Miscellanea,

Miscellaneous papers containing notes, transcripts, extracts, etc., in the hand of Edward Williams ('Iolo Morganwg') bound together in one volume. The contents include pp. 10-18, notes on the royal ancestors of Iestyn ab Gwrgan, lord of Glamorgan, to the time of Morgan Mwynfawr extracted 'o Lyfr Mr. Thos. Trueman o Bantlliwydd' (for the Welsh text see Iolo Manuscripts . . ., pp. 3-11, and for an English translation ibid., pp. 331-56); 21, extracts [from Thomas Carte: A General History of England . . . (London, 1747-1755)]; 22-38, notes on the rulers of Glamorgan from the time of Morgan Mwynfawr to the time of the aforementioned Iestyn ab Gwrgan, the quarrels leading to the conquest of Glamorgan by the Normans under Robert Fitzhamon, the subsequent Norman lords of the territory, and the coming of the Flemings to Glamorgan (for the Welsh text of pp. 22-9 see Iolo Manuscripts . . ., pp. 12-17, and for an English translation ibid., pp. 357-83); 39-40, a brief chronicle of political events, earthquakes, plagues, extreme weather conditions, etc., temp. William I to temp. Edward VI; 41, a short chronicle of events in South Wales, 1030-1079; 42-3, a list of the bishops of Llandaf, 436-1396; 44- 7, miscellaneous topographical and historical notes on Glamorgan; 48-9, notes on Dafydd ap Gwilym; 50-51, 'Hanes y tri Marchog ar ddeg' (an incomplete account of the thirteen Norman knights who conquered Glamorgan); 52-4, miscellaneous historical anecdotes relating mainly to Glamorgan (see Iolo Manuscripts . . ., pp. 64-7, 450-53); 56-60, genealogical and historical notes on the Stradling family, eleventh-seventeenth cent. ('allan o hen lyfr St. Dunwyd gan y Parchedig Mr. Edward Gamage, Periglor St. Athan'); 64-7, a Welsh-English list of species of apples found in Glamorgan and Gwent and of pears ?found in the same region (see IM., tt. 334-8); 68-9, a list of mountains and rivers in Glamorgan; 72-4, further notes on the lordship of Glamorgan and its conquest by the Normans (from British Museum Harleian MS 368; see Cambrian Journal, 1859, pp. 68-71); 78-81, a brief account of the history of Glamorgan from the time of Morgan Mwynfawr to the reign of Henry VIII 'translated from a Welsh MS late in the possession of the Revd. Mr. Gamage, Rector of St. Athan, and now of Mr. John Spen[ ] of the same place'; 82-5, historical anecdotes relating to the lords of Bewper Castle [co. Glamorgan], anecdotes relating to the brothers William and Richard Twrch and the building of the porch and chapel gateway at Bewper, late sixteenth-early seventeenth cent. (see IM, tt. 272-3), a note on Inigo Jones, and notes on Dunraven Castle; 86-95, notes relating to St. Illtud, the monastic church and school at Llanilltud [or Llantwit Major, co. Glamorgan], and the abbots of the said monastery, including extracts from [Thomas] Carte: op. cit., and a manuscript sketch plan of Llantwit Major, ? late eighteenth cent. (see note in IM, t. 316); 95-115, general notes on British history to the second half of the thirteenth cent., including extracts from Carte: op. cit.; 116-23, miscellaneous brief notes on the topography, agriculture, industries, commerce, etc., of Glamorgan, with references to the iron works at Merthyr Tidvil, Aberdare Vale, Newbridge, Pentyrch, and Melin Griffith, the porcelain works at Nantgarw, etc.; 125, extracts from Archaeologia, vol. VI; 126-7, notes on the Voss family more particularly William Voss of St. Athan and Nicolas Vosse of Lantwit (circa 1750) [both of co. Glamorgan], and the latter's books; 128-31, 'Cursory Remarks on reading Camden's account of Glamorgan'; 132-3, copies of extracts from the register of the parish of Lantwit Major [co. Glamorgan] and other data relating to the Vosse family; 134, proposals [by Edward Williams] for publishing a periodical to be called Dywenydd Morganwg (see IM, tt. 214, 363, 387-91); 135, a note on 'Y modd i wneuthur Lloriau da mewn tai' (see IM, t. 363); 136, notes on the village of Llandaff [co. Glamorgan] and the vicinity; 137, anecdotes relating to the poet Dafydd o'r Nant, [the Methodist cleric, the Reverend] Daniel Rowland, and a seventeenth century poet Will Tabwr; 142-3, a ? draft copy of a letter to the clergy of the town and neighbourhood of Cowbridge [co. Glamorgan], suggesting a plan for adding [Bishop Richard Watson's work A Collection of] Theological Tracts [Cambridge, 1785] to a circulating library the writer had established in the town; 146-7, copies of three English poems headed 'Poetical Anecdotes of Glamorgan', one being by Christopher Roberts of St. Athan and ? two by Edward Williams of Lancarvan; 148 and 151, brief notes on the Glamorgan towns, etc., of Caerffily, Merthyr Tidvil, Cowbridge, Bridgend, Lantrisant, Landaff, and Cardiff; 150, a list of the products of Glamorgan which were, or could become, articles of trade and commerce; 154-7, copies of the memorial inscription ? on the tomb of Roger Seys in the church of Lantwit Major, and notes on the Seys family's connection with the Boverton estate [co. Glamorgan]; 158- 69, notes on the topography, agricultural produce and methods, horticulture, etc., of Glamorgan headed 'Remarks on J. Fox's General View of the Agriculture of [the county of] Glamorgan ([London], 1796)', and notes on the pastime known as 'Bandy playing' (see IM, tt. 54-6); 170-76, observations on Newton Down [co. Glamorgan], and on Brandon Hill and Cliffon Hill near Bristol; 181, a report on a survey of the pillars and arches dividing the nave from the south aisle in Cowbridge parish church carried out in 1810 by the churchwardens assisted by Edward Williams ['Iolo Morganwg'] and Taliesin Williams, masons, and David Jenkins, carpenter; 182-3, an incomplete draft or copy of a letter in Welsh addressed to the Protestant dissenters of Glamorgan advising them to vote for [Thomas] Wyndham of Dwnrufan (Dunraven) rather than for his opponent Captain Thomas Windsor in the Glamorgan parliamentary election [? of 1789]; 188, notes on Boverton house [co. Glamorgan]; 192-3, an anecdote relating to Penmark church [co. Glamorgan]; 196-231, a transcript of the section of [John] Leland's Itinerary which deals with Glamorgan; 232-51, miscellanea including an incomplete Welsh poem on the county of Carmarthen, its towns, etc., observations on statements in the first few pages of [Edward] Jones: [Musical and Poetical Relicks of the Welsh] Bards . . ., 2nd ed. [1794], and further notes on 'bandy playing' (some of these on the blank versos and margins of printed proposals for publishing Edward Williams's volume of English verse Poems Lyric and Pastoral in 1792, and his Cyfrinach Beirdd Ynys Prydain in 1821); 253-4, the words and music of a 'Catch written for the Pine Apple Catch club in Bristol . . . by [Thomas] Chatterton, father of Thomas Chatterton, the poet'; 256-7, a copy of a letter in Welsh from Rhys Morgan from Pencraig nedd [co. Glamorgan], to [ ], 1751 (praise for recipient's poems, the continuance of the Welsh bardic tradition in Glamorgan, the state of the Welsh language in the county, its use in church services, the failure of the county of Monmouth to produce Welsh poets) (for the text of this letter with the opinion that it is a forgery to be attributed to Edward Williams himself see TLLM, tt. 260-61; see also ibid., tt. 101-02, and IM, tt.77-8, 274); 258-61, a copy of an eight-stanza 'Song for the Glamorgan Volunteers' by Edward Williams, with preface and notes on some of the proper names in the text; 262-73, notes on early Welsh literature, the extant manuscript sources thereof, the authenticity of the material in these manuscripts, etc., written on the verso and in the margins of copies of a printed handbill containing proposals, 1793, for publishing The Celtic Remains (vol. I by Lewis Morris, vol. II by Walter Davies), and of a printed handbill announcing an 'eisteddfod' to be held at Caerwys [co. Flint] in 1798 under the patronage of the Gwyneddigion Society (some of this material appears to be a draft version of sections of the essay 'A Short Review of the Present State of Welsh Manuscripts' which forms the preface to The Myvyrian Archaiology of Wales . . ., vol. I, (London, 1801)) (continued)
278-9, notes headed 'Llyma'r Ddosparth a wnaeth y Brenin Arthur ar achoedd a'r Cof a'r cadw arnynt ac ar fonedd Cenedl y Cymry a'u Breiniau'; 279, anecdotes relating to Gruffydd ap Llywelyn ap Seisyllt and opposition to his claim to the principality of Powys circa 1040, and a convention held at Henffordd ( Hereford) in connection therewith when matters relating to the genealogy and rights and privileges of the Welsh nobility, etc., were discussed and ? an agreed code was drawn up, and notes on the duties of the Welsh bards with regard to genealogy and heraldry; 280-85, notes relating to the Welsh bardic order and Welsh musicians including notes with the superscription 'Llyma hen Ystatut Cadair Tir Iarll fal a'i trefnwyd yn amser yr Arglwydd Clâr diweddaf . . .'; 286-9, miscellanea including notes on the meaning of the expressions 'Mab aillt' and 'Mab aillt beirdd', notes on the loss of a manuscript copy of the statutes of Grulfudd ap Cynan from the Ashmolean Museum [Oxford] and of a Welsh translation of the works of Aristotle by John David Rhys from the library of Jesus College [Oxford], a comment on Jesus College, and brief notes on the Welsh strict poetic metres; 295, a copy of an 'englyn' attributed to Dafydd ap Edmund; 303, notes on the relationship between the vocabulary of a language and the cultural and technical attainments of the speakers of the language; 305, a copy of an 'englyn' attributed to D[afydd ap] G[wilym]; 306-07, an incomplete transcript of a Welsh poem entitled 'Cynghorion Tad i'w Fab' attributed to Henry Evans 'o'r Gelli Gaer ym Morganwg'; 308-09, a transcript of twenty- two stanzas of Welsh verse entitled 'Englynion Marchwiail' and attributed to Mab claf ab Llywarch; 314, ? an extract re the Latin language from a letter from R. Flaherty to E[dward] Llwyd; 315, a note on Llywelyn Siôn, the Glamorgan scribe [late sixteenth cent.], a note on the possible origin of the 'coelbren' and 'coelfain' amongst the Welsh bards, and a transcript of four 'englynion' ? attributed to Rhys Brydydd; 316, a list of the descendants of Caw o Brydyn, a list of the achievements of the Stradling family ('Gweithredoedd y Stradlingiaid'), a note on Mauritius Morganensis, poet and rhetorician, a copy of an 'englyn' written by Prince Llywelyn ab Gruffudd after the battle of Aberconwy, a list of 'Saith Brif Glaswrdai Ynys Prydain', and a note on the castles of the kings of Morganwg; 317, notes relating to Caerfilly castle [co. Glamorgan] and to Sir Gilbert Stradling (temp. Richard I) and the origin of the Knights of the Garter; 317 + 322, notes on Sir Edward Stradling and his connection with Dr. John David Rhys and Dr. Thomas Lleison; 320, a note on the teaching activities of Glamorgan bards circa 1700, and ? a list of bards at an eisteddfod held at Llandaf in 1564; 320, 328, 329, 334-5 343, 363, 392, lists of Welsh proverbs, popular sayings, etc.; 322-7, notes on Welsh poetic metres, bardic meetings, and the tradition re the original home of the Ancient Britons (Deffrobani); 330-33, brief biographical notes on a number of Welsh bards (medieval- eighteenth cent.); 333, notes headed 'Gosgorddiadau'r ser ydynt fal hynn'; 335, a copy of six stanzas of Welsh verse entitled 'Pennillion Morganwg'; 337, lists of Welsh names for the months of the year (see John Williams: Barddas . . ., vol. I, pp. 410-17); 339, a copy of an 'englyn' attributed to Wm. Cynwal; 357, notes on an oak tree at Cefn Mabli, co. Glamorgan; 360, notes on an 'eisteddfod' held at Y Pil [co. Glamorgan], circa 1740, a brief list of Welsh triads, and a list of troubadours and Welsh poets, ob. 1122-1300; 361, notes on Dafydd ap Gwilym and the 'cywydd' measure, Dafydd o'r Llwyn, an 'eisteddfod' held at Nant Conwy [co. Caernarvon], 1 Edward IV, and the confusion concerning the date of the 'eisteddfod' held at Carmarthen, 1451 or 1461; 362, a transcript of an 'englyn' attributed to Samuel Jones 'o Fryn Llywarch'; 363, a transcript of an 'englyn' attributed to Thos. Llywelyn 'o Regoes' and a few Welsh triads; 370, a transcript of an 'englyn' attributed to Thos. Lln.; 371, a copy of an elegy in Welsh with the superscription 'Carmen Britanicum on the Death of Queen Caroline per Ned Edwards of Talgarth . . .', and a note on a copy of 'Dr. Gr. Roberts Grammar printed in Italy, A.D. 1567, in the hands of Mr. E. Evans. . .'; 381, a version of the Lord's Prayer (Welsh) in verse, and transcripts of 'englynion' attributed to Rhys Cain and ?D. o'r Nant; 387, a brief note on the building of Landaff Bridge and Rumney Bridge in the seventeenth century; 388, historical notes relating to Carfilly Castle; 390, transcripts of 'englynion' attributed to Huw Llyn, Wm Llyn, Siôn Tudur, and Dr. Morgan, Esgob Llandaf; 391, miscellaneous Welsh triads; 393, seventeen maxims headed 'Llyma ymadroddion Barddas o Lyfr Ieuan ab Hywel Swrdwal' (see John Williams: Barddas . . ., vol. I, pp- 270-75; 394, miscellaneous Welsh triads; 395, 'Gwyddor Dewiniaeth Gildas Broffwyd' (see Iolo Manuscripts . . ., pp. 195-6, 608-09); 396-7, miscellaneous notes on bardism, a few Welsh triads, and transcripts of ? two 'englynion' attributed to Siôn Tudur; 401, transcripts of two 'englynion' attributed to ? y Capten Middelton and Morys Cyffin; 405, an extract from a letter from Captain Wm. Myddelton to his nephew, and transcripts of 'englynion' attributed to D. Ddu Eryri and D. Davies, Castell Hywel; 460-09, a Latin-English list of rare plants to be found in various English counties; 410-12, extracts from the English version of [William] Camden ['s Britannia]; 416-19, notes on the Welsh bardic order headed 'Llyma Llafar Gorsedd Beirdd Ynys Prydain Ile gellir gweled Breiniau a Defodau Beirdd Ynys Prydain . . .' (see John Williams: Barddas . . ., vol. II, pp. 10-23); 422-67, miscellaneous notes in English on British or Welsh bardism, its organisation, ceremonial, connection with druidism and the Christian religion, etc. (there is considerable repetition in these notes, they possibly represent several drafts of parts of an essay on the subject of bardism); 468-70, a transcript of the title-page, advertisement, and part of the introduction to Charles Wilkins: The Bhagvat-Geeta . . . (London, 1785); and 472-3, extracts from [Edward] Jones: [Musical and Poetical Relicks of the Welsh] Bards . . ., 2nd ed. [London, 1794], pp. 83-4. Also included, pp. 278-470, are lists of Welsh words sometimes with English definitions and/or illustrative excerpts from the works of Welsh poets, notes on Welsh words or elements in Welsh words, etymological and philological notes on the Welsh language, notes on Welsh grammar, extracts of varying length (one line, 'cywydd' couplets, etc.) from the works of Welsh poets, and a multitude of miscellaneous items of historical, literary, or bardic significance.

Title based on contents.

Formerly known as Llanover C. 2.

Preferred citation: NLW MS 13089E.

The description is also available in the Handlist of Manuscripts in the National Library of Wales, Volume IV (Aberystwyth, 1971).

Item: 1.1 Manuscript Volume (NLW MS 13089E). Action: Condition reviewed. Action identifier: 4985746. Date: 20030611. Authorization: Selected for conservation. Authorizing institution: NLW. Action agent: J. Thomas. Status: Manuscript Volume (NLW MS 13089E) : Gelatine adhesive surrounding repair patches has discoloured, ink highly acidic in places causing staining through paper, some loose documents inside volume f118-123, f128-131, f158-161, edges of some leaves repaired with commercial heatset tissue. Institution: WlAbNL.
Item: 1.2 Manuscript Volume (NLW MS 13089E). Action: Conserved. Action identifier: 4985746. Date: 20030728. Authorizing institution: NLW. Action agent: A. Pugh. Status: Manuscript Volume (NLW MS 13089E) : Attached eleven loose items. Institution: WlAbNL.

Published