The earliest arrivals of the British Celtic tribes started initially in the south and east of Britain and made their way northwards). The strongest were rulers of their own tribal groups and from these groups, one held at high-kingship over the rest. Their duty as high king was to unite tribes in times of emergency, such as at the landings of Julius Caesar in 55 and 54 BC. History shows that both kings and queens ruled over various tribes.

They would train with the warriors of their tribes and lead them into battle, but only to protect their tribes. The Celts were fierce warriors, but only as protectors of their tribes and the kingdom.

Pre-Roman, heroic age Celtic kingdoms almost always formed the basis of the ancestral heritage of later post-Roman Celtic kings.

Although largely legendary until the Roman and post-Roman periods, the Celtic warrior class placed great importance on lineage. They had an oral tradition of being able to recite their ancestors. In the early 12th century, a Catholic cleric, Geoffrey of Monmouth, compiled the “The History of the Kings of Britain.” Whilst many believe it to be highly inaccurate, the oral tradition and lost written sources may well be more accurate than he is given credit for.

Pre-Roman Iron Age Celts left no written records, and the post-Roman Britons lost a large amount of the records they did possess after the Saxon invasion, so very little of Geoffrey’s work can ever be proved, or disproved. The dates of kingships are rough approximations and are calculated back from known high kings. They form a framework for the known facts about the Celtic
settlement of Britain.

Here are a few of the most famous early rulers of Britain: –

Brutus c. 1115 BC (reigned for 23 years)

Brutus founds a city on the banks of the Thames which he names New Troy, ‘that is, Trinovantum’ (thereby linking the later tribe of the Trinovantes to the region that is under their control in the first century BC). It is here that the ‘Crown of the Island’ is worn, in the land that had been called Albion but is now named Britain after Brutus himself. He divides the land between his three sons. Albanactus (Albanac) gains Albany (Scotland), and Kamber gains Cambria (Wales). The eldest, Locrinus, gains Lloegr (Logris or Loegria, analogous to England south of the Humber and remarkably similar to the civilian-controlled areas of Roman Britain, south and east of the military zones of Wales and the north, shown on the maps below in the AD 43-84 period).

Leir c.843 BC Reigned 60 years

Leir is the subject of William Shakespeare’s play, ‘King Lear’, and the Shakespearian spellings of his daughters’ names are shown after the more original Celtic versions below. Leir is also the traditional founder of Caer Leir (or Caer Lerion, modern Leicester).

His daughters Goronilla and Riganna are gifted Albany and Cornwall, respectively, when Leir decides to divide his kingdom amongst his offspring (as is the custom, but this time before his death). Cordaella is banished from Britain for not praising her father when asked. She seeks refuge with her foster parents, Maglocun and his wife, and is brought to King Aganippus in an unidentified part of Gaul. Cordaella and Aganippus are soon married. Goronilla gains Logris while Riganna gains Cambria, both of which should have gone to their youngest sister.

Leir has withdrawn from public life, but his attempts to maintain his household and warband are frustrated by Goronilla and Riganna. His status is whittled away by the pair until he has nothing other than the lowliest of bards. He goes to Gaul, to ‘the place where Aganippus was king’ (presumably a specific Gaulish tribe – he is sometimes referred to as one of the twelve kings that ruled Gallia), and seeks forgiveness from Cordaella. With the pair warmly reunited, they raise an army and defeat Goronilla and Riganna in battle. Leir is restored to his throne, and Cordaella succeeds him.

Cunedagius c.750 BC Reigned 33 years

Cunedagius is dated by Geoffrey of Monmouth to the period in which Romulus founded the city of Rome and the prophet Isaiah ministers to the Israelites. Cunedagius means ‘the hound (or dog) of [the god] Dadga’.

This is also the period in which the Iron Age begins to arrive in Britain, introduced alongside more early Celtic settlers. The site of Caerau in the later territory of the Silures shows evidence of this, although the initial spread of the Celtic newcomers is probably confined to the south and south-east coast before it moves inland. It is quite possible that with most of southern Britain held by Celts, the pre-Indo-European natives of the west and north respond to the threat by building defences that contain the latest technological advances, which are typical of those seen at Caerau. The use of iron weapons would more quickly supplant the bronze ones as a matter of necessity, and pockets of pre-Indo-Europeans would survive and persist much as later Romano-Britons do in the face of Anglo-Saxon advances, with the natives adopting elements of the newcomers’ weapons and fighting techniques as a matter of survival (the Votadini could be an example of this). Either way, Celtic language and tough iron swords gradually replace native language and soft bronze swords across the country over the course of the next 250 years.

Lludd Llaw Ereint (the Silver-Handed) c.80 BC

Lludd Llaw Ereint is the rebuilder of the city of Trinovantum, which is renamed Lludd’s Dun, or London, in his honour. Following his death, he is buried at Porthlud (modern Ludgate in the City of London). His two sons, Androgeus and Tenvantius, are still young and another son, Amalach or Afallach is claimed as the founder of the later ruling families of both Powys and Gwynedd, so Lludd’s brother, Cassivellaunus, gains the high kingship.

Cassivellaunus led the defense attack against Julius Caesar’s invading forces.

Bran Fendigaid (the Blessed) c.30 BC

Appearing in several of the Welsh Triads, Bran Fendigaid, Bran the Blessed, is the son of Lir, who comes from beyond the waves, from the Living Land (Ireland).

Bran becomes high king and is approached by Matholug, king of Ireland, who asks for his sister’s Branwen’s hand in marriage. Branwen is taken back to Ireland where she gives birth to a son, Gwern. An insult paid to Matholug by the troubled Emnissien plays on his mind so, at the urging of his advisors, Branwen is consigned to captivity in his kitchens. When Bran hears of this, he leads a mighty host which defeats the Irish king. His son, Caradoc, is left in command in Britain. Despite a truce between Bran and Matholug, further fighting erupts, devastating both sides and resulting in the deaths of Bran, Emnissien, Gwern, Matholug and, eventually, Branwen. Only Manadan survives with a few followers to bring Bran’s sacred head back to Britain to bury it in the White Mount, looking down the Thames to the sea. While the head remains in place, Britain will be protected from invasion from across the sea.

Today, the Tower of London stands over the White Mount, and legends state that Bran’s sacred head still lies beneath it.