annwn welsh corgis

The Pembroke Welsh corgi is an old breed, originating on the  west coast of Wales, - Pembrokeshire.  There are different theories about its background; one is that the Vikings brought their herding dogs with them when they settled in Britain.  This theory is substantiated by the resemblance to the Swedish Vallhund, or Västgötaspets.

My mother comes from an isolated mountain farm on the west  coast of Norway, and she can remember from her childhood such shortlegged herding dogs, not grey sables like the Swedish, but red like a corgi, that now are extinct.  When  writing about this in our KC Gazette, people contacted me from other parts of Norway, mainly isolated areas in the far north, telling about similar dogs.  This proves that corgi like dogs have been found also in Norway up till the 1920’s or 30’s at least. 
Another theory is that they got their spitz like expression and alert temperament from dogs brought to Wales by Flemish weavers, relatives of the schipperke, but since the schipperke is mainly all black, a dominant  colour not found in corgis, I doubt their influence on the breed.
The name corgi probably comes from Welsh COR, meaning dwarf, and Ci, meaning dog, that is Dwarf dog, either from its short legs and small size, or from the myth that the corgi is a gift to humans from the faeries.  Another interpretation is that it comes from the word CUR, meaning mongrel, plus CI = dog. 

In the middle ages, only dogs with legs too short to chase the deer the nobles so eagerly hunted, or dogs that had been maimed, were permitted the smallholders.  Also, no fencing was allowed, so that the hunt could ride unhindered over their land.  Dogs that could keep the cattle on the farmer’s own land and keep others’ cattle out were valuable assets.  It was also important that the dog was frugal and could make do with little, as there was little to spare. A farmer could not afford to keep a dog for each task, so it was also important that the same dog could do many jobs; catch rats, warn intruders, help the farmer when poaching, herd and drive the cattle to market, a real Jack-of-All-Trades!

Thus the corgi became the versatile dog we know and love today,- getting fat on nothing but air and love, loving all activities, doing well in agility, obedience, tracking and herding, but most of all a cherished companion, always faithful and at your side, willing to follow you to the end of the world and back. 

But if you think the corgi is a common cur, think again!  It is the favourite breed of the British queen, ever since she got her first corgi for her 18th birthday.  Wherever she goes, even to this day, she is accompanied by a pack of corgis.   This increased the popularity of the breed that was first recognized as such by the Kennel Club in 1934 as separate from its Cardiganshire cousins.