The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #40451 Message #2320795
Posted By: Gervase
20-Apr-08 - 01:40 PM
Thread Name: Origins: What does 'Hal an Tow' mean?
Subject: RE: What does 'Hal an Tow' mean?
Little Robyn's comment on "ladies in red capes" is probably a reference to the time during the Napoleonic Wars when French troops landed in Caermarthenshire, in an attempt to invade Britain.
They surrendered to a group of Welsh women, wearing traditional costume of dark skirt and red capes, who they thought were English Redcoats. Like in many stories, time/place seems to have been portable!
Don't tell that to the folk of Abergwaun. It was there that the last French invasion of Britain, led by an Irish American, was seen off in 1797,with the help of a hefty lass called Jemima Nicholas, and they're very proud of the old battleaxe.
These days there's a music session every Tuesday in the Royal Oak, the pub where the French signed the surrender documents.
You can find a fairly comprehensive account here.