Lord Rhys' connection with Cardigan, home of this year’s National Eisteddfod
Lord Rhys had a strong connection with Cardigan, home of this year’s National Eisteddfod, writes Richard Davies
August’s National Eisteddfod, Eisteddfod y Garreg Las, is fast approaching. But this year, our principal festival is celebrating a very special anniversary, marking 850 years since the first eisteddfod was held at Cardigan Castle in 1176. That first eisteddfod was held under the patronage of prince Rhys ap Gruffudd, or Lord Rhys. But what do we know about this important man?
He was born around 1132, the son of Gruffudd ap Rhys ap Tewdwr and his wife Gwenllian. These were difficult and unstable years in Wales, with the Normans attacking and seizing large swathes of the kingdom of Deheubarth. Rhys lost both his parents at a young age, and one of his main objectives in life was to reclaim his family’s lost territory.
His life can generally be divided into three stages: up until 1155, when he was only in his early teens, fighting the enemy alongside his brothers. By 1155, only Rhys had survived.
In the second stage, despite being the ruler of what was left of Deheubarth, Rhys had to recognise that his uncle, Owain Gwynedd, was stronger than he was. These were difficult years for Rhys but he did gradually regain some of the family’s lost territory.
When Owain Gwynedd died in 1170, it was clear that Rhys was the strongest ruler in Wales. But he had to tread carefully because of the opposition at the time – Henry II, King of England and the most powerful monarch in western Europe.
However, even Henry II needed friends and in the early 1170s Rhys and Henry came to an agreement, and as the King’s representative in south Wales, he was ennobled as ‘Lord Rhys.’
The following quarter of a century was a golden age for Rhys. He successfully regained most of his forefathers’ lands, and was the most powerful ruler in the whole of Wales. He was a successful statesman: he built stone castles (the first Welshman to do so), he was patron of the church and monasteries, Welsh laws were written in statue books and, of course, he was the patron of the first-ever eisteddfod.
However, his final years were difficult: when Henry II died in 1189, it became evident that theirs was a personal relationship, one which the new king was reluctant to renew – and as a result, battle resumed. Another problem facing him was unruly offspring, and for a time, Rhys was imprisoned by two of his sons at Nevern Castle.
He died on 28 April 1197, and was buried at St David’s Cathedral.