Kingdom of Gwynedd
Encyclopedia
Gwynedd (ˈɡwɪnɛð) 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 Deceangli
which were collectively known as Venedotia in late Romano-British
documents. Between the 5th and 13th centuries Gwynedd grew to include Ynys Môn
(Anglesey) and all of north Wales
between the River Dyfi
in the south and River Dee
(Welsh
Dyfrdwy) in the northeast. The Irish sea
(Môr Iwerddon) washes the coast of Gwynedd to the west and north and lands formerly part of the Kingdom of Powys border Gwynedd in the south-east.
Gwynedd's strength lay in part due to the region's mountainous
geography which made it difficult for foreign invaders to campaign in the country and impose their will effectively.
Popular tradition attributed to Nennius
, a 10th-century Welsh chronicler, traced Gwynedd's foundation to Cunedda
. According to Nennius, Cunedda migrated with his sons and followers from Brythonic
Lothian
, in southern Scotland, in the 5th century.
The main court of the Kingdom of Gwynedd was originally at Deganwy Castle
, where Maelgwn Gwynedd (died 547) had his stronghold
. The senior line of descendants of Rhodri the Great would make Aberffraw
on Ynys Mon
as their principal seat until 1170. In the thirteenth century, Llywelyn Fawr, his son Dafydd ap Llywelyn
and grandson Llywelyn ap Gruffudd had Abergwyngregyn
on the north coast as their home.
Alternatively, the name Gwynedd may derive from Brythonic Ueneda, which may be akin to Goidelic (ancestor of Irish) Fenia (which gives fiana, "war-band" in Old Irish - e.g. Finn and his warriors). Thus the possible meaning may be "Land of the Hosts" or "Land of the Warrior Bands".
Whatever the exact etymology
of the name, a gravestone from the late 5th century now in Penmachno
church seems to be the earliest record of the name. It is in memory of a man named Cantiorix and the Latin
inscription is: "Cantiorix hic iacit/Venedotis cives fuit/consobrinos Magli magistrati", ("Cantiorix lies here. He was a citizen of Gwynedd and a cousin of Maglos the magistrate"). The references to "citizen" and "magistrate" suggest that Roman institutions may have survived in Gwynedd for a while after the legions departed.
period the western areas of Britannia which had been under military administration seem to have reverted quickly to tribal law and petty states. Raiders from Ireland
such as the Uí Liatháin
and Laigin
harried the coasts initially razing towns and capturing slaves but later colonising
large areas of what was then called Venedotia and later called Gwynedd, in particular Llŷn
, the coasts of Arllechwedd, Arfon and the Isle of Mona
. Legend, supported by some later written accounts, asserts that a prince called Cunedda
(modern "Kenneth") from distant Manaw Gododdin
—probably a refugee himself from the northern wars with the Picts
—was "sent" to free these lands from the Irish scourge in about 450AD. He and his sons forced out the Irish and upon his death the realm was divided between his sons following Brythonic tradition. From these beginnings many of the ancient divisions of Gwynedd occur; his son Dynod was awarded Dunoding
, another son Ceredig
achieved Ceredigion
and so forth. Cunedda's heir, Einion Yrth threw the last Irish out of Môn
in 470. Einion Yrth's son Cadwallon Lawhir appears to have consolidated the realm during the time of relative peace following the Battle of Mons Badonicus
where the Anglo-Saxons were soundly defeated. During that peace he managed to establish a mighty kingdom.
After Cadwallon, Gwynedd appears to have held a pre-eminent position amongst the petty Cambrian states in the post-Roman period. The great-grandson of Cunedda, Maelgwn Hir (Maelgwn the Tall), became one of the most famous (or infamous) leaders in Welsh history. There are several legends about his life concerning miracles either performed by him or in his presence. He is attributed in some old stories as hosting the first Eisteddfod and he is one of five Celtic British kings castigated for their sins by the contemporary Christian writer Gildas
(who referred to him as Maglocunus, meaning 'Prince-Hound' in Brittonic) in De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae
. Maelgwn was curiously described as "the dragon of the island" by Gildas which was possibly a title (Pendragon
?), but explicitly as the most powerful of the five named British kings.
Maelgwn eventually died in 547 from the plague leaving a succession crisis in his wake. His son in law, Elidyr Mwynfawr of the Kingdom of Strathclyde
, claimed the throne and invaded Gwynedd to displace Maelgwn's son Rhun Hir. Elidyr was killed in the attempt but his death was then avenged by his relatives who ravaged the coast of Arfon. Rhun counter-attacked and exacted the same penalty on the lands of his foes in what is now central Scotland
. The long distances these armies travelled suggests they were moving across the Irish Sea
but because almost all of what is now northern England
was at this point (c.550) under British (Brythonic
) rule it is possible his army marched to Strathclyde overland. Rhun returned to Gwynedd and the rest of his reign was far less eventful. He was succeeded by his son Beli
in c.586.
On the accession of Beli's son Iago
in c.599 the situation in Britain had deteriorated significantly. Most of the area today called northern England
and been overrun by the invading Angles
of Deira
and Bernicia
who were in the process of forming a united Northumbria
n kingdom. In a rare show of common interest it appears Gwynedd and neighbouring Powys acted in concert to rebuff the Anglican advance but were defeated at the Battle of Chester
in 613. Following this catastrophe the approximate borders of northern Wales were set with the city of Caerlleon (now called Chester
) and the surrounding Cheshire Plain
falling under the control of the Anglo-Saxons. Most importantly the Britons of Wales were now cut off from their kin in Cumbria
and Strathclyde.
The Battle of Chester would not end the ability of the Welsh to seriously threaten England (although England as a united realm would not exist for another 350 years). For among the most powerful of the early kings of Gwynedd was Cadwallon ap Cadfan
(c.624 - 634) the grandson of Iago ap Beli
. He became engaged in an initially disastrous campaign against Northumbria where following a series of epic defeats he was confined first to Môn and then just to Ynys Glannauc
before being forced into exile across the Irish Sea
to Dublin - a place which would come to host many royal refugees from Gwynedd. All must have seemed lost but Cadwallon raised an enormous army and after a brief time in Guernsey
he invaded Dumnonia
, relieved the West Welsh
who were suffering a Mercian invasion and forced Penda, the pagan King of Mercia
, into an alliance against Northumbria. With new vigour he returned to his Northumbrian foes, devastated their armies and slaughtered a series of their kings. In this furious campaign his armies devastated Northumbria, captured and sacked York
in 633 and briefly controlled the kingdom. From contemporary accounts he is said to have massacred so many of the Anglo-Saxons they believed it was his intention to exterminate them. They were probably right.
However, these tumultuous events would come to be short-lived, for he died in battle in 634 close to Hadrians Wall. On account of these deeds he and his son Cadwaladr Fendigaid appear to have been considered the last two High Kings of Britain. Cadwaladr presided over a period of consolidation and devoted much time to the Church earning the title Fendigaid meaning "blessed".
and, as Sir John Edward Lloyd
put it, "a stranger possessed the throne of Gwynedd."
This "stranger" who became the next King of Gwynedd was Merfyn "Frych" (meaning Merfyn "the Freckled"). When, however, Merfyn Frych's pedigree is examined - and to the Welsh pedigree meant everything - he seems not a stranger but a direct descendant of the ancient ruling line. Some sources state he was the son of Erthil, "a prince of the Northern Britons" (for more on this see: Y Gogledd Hen), while others suggest he was the son of Gwriad, the contemporaneous King of the Isle of Man
. All sources agree that he was the son of Esyllt, heiress and niece of the aforementioned Hywel ap Rhodri Molwynog, last of the House of Cunedda, and that his male line went back to the Men of the North, to Llywarch Hen
, a first cousin of Urien Rheged and thus a direct descendant of Coel Hen. Thus the House of Cunedda and the new House of Aberffraw, as Merfyn's descendants came to be known, shared Coel Hen as a common ancestor, although the House of Cunedda traced their line through Gwawl
his daughter and wife of Cunedda.
Merfyn married Nest ferch Cadell
, the sister of Cyngen ap Cadell
, the King of Powys, and founded what was to become known as the House of Aberffraw
which was named after his principle court at Aberffraw
on the Isle of Môn (Anglesey). No written records are preserved from the Britons of southern Scotland and northern England and it is very likely that Merfyn Frych brought many of these legends as well as his pedigree with him when he came to north Wales. It appears most probable that that it was at Merfyn's court that all the lore of the north was collected and written down during his reign and that of his son.
Rhodri Mawr (meaning Rhodri the Great) (844 - 878), son of Merfyn Frych and Nest ferch Cadell, was able to add Powys to his realm after its king (his maternal uncle) died on pilgrimage to Rome
in 855
. Later, he married Angharad the sister of King Gwgon of Seisyllwg and when Gwgon drowned in 872
Rhodri was able to annex that realm as well. This he became the first ruler since the days of Cunedda to control the greater part of Wales.
When Rhodri died in 878
the relative unity of Wales ended and it was once again divided into its component parts each ruled by one of his sons. Rhodri's eldest son Anarawd ap Rhodri
inherited Gwynedd and would firmly establish the princely House of Aberffraw
that would come to rule Gwynedd with but a few interruptions until 1283.
From the successes of Rhodri and the seniority of Anarawd among his sons the Aberffraw
family claimed primacy over all other Welsh lords including the powerful kings of Powys and Deheubarth. In The History of Gruffydd ap Cynan, written in the late 12th century, the family asserted its rights as the senior line of descendants from Rhodri the Great
who had conquered most of Wales during his lifetime. Gruffydd ap Cynan
's biography was first written in Latin
and intended for a wider audience outside Wales. The significance of this claim was that the Aberffraw family owed nothing to the English king for its position in Wales, and that they held authority in Wales "by absolute right through descent," wrote historian John Davies.
The House of Aberffraw was displaced in 942
by Hywel Dda
, a junior descendant of Rhodri Mawr and the King of Deheubarth. This occurred because Idwal Foel
, the King of Gwynedd, was determined to cast off English overlordship and took up arms against the new English king, Edmund
. Idwal and his brother Elisedd were both killed in battle against Edmund's forces. By normal custom Idwal's crown should have passed to his sons, Ieuaf
and Iago ab Idwal
, but Hywel Dda intervened and sent Iago and Ieuaf into exile in Ireland and established himself as ruler over Gwynedd until his death in 950
when the House of Aberffraw was restored.
Between 986
and 1081 the throne of Gwynedd was often in contention with the rightful kings frequently displaced by rivals within and outside the realm. One of these, Gruffudd ap Llywelyn, originally from Powys, displaced the Aberffraw line from Gwynedd making himself ruler there, and by 1055 was able to make himself king of most of Wales. He became powerful enough to present a real menace to England and annexed some neighbouring parts after several victories over English armies. Eventually he was defeated by Harold Godwinson
in 1063 and later killed by his own men in a deal to secure peace with England. Bleddyn ap Cynfyn
and his brother Rhiwallon of the Mathrafal
house
of Powys, Gruffudd's maternal half-brothers, came to terms with Harold and took over the rule of Gwynedd and Powys.
Shortly after the Norman
conquest of England in 1066 the Normans began to exert pressure on the eastern border of Gwynedd. They were helped by internal strife following the killing of Bleddyn ap Cynfyn in 1075 by his cousin Trahaearn ap Caradog
. Trahaearn seized the throne but was soon challenged by Gruffydd ap Cynan
, the exiled grandson of Iago ab Idwal
who had been living in the Hiberno-Norse stronghold of Dublin. In 1081 Trahaearn was killed by Gruffydd in battle and the ancient line of Rhodri Mawr was restored.
, Wales and the Normans: 1067–1283
The Aberffraw dynasty suffered various depositions
by rivals in Deheubarth, Powys, and England in the 10th and 11th centuries. Gruffydd I ap Cynan
(b.c.1055–1137), who grew up in exile in Hiberno-Norse Dublin, regained his inheritance following his victory at the Battle of Mynydd Carn
in 1081 over his Mathrafal rivals then in control of Gwynedd. However, Gruffydd's victory was short-lived as the Normans
launched an invasion of Wales following the Saxon revolt in northern England
, known as the Harrowing of the North
.
Shortly after the Battle of Mynydd Carn
in 1081, Gruffydd was lured into a trap with the promise of an alliance but seized by Hugh the Fat, 1st Earl of Chester
in an ambush near Corwen
Earl Hugh claimed the Perfeddwlad up to the Clwyd river
(the commote
s of Tegeingl and Rhufoniog
; the modern counties of Denbighshire
Flintshire
and Wrexham
) as part of Chester, and viewed the restoration of the Aberffraw family in Gwynedd as a threat to his own expansion into Wales. The lands west of the Clwyd were intended for his cousin Robert "of Ruddlan"
, and their advance extended to the Llŷn Peninsula
by 1090. By 1094 almost the whole of Wales was occupied by Norman forces. However, although they erected many castles, Norman control in most regions of Wales was tenuous at best. Motivated by local anger over the "gratuitously cruel" invaders, and led by the historic ruling houses, Welsh control over the greater part of Wales was restored by 1100.
In an effort to further consolidate his control over Gwynedd, Earl Hugh of Chester had Hervé the Breton
elected as Bishop of Bangor
in 1092, and consecrated by Thomas of Bayeux, Archbishop of York
. It was hoped that by placing a prelate loyal to the Normans over the traditionally independent Welsh church in Gwynedd would help to pacify the local inhabitants, and Hervé recognized the primacy of the Archbishop of Canterbury over the episcopal see
of Bangor, a recognition hitherto rejected by the Welsh church.
However, the Welsh parishioners remained hostile to Hervé's appointment, and the bishop was forced to carry a sword with him and rely on a contingent of Norman knights for his protection. Additionally, Hervé routinely excommunicated parishioners who he perceived as challenging his spiritual and temporal authority.
Gruffydd escaped imprisonment in Chester, and slew Robert of Rhuddlan in a beachside battle at Deganwy on 3 July 1093. Gruffydd recovered Gwynedd by 1095, and by 1098 Gruffydd allied with Cadwgan ap Bleddyn
of the Mathrafal house of Powys, their traditional dynastic rivalry notwithstanding. Gruffydd and Cadwgan led the Welsh resistance to the Norman occupation in north and mid Wales. However, by 1098 Earl Hugh of Chester and Hugh of Montgomery, 2nd Earl of Shrewsbury
advanced their army to the Menai Strait
, with Gruffydd and Cadwgan regrouping on defensible Ynys Môn
, where they planned to make retaliatory strikes from their island fortress. Gruffydd hired a Norse
fleet from a settlement in Ireland to patrol the Menai and prevent the Norman army from crossing, however the Normans were able to pay off the fleet to instead ferry them to Môn.
Betrayed, Gruffydd and Cadwgan were forced to flee to Ireland in a skiff
.
The Normans landed on Môn, and their furious 'victory celebrations' which followed were exceptionally violent, with rape and carnage committed by the Norman army left unchecked. The earl of Shrewsbury had an elderly priest mutilated, and made the church of Llandyfrydog
a kennel for his dogs.
During the 'celebrations' a Norse fleet led by Magnus Barefoot
, King of Norway
, appeared off the coast at Ynys Seiriol (Puffin island) , and in battle that followed, known as the Battle of Anglesey Sound, Magnus shot dead the earl of Shrewsbury with an arrow to the eye. The Norse left as suddenly and as mysteriously as they had arrived, however leaving the Norman army weakened and demoralized.
The Norman army retired to England, leaving a Welshman, Edwin ap Goronwy, lord of Tegeingl, in command of a token force to control Ynys Môn and upper Gwynedd, and ultimately abandoning any colonization plans there. Edwin ap Goronwy transferred his allegiance to Chester following the defeat
of his ally Trahaearn ap Caradog in 1081, a move for which earned him the epithet Fradwr, traitor, among the Welsh.
In late 1098 Gruffydd and Cadwgan landed in Wales and recovered Ynys Môn without much difficulty, with Hervé the Breton fleeing Bangor for safety in England. Over the course of the next three years, Gruffydd was able to recover upper Gwynedd to the Conwy
, defeating Hugh, Earl of Chester. In 1101, after Earl Hugh's death, Gruffydd and Cadwgan came to terms with England's new king, Henry I
, who was consolidating his own authority and also eager to come to terms. In the negotiations which followed Henry I recognized Gruffydd's ancestral claims of Môn, Llŷn, Dunoding
(Eifionydd
and Ardudwy
) and Arllechwedd
, being the lands of upper Gwynedd to the Conwy which were already firmly in Gruffydd's control. Cadwgan regained Ceredigion
, and his share of the family inheritance in Powys, from the new earl of Shrewsbury, Robert of Bellême
.
With the settlement reached between Henry I and Gruffydd I, and other Welsh lords, the dividing of Wales between Pura Wallia, the lands under Welsh control; and Marchia Wallie
, Welsh lands under Norman control, came into existence. Author and historian John Davies
notes that the border shifted on occasion, "in one direction and in the other", but remained more or less stable for almost the next two hundred years.
After generations of incessant warfare, Gruffydd began the reconstruction of Gwynedd, intent on bringing stability to his country. According to Davies, Gruffydd sought to give his people the peace to "plant their crops in the full confidence that they would be able to harvest them". Gruffydd consolidated princely authority in north Wales, and offered sanctuary to displaced Welsh from the Perfeddwlad, particularly from Rhos, at the time harassed by Richard, 2nd Earl of Chester
.
Alarmed by Gruffydd's growing influence and authority in north Wales, and on pretext that Gruffydd sheltered rebels from Rhos against Chester, Henry I launched a campaign against Gwynedd and Powys in 1116, which included a vanguard
commanded by King Alexander I of Scotland
. While Owain ap Cadwgan
of Ceredigion
sought refuge in Gwynedd's mountains, Maredudd ap Bleddyn
of Powys made peace with the English king as the Norman army advanced. There were no battles or skirmishes fought in the face of the vast host
brought into Wales; rather, Owain and Gruffydd entered into truce negotiations. Owain ap Cadwgan regained royal favor relatively easily. However Gruffydd I was forced to render homage
and fealty
and pay a heavy fine, though he lost no land or prestige.
The invasion left a lasting impact on Gruffydd, who by 1116 was in his 60s and with failing eyesight. For the remainder of his life, while Gruffydd I continued to rule in Gwynedd, his sons Cadwallon, Owain
, and Cadwaladr
, would lead Gwynedd's army after 1120. Gruffydd's policy, which his sons would execute and later rulers of Gwynedd adopted, was to recover Gwynedd's primacy without blatantly antagonizing the English crown.
The Expansion of Gwynedd
In 1120 a minor border war between Llywarch ab Owain, lord of a commote in the Dyffryn Clwyd
cantref, and Hywel ab Ithel, lord of Rhufoniog
and Rhos brought Powys and Chester into conflict in the Perfeddwlad. Powys brought a force of 400 warriors to the aid of its ally Rhufoniog, while Chester sent Norman knights from Rhuddlan to the aid of Dyffryn Clwyd. The bloody Battle of Maes Maen Cymro, fought a mile to the north-west of Ruthin, ended with Lywarch ab Owain slain and the defeat of Dyffryn Clwyd. However, It was a pyrrhic victory
as the battle left Hywel ab Ithel mortally wounded. The last of his line, when Hywel ab Ithel died six weeks later he left Rhufoniog and Rhos bereft. Powys, however, was not strong enough to garrison Rhufoniog and Rhos, nor was Chester able to exert influence inland from its coastal holdings of Rhuddlan and Degannwy. With Rhufoniog and Rhos abandoned, Gruffydd I annexed the cantrefs.
On the death of Einion ap Cadwgan, lord of Meirionydd, a quarrel engulfed his kinsmen on who should succeed him. Meirionydd was then a vassal cantref of Powys
, and the family there a cadet
of the Mathrafal house of Powys. Gruffydd gave license to his sons Cadwallon and Owain to press the opportunity the dynastic strife in Meirionydd presented. The brothers raided Meirionydd with the Lord of Powys as important there as he was in the Perfeddwlad. However it would not be until 1136 that the cantref was firmly within Gwynedd's control. Perhaps because of their support of Earl Hugh of Chester, Gwynedd's rival, in 1124 Cadwallon slew the three rulers of Dyffryn Clwyd, his maternal uncles, bringing the cantref firmly under Gwynedd's vassalage that year. And in 1125 Cadwallon slew the grandsons of Edwin ap Goronwy of Tegeingl, leaving Tegeingl berift of lordship. However, in 1132 while on campaign in the commote of Nanheudwy
, near Llangollen
, 'victorious' Cadwallon was defeated in battle and slain by an army from Powys. The defeat checked Gwynedd's expansion for a time, "much to the relief of the men of Powys", wrote historian Sir John Edward Lloyd
(J.E Lloyd).
In 1136 a campaign against the Normans was launched from Gwynedd in revenge for the execution of Gwenllian ferch Gruffydd ap Cynan, the wife of the Prince of Deheubarth and the daughter of Gruffydd. When word reached Gwynedd of Gwenllain's death and the revolt in Gwent, Gruffydd I's sons Owain and Cadwaladr invaded Norman controlled Ceredigon, taking Llanfihangle, Aberystwyth
, and Llanbadarn. Liberating Llanbadarn, one local chronicler hailed Owain and Cadwaladr both as "bold lions, virtuous, fearless and wise, who guard the churches and their indwellers, defenders of the poor [who] overcome their enemies, affording a safest retreat to all those who seek their protection". The brothers restored the Welsh monks of Llanbadarn, who had been displaced by monks from Gloucester brought there by the Normans who had controlled Ceredigon. By late September 1136 a vast Welsh host gathered in Ceredigion
, which included the combined forces of Gwynedd, Deheubarth, and Powys; met the Norman army at the Battle of Crug Mawr
at Cardigan Castle
. The battle turned into a rout, and then into a resounding defeat of the Normans.
When their father Gruffydd I died in 1137, the brothers Owain and Cadwaladr were on a second campaign in Ceredigion
, and took the castles of Ystrad Meurig
, Lampeter
(Stephen's Castle), and Castell Hywell (Humphries Castle) Gruffydd I ap Cynan left a more stable realm then had hitherto existed in Gwynedd for more than 100 years. No foreign army was able to cross the Conwy into upper Gwynedd. The stability of Gruffydd's long reign allowed for Gwynedd's Welsh to plan for the future without fear that home and harvest would "go to the flames" from invaders.
Settlements became more permanent, with buildings of stone replacing timber structures. Stone churches in particular were built across Gwynedd, with so many limewashed that "Gwynedd was bespangled with them as is the firmament
with stars". Gruffydd had built stone churches at his princely manors, and Lloyd suggests Gruffydd's example led to the rebuilding of churches with stone in Penmon, Aberdaron
, and Towyn
in the Norman fashion
.
Gruffydd promoted the primacy of the Episcopal See
of Bangor
in Gwynedd, and funded the building of Bangor Cathedral
during the episcopate of David the Scot
, Bishop of Bangor
, between 1120-1139. Gruffydd's remains were interned
in a tomb in the presbytery
of Bangor Cathedral.
, the Cyfraith Hywel, the Laws of Hywel; and became known as Owain Gwynedd to differiate him from another Owain ap Gruffydd, the Mathrafal ruler of Powys, known as Owain Cyfeiliog
. Cadwaladr, Gruffydd's youngest son, inherited the commote of Aberffraw on Ynys Môn, and the recently conquered Meirionydd and northern Ceredigion, that is Ceredigion between the rivers Aeron and the Dyfi.
By 1141 Cadwaladr and Madog ap Maredudd of Powys led a Welsh vanguard as an ally of the Earl of Chester in the Battle of Lincoln
, and joined in the route which made Stephen of England prisoner of Empress Matilda for a year. Owain, however, did not participate in the battle, keeping the majority of Gwynedd's army at home. Owain, of restrained and prudent temperament, may have judged that the aiding in Stephen's capture would lead to the restoration of Matilda and a strong royal government in England; a government which would support Marcher lords, support hitherto bereft since Stephen's usurpation.
Owain and Cadwaladr came to blows in 1143 when Cadwaladr was implicated in the murder of Prince Anarawd ap Gruffydd of Deheubarth, Owain's ally and future son-in-law, on the eve of Anarawd's wedding to Owain's daughter. Owain followed a diplomatic policy of binding other Welsh rulers to Gwynedd through dynastic marriages, and Cadwaladr's border dispute and murder of Anarawd threatened Owain's efforts and credibility. As ruler of Gwynedd, Owain stripped Cadwaladr of his lands, with Owain's son Hywel
dispatched to Ceredigion, where he burned Cadwaladr's castle at Aberystwyth. Cadwaladr fled to Ireland and hired a Norse fleet from Dublin, bringing the fleet to Abermenai to compel Owain to reinstate him. Taking advantage of the brotherly strife, and perhaps with the tacit understanding of Cadwaladr, the marcher lords mounted incursions into Wales. Realizing the wider ramifications of the war before him, Owain and Cadwaladr came to terms and reconciled, with Cadwaladr restored to his lands. Peace between the brothers held until 1147, when an unrecorded event occurred which led Owain's sons Hywel and Cynan
to drive Cadwaladr out of Meirionydd and Ceredigon, with Cadwaladr retreating to Môn. Again an accord was reached, with Cadwaladr retaining Aberffraw until a more serious breach occurred in 1153, when he was forced into exile in England, where his wife was the sister of Gilbert de Clare, 2nd Earl of Hertford
and the niece of Ranulph de Gernon, 2nd Earl of Chester
.
In 1146 news reached Owain that his favoured eldest son and heir, Rhun
, died. Owain was overcome with grief, falling into a deep melancholy from which none could console him, until news reached him that Mold castle
in Tengeingl (Flintshire) had fallen to Gwynedd, "[reminding Owain] that he had still a country for which to live," wrote historian Sir John Edward Lloyd.
Between 1148 and 1151, Owain I of Gwynedd fought against Madog ap Maredudd of Powys, Owain's son-in-law, and against the Earl of Chester for control of Iâl, with Owain having secured Rhuddlan Castle and all of Tegeingl from Chester. "By 1154 Owain had brought his men within sight of the red towers of the great city on the Dee", wrote Lloyd."
Having spent three years consolidating his authority in the vast Angevin Empire
, Henry II of England
resolved on a strategy against Owain I of Gwynedd by 1157. By now, Owain's enemies had joined Henry II's camp, enemies such as his wayward brother Cadwaladr and in particular the support of Madog of Powys. Henry II raised his feudal host and marched into Wales from Chester. Owain positioned himself and his army at Dinas Basing (Basingwerk
), barring the road to Rhuddlan, setting up a trap in which Henry II would send his army along the direct road along the coast, while he crossed through the woods to out-flank Owain. The Prince of Gwynedd anticipated this, and dispatched his sons Dafydd
and Cynan into the woods with an army, catching Henry II unaware.
In the melee which followed Henry II was almost slain had not Roger, Earl of Hertford
rescued the king. Henry II retreated and made his way back to his main army, by now slowly advancing towards Rhuddlan. Not wishing to engage the Norman army directly, Owain repositioned himself first at St. Asaph, then further west, clearing the road for Henry II to enter into Rhuddlan "ingloriously". Once in Rhuddlan Henry II received word that his naval expedition had failed, as instead of meeting Henry II at Degannwy or Rhuddlan, it had gone to plunder Môn.
In a later letter to the Byzantine Emperor, Henry probably recalled these experiences when he wrote of the Welsh:
The naval expedition was led by Henry II's maternal uncle (Empress Matilda's half-brother), Henry FitzRoy
; and when they landed on Môn, Henry FitzRoy had the churches of Llanbedr Goch and Llanfair Mathafarn Eithaf torched. During the night the men of Môn gathered together, and the next morning fought and defeated the Norman army, with Henry FitzRoy falling under a shower of lances. The defeat of his navy and his own military difficulties had convinced Henry II that he had "gone as far as was practical that year" in his effort to subject Owain, and the King offered terms to the prince.
Owain I of Gwynedd, "ever prudent and sagacious", recognized that he needed time to further consolidate power, and agreed to the terms. Owain was to render homage and fealty to the King, and resign Tegeingle and Rhuddlan to Chester, and restore Cadwaladr to his possessions in Gwynedd.
The death of Madog ap Meredudd of Powys in 1160 opened an opportunity for Owain I of Gwynedd to further press Gwynedd's influence at the expense of Powys. However, Owain continued to further Gwynedd's expansion without rousing the English crown, maintaining his 'prudent policy' of Quieta non movere (don't move settled things), as Lloyd wrote. It was a policy of outward conciliation, while masking his own consolidation of authority. To further demonstrate his good-will, in 1160 Owain handed over to the English crown the fugative Einion Clud. By 1162 Owain was in possession of the Powys cantref of Cyfeiliog, and its castle of Tafolwern; and ravaged another Powys cantref of Arwystli
, slaying its lord, Hywel ab Ieuaf. Owain's strategy was in sharp contrast to Rhys ap Gruffydd, prince of Deheubarth, who in 1162 rose in open revolt against the Normans in south Wales, drawing Henry II back to England from the continent.
In 1163 Henry II quarrelled with Thomas Becket, the Archbishop of Canterbury
, causing growing divisions between the king's supporters and the archbishop's supporters. With discontent mounting in England, Owain I of Gwynedd joined with Rhys ap Gruffydd of Deheubarth in a second grand Welsh revolt against Henry II. England's king, who only the prior year had pardoned Rhys ap Gruffydd for his 1162 revolt, assembled a vast host against the allied Welsh, with troops drawn from all over the Angevin empire assembling in Shrewsbury, and with the Norse of Dublin paid to harass the Welsh coast. While his army gathered on the Welsh frontier, Henry II left for the continent to negotiate a truce with France and Flanders to not disturb his peace while campaigning in Wales.
However, when Henry II returned to England he found that the war had already begun, with Owain's son Dafydd raiding Angevin positions in Tegeingle, exposing the castles of Rhuddlan and Basingwerk to "serious dangers", wrote Lloyd. Henry II rushed to north Wales for a few days to shore up defences there, before returning to his main army now gathering in Oswestery.
The vast host gathered before the allied Welsh principalities represented the largest army yet assembled for their conquest, a circumstance which further drew the Welsh allies into a closer confederacy, wrote Lloyd. With Owain I of Gwynedd the over all battle commander, and with his brother Cadwaladr as his second, Owain assembled the Welsh host at Corwen in the vale of Edeyrion where he could best resist Henry II's advance.
The Angevin army advanced from Oswestry into Wales crossing the mountains towards Mur Castell, and found itself in the thick forest of the Ceiriog Valley
where they were forced into a narrow thin line. Owain I had positioned a band of skirmishers in the thick woods overlooking the pass, which harassed the exposed army from a secured position. Henry II ordered the clearing of the woods on either side to widen the passage through the valley, and to lessen the exposure of his army. The road his army travelled later became known as the Ffordd y Saeson, the English Road, and leads through heath and bog towards the Dee. In a dry summer the moors may have been passable, however "on this occasion the skies put on their most wintry aspect; and the rain fell in torrents [...] flooding the mountain meadows" until the great Angevin encampment became a "morass
," wrote Lloyd. In the face of "hurricane" force wind and rain, diminishing provisions and an exposed supply line stretching through hostile country subject to enemy raids, and with a demoralized army, Henry II was forced into a complete retreat without even a semblance of a victory.
In frustration, Henry II had twenty-two Welsh hostages mutilated; the sons of Owain' supporters and allies, including two of Owain's own sons. In addition to his failed campaign in Wales, Henry's mercenary Norse navy, which he had hired to harass the Welsh coast, turned out to be too few for use, and were disbanded without engagement.
Henry II's Welsh campaign was a complete failure, with the king abandoning all plans for the conquest of Wales, returning to his court in Anjou and not returning to England for another four years. Lloyd wrote;
It later came to light that Hywel Trwyndwn (the bodyguard and brother to Iorweth) was not allowed to claim his inheritance due to his undesirable nose. this was then passed down the lineage through Thomas Davies, of Peniarth Fawr, to his yonges and most ferocious daughter Lyn "the Twrch deuar" Brasssington.
Owain expanded his international diplomatic offensive against Henry II by sending an embassy to Louis VII of France
in 1168, led by Arthur of Bardsey, Bishop of Bangor (1166–1177), who was charged with negotiating a joint alliance against Henry II. With Henry II distracted by his widening quarrel with Thomas Becket, Owain's army recovered Tegeingle for Gwynedd by 1169.
Like his father before him, Owain I promoted stability in upper Gwynedd as no foreign army was able to campaign past the Conwy, marking nearly 70 years of peace in upper Gwynedd and on Ynys Môn.
In his later reign Owain I was the styled princeps Wallensium, Latin for the Prince of the Welsh, a title of substance given his leadership of the Welsh and victory against the English king, wrote historian Dr. John Davies. Additionally, Owain I commissioned the Life of Gruffydd ap Cynan, the biography of his father in which Owain firmly asserted his primacy over other Welsh rulers by "absolute right through decent" from Rhodri the Great, according to Davies. Owain I was the eldest male descendent of Rhodri the Great through paternal decent
.
The adoption of the title prince
(Latin princeps, Welsh
twysog), rather than king (Latin rex, Welsh brenin), did not mean a diminution
in status
, according to Davies. The use of the title prince was a recognition of the ruler of Gwynedd in relation to the wider international feudal world. The princes of Gwynedd exercised greater status and prestige
then the earls, counts, and dukes of the Angevin empire, suggesting a similar status as that of the King of Scots, himself nominal
ly a vassel of the King of England, argued Davies. As Welsh society became further influenced by feudal Europe, the princes of Gwynedd would in turn use feudalism to strengthen their own authority over lesser Welsh lords, a "two-edged sword" for the King of England, wrote Davies. Though Gwynedd's princes recognized the de jure
suzerainty
of the King of England, they maintained a well established legal jurisprudence
, separate from the English legal system, and were independent de facto
, wrote Davies.
and Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd
; were illegitimate, but it is worth pausing to consider that victory is often written by the victors. Owain and his father, Gruffydd ap Cynan
, had both drawn considerable strength from family connections they had maintained across the Irish Sea in Dublin, and it was these connections which had restored Gruffydd on several occasions to his throne and had provided his father, Cynan, with a place of refuge during the usurpations of the 11th Century. It is therefore possible that Owain hoped to maintain this Irish connection by ensuring the succession of one of his sons born of this Irish woman, Pyfog. Furthermore, it seems illogical - given the fact Owain was so set on their succession and the respect he no doubt commanded in Ireland - that the mother of Rhun and Hywel was a mere commoner and that both those children were born out of wedlock. What the annals record, however, is that in 1146 the eldest son and designated heir, Rhun - a man who was acclaimed as a great warrior - "died" mysteriously, and that Hywel his natural brother was proclaimed the new Edling
or heir.
Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd
duly succeeded his father in 1170 and the realm was plunged immediately into a civil war that appears to have been a conflict between two rival factions; one which was pro-Irish and seeking to ensure the succession of Hywel and protect the legacy of Owain Gwynedd and his father, and a second which seems to be an anti-Irish coalition and headed by Iorwerth Drwyndwn
and Owain's widow, Cristin ferch Goronwy ab Owain.
They made their move, and within a few months of his succession Hywel was overthrown and killed at the Battle of Pentraeth in 1171. It seems that Iorwerth was injured badly enough to be ruled out of the succession (he was to die in 1174), leaving Dafydd as the leading figure in this cabal, which included his brother Rhodri as well as his half brother Maelgwn ab Owain Gwynedd
and the nephews of another half brother Cynan ab Owain, namely Gruffudd ap Cynan and Maredudd ap Cynan.
Although the exact division of the spoils is unclear, Maelgwn appears to have gained Anglesey whilst the sons of Cynan held the cantrefs of Meirionydd, Eifionydd and Ardudwy between them. However Dafydd appears at to have been recognised as pre-eminent amongst them and was regarded in some way as the overall leader. Naturally, once he'd enjoyed some of the benefits of power, Dafydd felt disinclined to share, as well as no doubt nervous that he might also soon share the fate of his predecessor Hywel; in 1173 he acted against his brother Maelgwn and drove him into exile in Ireland thereby gaining possession of all Anglesey for himself.
The following year he expelled all his remaining family rivals and made himself master of all Gwynedd and in 1175 "seized through treachery" his brother Rhodri and imprisoned him for good measure. Thus Dafydd re-united all Gwynedd under his one rule and in order to strengthen his position he sought an agreement with Henry II
. Due to his problems with the Church and Normandy
, Henry was anxious to secure peace and order in Wales. It was agreed that Dafydd would marry Emma of Anjou, who was Henry's illegitimate half sister, and receive the manor of Ellesmere
as dowry
, but unlike his southern counterpart, Rhys ap Gruffudd, he received no 'official' recognition of his position in the north.
All this was done, as the Brut y Tywysogion
explained regarding Dafydd "because he thought he could hold his territory in peace thereby", but it proved insufficient. Before the end of 1175 Rhodri had escaped from captivity and gathered sufficient support to be able to drive Dafydd from Anglesey and across the River Conwy
. Faced with this turn of events, Dafydd and Rhodri agreed to divide Gwynedd between each other. Thereafter Dafydd's realm was restricted to Gwynedd Is Conwy
, that is the Perfeddwlad
, the land between the rivers Conwy and the Dee, whilst Rhodri retained Anglesey and Gwynedd Uwch Conwy
. Secure in his now truncated realm, Dafydd now appears to have pushed ambition to one side and resolved to enjoy the quiet life. There is no record of him engaging in any further strife for the twenty years or so after the settlement of 1175. Dafydd may not have inherited the leadership abilities of his father but he had sufficient qualities of diplomacy and tact remaining to ensure he could live at peace with his neighbours. This appears to be the one quality recognised by his contemporaries as he was described by Giraldus Cambrensis
as a man who showed "good faith and credit by observing a strict neutrality between the Welsh and English"
His brother Rhodri had a more eventful time and fell out with the descendants of Cynan. They acted against Rhodri in 1190 and drove him out of Gwynedd altogether. Rhodri fled to the safety of the Isle of Man
only to be briefly reinstated in 1193 with the assistance of the Ragnvald, King of the Isles, to be driven out once more at the beginning of 1194.
Dafydd's nemesis proved to be his nephew Llywelyn ap Iorwerth, born most likely in the year 1173 and therefore only a child when all these events were played out. Llywelyn's father Iorwerth Drwyndwn
had been involved in the early stages of the dynastic struggles and most likely died sometime around 1174. As the century drew to a close Llywelyn became a young man and conceived the ambition to stake his claim to power in Gwynedd. He conspired with his cousins Gruffudd and Maredudd and his uncle Rhodri and in the year 1194 they all united against Dafydd, defeated him at the Battle of Aberconwy
and "drove him to flight and took from him all his territory except three castles".
Llywelyn, later known as Llywelyn the Great, was sole ruler of Gwynedd by 1200, and made a treaty with King John of England the same year. Llywelyn's relations with John remained good for the next ten years. He married John's illegitimate daughter Joan, also known as Joanna, in 1205, and when John arrested Gwenwynwyn ab Owain
of Powys in 1208 Llywelyn took the opportunity to annex southern Powys. In 1210 relations deteriorated and John invaded Gwynedd in 1211. Llywelyn was forced to seek terms and to give up all his lands east of the River Conwy, but was able to recover these lands the following year in alliance with the other Welsh princes. He allied himself with the barons who forced John to sign Magna Carta in 1215. By 1216 he was the dominant power in Wales, holding a council at Aberdyfi that year to apportion lands to the other princes.
Following King John's death, Llywelyn concluded the Treaty of Worcester with his successor Henry III in 1218. During the next fifteen years Llywelyn was frequently involved in fighting with Marcher lords and sometimes with the king, but also made alliances with several of the major powers in the Marches. The Peace of Middle in 1234 marked the end of Llywelyn's military career as the agreed truce of two years was extended year by year for the remainder of his reign.
Llywelyn the Great was determined to enforce the right of legitimate sons in Welsh succession law to bring Gwynedd in line with other Christian countries in Europe. However, by promoting his younger son Dafydd he was up against considerable support for his elder son Gruffydd from traditionalists in Gwynedd. However, with Gruffydd a prisoner the support for Gruffydd could not be transformed into anything more dangerous. Although Dafydd lost one of his most important supporters when his mother died in 1237, he retained the support of Ednyfed Fychan, the Seneschal of Gwynedd and the wielder of great political influence. Llywelyn suffered a paralytic stroke in 1237, and Dafydd took an increasing role in government. Dafydd ruled Gwynedd following his father's death in 1240.
, he had to give up all his lands outside Gwynedd, and also to hand over to the King his half brother Gruffydd whom he had been keeping a prisoner. Henry thereby gained what could have been a useful weapon against Dafydd, with the possibility of setting Gruffydd up as a rival to Dafydd in Gwynedd, but Gruffydd died trying to escape from the Tower of London by climbing down a knotted sheet, and fell to his death in March 1244.
With his main rival dead Dafydd formed an alliance with other Welsh rulers and began a campaign against the English occupation of parts of Wales. After savage fighting the campaign was successful until Dafydd's sudden natural death brought it to a halt. At the time of his death he had no children and with Gruffydd dead the succession would pass to the sons of Gruffydd. The only adult sons of Gruffydd were Owain Goch ap Gruffydd
and Llywelyn ap Gruffydd
who divided the realm between them.
In 1255 their younger sibling Dafydd ap Gruffydd reached maturity and Henry III sensing an opportunity to create mischief demanded that he be allowed his division of Gwynedd also. Llywelyn rejected this on the grounds that this would further weaken the realm and play into England's hands. Dafydd formed an alliance with Owain and at the Battle of Bryn Derwin
met Llywelyn in battle. Llywelyn was victorious and imprisoned Owain and confiscated his lands. He also imprisoned Dafydd for a short period before coming to terms with him.
Between 1255 and 1258 Llywelyn orchestrated a campaign against England across all of Wales gaining allies in Deheubarth and Powys. By 1258 he was acknowledged by almost all the native rulers as Prince of Wales
. In 1263 his brother Dafydd defected to England for reasons which are unclear. It has been speculated that the death of their mother may have had an effect.
The following year, 1264, the Baron's Revolt in England had reached its climax at the Battle of Lewes
. Llywelyn signed the Treaty of Woodstock with Simon de Montfort
thus forming an alliance against Henry III
. Although de Montfort was soon defeated and killed by the English king the peace between England and Wales held, being formalised at the Treaty of Montgomery
in 1267 and the title "Prince of Wales" was recognised by the King of England. All the native Welsh princes were to be vassals of Llywelyn and it is from this point that the independent history of the kingdom of Gwynedd comes to an end.
The principality of Wales was to be a short-lived creation. As is explained in greater detail elsewhere, the relationship between England and Wales broke down following the death of Henry III in 1272. By 1276 Llywelyn had been declared a rebel by the new King Edward I who was determined to be the master of the whole island of Great Britain
. Diplomatic pressure followed up by an enormous invasion force broke the unity of Wales and allowed the English army to quickly occupy large areas forcing Llywelyn back into his Gwynedd heartland. With the capture of Môn
and the Perfeddwlad, LLywelyn sued for peace and was forced to sign the Treaty of Aberconwy
reducing his realm to almost same extent that had existed at the beginning of his reign in 1247; confined to the lands above the Conwy. Dafydd was restored and granted some lands in the Perfeddwlad by Edward, including the cantrefi of Rhôs and Rhufoniog.
A confined Llywelyn appears to have put all of his hopes into stabilising the succession through children sired by his new wife Eleanor de Montfort
. Tragedy struck when she died during childbirth in 1282, giving birth to a daughter; Gwenllian ferch Llywelyn. This seems to have driven Llywelyn into what some historians have speculated to be a nervous breakdown and incapacitated him.
Rebellion over the rule of the English Crown arose and Dafydd was joined by Llywelyn. In November 1282 the Archbishop of Canterbury John Peckham
came to North Wales to mediate between Llywelyn ap Gruffudd and Edward Longshanks. Llywelyn ap Gruffudd was offered a bribe: one thousand pounds a year and an estate in England, if he would surrender his control (which extended at least to Gwynedd and Deheubarth) to Edward. Llywelyn wrote rejecting the offer . Within a month, Llywelyn, on 11 December 1282, was killed at Cilmeri in an ambush. His leaderless forces were routed shortly afterwards and the English forces led by Edward I moved to occupy Powys and eastern Gwynedd.
was proclaimed Prince of Wales. Dafydd continued the fight and kept the support of Goronowy ap Heilin, the Lord of Rhôs
, as well as Hywel ap Rhys Gryg
and his brother Rhys Wyndod, disinherited princes of Deheubarth.
However, as the English forces encircled Snowdonia and his people starved he was soon moving desperately from one fort to another as effective resistance was systematically crushed. Dolwyddelan
which was at risk of becoming encircled was first abandoned on January 18, 1283. After this Dolbadarn Castle
served as his base but by March this noble site in the heart of Snowdonia was also threatened forcing his departure. Finally, Dafydd moved his headquarters south to Castell y Bere
near Llanfihangel-y-pennant
. As the situation deteriorated it seems most likely that Dafydd and his family hoped to remain at Y Bere just long enough to avoid the worst of the Welsh winter before they were compelled to evacuate the site at the end of March in advance of the English forces who were manoeuvering to place it under siege. From this point forwards the prince, his family and the remains of his government were fugitives sleeping outdoors, forced to keep moving from place to place to avoid capture. Castell Y Bere's starving garrison would eventually surrender on April 25. After the fall of Y Bere, Dafydd's movements are speculative but he is recorded in May 1283 leading raids from the mountains supported to the bitter end by Goronwy ap Heilin, Hywel ap Rhys and his brother Rhys Wyndod.
On the 22nd June 1283, Dafydd ap Gruffudd was captured in the uplands above Abergwyngregyn close to Bera Mawr
in a secret hiding place recorded as Nanhysglain. The site was no more than a hovel in a bog which may have been used previously by religious hermits. It is recorded that Dafydd, who had been betrayed, was "severely injured" during his capture. It is likely that his wife, daughters, niece and one of his sons were captured alongside him. His eldest son, Llywelyn ap Dafydd
(aged about 15) was not there at the time because it is recorded that King Edward issued specific orders ad querendum filium David primogenitum to have him apprehended. Llywelyn ap Dafydd was detained later by "men of his own tongue" and taken into royal custody on 29 June. Following this any organised resistance ended until the uprising of Madog ap Llywelyn
some eleven years later.
Dafydd was taken to Edward on the night of his capture, then moved under heavy guard by way of Chester to Shrewsbury where in October he was hanged, drawn and quartered. His children and legal successors were locked away and never released: his sons Llywelyn ap Dafydd
and Owain ap Dafydd
in Bristol Castle; his daughter and niece in priories in Lincolnshire.
in 1282, and the execution of his brother Dafydd ap Gruffydd
the following year, eight centuries of independent rule by the house of Gwynedd came to an end, and the kingdom, which had long been one of the final holdouts to total English domination of Wales, was annexed to England. The remaining important members of the ruling house were all arrested and imprisoned for the remainder of their lives (Dafydd's sons Llywelyn ap Dafydd
and Owain ap Dafydd
in Bristol Castle, his daughters and niece in convents). Under the terms of the Statute of Rhuddlan
in 1284 the Kingdom of Gwynedd was broken up and re-organised into the English county model which created the counties of Anglesey
, Carnarvonshire, Merionethshire
, Denbighshire
and Flintshire
.
The Pura Walia (the new counties which had been Gwynedd plus Carmarthenshire
and Cardiganshire
) continued to be within a nominal Principality of Wales
ruled by the Council of Wales at Ludlow
as a part of the English crown. The title Prince of Wales was retained by the sovereign to be eventually awarded to his son, Prince Edward (later Edward II). The Welsh Marches would be merged with the principality in 1534 under the Council of Wales and the Marches until all separate governance for Wales as an administrative entity was abolished in 1689.
There were many Gwynedd-based rebellions after 1284 with varying degrees of success with most being led by peripheral members of the old royal house. In particular the rebellions of Prince Madoc in 1294 and of Owain Lawgoch
(the great-nephew of Llywelyn ap Gruffydd) between 1372-1378 are most notable. Because of this the old royal house was purged and any surviving members went in to hiding. A final rebellion in 1400 led by Owain Glyndŵr
, a member of the rival royal house of Powys, also drew considerable support from within Gwynedd.
The royal house of Gwynedd may have endured in the guise of the Wynn and the Anwyl families who both claimed Rhodri ab Owain Gwynedd
as their ancestor. After the purges in Wales had finished in the 16th century a certain Ioan ap Morys of Gwydir
proved his royal ancestry and he and his descendants were recognised across north Wales as the de jure Princes of Gwynedd until the male line of the Wynn family died out, probably in the late 18th century. Another claim could come via the surviving members of the Anwyl of Tywyn Family
or from any surviving male descendants of Dafydd Goch
, the acknowledged Bastard
son of Dafydd ap Gruffudd who avoided detection during the royal purges and continued the line.
The Welsh method of warfare during the reign of Henry II is described by Gerald of Wales in his work Descriptio Cambriae written c. 1190;
The Welsh were revered for the skills of their bowmen. Additionally, the Welsh learned from their Norman rivals. During the generations of warfare and close contact with the Normans, Gruffydd I and other Welsh leaders learned the arts of knighthood and adapted them for Wales. By Gruffydd's death in 1137 Gwynedd could field hundreds of heavy well-armed cavalry as well as their traditional bowmen and infantry.
In the end Wales was defeated militarily by the improved ability of the English navy to blockade or seize areas essential for agricultural production such as Anglesey
. With control of the Menai Strait, an invading army could regroup on Anglesey; without control of the Menai an army could be stranded there; and any occupying force on Anglesey could deny the vast harvest of the island to the Welsh.
Lack of food would force the disbandment of any large Welsh force besieged within the mountains. Following the occupation Welsh soldiers were conscripted to serve in the English Army. During the revolt of Owain Glyndwr
the Welsh adapted the new skills they had learnt to guerilla tactics and lightning raids. Owain Glyndwr
reputedly used the mountains with such advantage that many of the exasperated English soldiery suspected him of being a magician able to control the natural elements.
In early times Gwynedd (or Venedotia) may have been ruled from Chester
. After the Battle of Chester
in 613
when the city fell to the Anglo-Saxons
the royal court moved west to the stronghold at Deganwy Castle
near modern Conway
. This site was destroyed in 860
and afterwards Aberffraw
on Anglesey became the principal power base. However, as the English fleet became more powerful and particularly after the Norman colonization of Ireland began it became indefensible and from about 1200 until 1283 the home and headquarters of the Princes was Abergwyngregyn
or simply just "Aber" (its shortened form adopted by the Crown of England after the conquest). Joan, Lady of Wales, died there in 1237; Dafydd ap Llywelyn in 1246; Eleanor de Montfort, Lady of Wales, wife of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, Prince of Wales ("Tywysog Cymru" in modern Welsh), on 19 June 1282, giving birth to a daughter, Gwenllian. The royal home was occupied and expropriated by the English Crown in early 1283.
The traditional sphere of Aberffraw's influence in north Wales included Ynys Môn as their early seat of authority, and Gwynedd Uwch Conwy
(Gwynedd above the Conwy, or upper Gwynedd), and the Perfeddwlad
(the Middle Country) also known as Gwynedd Is Conwy
(Gwynedd below the Conwy, or lower Gwynedd). Additional lands were acquired through vassalage or conquest, and by regaining lands lost to Marcher lords
, particularly that of Ceredigion
, Powys Fadog
, and Powys Wenwynwyn
. However these areas were always considered an addition to Gwynedd never part of Gwynedd.
The extent of the kingdom varied with the strength of the current ruler. Gwynedd was traditionally divided into "Gwynedd Uwch Conwy" and "Gwynedd Is Conwy" (with the River Conwy
forming the dividing line between the two), which included Môn (Anglesey). The kingdom was administered under Welsh custom through thirteen Cantrefi each containing, in theory, one hundred settlements or Trefi. Most cantrefs were also divided into cymydau (English commote
s).
Cantref Arllechwedd
Cantref Arfon
Cantref Dunoding
Cantref Llŷn
Cantref Meirionnydd
, or "the Middle Country" or Gwynedd Is Conwy (Gwynedd below the Conwy, or lower Gwynedd)
Line of Maelgwn Gwynedd
With Hywel's death all male descendants of Maelgwn Gwynedd have expired, and Merfyn the Freckled succeeds because his mother Esyllt was the eldest daughter of Cynan Dindaethwy ap Rhodri, and niece to the last king Hywel ap Rhodri Molwynog.
House of Manaw
10th- and 11th-century usurpations
Aberffraw restoration
Interregnum
Dafydd ab Owain ursurped the throne of Gwynedd from his brother Hywel ab Owain, and recognized as 'prince of Gwynedd' by the English Crown. However, his ascendency was short lived as he was displaced by other brothers, with the throne of Gwynedd returning to the senior legitimate heir of Owain Gwynedd with Llywelyn the Great.
Restoration of the senior line:
After Owain Lawgoch
the line of Aberffraw would continue post conquest, and later direct male descendants would include the Wynn family and the Anwyl family, both claiming direct male descent from Owain Gwynedd
.
of Gwydir were created in the Baronetage of England in 1611—one of the initial creations—for John Wynn, of Gwydir. The members of this line were heirs to the Aberffraw
claim to the Principality of Gwynedd and Wales
as direct descendents of Owain Gwynedd
in the senior line from the 15th Century. The family continued to be prominent in politics, all the baronets save Owen sat as members of parliament, often for Carnarvon or Carnarvonshire. This creation became extinct in 1719, on the death of the fifth baronet. Wynnstay, near Ruabon
, passed to Jane Thelwall and her husband Sir Watkin Williams, who took the name of Williams-Wynn in honor of his wife's princely heritage.
(and later of Tywyn
) also claim Rhodri ab Owain Gwynedd
as their ancestor. However, they part from the Wynn family in the early 15th Century as they descend from Ieuan ap Maredudd whereas the Wynn family descends from Robert ap Maredudd (the elder brother). The brothers took opposing sides during the revolt of Owain Glyndwr
. The Anwyl family has been maintained in the male line and survives in Wales to this day; the current head of the family is Evan Vaughan Anwyl of Tywyn (b.1943).
Petty kingdom
A petty kingdom is one of a number of small kingdoms, described as minor or "petty" by contrast to an empire or unified kingdom that either preceded or succeeded it...
of several 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...
successor states which emerged in 5th-century post-Roman Britain
Sub-Roman Britain
Sub-Roman Britain is a term derived from an archaeological label for the material culture of Britain in Late Antiquity: the term "Sub-Roman" was invented to describe the potsherds in sites of the 5th century and the 6th century, initially with an implication of decay of locally-made wares from a...
in the Early Middle Ages
Early Middle Ages
The Early Middle Ages was the period of European history lasting from the 5th century to approximately 1000. The Early Middle Ages followed the decline of the Western Roman Empire and preceded the High Middle Ages...
, and later evolved into a principality
Principality
A principality is a monarchical feudatory or sovereign state, ruled or reigned over by a monarch with the title of prince or princess, or by a monarch with another title within the generic use of the term prince....
during the High Middle Ages
High Middle Ages
The High Middle Ages was the period of European history around the 11th, 12th, and 13th centuries . The High Middle Ages were preceded by the Early Middle Ages and followed by the Late Middle Ages, which by convention end around 1500....
. It was based on the former Brythonic
Britons (historical)
The Britons were the Celtic people culturally dominating Great Britain from the Iron Age through the Early Middle Ages. They spoke the Insular Celtic language known as British or Brythonic...
tribal lands of the Ordovices
Ordovices
The Ordovices were one of the Celtic tribes living in Great Britain, before the Roman invasion of Britain. Its tribal lands were located in present day Wales and England between the Silures to the south and the Deceangli to the north-east...
, Gangani
Gangani
The Gangani were a people of ancient Ireland who are referred to in Ptolemy's 2nd century Geography as living in the south-west of the island, probably near the mouth of the River Shannon, between the Auteini to the north and the Uellabori to the south...
, and the Deceangli
Deceangli
The Deceangli or Deceangi were one of the Celtic tribes living in Britain, prior to the Roman invasion of the island. The tribe lived mainly in what is now north-east Wales, though it is uncertain whether their territory covered only the modern counties of Flintshire, Denbighshire and part of...
which were collectively known as Venedotia in late Romano-British
Romano-British
Romano-British culture describes the culture that arose in Britain under the Roman Empire following the Roman conquest of AD 43 and the creation of the province of Britannia. It arose as a fusion of the imported Roman culture with that of the indigenous Britons, a people of Celtic language and...
documents. Between the 5th and 13th centuries Gwynedd grew to include Ynys Môn
Anglesey
Anglesey , also known by its Welsh name Ynys Môn , is an island and, as Isle of Anglesey, a county off the north west coast of Wales...
(Anglesey) and all of north Wales
North Wales
North Wales is the northernmost unofficial region of Wales. It is bordered to the south by the counties of Ceredigion and Powys in Mid Wales and to the east by the counties of Shropshire in the West Midlands and Cheshire in North West England...
between the River Dyfi
River Dyfi
The River Dyfi is a river in Mid Wales. The Dyfi estuary forms the border between the counties of Gwynedd and Ceredigion.- Source :...
in the south and River Dee
River Dee, Wales
The River Dee is a long river in the United Kingdom. It travels through Wales and England and also forms part of the border between the two countries....
(Welsh
Welsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
Dyfrdwy) in the northeast. The Irish sea
Irish Sea
The Irish Sea separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is connected to the Celtic Sea in the south by St George's Channel, and to the Atlantic Ocean in the north by the North Channel. Anglesey is the largest island within the Irish Sea, followed by the Isle of Man...
(Môr Iwerddon) washes the coast of Gwynedd to the west and north and lands formerly part of the Kingdom of Powys border Gwynedd in the south-east.
Gwynedd's strength lay in part due to the region's mountainous
Snowdonia
Snowdonia is a region in north Wales and a national park of in area. It was the first to be designated of the three National Parks in Wales, in 1951.-Name and extent:...
geography which made it difficult for foreign invaders to campaign in the country and impose their will effectively.
Popular tradition attributed to Nennius
Nennius
Nennius was a Welsh monk of the 9th century.He has traditionally been attributed with the authorship of the Historia Brittonum, based on the prologue affixed to that work, This attribution is widely considered a secondary tradition....
, a 10th-century Welsh chronicler, traced Gwynedd's foundation to Cunedda
Cunedda
Cunedda ap Edern , was an important early Welsh leader, and the progenitor of the royal dynasty of Gwynedd.-Background and life:The name Cunedda derives from the Brythonic word , meaning good hound. His genealogy is traced back to Padarn Beisrudd, which literally translates as Paternus of the...
. According to Nennius, Cunedda migrated with his sons and followers from Brythonic
Britons (historical)
The Britons were the Celtic people culturally dominating Great Britain from the Iron Age through the Early Middle Ages. They spoke the Insular Celtic language known as British or Brythonic...
Lothian
Lothian
Lothian forms a traditional region of Scotland, lying between the southern shore of the Firth of Forth and the Lammermuir Hills....
, in southern Scotland, in the 5th century.
The main court of the Kingdom of Gwynedd was originally at Deganwy Castle
Deganwy Castle
Deganwy Castle was an early stronghold of Gwynedd and lies at the mouth of the River Conwy in Conwy, north Wales...
, where Maelgwn Gwynedd (died 547) had his stronghold
Deganwy Castle
Deganwy Castle was an early stronghold of Gwynedd and lies at the mouth of the River Conwy in Conwy, north Wales...
. The senior line of descendants of Rhodri the Great would make Aberffraw
Aberffraw
Aberffraw is a small village and community on the south west coast of the Isle of Anglesey , in Wales, by the west bank of the River Ffraw, at . The UK postcode begins LL63. Access by road is by way of the A4080 and the nearest rail station is Bodorgan. In the early Middle Ages Aberffraw was the...
on Ynys Mon
Anglesey
Anglesey , also known by its Welsh name Ynys Môn , is an island and, as Isle of Anglesey, a county off the north west coast of Wales...
as their principal seat until 1170. In the thirteenth century, Llywelyn Fawr, his son Dafydd ap Llywelyn
Dafydd ap Llywelyn
Dafydd ap Llywelyn was Prince of Gwynedd from 1240 to 1246. He was for a time recognised as Prince of Wales.- Descent :...
and grandson Llywelyn ap Gruffudd had Abergwyngregyn
Abergwyngregyn
Abergwyngregyn is a village of historical note in Gwynedd, a county and principal area in Wales. Under its historic name of Aber Garth Celyn it was the seat of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd....
on the north coast as their home.
Etymology
According to John Koch and several other historians, the Latin name "Venedotia" from whence the Welsh name "Gwynedd" comes is derived from the Irish word "Feni", referring at one time to a specific group on the island and later broadening to become a general reference to the Irish people as a whole, the free, nonslave people in particular. The Irish, especially the Laighin, are known to have colonized and/or conquered much of northern Wales in the mid-4th to early 5th centuries.Alternatively, the name Gwynedd may derive from Brythonic Ueneda, which may be akin to Goidelic (ancestor of Irish) Fenia (which gives fiana, "war-band" in Old Irish - e.g. Finn and his warriors). Thus the possible meaning may be "Land of the Hosts" or "Land of the Warrior Bands".
Whatever the exact etymology
Etymology
Etymology is the study of the history of words, their origins, and how their form and meaning have changed over time.For languages with a long written history, etymologists make use of texts in these languages and texts about the languages to gather knowledge about how words were used during...
of the name, a gravestone from the late 5th century now in Penmachno
Penmachno
Penmachno is a village in the isolated upland valley of Cwm Penmachno, 4 miles south of Betws-y-Coed in the county of Conwy, north Wales.It is renowned as the home of Bishop William Morgan , who lived at Tŷ Mawr, Y Wybrnant, near the village. He was one of the leading scholars of his day, having...
church seems to be the earliest record of the name. It is in memory of a man named Cantiorix and the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
inscription is: "Cantiorix hic iacit/Venedotis cives fuit/consobrinos Magli magistrati", ("Cantiorix lies here. He was a citizen of Gwynedd and a cousin of Maglos the magistrate"). The references to "citizen" and "magistrate" suggest that Roman institutions may have survived in Gwynedd for a while after the legions departed.
The Sons of Cunedda
At the end of the RomanRoman Britain
Roman Britain was the part of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire from AD 43 until ca. AD 410.The Romans referred to the imperial province as Britannia, which eventually comprised all of the island of Great Britain south of the fluid frontier with Caledonia...
period the western areas of Britannia which had been under military administration seem to have reverted quickly to tribal law and petty states. Raiders from Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
such as the Uí Liatháin
Uí Liatháin
The Uí Liatháin were an early kingdom of Munster in southern Ireland. They belonged the same kindred as the Uí Fidgenti, and the two are considered together in the earliest sources, for example The Expulsion of the Déisi...
and Laigin
Laigin
The Laigin, modern spelling Laighin , were a population group of early Ireland who gave their name to the province of Leinster...
harried the coasts initially razing towns and capturing slaves but later colonising
Colonisation
Colonization occurs whenever any one or more species populate an area. The term, which is derived from the Latin colere, "to inhabit, cultivate, frequent, practice, tend, guard, respect", originally related to humans. However, 19th century biogeographers dominated the term to describe the...
large areas of what was then called Venedotia and later called Gwynedd, in particular Llŷn
Llyn
Llyn is the Welsh word for "lake" or, occasionally, "pond" or "pool". The word and its cognates in other Celtic languages , as well their derivatives—including lyn, lynn and lin—appear in many placenames throughout the current and former Celtic world, as, for example, in Dublin and King's...
, the coasts of Arllechwedd, Arfon and the Isle of Mona
Mon
-Places:* Mon State, a subdivision of Burma* Mon, Nagaland, a town in India* Mon District, Nagaland, India* Mon, Switzerland, a village in the Grisons* Isle of Anglesey or Môn, an island and county of Wales* Møn, an island of Denmark...
. Legend, supported by some later written accounts, asserts that a prince called Cunedda
Cunedda
Cunedda ap Edern , was an important early Welsh leader, and the progenitor of the royal dynasty of Gwynedd.-Background and life:The name Cunedda derives from the Brythonic word , meaning good hound. His genealogy is traced back to Padarn Beisrudd, which literally translates as Paternus of the...
(modern "Kenneth") from distant Manaw Gododdin
Manaw Gododdin
Manaw Gododdin was the narrow coastal region on the south side of the Firth of Forth, part of the Brythonic-speaking Kingdom of Gododdin in the post-Roman Era. Its notability is as the homeland of Cunedda prior to his conquest of North Wales, and as the homeland of the heroic warriors in the...
—probably a refugee himself from the northern wars with the Picts
Picts
The Picts were a group of Late Iron Age and Early Mediaeval people living in what is now eastern and northern Scotland. There is an association with the distribution of brochs, place names beginning 'Pit-', for instance Pitlochry, and Pictish stones. They are recorded from before the Roman conquest...
—was "sent" to free these lands from the Irish scourge in about 450AD. He and his sons forced out the Irish and upon his death the realm was divided between his sons following Brythonic tradition. From these beginnings many of the ancient divisions of Gwynedd occur; his son Dynod was awarded Dunoding
Dunoding
Dunoding was an early sub-kingdom within the Kingdom of Gwynedd in north-west Wales which existed between the 5th and 10th centuries. According to tradition, it was named after Dunod, a son of the founding father of Gwynedd - Cunedda Wledig - who drove the Irish settlers from the area in c.460...
, another son Ceredig
Ceredig
Ceredig ap Cunedda, , king of Ceredigion, may have been born c. 420 AD in the Brythonic kingdom of Manaw Gododdin , centred on the Firth of Forth in the area known as Yr Hen Ogledd.Little is known of him...
achieved Ceredigion
Kingdom of Ceredigion
The Kingdom of Ceredigion was one of several Welsh kingdoms that emerged in 5th-century post-Roman Britain. Its area corresponded roughly to that of the modern county of Ceredigion. The kingdom's hilly geography made it difficult for foreign invaders to conquer. Cardigan Bay bordered to the west...
and so forth. Cunedda's heir, Einion Yrth threw the last Irish out of Môn
Mon
-Places:* Mon State, a subdivision of Burma* Mon, Nagaland, a town in India* Mon District, Nagaland, India* Mon, Switzerland, a village in the Grisons* Isle of Anglesey or Môn, an island and county of Wales* Møn, an island of Denmark...
in 470. Einion Yrth's son Cadwallon Lawhir appears to have consolidated the realm during the time of relative peace following the Battle of Mons Badonicus
Battle of Mons Badonicus
The Battle of Mons Badonicus was a battle between a force of Britons and an Anglo-Saxon army, probably sometime between 490 and 517 AD. Though it is believed to have been a major political and military event, there is no certainty about its date, location or the details of the fighting...
where the Anglo-Saxons were soundly defeated. During that peace he managed to establish a mighty kingdom.
After Cadwallon, Gwynedd appears to have held a pre-eminent position amongst the petty Cambrian states in the post-Roman period. The great-grandson of Cunedda, Maelgwn Hir (Maelgwn the Tall), became one of the most famous (or infamous) leaders in Welsh history. There are several legends about his life concerning miracles either performed by him or in his presence. He is attributed in some old stories as hosting the first Eisteddfod and he is one of five Celtic British kings castigated for their sins by the contemporary Christian writer Gildas
Gildas
Gildas was a 6th-century British cleric. He is one of the best-documented figures of the Christian church in the British Isles during this period. His renowned learning and literary style earned him the designation Gildas Sapiens...
(who referred to him as Maglocunus, meaning 'Prince-Hound' in Brittonic) in De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae
De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae
De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae is a work by the 6th-century British cleric Gildas. It is a sermon in three parts condemning the acts of Gildas' contemporaries, both secular and religious, whom he blames for the dire state of affairs in sub-Roman Britain...
. Maelgwn was curiously described as "the dragon of the island" by Gildas which was possibly a title (Pendragon
Pendragon (disambiguation)
Pendragon meaning 'head dragon' is used to refer to number of topics:People* Ambrosius Aurelianus, son of Constantine II of Britain, called "Pendragon" in the Vulgate Cycle* Uther, brother of Aurelius and father of King Arthur* King Arthur, son of Uther...
?), but explicitly as the most powerful of the five named British kings.
"...you the last I write of but the first and greatest in evil, more than many in ability but also in malice, more generous in giving but also more liberal in sin, strong in war but stronger to destroy your soul...."
Gildas Sapiens, De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae
Maelgwn eventually died in 547 from the plague leaving a succession crisis in his wake. His son in law, Elidyr Mwynfawr of the Kingdom of Strathclyde
Kingdom of Strathclyde
Strathclyde , originally Brythonic Ystrad Clud, was one of the early medieval kingdoms of the celtic people called the Britons in the Hen Ogledd, the Brythonic-speaking parts of what is now southern Scotland and northern England. The kingdom developed during the post-Roman period...
, claimed the throne and invaded Gwynedd to displace Maelgwn's son Rhun Hir. Elidyr was killed in the attempt but his death was then avenged by his relatives who ravaged the coast of Arfon. Rhun counter-attacked and exacted the same penalty on the lands of his foes in what is now central Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. The long distances these armies travelled suggests they were moving across the Irish Sea
Irish Sea
The Irish Sea separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is connected to the Celtic Sea in the south by St George's Channel, and to the Atlantic Ocean in the north by the North Channel. Anglesey is the largest island within the Irish Sea, followed by the Isle of Man...
but because almost all of what is now northern England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
was at this point (c.550) under British (Brythonic
Britons (historical)
The Britons were the Celtic people culturally dominating Great Britain from the Iron Age through the Early Middle Ages. They spoke the Insular Celtic language known as British or Brythonic...
) rule it is possible his army marched to Strathclyde overland. Rhun returned to Gwynedd and the rest of his reign was far less eventful. He was succeeded by his son Beli
Beli ap Rhun
Beli ap Rhun was King of Gwynedd . Nothing is known of the person, and his name is known only from Welsh genealogies, which confirm that he had at least two sons. He succeeded his father Rhun ap Maelgwn as king, and was in turn succeeded by his son Iago...
in c.586.
On the accession of Beli's son Iago
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....
in c.599 the situation in Britain had deteriorated significantly. Most of the area today called northern England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and been overrun by the invading Angles
Angles
The Angles is a modern English term for a Germanic people who took their name from the ancestral cultural region of Angeln, a district located in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany...
of 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...
and Bernicia
Bernicia
Bernicia was an Anglo-Saxon kingdom established by Anglian settlers of the 6th century in what is now southeastern Scotland and North East England....
who were in the process of forming a united 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...
n kingdom. In a rare show of common interest it appears Gwynedd and neighbouring Powys acted in concert to rebuff the Anglican advance but were defeated at 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 613. Following this catastrophe the approximate borders of northern Wales were set with the city of Caerlleon (now called Chester
Chester
Chester is a city in Cheshire, England. Lying on the River Dee, close to the border with Wales, it is home to 77,040 inhabitants, and is the largest and most populous settlement of the wider unitary authority area of Cheshire West and Chester, which had a population of 328,100 according to the...
) and the surrounding Cheshire Plain
Cheshire Plain
The Cheshire Plain is a relatively flat expanse of lowland situated almost entirely within the county of Cheshire in northwest England. It is bounded by the hills of North Wales to the west, and the Peak District of Derbyshire and North Staffordshire to the east and southeast...
falling under the control of the Anglo-Saxons. Most importantly the Britons of Wales were now cut off from their kin in Cumbria
Cumbria
Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
and Strathclyde.
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...
(c.624 - 634) the grandson of 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....
. He became engaged in an initially disastrous campaign against Northumbria where following a series of epic defeats he was confined first to Môn and then just to Ynys Glannauc
Puffin Island, Anglesey
Puffin Island is an uninhabited island off the eastern tip of Anglesey, Wales. It was formerly known as Priestholm in English and Ynys Lannog in Welsh.-Geography:...
before being forced into exile across the Irish Sea
Irish Sea
The Irish Sea separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is connected to the Celtic Sea in the south by St George's Channel, and to the Atlantic Ocean in the north by the North Channel. Anglesey is the largest island within the Irish Sea, followed by the Isle of Man...
to Dublin - a place which would come to host many royal refugees from Gwynedd. All must have seemed lost but Cadwallon raised an enormous army and after a brief time in Guernsey
Guernsey
Guernsey, officially the Bailiwick of Guernsey is a British Crown dependency in the English Channel off the coast of Normandy.The Bailiwick, as a governing entity, embraces not only all 10 parishes on the Island of Guernsey, but also the islands of Herm, Jethou, Burhou, and Lihou and their islet...
he invaded Dumnonia
Dumnonia
Dumnonia is the Latinised name for the Brythonic kingdom in sub-Roman Britain between the late 4th and late 8th centuries, located in the farther parts of the south-west peninsula of Great Britain...
, relieved the West Welsh
Cornish people
The Cornish are a people associated with Cornwall, a county and Duchy in the south-west of the United Kingdom that is seen in some respects as distinct from England, having more in common with the other Celtic parts of the United Kingdom such as Wales, as well as with other Celtic nations in Europe...
who were suffering a Mercian invasion and forced Penda, the pagan King of Mercia
Mercia
Mercia was one of the kingdoms of the Anglo-Saxon Heptarchy. It was centred on the valley of the River Trent and its tributaries in the region now known as the English Midlands...
, into an alliance against Northumbria. With new vigour he returned to his Northumbrian foes, devastated their armies and slaughtered a series of their kings. In this furious campaign his armies devastated Northumbria, captured and sacked York
York
York is a walled city, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. The city has a rich heritage and has provided the backdrop to major political events throughout much of its two millennia of existence...
in 633 and briefly controlled the kingdom. From contemporary accounts he is said to have massacred so many of the Anglo-Saxons they believed it was his intention to exterminate them. They were probably right.
"...he neither spared the female sex, nor the innocent age of children, but with savage cruelty put them to tormenting deaths, ravaging all their country for a long time, and resolving to cut off all the race of the English within the borders of Britain."
BedeBedeBede , also referred to as Saint Bede or the Venerable Bede , was a monk at the Northumbrian monastery of Saint Peter at Monkwearmouth, today part of Sunderland, England, and of its companion monastery, Saint Paul's, in modern Jarrow , both in the Kingdom of Northumbria...
(Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum)
However, these tumultuous events would come to be short-lived, for he died in battle in 634 close to Hadrians Wall. On account of these deeds he and his son Cadwaladr Fendigaid appear to have been considered the last two High Kings of Britain. Cadwaladr presided over a period of consolidation and devoted much time to the Church earning the title Fendigaid meaning "blessed".
Rhodri the Great and Aberffraw primacy
During the later 9th century and 10th century the coastal areas of Gwynedd, particularly Môn, were coming under increasing attack by Viking raiders. These raids no doubt had a seriously debilitating effect on the country but fortunately for Gwynedd the victims of the Vikings were not confined to Wales. The House of Cunedda - as the direct descendants of Cunedda are known - eventually expired in the male line in 825 upon the death of Hywel ap Rhodri MolwynogHywel ap Rhodri Molwynog
Hywel ap Rhodri Molwynog was King of Gwynedd . He rose to power following a destructive dynastic struggle in which he deposed his brother, King Cynan Dindaethwy ap Rhodri . During Hywel's reign Gwynedd's power was largely confined to Anglesey...
and, as Sir John Edward Lloyd
John Edward Lloyd
Sir John Edward Lloyd , was a Welsh historian, the author of the first serious history of the country's formative years, A History of Wales from the Earliest Times to the Edwardian Conquest, 2 vols...
put it, "a stranger possessed the throne of Gwynedd."
This "stranger" who became the next King of Gwynedd was Merfyn "Frych" (meaning Merfyn "the Freckled"). When, however, Merfyn Frych's pedigree is examined - and to the Welsh pedigree meant everything - he seems not a stranger but a direct descendant of the ancient ruling line. Some sources state he was the son of Erthil, "a prince of the Northern Britons" (for more on this see: Y Gogledd Hen), while others suggest he was the son of Gwriad, the contemporaneous King of the Isle of Man
Isle of Man
The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...
. All sources agree that he was the son of Esyllt, heiress and niece of the aforementioned Hywel ap Rhodri Molwynog, last of the House of Cunedda, and that his male line went back to the Men of the North, to Llywarch Hen
Llywarch Hen
Llywarch Hen was a 6th-century prince of the Brythonic kingdom of Rheged, a ruling family in the Hen Ogledd or 'Old North' of Britain...
, a first cousin of Urien Rheged and thus a direct descendant of Coel Hen. Thus the House of Cunedda and the new House of Aberffraw, as Merfyn's descendants came to be known, shared Coel Hen as a common ancestor, although the House of Cunedda traced their line through Gwawl
Gwawl
In Welsh mythology, Gwawl was the son of Clud, and tricks Pwyll into promising him Rhiannon. She decides to marry Pwyll instead. Gwawl is only mentioned in the First Branch of the Mabinogi...
his daughter and wife of Cunedda.
Merfyn married Nest ferch Cadell
Nest ferch Cadell
Nest ferch Cadell was the daughter of Cadell ap Brochfael a late 8th century King of Powys, wife of Merfyn Frych King of Gwynedd and mother to Rhodri the Great, King of both Powys and Gwynedd....
, the sister of Cyngen ap Cadell
Cyngen ap Cadell
Cyngen ap Cadell was a king of Powys in eastern Wales.-Biography:Cyngen was of the line of Brochwel Ysgithrog and after a long reign as king of Powys went on a pilgrimage to Rome and died there in 855...
, the King of Powys, and founded what was to become known as the House of Aberffraw
Aberffraw
Aberffraw is a small village and community on the south west coast of the Isle of Anglesey , in Wales, by the west bank of the River Ffraw, at . The UK postcode begins LL63. Access by road is by way of the A4080 and the nearest rail station is Bodorgan. In the early Middle Ages Aberffraw was the...
which was named after his principle court at Aberffraw
Aberffraw
Aberffraw is a small village and community on the south west coast of the Isle of Anglesey , in Wales, by the west bank of the River Ffraw, at . The UK postcode begins LL63. Access by road is by way of the A4080 and the nearest rail station is Bodorgan. In the early Middle Ages Aberffraw was the...
on the Isle of Môn (Anglesey). No written records are preserved from the Britons of southern Scotland and northern England and it is very likely that Merfyn Frych brought many of these legends as well as his pedigree with him when he came to north Wales. It appears most probable that that it was at Merfyn's court that all the lore of the north was collected and written down during his reign and that of his son.
Rhodri Mawr (meaning Rhodri the Great) (844 - 878), son of Merfyn Frych and Nest ferch Cadell, was able to add Powys to his realm after its king (his maternal uncle) died on pilgrimage to Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
in 855
855
Year 855 was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar.- Europe :* Louis II succeeds Lothar as Western Emperor...
. Later, he married Angharad the sister of King Gwgon of Seisyllwg and when Gwgon drowned in 872
872
Year 872 was a leap year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar.- Europe :* Battle of Hafrsfjord: Harald Fairhair becomes the first king of Norway....
Rhodri was able to annex that realm as well. This he became the first ruler since the days of Cunedda to control the greater part of Wales.
When Rhodri died in 878
878
Year 878 was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar.- Europe :...
the relative unity of Wales ended and it was once again divided into its component parts each ruled by one of his sons. Rhodri's eldest son Anarawd ap Rhodri
Anarawd ap Rhodri
Anarawd ap Rhodri was a King of Gwynedd, also referred to as "King of the Britons" by the Annales Cambriae.Anarawd's father Rhodri the Great had eventually become ruler of most of Wales, but on his death in 878 his kingdom was shared out between his sons, with Anarawd inheriting the throne of...
inherited Gwynedd and would firmly establish the princely House of Aberffraw
Aberffraw
Aberffraw is a small village and community on the south west coast of the Isle of Anglesey , in Wales, by the west bank of the River Ffraw, at . The UK postcode begins LL63. Access by road is by way of the A4080 and the nearest rail station is Bodorgan. In the early Middle Ages Aberffraw was the...
that would come to rule Gwynedd with but a few interruptions until 1283.
From the successes of Rhodri and the seniority of Anarawd among his sons the Aberffraw
Aberffraw
Aberffraw is a small village and community on the south west coast of the Isle of Anglesey , in Wales, by the west bank of the River Ffraw, at . The UK postcode begins LL63. Access by road is by way of the A4080 and the nearest rail station is Bodorgan. In the early Middle Ages Aberffraw was the...
family claimed primacy over all other Welsh lords including the powerful kings of Powys and Deheubarth. In The History of Gruffydd ap Cynan, written in the late 12th century, the family asserted its rights as the senior line of descendants from Rhodri the Great
Rhodri the Great
Rhodri the Great was King of Gwynedd from 844 until his death. He was the first Welsh ruler to be called 'Great', and the first to rule most of present-day Wales...
who had conquered most of Wales during his lifetime. Gruffydd ap Cynan
Gruffydd ap Cynan
Gruffydd ap Cynan was a King of Gwynedd. In the course of a long and eventful life, he became a key figure in Welsh resistance to Norman rule, and was remembered as King of all Wales...
's biography was first written in Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
and intended for a wider audience outside Wales. The significance of this claim was that the Aberffraw family owed nothing to the English king for its position in Wales, and that they held authority in Wales "by absolute right through descent," wrote historian John Davies.
The House of Aberffraw was displaced in 942
942
Year 942 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar.- Asia :* Kaminarimon, the eight-pillared gate to Japan's Kinryuzan Sensouji Temple, is erected....
by Hywel Dda
Hywel Dda
Hywel Dda , was the well-thought-of king of Deheubarth in south-west Wales, who eventually came to rule Wales from Prestatyn to Pembroke. As a descendant of Rhodri Mawr, through his father Cadell, Hywel was a member of the Dinefwr branch of the dynasty and is also named Hywel ap Cadell...
, a junior descendant of Rhodri Mawr and the King of Deheubarth. This occurred because Idwal Foel
Idwal Foel
Idwal Foel ap Anarawd was a King of Gwynedd, referred to as King of the Britons by William of Malmesbury in his Gesta Regum Anglorum. William spells his name as Judwalum in the original Latin ; the Annales Cambriae spell it Iudgual.Idwal inherited the throne of Gwynedd on the death of his...
, the King of Gwynedd, was determined to cast off English overlordship and took up arms against the new English king, Edmund
Edmund I of England
Edmund I , called the Elder, the Deed-doer, the Just, or the Magnificent, was King of England from 939 until his death. He was a son of Edward the Elder and half-brother of Athelstan. Athelstan died on 27 October 939, and Edmund succeeded him as king.-Military threats:Shortly after his...
. Idwal and his brother Elisedd were both killed in battle against Edmund's forces. By normal custom Idwal's crown should have passed to his sons, Ieuaf
Ieuaf ab Idwal
Ieuaf ap Idwal was a king of part of Gwynedd and possibly part of Powys .Ieuaf was the son of Idwal Foel...
and Iago ab Idwal
Iago ab Idwal
Not to be confused with Iago ab Idwal ap MeurigIago ab Idwal was a King of Gwynedd and possibly Powys, also referred to as "King of the Britons" by the Annals of Ulster....
, but Hywel Dda intervened and sent Iago and Ieuaf into exile in Ireland and established himself as ruler over Gwynedd until his death in 950
950
Year 950 was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar.- Europe :* Duke Boleslav I of Bohemia makes peace with Otto I....
when the House of Aberffraw was restored.
Between 986
986
Year 986 was a common year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar.- Europe :* March 2 – Louis V becomes King of the Franks....
and 1081 the throne of Gwynedd was often in contention with the rightful kings frequently displaced by rivals within and outside the realm. One of these, Gruffudd ap Llywelyn, originally from Powys, displaced the Aberffraw line from Gwynedd making himself ruler there, and by 1055 was able to make himself king of most of Wales. He became powerful enough to present a real menace to England and annexed some neighbouring parts after several victories over English armies. Eventually he was defeated by Harold Godwinson
Harold Godwinson
Harold Godwinson was the last Anglo-Saxon King of England.It could be argued that Edgar the Atheling, who was proclaimed as king by the witan but never crowned, was really the last Anglo-Saxon king...
in 1063 and later killed by his own men in a deal to secure peace with England. Bleddyn ap Cynfyn
Bleddyn ap Cynfyn
Bleddyn ap Cynfyn was a Prince of the Welsh Kingdoms of Gwynedd and of Powys.- Lineage :Bleddyn was the son of Princess Angharad ferch Maredudd with her second husband Cynfyn ap Gwerstan, a Powys Lord, about whom little is now known...
and his brother Rhiwallon of the Mathrafal
Mathrafal
Mathrafal near Welshpool, in Powys, Mid Wales, was the seat of the Kings and Princes of Powys probably from the 9th century until its destruction in 1212 by Llywelyn ap Iorwerth of Gwynedd.- Location :...
house
Dynasty
A dynasty is a sequence of rulers considered members of the same family. Historians traditionally consider many sovereign states' history within a framework of successive dynasties, e.g., China, Ancient Egypt and the Persian Empire...
of Powys, Gruffudd's maternal half-brothers, came to terms with Harold and took over the rule of Gwynedd and Powys.
Shortly after the Norman
Normans
The Normans were the people who gave their name to Normandy, a region in northern France. They were descended from Norse Viking conquerors of the territory and the native population of Frankish and Gallo-Roman stock...
conquest of England in 1066 the Normans began to exert pressure on the eastern border of Gwynedd. They were helped by internal strife following the killing of Bleddyn ap Cynfyn in 1075 by his cousin Trahaearn ap Caradog
Trahaearn ap Caradog
- Accession:On the death of Bleddyn ap Cynfyn in 1075, it appears that none of his sons were old enough to claim the throne, and Bleddyn's cousin Trahaearn ap Caradog, seized power...
. Trahaearn seized the throne but was soon challenged by Gruffydd ap Cynan
Gruffydd ap Cynan
Gruffydd ap Cynan was a King of Gwynedd. In the course of a long and eventful life, he became a key figure in Welsh resistance to Norman rule, and was remembered as King of all Wales...
, the exiled grandson of Iago ab Idwal
Iago ab Idwal
Not to be confused with Iago ab Idwal ap MeurigIago ab Idwal was a King of Gwynedd and possibly Powys, also referred to as "King of the Britons" by the Annals of Ulster....
who had been living in the Hiberno-Norse stronghold of Dublin. In 1081 Trahaearn was killed by Gruffydd in battle and the ancient line of Rhodri Mawr was restored.
Gwynedd in the High Middle Ages
See also Gwynedd in the High Middle AgesGwynedd in the High Middle Ages
The history of Gwynedd in the High Middle Ages is a period in the History of Wales spanning the 11th through the 13th centuries. Gwynedd, located in the north of Wales, eventually became the most dominant of Welsh principalities during this period...
, Wales and the Normans: 1067–1283
Gruffydd ap Cynan
Deposition (politics)
Deposition by political means concerns the removal of a politician or monarch. It may be done by coup, impeachment, invasion or forced abdication...
by rivals in Deheubarth, Powys, and England in the 10th and 11th centuries. Gruffydd I ap Cynan
Gruffydd ap Cynan
Gruffydd ap Cynan was a King of Gwynedd. In the course of a long and eventful life, he became a key figure in Welsh resistance to Norman rule, and was remembered as King of all Wales...
(b.c.1055–1137), who grew up in exile in Hiberno-Norse Dublin, regained his inheritance following his victory at the Battle of Mynydd Carn
Battle of Mynydd Carn
The Battle of Mynydd Carn took place in 1081, as part of a dynastic struggle for control of the Welsh kingdoms of Gwynedd and Deheubarth. The result of the battle had a radical effect on the history of Wales....
in 1081 over his Mathrafal rivals then in control of Gwynedd. However, Gruffydd's victory was short-lived as the Normans
Normans
The Normans were the people who gave their name to Normandy, a region in northern France. They were descended from Norse Viking conquerors of the territory and the native population of Frankish and Gallo-Roman stock...
launched an invasion of Wales following the Saxon revolt in northern England
Northern England
Northern England, also known as the North of England, the North or the North Country, is a cultural region of England. It is not an official government region, but rather an informal amalgamation of counties. The southern extent of the region is roughly the River Trent, while the North is bordered...
, known as the Harrowing of the North
Harrying of the North
The Harrying of the North was a series of campaigns waged by William the Conqueror in the winter of 1069–1070 to subjugate Northern England, and is part of the Norman conquest of England...
.
Shortly after the Battle of Mynydd Carn
Battle of Mynydd Carn
The Battle of Mynydd Carn took place in 1081, as part of a dynastic struggle for control of the Welsh kingdoms of Gwynedd and Deheubarth. The result of the battle had a radical effect on the history of Wales....
in 1081, Gruffydd was lured into a trap with the promise of an alliance but seized by Hugh the Fat, 1st Earl of Chester
Hugh d'Avranches, 1st Earl of Chester
Hugh d'Avranches , also known as le Gros and Lupus was the first Earl of Chester and one of the great magnates of early Norman England.-Early career:...
in an ambush near Corwen
Corwen
Corwen is a town and community in the county of Denbighshire in Wales; it was previously part of the county of Meirionnydd). Corwen stands on the banks of the River Dee beneath the Berwyn mountains. The town is situated west of Llangollen and south of Ruthin...
Earl Hugh claimed the Perfeddwlad up to the Clwyd river
River Clwyd
The River Clwyd is a river in North Wales which rises in the Clocaenog Forest northwest of Corwen.It flows due south until at Melin-y-Wig it veers northeastwards, tracking the A494 to Ruthin. Here it leaves the relatively narrow valley and enters a broad agricultural vale, the Vale of Clwyd...
(the commote
Commote
A commote , sometimes spelt in older documents as cymwd, was a secular division of land in Medieval Wales. The word derives from the prefix cym- and the noun bod...
s of Tegeingl and Rhufoniog
Rhufoniog
Rhufoniog was a small sub-kingdom of the Dark Ages Gwynedd, and later a cantref in medieval Wales. According to tradition, it was ruled by its eponymous founder Rhufon, the third son of the first King of Gwynedd, Cunedda, and his direct descendants from the year 445 until the year 540 when it was...
; the modern counties of Denbighshire
Denbighshire
Denbighshire is a county in north-east Wales. It is named after the historic county of Denbighshire, but has substantially different borders. Denbighshire has the distinction of being the oldest inhabited part of Wales. Pontnewydd Palaeolithic site has remains of Neanderthals from 225,000 years...
Flintshire
Flintshire
Flintshire is a county in north-east Wales. It borders Denbighshire, Wrexham and the English county of Cheshire. It is named after the historic county of Flintshire, which had notably different borders...
and Wrexham
Wrexham
Wrexham is a town in Wales. It is the administrative centre of the wider Wrexham County Borough, and the largest town in North Wales, located in the east of the region. It is situated between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley close to the border with Cheshire, England...
) as part of Chester, and viewed the restoration of the Aberffraw family in Gwynedd as a threat to his own expansion into Wales. The lands west of the Clwyd were intended for his cousin Robert "of Ruddlan"
Robert of Rhuddlan
Robert of Rhuddlan was a Norman adventurer who became lord of much of north-east Wales and for a period lord of all North Wales....
, and their advance extended to the Llŷn Peninsula
Llŷn Peninsula
The Llŷn Peninsula extends into the Irish Sea from north west Wales, south west of the Isle of Anglesey. It is part of the modern county and historic region of Gwynedd. The name is thought to be of Irish origin, and to have the same root Laigin in Irish as the word Leinster...
by 1090. By 1094 almost the whole of Wales was occupied by Norman forces. However, although they erected many castles, Norman control in most regions of Wales was tenuous at best. Motivated by local anger over the "gratuitously cruel" invaders, and led by the historic ruling houses, Welsh control over the greater part of Wales was restored by 1100.
In an effort to further consolidate his control over Gwynedd, Earl Hugh of Chester had Hervé the Breton
Hervey le Breton
Hervey le Breton was a Breton cleric who became Bishop of Bangor in Wales and later Bishop of Ely in England. Appointed to Bangor by King William II of England, when Normans were advancing into Wales, Hervey was unable to remain in his diocese when the Welsh began to drive the Normans back from...
elected as Bishop of Bangor
Bishop of Bangor
The Bishop of Bangor is the Ordinary of the Church in Wales Diocese of Bangor.The diocese covers the counties of Anglesey, most of Caernarfonshire and Merionethshire and a small part of Montgomeryshire...
in 1092, and consecrated by Thomas of Bayeux, Archbishop of York
Archbishop of York
The Archbishop of York is a high-ranking cleric in the Church of England, second only to the Archbishop of Canterbury. He is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of York and metropolitan of the Province of York, which covers the northern portion of England as well as the Isle of Man...
. It was hoped that by placing a prelate loyal to the Normans over the traditionally independent Welsh church in Gwynedd would help to pacify the local inhabitants, and Hervé recognized the primacy of the Archbishop of Canterbury over the episcopal see
Episcopal See
An episcopal see is, in the original sense, the official seat of a bishop. This seat, which is also referred to as the bishop's cathedra, is placed in the bishop's principal church, which is therefore called the bishop's cathedral...
of Bangor, a recognition hitherto rejected by the Welsh church.
However, the Welsh parishioners remained hostile to Hervé's appointment, and the bishop was forced to carry a sword with him and rely on a contingent of Norman knights for his protection. Additionally, Hervé routinely excommunicated parishioners who he perceived as challenging his spiritual and temporal authority.
Cadwgan ap Bleddyn
Cadwgan ap Bleddyn was a prince of Powys in eastern Wales.Cadwgan was the second son of Bleddyn ap Cynfyn who was king of both Powys and Gwynedd. When Bleddyn was killed in 1075, Powys was divided between three of his sons, Cadwgan, Iorwerth and Maredudd. Cadwgan is first heard of in 1088 when he...
of the Mathrafal house of Powys, their traditional dynastic rivalry notwithstanding. Gruffydd and Cadwgan led the Welsh resistance to the Norman occupation in north and mid Wales. However, by 1098 Earl Hugh of Chester and Hugh of Montgomery, 2nd Earl of Shrewsbury
Hugh of Montgomery, 2nd Earl of Shrewsbury
Hugh of Montgomery, 2nd Earl of Shrewsbury was an Anglo-Norman aristocrat.-Lineage:He was the second surviving son of Roger of Montgomery, 1st Earl of Shrewsbury and Mabel of Bellême...
advanced their army to the Menai Strait
Menai Strait
The Menai Strait is a narrow stretch of shallow tidal water about long, which separates the island of Anglesey from the mainland of Wales.The strait is bridged in two places - the main A5 road is carried over the strait by Thomas Telford's elegant iron suspension bridge, the first of its kind,...
, with Gruffydd and Cadwgan regrouping on defensible Ynys Môn
Anglesey
Anglesey , also known by its Welsh name Ynys Môn , is an island and, as Isle of Anglesey, a county off the north west coast of Wales...
, where they planned to make retaliatory strikes from their island fortress. Gruffydd hired a Norse
Norsemen
Norsemen is used to refer to the group of people as a whole who spoke what is now called the Old Norse language belonging to the North Germanic branch of Indo-European languages, especially Norwegian, Icelandic, Faroese, Swedish and Danish in their earlier forms.The meaning of Norseman was "people...
fleet from a settlement in Ireland to patrol the Menai and prevent the Norman army from crossing, however the Normans were able to pay off the fleet to instead ferry them to Môn.
Betrayed, Gruffydd and Cadwgan were forced to flee to Ireland in a skiff
Skiff
The term skiff is used for a number of essentially unrelated styles of small boat. The word is related to ship and has a complicated etymology: "skiff" comes from the Middle English skif, which derives from the Old French esquif, which in turn derives from the Old Italian schifo, which is itself of...
.
The Normans landed on Môn, and their furious 'victory celebrations' which followed were exceptionally violent, with rape and carnage committed by the Norman army left unchecked. The earl of Shrewsbury had an elderly priest mutilated, and made the church of Llandyfrydog
Llandyfrydog
Llandyfrydog is a village in Anglesey, in north-west Wales....
a kennel for his dogs.
During the 'celebrations' a Norse fleet led by Magnus Barefoot
Magnus III of Norway
Magnus Barefoot or Magnus III Olafsson was King of Norway from 1093 until 1103 and King of Mann and the Isles from 1099 until 1103.-Background:...
, King of Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, appeared off the coast at Ynys Seiriol (Puffin island) , and in battle that followed, known as the Battle of Anglesey Sound, Magnus shot dead the earl of Shrewsbury with an arrow to the eye. The Norse left as suddenly and as mysteriously as they had arrived, however leaving the Norman army weakened and demoralized.
The Norman army retired to England, leaving a Welshman, Edwin ap Goronwy, lord of Tegeingl, in command of a token force to control Ynys Môn and upper Gwynedd, and ultimately abandoning any colonization plans there. Edwin ap Goronwy transferred his allegiance to Chester following the defeat
Battle of Mynydd Carn
The Battle of Mynydd Carn took place in 1081, as part of a dynastic struggle for control of the Welsh kingdoms of Gwynedd and Deheubarth. The result of the battle had a radical effect on the history of Wales....
of his ally Trahaearn ap Caradog in 1081, a move for which earned him the epithet Fradwr, traitor, among the Welsh.
In late 1098 Gruffydd and Cadwgan landed in Wales and recovered Ynys Môn without much difficulty, with Hervé the Breton fleeing Bangor for safety in England. Over the course of the next three years, Gruffydd was able to recover upper Gwynedd to the Conwy
Conwy
Conwy is a walled market town and community in Conwy County Borough on the north coast of Wales. The town, which faces Deganwy across the River Conwy, formerly lay in Gwynedd and prior to that in Caernarfonshire. Conwy has a population of 14,208...
, defeating Hugh, Earl of Chester. In 1101, after Earl Hugh's death, Gruffydd and Cadwgan came to terms with England's new king, Henry I
Henry I of England
Henry I was the fourth son of William I of England. He succeeded his elder brother William II as King of England in 1100 and defeated his eldest brother, Robert Curthose, to become Duke of Normandy in 1106...
, who was consolidating his own authority and also eager to come to terms. In the negotiations which followed Henry I recognized Gruffydd's ancestral claims of Môn, Llŷn, Dunoding
Dunoding
Dunoding was an early sub-kingdom within the Kingdom of Gwynedd in north-west Wales which existed between the 5th and 10th centuries. According to tradition, it was named after Dunod, a son of the founding father of Gwynedd - Cunedda Wledig - who drove the Irish settlers from the area in c.460...
(Eifionydd
Eifionydd
Eifionydd is an area in north-west Wales covering the south-eastern part of the Llŷn Peninsula from Porthmadog to just east of Pwllheli. The Afon Erch forms its western border. It now lies in Gwynedd....
and Ardudwy
Ardudwy
Ardudwy is an area of Gwynedd in north-west Wales, lying between Tremadog Bay and the Rhinogydd. Administratively, under the old Kingdom of Gwynedd, it was first a division of the sub kingdom of Dunoding and later a cantref in its own right...
) and Arllechwedd
Arllechwedd
The ancient Welsh cantref of Arllechwedd in north-west Wales was part of the kingdom of Gwynedd for much of its history until it was included in the new county of Caernarfonshire, together with Arfon and Llŷn under the terms of the Statute of Rhuddlan in 1284.In the middle ages the Cantref...
, being the lands of upper Gwynedd to the Conwy which were already firmly in Gruffydd's control. Cadwgan regained Ceredigion
Kingdom of Ceredigion
The Kingdom of Ceredigion was one of several Welsh kingdoms that emerged in 5th-century post-Roman Britain. Its area corresponded roughly to that of the modern county of Ceredigion. The kingdom's hilly geography made it difficult for foreign invaders to conquer. Cardigan Bay bordered to the west...
, and his share of the family inheritance in Powys, from the new earl of Shrewsbury, Robert of Bellême
Robert of Bellême, 3rd Earl of Shrewsbury
Robert de Bellême, 3rd Earl of Shrewsbury , also spelled Belleme or Belesme, was an Anglo-Norman nobleman, and one of the most prominent figures in the competition for the succession to England and Normandy between the sons of William the Conqueror...
.
With the settlement reached between Henry I and Gruffydd I, and other Welsh lords, the dividing of Wales between Pura Wallia, the lands under Welsh control; and Marchia Wallie
Welsh Marches
The Welsh Marches is a term which, in modern usage, denotes an imprecisely defined area along and around the border between England and Wales in the United Kingdom. The precise meaning of the term has varied at different periods...
, Welsh lands under Norman control, came into existence. Author and historian John Davies
John Davies (historian)
John Davies is a Welsh historian, and a television and radio broadcaster.Davies was born in the Rhondda, Wales, and studied at both University College, Cardiff, and Trinity College, Cambridge. He is married with four children...
notes that the border shifted on occasion, "in one direction and in the other", but remained more or less stable for almost the next two hundred years.
After generations of incessant warfare, Gruffydd began the reconstruction of Gwynedd, intent on bringing stability to his country. According to Davies, Gruffydd sought to give his people the peace to "plant their crops in the full confidence that they would be able to harvest them". Gruffydd consolidated princely authority in north Wales, and offered sanctuary to displaced Welsh from the Perfeddwlad, particularly from Rhos, at the time harassed by Richard, 2nd Earl of Chester
Richard d'Avranches, 2nd Earl of Chester
Richard d'Avranches, 2nd Earl of Chester was the son of Hugh, 1st Earl of Chester and Ermentrude of Clermont.-Early life:...
.
Alarmed by Gruffydd's growing influence and authority in north Wales, and on pretext that Gruffydd sheltered rebels from Rhos against Chester, Henry I launched a campaign against Gwynedd and Powys in 1116, which included a vanguard
Avant-garde
Avant-garde means "advance guard" or "vanguard". The adjective form is used in English to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics....
commanded by King Alexander I of Scotland
Alexander I of Scotland
Alexander I , also called Alaxandair mac Maíl Coluim and nicknamed "The Fierce", was King of the Scots from 1107 to his death.-Life:...
. While Owain ap Cadwgan
Owain ap Cadwgan
Owain ap Cadwgan was a prince of Powys in eastern Wales. He is best known for his abduction of Nest, wife of Gerald of Windsor.Owain was the eldest son of Cadwgan ap Bleddyn, prince of part of Powys. He is first recorded in 1106, when he killed Meurig and Griffri, the sons of Trahaearn ap Caradog,...
of Ceredigion
Kingdom of Ceredigion
The Kingdom of Ceredigion was one of several Welsh kingdoms that emerged in 5th-century post-Roman Britain. Its area corresponded roughly to that of the modern county of Ceredigion. The kingdom's hilly geography made it difficult for foreign invaders to conquer. Cardigan Bay bordered to the west...
sought refuge in Gwynedd's mountains, Maredudd ap Bleddyn
Maredudd ap Bleddyn
Maredudd ap Bleddyn was a prince of Powys in eastern Wales.Maredudd was the son of Bleddyn ap Cynfyn who was king of both Powys and Gwynedd...
of Powys made peace with the English king as the Norman army advanced. There were no battles or skirmishes fought in the face of the vast host
Army
An army An army An army (from Latin arma "arms, weapons" via Old French armée, "armed" (feminine), in the broadest sense, is the land-based military of a nation or state. It may also include other branches of the military such as the air force via means of aviation corps...
brought into Wales; rather, Owain and Gruffydd entered into truce negotiations. Owain ap Cadwgan regained royal favor relatively easily. However Gruffydd I was forced to render homage
Homage
Homage is a show or demonstration of respect or dedication to someone or something, sometimes by simple declaration but often by some more oblique reference, artistic or poetic....
and fealty
Fealty
An oath of fealty, from the Latin fidelitas , is a pledge of allegiance of one person to another. Typically the oath is made upon a religious object such as a Bible or saint's relic, often contained within an altar, thus binding the oath-taker before God.In medieval Europe, fealty was sworn between...
and pay a heavy fine, though he lost no land or prestige.
The invasion left a lasting impact on Gruffydd, who by 1116 was in his 60s and with failing eyesight. For the remainder of his life, while Gruffydd I continued to rule in Gwynedd, his sons Cadwallon, Owain
Owain Gwynedd
Owain Gwynedd ap Gruffydd , in English also known as Owen the Great, was King of Gwynedd from 1137 until his death in 1170. He is occasionally referred to as "Owain I of Gwynedd"; and as "Owain I of Wales" on account of his claim to be King of Wales. He is considered to be the most successful of...
, and Cadwaladr
Cadwaladr ap Gruffydd
Cadwaladr ap Gruffydd was the third son of Gruffydd ap Cynan, King of Gwynedd, Wales and younger brother of Owain Gwynedd.-Appearance in history:...
, would lead Gwynedd's army after 1120. Gruffydd's policy, which his sons would execute and later rulers of Gwynedd adopted, was to recover Gwynedd's primacy without blatantly antagonizing the English crown.
The Expansion of Gwynedd
In 1120 a minor border war between Llywarch ab Owain, lord of a commote in the Dyffryn Clwyd
Dyffryn Clwyd
Dyffryn Clwyd was a cantref of Medieval Wales and from 1282 a marcher lordship. In 1536, it became part of the new county of Denbighshire. The name means Vale of Clwyd in English and is still the name for that region of north Wales in modern Welsh...
cantref, and Hywel ab Ithel, lord of Rhufoniog
Rhufoniog
Rhufoniog was a small sub-kingdom of the Dark Ages Gwynedd, and later a cantref in medieval Wales. According to tradition, it was ruled by its eponymous founder Rhufon, the third son of the first King of Gwynedd, Cunedda, and his direct descendants from the year 445 until the year 540 when it was...
and Rhos brought Powys and Chester into conflict in the Perfeddwlad. Powys brought a force of 400 warriors to the aid of its ally Rhufoniog, while Chester sent Norman knights from Rhuddlan to the aid of Dyffryn Clwyd. The bloody Battle of Maes Maen Cymro, fought a mile to the north-west of Ruthin, ended with Lywarch ab Owain slain and the defeat of Dyffryn Clwyd. However, It was a pyrrhic victory
Pyrrhic victory
A Pyrrhic victory is a victory with such a devastating cost to the victor that it carries the implication that another such victory will ultimately cause defeat.-Origin:...
as the battle left Hywel ab Ithel mortally wounded. The last of his line, when Hywel ab Ithel died six weeks later he left Rhufoniog and Rhos bereft. Powys, however, was not strong enough to garrison Rhufoniog and Rhos, nor was Chester able to exert influence inland from its coastal holdings of Rhuddlan and Degannwy. With Rhufoniog and Rhos abandoned, Gruffydd I annexed the cantrefs.
Powys
Powys is a local-government county and preserved county in Wales.-Geography:Powys covers the historic counties of Montgomeryshire and Radnorshire, most of Brecknockshire , and a small part of Denbighshire — an area of 5,179 km², making it the largest county in Wales by land area.It is...
, and the family there a cadet
Cadet
A cadet is a trainee to become an officer in the military, often a person who is a junior trainee. The term comes from the term "cadet" for younger sons of a noble family.- Military context :...
of the Mathrafal house of Powys. Gruffydd gave license to his sons Cadwallon and Owain to press the opportunity the dynastic strife in Meirionydd presented. The brothers raided Meirionydd with the Lord of Powys as important there as he was in the Perfeddwlad. However it would not be until 1136 that the cantref was firmly within Gwynedd's control. Perhaps because of their support of Earl Hugh of Chester, Gwynedd's rival, in 1124 Cadwallon slew the three rulers of Dyffryn Clwyd, his maternal uncles, bringing the cantref firmly under Gwynedd's vassalage that year. And in 1125 Cadwallon slew the grandsons of Edwin ap Goronwy of Tegeingl, leaving Tegeingl berift of lordship. However, in 1132 while on campaign in the commote of Nanheudwy
Nanheudwy
Nanheudwy was a medieval commote of Wales considered part of the ancient Kingdom of Powys. It was traditionally defined as "the region between the rivers Dee and Ceiriog". From 1160 it was a part of the principality of Powys Fadog until the dissolution of that realm in 1277 when it became a...
, near Llangollen
Llangollen
Llangollen is a small town and community in Denbighshire, north-east Wales, situated on the River Dee and on the edge of the Berwyn mountains. It has a population of 3,412.-History:...
, 'victorious' Cadwallon was defeated in battle and slain by an army from Powys. The defeat checked Gwynedd's expansion for a time, "much to the relief of the men of Powys", wrote historian Sir John Edward Lloyd
John Edward Lloyd
Sir John Edward Lloyd , was a Welsh historian, the author of the first serious history of the country's formative years, A History of Wales from the Earliest Times to the Edwardian Conquest, 2 vols...
(J.E Lloyd).
In 1136 a campaign against the Normans was launched from Gwynedd in revenge for the execution of Gwenllian ferch Gruffydd ap Cynan, the wife of the Prince of Deheubarth and the daughter of Gruffydd. When word reached Gwynedd of Gwenllain's death and the revolt in Gwent, Gruffydd I's sons Owain and Cadwaladr invaded Norman controlled Ceredigon, taking Llanfihangle, Aberystwyth
Aberystwyth
Aberystwyth is a historic market town, administrative centre and holiday resort within Ceredigion, Wales. Often colloquially known as Aber, it is located at the confluence of the rivers Ystwyth and Rheidol....
, and Llanbadarn. Liberating Llanbadarn, one local chronicler hailed Owain and Cadwaladr both as "bold lions, virtuous, fearless and wise, who guard the churches and their indwellers, defenders of the poor [who] overcome their enemies, affording a safest retreat to all those who seek their protection". The brothers restored the Welsh monks of Llanbadarn, who had been displaced by monks from Gloucester brought there by the Normans who had controlled Ceredigon. By late September 1136 a vast Welsh host gathered in Ceredigion
Kingdom of Ceredigion
The Kingdom of Ceredigion was one of several Welsh kingdoms that emerged in 5th-century post-Roman Britain. Its area corresponded roughly to that of the modern county of Ceredigion. The kingdom's hilly geography made it difficult for foreign invaders to conquer. Cardigan Bay bordered to the west...
, which included the combined forces of Gwynedd, Deheubarth, and Powys; met the Norman army at the Battle of Crug Mawr
Battle of Crug Mawr
The Battle of Crug Mawr took place in September or October 1136, as part of a struggle for control of Ceredigion which had been captured by the Normans....
at Cardigan Castle
Cardigan Castle
Cardigan Castle is a castle located in Cardigan, Ceredigion, Wales.-History:The first motte-and-bailey castle was built a mile away from the present site, probably about the time of the founding of the town by Roger de Montgomery, a Norman baron....
. The battle turned into a rout, and then into a resounding defeat of the Normans.
Kingdom of Ceredigion
The Kingdom of Ceredigion was one of several Welsh kingdoms that emerged in 5th-century post-Roman Britain. Its area corresponded roughly to that of the modern county of Ceredigion. The kingdom's hilly geography made it difficult for foreign invaders to conquer. Cardigan Bay bordered to the west...
, and took the castles of Ystrad Meurig
Ystrad Meurig
Ystrad Meurig is a village in Ceredigion, Wales. It lies on the B4340 road northwest of the town of Tregaron.- History & Amenities :...
, Lampeter
Lampeter
Lampeter is a town in Ceredigion, South West Wales, lying at the confluence of the River Teifi and the Afon Dulas.-Demographics:At the 2001 National Census, the population was 2894. Lampeter is therefore the smallest university town in both Wales and the United Kingdom...
(Stephen's Castle), and Castell Hywell (Humphries Castle) Gruffydd I ap Cynan left a more stable realm then had hitherto existed in Gwynedd for more than 100 years. No foreign army was able to cross the Conwy into upper Gwynedd. The stability of Gruffydd's long reign allowed for Gwynedd's Welsh to plan for the future without fear that home and harvest would "go to the flames" from invaders.
Settlements became more permanent, with buildings of stone replacing timber structures. Stone churches in particular were built across Gwynedd, with so many limewashed that "Gwynedd was bespangled with them as is the firmament
Firmament
The firmament is the vault or expanse of the sky. According to Genesis, God created the firmament to separate the oceans from other waters above.-Etymology:...
with stars". Gruffydd had built stone churches at his princely manors, and Lloyd suggests Gruffydd's example led to the rebuilding of churches with stone in Penmon, Aberdaron
Aberdaron
Aberdaron is a community and former fishing village at the western tip of the Llŷn Peninsula in the Welsh county of Gwynedd. It lies west of Pwllheli and south west of Caernarfon, and has a population of 1,019. It is sometimes referred to as the "Land's End of Wales"...
, and Towyn
Towyn
Towyn , is a seaside resort in the County Borough of Conwy, Wales.It is located between Rhyl, in Denbighshire, and Abergele in Conwy. According to the 2001 Census, together with neighbouring Kinmel Bay , it had a population 7,864, of which 10.7% could speak Welsh...
in the Norman fashion
Norman architecture
About|Romanesque architecture, primarily English|other buildings in Normandy|Architecture of Normandy.File:Durham Cathedral. Nave by James Valentine c.1890.jpg|thumb|200px|The nave of Durham Cathedral demonstrates the characteristic round arched style, though use of shallow pointed arches above the...
.
Gruffydd promoted the primacy of the Episcopal See
Episcopal See
An episcopal see is, in the original sense, the official seat of a bishop. This seat, which is also referred to as the bishop's cathedra, is placed in the bishop's principal church, which is therefore called the bishop's cathedral...
of Bangor
Bangor, Gwynedd
Bangor is a city in Gwynedd, north west Wales, and one of the smallest cities in Britain. It is a university city with a population of 13,725 at the 2001 census, not including around 10,000 students at Bangor University. Including nearby Menai Bridge on Anglesey, which does not however form part of...
in Gwynedd, and funded the building of Bangor Cathedral
Bangor Cathedral
Bangor Cathedral is an ancient place of Christian worship situated in Bangor, Gwynedd, north-west Wales. It is dedicated to its founder, Saint Deiniol....
during the episcopate of David the Scot
David the Scot
David the Scot was a Welsh or Irish cleric who was Bishop of Bangor from 1120 to 1138.There is some doubt as to David's nationality, as he is variously described as Irish and Welsh. He was master of the cathedral school of Würzburg before 1110, and in that year accompanied the Emperor Henry V to...
, Bishop of Bangor
Bishop of Bangor
The Bishop of Bangor is the Ordinary of the Church in Wales Diocese of Bangor.The diocese covers the counties of Anglesey, most of Caernarfonshire and Merionethshire and a small part of Montgomeryshire...
, between 1120-1139. Gruffydd's remains were interned
Internment
Internment is the imprisonment or confinement of people, commonly in large groups, without trial. The Oxford English Dictionary gives the meaning as: "The action of 'interning'; confinement within the limits of a country or place." Most modern usage is about individuals, and there is a distinction...
in a tomb in the presbytery
Presbytery (architecture)
The presbytery is the name for an area in a church building which is reserved for the clergy.In the oldest church it is separated by short walls, by small columns and pilasters in the Renaissance ones; it can also be raised, being reachable by a few steps, usually with railings....
of Bangor Cathedral.
Owain Gwynedd
Owain I ap Gruffydd succeeded his father to the greater portion of Gwynedd in accordance to Welsh lawWelsh law
Welsh law was the system of law practised in Wales before the 16th century. According to tradition it was first codified by Hywel Dda during the period between 942 and 950 when he was king of most of Wales; as such it is usually called Cyfraith Hywel, the Law of Hywel, in Welsh...
, the Cyfraith Hywel, the Laws of Hywel; and became known as Owain Gwynedd to differiate him from another Owain ap Gruffydd, the Mathrafal ruler of Powys, known as Owain Cyfeiliog
Owain Cyfeiliog
Owain ap Gruffydd was a prince of the southern part of Powys and a poet. He is usually known as Owain Cyfeiliog to distinguish him from other rulers named Owain, particularly his contemporary, Owain ap Gruffydd of Gwynedd, who is known as Owain Gwynedd.Owain was the son of Gruffydd ap Maredudd and...
. Cadwaladr, Gruffydd's youngest son, inherited the commote of Aberffraw on Ynys Môn, and the recently conquered Meirionydd and northern Ceredigion, that is Ceredigion between the rivers Aeron and the Dyfi.
By 1141 Cadwaladr and Madog ap Maredudd of Powys led a Welsh vanguard as an ally of the Earl of Chester in the Battle of Lincoln
Battle of Lincoln (1141)
The Battle of Lincoln or First Battle of Lincoln occurred on 2 February 1141. In it Stephen of England was captured, imprisoned and effectively deposed while Empress Matilda ruled for a short time.-Account:...
, and joined in the route which made Stephen of England prisoner of Empress Matilda for a year. Owain, however, did not participate in the battle, keeping the majority of Gwynedd's army at home. Owain, of restrained and prudent temperament, may have judged that the aiding in Stephen's capture would lead to the restoration of Matilda and a strong royal government in England; a government which would support Marcher lords, support hitherto bereft since Stephen's usurpation.
Owain and Cadwaladr came to blows in 1143 when Cadwaladr was implicated in the murder of Prince Anarawd ap Gruffydd of Deheubarth, Owain's ally and future son-in-law, on the eve of Anarawd's wedding to Owain's daughter. Owain followed a diplomatic policy of binding other Welsh rulers to Gwynedd through dynastic marriages, and Cadwaladr's border dispute and murder of Anarawd threatened Owain's efforts and credibility. As ruler of Gwynedd, Owain stripped Cadwaladr of his lands, with Owain's son Hywel
Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd
Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd Wales Prince of Gwynedd in 1170, a Welsh poet and military leader. Hywel was the son of Owain Gwynedd, prince of Gwynedd, and an Irishwoman named Pyfog. In recognition of this, he was also known as Hywel ap Gwyddeles...
dispatched to Ceredigion, where he burned Cadwaladr's castle at Aberystwyth. Cadwaladr fled to Ireland and hired a Norse fleet from Dublin, bringing the fleet to Abermenai to compel Owain to reinstate him. Taking advantage of the brotherly strife, and perhaps with the tacit understanding of Cadwaladr, the marcher lords mounted incursions into Wales. Realizing the wider ramifications of the war before him, Owain and Cadwaladr came to terms and reconciled, with Cadwaladr restored to his lands. Peace between the brothers held until 1147, when an unrecorded event occurred which led Owain's sons Hywel and Cynan
Cynan ab Owain Gwynedd
Cynan ab Owain Gwynedd was an illegitimate son of Owain Gwynedd, a Prince of the ancient Kingdom of Gwynedd, Wales. He held the title "Lord of Meirionnydd"...
to drive Cadwaladr out of Meirionydd and Ceredigon, with Cadwaladr retreating to Môn. Again an accord was reached, with Cadwaladr retaining Aberffraw until a more serious breach occurred in 1153, when he was forced into exile in England, where his wife was the sister of Gilbert de Clare, 2nd Earl of Hertford
Gilbert de Clare, 2nd Earl of Hertford
Gilbert FitzRichard de Clare, 1st Earl of Hertford was the eldest son of the Richard Fitz Gilbert de Clare and Adeliza. He was created Earl of Hertford, possibly at the same time his uncle was created Earl of Pembroke. He died without issue and was succeeded by his brother Roger de Clare.-...
and the niece of Ranulph de Gernon, 2nd Earl of Chester
Ranulph de Gernon, 2nd Earl of Chester
Ranulf II was an Anglo-Norman potentate who inherited the honour of the palatine county of Chester upon the death of his father Ranulf le Meschin, 3rd Earl of Chester...
.
In 1146 news reached Owain that his favoured eldest son and heir, Rhun
Rhun ab Owain Gwynedd
Rhun ab Owain Gwynedd was the eldest child of Owain Gwynedd . His mother was an Irish woman Pyfog who was one of his father's many mistresses. Despite being illegitimate he was his father's favourite child and chosen successor...
, died. Owain was overcome with grief, falling into a deep melancholy from which none could console him, until news reached him that Mold castle
Mold, Flintshire
Mold is a town in Flintshire, North Wales, on the River Alyn. It is the administrative seat of Flintshire County Council, and was also the county town of Clwyd from 1974 to 1996...
in Tengeingl (Flintshire) had fallen to Gwynedd, "[reminding Owain] that he had still a country for which to live," wrote historian Sir John Edward Lloyd.
Between 1148 and 1151, Owain I of Gwynedd fought against Madog ap Maredudd of Powys, Owain's son-in-law, and against the Earl of Chester for control of Iâl, with Owain having secured Rhuddlan Castle and all of Tegeingl from Chester. "By 1154 Owain had brought his men within sight of the red towers of the great city on the Dee", wrote Lloyd."
Having spent three years consolidating his authority in the vast Angevin Empire
Angevin Empire
The term Angevin Empire is a modern term describing the collection of states once ruled by the Angevin Plantagenet dynasty.The Plantagenets ruled over an area stretching from the Pyrenees to Ireland during the 12th and early 13th centuries, located north of Moorish Iberia. This "empire" extended...
, Henry II of England
Henry II of England
Henry II ruled as King of England , Count of Anjou, Count of Maine, Duke of Normandy, Duke of Aquitaine, Duke of Gascony, Count of Nantes, Lord of Ireland and, at various times, controlled parts of Wales, Scotland and western France. Henry, the great-grandson of William the Conqueror, was the...
resolved on a strategy against Owain I of Gwynedd by 1157. By now, Owain's enemies had joined Henry II's camp, enemies such as his wayward brother Cadwaladr and in particular the support of Madog of Powys. Henry II raised his feudal host and marched into Wales from Chester. Owain positioned himself and his army at Dinas Basing (Basingwerk
Basingwerk Abbey
Basingwerk Abbey is the ruin of an abbey near Holywell, Flintshire, Wales, in the care of Cadw .The abbey was founded in 1132 by Ranulph de Gernon, 2nd Earl of Chester, who brought Benedictine monks from Savigny Abbey in southern Normandy. In 1147, the abbey became part of the Cistercian Order and...
), barring the road to Rhuddlan, setting up a trap in which Henry II would send his army along the direct road along the coast, while he crossed through the woods to out-flank Owain. The Prince of Gwynedd anticipated this, and dispatched his sons Dafydd
Dafydd ab Owain Gwynedd
Dafydd ab Owain Gwynedd was Prince of Gwynedd from 1170 to 1195. For a time he ruled jointly with his brothers Maelgwn ab Owain Gwynedd and Rhodri ab Owain Gwynedd....
and Cynan into the woods with an army, catching Henry II unaware.
In the melee which followed Henry II was almost slain had not Roger, Earl of Hertford
Roger de Clare, 3rd Earl of Hertford
Roger de Clare was a son of Richard Fitz Gilbert de Clare and Alice de Gernon. He succeeded to the earldom when his brother Gilbert died without issue. In 1164 he assisted with the Constitutions of Clarendon. From his munificence to the Church and his numerous acts of piety, Roger was called the...
rescued the king. Henry II retreated and made his way back to his main army, by now slowly advancing towards Rhuddlan. Not wishing to engage the Norman army directly, Owain repositioned himself first at St. Asaph, then further west, clearing the road for Henry II to enter into Rhuddlan "ingloriously". Once in Rhuddlan Henry II received word that his naval expedition had failed, as instead of meeting Henry II at Degannwy or Rhuddlan, it had gone to plunder Môn.
In a later letter to the Byzantine Emperor, Henry probably recalled these experiences when he wrote of the Welsh:
A people called Welsh, so bold and ferocious that, when unarmed, they do not fear to encounter an armed force, being ready to shed their blood in defence of their country, and to sacrifice their lives for renown.http://www.britannia.com/wales/lit/lit6.html
The naval expedition was led by Henry II's maternal uncle (Empress Matilda's half-brother), Henry FitzRoy
Henry FitzRoy (d. 1158)
Henry FitzRoy was an illegitimate son of Henry I of England by Nest, daughter of Rhys ap Tewdwr, last king of Deheubarth , and his wife, Gwladys ferch Rhiwallon ap Cynfyn. He held lands from his royal father in Narberth and Pebidiog...
; and when they landed on Môn, Henry FitzRoy had the churches of Llanbedr Goch and Llanfair Mathafarn Eithaf torched. During the night the men of Môn gathered together, and the next morning fought and defeated the Norman army, with Henry FitzRoy falling under a shower of lances. The defeat of his navy and his own military difficulties had convinced Henry II that he had "gone as far as was practical that year" in his effort to subject Owain, and the King offered terms to the prince.
Owain I of Gwynedd, "ever prudent and sagacious", recognized that he needed time to further consolidate power, and agreed to the terms. Owain was to render homage and fealty to the King, and resign Tegeingle and Rhuddlan to Chester, and restore Cadwaladr to his possessions in Gwynedd.
The death of Madog ap Meredudd of Powys in 1160 opened an opportunity for Owain I of Gwynedd to further press Gwynedd's influence at the expense of Powys. However, Owain continued to further Gwynedd's expansion without rousing the English crown, maintaining his 'prudent policy' of Quieta non movere (don't move settled things), as Lloyd wrote. It was a policy of outward conciliation, while masking his own consolidation of authority. To further demonstrate his good-will, in 1160 Owain handed over to the English crown the fugative Einion Clud. By 1162 Owain was in possession of the Powys cantref of Cyfeiliog, and its castle of Tafolwern; and ravaged another Powys cantref of Arwystli
Arwystli
Arwystli was a cantref in medieval Wales, located in the headland of the River Severn in what is now the county of Powys. It was chiefly associated with the Kingdom of Powys, but was heavily disputed between Powys, Gwynedd, and the Norman Marcher Lords for hundreds of years, and was the scene of...
, slaying its lord, Hywel ab Ieuaf. Owain's strategy was in sharp contrast to Rhys ap Gruffydd, prince of Deheubarth, who in 1162 rose in open revolt against the Normans in south Wales, drawing Henry II back to England from the continent.
In 1163 Henry II quarrelled with Thomas Becket, the Archbishop of Canterbury
Thomas Becket
Thomas Becket was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1162 until his murder in 1170. He is venerated as a saint and martyr by both the Roman Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion...
, causing growing divisions between the king's supporters and the archbishop's supporters. With discontent mounting in England, Owain I of Gwynedd joined with Rhys ap Gruffydd of Deheubarth in a second grand Welsh revolt against Henry II. England's king, who only the prior year had pardoned Rhys ap Gruffydd for his 1162 revolt, assembled a vast host against the allied Welsh, with troops drawn from all over the Angevin empire assembling in Shrewsbury, and with the Norse of Dublin paid to harass the Welsh coast. While his army gathered on the Welsh frontier, Henry II left for the continent to negotiate a truce with France and Flanders to not disturb his peace while campaigning in Wales.
However, when Henry II returned to England he found that the war had already begun, with Owain's son Dafydd raiding Angevin positions in Tegeingle, exposing the castles of Rhuddlan and Basingwerk to "serious dangers", wrote Lloyd. Henry II rushed to north Wales for a few days to shore up defences there, before returning to his main army now gathering in Oswestery.
The vast host gathered before the allied Welsh principalities represented the largest army yet assembled for their conquest, a circumstance which further drew the Welsh allies into a closer confederacy, wrote Lloyd. With Owain I of Gwynedd the over all battle commander, and with his brother Cadwaladr as his second, Owain assembled the Welsh host at Corwen in the vale of Edeyrion where he could best resist Henry II's advance.
The Angevin army advanced from Oswestry into Wales crossing the mountains towards Mur Castell, and found itself in the thick forest of the Ceiriog Valley
Ceiriog Valley
The Ceiriog Valley or Dyffryn Ceiriog is the valley of the River Ceiriog in north-east Wales. It is also the name of a ward of the County Borough of Wrexham Until 1974 the valley was part of the traditional county of Denbighshire; then it became part of the short-lived county of Clwyd, which was...
where they were forced into a narrow thin line. Owain I had positioned a band of skirmishers in the thick woods overlooking the pass, which harassed the exposed army from a secured position. Henry II ordered the clearing of the woods on either side to widen the passage through the valley, and to lessen the exposure of his army. The road his army travelled later became known as the Ffordd y Saeson, the English Road, and leads through heath and bog towards the Dee. In a dry summer the moors may have been passable, however "on this occasion the skies put on their most wintry aspect; and the rain fell in torrents [...] flooding the mountain meadows" until the great Angevin encampment became a "morass
Marsh
In geography, a marsh, or morass, is a type of wetland that is subject to frequent or continuous flood. Typically the water is shallow and features grasses, rushes, reeds, typhas, sedges, other herbaceous plants, and moss....
," wrote Lloyd. In the face of "hurricane" force wind and rain, diminishing provisions and an exposed supply line stretching through hostile country subject to enemy raids, and with a demoralized army, Henry II was forced into a complete retreat without even a semblance of a victory.
In frustration, Henry II had twenty-two Welsh hostages mutilated; the sons of Owain' supporters and allies, including two of Owain's own sons. In addition to his failed campaign in Wales, Henry's mercenary Norse navy, which he had hired to harass the Welsh coast, turned out to be too few for use, and were disbanded without engagement.
Henry II's Welsh campaign was a complete failure, with the king abandoning all plans for the conquest of Wales, returning to his court in Anjou and not returning to England for another four years. Lloyd wrote;
It later came to light that Hywel Trwyndwn (the bodyguard and brother to Iorweth) was not allowed to claim his inheritance due to his undesirable nose. this was then passed down the lineage through Thomas Davies, of Peniarth Fawr, to his yonges and most ferocious daughter Lyn "the Twrch deuar" Brasssington.
It is true that [Henry II] did not cross swords with [Owain I], but the elements had done their work for [the Welsh]; the stars in their courses had fought against the pride of England and humbled it to the very dust. To conquer a land which was defended, not merely by the arms of its valiant and audacious sons, but also by tangled woods and impassable bogs, by piercing winds and pitiless storms of rain, seemed a hopeless task, and Henry resolved to no longer attempt it.
Owain expanded his international diplomatic offensive against Henry II by sending an embassy to Louis VII of France
Louis VII of France
Louis VII was King of France, the son and successor of Louis VI . He ruled from 1137 until his death. He was a member of the House of Capet. His reign was dominated by feudal struggles , and saw the beginning of the long rivalry between France and England...
in 1168, led by Arthur of Bardsey, Bishop of Bangor (1166–1177), who was charged with negotiating a joint alliance against Henry II. With Henry II distracted by his widening quarrel with Thomas Becket, Owain's army recovered Tegeingle for Gwynedd by 1169.
Like his father before him, Owain I promoted stability in upper Gwynedd as no foreign army was able to campaign past the Conwy, marking nearly 70 years of peace in upper Gwynedd and on Ynys Môn.
In his later reign Owain I was the styled princeps Wallensium, Latin for the Prince of the Welsh, a title of substance given his leadership of the Welsh and victory against the English king, wrote historian Dr. John Davies. Additionally, Owain I commissioned the Life of Gruffydd ap Cynan, the biography of his father in which Owain firmly asserted his primacy over other Welsh rulers by "absolute right through decent" from Rhodri the Great, according to Davies. Owain I was the eldest male descendent of Rhodri the Great through paternal decent
Patrilineality
Patrilineality is a system in which one belongs to one's father's lineage. It generally involves the inheritance of property, names or titles through the male line as well....
.
The adoption of the title prince
Prince
Prince is a general term for a ruler, monarch or member of a monarch's or former monarch's family, and is a hereditary title in the nobility of some European states. The feminine equivalent is a princess...
(Latin princeps, Welsh
Welsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
twysog), rather than king (Latin rex, Welsh brenin), did not mean a diminution
Diminution
In Western music and music theory, diminution has four distinct meanings. Diminution may be a form of embellishment in which a long note is divided into a series of shorter, usually melodic, values...
in status
Social status
In sociology or anthropology, social status is the honor or prestige attached to one's position in society . It may also refer to a rank or position that one holds in a group, for example son or daughter, playmate, pupil, etc....
, according to Davies. The use of the title prince was a recognition of the ruler of Gwynedd in relation to the wider international feudal world. The princes of Gwynedd exercised greater status and prestige
Prestige (sociology)
Prestige is a word commonly used to describe reputation or esteem, though it has three somewhat related meanings that, to some degree, may be contradictory. Which meaning applies depends on the historical context and the person using the word....
then the earls, counts, and dukes of the Angevin empire, suggesting a similar status as that of the King of Scots, himself nominal
Nominal (disambiguation)
A nominal is one of the parts of speech.Nominal may also refer to:* Nominal aphasia, a problem remembering words and names* Nominal category, a group of objects or ideas that can be collectively grouped on the basis of shared, arbitrary characteristic...
ly a vassel of the King of England, argued Davies. As Welsh society became further influenced by feudal Europe, the princes of Gwynedd would in turn use feudalism to strengthen their own authority over lesser Welsh lords, a "two-edged sword" for the King of England, wrote Davies. Though Gwynedd's princes recognized the de jure
De jure
De jure is an expression that means "concerning law", as contrasted with de facto, which means "concerning fact".De jure = 'Legally', De facto = 'In fact'....
suzerainty
Suzerainty
Suzerainty occurs where a region or people is a tributary to a more powerful entity which controls its foreign affairs while allowing the tributary vassal state some limited domestic autonomy. The dominant entity in the suzerainty relationship, or the more powerful entity itself, is called a...
of the King of England, they maintained a well established legal jurisprudence
Welsh law
Welsh law was the system of law practised in Wales before the 16th century. According to tradition it was first codified by Hywel Dda during the period between 942 and 950 when he was king of most of Wales; as such it is usually called Cyfraith Hywel, the Law of Hywel, in Welsh...
, separate from the English legal system, and were independent de facto
De facto
De facto is a Latin expression that means "concerning fact." In law, it often means "in practice but not necessarily ordained by law" or "in practice or actuality, but not officially established." It is commonly used in contrast to de jure when referring to matters of law, governance, or...
, wrote Davies.
Civil war and usurpation 1170–1195
When Owain Gwynedd died in November 1170 the realm was plunged into conflict between two rival factions within the ruling family. Throughout his life it is clear he favoured his eldest sons; those born of Pyfog the Irishwoman. Annals state that these two sons; Rhun ab Owain GwyneddRhun ab Owain Gwynedd
Rhun ab Owain Gwynedd was the eldest child of Owain Gwynedd . His mother was an Irish woman Pyfog who was one of his father's many mistresses. Despite being illegitimate he was his father's favourite child and chosen successor...
and Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd
Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd
Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd Wales Prince of Gwynedd in 1170, a Welsh poet and military leader. Hywel was the son of Owain Gwynedd, prince of Gwynedd, and an Irishwoman named Pyfog. In recognition of this, he was also known as Hywel ap Gwyddeles...
; were illegitimate, but it is worth pausing to consider that victory is often written by the victors. Owain and his father, Gruffydd ap Cynan
Gruffydd ap Cynan
Gruffydd ap Cynan was a King of Gwynedd. In the course of a long and eventful life, he became a key figure in Welsh resistance to Norman rule, and was remembered as King of all Wales...
, had both drawn considerable strength from family connections they had maintained across the Irish Sea in Dublin, and it was these connections which had restored Gruffydd on several occasions to his throne and had provided his father, Cynan, with a place of refuge during the usurpations of the 11th Century. It is therefore possible that Owain hoped to maintain this Irish connection by ensuring the succession of one of his sons born of this Irish woman, Pyfog. Furthermore, it seems illogical - given the fact Owain was so set on their succession and the respect he no doubt commanded in Ireland - that the mother of Rhun and Hywel was a mere commoner and that both those children were born out of wedlock. What the annals record, however, is that in 1146 the eldest son and designated heir, Rhun - a man who was acclaimed as a great warrior - "died" mysteriously, and that Hywel his natural brother was proclaimed the new Edling
Edling
Edling was a title given to the agreed successor or heir apparent of a reigning Welsh monarch. The title comes from the Anglo-Saxon language word Æðling , literally meaning noble child, which was used in the Anglo Saxon kingdoms of England before the Norman Conquest to denote one of "royal...
or heir.
Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd
Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd
Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd Wales Prince of Gwynedd in 1170, a Welsh poet and military leader. Hywel was the son of Owain Gwynedd, prince of Gwynedd, and an Irishwoman named Pyfog. In recognition of this, he was also known as Hywel ap Gwyddeles...
duly succeeded his father in 1170 and the realm was plunged immediately into a civil war that appears to have been a conflict between two rival factions; one which was pro-Irish and seeking to ensure the succession of Hywel and protect the legacy of Owain Gwynedd and his father, and a second which seems to be an anti-Irish coalition and headed by Iorwerth Drwyndwn
Iorwerth Drwyndwn
Iorwerth ab Owain Gwynedd , meaning "the broken-nosed", was the eldest legitimate son of Owain Gwynedd and his first wife Gwladys ferch Llywarch. He married Marared ferch Madog. His son Llywelyn the Great eventually united the realm and became known as Llywelyn Fawr and is one of Wales's most...
and Owain's widow, Cristin ferch Goronwy ab Owain.
They made their move, and within a few months of his succession Hywel was overthrown and killed at the Battle of Pentraeth in 1171. It seems that Iorwerth was injured badly enough to be ruled out of the succession (he was to die in 1174), leaving Dafydd as the leading figure in this cabal, which included his brother Rhodri as well as his half brother Maelgwn ab Owain Gwynedd
Maelgwn ab Owain Gwynedd
Maelgwn ab Owain Gwynedd was a prince of part of Gwynedd.Maelgwn was the son of Owain Gwynedd and Gwladus ferch Llywarch ap Trahaearn, and therefore full brother to Iorwerth Drwyndwn, the father of Llywelyn the Great...
and the nephews of another half brother Cynan ab Owain, namely Gruffudd ap Cynan and Maredudd ap Cynan.
Although the exact division of the spoils is unclear, Maelgwn appears to have gained Anglesey whilst the sons of Cynan held the cantrefs of Meirionydd, Eifionydd and Ardudwy between them. However Dafydd appears at to have been recognised as pre-eminent amongst them and was regarded in some way as the overall leader. Naturally, once he'd enjoyed some of the benefits of power, Dafydd felt disinclined to share, as well as no doubt nervous that he might also soon share the fate of his predecessor Hywel; in 1173 he acted against his brother Maelgwn and drove him into exile in Ireland thereby gaining possession of all Anglesey for himself.
The following year he expelled all his remaining family rivals and made himself master of all Gwynedd and in 1175 "seized through treachery" his brother Rhodri and imprisoned him for good measure. Thus Dafydd re-united all Gwynedd under his one rule and in order to strengthen his position he sought an agreement with Henry II
Henry II of England
Henry II ruled as King of England , Count of Anjou, Count of Maine, Duke of Normandy, Duke of Aquitaine, Duke of Gascony, Count of Nantes, Lord of Ireland and, at various times, controlled parts of Wales, Scotland and western France. Henry, the great-grandson of William the Conqueror, was the...
. Due to his problems with the Church and Normandy
Normandy
Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...
, Henry was anxious to secure peace and order in Wales. It was agreed that Dafydd would marry Emma of Anjou, who was Henry's illegitimate half sister, and receive the manor of Ellesmere
Ellesmere
-Places:* Ellesmere, Shropshire, a market town in Shropshire, England** Ellesmere Castle** Ellesmere Rural, a civil parish to the west* Ellesmere Park, area of Eccles, Greater Manchester, England* Ellesmere Port, an industrial town in Cheshire, England...
as dowry
Dowry
A dowry is the money, goods, or estate that a woman brings forth to the marriage. It contrasts with bride price, which is paid to the bride's parents, and dower, which is property settled on the bride herself by the groom at the time of marriage. The same culture may simultaneously practice both...
, but unlike his southern counterpart, Rhys ap Gruffudd, he received no 'official' recognition of his position in the north.
All this was done, as the Brut y Tywysogion
Brut y Tywysogion
Brut y Tywysogion is one of the most important primary sources for Welsh history. It is an annalistic chronicle that serves as a continuation of Geoffrey of Monmouth’s Historia Regum Britanniae. Brut y Tywysogion has survived as several Welsh translations of an original Latin version, which has...
explained regarding Dafydd "because he thought he could hold his territory in peace thereby", but it proved insufficient. Before the end of 1175 Rhodri had escaped from captivity and gathered sufficient support to be able to drive Dafydd from Anglesey and across the River Conwy
River Conwy
The River Conwy is a river in north Wales. From its source to its discharge in Conwy Bay it is a little over long. "Conwy" is sometimes Anglicized as "Conway."...
. Faced with this turn of events, Dafydd and Rhodri agreed to divide Gwynedd between each other. Thereafter Dafydd's realm was restricted to Gwynedd Is Conwy
Gwynedd Is Conwy
Gwynedd Is Conwy was the portion of the former Kingdom of Gwynedd lying between the River Conwy and River Dee. This area was also known as Y Berfeddwlad as it lay between and was contested by the rival realms of Gwynedd and Powys...
, that is the Perfeddwlad
Perfeddwlad
Perfeddwlad, , , was a name adopted during the twelfth century for the territories in north-east Wales lying between the rivers Conwy and Dee, and comprised the cantrefi of Rhos, Rhufoniog, Dyffryn Clwyd and Tegeingl...
, the land between the rivers Conwy and the Dee, whilst Rhodri retained Anglesey and Gwynedd Uwch Conwy
Gwynedd Uwch Conwy
Gwynedd Uwch Conwy was the portion of the former Kingdom of Gwynedd lying to the west of the River Conwy in north Wales, including the island of Anglesey...
. Secure in his now truncated realm, Dafydd now appears to have pushed ambition to one side and resolved to enjoy the quiet life. There is no record of him engaging in any further strife for the twenty years or so after the settlement of 1175. Dafydd may not have inherited the leadership abilities of his father but he had sufficient qualities of diplomacy and tact remaining to ensure he could live at peace with his neighbours. This appears to be the one quality recognised by his contemporaries as he was described by Giraldus Cambrensis
Giraldus Cambrensis
Gerald of Wales , also known as Gerallt Gymro in Welsh or Giraldus Cambrensis in Latin, archdeacon of Brecon, was a medieval clergyman and chronicler of his times...
as a man who showed "good faith and credit by observing a strict neutrality between the Welsh and English"
His brother Rhodri had a more eventful time and fell out with the descendants of Cynan. They acted against Rhodri in 1190 and drove him out of Gwynedd altogether. Rhodri fled to the safety of the Isle of Man
Isle of Man
The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...
only to be briefly reinstated in 1193 with the assistance of the Ragnvald, King of the Isles, to be driven out once more at the beginning of 1194.
Dafydd's nemesis proved to be his nephew Llywelyn ap Iorwerth, born most likely in the year 1173 and therefore only a child when all these events were played out. Llywelyn's father Iorwerth Drwyndwn
Iorwerth Drwyndwn
Iorwerth ab Owain Gwynedd , meaning "the broken-nosed", was the eldest legitimate son of Owain Gwynedd and his first wife Gwladys ferch Llywarch. He married Marared ferch Madog. His son Llywelyn the Great eventually united the realm and became known as Llywelyn Fawr and is one of Wales's most...
had been involved in the early stages of the dynastic struggles and most likely died sometime around 1174. As the century drew to a close Llywelyn became a young man and conceived the ambition to stake his claim to power in Gwynedd. He conspired with his cousins Gruffudd and Maredudd and his uncle Rhodri and in the year 1194 they all united against Dafydd, defeated him at the Battle of Aberconwy
Battle of Aberconwy
The Battle of Aberconwy was fought in 1194 between the forces of Llywelyn ap Iorwerth and Dafydd ab Owain Gwynedd for control of Gwynedd. Llywelyn's victory allowed him to claim the title of prince of Gwynedd and, in turn, prince of Wales; ejected from his lands, Dafydd went to live in England and...
and "drove him to flight and took from him all his territory except three castles".
Llywelyn the Great
See also Llywelyn ap IorwerthLlywelyn, later known as Llywelyn the Great, was sole ruler of Gwynedd by 1200, and made a treaty with King John of England the same year. Llywelyn's relations with John remained good for the next ten years. He married John's illegitimate daughter Joan, also known as Joanna, in 1205, and when John arrested Gwenwynwyn ab Owain
Gwenwynwyn ab Owain
Gwenwynwyn ab Owain Cyfeiliog was the last major ruler of mid Wales before the completion of the Norman English invasion.- Lineage :...
of Powys in 1208 Llywelyn took the opportunity to annex southern Powys. In 1210 relations deteriorated and John invaded Gwynedd in 1211. Llywelyn was forced to seek terms and to give up all his lands east of the River Conwy, but was able to recover these lands the following year in alliance with the other Welsh princes. He allied himself with the barons who forced John to sign Magna Carta in 1215. By 1216 he was the dominant power in Wales, holding a council at Aberdyfi that year to apportion lands to the other princes.
Following King John's death, Llywelyn concluded the Treaty of Worcester with his successor Henry III in 1218. During the next fifteen years Llywelyn was frequently involved in fighting with Marcher lords and sometimes with the king, but also made alliances with several of the major powers in the Marches. The Peace of Middle in 1234 marked the end of Llywelyn's military career as the agreed truce of two years was extended year by year for the remainder of his reign.
Llywelyn the Great was determined to enforce the right of legitimate sons in Welsh succession law to bring Gwynedd in line with other Christian countries in Europe. However, by promoting his younger son Dafydd he was up against considerable support for his elder son Gruffydd from traditionalists in Gwynedd. However, with Gruffydd a prisoner the support for Gruffydd could not be transformed into anything more dangerous. Although Dafydd lost one of his most important supporters when his mother died in 1237, he retained the support of Ednyfed Fychan, the Seneschal of Gwynedd and the wielder of great political influence. Llywelyn suffered a paralytic stroke in 1237, and Dafydd took an increasing role in government. Dafydd ruled Gwynedd following his father's death in 1240.
Dafydd ap Llywelyn
Although King Henry III of England had accepted Dafydd's claim to rule Gwynedd, he was not disposed to allow him to retain his father's conquests outside Gwynedd. In 1241 the King invaded Gwynedd, and Dafydd was forced to submit in late August. Under the terms of the Treaty of GwerneigronTreaty of Gwerneigron
Treaty of Gwerneigron was a peace treaty signed by Henry III, king of England and Dafydd ap Llywelyn, prince of Wales of the House of Gwynedd, on 29 August 1241. The treaty brought to an end Henry's invasion of Wales begun earlier that month....
, he had to give up all his lands outside Gwynedd, and also to hand over to the King his half brother Gruffydd whom he had been keeping a prisoner. Henry thereby gained what could have been a useful weapon against Dafydd, with the possibility of setting Gruffydd up as a rival to Dafydd in Gwynedd, but Gruffydd died trying to escape from the Tower of London by climbing down a knotted sheet, and fell to his death in March 1244.
With his main rival dead Dafydd formed an alliance with other Welsh rulers and began a campaign against the English occupation of parts of Wales. After savage fighting the campaign was successful until Dafydd's sudden natural death brought it to a halt. At the time of his death he had no children and with Gruffydd dead the succession would pass to the sons of Gruffydd. The only adult sons of Gruffydd were Owain Goch ap Gruffydd
Owain Goch ap Gruffydd
Owain ap Gruffudd, , , was brother to Llywelyn the Last and Dafydd ap Gruffudd and, for a brief period in the late 1240s and early 1250s, ruler of part of the Kingdom of Gwynedd .- Lineage :Owain was the eldest son of Gruffudd ap Llywelyn and the grandson of Llywelyn the Great...
and Llywelyn ap Gruffydd
Llywelyn the Last
Llywelyn ap Gruffydd or Llywelyn Ein Llyw Olaf , sometimes rendered as Llywelyn II, was the last prince of an independent Wales before its conquest by Edward I of England....
who divided the realm between them.
Llywelyn ap Gruffydd
Llywelyn was in Gwynedd at the time of his elevation to the throne and had fought alongside his uncle Dafydd during the last campaign of his reign. This gave him an advantage over his elder brother Owain who had been imprisoned in England with his uncle since 1242. Owain returned to Gwynedd - he apparently "escaped" or was released from Chester immediately after the news of Dafydd's death reached England. Llywelyn and Owain were able to come to agreement and the reduced territory of Gwynedd were divided between them.In 1255 their younger sibling Dafydd ap Gruffydd reached maturity and Henry III sensing an opportunity to create mischief demanded that he be allowed his division of Gwynedd also. Llywelyn rejected this on the grounds that this would further weaken the realm and play into England's hands. Dafydd formed an alliance with Owain and at the Battle of Bryn Derwin
Battle of Bryn Derwin
The Battle of Bryn Derwin was fought in Eifionydd in Gwynedd in June 1255, between Llywelyn ap Gruffudd and his brothers, Dafydd ap Gruffudd and Owain Goch ap Gruffydd....
met Llywelyn in battle. Llywelyn was victorious and imprisoned Owain and confiscated his lands. He also imprisoned Dafydd for a short period before coming to terms with him.
Between 1255 and 1258 Llywelyn orchestrated a campaign against England across all of Wales gaining allies in Deheubarth and Powys. By 1258 he was acknowledged by almost all the native rulers as Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales is a title traditionally granted to the heir apparent to the reigning monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the 15 other independent Commonwealth realms...
. In 1263 his brother Dafydd defected to England for reasons which are unclear. It has been speculated that the death of their mother may have had an effect.
The following year, 1264, the Baron's Revolt in England had reached its climax at the Battle of Lewes
Battle of Lewes
The Battle of Lewes was one of two main battles of the conflict known as the Second Barons' War. It took place at Lewes in Sussex, on 14 May 1264...
. Llywelyn signed the Treaty of Woodstock with Simon de Montfort
Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester
Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester, 1st Earl of Chester , sometimes referred to as Simon V de Montfort to distinguish him from other Simon de Montforts, was an Anglo-Norman nobleman. He led the barons' rebellion against King Henry III of England during the Second Barons' War of 1263-4, and...
thus forming an alliance against Henry III
Henry III of England
Henry III was the son and successor of John as King of England, reigning for 56 years from 1216 until his death. His contemporaries knew him as Henry of Winchester. He was the first child king in England since the reign of Æthelred the Unready...
. Although de Montfort was soon defeated and killed by the English king the peace between England and Wales held, being formalised at the Treaty of Montgomery
Treaty of Montgomery
By means of the Treaty of Montgomery , Llywelyn ap Gruffydd was acknowledged as Prince of Wales by the English king Henry III, the only time in history that an English ruler would recognise the right of a ruler of Gwynedd over Wales...
in 1267 and the title "Prince of Wales" was recognised by the King of England. All the native Welsh princes were to be vassals of Llywelyn and it is from this point that the independent history of the kingdom of Gwynedd comes to an end.
The principality of Wales was to be a short-lived creation. As is explained in greater detail elsewhere, the relationship between England and Wales broke down following the death of Henry III in 1272. By 1276 Llywelyn had been declared a rebel by the new King Edward I who was determined to be the master of the whole island of Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
. Diplomatic pressure followed up by an enormous invasion force broke the unity of Wales and allowed the English army to quickly occupy large areas forcing Llywelyn back into his Gwynedd heartland. With the capture of Môn
Mon
-Places:* Mon State, a subdivision of Burma* Mon, Nagaland, a town in India* Mon District, Nagaland, India* Mon, Switzerland, a village in the Grisons* Isle of Anglesey or Môn, an island and county of Wales* Møn, an island of Denmark...
and the Perfeddwlad, LLywelyn sued for peace and was forced to sign the Treaty of Aberconwy
Treaty of Aberconwy
The Treaty of Aberconwy was signed in 1277 by King Edward I of England and Llewelyn the Last of modern-day Wales, who had fought each other on and off for years over control of the Welsh countryside...
reducing his realm to almost same extent that had existed at the beginning of his reign in 1247; confined to the lands above the Conwy. Dafydd was restored and granted some lands in the Perfeddwlad by Edward, including the cantrefi of Rhôs and Rhufoniog.
A confined Llywelyn appears to have put all of his hopes into stabilising the succession through children sired by his new wife Eleanor de Montfort
Eleanor de Montfort
Eleanor de Montfort, Princess of Wales and Lady of Snowdon was a daughter of Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester and Eleanor of England. She was also the first woman who can be shown to have used the title Princess of Wales....
. Tragedy struck when she died during childbirth in 1282, giving birth to a daughter; Gwenllian ferch Llywelyn. This seems to have driven Llywelyn into what some historians have speculated to be a nervous breakdown and incapacitated him.
Rebellion over the rule of the English Crown arose and Dafydd was joined by Llywelyn. In November 1282 the Archbishop of Canterbury John Peckham
John Peckham
John Peckham was Archbishop of Canterbury in the years 1279–1292. He was a native of Sussex who was educated at Lewes Priory and became a Franciscan friar about 1250. He studied at Paris under Bonaventure, where he later taught theology. From his teaching, he came into conflict with Thomas...
came to North Wales to mediate between Llywelyn ap Gruffudd and Edward Longshanks. Llywelyn ap Gruffudd was offered a bribe: one thousand pounds a year and an estate in England, if he would surrender his control (which extended at least to Gwynedd and Deheubarth) to Edward. Llywelyn wrote rejecting the offer . Within a month, Llywelyn, on 11 December 1282, was killed at Cilmeri in an ambush. His leaderless forces were routed shortly afterwards and the English forces led by Edward I moved to occupy Powys and eastern Gwynedd.
Dafydd ap Gruffydd
After these events Dafydd ap GruffyddDafydd ap Gruffydd
Dafydd ap Gruffydd was Prince of Wales from 11 December 1282 until his execution on 3 October 1283 by King Edward I of England...
was proclaimed Prince of Wales. Dafydd continued the fight and kept the support of Goronowy ap Heilin, the Lord of Rhôs
Rhôs
Rhos means 'moor' or 'moorland' in Welsh. It is a region to the east of the River Conwy in north Wales. It started as a minor kingdom then became a medieval cantref, and was usually part of the Kingdom of Gwynedd .-Kingdom: history and archaeology:Rhos is identified as a small kingdom during...
, as well as Hywel ap Rhys Gryg
Rhys Gryg
Rhys Gryg , real name Rhys ap Rhys, also known as Rhys Fychan was a Welsh Prince who ruled part of the Kingdom of Deheubarth.- Lineage :...
and his brother Rhys Wyndod, disinherited princes of Deheubarth.
However, as the English forces encircled Snowdonia and his people starved he was soon moving desperately from one fort to another as effective resistance was systematically crushed. Dolwyddelan
Dolwyddelan
Dolwyddelan, Welsh language : 'the meadow of Gwyddelan', is a village and community in Conwy county borough, north Wales, on the main A470 road between Blaenau Ffestiniog and Betws-y-Coed...
which was at risk of becoming encircled was first abandoned on January 18, 1283. After this Dolbadarn Castle
Dolbadarn Castle
Dolbadarn Castle is a fortification built by the Welsh prince Llywelyn the Great during the early 13th century, at the base of the Llanberis Pass, in North Wales. The castle was important both militarily and as a symbol of Llywelyn's power and authority. The castle features a large stone keep,...
served as his base but by March this noble site in the heart of Snowdonia was also threatened forcing his departure. Finally, Dafydd moved his headquarters south to Castell y Bere
Castell y Bere
Castell y Bere is a native Welsh castle near Llanfihangel-y-pennant in Gwynedd, Wales. Constructed by Llywelyn the Great in the 1220s, the stone castle was intended to maintain his authority over the local people and to defend the south-west part of the princedom of Gwynedd...
near Llanfihangel-y-pennant
Llanfihangel-y-Pennant
Llanfihangel-y-Pennant is a small village and community, which includes Abergynolwyn, in the Meirionnydd area of Gwynedd in Wales. It is located in the foothills of Cadair Idris, and has a population of 402....
. As the situation deteriorated it seems most likely that Dafydd and his family hoped to remain at Y Bere just long enough to avoid the worst of the Welsh winter before they were compelled to evacuate the site at the end of March in advance of the English forces who were manoeuvering to place it under siege. From this point forwards the prince, his family and the remains of his government were fugitives sleeping outdoors, forced to keep moving from place to place to avoid capture. Castell Y Bere's starving garrison would eventually surrender on April 25. After the fall of Y Bere, Dafydd's movements are speculative but he is recorded in May 1283 leading raids from the mountains supported to the bitter end by Goronwy ap Heilin, Hywel ap Rhys and his brother Rhys Wyndod.
The last months saw inward disintegration as well as submission to superior force. Nevertheless, Goronwy ap Heilin had committed himself to the struggle and died in rebellion, alongside the disinherited princes who stood with Dafydd ap Gruffudd in the last springtime of the principality of Wales, diehards who knew that theirs was not the heroism of a new beginning but the ultimate stand of the very last cohort clutching the figment of the political order that they had once been privileged to know.
On the 22nd June 1283, Dafydd ap Gruffudd was captured in the uplands above Abergwyngregyn close to Bera Mawr
Bera Mawr
Bera Mawr is a summit in the Carneddau mountains in north Wales, height 794 metres. It and Bera Bach are together known as the Berau, or northern Carneddau. The summit is a large rock tor, characteristic of the western Carneddau...
in a secret hiding place recorded as Nanhysglain. The site was no more than a hovel in a bog which may have been used previously by religious hermits. It is recorded that Dafydd, who had been betrayed, was "severely injured" during his capture. It is likely that his wife, daughters, niece and one of his sons were captured alongside him. His eldest son, Llywelyn ap Dafydd
Llywelyn ap Dafydd
Llywelyn ap Dafydd , de jure Prince of Gwynedd , was the eldest son of Dafydd ap Gruffydd the last free ruler of Gwynedd and his wife Elizabeth Ferrers. Nothing is known of his early life, though it is thought he was probably born some time around 1267...
(aged about 15) was not there at the time because it is recorded that King Edward issued specific orders ad querendum filium David primogenitum to have him apprehended. Llywelyn ap Dafydd was detained later by "men of his own tongue" and taken into royal custody on 29 June. Following this any organised resistance ended until the uprising of Madog ap Llywelyn
Madog ap Llywelyn
Madog ap Llywelyn, or Prince Madoc, was from a junior branch of the House of Aberffraw and a distant relation of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, the last recognised native Prince of Wales.-Lineage:...
some eleven years later.
Dafydd was taken to Edward on the night of his capture, then moved under heavy guard by way of Chester to Shrewsbury where in October he was hanged, drawn and quartered. His children and legal successors were locked away and never released: his sons Llywelyn ap Dafydd
Llywelyn ap Dafydd
Llywelyn ap Dafydd , de jure Prince of Gwynedd , was the eldest son of Dafydd ap Gruffydd the last free ruler of Gwynedd and his wife Elizabeth Ferrers. Nothing is known of his early life, though it is thought he was probably born some time around 1267...
and Owain ap Dafydd
Owain ap Dafydd
Owain ap Dafydd , de jure Prince of Gwynedd , was the younger son of Dafydd ap Gruffydd the last free ruler of Gwynedd and self-proclaimed Prince of Wales...
in Bristol Castle; his daughter and niece in priories in Lincolnshire.
End of independence
Following the death of Llywelyn ap GruffyddLlywelyn the Last
Llywelyn ap Gruffydd or Llywelyn Ein Llyw Olaf , sometimes rendered as Llywelyn II, was the last prince of an independent Wales before its conquest by Edward I of England....
in 1282, and the execution of his brother Dafydd ap Gruffydd
Dafydd ap Gruffydd
Dafydd ap Gruffydd was Prince of Wales from 11 December 1282 until his execution on 3 October 1283 by King Edward I of England...
the following year, eight centuries of independent rule by the house of Gwynedd came to an end, and the kingdom, which had long been one of the final holdouts to total English domination of Wales, was annexed to England. The remaining important members of the ruling house were all arrested and imprisoned for the remainder of their lives (Dafydd's sons Llywelyn ap Dafydd
Llywelyn ap Dafydd
Llywelyn ap Dafydd , de jure Prince of Gwynedd , was the eldest son of Dafydd ap Gruffydd the last free ruler of Gwynedd and his wife Elizabeth Ferrers. Nothing is known of his early life, though it is thought he was probably born some time around 1267...
and Owain ap Dafydd
Owain ap Dafydd
Owain ap Dafydd , de jure Prince of Gwynedd , was the younger son of Dafydd ap Gruffydd the last free ruler of Gwynedd and self-proclaimed Prince of Wales...
in Bristol Castle, his daughters and niece in convents). Under the terms of the Statute of Rhuddlan
Statute of Rhuddlan
The Statute of Rhuddlan , also known as the Statutes of Wales or as the Statute of Wales provided the constitutional basis for the government of the Principality of North Wales from 1284 until 1536...
in 1284 the Kingdom of Gwynedd was broken up and re-organised into the English county model which created the counties of Anglesey
Anglesey
Anglesey , also known by its Welsh name Ynys Môn , is an island and, as Isle of Anglesey, a county off the north west coast of Wales...
, Carnarvonshire, Merionethshire
Merionethshire
Merionethshire is one of thirteen historic counties of Wales, a vice county and a former administrative county.The administrative county of Merioneth, created under the Local Government Act 1888, was abolished under the Local Government Act 1972 on April 1, 1974...
, Denbighshire
Denbighshire (historic)
Historic Denbighshire is one of thirteen traditional counties in Wales, a vice-county and a former administrative county, which covers an area in north east Wales...
and Flintshire
Flintshire (historic)
Flintshire , also known as the County of Flint, is one of thirteen historic counties, a vice-county and a former administrative county, which mostly lies on the north east coast of Wales....
.
The Pura Walia (the new counties which had been Gwynedd plus Carmarthenshire
Carmarthenshire
Carmarthenshire is a unitary authority in the south west of Wales and one of thirteen historic counties. It is the 3rd largest in Wales. Its three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford...
and Cardiganshire
Ceredigion
Ceredigion is a county and former kingdom in mid-west Wales. As Cardiganshire , it was created in 1282, and was reconstituted as a county under that name in 1996, reverting to Ceredigion a day later...
) continued to be within a nominal Principality of Wales
Principality of Wales
The Principality of Wales existed between 1216 and 1542, encompassing two-thirds of modern Wales.It was formally founded in 1216 at the Council of Aberdyfi, and later recognised by the 1218 Treaty of Worcester between Llywelyn the Great of Wales and Henry III of England...
ruled by the Council of Wales at Ludlow
Ludlow
Ludlow is a market town in Shropshire, England close to the Welsh border and in the Welsh Marches. It lies within a bend of the River Teme, on its eastern bank, forming an area of and centred on a small hill. Atop this hill is the site of Ludlow Castle and the market place...
as a part of the English crown. The title Prince of Wales was retained by the sovereign to be eventually awarded to his son, Prince Edward (later Edward II). The Welsh Marches would be merged with the principality in 1534 under the Council of Wales and the Marches until all separate governance for Wales as an administrative entity was abolished in 1689.
There were many Gwynedd-based rebellions after 1284 with varying degrees of success with most being led by peripheral members of the old royal house. In particular the rebellions of Prince Madoc in 1294 and of Owain Lawgoch
Owain Lawgoch
Owain Lawgoch, , full name Owain ap Thomas ap Rhodri , was a Welsh soldier who served in Spain, France, Alsace and Switzerland. He led a Free Company fighting for the French against the English in the Hundred Years' War...
(the great-nephew of Llywelyn ap Gruffydd) between 1372-1378 are most notable. Because of this the old royal house was purged and any surviving members went in to hiding. A final rebellion in 1400 led by Owain Glyndŵr
Owain Glyndwr
Owain Glyndŵr , or Owain Glyn Dŵr, anglicised by William Shakespeare as Owen Glendower , was a Welsh ruler and the last native Welshman to hold the title Prince of Wales...
, a member of the rival royal house of Powys, also drew considerable support from within Gwynedd.
The royal house of Gwynedd may have endured in the guise of the Wynn and the Anwyl families who both claimed Rhodri ab Owain Gwynedd
Rhodri ab Owain Gwynedd
Rhodri ab Owain Gwynedd was prince of part of Gwynedd, one of the kingdoms of medieval Wales. He ruled from 1175 to 1195.On the death of Owain Gwynedd in 1170, fighting broke out among his nineteen sons over the division of his kingdom...
as their ancestor. After the purges in Wales had finished in the 16th century a certain Ioan ap Morys of Gwydir
Gwydir Castle
Gwydir Castle is situated in the Conwy valley, North Wales, a mile to the west of the ancient market town of Llanrwst and to the south of the large village of Trefriw...
proved his royal ancestry and he and his descendants were recognised across north Wales as the de jure Princes of Gwynedd until the male line of the Wynn family died out, probably in the late 18th century. Another claim could come via the surviving members of the Anwyl of Tywyn Family
Anwyl of Tywyn Family
Anwyl of Tywyn are a Welsh family who trace their descent to Owain Gwynedd. They claim direct patrilinear descent from Owain, who was King of Gwynedd from 1137 - 1170 and a scion of the royal House of Aberffraw...
or from any surviving male descendants of Dafydd Goch
Dafydd Goch
Dafydd Penmachno Goch or Dafydd ap Dafydd ap Gruffudd is said in some genealogical sources to be the illegitimate and only surviving son of Dafydd III the last free Welsh Prince of Wales ....
, the acknowledged Bastard
Bastard (Law of England and Wales)
A bastard in the law of England and Wales is a person whose parents, at the time of his/her birth, were not married to each other....
son of Dafydd ap Gruffudd who avoided detection during the royal purges and continued the line.
Welsh in warfare
According to Sir John Edward Lloyd, the challenges of campaigning in Wales were exposed during the 20 year Norman invasion of Wales. If a defender could bar any road, control any river-crossing or mountain pass, and control the coastline around Wales, then the risks of extended campaigning in Wales were too great.The Welsh method of warfare during the reign of Henry II is described by Gerald of Wales in his work Descriptio Cambriae written c. 1190;
"Their mode of fighting consists in chasing the enemy or in retreating. This light-armed people, relying more on their activity than on their strength, cannot struggle for the field of battle, enter into close engagement, or endure long and severe actions...though defeated and put to flight on one day, they are ready to resume the combat on the next, neither dejected by their loss, nor by their dishonour; and although, perhaps, they do not display great fortitude in open engagements and regular conflicts, yet they harass the enemy by ambuscades and nightly sallies. Hence, neither oppressed by hunger or cold, not fatigued by martial labours, nor despondent in adversity, but ready, after a defeat, to return immediately to action, and again endure the dangers of war."
The Historical Works of Giraldus Cambrensis translated by Sir Richard Colt-Hoare (1894), p.511
The Welsh were revered for the skills of their bowmen. Additionally, the Welsh learned from their Norman rivals. During the generations of warfare and close contact with the Normans, Gruffydd I and other Welsh leaders learned the arts of knighthood and adapted them for Wales. By Gruffydd's death in 1137 Gwynedd could field hundreds of heavy well-armed cavalry as well as their traditional bowmen and infantry.
"They make use of light arms, which do not impede their agility, small coats of mail, bundles of arrows, and long lances, helmets and shields, and more rarely greaves plated with iron. The higher class go to battle mounted on swift and generous steeds, which their country produces; but the greater part of the people fight on foot, on account of the marshy nature and unevenness of the soil. The horsemen, as their situation or occasion requires, willingly serve as infantry, in attacking or retreating; and they either walk bare-footed, or make use of high shoes, roughly constructed with untanned leather. In time of peace, the young men, by penetrating the deep recesses of the woods, and climbing the tops of mountains, learn by practice to endure fatigue through day and night."
The Historical Works of Giraldus Cambrensis translated by Sir Richard Colt-Hoare (1894), p.491
In the end Wales was defeated militarily by the improved ability of the English navy to blockade or seize areas essential for agricultural production such as Anglesey
Anglesey
Anglesey , also known by its Welsh name Ynys Môn , is an island and, as Isle of Anglesey, a county off the north west coast of Wales...
. With control of the Menai Strait, an invading army could regroup on Anglesey; without control of the Menai an army could be stranded there; and any occupying force on Anglesey could deny the vast harvest of the island to the Welsh.
Lack of food would force the disbandment of any large Welsh force besieged within the mountains. Following the occupation Welsh soldiers were conscripted to serve in the English Army. During the revolt of Owain Glyndwr
Owain Glyndwr
Owain Glyndŵr , or Owain Glyn Dŵr, anglicised by William Shakespeare as Owen Glendower , was a Welsh ruler and the last native Welshman to hold the title Prince of Wales...
the Welsh adapted the new skills they had learnt to guerilla tactics and lightning raids. Owain Glyndwr
Owain Glyndwr
Owain Glyndŵr , or Owain Glyn Dŵr, anglicised by William Shakespeare as Owen Glendower , was a Welsh ruler and the last native Welshman to hold the title Prince of Wales...
reputedly used the mountains with such advantage that many of the exasperated English soldiery suspected him of being a magician able to control the natural elements.
Administration
Chester
Chester is a city in Cheshire, England. Lying on the River Dee, close to the border with Wales, it is home to 77,040 inhabitants, and is the largest and most populous settlement of the wider unitary authority area of Cheshire West and Chester, which had a population of 328,100 according to the...
. After 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 613
613
Year 613 was a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. The denomination 613 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.- Europe :* Clotaire II reunites the Frankish kingdoms...
when the city fell to the Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxon is a term used by historians to designate the Germanic tribes who invaded and settled the south and east of Great Britain beginning in the early 5th century AD, and the period from their creation of the English nation to the Norman conquest. The Anglo-Saxon Era denotes the period of...
the royal court moved west to the stronghold at Deganwy Castle
Deganwy Castle
Deganwy Castle was an early stronghold of Gwynedd and lies at the mouth of the River Conwy in Conwy, north Wales...
near modern Conway
Conway
-Surname:* Alan Conway, impersonator of Stanley Kubrick* Albert Conway , Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals * Anne Conway, Viscountess Conway , English philosopher* Arthur Conway , any of several men...
. This site was destroyed in 860
860
Year 860 was a leap year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar.- Europe :* Ethelbert succeeds as king of Wessex.* The later Harald I of Norway becomes king.- Art :...
and afterwards Aberffraw
Aberffraw
Aberffraw is a small village and community on the south west coast of the Isle of Anglesey , in Wales, by the west bank of the River Ffraw, at . The UK postcode begins LL63. Access by road is by way of the A4080 and the nearest rail station is Bodorgan. In the early Middle Ages Aberffraw was the...
on Anglesey became the principal power base. However, as the English fleet became more powerful and particularly after the Norman colonization of Ireland began it became indefensible and from about 1200 until 1283 the home and headquarters of the Princes was Abergwyngregyn
Abergwyngregyn
Abergwyngregyn is a village of historical note in Gwynedd, a county and principal area in Wales. Under its historic name of Aber Garth Celyn it was the seat of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd....
or simply just "Aber" (its shortened form adopted by the Crown of England after the conquest). Joan, Lady of Wales, died there in 1237; Dafydd ap Llywelyn in 1246; Eleanor de Montfort, Lady of Wales, wife of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, Prince of Wales ("Tywysog Cymru" in modern Welsh), on 19 June 1282, giving birth to a daughter, Gwenllian. The royal home was occupied and expropriated by the English Crown in early 1283.
The traditional sphere of Aberffraw's influence in north Wales included Ynys Môn as their early seat of authority, and Gwynedd Uwch Conwy
Gwynedd Uwch Conwy
Gwynedd Uwch Conwy was the portion of the former Kingdom of Gwynedd lying to the west of the River Conwy in north Wales, including the island of Anglesey...
(Gwynedd above the Conwy, or upper Gwynedd), and the Perfeddwlad
Perfeddwlad
Perfeddwlad, , , was a name adopted during the twelfth century for the territories in north-east Wales lying between the rivers Conwy and Dee, and comprised the cantrefi of Rhos, Rhufoniog, Dyffryn Clwyd and Tegeingl...
(the Middle Country) also known as Gwynedd Is Conwy
Perfeddwlad
Perfeddwlad, , , was a name adopted during the twelfth century for the territories in north-east Wales lying between the rivers Conwy and Dee, and comprised the cantrefi of Rhos, Rhufoniog, Dyffryn Clwyd and Tegeingl...
(Gwynedd below the Conwy, or lower Gwynedd). Additional lands were acquired through vassalage or conquest, and by regaining lands lost to Marcher lords
Welsh Marches
The Welsh Marches is a term which, in modern usage, denotes an imprecisely defined area along and around the border between England and Wales in the United Kingdom. The precise meaning of the term has varied at different periods...
, particularly that of Ceredigion
Ceredigion
Ceredigion is a county and former kingdom in mid-west Wales. As Cardiganshire , it was created in 1282, and was reconstituted as a county under that name in 1996, reverting to Ceredigion a day later...
, Powys Fadog
Powys Fadog
Powys Fadog or Lower Powys was the northern portion of the former princely realm of Powys which split in two following the death of Madog ap Maredudd of Powys in 1160...
, and Powys Wenwynwyn
Powys Wenwynwyn
Powys Wenwynwyn or Powys Cyfeiliog was the southern portion of the former princely state of Powys which split following the death of Madog ap Maredudd of Powys in 1160...
. However these areas were always considered an addition to Gwynedd never part of Gwynedd.
The extent of the kingdom varied with the strength of the current ruler. Gwynedd was traditionally divided into "Gwynedd Uwch Conwy" and "Gwynedd Is Conwy" (with the River Conwy
River Conwy
The River Conwy is a river in north Wales. From its source to its discharge in Conwy Bay it is a little over long. "Conwy" is sometimes Anglicized as "Conway."...
forming the dividing line between the two), which included Môn (Anglesey). The kingdom was administered under Welsh custom through thirteen Cantrefi each containing, in theory, one hundred settlements or Trefi. Most cantrefs were also divided into cymydau (English commote
Commote
A commote , sometimes spelt in older documents as cymwd, was a secular division of land in Medieval Wales. The word derives from the prefix cym- and the noun bod...
s).
Ynys Môn
Cantref of Ynys MônAnglesey
Anglesey , also known by its Welsh name Ynys Môn , is an island and, as Isle of Anglesey, a county off the north west coast of Wales...
| Commote Commote A commote , sometimes spelt in older documents as cymwd, was a secular division of land in Medieval Wales. The word derives from the prefix cym- and the noun bod... | Modern local | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Aberffraw | Aberffraw Aberffraw Aberffraw is a small village and community on the south west coast of the Isle of Anglesey , in Wales, by the west bank of the River Ffraw, at . The UK postcode begins LL63. Access by road is by way of the A4080 and the nearest rail station is Bodorgan. In the early Middle Ages Aberffraw was the... |
Historic seat of rulers of Gwynedd |
| Cemais | Cemaes Cemaes Cemaes is a village on the north coast of Anglesey in Wales , on Cemaes Bay, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, which is partly owned by the National Trust. Population 1,392 . It is home to both a wind farm and a nuclear power station . It is also a fishing port and is known for its beach... |
|
| Talebolyon | ||
| Llan-faes | Llan-maes Llan-maes Llanmaes is a small village in the Vale of Glamorgan near the market town of Llantwit Major.- Amenities :... |
|
| Penrhos | Penrhos Penrhos, Anglesey Penrhos is a village in Anglesey, in north-west Wales.The 18th century artist and letter-writer Edward Owen was from Penrhos.... |
|
| Rhosyr Llys Rhosyr Llys Rhosyr is an archaeological site near Newborough in Anglesey; the ruins of a pre-Edwardian commotal court.Llys Rhosyr was a commotal centre before the Edward I of Englands conquest of Wales and debate now surrounds the former use of the Rhosyr site... |
Newborough Newborough, Anglesey Newborough is a village in the south-western corner of the Isle of Anglesey in Wales; it is in the community of Rhosyr, which has a population of 2,169.-History:Newborough was a commotal centre of medieval Anglesey... , Niwbro |
in 1294, refounded to house displaced villagers from Llanfaes |
Gwynedd Uwch Conwy
Gwynedd above the Conwy, or upper GwyneddCantref Arllechwedd
| Commote Commote A commote , sometimes spelt in older documents as cymwd, was a secular division of land in Medieval Wales. The word derives from the prefix cym- and the noun bod... | Modern local | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Arllechwedd Uchaf | Abergwyngregyn Abergwyngregyn Abergwyngregyn is a village of historical note in Gwynedd, a county and principal area in Wales. Under its historic name of Aber Garth Celyn it was the seat of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd.... , Conwy County Borough |
|
| Arllechwedd Isaf | Trefriw Trefriw Trefriw is a village in Conwy County Borough, Wales. It lies on the river Conwy in North Wales, a few miles south of the site of the Roman fort of Canovium, sited at Caerhun. The parish population in 2001 was 924.... , Conwy County Borough |
Cantref Arfon
Cantref Arfon
The mediaeval Welsh cantref of Arfon in north-west Wales was the core of the Kingdom of Gwynedd. Later it was included in the new county of Caernarfonshire, together with Llŷn and Arllechwedd under the terms of the Statute of Rhuddlan in 1284...
| Commote Commote A commote , sometimes spelt in older documents as cymwd, was a secular division of land in Medieval Wales. The word derives from the prefix cym- and the noun bod... | Modern local | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Arfon Uwch Gwyrfai | Gwynedd Gwynedd Gwynedd is a county in north-west Wales, named after the old Kingdom of Gwynedd. Although the second biggest in terms of geographical area, it is also one of the most sparsely populated... |
Arfon above Gwyrfai |
| Arfon Is Gwyrfai | Gwynedd Gwynedd Gwynedd is a county in north-west Wales, named after the old Kingdom of Gwynedd. Although the second biggest in terms of geographical area, it is also one of the most sparsely populated... |
Arfon beneath Gwyrfai |
Cantref Dunoding
Dunoding
Dunoding was an early sub-kingdom within the Kingdom of Gwynedd in north-west Wales which existed between the 5th and 10th centuries. According to tradition, it was named after Dunod, a son of the founding father of Gwynedd - Cunedda Wledig - who drove the Irish settlers from the area in c.460...
| Commote Commote A commote , sometimes spelt in older documents as cymwd, was a secular division of land in Medieval Wales. The word derives from the prefix cym- and the noun bod... | Modern local | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Ardudwy Ardudwy Ardudwy is an area of Gwynedd in north-west Wales, lying between Tremadog Bay and the Rhinogydd. Administratively, under the old Kingdom of Gwynedd, it was first a division of the sub kingdom of Dunoding and later a cantref in its own right... |
Meirionnydd area within Gwynedd Gwynedd Council Gwynedd Council is the governing body for the principal area of Gwynedd, one of the subdivisions of Wales within the United Kingdom.- Creation of the Authority :... |
|
| Eifionydd Eifionydd Eifionydd is an area in north-west Wales covering the south-eastern part of the Llŷn Peninsula from Porthmadog to just east of Pwllheli. The Afon Erch forms its western border. It now lies in Gwynedd.... |
Dwyfor area within Gwynedd Gwynedd Council Gwynedd Council is the governing body for the principal area of Gwynedd, one of the subdivisions of Wales within the United Kingdom.- Creation of the Authority :... |
|Named after Eifion ap Dunod ap Cunedda |
Cantref Llŷn
Cantref Llyn
The ancient Welsh cantref of Llŷn in north-west Wales was part of the kingdom of Gwynedd for much of its history until it was included in the new county of Caernarfonshire, together with Arfon and Arllechwedd under the terms of the Statute of Rhuddlan in 1284....
| Commote Commote A commote , sometimes spelt in older documents as cymwd, was a secular division of land in Medieval Wales. The word derives from the prefix cym- and the noun bod... | Modern local | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Dinllaen | Dwyfor council in Gwynedd county | |
| Cymydmaen | Dwyfor council in Gwynedd county | |
| Cafflogion |
Cantref Meirionnydd
Meirionnydd
Meirionnydd is a coastal and mountainous region of Wales. It has been a kingdom, a cantref, a district and, as Merionethshire, a county.-Kingdom:...
| Commote Commote A commote , sometimes spelt in older documents as cymwd, was a secular division of land in Medieval Wales. The word derives from the prefix cym- and the noun bod... | Modern local | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Ystumaner | Merionethshire council in Gwynedd county | |
| Tal-y-bont |
Gwynedd Is Conwy
Also known as PerfeddwladPerfeddwlad
Perfeddwlad, , , was a name adopted during the twelfth century for the territories in north-east Wales lying between the rivers Conwy and Dee, and comprised the cantrefi of Rhos, Rhufoniog, Dyffryn Clwyd and Tegeingl...
, or "the Middle Country" or Gwynedd Is Conwy (Gwynedd below the Conwy, or lower Gwynedd)
- Cantref Tegeingl:
- Cwnsyllt
- Prestatyn
- Rhuddlan
- Dyffryn ClwydDyffryn ClwydDyffryn Clwyd was a cantref of Medieval Wales and from 1282 a marcher lordship. In 1536, it became part of the new county of Denbighshire. The name means Vale of Clwyd in English and is still the name for that region of north Wales in modern Welsh...
:- Colion
- Llannerch
- DogfeilingDogfeilingDogfeiling was a minor sub-kingdom and later a commote in north Wales.It formed part of the eastern border of the Kingdom of Gwynedd in early medieval Wales. The area was named for Dogfael, one of the sons of the first King of Gwynedd, Cunedda. It existed from the year 445 until sometime around the...
- RhufoniogRhufoniogRhufoniog was a small sub-kingdom of the Dark Ages Gwynedd, and later a cantref in medieval Wales. According to tradition, it was ruled by its eponymous founder Rhufon, the third son of the first King of Gwynedd, Cunedda, and his direct descendants from the year 445 until the year 540 when it was...
- Ceinmeirch
- Uwch Aled
- Is Aled
- Cantref Rhos
- Uwch Dulas
- Is Dulas
- Y Creuddyn
House of Cunedda
- Cunedda Wledig ap EdernCuneddaCunedda ap Edern , was an important early Welsh leader, and the progenitor of the royal dynasty of Gwynedd.-Background and life:The name Cunedda derives from the Brythonic word , meaning good hound. His genealogy is traced back to Padarn Beisrudd, which literally translates as Paternus of the...
(Cunedda the Imperator) (c.450–c.460) - Einion Yrth ap CuneddaEinion Yrth ap CuneddaEinion ap Cunedda , also known as Einion Yrth was a king of Gwynedd.One of the sons of Cunedda, it is believed he travelled with his father to north Wales in the early 450s to expel Irish raiders from the region. After his father's death, Einion inherited control over the newly founded kingdom of...
(Einion the Impetuous) (c.470–c.480) - Cadwallon Lawhir ap EinionCadwallon Lawhir ap EinionCadwallon ap Einion , usually known as Cadwallon Lawhir and also called Cadwallon I by some historians, was a king of Gwynedd....
(Cadwallon Long Hand) (c.500–c.534) - Maelgwn Hir ap Cadwallon (Maelgwn Gwynedd) (c.520–c.547)
Line of Maelgwn Gwynedd
- Rhun Hir ap MaelgwnRhun Hir ap MaelgwnRhun ap Maelgwn Gwynedd , also known as Rhun Hir ap Maelgwn Gwynedd , was King of Gwynedd . He came to the throne on the death of his father, King Maelgwn Gwynedd. There are no historical records of his reign in this early age...
(Rhun the Tall) (c.547–c.580) - Beli ap RhunBeli ap RhunBeli ap Rhun was King of Gwynedd . Nothing is known of the person, and his name is known only from Welsh genealogies, which confirm that he had at least two sons. He succeeded his father Rhun ap Maelgwn as king, and was in turn succeeded by his son Iago...
(c.580–c.599) - Iago ap BeliIago ap BeliIago 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....
(c.599–c.616) - Cadfan ap IagoCadfan ap IagoCadfan ap Iago was King of Gwynedd . Little is known of the history of Gwynedd from this period, and information about Cadfan and his reign is minimal....
(c.613–c.625) - Cadwallon ap CadfanCadwallon ap CadfanCadwallon 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...
(c.625–634) - Cadafael Cadomedd ap CynfeddwCadafael Cadomedd ap CynfeddwCadafael ap Cynfeddw was King of Gwynedd . He came to the throne when his predecessor, King Cadwallon ap Cadfan, was killed in battle, and his primary notability is in having gained the disrespectful sobriquet Cadafael Cadomedd .Unusual for the era, King Cadafael was not a member of one the...
(Cadfael the Battle-Shirker) (634–c.655) - Cadwaladr Fendigaid ap CadwallonCadwaladrCadwaladr ap Cadwallon was King of Gwynedd . Two devastating plagues happened during his reign, one in 664 and the other in 682, with himself a victim of the second one. Little else is known of his reign...
(Cadwallader the Blessed) (c.655–c.682) - Idwal Iwrch ap CadwaladrIdwal RoebuckIdwal Iwrch , or Idwal ap Cadwaladr , is a figure in the genealogies of the kings of Gwynedd. He was the son of King Cadwaladr ap Cadwallon and the father of King Rhodri Molwynog...
(Idwal Roebuck) (c.682–c.720) - Rhodri Molwynog ap IdwalRhodri Molwynog ap IdwalRhodri Molwynog ap Idwal was King of Gwynedd . This era in the history of Gwynedd was not notable, and given the lack of reliable information available, serious histories of Wales, such that as by Davies, do not mention Rhodri, while that of Lloyd mentions his name in passing only to quote the...
(Rhodri the Bald and Grey) (c.720–c.754) - Caradog ap MeirionCaradog ap MeirionCaradog ap Meirion was King of Gwynedd . This era in the history of Gwynedd was not notable, and given the lack of reliable information available, serious histories of Wales, such that as by Davies, do not mention Caradog, while that of Lloyd mentions his name only in a footnote quoting the year...
(c.754–c.798) - Cynan Dindaethwy ap RhodriCynan Dindaethwy ap RhodriCynan Dindaethwy ap Rhodri was King of Gwynedd . His reign was marked by a destructive dynastic power struggle with his brother Hywel, and is not otherwise notable....
(c.798–816) - Hywel ap Rhodri MolwynogHywel ap Rhodri MolwynogHywel ap Rhodri Molwynog was King of Gwynedd . He rose to power following a destructive dynastic struggle in which he deposed his brother, King Cynan Dindaethwy ap Rhodri . During Hywel's reign Gwynedd's power was largely confined to Anglesey...
(814–825)
With Hywel's death all male descendants of Maelgwn Gwynedd have expired, and Merfyn the Freckled succeeds because his mother Esyllt was the eldest daughter of Cynan Dindaethwy ap Rhodri, and niece to the last king Hywel ap Rhodri Molwynog.
House of Manaw
- Merfyn Frych ap Gwriad (Merfyn the Freckled) (825–844)
- Rhodri Mawr ap MerfynRhodri the GreatRhodri the Great was King of Gwynedd from 844 until his death. He was the first Welsh ruler to be called 'Great', and the first to rule most of present-day Wales...
(844–878); inherits Gwynedd from his father and Powys from his maternal uncle (who died without issue), then conquers most of rest of Wales.
House of Aberffraw
- Anarawd ap RhodriAnarawd ap RhodriAnarawd ap Rhodri was a King of Gwynedd, also referred to as "King of the Britons" by the Annales Cambriae.Anarawd's father Rhodri the Great had eventually become ruler of most of Wales, but on his death in 878 his kingdom was shared out between his sons, with Anarawd inheriting the throne of...
(878–916) (establishes the AberffrawHouse of GwyneddThe House of Gwynedd is the name given to the old royal house of the Kingdom of Gwynedd. Technically it is divided between the earlier House of Cunedda which lasted from c.420-825 and the later House of Aberffraw beginning in 844. They are so named after the founding king of Gwynedd; Cunedda, and...
dynasty, the senior branch of descendants from Rhodri Mawr) - Idwal FoelIdwal FoelIdwal Foel ap Anarawd was a King of Gwynedd, referred to as King of the Britons by William of Malmesbury in his Gesta Regum Anglorum. William spells his name as Judwalum in the original Latin ; the Annales Cambriae spell it Iudgual.Idwal inherited the throne of Gwynedd on the death of his...
ab Anarawd (Idwal the Bald) (916–942) - Hywel Dda ap CadellHywel DdaHywel Dda , was the well-thought-of king of Deheubarth in south-west Wales, who eventually came to rule Wales from Prestatyn to Pembroke. As a descendant of Rhodri Mawr, through his father Cadell, Hywel was a member of the Dinefwr branch of the dynasty and is also named Hywel ap Cadell...
(Howell the Good) (942–950) (DinefwrDinefwrDinefwr was a local government district of Dyfed, Wales from 1974 to 1996. It was named after Dinefwr Castle which was the royal capital of the Principality of Deheubarth and one of the three principal royal courts of Wales....
dynasty, descended from the second son of Rhodri Mawr who ruled in Deheubarth, usurps Gwynedd from the Aberffraw line.) - Iago ab IdwalIago ab IdwalNot to be confused with Iago ab Idwal ap MeurigIago ab Idwal was a King of Gwynedd and possibly Powys, also referred to as "King of the Britons" by the Annals of Ulster....
(950–979) (returns to the Aberffraw branch) - Ieuaf ab IdwalIeuaf ab IdwalIeuaf ap Idwal was a king of part of Gwynedd and possibly part of Powys .Ieuaf was the son of Idwal Foel...
(950–969) - Hywel ab IeuafHywel ab IeuafHywel ap Ieuaf was a King of Gwynedd in north-west Wales from 979 to 985.Hywel was the son of Ieuaf ap Idwal who had ruled Gwynedd jointly with his brother Iago ab Idwal until 969. In that year the sons of Idwal quarrelled and Iago took Ieuaf prisoner...
(974–985) - Cadwallon ab IeuafCadwallon ab IeuafCadwallon ap Ieuaf was a King of Gwynedd.Cadwallon was the son of Ieuaf ab Idwal and succeeded to the throne of Gwynedd on the death of his brother Hywel ab Ieuaf in 985. He only reigned for a year, for in 986 Maredudd ab Owain of Deheubarth invaded Gwynedd, slew Cadwallon and annexed his...
(985–986)
10th- and 11th-century usurpations
- Maredudd ab OwainMaredudd ab OwainMaredudd ab Owain was a King of Deheubarth, and through conquest also of Gwynedd and Powys, kingdoms in medieval Wales.Maredudd was the son of Owain ap Hywel and the grandson of Hywel Dda. His father was king of Deheubarth before him. As Owain grew too old to lead in battle his son Maredudd took...
(986–999) DinefwrDinefwrDinefwr was a local government district of Dyfed, Wales from 1974 to 1996. It was named after Dinefwr Castle which was the royal capital of the Principality of Deheubarth and one of the three principal royal courts of Wales....
dynasty seizes Gwynedd - Cynan ap HywelCynan ap HywelCynan ap Hywel was a Prince of Gwynedd, one of the kingdoms or principalities of medieval Wales.After the death in 999 of Maredudd ab Owain who had seized Gwynedd from the line of Idwal Foel, the rule of Gwynedd returned to the original dynasty in the form of Idwal's great-grandson, Cynan ap Hywel...
(999–1005) Returns to the Aberffraw dynasty briefly - Aeddan ap BlegywrydAeddan ap BlegywrydAeddan ap Blegywryd was a Prince of Gwynedd in medieval Wales.After the death of Cynan ap Hywel in 1005, the throne of Gwynedd fell to Aeddan ap Blegywryd, who was apparently out of the direct line of succession. It is not known whether or not Aeddan seized the throne by force, but his lack of...
(1005–1018) (minor commote lord usurps Gwynedd from the Aberffraw dynasty) - Llywelyn ap SeisyllLlywelyn ap SeisyllLlywelyn ap Seisyll was a King of Gwynedd and of Deheubarth in north-west and south-west Wales, also called King of the Britons by the Annals of Ulster. Also called Llywelyn ap Seisyllt- Lineage :...
(1018–1023) (Rhuddlan dynasty in lower Gwynedd usurps from Aeddan ap Blegywryd) - Iago ab Idwal ap MeurigIago ab Idwal ap MeurigIago ab Idwal ap Meurig was a Prince of Gwynedd.On the death of Llywelyn ap Seisyll in 1023, the rule of Gwynedd returned to the ancient dynasty with the accession of Iago, who was a great-grandson of Idwal Foel....
(1023–1039) (Aberffraw dynasty returns) - Gruffydd ap LlywelynGruffydd ap LlywelynGruffydd ap Llywelyn was the ruler of all Wales from 1055 until his death, the only Welsh monarch able to make this boast...
(1039–1063) (Llywelyn's son Gruffydd usurps from Aberffraw dynasty) - Bleddyn ap CynfynBleddyn ap CynfynBleddyn ap Cynfyn was a Prince of the Welsh Kingdoms of Gwynedd and of Powys.- Lineage :Bleddyn was the son of Princess Angharad ferch Maredudd with her second husband Cynfyn ap Gwerstan, a Powys Lord, about whom little is now known...
(1063–1075) (Mathrafal dynasty of Powys "receives" Gwynedd from the English King) - Trahaearn ap CaradogTrahaearn ap Caradog- Accession:On the death of Bleddyn ap Cynfyn in 1075, it appears that none of his sons were old enough to claim the throne, and Bleddyn's cousin Trahaearn ap Caradog, seized power...
(1075–1081)
Aberffraw restoration
- Gruffydd ap CynanGruffydd ap CynanGruffydd ap Cynan was a King of Gwynedd. In the course of a long and eventful life, he became a key figure in Welsh resistance to Norman rule, and was remembered as King of all Wales...
(1081–1137) (Aberffraw dynasty returns) - Owain Gwynedd ap GruffyddOwain GwyneddOwain Gwynedd ap Gruffydd , in English also known as Owen the Great, was King of Gwynedd from 1137 until his death in 1170. He is occasionally referred to as "Owain I of Gwynedd"; and as "Owain I of Wales" on account of his claim to be King of Wales. He is considered to be the most successful of...
(1137–1170) (After Owain rulers of Gwynedd are styled Prince of Aberffraw and Lord of Snowdon) - Hywel ab Owain GwyneddHywel ab Owain GwyneddHywel ab Owain Gwynedd Wales Prince of Gwynedd in 1170, a Welsh poet and military leader. Hywel was the son of Owain Gwynedd, prince of Gwynedd, and an Irishwoman named Pyfog. In recognition of this, he was also known as Hywel ap Gwyddeles...
r. 1170; killed by his younger brother Dafydd ab Owain in a conspiracy hatched by his stepmother Cristen, dowager princess of Gwynedd, and her sons Dafydd and Rhodri ab Owain.
Interregnum
Dafydd ab Owain ursurped the throne of Gwynedd from his brother Hywel ab Owain, and recognized as 'prince of Gwynedd' by the English Crown. However, his ascendency was short lived as he was displaced by other brothers, with the throne of Gwynedd returning to the senior legitimate heir of Owain Gwynedd with Llywelyn the Great.
- Dafydd the UsurperDafydd ab Owain GwyneddDafydd ab Owain Gwynedd was Prince of Gwynedd from 1170 to 1195. For a time he ruled jointly with his brothers Maelgwn ab Owain Gwynedd and Rhodri ab Owain Gwynedd....
(1170–1195), displaced elder brother Hywel ap Owain Gwynedd, but was himself displaced between 1195 ruling only lower Gwynedd. England recognized Dafydd as Prince of Gwynedd, though Welsh jurists did not.- Rhodri ab Owain GwyneddRhodri ab Owain GwyneddRhodri ab Owain Gwynedd was prince of part of Gwynedd, one of the kingdoms of medieval Wales. He ruled from 1175 to 1195.On the death of Owain Gwynedd in 1170, fighting broke out among his nineteen sons over the division of his kingdom...
(1170–1190) Ruling upper Gwynedd until 1174 - Maelgwn ab Owain GwyneddMaelgwn ab Owain GwyneddMaelgwn ab Owain Gwynedd was a prince of part of Gwynedd.Maelgwn was the son of Owain Gwynedd and Gwladus ferch Llywarch ap Trahaearn, and therefore full brother to Iorwerth Drwyndwn, the father of Llywelyn the Great...
(1170–1173), ruling Ynys Mon and supporter of his elder brother Hywel ap Owain's claim as Prince. After Hywel's death, Maelgwn was able to retain Ynys Mon from Dafydd the Usurper.
- Rhodri ab Owain Gwynedd
Restoration of the senior line:
- Llywelyn Fawr ap IorwerthLlywelyn the GreatLlywelyn the Great , full name Llywelyn ab Iorwerth, was a Prince of Gwynedd in north Wales and eventually de facto ruler over most of Wales...
(Llywelyn the Great) (1195–1240) de jure first Prince of Wales - Dafydd IDafydd ap LlywelynDafydd ap Llywelyn was Prince of Gwynedd from 1240 to 1246. He was for a time recognised as Prince of Wales.- Descent :...
(1240–1246) (First acknowledged Prince of Wales) - Owain Goch ap GruffyddOwain Goch ap GruffyddOwain ap Gruffudd, , , was brother to Llywelyn the Last and Dafydd ap Gruffudd and, for a brief period in the late 1240s and early 1250s, ruler of part of the Kingdom of Gwynedd .- Lineage :Owain was the eldest son of Gruffudd ap Llywelyn and the grandson of Llywelyn the Great...
(Owen the Red) (1246–1255) - Llywelyn ap GruffyddLlywelyn the LastLlywelyn ap Gruffydd or Llywelyn Ein Llyw Olaf , sometimes rendered as Llywelyn II, was the last prince of an independent Wales before its conquest by Edward I of England....
(Llywelyn the Last) (1246–1282) (Second acknowledged Prince of Wales) - Dafydd ap GruffyddDafydd ap GruffyddDafydd ap Gruffydd was Prince of Wales from 11 December 1282 until his execution on 3 October 1283 by King Edward I of England...
(1282–1283) (not crowned but claimed the title)
Post-Conquest descendants
- Madog ap LlywelynMadog ap LlywelynMadog ap Llywelyn, or Prince Madoc, was from a junior branch of the House of Aberffraw and a distant relation of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, the last recognised native Prince of Wales.-Lineage:...
(1294–1295) (not crowned but claimed the title) - Owain ap Tomas ap RhodriOwain LawgochOwain Lawgoch, , full name Owain ap Thomas ap Rhodri , was a Welsh soldier who served in Spain, France, Alsace and Switzerland. He led a Free Company fighting for the French against the English in the Hundred Years' War...
(Owen the Red Hand) (1372–1378), great-nephew of Llywelyn the LastLlywelyn the LastLlywelyn ap Gruffydd or Llywelyn Ein Llyw Olaf , sometimes rendered as Llywelyn II, was the last prince of an independent Wales before its conquest by Edward I of England....
, in exile but claimed the title.
After Owain Lawgoch
Owain Lawgoch
Owain Lawgoch, , full name Owain ap Thomas ap Rhodri , was a Welsh soldier who served in Spain, France, Alsace and Switzerland. He led a Free Company fighting for the French against the English in the Hundred Years' War...
the line of Aberffraw would continue post conquest, and later direct male descendants would include the Wynn family and the Anwyl family, both claiming direct male descent from Owain Gwynedd
Owain Gwynedd
Owain Gwynedd ap Gruffydd , in English also known as Owen the Great, was King of Gwynedd from 1137 until his death in 1170. He is occasionally referred to as "Owain I of Gwynedd"; and as "Owain I of Wales" on account of his claim to be King of Wales. He is considered to be the most successful of...
.
Wynn Baronets of Gwydir (1611)
The Wynn BaronetsWynn Baronets
There have been two Baronetcies created for persons with the surname Wynn, one in the Baronetage of England and one in the Baronetage of Great Britain. One creation is extant as of 2008....
of Gwydir were created in the Baronetage of England in 1611—one of the initial creations—for John Wynn, of Gwydir. The members of this line were heirs to the Aberffraw
Aberffraw
Aberffraw is a small village and community on the south west coast of the Isle of Anglesey , in Wales, by the west bank of the River Ffraw, at . The UK postcode begins LL63. Access by road is by way of the A4080 and the nearest rail station is Bodorgan. In the early Middle Ages Aberffraw was the...
claim to the Principality of Gwynedd and Wales
Principality of Wales
The Principality of Wales existed between 1216 and 1542, encompassing two-thirds of modern Wales.It was formally founded in 1216 at the Council of Aberdyfi, and later recognised by the 1218 Treaty of Worcester between Llywelyn the Great of Wales and Henry III of England...
as direct descendents of Owain Gwynedd
Owain Gwynedd
Owain Gwynedd ap Gruffydd , in English also known as Owen the Great, was King of Gwynedd from 1137 until his death in 1170. He is occasionally referred to as "Owain I of Gwynedd"; and as "Owain I of Wales" on account of his claim to be King of Wales. He is considered to be the most successful of...
in the senior line from the 15th Century. The family continued to be prominent in politics, all the baronets save Owen sat as members of parliament, often for Carnarvon or Carnarvonshire. This creation became extinct in 1719, on the death of the fifth baronet. Wynnstay, near Ruabon
Ruabon
Ruabon is a village and community in the county borough of Wrexham in Wales.More than 80% of the population of 2,400 were born in Wales with 13.6% speaking Welsh....
, passed to Jane Thelwall and her husband Sir Watkin Williams, who took the name of Williams-Wynn in honor of his wife's princely heritage.
- Owain GwyneddOwain GwyneddOwain Gwynedd ap Gruffydd , in English also known as Owen the Great, was King of Gwynedd from 1137 until his death in 1170. He is occasionally referred to as "Owain I of Gwynedd"; and as "Owain I of Wales" on account of his claim to be King of Wales. He is considered to be the most successful of...
, Prince of Gwynedd (died November 1170) = Cristina ferch Gronw ap Owain ap Edwin - Rhodri ab Owain GwyneddRhodri ab Owain GwyneddRhodri ab Owain Gwynedd was prince of part of Gwynedd, one of the kingdoms of medieval Wales. He ruled from 1175 to 1195.On the death of Owain Gwynedd in 1170, fighting broke out among his nineteen sons over the division of his kingdom...
, Lord of Anglesey (d.1195) = Annest ferch Rhys ap Gruffudd - Thomas ap Rhodri ab Owain GwyneddThomas ap Rhodri ab Owain GwyneddTomas ap Rhodri ab Owain Gwynedd was the only known son of Rhodri ab Owain Gwynedd ruler of half Gwynedd from 1170–1195. In the 17th century, Sir John Wynn, 1st Baronet of Gwydir claimed and later proved his ancestor was Tomas ap Rhodri, however the Wynn family expired in the male line by the...
= Annest ferch Einion ap Seisyllt - Caradog ap Tomas = Efa ferch Gwyn ap Gruffudd ap Beli
- Gruffudd ap Caradog = Lleuca ferch Llywarch Fychan ap Llywarch
- Dafydd ap Gruffudd of Rhos = Efa ferch Gruffudd Fychan
- Hywel ap Dafydd = Efa ferch Evan ap Hywel ap Maredudd
- Maredudd ap Hywell (d. after 1353) = Morfydd ferch Ieuan ap Dafydd ap Trahaern Goch
- Robert ap MareduddRobert ap MareduddRobert ap Maredudd is the presumed Head of the House of Aberffraw following the death of Owain Lawgoch the last and only known surviving great-nephew of Llywelyn ap Gruffydd in 1378. He is cited by Sir John Wynn, 1st Baronet as his ancestor and head of the family at that time. He is known to have...
= Angharad ferch Dafydd ap Llywelyn - Ifan ap RobertIfan ap RobertIfan ap Robert was the Head of the House of Aberffraw following the death of his father. It is not known if he had any siblings. He is cited by Sir John Wynn, 1st Baronet as his ancestor and head of the family at that time....
(b. 1438, died 1469) = Catherine ferch Rhys ap Hywel Fychan - Maredudd ap IfanMaredudd ap IfanMaredudd ab Ifan was the Head of the House of Aberffraw following the death of his father. It is not known if he had any siblings. He rebuilt Gwydyr Castle after it was destroyed in the 1460s and made it the family home. He is cited by Sir John Wynn, 1st Baronet as one of his ancestors and head of...
(Ieuan) ap Robert (b. c1459, died 18 March 1525) = Ales ferch William Gruffudd ap Robin - John "Wynn" ap Maredudd (died 9 July 1559) = Ellen Lloyd ferch Morys ap John
- Morys Wynn ap John (d.1580) = Jane Bulkeley (1) Ann Grevill (2) Katherine of Berain (3)
- Sir John Wynn ap MorysSir John Wynn, 1st BaronetSir John Wynn, 1st Baronet , Welsh baronet, Member of Parliament and antiquary, was the son of Morys Wynn ap John. He claimed to be directly descended from the princes of Gwynedd through Rhodri ab Owain son of Owain Gwynedd. However, this claim is disputed in a publication of 1884 entitled...
of Gwydir- Jane Thelwall (great-granddaughter of Sir John Wynn, 1st Baronet through his son William Wynn of Branas, and his son Sidney Wynn) married Watkin Williams (1692–1749). Her husband took the name Wynn in honor of his wife's princely heritage, establishing the Williams-WynnWilliams-Wynn BaronetsThe Williams-Wynn Baronetcy, of Gray's Inn in the County of Middlesex in the Baronetage of England, and of Bodelwyddan in the County of Flint in the Baronetage of Great Britain, are two titles held jointly since 1880.- Creation :...
family.- Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 4th BaronetSir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 4th BaronetSir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 4th Baronet was a Welsh politician and patron of the arts.Sir Watkin was the eldest son of the second marriage of his father, Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 3rd Baronet, to Frances Shackerley of Cheshire...
(1749–1789)- Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 5th BaronetSir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 5th BaronetSir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 5th Baronet was a Welsh politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1794 to 1840....
(1772–1840)- Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 6th BaronetSir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 6th BaronetSir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 6th Baronet was a Welsh Conservative politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1841 to 1885....
(1820–1885)- Sir Herbert Lloyd Watkin Williams-Wynn, 7th Baronet (1860–1944)
- Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 8th Baronet (1891–1949)
- Sir Robert William Herbert Watkin Williams-Wynn, 9th Baronet (1862–1951)
- Sir Owen Watkin Williams-Wynn, 10th Baronet (1904–1988)
- Sir David Watkin Williams-Wynn, 11th BaronetSir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 11th BaronetSir David Watkin Williams-Wynn, 11th Baronet of Bodelwyddan in the County of Flint , and of Gray's Inn in the county of Middlesex , is a member of the surviving Welsh nobility and is the closest known living heir of the Princely House of Aberffraw, the former ruling family of Gwynedd and the...
(b. 1940)
- Sir David Watkin Williams-Wynn, 11th Baronet
- Sir Owen Watkin Williams-Wynn, 10th Baronet (1904–1988)
- Sir Robert William Herbert Watkin Williams-Wynn, 9th Baronet (1862–1951)
- Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 8th Baronet (1891–1949)
- Sir Herbert Lloyd Watkin Williams-Wynn, 7th Baronet (1860–1944)
- Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 6th Baronet
- Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 5th Baronet
- Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 4th Baronet
- Jane Thelwall (great-granddaughter of Sir John Wynn, 1st Baronet through his son William Wynn of Branas, and his son Sidney Wynn) married Watkin Williams (1692–1749). Her husband took the name Wynn in honor of his wife's princely heritage, establishing the Williams-Wynn
- Sir Richard Wynn, 2nd BaronetSir Richard Wynn, 2nd BaronetSir Richard Wynn, 2nd Baronet was an English courtier and politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1614 and 1649....
(c. 1588–1649) - Sir Owen Wynn, 3rd BaronetSir Owen Wynn, 3rd BaronetSir Owen Wynn, 3rd Baronet inherited the family baronetcy, of Gwydyr, Wales in 1649 after the death of his brother Sir Richard Wynn, 2nd Baronet during the Civil War...
(d. 1660) - Sir Richard Wynn, 4th BaronetSir Richard Wynn, 4th BaronetSir Richard Wynn, 4th Baronet succeeded his father Sir Owen Wynn, 3rd Baronet at Gwydir in 1660.He was High Sheriff of Caernarvonshire for 1657, Member of the Parliament of England for Caernarvonshire, 1647–53 and 1661–75, and was associated with the municipal government of Denbigh...
(c. 1625–1674)- Mary Wynn, Duchess of Ancaster and KestevenWynn BaronetsThere have been two Baronetcies created for persons with the surname Wynn, one in the Baronetage of England and one in the Baronetage of Great Britain. One creation is extant as of 2008....
, only child of Sir Richard Wyn- Peregrine Bertie, 2nd Duke of Ancaster and KestevenPeregrine Bertie, 2nd Duke of Ancaster and KestevenPeregrine Bertie, 2nd Duke of Ancaster and Kesteven, 2nd Marquess of Lindsey, 5th Earl of Lindsey, 18th Baron Willoughby de Eresby PC , also styled Hon...
- Peregrine Bertie, 3rd Duke of Ancaster and KestevenPeregrine Bertie, 3rd Duke of Ancaster and KestevenGeneral Peregrine Bertie, 3rd Duke of Ancaster and Kesteven, 3rd Marquess of Lindsey, 6th Earl of Lindsey, 19th Baron Willoughby de Eresby PC was the son of Peregrine Bertie, 2nd Duke of Ancaster and Kesteven....
- Robert Bertie, 4th Duke of Ancaster and KestevenRobert Bertie, 4th Duke of Ancaster and KestevenRobert Bertie, 4th Duke of Ancaster and Kesteven, 4th Marquess of Lindsey, 7th Earl of Lindsey, 20th Baron Willoughby de Eresby PC was a British hereditary peer...
(died without issue)
- Robert Bertie, 4th Duke of Ancaster and Kesteven
- Lady Georgina Charlotte Bertie, eldest daughter of the 3rd Duke, married George Cholmondeley, 1st Marquess of CholmondeleyGeorge Cholmondeley, 1st Marquess of CholmondeleyGeorge James Cholmondeley, 1st Marquess of Cholmondeley KG, GCH, PC , styled Viscount Malpas between 1764 and 1770 and known as The Earl of Cholmondeley between 1770 and 1815, was a British peer and politician.-Background and education:...
- George Cholmondeley, 2nd Marquess of CholmondeleyGeorge Cholmondeley, 2nd Marquess of CholmondeleyGeorge Horatio Cholmondeley, 2nd Marquess of Cholmondeley PC , styled Viscount Malpas from 1792 to 1815 and subsequently Earl of Rocksavage to 1827 was a British peer and Lord Great Chamberlain of England between 1838 and 1870...
- see Marquess of CholmondeleyMarquess of CholmondeleyMarquess of Cholmondeley is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1815 for George Cholmondeley, 4th Earl of Cholmondeley. Each Marquess of Cholmondeley is a descendant of Sir Robert Walpole, the first Prime Minister of Great Britain....
for continuation of the line- David Cholmondeley, 7th Marquess of CholmondeleyDavid Cholmondeley, 7th Marquess of CholmondeleyDavid George Philip Cholmondeley, 7th Marquess of Cholmondeley, KCVO, DL , was styled from birth Viscount Malpas until 1968, and subsequently Earl of Rocksavage until 1990...
, b. 1960, Lord Great Chamberlain to HM the Queen.
- David Cholmondeley, 7th Marquess of Cholmondeley
- see Marquess of Cholmondeley
- George Cholmondeley, 2nd Marquess of Cholmondeley
- Peregrine Bertie, 3rd Duke of Ancaster and Kesteven
- Peregrine Bertie, 2nd Duke of Ancaster and Kesteven
- Mary Wynn, Duchess of Ancaster and Kesteven
Anwyl family of Parc (later of Tywyn)
Like the Wynn family, the Anwyl family of ParcParc, Penrhyndeudraeth
Parc is the name of an ancient mansion found near the village of Croesor in the community of Llanfrothen near Penrhyndeudraeth, in Gwynedd, Wales...
(and later of Tywyn
Tywyn
Tywyn is a town and seaside resort on the Cardigan Bay coast of southern Gwynedd , in north Wales. The name derives from the Welsh tywyn and the town is sometimes referred to as Tywyn Meirionnydd...
) also claim Rhodri ab Owain Gwynedd
Rhodri ab Owain Gwynedd
Rhodri ab Owain Gwynedd was prince of part of Gwynedd, one of the kingdoms of medieval Wales. He ruled from 1175 to 1195.On the death of Owain Gwynedd in 1170, fighting broke out among his nineteen sons over the division of his kingdom...
as their ancestor. However, they part from the Wynn family in the early 15th Century as they descend from Ieuan ap Maredudd whereas the Wynn family descends from Robert ap Maredudd (the elder brother). The brothers took opposing sides during the revolt of Owain Glyndwr
Owain Glyndwr
Owain Glyndŵr , or Owain Glyn Dŵr, anglicised by William Shakespeare as Owen Glendower , was a Welsh ruler and the last native Welshman to hold the title Prince of Wales...
. The Anwyl family has been maintained in the male line and survives in Wales to this day; the current head of the family is Evan Vaughan Anwyl of Tywyn (b.1943).