The Mabinogion Tetralogy

First published:The Virgin and the Swine (1936; retitled The Island of the Mighty, 1970), The Children of Llyr (1971), The Song of Rhiannon (1972), and Prince of Annwn (1974)

Type of work: Novels

Type of plot: Fantasy—mythological

Time of work: Early in the medieval period

Locale: Wales, Ireland, and England

The Plot

Prince of Annwn has two parts: “Descent into the Abyss” and “Rhiannon of the Birds.” Having broken a hunting code, Pwyll, Prince of Dyved (South Wales), accepts an exchange with Arawn, King of Annwn (Kingdom of the Dead). Pwyll changes shape with Arawn to battle Havgan, a rival king in Annwn. Entering Annwn, Pwyll faces a series of tests: a huge, spiderlike monster; a huge bird that guards the entrance gate; and finally the bedroom invitation of Arawn’s wife. After a day-long battle, Pwyll follows Arawn’s instructions and resists the wounded Havgan’s appeal to “take my head” and so vanquishes him.

Returning to Dyved, Pwyll exchanges pledges of friendship with Arawn, whose rule has gained Pwyll a reputation for wisdom. By resisting a Druidic coronation rite of coupling with a white mare, Pwyll antagonizes the High Druid, who questions his virility, forces him to promise marriage, and plots his death.

From Gorsedd Arbeth, a magical burial mound, Pwyll sees beautiful Rhiannon, whom he had met in Annwn. He pursues her but cannot overtake her until he requests that she stop. Rhiannon, the daughter of Heveydd the Ancient, a former king of Dyved, has been promised against her will to Gwawl the Bright. Drawn together, Rhiannon and Pwyll agree to marry. At their wedding feast, Pwyll responds generously to Gwawl’s request, and Gwawl claims Rhiannon. A year and a day later, shabbily dressed Pwyll tricks Gwawl with his request that a small food bag be filled. Gwawl is trapped in this bottomless bag and brutally beaten. Rhiannon protects Pwyll from betrayal by six of his elite guard. The dying High Druid curses Pwyll, so that he cannot father children.

The Children of Llyr has a prologue and fourteen chapters. In the prologue, resentful Eurysswudd refuses tribute to “outlander” Llyr, holds him hostage, and as ransom demands a night with Llyr’s wife, Pendardin. Following the Old Tribe’s “Ancient Harmonies,” which allowed women to mate with whom they desired, Llyr accepts but later kills Eurysswudd in a duel. From this strange union are born mirror-opposite twins, Evnissyen, who “has a nose for pain,” and Nissyen, who breaks social tensions with kindness or laughter.

Gigantic Bran the Blessed, the eldest of Llyr’s sons by Pandarin, seeks to unite the Old and New tribes by a peace-marriage between his sister Branwen and Matholuch, king of Ireland. This treaty is made without consulting Evnissyen, who out of spite mutilates the Irish horses. As “face-price” for this offense, Bran gives Matholuch a magic cauldron that regenerates the dead.

In Ireland, Branwen bears Matholuch a son, Gwern. Rumor of the insult to Matholuch spreads. Bowing to social pressure, he agrees to put his wife aside. He strikes her and dismisses her to his kitchen, where she is brutally mistreated.

Branwen trains a starling to carry her message to Bran, who calls up warriors to avenge her mistreatment. Bran’s motive is not without self-interest. He ignores the matrilinear claim by which Branwen’s son, Gwern, should succeed to both his throne and that of Ireland, instead establishing his son, Caradoc, as his successor.

Bran walks to Ireland with his fleet through the legendary “sinking lands” that separate the two islands. Matholuch blames his counselor for forcing him to abandon Branwen and as “face-price” agrees to build Bran a palace (no ordinary house is big enough for Bran) and to give his throne to Gwern. This compromise is accepted, and peace is celebrated in Bran’s house, only to be broken by Evnissyen, who throws Gwern into the fire. This brings about a terrible battle. Nissyen saves his wounded twin by sacrificing himself.

The Irish use their cauldron to restore their dead. Evnissyen finally sacrifices himself to break the cauldron, the only unselfish act he had ever performed. The fumes from this broken cauldron destroy most of the Irish and their invaders. Although wounded by Matho-luch’s poisoned spear, Bran wipes out Matholuch and the remaining Irish. As he dies, he requests that his head be cut off. Bran’s head, Branwen, and the surviving chieftain return to the Island of the Mighty, where the head is buried at the White Tower of London.

Rather than succeeding to Bran’s throne, like Branwen, Caradoc dies in despair after his chiefs are killed by his father’s cousin, Caswallon. Caswallon assumes the throne but with the prophecy that none of his line will reign in peace, and none will found a dynasty.

The fifteen chapters of The Song of Rhiannon bring the seven companions back to the Island of the Mighty. After Bran’s burial, Pryderi and Mathawyddan discover domestic contentment despite challenges from their world (the political intrigues of Caswallon) and from Annwn (the Gray Man seeking vengeance for Gwawl the Bright’s treatment in Prince of Annwn).

A folktale version of the story of the birth of Pryderi, who was abducted by a giant claw, saved, and reared by a childless couple, is told to Pryderi and Mathawyddan by a shepherd’s wife. Mathawyddan is really Pryderi’s father; Pwyll had lost his virility in his underworld adventures. Unaware of this tie, Pryderi arranges that his mother marry Mathawyddan. After visiting Gorsedd Arbeth, Pryderi, his wife Kigva, Mathawyddan, and Rhiannon all find themselves in a barren Dyved. They pursue the leather trade before returning to farm in Dyved. There they are separated, to be reunited only after trapping the Gray Man’s wife, in disguise as a mouse, and extracting his promise of no more enchantments.

The Island of the Mighty has three parts. Part 1, “The Pigs of Pryderi,” follows the artist Gwydion and his brother Gilvaethwy. They trick Pryderi and thereby take his swine, so that during Pryderi’s armed pursuit, Gilvaethwy can gain access to their uncle Math’s virgin footholder. Math marries his defiled footholder after her rape, the first time that a king of Gwynedd had married.

Gwydion destroys Pryderi by turning his own hate against him. Math turns Gwydion and Gilvaethwy into bestial form to match their conduct. When he auditions his niece, Aranrhod, as his virgin footholder, she gives birth to two children.

The second part, “Lleu,” follows these children. Dylan, the son of a merman, swims to his father. He will later be destroyed by his mother. The other child is Gwydion’s child by his sister. More interested in magic than in motherhood, Aranrhod disowns this child. Reared by magic, he becomes the “child whose being Gwydion willed.” Because the child must be named and armed by his mother, Gwydion tricks his sister into performing both of these feats.

The final part, “The Loves of Blodeuwedd,” follows Gwydion’s attempt to avoid Aranrhod’s decree that Lleu’s wife must not be “of the race that now dwells upon this earth.” Gwydion and Math construct a woman from flowers. She proves to be unfaithful with a dark lover, Goronwy Pevr, Lord of Penllyn. These two plot Lleu’s death so that Goronwy can take his shape, bride, and kingdom. Trusting Lleu reveals that he can be killed only by a spear made when Druids were performing sacrifice and only when he is standing with one foot on a goat and the other on a bathing cauldron beside a river. Following these directions, the pair kill Lleu. Gwydion traces Lleu’s decaying remains to an eagle’s nest and, by magic, restores them to life. Blodeuwedd is transformed into an owl and her attendants drowned. Goronwy is killed by a spear that pierces the rock he uses as protection.