Bledric ap Custennin (also known as Blederic, Bredrice, Peledric, Bletius, Bledrys, Bledrig, Bletricius or Bledericus) was a 6th- and 7th-century ruler of

Dumnonia Dumnonia is the Latinised name for a Brythonic kingdom that existed in Sub-Roman Britain between the late 4th and late 8th centuries CE in the more westerly parts of present-day South West England. It was centred in the area of modern Devon, ...

(now part of the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

West Country The West Country (occasionally Westcountry) is a loosely defined area of South West England, usually taken to include all, some, or parts of the counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Bristol, and, less commonly, Wiltshire, Glouc ...

Life and rule

The actual status and reality of Bledric is difficult to ascertain as most his references are in old

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 peopl ...

literature variously known as "King", "Duke" or "Prince" of

Devonshire Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, ...

and/or

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a Historic counties of England, historic county and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people ...

. He was described as Duke of Cornwall by ''c.''603,Carew, Richard. ''The Survey of Cornwall And An Epistle Concerning the Excellencies of the English Tongue''. London. 1769 p77 and an ally of northern Welsh kings. The fullest account of Bledric's life comes from

Geoffrey of Monmouth Geoffrey of Monmouth ( la, Galfridus Monemutensis, Galfridus Arturus, cy, Gruffudd ap Arthur, Sieffre o Fynwy; 1095 – 1155) was a British cleric from Monmouth, Wales and one of the major figures in the development of British historiography ...

's pseudohistorical ''

Historia Regum Britanniae ''Historia regum Britanniae'' (''The History of the Kings of Britain''), originally called ''De gestis Britonum'' (''On the Deeds of the Britons''), is a pseudohistorical account of British history, written around 1136 by Geoffrey of Monmouth. ...

'' where he is numbered amongst the legendary Dukes of Cornwall. Here Bledric, Duke of Cornwall, was the commander of the allied British armies which included King Cadvan of North Wales (Cadfan ap Iago of

Gwynedd Gwynedd (; ) is a county and preserved county (latter with differing boundaries; includes the Isle of Anglesey) in the north-west of Wales. It shares borders with Powys, Conwy County Borough, Denbighshire, Anglesey over the Menai Strait, an ...

) and King Margadud of South Wales (probably Maredydd ap Rhain of

Dyfed Dyfed () is a preserved county in southwestern Wales. It is a mostly rural area with a coastline on the Irish Sea and the Bristol Channel. Between 1974 and 1996, Dyfed was also the name of the area's county council and the name remains in use f ...

) at the Battle of Bangor-is-Coed. He joined battle with the army of

Æthelfrith Æthelfrith (died c. 616) was King of Bernicia from c. 593 until his death. Around 604 he became the first Bernician king to also rule the neighboring land of Deira, giving him an important place in the development of the later kingdom of Nor ...

Northumbria la, Regnum Northanhymbrorum , conventional_long_name = Kingdom of Northumbria , common_name = Northumbria , status = State , status_text = Unified Anglian kingdom (before 876)North: Anglian kingdom (af ...

who had just slain 1200 monks, and succeeded in wounding Æthelfrith and defeating the

Angles The Angles ( ang, Ængle, ; la, Angli) were one of the main Germanic peoples who settled in Great Britain in the post-Roman period. They founded several kingdoms of the Heptarchy in Anglo-Saxon England. Their name is the root of the name ...

but being slain himself. Some authors have Peredur, son of Cado ap Gerren, ruling as king in the ''fl.'' 7th century, descended from a different line of Dumnonian kings from Gerren ''Llyngesic''. This is as given in the Dumnonian king-list derived from Jesus College, Oxford, MS 20.

Family

Bledric was one of three sons of king Constantine (or Custennin) who died in ''c.''560, his brothers being Gerren rac Denau, who he may have succeeded as king, and Domuel (or Dywel). He also had a sister who married

Peibio Clafrog Peibo Clafrog (alternatively, Pepiau Glavorawc, or in Latin, Pepianus Spumosus), was King of Ergyng in south-east Wales in the 5th or 6th century. He is chiefly known from the legends of Saint Dubricius, who was supposedly his grandson. The cont ...

, king of Ergyng in South Wales. Bledric may have had two sons, Clemen as given in the ''Llyfr Baglan'' ( Book of Baglan) who is thought to have succeeded him, and Blethyn as given by

Caradoc of Llancarfan Caradoc of Llancarfan ( Welsh: ''Caradog o Lancarfan'') was a Welsh cleric and author associated with Llancarfan in Wales in the 12th century. He is generally seen as the author of a ''Life of Gildas'' and a ''Life of Saint Cadog'', in Latin. Da ...

Death

Caradoc of Llancarfan, in his ''Historie of Cambria'' (History of Wales), notes that Bledric was one of the British leaders killed by King

and King

Æthelberht of Kent Æthelberht (; also Æthelbert, Aethelberht, Aethelbert or Ethelbert; ang, Æðelberht ; 550 – 24 February 616) was King of Kent from about 589 until his death. The eighth-century monk Bede, in his ''Ecclesiastical History of the Engli ...

at Bangor on the River Dee in ''c.''613, where he is described as the Prince of Devonshire and Cornwall. It is said that 'by the valiant forgoings of his life got his partners the victory'. His sons apparently went on to 'enjoy the government of North Wales ever since

Cadfan ap Iago Cadfan ap Iago (c. 569 – c. 625) was King of Gwynedd (reigned c. 616 – c. 625). Little is known of the history of Gwynedd from this period, and information about Cadfan and his reign is minimal. The historical person is known only fr ...

was chief King in Britain.' Caradoc of Llancarfan also gives Bledric's descendants elsewhere and gives Blethyn (or Bleddyn) as his son and Ednowen (or Ednowain) as his grandson.

Literature

Bledric may also appear in one of the

Welsh Triads The Welsh Triads ( cy, Trioedd Ynys Prydein, "Triads of the Island of Britain") are a group of related texts in medieval manuscripts which preserve fragments of Welsh folklore, mythology and traditional history in groups of three. The triad is a ...

. Triad 69, the 'Three Defilements of the

Severn , name_etymology = , image = SevernFromCastleCB.JPG , image_size = 288 , image_caption = The river seen from Shrewsbury Castle , map = RiverSevernMap.jpg , map_size = 288 , map_c ...

' give the second as 'the gift of Golydan from Einiawn son of Bedd, king of Cornwall', although given the genealogy of Caradoc of Llancarfan, this could be his supposed son Bleddyn who was recorded as father of Ednowain. He is also given in ''Llyfr Baglan'' as a

Duke of Cornwall Duke of Cornwall is a title in the Peerage of England, traditionally held by the eldest son of the reigning British monarch, previously the English monarch. The duchy of Cornwall was the first duchy created in England and was established by a r ...

, son of Constantine, High King of Britain (e.g. Custennin) and father of Clement (e.g. Clemen), Duke of Cornwall.Williams, John. ''Llyfr Baglan: or The Book of Baglan. Compiled Between the Years 1600 and 1607. Edited by Joseph Alfred Bradney.'' London: Mitchell, Hughes and Clarke, 1910. p80

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bledric Ap Custennin 7th-century births 7th-century deaths Monarchs of Dumnonia 7th-century English monarchs