The book's third chapter is called Diluted Magnificence and it focuses on the thirteenth-century monarchy, including the birth of Parliament, the conquest of Wales and the Scottish Wars of Independence. The chapter covers the reigns of three generations of kings between 1199 and 1307 - John, Henry III, and Edward I. This section discusses Edward I's feud with Prince Llywelyn of Wales, which ultimately resulted in an end to the principality's independence.

The
resurgence of so-called ‘Celtic nationalism’ in the twentieth century and the
inescapable romance of a lost cause saw Llywelyn ap Gruffudd cast as the heroic
leader of a lost golden age, but this Gone
with the Wind-esque rehabilitation of Llywelyn has more to do with Edward’s
vices than Llywelyn’s virtues. By the time Edward I came to the throne in 1272,
Llywelyn’srule in Wales was detested. His military skills and long run of good
luck when it came to the internecine incompetence of the neighbouring
government in England meant that he was begrudgingly respected, but his
attempts to modernise the Welsh economy and his bullying demands for money from
his subjects did not make him popular. Wales was, and is, one of the most
beautiful countries in the world. However, Llywelyn was sufficiently astute to
realise that its stunning hills and mountains made agriculture difficult – in a
moment of admirable honesty from any country’s leader, he compared the ‘fertile
and abundant land’ of Edward’s kingdom with the ‘barren and uncultivated land’
of Wales. This agricultural shortfall meant that the entire principality relied
on a few pockets of arable land for its subsistence, namely the island of
Anglesey. The economy