Has Wales turned on Mark Drakeford over Covid?

11 December has long stirred the imagination of the Welsh. On this day in 1282, the last native Prince of Wales, Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, was slain by Edward I’s army at Cilmeri. The Tywysog’s head was then apparently taken to the Tower of London and put on display for 15 years. The Welsh he left behind were first conquered and later assimilated into their larger neighbour – marking the beginning of the ancient political, cultural and economic partnership between Wales and England. Nobody has credibly challenged the union since.

Welsh legend has it that we will eventually be rescued from our English captors by Y Mab Darogan: a prophesised son of destiny. But attaining nationhood has long been just a dream: the medieval rebel Owain Glyndŵr failed in his revolt against another English king and over four hundred years later the ‘Welsh Wizard’ David Lloyd George was more interested in elevating the politics of his nation within Britain.