Glyndŵr rebellion
| Glyndŵr rebellion | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Owain Glyndŵr by A. C. Michael, 1918 | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||||
|
Principality of Wales Kingdom of France (until 1408) | Kingdom of England | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
|
Owain Glyndŵr Sir Edmund Mortimer † Rhys Gethin † Gruffudd ab Owain Glyndŵr (POW) Tudur ap Gruffudd † Jean II de Rieux |
King Henry IV (1400–1413) King Henry V (1413–1415) John Talbot Richard Grey Dafydd Gam | ||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
| Around 6000 | Around 10,000 | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
| Around 4000 killed | Around 5000 killed | ||||||||
The Glyndŵr rebellion was a Welsh rebellion led between 1400 and c. 1415 by Owain Glyndŵr against the Kingdom of England during the Late Middle Ages. During the rebellion's height, Owain exercised control over the majority of Wales after capturing several of the most powerful English castles in the country, and formed a parliament at Machynlleth. The revolt was the last major manifestation of Welsh independence before the annexation of Wales into England in 1542–43.
The uprising began in 1400, when Owain Glyndŵr, a descendant of several Welsh royal dynasties, claimed the title Prince of Wales following a dispute with a neighbouring English lord. In 1404, after a series of successful castle sieges and battlefield victories, Owain was crowned prince of Wales in the presence of Scottish, French, Spanish and Breton envoys. He summoned a national parliament, where he announced plans to reintroduce the traditional Welsh laws of Hywel Dda, establish an independent Welsh church, and build two universities. Owain also formed an alliance with Charles VI of France, and in 1405 a French army landed in Wales to support the rebellion.
Early in 1406, Owain's forces suffered defeats at Grosmont and Usk, in the south east of Wales. Despite the initial successes of the rebellion from 1400 to 1406, the Welsh were severely outnumbered and the Welsh populace increasingly exhausted by an English blockade combined with pillaging and violence by English armies.
By 1407 the English had recaptured Anglesey and large parts of south Wales. In 1408 they seized Aberystwyth Castle, followed by Harlech Castle in February 1409, effectively ending Owain's territorial rule, although Owain himself was never captured or killed. He ignored two offers of a pardon from the new King Henry V and Welsh resistance continued in small pockets of the country for several more years utilising guerrilla tactics. Owain disappeared in 1415, when he was recorded to have died. His son, Maredudd ab Owain, accepted a pardon from King Henry V in 1421, formally ending the rebellion.