A History of Wales, Volume I: III

III

III

Os mai oddi wrth yr Iberiad y cafodd y Cymro ei allu i ddychmygu a breuddwydio a rhyfeddu, oddi wrth y Celt y cafodd hynny o allu sydd ganddo i drefnu ac i lywodraethu.

If it was from the Iberian that the Welshman acquired his ability to imagine, dream and wonder, it was from the Celt that he acquired such ability as he possesses to organise and govern.

Ei natur Iberaidd wna iddo weled byd arall, ei natur Geltaidd wna iddo geisio trin y byd hwn.

It is his Iberian nature that makes him see another world; it is his Celtic nature that makes him seek to deal with this one.

Gŵr rhyfel oedd y Celt; sefydlodd ymherodraethau, a thaflodd ymherodraethau i lawr.

The Celt was a man of war; he founded empires and cast empires down.

Yr oedd yn perthyn yn agos i'r Rhufeiniwr, a'r un oedd ei athrylith, - athrylith at uno a threfnu a llywodraethu.

He was closely related to the Roman, and his genius was the same: a genius for uniting, organising and governing.

Efe roddodd ei ysbryd i Hanes Cymru; ond yr Iberiad roddodd ei ysbryd i Lenyddiaeth Cymru.

He gave his spirit to Welsh history; but it was the Iberian who gave his spirit to Welsh literature.

Nid ydyw'r ymdrech rhwng yr Iberiad a'r Celt wedi darfod eto.

The struggle between the Iberian and the Celt is not yet over.

Yng nghyfnod cryfder ei athrylith y mae Shakespeare yn gwneud i ysbrydion ei arwyr ymladd y frwydr drosodd drachefn.

In the age when his genius was at its height, Shakespeare makes the spirits of his heroes fight the battle all over again.

Ac yn hanes Cymru, dan bob ymdrech arall, y mae ysbryd yr Iberiad yn ymdrechu yn erbyn ysbryd y Celt.

And in the history of Wales, beneath every other struggle, the spirit of the Iberian is contending against the spirit of the Celt.

Y mae pob diwygiad crefyddol yn fuddugoliaeth i'r Iberiad; y mae darganfod gwaith glo neu waith aur newydd yn fuddugoliaeth i'r Celt.

Every religious revival is a victory for the Iberian; the discovery of a new coalfield or goldfield is a victory for the Celt.

Mewn pob cân newydd y mae llais yr Iberiad; yn hanes hela a chware pêl droed clywir llais y Celt.

In every new song there is the voice of the Iberian; in the history of hunting and the playing of football, the voice of the Celt is heard.

Y cymorth cryfaf gafodd yr Iberiad ydyw'r Beibl; y cymorth cryfaf gafodd y Celt ydyw'r Sais.

The greatest aid the Iberian received was the Bible; the greatest aid the Celt received was the Englishman.

Fel rheol, y cyntaf i wladychu mewn gwlad fydd byw hwyaf ynddi.

As a rule, those who first colonise a country are the ones who survive longest in it.

Nid ydyw dyfodiaid yn medru ymgynefino cystal â natur y wlad, oherwydd hynny y maent yn gwanhau ac yn marw mewn amser.

Newcomers cannot adapt themselves so well to the nature of the country; consequently, they grow weaker and eventually die out.

A than bopeth. y peth rhyfeddaf a phwysicaf yn hanes Cymru ydyw adfywiad yr Iberiad.

And beneath everything else, the strangest and most important thing in the history of Wales is the revival of the Iberian.

Trwy'r diwygiadau crefyddol y mae wedi ennill Llenyddiaeth Cymru yn eiddo iddo; ac oherwydd estyn yr etholfraint, y mae'r gallu politicaidd yn ei law.

Through the religious revivals he has won Welsh literature as his own; and, through the extension of the franchise, political power is in his hands.

Dan ei ddylanwad y mae Cymru'n dod yn fwy llenyddol ac yn fwy gwerinol bob dydd.

Under his influence, Wales is becoming more literary and more democratic every day.

Er hyn oll, rhaid cofio mai nid Iberiad pur ydyw'r Cymro.

Despite all this, it must be remembered that the Welshman is not a pure Iberian.

Y mae gwaed y Celt ynddo hefyd.

The blood of the Celt is in him too.

Oni bai am y gwaed hwn, ni fedrasai dim ei gadw rhag gorfreuddwydio; diwinyddiaeth ac athroniaeth a barddoniaeth fuasai ei unig fyfyrdod holl ddyddiau ei fywyd.

Were it not for this blood, nothing could have prevented him from dreaming excessively; theology, philosophy and poetry would have occupied his thoughts exclusively throughout his life.

Ond yn y gwaed Celtaidd sydd ynddo y mae awydd am lywodraethu, am gysuron, ac am feddiannau.

But it is in the Celtic blood within him that the desire for governing, for comforts and for possessions resides.

Y mae'r gwaed oer hwn yn tymheru ei natur ddychmygol wyllt.

This cool-headed blood tempers his wild, imaginative nature.

Paham y desgrifir y Cymro mor aml fel Celt, a phaham yr anghofir am ei waed Iberaidd?

Why is the Welshman so often described as a Celt, and why is his Iberian blood forgotten?

Y rheswm am hyn ydyw mai iaith Geltaidd ydyw'r Gymraeg.

The reason for this is that Welsh is a Celtic language.

Collodd yr Iberiad ei iaith, a dysgodd iaith ei orchfygwr, ond nid hwyrach heb newid peth a'r yr iaith honno.

The Iberian lost his language and learned the language of his conqueror, though perhaps not without altering that language somewhat.

GalI Cymru golli ei hiaith lawer gwaith eto, ond erys neilltuolion meddwl y bobl o hyd.

Wales may lose its language many times yet, but the distinctive characteristics of its people's thought will nevertheless remain.

A newidir pob iaith ddysgant hyd nes y bo'n alluog i osod allan neilltuolion meddwl y bobl hynny.

Every language they learn is altered until it becomes capable of expressing the distinctive characteristics of those people's thought.

Erys rhyw adlais o iaith goIl yr Iberiad, ac o iaith y Celt, ymhen oesoedd rif y gwlith, ymysg preswylwyr y mynyddoedd hyn.

Some echo of the lost language of the Iberian, and of the language of the Celt, will remain through countless generations among the inhabitants of these mountains.

Nid mewn geiriau wyf yn feddwl, ond mewn arddull, - yn null ffurfio brawddeg, yn nhroadau meddwl.

I do not mean in words, but in style—in the manner of forming sentences and in the turns of thought.

Ai hanes yr Iberiad a'r Celt ydyw hanes Cymru?

Is the history of Wales the history of the Iberian and the Celt?

Na, tra'r oedd y rhain yn ymdrechu neu ymgyfuno yng Nghymru, yr oedd galluoedd eraill yn ymffurfio draw dros y môr, galluoedd fu'n gweithio'n nerthol wedi hynny yn ein hanes ni.

No. While these peoples were struggling or combining in Wales, other forces were taking shape across the sea, forces that would afterwards exert a powerful influence upon our history.

O'r rhai hyn, y ddau bwysicaf oedd dinas yn codi mewn cors a haid o farbariaid yn ymwthio drwy goedwigoedd.

Of these, the two most important were a city rising from a marsh and a horde of barbarians pressing through the forests.

Mewn cors afiach a'r lan y Tiber, yng nghanol penrhyn red i Fôr y Canoldir, gwelwyd Rhufain yn cael ei hadeiladu, nid mewn un dydd.

In an unhealthy marsh on the banks of the Tiber, in the midst of a peninsula stretching into the Mediterranean Sea, Rome was seen taking shape—not in a single day.

Yr oedd ei phreswylwyr yn perthyn o bell i'r Celtiaid oedd wedi crwydro tua'r gorllewin, ac yn debyg iddynt mewn meddwl ac iaith.

Its inhabitants were distantly related to the Celts who had wandered westward, and resembled them in thought and language.

Y ddinas hon, mewn amser, oedd i uno pob llwyth ac iaith mewn un ymherodraeth; wneud y byd yn ddinas, a dynion yn gyd-ddineswyr.

In time, this city was to unite every tribe and language in a single empire, to make the world one city and all men fellow citizens.

Cawn weled llengoedd Rhufain yn gwneud ffyrdd gysylltai Gymru âr byd oddi allan. a'r amaethwr a'r gwladweinydd yn dod â'r hyd y ffyrdd hyn, a thraed yr hwn gyhoeddai efengyl tangnefedd ar y mynyddoedd.

We shall see the legions of Rome making roads that connected Wales with the outside world, and the farmer and the statesman coming along these roads, followed by the feet of him who proclaimed the gospel of peace upon the mountains.

Tra'r oedd yr Iberiad yn cyrchu tua Phrydain trwy ddeheubarth Ewrob, a'r Celt hyd lwybr cyfochrog trwy'r canolbarth, a thra'r oedd muriau Rhufain yn codi ar lwybr y cenhedloedd crwydr, yr oedd cenedl arall yn paratoi at ymsymud i'r un cyfeiriad hyd lwybr cyfochrog arall, yn y gogledd.

While the Iberian was advancing towards Britain through southern Europe, and the Celt along a parallel route through central Europe, and while the walls of Rome were rising across the path of the migrating peoples, another nation was preparing to move in the same direction along yet another parallel route in the north.

Cenedl o bobl dalgryfion, o gorff anferth, oedd y genedl Deutonaidd hon.

This Teutonic nation was a race of tall, powerful people of enormous stature.

Yr oedd y Teuton yn gawr o ddyn, yn felynwallt, lygadlas, ac yn hagr iawn.

The Teuton was a giant of a man, fair-haired, blue-eyed and exceedingly ugly.

Yr oedd ei ben yn fychan, ei dalcen yn isel, ei drwyn yn hir. a'i lygad yn enfawr.

His head was small, his forehead low, his nose long, and his eyes enormous.

Yr oedd yn ddewr iawn, yn hoff o ryfel a hela, ond araf iawn oedd ei feddwl.

He was exceedingly brave and fond of war and hunting, but very slow in thought.

Medrai orchfygu mewn brwydr, ond ni fedrai lywodraethu na chadw yr hyn a enillai.

He could conquer in battle, but he could neither govern nor retain what he had won.

Gorchfygodd orllewin Ewrob, a daeth gwastadeddau Prydain a'u trigolion yn eiddo iddo.

He conquered western Europe, and the plains of Britain and their inhabitants became his possessions.

Erbyn heddyw nis ceir ef ond fel tir feddiannydd y gwahanol wledydd, - ni chymer fawr o ddiddordeb mewn celfyddyd na llenyddiaeth, deil i ymhyfrydu yn hen arferion helwriaethol ei hynafiaid barbaraidd.

Today he is found only as a landowner in the various countries. He takes little interest in art or literature, and continues to delight in the ancient hunting customs of his barbarian ancestors.

Y mae eto yn ein plith yng Nghymru; clywir ei helgorn,. a deil i redeg a'r ôl llwynogod a dyfrgwn, a'r ychydig anifeiliaid gwylltion eraill sydd eto heb eu difa yn ein hynys.

He is still among us in Wales; his hunting horn can be heard, and he continues to pursue foxes and otters, along with the few other wild animals that have not yet been exterminated from our island.

Dinistrio Rhufain, lladd ac ymladd oedd gwaith ei gyndadau; lladd rhyw fwystfil ydyw ei hoff waith yntau hyd y dydd heddyw.

Destroying Rome, killing and fighting, were the occupations of his forefathers; killing some beast remains his favourite occupation to this very day.

Ni roddodd ddim i lenyddiaeth y byd, ond cryfhaodd ysbryd annibyniaeth a rhyddid, ac y mae rhywbeth iachusol yn ei ddylanwad barbaraidd.

He contributed nothing to the literature of the world, but strengthened the spirit of independence and freedom, and there is something invigorating in his barbarian influence.

Ymysg pa genedl bynnag y mae ef wedi sefydlu, y mae'r genedl honno wedi derbyn y diwygiad Protestannaidd ac wedi taflu ymaith iau offeiriadol Rhufain.

Whatever nation he has settled among, that nation has embraced the Protestant Reformation and cast off the priestly yoke of Rome.

Efe drwythodd Gristionogaeth y gorllewin âi natur filwrol, - peth mor anghydnaws â natur yr Iberiad a'r Celt; efe drodd yr eglwys yn eglwys filwriaethol, - peth mor annhebyg i wir eglwys brenin tangnefedd.

He imbued Western Christianity with his military nature—a quality so incompatible with the nature of the Iberian and the Celt; he turned the Church into a militant Church, something so unlike the true Church of the Prince of Peace.

Yr Iberiad fun ddeiliad y byd, y Celt yn llywodraethwr, a'r Teuton yn wrthryfelwr.

The Iberian was the dreamer of the world, the Celt its ruler, and the Teuton its rebel.

Ymhen amser wedi i'r tri hyn ddod, daeth un arall, - y Norman o'r gogledd.

Some time after these three had arrived, another came—the Norman from the north.

Daeth yn ddinistrydd i ddechrau.

At first he came as a destroyer.

Gadawodd greigiau a hafanau Norwy, a daeth i losgi eglwysi, ac i ddymchwelyd teyrnasoedd.

He left the cliffs and harbours of Norway and came to burn churches and overthrow kingdoms.

Daeth drachefn fel llywodraethwr, wedi ei ddofi a'i ddysgu.

He came again as a ruler, having been tamed and educated.

Hyd y môr y daeth i Gymru yn ei ddyddiau barbaraidd; o wastadeddau Lloegr y daeth pan wedi ei wareiddio, i godi cestyll a mynachlogydd - mae eu hadfeilion eto ymysg rhyfeddodau ein gwlad.

By sea he came to Wales in his barbarous days; from the plains of England he came when civilised, to build castles and monasteries—whose ruins are still among the wonders of our land.

Ac o'r holl genhedloedd hyn, ddilynodd eu gilydd i'r mynyddoedd, y gwnaed cenedl y Cymry.

And from all these nations, which followed one another into the mountains, the Welsh nation was formed.

NODYN II. golygu

NOTE II. References

Gellir darllen ychwaneg a'r testun y bennod hon yn y llyfrau a enwir yn y nodyn hwn, ymysg eraill.

Further information on the subject of this chapter may be found in the books named in this note, among others.

Yn llyfr diddorol ac eglur Isaac Taylor,—The Origin of the Aryans,—ceir crynhodeb o'r hyn a ddywedir yn y dyddiau hyn am y cenhedloedd crwydr.

In Isaac Taylor's interesting and lucid book, The Origin of the Aryans, there is a summary of what is currently being said about the migrating nations.

Ceir manylion gwerthfawr yn Village Communty Gomme hefyd.

Valuable details are also to be found in Gomme's Village Community.

Am hanes trigolion ein hynys ni'n dod yma, darllener llyfrau John Rhys, pen Coleg yr Iesu, yn enwedig ei Celtic Britain , ei Celtic Heathendom , a'i Arthur .

For an account of how the inhabitants of our island came here, read the books of John Rhys, Principal of Jesus College, especially his Celtic Britain, Celtic Heathendom, and Arthur.

Gweler ei amrywiol ddarlithiau, yn enwedig y Rhind Lectures .

See his various lectures, particularly the Rhind Lectures.

Os mynnir darllen llyfrau syn taflu goleuni ar fywyd cyntefig cenhedloedd anwaraidd, darllener y traethawd a'r y teulu yn Custom and Myth Andrew Lang,—crynodeb o weithiau cyflawnach Morgan a Maclennan.

For books that shed light on the primitive life of uncivilised peoples, read Andrew Lang's essay on the family in Custom and Myth—a summary of the more extensive works of Morgan and MacLennan.

Y mae erthygl debyg, ond yn dod i well canlyniad, ar Sylfeini Cymdeithas, yn yr ail lyfr o'r Llenor.

A similar article, though reaching a better conclusion, on the Foundations of Society appears in the second book of the Llenor.

Am y goleuni deifl hen gyfreithiau, darllener Ancient Law Syr Henry Maine.

For the light shed by ancient laws, read Sir Henry Maine's Ancient Law.

Y mae pob peth ysgrifenna Professor Tylor yn werth ei astudio hefyd; ac ennyn Grant Allen ein diddordeb bob amser.

Everything written by Professor Tylor is also worth studying; and Grant Allen never fails to arouse our interest.

Wedi cael peth cyfarwyddyd o lyfrau fel hyn, dechreua'r gwir efrydydd ddarllen yr hen gyfreithiau Cymreig yn fanwl; a dechreua graffu a'r traddodiadau, enwau lleoedd, a hen lysenwau, na feddent ddiddordeb iddo o'r blaen.

Having gained some guidance from books such as these, the serious student begins to read the ancient Welsh laws carefully, and to examine traditions, place names and old surnames which previously held no interest for him.

Lloegr fod olion haenau o genhedloedd yn y cyfreithiau; medr weithio'n ôl oddi wrth wahaniaethau rhwng dosbarthiadau mewn cymdeithas at goncwest ar ôl concwest nad oes ond eu heffeithiau i ddangos eu bod.

England has traces of successive layers of peoples in its laws; one can work backwards from the differences between classes in society to successive conquests, of which only the effects remain as evidence.

Y FENAI AC YNYS MON,—GER PORTHAMEL

THE MENAI STRAIT AND ANGLESEY—NEAR PORT HAYEL

HANES CYMRU Cyfrol I - O. M.

A HISTORY OF WALES Volume I - O. M.

EDWARDS PENNOD III.- Y RHUFEINIAID.

EDWARDS CHAPTER III—THE ROMANS.

TRA'R oedd cenedl ar ôl cenedl yn crwydro tua'r gorllewin, i'r ynys oedd y pryd hwnnw a'r ymyl eithaf y byd, yr oedd dinas yn codi a'r lan Môr y Canoldir, dinas oedd i roi terfyn am rai canrifoedd i grwydradau'r cenhedloedd, dinas oedd i estyn ei theyrnwialen dros ynysoedd eithaf y ddaear, dinas oedd i wneud tylwythau gelynol yn gyd-ddinasyddion, dinas oedd i wneud gwledydd y ddaear yn un ymherodraeth.

While nation after nation was migrating westward towards the island which was then regarded as the farthest edge of the world, a city was rising on the shores of the Mediterranean—a city destined to bring the migrations of nations to an end for several centuries, to extend its sceptre over the remotest islands of the earth, to make hostile tribes fellow citizens, and to unite the countries of the world into a single empire.

Y mae gwaith Rhufain wedi ei ddarlunio'n gyflawn yn y geiriau ddywedwyd wrthi gan un o'i beirdd,

The work of Rome has been fully portrayed in the words spoken to her by one of her poets:

Ond, ymhell cyn sylfaenu Rhufain, yr oedd dychmygu wedi bod yn heolydd dinasoedd gorwych, pa ynysoedd orweddai draw y tu hwnt i golofnau Moloch, yn y môr y tybid nad oedd terfyn iddo.

But long before Rome was founded, imagination had already wandered through the streets of magnificent cities, wondering what islands lay beyond the Pillars of Moloch, in the sea that was thought to have no end.

Gwelwyd llongau Tyrus yn chwilio holI gilfachau Môr y Canoldir, ac yn meiddio hwylio rhwng y colofnau i'r môr dieithr di-lan.

The ships of Tyre were seen exploring every inlet of the Mediterranean, and daring to sail between the pillars into the strange, boundless sea.

Yr oedd medr morwyr Tyrus yn ddihareb, - dy ddoethion di, Tyrus, o'th fewn, oedd dy long lywiawdwyr.

The skill of the sailors of Tyre was proverbial: your wise men, O Tyre, were within you, and your shipmasters were your own.

Yr oedd llongau Tyrus yn syndod y byd, - eu rhwyfau o dderw a'u meinciau o ifori, lliain main o'r Aifft o symudliw oedd yr hyn a ledit i fod yn hwyl i ti, glas a phorffor o ynysoedd Elisah oedd dy do.

The ships of Tyre were the wonder of the world: their oars were of oak and their benches of ivory; fine Egyptian linen, richly coloured, was spread for your sail, and blue and purple from the islands of Elishah formed your awning.

Ymsefydlodd y Phoeniciaid hyn yma ac acw hyd lannau Môr y Canoldir, - a dwy ferch enwocaf Tyrus a Sidon oedd Carthage a'r dueddau Affrig a Tharsis a'r lan Hispaen.

These Phoenicians settled here and there along the shores of the Mediterranean; and the two most famous daughters of Tyre and Sidon were Carthage, on the African coast, and Tartessus, on the coast of Spain.

Tarsis oedd y bellaf i'r gorllewin o ferched Tyrus, a daeth mor gyfoethog fel y gofynnodd proffwyd Hebreig am ei llongau,

Tartessus was the westernmost of Tyre's daughters, and became so wealthy that a Hebrew prophet spoke of its ships:

I Darsis y doi cyfoeth Prydain a'r gorllewin, - yr arian a'r haearn a'r alcan a'r plwm â'r rhiai y marchnatai ei marsiandwyr yn ffeiriau Tyrus.

To Tartessus came the wealth of Britain and the West—the silver, iron, tin and lead with which its merchants traded in the markets of Tyre.

Ond daeth dydd cwymp Tyrus, y ddinas sylfaenesid a'r y graig, marchnadyddes y bobloedd i ynysoedd lawer.

But the day of Tyre's downfall came, that city founded upon the rock, the merchant of peoples for many islands.

Ymadnewyddodd wedi i Nebuchodonosor ei dinistrio, - dy derfynau oedd yng nghanol y môr, dy adeiladwyr a berffeithiasant dy degwch.

It revived after Nebuchadnezzar had destroyed it: your borders were in the heart of the sea; your builders perfected your beauty.

Ond, yn y flwyddyn 332 cyn Crist, dinistriwyd hi gan Alecsander Fawr a'i Roegwyr, a'r ynysoedd y rhai oedd yn y môr a drallodwyd wrth ei mynediad hi ymaith.

But in 332 BC it was destroyed by Alexander the Great and his Greeks, and the islands in the sea trembled at its fall.

Wedi cwymp Tyrus, ymholodd y Groegiaid o ba le yn y gorllewin y deuai ei gollid.

After the fall of Tyre, the Greeks began to inquire from what part of the West its wealth had come.

Tua'r adeg yr oedd Alecsander yn gwarchae a'r Dyrus, yr oedd llong Groegwr yn hwylio allan o Fôr y Canoldir, rhwng colofnau Moloch, i chwilio am ynysoedd y gorllewin.

About the time Alexander was besieging Tyre, a Greek ship sailed out of the Mediterranean, between the Pillars of Moloch, in search of the western islands.

A daeth colofnau Moloch, duw Tyrus, yn golofnau Hercules, enw Groeg.

And the pillars of Moloch, the god of Tyre, became the Pillars of Hercules, as they were called by the Greeks.

Erbyn hyn y mae magnelau Prydain ar graig Gibraltar, yn lle temlau'r hen genhedloedd fu'n anfon morwyr i chwilio am dani.

Today, British artillery stands upon the Rock of Gibraltar, where once stood the temples of the ancient nations that sent their sailors in search of it.

Pytheas oedd enw'r Groegwr anturiodd allan i fôr y gorllewin.

Pytheas was the name of the Greek who ventured out into the western sea.

Un o frodorion Marseilles Roegaidd oedd,—efrydydd lledredau, a sêr, a dylanwad y lleuad ar y tonnau.

He was a native of Greek Marseilles, a student of latitudes, the stars, and the influence of the moon upon the waves.

Wedi dod allan i Fôr y Werydd, hwyliodd i'r gogledd, gyda gororau Spaen a Llydaw, ac o'r diwedd cyrhaeddodd Brydain yn gynnar yn yr haf.

Having reached the Atlantic Ocean, he sailed northwards along the coasts of Spain and Brittany, and eventually arrived in Britain early in the summer.

Gwelodd drigolion yr ynys yn dyrnu eu gwenith, ac yn gwneud medd o wenith a mêl, ond y mae'n amheus iawn a aeth yn ddigon pell i'r gorllewin i weled ardaloedd yr alcan.

He saw the inhabitants of the island threshing their wheat and making mead from wheat and honey, but it is very doubtful whether he travelled far enough west to see the tin-producing regions.

O Brydain hwyliodd i'r gogledd, gan gadw gyda thraethell y Cyfandir.

From Britain he sailed northwards, keeping close to the coastline of the Continent.

Gwelodd Gimbrir Iseldiroedd yn gorfod ffoi yn awr ac eilwaith a'r eu ceffylau cyflymaf i osgoi'r llanw ddoi dros eu gwlad, gwelodd y fforestydd tywyll oedd yn gorchuddio gogledd Ewrob, hwyliodd a'r hyd glannau mynyddig danheddog Norwy tua Phegwn y Gogledd, hyd nes y cafodd ei hun mewn gwlad lle gellid gweled yr haul ganol nos, ac ymysg pobl dangosent iddo y lle'r oedd yr haul yn cysgu.

He saw the Cimbri of the Low Countries occasionally forced to flee on their swiftest horses to escape the tides that flooded their land; he saw the dark forests covering northern Europe; and he sailed along the jagged, mountainous coast of Norway towards the North Pole, until he found himself in a country where the sun could be seen at midnight, among people who showed him the place where the sun slept.

O fôr oer marw'r gogledd trodd Pytheas yn ôl tua Phrydain, ac oddi yno adre, wedi dechrau masnach, feallai, rhwng Marseilles ac ardaloedd alcan Prydain, a rhyngddi ac ardaloedd amber rhuddgoch y Baltic.

From the cold, lifeless northern sea Pytheas turned back towards Britain, and from there sailed home, having perhaps initiated trade between Marseilles and the tin-producing regions of Britain, as well as the regions of reddish amber around the Baltic.

Wedi ei farw, ni chredid Pytheas.

After his death, Pytheas was not believed.

Tybid mai cread ei ddychymyg ei hun oedd y petha welsai, ac ni roddid gwerth a'r ei ffeithiau ond fel defnyddiau rhamantau.

It was thought that the things he had seen were creations of his own imagination, and his accounts were valued only as material for romances.

I gyfoedion Pytheas,—megis Plato ac Aristotl,—nid oedd ynysoedd y gorllewin ond enw ar wlad o fwnau heb eu darganfod, rhywbeth fel enw Peru i'r rhai ganasant emynau Pant y Celyn gyntaf.

To Pytheas's contemporaries, such as Plato and Aristotle, the western islands were merely a name for a land of undiscovered mines, rather like the name Peru to those who first sang the hymns of Pant y Celyn.

Collwyd Prydain eilwaith yn niwl a hud dychymyg y Groegiaid.

Britain was once again lost in the mists and enchantments of Greek imagination.

Wedi cwymp Tyrus, a thra gwywai Groeg, cododd Rhufain.

After the fall of Tyre, and while Greece was declining, Rome arose.

Ei gwaith hi oedd uno gwledydd y ddaear, a gwneud ffyrdd i bob man.

Her task was to unite the countries of the earth and build roads to every place.

Erbyn 275 c.c., yr oedd yr Eidal yn eiddo iddi; erbyn 202 yr oedd wedi gorchfygu Hannibal, ac yn ymbaratoi at ddinistrio Carthage: erbyn 190 yr oedd Macedonia, Groeg, a Syria wedi eu gorchfygu: erbyn 133, yr oedd Spaen wedi ei hennill a Charthage yn lludw: yr oedd holl lannau Môr y Canoldir yn eiddo Rhufain.

By 275 BC, Italy belonged to her; by 202, she had defeated Hannibal and was preparing to destroy Carthage; by 190, Macedonia, Greece and Syria had been conquered; by 133, Spain had been won and Carthage lay in ashes. The entire coastline of the Mediterranean belonged to Rome.

Yna trodd y ddinas aniwalladwy ei llygaid tua'r dwyrain a thua'r gogledd.

Then the invincible city turned its eyes towards the east and the north.

Croesodd Iwl Cesar, hoff arweinydd y bobl, yr Alpau, yn y flwyddyn 58 c.c.: a chyn pen y deng mlynedd yr oedd Gallia, yr holl wlad rhwng y Rhein a Môr y Werydd wedi dod yn wlad Rufeinig, - ffyrdd Rhufeinig yn rhedeg drwyddi i'r môr eithaf, a'i thrigolion yn ddeiliaid ffyddlon.

Julius Caesar, the people's beloved leader, crossed the Alps in 58 BC; and within ten years Gaul, the whole country between the Rhine and the Atlantic Ocean, had become Roman territory, with Roman roads running through it to the remotest sea and its inhabitants becoming loyal subjects.

Pan oedd Cesar yn gorchfygu trigolion Gallia, gwelodd eu bod yn cael cymorth o ynys Prydain oedd a'r eu gororau.

While Caesar was conquering the inhabitants of Gaul, he discovered that they were receiving assistance from the island of Britain, which lay along their borders.

Ac er mwyn cwblhau ei goncwest, penderfynodd ddarostwng yr ynys honno hefyd.

And in order to complete his conquest, he decided to subdue that island as well.

Croesodd y culfor, gyda'r ail a'r seithfed leng, yn niwedd Awst 55 c.c.

He crossed the Channel with the Second and Seventh Legions at the end of August, 55 BC.

Nid oedd ei fyddin yn ddigon i orchfygu'r wlad, ac yr oedd yn hwyr ar y flwyddyn.

His army was not strong enough to conquer the country, and the season was already far advanced.

Aeth yntau'n ôl, a daeth yn gynharach yn y flwyddyn wedyn, gyda byddin gryfach.

He therefore returned, and came again earlier the following year with a stronger army.

Dywed ei hanes ei hun yn gorchfygu Caswallon, tywysog y Brytaniaid, yn cymeryd dinas noddfa ei lwyth, yn derbyn ymostyngiad llwythau dwyrain yr ynys, ac yn troi ei gefn a'r Brydain.

In his own account, he describes defeating Cassivellaunus, prince of the Britons, capturing the refuge city of his tribe, receiving the submission of the tribes in the east of the island, and then turning his back on Britain.

Casglodd beth gwybodaeth am ganolbarth a gorllewin yr ynys, - dywed fod eu pobl yn gwisgo crwyn ac yn byw ar gig a llaeth eu praidd, fod yr Iwerddon y tu hwnt i Brydain, ac Ynys Môn rhwng y ddwy.

He gathered some information about the central and western parts of the island. He says that their people wore animal skins and lived on the meat and milk of their flocks, that Ireland lay beyond Britain, and that the Isle of Anglesey lay between the two.

Am gan mlynedd wedyn ni ddaeth milwyr Rhufeinig i Brydain.

For the next hundred years, no Roman soldiers came to Britain.

Yr oedd y can mlynedd hyn yn gan mlynedd rhyfedd yn hanes y byd.

These hundred years were a remarkable century in the history of the world.

Ynddynt y cyrhaeddodd Rhufain binacl ei gogoniant, ac y dechreuodd wywo.

During them, Rome reached the pinnacle of her glory and began to decline.

Ynddynt y gwelwyd Iwl Cesar yn gorchfygu cyrrau'r byd, o Balestina i Brydain, ac yn dod yn ymerawdwr mewn popeth ond enw, hyd nes y llofruddiwyd ef gan garedigion yr hen weriniaeth.

During them, Julius Caesar was seen conquering the farthest corners of the world, from Palestine to Britain, and becoming emperor in everything but name, until he was murdered by the champions of the old republic.

Ynddynt rhoddwyd enw ymerawdwr, yn gystal â'r gallu, i Augustus.

During them, Augustus was given the title of emperor as well as the power.

Yn ystod ei ymherodraeth ef y canodd beirdd gorau Rhufain, - daw cyfnod aur llenyddiaeth bob amser yn adeg gorthrwm a llwyddiant, - Virgil a Horas ac Ovid.

It was during his reign that Rome's greatest poets sang. A golden age of literature always comes in an age of autocracy and prosperity: Virgil, Horace and Ovid.

Yn ystod ei ymherodraeth ef yr oedd hen gredoau'r byd wedi gwanhau, yr oedd yr hen dduwiau wedi mynd mor lluosog fel nad oedd gan un awdurdod ar feddyliau a bywydau dynion.

During his reign, the ancient beliefs of the world had grown weak, and the old gods had become so numerous that none possessed authority over the thoughts and lives of men.

Ac yn nheyrnasiad Augustus, pan oedd wedi anfon gorchymyn allan i drethu yr holl fyd daeth teulu tlawd o Nazareth i Fethlehem Judea, a'r gyrrau eithaf yr ymherodraeth, i'w trethu yn eu dinas eu hun..

And during the reign of Augustus, when he had issued a decree that the whole world should be taxed, a poor family from Nazareth came to Bethlehem in Judea, in the farthest reaches of the empire, to be registered for taxation in their own city.

A thithau Bethlehem Ephratah, er dy fod yn fechan ymhlith miloedd Judah, eto o honot ti y daw allan i mi un i fod yn llywydd yn Israel: yr hwn yr oedd ei fynediad allan o'r dechreuad, er dyddiau tragwvddoldeb.

And you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth one who is to be ruler in Israel; whose origins are from of old, from everlasting.