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tjj My biological father was welsh, he named my sister Gwenhwyfar because she was so white even just after being born. Hence the name Branwen too - white raven.

moss I thought of this legend,but couldn't decide if what I remembered was from The Crystal Cave by Margaret Stewart, and so part fiction. What about the legend of Bran the Blessed, his head is buried at White Mount and if it ever leaves off its placement there, guarding our shores, Britain will fall. (Bran means raven - which gave rise to the obfuscation that Britain would fall if the ravens left the Tower of London at White Mount). That aside, the head and the stone are closely connected in celtic myth and legend.

GLADMANThe northern welsh kingdoms were founded by Cunnedda who came down from Scotland. Perhaps it's that long memory and insularity of the celts that still carries on.

cerrig It strikes me that Wales is just the last bastion of the brythonic speaking celts, and they once spread all over Britain, giving us the name Britain, in fact. The older legends probably belong to the whole country now. Perhaps what you heard was something to do with the thirteen treasures of the Islands of Britain, which in those times, were the Islands of the Pretani, or what became the Welsh. What remains of written legends about these treasures date to fairly recently, but it has the flavour of ancient things passed down into modern times. Different translations have different treasures in different manuscripts.
http://www.maryjones.us/ctexts/13.html

moss ;"I thought of this legend,but couldn't decide if what I remembered was from The Crystal Cave by Margaret Stewart, and so part fiction. What about the legend of Bran the Blessed, his head is buried at White Mount and if it ever leaves off its placement there, guarding our shores, Britain will fall. (Bran means raven - which gave rise to the obfuscation that Britain would fall if the ravens left the Tower of London at White Mount). That aside, the head and the stone are closely connected in celtic myth and legend."

As Gladman says Welsh history is extrordinary complicated without bringing in Nennius, Geoffrey of Monmouth and Gildas the monk into the discussion;)
As you say Cunedda migrated down from Scotland and came after Vortigen as a leader, interestingly if you read the Vortigen study link on the Dinas Emrys page, the sacrifical boy/magician/next leader who told the tale of the two dragons - Ambrosius, may be part of the legend of Stonehenge as well, a meeting having take place at Amesbury.
Whatever this 'dark age' when all was up for grabs as far as storytelling is concerned had I believe the one mention of Arthur up in Scotland fighting a battle, now whether he came down with Cunedda might explain his presence, I like to think Arthur was a king at Caerwent, but Tintagel is another stronghold for him.
Trying to remember the story of the warriors/king who slept in a cave, and if you woke them up, he would become the next king of Wales? or have I got it wrong..

Branwen wrote:
I thought of this legend,but couldn't decide if what I remembered was from The Crystal Cave by Margaret Stewart, and so part fiction. What about the legend of Bran the Blessed, his head is buried at White Mount and if it ever leaves off its placement there, guarding our shores, Britain will fall. (Bran means raven - which gave rise to the obfuscation that Britain would fall if the ravens left the Tower of London at White Mount). That aside, the head and the stone are closely connected in celtic myth and legend.
It was good to see the Crystal Cave by Mary Stewart mentioned. Some years ago my dear father gave me a book of her poetry called Frost on the Window. In the section called Poems of Merlin there is a poem adapted from the Old English poem, 'The Wanderer' called 'He Who is Companionless'. Here is the last verse:

Alas, the bright cup!
Alas, the hall of feasting!
Alas, the sword that kept
The sheep-fold and the apple-orchard
Safe from the claw of the wolf!
The wolf-slayer is dead.
The law-giver, the law-upholder is dead,
While the sad wolf's self, with the eagle, and the raven,
Come as kings, instead.
(from The Wicked Day)

tjj