The Battle of Llongborth
The Battle of Llongborth is a fairly obscure battle in the Arthurian legends, but there is evidence that it was a very important one. In fact, the evidence strongly suggests that it was the prelude to the infamous Battle of Camlann. Many of Arthur’s men died at this battle. Which sources mention it, and what do we really know about it? This article will examine the answers to those questions and others.
What Was the Battle of Llongborth?
The Battle of Llongborth is a battle that appears in just a few Welsh texts. The earliest surviving source that mentions it is a Welsh poem about Geraint ap Erbin. He was a historical king of Dumnonia (encompassing a large portion of the West Country) in the sixth century. There are two surviving versions of this poem.
One version is entitled Gereint fil’ Erbin. This is found in a document known as the Black Book of Carmarthen. The other version is found in the Red Book of Hergest, where it is entitled Englynion Gereint fab Erbin. On linguistic grounds, the poem has been dated to perhaps as early as c. 900.
Traditionally, this poem has been understood to be an elegy, or grave song, about Geraint. The poem appears to claim that he died at this battle. Not only did Geraint die, but many of his men died there as well. The poem generally presents the battle as a tragedy, though not necessarily meaning that Geraint’s side was not victorious overall.
Notably, Arthur himself is portrayed as being there. Furthermore, two other Welsh documents refer to the Battle of Llongborth in a different context. These two documents, both dating to the sixteenth century, claim that it was at this battle that Llacheu, the son of King Arthur, died.
A Connection to the Battle of Camlann?
Based simply on those brief references to the Battle of Llongborth in the Welsh texts, there is very little that we can say about the battle. However, when we piece that information together with other evidence from other sources, we can place it in a reasonably firm context.
One of the reasons that the Battle of Llongborth is so interesting is because, as a result of the aforementioned comparison with other sources, it appears to have been part of the civil war between Arthur and his nephew Mordred.
In Geoffrey of Monmouth’s Historia Regum Britanniae, he describes how Mordred sought to usurp the throne while Arthur was away in Gaul. When Arthur returned, Mordred led an army to try to oppose Arthur from landing. According to some researchers, this coastal battle was the Battle of Llongborth.
What is the evidence for this viewpoint? Does it really stand up to scrutiny? Before we examine this issue any further, let us simply see what the source texts actually say about the Battle of Llongborth.
Gerein fil’ Erbin
Let us start by examining the poem known variously as Gereint fil’ Erbin and Englynion Gereint fab Erbin. The two different versions of the poem differ in structure and wording, but the basic story being told is the same.
The poem proceeds with the bard describing what he saw. Many of the lines include the phrase ‘I saw’. This suggests that the bard was actually there at the battle. That is not to say that this poem necessarily really dates back to the sixth century. As we saw, most scholars date it to no earlier than c. 900.
Nevertheless, it is presumably the case that the bard who composed this poem was representing an earlier bard, just as many of the poems attributed to Taliesin (a sixth century bard) were actually composed centuries after his time. Traditionally, Gereint fil’ Erbin has been thought to be attributed to Llywarch Hen.
Fought Along the Sea
In any case, the composer describes the terrible slaughter that occurred at Llongborth. One line includes a reference to seeing ‘horses white with foam’. This shows two things. Firstly, it reveals that horses were present at the battle, and other lines emphasise their prominence.
Secondly, it suggests that this battle occurred by the seashore. The splashing of the water as the horses charged along the water’s edge, along with, perhaps, actual sea foam, would nicely explain the origin of the foam mentioned in this line. It is difficult to see why else the horses at this battle would be described as ‘white with foam’.
This ties in well with the very name of the battle site. The name ‘Llongborth’ is Welsh for ‘ship port’. This obviously suggests that the battle was fought at a location which was convenient for ships to land at, a place which was actually used as a port.
The correspondence between this place name and the line mentioning the horses white with foam suggests that this conclusion is correct.
Arthur Present at the Battle
Another detail mentioned in the poem is the fact that Arthur was present. The stanza mentioning him is as follows:
“In Llongborth was slain to Arthur,
brave warriors, they hewed with steel,
emperor, leader of battle.”
This shows that Arthur was present at the battle. Not only was he present, but he is specifically called the ‘leader of battle’. This implies that he was the one who was actually the chief commander at the battle, and Geraint was simply there as one of Arthur’s allies.
Furthermore, this line calls Arthur ‘emperor’. This is one of the earliest references to Arthur’s status. Given the likely early date for the poem, this disproves the notion that Arthur’s position as high king was a later development of Arthurian lore.
Geraint’s Death
Just after (or before, depending on the version) mentioning Arthur, the adjacent stanza refers specifically to Geraint. According to the most traditional view, it refers to Geraint’s death. The version in the Red Book of Hergest unambiguously refers to his death. The stanza reads:
“In Llongborth Geraint was slain,
A brave warrior from the region of Dyfnaint,
They were killing although they were killing them.”
Based on this clear statement, it seems clear that Geraint died at Llongborth. On the other hand, the version in the Black Book of Carmarthen reads:
“In Llongborth was slain to Geraint
Brave warriors from the region of Dyfnaint,
And although they had been killed, they killed.”
According to this version, it was not Geraint himself who died. Rather, it was his men. The bard poetically refers to the warriors as being ‘slain to Geraint’. While the wording is awkward, it has attested parallels elsewhere in Welsh poetry.
Did Geraint Die at Llongborth?
This leads to an important question: Did Geraint really die at the Battle of Llongborth or not? The textual evidence is complicated. However, with some close examination, we can come to a reasonable conclusion.
The Date of Both Versions
The first thing to bear in mind is the fact that the Black Book of Carmarthen predates the Red Book of Hergest by a little over a century. On that basis, the wording in the Black Book might be taken to be more authoritative.
However, this is not necessarily the case. After all, the version in the Red Book is also found in the White Book of Rhydderch, with virtually identical wording. This was written in the mid-fourteenth century, slightly earlier than the Red Book.
Scholars agree that the version in the Red Book was not copied from the White Book, but that both versions derive from a common source. This would push the date of this version (which presents Geraint as dying) further back than the date of composition of either the White Book or the Red Book, and hence much closer to the date of composition of the Black Book.
In other words, when we consider this evidence of an earlier source for the version contained in the Red Book and White Book, we see that there is really not much difference in date between the version which speaks of Geraint’s death (the Red/White version) and the one which does not (the Black version).
Evidence of Preservation
It is also noteworthy that the version in the Black Book is shorter than the other version. As Nerys Ann Jones, an authority on medieval Welsh poetry, explained:
“The stanzas they have in common, however, are fairly similar, suggesting that much of the variation is probably due to oral and written transmission, the Black Book text being a shorter version of a longer original more fully preserved in the White/Red Book.”
Based on this evidence, it is surely sensible to give more weight to the wording found in the White/Red version of the poem. Since that is the version which appears to more fully preserve the original text, then surely it would be perverse to do anything but favour its wording over the version which seems to have not preserved the original text as thoroughly.
The Number of Syllables
Another issue is related to the number of syllables seen in the pertinent line. Interestingly, in the Black Book version, the line in the original Welsh reads:
“en Llogporth y llas y Gereint.”
It has been pointed out that most of the lines in the poem are seven syllables long. This suggests that this line in Welsh might be somewhat corrupt, since it is eight syllables long. If one of the ‘y’s is removed, this would leave seven syllables while still being grammatically correct.
Some scholars have argued that we should remove the ‘y’ before ‘llas’ (meaning ‘slain’), which would leave ‘en Llogporth llas y Geraint’. This would mean ‘In Llongborth was slain to Geraint’, with the following line mentioning his warriors, as we saw in the provided translation earlier.
However, this is an arbitrary suggestion. It would be equally acceptable to remove the ‘y’ after ‘llas’, leaving ‘en Llogporth y llas Gereint’, meaning ‘In Llongporth Geraint was slain’.
This is the exact wording seen in the Red/White version, and it is seven syllables long. The version in the Black Book does have the ‘y’ before the ‘llas’ as well; it is merely the presence of the second ‘y’ afterwards which changes the meaning to something other than a reference to Geraint’s own death.
Since the initial ‘y’ is present in both the Black and Red/White versions, whereas the second ‘y’ is only attested in the Black version, the second ‘y’ is unquestionably the one which should be removed to bring the line down to the required seven syllables.
In contrast, there is simply no basis for doing the opposite. In other words, the best supported reconstruction of the original line is exactly what the Red/White version already has, a seven-syllable line referring to Geraint’s death.
An Easy Corruption
Another reason to favour this conclusion is that it is easier to see how ‘y llas Gereint’ (‘Geraint was slain’) could have been corrupted into ‘y llas y Gereint’ (‘was slain to Geraint’) than the other way around.
As mentioned earlier, the adjacent stanza mentions Arthur. This line does indeed use ‘llas y’, meaning ‘slain to’. Since repetition and parallelism is a foundation of poetry, it is easy to see how a scribe could have been influenced to mistakenly reproduce the same structure, thus adding an extra ‘y’ after the ‘llas’ where there was not one originally.
On the other hand, a corruption in the other direction is not so easily explainable. There is no obvious reason why ‘llas y’ would have been corrupted into ‘y llas’, especially since it goes against the wording in the adjacent stanza about Arthur.
Warriors or a Warrior?
There is one piece of evidence which is presented as a reason to believe that the line mentioning Geraint’s death is corrupt. The next two lines in the stanza in the Red/White version read:
“A brave warrior from the region of Dyfnaint,
They were killing although they were killing them.”
As we can see here, the middle line appears to continue the description of Geraint himself, calling him a ‘brave warrior’, whereas the third line uses plural verbs. This is similar to what we see in the Black Book version, which reads:
“Brave warriors from the region of Dyfnaint,
And although they had been killed, they killed.”
The final line is essentially the same, speaking in the plural. The key difference is in the middle line, which is also in the plural.
It has been argued that this shows that the first line did originally read ‘slain to Geraint’, the stanza describing the deaths of his soldiers rather than describing the death of Geraint himself. It has been argued that the switch to the plural in the third line of the Red/White version does not make sense if the previous two lines are talking about Geraint himself.
What the Evidence Really Indicates
However, does this argument really stand up to scrutiny? In reality, we find the same apparently random switch between singular and plural in the stanza about Arthur. As we saw earlier, that stanza reads:
In Llongborth was slain to Arthur,
brave warriors, they hewed with steel,
emperor, leader of battle.”
This is the version seen in the Red/White version. As we can see, the stanza describes the deaths of Arthur’s men, but then it apparently randomly switches to the singular to describe Arthur himself. A similar switch occurs in the equivalent stanza in the Black Book version, which reads:
“In Llongborth I saw to Arthur
brave warriors, they hewed with steel,
emperor, leader of the battle.”
It is obvious that ‘emperor, leader of the battle’ is a description of Arthur himself. Yet, the textual evidence is clear that the middle line is plural, describing Arthur’s men. This is evidently the correct reading in the case of this stanza.
This demonstrates that there is nothing unusual about the apparently random switch to the plural in the third line of the stanza about Geraint in the Red/White version.
Another Easy Corruption
Just like in the previous case, the corruption required to turn the Red/White version into the Black Book version is easier than the reverse. As Nerys Ann Jones pointed out, the plural word for ‘warriors’ is repeated in the second line of most of the poem’s stanzas.
Hence, it would be have been incredibly easy for a scribe to allow the repetition and parallelism of the poem to lead him to mistakenly change the singular ‘warrior’ (‘gwr’ in Welsh) into ‘warriors’ (‘gwyr’ in Welsh) in the stanza about Geraint.
In contrast, there is no obvious reason why the reverse would have happened.
The Title of the Poem
Another piece of evidence that this poem is intended to be an elegy for Geraint is seen from the title of the poem in both the Black Book and the Red/White versions. As mentioned earlier, the title in the Black Book is Gereint fil’ Erbin, while the title in the Red Book is Englynion Gereint fab Erbin.
In other words, the poem was simply named after Geraint ap Erbin. It was not given a specific title. The various poems in the Book of Taliesin, for instance, have specific titles which describe specific conflicts when that is all they are talking about.
Yet the title of this poem about Geraint does not include any reference to Llongborth, despite the poem being entirely about that one battle. Why would a poem about one specific battle be entitled simply after the name of the person who fought at that battle?
The logical conclusion would be that there was something exceptionally important about this battle in the life of Geraint. Arguably, the most natural explanation for the title of the poem is that this was the battle in which Geraint died.
It seems very fitting to give the name of Geraint to the poem which describes the battle in which he died. No other situation seems nearly as appropriate as this.
In summary, we can see that the evidence strongly supports the conclusion that Geraint died at the Battle of Llongborth. This is seen from a close examination of the textual evidence, as well as from the very title of the poem.
The Battle of Llongborth in Connection with Llacheu
Let us now examine the references to Llongborth in connection with Llacheu. Llacheu is recorded in Welsh tradition as the son of King Arthur. His death, which occurred in battle while Llacheu was still a youth, was remembered as a tragedy.
In a document known as Gwyneddon 3, written in the sixteenth century, we find an interesting reference to Llacheu by Bleddyn Fardd of the thirteenth century. He referred to Llacheu was dying at a place named Llech Ysgar.
In Gwyneddon 3, a copy of this statement appears. However, in the margin of the document, we find the words:
“Llacheu was son of Arthur. He was slain at Llongborth.”
Another sixteenth century manuscript contains the same line by Bleddyn Fardd, along with the same marginal gloss.
This shows that a tradition existed in the sixteenth century to the effect that Llacheu had died at Llongborth. On the other hand, the fact that this statement was crossed out in Gwyneddon 3 suggests that there was some controversy about this tradition. This was likely due to the rival tradition that he died at Llech Ysgar.
The Timing of the Battle of Llongborth
To summarise what we have seen so far, both Geraint and Llacheu were remembered as dying at the Battle of Llongborth. Arthur was present at the battle, and it was remembered as a tragedy, in which both attested allies (Geraint and Llacheu) fell, along with other warriors in Arthur’s service.
We have also seen that it took place along the seashore, as shown by the very place name ‘Llongborth’ and the reference to horses being white with foam.
Truthfully, we have a substantial amount of contextual information regarding this battle. This allows us to place it firmly in a specific context. Let us first begin by examining how the evidence from Geraint points to a particular conclusion.
Geraint’s Death in Other Sources
Since Geraint apparently died at the Battle of Llongborth, it stands to reason that another source which describes the death of Geraint would provide us with another perspective of this event. As it happens, the death of Geraint is mentioned in the Life of St Teilo.
This hagiography tells of how Teilo and many others from southern Britain fled to Brittany to escape the effects of the devastating Yellow Plague. They stayed in Brittany for about seven years, and then they returned to Britain.
Soon after people started returning to Britain, Teilo received news that Geraint was dying. He then rushed to see Geraint before he finally passed away. Based on where this event occurs in Teilo’s life, what can we say about when it happened?
Teilo’s Replacement by Oudoceus
In the Life of St Oudoceus, another event occurs almost immediately after Teilo returns to Britain. Teilo is replaced as Bishop of Llandaff by his nephew, a man named Oudoceus. This is a very useful piece of information regarding when Geraint died.
Oudoceus was the son of a king of Brittany named Budic. He was Budic’s son by his second wife, and what is more, the couple had several sons before Oudoceus. Hence, Budic was probably about forty years old when Oudoceus was born.
Since Budic, according to scholar Peter Bartrum, was born in c. 500, this would place Oudoceus’ birth in c. 540. He is unlikely to have been younger than thirty years old when he was made bishop. Since he replaced Teilo as Bishop of Llandaff immediately after the latter returned from Brittany, that would place this event in c. 570.
By extension, then, the death of Geraint and the Battle of Llongborth would have likely occurred in c. 570 as well.
Llacheu’s Death in Other Sources
Do we come to this same conclusion when we look at the evidence concerning Llacheu? As mentioned earlier, there are multiple references to his death, which was remembered as a tragedy. The earliest reference to this appears to be in Pa Gur, which mentions it along with the death of Cai, one of Arthur’s close allies.
The strong implication of the poem is that Llacheu and Cai died in the same conflict. This is very useful to know, since Cai’s death is mentioned in another source, the tale Culhwch and Olwen. In a list of Arthur’s allies during the events of the story, one of them is listed as the following:
“Gwyddog son of Menestyr, who killed Cai, and Arthur killed him and his brothers to avenge Cai.”
This information is very useful. Since Pa Gur heavily suggests that Llacheu and Cai died in the same battle, this shows that Gwyddog son of Menestyr was evidently involved in that battle.
Culhwch and Olwen appears to be set in the year following the Battle of Badon. Hence, the Battle of Llongborth must have taken place after that, since Gwyddog would surely not have been listed as one of Arthur’s allies if he had already killed Cai when this story was set.
Cai’s Death at the Battle of Camlann
When we consider these facts, there is one obvious context in which Cai evidently died. The idea of a battle involving a former ally of Arthur betraying him, killing one of his closest allies, some time after the Battle of Badon points firmly to the Battle of Camlann.
This is the only attested civil war during Arthur’s reign after the Battle of Badon. Hence, it would appear that the conflict which resulted in the death of Cai – and hence, the death of Llacheu – was part of Arthur’s civil war against Mordred, which culminated in the Battle of Camlann.
How This Relates to the Battle of Llongborth
What does this potentially tell us about the Battle of Llongborth? It means that it was part of the same wider conflict of which the Battle of Camlann was the climax. And when did the Battle of Camlann occur?
The date of the Battle of Camlann is given as 537 in the Annales Cambriae. However, this is inconsistent with the overwhelming weight of evidence concerning Arthur’s contemporaries, and especially those involved in the Battle of Camlann itself.
For example, Mordred was the son of Lot and the nephew of Urien Rheged. Urien was famously a mid to late sixth century king. His son (Mordred’s first cousin) Owain was a late sixth century king. Hence, Mordred cannot possibly have fought a battle as early as 537. He would not even have been born then.
A mistake that we sometimes see in the medieval records is confusion between events being dated relative to Jesus’ birth and events being dated relative to Jesus’ death. This could sometimes result in events being backdated.
This is the easiest explanation for the obviously erroneous date for the Battle of Camlann in the Annales Cambriae. This would mean that the correct date should be 570. This should therefore be the date for the Battle of Llongborth as well.
Significantly, this is the same conclusion that we arrived at when using the information regarding Geraint’s death and the appointment of Oudoceus as Bishop of Llandaff.
The Context of the Battle of Llongborth
Based on the evidence that we have seen so far, what can we conclude regarding the context of the Battle of Llongborth? We have seen that it was part of the wider conflict between Arthur and Mordred, at least based on the evidence about Cai in Welsh tradition.
This conclusion is consistent with the evidence from the source text for the Battle of Llongborth itself. As we saw, it describes a battle in which Arthur was present as the leader of the battle. Many of Arthur’s men died at the conflict, including Geraint himself, a prominent king. The general tone of the poem is that it was a tragedy.
Of all the battles associated with Arthur, only one conflict was remembered in Welsh tradition as a tragedy. This was the civil war between Arthur and Mordred.
Furthermore, this is consistent with the fact that the Life of St Teilo presents Geraint’s death as occurring just after the Britons started returning to Britain after being away for many years. This harmonises well with the tradition of Mordred and Arthur waging war against each other after Arthur and his men had been away in Gaul for some time.
When in the Conflict Did Mordred and Arthur Fight at Llongborth?
With this in mind, which part of the conflict between Mordred and Arthur can we identify as the Battle of Llongborth?
Recall that Llongborth was evidently somewhere on the seashore. In Geoffrey of Monmouth’s account of the civil war between Arthur and Mordred (the earliest source which describes the event), they were said to have fought a battle on the seashore as Arthur attempted to return to Britain with his men.
Geoffrey claims that this occurred at the port of Richborough. However, this is obviously incorrect. Richborough was thoroughly within Anglo-Saxon territory by the mid sixth century. It cannot possibly be the location at which Arthur really attempted to land.
Nonetheless, there was apparently a coastal battle, and this matches well with the Battle of Llongborth. Also notable is the fact that Geoffrey presents this as a tragedy at which numerous allies of Arthur died. This matches well with the description found in the poem about the Battle of Llongborth.
Hence, it would appear that the Battle of Llongborth was the battle fought between Arthur and Mordred upon Arthur’s attempt to land in Britain. Although many of Arthur’s men were lost, his side won the battle, causing Mordred to flee. Arthur pursued him, and the two armies eventually arrived at Camlann and fought their final battle.
Where Did the Battle of Llongborth Take Place?
When we look at the evidence concerning the location of Llongborth, this conclusion becomes even stronger. In the Life of St Teilo, we are told that Teilo arrived in Britain at a place named Din Gereint. This is where he saw Geraint on his deathbed.
In the absence of any reason to think otherwise, we can assume that Geraint was mortally wounded in battle in approximately the same location where he was met by Teilo. Hence, Llongborth would presumably have been close to Din Gereint.
Din Gereint was the medieval name for the site where Cardigan Castle now stands. The name fell out of use in the twelfth century. As it happens, just a few miles along the coast from Cardigan is Penbryn, where we find the place name ‘Llamborth’.
Many scholars have suggested that this Llamborth is likely the Llongborth of Welsh tradition. This is further supported by the fact that several place names in the area contain ‘Geraint’. One nearby village is Beddgeraint, meaning ‘Grave of Geraint’.
On the basis of this evidence, Llamborth in Cardiganshire is clearly the most likely location for the Llongborth of Welsh tradition.
How This Relates to Arthur and Mordred’s Conflict
This location harmonises extremely well with the conclusion that this was the initial battle between Arthur and Mordred. From that coastal location, Mordred supposedly fled. Presumably, he intended to flee to the North, since that was his home territory.
Inland from Llamborth, Mordred would have come to the prominent Roman road that went up along the western side of Wales, where he could eventually turn towards the east, up towards northern England.
Along this route up the side of Wales, the Roman road passes very close to Camlan Uchaf. This is almost certainly the site of the Battle of Camlann. Hence, placing Arthur and Mordred’s first battle at Llamborth in West Wales makes sense of the geography of the conflict.
Furthermore, two Welsh translations of Geoffrey of Monmouth’s Historia Regum Britanniae place this initial battle at ‘Aber Temys’. This is a reference to the mouth of the Thames. However, for the same reasons that eliminate Richborough as a possibility, this location must be rejected as unhistorical.
Yet, a plausible explanation for this mistake is that the tradition originally placed it at Aber Teifi. The letters ‘f’ and ‘m’ were often exchanged in medieval Welsh manuscripts. For this reason, mistaking ‘Aber Teifi’ for ‘Aber Temys’ is plausible.
Notably, Aber Teifi is another name for Cardigan. This provides yet more support for placing Arthur and Mordred’s initial battle in that area.
The Siege of Winchester
One final piece of the puzzle remains to be addressed. According to Geoffrey of Monmouth, Arthur besieged Mordred at Winchester at some point between the coastal battle and the final battle at Camlann.
It has been plausibly suggested that some of Geoffrey’s references to ‘Winchester’ are actually mistakes for ‘Caerwent’. This is because ‘chester’ is the English equivalent to ‘caer’ in Welsh, and ‘Win’ and ‘Went’ are also equivalent.
Of course, Caerwent makes no sense in the context of a route from Llamborth to Camlan Uchaf. Is there another possible identification of Winchester in this context?
As it happens, there is a settlement named Dre-wynt perfectly placed on the route between Llamborth and the Roman road that would have taken Mordred towards Camlann. The element ‘dre’ is a mutation of ‘tre’, meaning ‘town’. While not a perfect equivalent to the English ‘chester’, which means ‘fortified town’, it is very close.
It is surely plausible to conclude that Geoffrey could have seen the place name ‘Dre-wynt’, or ‘Wynt Town’ and decided to translate it as ‘Winchester’.
Given the placement of this location between Llamborth and the aforementioned Roman road, this makes perfect geographical sense of the tradition recorded by Geoffrey.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the Battle of Llongborth can be confidently identified as the initial conflict between Arthur and Mordred when the former attempted to return to Britain to deal with Mordred’s usurpation. It occurred at modern-day Llamborth, a few miles away from Cardigan.
At this battle, Arthur’s ally Geraint was mortally wounded. Llacheu, Arthur’s son, was also killed or mortally wounded. Although suffering many losses, Arthur ultimately won this battle and drove Mordred back, eventually defeating him at the Battle of Camlann.
Sources
Bartrum, Peter, A Welsh Classical Dictionary, 1993
Bromwich, Rachel, Trioedd Ynys Prydein: The Triads of the Island of Britain, 2014
Morris, John, Arthurian Period Sources, Vol 3: Persons, 1995
Breverton, Terry, Wales: A Historical Companion, 2009
Howells, Caleb, King Arthur: The Man Who Conquered Europe, 2019
