Raglan Library was a

library A library is a collection of materials, books or media that are accessible for use and not just for display purposes. A library provides physical (hard copies) or digital access (soft copies) materials, and may be a physical location or a vir ...

located in

Raglan Castle Raglan Castle ( cy, Castell Rhaglan) is a late medieval castle located just north of the village of Raglan in the county of Monmouthshire in south east Wales. The modern castle dates from between the 15th and early 17th centuries, when the succ ...

in the county of

Monmouthshire Monmouthshire ( cy, Sir Fynwy) is a county in the south-east of Wales. The name derives from the historic county of the same name; the modern county covers the eastern three-fifths of the historic county. The largest town is Abergavenny, with ...

in south east

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

. The library contained one of the most extensive collections of ancient Welsh

manuscript A manuscript (abbreviated MS for singular and MSS for plural) was, traditionally, any document written by hand – or, once practical typewriters became available, typewritten – as opposed to mechanically printing, printed or repr ...

s in history. This included works by Dafydd ap Gwilym,

Taliesin Taliesin ( , ; 6th century AD) was an early Brittonic poet of Sub-Roman Britain whose work has possibly survived in a Middle Welsh manuscript, the '' Book of Taliesin''. Taliesin was a renowned bard who is believed to have sung at the courts ...

Rhys Goch :''Distinguish from Rhys Goch ap Rhicert and Rhys Goch Glyndyfrdwy (fl. 1460)'' Rhys Goch Eryri (or Rhys ab Dafydd) ( fl. 1385 – 1448), was a 15th-century bard who lived at Hafod Garegog, near Beddgelert in North Wales. He was acquainted with Da ...

Jonas of Menevia Jonas may refer to: Geography * Jonas, Netherlands, Netherlands * Jonas, Pennsylvania, United States * Jonas Ridge, North Carolina, United States People with the name * Jonas (name), people with the given name or surname Jonas * Jonas, one of t ...

Ederyn the Golden-tongued Edern ap Nudd ( la, Hiderus; Old french: Yder or ') was a knight of the Round Table in Arthur's court in early Arthurian tradition. As the son of Nudd (the ''Nu'', ''Nut'' or ''Nuc'' of Old French, Arthurian romance ), he is the brother of Gwyn, ...

, Einion the Priest, Cwtta Cyvarwydd,

Siôn Cent Siôn Cent (c. 1400 – 1430/45), (or 1367? – 1430?) was a Welsh language poet, and is an important figure in Medieval Welsh literature. Similarity to other persons He has also been called Sion Gwent by Gruffydd Robert and Sion Y Kent and Sion K ...

and

Dafydd Ddu o Hiraddug Dafydd Ddu o Hiraddug (died 1371), also known as Dafydd Ddu Athro o Hiraddug, was a Welsh language poet, grammarian, and Roman Catholic priest in the diocese of Llanelwy (St Asaph). He was once believed to be the son of a certain Hywel ap Madog of ...

amongst others. It was destroyed and looted by parliamentarian forces under

Oliver Cromwell Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three Ki ...

in August 1646, during the

English civil war The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...

. The destruction of Raglan Library was described as an ''" loss to the literature of Wales"''.

References

External links

Raglan Castle and the Civil War on castlewales.com
{{Authority control Former library buildings in Wales Ancient libraries Demolished buildings and structures in Wales