The Kingdom of Rheged: A Landscape Perspective.

For over a century scholars have been wrestling with early Welsh poetry and associated texts in an attempt to shed light on the activities of North British kings resisting the expansion of the kingdoms of Bernicia and Northumbria. This paper first of all questions some of the historical reasoning about the kingdom of Rheged, especially its location and extent. Secondly, looking at the period from an archaeological perspective, it identifies potential heartlands on either side of the Solway. Although the location of Rheged cannot, and probably never will, be settled, it is suggested that it is unlikely to have straddled both sides of the Solway. Whichever heartland scholars may prefer, the natural advantages of the areas highlighted including the landscape, the resource potential and communications, would have provided a powerful incentive for the Northumbrians intent on expanding westwards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]