Maredudd ap Gruffydd was a prince of the kingdom of Deheubarth in south west Wales.

Maredudd was the eldest son of Gruffydd ap Rhys

Gruffydd ap Rhys

Gruffydd ap Rhys was Prince of Deheubarth, in Wales. His sister was the Princess Nest ferch Rhys.-Early life:Following the death of Gruffydd's father Rhys ap Tewdwr in 1093, Deheubarth was taken over by the Normans, and Gruffydd spent much of his early years in exile in Ireland.In 1113 Gruffydd...

 by Gwenllian ferch Gruffydd

Gwenllian ferch Gruffydd

Gwenllian ferch Gruffydd was Princess-consort of Deheubarth in Wales, and married to Gruffydd ap Rhys, Prince of Deheubarth. Gwenllian was the daughter of Gruffydd ap Cynan , Prince of Gwynedd, and a member of the princely Aberffraw family of Gwynedd. Gwenllian was the sister of Prince Owain...

, though he had two older half-brothers, Anarawd

Anarawd ap Gruffydd

- Lineage :Anarawd was the eldest son of Gruffydd ap Rhys. On the death of his father in 1137 Anarawd took over the rule of Deheubarth.- Resistance :...

 and Cadell

Cadell ap Gruffydd

Cadell ap Gruffydd was prince of the kingdom of Deheubarth in south west Wales.Cadell was the son of Gruffydd ap Rhys, who held part of the kingdom of Deheubarth with the remainder in the hands of various Norman lords. Gruffydd died in 1137 and Cadell's brother Anarawd ap Gruffydd took over the...

. He was only six years old when his mother and then his father were killed. At the age of 16 he is recorded helping his half-brother Cadell, now prince of Deheubarth, to expel the Normans from Ceredigion. He then successfully defended Carmarthen

Carmarthen

Carmarthen is a community in, and the county town of, Carmarthenshire, Wales. It is sited on the River Towy north of its mouth at Carmarthen Bay. In 2001, the population was 14,648....

 castle against a Norman assault, hurling down the scaling ladders.

In 1151 he took a prominent part in winning back the northern part of Ceredigion from Gwynedd

Kingdom of Gwynedd

Gwynedd was one petty kingdom of several Welsh successor states which emerged in 5th-century post-Roman Britain in the Early Middle Ages, and later evolved into a principality during the High Middle Ages. It was based on the former Brythonic tribal lands of the Ordovices, Gangani, and the...

. The same year Cadell was attacked by a force of Normans while out hunting and left for dead. He survived, but was so badly injured that the effective rule of Deheubarth fell on Maredudd. In 1153 Cadell left on a 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...

, leaving Maredudd as prince of Deheubarth.

Maredudd died two years later in 1155, leaving the throne of Deheubarth to his younger brother Rhys

Rhys ap Gruffydd

Rhys ap Gruffydd or ap Gruffudd was the ruler of the kingdom of Deheubarth in south Wales. He is commonly known as The Lord Rhys, in Welsh Yr Arglwydd Rhys, but this title may not have been used in his lifetime...

, later known as The Lord Rhys.