4 h 38 minAudiobook8 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What remains when warriors lose the battle, but their names refuse to fade?
In Y Gododin: A Poem of the Battle of Cattraeth, a lord named Mynyddog Mwynfawr gathers chosen warriors. They belong to the Gododdin, a Brittonic people from what is now south east Scotland. Their world holds feasting halls, mead, horses and spears. They ride south to Catraeth, where a far larger enemy awaits.
Credited to Aneirin, the poem remembers these men through short laments rather than a single unfolding plot. Each piece honours a warrior or a small group, measuring them by courage and loyalty rather than victory. Grief gives the praise its force. Preserved in the Book of Aneirin, the poem also raises questions about how its words change across centuries.
What you’ll discover
- A hall before battle Enter a warrior world where feasting and generosity stand beside the prospect of war.
- Names held in memory Meet fallen men through separate tributes that keep each warrior distinct within the loss.
- Honour beyond victory Explore praise rooted in courage and loyalty, even when the battle ends in defeat.
- A chain of laments Follow linked memorial songs whose power comes from remembrance rather than a straight narrative.
- The roots of Welsh poetry Discover an early poetic voice whose age and changing words still invite scholarly debate.
Is it for you?
This is for readers who like early poetry, Celtic history, or the roots of British legend, and for anyone curious how a defeat can become a monument in words. It may suit you less if you want a single plot with a clear line.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A lost kingdom speaks through song
- A year of feasting leads to war
- Each stanza names a fallen man
- Honour matters more than winning
- How the poem sounds and is built
- Why the poem still matters today
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet, computer or Kindle, with the type as large as you like.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, from the first page.
- Audiobook
- 4 h 38 min, complete, read by Lucas Linden.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 8 minutes, to read or to hear.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
eBooks and audiobooks open right away. Download EPUB or PDF, or send the book to your Kindle. Every printed copy is made when you order it and shipped worldwide; shipping is shown at checkout.
How it works · 60-day guarantee
- Start free. Nothing to pay today; the eBook of this book is yours to keep.
- Read, listen and print. 200,000+ classics as eBook, large-print eBook, audiobook and 15-minute summary, and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print, for the whole household.
- We remind you first. We email you 7 days before your first payment. Then your first year is 50% off: 0,14 USD a day, then 0,27 USD a day, never raised. Or 0,66 USD a day on the monthly plan. Cancel online in two clicks.
60-day money-back guarantee. If the library is not for you, ask within 60 days of your first payment and we refund it in full.
25 languages, side by side
Read and hear Y Gododin : poème de la bataille de Cattraeth in 25 languages and switch at any time. Or read two side by side, paragraph by paragraph: the way to learn a language with a book you love.
Read it side by side
Y Gododin : poème de la bataille de Cattraeth
by Aneirin
Welsh laments mourn warriors after a lost battle.
Excellent
- Read or listen
- 25 languages, side by side
- Print and large print at cost
- The whole household
Starts right away, on any device
Read free60-day money-back guaranteeRenews every yearCancel anytimeHow it works
Language: Français
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1 of 6
A lost kingdom speaks through song
The Gododdin were a Brittonic people. Their language was an ancestor of Welsh, and they lived in what is now south east Scotland. Their stronghold is thought to have been Din Eidyn, the fort that became Edinburgh. This was the period after Roman rule had gone, when British kingdoms stood beside the growing English kingdoms of the east and south.
This region is often called the Old North, in Welsh Yr Hen Ogledd. The Welsh of later centuries remembered it as a lost homeland of heroes and poets. Aneirin is said to have belonged to this world. Another poet, Taliesin, is linked to it too. Their work was kept alive in Wales long after the northern British kingdoms had vanished.
Renews every year · Cancel anytime
Free gifts
580 USD in free gifts when you start
Every book in every format and in 25 languages, for the whole household. Nothing to pay today.
- 200,000+ classic eBooksIn 25 languages, side by side
170 USDFREE - Every audiobookIn 25 languages, any device
120 USDFREE - 15-minute summariesRead or listen, in 25 languages
60 USDFREE - Print at cost, no markupPaperback, hardcover, large print
60 USDFREE - The whole householdUp to 5 readers
170 USDFREE - A part in rebuilding the libraryNew languages and books for all
FREE
More like this
Free
Free
Free
Our mission
The library burned once. We are building it back.
Every great book, in every language and every format, for every family. Every plan helps pay for new languages, new audiobooks and books for readers who have never had them. Join the movement.
Read our story- Every language25 languages today, side by side, and more every year
- No wastePrinted on demand: no warehouses, no unsold stock, no pulped copies
- For everyonePaperback, hardcover and large print at the cost of printing
Questions about Y Gododin : poème de la bataille de Cattraeth
Can I read it free?
Yes. The beginning, from the first page to the end of chapter 1, and the first 5 minutes of the audiobook are free with no sign-up. Start free and the whole book is yours for 90 days, with the eBook to keep. After that, your first year is 50% off. You also get 200,000+ more classics and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print. Nothing to pay today: we email you 7 days before your first payment, and you can cancel online in two clicks.
Can I buy the printed book?
Soon. The paperback, hardcover and large print editions are being prepared. Choose Paperback or Hardcover above, leave your email, and we tell you the day you can order it, printed at cost.
Can my family read too?
Yes. The whole household reads and listens: up to 5 readers, each with their own shelf and their own place in every book.
What if it is not for me?
Cancel online in two clicks at any time and nothing more is charged. If you have paid and the library is not for you, ask within 60 days of your first payment and we refund it in full.
What is Y Gododdin about?
It is a series of elegies for warriors of the Gododdin, a British people of south east Scotland, who feasted in their lord's hall and then rode to fight at Catraeth. Each stanza mourns and praises named men.
Who was Aneirin?
Aneirin was an early Welsh poet, traditionally placed in the late sixth century, and the author named in Y Gododdin. Welsh tradition counts him among the earliest poets of the Britons, alongside Taliesin.
Where was Catraeth?
Catraeth is usually identified with Catterick in North Yorkshire, though scholars cannot be certain. The poem gives few details of the place, and the battle is poorly attested in other early sources.
Popular in poetry and plays
See all
Free
Free
Free
Free
Free
Free
Free
Free
Free
