Gwenllian of Wales

Gwenllian ferch Llywelyn (June 12 1282 – June 7 1337) was the only child of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, the last native "Tywysog Cymru" (Prince of Wales). She is sometimes confused with Gwenllian ferch Gruffudd, who lived two centuries earlier.

Lineage

Gwenllian (pronounced gwen-LLEE-an) was born in the Welsh royal home Garth Celyn, Aber Garth Celyn (now known as Pen y Bryn Abergwyngregyn) near Bangor, Gwynedd, on or about June 19, 1282. Her mother was Llywelyn's wife, Eleanor de Montfort, who died giving birth to the baby. She was descended from dual Royal bloodlines; not only was she the daughter of the reigning Welsh Tywysog, but her maternal great-grandfather was King John of England, making Gwenllian a member of the House of Plantagenet.

At the mercy of King Edward I

Just a few months after Gwenllian's birth, on 11 December 1282, with north Wales encircled by the massive army of Edward I of England, her father Llywelyn, lured into a trap, was put to death. Her uncle, Tywysog Dafydd ap Gruffudd, assumed guardianship of the baby, but in June 1283 he and his family were captured at 'Nanhysglain,' a secret hiding place in a bog by Bera mountain in the uplands above Garth Celyn. Tywysog Dafydd, 'severely injured,' was taken to Edward, then moved under guard to Shrewsbury, where he was later executed.

Confinement in the seclusion of Lincolnshire priories

Gwenllian, together with the daughters of Tywysog Dafydd, were confined for life in remote, secluded priories in Lincolnshire. It is to be supposed that they were spared due to their young ages; Gwenllian was barely a year old. Gwenllian's Plantagenet descent probably worked in her favour as well.

Confinement for fifty years

Gwenllian was placed in the Gilbertine Priory at Sempringham, where she was held behind its high walls until her death 54 years later. In committing her to a convent, Edward's aim was not only to prevent her marrying and having children who might claim the Principality but also to hide her from the outside world, lest she become a symbol for rebellion by the Welsh. He chose the Gilbertines in Lincolnshire because of their remote location and because they were an order with large communities, where the children would not stand out. It has been speculated by archaeologists involved in the excavations at Sempringham that the girls may have been taken there by sea rather than land; Sempringham at that time was close to the coast. (This would have reduced the risk of ambush or kidnap by supporters of the princes of Gwynedd.)

Only once in records was Gwenllian's royal rank ever acknowledged. When writing to the Pope, attempting to secure more money for the Sempringham priory from the Church, the English King noted that "...herein is kept the Princess of Wales, whom we have to maintain." It is difficult to know whether Gwenllian herself ever truly understood her status or importance; what is known is that no one ever taught her how to spell her own name. Possibly the English nuns had no idea themselves. Records show the princess writing her name alternately as "Wencilane" and "Wentliane."

Old age & death

Edward III of England, Edward I's grandson, endowed Gwenllian with a pension of £20 per year, the sum simply needed to pay the priory for her board and lodgings. Her death was recorded by the priory's chronicler Piers Langtoft.

Fate of her male cousins

Dafydd's two young sons, direct heirs to the Principality/Kingdom of Wales, were taken to Bristol Castle where they were held prisoner; Llywelyn ap Dafydd died there in 1287, four years after capture, and was buried in the Dominican Church; Owain ap Dafydd survived his brother; the King of England ordered a cage made of timber, bound with iron, in which to hold the prince Owain ap Dafydd more securely at night. Owain was never released from imprisonment.

King Edward I took the title of "Prince of Wales" for the Crown, bestowing it upon his son, Edward, who was crowned in Caernarfon in 1301 at age 17. Hence the title passed as a grace title bestowable by the English, and later British, monarchy to this day.

Primary source references

* Calendar of Patent Rolls, 1281-92, 321 ((Inquiry of 1289 concerning the custody of the Welsh royal children)
* Calendar of Papal Letters, ii, 185, 273
* Calendar of Memoranda Rolls, 1226-7, no. 2160
* Calendar of Close Rolls, 1327-30, 65, 175, 273, 322, 438
* Public Record Office, London E101/351/9 (Letter, noting provision made for the needs of the Welsh royal children, 11 November 1283)
* Calendar Ancient Petitions, 458 (letter from Gwenllian)
* Robert Manning (a canon at Sempringham then at Sixhills) see "The Works of Thomas Hearne", 4 vols (London, 1810)
* "Annales Prioratus de Dunstaplia", 293-4
* "Accounts of Bristol Castle"

External links

* The [http://www.ad-je-leaver.freeserve.co.uk/cydgg.htm The Princess Gwenllian Society] has been formed in honour of this princess, and a memorial to her has been erected on the site of the former priory at Sempringham.

* The [http://www.llywelyn.co.uk/8.html Aber Trust / Ymddiriedolaeth Aber] owns and is restoring the medieval gatehouse at Garth Celyn, Aber Garth Celyn, the place of Gwenllian's birth.

*Music composed about Princess Gwenllian includes Llio Rhydderch's harp suite "Gwenllian" and Toby Griffen's song, [http://www.geocities.com/~dubricius/gwen.html Gwenllian's Lament/Cradlesong]