Rhys ap Tewdwr

Personal and Family Information

Rhys was born about 1040 in Carmarthenshire, Wales, the son of unknown parents.

He died in 1093 in Penrhys, Rhondda Cynon Taff, Wales.

His wife was Gwladys verch Rhiwallon. They were married, but the date and place have not been found. Their only known child was Gruffydd (c1090-1137).

Events

Notes

Note 1

!StyleName: ap Tewdwr, Rhys King of Deheubarth [South Wales], Wales [~1040 - 1093]

!Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhys_ap_Tewdwr

Rhys ap Tewdwr

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This Welsh name means Rhys son of Tewdwr.

Rhys ap Tedwr

Prince of Deheubarth

Reign 1078–1093

Predecessor Rhys ab Owain

Successor Gruffydd ap Rhys

Born 1040

Carmarthenshire, Wales

Died April 1093

Brecon, Powys, Wales

Spouse Catrin verch Lestyn

Gwladys ferch Rhiwallon

Issue Goronwy

Hywel

Owain

Owain

Gwellian

Nest ferch Rhys

Efa

Ardden

House Dinefwr

Father Tewdwr ap Cadell

Mother Gwenllian ferch Gwyn of Dyfed

Medieval Wales, showing Deheubarth in the southwest

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Rhys ap Tewdwr was a king of Deheubarth in Wales and member of the Dinefwr dynasty, a branch descended from Rhodri the Great. Following the Norman Conquest, he had to pay William the Conqueror to keep his kingdom, which lasted until the end of William's reign.[1]

Family

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Rhys ap Tewdwr was born in the area which is now Carmarthenshire. As a member of the House of Dinefwr, he claimed the throne of Deheubarth following the death of his second cousin Rhys ab Owain, who was beheaded after the battle of Gwdig against Caradog ap Gruffydd in 1078.

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He was a grandson of Cadell ab Einion ab Owain ab Hywel Dda and a great-grandson of Einion ab Owain, thus a descendant of Hywel Dda, king of the Britons.[2]

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He married more than once. His first wife was Catrin verch Iestyn . The name of his last wife was Gwladys ferch Rhiwallon, daughter of Rhiwallon ap Cynfyn of the Mathrafal Dynasty of Powys.[3]

…,

Death and succession

Part of the Welsh version of Brut y Tywysogion found in the Red Book of Hergest

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Rhys was unable to withstand the increasing Norman pressure. The Welsh Bruts state that "Rhys ap Tewdwr, king of Deheubarth, was slain by the Frenchmen who were inhabiting Brycheiniog." The Brut y Tywysogion adds "and with him fell the kingdom of the Britons." This passage lends evidence to the belief that the conquest of Brycheiniog , led by Bernard de Neufmarche, was mostly finished by Eastertide 1093. The battle of Brecon opened the way to the conquest of Deheubarth.

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The monastery and village of Penrhys in Rhondda Cynon Taff is said to be named for Rhys, as he was beheaded at the site by Norman forces. The village was originally named, Pen-Rhys ap Tewdwr . Upon Rhys's death, the Normans seized much of south Wales, and there was fighting over the spoils with the chieftains of Powys and Gwynedd. Eventually, Rhys's eldest son, Gruffydd, was allowed to inherit a small portion of his father's kingdom. Rhys's daughter Nest was briefly one of the numerous concubines of Henry I, to whom she bore a son, and thereafter the wife of Gerald FitzWalter of Pembroke; their sons and grandsons, the FitzGerald conquerors of Ireland, were known collectively as the "sons of Nest". Through his son Gruffydd, Rhys was an ancestor of the Tudor dynasty.