Owain Lawgoch :: European History

Owain LawgochLlywelyn Fawr (Llywelyn the Great) was the father of two ambitious discussions, both of whom were destined to acquire intertwined in the 13th-century dynastic struggles between Wales and England. Gruffydd ap Llywelyn was his fathers natural son and the eldest, while Dafydd was the son of Llywelyns wife Joan, herself the natural daughter of world-beater John. Both sons were apparently find to succeed their father and carry forward the countrys struggle against their Norman would-be(prenominal) conquerors. At Llywelyns death in 1240, contrary Welsh law and custom, Gwynedd passed to his let son Dafydd, rather than being divided equally between Dafydd and his chum Gruffydd. It is thought that Llywelyn saw the practice of divided inheritance as a threat to the survival of Gwynedd, and he took extraordinary measures to ensure that Dafydd was recognized as his sole heir. As a consequence, Gruffydd spent much his life as a prisoner of his father, then his brother and late r the English king, until his tragical death during an attempted escape from the Tower of London in 1244 (shown right). scorn Llywelyns precautions, Dafydds reign was tragically short and he died without heirs in 1246. Soon more or less of Wales was back under the control of the English king and his barons. Despite this wonderful setback, in less than 10 years Gruffydds son Llywelyn, known to narration as Llywelyn the Last, had managed to reclaim the dynasty of Gwynedd, gaining unprecedented recognition as Prince of Wales before his tragic downfall and death in 1282. With his death, and the death of his older brother Owain the corresponding year, and his younger brother Dafydd the following year, the House of Gwynedd ended almost d years of rule over most of northern Wales. The princely personal credit line of Gwynedd had finally run out, extinguished forever by the ruthless King Edward I. Or had it? Little remembered is Llywelyns youngest brother Rhodri ap Gruffydd. He appa rently played no part in the dynastic struggles of the 13th century, and lived most of his life in relative obscurity and peace outside Wales, reportedly dying on his English manor c1315. Yet it was one of his descendants who was destined to compensate Gwynedds final claim to the title Prince of Wales. That person was Rhodris grandson, Owain Lawgoch. Owain ap Thomas ap Rhodri, known to muniment as Owain Lawgoch (Owain of the red hand) and to the French as Yvain de Galles, like his father, was born and grew up in England and had no direct associations with Wales.