Born this day 1962 in Syracuse, NewYork.

Tom Cruise  (Thomas Cruise Mapother IV ) - Star of many Hollywood blockbusters, including Top Gun, The Last Samurai, A Few Good Men and Rain Man, has made Cruise, Hollywood's highest paid actor.  His Welsh connections were revealed to him on an American TV show which investigates the family trees of the rich and famous.  A stunned Cruise heard that his great-great grandfather had emigrated from Flint in north Wales in 1850 and that his middle name Mapother had come from many generations of Welsh people with the same name.

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Robert of Rhuddlan - the hated Norman Lord of much of north-east Wales was killed by a volley of Welsh  arrows on this day 1093.   The raiders then sailed off with his head attached to the mast of one of their vessels.

Twthill castle was erected by Robert of Rhuddlan in 1073 at the command of  William the Conqueror.  It remained in use for two hundred years until Rhuddlan Castle was built, on adjacent territory, on the orders of Edward I.

Robert was the cousin of Hugh d'Avranches one of the first Norman Marcher Lords, who was appointed Earl of Chester in 1070 by William the Conquerer after The Norman Invasion of 1066 

1072 .  Robert was appointed Hugh's "commander of troops" and immediately began hostilities with the Welsh, capturing land in the cantref of Tegeigl (North East Wales), where he built a Motte and Bailey castle at Twthill near Rhuddlan to consolidate his advances into the north of Wales.

1075 .  Robert assisted Gruffudd ap Cynan in his attempt to recover the throne of Gwynedd from Trahaern ap Caradog.  Gruffydd was eventually forced to flee to Ireland where he sought temporary refuge. Robert took  advantage of the local conflict to seize the cantrefs of Rhos and Rhufoniog and to build another castle at Deganwy.  He, therefore, ruled most of northern Wales to the east of the River Conwy.

1081 .  Trahaearn  was killed in the Battle of Mynydd Carn by the now returned Gruffydd ap Cynan, who claimed the throne of Gwynedd, but shortly thereafter he was captured by Robert and imprisoned by Earl Hugh in his castle at Chester.  Robert claimed Gruffydd's lands, and went on to build further castles at Bangor, Caernarfon and Aberlleiniog.

1087 .   On William the Conquerer's death, war broke out between his sons. Robert gave his support to Robert Curthose, the elder son,  but they were eventually forced to surrender to the forces of  William Rufus.

1093 .  Robert's career was brought to a sudden and not unwelcome end at the beginning of the great Welsh revolt. He was indulging in a midday nap in his castle at Deganwy when a message  was brought to him that Welsh raiders had landed in three ships underneath the Great Orme and were in the process of pillaging his lands. Some sources claim that these audacious  raiders were led by Gruffydd ap Cynan, who had managed to escape from captivity in Chester. The raiders had landed their ships and were loading their plunder. Robert sent urgent dispatches  to muster his troops and made great haste  to the Great Orme, where he was dismayed to discover that the rising tide was allowing the Welsh raiders to float their vessels and make off with the loot before Robert's troops could reach them. Furious, Robert rushed down the slopes to attack them, supported only by his armour-bearer. He was killed by a volley of Welsh javelins, and the raiders made their escape with Robert's head displayed triumphantly on the mast of one of their vessels.

1094 .  The Welsh revolt led by Gruffydd ap Cynan resulted in the loss of most of Robert's former territory.

Died on this day 1749.

William Jones (1675 – 3 July 1749)  - was born in Llanfihangel Tre'r Beirdd on the Island of Anglesey(Ynys Môn). Jones became a mathematician who is most remembered for the introduction of the symbol π  to represent the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter. He was a contemporary and close friend of both Sir Issac Newton and Sir Edmund Hally.  He became a Fellow of the Royal Society in November 1711 and was later to become its Vice-President.

Born this day 1958 in Maesteg.

Siân Lloyd  - Best known as an ITV Weather Forecaster.

Sian is the daughter of two teachers and attended Ystalyfera Bilingual School, before graduating with first class honours from University College, Cardiff. She then gained a meteorology distinction from the Met Office College and won the Television and radio Industries Club  (TRIC) award for the best TV weather presenter in 2005 and 2007.

Proud of being Welsh, she set up a Welsh networking group, SWS (meaning "kiss", and standing for "Social, Welsh and Sexy") in partnership with entertainer Stifyn Parri in the Groucho Club in London. Bryn Terfel and Sian Phillips are now patrons.

 In 2007, Lloyd won the UK Rear of the Year competition, making her the oldest woman to date to win the title. 

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Today is the feast day of Saint Gurthiern.

Saint Gurthiern (c. 500) - is said to have been a Welsh prince who became a hermit in Brittany and founded the abbey at Kemperle.  Legend says that insects once threatened to destroy the region's crops, so Gunthiern blessed some water and had it sprinkled over the fields. The insects fled, and the crops were saved. 

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In what has become an annual event, The Wales Swim takes place in Tenby.

Up to 2000 competitors take to the water at Tenby's North Beach in a mixed gender race over either a 1.2 or a 2.4-mile course depending on ability. The event draws many spectators, both local and tourist alike. 

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