Lesson plan
Curriculum tags
- KS3: Britain 1066 – 1509, the Welsh under English rule, medieval political documents
- GCSE: Britain medieval, Welsh history strand
- A-Level: Medieval kingship and authority, primary source analysis
- Welsh GCSE: history of the Welsh language, Cyfraith Hywel, Welsh national identity
- KS2 (with facilitation): The Welsh story strand, medieval Britain, named historical figures. See the content note above before using with under-11s.
Learning outcomes
By the end of the lesson, students will be able to:
- Identify the trigger and key events of the Welsh rising 1400 – 1412
- Describe the four demands of the Pennal Letter and explain their significance
- Connect Glyndŵr's 1406 vision to modern Welsh political and cultural institutions
- Discuss how documentary evidence survives and shapes modern understanding
- Evaluate the framing of historical "failure" versus historical "earliness"
Suggested lesson structure
0 – 5 minWatch the video (Owain Glyndŵr, The Welshman Who Wrote Modern Wales)
5 – 10 minDiscussion: in one sentence, how would you describe Glyndŵr to someone who had never heard of him?
10 – 25 minGroup work, students take the four Pennal Letter demands and research how each stands in modern Wales
25 – 40 minDiscussion questions (see below)
40 – 50 minQuiz (see below)
50 – 60 minOptional extension: students write their own "what should this country be in 600 years" letter
Discussion questions
- Why was the Pennal Letter sent to France, and not to England? What does this tell you about Glyndŵr's political alliances?
- The Pennal Letter demanded two Welsh universities, one in the north and one in the south. Where are Welsh universities today? Does this match Owain's vision?
- The Welsh language was punished out of children in Victorian schools. How does this compare to its legal status today? What changed?
- Catrin Glyndŵr died in the Tower of London with her children. Her memorial was unveiled in 2001. Why might it have taken so long?
- Glyndŵr was never captured and never betrayed. What does that tell you about the relationship between the Welsh people and their leader?
- Henry IV thought Glyndŵr had failed. The video argues he had been "early." How would you frame his legacy in one sentence?
- The Pennal Letter has survived in Paris for 620 years. What does the survival of documents like this tell us about how history is preserved?
Quiz, test yourself
Five questions. Recommended for ages 11 and up. Click each question to reveal the answer.
1. In what year did Owain Glyndŵr raise his banner at Glyndyfrdwy?
1400 (specifically 16 September 1400).
2. Whose laws were set aside after the English conquest of 1282?
The laws of Hywel Dda (known in Welsh as Cyfraith Hywel), the body of law that had governed Welsh life for five hundred years.
3. In which town was the Pennal Letter sealed?
Pennal, a small village in Merionethshire (Mid Wales).
4. Where can the Pennal Letter still be seen today?
The Archives Nationales in Paris.
5. In what year was the National Assembly for Wales first opened?
1999. It was renamed the Senedd in 2020.
Took the test? Share what you learned.
Pre-written. One click and it's posted.
Printable worksheet
A one-page clay-illustrated worksheet for classroom use. Free to print and distribute. Covers a map of Wales 1404, a timeline of the rising, the four Pennal Letter demands, the quiz, and a reflection space.
Open the printable worksheetOpens in a new tab. Use File → Print → "Save as PDF" to download.
Primary sources
The Pennal Letter (31 March 1406)
Archives Nationales, Paris (J.516.30). Original Latin manuscript, sealed with Glyndŵr's great seal.
The Tripartite Indenture (28 February 1405)
National Library of Wales. Glyndŵr's alliance with Edmund Mortimer and Henry Percy.
Brut y Tywysogion (Chronicle of the Princes)
National Library of Wales. The principal Welsh medieval chronicle covering the rising.
Adam of Usk's Chronicle (1377 – 1421)
Contemporary account by a Welsh churchman who lived through Glyndŵr's rising.
The Hanmer Papers
Documents relating to the marriage of Margaret Hanmer and Owain Glyndŵr.
Further reading
For teachers
- Rees Davies, The Revolt of Owain Glyn Dŵr (Oxford University Press), the standard scholarly work
- Michael Livingston and John K. Bollard (eds.), Owain Glyndŵr: A Casebook (University of Exeter Press), primary sources translated
- The Senedd's online resources on Welsh constitutional history
For students (KS3 – KS4)
- Terry Breverton, Owain Glyn Dŵr: The Story of the Last Prince of Wales
- BBC Bitesize: Owain Glyndŵr
- National Library of Wales online exhibition: Glyndŵr digital archive
For visits
- The Owain Glyndŵr Centre, Machynlleth, the stone hall where Glyndŵr was crowned. Free entry.
- The Senedd, Cardiff Bay, modern parliament. Free public gallery.
- Catrin Glyndŵr's memorial, St Swithin's Church Garden, London, unveiled 2001.
Extension, for older students (KS4 / A-Level)
The video frames Glyndŵr's story as "not failure, but earliness." Ask students:
- Is this a fair reading of Glyndŵr? Or does it project modern Welsh identity backwards onto a medieval figure?
- What's the difference between describing a historical figure as a man of his time and as a man ahead of his time?
- How should historians handle figures whose visions were "realised" only centuries later? Is the connection between Glyndŵr's 1406 demands and the 1999 Assembly a real historical thread, or a modern act of myth-making?
If you use this in a classroom, drop us a line at Iam@proudofus.co.uk, we love to hear from teachers.