When I was in preschool, my younger brother almost blinded me with a fork. Since then, I cannot stand any sharp objects near my eyes. Little did I know that one of my ancestors actually did blind his brother.
Iago Foel
Iago Foel was the King of Gwynedd (a Welsh Kingdom) from 950-979. When his father, Idwal Foel (Idwal the Bald) died in 916, Idwal and his brother Iauaf were cheated from their inheritance to the throne of Gwynedd by their uncle Hywel Dda (Hywel the Good). However, when Hywel died in 950, Iago and Iauaf invaded Gwynedd and reclaimed their throne by driving their cousins out. After the brothers reclaimed their throne, they began to argue, leading Iago to take his brother prisoner. In order to render Iauaf unfit to rule and to secure his own rule as the sole king of Gwynedd, Iago had his brother blinded and then executed.
House of Abberffraw Crest
Iago and Iauaf were members of the House of Aberffraw; this House was founded by Anarawd ap Rhodri (Anarawd son of Rhodri) who was King of Gwynedd from 878 until his death in 916. Anarawd’s crowning achievement was his defeat of Mercia in 881 during the Battle of Conwy. Traditionally, the English Mercians had a hegemony over the Welsh kingdoms, and Anarawd’s triumph not only ended Mercia’s dominance, but also ended the feuding between Mercia and Gwynedd.
The blood feud between Mercia and Gwynedd was a result of Rhodri Mawr’s (Roderick the Great’s) reign. Rhodri Mawr was Anarawd’s father and the first Prince of Wales to receive the epithet “Mawr” or “the Great.” He was given this epithet because he contributed to the creation of nationalism and the growth of statehood and the nation state through uniting over half of modern day Wales under one throne. However, his fame, or infamy, didn’t come from his vast kingdom, but rather from his skill as a warrior. Rhodri ruled from 855 until 878, and he often had to defend his kingdom against the Vikings, Saxons, and Mercians, but his greatest triumph was against the Danes in 856. “The Ulster Chronicle” records his victory over Horn (the leader of the Danes) that gave Rhodri international acclaim as a warrior. It is believed that Rhodri died in battle against the Mercians in 878, thus creating a blood feud between Gwynedd and Mercia. So when Rhodri’s son Anarawd defeated the Mercians, Anarawd named the battle “Dial Rhodri” or “God’s Vengeance for Rhodri.” Rhodri was so renowned and respected by the Welsh, that a necessary qualifier to the Welsh throne was to be descended from Rhodri Mawr.
Rhodri Mawr built the first fort at Dinefwr Castle
Unfortunately, my family today is not Welsh royalty. Iago Foel’s eldest son Custinnen inherited the throne of Gwynedd while his second son, my ancestor, Owain of Holt, was a ward of the Earl of Mercia and was given a manor in Holt. He and his descendants were known as “de Belward” or “the nice ward” and went on to become members of Parliament in England before immigrating to Pennsylvania circa 1700.
While I am not going to rule a nation or even study politics, I still strive to be as great in the field of engineering as Rhodri Mawr was in his profession.
Works Consulted
Cannon, John, and Anne Hargreaves. “The Kings and Queens of Britain (2 Rev. Ed.).” Kings and Queens of Britain. Oxford University Press, 26 Mar. 2009. Web. 27 Oct. 2014.
Matthews, Rupert. Wales: A Very Peculiar History. Brighton: Book House, 2010. Print.
“Rhodri Mawr (844-878).” The British Monarchy. The Royal Household, 2008. Web. 28 Oct. 2014.
“Rhodri The Great.” BBC News. BBC, 2014. Web. 27 Oct. 2014.
http://ardal-wales.co.uk/
bbc.co.uk