On Two Welsh Prisoners, by Mr James Hardy. 507 



Rees ap Maelgwyn was a chieftain of South Wales, who 

 joined in this general rising. In Trivet's Annals, of the 

 date 1281, we find Rees ap Mailgon and Griffin ap Mereduc 

 in arms, in opposition to Edward ; and they took the castle 

 of " Lampedervaur," (Lampeter) a strong fortress which the 

 king had erected, in 1277, to repress the invasions of the 

 Welsh ; and " many other castles," it is added, " were re- 

 duced in those parts by other Welsh nobles."* Stow, who had 

 access to the records of John Peckham, Archbishop of Can- 

 terbury, who visited Wales on this occasion, to interpose his 

 ineffectual efforts to conclude a peace between Edward and 

 Llewelyn, also names these two chieftains as principals. " In 

 the meanetime Ryce the sonne of Maglon, and Griffyth ap 

 Meredith ap Owen, with other noblemen of South Wales, 

 took the castle of Aberistwith, the castle of Flint, of Ruth- 

 land ; and divers other, spoyling the kings people that 

 inhabited thereabouts.''^ Edward had built the first in 

 1277, the second in 1275, when he also strengthened the 

 third.! The taking possession of the castle and town of 

 Aberystwith, was properly the work of Rees ap Maelgwyn 

 and Grufycld ap Meredydd. They burnt both.§ Rees after- 

 wards took possession of the hundred of Penwedvy.|| Sub- 

 sequently Cynan ap Meredith (brother of Grufydd ap Mere- 

 dydd or Meredith) joined the movement, and assisted in 

 taking forcible possession of Llandovery (Caermarthenshire) 

 and Carreg Cennen castles.1T 



The sons of Meredydd could not any longer endure the 

 English encroachments on their privileges, and were forced 

 to take arms to rid themselves of a reign of terror. This 

 appears from the statement of grievances sent from Prince 

 Llewelyn to the Archbishop of Canterbury. 



" These be the greefes doone by the Englishmen to the sonnes 

 of Meredyth ap Owen. 



1. After that the King had granted the Gentelmen their own 

 inheritance of Genewr-glyn (a hundred in which Aberystwith is 

 situated) and Creuthyn, he, contrarie to the peace, disherited the 



* Nic Triveti Annales, p. 305, Ed. T. Hog. 

 f Stow's Annals by Howes, p. 201. Power's Hist, of Cambria, (1584), 

 p. 337. 



t Stow, p. 200 § Hane's Cymru, p. 708. || Hid. 



IT J. Williams' Hist, of "Wales, p 406. For the references to the works 

 on Wales, I am indebted to Mr Edward Hamer, Abersychan, Pontypool, and 

 Mr Richard Williams, Celynog, Newtown, Montgomeryshire. 



