Editing Cunedda

{{Short description|Founder of the Kingdom of Gwynedd from c. 450 to c. 460}}
{{See also|Kingdom of Gwynedd#Gwynedd in the early Middle Ages}}
{{more citations needed|date=January 2025}}
{{Use British English|date=July 2024}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2014}}
{{Infobox royalty
| name         = Cunedda ap Edern
| title        = 
| more         = 
| image        = Crop Cunedda from File History of the Kings.jpg
| caption      = 15th century illustration of Cunedda from an edition of ''[[Historia Regum Britanniae]]''
| succession   = [[List of rulers of Gwynedd|King of Gwynedd]]
| moretext     = 
| reign        = c. 450 – c. 460
| coronation   = 
| predecessor  = ''Position established''
| successor    = [[Einion Yrth ap Cunedda]]
| spouse       = [[Coel Hen#Context and evidence|Gwawl Verch Coel]]
| issue        = 
| house        = [[List of rulers of Gwynedd#House of Cunedda|Cunedda]] ([[House of Gwynedd|Gwynedd]])
| house-type   = 
| father       = Eternus (Edeyrn ap Padarn)
| mother       = 
| birth_date   = {{Start date and age|386}}
| birth_place  = [[Manaw Gododdin]]
| death_date   = 460 (74 years)
| death_place  = [[Gwynedd]], modern-day [[Wales]] or Allt Cunedda, [[Kidwelly]]
}}

'''Cunedda ap Edern''', also called '''Cunedda ''Wledig''''' (reigned {{circa|lk=no|450}} – c. 460), was an important early [[Welsh people|Welsh]] leader, and the progenitor of the royal dynasty of [[Kingdom of Gwynedd|Gwynedd]], one of the very oldest of [[Western Europe]].<ref>{{cite book |url=https://ia804503.us.archive.org/10/items/yalegenealogyhis00byuyale/yalegenealogyhis00byuyale.pdf |pages=19–20 |title=Yale genealogy and history of Wales: the British kings and princes, and other noted persons (1908) |publisher=WorldCat.org |oclc=1102359364 |access-date=2022-08-27}}</ref>

== Name ==
{{see also|Wledig}}

The name ''Cunedda'' (spelled ''Cunedag'' in the AD 828 pseudo-history ''[[Historia Brittonum]]'') derives from the [[Common Brittonic|Brythonic]] word ''{{lang|cel|*Cuno-dagos}}'', meaning "Good Hound/Warrior" or "Having Good Hounds/Warriors".<ref>{{cite book |last=Koch |first=John |title=Celtic Culture |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2006 |page=519}}</ref> His title, ''Wledig'', is an obscure and difficult to translate [[epithet]].<ref name="lines231"/> It literally means, "of a {{lang|cy|gwlad}}" or "country".<ref name="lines231"/> However, as an epithet, ''Wledig'' was possibly applied to some official or claimed position within the Roman hierarchy.<ref name="lines231"/> It has been argued that the term is likely a rendition of a Roman title since all known figures with the title are either genealogically connected with the Roman aristocracy or associated with the Roman government.<ref name="lines231">Hywel ap Cadell (1909), [https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_Laws_of_Howel_the_Good/Introduction ''Welsh Medieval Law: The Laws of Howell the Good''], translated by Arthur Wade-Evans</ref><ref>Wade-Evans, Arthur. ''Welsh Medieval Law''.</ref>{{fcn|date=April 2025}}

These figures also all ruled in the century after the Roman withdrawal from Britain. However, this interpretation is subject to criticism. The historian [[Rachel Bromwich]] argued that translating Latin titles into Welsh is unusual for contemporary Welsh leaders, who typically used the original Latin titles.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Roberts |first1=Brynley F. |last2=Bromwich |first2=Rachel |year=1962 |title=Trioedd Ynys Prydein. The Welsh Triads |journal=The Modern Language Review |volume=57 |issue=3 |page=405 |doi=10.2307/3721837 |jstor=3721837 |issn=0026-7937}}</ref> There are other competing theories concerning the true meaning of the term. The word {{lang|cy|Gwledig}} is a [[cognate]] with the Irish word {{lang|ga|flaith}}, which means ruler. Therefore, the word may simply mean "lord" or "ruler".<ref>{{cite book |last=Charles-Edwards |first=Thomas Mowbray |year=2013 |title=Wales and the Britons, 350–1064 |series=The history of Wales |edition=1st |location=Oxford |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-821731-2}}</ref>

== Early life ==
[[File:Magnusmaximus10100662cng (obverse).jpg|180px|thumb|Coin featuring [[Magnus Maximus]], Roman Emperor]]

Cunedda's family is traced back to a grandfather living in late [[Roman Britain]] named [[Padarn Beisrudd]].<ref name="beli22"/> His name literally translates as Paternus of the "red [[tunic]]" or the [[Paludamentum|scarlet cloak]],<ref>{{cite DWB|id=s-CUNE-WLE-0380|title=CUNEDDA WLEDIG (fl. 450?), British prince|access-date=9 August 2022}}</ref> a colour attributed to Roman officers during the [[Roman Empire]]. One traditional interpretation identifies Padarn as a [[Roman people#Late antiquity|Roman]] ([[Romano-British]]) official of reasonably high rank who had been placed in command of the [[Votadini]] troops stationed in the [[Clackmannanshire]] region of [[Scotland]] in the 380s or earlier by the Roman Emperor [[Magnus Maximus]].

Alternatively, he may have been a frontier chieftain who was granted Roman military rank, a practice attested elsewhere along the empire's borders at the time. Possibly, Padarn's command in Scotland was assumed after his death by his son, Edern ({{langx|la|Æturnus}}), and then passed to Edern's son, Cunedda, who would later be the founder of the [[Kingdom of Gwynedd]] and become its first King.<ref name="lines222"/>

=== Genealogy ===
{{see also|House of Gwynedd#Beli Mawr legendary descent}}
Cunedda's [[genealogy]], as many early Welsh Royal families, was later said to descend from [[Afallach]], son of [[Beli Mawr]], the legendary father of King [[Cassivellaunus]].<ref name="beli22">{{cite web |url=https://journals.library.wales/view/1386446/1389339/116#?xywh=-1251%2C50%2C7230%2C3621 |last=Nicholson |first=E. Williams B. |date=1908 |title=The Dynasty of Cunedag and the 'Harleian Genealogies' |volume=XXI |publisher=[[Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion]] |publication-place=London |pages=63, 67–105 (Beli "magnus")}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |chapter-url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/abs/medieval-welsh-genealogy/pedigrees-of-the-kings-of-gwynedd/2EA6360E6505F208A51C4588923958E5 |chapter=The Pedigrees of the Kings of Gwynedd |author=Ben Guy |title=Medieval Welsh Genealogy |year=2020 |pages=233–264 |doi=10.1017/9781787448988.006 |isbn=978-1-78744-898-8 |access-date=24 August 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://academic.oup.com/book/10443/chapter-abstract/158305477?redirectedFrom=fulltext |title=11 The Britons and the Northumbrians, 547-685:The Evidence, by T.M. Charles-Edwards, page 343-380, November 2012 |chapter=The Britons and the Northumbrians, 547–685: The Evidence |date=29 November 2012 |publisher=Oxford University Press |doi=10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198217312.003.0012 |isbn=978-0-19-821731-2 |access-date=27 August 2022}}</ref> Cassivellaunus was a [[British Iron Age|pre-Roman]] historical figure who fought against [[Julius Caesar]] during his [[Julius Caesar's invasions of Britain|invasion of Britain]] in 54 BC.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://classics.mit.edu/Caesar/gallic.5.5.html |title=The Gallic Wars By Julius Caesar Translated by W. A. McDevitte and W. S. Bohn, Provided by The Internet Classics Archive, Massachusetts Institute of Technology |access-date=24 August 2022}}</ref>

[[Coel Hen]], possibly based on a historical figure from post-Roman Britain, was said to be Cunedda's father-in-law and also to be a descendant of Beli Mawr.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://ukga.org/browse.php?action=ViewRec&DB=33&bookID=231&pagecount=1338&submit=Next |title=A Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Landed Gentry of Great Britain |date=1906 |page=1328 |author=Sir Bernard Burke, Ulster King of Arms |access-date=2022-12-05}}</ref><ref name="David Ewan Thomson 15–16">{{cite web |url=https://www.academia.edu/3869372 |title=A neglected genealogy of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd |website=www.academia.edu |publisher=Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies |pages=15–16 |author=David Ewan Thomson |date=January 1992 |access-date=27 August 2022}}</ref><ref name="beli22"/><ref>{{cite book |chapter-url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/abs/medieval-welsh-genealogy/earliest-welsh-genealogical-collections-the-st-davids-recension-and-the-gwynedd-collection-of-genealogies/25E3AFC615CF6884D62E225E6639CF6E |chapter=The Earliest Welsh Genealogical Collections: The St Davids Recension and the Gwynedd Collection of Genealogies |publisher=Cambridge University Press |author=Ben Guy |title=Medieval Welsh Genealogy |year=2020 |pages=51–100 |doi=10.1017/9781787448988.003 |isbn=978-1-78744-898-8 |access-date=2 March 2023}}</ref> As head of the [[House of Gwynedd]], Cunedda's line was claimed to continue through to [[Rhodri Mawr]], and the subsequent houses of [[House of Aberffraw|Aberffraw]], [[House of Dinefwr|Dinefwr]], and [[House of Mathrafal|Mathrafal]].<ref name="lines222"/>

== Life ==
=== Move to Gwynedd ===
According to [[Old Welsh]] tradition contained in section 62 of the ''[[Historia Brittonum]]'', Cunedda came from [[Manaw Gododdin]], the modern [[Falkirk]] region of [[Scotland]]:

<blockquote>Maelgwn, the great king, was reigning among the Britons in the region of Gwynedd, for his ancestor, Cunedag, with his sons, whose number was eight, had come previously from the northern part, that is from the region which is called Manaw Gododdin, one hundred and forty-six years before Maelgwn reigned. And with great slaughter, they drove out from those regions the Scotti who never returned again to inhabit them.<ref>Bartrum, Peter; A Welsh Classical Dictionary, National Library of Wales, 1993, p. 172.</ref></blockquote>

Cunedda and his forebears led the Votadini against [[Picts|Pictish]] and Irish incursions south of [[Hadrian's Wall]]. Sometime after this, the [[Votadini]] troops under Cunedda relocated to [[North Wales]] to defend the region from Irish invasion, specifically the [[Uí Liatháin]], as mentioned in the ''[[Historia Brittonum]]''. Cunedda established himself in Wales, in the territory of the [[Venedoti]], which would become the centre of the [[Kingdom of Gwynedd]]. Two explanations for these actions have been suggested: either Cunedda was acting under the orders of [[Magnus Maximus]] (or Maximus' successors) or [[Vortigern]], the high king of the British in the immediate post-Roman era. The range of dates (suggested by Oxford genealogist [[Peter Bartrum]]) runs from the late 370s, which would favour Maximus, to the late 440s, which would favour Vortigern.

[[File:Hadrian's Wall west of Housesteads 3.jpg|thumb|The Roman [[Hadrian's Wall]], Cunedda and his family commanded the [[Votadini]] between its wall and [[Antonine Wall]], located at the edge of England and Scotland.]]

The suggestion that Cunedda was operating under instructions from [[Roman Empire|Rome]] has been challenged by several historians. [[David Dumville]] dismisses the whole concept of transplanting ''[[foederati]]'' from [[Scotland]] to Wales in this manner, given that the political state of sub-Roman Britain would probably have made it impossible to exercise such centralised control by the 5th century. As [[Magnus Maximus|Maximus]] himself was dead by the end of 388, and [[Constantine III (Western Roman emperor)|Constantine III]] departed from Britain with the last of Rome's military forces in 407, less than a generation later, it is doubtful that Rome had much direct influence over the military actions of the Votadini, either through Maximus or any other emissary, for any significant length of time.

Magnus Maximus (or his successors) may have handed over control of the British frontiers to local chieftains at an earlier date; with the evacuation of the fort at [[Chester]] (which [[Mike Ashley (writer)|Mike Ashley]], incidentally, argues is most likely where Cunedda established his initial base in the region, some years later) in the 370s, he may have had little option. Given that the archaeological record demonstrates Irish settlement on the [[Llŷn Peninsula]] however and possible raids as far west as [[Wroxeter]] by the late 4th century, it is difficult to conceive of either Roman or allied British forces having presented an effective defence in Wales.

Academics such as [[Sheppard Frere]] have argued that it may have been Vortigern who, adopting elements of Roman statecraft, moved the Votadini south, just as he invited [[Saxons|Saxon]] settlers to protect other parts of the island. According to this version of events, Vortigern would have instructed Cunedda and his Votadini subjects to move to Wales in response to the aforementioned Irish incursions no later than the year 442, when Vortigern's former Saxon allies rebelled against his rule. Some historians even suggest that Cunedda never even moved to North Wales and simply died while fighting the Picts, and [[Nennius]]'s claims about Cunedda are just simply propaganda for the Kingdom of Gwynedd.{{citation needed|date=January 2024}} Based on the fact that despite Nennius saying Cunedda "drove out the Irish with great slaughter and that they never returned" it is not entirely true as there was heavy Irish presence among the southern Welsh Kingdoms and [[Anglesey]] even in the 6th century.{{citation needed|date=January 2024}}

=== Life and succession ===
[[File:History of the Kings (f.39.v) Coel.jpg|190px|thumb|King [[Coel Hen]], father-in-law of Cunedda]]

Of Cunedda personally even less is known. Probably celebrated for his strength, courage, and ability to rally the beleaguered [[Romano-British]] forces of the region, he eventually secured a politically advantageous marriage to Gwawl, daughter of King [[Coel Hen]], the Romano-British ruler of [[Eboracum]] (modern [[York]]) appointed by [[Magnus Maximus]], and is claimed to have had nine sons.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Kessler |first1=Peter |title=Magnus Maximus |url=https://www.historyfiles.co.uk/FeaturesBritain/BritishMagnusMaximus.html |website=The History Files |access-date=August 14, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://earlybritishkingdoms.com/gene/cunedanc.html |website=earlybritishkingdoms.com |title=Cunedda Wledig's Ancestry |access-date=2 October 2023}}</ref> The early kingdoms of [[Ceredigion]] and [[Meirionnydd]] were supposedly named after his two sons King [[Ceredig]] and King [[Meirion]].

Cunedda's supposed great-grandson [[Maelgwn Gwynedd]] was a contemporary of [[Gildas]],<ref>{{Harvcolnb|Giles|1841|pp=24–25}}, ''De Excidio'', sections 28 and 29 (in English)</ref><ref>{{Harvcolnb|Giles|1841|pp=244–245}}, ''De Excidio'', sections 28 and 29 (in Latin)</ref> and according to the ''[[Annales Cambriae]]'' died in 547.<ref>{{Harvcolnb|Phillimore|1888|pp=155}}, ''Annales Cambriae'', year 547 – "Mortalitas magna inqua pausat mailcun rex genedotae"</ref> The reliability of early Welsh genealogies is not uncontested however, and many of the claims regarding the number and identity of Cunedda's heirs did not surface until as late as the 10th century. Nonetheless, if we accept this information as valid, calculating back from this date suggests the mid-5th century interpretation.

== Allt Cunedda ==
There is a hill called '''Allt Cunedda''', close to Cydweli (now [[Kidwelly]]) in [[Carmarthenshire]], in [[West Wales|southwest Wales]]. A local folk story, recorded by Victorian antiquarians, claims that Cunedda and his sons attempted to invade Cydweli, but was defeated and killed by rebellious locals and was buried in the Allt Cunedda. Amateur and ill-recorded excavations did reveal a [[hill fort]], probably pre-Roman, the broken head of a stone [[Axe#Hammer axe|hammer axe]],<ref name="kidwellyhistory.co.uk">Kidwelly History [http://www.kidwellyhistory.co.uk/Articles/AlltCunedda/AlltCunedda.htm] accessed 11 December 2022</ref> and several collapsed stone [[cist]]s containing the well-preserved skeletons of several men with formidable physical proportions. At least one of these was found in the "seated position" and another buried beneath a massive stone "shield" who had apparently been killed by a head wound. John Fenton's excavations in 1851 destroyed much of the archaeological evidence from Allt Cunedda, and more by [[John William Watson Stephens]]' dig in the 1930s.<ref name="kidwellyhistory.co.uk"/> The bones are lost; Fenton sent them to an institution in London, and Stephens' long searches for them were unsuccessful.

One of the [[tumuli]] was known locally as ''Banc Benisel'' and was reputedly the grave of a [[Sawyl Penuchel]], a legendary [[List of legendary kings of Britain|King of the Britons]] presumably from late [[Iron Age Britain]]. His [[epithet]] ''Penuchel'' or ''Ben Uchel'' means "high head" perhaps on account of his height. [http://www.kidwellyhistory.co.uk/Articles/AlltCunedda/AlltCunedda.htm#2] According to the Welsh ''Life of Saint [[Cadoc]]'', a king named [[Sawyl Penuchel]] held court at Allt Cunedda. Confusingly, [[Geoffrey of Monmouth]], in his ''[[Historia Regum Britanniae]]'' (1136), uses the name [[Sawyl Penuchel|Samuil Penessil]] for a legendary pre-Roman king of Britain, preceded by [[Redechius]] and succeeded by [[Pir of the Britons|Pir]].<ref>[[wikisource:History of the Kings of Britain/Book 3#19|''History of the Kings of Britain'' 3.19]] at Wikisource. Lewis Thorpe's translation for [[Penguin Classics]] (p. 105) gives two kings, Samuil followed by Penessil.</ref> Whether this is the same king and Cadoc's tale is just revisiting an old folk memory, a different man of the same name, or simply an error by the composer of the ''Life'', is unclear.

== Immediate family ==
{{see also|List of rulers of Gwynedd#House of Cunedda}}
[[File:Y Ddraig Goch in Flag of Wales.svg|thumb|190px|The [[Welsh Dragon]] on the [[Flag of Wales]], associated with King [[Cadwaladr]], descendant of Cunedda]]

=== Immediate ancestors ===
* Eternus (Edeyrn) father, Commander of the [[Votadini]] troops;
* [[Padarn Beisrudd|Paternus]] (Padarn Beisrudd, ''of the red robe'') grandfather, Commander of the [[Votadini]] troops;
* Tacitus (Tegid) great-grandfather.

=== Children ===
* Rhufon, ruler of the [[Rhufoniog|Kingdom of Rhufoniog]];
* [[Dunoding|Dunod]], ruler of the [[Dunoding|Kingdom of Dunoding]];
* [[Ceredig]], King of the [[Kingdom of Ceredigion]], grandfather of Bishop [[Saint David]];
* [[Einion Yrth ap Cunedda|Einion]], Ruler of [[List of rulers of Gwynedd|Gwynedd]], father of King [[Cadwallon Lawhir ap Einion]];
* [[Dogfeiling|Dogfael]], King of the petty [[Dogfeiling|Kingdom of Dogfeiling]];
* [[Edeirnion|Edern]], ruler of the minor [[Edeirnion|Kingdom of Edeirnion]] under Gwynedd;
* As well as Tybion, Ysfael and Afloeg.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Bartrum|first=Peter Clement |url=https://www.library.wales/fileadmin/fileadmin/docs_gwefan/casgliadau/Drych_Digidol/Deunydd_print/Welsh_Classical_Dictionary/04_C2.pdf |title=A Welsh Classical Dictionary, people in History and Legend up to about A.D. 1000 |publisher=National Library of Wales |year=1993 |page=13}}</ref>

=== Great-grandson ===
[[Maelgwn Gwynedd]], [[Kingdom of Gwynedd|King of Gwynedd]], referred by [[Gildas]] as Maelgwn the [[Welsh Dragon|Dragon]] or Dragon of the [[Anglesey|Island]], and was the ancestor of King [[Cadwaladr]].<ref name="lines222">[https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_Laws_of_Howel_the_Good/The_Houses_of_Cunedda_and_Rhodri_Mawr The Houses of Cunedda and Rhodri Mawr], Welsh Medieval Law: The Laws of Howell the Good (1909) by Hywel ap Cadell, translated by Arthur Wade Wade-Evans</ref>

The Red Dragon would later be flown by the [[House of Tudor#Coat of arms as sovereigns|House of Tudor]], claimed descendants of Cunedda, through [[Owen Tudor]] and King [[Henry VII of England|Henry Tudor]], and is featured on the [[Flag of Wales]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofWales/The-Red-Dragon-of-Wales/ |website=historic-uk.com |title=The Red Dragon of Wales by Ben Johnson |access-date=25 August 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.academia.edu/43073424 |title=King Arthur the Pendragon who was Born of Fire, by Nigel Dryden Cunningham |website=academia.edu |access-date=27 August 2022 |last1=Cunningham |first1=Nigel }}</ref>

== See also ==
* [[Family tree of Welsh monarchs]]

== References ==
{{reflist|24em}}

== Sources ==
{{Refbegin}}
* Bartrum, Peter; A Welsh Classical Dictionary, National Library of Wales, 1993, pp.&nbsp;172–173.
* J. Fenton; "The Grave of Sawyl Benisel, King of the Britons", ''Archaeol. Camb.'', vol. 2 (1851), new series, pp.&nbsp;159–162.
* {{Citation |last=Lloyd |first=John Edward |author-link=John Edward Lloyd |year=1911 |title=A History of Wales from the Earliest Times to the Edwardian Conquest |volume=I |edition=2nd |publisher=Longmans, Green, and Co. |publication-date=1912 |publication-place=London |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NYwNAAAAIAAJ}}
* {{Citation |year=1841 |editor-last=Giles |editor-first=John Allen |title=The Works of Gildas and Nennius |publisher=James Bohn |publication-date=1841 |publication-place=London |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3R1mCE7p44MC}} — English translation.
* {{Citation |year=1847 |editor-last=Giles |editor-first=John Allen |editor-link=John Allen Giles |title=History of the Ancient Britons |volume=II |edition=Second |publisher=W. Baxter |publication-date=1854 |publication-place=Oxford |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XX3TAAAAMAAJ}} — in [[Latin]].
* {{Citation |last=Phillimore |first=Egerton |year=1888 |contribution=The Annales Cambriae and Old Welsh Genealogies, from Harleian MS. 3859 |contribution-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aFMrAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA141 |title=Y Cymmrodor |volume=IX |publisher=Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion |publication-date=1888 |pages=141–183}}
{{Refend}}

{{s-start}}
{{s-new|reason=Created<br/>[[Kingdom of Gwynedd]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[List of rulers of Gwynedd|King of Gwynedd]] |years=c. 450 - c. 460}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Einion Yrth ap Cunedda]]}}
{{s-end}}

{{Hen Ogledd}}
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[[Category:House of Cunedda|.]]
[[Category:Monarchs of Gwynedd]]
[[Category:Britons of the North]]
[[Category:British traditional history]]
[[Category:Children of Cunedda| 01]]
[[Category:People from Gwynedd]]
[[Category:Welsh royalty]]
[[Category:5th-century Welsh monarchs]]