A Brief History of Wales | Series 7 Episode 0
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In an act of gross hubris, we proudly present our first episode of Three Ravens Series 7: A Brief History of Wales!
Based on a silly amount of research, this episode tracks through the story of how the country of Wales became 'Wales' - from the nation's very first settlers who wandered west through England through to the Stone Age tradition of cromlech building, the Bronze Age, and, in due course, the Iron Age, too.
Along the way, the nascent country of Wales develops its own place within Celtic culture, apart from its immediate neighbours, yet connected by ancient trade routes, including by sea. With more hill forts per square mile than any other British nation, even before the Romans came along things in Wales were feisty.
Yet, once the Romans came, much like in neighbouring England, things changed forever. Across almost four centuries, the Welsh landscape itself was reshaped by Rome, all before maintaining such large armies in 'Britain' became unaffordable.
Much as Rome retreated, Christianity also arrived, and with it a tantalizing time; the development of Anglo Saxon 'England' on one side of Offa's Dyke, and, on the other, one that calls itself 'Cymry' - 'the collective' or 'fellow countrymen.'
While the Angles call them the 'Wealas' - 'the foreigners...'
We hope it makes for interesting and exciting listening, whether you are Welsh or not!
About Three Ravens 🔮
Three Ravens is a completely independent English myth and folklore podcast where we share stories, celebrate folk culture, and fall backwards through the hedgerows of history.
Hosted by real-life couple Eleanor Conlon and Martin Vaux, and mostly recorded at our home in rural Sussex in southern England, Three Ravens is rated 4.8/5 from over 500 reviews and has grown by word of mouth care of our lovely listener community ‘The Conspiracy of Ravens.’
We release three episodes a week, on Mondays, Thursday and Saturdays, through which we explore folktales, folkways, fairy stories, folk songs, mythology, local heritage, seasonal customs and traditional beliefs.
Our research inspires our retellings of stories from across history and culture, with episodes standing alone but connected together across over 500 chatty, mostly light-hearted, swear-free installments driven by passion, kindness and curiosity.
Now ranked as an all-time Top 5 podcast across several categories by Goodpods, charting in the Spotify, Apple and Rephonic UK Fiction Top 10 across 2024, 2025 and 2026, if you’re interested in ghosts, monsters, regional beliefs, and the things that unite us all, then join us round the campfire and listen in…
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