The tragedy of Dafydd (5)

In September 1267 Dafydd was at the ford of Rhyd Chwima, the ford by Montgomery, to take part in the treaty negotiations between his brother Llywelyn and Henry III. Here, in the presence of the papal legate Ottobuono, Llywelyn knelt before the king and swore homage and fealty for the principality of Wales. He was the first and last Prince of Wales to gain such explicit recognition of his title from the English crown, but the arrangement did not secure any kind of political independence. Llywelyn’s authority as prince stemmed from his vassal status, a subordinate of the English king, just as the Count of Flanders was a vassal of the Capetian kings of France.

Dafydd was the elephant in the room. Via the terms of the Treaty of Montgomery, Llywelyn was bound to provide for his younger brother, who had defected to the English back in 1263. During the talks it was “specially ordained” that provision would be made for Dafydd, and that Llywelyn would restore to him the land he held in Wales before his defection. Further arrangements would be made if Dafydd was not satisfied. This appears to have been an effort to honour the agreement of 1263, in which Edward had promised to come to no agreement with Llywelyn without consulting Dafydd. To avoid breaking that treaty, the decision was passed to Llywelyn.

This must have annoyed Dafydd, who now found himself dependent on his brother’s charity. For all his ambition and striving, the best he could hope for was to be granted an estate within the borders of Llywelyn’s principality.

Dafydd ate his heart out for several years. Llywelyn, whose patience with his permanently disgruntled sibling was remarkable, welcomed him back to the fold. Together they waged war against Gilbert de Clare, Earl of Gloucester, and invaded his lands of Senghenydd. Here Dafydd witnessed Llywelyn’s first real defeat as the prince failed to prevent the construction of Clare’s mighty new castle at Caerphilly. This seemed to plant an idea in his mind, though it took a while to germinate.

In early 1274 Dafydd entered into a plot with Owain ap Gwenwynwyn, eldest son of the lord of southern Powys. Together they planned to murder Llywelyn at Christmas, when the prince’s bodyguard was away touring his estates. The plan was for Dafydd to open a gate at night to allow Owain and his men into the court. Together they would go to Llywelyn’s bedchamber and murder him. In the morning Dafydd would be proclaimed the new Prince of Wales, presumably while Llywelyn’s body was quietly smuggled out of a rear entrance.

The plan was foiled by a snowstorm, which obliged Owain and his band of assassins to turn back. Llywelyn then got wind of the plot and summoned Dafydd to explain himself, but he and Gruffudd ap Gwenwynwyn fled over the border into England. The new king, Edward I, welcomed these useful idiots…valuable political allies…to his court.