| The Welsh Dragon | |
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Other Names |
y Ddraig Goch, red dragon of wales |
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First Appearance |
Welsh mythology |
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Created by |
Welsh mythology |
Origin[]
The Welsh Dragon is a heraldic symbol that represents Wales and appears on the national flag of Wales.
Ancient leaders of the Celtic Britonsthat are personified as dragons include Maelgwn Gwynedd, Mynyddog Mwynfawr and Urien Rheged. Later Welsh"dragons" include Owain Gwynedd, Llywelyn ap Gruffydd and Owain Glyndŵr.
The red dragon appears in the ancient Mabinogion story of Lludd and Llefelys where it is confined, battling with an invading white dragon, at Dinas Emrys. The story continues in the Historia Brittonum, written around AD 829, where Gwrtheyrn, King of the Britons is frustrated in attempts to build a fort at Dinas Emrys. He is told by a boy, Emrys, to dig up two dragons fighting beneath the castle. He discovers the white dragon representing the Anglo-Saxons, which is soon to be defeated by the red dragon of Wales.
The red dragon is now seen as symbolizing Wales, present on the current national flag of Wales, which became an official flag in 1959.
Public Domain Appearances[]
All published appearances of the Welsh Dragon from before Janurary 1, 1929 are public domain in the US.
Some notable appearances are listed below:
Public Domain Literary Appearances[]
- Historia Brittonum (828)
- Historia Regum Britanniae (1136)
- Mabinogion
- Lludd and Llefelys (12th or 13th century)