Cadwallon Lawhir ap Einion facts for kids
Cadwallon ap Einion was an important Welsh ruler who lived around the year 500. He is often called Cadwallon Lawhir, which means 'Long Hand'. Some historians also know him as Cadwallon I.
Cadwallon was the son of Einion Yrth and Prawst ferch Deithlyn. Many believe he was the king of Gwynedd. He became king after his father died around 500 AD. He ruled until his own death, which was sometime between 517 and 534 AD.
Cadwallon is famous for making the last Irish settlers leave the island of Anglesey. There is a cool story about one of his battles. It says that Cadwallon and his soldiers locked their feet to their stirrups. This way, they couldn't run away from the fight!
His nickname, Lawhir (Long Hand), might mean he had unusually long arms. Or, it could be a way to say he had a lot of power and influence. A poet named Iolo Goch once wrote about him. He claimed Cadwallon could pick up a stone from the ground to hit a bird. He could do this without bending his back because his arm was so long!
A writer named Gildas tells a different story. He suggests that Cadwallon's son, Maelgwn, became king by taking the throne from his uncle. This makes some people think that Cadwallon's brother, Owain Ddantgwyn, might have been the actual king of Gwynedd before Maelgwn.
Cadwallon's Royal Court
For a long time, people have connected Cadwallon to a special place. This place is called Caswallon's Llys. A "Llys" was a medieval royal court building. It was like a palace or a main home for a king.
On an old map from 1889, this Llys was shown in a field. It was near Mynnydd Eilian, in the Llaneilian area of Anglesey. By the 1900s, there were no clear remains of the building. So, many people stopped believing it was a real Llys site.
However, in 2009, scientists did a special survey of the ground. They used tools to look underground without digging. This survey found the foundations of a rectangular building. It was inside a trapezoid-shaped area. This discovery makes it very likely that it was an early medieval royal site.
See also
- Kings of Wales family trees
- Bodysgallen Hall
