Kingdom of Dyfed Teyrnas Dyfed (Welsh) | |||||||||
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| c. 410–920 | |||||||||
 Map showing Dyfed, after the late 7th century, showing its seven cantrefi. | |||||||||
| Common languages | Welsh,Latin,Irish[1] | ||||||||
| Government | Monarchy | ||||||||
| Historical era | Middle Ages | ||||||||
• Established | c. 410 | ||||||||
• Disestablished | 920 | ||||||||
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TheKingdom of Dyfed (Welsh pronunciation:['dəvɛd]), one of severalWelshpetty kingdoms that emerged in 5th-centurysub-Roman Britain insouthwest Wales, was based on the former territory of theDemetae (modern WelshDyfed). The royal line was founded by Irish settlers in the 5th century. After theNorman invasion of Wales Dyfed was incorporated intoPembrokeshire. The name was resurrected for the now-defunct administrative area calledDyfed as well as in the names of some regional organisations such asDyfed–Powys Police.
In the year 360, a sudden series of coordinated raids by the Irish,Anglo-Saxons andPicts began. These continued as the Irish colonised theIsle of Man, and resulted in a short period lasting until the 5th century during whichOld Irish was spoken in the region: twenty stones dated to this period haveogham inscriptions. Onebilingual Latin-Irish stone in Castelldwyran, nearNarberth, has the nameVotecorigas written on it; the wordier Latin inscription isMemoria Voteporigis Protictoris, giving him the title "protector", a late Imperial Roman title given to nobility.[2]
The medieval Irish narrativeThe Expulsion of the Déisi attributes the kingdom's founding to Eochaid, son of Artchorp, who was forced across the Irish sea in the 5th century; his descendants founded the line of the kings of Dyfed down to "Tualodor mac Rígin" (Tudor map Regin).[3]
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Dyfed may have originally occupied the area that bordered the riversTeifi,Gwili andTywi, and included contemporaryPembrokeshire, the western part of contemporaryCarmarthenshire, and with the town ofCarmarthen. Dyfed eventually comprised at least sevencantrefi:Cemais,Deugleddyf,Emlyn,Cantref Gwarthaf,Pebidiog,Penfro andRhos, with an approximate area of about 2,284 square kilometres (882 sq mi).
During times of strength, the kingdom expanded to additionally cover theYstrad Tywi ("Valley of the Tywi"), includingCydweli (Kidwelly) andGwyr (Gower; possibly under the reign ofAergol Lawhir), and even borderedBrycheiniog. Dyfed lost the Ystrad Tywi region toCeredigion, another petty kingdom, in the late 7th century.
During theAge of the Saints, Dyfed may have had as many as sevenbishops, called in Latinsacerdotes[4] one for each cantref; their sees were calledparochia.[5][6][7] However, by the High Middle Ages theDiocese of St David's emerged as one of only three episcopaldioceses in Wales, with St. David's covering all ofWest Wales and part ofMid Wales.[8]
Dyfed was subject to extensive raids during theViking Age between the 8th and 11th centuries, causing social and political instability, and with the Vikings establishing settlements in southern Dyfed.[9] By the latter part of the 9th century, the rulers of Dyfed had grown cautious of the influence of the sons ofRhodri the Great, and sought out an alliance and the patronage ofAlfred the Great of England.[9] Historical attempts have been made to cast the relationship as one as a confederation of Christian unity on the isle of Britain, under the leadership of Alfred, against the heathen Danes.[9] However, there evolved a significant degree of coercion in the relationship, according to Davies. "The recognition by Welsh rulers that the king of England had claims upon them would be a central fact in the subsequent political history of Wales," according to Davies.[9]
In about 904, Dyfed's ruler,Llywarch ap Hyfaidd, died, leaving his daughter Elen ferch Llywarch (893-943) as his heiress.[9] Elen was married toHywel Dda, ruler of neighbouringSeisyllwg and grandson ofRhodri the Great through his second son,Cadell ap Rhodri.[9]Through his marriage to Elen, Hywel incorporated Dyfed into an enlarged realm to be known asDeheubarth, meaning the "south part", and later went on to conquerPowys andGwynedd.[9] However, both Powys and Gwynedd returned to their native dynasties on Hywel's death in 950. Hwyel's grandsonMaredudd ab Owain recreated the kingdom of his grandfather, but his rule was beset with increasing Viking raids during the latter part of the 10th century.[9] It is during this period that Viking settlements increased, particularly in the area in thecantref of Penfro, with other Viking settlements and trading station atHaverfordwest,Fishguard andCaldey Island in Dyfed.[9] Viking raids upon the Welsh were "relentless", according to Davies, and Maredudd was compelled to raise taxes to pay the ransoms for Welsh hostages in 993, and in 999 a Viking raiding party attacked St. David's and killed Morganau, the bishop.[9]
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Dyfed remained an integral province within Deheubarth until the Norman invasions of Wales between 1068-1100. In the Dyfed region, the cantrefi ofPenfro, Rhos,Cemais and Pebidiog became occupied by Norman overlords. The Normans influenced the election of the Bishops of St. David's, in Pebidiog, from 1115 onwards. The Princes of Deheubarth, and later Llywelyn the Great as the Prince of a virtual Principality of Wales from 1216, fought to recover the region until theConquest of Wales by Edward I in 1284 settled the matter. The 1284Statute of Rhuddlan established the English counties ofPembrokeshire andCarmarthenshire out of the region formally known asDyfed.
By 1138 Dyfed was incorporated into a newshire calledPembrokeshire after theNorman castle built in theCantref of Penfro and under the rule of the MarcherEarl of Pembroke.
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