Description

Book Synopsis

The timeless and compelling word-music' of one of Britain's oldest cultural treasures is captured in this new bilingual edition.

The Gododdin charts the rise and fall of 363 warriors in the battle of Catraeth, around the year AD 600. The men of the Brittonic kingdom of Gododdin rose to unite the Welsh and the Picts against the Angles, only to meet a devastating fate. Composed by the poet Aneirin, the poem was originally orally transmitted as a sung elegy, passed down for seven centuries before being written down in early Welsh by two medieval scribes. It is composed of one hundred laments to the named characters who fell, and follows a sophisticated alliterative poetics. Former National Poet of Wales Gillian Clarke animates this historical epic with a modern musicality, making it live in the language of today and underscoring that, in a world still beset by the misery of war, Aneirin's lamentation is not done.

The Gododdin

    Product form

    A Paperback / softback by Gillian Clarke

    £11.69

    Includes FREE delivery

    RRP £12.99 – you save £1.30 (10%)

    Order before 4pm today for delivery by Sat 12 Sep 2026.

    15 in stock

      Trusted by thousands of customers. See 2,385+ Customer Reviews

      View other formats and editions of The Gododdin by Gillian Clarke

      Book details

      Publisher Faber & Faber
      Published 5 May 2022
      ISBN-13 9780571352128
      978-0571352128
      ISBN-10 057135212X
      Also in:
      Poetry Dictionaries, Reference & Language Translation and language interpretation

      Description

      Book Synopsis

      The timeless and compelling word-music' of one of Britain's oldest cultural treasures is captured in this new bilingual edition.

      The Gododdin charts the rise and fall of 363 warriors in the battle of Catraeth, around the year AD 600. The men of the Brittonic kingdom of Gododdin rose to unite the Welsh and the Picts against the Angles, only to meet a devastating fate. Composed by the poet Aneirin, the poem was originally orally transmitted as a sung elegy, passed down for seven centuries before being written down in early Welsh by two medieval scribes. It is composed of one hundred laments to the named characters who fell, and follows a sophisticated alliterative poetics. Former National Poet of Wales Gillian Clarke animates this historical epic with a modern musicality, making it live in the language of today and underscoring that, in a world still beset by the misery of war, Aneirin's lamentation is not done.

      Recently viewed products

      © 2026 Book Curl

        • American Express
        • Apple Pay
        • Diners Club
        • Discover
        • Google Pay
        • Maestro
        • Mastercard
        • PayPal
        • Shop Pay
        • Union Pay
        • Visa

        Login

        Forgot your password?

        Don't have an account yet?
        Create account