Cyfres Cip ar Gymru / Wonder Wales: Hywel Dda / Hywel the Good

A handy colour illustrated bilingual booklet tracing the story of Hywel the Good, (c. 890-950), a powerful king and statesman and Wales's law-writer. 27 colour illustrations.

About the Author :
Born in Llan-non, Ceredigion, Catrin Stevens was educated at Ardwyn Grammar School and Bangor University. Having worked as a Welsh and History teacher, Catrin was also head of the History and Welsh History department at Trinity College, Carmarthen. Her books about Welsh courting customs derive from Catrin's research into old Welsh customs at St Fagan's National History Museum. Catrin now works as a freelance writer and her main interest is interpreting history for readers of all ages.

Review :
English review below Pam y galwyd Hywel yn Dda? Dyma’r cwestiwn sy’n fframwaith i’r llyfryn bach hwn, a gomisiynwyd ar gyfer y gyfres Cip ar Gymru/Wonder Wales gan Gyngor Llyfrau Cymru. Cynlluniwyd ef yn ofalus, pob tudalen yn ddwy golofn, y Gymraeg yn gyntaf a’r Saesneg yn gyfochrog â hi; llwyddwyd i gynnwys nifer fawr o luniau lliw perthnasol a’u gosod yn daclus fel y gellir parhau i ddarllen heb droi tudalennau yn ôl ac ymlaen yn ormodol. O Lawysgrif Peniarth 28, sy’n cynnwys Cyfraith Hywel, y daw nifer o’r darluniau. Dengys rhai eraill rannau o’r Ardd Goffa a grëwyd gan Peter Lord yn Hendy-gwyn yn 1986. Mae’r ffotograffau yn y llyfryn hwn mor glir fel y gellir darllen y dyfyniadau (gyda chwydd-wydr,weithiau!) yn ogystal ag astudio cynllunwaith yr ardd, o hirbell, megis. Pa ddaioni wnaeth Hywel Dda? ‘Unodd rannau helaeth o Gymru yn un deyrnas.’ Da iawn. ‘Galwodd chwe gŵr o bob cantref yn y wlad i’r Tŷ Gwyn ar Daf i drafod cyfreithiau, i gadw a diwygio rhai ac i ddileu eraill.’ Gwell fyth! Roedd Cyfraith Hywel yn cwmpasu pob agwedd ar fywyd – maen nhw hefyd yn rhoi darlun hyfryd o’r cyfnod y lluniwyd nhw, neu y rhoddwyd trefn arnyn nhw, yn hytrach. Roedd gan y ddau ddwsin o weithwyr llys (o’r penteulu i’r penhebogydd, o’r bardd teulu i was bach y stafell wely) bob un ei gadair ei hun, yn ogystal â’i swyddogaeth a’i gydnabyddiaeth a’i statws penodol. Roedd safle gymdeithasol pawb yn wybyddus ac yn bur sefydlog, mae’n debyg. Doedd hi ddim yn hawdd dringo ris yn uwch yn eich cymdeithas, oni bai ichi gael caniatâd arglwydd. Fe dâl inni gofio nad oedd cosb eithaf am lofruddiaeth, yn ôl y Gyfraith hon. Yn hytrach, gorfodid teulu’r un euog i dalu ‘galanas’ i deulu’r llofruddiedig ‘hyd y seithfed ach’. Ac eto, gellid crogi lleidr! Ond nis crogwyd am ddwyn bwyd, os bu’n cardota am dridiau. Fe dâl inni gofio hefyd am Gyfraith y Gwragedd. ‘Roedd gan ferched Cymru fwy o ryddid a hawliau, yn enwedig o fewn priodas, nag oedd gan lawer o ferched Ewrop ar y pryd . . . Cytundeb cyfreithiol ac nid sacrament crefyddol oedd priodas,’ meddir. Mae Cyfraith Hywel Dda yn profi ‘fod y Gymraeg yn iaith soffistigedig ac ymarferol yn yr Oesoedd Canol’. Mae’r Cyfreithiau hefyd ‘yn un o greadigaethau mwyaf ysblennydd diwylliant y Cymry,’ meddai John Davies yn ei gyfrol bwysig, Hanes Cymru. Dylem fel Cymry bwysleisio’r ddwy ffaith yma a bod yn falch ohonyn nhw, greda i. Llyfryn sy’n codi cwr y llen ar gymeriad diddorol, felly, a llyfryn deniadol, lliwgar sy’n taflu golau llachar ar bwnc perthnasol i’n dyddiau ni, yntê? (Ys gwn i pa ddeddfau a lunnid yn 2004, pe bai chwe gŵr/gwraig o bob cymuned yn dod ynghyd? Efallai y cawn weld ym Machynlleth!) * * * Anyone who is interested in Wales and Welsh culture should snap up this little booklet and treasure it. Why does this Welsh king, called ‘the Good’, have such a special place in the history of mediaeval Wales? He lived in a violent age —‘Kings had to be powerful and ruthless to survive’. So how did the Good not only manage to outlive the Bad and the Ugly but also to extend his lands until he commanded everything from the River Dyfi to the Tawe, eventually to become High King of most of Wales, including Gwynedd, Powys, Brycheiniog and Deheubarth? Hywel’s Law – the native law of Wales before the Acts of Union with England were passed in 1536/43 – may hold the key to his popularity. Unfortunately, only copies dated from 1250 onwards survive, but these may contain the ‘core’ laws dating back to Hywel Dda’s days. These Laws give us a fascinating glimpse of that long-ago everyday life. They begin with the law of the king’s court and the detailed roles of all twenty-four officers therein. Everyone had his or her proper place in society, and the lord’s permission would have to be given before any rungs in the social ladder could be climbed. The Welsh did not believe in capital punishment for murder. ‘Galanas’ money was paid instead to the victim’s family for seven generations. A thief caught stealing property could be hanged, but a person charged with stealing food (if he had been begging for three days) could ask for clemency. You could turn to the Women’s Laws. ‘In many ways, Welsh women had more freedom and rights, especially within marriage, than many women in Europe at this time . . . Marriage was a legal contract and not a religious sacrament.’ ‘The vast number of accurate legal terms indicate that Welsh was a sophisticated and practical language during the Middle Ages,’ maintains Catrin Stevens. ‘The laws are considered to be one of the most splendid creations of Welsh culture,’ writes John Davies in his important volume, The History of Wales. A memorial to commemorate Hywel Dda’s contribution to the compilation of the law books was erected at Whitland in 1986, designed by Peter Lord. Good quality photographs are included in this booklet so that the reader may have a peep at the Whitland garden and the Peniarth 28 manuscript which is decorated with delightful child-like drawings of court personnel at their work, suitably dressed – and all having very long index fingers! Commissioned by the Welsh Books Council, printed on glossy paper, filled to the brim with photographic images – but costing only £2.99 – this booklet should sell like hot cakes. A chapter of our history, presented to the general public in such an attractive bilingual booklet is excellent value for money.