The Battle of Crug Mawr ('Great Barrow'), sometimes referred to as the Battle of Cardigan, took place in September or October 1136, as part of a
struggle
Struggle may refer to:
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* ''Struggle'' (2003 film), an Austrian film
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* ''Struggle'' (TV series), 2007 Chinese TV series
Music
* ''Struggle'' (Nonpoint album), 1999 release
* Struggle (Woody Guthrie album), 1 ...
between the
Welsh
Welsh may refer to:
Related to Wales
* Welsh, referring or related to Wales
* Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales
* Welsh people
People
* Welsh (surname)
* Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...
and
Normans
The Normans ( Norman: ''Normaunds''; french: Normands; la, Nortmanni/Normanni) were a population arising in the medieval Duchy of Normandy from the intermingling between Norse Viking settlers and indigenous West Franks and Gallo-Romans. ...
for control of
Ceredigion
Ceredigion ( , , ) is a county in the west of Wales, corresponding to the historic county of Cardiganshire. During the second half of the first millennium Ceredigion was a minor kingdom. It has been administered as a county since 1282. Cer ...
, West Wales.
The battle was fought near
Penparc
Penparc (also known as Penyparc) is a village in Ceredigion
Ceredigion ( , , ) is a county in the west of Wales, corresponding to the historic county of Cardiganshire. During the second half of the first millennium Ceredigion was a min ...
, northeast of
Cardigan, probably on the hill now known as
Banc-y-Warren
Banc-y-Warren is hill in Ceredigion with a height of 146 m.http://www.hill-bagging.co.uk/mountaindetails.php?rf=15488 Hill Bagging - Banc y Warren It is also classed as a Site of Special Scientific Interest.
See also
*List of Sites of Special S ...
; it resulted in a rout of the Norman forces, setting back their expansion in West Wales for some years.
Background
A Welsh revolt against
Norman
Norman or Normans may refer to:
Ethnic and cultural identity
* The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries
** People or things connected with the Norm ...
rule had begun in
South Wales, where on 1 January 1136 the Welsh won a victory over the local Norman forces at the
Battle of Llwchwr
The Battle of Llwchwr (or Battle of Gower) was a battle fought between Welsh and Norman forces between Loughor and Swansea on New Year's Day 1136.
Background
In 1135–1136 an opportunity arose for the Welsh to recover lands lost to the Mar ...
between
Loughor
Loughor () ( cy, Casllwchwr) is a Welsh town in the City and County of Swansea, within the Historic counties of Wales, historic county boundaries of Glamorgan, Wales. It lies on the estuary of the River Loughor. The town has a community (Wales), ...
and
Swansea, killing about 500 of their opponents.
Richard Fitz Gilbert de Clare, the Norman lord of Ceredigion, had been away from his lordship in the early part of the year. Returning to the borders of Wales in April, he ignored warnings of the danger and pressed on towards Ceredigion with a small force. He had not gone far when he was ambushed and killed by the men of Iorwerth ab Owain, grandson of
Caradog ap Gruffydd
Caradog ap Gruffydd (died 1081) was a Prince of Gwent in south-east Wales in the time of Gruffydd ap Llywelyn and the Norman conquest, who reunified his family's inheritance of Morgannwg and made repeated attempts to reunite southern Wales ...
(the penultimate prince of Gwent).
The news of Richard's death led to an invasion by the forces of
Gwynedd, led by
Owain Gwynedd
Owain ap Gruffudd ( 23 or 28 November 1170) was King of Gwynedd, North Wales, from 1137 until his death in 1170, succeeding his father Gruffudd ap Cynan. He was called Owain the Great ( cy, Owain Fawr) and the first to be ...
and
Cadwaladr ap Gruffydd
Cadwaladr ap Gruffydd (c. 1100 – 1172) was the third son of Gruffudd ap Cynan, King of Gwynedd, and brother of Owain Gwynedd.
Appearance in history
Cadwaladr first appears in the historical record in 1136, when following the killing of the l ...
, sons of the king of Gwynedd,
Gruffudd ap Cynan
Gruffudd ap Cynan ( 1137), sometimes written as Gruffydd ap Cynan, was King of Gwynedd from 1081 until his death in 1137. In the course of a long and eventful life, he became a key figure in Welsh resistance to Norman rule, and was rememb ...
. They captured a number of castles in northern Ceredigion before returning home to dispose of the plunder. Around
Michaelmas
Michaelmas ( ; also known as the Feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, the Feast of the Archangels, or the Feast of Saint Michael and All Angels) is a Christian festival observed in some Western liturgical calendars on 29 September, ...
(11 October in the
Julian Calendar
The Julian calendar, proposed by Roman consul Julius Caesar in 46 BC, was a reform of the Roman calendar. It took effect on , by edict. It was designed with the aid of Greek mathematicians and astronomers such as Sosigenes of Alexandr ...
used at the time) they again invaded Ceredigion and made an alliance with
Gruffydd ap Rhys of
Deheubarth
Deheubarth (; lit. "Right-hand Part", thus "the South") was a regional name for the realms of south Wales, particularly as opposed to Gwynedd (Latin: ''Venedotia''). It is now used as a shorthand for the various realms united under the House o ...
.
The combined Welsh forces headed for the town of
Cardigan. This army, said to number 6,000, including 2,000 mailed horsemen, had taken up a style of warfare learnt from the Normans. The Normans were said to have a substantial force.
Location
![Banc-y-Warren - geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c1/Banc-y-Warren_-_geograph.org.uk_-_54234.jpg)
The exact location of the battlefield is not known. The
puts the site of the battle on the southeast slopes of Banc y Warren (or Banc-y-Warren), a prominent conical hill near
Penparc
Penparc (also known as Penyparc) is a village in Ceredigion
Ceredigion ( , , ) is a county in the west of Wales, corresponding to the historic county of Cardiganshire. During the second half of the first millennium Ceredigion was a min ...
, northeast of Cardigan. There is a farm on the southeast slope named ''Crugmore''.
A geophysical survey and archaeological appraisal were carried out at Crugmore Farm in 2014 in support of planning applications. No evidence indicative of a battle was found in the areas covered by the surveys. Some accounts place the site on the northeast of the hill, which may be more likely because the road from Cardigan bends round the northeast side of the hill before turning more northerly again. The southeast side of the hill does not coincide with a road. The hill was known as Crug Mawr at least as early as the 9th century.
Gerald of Wales
Gerald of Wales ( la, Giraldus Cambrensis; cy, Gerallt Gymro; french: Gerald de Barri; ) was a Cambro-Norman priest and historian. As a royal clerk to the king and two archbishops, he travelled widely and wrote extensively. He studied and taugh ...
, in his ''
Itinerarium Cambriae
The ''Itinerarium Cambriae'' ("The Itinerary Through Wales") is a medieval account of a journey made by Gerald of Wales, written in Latin.
Gerald was selected to accompany the Archbishop of Canterbury, Baldwin of Forde, on a tour of Wales in 1 ...
'' of 1191, describes (56 years after the battle): Members of Gerald's family were participants in the battle.
Battle
Two miles outside Cardigan the Welsh army encountered a Norman force and battle was joined. The Normans were led by Robert fitz Martin, supported by Robert fitz Stephen, constable of Cardigan Castle, with the brothers William and
Maurice FitzGerald, Lord of Lanstephan
Maurice FitzGerald, Lord of Maynooth, Naas, and Llanstephan (born: almost certainly not at Windsor Castle, more likely Carew in Wales c.1105 – September c.1176 Wexford, Ireland. He was a medieval Anglo-Norman baron and a major figure in the N ...
. After hard fighting, the Norman forces were put to flight and pursued as far as the
River Teifi
, name_etymology =
, image = File:Llyn Teifi - geograph.org.uk - 41773.jpg
, image_size =
, image_caption = Llyn Teifi, the source of the Teifi
, map =
, map_size =
, map_caption ...
. Many of the fugitives tried to cross the bridge, which broke under the weight. Hundreds are said to have drowned, clogging the river with the bodies of men and horses. Foot soldiers were trampled by horses. Others fled to the town of Cardigan which, however, was taken and burned by the Welsh even though Robert fitz Martin managed to successfully defend the castle. Skulls with battle wounds have been found nearby.
The Breviate Chronicle of 1136 gives a contemporary account of the battle, which notes that the leaders included Owain and Cadwaladr (ap Gruffydd), Gruffydd ap Rhys, Rhys ap Hywel, Madog ab Idnerth and the sons of Hywel on the Welsh side, and Stephen the Constable and the sons of Gerald, supported by
Flemish
Flemish (''Vlaams'') is a Low Franconian dialect cluster of the Dutch language. It is sometimes referred to as Flemish Dutch (), Belgian Dutch ( ), or Southern Dutch (). Flemish is native to Flanders, a historical region in northern Belgium; ...
forces, on the Norman side, some travelling a considerable distance to the battle.
Edward Laws quotes
Florence of Worcester Florence of Worcester (died 1118), known in Latin as Florentius, was a monk of Worcester, who played some part in the production of the '' Chronicon ex chronicis'', a Latin world chronicle which begins with the creation and ends in 1140.Keynes, "Fl ...
(vol iii, p. 97): Florence had died in 1118, so the account was probably penned by his successor,
John of Worcester
John of Worcester (died c. 1140) was an English monk and chronicler who worked at Worcester Priory. He is usually held to be the author of the ''Chronicon ex chronicis''.
''Chronicon ex chronicis''
The ''Chronicon ex chronicis'' is a world wi ...
(who died about 1140).
Aftermath
The battle was a significant setback to Norman expansion in Wales.
Ceredigion
Ceredigion ( , , ) is a county in the west of Wales, corresponding to the historic county of Cardiganshire. During the second half of the first millennium Ceredigion was a minor kingdom. It has been administered as a county since 1282. Cer ...
, which had been part of
Deheubarth
Deheubarth (; lit. "Right-hand Part", thus "the South") was a regional name for the realms of south Wales, particularly as opposed to Gwynedd (Latin: ''Venedotia''). It is now used as a shorthand for the various realms united under the House o ...
before the Normans had conquered it, was now annexed by Gwynedd, the more powerful member of the coalition. Owain Gwynedd became king of Gwynedd on the death of his father the following year and further expanded the borders of his kingdom. In Deheubarth,
Gruffydd ap Rhys died in uncertain circumstances in 1137, and the resulting disruption allowed the Normans to partially recover their position in the south.
Rhys ap Gruffydd
Rhys ap Gruffydd, commonly known as The Lord Rhys, in Welsh ''Yr Arglwydd Rhys'' (c. 1132 – 28 April 1197) was the ruler of the Welsh kingdom of Deheubarth in south Wales from 1155 to 1197 and native Prince of Wales.
It was believed that he ...
of Deheubarth won it back for his kingdom during the war of 1165–1170.
See also
History of Wales
The history of what is now Wales () begins with evidence of a Neanderthal presence from at least 230,000 years ago, while ''Homo sapiens'' arrived by about 31,000 BC. However, continuous habitation by modern humans dates from the period after ...
References
Further reading
*Pritchard, E.M. (1904) ''Cardigan Priory in the old days'' (London)
*
John Edward Lloyd (1911) ''A history of Wales from the earliest times to the Edwardian conquest'' (Longmans, Green & Co.)
*Griffiths, R.A. (1972). The Principality of Wales in the Later Middle Ages. London.
*Pryce, H. (2005). Acts of the Welsh Rulers: 1120–1283. University of Wales, Cardiff.
*Davis, P.R. (2007). Castles of the Welsh Princes. Y Lolfa Cyf, Talybont.
*Douglas, D.C. and Greeaway, G.W (ed) (1981). English Historical Documents Vol 2 (1042-1189). Routledge, London.
*Gater, D. (2008). The Battles of Wales. Gwasg Carreg Gwalch, Llanrwst.
*Matthews, R. (2012). Anglo-Welsh Wars: Cardigan / Crug Mawr 1136. Bretwalda Battles.
*Johnson, G.K. (2014)
Cardigan Castle: A History*Turvey, R.K. (2014). The Marcher Lords. Gwasg Carreg Gwalch
{{Use dmy dates, date=June 2017
Crug Mawr 1136
Crug Mawr 1136
Crug Mawr
Crug Mawr is a hill in the Black Mountains in the Brecon Beacons National Park in southern Powys, Wales. Its summit at a height of 550 m (1,805 ft) is marked by a trig point. The peak sits high above the valleys of the Grwyne Fawr an ...
1136 in Wales
History of Ceredigion