ANNUAL ADDRESS. 
21 
other national badges, is lost in the traditions of early times. The 
Christian religion was brought to Wales from the north of Ireland, 
and at once took a strong hold on the fervent imagination of the 
Welsh nation, and a patron saint became a part of its every day 
life. About the year a.d. 540 the Archbishop, known to us as 
St. David, was on his death regarded, by virtue of his learning 
and noble life, fit to be the chief patron, and the 1st of March 
became the annual day set aside in his honour. Just about one 
hundred years later the Welsh princes gained a great victory over 
the Saxons, who were trying to occupy their territory, and as this 
battle was fought on March 1st the success was naturally attributed 
to the direct influence of their patron saint, and in some way it 
came about that henceforth the leek was regarded as the emblem 
of St. David, and therefore the device of the Principality. The 
reason why the leek was chosen is a matter of tradition and not 
of actual history. It is usually stated that at the time of the battle 
the Welsh troops were passing near a field planted With leeks, and 
wishing to adopt a badge, which might distinguish them from 
their enemies, each man thereupon plucked a leek and stuck it in 
his cap. This could have been possible, as the leek is in full 
growth in March, as old Tusser, the herbalist, sets forth in one of 
his quaint couplets. 
Shakespeare's play of Henry V. abounds with interesting 
allusions to this custom of wearing the leek as a badge of honour. 
And the vegetable has always attracted attention, because it has 
served as an emblem round which Welshmen have rallied on all 
kinds of occasions during so many centuries. 
Within the last few years, however, certain writers have sought 
to bring forward the wild daffodil to take its place as a substitute. 
The daffodil is a well-known flower in certain parts of Wales, and 
has its own distinctive name in the language, but the modern 
writers find that one of the dictionary names for the flower consists 
in part of the same word as is used for the leek, and apparently on 
this account they argue that a misunderstanding has arisen all 
through the centuries in thinking the leek was intended as a dis- 
tinctive badge, whilst all the time it w T as the daffodil that was 
gathered by the soldiers. 
m It seems a better reason than this will be needed to displace the 
highly-honoured leek, but, still more recently, advantage has been 
taken of the idea. It must be acknowledged that there are times 
when the leek is not a picturesque plant to insert in an artistic 
design on a small scale, so it was abandoned by one of our leading 
artists, Sir W. Goscombe John, of the Royal Academy, when pre- 
paring a design into which the emblem of Wales had to be intro- 
duced. Accordingly, as the King had no objection, we find the 
head of a daffodil flower was enamelled on the small gold circlet 
with which Prince Edward was invested, when he was created 
Prince of Wales at Carnarvon in July, 191 1, and this was 
the first occasion on which the flower was used to typify 
the Principality of Wales. This lead has since been followed bv 
