Clemen ap Bledric facts for kids

Clemen ap Bledric (also known as Clement or Clemens) was a king who lived in the 600s. He ruled a kingdom called Dumnonia, which is now the West Country part of England.

Clemen's Family and Rule

Clemen was born around the year 580. His father was Bledric ap Custennin. Clemen became king after his father was killed in a battle around 613. This battle was fought against King Æthelfrith of Northumbria at a place called Bangor-is-Coed.

Clemen married the daughter of a man named Guitoli ap Urbgen. They had a son named Petroc. Some old Welsh writings say that Clemen was the father of St Petroc. However, other historians think that St Petroc lived much earlier. So, it's more likely that Clemen was the father of Petroc Baladrddellt, which means "Splintered Spear."

The Battle of Beandun

Clemen was probably king when a big battle happened in 614. This was the Battle of Beandun. Historians think it might have been in Somerset, not Devon. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle tells us that King Cynegils and his son Cwichelm from Wessex invaded Dumnonia.

The record says that the West Saxon army killed 2,065 British fighters. This number seems very high. For example, at the Battle of Hastings, a huge battle much later, about 2,000 Norman soldiers were killed. If so many Dumnonians were killed, it should have been a total defeat. But things didn't seem to change that much for Dumnonia after this battle. This suggests the number might be exaggerated.

It's thought that the Dumnonians might have worked with kings from South Wales during this time. This could have helped them fight against Wessex.

The Siege of Exeter (A Story)

Clemen might have been king around 630-632. During this time, a writer named Geoffrey of Monmouth wrote a famous book called Historia Regum Britanniae. In his book, he tells a story about King Penda of Mercia attacking Exeter. Exeter was in Clemen's kingdom of Dumnonia.

According to this story, the exiled King Cadwallon of Gwynedd arrived and defeated the Mercians. The story says these three kings formed an alliance. They then marched north to fight the Northumbrians. However, Clemen's name is not mentioned in this story.

Today, most historians do not believe this story. They think it was one of Geoffrey of Monmouth's many made-up tales.

The Battle of Cefn Digoll

Clemen may have also fought in the Battle of Cefn Digoll in 630. This battle was near Welshpool in Gwynedd. It was fought against Northumbrian rule. Dumnonia might have been allied with Gwynedd and Mercia in this fight. It's not known if Dumnonian soldiers joined the British army that later attacked Northumbria.

In Old Writings

Clemen is also mentioned in an old book called Llyfr Baglan (the Book of Baglan). In this book, he is called a Duke of Cornwall. It says he was the son of Bredrice (which means Bledric) and the father of Pedroc (which means Petroc).