The Pennal Letter was a historical letter by

Owain Glyndŵr Owain ap Gruffydd (28 May 135420 September 1415), commonly known as Owain Glyndŵr (Glyn Dŵr, , anglicised as Owen Glendower) was a Welsh people, Welsh leader, soldier and military commander in the Wales in the late Middle Ages, late Middle ...

Charles VI, King of France Charles VI (3 December 136821 October 1422), nicknamed the Beloved () and in the 19th century, the Mad ( or ''le Fou''), was King of France from 1380 until his death in 1422. He is known for his mental illness and psychosis, psychotic episodes t ...

. Owain composed the letter in Latin, in

Pennal Pennal is a village and community on the A493 road in southern Gwynedd, Wales, on the north bank of the River Dyfi, near Machynlleth. It lies in the historic county of Merionethshire () and is within the Snowdonia National Park. Roman for ...

, in the north of

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

, in 1406, and set out his vision of an independent Wales. Glyndwr Pennal 1406

The letter is regarded as unique as the only surviving written documentation detailing secular and religious policies for a potential independent Wales in the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

. In the letter, Owain pledges obedience to

Antipope Benedict XIII Pedro Martínez de Luna y Pérez de Gotor (25 November 1328 – 23 May 1423), known as () or Pope Luna, was an Aragonese nobleman who was antipope with the regnal name Benedict XIII during the Western Schism. Early life Pedro Martínez de Lu ...

of Avignon, supported by Charles VI during the

Avignon Papacy The Avignon Papacy (; ) was the period from 1309 to 1376 during which seven successive popes resided in Avignon (at the time within the Kingdom of Arles, part of the Holy Roman Empire, now part of France) rather than in Rome (now the capital of ...

, as opposed to the

Province of Canterbury The Province of Canterbury, or less formally the Southern Province, is one of two ecclesiastical provinces which constitute the Church of England. The other is the Province of York (which consists of 12 dioceses). Overview The Province consi ...

and

Pope Innocent VII Pope Innocent VII (; ; 1339 – 6 November 1406), born Cosimo de' Migliorati, was head of the Catholic Church from 17 October 1404 to his death, in November 1406. He was pope during the period of the Western Schism (1378–1417), and was opposed ...

, the pope in Rome, who was supported by the English king Henry IV. He describes the English government as "the barbarous Saxons, who usurped to themselves the land of Wales" and calls for Pope Benedict XIII to try and punish Henry IV as a heretic for the burning of many church buildings and the execution of members of the Welsh church.

History

The letter was sent by Owain Glyndŵr in 1406 to the king of France, Charles V asking for assistance in fighting against English rule in Wales. Glyndŵr outlines his hopes to establish an independent Welsh church and the ability of clergy to speak Welsh. He also sets out his plans for founding two universities in Wales.

Location

The letter is held in the National Archives of France (J516 B.40 and J516.29). It was briefly exhibited at the

National Library of Wales The National Library of Wales (, ) in Aberystwyth is the national legal deposit library of Wales and is one of the Welsh Government sponsored bodies. It is the biggest library in Wales, holding over 6.5 million books and periodicals, and the l ...

in 2000, and there is a campaign for its permanent return and display at the

Senedd The Senedd ( ; ), officially known as the Welsh Parliament in English and () in Welsh, is the devolved, unicameral legislature of Wales. A democratically elected body, Its role is to scrutinise the Welsh Government and legislate on devolve ...

Cardiff Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...

. Six exact facsimile copies, on aged parchment sealed with moulds of the original seal of Glyndŵr, were made by the National Library of Wales and presented to six Welsh institutions in 2009.

Mark Drakeford Mark Drakeford (born 19 September 1954) is a Welsh politician who has served as Cabinet Secretary for Finance since September 2024, having previously held the position from 2016 to 2018. He previously served as First Minister of Wales and L ...

First Minister of Wales The first minister of Wales () is the leader of the Welsh Government and keeper of the Welsh Seal. The first minister chairs the Welsh Cabinet and is primarily responsible for the formulation, development and presentation of Welsh Government po ...

was shown the letter on his visit to Paris to strengthen the Welsh relationship with France.

Proposed repatriation to Wales

Pennal Letter is held in Paris, France after being sent by

to the king of France in 1406. It has been backed by periodic calls for its return to Wales. In 1999, an

early day motion In the Westminster parliamentary system, an early day motion (EDM) is a motion, expressed as a single sentence, tabled by a member of Parliament, which the Government (in charge of parliamentary business) has not yet scheduled for debate. Hi ...

to the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

, signed by 28 members, called for the letter and the seal to be repatriated from the

French National Library French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

in France, reasoning that it was of "great historical significance in Wales as rare treasures of Welsh history" and should be exhibited in Wales. The motion was supported by the politicians Paul Flynn,

Alun Michael Alun Edward Michael (born 22 August 1943) is a Welsh Labour and Co-operative retired politician. He served as Secretary of State for Wales from 1998 to 1999 and then as the first First Secretary of Wales (later known as First Minister) and L ...

and Ron Davies. In 2022, Welsh singer Gwilym Bowen Rhys made similar calls.

References

{{Reflist 15th-century documents Glyndŵr rebellion Pennal Political history of Wales Medieval documents of Wales