Everything about Rhodri Mawr totally explained
Rhodri the Great (in
Welsh,
Rhodri Mawr; occasionally in
English,
Roderick the Great) (c.
820–
878) was the first ruler of
Wales to be called 'Great', and the first to rule most of present-day Wales. He was called
King of the Britons by the
Annals of Ulster.
Lineage & inheritance
The son of
Merfyn Frych, King of
Gwynedd, and
Nest ferch Cadell of the Royal line of
Powys, he inherited the
Kingdom of Gwynedd on his father's death in
844.
When his uncle
Cyngen ap Cadell ruler of
Powys died on a
pilgrimage to
Rome in
855 Rhodri inherited Powys. In
872 Gwgon, ruler of
Seisyllwg in southern Wales, was accidentally drowned, and Rhodri added his Kingdom to his domains by virtue of his marriage to
Angharad, Gwgon's sister. This made him the ruler of the larger part of Wales.
Resistance against Danes
Rhodri faced pressure both from the
English and increasingly from the
Danes, who were recorded as ravaging
Anglesey in
854. In
856 Rhodri won a notable victory over the Danes, killing their leader
Gorm (sometimes given as Horm). Two poems by
Sedulius Scotus written at the court of
Charles the Bald, King of the Western
Franks, celebrate the victory of "Roricus" over the Norsemen.
In
877 Rhodri fought another battle against the Norse invaders on Anglesey, this time being forced to flee to
Ireland.
Defeat and death
On his return the following year, he and his son Gwriad were said to have been killed by the English under Alfred the Great, though the precise manner of his death is unknown. When his son,
Anarawd ap Rhodri won a victory over the Mercians a few years later, it was hailed in the annals as "God's vengeance for Rhodri".
Succession
His son
Cadell ap Rhodri conquered
Dyfed, which was later joined with
Seisyllwg by Rhodri's grandson
Hywel Dda to become
Deheubarth. Like his grandfather, Hywel would come to rule to bulk of Wales.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Rhodri Mawr'.
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