Powys

Who rules

Name

Gwenwynwyn ab Owain (southern Powys) and Madog ap Gruffudd Maelor (northern Powys)

Title

Princes (lords) of Powys

Since

Gwenwynwyn 1195; Madog 1191 (with his brother Owain, alone from 1197)

Born

Not pinned for either

Family

Gwenwynwyn is the son of Owain Cyfeiliog; Madog is the son of Gruffudd Maelor and of a daughter of Owain Gwynedd. Both descend from Maredudd ap Bleddyn; the kingdom has been divided since Madog ap Maredudd's death in 1160. Cadet lines hold Penllyn (Elise ap Madog), Edeirnion (the sons of Owain Brogyntyn) and Mawddwy.

Confidence

high

Wikipedia (Gwenwynwyn; Madog ap Gruffydd Maelor; Powys Fadog).

Overlord

None in practice; Gwenwynwyn made peace with John in 1199

What the realm holds

• Powys Wenwynwyn (see Gwenwynwyn)
• Powys Fadog (see Powys Fadog)
• Cadet lordships: Penllyn (Penllyn), Edeirnion (Edeirnion), Mawddwy (not drawn)

How it was acquired

Inheritance; Arwystli taken by Gwenwynwyn in 1197.

Allies and rivals

Gwenwynwyn allied with Maelgwn ap Rhys against Gruffydd; rival of Llywelyn. Madog close to Llywelyn. Both border William FitzAlan, the Corbets, the Boulers of Montgomery and the earl of Chester.

The realm that morning

Both princes hold their lands; Powys Wenwynwyn is weakened by the losses of 1198.

Wealth

Cattle, the Severn and Dee valleys, Cistercian wool (Strata Marcella), the Shrewsbury and Oswestry markets.

Military

The princes' teuluoedd and the levies; castles at Pool, Mathrafal and the Maelor border.

Threats

• Gwynedd's rise
• The Shropshire March

Officers

Not pinned for either court.

Court winter 1199 in 1200

Gwenwynwyn at Pool (Welshpool) and Mathrafal; Madog in the Dee valley (Llangollen, Ial); neither pinned for the winter.

Treaties and truces

Gwenwynwyn at peace with John since 1199 (terms not pinned). No written treaty for Madog.

Coinage

None; English silver.

Rome and interdict

Not affected; Strata Marcella is Gwenwynwyn's family abbey and will found Valle Crucis for Madog (28 January 1201).

What the year holds

What happened next, if nothing in play changes it. Each event carries what it depends on and what would stop it.

1. 28 January 1201Madog founds Valle Crucis.Depends on: Peace Stopped by: War
2. August 1202Llywelyn moves against Gwenwynwyn; the clergy make peace.Depends on: Llywelyn's ambition Stopped by: A settlement first

Where the sources disagree

Evidence: Chronicle years; little on the courts.

Primary sources for this realm

Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.

• Annals of Wales, Anonymous (St Davids and other Welsh houses) (10th to 13th centuries; the B and C texts continue to 1286 and 1288). Short Latin annals whose later versions are kept at St Davids and Cistercian houses. Read online
• Chronicle of the Princes, Anonymous (Welsh translation of a lost Latin chronicle kept at Strata Florida) (Latin original to about 1282, compiled from contemporary annals; Welsh versions about 1300 and later). The native Welsh record of the year. Read online
• The Journey through Wales; The Description of Wales, Gerald of Wales (Giraldus Cambrensis) (Itinerarium 1191, revised to about 1214; Descriptio 1194). The standing description of Wales a decade before 1200: the cantrefs and their lords, the castles of the March, the bishoprics, the Welsh way of fighting and living, and Gerald's advice on how the Welsh might be conquered and how they might resist. Read online