Happy Saint Patricks day!

Bran the Blessed
In the collection of Welsh mythical tales called The Mabinogion, Bran the Blessed is a giant Welsh king.
Hearing of the disgrace of his sister, Branwen, Bran walks across the Irish Sea to rescue her.
His animal totem is the Raven.


I hope ye be wearin' the Green taday! Just so ya be knowin, My ancestor "Bran the Blessed" was well steeped in Irish hist'ry. I hope ye be readin the tale, and it be the Lard's own truth I tell ye. Fact o' the matter is, all o' the stories of Bran the Blessed are the truth! But when the truth be told in the wee Emerald Isle, it be stretched a wee bit, until it become a "tale" or a legend. "Bran the blessed" is what is known as a "tall tale". By the Lards own truth, he be tall enough ta wade the Irish sea ta be savin' his poor misused sister "Aunt Branwen". By some tellin' of the tales he took a fleet of ships to save her. M'self? I like the tale where he wades the Irish Sea.

Ta go back a wee tad, Bran was the King of Wales and ruled all of England, when Matholwch, the King of Ireland fell in love with Brans sister, Branwen, He asked Bran fer her hand in marriage, The Old Kings back then liked to keep everything in the family and Bran saw this as a grand opportunity to have ALL of the British Isle in the family, so he gladly gave his sisters hand in marriage to Matholwch. His half brother became enraged that Bran had given Branwen away, and killed all of the Irish Kings horses by slashing them apart with his sword. As ya might be thinkin' this greatly angered the Irish king. Bran, bein' greatly embarassed gave the Irish King a great gift ta make up fer it. Brân gave him "The magic cauldron", which restores the dead to life. All ye have ta do is poke a dead man in it, and he be poppin' right back alive! As the Lard be me witness!(We, with direct ancestry, truly know that the magic Cauldron was actually THE HOLY GRAIL! I can hear the angles singin' with the mere mention.)

Now, as ye already know, Matholwch mistreated Branwen, this greatly angered Bran and he waded the Irish sea, while his soldiers took ships. They had a great battle and all but seven soldiers were killed, and Bran was mortally wounded. He was too big to take back to England, so he told them to cut off his head, and he would talk to them while they took it back home. They buried the head on the "White Hill" which us ancestors know is where The Tower of London now stands. His head was buried facing France to scare off any French invaders.

Bran's Great body was turned into Ravens, which are called Brans in Wales, but called Ravens, or Crows, in the rest of the world. They are all my ancestors. If ye be visitin' the Tower of London, ye will be noticin' that the "Brans" or Ravens are well protected, and that if any harm be comin' of the Brans, great misfortune will be befallin' Angland.

If ye be steppin' out side today and see a Raven, say a blessin' ta keep it safe. The Raven be my "Grandfather Bird".

Epilogue:

As with all tales, or legends, from the British Isles that have some age to them, there is some truth, and some fiction. The early people had no written language, and they passed on stories as they saw fit. They added "morals" or aggrandised their ancestors, or put a in few extra ideas that might win over a lover, or win a bet. If the memory of the story was vague, they would just verbally gloss over the rough parts, much as we change photographs with our computers today. The end story has little to do with the truth, but what grand stories they end up being. As you might have guessed, my ancestors Kissed the Blarney Stone while they were there. I also have direct Irish ancestry... Another tale for another day.

For the Legend of Bran, check these links, or Goggle "Bran the Blessed"

Bran the Blessed

Bran

Bran some more