[August 5] Gruffydd, king of the Britons

The united kingdom of Wales, c. 1058 CE

Parents: Llywelyn, king of Gwynedd & Powys

Date of Birth: circa 1007

House: Aberffraw

Spouse(s): Ealdgyth, daughter of Ælfgar, earl of Mercia, and Ælfgifu of Northumbria

Predecessor: Iago (in Gwynedd & Powys), Meurig (in Gwent), Gruffydd (in Mogannwg & Deheubarth)
Reign: 1055 – 1063

Summary: The only person since the Anglo-Saxon conquest to be the undisputed king of the Britons and ruler of all of modern-day Wales, Gruffydd was born into an optimistic time in Welsh history when Wales' fortunes seemed to be on the rise. A close relative, Iago, inherited Gwynedd and Powys when his father died since he was still a young teenager at the time. Iago died in 1039, killed by his own men and Gruffydd was able to gain the throne there. In Powys, he was already recognized as king under Iago. Within a few months of gaining power, Gruffydd surprised his Anglo neighbor, Mercia, by suddenly attacking a band of soldiers and annihilating them, including killing its leader, Edwin, the brother of the earl of Mercia. With his eastern neighbors confused, he attacked the southern kingdom of Debeubarth and defeated the king, Hywel, in open battle at Pencader. Gruffydd claimed the Debeubarth throne at this time though Hywel still was alive and attacked the kingdom in 1044 with a fleet of Danish mercenaries. In 1047, Gruffydd was expelled from Deheubarth by the king of Gwent, who then took the throne for himself. Gruffydd continued to harass England and southern Wales for the next eight years, though he made little progress in conquering lands in either. In 1055, he finally defeated his rival in Gwent and recaptured Deheubarth, gaining the throne of that kingdom and Gwent in the process. Gruffydd was now the uncontested king of the Britons of Wales.

As a powerful lord in the west, he allied himself with the earl of Mercia, the brother of the man he killed almost twenty years earlier. The earl, Ælfgar, had lost an earldom to Harold Godwinsson, the future king Harold II. Ahead of an army, the king and the earl sacked Hareford in 1055 and destroyed its castle. Peace was concluded soon after an Ælfgar was once again earl in East Anglia. As a necessity, Gruffydd completed his conquest of Wales by conquering Morgannwg, which had already been ruled as a vassal state. The English finally recognized him as the king of a united Wales in 1056, a feat accomplished by only a single native king. For six years, Wales had peace as Gruffydd made peace with King Edward the Confessor. But the death of his ally Ælfgar in 1062 caused the English to become more brave, and Harold was given permission to attack Gruffydd at his court in Rhuddlan. The Welsh king escaped just in time out to sea. The next year, Harold's brother Tostig marched on Wales a second time while Harold led a fleet to harry the shores. Gruffydd was overrun and forced to hide in the mountains of Snowdonia. Lost and abandoned by his people, Gruffydd was killed by his own men, possibly due to resentment against their force unification under one king. Gruffydd's head was sent to Harold as tribute and Harold married Gruffydd's widow, Ealdgyth. Wales was never united again and the Norman Conquest three years later was aided in Wales by the fact that Gruffydd's unified kingdom had broken apart three years prior.

Date of Death: 5 August 1063
Successor: Bleddyn (in Gwynedd & Powys), Cadwgan (in Gwent & Morgannwg), Maredudd (in Deheubarth) 

Other Monarchs Who Died Today:

• Louis III, king of France (882)
• Kogon, emperor of Japan (1364)