eld the standard of Welsh nationality,
the dragon of Welsh independence; only in Gwynedd and its dependencies
did the Welsh public law prevail over feudal custom. And what was the
result? Exactly what Giraldus Cambrensis had foreseen and longed for.
The eyes of Welshmen everywhere began to turn to the Lord of Eryri,
the one hope of Wales. It was an alluring--an inspiring prospect,
which opened before the princes of Gwynedd--to head a national
movement, drive out the foreigners, and unite all Wales under their
sway. Llywelyn ap Iorwerth, at the end of his long reign, deliberately
rejected the dream. That is the meaning of his emphatic declaration
of fidelity and submission to Henry III. in 1237. "Llywelyn, Prince of
Wales, by special messengers sent word to the king that, as his time
of life required that he should thenceforth abandon all strife and
tumult of war, and should for the future enjoy peace, he had
determined to place himself and his possessions under the authority
and protection of him, the English king, and would hold his lands from
him in all fealty and friendship, and enter into an indissoluble
treaty; and if the king should go on any expedition he would, to the
best of his power, as his liege subject, promote it, by assisting him
with troops, arms, horses, and money." Llywelyn the Great refused to
dispute the suzerainty of England. This may appear pusillanimous to
the enthusiastic patriot, but subsequent events proved the old
statesman's wisdom and clearsightedness. His successors were less
cautious, were carried away by the patriotism round them and the syren
voices of the bards. And to Llywelyn ap Gruffydd the prospect was even
more tempting than to Llywelyn ap Iorwerth. The Barons' War weakened
the power of England, and the necessities of Simon de Montfort led
him to enter into an alliance with Llywelyn. The expansion of Gwynedd
was great and rapid. Llywelyn's rule extended as far south as Merthyr,
and made itself felt on the shores of Carmarthen Bay. The Earl of
Gloucester found it necessary to build Caerphilly Castle to uphold his
influence in Glamorgan. But it was just the expansion of Llywelyn's
power which forced Edward I. to overthrow him once for all. "We hold
it better"--so ran Edward's proclamation in 1282--"that, for the
common weal, we and the inhabitants of our land should be wearied by
labours and expenses this once, although the burden seem heavy, in
order to destroy their wickedness altog