| Second Dynasty of Gwynedd | |
|---|---|
 Arms ofLlywelyn ap Gruffudd (d. 11 December 1282), one of the most important members of the dynasty | |
| Parent family | Coeling (alleged, agnatic) First Dynasty (enatic) |
| Country | Kingdom of Gwynedd |
| Current region | Wales |
| Place of origin | Isle of Man |
| Founded | c. 825 |
| Founder | Merfyn Frych |
| Final ruler | Dafydd ap Gruffudd |
| Final head | Owain Lawgoch |
| Historic seat | Aberffraw |
| Deposition | 1283 |
| Cadet branches | Dynasty of Deheubarth |
TheSecond Dynasty of Gwynedd, also known as theHouse of Aberffraw and contemporaneously as theMerfynion, was a dynasty which ruled over Gwynedd with minor interruptions from the ninth to thirteenth centuries. The family was deposed in 1283 with theconquest of Wales by Edward I, and the execution of the last ruler of Gwynedd,Dafydd ap Gruffudd on October 3 of that year.[1][2] The final politically active descendant of the main branch of the Second Dynasty of Gwynedd,Owain Lawgoch, was assassinated in July 1378.
Merfyn Frych was the first ruler of Gwynedd not to be a male-line descendant ofCunedda and thus was not a member of theFirst Dynasty of Gwynedd, though he was married to a woman of this line. Therefore, the dynasty was known contemporaneously as theMerỼynyaỼn, literally 'descendants of Merfyn'. However, this name would and did also apply to theDynasty of Deheubarth, who descendants of Anarawd's brotherCadell ap Rhodri, so modern scholarship refers to the branch of the family associated which ruled Gwynedd as the Second Dynasty of Gwynedd.
In the 9th century, Rhodri the Great (Welsh:Mawr) had inherited multiple Welsh Kingdoms,Gwynedd from his fatherMerfyn Frych (ManxChieftain),Powys from his motherNest and he addedSeisyllwg (Ceredigion andYstrad Tywi) by a dynastic marriage toAngharad of Seisyllwg. Rhodri divided Wales into at least 3 provinces, his son Anarawd ap Rhodri was given theKingdom of Gwynedd and founded the medievaldynasty the Second Dynasty of Gwynedd.Merfyn ap Rhodri was given theKingdom of Powys. And another of Rhodri's sons,Cadell ap Rhodri was given the province ofDeheubarth and began theHouse of Dinefwr. Wales was subsequently separated intoNorth Wales,Mid Wales andSouth Wales respectively.[3][4][5]
Royal succession within the Second Dynasty of Gwynedd (as with succession in Wales in general) was a complex matter due to the unique character ofWelsh law.[6] According to Hubert Lewis, though not explicitly codified as such, theedling, or heir apparent, was by convention, custom, and practice the eldest son of the lord or Prince and was entitled to inherit the position and title as "head of the family" from the father. This was effectively primogeniture with local variations. However, all sons were provided for out of the lands of the father, and in certain circumstances so too were daughters (with children born both in and out of wedlock considered legitimate).[6] Men could also claim royal title through the maternal patrimony of their mother's line in certain circumstances (which occurred several times during the period of Welsh independence).[7] The female line of the dynasty was also considered to remain royal, as marriage was an important means of strengthening individual claims to the various kingdoms of Wales and uniting various royal families to that of Aberffraw, or reuniting factions after dynastic civil wars (for example with the marriage ofHywel Dda, a member of theDinefwr branch of the Aberffraw dynasty, and Elen of Dyfed, daughter ofLlywarch ap Hyfaidd, King of Dyfed).[8]
During the Cambro-Norse era (850s – 1100s), Wales was subjected to Viking raids all throughout the country between 852 and 919 (theJómsvíkinga saga refers to that period). An example of this pattern was with the Viking leaderIngimund who was expelled fromDublin and tried unsuccessfully to establish a base on Anglesey (c. 902), but instead left for Chester.[9]
The Welsh Kingdoms had been subject to the Kingdom ofMercia from the 7th century onwards. This led to the construction ofOffa's Dyke, a territorial land border betweenEngland and Wales built in the mid to late 8th century. However, war broke out against the English for decades from 853, this culminated in a victory for the Welsh Kingdoms of Gwynedd and Powys againstMercia andWessex and their Viking allies.[4][10][11]
Rhodri the Great fought successfully against theVikings, beginning with the death ofHorn the Dane (leader of the 'New Dubliners') in 856. Rhodri was killed in battle against theSaxon leaderCeolwulf of Mercia in 878 AD. The Welsh avenged Rhodri with a victory over the Mercians at theBattle of the Conwy in 881. During this period, Rhodri Mawr's sons depended for protection on Viking mercenaries fromScandinavian York.[4][9][12][13]
The second phase ofViking raids in Wales continued into the 10th century. Between the years 950–998, Wales saw raids, attacks, andslave raids with a devastating Viking raid happening at Aberffraw in 968. KingMaredudd ab Owain paid the ransom for the return of Welsh victims of enslavement. Then, the third phase of Viking raids would coincide with theNorman invasion of Wales during the 11th century. This era saw a new alliance between the Vikings and the Second Dynasty through the marriage ofGruffudd ap Cynan's fatherCynan ab Iago to the daughter of aNorseman after he took refuge in theKingdom of Dublin. After several attempts to retake Gwynedd from the Normans, Gruffudd eventually succeeded with assistance fromMagnus Barefoot (King of Dublin,King of Norway andKing of the Isles) in 1098 when they won theBattle of Anglesey Sound against the English Normans together.[9][14][15][page needed][16]
The family were able to assert their influence within Gwynedd, their traditional sphere of influence, but by the 11th century they were ousted fromPowys (Mid Wales) andDeheubarth (West Wales) by a series of strong rulers from theHouse of Dinefwr in Deheubarth, their dynastically junior cousins. The Dinefwr family were descended from the Cadell ap Rhodri, the second son of Rhodri the Great. However, underGruffudd ap Cynan, the Second Dynasty was able to recover its heritage and position during theNorman invasion of Gwynedd (1081–1100) with Cynan as King of Gwynedd defeating theNorman invaders.[6]Owain Gwynedd, Gruffudd's son defeated KingHenry II of England and the vastAngevin host in the1157 campaign and again in 1166. That led to Owain being proclaimed as thePrince of Wales (Latin:Princeps Wallensium) by other Welsh rulers. The proclamation reasserted and updated the Aberffraw claims to be the principal royal house of Wales, as senior line descendants of Rhodri the Great.[6][a][b] However, after the death of Owain during 1170, 13 of his sons as thePrinces of Gwynedd descended into an internal bloody violence which became a cue forPrince Madog to flee the Kingdom and supposedly cross theAtlantic Ocean settling theNew World, which today has becomeAmerica. Madog's voyages are a part of therediscovery of the Americas theory debate.[18]
Below is a partial family tree of thedynasty of Gwynedd.[19]
There were 22 administrative centres (Welsh:Llys/Llysoedd) in the Kingdom of Gwynedd to act asroyal courts for the Princes of theSecond Dynasty of Gwynedd.[28] Below is an example of a couple of 'Llysoedd':
Nearby Aberffraw atNewborough, Anglesey was Llys Rhosyr, wherepottery andcoins were excavated in the area dating between the years 1247 – 1314. The royal court was built during the reign of Prince Llywelyn and was first recorded on the 10 April 1237. Today a reconstruction is found inSt. Fagans Museum inCardiff, UK.[28][29]
Duringc. 1200, PrinceLlywelyn the Great continued to convene the Royal court at Aberffraw to the high standard of the neighbouring English Kingdom The Prince's consort wasJoan, daughter of KingJohn of England, herself being a Princess who would have entertained court at Aberffraw for Welsh and English royalty. Llywelyn, as Prince, re-edified the rules of the 'royal suite', which were reenacted from the original laws and customs from the year 914 for the AberffrawRoyal Palace. The palace was known as "the chief[e] house of the Prince of Gwynedd" from its foundations during the reign of Rhodri the Great.[g][31][30]
"The officers of the household and twelve gentlemen, composed the royal guard, and were mounted on horses, furnished by the king."[30]
There were 35 court positions:[30]The Master of thePalace, TheDomestic Chaplain / The Queen's Chaplain, TheSteward of the Household / The Steward to the Queen, TheMaster of the Hawks, TheJudge of the Palace, TheMaster of the Horse / Master of the Horse to the Queen, TheChamberlain / Queen's Chamberlain, The Domestic Bard, The Officer to Command Silence, TheMaster of the Hounds, TheMetheglin (Mead brewer), The Physician of the Palace, TheCup Bearer, TheDoor Keeper, TheCook / The Queen's Cook, TheSconce bearer / The Queen's Sconce bearer, Woman of the Queen'sChamber, The Door-Keeper to the Queen, The Groom of the Rein, Officer to Support the Prince's Feet atBanquets, TheBailiff of the RoyalDemesne, TheApparitor, TheGate-Keeper, The Watchmen of the Palace, The Woodman, TheBaker Woman, The PalaceSmith, TheLaundress, The Chief ofSong.
"These were the officers of whom the royal household was composed. They were freeholders by their offices. They received for their wearing apparel, woollen cloth from the prince, and linen from the queen. They were all called together by the palace horn. We have room to infer that Aberffraw was a favourite residence with Llewelyn and his Princess Joan of England"[30]
The setup of the Royal court was vast with a minimum of 47 positions necessary daily, and in some positions, multiple people would be needed.[30] The hall at Aberffraw Palace would have been small. It wasLlywelyn ap Gruffudd's room inHarlech Castle which was projected to be the same size as Aberffraw, that is, 15 feet wide and 40 feet long. During 1317, the hall was dismantled, with its timbers being reused in the construction ofCaernarfon Castle.[31][32]
The Kingdoms of Wales defended their territory fromAnglo-Normans and subsequent Kings of England'smilitary expeditions 21 times between 1081 – 1267. It wasKing Edward I of England who finally suppressed the WelshPrincipality afterLlywelyn ap Iorwerth (Llywelyn I, the Great) and his grandson,Llywelyn ap Gruffudd (Llywelyn II) had controlled all of medievalWales. As Llywelyn II was a second son and direct (lineal) descendant ofRhodri Mawr andOwain Gwynedd, his succession caused a number of problems within the Second Dynasty. The 13th century Llywelyns, rulers of Wales controlled their neighbouring Kingdoms through apolitical framework whilst excluding and subduing the descendants of Normanmarcher lords throughwarfare.[33][6]
By 1203 Llywelyn ap Iorwerth (Llywelyn I, the Great) had followed in the footsteps of his grandfather, Owain Gwynedd, and unified the divided Kingdom of Gwynedd. He further advanced to conquer all of Wales by 1207.King John I of England (Llywelyn's father-in-law) intervened in Powys returning the Kingdom toPrince Gwenwynwyn in 1209, however, the intervention caused a retaliation in the form of theWelsh uprising of 1211. Llywelyn would gain favour fromPope Innocent III who excommunicated King John and encouraged theWelsh Principality to rebel against English rule. After the signing ofMagna Carta on the 15th of June 1215, Llywelyn was recognised as Prince and ruler of all Wales. In 1216 Llywelyn the Great had received thefealty andhomage of the Dinefwr rulers of Deheubarth at theCouncil of Aberdyfi.[23][34][35] With homage and fealty paid by other Welsh lords to Llywelyn atAberdyfi, Llywelyn the Great became thede facto firstPrince of Wales in the modern sense. This was confirmed in a 1218 meeting inWorcester, England, by the nextEnglish monarch,Henry III. Llywelyn acted asOverlord to other nobles. By 1230 Llywelyn styled himself as thePrince of Aberffraw andLord of Snowdon.[23][34]
During the 13th century, Wales was ruled byDafydd ap Llywelyn (Dafydd II), son of Llywelyn the Great. After the death of Dafydd II, the power was given to his nephew,Llywelyn ap Gruffudd (Prince Llywelyn II) who was granted the title of Prince of Wales by his English compatriot Henry III at theTreaty of Montgomery during 1267. Prince Llywelyn II waskilled in action campaigning for Welsh independence inCilmeri, December 1282. Of theAberffrawdynasty the final Prince of Wales wasDafydd ap Gruffydd (Prince Dafydd III). After the death of Dafydd III's brother, the prince himself would be tried fortreason andexecuted inShrewsbury,England by his once ally Edward I of England on 3 October 1283.[36][37][38] The consequences of the 1282–83Conquest of Wales by Edward I greatly reduced the influence of the family. King Edward I forced the remaining members of the family to surrender their claim to the title of Prince of Wales under theStatute of Rhuddlan in 1284, which also abolished the independentWelsh peerage.[39][40] The Aberffraw family members closest to Llywelyn II were imprisoned for life by Edward, while the more distant Aberffraw members went into deep hiding and fell into obscurity. Other members of the family did lay claim to their heritage; they includedOwain Lawgoch as thelineal successor to Llywelyn II in the 14th century.[36][37][24] After the 13th century Lords of Aberffraw had accomplished the title of Prince of Wales very few Welsh lords survived theEnglish conquest of 1282/3. But another descendant wasOwain Glyndŵr, he proclaimed himself as Prince of Wales in 1400 and successfullyrebelled against the English Crown during the early 15th century.[41]
Merely a century after the end of the dynasty, it was theMeyrick (Welsh:Meurig) family of nearbyBodorgan who were given the Crown lease for the manor lands of theAberffraw cantref. Llewelyn Ap Heilyn fought at theBattle of Bosworth alongsideHenry VII of England. Also known as Henry Tudor, the King was a descendant of the Aberffraw dynasty via TheTudors of Penmynydd, they descended fromEdnyfed Fychan, he was theSeneschal (effectively a Prime ministerial position in government) to Llywelyn the Great and his sonDafydd II. Then Heilyn's son Meurig ap Llewelyn became captain of the bodyguard toHenry VIII, and the same family was once again rewarded with an extension of the land's lease. To date, the Meurig family of the Aberffraw cantref is represented by theTapps-Gervis-Meyrick baronets.[42][43][44] Away from Anglesey, several post medieval Welsh families including theWynn family of Gwydir (untilc. 17th century) and theAnwyl of Tywyn family became heirs of the dynasty ashereditary male line descendants of Owain Gwynedd.[27][26][45][46]
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