The Island of the Mighty is the retelling of the Fourth Branch of the Mabinogi concerning the
druid prince Gwydion, his sister Arianhod, their son Llew Llaw Gyffes and their Uncle Math ab Mathonwy,
King of the Welsh Principality of Gwynedd a century or so after the coming of the Celts to Britain (ca 500 BCE). Like the Arthurian legends they resemble, the Mabinogi mix ancient Celtic and pre-Celtic mythology with arguably historical stories. The original Mabinogi as we now have them take place in an anachronistic Christian medieval context. Walton returns the stories to their likely pre Roman and druidic context. Walton never makes entirely clear whether the characters are tribal gods or people (Llew is a Welsh form of the name of the Celtic god Lug for whom Lyon France and London England are both named.) As background, Pwyll, King of Dyfed, of the invading Celtic tribes had once befriended Arawn, King of Annwn, kingdom of the dead. He also married the goddess Rhiannon who became human again for that purpose. They had a child Pryderi, though according to Walton, Pwyll could not father children and had to ask his mentor Manawyddan
ap Llyr, himself of the pre-Celtic tribes or “Prydain”, High Druid and brother of the High King Bran the Blessed, to take his place in a kind of Celtic prima nocte with Rhiannon. Manawyddan was fond of both Pwyll and Rhiannon and taking Pwyll’s form so that noone would know, fathered Pryderi who was thus entirely of the Prydain. Arawn continued, after Pwyll’s death, to cherish Pryderi and gave him the first herd of domesticated pigs in the world. Gwydion learned of the pigs and decided to combine the enterprise of getting some pigs with helping his younger brother, Gilvaethwy seduce Goewyn, King Math’s virgin “footholder”. King Math would die if he was not either at war or having his feet held in the lap of a virgin. In the old heroic cattle raiding motif of the Celts, when acquiring livestock, Gwydion preferred crafty and courageous lareny to dull honest bargaining. He mistakenly regarded Pryderi as a Celt and did not feel obliged to treat him honorably. Math, wiser, more honorable generally and knowing Pryderi to be Prydain, forsaw the harm that this would bring, but allowed Gwydion to proceed knowing that for Gwydion experientia solum docet. Pryderi was defrauded of some pigs and invaded Gwynedd. Math went to raise the hosts of Gwynedd, Givaethwy forced himself upon Goewyn, and Gwynedd battled Pryderi’s army. Pryderi died in single combat with Gwydion, cursing Gwydion’s flesh to one day be the food of the swine he stole. Goewyn was forthright with Math who then took her as a wife (a custom yet barely known among the Prydain whose women chose their lovers freely). Gwydion and Gilvaethwy were transformed successively over three years into mating pairs of deer, boars and wolves. Then Gwydion, forgiven and human again, fascinated by ideas learned from the Celts and Egyptian traders, longed to have a son to rule after him, but only by his beloved sister Aranrhod. He seduced a willing Arianrhod and playing to her vanity and ambition suggested she seek the exalted position of royal virgin footholder. Math tested her virginity, as Gwydion had forseen, and the children that would have resulted from her liasons with Gwydion and an undersea King from Caer Sidi were suddenly born. She fled home in shame, the Caer Sidian child, Dylan, returned to the sea and Gwydion grabbed up the other boy, took him to Caer Seon and raised him. Arhianrhod in anger swore noone could name her son. Gwydion tricked her with
sorcery into naming the boy Llew Llaw Gyffes. Arianrhod then cursed him to receive arms from noone but her and Gwydion again deceived her into giving him weapons. Finally she swore he could never lay with any human born woman so Gwydion and Math created a beautiful woman, Blodeuwedd, from flowers. Llew became a great prince and with Blodeuwedd ruled over a part of Gwynedd. One day Llew went to visit Gwydion and Math. Goronwy Pevr of Pennlyn came to Llew’s castle, and Blodeuwedd fell in love with him. Together they plotted and killed Llew a year later and Goronwy magically took Llew’s likeness. Gwydion knowing Llew dead, searched for months, finally finding Llew’s abandoned body being devoured by swine, and his disembodied soul in an eagle, and he reunited them. Then Dylan returned from the sea to meet Arianrhod. Still angry at her humiliation by Gwydion, she tricked Dylan into asking her brother Govannon for a spear to kill Gorowny Pevr. Govanon killed Dylan, thinking him Gorowny as Arianrhod had arranged. Arianrhod, driven mad by realization of what she had done, removed the cover from the
sacred well in the depths of her castle unleashing the vengeance of the sea and inundating her island. The death of Arianrhod was originally written by Walton from her interpretation of references in the Triads. Returning to the Mabinogi, Gwydion healed Llew, and Math and Gwydion raised Gwynedd to destroy Goronwy. Gwydion went ahead and at Llew’s request for clemency, transformed Blodeuwedd into an Owl. Llew killed Goronwy in single combat. It is not clear whether he could ever find a consort again though the Triads say he had a son.
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