'The Welsh habit of revolt against the English is an old-standing madness ... from the sayings of the prophet Merlin they still hope to recover their land. Hence, they frequently rebel ... but because they do not know the appointed time, they are often deceived and their labour is in vain.' (Vita Edwardi Secundi) The appointed time, it turned out, was 1485. For generations, the ancestors of Welshman Owen Tudor had fought Romans, Irish Picts, Vikings,...