Owain mab Urien

Owain mab Urien(Middle WelshOwein) (died c. 595) was the son ofUrien,king ofRhegedc. 590, and fought with his father against theAnglesofBernicia.The historical figure of Owain became incorporated into theArthurian cycle of legendswhere he is also known asYwain,Yvain, Ewain or Uwain. In his legendary guise he is the main character inChrétien de Troyes'sYvain, the Knight of the Lionand theWelsh RomanceOwain, or the Lady of the Fountain,which corresponds to Chrétien's poem.

Historical Owain

The chief references to the historical Owain appear in the poems ofTaliesin,Urien's bard. In one poem, he appears as the victor of theBattle of Alclud Ford.Another,Gweith Argoed Llwyfain( "TheBattle of Argoed Llwyfain"), tells of Owain's part in a battle between the men ofRhegedunder Urien and the men of Bernicia under "Fflamddwyn" (Firestealer), possibly the Anglian kingTheodric.When Fflamddwyn demands hostages, Owain shouts defiance and inspires the men of Rheged to fight rather than give tribute to the English.

Taliesin also composedMarwnad Owain,an elegy to Owain. In the poem, it is said that Owain slew Fflamddwyn:

Pan laddodd Owain Fflamddwyn Nid oedd fwy nogyd cysgaid

Cysgid Lloegr llydan nifer | A lleufer yn eu llygaid

A rhai ni ffoynt haeach | A oeddynt hyach na rhaid

Owain a'u cosbes yn ddrud | Mal cnud yn dylud defaid

When Owain slew Fflamddwyn it was no more to him than to sleep

The wide host of Lloegr [England] sleeps with the light in their eyes

And those that did not flee were braver than was needed

Owain punished them harshly like a pack of wolves chasing sheep

He inherited the kingdom of Rheged when his father was killed, but was immediately beset by his British neighbours,Gwallawc Marchawc TrinofElmetandDunaut Bwr;the former attacking Owain's brother Elffin whilst Owain and Pasgen, another brother, fought Dunaut.

Owain was slain in battle against his father's old nemesisMorcant BulcofBryneichafter a short reign. His death marked the end of Rheged as an effective power.

He is said to be buried atLlan-ForfaelorLlan-Heledd,which local traditions place in the churchyard of St. Andrew's atPenrith,though it is possible that the grave is actually that of the laterOwen Cesarius.

Owain is said to be the father ofSt. Kentigern GarthwysbyDenw,the daughter of "Leuddun", commonly identified withLotofLothian.Owain is believed to have dressed as a woman and rapedSaint Teneu,the mother of Kentigern.

Owain of legend

Main article:Ywain

Over the centuries, the history of Owain known to storytellers faded sufficiently that he was incorporated into WelshArthurian legendand stories about him spread to continental Europe. Chrétien'sYvain, the Knight of the Lionand the relatedMabinogionstoryOwain, or the Lady of the Fountainare devoted to his exploits, and he appears prominently in theMabinogiontaleThe Dream of Rhonabwyand briefly inGeoffrey of Monmouth'sHistoria Regum Britanniae.He also features as the knight Sir Owayne fytz-Vryene in the fifteenth century romanceAwntyrs of Arthure at the Terne Wathelyne.The character is portrayed as an excellent knight in the later romances, theLancelot-Grailcycle andSir Thomas Malory'sLe Morte d'Arthur,under one spelling of his name or another.

InThe Dream of Rhonabwy,he plays a game of chess against Arthur while Rhonabwy looks on and the Saxons prepare to fight. The outlines ofChrétien'sYvain, the Knight of the LionandOwain, or the Lady of the Fountainare essentially the same; Owainhears of a magical storm-making fountainin the forest ofBrocéliandeand seeks it out, only to find it defended by an excellent knight. He defeats this warrior and marries his wifeLaudine,but forsaking his marital duties for knightly exploits, he loses her love. With the aid of a lion he rescues from a serpent, he completes several adventures and is eventually reunited with his lady. He appears in most of the later accounts, his importance indicated by his close friendship withGawainand the passage in theMort Artusection of the Lancelot-Grail cycle where he is one of the last knights to die before Arthur.

Almost all versions of the Arthurian story have Owain asUrien's son and Arthur's nephew, and the later accounts assume his mother isMorgan le Fay,if not one of the King's other half-sisters. He has a half brother calledOwain (or Yvain) the Bastardafter him, the product of a union between Urien and his seneschal's wife. The Welsh give him a twin sister,Morvydd,and as Arthur's maternal nephew he is a cousin to Gawain and the Orkney clan.

See also

• List of characters named Ywain in Arthurian legend