Ardudwy

Open land above Dyffryn Ardudwy

Ardudwy(Welsh pronunciation:[arˈdɨ̞duːɨ̯]) is an area ofGwyneddin north-westWales,lying betweenTremadog Bayand theRhinogydd.Administratively, under the oldKingdom of Gwynedd,it was first a division of the sub kingdom (cantref) ofDunodingand later acommotein its own right. The fertile swathe of land stretching fromBarmouthtoHarlechwas historically used aspasture.The name exists in the modern community and village ofDyffryn Ardudwy.

History and Mythology

Ardudwy features prominently inWelsh mythology,the Triads of the Island of Britainheavily associates Ardudwy with the flooding ofCantre'r Gwaelod,stating that survivors of the flooding moved into the area in the time ofAmbrosius Aurelianus,as well as surrounding areas that were previously uninhabited.In the Second Branch of theMabinogi,Bendigeidfranholds court atHarlech,and his severed head returns there for seven years before it is taken on toGwales.In the Fourth Branch,Lleu Llaw Gyffesis givenEifionyddand Ardudwy as his fief byMath fab Mathonwy.Lleu built his palace at "Mur y Castell"in Ardudwy. He reigned there before and after the usurpation ofGronw Pebr,whom he killed on the banks of the River Cynfael.A holed stone in Ardudwy is still known asLlech Ronw(Gronw's Stone).

Ardudwy is later associated with the 9th-century chieftainCollwyn ap Tango,the progenitor of the fifth of the Fifteen Noble Tribes of Gwynedd. He was Lord ofEifionydd,Ardudwy and part ofLlŷnand is a maternal ancestor of theAnwyl of Tywyn Family.Ardudwy was a core part of theKingdom of Gwyneddabove theRiver Conwythroughout the earlyMiddle Ages.After the conquest and subjugation ofGwyneddin 1283, the cantref was merged withMeirionyddto form the new county ofMerionethshire.This situation was retained until 1974, when Welsh Local Government wasreorganisedand it became part of the reformedGwynedd,where it remains to this day.