THE WELSH – THE BIOGRAPHY

400pp Amberley paperback 28 November 2012

‘Breverton’s breadth, generosity and sheer enthusiasm about Wales are compelling’

YR ENFYS – JOURNAL OF WALES INTERNATIONAL [CYLCHGRWAN UNDEB CYMRU A’R BYD] Spring 2013

WHAT A STATE OF THE NATION! A BLEAK AND FRIGHTENING PICTURE OF A NATION LED BY FIFTH RATE POLITICIANS.

‘It is not often that an author warns prospective readers that there is a good chance that they will not like and approve of a book of his they are about to read. But that is Terry Breverton’s stark warning, introducing his 379-page history of Wales and its people, The Welsh: The Biography, which he rounds off with a present day ‘state of the nation’ treatise. His is a bleak and delusion shattering interpretation.

His is not a rose-tinted look at the state of our nation but a picture of a nation teetering on the brink, overwhelmed by inward migration whilst ineffectual politicians bury their heads in the sand. No wonder he says: ‘This book will be criticised by some politicians and historians’, adding: ‘It is unlikely to appear in school of college syllabi because it is not blandly apolitical.’ It is, however, again in his words, ‘critical and informative’ and written by someone much concerned about the Welsh nation and who has ‘a different perspective on Wales’ to many Welsh writers. ‘No history is totally impartial, but one tries to be realistic’, he says. And that reality is pretty depressing with our language and culture at bay and the economic prospects for Cymru ‘grim’ being the poorest part of the United Kingdom.

Some of us were made well aware of the most recent stab of reality that Terry Breverton writes about when the blunt instrument of the 2011 Census figures of the alarming state of the Welsh language were published mid-January of this year – some three months after this book was published. After his foray into Welsh history from the earliest of times 250BCE to the present day Breverton rounds off his volume with a ‘personal perspective’ of the 21st century and his thoughts are ones that should stir our politicians, leaders and the electorate, fulfilling the author’s hopes that his book ‘will make the Welsh people reflect upon how the nation has been and is being treated.’

And the answer seems to be not very well: ‘Wales is struggling and failing to survive’, he says. ‘Incoming retirees give Wales the oldest population in the British Isles; Wales is dying economically and culturally; One third of the population was not born here; The language is not thriving, despite what the quangos tell us’. And his condemnation of ‘fifth rate’ politicians is particularly damning: ‘… across Britain the masses have been pacified into a supine acceptance of fifth-rate, time-serving politicians of whom the worst rise effortlessly to the top… Cymru deserves better’, he says. ‘We need politicians who have intelligence, business acumen, a record of success in the private sector… Most have not one of these attributes’, he says.

All is not dismal, however, because over the centuries there is much to celebrate about the Welsh, their cultural and literary abilities, their pacifism and their contribution to the world in general. All are described in Breverton’s book about Europe’s oldest nation – and language – battling against overwhelming odds with heroes and heroines such as Owain Glyndŵr and David Lloyd George to inspire and amaze the reader.

GOODREADS [US Website]

Pages: 400, including 52 colour photographs. Rating: 5 Stars
This is the second book that I've reviewed for Amberley Publishing. While reading through the books available on their website I was anxious to read Mr. Breverton's book on Welsh history. The Welsh, The Biography has been eye-opening, educational, and thought provoking.

Reader Review: ‘The author’s supreme knowledge of Welsh history. From its ancient beginnings, through to the Middle Ages, the Tudor king who was Welsh, the boundary changes of Wales, religion, Church history, princes and castles, Welsh language, mining industry, mining disasters, child labour, promotion of education for children in the mid 19th century, and the current period detailing the affects of the economy and culture.

I appreciate and admire the author’s directness in stating the problems that Wales has currently. He acknowledges various problems, seeking to be an advocate that will rally the Welsh to address and find answers.  The Welsh, The Biography, was exciting to read. Welsh is in my ancestry, and I felt an excitement and pride in knowing where my family came from.  After I'd read The Welsh, The Biography, I felt as if I'd taken a semester college course on Welsh history.

Norman history with the emphasis on the invasion including their brutality was horrifying, yet it gave me an idea of what life was like for the Welsh. Most books on the Norman invasion of England is on what happened to the English. Whereas, The Welsh, The Biography, specifically educated me on Wales. Reading about the mining industry, disasters, and child labour, were heart-wrenching. I was angered by vile and money hungry men who cared only for themselves. Even in the 20th century, disasters and death happened because men in authority flagrantly denied fault. Why is this a positive point? Because knowledge is the first step, which then leads to being an advocate and spokesperson in being a rallying cry against its foes.

I finished reading The Welsh, The Biography, on 9 of January. I've had several days to think about it and I've not found any negative points. I have high regards for both the book and author. I'm anxious to read more books this author has written. I'm hoping in the near future to read Owain Glyndŵr: The Story of the Last Prince of Wales. hwyl (cheers) Thank you to Amberely Publishing and Terry Breverton for my free review copy in exchange for an honest review.’

Amazon Book Description

The Welsh: The Biography tells the story of the remarkable survival of the oldest nation and oldest language in Europe. We see how the four original Celtic tribes are still reflected in the location of Britain’s four oldest cathedrals and how after one and a half millennia of constant invasions and eventual conquest, the Welsh retained their sense of nationality. The story of the Welsh is one of defending the nation against overwhelming odds and of a major contribution to European literature. Its tenth century laws are acknowledged as the most progressive in the world until the later twentieth century. Almost uniquely in the world, Wales has had heroines as well as heroes, princesses as well as princes who contributed to its progress. Wales has given heroes such as Owain Glyndŵr who are recognised across the globe and men such as David Lloyd George to whom Hitler attributed the winning of the First World War. The character of the Welsh - their pacifism, literary abilities and influence - is splendidly described in this unique history of the Welsh as a people’.

Gwales Review, with the permission of the Books Council of Wales

Despite its close physical resemblance to John Davies’s The History of Wales, Terry Breverton’s Biography is not, and does not wish to be a conventional history book. It is unashamedly partisan, even polemical. It concentrates on areas the author feels have been neglected or misinterpreted by the majority of (English) historians. He also devotes more attention than usual to the current position of Wales in his final chapter: ‘A personal perspective on the 21st Century’.
  His opening chapters on the prehistoric period are particularly interesting and incorporate very recent research on the people of Britain in the pre-Roman era – which he rightly says are often overlooked by Anglo-centric writers. He makes a good case for Wales being a very difficult ‘province’ for the Romans to hold down but considered worth the effort for the plunder of its mineral wealth. Indeed, this is the most constant pattern in the history – that Wales has been constantly plundered for its natural resources without benefit to the native population.
  His other prevailing theme is continuity of tradition. He gives proper weight to Roman and Celtic Christianity (which has been overshadowed by Augustinian propaganda and the prejudice of chroniclers such as Bede) and to the importance of the survival of the British/Welsh language. The savagery of Norman methods of invasion and domination is treated in detail but, as Gerald of Wales wrote of his countrymen, ‘If they would be inseparable, they would be insuperable.’ The fragmentation, internal rivalries and problems caused by the Welsh system of inheritance worked against them on many occasions. Consequently, Breverton places great emphasis on the leaders who did succeed in uniting them, particularly on Owain Glyndŵr.
  After the Tudors his coverage becomes more selective, giving prominence to Welsh figures whose pivotal place in history has been under-valued, such as the great Civil War general Thomas Morgan and admiral Henry Morgan (though he surprisingly overlooks the importance of Welsh silver to the royal cause). The central position of the language in Welsh identity (undermined by some Tudor legislation and the Anglicisation of Welsh gentry in the 18th century) was supported by the spread of Nonconformist teaching but this suppressed other aspects of native culture which were championed by Iolo Morganwg and his associates. The author uses his research into court records to give a flavour of life and language through the centuries. His treatment of the 20th century does become very passionate and personalised, and he clearly has no confidence in the autonomy or effectiveness of the Assembly.
  Although he is a widely read and prolific author on Welsh subjects, Terry Breverton makes it clear that his approach is not that of the academic historian. He does not include any notes on his sources. This is a pity as I was constantly coming across items and thinking ‘I didn’t know that!’ – which was very much his intention. The Biography … on its own stated terms, this is a challenging and thought-provoking study of the Welsh.’ Caroline Clark

GOLWG 22 November 2012 [Welsh monthly magazine – full page article in Welsh] - Ei dweud-hi am y mewnlifiad

AMBERLEY PUBLISHING REVIEW Rating: 5 Stars

‘This is the second book that I've reviewed for Amberley Publishing. while reading through the books available on their website I was anxious to read Mr. Breverton's book on Welsh history.  The Welsh, The Biography has been eye-opening, educational, and thought provoking.

Summary:

Terry Breverton describes his book, "unashamedly pro-Welsh." It is with these direct and honest words that I was introduced to a complete and compelling biography of Wales. Breverton begins with the known historical and archaeological beginnings of Welsh history, and takes the reader up until the present 21st century. From the early part of the 1st century and extending until the Middle Ages, the Romans, Vikings, Angles, Saxons, Irish, Normans, and English, all invaded Wales, with the goal of possessing lands and a people group that had been intact for centuries. Yet, Wales struggled and fought to retain its national identity.

Often when books have been written about Wales, it was with a bent towards English thought and opinion. Mr. Breverton through study, research, and a love for Wales, has written a biography of Wales from the perspective of a Welshman seeking foremost to record the truth.

Are you aware?

"Wales has one of the oldest languages and national flags in the world."

"Wales has always been a nation."

"Wales has the longest unbroken Christian heritage in the world. "

The author’s supreme knowledge of Welsh history- from its ancient beginnings, through to the Middle Ages, the Tudor king who was Welsh, the boundary changes of Wales, religion, Church history, princes and castles, Welsh language, mining industry, mining disasters, child labour, promotion of education for children in the mid-19th century, and the current period detailing the effects of the economy and culture.

I appreciate and admire the authors directness in stating the problems that Wales has currently. He acknowledges various problems, seeking to be an advocate that will rally the Welsh to address and find answers.

The Welsh, The Biography, was exciting to read. Welsh is in my ancestry, and I felt an excitement and pride in knowing where my family came from. After I'd read The Welsh, The Biography, I felt as if I'd taken a semester college course on Welsh history. Norman history with the emphasis on the invasion including their brutality was horrifying, yet it gave me an idea of what life was like for the Welsh. Most books on the Norman invasion of England is on what happened to the English. Whereas, The Welsh, The Biography, specifically educated me on Wales.

Reading about the mining industry, disasters, and child labour, were heart-wrenching. I was angered by vile and money hungry men who cared only for themselves. Even in the 20th century, disasters and death happened because men in authority flagrantly denied fault. Why is this a positive point? Because knowledge is the first step, which then leads to being an advocate and spokesperson in being a rallying cry against its foes.

I finished reading The Welsh, The Biography, on 9 of January. I've had several days to think about it and I've not found any negative points. I have high regards for both the book and author. I'm anxious to read more books this author has written. I'm hoping in the near future to read Owain Glyndŵr: The Story of the Last Prince of Wales. Hwyl (cheers)

Thank you to Amberley Publishing and Terry Breverton for my free review copy in exchange for an honest review.’

Who Do You Think You Are - FAMILY HISTORY MAGAZINE 21 January 2013 review by John Williams – ‘Over the centuries, Wales has contributed to the life and industry of Great Britain in a number of different ways, from providing a different ruling dynasty (the Tudors) to supplying coal, iron, steel and copper in abundance. To attempt to cover over 2,000 years in just 375 pages is a feat in itself, but Terry Breverton manages to do this in a most readable fashion. You are gently led through the ups and downs of Welsh history in a knowledgeable and sometimes witty way. Chapters are split up into subsections, which enable the reader to dip in and out of the book if they so wish. This is not in itself a strictly genealogical work, but is of great help to the family historian in giving background to the life of their Welsh forebears. Perhaps the most important fact mentioned is that surnames are a fairly new innovation in Wales, only dating from the early 16th century. Until this time, the Welsh had employed a system of ‘patronymics’, whereby a son would carry his father’s name after his own, prefixed with the words ‘ap’ or ‘ab’, from ‘map’ meaning son. Thus Rhys ‘ap’ Thomas means Rhys ‘son of’ Thomas. It was really with the accession of the Tudors that many Welshmen seeking higher status chose to anglicise their names, for example ab Owen became Bowen. For anyone with Welsh ancestors, this is a real ‘must’ for the bookshelf.’