Tuesday July 6th 1819, Machynlleth; Cader Idris; Dolgellau
At eleven o’Clock we left Aberystwith and the beautiful sea with regret and proceeded towards Machynlith in North Wales a very hilly stage of eighteen miles, the Country not
finer than we had already seen, we dined at Machynlith, where we again met our new friend Mr Grimes, after dinner we commenced another long stage of seventeen miles to Dolgilly, but this appeared too short for us to sufficiently admire the sublime scenery as we passed, which surpasses any we have seen in South Wales in richness of foliage and waterfalls
(excepting the Devils Bridge which of course is an exception) after proceeding many miles in these surrounding beauties, the stupendous and craggy summit of Cader Idris was seen towering above the adjacent now small mountains with majestic views, this (excepting Snowden) is the highest in Wales at the bottom of it is the Lake of the three grains
said to be unfathomable and at the side of it are three immense stones which (according to report) the Giant Idris who presided over this Mountain took out of his shoes when passing by. We intended if possible to reach the top of this mountain tomorrow. We arrived at Dolgilly at ½ past ten o’Clock where there is excellent accommodation
OBSERVATIONS & COMMENTS:
Machynlleth is a market town in the Dyfi Valley within the historic boundaries of Montgomeryshire.
It was the seat of Owain Glyndŵr's Welsh Parliament in 1404, and as such claims to be the "ancient capital of Wales".
The 1404 Parliament building is still standing. The Royal House, below, was traditionally associated with Owain Glyndŵr.
According to local tradition, Dafydd Gam, a Welsh ally of the English kings, was imprisoned here from 1404 to 1412 for attempting to assassinate Owain Glyndŵr. After his release by Glyndŵr, ransomed Gam fought alongside Henry V at the Battle of Agincourt and is named amongst the dead in Shakespeare's Henry V. However the building has been dated by denchrochronology or tree-ring dating giving felling dates for timbers within the house of 1559-1561, and for the rear store-house range of 1576, predating the building of the house. The name Royal House stems from the tradition that Charles I stayed at the house in 1643. It stands on the corner of the Garsiwn and is a 16th century Merchants House with an extensive interior, clad in stone on the outside, and with two massive chimney stacks. It was probably a drapers shop at the time the Coplands visited Machynlleth.
A Royal charter was granted in 1291 by Edward I to Owen de la Pole, Lord of Powys, creating the right to hold "a market at Machynlleth every Wednesday for ever and two fairs every year". The Wednesday market is still a busy and popular day in Machynlleth 718 years later. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Machynlleth
Dolgellau was traditionally the county town of the historic county of Merionethshire although it lost its status in 1974. The print below, published in about 1840 shows the town’s relationship to Cader Idris towering above it.
A church was built in the 12th century (demolished and replaced by the present building in 1716), although Cymer Abbey, founded in 1198 in nearby Llanelltyd, remained the most important religious centre locally. Dolgellau gained in importance from this period onwards, and was mentioned in the Survey of Merioneth ordered by Edward I. In 1404 it was the location of a council of chiefs under Owain Glyndŵr. After a visit by George Fox in 1657, many inhabitants of Dolgellau converted to Quakerism. Persecution led a large number of them to emigrate to Pennsylvania in 1686, under the leadership of Rowland Ellis, a local gentleman-farmer. The Pennsylvanian town of Bryn Mawr, home to a prestigious women's liberal arts college, is named after Ellis's farm near Dolgellau.
The town was the centre of a minor gold rush in the 19th century. At one time the local gold mines employed over 500 workers. Clogau St. David's mine in Bontddu and Gwynfynydd mine in Ganllwyd have supplied gold for many royal weddings. Today Dolgellau remains the main base for climbers of Cadair Idris, as it would have been in Lucy's day. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolgellau
Cader Idris mountain is associated with numerous legends about the giant Cadair Idris.
Some nearby lakes are supposed to be bottomless, and anyone who sleeps on its slopes alone will supposedly awaken either a madman or a poet. This tradition (of sleeping on the summit of the mountain) apparently stems from bardic traditions, where bards would sleep on the mountain in hope of inspiration. The mythological giant Idris was said to have been skilled in poetry, astronomy and philosophy. In Welsh mythology, Cadair Idris is also said to be one of the hunting grounds of Gwyn ap Nudd and his Cŵn Annwn. The howling of these huge dogs foretold death to anyone who heard them, the pack sweeping up that person's soul and herding it into the underworld. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadair_Idris
The 1800 story of Mary Jones and her Bible, an account of a girl from Llanfihangel-y-Pennant at the foot of the mountain who walked 25 miles to Bala in to buy a scarce bible, was a major factor behind the foundation of the British and Foreign Bible Society in 1804. "Tongues of fire on Idris flaring" is mentioned in the opening verse of the John Guard version of the song Men of Harlech. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadair_Idris
Cader Idris or Cadair Idris?: Both spellings are used, but the April 24th 2016 Cambrian News carried an article on the controversy brought about when it was discovered that the former Countryside Commission for Wales had changed the name to Cadair Idris after consultation with the Welsh Language Commissioner, meaning that Cadair Idris is now used on all official documents. Snowdonia National Park’s planning committee argued that there had not been any local consultation on the change of name and have insisted on retaining the original spelling. Chairman of the Planning Committee Cllr Elwyn Edwards, a campaigner for keeping original Welsh names, said that historic documents showed that the name was Cader Idris. Another Councillor added “It was probably some academic somewhere without any knowledge of the history of the name. It has always been Cader Idris to me,”http://www.cambrian-news.co.uk/article.cfm?id=104757&headline=Cadair%20or%20Cader%20Idris?%20Mountain%20spelling%20row§ionIs=news&searchyear=2016 Lucy’s spelling supports the decision made by Snowdonia National Park to keep Cader Idris, although Hugh Owen in 1927 is quoted in Wikipedia stating that Cadair/Cadeir Idris is the form used in the earliest Welsh-language sources. “In a poem in his own hand in the second half of the 15th century, the poet Lewys Glyn Cothi wrote 'Dros gadair idris gedy' ('and then over Cadair Idris'). Around 1600, John Jones of Gellilyfdy referred to 'y mynydh neu bhan neu bhoel a elwir Cadeir Idris' ('the mountain, peak or hill known as Cadeir Idris').” The controversy drags on!
Pool of three grains: Tradition has it that three vast rocks were thrown by the Giant when these “grains” in his shoe irritated his foot https://www.peoplescollection.wales/items/20298
Royal Ship Hotel ?: We cannot be sure where the Coplands stayed, but the Royal Ship Hotel was a 19th century coaching Inn situated in the heart of the town.
History Points tells us that the building is thought to date from c.1800 and “catered for some of the wealthier visitors to Dolgellau”. http://historypoints.org/index.php?page=royal-ship-hotel-dolgellau Lucy was impressed by the excellent accommodation.
Can you help us?
The Royal Ship Inn: Was this the only Inn operating in Dolgellau in 1819? According to History Points it catered for wealthy visitors and would have suited the Coplands, but might they have stayed elsewhere?
Old Regency Prints, Pictures an Coaching maps: Do you have access to any prints or pictures showing what town and country would have looked like when Lucy travelled through? Any illustrations of what she would have seen in 1819 will enliven our research.
New Pictures: Do you have any modern pictures of the streets, buildings, gardens and views that would enable us to see the changes that two centuries have wrought?