Cadfan ap Iago
Encyclopedia
Cadfan ap Iago was King of Gwynedd
(reigned c. 616 – c. 625). Little is known of the history of Gwynedd from this period, and information about Cadfan and his reign is minimal.
The historical person is known only from his appearance in royal genealogies, from his grant to Saint Beuno
for the monastery at Clynnog Fawr
, and from his inscribed gravestone.
Cadfan was the son and successor of King Iago ap Beli
, and is listed in the royal genealogies of the Harleian genealogies
and in Jesus College MS. 20
. Cadfan came to the throne near the time of the Battle of Chester
in 616, in which the Northumbria
ns under Æthelfrith
decisively defeated the neighboring Welsh
Kingdom of Powys and then massacred the monks of Bangor Is Coed
. However, there is no evidence that Gwynedd had any part in the battle, so Cadfan's accession at that time appears to be no more than coincidence.
Cadfan's gravestone is at Llangadwaladr
(Cadwaladr's Church) on Anglesey, a short distance from the ancient llys (royal court
) of the kings of Gwynedd, and reputed to be their royal burial ground. The inscription refers to him as sapientisimus (most wise), and as this term is historically used for ecclesiastics, it suggests that at some point, Cadfan had resigned as king to live out his remaining years as an ecclesiast
.
Cadfan was succeeded as king by his son, Cadwallon ap Cadfan
.
and the monastery at Clynnog Fawr
are often cited in conjunction with Cadfan. An 1828 article by P. B. Williams in the The Cymmrodorion cites a manuscript stating that a local prince named 'Gwytheint' gave Clynnog Fawr to God and Saint Beuno, who was then Abbot at the monastery at Clynnog, and that the donation was free from taxes and obligations forever. It goes on to say that Beuno founded a Convent at Clynnog in 616, and that Cadfan was Beuno's great patron, promising him extensive lands. The promise was carried out by Cadfan's son, King Cadwallon
, and that Cadwallon was given a golden sceptre worth 60 cows as a token of acknowledgment. A consistent version is given in W. J. Rees' 1853 Lives of the Cambro-British Saints (Rees' was the editor of the 1828 Cymmrodorion that published P. B. Williams' account).
There are minor variations of these accounts, sometimes with the details rearranged, such as in Rice Rees' 1836 Essay on the Welsh Saints, where he says that Cadfan (rather than his son Cadwallon) was given the golden sceptre by Beuno.
use the names of many historical personages as characters, and the use of these names is a literary convenience made in order to advance the plot of Geoffrey's stories. One of these stories uses the names of Cadfan and other contemporary people, telling of how a certain Edwin spent his exiled youth at the court of King Cadfan, growing up alongside Cadfan's son, the future King Cadwallon. There is no historical basis for this story, as is readily acknowledged in the preface of works on the subject.
Nevertheless, a "traditional" story arose blending Geoffrey's fiction with known history, implying that the future King Edwin of Northumbria
had actually spent his youth at the court of King Cadfan, growing up alongside Cadfan's son, the future King Cadwallon. In point of fact, Cadwallon and Edwin were enemies with no known youthful connections: King Edwin invaded Gwynedd and drove King Cadwallon into exile, and it would be Cadwallon, in alliance with Penda of Mercia
, who would ultimately defeat and at kill Edwin in 633 at the Battle of Hatfield Chase
. The story that they had spent an idyllic youth together may have had a romantic appeal.
What is known from history is that in 588 King Ælla of Deira died, and Æthelfrith of Bernicia
took the opportunity to invade and conquer Deira
, driving Ælla 's 3-year old infant son, the future Edwin of Northumbria, into exile. Edwin would eventually ally himself with Rædwald of East Anglia in 616, defeating and killing Æthelfrith and becoming one of Northumbria
's most successful kings. Edwin's life in exile is unknown, and there is no historical basis for placing him at the court of King Cadfan.
Kingdom of Gwynedd
Gwynedd was one petty kingdom of several Welsh successor states which emerged in 5th-century post-Roman Britain in the Early Middle Ages, and later evolved into a principality during the High Middle Ages. It was based on the former Brythonic tribal lands of the Ordovices, Gangani, and the...
(reigned c. 616 – c. 625). Little is known of the history of Gwynedd from this period, and information about Cadfan and his reign is minimal.
The historical person is known only from his appearance in royal genealogies, from his grant to Saint Beuno
Beuno
Saint Beuno was a 7th-century Welsh holy man and Abbot of Clynnog Fawr in Gwynedd, on the Llŷn peninsula.-Life:Beuno was born in Powys, supposedly at Berriew, the grandson of a prince of that realm. After education and ordination in the monastery of Bangor-on-Dee in north-east Wales, he became an...
for the monastery at Clynnog Fawr
Clynnog Fawr
Clynnog Fawr, often simply called "Clynnog", is a village on the north coast of the Llŷn peninsula in Gwynedd, north-west Wales.Clynnog Fawr lies on the A499 road between Caernarfon and Pwllheli, at . It had a population of 130 in 1991...
, and from his inscribed gravestone.
Cadfan was the son and successor of King Iago ap Beli
Iago ap Beli
Iago ap Beli was King of Gwynedd . Little is known of him or his kingdom from this early era, with only a few anecdotal mentions of him in historical documents....
, and is listed in the royal genealogies of the Harleian genealogies
Harleian genealogies
The Harleian genealogies are a collection of Old Welsh genealogies preserved in British Library, Harleian MS 3859. Part of the Harleian Collection, the manuscript, which also contains the Annales Cambriae and a version of the Historia Brittonum, has been dated to c. 1100, although a date of c.1200...
and in Jesus College MS. 20
Genealogies from Jesus College MS 20
The genealogies from Jesus College MS 20 are a medieval Welsh collection of genealogies preserved in a single manuscript, Oxford, Bodleian Library, Jesus College, MS 20, folios 33r–41r...
. Cadfan came to the throne near the time of the Battle of Chester
Battle of Chester
The Battle of Chester was a major victory for the Anglo Saxons over the native Britons near the city of Chester, England in the early 7th century. Æthelfrith of Northumbria annihilated a combined force from the Welsh kingdoms of Powys, Rhôs and possibly Mercia...
in 616, in which the Northumbria
Northumbria
Northumbria was a medieval kingdom of the Angles, in what is now Northern England and South-East Scotland, becoming subsequently an earldom in a united Anglo-Saxon kingdom of England. The name reflects the approximate southern limit to the kingdom's territory, the Humber Estuary.Northumbria was...
ns under Æthelfrith
Æthelfrith of Northumbria
Æthelfrith was King of Bernicia from c. 593 until c. 616; he was also, beginning c. 604, the first Bernician king to also rule Deira, to the south of Bernicia. Since Deira and Bernicia were the two basic components of what would later be defined as Northumbria, Æthelfrith can be considered, in...
decisively defeated the neighboring Welsh
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
Kingdom of Powys and then massacred the monks of Bangor Is Coed
Bangor-on-Dee
Bangor-on-Dee is a local government community, the lowest tier of local government, part of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. It is a village in the ancient district of Maelor in Wales, situated on the banks of the River Dee...
. However, there is no evidence that Gwynedd had any part in the battle, so Cadfan's accession at that time appears to be no more than coincidence.
Llangadwaladr
Llangadwaladr is a small village in south-west Anglesey, Wales, located around 2 miles east of Aberffraw and 3 miles south of Gwalchmai. It is part of the community of Bodorgan....
(Cadwaladr's Church) on Anglesey, a short distance from the ancient llys (royal court
Royal court
Royal court, as distinguished from a court of law, may refer to:* The Royal Court , Timbaland's production company*Court , the household and entourage of a monarch or other ruler, the princely court...
) of the kings of Gwynedd, and reputed to be their royal burial ground. The inscription refers to him as sapientisimus (most wise), and as this term is historically used for ecclesiastics, it suggests that at some point, Cadfan had resigned as king to live out his remaining years as an ecclesiast
Ecclesiology
Today, ecclesiology usually refers to the theological study of the Christian church. However when the word was coined in the late 1830s, it was defined as the science of the building and decoration of churches and it is still, though rarely, used in this sense.In its theological sense, ecclesiology...
.
Cadfan was succeeded as king by his son, Cadwallon ap Cadfan
Cadwallon ap Cadfan
Cadwallon ap Cadfan was the King of Gwynedd from around 625 until his death in battle. The son and successor of Cadfan ap Iago, he is best remembered as the King of the Britons who invaded and conquered Northumbria, defeating and killing its king, Edwin, prior to his own death in battle against...
.
Saint Beuno
Saint BeunoBeuno
Saint Beuno was a 7th-century Welsh holy man and Abbot of Clynnog Fawr in Gwynedd, on the Llŷn peninsula.-Life:Beuno was born in Powys, supposedly at Berriew, the grandson of a prince of that realm. After education and ordination in the monastery of Bangor-on-Dee in north-east Wales, he became an...
and the monastery at Clynnog Fawr
Clynnog Fawr
Clynnog Fawr, often simply called "Clynnog", is a village on the north coast of the Llŷn peninsula in Gwynedd, north-west Wales.Clynnog Fawr lies on the A499 road between Caernarfon and Pwllheli, at . It had a population of 130 in 1991...
are often cited in conjunction with Cadfan. An 1828 article by P. B. Williams in the The Cymmrodorion cites a manuscript stating that a local prince named 'Gwytheint' gave Clynnog Fawr to God and Saint Beuno, who was then Abbot at the monastery at Clynnog, and that the donation was free from taxes and obligations forever. It goes on to say that Beuno founded a Convent at Clynnog in 616, and that Cadfan was Beuno's great patron, promising him extensive lands. The promise was carried out by Cadfan's son, King Cadwallon
Cadwallon ap Cadfan
Cadwallon ap Cadfan was the King of Gwynedd from around 625 until his death in battle. The son and successor of Cadfan ap Iago, he is best remembered as the King of the Britons who invaded and conquered Northumbria, defeating and killing its king, Edwin, prior to his own death in battle against...
, and that Cadwallon was given a golden sceptre worth 60 cows as a token of acknowledgment. A consistent version is given in W. J. Rees' 1853 Lives of the Cambro-British Saints (Rees' was the editor of the 1828 Cymmrodorion that published P. B. Williams' account).
There are minor variations of these accounts, sometimes with the details rearranged, such as in Rice Rees' 1836 Essay on the Welsh Saints, where he says that Cadfan (rather than his son Cadwallon) was given the golden sceptre by Beuno.
Geoffrey of Monmouth
The largely fictional stories of ancient Britain written by Geoffrey of MonmouthGeoffrey of Monmouth
Geoffrey of Monmouth was a cleric and one of the major figures in the development of British historiography and the popularity of tales of King Arthur...
use the names of many historical personages as characters, and the use of these names is a literary convenience made in order to advance the plot of Geoffrey's stories. One of these stories uses the names of Cadfan and other contemporary people, telling of how a certain Edwin spent his exiled youth at the court of King Cadfan, growing up alongside Cadfan's son, the future King Cadwallon. There is no historical basis for this story, as is readily acknowledged in the preface of works on the subject.
Nevertheless, a "traditional" story arose blending Geoffrey's fiction with known history, implying that the future King Edwin of Northumbria
Edwin of Northumbria
Edwin , also known as Eadwine or Æduini, was the King of Deira and Bernicia – which later became known as Northumbria – from about 616 until his death. He converted to Christianity and was baptised in 627; after he fell at the Battle of Hatfield Chase, he was venerated as a saint.Edwin was the son...
had actually spent his youth at the court of King Cadfan, growing up alongside Cadfan's son, the future King Cadwallon. In point of fact, Cadwallon and Edwin were enemies with no known youthful connections: King Edwin invaded Gwynedd and drove King Cadwallon into exile, and it would be Cadwallon, in alliance with Penda of Mercia
Penda of Mercia
Penda was a 7th-century King of Mercia, the Anglo-Saxon kingdom in what is today the English Midlands. A pagan at a time when Christianity was taking hold in many of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, Penda took over the Severn Valley in 628 following the Battle of Cirencester before participating in the...
, who would ultimately defeat and at kill Edwin in 633 at the Battle of Hatfield Chase
Battle of Hatfield Chase
The Battle of Hatfield Chase was fought on October 12, 633 at Hatfield Chase near Doncaster, Yorkshire, in Anglo-Saxon England between the Northumbrians under Edwin and an alliance of the Welsh of Gwynedd under Cadwallon ap Cadfan and the Mercians under Penda. The site was a marshy area about 8...
. The story that they had spent an idyllic youth together may have had a romantic appeal.
What is known from history is that in 588 King Ælla of Deira died, and Æthelfrith of Bernicia
Æthelfrith of Northumbria
Æthelfrith was King of Bernicia from c. 593 until c. 616; he was also, beginning c. 604, the first Bernician king to also rule Deira, to the south of Bernicia. Since Deira and Bernicia were the two basic components of what would later be defined as Northumbria, Æthelfrith can be considered, in...
took the opportunity to invade and conquer Deira
Deira
Deira was a kingdom in Northern England during the 6th century AD. Itextended from the Humber to the Tees, and from the sea to the western edge of the Vale of York...
, driving Ælla 's 3-year old infant son, the future Edwin of Northumbria, into exile. Edwin would eventually ally himself with Rædwald of East Anglia in 616, defeating and killing Æthelfrith and becoming one of Northumbria
Northumbria
Northumbria was a medieval kingdom of the Angles, in what is now Northern England and South-East Scotland, becoming subsequently an earldom in a united Anglo-Saxon kingdom of England. The name reflects the approximate southern limit to the kingdom's territory, the Humber Estuary.Northumbria was...
's most successful kings. Edwin's life in exile is unknown, and there is no historical basis for placing him at the court of King Cadfan.