Campaign of Henry III. Wales (1241)

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The campaign of Henry III. after Wales from 1241 there was a military conflict between the Kingdom of England and the Principality of Gwynedd . In a quick campaign, the English King Henry III. after the death of the mighty Prince Llywelyn from Iorwerth to gain supremacy over Gwynedd.

Wales after the death of Llywelyn from Iorwerth

After the failure of the campaigns of 1228 and 1231 and the support of the rebellion of Richard Marshal, 3rd Earl of Pembroke by the Welsh King Henry III. in June 1234 the peace of Myddle with the Welsh prince Llywelyn from Iorwerth. This peace was initially limited to two years, but was repeatedly extended over the next few years. It was only when Prince Llywelyn died in 1240 that Heinrich III tried. again to assert his supremacy over Wales.

In Gwynedd, the line of succession after the death of Lord Llywelyn was not without controversy. Prince Llywelyn had appointed his younger but legitimate son Dafydd as his successor, not least because he was a nephew of Henry III through his mother. was. Dafydd's older but illegitimate half-brother, Gruffydd , had been passed over in the line of succession even though Welsh inheritance law would have given him part of Gwynedd. On May 15, 1240, Dafydd came to Gloucester to pay homage to his royal uncle. In humiliating circumstances he had to submit to the king. Dafydd was knighted and given a crown circlet as a sign of his rank, but had to submit to the English king. In contrast to his father Llywelyn, Dafydd was not recognized by the king as a prince, but only as a lord of North Wales. This humiliation further weakened Dafydd's position in Gwynedd. As a result, the king ignored Dafydd's claim to supremacy over the other Welsh lords by negotiating directly with them and demanding their homage.

The King's Campaign to Gwynedd

Given the weakness of the Prince of Gwynedd, the Marcher Lords took the initiative. Walter Marshal, 5th Earl of Pembroke conquered Cardigan and forced the Welsh Lord Maelgwn Fychan to marry one of his nieces. In Maelienydd and Gwrtheynion , Ralph de Mortimer , Lord of Wigmore , conquered territories. Richard de Clare, 2nd Earl of Gloucester , subjugated the Welsh rule of Meisgyn in the Glamorgan highlands . As a result, Dafydd was politically isolated when armed arguments broke out on the Gwynedd borders. The king then gathered an army in Chester , which had been in direct possession of the crown since 1237. In August 1241, he advanced west along the coast of North Wales. Unusually dry weather favored the English advance, and within a week Dafydd realized that his position was hopeless. The other Welsh princes had refused to support him, while the English army had outmaneuvered him and cut him off from retreat to the mountains of Snowdonia. On August 29, 1241 Dafydd had to surrender in Gwern Eigron . Two days later, Dafydd had to accept the king's terms of peace in Rhuddlan .

English supremacy in Wales

With his defeat Dafydd ap Llywelyn had to give up all conquests that his father Llywelyn had made since 1215 from Iorwerth. Tegeingl and other areas east of the Conwy fell to the king, and he had to do without Ellesmere and Mold Castle . Meirionydd in West Wales he had to hand over to the sons of Maredudd ap Cynan who were related to him . However, the king did not implement his original plan to divide Gwynedd among the two sons of Lord Llywelyn. For this Dafydd had to take his half-brother Gruffydd hostage, who was brought to the Tower of London as a bargaining chip from the king . Dafydd also had to travel to London, where he again had to pay homage to the king on October 24, 1241 under humiliating circumstances. He had to accept that he or his heirs would lose their right to rule if they rebelled against the king. Should Dafydd die without male heirs, Gwynedd would fall to the English king. To secure his conquests, Heinrich III began. with the construction of the mighty Dyserth Castle , which secured the Conwy as a border river. In Powys Wenwynwyn , Gruffydd ap Gwenwynwyn came to power, who was allied with the English king. Cardigan and Carmarthen remained the king's bases in South West Wales. The Welsh lords of Gwrtheyrnion and Maelienydd submitted to the king. To secure his position in Mid Wales, the king began rebuilding Builth Castle , to which Dafydd was actually entitled through his wife Isabel de Braose. The king's victory over the Welsh seemed complete. However, the supremacy of the English king united the Welsh against the English and led to the Anglo-Welsh War from 1244 .

literature

  • Rees R. Davies: The Age of Conquest. Wales 1063-1415. Oxford University Press, Oxford 1991, ISBN 0-19-820198-2

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ RF Walker: The supporters of Richard Marshal, earl of Pembroke, in the rebellion of 1233-1234 in: Welsh History Review / Cylchgrawn Hanes Cymru , 17 (1994-95), p. 63
  2. ^ Rees R. Davies: The Age of Conquest. Wales 1063-1415 . Oxford Univ. Press, Oxford 1991, ISBN 0-19-820198-2 , p. 300
  3. ^ David Walker: Medieval Wales. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 1990, ISBN 0-521-32317-7 , p. 104
  4. ^ David Walker: Medieval Wales. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 1990, ISBN 0-521-32317-7 , p. 105
  5. ^ Rees R. Davies: The Age of Conquest. Wales 1063-1415 . Oxford Univ. Press, Oxford 1991, ISBN 0-19-820198-2 , p. 301