**UPDATED** WELSH BATTLES, WARS AND REBELLIONS FROM 616 to 1409
WELSH WARS, BATTLES
AND
REBELLIONS
FROM 616 TO 1409.
****IF YOU FIND
MISTAKES LET ME KNOW. ****
There is an article on wiki called 'list of anglo Welsh wars" it doesn't cover most of the conflicts, battles, wars that involve the Welsh so iv always intended on adding to it, but for now, I decided to put as many as I can find in one place.
All I'm doing (doing because iv not finished) is searching through the lives of
the Welsh princes, primary sources, secondary sources, various articles
and adding whatever I can find and trust me, the list as easily five or six
times bigger than the wiki list so far.
There are many medieval writers who describe the Welsh as brave and
vicious fighters who dont often stick by the rules of war. They would
often come out of nowhere and attack an invading army and disappear before
the invaders knew what hit them.
quote from Itinerarium Cambriae 1191
"My Lord King, this nation may now be harassed, weakened and decimated
by your soldiery, as it has so often been by others in former times; but it
will never be totally destroyed by the wrath of man, unless at the
same time it is punished by the wrath of God. Whatever else may come to pass, I
do not think that on the Day of Direst Judgement any race other than
the Welsh, or any other language, will give answer to the Supreme
Judge of all for this small corner of the earth"
'king Henry II., in reply to the inquiries
of Emanuel, emperor of Constantinople, concerning the situation, nature, and
striking peculiarities of the British island, among other remarkable
circumstances mentioned the following: '
“That in a certain part of the island there
was a people, called Welsh, so bold and ferocious that, when unarmed, they did
not fear to encounter an armed force; being ready to shed their blood in
defence of their country, and to sacrifice their lives for renown; which is the
more surprising, as the beasts of the field over the whole face of the island
became gentle, but these desperate men could not be tamed. The wild animals,
and particularly the stags and hinds, are so abundant, owing to the little molestation
they receive, that in our time, in the northern parts of the island towards the
Peak, (17) when pursued by the hounds and hunters, they contributed, by their
numbers, to their own destruction.”
Iv decided to expand the list to a much earlier date to include conflicts that
occurred in the land we call Wales today and battles that were relevant in the
shaping of modern Wales.
616
The Battle of Chester where the Anglo
Saxons beat native Britons near the city
of Chester,. Æthelfrith of Northumbria annihilated a combined force
from the Welsh kingdoms of Powys, Rhôs, and Mercia. It
resulted in the deaths of Welsh leaders Selyf Sarffgadau of Powys and
Cadwal Crysban of Rhôs. Evidence suggests that King Iago of Gwynedd may
have also been killed.
According to Bede, a
large number of monks from the monastery at Bangor on
Dee who had come
to witness the fight were killed on the orders of Æthelfrith before the battle.
He told his warriors to massacre the clerics because although they bore no
arms, they were praying for a Northumbria defeat.
Bede mentions the killings of British monks by the Anglo-Saxons. He wrote that the monks:
This episode was also noted in the Annals of Ulster s.a. 612 (recte 613):
The battle's led to the severing of the land connection between Wales and
the Old
North - the Brythonic kingdoms of Rheged and Kingdom
of Strathclyde, as The Battle
of Deorham is held to have separated the Welsh peninsula from
the West
Country (all these kingdoms covered land where Brythonic/Welsh
languages were spoken)
620 - 626
King Edwin of Deira invades the Isle of Man and then Anglesey. Cadwallon is defeated in battle and is besieged on Puffin Island. He eventually flees to Brittany.
630
The Battle of Pont y Saeson Tewdrig King of Gwent together
with Meurig, took up arms and drove back the Saxons. But Tewdrig was wounded
and had to be taken to Flat Holm in the Bristol Channel for treatment. An
ox-cart was called to take him there but, on their journey, the oxen stopped at
a spring (now known as St.Tewdrig's Well), where Tewdrig's wounds were
cleansed. However he died soon after, so Meurig built a great church on the
spot which became known as Merthyr-Teyryn (Mathern). Tewdrig later became known
as St Tewdrig
630
"The Battle of Cefn Digoll, also known as the Battle of the Long Mynd was
a battle fought in 630 at Long Mountain near Welshpool . The battle was
fought between the Northumbrian army of King Edwin and an anti-Northumbrian
alliance between King Cadwallon of Gwynedd and Penda of Mercia.
The battle ended the Northumbrian domination of
Gwynedd, and preceded a Welsh campaign into Northumbria, which led to Edwin's
death at the Battle of Hatfield Chase."
"(Britannia History) King Penda of Mercia besieges Exeter (possibly held by King Clemen of Dumnonia). King Cadwallon of Gwynedd lands nearby, from his Deiran imposed exile in Brittany. He negotiates an alliance with King Penda of Mercia and a united British and Saxon force moves north to re-take Gwynedd. The Deirans are defeated at the Battle of the Long Mountain and Cadwallon chases them back to Northumbria. The British ransack Northumbria and bring the kingdom to its knees."
633
The Battle of Hatfield Chase on 12 October 633 ended in the defeat and death of
Edwin and his son Osfrith. After this, the Kingdom of Northumbria fell into
disarray, divided between its sub-kingdoms of Deira and Bernicia, but the war
continued: according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, "Cadwallon and Penda
went and did for the whole land of Northumbria". Bede says that Cadwallon
was besieged by the new king of Deira, Osric, "in a strong town";
Cadwallon, however, "sallied out on a sudden with all his forces, by
surprise, and destroyed him [Osric] and all his army.
After this, according to Bede, Cadwallon ruled over the "provinces of the
Northumbrians" for a year, "not like a victorious king, but like a
rapacious and bloody tyrant. Furthermore, Bede tells us that Cadwallon,
"though he bore the name and professed himself a Christian, was so
barbarous in his disposition and behaviour, that he neither spared the female
sex, nor the innocent age of children, but with savage cruelty put them to
tormenting deaths, ravaging all their country for a long time, and resolving to
cut off all the race of the English within the borders of Britain.
The new king of Bernicia, Eanfrith, was also killed
by Cadwallon when the former went to him in an attempt to negotiate peace.
633
Battle of Heavenfield
Cadwallon was finally defeated by an army under Eanfrith's brother, Oswald
Eanfrith's brother, Oswald, returned from seventeen years exile in Dál Riata to claim the crown of Northumbria.
The battle
It seems that the Welsh army advanced northward from York along the line of Dere Street. Oswald, who may have been accompanied by a force of Scots, took up a defensive position beside the Roman Wall, about four miles north of Hexham. It was claimed that the night before the battle, Oswald had a vision of Saint Columba, in which the saint foretold that Oswald would be victorious. Oswald placed his army so that it was facing east, with its flanks shielded by Brady's Crag to the north and the Wall to the south. According to Bede, Oswald raised a cross, and prayed for victory alongside his troops.
It is believed that the Welsh had greater numbers, but they were forced to attack from the east along a narrow front, where they were hemmed in and unable to outflank the Northumbrians. It is not known how long the battle lasted or what the losses were, but the Welsh line finally broke. This began a headlong flight southward by the Welsh, pursued by the vengeful Northumbrians. Many Welsh soldiers were cut down as they ran, and according to Bede, Cadwallon was caught and killed at a place called the 'Brook of Denis', now identified as the Rowley Burn. The battle was a decisive victory for Oswald, and it was likely that the Welsh losses must have been substantial. Afterwards, the site was known as Heavenfield (Hefenfelth).
"though he had most numerous forces, which he boasted nothing could withstand". Cadwallon was killed at a place called "Denis's-brook"
642
Battle of Maes Cogwy /Battle of Maserfield
near Oswestry where Penda along with his Welsh allies defeated Northumbria and killed its king Oswald.
Oswald had defeated Cadwallon ap Cadfan of Gwynedd, King of the Britons (Penda's ally at Hatfield) at Heavenfield in 634,
Penda's Welsh allies may have included Cynddylan ap Cyndrwyn of Pengwern Powys, and Cadwaladr ap Cadwallon (son of Cadwallon ap Cadfan who was killed by Oswald in an earlier battle) is also thought to have donated reinforcements to Penda from the Kingdom of Gwynedd
655
Nov 15: Battle of the Winwaed in which King Oswiu
of Bernicia defeated and killed King Penda of Mercia. King Cadafael ap Cynfeddw
of Gwynedd was allied with Penda but stayed out of the battle.
658
Battle of Peonnum in Somerset where an allied force
of the West Welsh and Cadwaladr of Gwynedd are defeated. The West Saxons move
to conquer western Somerset.
658
A Northumbrian raiding party led by Oswiu of Northumbria overran Cynddylan's palace at Llys Pengwern in a surprise attack. Caught completely off guard and without defence, the royal family, including the king, were slaughtered. .
Princess Heledd was the only survivor and fled to western Powys. After this the region associated with Pengwern seems to have been shared between Mercia and Powys; part of it remained in Welsh hands until the reign of Offa of Mercia and the construction of his dyke. Part of it consisted of the Anglian sub-kingdom of the Magonsæte.
Princess Heledd went on to write Canu Heledd (modern Welsh /'kani 'hɛlɛð/, the songs of Heledd) are a collection of early Welsh englyn-poems. They are rare among medieval Welsh poems for being set in the mouth of a female character. One prominent figure in the poems is Heledd's dead brother Cynddylan.
wiki
Dorothy Ann Bray summarised the cycle thus:
As with the other so-called 'saga englynion’ (pre-eminently Canu Llywarch Hen and Canu Urien), there is considerable uncertainty and debate as to how the poems of Canu Heledd might originally have been performed. It is usually assumed that they must have been accompanied by some kind of prose narrative, to which they provided emotional depth; but this is not certain
682
[ASC 16] This year also, Centwine chased the
Britons into the sea.
710
King Seisyll of Ceredigion invaded Dyfed and annexed its Cantref Ystrad
Tywi
720
In or about 722, the Welsh won a victory against
the Mercians in south Wales, at a Pencon or Pencoed, a place not yet
identified. Source: J.E.Lloyd, A History of Wales, 1954, vol.1, p.197.
brut
'And then, a year after that, Beli, son of Elfin, died. And the battle
of Heilin, with Rhodri Molwynog, took place in Cornwall; and the action of
Garthmaelog, and the fight of Pencoed in South Wales. And in those three
battles, the Britons were victorious.'
722
"In or about 722 the Welsh won two victories
in South Wales . . . one at Garth Maelog, which was probably the place of that
name near Llanbister in Radnorshire." and the battle of
Garthmaelog . and in those battles the Welsh prevailed."
Source: Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the Princes,
1955, p.5.
"Battle Field, Banc y Sidi. A field on Lower Cae Faelog, just west of the
farm-house. The tradition handed down to the present owner is to the effect
that it owes its name to a heavy battle fought here. No object is known to have
been recovered from it.
Visited, 15 June, 1911."
Source: RCAHMW Radnorshire Inventory, 1913, no.269;
latitude and longitude co-ordinates given in the Inventory account provide a
National Grid Reference (SO 1058 7411) which places the site several fields
away and 340m northwest of the farmhouse.
The Clwyd-Powys Archaeological Trust records
suggest two battles in this area, one in 722 (no.1106) and one in 772
(no.1984), but these may both refer to the battle above.
B.A.Malaws, RCAHMW, 06 November 2006.
728
Battle of Carno Mountain in Gwent where
the Welsh forced the Anglo-Saxons back to the River
Usk where many were drowned.
brut
'Seven hundred and thirty was the year of Christ, when there was a battle on
Carn mountain.'
735
The Battle of Hereford was fought in 760 at Hereford (in what is now Herefordshire, England). The conflict followed decades of hostility between the Welsh Kingdoms of Brycheiniog, Gwent and Powys by Æthelbald of Mercia and Coenred of Wessex, and involved the armies of Mercia and the Welsh. The Welsh were said to have defeated the Mercian army, and freed themselves from the influence of the Anglo-Saxons
743
An allied army of Mercians and West Saxons fight the Welsh.
753
This year Cuthred, king of the West-Saxons, fought
against the Welsh.
760
The second Battle of Hereford is recorded as a Welsh victory against the
Mercians led by Offa of Mercia.
***BRUT***
Seven hundred and sixty was the year of
Christ, when a battle between the Britons and Saxons took place, to wit, the
action of Hereford. And Dyvnwal, son of Tewdwr, died.
765
The Welsh invade Mercia and cause devastation.
769
Mercians
invade Wales.
776
And then, the next year to that, the
destruction of the South Wales men by king Offa took place.
seven hundred and eighty was the year of Christ, when king Offa spoiled the
Britons in summer time.
778.
Offa of Mercia raids Dyfed in Wales
This raid is recorded only in the Annales Cambriae, which note "The devastation of the Southern Britons [i.e. Dyfed in South Wales] by Offa".
780
The construction of Offa's
Dyke begins. It appears this frontier ditch delineated an agreed
frontier between Powys and Mercia.
784
seven hundred and eighty was the year of Christ, when king Offa spoiled the Britons
in summertime.
784
it is presumed that Exeter was
captured by Cynewulf of Wessex following a siege. The Welsh invade Mercia again
causing havoc.
795
Offa of Mercia raids Wales (Brycheiniog)
In 796, the year of the death of Offa, a battle was fought at Rhuddlan, between
the Mercians and the Welsh in which it may be conjectured the English sought to
defend their new frontier in Tegeingl.Source: J.E.Lloyd, A History of Wales,
vol I, 1912, p.201.
796: "And king Offa and Maredydd, king of
Dyfed, died. And there was a battle at Rhuddlan."
Source: Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the Princes,
798
the Mercians led by Coenwulf
of Mercia invade Wales but withdraw after killing Caradog
ap Meirion.
810
St. Davids is burnt.
813
King Cynan Dindaethwy fights Hywel Farf-Fehinog
in battle. Hywel is loses.
815
And then, three years after that, there was a great thunderstorm, which caused many conflagrations; and Tryffin, son of Rein, died; and Griffri, son of Cyngen, son of Cadell, was slain, through the treachery of his brother Elisse; and Howel subdued the isle of Mona; and expelled his brother Cynan from Mona, killing many of his army.
816
Mercians invade Powys. .. Saxons invaded the mountains of Eryri and the kingdom of Rhufoniog
818
And, a year after that, a fight took place in Mona, called the action of
Llanvaes.
818
Cenwulf devastated the Dyfed region
820
In 820 the castle of Degannwy was destroyed by the Saxons, who then took over
rulership of Powys.
Source: The Chronicle of the Princes,
"the citadel of Deganwy was destroyed by the [Anglo-]Saxons and they took
the region of Powys into their power."
Annales Cambriae
822
Coelwulf of Mercia invaded north Wales and captures Deganwy from
Gwynedd and occupies the whole of Powys.
828
The lands of Powys are liberated from Mercian occupation by Cyngen
ap Cadell. The Pillar
of Eliseg was probably commissioned at this time.
830
Egbert of Wessex invades Powys and forces Cyngen ap Cadell to submit. Egbert
then withdraws his forces.
831
A.D. 831 The Saxons of Mercia came unawares by night, and burnt the monastery of Senghenydd, which stood in the place the castle now does. From thence they went to the Castle of Treoda, and burnt it, and escaped from thence over the Severn Sea with much stolen property, at the time there was peace between the men of Glamorgan and Gwent, and the Saxons of Mercia
849
Eight hundred and fifty was the year of Christ, when Meurug was killed by the
Saxons.
850
Welsh
Annals record that one Cyngen died on the swords of "the Heathen,"
meaning Viking raiders.
The southern Welsh districts of Gwent, Glamorgan
and Dyfedd also suffered Norse attacks.
853
Burgred of Mercia overruns Powys. Cyngan ap Cadell abdicates and retires
to Rome and
his kingdom is annexed by Rhodri
Mawr of Gwynedd.
854
Vikings referred to as Y Llu Du are recorded ravaging Anglesey
856
Anglesey was ravaged by the Black Gentiles in 855 AD.Source: Thomas Jones, The
Chronicle of the Princes, 1955, p.9
"the ravaging of Anglesey in 853 (or 854) by
the Dubhgaill or 'black' Danes who had newly appeared in Irish waters and
attacked the earlier settlers of Norse origin. In 856 Rhodri Mawr avenged
himself by killing their leader Horm."
Source: J.E.Lloyd, A History of Wales, vol I, 1912,
p. 326.
Various other sources, as yet unverified, suggest
an invasion of Anglesey took place in 856 AD, at an unspecified location, by a
Viking or Norse force under the leadership of (?)Gorm who was killed in the
battle. The invasion was successfully repelled by Rhodri Mawr.
856,
Rhodri the great won a notable victory over the Vikings and killed their
leader Gorm.
865
Burgred of Mercia leads his forces against Rhodri Mawr and captures Anglesey,
briefly, from Gwynedd. Burgred is later forced to withdraw as his realm is
invaded by the Vikings.
870
The battle of Bryn Onnen, In the time of Rhodri the Great, the Saxons of
Mercia made many attempts to invade Gwynedd. They were every time repelled, and
in 870 A.D., the Chronicles tell us that a great battle was fought near
Llangollen in which the Mercians suffered terrible loss.Cambridge County Histories:
Merionethshire, 1913; p. 86.
There are two possible locations for this battle
near Llangollen:
The battle of Bryn Onnen took place in 870; (Thomas
Jones, The Chronicle of the Princes, 1955, p.9); no further information is
available as to its location; however, there are two farms, Rhyd Onnen Isaf and
Rhyd Onnen Uchaf, on a steep-sided hill some 4km to the west of Llangollen in
the Ordnance Survey kilometre square SJ1742.
A farmhouse, Coed-y-gadfa, meaning 'the battlefield
wood' (nprn 404837), is shown on early editions of the Ordnance Survey maps
some 5km northwest of Langollen at SJ 1749 4484.
B.A.Malaws, RCAHMW, 29 August 2006.
871
The Irish Annals record that Óláfr Cuaran and Ívarr Beinlausi returned to
Dublin after their raids against the Strathclyde Welsh, Albans, and Saxons with
two hundred ships and English, Welsh, and Pictish captives to be sold into
slavery.
872
Rhodri the great won two battles this year, the first at a place given
variously as Bangolau, Bann Guolou,or Bannoleu, where he defeated the
Vikings on Anglesey "in a hard battle" and the second
at Manegiu or Enegydwhere the Vikings "were destroyed".
873
Battle of Rhiw-saeson Fought A.D. 873" within the enclosure of Caerau
hillfort
''The action of Rhiw Saeson, in Glamorgan, took place, in which the Welsh
conquered the Saxons, and slaughtered them dreadfully
(Owen, 15).''
876
The Norse attack in the famous Sunday Battle of Anglesea (Gweith Duw Sul)
Rhodri Mawr . . . is still found
fighting the 'black gentiles' at the close of his life; the 'gwaith dyw Sul' or
'Sunday's fight' fought in Anglesey in 877 must have been an encounter with a
heathen foe, and its issue is shown by the statement in the Irish Chronicles
that Rhodri, king of the Welsh, in this year sought safety in Ireland from the
attacks of the 'black gentiles'."
Source: J.E.Lloyd, A History of Wales, vol I,
1912, p. 326.
877: And the Sunday Battle took place in
Anglesey.
Source: Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the
Princes, 1955, p.9
The location of the battle is not known; other,
unverified, sources suggest a date of 876.
B.A.Malaws, RCAHMW, 20 June 2006.
876
The Western Host, the naval force supporting the
Danish attack upon King Alfred of Mercia and led by Ivarr Beinlausi and Hubba,
the sons of Ragnarr Loðbrokk, is off the Welsh coastline, indulging in the
occasional raiding of the Welsh as well as maintaining the campaign against
Alfred. The fleet wintered in South Wales.
877
Rhodri Mawr and his son Gwriad were killed by Mercian forces.
878
Norse mercenaries in the employ of
Hywel ab Ieuaf ab Idwal the Bald destroy the Church of Clynnog Fawr and attack
the Lleyn territory in Gwynedd. Hywel had hired the Norsemen to assist in his
fight for the throne of Gwynedd.
879
The gentiles or Norsemen captured Iago ab Idwal the Bald, leaving the way clear
for Hywel to become king of Gwynedd.
880
"Eight hundred and eighty was the year of Christ when the battle of the
Conway took place for God to avenge Rhodri." [Rhodri had been slain by the
Saxons in 878]Source: Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the Princes, 1955, p.9.
"A raid upon Eryri conducted by Aethelred in
881 had been arrested by Anarawd at the mouth of the Conway, and the victory of
Cymryd - the day of divine vengeance for Rhodri - had been won with great
slaughter of the foe."
Source: J.E.Lloyd, A History of Wales, vol I, 1912,
p.328.
890
Y Normanyeit Duon or black Northmen attack Castell Baldwin in
Powys.
890
at least some of the
"men of Strathclyde" are forced to relocate to Gwynedd after their
kingdom, much weakened by the Vikings, is overrun by Angles and Scots'
893:
A combined force containing men
from Mercia, Wessex, and Wales besieged the Vikings at Buttington for several
weeks, starving them out until finally the Vikings had to emerge and they were
defeated there by the English and the Welsh: the surviving Vikings fled back to
Essex
893
The Danes, led by a man named Haesten, marched
up beside the Thames, crossed over and ravaged the Severn Valley. Welshmen from
Gwent and Glynwysing, as well as some of Anarawd's men from Gwynedd, cooperated
with Alfred the Great to battle and defeat the raiders at Buttingtune on the Severn shore.
894
Northmen
came and they ravaged Lloegyr, Brycheiniog, Gwent, and Gwynllywiog
(Dumville, 14).
902
Irish capture the fortress of Dublin in Ireland, driving the Dublin Vikings
across the sea to North Wales. They were opposed by Welsh forces under the
command of either Hywel ap Cadell ap Rhodri Mawr or his younger brother Clydog,
driving the Norsemen into the vicinty of Chester.
903
A
party of Danes referred to as Dub Gint or black pagans under the command of
Ingimundr attacked the Welsh in pitched battle at Ros Meilon or Osmeliavn,
perhaps near Holyhead.
904
AD The Danes kill Mervyn ap Rhodri Mawr in a retaliatory raid.
905 to 910
AD Eiríkr bloðøx, son of King Haraldr hárfagri of Norway, raids Wales,
Scotland, Ireland and Brittany.
915
A large Viking fleet based on the Continent under the command of Óttarr and
Hróaldr ravaged Gwent as far inland as Archenfield, capturing a bishop named
Cyfeiliog ("Cameleac" in the chronicle), who was later ransomed by
the Saxon king Edward the Elder for a sum of forty pounds.
918
A renewed Norse force re-takes Dublin, establishing Sihtric as king. In 918
Dublin Norse raiders attack Anglesey.
922
"And the battle of Dinasnewydd took place."Source: Thomas Jones, The
Chronicle of the Princes, 1955, p.13.
937
Welsh forces join with Scandinavian and Scottish troops to fight against the
English in the Battle of Brunanburh.
940
Idwal Foel of Gwynedd invaded England and was driven back and later deprived of his
lands.
942
Hywel Dda's cousin Idwal Foel, King of Gwynedd, determined to cast off English
overlordship took up arms against the new English king, Edmund. Idwal and his brother Elisedd were both
killed in battle against Edwin's forces. By normal custom, Idwal's crown should
have passed to his sons, but Hywel intervened. He sent Iago and Ieuaf
into exile and established himself as ruler over Gwynedd, which also likely
placed him in control of the Kingdom of Powys, which was under the authority of
Gwynedd. As such Hywel dda became king of nearly all of Wales except
for Morgannwg and Gwent in the south.
945
following an English invasion of the Kingdom of the Cumbrians, ruled by Dyfnwal ab Owain, the English king is recorded to
have granted or given it or a portion of it to the Scottish king. How much
authority the Scots had over the Cumbrians is uncertain.
949
"King Hywel the Good died . . . then
the battle of Carno took place between the sons of Hywel and the sons of
Idwal."
Source: Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the Princes, 1955, p.13.
949 or 950: The men of Gwynedd marched to meet the
sons of the dead king [Hywel Dda] under the leadership of their own princes,
Iago or Jacob and Idwal or Ieuaf, the sons of Idwal the Bald. The battle was
fought at Nant Carno, in the region of Arwystli, on the border of North and
South Wales, and was a victory for the sons of Idwal.
Source: J.E.Lloyd, A History of Wales, vol I, 1912,
p.344.
"It is well known that these mountains of
Carno were the scenes of the bloody battles fought some time after the death of
Hywel Dda, A.D. 949. The contending parties were the men of North Wales, led on
by Ieuaf and Iago, sons of Idwal Foel, on the one hand, and the men of South
Wales, by Owen Rhun, Roderic and Edwin, their cousins, when the Northwallians
became masters of the field."
Source: Archaeologia Cambrensis, III, 3rd series,
1857, p.302.
"Twr Gwyn Mawr. Welsh historians and
antiquaries of two or three generations ago were wont to associate the
carneddau on the high land between the parishes of Carno and Llanbrynmair, and
especially the carnedd known as Twr Gwyn Mawr [nprn 304912], with the conflicts
mentioned in the Welsh chronicle called Brut y Tywysogion under the years 948
and 1080 [nprn 405052] A.D."
Source: RCAHMW Montgomeryshire Inventory, 1911,
no.43.
952,
Iago and Ieuaf, the two exiled sons of Idwal Foel, King of
Gwynedd, invaded Dyfed. But they were defeated in a
decisive battle near Carno by the sons of Hywel Dda, King of Deheubarth. The victory secured the
sovereignty of North Wales
952
Brut y Tywysogion records that Hirmawr and Anarawd ap Gwriad (possibly the sons
of King Now ap Gwriad of Glamorgan) died at the hands of the paganaid Vikings.
954
The sons of Hywel in 954 [led] a march into the Conway valley, where their
progress was checked not far from Llanrwst and a defeat inflicted upon them
which emboldened the men of Gwynedd to pursue them into
Ceredigion."Source: J.E.Lloyd, A History of Wales, vol I, 1912, p.344.
954: "And then there was a great slaughter
between the sons of Idwal and the sons of Hywel in the battle of the Conway at
Llan-rwst. And Hirfawr and Anarawed were slain by the gentiles: those were sons
of Gwriad."
Source: Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the Princes,
1955, p.13.
"In the year 952 was the scene of an important
battle in the contests maintained at that period, for the sovereignty of Wales,
between the sons of Hywel Dda and those of Edwal Voel. The former, assembling
their forces in South Wales, laid waste the territory of North Wales as far as
the river Conway, but were opposed by the latter at the town of Llanrwst,
where, after an obstinate conflict, in which many of considerable rank were
slain on both sides, the sons of Edwal Voel were victorious. These, pursuing
their enemies into South Wales, retaliated upon their territories for the
ravages which had been inflicted on their own."
Source: Samuel Lewis, A Topographical Dictionary of
Wales,1849.
B.A.Malaws, RCAHMW, 29 August 2006.
961
The annals record that "the sons of Abloec ravaged Caer Gybi and
Lleyn." Abloec (from the Irish Amhlaoibh) meaning Óláfr Cuaran, ruler of
the Dublin Norse. Ólaf's sons included Gluniarain ("Iron-Knee"),
Sitric Silkenbeard, Ragnall, Aralt, Amancus, and possibly Gillapatraic. Caer
Gybi is modern Holyhead, Anglesey. It is interesting to note that Óláfr Cuaran
professed Christianity in 943, and his son Sitric's cross-imprinted coinage
shows that he likewise accepted the Christian faith, yet this did not seem to
affect their decision to attack churches and monastic institutions outside
their own domains.
962
King Edgar the Peaceful invades Gwynedd.
963
The
monastic establishment at Towyn or Tywyn raided by Vikings. Aberffraw in
Anglesea, royal seat of the kings of Gwynedd, was attacked by paganaid.
963
Aberffraw, royal seat of the kings of Gwynedd, was
attacked by vikings
968
Ívarr of Limerick is driven out of Ireland by King Mathgamhain of Munster.
Ívarr's response was to sail west to Wales to try and carve a new kingdom
there. The Limerick Norse were apparently repulsed by "the king of
Britain" and the next year Ívarr sailed back to Limerick, slew Beolan
Littill and his son, and re-established his rule on the larger islands of the
Shannon.
968
Rhodri ab Idwal was slain. And Aberffraw was ravaged
(Jones, 15).
971
King
Magnús Haraldsson, ruler of Man and Limerick, leads an attack on the monastic
house of Penmon in Anglesey.
972
Goðfriðr
Haraldsson, brother of King Magnús of Man and Limerick, attacks and conquers
Anglesey. The Welsh annalists record that a King Edgar gave "the men of
Gotfrid sanction to remain in Mona."
980
AD
Goðfriðr Haraldsson allies with King Cystennin ab Iago of Gwynedd to support
Cystennin against Hywel ab Ieuaf, who was attempting to capture the Gwenedd
throne for himself. The combined Welsh-Danish force devastated Anglesey from
where they crossed to Lleyn and continued ravaging the peninsula until Hywel's
troops faced them in the Battle of Hirbarth, where Cysteinn was killed.
981
LLANWENOG
. . . is distinguished as the scene of a memorable battle, which was fought in
981, between the Danes, under their famous leader Godfrid, and the native Welsh
under Eineon ab Owain (in which the former were totally defeated), or,
according to Dr. Meyrick, between Eineon and his countryman Hywel ab Ievav; and
a square intrenchment in a field called Cae'r Vaes, or 'the field of battle,'
on the farm of Ty cam [farm at SN 4944 4487], in this parish, is still pointed
out as the spot where the engagement took place"
Source: Samuel Lewis, A Topographical Dictionary of Wales, 1833.
981: "Godfrey, son of Harold, ravaged Dyfed and Menevia. And the battle
of Llanwenog took place."
981
The Norse start 20 years of savage attacks on st davids
985
Hywel ap Ieuaf of Gwynedd is killed
fighting Ælfhere, Ealdorman of Mercia.
987
"Godfrey, son of Harold, and the Black Host along with him, ravaged the
island of Anglesey. And two thousand men were captured; and the remainder of
them Maredudd ab Owain took
with him to Ceredigion and Dyfed."
Source: Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the Princes,
1955, p.17.
"In 978 he [Godfrey, son of Harold] and his
Danish host, in a third irruption into Anglesey, won a victory over the Welsh,
the fame of which - for a thousand of the enemy were left dead on the field and
two thousand carried into captivity - penetrated to Ireland and was thought
worthy to be preserved in the annals of that country."
Footnote: The 'Cath Manand', won by 'Mac Aralt' and
the Danes.
Source: J.E.Lloyd, A History of Wales, vol I, 1912,
pp.351, 352.
Various other sources, as yet unverified, suggest
that Godfrey Haroldson or Haraldsson won an overwhelming victory over Maredudd
ab Owain at the "Battle of Mannan" (location unknown), on Anglesey in
987 AD.
988
The
Norse raid Church of St. David at Menevia, as well as the monastic houses of
Llanbadarn Fawr near Aberystwyrth, Llandudoch (modern St. Dogmaels) near
Cardigan, Llancarfan near Glamorgan, and Llanilltrud, also near Glamorgan.
992
Church
of St. David at Menevia destroyed for the third time by the Norse raiders.
Maredudd ab Owain, king of Dyfed, hired Norse mercenaries for his retaliatory
campaign against Edwin ab Einion, king of Glamorgan.
993
Anglesey
was raided again by the "black pagans."
995
"Mannaw,"
probably Anglesey, was raided by King Sveinn Forkbeard of Denmark.
999
Church
of St. David at Menevia destroyed and Bishop Morgeneu slain by Vikings.
1000
Aeddan ap Blegywryd wrested control of the whole of North Wales and Idwal's
son, Iago, fled to Ireland.
1002
AD
Norse raiders attack Dyfed, but this time spare the Church of St. David at
Menevia.
1005
Ard-Righ Brian Boru sends a fleet composed of Norsemen from Dublin,
Waterford, Wexford and Munster to "levy royal tribute" (i.e.,
plunder) in Wales. The haul from this expedition was to be divided in three
parts, with a third going to the King of Dublin, another third going to the
warriors of Leinester and Munster, and the remainder to professors of
sciences and arts and the needful. This may have been a clever tactic on
Brian's part to keep his fractious people from warring on one another.
1012
Earl Eodwin Streona of Mercia led an English attack against the Church
of St. David at Menevia making use of the Danish ships which King
Ethelred took into his service that year
1018
Llywelyn ap Seisyll defeated and killed Aeddan ap Blegywryd along with four of his
sons and obtained Gwynedd and Powys.
1022,
A man named Rhain the Irishman was made king of
Deheubarth, he claimed to be a son of Maredudd ab Owain, whose daughter Angharad had
married Llywelyn. Llywelyn
ap Seisyll made war against Rhain, they fought a
battle at Abergwili, and after a “slaughter on both sides” Rhain was
killed allowing Llywelyn take control of Deheubarth.
1022
Eileifr, a Dane in the service of King Cnut, raided Dyfed and the Church
of St. David at Menevia.
1031
Scene
of a desperate battle between the invading Saxons and the ancient Britons under
Conan ab Sytsylt, in the year 1031, in which that chieftain and all his sons
were slain."
Source: Samuel Lewis, A Topographical Dictionary of
Wales, 1833.
B.A.Malaws, RCAHMW, 01 September 2006.
1032
Rhydderch ap
Iestyn the king of Gwent and
Morgannwg seized Deheubarth,
1033
Rhydderch ap Iestyn is recorded by as having been slain by the Irish, but with
no explanation of the circumstances.
1034
Hywel
ab Edwin became king of
Deheubarth, sharing the realm with his brother Maredudd. Hywel and Maredudd's
rule did not go unchallenged as the sons of Rhydderch fought in the battle
against them at Irathwy, though sources do not name the victors it seems as
though Hywel and Maredudd were victorious as they remained in power.
1035
Caradog ap
Rhydderch was killed by the "Saxons".
1039
Meurig ap Hywel, who would later become King of
Morgannwg, was
captured by the Norse and later ransomed.
1039
Iago ab Idwal ap
Meurig was killed by his own men in 1039 and
replaced by Llywelyn ap Seisyll's son, Gruffydd ap Llywelyn. Iago's grandson Gruffudd ap Cynan later won the throne of
Gwynedd, and because of his father, Cynan ab Iago, was little known in Wales, Gruffudd
was styled "grandson of Iago" rather than the usual "son of
Cynan".
1039
Battle of Rhyd y
Groes where Gruffudd ap Llywelyn – the recently crowned King of Gwynedd –
ambushes a Mercian army led by Leofric of Mercia in Brycheiniog, destroying
them. killing Edwin, brother of the Leofric, Earl of Mercia. He then
attacked Dyfed,
1041
Gruffydd defeated Hywel
ab Edwin in the Battle of Pencader (1041) and carried off
Hywel's wife. Gruffydd seems to have been able to drive Hywel out of the south.
1042
King Hywel ab Edwin ab Einon ab Owen of
Deheubarth defeated Viking marauders who had been raiding Dyfed in a battle at
Pwll Dyfach. Another group of Dublin
Norsemen captured King Gruffydd ap Llywellyn of Gwynedd and held him for ransom.
1044
"And then Hywel ab Edwin thought to ravage Deheubarth and a fleet of the folk of Ireland along with him. And Gruffudd ap Llywelyn opposed him; and after there had been a fierce battle and a huge slaughter of Hywel's host and of the Irish at the mouth of the Tywi, Hywel fell and was slain. And then Gruffudd prevailed."
Source: Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the Princes, 1955, p.25.
In 1044, king Hywel ab Edwin returned to Deheubarth as an exile; on entering the mouth of the river Towy with a Danish fleet, he was killed in the battle with Gruffydd ap Llywelyn and his men defeated.
Source: J.E.Lloyd, A History of Wales, vol II, 1912, p.360-1
1044
Hywel
is recorded returning to the mouth of the River Tywi with a Danish fleet to try to reclaim
his kingdom. Gruffydd, however, defeated and killed him in a closely fought
engagement.
"And then Hywel ab Edwin thought to ravage
Deheubarth, and a fleet of the folk of Ireland along with him. And Gruffudd ap
Llywelyn opposed him; and after there had been a fierce battle and a huge
slaughter of Hywel's host and of the Irish at the mouth of the Tywi, Hywel fell
and was slain. And then Gruffudd prevailed."Source: Thomas Jones, The
Chronicle of the Princes,
1047
Gruffydd ap Rhydderch of Gwent was able to expel Gruffydd ap Llywelyn
from Deheubarth and became king of Deheubarth himself after the nobles of
Ystrad Tywi had attacked and killed 140 of Gruffydd ap Llywelyn's household
guard. He was able to resist several attacks by Gruffydd ap Llywelyn in the
following years.
1049
" In the same year 36 ships came from
Ireland up the Welsh Usk, and did harm thereabout, with the help of Gruffydd,
the Welsh king. People were gathered against them; there was also Bishop Aldred
with them, but they had too little help, and they came on them by surprise in
the very early morning and killed many good men there, and the others escaped
along with the bishop. This was done on 29 July"
(Swanton, 170).
1052
Gruffydd ap Llywelyn was active on the Welsh border in 1052, when he attacked
Herefordshire and defeated a mixed force of Normans and English in the Battle
of Leominster and sacks the town.
1055
Gruffydd ap Llywelyn killed his rival Gruffydd ap Rhydderch in battle and
recaptured Deheubarth, he allies with the exiled Ælfgar, Earl of Mercia
and They marched on Hereford and were opposed by a force led by the Earl of
Hereford, Ralph the Timid. This force was mounted and armed
in the Norman fashion, but on 24 October Gruffydd defeated it. He then sacked
the city and destroyed its motte-and-bailey castle
1055
Gruffydd
was also able to seize Morgannwg and Gwent, along with extensive territories along the
border with England.
1056,
Gruffydd ap Llywelyn won another victory over an English army
near Glasbury. Now recognized as King of Wales, he claimed sovereignty over the whole
of the country – a claim which was recognised by the English.
Historian John Davies stated that Gruffydd
was "the only Welsh king ever to rule over the entire territory of
Wales... Thus, from about 1057 until his death in 1063, the whole of Wales
recognised the kingship of Gruffudd ap Llywelyn. For about seven brief years,
Wales was one, under one ruler, a feat with neither precedent nor successor
1059
Macht,
son of Harold, came to Wales with a great army in his train; and the Prince
Gruffudd, and Macht, with combined forces, proceeded against the Saxons, and
devastated the country of England a great way towards its centre; and they
returned to Wales with great spoil.
1062
Harold Godwinson obtained the king's approval for a surprise attack on
Gruffydd's court at Rhuddlan. Gruffydd was nearly captured but was warned in
time to escape out to sea in one of his ships, though his other ships were
destroyed.
1063
Harold's brother Tostig led an army into north Wales while Harold led
the fleet first to south Wales and then north to meet with his brother's army.
Gruffydd was forced to take refuge in Snowdonia where he met his death.
Gruffydd's head and the figurehead of his ship were sent to Harold. The Ulster
Chronicle states that he was killed by Cynan in 1064, whose father Iago had
been put to death by Gruffydd in 1039.
After the murder of Gruffydd ap Llywelyn, Harold Godwinson married his widow Ealdgyth and divided Gruffydd's realm into the traditional kingdoms of Gwynedd and Powys, the rule of which were given to Bleddyn ap Cynfyn and his brother Rhiwallon ap Cynfyn. Gruffydd left two sons— Maredudd and Idwal–who in 1070 challenged Bleddyn and Rhiwallon at Mechain in an attempt to win back part of their father's kingdom. However, both sons were defeated, Idwal (or Ithel) being killed in combat and Maredudd dying of exposure after the battle. Rhiwallon was also killed in this battle, leaving Bleddyn to rule Gwynedd and Powys alone.
1065
Harold Godwinson, after defeating Gruffydd ap Llywelyn in 1063 had begun to build a hunting lodge in Portskewet. Caradog ap Gruffydd prince of Gwent attacked and destroyed it, going on to ravage the district with his forces.
Bleddyn and Rhiwallon ap Cynfyn, co-rulers of Gwynedd, invade Herefordshire in
support of Eadric the Wild, an English rebel resisting the Norman Conquest of
England.
1067
The Normans invade the Kingdom of Gwent and conquer it driving king Caradog ap Gruffudd into exile.
1069
Gruffudd ap Lywelyns sons challenge for the crown of Gwynedd, both are killed.
The Battle of Mechain was fought in 1069 in Powys, for the rule of Gwynedd and Powys.
"And then was the battle of Mechain between Bleddyn and Rhiwallon, sons of
Cynfyn, and Maredudd and Ithel, sons of Gruffudd. And then the sons of Gruffudd
fell: Ithel was slain in the battle, and Maredudd died of cold in flight. And
there Rhiwallon ap Cynfyn was slain."
"The name of this place is derived from its
situation nearly in the centre of a beautiful vale in the north-eastern part of
the county, of circular form, and about three miles in diameter, watered by the
meandering river Cain, and from that circumstance called Mechain, or Mach Cain,
'the tract of the Cain'."
1072
Caradog ap
Gruffudd defeated and killed the ruler of
Deheubarth, Maredudd ab Owain ab Edwin, in a battle
by the Rhymney River.
1073
The Normans invade Gwynedd and occupy Arfon.
1074
"Goodwick
Moor. Here Rhys, son of Owain ap Edwyn, was defeated and slain in 1074 by
Trahaearn ap Caradog (Brut y Tywysogion). The moor is now waterlogged and
marshy. Visited, 2nd June 1921." [The 'Brut' gives a date of 1078, see
below]Source: RCAHMW Pembrokeshire Inventory, 1925, ii, no.591.
1078: "And then there was the battle of
Pwllgwdig. And then Trahaearn, king of Gwynedd, prevailed. And then all Rhys
[ap Owain]'s warband fell."
Source: Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the Princes,
1955, p.29.
"In 1078 Trahaearn of North Wales invaded
Dyfed, defeated Rhys [ab Owain] in the battle of Goodwick, not far from
Fishguard . . ."
In a footnote the battle is referred to as 'urwydyr
Llan wnda' (battle at Llanwnda).
Source: J.E.Lloyd, A History of Wales, vol II,
1912, p.377; p.393 & n.114.
B.A.Malaws, RCAHMW, 27 October 2006.
1075
And then was the battle in the Camddwr between Goronwy and Llywelyn, sons of Cadwgan, and Caradog ap Gruffydd along with them, and Rhys ab Owain and Rhydderch ap Caradog. And Goronwy and Llywelyn were defeated, and Caradog along with them.
Source: Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the Princes,
1955, p.29.
The location of this battle is uncertain; it could
be confused with a battle "at Llanddewi Brefi" (nprn 404610) in 1073,
or indeed be the same battle as exactly the same combatants were involved, but
with a different outcome, and as the Camddwr is a river which forms the eastern
boundary of the community of Llanddewi Brefi. Other sources suggest that it is
the Camddwr in Maelienydd and this is supported by local folk-lore which claims
that a battle was fought near Aber Camddwr, the location given here, between
two Welsh armies.
1075
following the death of Bleddyn ap Cynfyn. Trahaearn ap Caradog had seized control
of Gwynedd but had not yet firmly established himself. Gruffudd ap Cynan landed on Abermenai Point, Anglesey with an Irish force, and
with the assistance of troops provided by the Norman Robert of Rhuddlan 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 and gained control of Gwynedd.
1075
Gruffudd AP CYNAN led his forces eastwards to reclaim territories taken over by
the Normans, and despite the assistance previously given by Robert of Rhuddlan attacked and destroyed Rhuddlan Castle. However tension between Gruffudd's
Danish-Irish bodyguard and the local Welsh led to a rebellion in Llŷn, and
Trahaearn took the opportunity to counterattack, defeating Gruffudd at the
battle of Bron yr Erw above Clynnog Fawr the same year.
1078
Caradog
ap Gruffydd won another victory over Rhys ab Owain who had succeeded Maredudd as
prince of Deheubarth, killing him too.
: "And then there was the battle of Pwllgwdig.
And then Trahaearn, king of Gwynedd, prevailed. And then all Rhys [ap Owain]'s
warband fell."
Source: Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the Princes,
1955, p.29.
"In 1078 Trahaearn of North Wales invaded
Dyfed, defeated Rhys [ab Owain] in the battle of Goodwick, not far from
Fishguard . . ."
In a footnote the battle is referred to as 'battle
of Goodwick.
"Goodwick Moor. Here Rhys, son of Owain ap Edwyn, was defeated and
slain in 1074 by Trahaearn ap Caradog (Brut y Tywysogion). The moor is now
waterlogged and marshy. Visited, 2nd June 1921." [The 'Brut' gives a date
of 1078,
''In 1078 Rhys ab Owain was defeated by Trahaearn ap Caradog, who had followed Bleddyn on the throne of Gwynedd, in a battle at Gwdig (modern day Goodwick). Later the same year Rhys was killed by Caradog ap Gruffydd of Gwent. His defeat and death were hailed in the annals as "vengeance for the blood of Bleddyn ap Cynfyn".
Rhys was followed as king of Deheubarth by his second cousin, Rhys ap Tewdwr.
1080
"and is designated "Gwaith Carno" (or the affair at
Carno)." There is an immense cairn called Twr Gwyn Mawr beneath which it
is said Traherne ab Caradoc lies buried.Source: Archaeologia Cambrensis, III,
3rd series, 1857, p.302.
"Twr Gwyn Mawr [cairn: nprn 304912]. Welsh historians and antiquaries of
two or three generations ago were wont to associate the carneddau on the high
land between the parishes of Carno and Llanbrynmair, and especially the carnedd
known as Twr Gwyn Mawr, with the conflicts mentioned in the Welsh chronicle
called Brut y Tywysogion under the years 948 [nprn 405051] and 1080 A.D. In
Archaeologia Cambrensis, 1853, II, iv, 8, the conjectures relative to the
battle between Gruffudd ap Cynan (and Rhys ap Tewdwr) and Trahaiarn ap Caradog
in the year 1080 are said to have been strengthened by the discovery of
"javelin heads, battle-axes, and the infantry bills of that period"
near the site of Twr Gwyn Mawr. Visited,12th July, 1910."
Source: RCAHMW Montgomeryshire Inventory, 1911, no.43.
It is possible, perhaps because of the similarity of name, that this supposed
battle is confused with that of 1081 on Mynydd Carn (nprn 300319) in
Pembrokeshire, where Trahaearn ap Caradog was slain by Rhys ap Tewdwr: "As
to the site of the battle [of Mynydd Carn], Carno does not suit the conditions,
nor is this form to be found in any ancient authority for Mynydd Carn.
Source: J.E.Lloyd, History of Wales, 1939
1081
Caradog ap Gruffydd Prince of Gwent invaded Deheubarth and drove Rhys to seek sanctuary in the St David's Cathedral.
1081
Gruffudd ap
Cynan returned and made an alliance
with Rhys ap Tewdwr, Prince of Deheubarth. Rhys had been attacked by Caradog ap Gruffudd of Gwent and Morgannwg, and had been forced to flee to St David's Cathedral. Gruffudd this time
embarked from Waterford with a force composed of Danes and Irish and
landed near St David's, presumably by prior arrangement with Rhys.
He was joined here by a force of his supporters from Gwynedd, and he and Rhys
marched north to seek Trahaearn ap Caradog and Caradog ap Gruffudd 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 Gruffudd and Rhys
victorious and Trahaearn, Caradog and Meilyr all being killed. Gruffudd was
thus able to seize power in Gwynedd for the second time.
1081
BATTLE OF Mynydd Carn. The battle has been described as one in which "all
the leading rulers of Wales took part. Gruffudd ap Cynan, claimant
to the kingdom of Gwynedd, and Rhys ap Tudor, king of Deheubarth, defeated
Gruffudd's enemies and Caradog ap Gruffudd of Morgannwg. Gruffudd remained king
of Gwynedd until 1137.
1085
The Normans launch a wholesale invasion of Wales ravaging Gwynedd and Powys.
1085
Erw Beddau (Acre of Graves) is supposedly the site of a battle between Prince
Rhys ap Tewdr and Iestyn Gwrgant in about 1085-88; some sources say the battle
is ficticious, others cannot agree on the date nor the opposing parties. 'Site
of Battle' is marked on the first and second edition OS maps, which also show
several mounds in the immediate vicinity. The area is now built over.
1088
''And then Rhys ap Tewdwr was expelled from his kingdom by the sons of Bleddyn ap Cynfyn, that is, Madog, Cadwgan and Rhiddid. And he fled to Ireland, and forthwith after that he assembled a fleet and came back again. And then the battle of 'Llychcrei' took place, and the sons of Bleddyn were slain; and Rhys ap Tewdwr gave immense treasure to the seamen, Scots and Irish, who had come to his aid.''
Source: Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the Princes, 1955, p.31.
1088
Cadwgan ap Bleddyn of Powys attacked Deheubarth and forced Rhys ap
Tewdwr to flee to Ireland. However, Rhys returned later the same year with a
fleet from Ireland and defeated the men of Powys, in a battle in
which two of Cadwgan's brothers, Madog and Rhiryd, were killed.
'And then Rhys ap Tewdwr was expelled from his kingdom by the sons of
Bleddyn ap Cynfyn, that is, Madog, Cadwgan and Rhiddid. And he fled to Ireland,
and forthwith after that he assembled a fleet and came back again. And then the
battle of 'Llychcrei' took place, and the sons of Bleddyn were slain; and Rhys
ap Tewdwr gave immense treasure to the seamen, Scots and Irish, who had come to
his aid.'
Source: Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the Princes,
1955, p.31.
"In 1088 [Rhys ap Tewdwr] was attacked by the sons of Bleddyn, who now
ruled over Powys; at first defeated and forced to take refuge in Ireland, he
speedily returned with the aid of a Danish fleet and overthrew his rivals in a
battle in which Madog and Rhiryd ap Bleddyn fell, their brother Cadwgan
escaping with his life.
Footnote: The name of the place at which the battle was fought is not to be recognised
in the corrupt forms which have come down, viz. 'penllecheru' (Ann. C. MS. B.
in Trans. Cymr. 1899-1900, 176), 'perilethereu' (MS. C. 177) and 'llychcrei'
(Bruts, 270); 'llech ryt' (B. Saes. s.a. 1087), though adopted by Powel (88)
and others, does not seem a happy conjecture.
Source: J.E.Lloyd, A History of Wales, 1912, vol II, p.398."
1091
The Normans conquer the kingdom of Morgannwg (formerly Glywysing) driving
Iestyn ap Gwrgan into exile.
1091
Rhys ap
Tewdwr faced another challenge in the form of
an attempt to put Gruffydd, the son of Maredudd ab Owain, on the throne of Deheubarth.
Rhys was able to defeat the rebels in a battle at St. Dogmaels, killing Gruffydd.
1092
A battle was fought between Bleddin ap Maenarch and Bernard Newmarch near
Brecon, traditionally believed to be in Battle parish, in 1092.Sources:
T.Jones, History of Brecknockshire, vol 2, 1809, p196; Archaeologia Cambrensis,
vol 1, 1846, p.194.
1093
Robert of Rhuddlan was enjoying a noontide nap in his castle at Deganwy when the news was brought to him that Welsh raiders had landed in three ships underneath the Great Orme and pillaged his lands. Some sources say that these raiders were led by Gruffudd ap Cynan, who had escaped from captivity in Chester. The raiders had beached their ships and were busy loading the plunder. Robert despatched messengers to gather his troops and hastened to the Great Orme, where he found that the rising tide was about to allow the Welsh to refloat their vessels and get away with the loot before Robert's troops could appear. In a fury, Robert rushed down the slopes to attack them, followed only by his armour-bearer. He was killed by a volley of javelins, and the raiders sailed off with his head attached to the mast of one of the vessels.
Robert's lands in Gwynedd were now taken over by Earl Hugh of Chester, but the Welsh revolt of 1094 led by Gruffudd ap Cynan resulted in the loss of most of this territory.
1093
The Normans occupy Brycheiniog and ravage south Wales killing Rhys ap Tewdwr, the king of Deheubarth.
1093
Cadwgan again attacked Deheubarth, but it soon became clear that it was
the Normans who would benefit from the death of Rhys ap Tewdwr.
1094
Welsh revolt against Norman rule broke out,
1094
the Normans attacked Gelligaer. This resulted in a bloody
battle in which a number of important Norman lords were killed
1094
"And then the French-led hosts into Gwynedd; and Cadwgan ap Bleddyn
met them and attacked and defeated them, and drove them to flight and slew
them, and overthrew and subdued them with great slaughter. And that battle was
fought in Coed-ysbwys."
Source: Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the Princes,
1955, p.35.
"In the spring of 1094 Rufus left England for
Normandy. At once the Welsh, driven to despair by the rapidity with which their
enemies were sweeping all before them, resolved to rise in revolt. The movement
began in Gwynedd, where in a short space of time all the castles built by Earl
Hugh to the west of the Conway were carried by assault, the island of Anglesey
was recovered, and a Norman army which was dispatched to retrieve these losses
was defeated at Coed Yspwys by Cadwgan ap Bleddyn."
1094
in 1095 the Welsh began a sustained campaign of resistance. By early 1096 Hywel ap Goronwy had become one of the leaders of the Welsh revolt. That Spring he, together with Uchtryd ab Edwin and the war band of Cadwgan ap Bleddyn, laid waste the province of Penfro and strongly besieged Gerald Windsor in Pembroke castle. Unfortunately for the Welsh the wily Gerald outfoxed them and baffled, forced them to break off their siege, though they returned home with great booty. In the meantime Hywel's cousins, Gruffydd and Ifor, the sons of Idnerth ap Cadwgan, operating in Brycheiniog and Glamorgan won a great victory over a Norman force at Aber-llech in the river valley between Brecon and Swansea
(Remfry, 211)
1095
war had spread to many parts of Wales. This induced William II of England (William Rufus) to
intervene, invading northern Wales in 1095. However his army was unable to
bring the Welsh to battle and returned to Chester without having achieved very
much
1095
The Normans return but fail to draw the Welsh into battle.
1096
"And the French moved a host to Gwent, but they returned empty-handed
having gained naught. And as they were returning, they were slain by the
Britons at the place called Celli Carnant."
1096
"The men of Brycheiniog, led by Gruffydd and Ifor, sons of Idnerth ap
Cadwgan, fell upon another host which had issued from the same region
[Glamorgan] and totally routed it at Aber Llech, about three miles north-east
of Ystrad Gynlais."
" The men of Brycheiniog and Gwent and Gwynllwg threw off the French
yoke, but the French brought an army into Gwent, and they obtained nothing and
returned home empty-handed; and at Kellitravant they were put to flight. A
second time they came into Brycheiniog and built castles there, but on their
return they were put to flight at Aberllech by the sons of Idnerth ab Cadwgan
(Remfry, 211). "
1097
King William mounted a second invasion, but again without much success At this
time Cadwgan ap Bleddyn of Powys led the Welsh resistance. defeating a Norman force at the battle of Coed Yspwys
1098
Earl Hugh of Chester and Earl Hugh of Shrewsbury launched an invasion in 1098 to try to recover Anglesey for Hugh of Chester, A Danish fleet hired by Gruffudd AP CYNAN was offered a higher price by the Normans and changed sides, forcing Cadwgan ap Bleddyn and Gruffudd to flee to Ireland in a skiff.
1098
The Battle of Anglesey Sound, The Normans occupy Gwynedd and Anglesey.
They withdraw within the year.
"Magnus, king of Germany, and some ships with him came to Anglesey, hoping
to overrun all the lands of the Britons. And when king Magnus had heard the
French were often minded to ravage the whole land and to reduce it to naught,
he hastened to attack them. . . . earl Hugh was wounded in the face, and by the
hand of the king himself he fell in the battle. And then by a sudden resolve
king Magnus withdrew from the bounds of the land."
Source: Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the Princes, 1955, p.37-8.
1100
The arrival of a Norwegian fleet under the command of King Magnus III of Norway, also known as Magnus Barefoot, who attacked the Norman forces near the eastern end of the Menai Straits. Earl Hugh of Shrewsbury was killed by an arrow said to have been shot by Magnus himself. The Normans were obliged to evacuate Anglesey, and the following year, Gruffudd returned from Ireland to take possession again, having apparently come to an agreement with Earl Hugh of Chester.
1108
Henry l had conducted a campaign in South Wales in 1108, pushing out royal power in the region and colonizing the area around Pembroke with Flemings
1111
Iorwerth ap Bleddyn prince of Powys was killed by Madog ap Rhiryd in 1111, Cadwgan ap Bleddyn again briefly took over the rule of all Powys, but later the same year Cadwgan himself was also killed by Madog at Welshpool, Madog was able to seize some of his lands, while the remainder fell to his son Owain.
1114
some of the resident Norman lords were under attack, while in Mid-Wales, Owain ap Cadwgan blinded one of the political hostages he was holding.
in North Wales Gruffudd ap Cynan threatened the power of the Earl of Chester.
Henry sent three armies into Wales that year, with Gilbert Fitz Richard leading a force from the south, Alexander, King of Scotland, pressing from the north and Henry himself advancing into Mid-Wales. Owain and Gruffudd sued for peace, and Henry accepted a political compromise. He reinforced the Welsh Marches with his own appointees, strengthening the border territories
1116
The Welsh of Deheubarth revolt against their Norman overlords.
Gruffydd ap Rhys unsuccessfully attacked the Norman castle (nprn 301795) south
of Aberystwyth in 1116.
Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the Princes, 1955,
p.93-5.
As yet unconfirmed sources suggest that the battle
took place around a bridge across the river Ystwyth to the southeast of the
castle
1118
'Hywel ap Ithel made war upon his neighbours, the sons of Owain ap Edwin, who were
lords of the cantref of Dyffryn Clwyd. Hywel brought Maredudd ap Bleddyn, with
400 warriors from Powys, to his aid, while Gronw ab Owain and his brethren had
the help of Norman knights from the lands of the Earl of Chester. A bloody
battle was fought at Maes Maen Cymro, a mile to the north-west of Ruthin, in
which Hywel and his forces won the day and Llywarch ab Owain was slain. But
Hywel was severely wounded, and his death six weeks later turned the momentary
victory into a real defeat.
(Footnote:) Maes Maen Cymro is a township in the
parish of Llanynys and lies in the neighbourhood of Rhewl railway
station."
Source: J.E.Lloyd, A History of Wales, vol II,
1912, p.465-6.
In 1118, Hywel ab Ithel, lord of Rhos and
Rhufoniog, and Goronwy, Rhuiddid and Llywarch, the sons of Owain ap Edwin and
lords of Dyffryn Clwyd, fought a bitter battle where the sons of Owain and
their supporters were defeated. Hywel died of his wounds forty days
later.
Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the Princes, 1955,
p.103.
B.A.Malaws, RCAHMW, 29 August 2006.'
1121
Another invasion by the king of England was a military failure. The king had to
come to terms with Gruffudd AP CYNAN and made no further attempt to invade
Gwynedd during Gruffudd's reign.
1121
Maredudd AP BLEDUDD carried out raids on Cheshire which provoked King Henry
into invading Powys. Maredudd retreated into Snowdonia and asked Gruffudd ap
Cynan for assistance. However, Gruffudd was in no mood to defy the king on
Maredudd's behalf, and Maredudd had to purchase peace at a cost of a fine of
10,000 head of cattle. Gwynedd continued to put pressure on Powys, with the
sons of Gruffudd ap Cynan, Cadwallon and Owain Gwynedd annexing more territory
in 1124
1125
Cadwallon ap
Gruffydd (son of Gruffudd ap Cynan) killed the three rulers of the district Dyffryn Clwyd, being Meilyr ab Owain, Rhiryd ab
Owain, and Gronw ab Owain—his maternal uncles, i.e., his mother's
brothers. The district cantref of Dyffryn Clwyd was then annexed into the kingdom of Gwynedd. Cadwallon is
notoriously remembered by historians for murdering his uncles, as this ended
the reign of the house of Edwin of Tegeingl as a regime.
1127
Gruffydd ap Rhys,
the son of Rhys ap Tewdwr came
to terms with King Henry I of England and was allowed to rule
a portion of his father's kingdom, the Cantref Mawr, although he was soon under pressure from
the Normans again and was forced to flee to Ireland
1132
Cadwallon forged eastward to conquer more land for the kingdom of Gwynedd but was stopped in the area of Nanheudwy in 1133, near the town of Llangollen. An army from the kingdom of Powys then defeated and killed him.His uncle Einion ab Owain ab Edwin was one of the instigators, to avenge his brothers' deaths. Cadwallon's cousin Cadwgan ap Grown ab Owain also played a part in his slaying. Other cousins were also involved in Cadwallon's murder.
1134
Welsh raids into Shropshire destroying Caus Castle.
1136
Anarawd ap Gruffydd and his brother Cadell ap Gruffydd joined with the Prince of Gwynedd, Owain Gwynedd and the latter's brother Cadwaladr ap Gruffydd in an assault on Cardigan Castle which was in Norman hands. The assault was aided by a fleet of Viking ships, but an agreement was reached and the siege lifted.
1136
Battle of Llwchwr FROM WIKI
Background
In 1135–1136 an opportunity arose for the Welsh to recover lands lost to the Marcher lords after Stephen de Blois had displaced his cousin Matilda of England from succeeding her father to the English throne the previous year, sparking the Anarchy in England.
The battle
A Welsh army was raised by the lord of Brycheiniog (Brecknockshire), Hywel ap Maredudd, containing men from Brycheiniog as well as men from Northern Gŵyr that despised the Norman rule in Southern Gŵyr. The Normans sallied out expecting to meet a small collection of Welsh raiding bands, however the scale of the Welsh army took them by surprise. The two armies met on the common of Carn Coch. In a violent melee, the Welsh army emerged victorious, the Normans having lost around 500 men.
Aftermath
The victory of the Welsh army-inspired more rebellions around Wales including a battle near Kidwelly Castle fought by an army led by Gwenllian, Princess of Deheubarth and the Battle of Crug Mawr.
1136
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 de Clare, the Norman lord who controlled Ceredigion.
wiki
''Richard had been away from his lordship in the early part of the year. He returned to the borders of Wales via Hereford in the company of Brian Fitz Count, but on their separating, Richard ignored warnings of the danger and pressed on toward Ceredigion with only a small force.[5] He had not gone far when, on 15 April, he was ambushed and killed by the men of Gwent under Iorwerth ab Owain and his brother Morgan, grandsons of Caradog ap Gruffydd, in a woody tract called "the ill-way of Coed Grano", near Llanthony Abbey, north of Abergavenny.[6] Today the spot is marked by the 'garreg dial' (the stone of revenge). He was buried in Tonbridge Priory, which he founded.''
1136
While her husband (Gruffydd ap Rhys) was in Gwynedd seeking an alliance with her father against the Normans, Maurice of London and other Normans led raids against Deheubarth's Welsh. Gwenllian was compelled to raise an army for their defence. In a battle fought near Kidwelly Castle, Gwenllian's army was routed, she was captured in battle and beheaded In the battle her son Morgan was also slain and another son, Maelgwyn captured and executed.
For centuries after her death, Welshmen cried-out Revenge for Gwenllian when engaging in battle
1136
When word reached Gwynedd of Gwenllain's death and the revolt in Gwent, Gwenllian's brothers Owain and Cadwaladr invaded Norman controlled Ceredigion, taking Llanfihangel, Aberystwyth, and Llanbadarn
1136
Battle of Crug Mawr
The combined Welsh forces headed for the town of Cardigan. This army, said to number 6,000, including 2,000 mailed horsemen, had taken up a style of warfare learnt from the Normans. The Normans were said to have a substantial force.
1137
An army from Gwynedd captures Carmarthen from the Normans.
1143
Anarawd
ap Gruffydd was treacherously killed by the men of
Owain's brother Cadwaladr. Cadwaladr himself was strongly suspected of having
ordered the killing. This greatly angered Owain, for Anarawd had been a key
ally and was about to marry Owain's daughter. Owain sent his son Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd to strip
Cadwaladr of his lands in Ceredigion in punishment.
1144
The Marcher lord Hugh de Mortimer re-takes Maelienydd.
1145
Gilbert de Clare
rebuilds Carmarthen Castle. then
began a campaign to reclaim Ceredigion. He built a castle in the commote of Mabudryd,
1146
OWEN GWYNEDD captured Mold Castle
1146
Cadell ap
Gruffydd captured the castles of Carmarthen (repairing and retaining it for several
years) and then destroyed the castle.
1146
The lord rhys fighting alongside his brothers Cadell and Maredudd capture Llansteffan Castle
This was followed by the capture of
Wiston in 1147,
Carmarthen in 1150
and Loughor in 1151
1147
Cadell ap
Gruffydd defeated Walter Fitzwiz.
1149
Madog ap Maredudd advances into Shropshire and annexes Oswestry to the kingdom
of Powys; it remains in his possession until 1157.
1150
Maredudd became ruler of Deheubarth and continued a campaign aimed at
recovering Ceredigion, which had been held by Gwynedd since
1150
OWEN GWYNEDD captured Rhuddlan
1150
OWEN GWYNEDD encroached on the borders of Powys. The prince of Powys, Madog ap Maredudd, with assistance from Earl
Ranulf of Chester, gave battle at Coleshill, but Owain was victorious.
"In the year following the invasion of Iâl [i.e. in 1150], Owain Gwynedd
and Madog came to blows. Though there is no record of the achievement, Owain
seems about this time to have taken Rhuddlan Castle and made himself master of
Tegeingl; accordingly, he and Madog met at Coleshill, once a manor of the Earl
of Chester and miles away from the Welsh border, but now, as the star of Wales
rose to the zenith, to be the battleground of the two Welsh leaders. The prince
of Powys did not rely upon his own strength, but came into the field with the
support of troops lent him by Earl Ranulf, who had good reasons of his own for
wishing to check the progress of Owain. Nevertheless, it was Owain who won the
day."
Source: J.E.Lloyd, A History of Wales, vol II,
1912, p.494.
1150: In that year Madog ap Maredudd, king of
Powys, with the help of Ranulf, earl of Chester, prepared to rise up against
Owain Gwynedd. And after the people of his supporters had been slain at
Coleshill, the others turned their backs in flight.
Source: Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the Princes,
1955, p.129.
B.A.Malaws, RCAHMW, 31 August 2006.
1151
Cadell ap
Gruffydd was attacked while out hunting by a
group of Norman and Flemish knights from Tenby, and left for dead. He survived but suffered injuries
which left him unable to play an active role, and in 1153 he left on a
pilgrimage to Rome.
1153.
THE LORD Rhys leads an army to capture the Norman castle of St Clears. Maredudd and Rhys also destroyed the
castles at Tenby and Aberafan that year. Maredudd died in 1155 at the age of
twenty-five and left Rhys as ruler of Deheubarth.
1157
Henry II leads a massive invasion of the Perfeddwlad to drive Owain ap
Gruffudd, the king of Gwynedd, away from the border of Cheshire.
(Battle of Ewloe), Owain's men ambushed the royal army in a narrow, wooded valley, routing it completely with King Henry himself narrowly avoiding capture. The fleet accompanying the invasion made a landing on Anglesey where it was defeated. ( battle ofTal-y-Moelfre)
"a battle took place between [king Henry II's
men] and the men of Anglesey [under Owain Gwynedd]; and in that battle, the
French fled, according to their usual custom."
Source: Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the Princes,
1955, p.135-7.
"[Henry's] ships had cast anchor in the
harbour of Moelfre . . . on the following day a battle was fought which
vindicated the outraged honor of the saints of Môn. The invaders were
defeated."
"The spot marked on the Ordnance map as the
supposed site of the battle of Coleshill, though anyone, or all, of the
adjoining fields in the township of Coleshill Fechan would suit the required
conditions. Henry II, advancing along the shore from Saltney March as far as
Coleshill, found himself opposed by Owain, prince of Gwynedd. The sudden onset
of the Welsh temporarily disorganised Henry's army, but the King rallied his
forces, repulsed the charge, and advanced so as to cut off Owain's retreat, the
latter taking shelter in a more hilly or more defensible region. The exact site
of the 'Koet Kennadlaoc' (for which we should probably read 'Keun =
Kefnhadlog') of Brut y Tywysogion is not certainly known. It has been surmised
to be either Ewloe Wood or Hawarden.
"
Source: RCAHMW Flintshire Inventory, 1912, p.18, no.63; see also J.E.Lloyd, A
History of Wales, vol II, 1912, p.497-8; Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the
Princes, 1955, p.135.
1159
Rhys ap Gruffudd (the lord rhys) of Deheubarth attacks Anglo-Norman
castles and settlements in south Wales, capturing Llandovery in 1162.
1162
"Owain
[Gwynedd] moved a host to Arwystli, as far as Llandinam. And after they had
obtained immense spoil, the men of Arwystli gathered together, about three
hundred, along with Hywel ap Ieuaf, their lord, to go after the spoil. And when
Owain saw his enemies coming unexpectedly, he urged his men to fight. And the
enemies turned to flight, with Owain and his men slaughtering them, so that
hardly a third part of them escaped home in flight."Source: Thomas Jones,
The Chronicle of the Princes, 1955, p.143.
In 1162 Owain Gwynedd ravaged the lands of Hywel ab Ieuaf as far as Llandinam,
defeating him with great slaughter in a pitched battle.
Source: J.E.Lloyd, A History of Wales, vol II, 1912, p.510.
Other sources, as yet unverified, suggest that the battle took place at
Llanidloes.
1163
Henry II launches a military campaign in south Wales invading Deheubarth. He
captures Rhys ap Gruffudd at Pencader and takes him to England. Rhys is
restored to his lands in 1164 after he agrees to make homage to Henry.
1163
All
the Welsh princes united in an uprising,
1165
The Welsh revolt led to another invasion of Wales by King Henry in 1165. Henry
attacked Gwynedd first, but instead of following the usual invasion route along
the north coast he attacked from the south, following a route over the Berwyn hills. He was met by the united forces of the
Welsh princes, led by Owian Gwynedd
1165
Battle of Crogen 'The Battle of
Crogen took place in the Ceiriog
Valley, in 1165,
between Henry II of England and an alliance of Welsh princes led by Owain
Gwynedd. Although
outnumbered, the ambush tactics and valour of the Welsh aided them in their
defeat of King Henry's army'
"1165: In this year King Henry
came to Oswestry, thinking to annihilate all Welshmen. And against him came
Owain and Cadwaladr, sons of Gruffudd ap Cynan, and all the host of Gwynedd
with them, and Rhys ap Gruffudd and with him the host of Deheubarth, and Owain
Cyfeiliog and the sons of Madog ap Maredudd and the host of all Powys with
them, and the two sons of Madog ab Idnerth and their host. And both sides
stayed in their tents until the king moved his host into Dyffryn Ceiriog and
there he was defeated at Crogen."
Source: The Chronicle of Ystrad Fflur.
Henry II led his army to the river Ceiriog, where a party of Welsh suddenly
attacked the van of Henry's army and in the action that ensued, since called
the battle of Crogen, many were killed on both sides.
Source: Entry for Denbighshire in Lewis S, 'A Topographical
Dictionary of Wales' (1849).
A commemorative plaque (nprn 412333) has been affixed to Castle Mill Bridge
(nprn 310228) and refers to the "Battle of Crogen" having been fought
"nearby in August 1165 . . . between Henry II, King of England (r.1154-89)
and Welsh forces under Owain Gwynedd (1137-70)" The plaque was unveiled on
04 March 2009 by Wrexham Borough Council Leader Aled Roberts.
1165
Rhys ap
Gruffudd returned to Deheubarth where he
captured and burned Cardigan Castle. He allowed the garrison to depart,
but held the castellan, Robert Fitz-Stephen, as a prisoner. Shortly
afterwards Rhys captured Cilgerran castle
1167
Owain Gwynedd RE captures Rhuddlan Castle and Basingwerk advancing as far east
as the River Dee.
1168
the lord rhys attacked the Normans at Builth, destroying its castle.
1170,
Rhys ap Gruffydd had made the southern
kingdom of Deheubarth the strongest of the Welsh kingdoms and
had established himself as the leader of Pura Wallia. After Rhys
died in 1197, fighting between his sons led to the splitting of Deheubarth
between warring factions
1170
''Following the death of Owain Gwynedd in 1170, a bitter struggle broke out
between his sons over who would inherit the right to rule the kingdom of
Gwynedd. The first action on this long-running conflict was the battle at
Pentraeth on Anglesey where Hywel Ab Owain Gwyned, the likely nominated
heir was killed alongside his six foster-brothers, by his half-brother Dafydd ab
Owain Gwynedd. The event is mentioned in the Annales Cambriae and Brut y
Tywysogion, but is only located at Pentraeth in a contemporary poem by a
survivor of the battle Peryf ab Cedifor. Another poem by the same poet adds
additional details about the location of the battle and the names of those who
died there. By using this evidence it is possible to narrow down the location of
the battle to a small area in the parish of Pentraeth on Anglesey.''
'The warrior-poet, Hywel, was overwhelmed in a battle fought 'in the hollow
above Pentraeth' before the end of the year 1170.Source: J.E.Lloyd, A History
of Wales, vol II, 1912, p.549.
Four stone lined graves were found in a field at
Rhos-y-gad farm in 1893. One contained a skeleton, considered by Harold Hughes
FSA to be of the twelfth century.
Source: Transactions of the Anglesey Antiquarian
Society,
Further graves were found on Rhos-y-gad (the moor of the battle) farm in 1903,
in a field known as Bryn-y-cyrff (the hill of the corpses), at the eastern edge
of a quarry [SH 5119 7890]. (It is believed that the graves found in 1893 were
in a field to the south west of Bryn-y-cyrff.) The date of the remains was felt
to be consistent with that of 1170 suggested by the Rector of Llansadwrn; he
believed that the graves were those of the warriors who fell in the battle
between Hywel and Dafydd, the sons of Owain Gwynedd, 'fought in the hollow
above Pentraeth.' According to the Rector, 'spear-heads, etc.' have been picked
up in the area.
Source: Archaeologia Cambrensis,'
1176
Cadwallon ap Madog brought
destruction to the English
Marches of Herefordshire and Shropshire.
1185
Welsh raiders sack Cardiff.
1188
" [after 1188] there appears upon the stage the greatest of Welsh princes
in the person of Llywelyn, son of lorwerth ab Owain, who in 1194 won two
notable victories hereabouts, at Aberconwy (Conway) and Porthaethwy (Menai
Bridge) [nprn 404316], which launched him upon his triumphant career."
Cambridge County Histories: Carnarvonshire, 1911; p. 91.
"After the victory of Aberconwy, Llywelyn [ab Iorwerth] won fresh triumphs
at the passage of the Menai at Porthaethwy."
Source: J.E.Lloyd, A History of Wales, vol II
1189
Henry II died in and was succeeded
by Richard I. The lord rhys considered that he
was no longer bound by the agreement with King Henry and attacked the Norman
lordships surrounding his territory. He ravaged Pembroke, Haverfordwest, and Gower and captured the castles of St.
Clear's, Laugharne, and Llansteffan. Richard's brother, Prince John
(later King John), came to Wales in September and tried to
make peace. He persuaded Rhys to raise the siege of Carmarthen and accompany him to Oxford to meet Richard. Rhys arrived at Oxford to
discover that Richard was not prepared to travel there to meet him, and
hostilities continued
1194,
with the aid of his cousins, Gruffudd ap Cynan and Maredudd ap Cynan, Llywelyn the
Great defeated his uncle. Dafydd ab Owain at the Battle of Aberconwy at the mouth of the
River Conwy.
1194
Llywelyn, son of lorwerth ab Owain, [who] in 1194 won two notable victories
hereabouts, at Aberconwy (Conway) [nprn 404453] and Porthaethwy (Menai Bridge),
which launched him upon his triumphant career."Source: Cambridge County
Histories: Carnarvonshire, 1911; p. 91.
1194
Rhys was defeated in battle by Maelgwn and Hywel, who imprisoned him in Nevern castle
1196
The lord Rhys launched
his last campaign against the Normans, He captured a number of castles,
including Carmarthen, Colwyn, Radnor and Painscastle, and defeated an army led by Roger de Mortimer and Hugh de Say near Radnor,
with forty knights among the dead. This, the Battle of Radnor, was Rhys' last battle. William de Braose offered terms, and Painscastle
was returned to him
"And thence [Rhys ap Gruffydd]
immediately set out with his host to Radnor and burned it. And after it had
been burnt, that day in the valley close by, Roger Mortimer and Hugh de Sai
drew up their forces equipped with horses and corselets and helmets and shields
without warning against the Welsh. And when the great-hearted Rhys saw this,
like a fierce lion he armed himself with a stout heart and a strong hand, and
he attacked his enemies manfully and turned them to flight and pursued them and
treated them vilely, although manfully, so that the Marchers greatly lamented
the exceeding great slaughter of their men."
Source: Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of
the Princes,
1197 ,
Llywelyn the Great captured Dafydd and imprisoned him. A year later Hubert Walter, Archbishop of Canterbury, persuaded
Llywelyn to release him, and Dafydd retired to England where he died in
May
1198 .
Gwenwynwyn ab Owain, Prince of Powys Wenwynwyn, tried to take over as leader of
the Welsh princes and raised a great army to besiege Painscastle, which was held by the troops of William de Braose, Lord of
Bramber. Llywelyn the Great sent troops to help Gwenwynwyn, but in August
Gwenwynwyn's force was attacked by an army led by the Justiciar, Geoffrey Fitz Peter, and
heavily defeated. Gwenwynwyn's defeat gave Llywelyn the opportunity to
establish himself as the leader of the Welsh.
1199
Llywelyn
the great, captured the important castle of Mold and was apparently using the title
"Prince of the whole of North Wales"
The Annales Cestriensis notes:
The castle of Mold was besieged and captured from Llewelyn on the day of the
Epiphany of Our Lord [January 6, 1199](Christie, 45).
This event is also briefly mentioned in the Gwynedd chronicle, O Oes Gwrtheyrn:
O haf y Gwydyl hyd Castell Paen v mlyned. Y gayaf rac wyneb y torres Llywelyn
yr Wydgruc(Jones, 412).
From the summer of the Irish to Castell Paen, five years. The next winter
Llywelyn destroyed Yr Wyddgrug [Mold](Jones, 418)
A poem by Prydydd y Moch also notes the victory for Llywelyn ap Iorwerth:
Nyd fuc, o’r Wytgruc, wytgun---Gymry,
Oes goruod y hil Rhun:
Tyreu poeth, peithyawc pob un,
Tande fyryf, foes Alun(Jones, 188, line 45)
No delusion, since Mold, wolf-pack fortress,
Rhun’s descendant’s triumph:
Towers burnt, each one gutted,
Mighty flame, Alun’s folk in flight
1202
Llywelyn the great raised a force to attack Gwenwynwyn ab Owain of Powys, who
was now his main rival in Wales. The clergy intervened to make peace between
Llywelyn and Gwenwynwyn and the invasion was called off. Elise ap Madog, lord
of Penllyn, had refused to respond to Llywelyn's summons to arms and was
stripped of almost all his lands by Llywelyn as punishment.
1202
Within
half a mile of the castle [Carreghofa castle; nprn 405178] lies a memorable
spot, Gwern y Vigin, where a battle was fought about the year 1202, and
probably terminated in favour of the English, and [the writer conjectures] that
the castle of Carreghova was the fruit of their victory."
1210 ,
relations between Llywelyn and King John deteriorated. J.E. Lloyd suggests that
the rupture may have been due to Llywelyn forming an alliance with William
de Braose, 4th Lord of Bramber, who had fallen out with the king and had been
deprived of his lands. While John led a campaign against de Braose and his
allies in Ireland, an army led by Earl Ranulph of Chester,
and Peter des Roches, Bishop of Winchester, invaded Gwynedd. Llywelyn
destroyed his own castle at Deganwy and retreated west of the River
Conwy. The Earl of Chester rebuilt Deganwy, and Llywelyn retaliated by ravaging
the earl's lands. John sent troops to help restore Gwenwynwyn to the rule
of southern Powys.
1210
"Kilkennin . . . is remarkable in history as the scene of a slaughter
committed, in 1210 by Rhys and Owain ab Grufydd, at the head of a chosen band
of three hundred men, on a superior body of English and Welsh troops, under the
command of their uncle Maelgwyn."Source: S.Lewis, A Topographical
Dictionary of Wales, 1833.
In 1210, Rhys and Owain ab Gruffudd gathered three
hundred men and at Cilcennin they slaughtered, captured or drove to flight a
superior force of French and Welsh soldiers under Maelgwn ap Rhys.
Source: Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the Princes,
1955, p.189-91.
1210: "Rhys and Owain . . . the two young
princes with 300 chosen warriors, made an onslaught by night upon Maelgwn's
camp at Cilcennin, drove him ignominiously into hasty flight, and captured his
nephew, Cynan ap Hywel, and his chief counsellor, Gruffydd ap Cadwgan. It was
an indubitable victory . . . but it had no great effect upon the general
situation."
Source: J.E.Lloyd, A History of Wales, vol II,
1912, p.633-4.
B.A.Malaws, RCAHMW, 18 July 2006.
1211
King John of England launches an invasion of Gwynedd from Chester but has to
retreat without making gains. A second invasion later that year, this time from
Shrewsbury, leaves the Welsh town of Bangor in ruins; John succeeds in securing
the surrender of the prince of Gwynedd, Llywelyn Fawr, who agrees to cede the
Perfeddwlad to the English Crown as part of the peace terms.
1212
Llywelyn formed an alliance with Gwenwynwyn of Powys and the two main rulers of
Deheubarth, Maelgwn ap Rhys and Rhys Gryg, and rose against John. They had the support
of Pope Innocent III, who had been engaged in a
dispute with John for several years and had placed his kingdom under an interdict. Innocent released Llywelyn, Gwenwynwyn and
Maelgwn from all oaths of loyalty to John and lifted the interdict in the
territories which they controlled. Llywelyn was able to recover all Gwynedd
apart from the castles of Deganwy and Rhuddlan within two months
1213
, Llywelyn took the castles of Deganwy and Rhuddlan
At that time
Prince Llywelyn of North Wales with certain other Welsh Princes took the three
castles that remained in North Wales, namely Degannwy, Rhuddlan and Holywell
(Remfry, 238).Llywelyn ap Iorwerth had joined forces
with Maelgwn ap Rhys of Deheubarth and Gwenwynwyn ab Owain Cyfeiliog of Powys.
The castle of Deganwy (Scheduled Monument CN016) is located at SH 7821 7944).
Nothing further is known.
RCAHMW (Battlefields Inventory), Feb 2017
1215
Llywelyn had now established himself as the leader of the independent princes
of Wales, and in December 1215, led an army which included all the lesser
princes to capture the castles of Carmarthen, Kidwelly, Llanstephan, Cardigan and Cilgerran. Another indication of his growing power
was that he was able to insist on the consecration of Welshmen to two vacant
sees that year, Iorwerth, as Bishop of St. David's, and Cadwgan, as Bishop of Bangor
The Cronicon de Wallia for the year 1215
notes:
lewelínus Nortwallie prínceps . solopíam optínuit . et castellum de mumgumbría
et de kamhawn (Gough-Cooper, e25.2).
Prince Llywelyn of North Wales obtained Shropshire with the castles of
Montgomery and Cymaron (Remfry, 238).
The Cronicon de Wallia notes the castles taken by Llywelyn ap Iorwerth during
his campaign of December 1215:
In fíne huius anni lewelínus northwallie princeps parum ante natale domíní
sutwalliam intrans cum grandi exercítu ínfra tres ebdomadas castella quorum
nomína sunt . kermerd?n . seínt cler. lanstephan . abercorran . trefdrahet .
Aberteiu? . kilgarran prospere et uíriliter optínuít cum adiacentibus terrís et
cantaredis. que omnía castella destructa sunt atque solotenus confracta exceptis
aberteíu? et kilcarran. Idem uero lewelínus cum trípudío et uíctoría letus ad
propría remeauít (Gough-Cooper, e25.5).
At the end of this year Prince Llywelyn of North Wales a little before
Christmas entered South Wales with a grand army and in three weeks triumphantly
and manfully took the castles called Carmarthen, Saint Clears, Llanstephan,
Laugharne, Newport, Cardigan and Cilgerran with their adjacent lands and
cantrefs. And he destroyed all the castles as well as unrestrainedly wrecked
them except for Cardigan and Cilgeran. Truly Llywelyn returned home with ritual
dancing and joyful victory (Remfry, 239).
1216
Gwenwynwyn of Powys changed sides again that year and allied himself with King
John. Llywelyn called up the other princes for a campaign against him and drove
him out of southern Powys once more.
The Cronicon de Wallia for the year 1216 notes that Gwenwynwyn, ruler of Powys,
went against the oath he had given to Llywelyn ap Iorwerth. Llywelyn sent
bishops and letters to him to try and get him to change his mind:
suí contínentibus toto nísu eum reuocare laborauít . Sed cum níchil profícere
potuít: collecto exercítu et conuocatís tocius fere wallie principíbus uersus
powísíam tendít et totam terram eius sibi subíugauít et optínuít eo fu-gato (Gough-Cooper,
e26.2).
But when he was able to accomplish nothing in this, he collected an army and
called together nearly all the princes of Wales, and advanced against Powys,
taking and subjugating all the land and forcing Gwenwynwyn to flight (Remfry,
239).
1217,
Reginald de Braose of Brecon and
Abergavenny, who had been allied to Llywelyn and married his daughter, Gwladus
Ddu, was induced by the English crown to change sides. Llywelyn responded by
invading his lands, first threatening Brecon, where the burgesses offered hostages for the payment
of 100 marks, then heading for Swansea where Reginald de Braose met him to offer submission
and to surrender the town. He then continued westwards to threaten Haverfordwest where the burgesses offered hostages
for their submission to his rule or the payment of a fine of 1,000 marks
1220
Hostilities
broke out with William Marshal, 2nd Earl of
Pembroke, in 1220. Llywelyn destroyed the castles of Narberth and Wiston, burnt
the town of Haverfordwest and threatened Pembroke Castle, but agreed to abandon the attack
on payment of £100
1223
Llywelyn crossed the border into Shropshire and captured Kinnerley and Whittington castles. The Marshalls
took advantage of Llywelyn's involvement here to land near St David's in April with an army raised in Ireland and recaptured Cardigan and Carmarthen without
opposition
1223
Marcher lord Hubert de Burgh starts a series of campaigns during which he
retakes Carmarthen, Cardigan and Montgomery.
1223
Llewelyn ap Iorwerth took several of the Earl of Pembroke's castles in south
Wales in his absence; the earl on his return in 1223 retaliated by taking the
castles of Cardigan and Carmarthen. Llywelyn sent his son Gruffydd, who marched
towards Carmarthen, where the earl was then posted. The latter crossed the
river Tywi and gave battle; the engagement was terminated only by nightfall,
when both commanders withdrew their forces, neither of them having obtained any
advantage. The earl kept his troops in Carmarthen and Gruffydd encamped for a
few days at some distance on the opposite side of the river, but his provisions
beginning to fail, he withdrew into north Wales and the earl retired into
Cardiganshire.
"William Marshal, Earl of Pembroke "made his way across the Tywi to
Carmarthen bridge and Gruffudd ap Llywelyn waited for him fearlessly. And after
protracted fighting for the greater part of the day, each of the two hosts fell
back from the other to encamp, after many had been slain on either side and
others had been wounded. And then because of hunger Gruffudd ap Llywelyn
returned again to his land."
Source: Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the Princes,
1955, p.225.
""After the
victory of Aberconwy, Llywelyn [ab Iorwerth] won fresh triumphs at the passage
of the Menai at Porthaethwy . . . and again at Coedaneu, in the heart of
Anglesey, but there is no clear indication of the foes whom he fought".
Footnote mentions battle of
'Coettaneu'.
Source: J.E.Lloyd, A History of Wales, vol II,
1912, p.589.
The location of the battle is not
known.B.A.Malaws, RCAHMW, 20 June 2006."
1228,
Llywelyn was engaged in a campaign against Hubert de Burgh, who was Justiciar of England and Ireland and one of the most
powerful men in the kingdom. Hubert had been given the lordship and castle
of Montgomery by the king and was encroaching
on Llywelyn's lands nearby. The king raised an army to help Hubert, who began
to build another castle in the commote of Ceri. However, in October the royal army was
obliged to retreat and Henry agreed to destroy the half-built castle in
exchange for the payment of £2,000 by Llywelyn. Llywelyn raised the money by
demanding the same sum as the ransom of William de Braose, Lord of
Abergavenny, whom he had captured in the fighting
1228,
there was further fighting. Llywelyn was becoming concerned about the growing
power of Hubert de Burgh. Some of his men had been taken prisoner by the
garrison of Montgomery and beheaded, and Llywelyn responded by burning Montgomery, Powys, New Radnor, Hay, and Brecon before turning west to capture the castles
of Neath and Kidwelly. He completed the campaign by recapturing Cardigan
castle.[46] King
Henry retaliated by launching an invasion and built a new castle at Painscastle, but was unable to penetrate far into Wales
1231
The
Breviate Chronicle for the year 1231 notes that following Llywelyn ap
Iorwerth’s attacks in Mid Wales:
deinde uersus guenciam tendens et Karlíon ín cínerem redígens · castella de
Neth et Kedwel? et de Kardigan uilla prius a mailgono succensa ·
prostrauít(Gough-Cooper, b1253.1)Then he pressed on into Gwent and reduced
Caerleon to cinders as well as Neath castle and Kidwelly and Cardigan, where
the town had earlier been set alight by Maelgwn, which he threw to the ground
1231
Lywelyn ap Iorwerth laid an ambush for the men of King Henry III, who were
stationed at Montgomery Castle, with the help of a monk from Abbey Cwm Hîr, who
was instructed by Llewelyn to deceive the garrison with false intelligence.
When the king's men rode out and became trapped in boggy ground, Llywelyn's men
attacked and a violent battle ensued, the Welsh eventually gaining victory. One
suggested site for the battle is at Abermule, another being at Hay
The Breviate Chronicle for the year 1231
notes:
lewelínus princeps norwallíe suís comítatus in prisís quibusdam de causís inter
ipsum et regem subortís · mungumriam brechoniam et haiam cum radenor castello
solete(n)us dírupto et íncendio deuastauít(Gough-Cooper,
b1253.1)
Prince Llywelyn of North wales, because of his followers’s raids, shattered the
peace between him and the king and he burned and destroyed Montgomery, Brecon
and Hay together with Radnor castle
1233
The Cronicon de Wallia for the year 1233 note:
eodem anno . l(ewelinus) . princeps uillas de brechonia et de clua . combussít
et castrum quod uocatur castelh?choet cepít et destruxít necnon et villam de
albo monasterío ín cínerem redegít(Gough-Cooper, e31.2).The same year Prince
Llewelyn burned the towns of Brecon and Clun and he took and destroyed
Castellhychoet(Remfry, 241).
The Brutiau for the year 1233 provide further details: Y ulwydyn honno y
kyrchawd Llywelin ap Ioruerth Vrecheinawc ac y distrywawd holl gestyll a
threuyd y wlat drwy anreithaw ac yspeilaw pob lle. Ac ymlad a chastell Aber Hodni
vis a oruc gyt a blifyeu a magnelev. Ac yn y diwed y peidawd drwy ymhoelut y
dref oll yn llundy(Jones, 230).That year Llywelyn ap Iorwerth made for
Brycheiniog and he destroyed all the castles and towns of the land, plundering
and pillaging every palce. And he laid siege to the castle of Brecon for a
month with catapults and engines. But at last he desisted after having turned
the whole town into ashes
1233
That year there was strife between king Henry and Richard Marshal, earl of
Pembroke. And then the earl made a pact with Llywelyn ap Iorwerth and with the
princes of Wales. And forthwith he and Owain ap Gruffudd gathered a mighty
host; and they attacked Monmouth and burned it and made a slaughter of the
king's men who were there defending."
Source: Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the Princes,
1955, p.231.
Earl Richard of Pembroke, supported by Llywelyn ap
Iorwerth, defeated John of Monmouth in a pitched battle near Monmouth on 26
December 1233.
1233
And
their sons and the host of Llywelyn ap lorwerth and the host of the earl of
Pembroke gathered together against Carmarthen. And they laid siege to it for
three months, and they made a bridge upon the Tywi. And then the sailors came
armed, with the tide, to break down the bridge. And when the Welsh saw that
their expedition would be fruitless, they returned to their lands.Source:
Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the Princes, 1955, p.233.
"towards the end of this year [1233] . . .
earl Richard [Richard MarshalI, earl of Pembroke], Rhys Gryg, Maelgwn Fyhan,
and Owain ap Gruffydd beseiged the fortress [of Carmarthen] for three months
and by building a temporary bridge across the river Towy, shut off all hope of
relief from . . . the Bristol Channel. . . in March 1234, Henry de Turberville
sailed with a fleet from Bristol and . . . broke up the improvised bridge, with
great slaughter of its defenders."
1240
With Llywelyn Fawr dead the English attack Wales. Marcher lords retake the
territorial gains made by Llywelyn.
1241
Henry III invades Wales; Dafydd ap Llywelyn is forced to surrender (Aug). The
subsequent peace agreement, the Treaty of Gwerneigron, sees the English occupy
the Perfeddwlad.
1244
Dafydd ap Llywelyn
declares war, several Welsh raids are mounted on the Wales-England border.
1245
A victory of the English near Montgomery in 1244 (some sources suggest 1245),
where 300 Welshmen were drawn into an ambush and slain.
Source: J.E.Lloyd, A History of Wales, vol II,
1912, p.703.
1245
In August 1245 King Henry again invaded Gwynedd, but his army suffered a defeat in a narrow pass by Dafydd's men. Undaunted, Henry proceeded as far as the river Conwy, and began building a new castle at Deganwy.
Savage fighting continued at Deganwy until Henry, some of whose supplies had been captured by the Welsh, ran short of provisions. A truce was agreed and Henry's army withdrew in the autumn. The truce remained in effect throughout the winter, but the war was effectively ended by the sudden death of Dafydd in the royal home at Abergwyngregyn, in February 1246. He was buried with his father at the abbey of Aberconwy. The writer of Brut y Tywysogyon described him as tarian Cymru – the shield of Wales. The poet Dafydd Benfras composed an elegy in his honour.
Dafydd's war
intensifies. Gwynedd and her allies in Deheubarth and Powys Fadog make few
gains in mid-Wales; however, Mold is recaptured by the Welsh (28 Mar). In
August the English attack Gwynedd from Chester; defeated by Dafydd in battle,
the invasion force advances as far as Deganwy, where Henry is halted after
heavy fighting. In the autumn a truce is agreed, and the English army withdraws
to England. Dafydd's death in 1246 precipitates a new attack on Gwynedd from
the south by Marcher lord Nicholas de Molis which compels Deheubarth and then
Gwynedd to surrender. Under the terms of the Treaty of Woodstock, Gwynedd
withdraws from Perfeddwlad.
Since Dafydd's marriage to Isabella de Braose, daughter of William de Braose, had failed to produce an heir the two elder sons of his brother Gruffydd, Llywelyn ap Gruffudd and Owain ap Gruffydd, divided Gwynedd between them and continued the war with King Henry until April 1247, when Llywelyn and Owain met the King at Woodstock and came to terms with him at the cost of the loss of much territory. The pair would continue to rule over Gwynedd jointly until Llywelyn's victory over Owain at the battle of Bryn Derwin in 1255.
1255
The Battle of Bryn Derwin Llywelyn ap Gruffudd won a battle against his
brothers Owain and Dafydd:
"Llywelyn awaited the armies of his brothers
at Bryn Derwin, in the mountain pass which leads from Arfon to Eifionydd, not
far from the battlefield of Bron yr Erw, and there in the space of one hour
inflicted upon them a signal defeat, taking both Owain and David
prisoners."
(Source: J.E.Lloyd, A History of Wales, 1912,
Vol.2, p.715.)
"The next stage in the history of
Carnarvonshire was reached when in 1255 the nephews quarrelled, and at Bryn
Derwyn, in the pass which leads from Llanllyfni to Dolbenmaen, the abler of the
two, Llywelyn ap Gruffydd, won a signal triumph which was the beginning of a
long and honourable career."
(Source: Cambridge County Histories:
Carnarvonshire, 1911; p. 92.)
"In those days great strife was bred at
the instigation of the Devil between the sons of Gruffudd ap Llywelyn, namely,
Owain Goch and Dafydd, on the one side, and Llywelyn, on the other side. And
then Llywelyn and his men, trusting in God, awaited unafraid on Bryn Derwin the
fierce coming of his brothers, and a mighty host along with them. And before
the end of one hour Owain Goch was captured and Dafydd fled, after many of his
host had been slain and others had been captured and the remainder had fled.
And then Owain was imprisoned, and Llywelyn gained possession of the territory
of Owain and Dafydd without opposition to him."
1256
Gwynedd, led by
Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, grandson of Llywelyn Fawr, invades and annexes the
Perfeddwlad. Gwynedd annexes Brycheiniog, Maelienydd, Gwrtheyrnion and Builth
(late 1250s). The Treaty of Montgomery (1267) allows Llywelyn to keep these
gains. Deheubarth makes territorial gains in the south.
1256
Coed Llathan and the related battle of Cymerau took place on 2 June 1257 and
marked a significant phase in the extension of the reach and power of Llywelyn
ap Gruffudd (d. 1282) as Prince of Wales. Here, an English-led force of knights
and predominately Welsh infantry drawn from the Marcher lordships of south and
east Wales were defeated by forces led by members of the royal line of
Deheubarth.
1257
"Llywelyn
[ap Gruffydd] invaded the valley of the Severn, occupied the country as far as
Pool and burnt the little town which clustered round Gruffydd [ap Gwenwynwyn]'s
castle at that place."Footnote: "The name 'Trwst Llywelyn' (near
Berriew) may perhaps preserve the memory of the stampede."
1257
According to several nearly contemporary Welsh chroniclers a severe defeat of
an English force under Stephen Bauzan took place on the 2nd June 1257. The
encounter is no doubt historical, and the English losses appear to have been so
heavy as to make a considerable impression upon the victors. The site of the
battle is marked by place-names like 'Cae trange,' 'Cae dial,' 'Cae
yr ochain' and others, but these are probably the aftermath of a struggle that
may have stuck long in popular memory.
"In June 1257, a large force of English
soldiers, led by Stephen Bauzan, were returning from Llandeilo to Carmarthen.
They were intercepted by Welsh forces under Meredydd ap Owain and Meredydd ap
Rhys Gryg at Coed Llathen (nprn 403587) where the English lost their
provisions, packhorses, arms and other supplies. Later the same day, at Cymerau
(probably at the confluence of the Towy and the Cothi), the Welsh attacked and
defeated the English, slaughtering between two and three thousand men."
**via wiki **
The first day
On Friday night, the English army
encamped in the vicinity of Llandeilo Fawr.
Maredudd ap Rhys and Maredudd ap Owain had armies hidden in the woods which had
followed the English army. The Welsh army harassed the encamped English
constantly with a combination of arrows, spears and intimidating sounds. The
English suffered some casualties, and since morale was low, Stephen Bauzan quickly
sent Rhys Fychan (who had guided the army) to negotiate with Dinefwr castle's
garrison. However, Rhys is said to have either been seized by the garrison or
to have betrayed the English. Either way, the English army had now lost its
guide.[4]
The second day
The Battle of Coed Llathen
Lacking a guide, the English army
decided to march back to Carmarthen. The Welsh armies in the woods hit the
English with devastating guerrilla attacks (using mostly bows or javelins) from
the first hour of Saturday right up until midday. There was an engagement
between the two forces at midday which saw the Welsh troops outflank the
English and successfully capture the English supply train at Coed Llathen.
Although there seem to have been few casualties, the engagement at Coed Llathen
swung the balance in favour of the Welsh since the English had lost most of
their provisions.
The Battle of Cymerau
Following their defeat at Coed Llathen,
the English army retreated westward towards Cymerau. The land at Cymerau was
ideal for the Welsh since it contained ravines and heavily wooded areas which
would allow the Welsh to ambush the English with ease. The land was also wet
and marshy meaning that the English knights would have trouble riding over it.
The Welsh ambushed the English with
their full army and a bloody battle ensued. Many English were said to have been
torn from their mounts and trampled to death by the Welsh army. Stephen Bauzan
was killed along with around 1,000–3,000 of his men (the amount killed varies
with the source). The remaining Englishmen fled the battle.
Llywelyn ap Gruffudd,
Prince of Gwynedd is
said to have been present at the battle, collecting spoils from the fallen
English army
1257
Unverified sources suggest that there was a battle at 'Gwernesgof', Montgomery,
in May 1257; No further information. The site of the alleged battle has not been
identified, but there is a farm called 'Gwern-y-go' some 4.5km south of
Montgomery which is a possible location.
1258
Early in September [1258] David ap Gruffydd, Maredudd ab Owain, and Rhys Fychan
were together in Emlyn, where a conference was proposed between them and
Maredudd ap Rhys, who, with Patrick of Chaworth, was at Cardigan with a large
force, assembled from all the marcher lordships of West Wales. The meeting was
to have come off at Cilgerran, but Patrick, unhappily for himself, was persuaded
to deal treacherously with his foes, and on the evening of 4th September
attacked them with all his host. Notwithstanding the surprise and their
inferior numbers, the Welsh successfully met the onslaught, and in the rout
which followed the lord of Kidwelly was slain."
1258
Maredudd ap Rhys allied himself with the English and was subsequently attacked
by the Welsh, united under Lywelyn ap Gruffydd, becoming severely wounded in a
battle fought near the bridge at Carmarthen in 1258.
Source: J.E.Lloyd, A History of
Wales, vol II, 1912, p.724.
"1258: An assembly of the magnates of Wales gave an oath of allegiance to
Llywelyn ap Gruffudd under pain of excommunication. But Maredudd ap Rhys did
not keep that oath, but he falsely went against it. That year Dafydd ap
Gruffudd and Maredudd ab Owain and Rhys Fychan ap Rhys Mechyll went into Emlyn
to parley with Maredudd ap Rhys and Patrick de Chaworth, the king's seneschal,
at Carmarthen. When Maredudd and Patrick saw the other men, they broke truce
and rushed upon them. And then Patrick was slain and many knights and
foot-soldiers along with him."
Source: Thomas Jones, The
Chronicle of the Princes, 1955, p.251.
1262
"On 29th November [1262] the men of Maelienydd took Roger Mortimer's new
castle at Cefnllys by stratagem and proceeded to dismantle it; when Roger and
young Humphrey de Bohun came with an army to repair the broken walls, Llywelyn
ap Gruffydd swooped upon them with a still larger force, closely beset them in
the ruined fortress, and then induced them to accept the offer of a free
passage through his lines across the border."
Source: J.E.Lloyd, A History of Wales, vol II,
1912, p.730.
"1262: That year, about the feast of Andrew, certain men, by counsel of
the men of Maelienydd, came to the new castle [Cefnllys] which Roger Mortimer
had in Maelienydd. And after they had come inside by treachery they slew the
gate-keepers and seized Hywel ap Meurig, who was constable there, and his wife
and his sons and his daughters. And they made that known to the seneschal and
the constable of the Lord Llywelyn. And those hastened thither to burn the
castle. And when the said Roger heard that, he came, and a mighty force along
with him to help him, to the site of the said castle. And he encamped within
the walls for a few days. And when Llywelyn learned that, he gathered a host
and came to Maelienydd and he received the homage of the men of Maelienydd. And
after two other castles had been won he gave Roger Mortimer leave to
return."
Source: Thomas Jones, The Chronicle of the Princes,
1955, p.253.
B.A.Malaws, RCAHMW, 09 November 2006.
1263
"The following year John Lestrange the Younger, who was then bailiff in
Baldwin's Castle, and a mighty host with him, made a night raid across Ceri to
Cydewain. And after he had gathered vast spoil he came back down again. And
when the Welsh heard that, they pursued them and on that day they slew of the
English more than two hundred, between those on the fields and those in the
barn of Aber-miwl. And forthwith after that, John Lestrange burned the barn
because of that slaughter."
1263
the slaughter of Robert of Rhuddlan at Degannwy and a seven years blockade and siege ending in the castle's destruction in 1263.
1263
Peter of Montfort stoutly resisted a Welsh attack at Abergavenny, led by Gronw
ab Ednyfed and the princes of south Wales, in late February 1263.Source:
J.E.Lloyd, A History of Wales, vol II, 1912, p.731.
Other sources, as yet unverified, suggest that
Roger Mortimer and the Marchers counter-attacked and defeated the princes of
Deheubarth at Abergavenny in March 1263.
Battlefields Trust records refer to a battle in
1263 on the "Blorenge Mountains" (nprn 404987), which are some 3km to
the south west of Abergavenny; there may be a connection with the battle(s)
mentioned above
1265
Llywelyn captured Hawarden Castle and routed the
combined armies of Hamo Lestrange and Maurice fitz Gerald in north Wales.
Llywelyn then moved on to Brycheiniog
1266
Llywelyn ap Gruffudd routed Roger Mortimer's army. With
these victories and the backing of the papal legate, Ottobuono, Llywelyn opened negotiations with the
king, and was eventually recognised as Prince of Wales by King Henry in
the Treaty of Montgomery in 1267.
1277
Llywelyn II is
declared a rebel by Edward and
gathered an enormous army to march against him; the First War of Welsh
Independence begins.
1282
English armies
from Carmarthen defeat the princes of Deheubarth,
1282
armies from
Chester overwhelm Powys Fadog and armies from Shrewsbury retake Maelienydd,
Builth, Brycheiniog and Gwrtheyrnion.
1282
In the Treaty of
Aberconwy Llywelyn is confined to western Gwynedd and Powys Fadog and
Deheubarth are broken up.
1282 ,
Dafydd ap Gruffudd attacked the English at Hawarden Castle and then laid siege
to Rhuddlan.
1282
The revolt quickly spread to other parts of Wales,
with Aberystwyth castle captured and burnt and rebellion
in Ystrad Tywi in south Wales, also inspired by Dafydd according to the annals,
where Carreg Cennen castle was captured.
1282
The English invade
Wales under Edward I. 16 June – Battle of Llandeilo; an English army in the
south is routed, but Edward's forces continue to make slow progress for the
rest of the summer.
1282
Battle of
Moel-y-don; an English army is routed on the banks of the Menai Straits.
" The Bridge of Boats was a pontoon
bridge from Anglesey, where King Edward I had established a base, and was
intended to secure a bridgehead on the mainland for Edward’s final phase of
invasion and conquest of Gwynedd. Edward’s forces led by Luke de Tany found
themselves stranded due to the turning tide on the shore of the mainland where
they were either drowned in their attempts to escape or slaughtered by Welsh
forces as noted in the Peniarth MS.20 version of the Brut y Tywysogyon: Ac a
vanassant goresgin arvon ac ena y gwanaeth pwyd y bont ar venei ac y torres y
bont o tra llwith ac y bodes aneirif or season ac ereill a las(Jones,
228)
And they desired to gain possession of Arfon. And then was made a bridge over
the Menai; but the bridge broke under an excessive load, and countless numbers
of the English were drowned and others were slain(Jones, 120)
This marked the most significant reversal suffered by the English in Edward I’s
final war of conquest against Llywelyn ap Gruffudd in 1282.
The misleading traditional name for this encounter has been the ‘Battle of Moel
y Don’, SH 5183 6777 a point on the Anglesey shore where the straits narrow to
a point that was used as a ferry crossing throughout the Middle Ages. Recent
re-examination suggests that the bridge was constructed further north and
nearer to Edward’s centre of operations at Llanfaes on Anglesey. Two
suggestions have been made, a site close to Llanfaes extending to the mainland
near Abergwyngregyn near the sandbank of Traeth Lafan (SH 634 750) or close to
Bangor (SH 582 735) where a fortified bridgehead was subsequently established
at the second attempt.
RCAHMW (Battlefields Inventory), Jan 2017"
"And it was on the Menai Straits,
probably near Bangor, that the disaster befell the English in 1282, as they
were crossing a newly-made bridge of boats, which almost turned the scale in
Llywelyn ap Gruffydd's favour."
Source: Cambridge County Histories: Carnarvonshire, 1911; p. 93.
"On November 6th [1282] . . .attempting to cross the bridge of boats which
had been thrown across the Menai Straits near Bangor, some sixteen knights,
with their followers, were set upon by the Welsh and overwhelmed."
1282
Battle of Orewin
Bridge (11 Dec); Llywelyn II is killed in a chance ambush nearby at Cilmeri.
Dafydd ap Gruffudd succeeds him.
1283
The last remaining
castles in Gwynedd are captured. The royal court of Wales withdraws to shelter
in the mountains. Dafydd ap Gruffudd is captured in June and executed in
Shrewsbury in October. Gwynedd is conquered. Resulting accords leave no part of
Wales other than Powys Wenwynwyn, Edeirnion, Glyndyfrdwy and Dryslwyn Castle
under native lordship.
1287
Rhys ap Maredudd of Dryslwyn, a prince of Deheubarth incensed at his treatment
by Edward I, leads attacks on English holdings in the south taking back the
Deheubarth royal centre at Dinefwr and capturing the Ystrad Tywi. By 1288 he
has lost all his holdings but remains a guerilla leader until his capture and
execution in 1292.
1294
a Welsh uprising
led by Madog ap Llywelyn, a junior member of the House of Aberffraw starts a
national revolt Caernarfon was overrun by Madog's forces and the
castle occupied, as were the castles at Castell y Bere(subsequently burnt), Hawarden, Ruthin, and Denbigh. Criccieth Castle was besieged by Madog's forces
for several months, as was Harlech. Morlais castle was captured under the aegis of
Morgan in the south, and Cynan ap Mareduddbesieged the castle at Builth for a period of six weeks. Half the town of Caerphilly was burnt—although the castle itself held
out—and, further south, Kenfig castle was sacked.
In north Wales, attempts were made by many English
landowners to retrieve the situation. The lord of Denbigh, Henry de Lacy led a march to Denbigh after the
castle there was besieged; however, he was ambushed outside the town on 11
November, and in the ensuing battle his force was routed by the rebels. In
north-east Wales, Reginald de Grey was more successful, stationing substantial
garrisons at Flint and Rhuddlan—neither castle fell to the rebels, though Flint was
subjected to a lengthy siege. Many other castles across Wales were besieged and
several towns burnt.
1294
Welsh soldiers assembling at Shrewsbury, due to march to Portsmouth for Edward’s campaign in Gascony, mutinied and killed their English officers. The rebels rallied around Madog ap Llywelyn and his rebelion.
1294
Edward mustered an army at his customary base of Worcester to send reinforcements to a besieged Brecon Castle and the area south of Cardiff.
1294
Madog ap Llywelyn defeated the forces of the earl of Lincoln in a pitched battle near Denbigh.
1294
While Madog acted in the north the attacks in mid and south Wales were led by Cynan ap Maredudd, Maelgwn ap Rhys, and Morgan ap Maredudd of Gwynllwg in Glamorgan. The rebel leaders hoped that by the end of September King Edward and most of his forces would be in France on a planned campaign. However, due to bad weather Edward's army had not yet sailed and he quickly cancelled the French campaign to deal with the Welsh uprising.
1295
King
Edward led an army into north Wales to quell the revolt, stopping at Wrexham, Denbigh, Abergele, and elsewhere on his way to Conwy Castle, which he reached shortly before
Christmas. His campaign was timely, for several castles remained in serious
danger—Harlech Castle was defended at one point by just 37 men.
Edward himself was ambushed and retreated to Conwy Castle, losing his baggage train. The town of
Conwy was burnt down and Edward besieged until he was relieved by his navy in
1295.
Edward sacked the town of Nefyn. On the return journey, his troops were ambushed by Welsh forces near Bangor who retook the booty they had taken from the town. The King and most of his force survived and made it back to Conway, but were besieged, and because the rough winter seas prevented any fresh supplies from reaching the castle, they were forced to live off salted fish and water flavoured with honey.
1295
Battle of Maes
Moydog (5 Mar); Madog is defeated and the Welsh army destroyed. Madog is soon
captured and imprisoned. The revolt of 1294–95
elicited a harsh response from Edward I in the form of humiliating and punitive
ordinances further restricting the civil rights and economic and social
opportunities of the Welsh. However, it was not long before Llywelyn Bren, Lord of Senghenydd, led a second rebellion, aided by some of the
more prominent Marcher Lords in 1316.
1316
uprising in Gwent and Morgannwg led by Llywelyn Bren the lord of Senghennydd
and a descendant of the kings of Morgannwg.
llywelyn began the revolt by a surprise attack
on Caerphilly Castle. He captured the Constable
outside the castle and he and his men captured the outer ward but could not
break into the inner defences. They burned the town and slaughtered some of its
inhabitants and started a siege. The revolt quickly spread through Glamorgan
and Gwent; Kenfig castle was sacked, as was the castle at Llantrisant, and several others were attacked,
including St Georges-super-Ely, Llangibby and Dinefwr Castle. Towns including Cardiff were raided
and buildings burned. Edward ordered Humphrey de Bohun, 4th Earl of
Hereford and Lord of neighbouring Brecon to crush the revolt and he gathered overwhelming
forces supported by the men of the chief Marcher Lords like Thomas, 2nd Earl of Lancaster and Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March.
Troops came from Cheshire, north Wales, and also some Welsh soldiers from west
Wales. In March, forces advanced from Cardiff and in a brief battle at Castell Morgraig forced Llywelyn and his men
to break off the siege of Caerffili after 6 weeks. The Welsh retreated higher
up the north Glamorgan plateau where Hereford and his men were moving south
from Brecon.
1345
an
uprising in Gwynedd known as the Saint Valentine's Day Massacre when Henry de
Shaldeforde, the king of England's attorney and his men were ambushed and
slaughtered by Welsh rebels. Anti-English rioting had begun earlier in 1344
centred at Rhuddlan.
1400
The Glyndŵr Rising
erupts in Powys Fadog led by Owain Glyndŵr, a nobleman of the house of Powys.
Owain proclaims himself prince of Wales (16 Sep) and raids towns in north-east
Wales, Ruthin Castle was attacked and almost
destroyed. Denbigh, Rhuddlan, Flint, Hawarden, and Holt followed quickly afterward. On 22 September
the town of Oswestry was badly damaged by Owain's raid. By the 23
September Owain was moving south attacking Powis Castle and sacking Welshpool
1400
On
24 September 1400, the Welsh under Owain Glyndwr were met not far from
Welshpool on the banks of the Vrynwy by forces under Hugh Burnell and there
suffered a crushing defeat.
1400
Henry IV, on his way back from invading Scotland, turned his army towards
Wales. By 26 September he was in Shrewsbury ready to invade Wales. In a lightning
campaign, Henry led his army around North Wales. He was harassed constantly by
bad weather and the attacks of Welsh guerrillas. When he arrived on Anglesey, he harried
the island, burning villages and monasteries including the Llanfaes Friary near Bangor, Gwynedd.[10] This
was the historical burial place of the Tudor family.[11] Rhys
ap Tudur led an ambush for the king's forces at Rhos Fawr. After they were engaged, the Englishmen fled
back to the safety of Beaumaris Castle.[10] By
15 October, Henry was back in Shrewsbury where he released some prisoners and two
days later at Worcester with little to show for his efforts
1401
February 21st - The English Parliament reported that the Welsh were ‘in a dangerous mood’, and passed harsh Penal Laws against them. It had been reported that Welsh students at Oxford University were leaving their studies, and Welsh labourers and craftsmen were abandoning their employers, in England and returning to Wales in droves. These statutory laws were vindictive and discriminatory and resulted from practices that had been common for many years.
1400
The Tudur brothers from Anglesey launched a guerrilla war against the English. The Tudors of Penmynydd were a prominent
Anglesey family who were closely associated with King Richard II. Gwilym ap Tudur and Rhys ap Tudur were both military leaders of a
contingent of soldiers raised in 1396 to protect North Wales against any
invasion by the French. They joined the king in his military expedition to
Ireland in 1398. When Glyndŵr announced his revolt, Rhys, Gwilym and their
third brother, Maredudd ap Tudur, openly swore allegiance; they
were Glyndŵr's cousin on their mother's side.
1401,
the revolt began to spread. Much of northern and central Wales went over
to Owain. Multiple attacks were recorded on English towns, castles, and manors throughout the north. Even in the south
in Brecon and Gwent reports began to come in of banditry
and lawlessness.
1401
the Tudurs knew that they needed a bargaining chip if they were to lift the
dire threat hanging over them. They decided to capture Edward I’s great castle at Conwy. Although the Conwy Castle garrison amounted to just
fifteen men-at-arms and sixty archers, it was well stocked and easily reinforced from the
sea; and in any case, the Tudurs only had forty men. On Good Friday, 1 April, all but five of the garrison were
in the little church in the town when a carpenter appeared at the castle gate,
who, according to Adam of Usk’s Chronicon, "feigned to come for his
accustomed work". Once inside, the Welsh carpenter attacked the two guards
and threw open the gate to allow entry to the rebels
1401
"Henry Hotspur, a son of the Earl of Northumberland, was at that time
Justice of North Wales and Constable of its chief castles. He was commanded by
the King to take action forthwith, and accordingly in May, 1401 he proceeded to
Dolgelly with a strong military force. At the foot of Cader Idris he met with
the forces of Owain Glyndwr. A severe but undecided conflict took place, in
which the followers of Glyndwr fully held their ground. Hotspur did not attempt
to renew the attack, nor did he pursue Glyndwr farther, but quitted North Wales
and resigned his offices of Justice and Constable."Source: Cambridge
County Histories: Merionethshire, 1913; p.92-3.
B.A.Malaws, RCAHMW, 19 September 2006.
1401
Owain
scored his first major victory in the field in May or June, at Mynydd Hyddgen near Pumlumon. Owain and his army of a few hundred were camped at
the bottom of the Hyddgen Valley when about fifteen hundred English and Flemish settlers from Pembrokeshire ('little England beyond Wales'),
charged down on them. Owain rallied his army and fought back, killing 200
1401
August - After Hyddgen,
Glyndŵr probably attacked Abbey Cwm Hir, followed by the towns of New
Radnor, Montgomery and Welshpool.
1401
October = The situation was sufficiently serious for Henry IV to
assemble another punitive expedition. Henry IV and his
troops attacked the abbey at Strata Florida on a ‘Royal Expedition’ and, on
October 9th, Llywelyn ap Gruffudd Fychan was hanged, drawn and quartered
in Llandovery by Henry for his support of Glyndŵr.
Owain's forces harassed him and engaged in
hit-and-run tactics and Henry's army was forced to retreat
1401
Battle of
Tuthill, The Battle of Tuthill took
place at Caernarfon on 2 November 1401 during the revolt
of Owain Glyndŵr. Glyndŵr's success at the Battle of Mynydd Hyddgen the previous
June had provided the revolt with fresh impetus, and the battle may be seen as
indicative of his determination to foster revolt in the north-west after months
of relative inaction in that area. In symbolic terms, the battle is most famous
as the first occasion on which Glyndŵr flew his flag bearing a golden dragon on
a white field, recalling the symbolism of Uther Pendragon, and thereby more solidly drawing
comparisons between his revolt and Welsh political mythology of the time, which
drew heavily on the image of the mab darogan or chosen son, who would free
Wales from subjugation.
Little is known about the particulars of the
fighting; the battle ended inconclusively, with 300 Welsh soldiers reported
dead, but the isolation of Caernarfon and Glyndŵr's ability to attack English
positions in Wales with impunity amply demonstrated.
1402
April - Glyndŵr had attacked Ruthin at the
beginning of 1402, and then again in April when Reginald Grey, his neighbour
and arch-enemy, was captured nearby. Reginald was eventually released on
November 11th after a ransom of 10,000 marks had been paid to
Glyndŵr.
1402
Owain's forces encountered an army led by
Sir Edmund Mortimer, the uncle of the Earl of March, at Bryn
Glas in central Wales. Mortimer's army was badly defeated and
Mortimer was captured.
It is reported that the Welsh women following
Owain’s army, killed the wounded English soldiers and mutilated the bodies of
the dead, supposedly in revenge for plundering and rape by the English soldiery
the previous year The
English are driven from Wales.
1402
Adam of Usk notes that Glyndwr, and
a large army, during a series of attacks on South Wales in August 1402,
"Owen; backed by a force of thirty
thousand men who would issue forth from their caves, he seized castles
everywhere throughout Wales and the march- including Usk, Caerleon, and
Newport- and burned the towns"
1402
September 7th - Henry IV was nearly
killed during a storm while on another ‘Royal Expedition’ into Wales
1402
November 30th - Edmund Mortimer was released by Glyndŵr and then married his
daughter, Catrin. Henry IV had refused to pay a ransom for Mortimer
because his nephew, the Earl of March, had a strong claim to the English
throne.
1403
February 22nd - The town of Hope was liberated by Glyndŵr’s men.February 22nd - The town of Hope was liberated by Glyndŵr’s men.
1403
In response, Henry of Monmouth (son of Henry IV and the
future Henry V) attacked and burned Owain's homes at Glyndyfrdwy and Sycharth
1403
June 24th, 1403 - The Welsh of
Brycheiniog attacked Brecon Castle before Owain started a large-scale campaign
down the Tywi Valley:
July 3rd - After they
had put Llandovery Castle under siege, Glyndŵr’s army continued on to Llandeilo
Fawr where they joined up with Henry Dwn, who had just attacked Dinefwr Castle.
July 5th - Glyndŵr and
800 men attacked Carreg Cennen Castle, which was defended by John Scudamore
(his future son-in-law.) Glyndŵr also took the castles of Dryslwyn, Llansteffan
and Newcastle Emlyn, before taking Carmarthen on July 6th.
July 11th - Lord Carew
met with Glyndŵr near St Clears and negotiated an agreement.
1403
November - A French fleet joined Glyndŵr in attacking Caernarfon Castle and, by the end of the year, Glyndŵr was in control of almost the whole of Wales.
1403
Carmarthen, one of the main English power-bases in the
west, fell and was occupied by Owain. Owain then turned around and
attacked Glamorgan and Gwent. Abergavenny Castle was attacked and the
walled town burned.
1403
Owain pushed on down the valley of the River Usk to the coast, burning Usk and taking Cardiff Castle and Newport Castle.
1403
The men of Bristol, captained by the esquires James Clifford and William Rye, took an armed fleet and raided Glamorgan, plundering the church of Llandaff, but through a miracle of St Teilo they were defeated by the local people and driven off in confusion, with considerable loss
1403
Royal officials reported that Welsh students
at Oxford University were leaving their studies
for Owain and Welsh labourers and craftsmen were abandoning their employers in
England and returning to Wales in droves
1404
By the end of the year the French
ships were raiding the coast of England,
with Welsh troops on board, setting
fire to Dartmouth and devastating the coasts of Devon.
1404,
Owain captured and garrisoned the great western
castles of Harlech and Aberystwyth.
1404
Anxious to demonstrate his seriousness as a ruler,
he held court at Harlech and appointed the deft and brilliant Gruffydd Young as his chancellor.
1400
1404
Glyndŵr’s first parliament
in Machynlleth.
1404
The Welsh under Owain Glyndwr were heavily defeated
by an English force here in June 1404: "The young earl of Warwick . . .
won a victory over the Welsh at Campstone [Hill], not far from Abergavenny,
which set a check to the designs of Glyn Dwr in the neighbourhood
1404
At Craig y Dorth, between Penclawdd and Monmouth,
in 1404 following defeat at the battle at Campston Hill (nprn 402328), Owain
Glyndwr's men overcame the English forces, chasing them relentlessly to the
gates of Monmouth town. Source: J.E.Lloyd, Owain Glyndwr, 1931, pp.88,152.
The site of the battle is marked on early large scale OS maps as 'Craig-y-dorth
(Site of Battle A.D.1404)'
1405
Franco-Welsh force under Owain Glyndwr attacked
Haverfordwest, which resulted in the capture of the town but not the castle.
1405
Early in the year Owain’s forces suffered defeats
at Grosmont and Usk at the Battle of Pwll Melyn, after the Battle of Pwll Melyn near Usk, King Henry had three hundred prisoners beheaded in front of
Usk Castle
"Battle of Pwll
Melyn . . . is the pond lying north-east of Usk Castle. . . numerous skeletons
were found in this pond when it was cleaned out. The pond is so called because
the water is always slimy and of a dirty colour. . . The 'pwll' itself is
reduced in size, the marshy land drained, and the 'pwll' is now enclosed by an
iron railing and supplies water to the railway. From the 'pwll' the ground
rises westward and here Owen's army attacked the castle on the north. It is a
well-known spot and the name has never been lost."
Battle of Grosmont "Glyndwr's ally and trusted Captain Rhys Gethin raised a force of
maybe 8,000 men that marched on Grosmont burning the town to the
ground.[citation needed] At this time Grosmont was a large and important
settlement - only Abergavenny and Carmarthen were larger in the whole of South
Wales. Prince Henry, later to become King Henry V, dispatched a force
comprising men led by John Talbot, 1st Earl of Shrewsbury, Sir William Newport
and Sir John Greynder from Hereford to intercept the Welsh force. They fell on
them and defeated the Welsh, killing 800 to 1,000 men and capturing Owen ap
Gruffydd ap Rhisiant, Glyndwr's Secretary and John Hanmer, Glyndwr's brother in
law, who both survived the battle but were imprisoned in the Tower of
London."
1405
In May 1405, "Gruffydd, the eldest son of
[Owain] Glyndwr, led a Welsh host against the castle of Usk, but was there
encountered by an English force under Lord Grey of Codnor and overwhelmingly
defeated. The scene of the battle was the hill of Pwll Melyn (the Yellow Pool),
not far from the town of Usk . . . nor did the pursuers halt until they had
driven the fleeing rebels through the river Usk and into the great forest of
Monkswood."
Source: J.E.Lloyd, Owain Glyndwr, 1931, p.96.
"Pwll Melyn . . . is the pond lying north-east of Usk Castle. . . numerous
skeletons were found in this pond when it was cleaned out. The pond is so
called because the water is always slimy and of a dirty colour. . . The 'pwll'
itself is reduced in size, the marshy land drained, and the 'pwll' is now
enclosed by an iron railing and supplies water to the railway. From the 'pwll'
the ground rises westward and here Owen's army attacked the castle on the
north. It is a well-known spot and the name has never been lost."
1405
After travelling through South Wales, Glyndŵr and the French confronted Henry
IV’s army in the Teme Valley near Worcester - the Franco-Welsh
army camped on Woodbury Hill, and the English on Abberley Hill opposite
them. After eight days of stalemate, the armies went home in different
directions without a battle, although Glyndŵr and Henry IV may have been agreed
an informal truce at this time.
1406
English forces landed in Anglesey from Ireland.
Over the next year they would gradually push the Welsh back until the
resistance in Anglesey formally ended toward the end of 1406.
1407
Owain’s castle at Aberystwyth was under siege. That autumn Aberystwyth Castle surrendered
1409
Rhys Ddu, the defender of Aberystwyth Castle, was captured
and then tortured to death in the Tower of London
1409
it was the turn of Harlech Castle. Last minute desperate envoys were
sent to the French for help. There was no response. Gruffydd Young was sent to Scotland to attempt to coordinate action but nothing
was to come of that either. Harlech Castle fell in 1409. Edmund Mortimer died in
the final battle and Owain’s wife Margaret along with two of his daughters
(including Catrin) and three of his Mortimer granddaughters were taken prisoner
and incarcerated in the Tower of London. They were all to die in the Tower
before 1415..
1410,
Owain readied his supporters for a last raid deep into Shropshire.
Many of his most loyal commanders were present. It may have been a last
desperate suicide raid.
Whatever was intended, the raid went terribly wrong and many of the leading
figures still at large were captured. Rhys
Ddu ("Black Rhys") of Cardigan,
one of Owain’s most faithful commanders, was captured and taken to London for
execution. A chronicle of the time states that Rhys Ddu was: "…laid on a
hurdle and so drawn forth to Tyburn through
the City and was there hanged and let down again. His head was smitten off and
his body quartered and sent to four towns and his head set on London
Bridge." Philip
Scudamore and Rhys
ap Tudurwere also beheaded and their heads displayed at Shrewsbury and Chester (no
doubt to discourage any further thoughts of rebellion).
1412,
Owain captured, and later ransomed, a leading Welsh supporter of King Henry's, Dafydd Gam ("Crooked David"), in an
ambush in Brecon
**note**
The Annals of Owain Glyndwr (Panton
MS. 22) finish in the year 1422.
1414
The Earl of Arundel, Sir
Edward Charleton and David Holbache supervised the surrender of 600 of
Glyndŵr’s army at Bala.
1415
Owain went into hiding on St
Matthew's Day in Harvest (21 September), and thereafter his hiding place
was unknown. Very many said that he died; the seers maintain he did not.
1416
Glyndŵr,s son Maredudd was offered a pardon from Henry V on Owain’s behalf.
1421
Maredudd ab Owain submitted and was granted a pardon by Henry V, marking the end of the Uprising.
The Owain Glyndwr section was completed with the help of Gareth Jones
Very interesting. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteAwesome. Thank you
ReplyDeleteThis is awsome...i love my Welsh history see..cracking 👌💪👍
ReplyDeleteReally useful, in a nutshell, timeline of Cymric history but, can everyone who does it, stop referring to Owain Glyndŵr's War of Independence as a 'revolt'. It was a fully blown War of Independence, a war where 500,000 Cymry fought against a country or 3 million and all its sophisticated war machinary and resources; a war that lasted longer than both world wars of the 20th century. Those that refer to Glyndŵr's War of Independence as a 'revolt' are perpetuating that myth and it suits our enemies to play the greatness of the war down.
ReplyDeleteRegards Glyndŵr's dissapearance. He knew, of course, of the prophecy of the 'Mab Darogan and my theory is that Owain, when he realised at the end of the day that the Cymry could not win against such a large force and resources, had staged his dissapearance so that the prophecy of the Mab Darogan' returning one day to lead to Cymry to freedom again would stay in tact. I had an interesting little encounter with a well known Cymric medium around 15 yrs ago who told me that he had spoken to Owain in a vision and had asked him about his dissapearance. Owain had told him that he was closed in behind a wall. Most would be sceptical of this story but, if it is true, Owain did not wish to be found for a very sound reason and his wishes should be respected.