The wars of Gwenwynwyn (2)

In 1196 the Archbishop of Canterbury, Hubert Walter, gathered a large army to attack Gwenwynwyn’s castle at Welshpool in Powys. Hubert’s army included many of the earls and barons of England as well as ‘all the princes of Gwynedd’; the latter is probably an exaggeration, but he did have Venedotian troops in his host. Which of the princes of Gwynedd sent them is a moot point. Llywelyn ab Iorwerth had yet to establish his supremacy, and the chief lord of Gwynedd at this time was Prince Gruffudd ap Cynan. There was also Dafydd ab Owain, recently expelled from the Perfeddwlad by his nephew Llywelyn.

Thus, within a year of taking over from his father, Gwenwynwyn had united the English crown and elements in Gwynedd against him. The government of Richard I was already funding his half-brother, Caswallon, to launch attacks upon Powys from Shropshire. Hubert led his combined army in person to Welshpool, and the ensuing siege is graphically described in the Brutiau. Attempts to storm the castle were hurled back, with many of the besiegers thrown from the walls or drowned in the moat. At last the castle was undermined by ‘wonderful science’, compelling the garrison to surrender. The presence of miners at Welshpool is confirmed by entries in the Pipe Roll for Michaelmas 1196.

Only one member of the garrison was killed in the siege, and his comrades were allowed to depart in safety and with their weapons. Later in the year, after Hubert withdrew to England, Gwenwywnyn launched an attack upon Welshpool and forced the English garrison to submit. He returned the earlier compliment by allowing them to march away unharmed.