Date: [unknown] [unknown]
Location: Wales

Note - This is still a work in progress.

Contents 1 South Wales 1.1 Lineage 1.2 Locations 1.2.1 Cyfoeth Maredudd 1.2.2 Coordinates 1.3 Timeline 1.4 Descendants 1.5 Footnotes

South Wales

Homeland of Angharad ferch Morgan and her ancestors since Rhys ap Gruffyd.

The ancestors of Angharad, a descendant of Yr Arglwydd Rhys, The Lord Rhys, Prince of Deheubarth in south Wales, are mostly from the cantrefi^[1] of Gwent and Gwynllwg in southeast Wales.^[2]

This page was created 10 April 2022 with location information that had accumulated on the profile for Angharad's father, Sir Morgan ap Maredudd. The date range is from the time of The Lord Rhys, who flourished in the late 1100s, to Angharad's time (she was born before 1300, based on her age at the time of her father's death c1331/2).

While information here includes some citations, the linked WikiTree profiles may include additional details and sources.

Lineage

"Lord Rhys", Rhys ap Gruffydd (1132-1197), father of Gruffydd and Maredudd (and others) - Gruffydd and his wife took in Maredudd's family after he died and unrest in the area were a threat to them^[3]

• Gruffydd ap Rhys (abt 1148 - abt 25 Jul 1201) m. (1189) Maud Braose (abt 1173 - bef 29 Dec 1210), brother/sister-in-law of
• Maredudd Gethin ap Rhys (1170 - c1200)^[4] m. (1180) Gwenllian Fychan ferch Hywel, daughter of Sir Hywel of Caerleon, Gwent,^[3] ap Iorwerth ap Owain ap Caradog ap Gruffudd ap Rhydderch ap Iestyn,^[5] father of

|

|Gruffudd (born c1200) ap Maredudd Gethin m. Gwerful ferch Morgan ap Sir Hywel of Caerleon^[6][7]

|

|Maredudd (born 1234/5) m. Mawd ferch Cadwallon ap Madog ap Maelgwn ap Rhys^[3]

|

|Morgan (died 1332) m. Crisli ferch Dafydd ap Meurig Goch^[3]

|

|Angharad ferch Morgan (1300-1334) m. Llewelyn ap Ifor

Locations

Listed alphabetically following this brief introduction.

"Cyfoeth Meredydd, Gwynllwg, Monmouthshire, Wales" was the impetus for collecting the following information. Prior to 9 April 2022, that was the location given for the birth and marriage of Sir Morgan ap Maredudd on his profile.

Both "Cyfoeth Maredydd" and "Monmouthshire" were removed. Gwnllwg remained, as the time-appropriate place - Monmouthshire did not exist (it was created in 1535).^[8] Although "Cyfoeth Maredydd" is probably his birthplace, it was a manor house (and therefore not appropriate to be included in the location datafield, according to Help: Location Fields). He died at his home in Tredegar, Gwynllwg.^[3]

C

Caerleon: A town and community in Newport, Wales in the ceremonial county of Gwent.^[9] Home of Sir Hywel ab Owain, father of Maredudd Gethin's wife and grandfather of Gruffudd ap Maredudd's wife.^[6]

Castell Meredydd: The source of Cyfoeth Maredudd appears to be a pedigree written by Ieuan Brechfa c1500, who also refers to Castle Mechan: "Maredudd Gethin ap Lord Rhys was lord of Cyfoeth Maredudd in Morgannwg.... Gruffudd was father to Maredudd ap Gruffudd of Castle Mechan...."^[3]

Wolcott, in discussing this pedigree, notes that Gwent and Gwynllwg are adjoining cantrefs, and states that the castle "was actually in Gwynllwg".^[3] Wikipedia agrees:

"Castell Meredydd, also called Castell Machen, was a castle in Gwynllwg, Wales in the 13th century.... The ruined castle, which is also called Machen, Maghay or Maghhay in historical documents, is in the historic county of Monmouthshire and the modern authority of Newport", near Machen.^[10]

Cyfoeth Maredudd: The manor of "Maredudd the Wealthy" in northern Gwynllwg. The namesake Maredudd being the grandson of Maredudd Gethin. Shortly after his death (c1201), Sir Hywel gave his daughter, Maredudd Gethin's widow, "a smallish manor not too distant from his own in Gwynllwg".^[3] "Cyfoeth" means "wealth, riches or power".^[11] Cyfoeth Maredudd ≠ Castell Meredydd - see details below.

D

Deheubarth: need to develop

Dinefwr Castle: need to smooth out/share with Deheubarth? - "sometimes anglicised as Dynevor", Dinefwr Castle today is near the Llandeilo, Carmarthenshire, Wales.... Dinefwr was the chief seat of the Kingdom of Deheubarth." [from Wikipedia] from CADW: "Perched in a commanding hilltop position above the Tywi Valley, Dinefwr Castle occupies a similarly significant position in Welsh history. In the 12th century, the fortress was in the possession of The Lord Rhys, ruler of the ancient south Wales kingdom of Deheubarth. His reign saw a rare period of peace and stability that led to a flowering of Welsh culture, music and poetry."^[12]

G

Gwent: An article on Ynyr Gwent, King of Gwent, has "Gwerthefyriwg (Gwent)".^[13] An article on The History of Wales covers "The early Kingdoms of Ewyas, Gwerthefyriwg, Gwent, Ergyng, Cernyw, Glywyssing and Morganwg (383 - 1055)."^[14] A map of South Wales in the 11th century posted in an article by Darrell Wolcott shows Gwent's location,^[15] bordering "Wessex and Mercia" (aka England) to the east,^[16] with its southern border on the Severn Estuary.^[17]

Gwynllwg: A reference to Castell Maredudd being "in the south" is found on one website, which says that Llywelyn ab Iorwerth "was instrumental in forcing the Earl Marshall to return this castle to Llywelyn's princely vassal, Morgan ap Hywel of Gwynllwg, in 1236."^[18]

"Gwynllŵg... was traditionally regarded as part of the kingdom of Glamorgan (Welsh: Morgannwg), rather than that of Gwent which extended only as far westwards as the River Usk."^[19]

L

Llandovery Castle: need to develop^[20]

M

Monmouthshire: The area that become Monmouthshire in 1535 comprised six Marcher lordships "(subject to some boundary revisions)" that included Caerleon and Gwynllwg.^[8]

N

Newport: need to develop

T

Tredegar: Some sources have "Tredegar, Gwent", but Wolcott notes that Tredegar is in "northern Gwynllwg". It is unclear if this was the same place as Cyfoer Maredudd (also in northern Gwynllwg). Today, Tredegar "is in the county borough of Blaenau Gwent, in the southeast of Wales", within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire,^[21] although this may be describing the location of Tredegar House.^[20]

Tredegar House: This is likely a different location than where Sir Morgan, Angharad's father, was living when he died in 1334/5 ("at his home in Tredegar, Gwynllwg", which Wolcott described as being in northern Gwynllwg).^[3] Tredegar House is in Newport, which would probably not be described as northern Gwynllwg.^[20] A re-review of Wolcott's article is probably in order, as he may have been referring to two diferent Tredegars that I conflated. ~ Noland-165, 11 April 2022

From the WikiTree page for Tredegar House (accessed 10 April 2022):

• An article posted on the Tredegar House website on the family, "Welsh, wealthy and wild, the Morgan family called Tredegar House home for centuries", notes that the family claimed descent from the Welsh princes and that "Sir William Morgan and his wife, Blanche, were the visionaries behind the the red brick mansion that you see today [which] was built in the 1670s.... the result of renovations to the existing house.... Records show that there has been a house on this site since the medieval age".^[22]

The Tredegar House page also has the following about Sir William Morgan:

• A descendant of Angharad's is Sir William Morgan of Tredegar and Machen, Monmouthshire, MP for Monmouthshire, 1624-1625: "The Morgans claimed descent from Cadifor Fawr, an eleventh-century prince of Dyfed. Central in establishing their fortunes was the marriage in the early fourteenth century of Sir Llewellyn ab Ifor with Angharad, heiress to Sir Morgan ap Maredudd, lord of Tredegar."^[23][24]

Cyfoeth Maredudd

The following details are from the Wolcott article that discusses the pedigree of Meredudd Gethin, which also quotes from the c1500 pedigree by Ieuan Brechfa that refers to both Cyfoeth Maredudd and Castle Mechan.^[3]

• Maredudd Gethin was Lord of Cyfoeth Maredudd in Morgannwg (died c1200) ~ Brechfa... which cannot be so, considering the following:
• Maud (Matilda) de Braose, after Maredudd and her husband Gruffudd had died (c1200 and c1201, respectively), "may have visited" Sir Hywel, the father of Maredudd's widow Gwenllian, "at his manor in Gwynllwg where he resided after abandoning Caerlleon to the Normans. One can't be sure if it was affection for his daughter (he had many) or the fact that Matilda's father was the Norman governor of Gwynllwg, but Hywel apparently agreed to give his daughter and her new family a smallish manor not too distant from his own in Gwynllwg. This was the site which would, in the next generation, grow into Cyfoeth Maredudd... the manor of Maredudd the Wealthy." ~ Wolcott
• Gruffudd ap Maredudd Gethin and Gwenllian, the two children of Maredudd Gethin & Gwenllian ferch Hywel, "grew up in the relative solace of the mountains of northern Gwynllwg". ~ Wolcott
• "Gruffudd was father to Maredudd ap Gruffudd of Castle Mechan" ~ Brechfa, referring to Maredudd ap Gruffudd ap Maredudd Gethin. Castle Mechan, or Machen, aka Castell Meredith, is today located "in the historic county of Monmouthshire and the modern authority of Newport", near Machen.^[10]
• Maredudd ap Gruffudd ap Maredudd Gethin appears to be the "next generation" and the namesake for Cyfoeth Maredudd - "the manor Maredudd the Wealthy" - that the manor Sir Hywel gave Gwenllian near his own in northern Gwynllwg would "grow into" in the next generation. ~ quotes from Wolcott , but he does not specifically identify which Maredudd is the wealthy one. Logically, it must be the grandson of Maredudd Gethin, who died before Sir Hywel gave Gwenllian the manor.
• Sir Morgan, the son of of Maredudd (apparently "the Wealthy") died at "the manor of Tredegar in northern Gwynllwg". ~ Wolcott

I think that "the manor of Tredegar" and the "manor of Maredud the Wealthy" - both in northern Gwynllwg - are referring to the same place, which is not the same as place as Castell Machen/Meredith, which "has been described both as a timber castle and as a masonry castle. There are remains of masonry footings."^[10][25]

Wikipedia gives the history of Castell Meredith, stating that the outcrop "on which the castle stands was first fortified in the late 12th century by Meredydd Gethin." This does not sound like something that would be described as "a smallish manor" c1200, nor is it likely that Sir Hywel gave it to his daughter. When Sir Hywel died c1215, his son Morgan succeeded him. Although Morgan "lost Caerleon in October 1217", he "managed to retain Castell Machen for most of his life" (aside from 1236, when it was captured by Gilbert Marshal "during a truce between Llywelyn the Great and King Henry III of England"; Marshal was "forced to return it to Morgan by the terms of the truce"). When Morgan died "not long before 15 March 1248", his grandson Meredudd ap Gruffudd (died 1270)" succeeded him and "inherited the castle." In 1266, Gilbert de Clare, 7th Earl of Gloucester, took the castle. "The castle is listed as property of the last earl in 1314, and then is no longer mentioned in the records."^[10] Note: Wikipedia shows that William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke, captured Caerleon Castle from Morgan ap Hywel in 1217 and that Gilbert, the 4th Earl of Pembroke, captured Castell Maredudd in 1236 and was forced to return it to Morgan the same year.^[10] Wolcott's article says that "Castle of Caerleon which, although located in Edeligion, had in 1235 been given over to William Marshall, Earl of Pembroke by Morgan ap Hywel (under duress he was to later claim)."^[3] Comparing the maps on Wikipedia's articles for Caerleon Castle^[26] and Castell Meredydd,^[10] the former is further east, although both are said to be in Newport. Both are shown on the map found in the Wikipedia article for Morgan ap Hywel.^[27]

• Caerleon is on the River Usk. Caerleon Castle was "built outside the eastern corner of the old Roman fort... seemingly just within the Welsh Lordship of Gwynllwg".^[26] The coordinates for the Roman fort found in Caerleon - Isca Augusta - are 51.6103°N 2.9589°W^[28]
• Coordinates for Castell Meredydd, according to Wikipedia, are 51.591993°N 3.119780°W^[10] - described as "near Machen", coordinates 51.596°N 3.139°W^[29]
• Tredegar, at 51.77761°N 3.24069°W, is just a bit west of Castell Meredydd.^[21]

Meredith was killed in battle in Deheubarth in 1200/1 and his family was moved further north by Gruffudd, Meredith's brother, who took them to his castle at Dinefwr. Llandovery Castle was one of Meredith's holdings at the time, but it is north of Dinefwr.^[20] It was probably Castell Meredydd, also known as Castell Machen, that was the home of Gwenllian ferch Hywel and her young children that was not safe for them after Meredith's death. After Gruffudd's death (in 1201), his widow took the family to Sir Howel ap Iorwerth, who gifted his daughter Gwenllian with a "smallish manor" near his own (possibly in Tredegar?) that became known as Cyfoeth Maredudd, apparently named after Gwenllian's grandson, Meredudd ap Gruffud (died 1270), who had inherited Castell Machen from Morgan ap Hywel c1248. ~ Noland-165, 9 April 2022

Coordinates

Coordinates are from Wikipedia unless otherwise noted.

Location	Coordinates
Caerleon Castle	51.6103°N 2.9589°W
Castell Meredydd[30] near Machen	51.59234230386457°N 3.372050112522793°W 51.591993°N 3.119780°W
Cyfoeth Maredudd
Dinefwr Castle	51.8765307°N 4.01814222°W [20]
Gwent
Gwynllwg
Llandovery Castle	51.9929°N 3.79648°W [20]
Machen	51.596°N 3.139°W
Newport
Tredegar	51.77761°N 3.24069°W
Tredegar House	51.561627°N 3.027908°W [20]

Timeline

Unless otherwise noted, dates are likely "about". Profiles of people mentioned may have additional details, or there may be additional information elsewhere on this page.

1132: Birth of Rhys ap Gruffudd, "The Lord Rhys"

1170: Birth of Maredudd ap Rhys

1197: Death of The Lord Rhys

1197: Birth of Gwenllian ferch Meredydd Gethin

1200: Birth of Gruffudd ap Meredydd Gethin

1200/1: Death of Meredydd Gethin

1201: Death of Meredydd's brother Gruffudd ap Rhys

1201' (after): Sir Hywel ap Iorwerth gave his daughter a "smallish manor"

1234/5: Birth of Maredudd ap Gruffudd[3]

1248: Death of Morgan ap Hywel

1248: Maredudd ap Gruffudd, age 14, named sole heir of Morgan ap Hywel

1300 (before): Birth of Angharad

1331/2: Death of Sir Morgan

Descendants

See the WikiTree page for Tredegar House in Newport for information about Angharad's descendant who renovated the house in the 1670s

Footnotes

1. ↑ "Can or cant comes from the term for a hundred. Second is 'tref' a much less distinct term which might mean a house, settlement, or even a town. Thus the compound term 'cantref' generally meant the smallest type of settlement.
   
   In Welsh history the cantref was made up of a number of commotes (cymydau), though cantrefi (the plural of cantref in Welsh) was the original division and the commote a later subdivision. Most cantrefi were divided into several commotes, usually 2 or 3, but as many as 7 for the largest.
   
   "Each cantref traditionally had its own court, and the boundaries between cantrefs often coincided with areas of distinct Welsh dialects, or even kingdoms. The court was usually administered by thew most powerful landowners within each cantref. The legal function of cantrefs was later taken over by commotes."
   
   ~ Britain Express: "Cantref" (accessed 12 April 2022).
   
   
2. ↑ See the Wikipedia map of cantrefi, from the Wikipedia article, Cantref (accessed 12 April 2022).
3. ↑ ^{3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11} Darrell Wolcott, "Maredudd Gethin ap Lord Rhys" (article for The Center for the Study of Ancient Wales, accessed November 3, 2015).
4. ↑ Maredudd Gethin was killed in battle in the commote of Carnwyllion in Deheubarth, 1201. ~ Darrell Wolcott's article, Maredudd Gethin ap Lord Rhys".
5. ↑ Iorwerth ab Owain (d. 1175x84), prince in Wales, lord of Caerleon by David Crouch. © Oxford University Press. 2004–14 All rights reserved
6. ↑ ^{6.0 6.1} Welsh Gentry, © Copyright Derek Williams, Norma Rudinsky 1999, 2011, citing "Pedigree from II-3, 114,048. RHYDDERCH ap IESTYN to Lords of Caerleon" (Wayback Machine capture, accessed via archive.org on 8 April 2022).
7. ↑ See this article by Darrell Wolcott, which discusses Sir Hywel ap Iorwerth's son Morgan and whether or not Gwerful, wife of Gruffudd, was his daughter. (Conclusion: Yes she was.)
8. ↑ ^{8.0 8.1} "From the 11th until the 16th centuries, the area which later became Monmouthshire (subject to some boundary revisions) comprised six Marcher lordships – Abergavenny, Caerleon, Chepstow (or Striguil), Gwynllwg (Wentloog), Monmouth and Usk.... The Laws in Wales Act 1535 integrated Wales directly into the English legal system and the "Lordships Marchers within the said Country or Dominion of Wales" were allocated to existing and new shires. Some lordships were annexed to existing counties in England and some were annexed to existing counties in Wales, with the remainder being divided up into new counties, one of which was Monmouthshire." ~ Wikipedia: Monmouthshire (historic) (accessed 9 April 2022).
9. ↑ Wikipedia: Caerleon (accessed 9 April 2022).
10. ↑ ^{10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 10.5 10.6} Wikipedia: Castell Meredydd (accessed 9 April 2022).
11. ↑ From a comment posted on 19 July 2019 by Michael Staffor to Maredudd-21 (now merged into ap Maredudd-20).
12. ↑ Dinefwr Castle: National Trust, this one CADW, & Wikipedia (accessed 11 April 2022).
13. ↑ David Nash Ford's Early British Kingdoms, "Ynyr Gwent, King of Gwent" (accessed 9 April 2022).
14. ↑ "The early Kingdoms of Ewyas, Gwerthefyriwg, Gwent, Ergyng, Cernyw, Glywyssing and Morganwg (383 - 1055)" (accessed 9 April 2022).
15. ↑ Darrell Wolcott, "The Conquest of Glamorgan - Further Notes" (accessed 9 April 2022).
16. ↑ See this map, from the home page of The History of Wales (accessed 9 April 2022).
17. ↑ See this map from Wikipedia's List of rivers of Wales as well as the articles for the Bristol Channel and the Kingdom of Gwent.
18. ↑ Paul Martin Remfry, The Dating of Medieval Military Architecture, © Copyright 1998 (accessed 9 April 2022).
19. ↑ Wikipedia: Gwynllwg (accessed 9 April 2022).
20. ↑ ^{20.0 20.1 20.2 20.3 20.4 20.5 20.6} See this map showing relationship of Dinefwr Castle, Llandovery Castle, and Tedegar House.
21. ↑ ^{21.0 21.1} Wikipedia: Tredegar (accessed 9 April 2022).
22. ↑ Tredegar House: Home, Overview, Meet the Morgan Family. For details and a discussion of uncertainties concerning the lineage of Sir William Morgan (1567-abt.1652), see his profile (which as of 10 April 2022 displays the "Uncertain Family" research notes box). See also the WikiTree page for Tredegar House (accessed 10 April 2022).
23. ↑ History of Parliament Online: Sir William Morgan (1567-1652), by Lloyd Bowen.
24. ↑ The History of Parliament Online biography of Sir William Morgan says that "Morgan’s portrait, painted around 1650, is held at Tredegar House, and hints at the approaching mortality of the aged Member, by including a skull on his left hand." It is apparently no longer in the Tredegar House collection, as there is an entry for the portrait of "Sir William Morgan (1560-1653)" but no image. ~ National Trust, Tredegar Collection: Sir William Morgan (1560-1653), accessed 12 April 2022.
25. ↑ Castell Meredith, added to the previous three locations (this Google map).
26. ↑ ^{26.0 26.1} Wikipedia: Caerleon (accessed 9 April 2022).
27. ↑ Wikipedia: Morgan ap Hywel (accessed 9 April 2022).
28. ↑ Wikipedia: Isca Augusta (accessed 9 April 2022).
29. ↑ Wikipedia: Machen (accessed 9 April 2022).
30. ↑ This Google map includes Castell Meredydd.