Tudur Hen (English: Tudur the Elder) or Tudur ap Goronwy (died 11 October 1311) was a Welsh aristocrat and original founder of the

House of Tudor The House of Tudor ( ) was an English and Welsh dynasty that held the throne of Kingdom of England, England from 1485 to 1603. They descended from the Tudors of Penmynydd, a Welsh noble family, and Catherine of Valois. The Tudor monarchs ruled ...

. He was one of three sons of Goronwy ab Ednyfed who received lands from King

Edward I of England Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots (Latin: Malleus Scotorum), was King of England from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he was Lord of Ireland, and from 1254 ...

. Nonetheless, he backed the rebellion of Madog ap Llywelyn, but afterwards swore allegiance to both Edward I and his son, Edward of Caernarfon. Tudur Hen was responsible for the restoration of the

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

friary at Bangor, where his body was later placed on 11 October 1311. His name ''Tudur'' is an old version of the nickname Tudor of the Tudor dynasty.

Ancestry and family

His father Goronwy ab Ednyfed (d. 1268) was

seneschal The word ''seneschal'' () can have several different meanings, all of which reflect certain types of supervising or administering in a historic context. Most commonly, a seneschal was a senior position filled by a court appointment within a royal, ...

Llywelyn ap Gruffudd Llywelyn ap Gruffudd ( – 11 December 1282), also known as Llywelyn II and Llywelyn the Last (), was List of rulers of Gwynedd, Prince of Gwynedd, and later was recognised as the Prince of Wales (; ) from 1258 until his death at Cilmeri in 128 ...

(also known as Llywelyn the Last), the King 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 ...

by 1258, continuing in the role until his death on 12 October 1268. In that role, Goronwy had followed in the footsteps of his father,

Ednyfed Fychan Ednyfed Fychan ( 1170 – 1246), full name Ednyfed Fychan ap Cynwrig, was a Welsh warrior who became Seneschal to the Kingdom of Gwynedd in Northern Wales, serving Llywelyn the Great and his son Dafydd ap Llywelyn. Ednyfed claimed descent fr ...

, and by doing so had tied the fortunes of the early

to those of Llywelyn. Goronwy led Llywelyn's military forces, and in February 1263 he took them as far south as Gwent in action against the

Marcher Lord A marcher lord () was a noble appointed by the king of England to guard the border (known as the Welsh Marches) between England and Wales. A marcher lord was the English equivalent of a margrave (in the Holy Roman Empire) or a marquis (in Fra ...

s. Goronwy & Marudd had 3 sons, Tudur ap Goronwy, Goronwy ap Goronwy (also known as Goronwy the Younger or Goronwy Fychan) and Hywel ap Goronwy. Tudur Hen was not the first member of the family to be named Tudur: he was preceded by his uncle, Tudur ab Ednyfed, who had been in the service of the previous

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

Dafydd ap Llywelyn Dafydd ap Llywelyn (c. March 1212 – 25 February 1246) was List of rulers of Gwynedd, King of Gwynedd from 1240 to 1246. Birth and descent Though birth years of 1208, 1206, and 1215 have been put forward for Dafydd, it has recently been p ...

Service to the English crown and rebellion

In September 1278, King

granted lands to Tudur and his brothers. The majority of the noble houses in Wales sided with the Welsh forces during the English invasion of Gwynedd, but Edward proclaimed that any who joined him would retain their lands and titles under the English crown. Tudur Hen retained his prestige and lands after the death of Llywelyn in 1282 and the victory of the English. Tudur and his brother Goronwy were two of those lords who backed the rebellion of Madog ap Llywelyn against the English in 1294–95. Tudur acted as steward to Madog, while Goronwy was in his service. Tudur and Goronwy were two of three men who witnessed the Madog's charter, known as the

Penmachno Document The Penmachno Document was a letters patent drawn up at Penmachno in Gwynedd and signed on 19 December 1294 by Madog ap Llywelyn at the height of his revolt against English rule in Wales. Though unremarkable in its content – the document consi ...

, in 1294 which granted lands in Ardudwy and Llansannan to Bleddyn Fychan. After the revolt failed, Tudur was among those lords from North Wales who pledged their loyalty to Edward in person in 1296, and again to Edward of Caernarfon when he was invested as

in 1301. Tudur Hen has since the 18th century been historically credited with the construction of the

Llanfaes Friary near Bangor, but it actually pre-dated him. Llanfaes Friary is where Princesses of Wales,

Joan, Lady of Wales Joan, Lady of Wales and Lady of Snowdon, also known by her Welsh language, Welsh name often written as Siwan (said, approximately /''sɪuːan''/) (/92 – 2 February 1237) was an Royal bastard, illegitimate daughter of King John of England, and t ...

and

Eleanor de Montfort, Princess of Wales Eleanor de Montfort, Princess of Wales and Lady of Snowdon (1252 – 19 June 1282) was an English noblewoman and Welsh princess through her marriage to Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, who was List of rulers of Gwynedd, Prince of Gwynedd, and later, Prince ...

, the wives of

Llywelyn ap Iorwerth Llywelyn ab Iorwerth (, – 11 April 1240), also known as Llywelyn the Great (, ; ), was a medieval Welsh ruler. He succeeded his uncle, Dafydd ab Owain Gwynedd, as King of Gwynedd in 1195. By a combination of war and diplomacy, he dominate ...

and Llywelyn ap Gruffydd respectively, were interred. It has been proposed that Tudur was responsible for rebuilding the site around 1293 after it was damaged. He arranged to be interred in the south wall of the site. He acted as an official representative for the English Royal Family in the Perfeddwlad territories. Tudur used the English property laws, which he found more advantageous in his position than those used by the Welsh, as they allowed for inheritance of lands by a single party. He continued to hold the lands in North Wales and

Cardiganshire Ceredigion (), historically Cardiganshire (, ), is a county in the west of Wales. It borders Gwynedd across the Dyfi estuary to the north, Powys to the east, Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire to the south, and the Irish Sea to the west. Ab ...

which he had inherited. Upon his death in 1311, his holdings passed to his son

Goronwy ap Tudur Hen Goronwy ap Tudur Hen (died 1331), also known as Goronwy ap Tudur or Goronwy Fychan, was a Welsh aristocrat and Lord of Penmynydd. He was a member of the Tudor family of Penmynydd, Anglesey, North Wales, and a direct ancestor of Owen Tudor and ...

. He had two further sons, Madog and Hywel. Tudur Hen was interned in Bangor Priory on 11 October 1311; his son, Goronwy, was also placed there on 11 December 1331 following his death.

Legacy

One of the earliest works by the

bard In Celtic cultures, a bard is an oral repository and professional story teller, verse-maker, music composer, oral historian and genealogist, employed by a patron (such as a monarch or chieftain) to commemorate one or more of the patron's a ...

Iolo Goch was based on Tudur Hen; Iolo may have studied at the Bangor Priory. Tudur Hen's most significant legacy was his name. The naming practice of the time in Wales was to attach the father's name to the new first name, thus his son was named Goronwy ap Tudur Hen. Tudur Hen and his wife Anghared fil Ithel Fychan had children, one of whom was named Tudur, becoming another

Tudur ap Goronwy Tudur ap Goronwy (c. 1310 - c. 1367) was a Welsh landowner, soldier and administrator of the Tudors of Penmynydd family from the island of Anglesey. Origins Born about 1310, he was one of the two sons of Goronwy ap Tudur Hen and his wife ...

. The younger Tudur was noticed by King

Edward III of England Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring royal authority after t ...

and was made a knight in his service, and he was the grandfather (through Maredudd ap Tudur) of Owain ap Maredudd ap Tudur. Owain anglicised his name to become

Owen Tudor Sir Owen Tudor (, – 2 February 1461) was a Welsh courtier and the second husband of Queen Catherine of Valois (1401–1437), widow of King Henry V of England. He was the grandfather of Henry VII, founder of the Tudor dynasty. Background ...

, and was the grandfather of King

Henry VII of England Henry VII (28 January 1457 – 21 April 1509), also known as Henry Tudor, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from his seizure of the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death in 1509. He was the first monarch of the House of Tudor. Henr ...

, the founder of the Royal

Lineage

References

* * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tudur Hen 13th-century births 1311 deaths 13th-century Welsh nobility 14th-century Welsh nobility Welsh soldiers People from Anglesey House of Tudor Year of birth unknown Welsh Roman Catholics