Nanheudwy was a medieval

commote A commote (Welsh ''cwmwd'', sometimes spelt in older documents as ''cymwd'', plural ''cymydau'', less frequently ''cymydoedd'')''Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru'' (University of Wales Dictionary), p. 643 was a secular division of land in Medieval Wales ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

considered part of the ancient

Kingdom of Powys The Kingdom of Powys ( cy, Teyrnas Powys; la, Regnum Poysiae) was a Welsh successor state, petty kingdom and principality that emerged during the Middle Ages following the end of Roman rule in Britain. It very roughly covered the northern ...

in the

cantref A cantref ( ; ; plural cantrefi or cantrefs; also rendered as ''cantred'') was a medieval Welsh land division, particularly important in the administration of Welsh law. Description Land in medieval Wales was divided into ''cantrefi'', which were ...

of Swydd y Waun. It was traditionally defined as the region between the valleys of the rivers Dee and Ceiriog with a mountain ridge running along its length. Its name may be from "Nannau Dwy" meaning ''"Glens of the Dee"''. From 1160 it was a part of the principality of

Powys Fadog Powys Fadog (English: ''Lower Powys'' or ''Madog's Powys'') was the northern portion of the former princely realm of Powys, which split in two following the death of Madog ap Maredudd in 1160. The realm was divided under Welsh law, with Madog's ...

until the dissolution of that realm in 1277 when it became a

marcher lordship A Marcher lord () was a noble appointed by the king of England to guard the border (known as the Welsh Marches) between England and Wales. A Marcher lord was the English equivalent of a margrave (in the Holy Roman Empire) or a marquis (in Fran ...

. In 1542 it was incorporated into the new administrative county of

Denbighshire (historic) , HQ= Denbigh and Ruthin , Arms= , Map= , Code= DEN , CodeName= Chapman code , Government= Denbighshire County Council (1889-1974) , PopulationFirs ...

that had been constructed based on the English shire model. In 1974 it was transferred to the new county of

Clwyd Clwyd () is a preserved county of Wales, situated in the north-east corner of the country; it is named after the River Clwyd, which runs through the area. To the north lies the Irish Sea, with the English ceremonial counties of Cheshire to th ...

. This arrangement was maintained until 1996 when again it was returned to a reformulated

Denbighshire Denbighshire ( ; cy, Sir Ddinbych; ) is a county in the north-east of Wales. Its borders differ from the historic county of the same name. This part of Wales contains the country's oldest known evidence of habitation – Pontnewydd (Bontnewy ...

References

Commotes History of Denbighshire History of Powys {{Wales-hist-stub