Llywelyn was forced to seek terms and to give up all lands east of the River Conwy but was able to recover them the following year in alliance with the other Welsh princes.

During the next fifteen years, Llywelyn was frequently involved in fights with Marcher lords and sometimes with the king, but also made alliances with several major powers in the Marches.

[5] John Edward Lloyd states that Iorwerth was killed in battle at Pennant Melangell, in Powys, in 1174 during the wars deciding the succession following the death of his father.

There is evidence that after Iorwerth's death Marared married into the Corbet family of Caux in Shropshire, and Llywelyn may have spent part of his childhood there.

This young man, being only twelve years of age, began, during the period of our journey, to molest his uncles David and Roderic, the sons of Owen by Christiana, his cousin-german; and although they had divided amongst themselves all North Wales, except the land of Conan, and although David, having married the sister of king Henry II, by whom he had one son, was powerfully supported by the English, yet within a few years the legitimate son, destitute of lands or money (by the aid of divine vengeance), bravely expelled from North Wales those who were born in public incest, though supported by their own wealth and by that of others, leaving them nothing but what the liberality of his own mind and the counsel of good men from pity suggested: a proof that adulterous and incestuous persons are displeasing to God.

A year later Hubert Walter, Archbishop of Canterbury, persuaded Llywelyn to release him, and Dafydd retired to England, where he died in May 1203.

In 1199, he captured the important castle of Mold, Flintshire and was apparently using the title "prince of the whole of North Wales" (Latin: tocius norwallie princeps).

[14] Llywelyn made his first move beyond the borders of Gwynedd in August 1202 when he raised a force to attack Gwenwynwyn ab Owain Cyfeiliog of Powys, who was now his main rival in Wales.

[3] He had previously been negotiating with Pope Innocent III for leave to marry his uncle Rhodri's widow, daughter of Rǫgnvaldr Guðrøðarson, King of the Isles.

John Edward Lloyd suggests that the rupture may have been due to Llywelyn forming an alliance with William de Braose, 4th Lord of Bramber, who had fallen out with the king and had been deprived of his lands.

In 1211, John invaded Gwynedd with the aid of almost all the other Welsh princes, planning according to Brut y Tywysogion "to dispossess Llywelyn and destroy him utterly".

[22] The first invasion was forced to retreat, but in August that year John invaded again with a larger army, crossed the River Conwy and penetrated Snowdonia.

[25] He also had to pay a large tribute in cattle and horses and to hand over hostages, including his illegitimate son Gruffudd and was forced to agree that if he died without a legitimate heir by Joan, all his lands would revert to the king.

Innocent III released Llywelyn, Gwenwynwyn and Maelgwn from all oaths of loyalty to John and lifted the interdict in the territories which they controlled.

[29] Llywelyn made an alliance with Philip II Augustus of France,[30] then allied himself with the barons who were in rebellion against John, marching on Shrewsbury and capturing it without resistance in 1215.

[31] When John was forced to sign Magna Carta,[3] Llywelyn was rewarded with several favourable provisions relating to Wales, including the release of his son, Gruffudd, who had been a hostage since 1211.

[36] In 1217, Reginald de Braose of Brecon and Abergavenny, who had been allied to Llywelyn and married his daughter, Gwladus Ddu, was induced by the English crown to change sides.

From then until his death Llywelyn was the dominant force in Wales, though there were further outbreaks of hostilities with marcher lords, particularly the Marshal family and Hubert de Burgh, Earl of Kent, and sometimes with the king.

[39] Llywelyn was careful not to provoke unnecessary hostilities with the crown or the Marcher lords; for example, in 1220, he compelled Rhys Gryg to return four commotes in South Wales to their previous Anglo-Norman owners.

The Marshals took advantage of Llywelyn's involvement here to land near St David's in April with an army raised in Ireland and recaptured Cardigan and Carmarthen without opposition.

However, in October the royal army was obliged to retreat and Henry agreed to destroy the half-built castle in exchange for the payment of £2,000 by Llywelyn.

Llywelyn raised the money by demanding the same sum as the ransom of William de Braose, Lord of Abergavenny, whom he had captured in the fighting.

The Brut y Tywysogion chronicler commented: A letter from Llywelyn to William's wife, Eva Marshal, written shortly after the execution enquires whether she still wishes the marriage between Dafydd and Isabella to take place.

Dafydd deprived his half-brother Gruffudd of the lands given him by Llywelyn and later seized him and his eldest son Owain and held them in Criccieth Castle.

The chronicler of Brut y Tywysogion records that in 1240, "the lord Llywelyn ap Iorwerth, Prince of Wales, son of Owain Gwynedd, a second Achilles, died having taken on the habit of religion at Aberconwy, and was buried honourably.

[ll 10]Dafydd succeeded Llywelyn as Prince of Gwynedd, but King Henry was not prepared to allow him to inherit his father's position in the remainder of Wales.

[65][ll 11] John Edward Lloyd gave the following assessment of Llywelyn: "Among the chieftains who battled against the Anglo-Norman power his place will always be high if not indeed the highest of all, for no man ever made better or more judicious use of the native force of the Welsh people for adequate national ends; his patriotic statesmanship will always entitle him to wear the proud style of Llywelyn the Great".

Although he had dominated Wales, exacted unprecedented submissions and raised the status of the Prince of Gwynedd to new heights, his three major ambitions – a permanent hegemony, its recognition by the king, and its inheritance in its entirety by his heir – remained unfulfilled.

[70] The following are recorded in contemporary or near-contemporary records: Children by Joan:[3][71][69] Children by Tangwystl Goch,[78] (died c. 1198):[citation needed] Children whose parentage is uncertain:[citation needed] The family tree of Llywelyn the Great's lineal descendants from his birth in the late 12th century until the end of the family dynasty of Gwynedd in the late 14th century:[85] A number of Welsh poems addressed to Llywelyn by contemporary poets such as Cynddelw Brydydd Mawr, Dafydd Benfras and Llywarch ap Llywelyn (better known under the nickname Prydydd y Moch) have survived.

The play Siwan (1956, English translation 1960) by Saunders Lewis deals with the finding of William de Braose in Joan's chamber and his execution by Llywelyn.