After the Romans withdrew from Wales, the   Welsh tribes   became more autonomous. Now free from outside government, chieftains ruled over small parts of Cymru. Territories became kingdoms. Gruffudd ap Llewelyn was the only ruler of all the ancient kings of Wales who united the country as a whole.

The story of the ancient kings of Wales begins with the Roman departure from Britain in 383 AD. Celtic tribal chieftains, freed from the yoke of Roman rule, fought amongst themselves to keep or establish control over their lands and defend their territory from invaders. These territories eventually became kingdoms. 

The most important of these realms were Ceredigion (later known as Gwynedd), Seisyllwg (later Powys), Dyfed (later Deheubarth), and Morgannwg (formed of Glywysing and Gwent). Welsh kings and princes ruled their kingdoms until the Middle Ages when King Edward I of England overthrew Wales’ last ruler, Llewelyn ap Gruffydd, in 1282—over 200 years after Gruffudd ap Llewelyn’s death.

Known as “Llewelyn the Last,” like some other Welsh rulers, Llewelyn ap Gruffydd went by the title of “Prince” and not “King.” Why? The truth is that the Welsh used both titles at different times and for different reasons. One reason may have been to distinguish themselves from other independent rulers in Wales and set themselves apart from the English king. After Edward I conquered Llewelyn and gained control of the land, Edward gave his son the title “Prince of Wales.” Since then, the heir apparent to the English and British throne has always inherited the title. 

Another reason Welsh rulers often used the title of “Prince” instead of “King” was that the kingdoms weren’t united—there was no “King of the Britons.” A single ruler seldom led them, and when he did, it wasn’t for long. The last Welsh ruler to hold the title of King was Gruffudd ap Llewelyn in the 11th century. Today, we sometimes refer to him as “the first and last king of Wales.” Not only did he unify Wales, but he also conquered some of the border lands the English had previously controlled. When Gruffudd was killed in 1063, the remaining Welsh leaders called themselves princes again. 

While we hear more about   Llewelyn ap Gruffydd   in the 13th century, the last ruler of Wales before the English subdued it, Gruffudd ap Llewelyn (200 years earlier) was a key figure in history as the last of the ancient Welsh kings. By that, we should clarify that we’re referring to the title used more than how the rulers functioned. The princes in ancient Wales acted very much like kings in their capacities. They often ruled subkingdoms, smaller kingdoms within larger ones such as Gwynedd or Powys.

Gruffudd ruled as the King of Wales from 1055 – 1063. Something worth noting here is that Gruffudd’s given name also frequently appears with the spelling “Gruffydd.” In this article and throughout this website, we’re using “Gruffudd” as the spelling. Michael Davies and Sean Davies, the authors of the exceptional book   The Last King of Wales: Gruffudd ap Llywelyn, c. 1013-1063 , have listed the king’s name as above.

The Life of Gruffudd ap Llewelyn in the Ancient History of Wales

Historians believe Gruffudd was born a prince in 1010 or 1011 AD in Rhuddlan, in the Kingdom of Powys, North Wales. Although history hasn’t left us much about Gruffudd’s childhood, we know a bit from the stories of Walter Map, a writer and the courtier of King Henry II of England. Map said that Gruffudd was slow, downcast, and generally without direction in his youth. However, later in life, he became ambitious and took on responsibilities. It didn’t take long until his aspirations soared higher than anyone could have guessed!

In 1039, after Iago ab Idwal, the King of Gwynedd, was killed by his own men, Gruffudd took the lead and became king of both Powys and Gwynedd. He then took on the Saxons of Mercia, the neighboring kingdom to Welsh borders. He and his fighters achieved a victory in the battle of Rhyd-y-groes on the Severn River. As the Welsh kingdoms had been fighting the Saxons for hundreds of years, Gruffudd gained favor immediately among the   Welsh people . 

The Welsh Marches

Gruffudd’s victory over Mercia made the borderland between Wales and England known as the “Welsh Marches” safe for his people. Not only did this bring the Welsh more security, but it instantly boosted Gruffudd’s status and influence with his subjects. Quelling the Saxons gave him the support he needed to take the other Welsh kingdoms by force or bring them under his rule through diplomacy. By about 1055, Gruffudd ap Llewelyn had united all of Wales. 

Alliance with Mercia 

A critical reason that Gruffudd succeeded in solidifying his rule of the Welsh kingdoms was that he allied with Aelfgar, the Saxon King of Mercia. As Mercia was a neighboring English kingdom, this alliance only increased the security Gruffudd achieved with his victory over the Marches. How was this possible, especially since Wales and England had been enemies for centuries, and it was the Mercians who Gruffudd had defeated at Rhyd-y-groes? Aelfgar had his own enemies he needed help with—the Godwine family in Northumbria. 

When Aelfgar was exiled, he recruited an Irish mercenary fleet. Gruffudd also gathered a vast army, and together, he and Aelfgar attacked the Saxons and Normans under Earl Ralf. With Gruffudd and Aelfgar’s forces victorious, they set the town of Hereford afire. Aelfgar was later able to return to his own lands. Gruffudd then married Aelfgar’s daughter, Ealdgyth. The alliance of Gruffudd’s Wales and Aelfgar’s Mercia eventually culminated in a peace treaty with Edward the Confessor of Wessex in 1056. 

The Death of Gruffudd ap Llewelyn

Unfortunately, Aelfgar’s death late in 1062 gave discontent members of the Godwine family the opportunity they’d been looking for. Harold Godwinesson, the Earl of Wessex, attacked Gruffudd’s court without warning. He then turned some of Gruffudd’s own compatriots against him. Not all the princes and other lords of Wales agreed with Gruffudd’s rule, so Harold used these rivalries to his advantage. In 1063, Gruffudd ap Llewelyn, the last king of Wales, was slain by his own men. The traitors then sent the earl Gruffudd’s head.

Gruffudd’s death left England and Wales vulnerable to the Norman rule that soon followed. For a brief time, of all the ancient kings of Wales, he had brought his country together in a way like no one before him. Gruffudd may have given the people of his time more than any other leader had. He brought vision, identity, and alliance with Anglo-Saxon England. We’ll always remember Gruffud ap Llewelyn’s story among famous Welsh kings and as a founding father of Cymru.

Ancient Kings of Wales in Order

Here is an ancient kings of Wales timeline showing the leaders of the kingdoms in Cymru in the order they ruled. While we don’t know the exact dates for many of these kings and princes, we do have a good idea of their approximate times of leadership based on historical records. Larger kingdoms, like Gwynedd, often had a king with princes ruling over sub-kingdoms within it. This king of Wales list includes some rulers of petty kingdoms, cantrefs, and commotes (subdivisions of cantrefs).

Kingdom of Gwynedd

Kingdom of Dunoding (Sub-kingdom)

Kingdom of Rhufoniog (Sub-kingdom)

Kingdom of Dogfeiling (Sub-kingdom)

Kingdom of Rhos (Sub-kingdom)

Ancient Kings of Wales: Kingdom of Dyfed

Kingdom of Morgannwg

Kingdom of Ewyas (Sub-kingdom)

The Kingdom of Ewyas (also spelled “Ewias”) was a regional kingdom existing in what is now Wales and Herefordshire, England.

Kingdom of Ergyng (Sub-kingdom)

Kingdom of Glywysing (Sub-kingdom)

Cantref of Gwynllŵg

Gwynllŵg was a cantref (a medieval land division similar to a county) in Glamorgan (Gwent).

Kingdom of Gwent (Sub-kingdom)

The Kingdom of Morgannwg (Sub-kingdom)

The Kingdom of Morgannwg was sometimes an independent kingdom, and at other times, it was formed from the two Kingdoms of Morgannwg and Gwent.

The Kingdom of Ceredigion

Kingdom of Powys

Kingdom of Pengwern (Petty Kingdom)

Pengwern was a petty kingdom located in what is now the Midlands. It was possibly near the Wrekin, a hill in Shropshire, England.

Kingdom of Brycheiniog

Ancient Kings of Wales: Welsh Regional Kingdoms

All of Wales

North Wales

Gwynedd and Powys

South Wales

Cantref of Buellt and Commote of Gwrtheyrnion

Note: A “commote” is a territorial division under a cantref.

Deheubarth and Gwynedd

Regions: West and Northwest of Wales.

Ceredigion, Meirionnydd, Gwynedd

Regions: Kingdom of Gwynedd when it encompassed a larger area, including Ceredigion (Deheubarth), Meirionnydd, and Dyffryn Clwyd, making the king’s realm Northwest and West Wales. He also ruled Rhos and Rhufoniog.

Deheubarth, Gwynedd, Powys  

Regions: North and Mid to Southwest Wales.

Ergyng, Gwent

Region: Southeast of Wales

Glywysing, Gwent

Region: Southeast of Wales

Gwent, Morgannwg

Regions: South and Southeast of Wales

Who Is the King of Wales Now?

No one has held the title “King of Wales” since Gruffudd ap Llewelyn. However, Charles III held the title “Prince of Wales” for 64 years. He acceded to the British throne on 8 September 2022, upon the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II. Since then, Charles III has been the king of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The UK consists of England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland (but not the Republic of Ireland).

If you’d like to see an ancient kings of Wales map, this one on Britain Express shows the   major kingdoms of Cymru from 500 to 700 AD .