Prince of Wales, Rhodri Mawr Ap Merfyn the

Birth Name Prince of Wales, Rhodri Mawr Ap Merfyn the 1a 2a 3a
Also Known As King of Gwynedd, Rhodri Mawr the Great
Gramps ID I29125
Gender male
Age at Death 69 years

Events

Event Date Place Description Notes Sources
Birth [E38720] 809 of Caer Seiont, Carnarvonshire, Wales  
2b 3b
Death [E38721] 878 Anglesey, Wales  

Cause: Battle wounds.

2c 3c
_FA1 [E38722]   Acceded: 844. King of Gwynedd 844-878.  
1b 2d 3d
_FA2 [E38723]   United much of modern Wales into one realm (didn't last past his death).  
2e 3e
_FA3 [E38724]   Under his & grandson Hywel Dda’s leadership, a Welsh state emerged.  
2f 3f
_FA4 [E38725] 853 Ethelwulf of Wessex & Burghred of Mercia enter Wales.  
4 2g 3g
_FA5 [E38726]   They convince Rhodri to halt Viking incursions into England via Wales.  
4 2h 3h
_FA6 [E38727] 855 Defeats Viking invasion. Vikings never seriously invade Wales again.  
4 2i 3i

Parents

Relation to main person Name Birth date Death date Relation within this family (if not by birth)
Father King of Gwynedd, Merfyn Ap Gwriad the Freckled [I29127]784BET. 843 - 844
Mother verch Cadell, Nesta [I29126]780
         Prince of Wales, Rhodri Mawr Ap Merfyn the [I29125] 809 878

Families

    Family of Prince of Wales, Rhodri Mawr Ap Merfyn the and verch Meurig, Angharad [F11501]
Unknown Partner verch Meurig, Angharad [I29124] ( * 825 + ... )
  Children
Name Birth Date Death Date
Prince of Gwynedd, Anarawd ap Rhodri [I30288]857916
King of Powys, Merfyn ap Rhodri Mawr [I30281]859900
King of South Wales, Cadell ap Rhodri Mawr [I29123]861910

Narrative

[large-G675.FTW]

Rhodri Mawr, king of Gwynedd, died in 878. Although he was an important Welsh king, it is not really appropriate to call him the "first King of Wales", for there were large parts of Wales over which he did not rule. Most sources give the name of Rhodri's wife as Angharad, heiress of Ceredigion, and give his mother as Nest, heiress of Powys, but Patrick Sims-Williams [in the article "Historical Need and Literary Narrative: a Caveat from Ninth-Century Wales", Welsh History Review, vol. 17 (1994), pp. 1-40] has recently argued (conclusively, in my opinion) that neither Nest nor Angharad ever existed, and that they were inventions of later genealogists who wanted to give Rhodri's family a line of descent from the earlier kings of Powys and Ceredigion.

Pedigree

  1. King of Gwynedd, Merfyn Ap Gwriad the Freckled [I29127]
    1. verch Cadell, Nesta [I29126]
      1. Prince of Wales, Rhodri Mawr Ap Merfyn the
        1. verch Meurig, Angharad [I29124]
          1. Prince of Gwynedd, Anarawd ap Rhodri [I30288]
          2. King of Powys, Merfyn ap Rhodri Mawr [I30281]
          3. King of South Wales, Cadell ap Rhodri Mawr [I29123]

Ancestors

Source References

  1. Denis R. Reid: Royal Genealogies DB [S284656]
      • Source text:

        Prince of So Wales

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        Prince of Wales 844-878

  2. large-G675.FTW [S286834]
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        Date of Import: 14 Mar 1999

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        Date of Import: 14 Mar 1999

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        Date of Import: 14 Mar 1999

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        Date of Import: 14 Mar 1999

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        Date of Import: 14 Mar 1999

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        Date of Import: 14 Mar 1999

  3. large-G675.FTW [S468232]
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        b 990

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        b 990

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        b 990

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        b 990

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        b 990

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        b 990

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        b 990

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        b 990

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        b 990

  4. G.P. Baker: Fighting Kings of Wessex [S287682]