Secret treasure

In 1926 a pottery jug containing seventy silver pennies was discovered at Wrexham, in the heart of Maelor Gymraeg or “the Welsh Maelor”. Though some of the coins have been dispersed since the original discovery, those that are available for study indicate a deposition of c.1245: this study was made in the mid-1980s by George C. Boon, an archaeologist and museum curator.

The dating of the hoard, and the signs of it being hastily deposited in the ground, most likely connect it to the ravaging of Powys by the armies of Gwynedd. This was a consequence of the refusal of Gruffydd ap Madog, lord of northern Powys, to abandon his fealty to Henry III and join with Prince Dafydd ap Llywelyn. According to the Bruts, Dafydd had sent letters to all the princes of Wales, encouraging them to join a movement to free the country from English control. He appears to have warned Gruffydd that King Henry was planning to undermine native rule in Powys by introducing English laws and customs: this would explain a surviving letter from the king to Gruffydd, in which Henry insisted that it was never his intention to make changes in the customs and laws used hitherto.

For good measure, Henry also confirmed Gruffydd in all the lands that his father had justly held. Further evidence of the ravaging of Gruffydd’s lands can be found in the account rolls. These show Henry making compensation payments to Gruffydd and his brother Hywel (40 marks to Gruffydd and 25 to Hywel) in October 1244, and then a second payment of 100 marks to them both in November. Their nephew Einion ap Gruffudd was paid fifteen marks. More payments followed, indicating Henry was following the policy of his ancestor, Henry II, in retaining the loyalty of the lords of Powys via regular cash sweeteners. In total Gruffydd received about £460 over a period of fifteen years.

Henry III