesar Llaesgygwyd, and Pendaran Dyved as a young page with them.And these abode as seven ministers to take charge of this island; andCaradawc the son of Bran was the chief amongst them.

Bendigeid Vran, with the host of which we spoke, sailed towardsIreland, and it was not far across the sea, and he came to shoalwater. It was caused by two rivers; the Lli and the Archan were theycalled; and the nations covered the sea. Then he proceeded with whatprovisions he had on his own back, and approached the shore ofIreland.

Now the swineherds of Matholwch were upon the seashore, and they cameto Matholwch. "Lord," said they, "greeting be unto thee." "Heavenprotect you," said he, "have you any news?" "Lord," said they, "wehave marvellous news, a wood have we seen upon the sea, in a placewhere we never yet saw a single tree." "This is indeed a marvel,"said he; "saw you aught else?" "We saw, lord," said they, "a vastmountain beside the wood, which moved, and there was a lofty ridge onthe top of the mountain, and a lake on each side of the ridge. Andthe wood, and the mountain, and all these things moved." "Verily,"said he, "there is none who can know aught concerning this, unless itbe Branwen."

Messengers then went unto Branwen. "Lady," said they, "what thinkestthou that this is?" "The men of the Island of the Mighty, who havecome hither on hearing of my ill-treatment and my woes." "What isthe forest that is seen upon the sea?" asked they. "The yards andthe masts of ships," she answered. "Alas," said they, "what is themountain that is seen by the side of the ships?" "Bendigeid Vran, mybrother," she replied, "coming to shoal water; there is no ship thatcan contain him in it." "What is the lofty ridge with the lake oneach side thereof?" "On looking towards this island he is wroth, andhis two eyes, one on each side of his nose, are the two lakes besidethe ridge."

The warriors and the chief men of Ireland were brought together inhaste, and they took counsel. "Lord," said the nobles untoMatholwch, "there is no other counsel than to retreat over the Linon(a river which is in Ireland), and to keep the river between thee andhim, and to break down the bridge that is across the river, for thereis a loadstone at the bottom of the river that neither ship norvessel can pass over." So they retreated across the river, and brokedown the bridge.

Bendigeid Vran came to land, and the fleet with him by the bank ofthe river. "Lord," said his chieftains, "knowest thou the nature ofthis river, that nothing can go across it, and there is no bridgeover it?" "What," said they, "is thy counsel concerning a bridge?""There is none," said he, "except that he who will be chief, let himbe a bridge. I will be so," said he. And then was that saying firstuttered, and it is still used as a proverb. And when he had laindown across the river, hurdles were placed upon him, and the hostpassed over thereby.

And as he rose up, behold the messengers of Matholwch came to him,and saluted him, and gave him greeting in the name of Matholwch, hiskinsman, and showed how that of his goodwill he had merited of himnothing but good. "For Matholwch has given the kingdom of Ireland toGwern the son of Matholwch, thy nephew and thy sister's son. Andthis he places before thee, as a compensation for the wrong anddespite that has been done unto Branwen. And Matholwch shall bemaintained wheresoever thou wilt, either here or in the Island of theMighty." Said Bendigeid Vran, "Shall not I myself have the kingdom?Then peradventure I may take counsel concerning your message. Fromthis time until then no other answer will you get from me.""Verily," said they, "the best message that we receive for thee, wewill convey it unto thee, and do thou await our message unto him.""I will wait," answered he, "and do you return quickly."

The messengers set forth and came to Matholwch. "Lord," said they,"prepare a better message for Bendigeid Vran. He would not listen atall to the message that we bore him." "My friends," said Matholwch,"what may be your counsel?" "Lord," said they, "there is no othercounsel than this alone. He was never known to be within a house,make therefore a house that will contain him and the men of theIsland of the Mighty on the one side, and thyself and thy host on theother; and give over thy kingdom to his will, and do him homage. Soby reason of the honour thou doest him in making him a house, whereashe never before had a house to contain him, he will make peace withthee." So the messengers went back to Bendigeid Vran, bearing himthis message.

And he took counsel, and in the council it was resolved that heshould accept this, and this was all done by the advice of Branwen,and lest the country should be destroyed. And this peace was made,and the house was built both vast and strong. But the Irish planneda crafty device, and the craft was that they should put brackets oneach side of the hundred pillars that were in the house, and shouldplace a leathern bag on each bracket, and an armed man in every oneof them. Then Evnissyen came in before the host of the Island of theMighty, and scanned the house with fierce and savage looks, anddescried the leathern bags which were around the pillars. "What isin this bag?" asked he of one of the Irish. "Meal, good soul," saidhe. And Evnissyen felt about it until he came to the man's head, andhe squeezed the head until he felt his fingers meet together in thebrain through the bone. And he left that one and put his hand uponanother, and asked what was therein. "Meal," said the Irishman. Sohe did the like unto every one of them, until he had not left alive,of all the two hundred men, save one only; and when he came to him,he asked what was there. "Meal, good soul," said the Irishman. Andhe felt about until he felt the head, and he squeezed that head as hehad done the others. And, albeit he found that the head of this onewas armed, he left him not until he had killed him. And then he sangan Englyn:-

"There is in this bag a different sort of meal,The ready combatant, when the assault is madeBy his fellow-warriors, prepared for battle."

Thereupon came the hosts unto the house. The men of the Island ofIreland entered the house on the one side, and the men of the Islandof the Mighty on the other. And as soon as they had sat down therewas concord between them; and the sovereignty was conferred upon theboy. When the peace was concluded, Bendigeid Vran called the boyunto him, and from Bendigeid Vran the boy went unto Manawyddan, andhe was beloved by all that beheld him. And from Manawyddan the boywas called by Nissyen the son of Eurosswydd, and the boy went untohim lovingly. "Wherefore," said Evnissyen, "comes not my nephew theson of my sister unto me? Though he were not king of Ireland, yetwillingly would I fondle the boy." "Cheerfully let him go to thee,"said Bendigeid Vran, and the boy went unto him cheerfully. "By myconfession to Heaven," said Evnissyen in his heart, "unthought of bythe household is the slaughter that I will this instant commit."

Then he arose and took up the boy by the feet, and before any one inthe house could seize hold of him, he thrust the boy headlong intothe blazing fire. And when Branwen saw her son burning in the fire,she strove to leap into the fire also, from the place where she satbetween her two brothers. But Bendigeid Vran grasped her with onehand, and his shield with the other. Then they all hurried about thehouse, and never was there made so great a tumult by any host in onehouse as was made by them, as each man armed himself. Then saidMorddwydtyllyon, "The gadflies of Morddwydtyllyon's Cow!" And whilethey all sought their arms, Bendigeid Vran supported Branwen betweenhis shield and his shoulder.

Then the Irish kindled a fire under the cauldron of renovation, andthey cast the dead bodies into the cauldron until it was full, andthe next day they came forth fighting-men as good as before, exceptthat they were not able to speak. Then when Evnissyen saw the deadbodies of the men of the Island of the Mighty nowhere resuscitated,he said in his heart, "Alas! woe is me, that I should have been thecause of bringing the men of the Island of the Mighty into so great astrait. Evil betide me if I find not a deliverance therefrom." Andhe cast himself among the dead bodies of the Irish, and two unshodIrishmen came to him, and, taking him to be one of the Irish, flunghim into the cauldron. And he stretched himself out in the cauldron,so that he rent the cauldron into four pieces, and burst his ownheart also.

In consequence of that the men of the Island of the Mighty obtainedsuch success as they had; but they were not victorious, for onlyseven men of them all escaped, and Bendigeid Vran himself was woundedin the foot with a poisoned dart. Now the seven men that escapedwere Pryderi, Manawyddan, Gluneu Eil Taran, Taliesin, Ynawc, Grudyenthe son of Muryel, and Heilyn the son of Gwynn Hen.

And Bendigeid Vran commanded them that they should cut off his head."And take you my head," said he, "and bear it even unto the WhiteMount, in London, and bury it there, with the face towards France.And a long time will you be upon the road. In Harlech you will befeasting seven years, the birds of Rhiannon singing unto you thewhile. And all that time the head will be to you as pleasant companyas it ever was when on my body. And at Gwales in Penvro you will befourscore years, and you may remain there, and the head with youuncorrupted, until you open the door that looks towards AberHenvelen, and towards Cornwall. And after you have opened that door,there you may no longer tarry, set forth then to London to bury thehead, and go straight forward."

So they cut off his head, and these seven went forward therewith.And Branwen was the eighth with them, and they came to land at AberAlaw, in Talebolyon, and they sat down to rest. And Branwen lookedtowards Ireland and towards the Island of the Mighty, to see if shecould descry them. "Alas," said she, "woe is me that I was everborn; two islands have been destroyed because of me!" Then sheuttered a loud groan, and there broke her heart. And they made her afour-sided grave, and buried her upon the banks of the Alaw.

Then the seven men journeyed forward towards Harlech, bearing thehead with them; and as they went, behold there met them a multitudeof men and of women. "Have you any tidings?" asked Manawyddan. "Wehave none," said they, "save that Caswallawn the son of Beli hasconquered the Island of the Mighty, and is crowned king in London.""What has become," said they, "of Caradawc the son of Bran, and theseven men who were left with him in this island?" "Caswallawn cameupon them, and slew six of the men, and Caradawc's heart broke forgrief thereof; for he could see the sword that slew the men, but knewnot who it was that wielded it. Caswallawn had flung upon him theVeil of Illusion, so that no one could see him slay the men, but thesword only could they see. And it liked him not to slay Caradawc,because he was his nephew, the son of his cousin. And now he was thethird whose heart had broke through grief. Pendaran Dyved, who hadremained as a young page with these men, escaped into the wood," saidthey.

Then they went on to Harlech, and there stopped to rest, and theyprovided meat and liquor, and sat down to eat and to drink. Andthere came three birds, and began singing unto them a certain song,and all the songs they had ever heard were unpleasant comparedthereto; and the birds seemed to them to be at a great distance fromthem over the sea, yet they appeared as distinct as if they wereclose by, and at this repast they continued seven years.

And at the close of the seventh year they went forth to Gwales inPenvro. And there they found a fair and regal spot overlooking theocean; and a spacious hall was therein. And they went into the hall,and two of its doors were open, but the third door was closed, thatwhich looked towards Cornwall. "See, yonder," said Manawyddan, "isthe door that we may not open." And that night they regaledthemselves and were joyful. And of all they had seen of food laidbefore them, and of all they had heard of, they remembered nothing;neither of that, nor of any sorrow whatsoever. And there theyremained fourscore years, unconscious of having ever spent a timemore joyous and mirthful. And they were not more weary than whenfirst they came, neither did they, any of them, know the time theyhad been there. And it was not more irksome to them having the headwith them, than if Bendigeid Vran had been with them himself. Andbecause of these fourscore years, it was called "the Entertaining ofthe noble Head." The entertaining of Branwen and Matholwch was inthe time that they went to Ireland.

One day said Heilyn the son of Gwynn, "Evil betide me, if I do notopen the door to know if that is true which is said concerning it."So he opened the door and looked towards Cornwall and Aber Henvelen.And when they had looked, they were as conscious of all the evilsthey had ever sustained, and of all the friends and companions theyhad lost, and of all the misery that had befallen them, as if all hadhappened in that very spot; and especially of the fate of their lord.And because of their perturbation they could not rest, but journeyedforth with the head towards London. And they buried the head in theWhite Mount, and when it was buried, this was the third goodlyconcealment; and it was the third ill-fated disclosure when it wasdisinterred, inasmuch as no invasion from across the sea came to thisisland while the head was in that concealment.

And thus is the story related of those who journeyed over fromIreland.

In Ireland none were left alive, except five pregnant women in a cavein the Irish wilderness; and to these five women in the same nightwere born five sons, whom they nursed until they became grown-upyouths. And they thought about wives, and they at the same timedesired to possess them, and each took a wife of the mothers of theircompanions, and they governed the country and peopled it.

And these five divided it amongst them, and because of this partitionare the five divisions of Ireland still so termed. And they examinedthe land where the battles had taken place, and they found gold andsilver until they became wealthy.

And thus ends this portion of the Mabinogi, concerning the blow givento Branwen, which was the third unhappy blow of this island; andconcerning the entertainment of Bran, when the hosts of sevenscorecountries and ten went over to Ireland to revenge the blow given toBranwen; and concerning the seven years' banquet in Harlech, and thesinging of the birds of Rhiannon, and the sojourning of the head forthe space of fourscore years.