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'''Lud''' ({{lang-cy|Lludd map Beli Mawr}}) , according to [[Geoffrey of Monmouth]]'s legendary ''[[Historia Regum Britanniae|History of the Kings of Britain]]'' and related medieval texts, was a king of [[Great Britain|Britain]] in pre-[[Roman Britain|Roman]] times. He was the eldest son of Geoffrey's King [[Heli, King of Britain|Heli]], and succeeded his father to the throne.
Lud's reign is notable for the building of cities and the refortification of [[Trinovantum]] ([[London]]), which he especially loved. Geoffrey explained the name "London" as deriving from "''Caer Lud''", or Lud's Fortress.
In the Welsh versions of Geoffrey's ''Historia'', usually called ''Brut y Brenhinedd'', he is called [[Lludd]] fab [[Beli]]. An independent Welsh tale, ''[[Cyfranc Lludd a Llefelys]]'' ("The Tale of [[Lludd]] and [[Llefelys]]"), one of the tales now known as the ''[[Mabinogion]]'', is included in one Welsh version of the ''Historia''. While Lludd was king of the [[Prydain|Island of Britain]], his brother Llefelys (not found in Geoffrey's work) became king of France, and helped Lludd to rid Britain of three supernatural menaces.<ref>Wm. R. Cooper, ''[http://www.annomundi.com/history/chronicle_of_the_early_britons.pdf The Chronicle of the Early Britons]'' (pdf), 2002, pp. 24-26</ref> He may be connected with the [[Welsh mythology|Welsh mythological]] figure [[Lludd Llaw Eraint]], earlier Nudd Llaw Eraint, [[cognate]] with the [[Irish mythology|Irish]] [[Nuada|Nuada Airgetlám]], a king of the [[Tuatha Dé Danann]]. However, he was a separate figure in Welsh tradition and is usually treated as such.<ref>Rachel Bromwich (ed.), ''Trioedd Ynys Prydein'' (Cardiff, 1991; 1991), s.v. 'Lludd fab Beli'.</ref>
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