Rhys ab Owain (died 1078) was a king of

Deheubarth Deheubarth (; , thus 'the South') was a regional name for the Welsh kingdoms, realms of south Wales, particularly as opposed to kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd (Latin: ''Venedotia''). It is now used as a shorthand for the various realms united under ...

in southern Wales. Rhys was the son of Owain ab Edwin of the line of

Hywel Dda Hywel ap Cadell, commonly known as Hywel Dda, which translates to Howel the Good in English, was a Welsh king who ruled the southern Welsh kingdom of Deheubarth and eventually came to rule most of Wales. He became the sole king of Seisyllw ...

, and member of the Dinefwr dynasty. His ancestry was formally traced in his name Owain ab Edwin ab Einion ab Owain ap Hywel Dda. He followed his brother

Maredudd Maredudd, also found in the form Meredydd and in other spellings, is a Welsh male given name. The English-language name ''Meredith'' derives from it. A pet form of the name was ''Bedo'', which has also entered the English language in names such ...

as king of Deheubarth in 1072. Together with the nobility of

Ystrad Tywi Ystrad Tywi (, ''Valley of the river Towy'') is a region of southwest Wales situated on both banks of the River Towy (), it contained places such as Cedweli, Carnwyllion, Loughor, Llandeilo, and Gwyr (although this is disputed). Although ...

, he was implicated in the killing of Bleddyn ap Cynfyn king of

Gwynedd Gwynedd () is a county in the north-west of Wales. It borders Anglesey across the Menai Strait to the north, Conwy, Denbighshire, and Powys to the east, Ceredigion over the Dyfi estuary to the south, and the Irish Sea to the west. The ci ...

and

Powys Powys ( , ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county and Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county in Wales. It borders Gwynedd, Denbighshire, and Wrexham County Borough, Wrexham to the north; the English Ceremonial counties of England, ceremo ...

in 1075. In 1078 he was defeated by Trahaearn ap Caradog, who had followed Bleddyn on the throne of Gwynedd, in a battle at Gwdig (modern day

Goodwick Goodwick (; ) is a coastal town in Pembrokeshire, Wales, immediately west of its twin town of Fishguard. Fishguard and Goodwick form a community that wraps around Fishguard Bay. As well as the two towns, it consists of Dyffryn, Stop-and-Call, H ...

). Later the same year Rhys was killed by

Caradog ap Gruffydd Caradog ap Gruffudd (died 1081) was a Prince of Gwent in south-east Wales in the time of Gruffudd ap Llywelyn and the Norman conquest, who reunified his family's inheritance of Morgannwg and made repeated attempts to reunite southern Wales by ...

of Gwent. His defeat and death were hailed in the annals as "vengeance for the blood of Bleddyn ap Cynfyn". Rhys was followed as king of Deheubarth by his second cousin,

Rhys ap Tewdwr Rhys ap Tewdwr (c. 1040 – 1093) was a king of Deheubarth in Wales and member of the Dinefwr dynasty, a branch descended from Rhodri the Great. Following the Norman Conquest, he had to pay William the Conqueror to keep his kingdom, which lasted ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rhys Ab Owain 1078 deaths

Rhys Rhys or Rhŷs is a popular Welsh language, Welsh given name (usually male) that is famous in Welsh history and is also used as a surname. It originates from Deheubarth, an old region of South West Wales, with famous kings such as Rhys ap Tewdwr. ...

Monarchs of Deheubarth 11th-century Welsh monarchs Year of birth unknown