Ednyfed Fychan

Ednyfed is said to have first come to notice in battle, fighting against the army of Ranulph de Blondeville, 4th Earl of Chester, who attacked Llywelyn at the behest of King John of England. Ednyfed cut off the heads of three English lords in battle and carried them, still bloody, to Llywelyn, who commanded him to change his family coat of arms to display three heads in memory of the feat.[4]

In 1215, he succeeded Gwyn ab Ednywain as seneschal ("cynghellwr" in Welsh) of Gwynedd, roughly equivalent to Chief Councillor or Prime Minister. His titles included Lord of Bryn Ffanigl, Lord of Criccieth, and Chief Justice.[5] He was involved in the negotiations leading to the Peace of Worcester in 1218 and represented Llywelyn in a meeting with the king of England in 1232.

Ednyfed had estates at Bryn Ffanigl Isaf near Abergele and at Llandrillo-yn-Rhos, now a suburb of Colwyn Bay. These were the palace of Llys Euryn, on the hill of Bryn Euryn, and Rhos Fynach, on the seashore below it.[6] He also held lands in Llansadwrn and presumably also on Anglesey, where his son had his seat.

Ednyfed was married twice. His first marriage was to Tangwystl ferch Llywarch,[7] a known mistress of Llywelyn the Great, the daughter of Llywarch ap Brân. His second marriage was to Gwenllian ferch Rhys, daughter of prince Rhys ap Gruffydd of Deheubarth.[7]

Ednyfed probably went on a crusade to the Holy Land around 1235, although the evidence is not conclusive.

Gwenllian died in 1236. On Llywelyn the Great's death in 1240, Ednyfed continued as seneschal in the service of Llywelyn's son, Dafydd ap Llywelyn, until his own death in 1246. In 1240 Ednyfed served as a witness to a charter that Dafydd ap Llywelyn wrote for Basingwerk Abbey, alongside his brothers Grono and Heilyn.[1] One of his sons was captured and killed by the English in the war of 1245.

Ednyfed was buried in his own chapel, now Llandrillo yn Rhos Church, Llandrillo-yn-Rhos (Rhos-on-Sea), North Wales, which was enlarged to become the parish church after the previous one (Dinerth Parish Church) had been inundated by the sea during Ednyfed's lifetime. A tombstone attributed to him once lay near the altar but is now in a vertical position in the entrance porch of the church, but the name inscribed is "Ednyfed quondam vicarius"(sometime vicar), and an "Ednyfed ap Bleddyn" was vicar in 1407.

Two other sons were successively seneschals of Gwynedd under Llywelyn ap Gruffudd. After Llywelyn's death in 1282, the family made its peace with the English crown, though a descendant joined the revolt of Madog ap Llywelyn in 1294–5, acting as Madog's seneschal after his proclamation of himself as prince of Wales. Ednyfed's son Goronwy gave rise to the Penmynydd branch of the family in Anglesey, from whom Owen Tudor and later Henry VII were descended.

According to folk tradition, Ednyfed is said to have composed a farewell song to Gwenllian before leaving to take part in the Crusades. He was away for several years, and his family thought him dead. According to an old Welsh tale, Gwenllian accepted another offer of marriage. On the wedding night, a 'pitiable beggar' arrived at the house and asked permission to borrow a harp with which to entertain the party with a song. According to this legend the beggar sang Ednyfed's Farewell song and as he reached the last verse, removed his hat, revealing himself to be Ednyfed. He sang:

A wanderer I, and aweary of strife,

Get ye gone, if ye so desire;
But if I may not have my own wife

I'll have my own bed, my own house, my own fire!

Ednyfed then announced to the stunned throng:

"This was the tune 'Farewell' to my dear Gwenllian. Hence let her go with her new husband. My faithful harp, come to my arms."[8]

By first marriage to Tangwystl ferch Llywarch he had:

• Sir Tudur ap Ednyfed Fychan,[9] of Nant and Llangynhafal, Seneschal of Gwynedd (c. 1205 – 1278), married Adles ferch Rhicert, of Dinllaen; his issue included the Griffiths of Penrhyn and the second house of Tudors of Penmynydd
• Llywelyn ap Ednyfed Fychan, of Creuddyn
• Hywel ap Ednyfed Fychan, Bishop of Llanelwy (1235[7]–1247)
• Rhys ap Ednyfed Fychan, (of Garth Garmon) (born c. 1205)
• Cynwrig ap Ednyfed Fychan, of Creuddyn
• Iorwerth ap Ednyfed Fychan "y Gwahanglwyfus" (a leper), of Abermarlais
• Angharad ferch Ednyfed Fychan, married Einion Fychan ab Einion, (of Malltraeth)[7]

By second marriage to Gwenllian ferch Rhys he had:

• Goronwy ap Ednyfed Fychan, Lord of Tref-Gastell, Seneschal of Gwynedd (c. 1200 – 1268, bur Bangor), married Morfudd ferch Meurig, of Gwent, daughter of Meuric of Gwent ap Ithel, Lord of Gwent. He was ancestor of the first house of Tudors of Penmynydd, and hence of the House of Tudor
• Gruffudd ap Ednyfed Fychan, ancestor of Griffith of Wychnor, including "the wealthiest and most influential figure among the native gentry of the 14th century", Sir Rhys ap Gruffydd.[10]
• Gwladus ferch Ednyfed Fychan, married Tegwared ap Cynwrig
• Gwenllian ferch Ednyfed Fychan, married Tegwared y Baiswen, illegitimate son of Llywelyn Fawr, Prince of Gwynedd

By either of his marriages he had:

• Gwenllian ferch Ednyfed Fychan, married firstly Sir Aron ap Rhys, Knight of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre, and married secondly Gwrwared ap Gwilym

By an unknown woman he had, illegitimate:

• Tudur Gwilltyn ap Ednyfed Fychan; had issue with Welsey

W. Bezant Lowe is so described on the title page of his books 'The Heart of Northern Wales'<ref>W. Bezant Lowe, The Heart of Northern Wales' 2 vols 1912 and 1926; and not Bezzant as in the reference.

• John Edward Lloyd (1911) A history of Wales from the earliest times to the Edwardian conquest (Longmans, Green & Co.)