Cyngen ap Cadell (also spelled Concenn
) was King of
Powys
Powys ( , ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county and Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county in Wales. It borders Gwynedd, Denbighshire, and Wrexham County Borough, Wrexham to the north; the English Ceremonial counties of England, ceremo ...
from 808 until his death in 854 during a pilgrimage to
Rome
Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...
.
Biography
Cyngen was of the line of
Brochwel Ysgithrog, and, after a long reign as king of
Powys
Powys ( , ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county and Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county in Wales. It borders Gwynedd, Denbighshire, and Wrexham County Borough, Wrexham to the north; the English Ceremonial counties of England, ceremo ...
, he went on a pilgrimage to
Rome
Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...
and died there in 854. He is thought to be the first Welsh ruler to visit Rome after the healing of the breach between the Welsh branch of the
Celtic Church and Rome over the date of
Easter
Easter, also called Pascha ( Aramaic: פַּסְחָא , ''paskha''; Greek: πάσχα, ''páskha'') or Resurrection Sunday, is a Christian festival and cultural holiday commemorating the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, described in t ...
.
Cyngen raised a pillar, originally a round-shafted cross,
in memory of his great-grandfather
Elisedd ap Gwylog which stands near the later abbey of
Valle Crucis. This memorial had a lengthy inscription
and is known as the
Pillar of Eliseg owing to a typographical mistake by the original carver.
Cyngen was the last of the original line of kings of
Powys
Powys ( , ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county and Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county in Wales. It borders Gwynedd, Denbighshire, and Wrexham County Borough, Wrexham to the north; the English Ceremonial counties of England, ceremo ...
of the
Gwertherion dynasty. He had three sons, but on his death Powys was annexed by
Rhodri Mawr, ruler of
Gwynedd
Gwynedd () is a county in the north-west of Wales. It borders Anglesey across the Menai Strait to the north, Conwy, Denbighshire, and Powys to the east, Ceredigion over the Dyfi estuary to the south, and the Irish Sea to the west. The ci ...
. Rhodri was his nephew, as Rhodri's father
Merfyn Frych had married his sister,
Nest ferch Cadell.
[Lloyd, John Edward (1911)]
A History of Wales from the Earliest Times to the Edwardian Conquest
vol. I (2nd ed.), London: Longmans, Green, and Co. (published 1912), p. 324-325
Although, certain later manuscript pedigrees (like Jesus College 20) claim that Rhodri was the son of Cyngen's sister,
Nest ferch Cadell, others (like Mostyn 117) claim he was the son of Essyllt ferch Cynan (thought to be the daughter of
Cynan Dindaethwy, of Gwynedd). In any case, traditional Welsh law does not seem to allow female inheritance, so Rhodri is presumed to have taken Powys by conquest.
Cyngen had the following children:
*
Elisedd ap Cyngen;
* Ieuaf ap Cyngen;
* Aeddan ap Cyngen;
*
Gruffydd ap Cyngen.
See also
*
Family tree of Welsh monarchs
References
Sources
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cyngen ap Cadell
790s births
854 deaths
Monarchs of Powys
House of Gwertherion
9th-century Welsh monarchs