Wales on Wales

An able and highly educated man with an inquiring mind and a talent for lively observation, Gerald of Wales was at his best when writing about his beloved native land.

Born c.1145 at Manorbier near Pembroke, his father was a Norman knight and his mother the grand-daughter of a Welsh prince. He was appointed archdeacon of Brecon at the age of 28, but the bishopric of St. David's, which he long coveted, never became his. In these extracts from his Description of Wales, written in about 1191, he brings his countrymen to life with his acute and affecionate descriptions.

Welsh characteristics
The Welsh people are light and agile. They are fierce rather than strong, and totally dedicated to the practice of arms. Not only the leaders but the entire natin are trained in war. South the trumpet for battle and the peasant will rush from his plough to pick up his weapons as quickly as the courtier from the court.

They plough the soil once in March and April for oats, a second time in summer, and then they turn it a third time while the grain is being threshed. In this way the whole population lives almost entirely on oats and the produce of their herds: milk, cheese and butter. They eat plenty of meat, but little bread. They pay no attention to commerce, shipping or industry. They are passionately devoted to their freedom and to the defence of their country: for these they fight, for these they suffer hardships, for these the will take up their weapons and willingly sacrifice their lives...

The Welsh are given neither to gluttony nor to drunkenness. They spend little on food or clothes. Their sole interest in life consists of caring for their horses and keeping their weapons in good order, their sole preoccupation the defence of their country and the seizing of booty. From morning to evening they eat nothing. In the evening they eat a modest meal. If food is short or if they have none at all, they wait patiently for the next evening. They spend the dark and stormy nights in observing the movements of their enemies.

Hospitality - a way of life
In Wales no one begs. Everyone's home is open to all, for the Welsh generosity and hospitality are the greatest of all virtues. They very much enjoy welcoming others to their homes. When you travel there is no question of your asking for accommodation or of their offering it: you just march into a house and hand over your weapons to the person in charge. They give you water so that you may wash your feet and that

means that you are a guest. With these people the offering of water in which to wash one's feet in an invitation to stay.

Guests who arrive early in the day are entertained until nightfall by girls who pay to them on the harp...

When night falls and no more guests are expected, the evening meal is prepared, varying according to what the house has to offer, and to the number and importance of the men who have come. You must not expect a variety of dishes from a Welsh kitchen, and there are no highly seasoned tidbits to whet your appetite. In a Welsh house there are no tables, not tablecloths and no napkins. Everyone behaves quite naturally, with no attempt whatsoever at etiquette. You sit down in threes, not in pairs as elsewhere, and they put the food in front of you, all together, on a single large trencher containing enough for three, resting on rushes and green grass.

Alongside one of the walls is placed a communal bed, stuffed with rushes, and not all that many of them. For sole covering there is a stiff harsh sheet, made locally and call in Welsh a brychan. They all go to bed together. They keep on the same clothes which they have worn all day, a thin cloak and a tunic, which is all they have to keep the cold out. A fire is kept burning all night at their feet, just as it has done all day, and they get some warmth from the people sleeping next to them. When their underneath side begins to ache through the hardness of the bed and their uppermost side is frozen stiff with cold, they get up and sit by the fire, which soon warms them up and soothes away their aches and pains. Then they go back to bed again, turning over their other side if they feel like it, so that a different part is frozen and another side bruised by the hard bed.

Music and singing
The Welsh are very sharp and intelligent. When they apply their minds to anything, they are quick to make progress, for they have great natural ability. They are quicker-witted and more shrewd that any other Western people.

Whey they play their instruments they charm and delight the ear with the sweetness of their music. They play quickly and in subtle harmony. Their fingering is so rapid that they produce this harmony out of discord. The Welsh play three instruments, the harp, the pipe and the crwth [a stringed instrument]...

When they come together to make music, the Welsh sing their traditional songs, not in unison, as is done elsewhere, but in parts, in many modes and modulations. When a choir gathers to sing, which happens often in this country, you will hear as many different parts and voices as there are performers, all joining together in the end to produce a single organic harmony and melody in the soft sweetness of B flat.