64 Essay on Caerphilly Castle. 



subdivided into fifteen commotes. The names of these cantreds were, 

 Croneth, including the vales of the Neath, Avon, and Ogmore ; Penny- 

 then, the vales of the Ely and Rontha ; Brenhbiol, and Gwentlhwg, now 

 forming part of Monmouthshire. The commotes, or subdivisions of Bren- 

 h'mol were, Cibowr, Senghennyth, Vwchaeth, and Iscaeth. 



That the scite of the present castle of Caerphilly was in the cantred of 

 Brenhinol, is a matter of absolute certainty 3 and there ought to be but little 

 doubt concerning the commote, seeing that the modern hundred is called 

 indiscriminately Caerphilly and Senghennyth. 



Soon after the Norman conquest of England, Trahearn ap Caradoc, 



usurper of North Wales, having been slain in battle, Rhys ap Twdyr and 



Griffith ap Conan were universally acknowledged as princes, the one over 



the Southern, and the other over the Northern Britons. Rhys, who had 



regained his principality by the help of his Irish allies, seems 



1088. however to have dispensed with their services rather too 



hastily, for we find Llewelyn and Einon, sons of Cadivor, late 



lord of Dyvet, conspiring with Griffith ap Meredith for his overthrow. 



They were, however, unsuccessful, being themselves overthrown in a pitched 



battle, after which Griffith was taken prisoner and executed. Einon, who 



escaped, fled to Jestyn, then lord of Glamorgan, and like himself at war 



with Rhys, and covenanted with him to invite the neighbouring Normans 



to their assistance. 



Einon, who seems previously to have resided at the Norman court, intro- 

 duced accordingly Robert Fitz-Hamon, a great baron nearly allied to the 

 conqueror, with a band of adventurers, into Glamorganshire, and by their 

 aid Rhys was speedily vanquished and slain. 



The results of this victory raised a quarrel between Jestyn and Einon, 

 and the latter in revenge, recalled the departing Normans from their ships, 

 and persuaded them permanently to occupy the country. 



Fitz-Hamon, becoming by the slaughter of his old ally Jestyn, undisputed 

 lord of Glamorgan, fixed his residence at Cardiff', where he probably laid the 

 foundation of the present castle j and dividing, according to tlie genius of 

 the feudal system, the vallies and plains among the twelve knights who had 

 accompanied him, he left to Einon such parts of the country as were barren 

 and mountainous. 



The chancery, exchequer, and chief habitation of the lord 

 1091. were at Cardiff, but he held besides, the castles of Kenfiggs 

 and Cowbridge. 



Among the lordships into which the country was divided, we find 

 Senghennyth enumerated as having fallen to the share of Einon, whose 

 name, however, does not again occur. 



In 1 1 74, we find Griffith ap Ivor ap Meyric, of Senghennyth, 



Arch II 2 ^<^'"& homage, with other Welsh nobles, to king Henry If. 



at Gloucester ; and it seems probable that this Griffith was 



