Rhys Ap Gruffydd - Children

Children

Rhys had at least nine sons and eight daughters. Confusingly, three of the sons were named Maredudd and two of the daughters were named Gwenllian.

  • Gruffydd ap Rhys II (died 1201) was the eldest legitimate son and was nominated by Rhys as his successor. He married Matilda de Braose, the daughter of Maud de Braose.
  • Maelgwn ap Rhys (died 1231), who was the eldest son but illegitimate, refused to accept Gruffydd as his father's successor. A bitter feud developed between the two, with several of Rhys's other sons becoming involved.
  • Rhys Gryg (died 1233) married a daughter of the Earl of Clare. Rhys eventually became the main power in Deheubarth, but never ruled more than a portion of his father's realm and was a client prince of Llywelyn the Great of Gwynedd.
  • Hywel ap Rhys (died 1231) spent many years as a hostage at the court of Henry II and on his return became known as Hywel Sais (Hywel the Saxon, i.e. Englishman).
  • Maredudd ap Rhys (died 1239) was also given as a hostage, but was less fortunate than Hywel. He was blinded by King Henry after the failure of the invasion of Wales in 1165, and became known as Maredudd Ddall (Maredudd the Blind). He ended his days as a monk at Whitland Abbey.
  • Another Maredudd (died 1227) became Archdeacon of Cardigan.
  • Rhys's daughter Gwenllian ferch Rhys married Rhodri ab Owain, prince of the western part of Gwynedd.
  • Another Gwenllian (circa 1178 - 1236) married Ednyfed Fychan, seneschal of Gwynedd under Llywelyn the Great, and through her Rhys became an ancestor of the Tudor dynasty. Through the Tudors inter-marrying with the House of Stuart Rhys is an ancestor to the current ruling house of the United Kingdom and also an ancestor of several ruling houses in Europe. When Henry Tudor landed in Pembrokeshire, Wales in 1485 to make a bid for the throne, his descent from Rhys was one of the factors which enabled him to attract Welsh support (Henry flew a (Welsh) dragon banner at the battle of Bosworth Field).
  • Angharad ferch Rhys married William FitzMartin, lord of Cemais.
  • Other daughters married the Welsh rulers of Gwrtheyrnion and Elfael.
16. Cadell ab Einion ab Owain ap Hywel
8. Tewdwr ap Cadell
4. Rhys ap Tewdwr
2. Gruffydd ap Rhys
20. Cynfyn ap Gwerstan
10. Rhiwallon ap Cynfyn
21. Angharad ferch Maredudd ab Owain
5. Gwladys ferch Rhiwallon
1. Rhys ap Gruffydd
24. Iago ab Idwal ap Meurig
12. Cynan ab Iago
6. Gruffudd ap Cynan
3. Gwenllian ferch Gruffydd
28. Edwin ab Einion ab Owain ap Hywel
14. Owain ab Edwin
7. Angharad ferch Owain

Read more about this topic:  Rhys Ap Gruffydd

Famous quotes containing the word children:

    “The world men inhabit ... is rather bleak. It is a world full of doubt and confusion, where vulnerability must be hidden, not shared; where competition, not co-operation, is the order of the day; where men sacrifice the possibility of knowing their own children and sharing in their upbringing, for the sake of a job they may have chosen by chance, which may not suit them and which in many cases dominates their lives to the exclusion of much else.”
    —Anna Ford (b. 1943)

    “Everything our children hear, see, and feel is recorded onto a cassette. Guess who is the big star in their movie? You are. What you say and, more important, what you do, is recorded there for them to replay over and over again. We all have videocassettes. Adults just have larger libraries of tapes available.”
    —Stephanie Martson (20th century)

    “Do your children view themselves as successes or failures? Are they being encouraged to be inquisitive or passive? Are they afraid to challenge authority and to question assumptions? Do they feel comfortable adapting to change? Are they easily discouraged if they cannot arrive at a solution to a problem? The answers to those questions will give you a better appraisal of their education than any list of courses, grades, or test scores.”
    —Lawrence Kutner (20th century)