Welsh Folklore: The Legend of the Red Dragon (Why is There a Red Dragon on the Welsh Flag?) (#106)

In my (totally unbiased) opinion, the Welsh flag is the coolest flag in the whole world. We’ve talked about flags a few times on this podcast now, with a couple of whole episodes dedicated to them, but in today’s episode I’m going to focus on the Welsh flag in particular, and more specifically, the legend of the Welsh dragon.

So get ready for another storytime episode, because I’m going to be telling the story of…

The Dragon and the Flag, from Welsh Fairy Tales, Myths & Legends by Claire Fayers

(...a book I recently posted a picture of on our Instagram! Go follow us - @learnaboutpod!) 

Before we start, I need to quickly tell you about King Vortigern, who was king of the Britons at the time of the arrival of the Saxons in the 5th century. He is best known for inviting the Saxons to Britain to stop the invasion of the Scots and allowing them to take control of the land. The histories which tell his story are reliable enough to support the claim that he existed and was instrumental in the Saxon migration to Britain, but the main accounts are written by his enemies, and so his motivation is unclear.

I also need to point out before I begin that this story is ancient and has been adapted so many times, so this is probably just one version of many — but I think this is generally how the story is now told. So, let’s begin!

Vortigern, King of the Britons, was worried. The people of Britain faced a new and fierce enemy called the Saxons. Every week there were new reports of people’s homes being attacked, their farms burned, sheep and cows being stolen. His people needed a safe place, Vortigern thought: somewhere they could go if they needed to hide. Somewhere his soldiers could rest between battles. In his mind he saw a great fortress with stone walls and iron gates, standing high on a hill.

King Vortigern hurried off to speak to his advisors. They all agreed that a fortress was what they needed, and after a lot of discussion, they chose a hill near Dinas Emrys in Snowdonia, North Wales. It was high up, so Vortigern’s soldiers would be able to see the Saxons from a long way away; it was surrounded on all sides by a forest, which would provide wood for fires; and it was near a lake, so there would be water for drinking and washing.

Next, Vortigern called his whole court together and told them about the plan. Everybody cheered to hear the news, and the king commanded the best builders, ironworkers and carpenters in the country to come to Dinas Emrys. They set up a camp beside the lake and then, chattering and laughing in the sunshine, they set to work.

The first day sped by. Teams of workers cut stone from the nearby mountains and brought it to the camp ready to be built into the fortress. Carpenters cut down trees; ironworkers lit fires. Foundations were dug and the first walls were set in place. Everyone spent the night celebrating their progress — but the next morning, they woke up to broken tools and pieces of smashed up wood thrown around everywhere. The foundation stone that had been laid the night before was broken. Everyone, of course, jumped straight to blaming the Saxons.

King Vortigern made his way to the front of the crowd of angry people. He was wondering how the Saxons had managed to destroy a whole day of building work without any of his soldiers hearing or seeing a thing. He also noticed whoever did it hadn’t left a single footprint on the ground. He proclaimed that they wouldn’t be beaten by the Saxons, and ordered the builders to get back to work repairing what had been destroyed. They worked all throughout the day, rebuilding the first wall of their fortress.

The people were too tired to celebrate that night. Vortigern, learning from the night before, posted guards to keep watch around the hill and in the forest. But the next morning, the fortress wall was lying in pieces again. The guards admitted yet again that they didn’t see a thing, so they must have dozed off at some point throughout the night.

So this whole process went on for a whole week. Every day the builders would rebuild what was broken, and every night some seemingly invisible enemy destroyed them again. The builders began to whisper that the hill was haunted.

Vortigern’s advisors told him that they should abandon their hill and find somewhere new to try again. But Vortigern shook his head. If he abandoned their location, people would say he’d given up. The Saxons would laugh and call him a failure. So he said to his people, “You’re supposed to be clever. Go away and find out what’s happening every night and how we can stop it. I will give one hundred pieces of gold to whoever can solve this mystery.”

A week later, his advisors returned to him, telling him they had good news and bad news. The good news was that they found out why their fortress was falling down. The bad news was that there was a curse on Dinas Emrys, and no building will ever stand there. Vortigern didn’t know what to say. He’d never heard of a cursed hill before. He didn’t know much about curses at all, in fact, other than that they could be broken. So he simply said to them, “tell me what I have to do.”

His advisors were stunned. Surely they should just abandon the fortress idea and move onto a new plan? But kings never gave up, and Vortigern wasn’t going to let the Saxons say he was so weak he couldn’t even get his own fortress to stand up. He rose to his feet and ordered his advisors to tell him how to break the curse.

They told him that first, he must find a boy who has never had a father. “Ridiculous!” Vortigern snapped. “All children have fathers.” But nevertheless, they told him, if he wished to break the curse, that is what he must do. He must find this boy and take him to the top of the hill. Is that it? Vortigern thought. “And then what?” His advisors replied, trembling, “And then, your majesty, you must kill him.”

Vortigern was horrified. He would never kill a child. That night, he climbed the hill alone and sat down in the dark. No one had been there for days and it was littered with broken bits of wood and stone. He stared down at the forest below and vowed to himself that he would stay awake all night. He then promptly fell asleep.

When he woke, it was morning. Even more stones were scattered around the hill. This hill is cursed, he thought. It’s impossible to stay awake there! But he still wasn’t ready to give up. He sent messengers out across the country, offering 100 gold pieces to anyone who could solve the mystery of Dinas Emrys.

A week went by, and then a month, and finally, a young boy arrived at the camp. He looked around 9 years old, his hair as black as a raven, and his dark eyes had a strange look as if he was staring right through you. Vortigern asked who he was, feeling a cold shiver run through him.

“Your Majesty,” the boy said, “I am the boy who never had a father.” Vortigern jumped in surprise - he hadn’t told anyone what his advisors had said to him. How had the boy known - and what else did he know? All he said was, “I’m not going to kill you,” and the boy smiled. “I know. But let me spend a night on the hill, and tomorrow I’ll tell you why your fortress is falling.” Vortigern knew it wouldn’t work as he’d already tried it himself, but what harm could it do if he let the boy have a go too?

“Very well,” he said, and sent the boy up the hillside, loaded up with blankets and food for the night, and just as he did before, he ordered his soldiers to stand guard around the bottom of the hill and in the forest just in case any Saxons came along.

The next morning, the king expected the boy to have disappeared by now, but he was still there on the top of the hill. “Your Majesty, you were right: there was a curse on Dinas Emrys. A powerful spell that caused anyone on the hill at night to fall asleep. But I have broken the spell and now we have to uncover the secret of this place. Call all your builders up here and order them to dig and you’ll see what the hill is hiding.”

The king was irritated. Why couldn’t he just tell him what the hill was hiding? What if he was a Saxon spy sent to waste everyone’s time? “I’m not a Saxon spy,” the boy said, even though Vortigern hadn’t said a word. That made his mind up. There was clearly something about this boy. He hurried to order the builders to start digging. They dug all day, and finally as the day was drawing to a close, one of them shouted. His shovel had driven through the earth and into an empty space below. They widened the hole so that they could peer inside.

Inside the hill was a huge cave, and far below, they could see a glint of water. The surface of the underground lake began to bubble, and the ground trembled. Vortigern stumbled back, and the builders dropped their tools and ran. But the boy shouted, “stop where you are!” and they all halted, as if it were the king who had given them the order.

A moment later, two shapes burst out of the cave below. They were winged, scaly, snapping fire-breathing dragons: one white, its scales shining like diamonds against the darkness of the cave, and the other with scales the colour of rubies and wings that looked like flames. The king, astounded, watched them fly at each other, snarling and hissing, tumbling together to crash against the cave walls. The white dragon blew out a pale blue flame, so hot that Vortigern could feel it from where he was standing. The red dragon met the blue fire with a gush of blazing scarlet flames. The air sizzled around them.

“This is the cause of your trouble, King Vortigern,” the boy said. “These dragons have been trapped here for a thousand years and every night they wake up and fight. While they are here, your fortress will never stand.” Vortigern watched the dragons fight. All night they fought, while the ground shook and stones rolled down the hill.

Finally, as day was breaking, the white dragon looked up and saw the hole in the cave roof for the first time. It beat its wings and soared higher, mouth open, ready to breathe out flame. But the red dragon darted up behind it and closed its jaws around the white dragon’s tail. The white dragon fell back, letting out a scream as it tried to shake the other dragon off, but the red dragon held on.

The red dragon swung the white one around and then suddenly let go. The white dragon slammed against the cave wall, roaring in pain, and fled into the night sky where it disappeared from view. The red dragon roared triumphantly and dived into the lake. A moment later, the water was completely still again.

Vortigern was dazed, certain that if he had not just seen the dragons himself, he would never have believed they were there. “The red dragon will sleep now,” the boy said. “The white dragon is defeated. You can build your fortress in peace.” Vortigern looked at the boy, still with an uncertain feeling about him. “I owe you 100 pieces of gold,” he said. “What is your name?”

The boy shook his head. “You can keep your gold. I don’t need it.” He started to walk away and then stopped and turned back. “My name,” he said, “is Merlin.”

Some say this is only a story. The white dragon, they say, represented the Saxon people and the victorious red dragon represented the Britons. But there’s another story, and this one is definitely real. In 1945, archaeologists were excavating the hillside near Dinas Emrys and they found a cavern with an underground lake and the remains of a fortress which had been rebuilt many times. They didn’t find the dragon, though. Maybe it’s still sleeping.

Other Stories

This story was originally found in Historia Brittonum, an alleged history of the indigenous Brittonic people that was written around 828. The story is repeated in Geoffrey of Monmouth's fictional History of the Kings of Britain (from around 1136). In this telling the boy was identified for the first time as the young Merlin.

History of the King of Britons

I wanted to quickly touch on how the story I just told differs in the 1136 version published by Geoffrey of Monmouth. His book is a largely fictional account of the rulers of the land from the first king, Brut (c. 12th century BCE), to Cadwallader (c. 7th century CE).

Geoffrey is known as the Father of Arthurian Literature for his development of the figure of Arthur from brief description as a war-chief by Nennius (a 9th century Welsh monk who is attributed with the authorship of the Historia Brittonum), into the powerful and noble King of the Britons. Although there is no doubt that Geoffrey made up most of the book, it is still regarded as semi-historical in that some events can be corroborated by other sources.

In Geoffrey's work, King Vortigern is a weak-willed man torn between the dictates of his professed religion and his own desires. Vortigern invites the Saxons to Britain to help but is unable to control them from the start. Hengist (one of the Germanic brothers said to have led the Angles, Saxons and Jutes in their invasion of Britain in the 5th century) manipulates the king by introducing him to his beautiful daughter Ronwen, getting him drunk, and then letting Vortigern think it was his own idea to marry the woman. Once they are married, Hengist makes more demands on the king, and Vortigern then invites the Saxons back because of his great love for his wife.

Geoffrey then continues the narrative, introducing the wizard Merlin. From the time Vortigern is first introduced his Christian values are questionable, and Geoffrey frequently associates him with Satan and darkness. When Vortigern first sees Ronwen and falls in love with her, Geoffrey writes that Satan entered his heart. When he introduces Merlin, he makes clear that Vortigern has surrounded himself with magicians whose power Merlin shows to be nothing but fakery and lies.

Just like the modern story, Vortigern is trying to build a tower to defend himself against attack but, no matter how skilled the masons are, the building keeps falling. Vortigern's magicians (rather than his advisors) tell him that he must sacrifice a youth who has no father and sprinkle the blood on the foundation and then the tower will rise. Merlin is chosen as the sacrifice but, instead of submitting, defies the king. He then tells them that, if they dismantle the tower, they will find a pool beneath it which is causing the problem.

The tower is taken down and the pool is there as Merlin predicted. He then tells Vortigern to drain the pool and he will find two hollow stones with two dragons asleep inside. The king then has the pool drained and finds the stones and dragons, one white and the other red. The two dragons begin to fight and Vortigern asks Merlin to interpret the meaning.

Merlin basically tells them that the White Dragon represents the Saxons who have invaded, and the Red signifies the race of Britain that shall be oppressed by the White. By defeating the White, the mountains and the valleys thereof be made level plain and the streams of the valleys shall flow with blood. At last, the oppressed will prevail, and the Boar of Cornwall will trample their necks beneath his feet.

The ‘Boar of Cornwall’ that Merlin references is King Arthur, who will defeat the Saxons and go on to conquer most of Europe and even topple Rome in Geoffrey's story.

Lludd and Llefelys

A similar story of white and red dragons fighting is found in the mediaeval romance Lludd and Llefelys, although in this case the dragons aren’t used to symbolise Britons or Saxons. The battle between the two dragons in this story is the second plague to strike the Island of Britain, as the White Dragon would strive to overcome the Red Dragon, making it cry out a fearful shriek which was heard everywhere.

This shriek went through people's hearts, scaring them so much that the men lost their hue and their strength, women lost their children, young men and maidens lost their senses, and all the animals and trees and the earth and the waters were left barren.

Lludd finally eradicated the plague by catching the dragons and burying both of them in a rock pit at Dinas Emrys, the most secure place in Britain at that time. He captured the dragons by digging a pit under the exact point where the dragons would fall down exhausted after fighting. This place was at Oxford, which Lludd found to be the exact centre of the island when he measured the island of Britain. The pit had a satin covering over it and a cauldron of mead in it at the bottom.

First, the dragons fought by the pit in the form of terrific animals. Then they began to fight in the air over the pit in the form of dragons. Then, exhausted with the fighting, they fell down in the form of pigs and sank into the pit, where they drank the mead and fell asleep. The dragons were then wrapped up in the satin covering and placed in the pit to be buried at Dinas Emrys.

The Welsh flag

The dragon appeared on the battle flags of various British soldiers on their way to Rome in the 4th century. It was later adopted by 5th century Welsh kings who were keen to show their authority following the Roman withdrawal. It was also the symbol of the monarchy and other ancient leaders during the Romano-British era.

The symbol wasn’t widely used in Wales during this time since it represented the British authority and was used in the coat of arms and by the armies of the English crown. Under King Henry V, the battalions prominently displayed the red dragon during battles. 

Wales’ official first use of the flag was probably during the battle of Bosworth Field in England, 1485, when Henry Tudor defeated Richard III. It was displayed on St Paul’s Cathedral after a victory parade throughout Wales. The red dragon was then included as a supporter of the Tudor royal arms to signify their Welsh descent. The green and white stripes were additions by the House of Tudor, the Welsh dynasty that held the English throne from 1485 to 1603.

The dragon faded in popularity somewhat and wasn’t featured on the Union Flag of 1606 (the red, white and blue flag we know today). But in 1807, the red dragon on a green mount was adopted as the Royal Badge of Wales. In 1953, the motto Y Ddraig goch ddyry cychwyn ('The red dragon gives impetus' or 'The red dragon leads the way') was added, a line written by a 15th century poet named Deio ab Ieuan Du. This addition was met with criticism, however, as it was a double entendre - it was used in the original poem to allude to the penis of a copulating bull, so the motto was removed.

In 1959, Queen Elizabeth declared that “only the Red Dragon on a green and white flag should be flown on government buildings in Wales”. I’ve actually put a transcript in the notes from the actual statement that was made in parliament in 1959 to announce the queen’s official approval of the flag to be flown.

And now we officially have the coolest flag in the world!