Rhys ap Rhydderch

Rhys ap Rhydderch
Rhys ap Rhydderch
Died	1052
Nationality	Welsh
Parent(s)	Rhydderch ab Iestyn
Relatives	brother Gruffydd ap Rhydderch

Last updated September 10, 2019

Rhys ap Rhydderch was the brother of Gruffydd ap Rhydderch,^[1] king of Deheubarth from 1044 to 1055.^[2] Both were the sons of Rhydderch ab Iestyn, who had been able to take over the Welsh kingdom of Deheubarth from 1023 to 1033.^[2]

Gruffydd ap Rhydderch was a king of Gwent and part of the kingdom of Morgannwg in south Wales and later king of Deheubarth.

Deheubarth was a regional name for the realms of south Wales, particularly as opposed to Gwynedd. It is now used as a shorthand for the various realms united under the House of Dinefwr, but that Deheubarth itself was not considered a proper kingdom on the model of Gwynedd, Powys, or Dyfed is shown by its rendering in Latin as dextralis pars or as Britonnes dexterales and not as a named land. In the oldest British writers, Deheubarth was used for all of modern Wales to distinguish it from Hen Ogledd, the northern lands whence Cunedda and the Cymry originated.

By 1045, he and his brother had secured control of Morgannwg, and the native chronicles mention that in 1045 the two brothers performed some treacherous action against Gruffydd ap Llywelyn, the king of Gwynedd and Powys. The exact nature of this treachery is not specified, however. Although both Gruffydd ap Llywelyn and the brothers were rivals to rule Deheubarth, in the end, the two brothers became the rulers of the disputed territory. In 1049, Gruffydd ap Rhydderch joined with an Irish and Viking raiding party that raided England. Probably, Rhys was with his brother on this raid into England. The raid was opposed by Ealdred, the Bishop of Worcester, but the English forces were betrayed by Welsh soldiers serving with the English army, and the Welsh and Viking raiders defeated Ealdred's defenders.^[1]

Gruffydd ap Llywelyn was the King of Wales from 1055 to 1063. He was the son of King Llywelyn ap Seisyll and Angharad, daughter of Maredudd ab Owain. He was the great-great-grandson of Hywel Dda.

Gwynedd is a county in Wales, sharing borders with Powys, Conwy, Denbighshire, Anglesey over the Menai Strait, and Ceredigion over the River Dyfi. The scenic Llŷn Peninsula and most of Snowdonia National Park are in Gwynedd. Bangor is the home of Bangor University. In the northern part of the county, the other main settlements are Caernarfon, Bethesda, Ffestiniog, Llanddeiniolen, Llanllyfni, Porthmadog and Pwllheli. The largest settlement in the south is Tywyn.

Powys is a principal area and county, and one of the preserved counties of Wales. It is named after the Kingdom of Powys which was a Welsh successor state, petty kingdom and principality that emerged during the Middle Ages following the end of Roman rule in Britain.

King Edward the Confessor of England ordered the killing of Rhys in reprisal for his raiding of England, the decision being made at the royal court held at Christmas, 1052.^[3] Rhys was killed, according to the D version of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle , because he "did harmful things". The chronicle of Florence of Worcester recorded a bit more information, stating that Rhys was killed at "Bulendun", which may be Bullen's Bank near Clyro in Radnorshire.^[4]

Edward the Confessor, also known as Saint Edward the Confessor, was among the last Anglo-Saxon kings of England. Usually considered the last king of the House of Wessex, he ruled from 1042 to 1066.

<i>Anglo-Saxon Chronicle</i> Set of related medieval English chronicles

The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is a collection of annals in Old English chronicling the history of the Anglo-Saxons. The original manuscript of the Chronicle was created late in the 9th century, probably in Wessex, during the reign of Alfred the Great. Multiple copies were made of that one original and then distributed to monasteries across England, where they were independently updated. In one case, the Chronicle was still being actively updated in 1154.

Florence of Worcester, known in Latin as Florentius, was a monk of Worcester, who played some part in the production of the Chronicon ex chronicis, a Latin world chronicle which begins with the creation and ends in 1140.

After his death, Rhys' head was brought to King Edward on 5 January 1053.^[3] This left his brother as the only ruler in Deheubarth, but this did not last long, as around 1055, Gruffydd ap Llywelyn attacked the south and killed Gruffydd ap Rhydderch. This left Gruffydd ap Llywelyn as the sole ruler of Wales, the first Welshman to be so.^[1]

Citations

1 2 3 Maund Welsh Kings pp. 88–90
1 2 Fryde, et al. Handbook of British Chronology p. 52
1 2 Barlow Edward the Confessor p. 126
↑ Breeze "Anglo-Saxon Chronicle for 1053" Radnorshire Society Transactions pp. 168–169

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References

Barlow, Frank (1970). Edward the Confessor. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-01671-8.
Breeze, Andrew (2001). "The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle for 1053 and the killing of Rhys ap Rhydderch". Radnorshire Society Transactions. 71: 168–169.
Fryde, E. B.; Greenway, D. E.; Porter, S.; Roy, I. (1996). Handbook of British Chronology (Third revised ed.). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-56350-X.
Maund, Kari L. (2006). The Welsh Kings: Warriors, Warlords and Princes. Stroud, UK: Tempus. ISBN 0-7524-2973-6.

Frank Barlow was an English historian, known particularly for biographies of medieval figures.

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[Maund88-1] 1 2 3 Maund Welsh Kings pp. 88–90

[HBC52-2] 1 2 Fryde, et al. Handbook of British Chronology p. 52

[Confessor126-3] 1 2 Barlow Edward the Confessor p. 126

[Killing-4] Breeze "Anglo-Saxon Chronicle for 1053" Radnorshire Society Transactions pp. 168–169