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THE FAMILY OF TRAHAEARN AP CARADOG
By Darrell Wolcott
When Trahaearn ap Caradog was killed
at Mynydd Carn in 1081 [1], he had been the interim king of both Gwynedd and Powys, as neither of those dynasties had a qualified
claimant available to serve. His opponent at Mynydd Card, Gruffudd ap Cynan, nephew of Iago, had previously been unsuccessful
in his attempt to claim Gwynedd [2], and he lived in Ireland. The next-in-line, Gruffudd ap Cynan ap Iago, was then
just 11 years old. In Powys, the eldest son of Bleddyn ap Cynfyn was the designated edling, but was yet a year or so
too young for kingship. [3]
Trahaearn was survived by a wife and 4 legitimate
sons. [4] His widow was Nest, the daughter of former Powys king Gruffudd ap Llewelyn, by his first wife. [5] Their
sons were:
Owain, born c. 1065, so near age 16
Llywarch, born c. 1070, so near
age 11
Meurig, born c. 1073, so near age
8
Gruffudd, born c. 1075, so near age
6
The three youngest boys were still under
age 14, so they lived at the bed and board of their parents. The eldest son had, when he turned age 14, been sent for
his mandatory training to the court of Idnerth ap Cadwgan in Ceri. The Powys court was temporarily unstaffed for military
training [6] and Idnerth represented a cousin branch of Trahaearn's family. [7]
The edling-in-waiting for the Powys crown
was probably Madog ap Bleddyn, and he was due for coronation the following year. Madog was, however, old enough to assume
the wardship of Trahaearn's lands during the minority of his heirs. Young Owain ap Trahaearn was now sent to the Powys
court, together with his mother and other Powys members of his father's court. Owain's younger brothers each joined that court
as they, respectively, turned age 14. Madog ap Bleddyn, when coronated, ruled Powys until 1088, when he and his brother,
Rhiryd, were killed attempting to seize Deheubarth from Rhys ap Tewdwr. [8] Cadwgan ap Bleddyn then became the new king
of Powys.
About 1093, King Cadwgan named Owain ap
Trahaearn as Lord of Arwystli. About 1098, he named Llywarch ap Trahaearn Lord of Cedewain after Llywarch married a
daughter of Iorwerth ap Cadwgan of Ceri. [9] In 1106, the two youngest sons of Trahaearn, Meurig and Gruffudd, apparently
demanded a larger voice in Powys affairs. King Cadwgan sent his 21 year old son, Owain, to handle the matter....which
he did by killing the two men. [10] Each man left one or more toddler sons as orphans. [11]
ARWYSTLI LORDSHIP:
Owain ap Trahaearn apparently lived
a full life; when he died, his eldest son, Ieuaf, became the new Lord of Arwystli. His younger legitimate sons, Llewelyn,
Meurig and Iorwerth, never married since they were either blinded or killed in the wars between the sons of Owain and the
sons of Llywarch. [12] When Ieuaf ap Owain was also killed in 1130 [13], his only son, Hywel, was yet an infant.
The Lordship was held in wardship by the kings of Powys until Madog ap Maredudd ap Bleddyn conferred it upon Hywel ap Ieuaf
about 1158. During the lifetime of Hywel ap Ieuaf, King Henry II deprived him of the lordship and conferred it upon
Lord Rhys in 1171. [14] Although Hywel had several sons who continued to hold lands in Arwystli, there is no indication
any further lordships were held by descendants of Owain ap Trahaearn. Owain also had a base son who will be discussed
later in this paper.
CEDEWAIN LORDSHIP:
We believe Llywarch ap Trahaearn died about
1128, precipitating the war between his sons and the sons of his brother, Owain. He left 5 legitimate sons, with Cadafael
the eldest, born c. 1100. Three other sons, Maredudd, Madog and Iorwerth were killed in the inter-family wars [15], and Robert,
the youngest, was yet a teen, born c. 1110. The Lordship of Cedewain was held in wardship by the kings of Powys until
about 1138 when it was given to Robert. While Cadafael had been old enough to become Lord when his father died, King
Maredudd ap Bleddyn had declined such a grant due to that man's mental incompetence. [16] Lords of Cedewain which
followed Robert ap Llywarch are discussed in another paper. [17] Llywarch also had a base son who will be discussed
presently.
ILLEGITIMATE SON/GRANDSONS OF TRAHAEARN AP CARADOG:
About 1063, Trahaearn had a base son, Ieuan,
by an unnamed lady, probably of the commote of Gorddwr. [18] The boy was raised by his mother and never knew his father.
We suggest he married a Gorddwr lady by whom he had a son, Dafydd c. 1095. We further suggest his wife had two younger
sisters, and that Ieuan, his wife, her sisters, and the parents of his wife all resided at his in-laws manor. Ieuan
had inherited nothing from his own father, so he worked as a tenant for his father-in-law.
Ieuan had been made aware of his birth father
and half-brothers when he reached his teens. His curiousity about, and desire to learn more of his father, led
him to visit his half-brothers. He assured both Owain and Llywarch that he sought nothing but friendship from
them, and he was happy to live in obscurity far from the political scene. The three men embraced each other and
became good friends, About the year 1101, both his half-brothers visited Ieuan and his family in their home. Neither
of the younger sisters of Ieuan's wife had ever married, but neither was still a virgin. One thing led to another,
as often happens when a married man travels without his wife in tow. When the brothers Owain and Llywarch departed
for home, we think they left behind two pregnant ladies. [19]
The following year, Ieuan's household
was increased by two baby boys: Eilas ap Owain [20] and Trahaearn ap Llywarch [21]. A chart of the families which descended
from those illegitimate men, including the base son Ieuan ap Trahaearn ap Caradog, will show the closeness these
families shared with each other:
General comment on chart:
Notice how the families which descend from Trahaearn ap Llywarch
repeat the same series of male names found in the other two charted families
Specific chart comments to support our dating estimates:
(a) It is known that Trahaearn ap Iorwerth, a man descended from Llewelyn
Aurdorchog of Ial, was an officer in the warband of Gwenwynwyn of south Powys, who granted him the Lordship of Garthmyl for
his services. The c. 1170 Eilas ap Owain is called a man of Aberriw in some citations. Garthmyl and Aberriw are
less than a mile apart in the commote of Llanerch Hudol, Powys. We suggest Eilas acquired that manor at the same time
and for the same reason that Garthmyl was given to Trahaearn ap Iorwerth. The marriage of Sian ferch
Dafydd Fychan to Iorwerth (ap Einion ap Rhys ap Llewelyn Fychan ap Llewelyn Aurdorchog) is cited in "Powys Fadog" vol 5, page
120. Dafydd Fychan is called "of Bachelldre", a placename less than a mile from both Aberriw and Garthmyl
(b) Pen. 127, 39 cites the marriage of Angharad to Gruffudd (1210)
ap Ednyfed Chwith (1175) ap Morgan Fychan (1145) ap Morgan (1110) ap Rhiryd (1075) ap Hywel (1045) ap Trahaearn
(1008), which Trahaearn was a son of Pasgen I ap Gwyn I of the Powys Royal Family
(c) Pen 127, 39 also cites the marriage of Dafydd Frychgoch (corruptly called
"Frygoch") to Tangwystl (1235) ferch Madog Goch (1205) ap Gruffudd (1175). Gruffudd was the son of Llewelyn (1145)
ap Robert (1110) ap Llywarch (1979) ap Trahaearn (1035) ap Caradog
(d) Dwnn i, 274 cites the marriage of Ieuan ap Einion ap Eilas to Meddefys ferch
Dafydd Fychan ap Dafydd ap Ieuan ap Trahaearn, men who are dated in the chart
(e) Dwnn i, 308 cites the marriage of Dafydd Llwyd to Angharad (1305) ap Madog
(1275) ap Cadwgan (1240). This Cadwgan was a son of Rhys ap Richard ap Einion ap Richard ap Einion ap Cadifor Fawr
(f) Dwnn i, 274 cites the marriage of this Dafydd to Annes (1330) ferch Gruffudd
(1295) ap Maredudd (1260) ap Einion (1230) ap Cynfelyn (1200), the 2nd of the men named Einion ap Cynfelyn in his family
NOTES:
[1] See our paper "The Battle of Mynydd Carn" at the link below:
[2] ByT 1075
[3] The eldest sons of Bleddyn were Madog, Cadwgan, Rhiryd and Llywarch whose
birth order is not known, but the eldest would have been born about 1054
[4] He also had a base son, Ieuan, by
an unnamed mistress
[5] This marriage is cited in Dwnn ii, 107. Gruffudd ap Llewelyn had a
second daughter named Nest by his second wife
[6] Trahaearn held the interim kingships of both Gwynedd and Powys and was not
using the Powys court except for ceremonial events
[7] Both men were in the 10th generation after their common ancestor, Tegonwy
ap Teon
[8] ByT 1088
[9] This marriage is cited in Dwnn ii, 24
[10] ByT 1106
[11] ByT 1129 says Maredudd ap Llywarch killed the son of Meurig and blinded
the sons of Gruffudd, calling them his cousins.
[12] We describe this war in our paper "The Sons of Owain ap Cadwgan" at the
link below:
[13] ByT 1130
[14] ByT 1171, but Hywel was still described as the Lord of Arwystli in his obit
notice in 1185
[15] See Note 12 above
[16] See our paper "Cadafael Ynfyd of Cedewain" at
the link below:
[17]
See the paper "Maredudd ap Robert, Lord of Cedewain" at the link below:
[18] This suggestion is based on our observation that several Powys noblemen
had fathered base sons by ladies who lived in this commote
[19] The details in this paragraph are necessarily conjecture, but
the results were real
[20] Eilas is cited Dwnn i, 308
[21] Trahaearn is cited in Dwnn i, 274 and 308. The first incorrectly calls
him a son of Robert ap Llywarch, brother of Maredudd. The latter calls him a son of Maredudd ap Robert ap Llywarch.
Chronologically, however, he must have been a brother of Maredudd and Robert ap Llywarch
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