In a time when power and territory were constantly in flux, the intricacies of Welsh royalty were an inseparable part of the history of early Wales.
In the era preceding the industrial age, European monarchies were the way of governing. Kings gained kingdoms by inheriting them or by winning them in wars defeating a king and his supporters, then taking over the kingdom. There were a lot of small kingdoms in early Wales, thus a lot of wars. Very powerful kings were able to consolidate smaller kingdoms into a larger one, as did the kings of Gwyned and Powys. The kings were colorful individuals, and the stories of the battles are rich with hatred, jealousy and exaltation.
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An early history of Wales
Archaeologists in Wales have discovered human remains from the Mesolithic, Neolithic and Bronze Ages. However, continuous habitation didn’t develop until after the Iron Age. The Romans who began their conquest of Britain in northeast Wales remained until the 5th century. When they left, the culture splintered into the Kingdoms of Gwynedd, Powys, Deheubarth, Brycheiniog, Eryng and Gwent. Today, there are more than 600 castles in Wales - more per square mile than anywhere in the world. They testify to the excellent skills in building by the Welsh as early as the 12th century. A patriarchal society, the eldest male inherited the throne.
Notable Welsh monarchs
Rhodri the Great
Rhodri the Great 820 - 878 (in Welsh, Rhodri Mawr; occasionally in English, Roderick the Great) was the first ruler of Wales to be called 'Great', and the first to rule most of present-day Wales. He was also called King of the Britons, Celtic inhabitants of Great Britain from the Iron Age until the Middle Ages who diverged into the Welsh among others. The son of Merfyn Frych (Merfyn the Freckled)[1] ap Gwriad king of Gwynedd and his wife, Nest Cadell of the royal line of Powys, Rhodri inherited the kingdom of Gwynedd when his father died in 844. His uncle, Cyngen ap Cadell ruler of Powys who had no sons, died on a pilgrimage to Rome in 855 and Rhodri inherited Powys. In 872 Gwgon ruler of Seisyllwg in southern Wales was accidentally drowned, so Rhodri added his kingdom to his domains by virtue of his marriage to Angharad, Gwgon's sister. This made him the ruler of the larger part of Wales.
His succession marked the start of a new dynasty. Rhodri faced pressure both from the English and increasingly from the Danes, who were in 854 ravaging Anglesey, a Welsh island. In 856 Rhodri won a notable victory over the Danes, killing their leader Gorm (sometimes given as Horm). Two poems by Sedulius Scotus written at the court of Charles the Bald celebrate the victory over the Norsemen. The Norsemen invaded again in 877 forcing Rhodri and his son to flee to Ireland. On his return the following year, he and his son Gwriad were said to have been killed by the English, though the precise manner of his death is unknown. When his son, Anarawd ap Rhodri won a victory over the Mercians a few years later, it was hailed in the annals as "God's vengeance for Rhodri". Another son, Cadell ap Rhodri, conquered Dyfed, which was later joined with Seisyllwg by Rhodri's grandson Hywel Dda to become the kingdom called Deheubarth. Like his grandfather, Hywel would come to rule to the bulk of Wales.
Llywelyn ap Seisyll
Llywelyn ap Seisyll (died 1023) was an 11th-century King of Gwynedd, Powys and Deheubarth. Llywelyn was the son of Seisyll, a man of whom little is known. Llewelyn first appears on record in 1018, when in that year he defeated and killed Aeddan ap Blegywryd along with four of his sons and obtained Gwynedd and Powys. In 1022, a man named Rhain claimed to be a son of Maredudd ab Owain, whose daughter Angharad had married Llywelyn. The Irishman was made king of Deheubarth. Llywelyn made war against Rhain, and they fought a battle at Abergwili, after which Rhain was killed allowing Llywelyn take control of Deheubarth. Llywelyn, after his success against Rhain, died in 1023. Song portrays Llywelyn’s reign as one of prosperity saying “complete in abundance of wealth and inhabitants; so that it was supposed there was neither poor nor destitute in all his territories, nor an empty hamlet, nor any deficiency.” Llywelyn was called "King of the Britons" by the Annals of Ulster. A king’s popularity and longevity were ensured by his generosity to his subjects. Llywelyn had one son called Gruffydd; he did not succeed his father, possibly because he was too young to do so.
Gruffydd ap Cynan
As king of Gwynedd, the first act of Gruffydd ap Cynan (1070 - 1237) was to attack the Norman castle at Rhuddlan where he carried off booty but failed to take the castle itself. As a result of the resentment felt towards the Norsemen in Gruffudd's army, the men of Llŷn (an area in the county of Gwynedd, North Wales) rebelled, giving Trahaearn ap Caradog, a bold and ambitious personality among the minor lords, the opportunity to usurp regal powers over an extensive area at moments when the fortunes of the major dynasties were at a low ebb, and take the opportunity to attack Gruffudd and overcome him in a battle which took place near Clynnog.
Gruffudd fled to Ireland. In 1081 he returned and landed at Porth Clais in Dyfed, where he was joined by Rhys ap Tewdwr, another exile, who was laying claim to his patrimony in Deheubarth. They met Trahaearn at Mynydd Cam, where he was slain, Gruffudd thus again became king of Gwynedd. Soon after, however, through the treachery of Meirion Goch, of one of his own men, he was captured by the Normans and taken prisoner. During his imprisonment at Chester (about twelve years), the Normans gained much land in Gwynedd. He was freed in 1094 and returned to Anglesey.
Sometime in the course of the succeeding years he made himself lord of Gwynedd, and for the rest of his life he was left undisturbed to consolidate his kingdom. The authority of Gwynedd was greatly extended by his sons, Owain and Cadwaladr, and before Gruffudd's death Ceredigion, Meirionnydd, Rhos, Rhufoniog and Dyffryn Clwyd were under the rule of Gwynedd. He died, blind and decrepit, in 1137, and was buried in the cathedral church of Bangor. An elegy upon him was sung by Meilyr, his pencerdd (chief poet). His wife, Angharad, daughter of Owain ab Edwin, survived him by twenty-five years. It was part of the traditional lore of the Welsh bards that Gruffudd ap Cynan had made certain regulations to govern their craft, and his name was used to give authority to the 'statute' drawn up in connection with the Caerwys eisteddfod of 1523.
There is nothing to substantiate this tradition, but it is not unreasonable to suggest that Gruffudd may have brought bards and musicians with him from Ireland and that these may have had some influence on the craft of poetry and music in Wales. He may also have made some formal changes in the bardic organization. It is clear that a genuine and persistent tradition to this effect existed in the 16th century, and perhaps worth noting that History mentions the death in battle of Gellan, Gruffudd's harpist, in 1094. “Gruffudd ap Cynan is the only mediaeval Welsh prince whose biography, in the form of pure eulogy, has survived. Linguistic characteristics prove it to have been a translation of a Latin original now lost. It was probably written by a cleric towards the end of the 12th century.” Author Sir Thomas Parry, (1904 - 1985)
Rhys ap Gruffydd
Rhys ap Gruffydd (1081-1187) Giraldus Cambrensis frequently mentions Rhys in his writings and describes him as "a man of excellent wit and quick in repartee.” Gerald tells of a banquet at Hereford in 1186 where Rhys sat between two members of the Clare family from whom he had previously seized land. The evening passed with compliments and pleasantry. When Gerald and Archbishop Baldwin visited Wales in 1188, to raise Crusade troops, Gerald frequently referred to Rhys’ kindness. He was known to give provisions to his enemies when besieged and driven by risk of famine to capitulate; because he wished them to be overcome by his own strength and not by starvation; and though he deferred victory, he increased the renown of it.
Significant Battles:
- The capture of Llansteffan castle in 1146 (in his early teens)
- Early reign loss of territory (1155–1163)
- Rhys built a castle at Aberdyfi in 1156
- King Henry in 1157 attacked Gwynedd
- Welsh uprising (1164–1170) All the Welsh princes united in an uprising.
- Peace with King Henry (1171–1188). He was forced to submit to King Henry II of England
- Final campaigns (1189–1196)
April 8, 1197 Rhys died unexpectedly and was buried in St David's Cathedral. The chronicler of Brut y Tywysogion records for 1197: ... “There was a great pestilence throughout the island of Britain ... and that tempest killed innumerable people and many of the nobility and many princes, and spared none. That year, four days before May Day, died Rhys ap Gruffydd, Prince of Deheubarth and unconquered head of all Wales.”
Having quarreled with the Bishop of St. David's over the theft of some of the bishop's horses some years previously, Rhys died excommunicated. Before he could be buried in the cathedral, the bishop had his corpse scourged in posthumous penance. Rhys had nominated his eldest legitimate son, Gruffydd ap Rhys, as his successor, and soon after his father's death Gruffydd met the Justiciar, Archbishop Hubert Walter, on the border and was confirmed as heir.
Maelgwn, the eldest son but illegitimate, refused to accept this and was given military assistance by Gwenwynwyn ab Owain of Powys. Maelgwn took the town and castle of Aberystwyth and captured Gruffydd, whom he handed over to the custody of Gwenwynwyn who later handed him over to the king, who imprisoned him at Corfe Castle. Gruffydd was set free the following year and regained most of Ceredigion. In 1201 Gruffydd died, but this did not end the fighting between rival claimants. In 1216 Llywelyn the Great of Gwynedd held a council at Aberdyfi where he allocated parts of Deheubarth to several sons and grandsons of Rhys.
Gwenllian ferch Gruffydd
Gwenllian ferch Gruffydd (Gwenllian, daughter of Gruffydd; c. 1100 – 1136), princess consort of Deheubarth in Wales, married Gruffydd ap Rhys.
Gwenllian was the youngest daughter of Gruffudd ap Cynan, Prince of Gwynedd, and his wife, Angharad. She was born at the family seat at Aberffraw, the youngest of eight children; four older sisters, and three older brothers. She was the great-great-great-granddaughter of Brian Bóruma mac Cennétig, High King of Ireland.
Gwenllian grew to be strikingly beautiful with long blonde hair. After Gruffydd ap Rhys, the Prince of Deheubarth, ventured to Gwynedd around 1113 to meet her father, Gwenllian and Deheubarth's prince became romantically involved and eloped. She married Gruffydd ap Rhys shortly after 1116 at the age of 15. Gwenllian and Gruffydd had eight children.
Gwenllian joined her husband at his family seat in Deheubarth. Deheubarth was struggling against the Norman invasion in South Wales, with Norman, English, and Flemish colonists in footholds throughout the country. While the conflict between the Normans and the Welsh continued, the princely family were often displaced, with Gwenllian joining her husband in mountainous and forested strongholds. From here, she and Gruffydd ap Rhys led retaliatory strikes, aka "lightning raids" against Norman-held positions in Deheubarth.
Gwenllian is the only woman of the medieval period known to have led a Welsh army into battle. The field where the battle is believed to have taken place, close to Kidwelly Castle and north of the town, is known as The Field of Gwenllian. A spring in the field is also named after her, supposedly welling up on the spot where she died. For centuries after her death, Welshmen cried out Revenge for Gwenllian when engaging in battle.
Gwenllian and her husband also harassed Norman, English, and Flemish colonists in Deheubarth, taking goods and money and redistributing them among the Deheubarth Welsh who were themselves dispossessed by those colonizers, like a pair of "Robin Hoods of Wales", as a historian and author Philip Warner writes. Gwenllian's youngest son went on to become a notable leader of Deheubarth, The Lord Rhys.
There are many more fascinating stories about the many kings of Medieval Wales. It was a territory racked with jealousy and conflict. Today, modern Wales is a popular tourist destination where the many castles can be explored and slept in. A beautiful mountainous country, its history is rich with poetry and music relating the stories.
Explore more about Welsh royal ancestors
- Welsh historical record collections on MyHeritage
- How to Find Out If You Have Royal Ancestry, article by Daniella Levy on the MyHeritage Knowledge Base
- Sources for Landed and Titled People in England and Wales, webinar by Paul Milner, FUGA, MDiv on Legacy Family Tree Webinars
- All webinars on researching Welsh ancestors on Legacy Family Tree Webinars