Kevin Patrick Mostyn Family - Person Sheet
Kevin Patrick Mostyn Family - Person Sheet
NameRhodri Mawr AP MERFYN King Of Wales, 31G Grandfather
FatherMerfyn Frych AP GWRIAD King Of Gwynedd (~764-844)
MotherNesta VCH CADELL (<780-)
Spouses
1Angharad VCH MEURIG, 31G Grandmother
FatherMeurig AP DYFNWAL Lord Caerdigan (~780-)
2Mistress Of Rhodri Mawr, 32G Grandmother
ChildrenNest (Illegitimate) (~850-)
Web Notes notes for Rhodri Mawr AP MERFYN King Of Wales
From "The Matter of Wales: Epic Views of a Small Country" by Jan Morris, ISBN 0-19-504221-2, page 59:
In the early years of Wales, there were as many as 18 separate princedoms within the 8,000 square miles of Wales, largely because the Welsh law of portion, gavelkind, divided inheritances equally among all a man's sons, and so fragmented kingdoms as well as farms. They often fought against each other, besides being engaged in interminable warfare with their enemies. Between 949 and 1045, according to the 13th centure Brut y Tywysogyn, the Chronicle of Princes, 35 of their rulers died by violence and 4 more were forcibly blinded.
page 60:
Gradually the multitudinous little princedoms were consolidated into greater wholes, and four major Welsh kingdoms emerged: Gwynedd in the north, Powys in the east, Deheubarth and Morgannwg in the south. They generally came into being peacefully, by policy and marriage, and though they were often at odds with each other, they seldom went to war. Several great rulers, Rhodri Mawr of Powys, Hywel Dda of Deheubarth and the two Llywelyns of Gwynedd, each briefly succeeded in uniting almost all Wales under one aegis.
From Bartrum's "Welsh Genealogies". Upon the death of his father in 844 he became King of Gwynedd. When his uncle, Cyngen, died in 855 he became King of Powys. When his wife ANGHARAD's brother, Gwgon, died in 871 he also became ruler of Seisyllwg. By the time of his death in 877 he ruled over all of Wales with the exception of the southeastern and southwestern extremities. Rhodri was a pivotal person in Welsh history. In future centuries, one of the main requirements for kingship in the Welsh kingdoms was being of the descent of Rhodri Mawr. Rhodri's fame sprang from his success as a warrior. It was his victory over the Viking, Horn, leader of the Danes, in 856 which brought him international acclaim. The Irish and the Franks had been unsuccessfully trying to repel the Northmen and they were impessed by Rhodri's success. The English kingdom of Wessex had for many years been striving with partial success to subjugate Powys. It was in battle against the English that Rhodri, along with his son, Gwriad, was killed in 877. It appears that the Welsh court experienced a cultural revival during the reign of Rhodri.
Rhodri Mawr (the Great) ap Merfyn, Prince of Wales, who became King of Gwynedd in 844 on the death of his father Merfyn Frych, King of Powys in 855 on the death of his uncle Caell ap Brochwell, and King of Seisyllwg in 871 on the death of his brother-in-law Gwgon. Rhodri Mawr was the first ruler recognized as Prince of Wales. He defeated the Danish leader Horn in 856.
Died in 877 or 878, killed in battle with the English as was his son Gwriad.
http://www.castlewales.com/rhodri.html
According to legend, the first Dinefwr Castle was built by Rhodri Mawr - King of Wales in the 9th century. It is unavoidable that attention should focus on those Welsh rulers who extended their power over much of Wales in the centuries prior to the Norman conquest.
They foreshadowed the attempts by the princes of Gwynedd in the 13th century to create a unified Welsh state, and they matched contemporary developments in England, and similar, but later, developments in Scotland. So, Rhodri Mawr (844-78) is presented as one who set a pattern for the future. He either ruled or, by his personal qualities, dominated much of Wales.
Chroniclers of his generation hailed Rhodri ap Merfyn as Rhodri Mawr (Rhodri the Great), a distinction bestowed upon two other rulers in the same century - Charles the Great (Charlemagne, died 814) and Alfred the Great (died 899). The three tributes are of a similar nature - recognition of the achievements of men who contributed significantly to the growth of statehood among the nations of the Welsh, the Franks and the English. Unfortunately, the entire evidence relating to the life of Rhodri consists of a few sentences; yet he must have made a deep impression upon the Welsh, for in later centuries being of the line of Rhodri was a primary qualification for their rulers. Until his death, Rhodri was acknowledged as ruler of more than half of Wales, and that as much by diplomacy as by conquest.
Rhodri's fame sprang from his success as a warrior. That success was noted by The Ulster Chronicle and by Sedulius Scottus, an Irish scholar at the court of the Emperor Charles the Bald at Liege. It was his victory over the Vikings in 856 which brought him international acclaim. Wales was less richly provided with fertile land and with the navigable rivers that attracted the Vikings, and the Welsh kings had considerable success in resisting them. Anglesey bore the brunt of the attacks, and it was there in 856 that Rhodri won his great victory over Horn, the leader of the Danes, much to the delight of the Irish and the Franks.
It was not only from the west that the kingdom of Rhodri was threatened. By becoming the ruler of Powys, his mother's land, he inherited the old struggle with the kingdom of Mercia. Although Offa's Dyke had been constructed in order to define the territories of the Welsh and the English, this did not prevent the successors of Offa from attacking Wales. The pressure on Powys continued; after 855, Rhodri was its defender, and he and his son, Gwriad, were killed in battle against the English in 878.
In the early years of Wales, there were as many as 18 separate princedoms within the 8,000 square miles of Wales, largely because the Welsh law of portion, gavelkind, divided inheritances equally among all a man's sons, and so fragmented kingdoms as well as farms. They often fought against each other, besides being engaged in interminable warfare with their enemies. Between 949 and 1045, according to the 13th centure Brut y Tywysogyn, the Chronicle of Princes, 35 of their rulers died by violence and 4 more were forcibly blinded.
page 60:
Gradually the multitudinous little princedoms were consolidated into greater wholes, and four major Welsh kingdoms emerged: Gwynedd in the north, Powys in the east, Deheubarth and Morgannwg in the south. They generally came into being peacefully, by policy and marriage, and though they were often at odds with each other, they seldom went to war. Several great rulers, Rhodri Mawr of Powys, Hywel Dda of Deheubarth and the two Llywelyns of Gwynedd, each briefly succeeded in uniting almost all Wales under one aegis.
From Bartrum's "Welsh Genealogies". Upon the death of his father in 844 he became King of Gwynedd. When his uncle, Cyngen, died in 855 he became King of Powys. When his wife ANGHARAD's brother, Gwgon, died in 871 he also became ruler of Seisyllwg. By the time of his death in 877 he ruled over all of Wales with the exception of the southeastern and southwestern extremities. Rhodri was a pivotal person in Welsh history. In future centuries, one of the main requirements for kingship in the Welsh kingdoms was being of the descent of Rhodri Mawr. Rhodri's fame sprang from his success as a warrior. It was his victory over the Viking, Horn, leader of the Danes, in 856 which brought him international acclaim. The Irish and the Franks had been unsuccessfully trying to repel the Northmen and they were impessed by Rhodri's success. The English kingdom of Wessex had for many years been striving with partial success to subjugate Powys. It was in battle against the English that Rhodri, along with his son, Gwriad, was killed in 877. It appears that the Welsh court experienced a cultural revival during the reign of Rhodri.
Rhodri Mawr (the Great) ap Merfyn, Prince of Wales, who became King of Gwynedd in 844 on the death of his father Merfyn Frych, King of Powys in 855 on the death of his uncle Caell ap Brochwell, and King of Seisyllwg in 871 on the death of his brother-in-law Gwgon. Rhodri Mawr was the first ruler recognized as Prince of Wales. He defeated the Danish leader Horn in 856.
Died in 877 or 878, killed in battle with the English as was his son Gwriad.
http://www.castlewales.com/rhodri.html
According to legend, the first Dinefwr Castle was built by Rhodri Mawr - King of Wales in the 9th century. It is unavoidable that attention should focus on those Welsh rulers who extended their power over much of Wales in the centuries prior to the Norman conquest.
They foreshadowed the attempts by the princes of Gwynedd in the 13th century to create a unified Welsh state, and they matched contemporary developments in England, and similar, but later, developments in Scotland. So, Rhodri Mawr (844-78) is presented as one who set a pattern for the future. He either ruled or, by his personal qualities, dominated much of Wales.
Chroniclers of his generation hailed Rhodri ap Merfyn as Rhodri Mawr (Rhodri the Great), a distinction bestowed upon two other rulers in the same century - Charles the Great (Charlemagne, died 814) and Alfred the Great (died 899). The three tributes are of a similar nature - recognition of the achievements of men who contributed significantly to the growth of statehood among the nations of the Welsh, the Franks and the English. Unfortunately, the entire evidence relating to the life of Rhodri consists of a few sentences; yet he must have made a deep impression upon the Welsh, for in later centuries being of the line of Rhodri was a primary qualification for their rulers. Until his death, Rhodri was acknowledged as ruler of more than half of Wales, and that as much by diplomacy as by conquest.
Rhodri's fame sprang from his success as a warrior. That success was noted by The Ulster Chronicle and by Sedulius Scottus, an Irish scholar at the court of the Emperor Charles the Bald at Liege. It was his victory over the Vikings in 856 which brought him international acclaim. Wales was less richly provided with fertile land and with the navigable rivers that attracted the Vikings, and the Welsh kings had considerable success in resisting them. Anglesey bore the brunt of the attacks, and it was there in 856 that Rhodri won his great victory over Horn, the leader of the Danes, much to the delight of the Irish and the Franks.
It was not only from the west that the kingdom of Rhodri was threatened. By becoming the ruler of Powys, his mother's land, he inherited the old struggle with the kingdom of Mercia. Although Offa's Dyke had been constructed in order to define the territories of the Welsh and the English, this did not prevent the successors of Offa from attacking Wales. The pressure on Powys continued; after 855, Rhodri was its defender, and he and his son, Gwriad, were killed in battle against the English in 878.