The Story of Wales
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- Episode
- Episode Three - England and Wales
- Broadcast Info
- 2012 (59 mins)
- Description
- We begin with a fallen crown caught on a thorn bush in a bloody battlefield. The English throne is ours. We trace the fortunes of the Tudors of Penmynydd. They do important things for and to Wales. Henry VII, Henry VIII and Elizabeth are big figures in the popular imagination and we’ll show their impact on Wales. The Welsh gentry follow them to London. So many of them that the top satirists of the day, from Skelton to Shakespeare, poke continual fun at them. The Welsh have huge influence at the Tudor court. It’s boom time for gentry families. The Stanleys of Wrexham and Catrin Berain of Elizabeth’s bedchamber are Welsh figures at the very top of the Tudor tree.
But that’s not the whole story. Back home, Wales is not developing economically and socially. The country lacks its own institutions. The Welsh language has been down-graded by the Acts of Union. The development of towns is small-scale. So commerce doesn’t spread wealth across the population. In this context, the Welsh cling to old ways, especially in Religion. They’re Catholics. And Royalist. And alarmed at the Puritan agenda. When the Civil War comes, it’s particularly bitter in Wales. And Oliver Cromwell, who saw himself as Welsh, is certain that Wales needs a fresh start.... - Genre
- History; Social Science
How to cite this record
The Open University, "The Story of Wales". https://learningonscreen.ac.uk/ou/search/index.php/prog/82591 (Accessed 11 Jan 2025)