In Welsh tradition, Hueil mab Caw (also spelled Huail or Cuillus) was a

Pict The Picts were a group of peoples who lived in what is now northern and eastern Scotland (north of the Firth of Forth) during Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages. Where they lived and what their culture was like can be inferred from ear ...

ish warrior and traditional rival of King Arthur's. He was one of the numerous sons of Caw of Prydyn and brother to

Saint Gildas Gildas ( Breton: ''Gweltaz''; c. 450/500 – c. 570) — also known as Gildas the Wise or ''Gildas Sapiens'' — was a 6th-century British monk best known for his scathing religious polemic ''De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae'', which recounts ...

. The

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

''Life of

Gildas Gildas (Breton: ''Gweltaz''; c. 450/500 – c. 570) — also known as Gildas the Wise or ''Gildas Sapiens'' — was a 6th-century British monk best known for his scathing religious polemic ''De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae'', which recounts ...

'' by Caradoc of Llancarfan describes Hueil as an "active warrior and most distinguished soldier", who led a number of violent and sweeping raids from Scotland down into Arthur's territory. As a result, Arthur marched on Hueil and pursued him as far as the

Isle of Man ) , anthem = "O Land of Our Birth" , image = Isle of Man by Sentinel-2.jpg , image_map = Europe-Isle_of_Man.svg , mapsize = , map_alt = Location of the Isle of Man in Europe , map_caption = Location of the Isle of Man (green) in Europe ...

, where he killed the young plunderer.

Giraldus Cambrensis Gerald of Wales ( la, Giraldus Cambrensis; cy, Gerallt Gymro; french: Gerald de Barri; ) was a Cambro-Norman priest and historian. As a royal clerk to the king and two archbishops, he travelled widely and wrote extensively. He studied and taugh ...

alludes to this tradition, claiming that Gildas destroyed "a number of outstanding books" praising Arthur after hearing of the death of his brother. A variation of Hueil's death, chronicled by Elis Gruffudd, is as follows: The feud between Hueil and Arthur is further alluded to in the early Arthurian tale ''

Culhwch and Olwen ''Culhwch and Olwen'' ( cy, Culhwch ac Olwen) is a Welsh tale that survives in only two manuscripts about a hero connected with Arthur and his warriors: a complete version in the Red Book of Hergest, c. 1400, and a fragmented version in the Whit ...

'' in which Hueil alongside his many brothers is a knight of Arthur's court and is described as having "never submitted to a lord's hand." The text refers to an incident in which Hueil stabbed his nephew, Gwydre ap Llwydeu, which was the source of the enmity between them. The

Welsh Triads The Welsh Triads ( cy, Trioedd Ynys Prydein, "Triads of the Island of Britain") are a group of related texts in medieval manuscripts which preserve fragments of Welsh folklore, mythology and traditional history in groups of three. The triad is a ...

refer to Hueil as one of the three "battle-diademed" warriors alongside Cai and Drustan, but inferior to

Bedwyr Bedivere ( or ; cy, Bedwyr; la, Beduerus; french: link=no, Bédoier, also Bedevere and other spellings) is one of the earliest characters to be featured in the legend of King Arthur, originally described in several Welsh texts as the one-hande ...

. Hueil is further mentioned in the late twelfth century ''

Englynion y Clyweit Englynion y Clywaid (or Englynion y Clyweit) is a collection of Welsh stanzas. The stanzas date to around the 10th century or the late 12th or early 13th century according to Ifor Williams, as well as other academics. The earliest manuscript w ...

'', a collection of proverbial

englyn (; plural ) is a traditional Welsh and Cornish short poem form. It uses quantitative metres, involving the counting of syllables, and rigid patterns of rhyme and half rhyme. Each line contains a repeating pattern of consonants and accent know ...

s attributed to various historical and mythological heroes. The text describes him as "the son of Caw, whose saying was just" and claims that he once sang the proverb "Often will a curse fall from the bosom."
''Englynion y Clyweit''

References

{{reflist Welsh mythology Arthurian characters