Welcome dear reader ! Like last time, take a seat and get ready this time to read about the incredible Gwendydd !
Who was she ?
Ganieda - John Willam Waterhouse
Where Eigyr went from active to passive, Gwendydd is the complete opposite.
Gwendydd/Gwenddydd (in welsh), Ganieda (in Latin) is a female character that had been forgotten for centuries, until the XIXth/XXth centuries, and even nowadays. She is mostly known because of her brother (in the most version, some others claim him to be her son or even her lover, provoking a confusion or a link between her and Viviane) Myrddin (in Welsh) or Lailoken (in Gàidhlig), Suibhne (in Gaeilge) mostly known under the name Merlin.
She is a clever character that ends up being more powerful than her brother (often depicted as her twin brother) with whom she is either in conflict for a while or has a good and close relationship with, but that aspect will be developed a bit later. Her character is complex and was well-known in Welsh literature more than in Arthurian legends. Her appearances in the sources of the XIXth and XXth centuries were sparse compared to the XXIth century where she appears more and more frequently in books (such as Broceliande by Jean-Louis Fetjaine or The Lost Queen by Signe Pike where there is the representation of a Queen, sister of Lailoken…).
How was she depicted as a character ?
We see in Gwendydd an anchor, a bridge between the Society or the World of Humans (Kingdoms) and Nature (the Caledonia forest where her brother escape). She belongs to both worlds, easily adapting to each one, and, contrary to her brother, doesn’t fall into madness, still master of her mind, while she can also make prophecies (and like said earlier, become more powerful than her brother). Even though she ends up living with her twin, she is an example of an independent woman linked to the Arthurian legend (even though it is obvious that she doesn’t meet King Arthur nor his Court, her link being only her brother which, in these versions is a bard or a prophet that lose his mind, often because of the loss of the King Gwenddolau, or he is a King/prophet who fleed his kingdom because of that tragic battle that left him with a broken mind. Gwendydd plays an important role, her character is either depicted to be in a great relationship with him or a complex one (Cyfoesi Myrddin a Gwenddydd ei Chwaer :
« Gwendydd loves me not, greets me not ;
I am hated by the firmest minister of Rydderch ;
I have ruined his son and his daughter (…) »
or Vita Merlini for example, she tricked Merlin to come back to civilization twice, once with music (but he ran away) and then a second time when he is restrained by the King Rodarchus. But during that second time, Merlin laughs and she is accused of cheating on her husband, which is true, she has a leaf that her husband take off of her hair because she was with her lover right before which cause the laugh of her brother. To prove it, she brings a child three times under different appearances, each time her brother changes the way the boy will die which permits Gwendydd to prove her innocence for a couple of years, the boy dying from these three deaths a couple of years later, still, that event doesn’t destroy the relationship between the siblings). That part makes her in term an active character (as explained in Women at the Round Table by Theresa Adams, she doesn’t talk about Gwendydd, being a less-known character even though she has a huge importance in the life of her brother and his evolution. In her book, she mostly describes characters such as Morgana, Gwenhwyfar, or even the Lady in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, depicted as active characters, especially the Queen of Avalon, in the Arthurian legends and the Merlin part of them, active women characters were depicted as evil characters for being independent and master of their bodies, which correspond here to Gwendydd, except that she is not fully condemned by her brother and stay alive, ended up even mastering the skills he had more than him). She is the master of her body and even of her life (contrary to Eigyr who is suffering).
On opposition to Eigyr, Gwendydd isn't written to be the perfect female character of courtly love. She is a character full of nuance which gives her a sort of realism and humanity.
Gwenddydd (1891), a drypoint engraving by Sir Hubert von Herkomer
She joined her brother after the death of her husband in the Caledonian forest where she developed her abilities. She gained her independence, and went from the « wife of a king » and « sister of a prince » to a powerful woman of her own (even though we could already see that she was strong since the beginning).
« Merlin’s sister, Ganieda, wife of Rodarchus, king of the Cambrians, tries to induce her brother to give up his solitary existence in the Caledonian forest, but her words are all in vain, and except for two brief visits at court, he spends his life in the woods. Ganieda shows great solicitude for his welfare ; at his bidding she herself builds a house in the forest for him, and comes frequently with supplies of food to visit him. Later she takes up her abode with him in the woods. On one occasion she is represented as becoming inspired, and bursting into prophetic utterances. The poem closes leaving Ganieda and Merlin in their woodland retreat. » Vita Merlini Geoffrey of Monmouth
Sources :
Merlin l'enchanteur by Danièle James-Raoul
Merlin l'enchanteur by Jean Markale
Cyfoesi Myrddin a Gwenddydd ei Chwaer
Broceliande by Jean-Louis Fetjaine
Vita Merlini by Geoffrey of Monmouth
Women at the Round Table by Theresa Adams
Avant nous le Déluge ! L'humanité et ses mythes by Jean-Loïc Le Quellec
Merlin ou le savoir du monde by Philippe Walter
La mythologie du monde celte by Claude Sterckx
Further reading for anyone who want to know more about the Arthurian legends :
La parole empêchée dans la littérature arthurienne by Danièle James-Raoul
Mémoire, oralité, culture dans les pays celtiques La légende arthurienne Le celtisme under the direction of Joseph Rio
The crystal cave by Mary Stewart
The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley
Half sick of shadows by Laura Sebastian
The Other Merlin by Robyn Schneider
Oxford Guide to Arthurian Literature and Legend by Alan Lupack
La Mort du Roi Arthur Nouvelles études under the direction of Sébastien Douchet and Valérie Naudet
Arthur L'ours et le Roi by Philippe Walter
Once & Future by Amy Rose Capetta and Cori McCarthy
Mordred by Justine Niogret
L'Angleterre et les légendes arthuriennes by Josseline Bidard and Arlette Sancery
Avallon et l'Autre Monde géographie sacrée dans le monde celtique by Bernard Rio
The Pendragon Cycle by Stephen R. Lawhead
Merlin’s Sister by J.A Thornbury
Merlin's Shadow by Robert Treskillard
The Lost Queen by Signe Pike
Fata Morgana series by Jo-Anne Blanco