Gruffydd ap Llywelyn

On Llywelyn's death in 1023, a member of the House of Aberffraw, Iago ab Idwal ap Meurig, became ruler of Gwynedd and began his rise to power in Powys.

Soon after gaining power, he surprised a Mercian army at Rhyd y Groes near Welshpool and defeated it,[1] killing Edwin, brother of Leofric, Earl of Mercia.

[3] Gruffydd ap Llywelyn was active on the Welsh border in 1052 when he attacked Herefordshire with an army consisting of a fleet of 18 ships from Ireland, they defeated a mixed force of Normans and Anglo-Saxons in the Battle of Leominster.

Gruffydd allied himself with Ælfgar, son of Leofric, Earl of Mercia, who had been deprived of his earldom of East Anglia by Harold Godwinson and his brothers.

[citation needed] Around this time Gruffydd was also able to seize Morgannwg and Gwent, along with extensive territories along the border with England.

Historian John Davies stated that Gruffydd was: During this time, between 1053 and 1063, Wales lacked any internal strife and was at peace.

In late 1062 Harold Godwinson obtained the English king's approval for a surprise attack on Gruffydd's court at Rhuddlan.

Thus when Harold was defeated and killed at the Battle of Hastings in 1066, the Normans reaching the borders of Wales were confronted by the traditional kingdoms rather than a single king.

Gruffydd left two sons who in 1069 challenged Bleddyn and Rhiwallon at the Battle of Mechain in an attempt to win back part of their father's kingdom.