Owain mab Urien (

Middle Welsh Middle Welsh ( cy, Cymraeg Canol, wlm, Kymraec) is the label attached to the Welsh language of the 12th to 15th centuries, of which much more remains than for any earlier period. This form of Welsh developed directly from Old Welsh ( cy, Hen G ...

Owein) (died c. 595) was the son of

Urien Urien (; ), often referred to as Urien Rheged or Uriens, was a late 6th-century king of Rheged, an early British kingdom of the Hen Ogledd (today's northern England and southern Scotland) of the House of Rheged. His power and his victories, ...

, king of

Rheged Rheged () was one of the kingdoms of the ''Hen Ogledd'' ("Old North"), the Brittonic-speaking region of what is now Northern England and southern Scotland, during the post-Roman era and Early Middle Ages. It is recorded in several poetic and b ...

c. 590, and fought with his father against the

Angles The Angles ( ang, Ængle, ; la, Angli) were one of the main Germanic peoples who settled in Great Britain in the post-Roman period. They founded several kingdoms of the Heptarchy in Anglo-Saxon England. Their name is the root of the name ' ...

Bernicia Bernicia ( ang, Bernice, Bryneich, Beornice; la, Bernicia) was an Anglo-Saxon kingdom established by Anglian settlers of the 6th century in what is now southeastern Scotland and North East England. The Anglian territory of Bernicia was ap ...

. The historical figure of Owain became incorporated into the Arthurian cycle of legends where he is also known as

Ywain Sir Ywain , also known as Yvain and Owain among other spellings (''Ewaine'', ''Ivain'', ''Ivan'', ''Iwain'', ''Iwein'', ''Uwain'', ''Uwaine'', etc.), is a Knight of the Round Table in Arthurian legend, wherein he is often the son of King Urie ...

, Yvain, Ewain or Uwain. In his legendary guise he is the main character in Chrétien de Troyes's ''

Yvain, the Knight of the Lion , original_title_lang = fro , translator = , written = between 1178 and 1181 , country = , language = Old French , subject = Arthurian legend , genre = Chivalric romance , fo ...

'' and the

Welsh Romance The Three Welsh Romances (Welsh: ') are three Middle Welsh tales associated with the ''Mabinogion''. They are versions of Arthurian tales that also appear in the work of Chrétien de Troyes. Critics have debated whether the Welsh Romances are bas ...

'' Owain, or the Lady of the Fountain'', which corresponds to Chrétien's poem.

Historical Owain

Our chief references to the historical Owain appear in the poems of

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 ...

, Urien's bard. In one poem, he appears as the victor of the

Battle of Alclud Ford The Battle of Alclud Ford was a battle in ''c.''580 at an unknown ford near Alt Clut, the original name for Dumbarton Rock which could also be used for the whole of the kingdom of Strathclyde in modern-day Scotland. It is known from two poems in ...

. Another, ''Gweith Argoed Llwyfain'' ("The Battle of Argoed Llwyfain"), tells of Owain's part in a battle between the men of

under Urien and the men of Bernicia under "Fflamddwyn" (Firestealer), possibly the Anglian king Theodric. When Fflamddwyn demands hostages, Owain shouts defiance and inspires the men of Rheged to fight rather than give tribute to the English. Taliesin also composed ''Marwnad Owain'', an elegy to Owain. In the poem, it is said that Owain slew Fflamddwyn: :Pan laddodd Owain Fflamddwyn Nid oedd fwy nogyd cysgaid :Cysgid Lloegr llydan nifer , A lleufer yn eu llygaid :A rhai ni ffoynt haeach , A oeddynt hyach na rhaid :Owain a'u cosbes yn ddrud , Mal cnud yn dylud defaid :When Owain slew Fflamddwyn it was no more to him than to sleep :The wide host of Lloegr nglandsleeps with the light in their eyes :And those that did not flee were braver than was needed :Owain punished them harshly like a pack of wolves chasing sheep He inherited the kingdom of Rheged when his father was killed, but was immediately beset by his British neighbours, Gwallawc Marchawc Trin of

Elmet Elmet ( cy, Elfed), sometimes Elmed or Elmete, was an independent Brittonic kingdom between about the 5th century and early 7th century, in what later became the smaller area of the West Riding of Yorkshire then West Yorkshire, South Yorkshir ...

and Dunaut Bwr; the former attacking Owain's brother Elffin whilst Owain and Pasgen, another brother, fought Dunaut. Owain was slain in battle against his father's old nemesis

Morcant Bulc Morcant Bulc was a Britons (historical), Brythonic prince, probably a king, from Northern Sub-Roman Britain, Britain, during the period between the end of the Roman Empire and the establishment of an English people, English state during the early ...

of Bryneich after a short reign. His death marked the end of Rheged as an effective power. He is said to be buried at ''Llan-Forfael'' or ''Llan-Heledd'', which local traditions place in the churchyard of St. Andrew's at Penrith, though it is possible that the grave is actually that of the later Owen Cesarius. Owain is said to be the father of St. Kentigern Garthwys by Denw, the daughter of "Leuddun", commonly identified with

Lot Lot or LOT or The Lot or ''similar'' may refer to: Common meanings Areas * Land lot, an area of land * Parking lot, for automobiles *Backlot, in movie production Sets of items *Lot number, in batch production *Lot, a set of goods for sale togethe ...

Lothian Lothian (; sco, Lowden, Loudan, -en, -o(u)n; gd, Lodainn ) is a region of the Scottish Lowlands, lying between the southern shore of the Firth of Forth and the Lammermuir Hills and the Moorfoot Hills. The principal settlement is the Sco ...

. Owain is believed to have dressed as a woman and raped

Saint Teneu Teneu (or Thenew ( la, Theneva), Tannoch, Thaney, Thanea, Denw, etc.) is a legendary Christian saint who was venerated in medieval Glasgow, Scotland. Traditionally she was a sixth-century Brittonic princess of the ancient kingdom of Gododdin ( ...

, the mother of Kentigern.

Owain of legend

Over the centuries, the history of Owain known to storytellers faded sufficiently that he was incorporated into Welsh

Arthurian legend The Matter of Britain is the body of medieval literature and legendary material associated with Great Britain and Brittany and the legendary kings and heroes associated with it, particularly King Arthur. It was one of the three great Wester ...

and stories about him spread to continental Europe. Chrétien's ''Yvain, the Knight of the Lion'' and the related Mabinogion story ''Owain, or the Lady of the Fountain'' are devoted to his exploits, and he appears prominently in the Mabinogion tale ''

The Dream of Rhonabwy ''The Dream of Rhonabwy'' ( cy, Breuddwyd Rhonabwy) is a Middle Welsh prose tale. Set during the reign of Madog ap Maredudd, prince of Powys (died 1160), its composition is typically dated to somewhere between the late 12th through the late 14th c ...

'' and briefly in

Geoffrey of Monmouth Geoffrey of Monmouth ( la, Galfridus Monemutensis, Galfridus Arturus, cy, Gruffudd ap Arthur, Sieffre o Fynwy; 1095 – 1155) was a British cleric from Monmouth, Wales and one of the major figures in the development of British historiograph ...

's ''

Historia Regum Britanniae ''Historia regum Britanniae'' (''The History of the Kings of Britain''), originally called ''De gestis Britonum'' (''On the Deeds of the Britons''), is a pseudohistorical account of British history, written around 1136 by Geoffrey of Monmouth. I ...

''. The character is portrayed as an excellent knight in the later romances, the

Lancelot-Grail The ''Lancelot-Grail'', also known as the Vulgate Cycle or the Pseudo-Map Cycle, is an early 13th-century French Arthurian literary cycle consisting of interconnected prose episodes of chivalric romance in Old French. The cycle of unknown author ...

cycle and

Sir Thomas Malory Sir Thomas Malory was an English writer, the author of ''Le Morte d'Arthur'', the classic English-language chronicle of the Arthurian legend, compiled and in most cases translated from French sources. The most popular version of ''Le Morte d'Ar ...

's '' Le Morte d'Arthur'', under one spelling of his name or another. In ''The Dream of Rhonabwy'', he plays a game of chess against Arthur while Rhonabwy looks on and the Saxons prepare to fight. The outlines of Chrétien's ''

'' and ''Owain, or the Lady of the Fountain'' are essentially the same; Owain hears of a magical storm-making fountain in the forest of

Brocéliande Brocéliande, earlier known as Brécheliant and Brécilien, is a legendary enchanted forest that had a reputation in the medieval European imagination as a place of magic and mystery. Brocéliande is featured in several medieval texts, mostly r ...

and seeks it out, only to find it defended by an excellent knight. He defeats this warrior and marries his wife

Laudine Laudine is a character in Chrétien de Troyes's 12th-century romance ''Yvain, or, The Knight with the Lion'' and all of its adaptations, which include the Welsh tale of '' Owain, or the Lady of the Fountain'' and the German epic ''Iwein'' by ...

, but forsaking his marital duties for knightly exploits, he loses her love. With the aid of a lion he rescues from a serpent, he completes several adventures and is eventually reunited with his lady. He appears in most of the later accounts, his importance indicated by his close friendship with

Gawain Gawain (), also known in many other forms and spellings, is a character in Arthurian legend, in which he is King Arthur's nephew and a Knight of the Round Table. The prototype of Gawain is mentioned under the name Gwalchmei in the earliest ...

and the passage in the ''Mort Artu'' section of the Lancelot-Grail cycle where he is one of the last knights to die before Arthur. Almost all versions of the Arthurian story have Owain as

's son and Arthur's nephew, and the later accounts assume his mother is

Morgan le Fay Morgan le Fay (, meaning 'Morgan the Fairy'), alternatively known as Morgan ''n''a, Morgain ''a/e Morg ''a''ne, Morgant ''e Morge ''i''n, and Morgue ''inamong other names and spellings ( cy, Morgên y Dylwythen Deg, kw, Morgen an Spyrys), is a ...

, if not one of the King's other half-sisters. He has a half brother called Owain (or Yvain) the Bastard after him, the product of a union between Urien and his seneschal's wife. The Welsh give him a twin sister,

Morvydd Morfydd ferch Urien (Middle Welsh orthographical variations include ''Morvydd verch Urien''; "Morfydd daughter of Urien") is a figure of Welsh Arthurian legend. She is the daughter of Urien Rheged by Modron, and twin sister to Owain. Morfydd appe ...

, and as Arthur's maternal nephew he is a cousin to Gawain and the Orkney clan.

Historical Owain

Owain of legend

See also