Kingdom of Gwynedd

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Teyrnas Gwynedd Kingdom of Gwynedd[1] ← 5th century – 1282 → Traditional Banner of the Aberffraw House of Gwynedd Traditional Arms of the Aberffraw House of Gwynedd Medieval kingdoms of Wales. Capital Degannwy, Aberffraw and Garth Celyn Language(s) Welsh Government Monarchy King  - 450 - 460 Cunedda  - 520 - 547 Maelgwn I  - 625 - 634 Cadwallon II  - 1039 - 1063 Gruffydd ap Llywelyn  - 1081 - 1137 Gruffudd I  - 1137 - 1170 Owain I Historical era Middle Ages  - Established 5th century  - Annexed by England 1282 ^  In Latin, Gwynedd was often referred to in official medieval charters and acts of the 13th century as Principatus Norwallia (Principality of North Wales).

Gwynedd (pr. [ˈɡwɪnɛð]) is one of several Welsh successor states that emerged in 5th century post-Roman Britain. 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 and all of north Wales between the River Dyfi in the south and River Dee (Welsh Dyfrdwy) in the northeast.^[1] 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.^[2]

Popular tradition attributed to Nennius, a 10th century Welsh chronicler, traced Gwynedd's foundation to Cunedda.^[1] According to Nennius, Cunedda migrated with his sons and followers from Brythonic Lothian, in southern Scotland, in the 5th century. ^[1]

The heart of Gwynedd was originally at Deganwy, where Maelgwn Gwynedd (died 547) had his stronghold. The senior line of descendants of Rhodri the Great would make Aberffaw on Ynys Mon as their principle seat, and later rulers of Gwynedd would adopt the title "Prince of Aberffraw" or "Lord of Aberffraw".

Contents 1 Etymology 2 History 2.1 Dark Ages 2.2 Aberffraw primacy 2.3 Gruffydd I of Gwynedd, 1081-1137 2.3.1 The Norman invasion 2.3.2 Escape and resistance 2.3.3 Resurgence and Pura Wallia 2.3.4 The Great Revolt; 1136-1137 2.3.5 Gruffydd's legacy 2.4 Owain I of Gwynedd, 1137-1170 2.4.1 The Great Revolt: 1137-1157 2.4.2 Second Great Revolt, 1166 2.4.3 Owain's legacy 2.5 Hywel, Dafydd, and Llywelyn 1170-1195 2.6 Principality of Wales, 1195-1282 3 Welsh in warfare 4 Administration 4.1 Ynys Môn 4.2 Gwynedd-Uwch-Conwy 4.3 Perfeddwlad 5 End of independence 6 Rulers of Gwynedd 6.1 House of Cunedda 6.2 House of Aberffraw 6.3 10th and 11th century usurptions 6.4 Aberffraw restoration 6.5 Post-Conquest descendants 6.5.1 Wynn Dynasty of Gwydir 7 Images of Gwynedd 8 Sources 9 Notes

[edit] Etymology

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".^[3]The territory was called Venedotia in Latin.^[4]

Additionally, it is also suggested that Gwynedd is a mutated form of Cunedda, or Kenneth(a). In Welsh, the hard c mutates to g, thus Kenneth mutates to Gwyneth, thus Kenneth's Land

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.^[1] 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"). ^[1] The references to "citizen" and "magistrate" suggest that Roman institutions may have survived in Gwynedd for a while after the legions departed. ^[1]

[edit] History

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Chronological Eras
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[edit] Dark Ages

From the earliest sources Gwynedd appears to have held a pre-eminent position amongst the petty Cambrian states in the post-Roman period. It is acknowledged that Cunedda drove the Irish colonists out of Anglesey and the Llyn Peninsula and by the end of the 6th century the western borders of Gwynedd were secure under the control of his descendants. The grandson of Cunedda, Maelgwn Hir (Malcom the Tall), became one of the most famous (or infamous) leaders in Welsh history. 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 Britanniae. Maelgwn, described as "the island dragon", possibly a reference to his power base on Anglesey, is the most powerful of the five 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...." His immediate successors successfully resisted encroachments by both Northumbria and Powys.

Among the more powerful of the early kings of Gwynedd were Cadwallon ap Cadfan (c.624 - 634) who invaded Northumbria and briefly controlled it, and Rhodri the Great (844 - 878) who was able to add Powys and part of southern Wales to his realm, becoming the first ruler to control the greater part of Wales. Rhodri's eldest son Anarawd ap Rhodri would establish the princely house of Aberffraw, that would come to rule Gwynedd until the 13th century. Hywel Dda of Deheubarth was able to annex Gwynedd to his own kingdom between 942 and 950, but the previous dynasty regained power on his death.

King of Gwynedd c615-625]] The coastal areas, particularly Anglesey, were now coming under increasing attack by Viking raiders, particularly Danish raids in the period between 950 and 1000. Godfrey Haroldson is said to have carried off two thousand captives from Anglesey on 987, and the king of Gwynedd, Maredudd ab Owain is reported to have redeemed many of his subjects from slavery by paying the Danes a large ransom.

[edit] Aberffraw primacy

The Aberffraw family had long claimed primacy over all other Welsh lords, including of Powys and of Deheubarth. ^[5][6] 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.^[5] Gruffydd ap Cynan's biography was first written in Latin and intended for a wider audience outside of Wales.^[5]

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 decent," wrote historian John Davies.^[5]

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. Additionally, Gruffudd ap Llywelyn held parts of England near the border after several victories over English armies. However in 1063 he was defeated by Harold Godwinson and killed by his own men. 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, for following the killing of Bleddyn ap Cynfyn in Deheubarth in 1075, his cousin Trahaearn ap Caradog seized the throne but then was immediately challenged by Gruffydd ap Cynan who had been in exile in Ireland.

[edit] Gruffydd I of Gwynedd, 1081-1137

See also Wales and the Normans: 1067–1283

[edit] The Norman invasion

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.^[2][7] 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 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^[2][7][8] Earl Hugh claimed the Perfeddwlad up to the Clwyd river (the commotes 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.^[7] The lands west of the Clwyd were intended for his cousin Robert "of Ruddlan", and their advance extended to the Llŷn Peninsula by 1090.^[7] By 1094 almost the whole of Wales was occupied by Norman forces.^[7] However, although they erected many castles, Norman control in most regions of Wales was tenuous at best.^[7] 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.^[7]

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. ^[9] 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 with 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.^[10][11] Additionally, Hervé routinely excommunicated parishioners of whom he perceived as challenging his spiritual and temporal authority.^[10]

[edit] Escape and resistance

Gruffydd escaped imprisonment in Chester, and slew Robert of Rhuddlan in a beach side battle at Deganwy on 3 July 1093.^[8] 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.^[2][7] Gruffydd and Cadwgan led the Welsh resistance to the Norman occupation in north and mid Wales.^[2][7] 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 defensable Ynys Môn, where they planed to make retaliatory strikes from their island fortress.^[2][7] 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.^[2][7] Betrayed, Gruffydd and Cadwgan were forced to flee to Ireland in a skiff.^[2][7]

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.^[2] The earl of Shrewsbury had an elderly priest mutilated, and made the church of Llandyfrydog a kennel for his dogs.^[2]

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.^[2] The Norse left as suddenly and as mysteriously as they had arrived, however leaving the Norman army weakened and demoralized.^[2]

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 Gwyneed, and ultimatly abandoning any colonization plans there.^[2][12] Edwin ap Goronwy transfered his alliegence 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.^[12]

[edit] Resurgence and Pura Wallia

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.^[2] 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 (Môn, Caernarfonshire and northern Merionethshire), the lands of upper Gwynedd to the Conwy which were already firmly in Gruffydd's control.^[2] Cadwgan regained Ceredigion, and his share of the family inheritance in Powys, from the new earl of Shrewsbury, Robert of Bellême.^[2]

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.^[13] 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.^[13]

Reconstruction

After generations of incessant warfare, Gruffydd began the reconstruction of Gwynedd, intent on bringing stability to his country.^[7] 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".^[7] Gruffydd consolidated princely authoriy 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.^[14]

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.^[7][2] 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.^[2] There were no battles or skermishes 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.^[14]

The invasion left a lasting impact on Gruffydd, who by 1116 was in his 60s and with failing eyesight.^[2] 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.^[2] Gruffydd's policy, which his sons would execute and later rulers of Gwynedd adopted, was to recover Gwynedd's primacy without blantently antagonizing the English crown.^[2][14]

Gwynedd's Expansion 1120-1132

In 1120 a minor border war between Lywarch ab Owain, lord of a commote in the Dyffryn Clwyd cantref, and Hywel ab Ithel, lord of Rhufoniog and Rhos, (all three part of either Conwy county or Denbighshire), brought Powys and Chester into conflict in the Perfeddwlad.^[14] 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.^[14] 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 phyrric victory as the battle left Hywel ab Ithel mortally wounded.^[14] The last of his line, when Hywel ab Ithel died six weeks later he left Rhufoniog and Rhos berefit. ^[14] 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.^[14] With Rhufoniog and Rhos abandoned, Gruffydd I annexed the cantrefs. ^[14]

On the death of Einion ap Cadwgan, lord of Meirionydd, a quarell engulfed his kinsmen on who should succeed him.^[14] Meirionydd was then a vassel cantref of Powys, and the family there a cadet of the Mathrafal house of Powys.^[14] Gruffydd gave license to his sons Cadwallon and Owain to press the opportunity the dynastic striff in Meirionydd presented.^[14] The brothers raided Mierionydd with the Lord of Powys as impotant there as he was in the Perfeddwlad.^[14] However it would not be until 1136 that the cantref was firmly within Gwynedd's control.^[14]

Prehaps 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.^[14] And in 1125 Cadwallon slew the grandsons of Edwin ap Goronwy of Tegeingl, leaving Tegeingl berift of lordship.^[12]

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.^[14] 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).^[14]

[edit] The Great Revolt; 1136-1137

By 1136 an opportunity arose for the Welsh to recover lands lost to the Marcher lords when Stephen de Blois displaced his cousin Empress Matilda from succeeded her father to the English throne the prior year, sparking the Anarchy in England.^[15][16] The usurption and conflict it caused eroded central authority in England.^[15] The revolt began in south Wales, as Hywel ap Maredudd, lord of Brycheiniog (Brecknockshire), gathered his men and marched to the Gower, defeating the Norman and English colonists there. ^[15] Inspired by Hywel of Brycheiniog's success, Gruffydd ap Rhys, Prince of Deheubarth, hastened to meet with Gruffydd I of Gwynedd, his father-in-law, to enlist his aid in the revolt.^[15] However, with Gruffydd ap Rhys' absence the Normans increased their incursions into Deheubarth.^[17] Gruffydd ap Rhys' wife Gwenllian, Princess of Deheubarth, gathered a host for the defense of her country.^[17]

Gwenllian was the youngest daughter of Gruffydd I of Gwynedd, and after she eloped with the Prince of Deheubarth she joined him resisting Norman occupation in south Wales.^[17] Husband and wife led retalitory strikes on Norman positions in Deheubarth, taking goods from the Norman, English, and Flemish colonists and redistributing them back to Deheubarth's displaced Welsh, "as a pair of Robin Hoods of Wales", wrote historian Philip Warner.^[17]

With her husband meeting with her father in Gwynedd, Gwenllian raised an army to counter Norman incursians ravaging Deheubarth.^[17] Gwenllian met the Norman army, led by Maurice of London, near Kidwelly Castle.^[15][17] Gwenllian's forces were routed, and she was captured and beheaded by the Normans.^[15] Though defeated, her 'patriotic revolt' inspired others in south Wales to rise.^[15][17] The Welsh of Gwent, led by Iowerth ab Owain (grandson of Caradog ap Gruffydd, Gwent's Welsh ruler displaced by the Norman invasions), ambushed and slew Richard Fitz Gilbert, the Norman lord who controlled Ceredigion.^[15][17]

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.^[15][17] 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".^[15] 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.^[15]

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.^[15] The battle turned into a rout, and then into a resounding defeat of the Normans.^[15]

When their father Gruffydd I died in 1137, the brothers Owain and Cadwaladr were on a second campaign in Ceredifion, and took the castles of Ystrad Meurig, Lampeter (Stephen's Castle), and Castell Hywell (Humphries Castle)^[15]

Realizing how vulnerable they were with a resurgant Wales during the Great Revolt, the Marcher lords became estranged from Stephen of England due in large part because of his lackluster response to the Welsh resurgancy. These lords began shifting their alliegence back to the cause of Empress Matilda and the return of a strong royal government.^[15][16]

[edit] Gruffydd's legacy

When Gruffydd I ap Cynan died in 1137 he left a more stable realm then had hitherto existed in Gwynedd for more then 100 years.^[18] 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.^[18]

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".^[18] 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. ^[18]

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.^[18]

[edit] Owain I of Gwynedd, 1137-1170

Owain I ap Gruffydd succeeded his father to the greater portion of Gwynedd in accordance to Welsh law, 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.^[18] 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.^[19]

[edit] The Great Revolt: 1137-1157

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.^[20] Owain, however, did not participate in the battle, keeping the majority of Gwynedd's army at home.^[20] Owain, of restrained and prudent temperament, may have judge 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.^[21][22] 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.^[17]As ruler of Gwynedd, Owain striped Cadwaladr of his lands, with Owain's son Hywel dispatched to Ceredigion, where he burned Cadwaladr's castle at Aberystwyth.^[21] Cadwaladr fled to Ireland and hired a Norse fleet from Dublin, bringing the fleet to Abermenai to compel Owain to reinstate him.^[21] Taking advantage of the brotherly strife, and perhaps with the tacit understanding of Cadwaladr, the marcher lords mounted incursions into Wales.^[22] Realizing the wider ramifications of the war before him, Owain and Cadwaladr came to terms and reconciled, with Cadwaladr restored to his lands.^[21][22] 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.^[21] 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.^[21][22]

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. ^[23]

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.^[24] "By 1154 Owain had brought his men within sight of the red towers of the great city on the Dee", wrote Lloyd."^[24]

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.^[25] Henry II raised his feudal host and marched into Wales from Chester.^[25] 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.^[25]

In the melee which followed Henry II was almost slain had not Roger, Earl of Hertford rescued the king.^[25] Henry II retreated and made his way back to his main army, by now slowly advancing towards Rhuddlan.^[25] Not wishing to engage the Norman army directly, Owain repositioned himself first at St. Asph, then further west, clearing the road for Henry II to enter into Rhuddlan "ingloriously".^[25] 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.

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.^[25] 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. ^[25] 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.^[25]

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.^[25]

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.^[26] 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.^[26] It was a policy of outward conciliation, while masking his own consolidation of authority.^[26] To further demonstrate his good-will, in 1160 Owain handed over to the English crown the fugative Einion Clud.^[26] 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.^[26] 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.

[edit] Second Great Revolt, 1166

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. ^[26][27] 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.^[26] 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.^[28]

However, when Henry II returned to England he found that the war had already began, with Owain's son Dafydd raiding Angevin positions in Tegeingle, exposing the castles of Rhuddlan and Basingwerk to "serious dangers", wrote Lloyd.^[28] 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.^[28]

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.^[28] 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.^[28]

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.^[28] Owain I had positioned a band of skirmishers in the thick woods overlooking the pass, which harassed the exposed army from a secured position.^[28] 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.^[28] 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.^[28] 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.^[28] 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.^[28]

In frustration, Henry II had twenty-two Welsh hostages mutilated; the sons of Owain' supporters and allies, including two of Owain's own sons.^[28] 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.^[28]

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.^[28] Lloyd wrote;

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.^[28]

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.^[27] Distracted by his widening quarrel with Thomas Becket, Owain's army recovered Tegeingle for Gwynedd by 1169.^[27]

[edit] Owain's legacy

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.^[29] 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.^[5] 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 then king (Latin rex, Welsh brenin), did not mean a diminution in status, according to Davies.^[29] The use of the title prince was a recognition of the ruler of Gwynedd in relation to the wider international feudal world.^[29] 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 nominally a vassel of the king of England, argued Davies.^[29] 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.^[29]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.^[30]

[edit] Hywel, Dafydd, and Llywelyn 1170-1195

Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd duly succeeded his father in 1170, however Owain's widow Cristin ferch Goronwy ab Owain favoured her own sons Dafydd ab Owain Gwynedd and Rhodri ab Owain Gwynedd. Cristin appears to have been the prime instigator of a revolt organised between a cabal of discontented relatives.

They made their move, and within a few months of his succession Hywel was overthrown and killed at the Battle of Pentraeth in 1171. Dafydd was the leading figure in this cabal, which naturally included his brother Rhodri as well as his half brother Maelgwn ab Owain and the nephews of another half brother Cynan ab Owain, namely Gruffudd ap Cynan and Maredudd ap Cynan.

Althought 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 I. Due to his problems with the Church and Normandy, Henry I of England 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 King of Man, 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 ab Owain Gwynedd took no part in the dynastic struggles and most likely died sometime in the mid 1170s. 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".

[edit] Principality of Wales, 1195-1282

See also Principality of Wales

Llywelyn, later known as Llywelyn the Great, went on to become ruler of most of Wales. On his death in 1240, the rule of Gwynedd passed to his son Dafydd ap Llywelyn, but Dafydd died without an heir in 1246 and the kingdom was split between the sons of another son of Llywelyn the Great, Gruffudd ap Llywelyn. One of these, Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, eventually defeated his brothers and became ruler of all Gwynedd, later extending his rule to other parts of Wales.

From 1200 until 1283 the home and headquarters of the Princes was Garth Celyn, Aber Garth Celyn, now known as Pen y Bryn, Abergwyngregyn or simply just "Aber" (its shortened form adopted by the Crown of England after the conquest). Garth Celyn is situated on a ledge of land to the east of the river, at the foot of Maes y Gaer, a pre-Roman hillfort. It has widesweeping views over the Menai Strait to Anglesey, and the medieval port of Llanfaes. Joan, Lady of Wales, died at Garth Celyn 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 19th June 1282, giving birth to a daughter, Gwenllian. Rebellion over the rule of the English Crown arose and was joined by Llywelyn. This lead in November 1282 the Archbishop of Canterbury John Peckham came to Garth Celyn 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. From Garth Celyn Llywelyn wrote rejecting the offer^{[citation needed]}. Within a month, Llywelyn, on 11 December 1282, was killed. The nature of his death is reported in the Lambeth Palace Archives^{[citation needed]}. In June 1283 Dafydd ap Gruffudd was capured at Bera Mountain, in the uplands above Gath Celyn. Recorded as being "severely injured" in his capture, he was taken to Edward that day, then moved to Shrewsbury where in October he was hanged, drawn and quartered. The royal children were locked away and never released: the boys in Bristol Castle; the girls in priories in Lincolnshire.

[edit] 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.^[2] 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.^[2] With control of the Menai Strait, an army could regroup on Môn, without control of the Menai an army could be stranded there, and any occupying force on Môn could deny the vast harvest of the island from the Welsh. And Welsh through-out Wales were able to lead retaliatory strikes from mountainous strongholds or remote forested glens.^[7]

The Welsh were revered for the skills of their bowmen. Additionally, the Welsh learned from their Norman rivals.^[2] 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.^[2] By Gruffydd's death in 1137 Gwynedd could field hundreds of heavy well-armed cavalry as well as their traditional bowmen and infantry.^[2]

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. 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 lightening 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.

[edit] Administration

The traditional sphere of Aberffraw 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 commotes).

[edit] Ynys Môn

Cantref of Ynys Môn

Commote	Modern local	Notes
Aberffraw	Aberffraw	Historic seat of rulers of Gwynedd
Cemais	Cemaes
Talebolyon
Llan-faes	Llan-maes
Penrhos	Penrhos
Rhosyr	Newborough, Niwbro	in 1294, refounded to house displaced villagers from Llanfaes

[edit] Gwynedd-Uwch-Conwy

Gwynedd above the Conwy, or upper Gwynedd

Cantref Arllechwedd

Commote	Modern local	Notes
Aber	Abergwyngregyn, Conwy county
Trefriw	Trefriw, Conwy county

Cantref Arfon

Commote	Modern local	Notes
Uwch Conwy	Conwy county	Upper Conwy
Is Conwy	Conwy county	Lower Conwy
Dinmael	Conwy county

Cantref Dunoding

Commote	Modern local	Notes
Ardudwy	Meirionnydd area within Gwynedd
Eifionydd	Dwyfor area within Gwynedd	Named after Eifion ap Dynod ap Cunedda
Rifnot

Cantref Llŷn

Commote	Modern local	Notes
Cwm Dinam	Dwyfor council in Gwynedd county
Is Clogion	Dwyfor council in Gwynedd county
Rifnot

Cantref Meirionnydd

Commote	Modern local	Notes
Ystumaner	Merionethshire council in Gwynedd county
Tal-y-bont

[edit] Perfeddwlad

Perfeddwlad, or "the Middle Country" or Gwynedd-Is-Conwy (Gwynedd below the Conwy, or lower Gwynedd)

• Cantref Tegeingl:
  • Insel
  • Prestatyn
  • Rhuddlan
• Dyffryn Clwyd:
  • Colian
  • Llannerch
  • Ystrad
• Rhufoniog
  • Rhuthyn
  • Uwch Aled
  • Is Aled
• Cantref Rhos
  • Uwch Dulas
  • Is Dulas
  • y Creuddyn

[edit] End of independence

Following the death of Llywelyn ap Gruffydd 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. 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 traditional counties of Anglesey, Carnarvonshire, Merionethshire, Denbighshire and Flintshire.

The Principality of Wales (including 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 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. The resulting county model would last until the re-organisation of 1974.

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 family of Gwydir. 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 died out, probably in the late 18th Century. Another claim could come 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.

[edit] Rulers of Gwynedd

[edit] House of Cunedda

• Cunedda Wledig ap Edern (Cunedda the Imperator) (c.450-c.460)
• Einion Yrth ap Cunedda (Einion the Impetuous) (c.470-c.480)
• Cadwallon Lawhir ap Einion (Cadwallon Long Hand) (c.500-c.534)
• Maelgwn Hir ap Cadwallon (Maelgwn the Tall) (c.520-c.547)
• Rhun Hir ap Maelgwn (Rhun the Tall) (c.547-c.580)
• Beli ap Rhun (c.580-c.599)
• Iago ap Beli (c.599-c.613)
• Cadfan ap Iago (c.613-c.625)
• Cadwallon ap Cadfan (c.625-634)
• Cadafael Cadomedd ap Cynfeddw (Cadfael the Battle-Shirker) (634-c.655)
• Cadwaladr Fendigaid ap Cadwallon (Cadwallader the Blessed) (c.655-c.682)
• Idwal Iwrch ap Cadwaladr (Idwal Roebuck) (c.682-c.720)
• Rhodri Molwynog ap Idwal (Rhodri the Bald and Gray) (c.720-c.754)
• Caradog ap Meirion (c.754-c.798)
• Cynan Dindaethwy ap Rhodri (c.798-816)
• Hywel ap Rhodri Molwynog (814-825)
• Merfyn Frych ap Gwriad (Merfyn the Freckled) (825-844)
• Rhodri Mawr ap Merfyn (844-878)

[edit] House of Aberffraw

• Anarawd ap Rhodri (878-916) (establishes the Aberffraw dynasty, the senior branch of descendants from Rhodri Mawr)
• Idwal Foel ab Anarawd (Idwal the Bald) (916-942)
• Hywel Dda ap Cadell (Howell the Good) (942-950) (Dinefwr dynasty of Rhodri Mawr's descendants usurp from Aberffraw.)
• Iago ab Idwal (950-979) (returns to the Aberffraw branch)
• Ieuaf ab Idwal (950-969)
• Hywel ab Ieuaf (974-985)
• Cadwallon ab Ieuaf (985-986)

[edit] 10th and 11th century usurptions

• Maredudd ab Owain (986-999) Dinefwr dynasty seizes Gwynedd
• Cynan ap Hywel (999-1005) Returns to the Aberffraw dynasty briefly
• Aeddan ap Blegywryd (1005-1018) (usurpes Gwynedd from the Aberffraw dynasty))
• Llywelyn ap Seisyll (1018-1023) (cadet branch of Mathrafal dynasty from Powys usurps from Aeddan ap Blegywryd)
• Iago ab Idwal ap Meurig (1023-1039) (Aberffraw dynasty returns)
• Gruffydd ap Llywelyn (1039-1063) (Llywelyn's son Gruffydd usurps from Aberffraw dynasty)
• Bleddyn ap Cynfyn (1063-1075) (Mathrafal dynasty of Powys "receives" Gwynedd from the English King)
• Trahaearn ap Caradog (1075-1081)

[edit] Aberffraw restoration

• Gruffydd ap Cynan (1081-1137) (Aberffraw dynasty returns)
• Owain Gwynedd ap Gruffydd (1137-1170) (After Owain rulers of Gwynedd are styled Prince of Aberffraw and Lord of Snowdon)
• Maelgwn ab Owain Gwynedd (1170-1173)
• Dafydd ab Owain Gwynedd (1170-1195) (in the east)
• Rhodri ab Owain Gwynedd (1170-1190) (in the west)
• Llywelyn Fawr ap Iorwerth (Llywelyn the Great) (1195-1240) de jure first Prince of Wales
• Dafydd ap Llywelyn (1240-1246) (First acknowledged Prince of Wales)
• Owain Goch ap Gruffydd (Owen the Red) (1246-1255)
• Llywelyn ap Gruffydd (Llywelyn the Last) (1246-1282) (Second acknowledged Prince of Wales)
• Dafydd ap Gruffydd (1282-1283) (not crowned but claimed the title)

[edit] Post-Conquest descendants

• Madog ap Llywelyn (1294-1295) (not crowned but claimed the title)
• Owain ap Tomas ap Rhodri (Owen the Red Hand) (1372-1378), great-nephew of Llywelyn the Last, in exile but claimed the title.

[edit] Wynn Dynasty of Gwydir

After Owain Lawgoch the line of Aberffraw would continue post conquest, and later direct male descendants would include the Wynn family, claiming direct male decent from Owain Gwynedd.

• Owain Gwynedd, Prince of Gwynedd (d. November 1170) = Cristina ferch Gronw ap Owain ap Edwin
• Rhodri ab Owain Gwynedd, Lord of Anglesey (d.1195) = Annest ferch Rhys ap Gruffudd
• Thomas ap Rhodri ab Owain Gwynedd = 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 verch Ieuan ap Dafydd ap Trahaern Goch
• Robert ap Maredudd = Angharad ferch Dafydd ap Llywelyn
• Ifan ap Robert (b. 1438, d. 1469) = Catherine ferch Rhys ap Hywel Fychan
• Maredudd ap Ifan (Ieuan) ap Robert (b. c1459, d. 18 March 1525) = Ales ferch William Gruffudd ap Robin
• John "Wynn" ap Maredudd (d. 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 Morys of Gwydir

Wynn Baronets of Gwydir (1611)

The Wynn Baronets 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. 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.

• Sir John Wynn, 1st Baronet (d. 1627)
• Sir Richard Wynn, 2nd Baronet (c. 1588–1649)
• Sir Owen Wynn, 3rd Baronet (d. 1660)
• Sir Richard Wynn, 4th Baronet (c. 1625–1674)
  • Mary Wynn, Duchess of Ancaster and Kesteven
    • Priscilla Bertie, 21st Baroness Willoughby de Eresby
• Sir John Wynn, 5th Baronet (c. 1628–1719) (extinct 1719)
  • 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 family.
    • Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 4th Baronet (1749–1789)
      • Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 5th Baronet (1772–1840)
        • Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn, 6th Baronet (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 Baronet (b. 1940)

A cadet branch of descendants could trace their decent from Richard Wynn, through his daughter Mary Wynn, Duchess of Ancaster and Kesteven, and his great granddaughter Priscilla Bertie, 21st Baroness Willoughby de Eresby. This cadet branch would expire with the 1915 death of Willoughby Burrell, 5th Baron Gwydyr.

[edit] Images of Gwynedd

Eryri (Snowdonia) is the highest mountain range in Wales. At 1085 metres (3,560 feet), Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon) is the second highest peak in Great Britain south of Scotland's Ben Nevis. The Welsh sought refuge in the mountain range in the face of invasions.

The name of the range in Welsh, Eryri is traditionally believed to derive from the Welsh word for eagle, eryr. However, Welsh scholar Sir Ifor Williams argued the name's origin derived from higlands.^[31]

In the Middle Ages the title Prince of Aberffraw and Lord of Snowdon (Tywysog Aberffraw ac Arglwydd Eryri) was used by the hereditary princes of Gwynedd; for example Llywelyn Fawr.

Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon) from Llyn Llydaw	Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon) and Crib Goch in Winter, from Dyffryn Mymbyr	The flanks of Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon) in winter	Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon) massif from Glyder Fawr
Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon) from Hendre Fawr farm Ynys Môn (Anglesey)	View from the summit of Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon), looking east over Llyn Llydaw

[edit] Sources

• BBC Wales/History, The emergence of the principality of Wales extracted 26 March, 2008
• Bartlett, Robert (2000). England Under the Norman and Angevin Kings: 1075-1225. Oxford: Clarendon Press. ISBN 0-19-822741-8. 
• Barlow, Frank (2000). William Rufus. Yale University Press. ISBN 0-30-008291-6. 
• Davies, John (1994). A History of Wales. New York: Penguin. ISBN 0-14-014581-8. 
• Davies, John (2002). The Celts. New York: Cassell Illustrated. ISBN 1-841-88188-0. 
• Evans, Gwynfor (2004). Cymru O Hud. Abergwyngregyn: Y Lolfa. ISBN 0862435455. 
• Morris, John E. (1996). The Welsh Wars of Edward I. Conshohocken, PA.: Combined Books. ISBN 0-938289-67-5. 
• Lloyd, J.E (2004). A History of Wales; From the Norman Invasion to the Edwardian Conquest. New York: Barnes & Noble Publishing, Inc.. ISBN 0-7607-5241-9. 
• Stephenson, David (1984). The governance of Gwynedd. University of Wales Press. ISBN 0-7083-0850-3. 
• Warner, Philip (1997). Famous Welsh Battles. New York: Barnes & Noble Publishing, Inc.. ISBN 0-7-607-0466-x. 

[edit] Notes

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