Gwynedd in the High Middle Ages

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Gwynedd is located in the north west of Wales. Gwynedd in the High Middle Ages is a period of Welsh, British, and European history spanning the 11th, 12th, and 13th centuries (AD 1000–1300). The High Middle Ages were preceded by the Early Middle Ages and followed by the Late Middle Ages.

Distinctive achievements in Gwynedd during this period include further development of medieval Welsh literature, known as the Beirdd y Tywysogion (Welsh for Poets of the Princes), the reformation of bardic schools, and the continued development of Cyfraith Hywel (The Law of Hywel, or Welsh law); all three of which further contributed to the development of a Welsh national identity in the face of Anglo-Norman encroachment of Wales.

Gwynedd's traditional territory included 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) lies to the north, and lands formerly part of the Powys border the south-east. Gwynedd's strength was due in part to the region's mountainous geography which made it difficult for foreign invaders to campaign in the country and impose their will effectively.^[2]

Gwynedd emerged from the Early Middle Ages having suffered from increasing Viking raids and various occupations by rival Welsh princes, causing political and social upheaval. With the historic Aberffraw family displaced, by the mid 11th century Gwynedd was united with the whole of Wales by the conquest of Gruffydd ap Llywelyn, followed by the Norman invasions between 1067 and 1100.

After the restoration of the Aberffraw family in Gwynedd, a series of successful rulers such as Gruffydd I and Owain I in the late 11th and 12th century, and Llywellyn I and Llywelyn II in the 13th century, led to the emergence of the Principality of Wales, based on Gwynedd.

The emergence of the principality in the 13th century was proof that all the elements necessary for the growth of Welsh statehood were in place, and Wales was independent de facto, wrote historian Dr. John Davies^[3]. As part of the Principality of Wales, Gwynedd would retain Welsh laws and customs and home rule until the Edwardian Conquest of Wales of 1282.

Contents 1 History 1.1 11th Century 1.1.1 Gruffydd ap Llywelyn 1.1.2 Mathrafal Ascendency; 1063-1081 1.1.2.1 Alliance with Mercia and Northumbria 1.1.3 The Norman invasion of Gwynedd; 1081-1100 1.1.3.1 Aberffraw resistance 1.2 12th Century 1.2.1 Marchia Wallie and Pura Wallia 1.2.2 Consoladation; 1101-1132 1.2.3 During England's Anarchy 1135-1157 1.2.3.1 The Great Revolt; 1136-1137 1.2.3.2 Owain I of Gwynedd 1.2.3.3 Henry II's 1157 Campaign 1.2.3.4 The Great Revolt of 1166 1.2.4 Interregnum; 1170-1200 1.3 13th Century 1.3.1 Llywelyn I of Wales 1195-1240 1.3.2 Prince of Wales 2 Culture and society 2.1 Poetry and literature 2.2 Settlements and architecture 2.3 The Welsh Church in Gwynedd 2.3.1 Before the Norman Invasion 2.4 Government and law 2.5 Gwynedd at war 3 Sources 4 Notes

[edit] History

[edit] 11th Century

The latter part of the 10th century, and the whole of the 11th century, was an exceptionally tumultuous period for Gwynedd's Welsh population.^[4] Deheubarth's ruler Maredudd ab Owain deposed Gwynedd's ruler Cadwallon ab Ieuaf of the House of Aberffraw in 986, annexing Gwynedd into his enlarged domain, which came to include most of Wales.^[4]

The Norse from Dublin and Man routinely raided the coasts of Wales, with Ynys Môn and the Llŷn peninsula suffering the most in Gwynedd.^[4] In 987 a Norse raiding party landed on Môn and captured as many as two thousand of the island's residents, selling them as slaves across northern Europe.^[4] Historian and author Dr. John Davies argues that it is during this period that the Norse name for Môn, Anglesey, came into existence and was later adopted into English.^[4] In 989 Meredudd ab Owain bribed the Norse not to raid that year. However the Norse resumed significant raids on Môn in 993, as well as other parts of Wales for the remainder of the century.^[4]

In 999 Meredudd ab Owain of Deheubarth died, and Cynan ap Hywel was able to wrestle back Gwynedd for the Aberffraw dynasty.^[5] However, Cynan himself was deposed by Aeddan ap Blegywryd in 1005.^[5] Aeddan was not himself connected to the Aberffraw family, and was prehaps a minor commote lord.^[5]

[edit] Gruffydd ap Llywelyn

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[edit] Mathrafal Ascendency; 1063-1081

After Gruffydd ap Llywelyn was killed by his own men following his defeat by the Saxon Harold Godwinson in 1063, his maternal half brothers Bleddyn ap Cynfyn and Rhiwallon ap Cynfyn of the Mathrafal house of Powys divided Gwynedd and Powys between them, swearing fealty to Edward the Confessor who endorsed their seizure.^[6][7]

[edit] Alliance with Mercia and Northumbria

Bleddyn ap Cynfyn allied with the Anglo-Saxons of Northern England to resist the threat from William the Conqueror following the Norman Conquest of England in 1066.^[6] In 1067 Bleddyn and Rhiwallon joined with the Mercian Eadric the Wild in an attack on the Normans at Hereford Castle, and ravaged the Norman lands in Herefordshire along the River Lugg, "causing serious damage" to the Normans, wrote Llwyd.^[6]

Between 1068 and 1070 Bleddyn allied with Edwin, Earl of Mercia, Gospatric, Earl of Northumbria and Morcar of Northumbria in an alliance against the Normans during the Harrowing of the North.^[6] However the defeat of the Saxons in 1070 exposed lower Gwynedd, the Perfeddwld, to Norman incursions, with Robert "of Ruddlan" taking Rhuddlan Castle and establishing himself firmly at the mouth of the Clwyd river by 1073.^[6]

Bleddyn was killed in 1075 by Rhys ab Owain, Prince of Deheubarth, an ally of the dispossessed Aberffraw heir of Gwynedd, Gruffydd ap Cynan, who was attempting to recover his inheritance.^[6] However, Trahaearn ap Caradog of Arwystli, Bleddyn's cousin, took control of Gwynedd and by 1078 defeated Rhys ab Owain at the Battle of Goodwick.^[8] Trahaearn allied with Caradog ap Gruffydd of Gwent against Deheubarth.^[8]

Gruffydd ap Cynan, who grew up in exile in Hiberno-Norse Dublin and was himself half Norse on his mother's side, made his first attempt to recover Gwynedd in 1075 when he landed on Ynys Môn with a Norse force, and mercenary troops provided by Robert of Rhuddlan.^[2] Gruffydd ap Cynan first defeated and killed Cynwrig ap Rhiwallon, an ally of Trahaearn who held Llŷn, then defeated Trahaearn himself in the Battle of Gwaed Erw in Meirionnydd, gaining control of Gwynedd.^[8]

Gruffydd then led his forces eastwards into lower Gwynedd, the Perfeddwlad, to recover lands lost to the Normans. Despite the "assistance" previously given by Robert of Rhuddlan, Gruffydd attacked and destroyed Rhuddlan castle. However, tension between Gruffydd's Hiberno-Norse bodyguard and the local Welsh led to a rebellion in Llŷn, and Trahaearn took the opportunity to counter attack, defeating Gruffydd at the Battle of Bron yr Erw, above Clynnog Fawr, that same year.

Gruffydd fled to Ireland but in 1081 returned and made an alliance with Rhys ap Tewdwr, the new Prince of Deheubarth following the death of his cousin. Rhys had been attacked by Caradog ap Gruffydd of Gwent and Morgannwg, and had been forced to flee from his fortress of Dinefwr to St David's Cathedral in Penfro (Pembrokeshire).

Gruffydd this time embarked from Hiberno-Norse Waterford in Ireland with a Norse army and landed near St David's joining his ally Rhys ap Tewdwr of Deheubarth. He was joined here by his supporters from Gwynedd, and he and Rhys marched north to seek Trahaearn ap Caradog and Caradog ap Gruffydd of Powys, who had themselves made an alliance and been joined by Meilyr ap Rhiwallon of Powys.

The armies of the two confederacies met at the Battle of Mynydd Carn, with Gruffydd and Rhys victorious and Trahaearn, Caradog and Meilyr all killed.^[2][9] Gruffydd was thus able to seize power in Gwynedd for the second time.

[edit] The Norman invasion of Gwynedd; 1081-1100

See also Norman invasion of Wales

However, Gruffydd's victory was short-lived as the Normans launched an invasion of Wales following the Saxon revolt in northern England. 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 at Rug, near Corwen^[2][9][10] 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.^[9] The lands west of the Clwyd were intended for his cousin Robert of Rhuddlan, and their advance extended to the Llŷn peninsula by 1090.^[9]

Once in power, the Normans sought control over the spiritual traditions and ecclesiastical institutions in Wales.^[11][12] In his effort to further consolidate control over Gwynedd, Earl Hugh of Chester had forced the election of Hervé the Breton upon the Bangor diocese in 1092, with Hervé's consecration as Bishop of Bangor preformed by Thomas of Bayeux, the Archbishop of York.^[12][13] It was hoped that placing a prelate loyal to the Normans over the traditionally independent Welsh Church in Gwynedd would help pacify the local inhabitants.

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.^[14][15] Additionally, Hervé routinely excommunicated parishioners who he perceived as challenging his spiritual and temporal authority.^[14]

[edit] Aberffraw resistance

By 1094 almost the whole of Wales was occupied by Norman forces.^[9] However, although they erected many castles, Norman control in most regions of Wales was tenuous at best.^[9] Motivated by local anger over the "gratuitously cruel" invaders and led by the historic ruling houses such as Gwynedd's Aberffraw family, represented by Gruffydd ap Cynan, Welsh control over the greater part of Wales was restored by 1100.^[9]

Gruffydd escaped Norman imprisonment in Chester, and slew Robert of Rhuddlan in a beach side battle at Deganwy on 3 July 1093.^[10] Gruffydd recovered Gwynedd by 1095, and by 1098 he allied with Cadwgan ap Bleddyn of the Mathrafal house of Powys, their traditional dynastic rivalries notwithstanding.^[2][9] Gruffydd and Cadwgan led the Welsh resistance to the Norman occupation in north and mid Wales.^[2][9] 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.^[2][9] 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][9] Betrayed, Gruffydd and Cadwgan were forced to flee to Ireland in a skiff.^[2][9]

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 Gwynedd, and ultimately abandoning any colonization plans there.^[2][16] 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.^[16]

[edit] 12th Century

[edit] Marchia Wallie and Pura Wallia

See also Welsh Marches, Marcher Lord

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.^[17] 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.^[17]

[edit] Consoladation; 1101-1132

After generations of incessant warfare, Gruffydd began the reconstruction of Gwynedd, intent on bringing stability to his country.^[9] 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".^[9] 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.^[18]

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.^[9][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 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.^[18]

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 blatantly antagonizing the English crown.^[2][18]

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.^[18] 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.^[18] 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.^[18] The last of his line, when Hywel ab Ithel died six weeks later he left Rhufoniog and Rhos berefit. ^[18] 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.^[18] With Rhufoniog and Rhos abandoned, Gruffydd I annexed the cantrefs. ^[18]

On the death of Einion ap Cadwgan, lord of Meirionydd, a quarrel engulfed his kinsmen on who should succeed him.^[18] Meirionydd was then a vassel cantref of Powys, and the family there a cadet of the Mathrafal house of Powys.^[18] Gruffydd gave license to his sons Cadwallon and Owain to press the opportunity the dynastic strife in Meirionydd presented.^[18] The brothers raided Mierionydd with the Lord of Powys as impotant there as he was in the Perfeddwlad.^[18] However it would not be until 1136 that the cantref was firmly within Gwynedd's control.^[18]

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.^[18] And in 1125 Cadwallon slew the grandsons of Edwin ap Goronwy of Tegeingl, leaving Tegeingl bereft of lordship.^[16]

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.^[18] 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).^[18]

[edit] During England's Anarchy 1135-1157

[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.^[19][20] The usurpation and conflict it caused eroded central authority in England.^[19] 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. ^[19] 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.^[19] However, with Gruffydd ap Rhys' absence the Normans increased their incursions into Deheubarth.^[21] Gruffydd ap Rhys' wife Gwenllian, Princess of Deheubarth, gathered a host for the defense of her country.^[21]

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.^[21] Husband and wife led retaliatory 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.^[21]

With her husband meeting with her father in Gwynedd, Gwenllian raised an army to counter Norman incursions ravaging Deheubarth.^[21] Gwenllian met the Norman army, led by Maurice of London, near Kidwelly Castle.^[19][21] Gwenllian's forces were routed, and she was captured and beheaded by the Normans.^[19] Though defeated, her 'patriotic revolt' inspired others in south Wales to rise.^[19][21] 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.^[19][21]

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.^[19][21] 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".^[19] 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.^[19]

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.^[19] The battle turned into a rout, and then into a resounding defeat of the Normans.^[19]

Realizing how vulnerable they were with a resurgent 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 resurgence. These lords began shifting their allegiance back to the cause of Empress Matilda and the return of a strong royal government.^[19][20]

[edit] Owain I of Gwynedd

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)^[19]

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.^[22] 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.^[23]

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 rout which made Stephen of England prisoner of Empress Matilda for a year.^[24] Owain, however, did not participate in the battle, keeping the majority of Gwynedd's army at home.^[24] 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.^[25][26] 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.^[21]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.^[25] Cadwaladr fled to Ireland and hired a Norse fleet from Dublin, bringing the fleet to Abermenai to compel Owain to reinstate him.^[25] Taking advantage of the brotherly strife, and perhaps with the tacit understanding of Cadwaladr, the marcher lords mounted incursions into Wales.^[26] Realizing the wider ramifications of the war before him, Owain and Cadwaladr came to terms and reconciled, with Cadwaladr restored to his lands.^[25][26] 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 Ceredigion, with Cadwaladr retreating to Môn.^[25] 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.^[25][26]

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. ^[27]

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.^[28] "By 1154 Owain had brought his men within sight of the red towers of the great city on the Dee", wrote Lloyd."^[28]

[edit] Henry II's 1157 Campaign

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.^[29] Henry II raised his feudal host and marched into Wales from Chester.^[29] 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 outflank Owain. The Prince of Gwynedd anticipated this, and dispatched his sons Dafydd and Cynan into the woods with an army, catching Henry II unaware.^[29]

In the melée which followed Henry II was almost slain, had not Roger, Earl of Hertford rescued the king.^[29] Henry II retreated and made his way back to his main army, by now slowly advancing towards Rhuddlan.^[29] 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".^[29] 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.^[29] 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. ^[29] 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.^[29]

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.^[29]

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.^[30] 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.^[30] It was a policy of outward conciliation, while masking his own consolidation of authority.^[30] To further demonstrate his goodwill, in 1160 Owain handed over to the English crown the fugative Einion Clud.^[30] 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.^[30] 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] The Great Revolt of 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. ^[30][31] 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.^[30] 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.^[32]

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.^[32] 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.^[32]

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.^[32] With Owain I of Gwynedd the overall 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.^[32]

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.^[32] Owain I had positioned a band of skirmishers in the thick woods overlooking the pass, which harassed the exposed army from a secured position.^[32] 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.^[32] 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.^[32] 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.^[32] 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.^[32]

In frustration, Henry II had twenty-two Welsh hostages mutilated; the sons of Owain' supporters and allies, including two of Owain's own sons.^[32] 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.^[32]

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.^[32] 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.^[32]

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.^[31] Distracted by his widening quarrel with Thomas Becket, Owain's army recovered Tegeingle for Gwynedd by 1169.^[31]

[edit] Interregnum; 1170-1200

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 had 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] 13th Century

[edit] Llywelyn I of Wales 1195-1240

Main article: Llywelyn ab Iorwerth

By 1200 Owain Gwynedd's grandson Llywelyn I Fawr (the Great) ruled over all of Gwynedd, with England endorsing all of Llywellyn I's holdings that year ^[33]. England's endorsement was part of a larger strategy of reducing the influence of Powys Wenwynwyn, as King John had given William de Breos license in 1200 to "seize as much as he could" from the native Welsh ^[34]. However, de Breos was in disgrace by 1208, and Llywelyn seized both Powys Wenwynwyn and northern Ceredigon.

In his expansion, the Prince was careful not to antagonise King John, his father-in-law ^[33]. Llywelyn had married Joan, King John's illegitimate daughter, in 1204.^[35] In 1209 Prince Llywelyn joined King John on his campaign in Scotland.

However, by 1211 King John recognized the growing influence of Prince Llywellyn as a threat to English authority in Wales.^[34] King John invaded Gwynedd and reached the banks of the Menai, and Llywelyn was forced to cede the Perfeddwlad, and recognize John as his heir if Llywelyn I's marriage with Joan did not produce any legitimate successors.^[34] Succession was a complicated matter given that Welsh law recognized children born out of wedlock as equal to those in born in wedlock ^[36] . Llywelyn had several children by then with a mistress.

Many of Llywelyn I's Welsh allies had abandoned him during England's invasion of Gwynedd, preferring an overlord far away rather than one nearby. ^[37] These Welsh lords expected an unobtrusive English crown, however King John had castles built in Ystryth, and John's direct interference in Powys and the Perfeddwlad caused many of these Welsh lords to rethink their position.^[37]

Llywelyn capitalized on Welsh resentment against King John, and led a church sanctioned revolt against him.^[37] As King John was an enemy of the church, Innocent III gave his blessing to Llywelyn's revolt. Early in 1212 Llywelyn had regained the Perfeddwlad and burned the castle at Ystwyth.

Llywelyn's revolt caused John to postpone his invasion of France, and Philip Augustus, the King of France, was so moved as to contact Prince Llywelyn I and proposed they ally against the English king^[38] King John ordered the execution by hanging of his Welsh hostages, the sons of many of Llywelyn's supporters^[34]

[edit] Prince of Wales

Main article Principality of Wales

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Llywelyn I was the first prince to receive the fealty of other Welsh lords with the 1216 Council of Aberdyfi, thus becoming the de facto Prince of Wales and giving substance to the long-standing Aberffraw claims of primacy over the whole of Wales.

[edit] Culture and society

[edit] Poetry and literature

Main artical Medieval Welsh literature

In Welsh this period is known as Beirdd y Tywysogion (Poets of the Princes) or Y Gogynferidd (The Less Early Poets). The main source for the poetry of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries is the Hendregadredd manuscript, an anthology of court poetry brought together at the Cistercian Strata Florida Abbey from about 1282 until 1350.

The poets of this period were professionals who worked in the various princely courts in Wales. They were members of a Guild of poets whose rights and responsibilities were enshrined in native Welsh law; and as such, they worked within a developed literary culture and with inflexible traditions. Bardic families were still common -- the poet Meilyr Brydydd had a poet son and at least two poet grandsons -- but it was becoming more and more usual for the craft of poetry to be taught formally, in bardic schools which might only be run by the pencerdd (chief musician). The pencerdd was the top of his profession and a special chair was set aside for him in the court, in an honoured position next to the heir. When he performed he was expected to sing twice: once in honour of God, and once in honour of the king. The bardd teulu (retinue poet) was one of the 24 officers of the court and he was responsible for singing for the military retinue before going into battle, and for the queen in the privacy of her chamber. The lowest ranking poets were the cerddorion (musicians).

The poetry praises the military prowess of the prince in a language that is deliberately antiquarian and obscure, echoing the earlier praise poetry tradition of Taliesin. There is also some religious poems and poetry in praise of women.

With the death of the last native prince of Wales in 1282 the tradition gradually disappears. In fact, Gruffudd ab yr Ynad Coch's (fl. 1277-83) elegy on the death of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, is one of the most notable poems of the era. Other prominent poets of this period include:

• Meilyr Brydydd, fl. ca. 1100-1137; the earliest of the Gogynfeirdd
• Bleddyn Fardd, fl. ca. 1258-1284;
• Cynddelw Brydydd Mawr; fl. ca. 1155-1200;
• Dafydd Benfras, fl. ca. 1220-58; and
• Llywarch ap Llywelyn (also known as Prydydd y Moch), fl. 1174/5-1220.

A rather different poet of this period was Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd (d. 1170) who as the son of Prince Owain Gwynedd, was not a professional poet.

[edit] Settlements and architecture

When Gruffydd I ap Cynan died in 1137 he left a more stable realm than had hitherto existed in Gwynedd for more then 100 years.^[22] 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.^[22]

Settlements in Gwynedd 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".^[22] 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.^[22]

By the 13th century Gwynedd was part of the Principality of Wales, which came to encompass three quarters of the surface area of modern Wales; "from Anglesea to Machen, from the outskirts of Chester to the outskirts of Cydweli," wrote Davies.^[39][40] By 1271, Prince Llywelyn II could claim a growing population of about 200,000 people, or a little less than three fourths of the total Welsh population.^[39][41]

The population increase was common throughout Europe in the 13th century, but in Wales it was more pronounced.^[39] By Llywelyn II's reign as much as 10 per cent of the population were town-dwellers.^[39] Additionally, "unfree slaves... had long disappeared" from within the territory of the principality, wrote Davies.^[39] The increase in men allowed the prince to call on and field a far more substantial army.^[39]

[edit] The Welsh Church in Gwynedd

[edit] Before the Norman Invasion

Christians in Gwynedd shared many of the spiritual traditions and ecclesiastical institutions as found through-out Wales, customs originating directly with the 'Celtic Church' of the Early Middle Ages.^[12][11] The Celtic Church was always an integral part of the universal Church, recognizing the primacy of the papacy. However, Welsh bishops rejected the premise that the Archbishop of Canterbury held authority over them.^[11] Professor John Davies argued that there were additional dangers inherent for Welsh bishops in submitting to an ecclesiastical authority that "would by necessity be heavily under the influence ... of an English king".^[11]

The Welsh Church retained a distinctive episcopal structure and customs.^[11] By the 11th century, the Welsh Church consisted of three dioceses which were tied closely together by a strong sense of community and a shared sentiment in practice, but were also independent of each other.^[12] The Diocese of Bangor served as the episcopal see for all of upper and lower Gwynedd until 1143 when, under the auspices of the Normans, St. Asaph was founded to serve as the episcopal see for the Perfeddwlad and Powys Fadog ^[11]

Welsh monastic communities were called clasua (sing. clas), were ruled by an abbot, and contained a number of small churches and dormitory huts.^[11] Welsh monasticism highly valued asceticism, and the most celebrated Welsh ascestic was the 7th century St. David, who developed a monastic rule which emphasized hard work, encouraged vegetarianism, and promoted temperance.^[11] St. David would become the patron saint of Wales.

Gruffydd I of Gwynedd 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.^[22]

[edit] Government and law

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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] Gwynedd at war

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According to Sir John Edward Lloyd, the challenges of campaigning in Gwynedd and Wales as a whole were exposed during the 20 year Norman invasions between 1081-1101.^[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 the Welsh throughout Wales were able to lead retaliatory strikes from mountainous strongholds or remote forested glens.^[9]

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 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.

[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 (1911). A history of Wales: from the earliest times to the Edwardian conquest. Longmans, Green & Co.. 
• 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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