The Journey Through Wales and the Description of Wales (Penguin Classics)

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The South Wales Main Line and the North Wales Coast Line have always been Wales’ two most important rail links, but many lines have been provided through the hills and valleys. The Cambrian Railways owned a large network within Mid and North West Wales, including two lines cutting across the country, while the Central Wales Railway (now known as the Heart of Wales Line) and the Mid Wales Railway criss-crossed the country to the south. A winding route linked Carmarthen and Aberystwyth – the legacy of a failed attempt to build a direct line between Manchester and Milford Haven – while the Carnarvonshire Railway linked Bangor, Caernarfon and the Cambrian Coast Line near Porthmadog. Of reptiles, and those that are not found in Ireland and that there are no venomous creatures [XXIII] a b c [1] MacCaffrey, James. "Giraldus Cambrensis." The Catholic Encyclopedia] Vol. 6. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1909. Accessed 20 July 2015. Gerald's writings in good quality Latin, based on a thorough knowledge of Classical authors, reflect experiences gained on his travels as well as his great knowledge of the standard authorities and he was highly respected as a scholar in his time and afterwards. The noted scholar Edward Augustus Freeman said he was "the father of comparative philology," and in the preface to the last volume of Gerald's works in the Rolls Series, h Gerald of Wales (c. 1146 – c. 1223), also known as Gerallt Gymro in Welsh or Giraldus Cambrensis in Latin, archdeacon of Brecon, was a medieval clergyman and chronicler of his times. Born around 1146 at Manorbier Castle in Pembrokeshire, Wales, he was of mixed Norman and Welsh blood, his name being Gerald de Barri.

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Born c. 1146 at Manorbier Castle in Pembrokeshire, Wales, Gerald was of mixed Norman and Welsh descent. Gerald was the youngest son of William Fitz Odo de Barry (or Barri), the common ancestor of the De Barry family of Ireland, a retainer of Arnulf de Montgomery and Gerald de Windsor, and one of the most powerful Anglo-Norman barons in Wales. [1] His mother was Angharad FitzGerald, a daughter of Gerald FitzWalter of Windsor, [ citation needed] Constable of Pembroke Castle, and his wife Nest ferch Rhys, daughter of Rhys ap Tewdwr, the last King of South Wales. Through his mother Angharad, Gerald was a nephew of David FitzGerald, Bishop of St Davids, as well as a great-nephew of Gruffydd ap Rhys, the son and heir of Rhys ap Tewdwr, and a cousin of Rhys ap Gruffydd, the famous Arglwydd (Lord) Rhys and his family. These do not seem to be the actions of a man whose very reason for being was the liberation of Wales from foreign oppression. Gerald’s relationship with the English church was therefore rather closer than is allowed by the nationalist perspective put forward above.

Our tour starts at New Radnor, Powys, and ends in the Ceiriog Valley, near Wrexham. You can join the tour online by choosing a location from the list below. After reading each text, use the ‘Next’ icon beside the tour banner to discover the next point of interest on the route. So Gerald was, for a significant chunk of his life, politically aligned with the English church and the English monarchy. Such connections throw severe doubt on a simplistically nationalistic interpretation of his career. yesterday it was found too soft. ... Chapter 9: Passage over the rivers Lochor and Wendraeth; and of Cydweli Of the birds, and those that are wanting; of the hawk, falcon, and sparrow-hawk, and their natures [VIII] Nevertheless, in 1199 the chapter elected Gerald bishop on the understanding that he would petition the pope to make St David’s an archbishopric.As something of a reward for his services, in 1188 Giraldus was nominated to accompany the archbishop of Canterbury, Baldwin of Exeter, as he rode through Wales on a recruiting drive. The purpose of the journey was to enlist men for The Third Crusade but as far as Giraldus was concerned the trip gave him the ideal opportunity to study his fellow countrymen and to develop his literary skills. As a royal clerk, Gerald observed significant political events first-hand and was offered appointments as bishoprics [ clarification needed] of Wexford and Leighlin, and apparently, slightly later, the bishopric of Ossory and the archbishopric of Cashel, and later the bishopric of Bangor in Wales; and, in 1191, that of Llandaff. [1] He turned them all down, possibly in the hope of landing a more prominent bishopric in the future. He was acquainted with Walter Map, whose career shares some similarities with Gerald's. Retiring from royal service, he lived in Lincoln from c. 1196 to 1198, when his friend, William de Montibus, was chancellor of the cathedral. In this period De principis instructione was probably first written, a useful historical source on contemporary events. It was an influential work at the time, spreading, for example, the legend of MacAlpin's treason. Here Gerald is frequently critical of the rule of the Angevin kings, a shift from his earlier praise of Henry II in the Topographia. He also wrote a life of St Hugh of Lincoln. [ citation needed] Attempts to become bishop of St. Davids [ edit ] St Davids Cathedral today Anyone who scans the QR codes with a smartphone can discover what Gerald saw there in 1188, along with the place’s wider history.

Following Richard’s sudden death in March 2020 the project plans have been revised to ensure that the project will continue in Richard’s memory. Professor Thomas Charles-Edwards, Emeritus fellow and former Professor of Celtic at Jesus College here in Oxford, will take over as Principal Investigator with Professor Paul Russell, Professor of Celtic in Cambridge University's Anglo-Saxon, Norse & Celtic department as Co-Investigator. Dr Jacob Currie is joining the Faculty to undertake the primary manuscript research, as well as the editing and translating of the texts. As part of a new HistoryPoints project supported by the Church in Wales, 37 QR codes have been placed in locations all over Wales which featured in Gerald’s itinerary. It took until the 1980s for the first Cardiff-Holyhead services to emerge, under British Rail’s Regional Railways division. One service each way ran every day, running via Crewe. The services initially used the new Class 155 Super Sprinter trains, until they were replaced in the early 1990s by the popular Class 158 Express Sprinters, providing faster, more comfortable journeys. For starters, he was only one quarter Welsh. The rest of his lineage was unmistakably Norman and he was part of the top echelon of Norman society in Wales. Moreover, the lands held by his father and numerous Norman relations had been taken from the Welsh by force only a few decades before he was born. These were all built by individual private companies who were planning routes for their own gain – usually with the transport of freight in mind, with passengers as an after-thought. There was never a strategic national plan for a network, as seen in other European countries, who built their rail networks after Britain had led the way.did not come to meet the archbishop with his people.... Chapter 13: Of the journey by Wenloch, Brumfeld, the castle of Ludlow, and

When his uncle, the bishop, died, Giraldus was proposed by the chapter of St Davids Cathedral as by far the most suitable man to succeed him. The king and the archbishop of Canterbury refused the nomination, however. The king, Henry II certainly did not want a dynamic and energetic man in charge at St Davids - such a man could only give extra importance to the people of Wales. In effect he was not appointed simply because he was Welsh! Gerald was a product of what historians call the “Reform Church”. This was an ecclesiastical movement of the 11th and 12th centuries which sought to re-orientate the moral compass of society. Within the church, priestly marriage was a particular source of consternation, while in wider society it was again sex and marriage that formed the focus of the reformers’ zeal.Alternatively, an entirely new route could theoretically run direct between North and South Wales, with fewer stops and a much straighter alignment developed for higher speeds. However, this would be even more challenging to design and build, as it would require forging a brand new route through mountainous terrain. There would have to be extensive consultation about where the route would go, and which towns would be served by it. It would have to pass through unspoilt landscapes, national parks and areas of outstanding natural beauty, and would probably require heavy engineering solutions such as long tunnels and large viaducts. Perhaps instead Wales can today be proud of Gerald for what he was; an accomplished intellectual, a lively and observant writer, a determined adversary, a witness to many of the key events of the period, and very much a product of his own time. Gerald spent the remainder of his life in academic study, most probably in Lincoln, producing works of devotional instruction and politics, and revising the works on Ireland and Wales he had written earlier in his life. He spent two years (1204–6) in Ireland with his relatives and made a fourth visit to Rome, purely as a pilgrimage, in 1206. The controversy over St Davids soured his relationship with the crown. In 1216 a baronial plan to put Louis VIII of France on the throne of England in the First Barons' War was warmly welcomed by him. He died in about 1223 in his 77th year, probably in Hereford and he is, according to some accounts, buried at St Davids Cathedral. [5] Gerald was introduced to them during his early education in Norman-occupied Pembrokeshire and then Gloucester.