Owain Glyndwr

11 Pages 2728 Words

aign itself, well it was a complete disaster. Having rampaged around northeast Wales for eight days, during which time the English settlements of Ruthin, Denbigh, Rhuddlan, Flint, Harwarden and Holt were attacked and destroyed, there was very little else achieved, for the castles at all the places were left in intact. On the 24th of September Owain suffered a devastating blow.
Having left the town of Oswestry aflame on the 22nd he had advanced south with the the intention of doing the same to Welshpool. However, to the west of his intended target he decided to camp on the banks of the river Vyrnwy for a short while before advancing on the town. It was while he and his men lay at rest that the encampment was attacked by armour clad forces forces from Shropshire, Staffordshire and Warickshire, under the command of Hugh Burell. It was a bloody conflict with the river running red with blood, much of it the blood of Owain's men. Soon his men ran and scattered to the four corners of Wales. As for Owain, he and a small band took for the hills. It seemed to everyone that the rebellion was over, The king however, was not so sure. Whilst continuing to march south, he sent a message to the citizens of Shrewsbury warning them of the Welsh that lived in their midst..
The king was right to be wary. Having raised his battle standard once more in the heart of his mother's homeland the vale of the Twyi in Deheubarth, Owain set about rallying men to the cause. Slowly they answered his call and swore allegiance to him as the Prince of Wales. It was at this time that Welsh scholars in England were observed downing their quills and heading home to Wales. So concerned over this action was one member of the English parliament that he announced to the house that “ those scheming devils in Wales are up to something”. How right and how observant the fellow was.

Having assembled a few hundred men in the vale of the Twyi, Owain headed north with the inten...