Victory, however, at length proclaimed in favour of the usurpers, and so
decisively, that out of the three hundred and sixty three chieftains that
went to the field of Cattraeth, three only returned alive, Cynon, and
Cadreith, and Cadlew of Cadnant, besides Aneurin himself. {7i} The number of
common soldiers that fell must be conjectured.

We have said that the battle commenced on a Tuesday; it would appear from two
passages, namely, where the meeting of reapers in the hall of Eiddin, {7j}
and the employment of Gwynwydd in protecting the corn on the highlands, {8a}
are spoken of, that the time of year in which it occurred was the harvest.

It is not, however, so easy to determine the exact year when all this
happened. Neither Arthur nor Urien are mentioned as being present, and
though the stanzas containing their names may have been lost, it must be
admitted that in the case of such distinguished warriors reason will not
warrant the supposition: the fair inference would be that they were dead at
the time. This view is, moreover, supported by readings of the Gododin,
where certain heroes are compared to the said chiefs respectively, "of
Arthur," "un Urien," which would hardly have been done had these latter been
alive. The death of Arthur is placed in the year 542; Owain, who died at
Cattraeth, slew Ida, A.D. 560, and Urien is said to have been assassinated
about 567; the battle under consideration must have happened subsequently,
probably about the year usually assigned it, viz., 570. This was in the
reign of Rhun, a descendant in the 4th degree of Cunedda Wledig, King of
Gododin!

The vulgar opinion is that the Britons lost the battle in consequence of
having marched to the field in a state of intoxication; and it must be
admitted that there are many passages in the Poem, which, simply considered,