I have still received only one online criticism of the project. That came from M Tomos in Jasper, Alberta. I have been rejected by the "Establishment", i.e. the historical academics. This came as no great surprise. My letter of September to Aberyswyth University for the translation of one word remains unanswered. When I approached a colleague of the person I had written to, who happens to be married to our local vicar, he dismissed the project as a fantasy, and treated me as an imbecile. He said that he had studied and visited numerous tribes of native Americans, but not the Mandans, and there was no evidence at all to support the theory that Madoc ever travelled to America. He just refused to discuss it, even when I ventured that I had worked out how to prove it. How can you have an open discussion with a closed mind? It brought to mind a quotation from Marcus Aurelius (121-80 b.c.) No one was ever injured by the truth; but he who persists in self-deception and ignorance is injured. This only strengthens my resolve to seek the truth.
Now for the rest of the news! As mentioned earlier, my attempts to get the writing on the Bat Creek stone translated has fallen on deaf ears. This script was sent to me by Sundea Murphy and was on a stone under the head of the paramount skeleton of a group exhumed by the Smithsonian Institute in 1888. It has been liberally translated as "Madoc the leader", but I am not convinced by this translation and I need stronger evidence before I support any bid to the Smithsonian to release part of the skull for DNA testing.
Has anyone any ideas where we can get the following text translated or what it means?
I also have an envelope full of hair from Trevor Powell, of Hundred House, in Mid Wales. Trevor can trace his lineage back 50 generations to 'The Lord Rhys', Ruler of Deheubarth, who is recognised as holding the first 'National Eisteddfod' in Cardigan Castle in 1176. From the Lord Rhys, the line goes back to 'Rhodri Mawr' (Rhodri the Great) died 872, who was also an ancestor of King Owain Gwynedd, Prince Madoc's father. There are also strong marital relationships between the two kings, Rhys and Owain. Trevor's royal connections are authenticated by the 'College of Heralds', the official body that verifies such matters.
The fledgling 'Madoc Association' is working on a constitution. It is focused on being a body for the dissemination of information and a vehicle for people to raise funds to undertake research. It is hoped it will eventually become an international foundation, linking Wales and North America.
The chairman of the association, Allyn Rees, is trying to track down someone in Anglesey, who is credited by the College of Heralds as being directly descended from Owain Lawgoch (Owain of the Red Hand, on account of his battle prowess). Owain fought for the French against the English and claimed the title "Prince of Wales", although he lived in exile in France. Owain Lawgoch was a direct descendant of Owain Gwynedd and adopted the Gwynedd coat of arms as his own.
We desperately require samples of hair or nail clippings from people who have firm roots in Northwest Wales or who have good reason to believe that they are descended from the 'House of Gwynedd'. (I guarantee anonymity if requested.) I will be writing to Robert Glyn Maier for further samples from the 'White Madoc' and to the Tribal Elders of the Mandans for their contribution.
Once the 'Association' is on a formal footing, we will be in a position to seek grant funding for DNA tests. At least it will be a first step on a long, long road. The weakness in our research is that lineages are normally traced through the male line, whereas the genetic link between the Cheddar skull and the local schoolteacher was through the female line. Has genetics moved on enough since 1997 to undertake research through the male lineage?
We have formed a 'Creative Media' sub-group, so if anyone has any literary ambitions and is interested, please let me know. I would like to think that people would work in a spirit of co-operation and collaboration. I am preserving the anonymity of the members to take any pressure off them so their creativity is not stifled.
I hope you all like the new look website. We are indebted to Alyson Egan yet again for this wonderful spectacle. Following requests for a broader and more affordable range of products, I have asked Bryn Griffiths to assist in sorting it out, so 'watch this space'.
The next few months I intend to develop my IT skills and establish a process to manage the site, so when things really take off, I will be able to spend time undertaking research, rather than administering the site. I really need a good data management system? I do apologise to the people whose information has not yet been logged on the site, it will be done, please be patient. It is fundamental to the whole project that the site is fully interactive and that people do participate and network. Is there anyone out there who can help, either with a brief or with a suitable programme? Please. I think a brief is the first stage, so we understand what we want. I also need to organise and catalogue the research I have done to date.
I have been given a link to the Wales Tourist Board site and they are hosting a meeting I am holding on the 2nd April into the promotion of the site. Thank you to the Wales Tourist Board for your support. Another job I have to do over the next few months is to promote the site and develop as many web links as possible. Any help would be much appreciated.
My bid to the 'Winston Churchill Memorial Trust' for a Travel Fellowship was unsuccessful, but I am hoping to spend three weeks in Arizona in September, starting with the Jazz Festival in Sedona and finishing with the Navajo Indian Festival. I have promised to take my wife for the 'holiday of a lifetime', to see the Grand Canyon. Anyone who can put up with me for 33 years deserves a break. If anyone will be in Arizona in September, I would love to meet up with you.
I have now found out that Madoc was related to the Vikings on his father's side, not his mother's side. Although illegitimate, his mother was Brenda, a daughter of the Prince of Powys, in Mid Wales. Owain Gwynedd, Madoc's father was the son of Gruffydd, who was born in Dublin, Ireland, in 1054/55. Gruffydd was the son of Cynan, whose father Iago had been banished there and died in 1039. Cynan married the granddaughter of Sihtric Silkenbeard, the Viking King of Dublin.
When I met some members of the Association of American Travel Writers before Christmas, again courtesy of the Wales Tourist Board, I was asked what Lewis and Clark said about the Mandans' Welsh connections. Both Lewis and Jefferson were Welsh, and Lewis was charged by Jefferson to report back on the Welsh Indians. Lewis is noted as having strong anti -British feelings following the civil war, whether that hostility included the Welsh we don't know. The main problem, however, is that there are a large gaps in Lewis and Clark's journals, particularly during their stay with the Mandans. They do mention a Mandan Chief called 'Large White'. Is this a clue? With the bi-centenery of Lewis and Clark's journey looming, can any of you throw any light on this issue or can you put us in touch with anyone undertaking research in this area? It seems incredible that documents of such national importance have disappeared. Has there been a hidden agenda in high places?
Finally, does anyone of you in America feel inspired to form a local chapter of the Madoc Association, as a precursor to the forming of an International Madoc Research Foundation? It would be useful to have a constitution that would be acceptable on both sides of the Atlantic. There is a famous quote, which says something like: The best way to predict the future is to have a hand in shaping it. I wish you all well and I will leave you with my personal mantra, and I hope it inspires you as it does me:
Our Vision
is Limited only by Our Imagination.
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