One of the most celebrated, as well as most daring, of these marauders, was Reginald Meredith Griffith, or, in the language of his country, Reinallt ab Meredydd ab Gruffydd, who resided in the neighbourhood of Mold, in Flintshire, at a strong hold, called Tower, a castellated building of great strength, part of which is yet to be seen. Here, then, lived Reginald in the fifteenth century, exercising undisputed authority over his little clan, by whose willing assistance he continued to molest and plunder all who were obnoxious to him, with fearless and unceasing activity. The principal objects of his attention, in this respect, seem to have been the inhabitants of Chester,* with whom he was continually involved in dispute; nay, a regular system of warfare is said to have been carried on between the two parties, and many a dire and deadly conflict was the consequence. In 1465, a considerable number of the tradespeople of Chester repaired to Mold fair to dispose of their several commodities. This was an opportunity not to be resisted by the unconscionable free-booter, and he determined to avenge former grievances, by enriching himself at the expense of the "good men of Chester." He assembled his followers, therefore, and hastening to the town, a quarrel was soon generated, and a contest as quickly ensued, in which, after several lives lost on both sides, Reginald gained the victory. This was yet further enhanced by the capture of Robert Browne, or Bryne, the mayor of Chester, who had led on his fellow citizens, and had attended the fair for purposes connected with his trade, which was that of a draper. Browne was an inveterate enemy of Reginald, and his life paid the forfeit of his temerity in venturing so near the haunts of the outlaw. He was hurried up to the tower after the action, and hanged without ceremony on an iron staplet, fixed in the ceiling thereupon the said officers do take their bodies, and do such execution upon them, as by law required, without fine or redemption." 2 Hen. V. Stat. ii. ch. 5. This offence was made high-treason by 20 Hen. VI. It appears, however, that none of these statutes had much effect, for in 1534, (26 Hen. VIII.) an act passed, forbidding the keepers of the ferries on the borders of Wales to take any passenger across the river Severn after sun-set, or before sun-rise, as "daily, divers felonies, robberies, and murders, have been many times committed in the counties of Gloucester and Somerset near the Severn, and the felons make their escape over the said river into South Wales, or the forest of Dean, by night, and when they are over the water, they are by divers privileges there kept." ** Chester is about twelve or fifteen miles from Mold. + This staple, the engine of so much cruelty, is still to be seen in its original position, and remains, a terrible memento of the lawless ferocity which distinguished Wales during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. : of the great hall. Browne's fellow-townsmen attempted, a short time afterwards, to avenge his death by the seizure of Reginald, and his principal accomplices in the murder, on whom they doubtless intended to inflict the same severe and summary mode of punishment. For this purpose, therefore, two hundred stout and active men left Chester, and proceeded forthwith to the Tower. But the wily free-booter gained timely notice of their approach, and, quitting his house, retired with his men to a neighbouring wood, where he remained to watch the operations of his visitors, who, as he had anticipated, rushed eagerly into the house. No sooner had they all entered, than Reginald hastened from his ambush, surrounded the Tower with his men, and set it on fire, cutting down the Chester-men, as they hurried out, without mercy or remorse. Few escaped to relate the fate of their comrades, and the outlaw of Mold experienced no further molestation from the intimidated inhabitants of Chester. Notwithstanding his unjustifiable contempt of the laws, and his numerous atrocities, he procured a pardon from Thomas Lord Stanley, President of the Council of Wales, which was subsequently ratified under the great seal by Edward the Fourth. And he died, as many other rogues have died-at a good old age, and no doubt grievously lamented by his lawless, but faithful followers. We must now return to our author, from whose "History" we have two or three extracts to make, powerfully illustrative of that almost untameable ferocity, which influenced the conduct of the Cambro-Britons about the middle of the fifteenth century; first premising, that we have modernized, or rather anglicized, the orthography of the names, and that the events happened chiefly in the reign of the fourth Edward. "The beginning of the quarrell and unkindness between Jevan ab Robert and Howel ab Rice ab Howel Vaughan, grew in this sort. Jevan ab Robert after his sister's death, upon some mis-like, left the company of Howel ab Rice, and accompanied John ab Meredith his nephew, and his children, who were at continuall bate with Howel ab Rice. The fashion was, in those days, that the gentlemen and their retainers met commonly every day to shoote matches and masteries; there was noe gentleman of worth in the countrey, but had a wine cellar of his owne, which wine was sold to his profit; thither came his friends to meete him, and there spent the day in shooting, wrestling, throwing the sledge, and other actes of activitie, and drinkeing very moderately withall, not according the healthing and gluttonous manner of our dayes. That is-drinking of healths. "Howel ab Rice ab Howel did draw a draught upon Jevan ab Robert ab Meredith, and sent a brother of his to lodge over night at his house of Keselgyfarch, to understand which way Jevan ab Robert ab Meredith meant to goe the next day, who was determined to shoote a match with John ab Meredith's children at Llanvihangel y Pennant, not farre from John ab Meredith's house. This being understood, the spie (Howel ab Rice's brother) slips away in the night to his brother, and lets him know where he should lay for him. Now had Howel ab Rice provided a butcher for the purpose, that should have murthered him; for he had direction by Howel to keepe himselfe free, and not to undertake any of the company untill he saw them in a medley, and every man fighting. Then was his chardge to come behinde the tallest man in the company, (for otherwise he knew him not, being a stranger) and to knocke him down; for Howel ab Rice sayd, Thou shalt soone discerne him from the rest by his stature, and he will make way before him. There is a foster-brother of his, one Robin ab Inko, a little fellow, that useth to watch him behind; take heed of him; for, be the encountre never soe hotte, his eye is ever on his foster-brother.' Jevan ab Robert, according as he was appointed, went that morning with his ordinary company towards Llanvihangel to meete John ab Meredith. You are to understand, that in those dayes, and in that wilde worlde, every man stood upon his guard, and went not abroad but in sort and soe armed, as if he went to the field to encountre with his enemies. Howel ab Rice ab Howel Vaughan's sister, being Jevan ab Robert's wife, went a mile, or thereabout, with her husband and the company, talking with them, and soe parted with them; and in her way homewards, she met her brother a horseback, with a great company of people armed, and rideing after her husband as fast as they could. On this, she cried out upon her brother, and desired him, for the love of God, not to harme her husband, that meant him noe harme; and withall steps to his horse, meaning to have caught him by the bridle, which he seeing, turned his horse about. She then caught the horse by the tail, hanging upon him soe long, and crying upon her brother, that, in the end, he drew out his short-sword, and strucke at her arme. Which she perceiving, was faine to lett slippe her hold, and running before him to a narrow passage, whereby he must pass through a brooke, where there was a footbridge, near the ford. She then steps to the foot-bridge, and takes away the canllaw, or handstay, of the bridge, and with the same letts flie at her brother, and, if he had not avoyded the blow, she had strucke him downe from his horse. -Furor arma ministrat. Howel ab Rice and his company, within a while, overtooke Jevan ab -Robert and his followers, who turned head upon him, though greatlie overmatched. The bickering grew very hotte, and many were knocked * This is a phrase frequently used by our author, and implies, drawing a plan, or settling a scheme. downe on either side. In the end, when that should be performed which they came for, the murthering butcher haveing not strucke one stroake all day, but watching opportunity, and finding the company more scattered than at first from Jevan ab Robert, thrust himselfe among Jevan ab Robert's people behind, and makeing a blow at him, was prevented by Robin ab Inko, his foster brother, and knocked downe; God bringing upon his head the destruction that he meant for another which Howel ab Rice perceiving, cryed to his people, Let us away and begone, for I had given chardge that Robin ab Inko should have been better looked unto.' And soe that bickering brake, with the hurt of many, and the death of that one man. "It fortuned anon after, that the parson of Llanvrothen* took a child of Jevan ab Robert's to foster, which sore grieved Howel Vaughan's wife, her husband haveing then more land in that parish than Jevan ab Robert had; in revenge whereof she plotted the death of the said parson in this manner. She sent a woman to aske lodgeing of the parson, who used not to deny any. The woman being in bed, after midnight, began to strike and to rave; whereupon the parson, thinking that she had been distracted, awakeing out of his sleepe, and wondering at so suddaine a crie in the night, made towards her and his household also: then she sayd that he would have ravished her, and soe got out of doores, threatening revenge to the parson. This woman had for her brethren, three notable rogues of the damn'd crewe fit for any mischiefe, being followers of Howel ab Rice. In a morning, these brethren watched the parson, as he went to looke to his cattle, in a place in that parish called Gogo yr Llechwin, being now a tenement of mine, and there murthered him; and two of them fled to Chirkeland in Denbighshire, to some of the Trevors, who were friends or a-kinne to Howel ab Rice or his wife. It was the manner in those dayes, that the murtherer onely, and he that gave the death's wound should flye, and he was called in Wales a Llawrudd, which is a red hand, because he had blouded his hand: the accessaries and abettors to the murtherers were never hearken'd after." Now it happened, in those days, that two families, or clans, namely the Kyffins and the Trevors contended for the sovereignty of a district, denominated the Land of Chirke and Oswaldstre. "They had," says our author, "their alliance, partisans, and friends in all the countreys round thereabouts, to whome, as the manner of the time was, they sent such of their followers as committed murther or manslaughter, which were safely kept as very precious jewells; and they received the like from their friends. These kind of people were stowed in the day-time in chambers in their houses, and in the night they went to the next wine-house that belonged to the gentleman, or to his * Llanvrothen is a small village near the sea-side in Merionethshire. tenants' houses not farre off, to make merrie and to wench.” To the latter of these families-as we have just seen-fled two of the parson's murderers, but they were not probably aware that our hero-Jevan ab Robert, to wit-was in league with the chieftain of the opposite faction. So, however, it was; and Jevan sent to inform Meredith ab Howel ab Moris, the chief of the Kyffins, that he should come privately into Chirkeland, “ onely accompanied but with six," for the purpose of apprehending the assassins; at the same time desiring his ally to be on the alert, and to watch narrowly the movements of the murderers. He accordingly went, and "abode there many days, in secret and unseene, sleeping in the daye, and watching all night." It was a long time, however, before he could apprehend the felons; and when at last, with the help of his friends, he did succeed in catching them, a complete "gathering" of the two clans was the consequence, with the war-cry of the Trevors to their friends, and the Kyffins to their leaders!" But our author must relate the rest. the "To the latter of these cries Meredith ab Howel ab Moris resorted; who told Jevan ab Robert that it was impossible for him to carry the murtherers out of the countrey to any place to have judiciall proceeding against them, by reason that the faction of the Trevors would lay way and narrow passages of the countrey; and if they were brought to Chirke Castle gate, to receive the triall of the countrey laws, it was lawfull for the offender's friends, whosoever they were, to bring £5 for every man, for a fine to the lord, and to acquit them, soe it were not in cases of treason.* A damnable custom used in those dayes in the lordships' marches, which was used also in Mowddwy, untill the new Ordinance of Wales, made in the seven-and-twentieth yeare of Henry viij. Hereupon Jevan ab Robert ab Meredith commanded one of his men to strike off their heades; which the fellow doeing faintely, the offender told him, that if he had his necke under his sword, he would make his sword take better edge than he did;so resolute were they in those dayes in contempt of death: whereupon Jevan ab Robert in a rage stepping up to them, strucke off their heads." But his vengeance was yet incomplete. Two only of the murderers had been disposed of, and one still remained unpunished. Jevan, however, departed from Chirkeland, and determined to leave to time and chance the apprehension of the remaining villain. On his return home, he was detained till night by the tide at Traethmawr ;† and talking carelessly with his * A custom not wholly unknown in England, and very common on the continent, during the middle ages. + Traethmawr signifies the greater tract of sand, to distinguish |