4 h 38 minAudiobook14 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 4 h 38 minPaperback · 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.
Who will love it
This is for readers who love early poetry, Welsh and Celtic history, war elegies and the age of Arthur. It suits anyone curious how a warrior society used song to honour loss.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A bard and a lord bound by gifts
- A year of feasting buys a battle
- Kayawc leads the charge into slaughter
- Each fallen man gets a portrait and a name
- Mead turns to poison and faith asks for mercy
- Only one man in a hundred comes home
- The poet survives prison and sings for the dead
- Repeated openings, strange stanzas and lasting echoes
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Y Gododin: Un poema sulla Battaglia di Cattraeth
by Aneirin
Three hundred and sixty-three warriors feast for a year, then ride to Cattraeth, and a bard counts who comes home.
Medium level2–5 hours to readItaliano
Excellent
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In short
What would you give for a year of feasting, if the bill came due in blood? In Y Gododin, a war band of three hundred and sixty-three men drinks mead and wine in a lord's hall at Eidyn, the place scholars link with Edinburgh.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A bard and a lord bound by gifts
The poem belongs to the old North of Britain, where Britons and English fought over the land between the Forth and the Humber. Its voice is Aneirin, a bard who sings as a man who was there. He ate at the lord's table, he knew the dead by name, and he feels he owes them his song.
At the centre stands Mynyddog, lord of Eidyn. His hall is rich in mead, wine, horses and gold, and the poem calls him courteous and generous. Many stanzas return to that hall, linking a warrior's deeds in the field with the gifts of the feast.
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Which edition is right for me
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 14 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- Language
- Italiano
- Reading time
- 3 h 0 min
- Level
- Medium level
Cite this edition
Aneirin. Y Gododin: A Poem of the Battle of Cattraeth. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/y-gododin-a-poem-of-the-battle-of-cattraeth.
Aneirin. (2026). Y Gododin: A poem of the Battle of Cattraeth. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/y-gododin-a-poem-of-the-battle-of-cattraeth
Aneirin. Y Gododin: A Poem of the Battle of Cattraeth. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/y-gododin-a-poem-of-the-battle-of-cattraeth.
@book{aneirin2026y,
author = {Aneirin},
title = {Y Gododin: A Poem of the Battle of Cattraeth},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/y-gododin-a-poem-of-the-battle-of-cattraeth}
}
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What is Y Gododin about?
It is an early Welsh poem that mourns a war band sent by the lord Mynyddog to Cattraeth after a year of feasting. Most stanzas praise or lament warriors, and the poet repeatedly counts the few who return.
Who wrote Y Gododin and when?
The poem is credited to Aneirin, a bard of the old North of Britain, and is traditionally dated to the late sixth century. It speaks in the voice of a survivor who was present at the battle.
Where and what is Cattraeth?
Cattraeth is the place where the battle in the poem is fought. The poem names it often but does not describe it fully. The men ride there from Eidyn, a place scholars link with Edinburgh, to face the English kingdoms.
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