Gruffudd ap Nicolas

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Gruffudd ap Nicolas , also called Gruffydd ap Nicolas or Nicholas (* before 1400, † after 1456), was a Welsh nobleman and statesman. In the mid-15th century he was one of the most powerful nobles in South Wales .

There is no reliable information about his youth, presumably he was a later son of Nicolas ap Phylip ap Syr Elidir Ddu and his wife Jennet, daughter of Gruffydd ap Llewelyn Foethus. In 1415 he was given his first offices in the Kidwelly reign . Around 1425 he acquired Dinefwr Castle and the nearby Newton House , which became his primary residence. In 1433 he became the deputy of John Scudamore , the steward of the Duchy of Lancaster , who, however, soon lost his offices, so that Gruffudd exercised the offices as a representative. In 1436 he was sheriff of Carmarthenshire . Gruffudd became a protege of Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester , and managed to acquire extensive estates in Carmarthenshire and Cardiganshire , so that by 1440 he was considered one of the most powerful landowners in western Wales. In addition, he held numerous other offices such as that of Deputy Chamberlain and from 1443 that of Deputy Legal Counsel of South Wales, which he held on behalf of Edmund Beaufort or William de la Pole . Since these leading English nobles seldom took care of their Welsh offices, Gruffudd was the real royal representative and ruler in South Wales. Numerous Welsh people complained to the king about his ruthless execution and abuse of power, and in 1442/3 he had to answer for himself and for the execution of his son Owen before the Privy Council . Because of the weak rule of Henry VI. However, this remained without consequences. As a result of the fall of the Duke of Gloucester in 1447, Gruffudd was briefly arrested, but he quickly managed to resume his old offices after his release. Around 1451 he organized an elaborate Eisteddfod in Carmarthen , in which bards sang about his alleged origins of Urien , a mythical early medieval king, which is why his descendants, the Rhys family , were sometimes nicknamed FitzUrien .

As a supporter of the House of Lancaster , he was arrested at the instigation of Richard of York in 1454, but was quickly released with the help of his son-in-law John Scudamore. However, after the Battle of St Albans in 1455, in which Edmund Beaufort was killed, he lost most of his offices. In the following years he and his sons supported Jasper Tudor in the struggle for rule in Wales, but as an aging man he withdrew more and more in view of the energy of the young Jasper. According to some information, he fell in 1461 at the Battle of Mortimer's Cross , but he probably died around 1456, since after that time only his sons Owen and Thomas are mentioned, or at the latest in 1460, when the castle and rule of Narberth were transferred to his son Owen .

He was probably married three times:

  1. Mabel, daughter of Meredith ap Henry Dwnn, a granddaughter of Henry Dwnn
  2. Joan Perrott, a daughter of Sir Thomas Perrot
  3. Jane, daughter of Jenkin ap Rhys ap Dafydd from Gilfach-wen.

He had at least three sons and three daughters:

  1. John
  2. Owen , Mr. Bryn y Beirdd, had together with his brother Thomas in 1462 after the siege of Carreg Cennen Castle result
  3. Thomas ap Gruffudd ap Nicolas , killed around 1474 in a battle with William Herbert, 2nd Earl of Pembroke near Pennal in North Wales.
  4. Lleucu ∞ Huw Bassett
  5. Mary ∞ Philip Mansel of Oxwich Castle
  6. Maud ∞ John Scudamore of Kentchurch

His grandson Rhys ap Thomas rose again to the most powerful nobleman in South Wales after 1485 and became the founder of the Rhys family . His great-grandson Thomas ap John founded the Jones family, which was one of the most influential families in South West Wales in the 16th century.

literature

  • Ralph A. Griffiths: Gruffydd ap Nicholas and the Rise of the House of Dinefwr. In: Ralph A. Griffiths: King and Country - England and Wales in the Fifteenth Century. Hambledon, London 1991, ISBN 1-85285-018-3 , pp. 187-199.
  • Ralph A. Griffiths: Gruffydd ap Nicholas and the Fall of the House of Lancaster. In: Ralph A. Griffiths: King and Country - England and Wales in the Fifteenth Century. Hambledon, London 1991, ISBN 1-85285-018-3 , pp. 201-219.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Ralph Alan Griffiths: King and Country. England and Wales in the fifteenth century . Hambledon, London 1989. ISBN 1-85285-018-3 . P. 189
  2. ↑ The Gentry 3: I-376 GRUFFUDD ap NICHOLAS. (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on January 2, 2014 ; accessed on August 16, 2013 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.welshleigh.org
  3. ^ Llandeilo through the Ages: The Acquisition of lands. (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on July 30, 2013 ; Retrieved August 15, 2013 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.llandeilo.org
  4. ↑ Coflein: PENNAL, SITE OF BATTLE. Retrieved August 15, 2013 .
  5. ^ Diane M. Williams: Gower. A Guide to ancient and historic monuments on the Gower peninsula. Cadw, Cardiff 1998. ISBN 1-85760-073-8 , p. 24
personal data
SURNAME Gruffudd ap Nicolas
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Gruffydd ap Nicolas; Gruffudd ap Nicholas
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Welsh nobleman and statesman
DATE OF BIRTH before 1400
DATE OF DEATH after 1456