Llywelyn had no intention of accepting defeat. In May 1278, several months before his wedding, he received a number of Welsh nobles at Dolwyddelan.
Llywelyn had no intention of accepting defeat. In May 1278, several months before his wedding, he received a number of Welsh nobles at Dolwyddelan.
In their presence, Llywelyn took the homage of one Trahearn ap Madog. This was risky: via the terms of Aberconwy, Llywelyn was only entitled to the homage of five named lords in Gwynedd. Trahearn was not one of them, and he was a man of the south. So, Llywelyn was in breach of the treaty.
The nobles who witnessed this ceremony included two brothers, Gruffudd and Cynan ap Maredudd, Rhys Wyndod, and Hywel ap Rhys Gryg. This was an interesting bunch, to say the least. Gruffudd and Cynan had both fought against Llywelyn in the recent war, while Rhys was among the first to surrender to the king. Hywel, on the other hand, had fled to Snowdonia rather than bend the knee.
These men were unhappy with the postwar settlement. Gruffudd, for instance, had complained to the king that he had been insufficiently rewarded. He was, Gruffudd claimed, the greatest and most powerful man in West Wales, and had destroyed Llywelyn's power almost single-handed. Come on, sire. Gimme.
In response, Edward ordered his clerks at the Tower to pay Gruffudd a sum of money. The amount is undisclosed, but it obviously wasn't enough.
As for Llywelyn, it is fairly obvious what he was up to. He had been humbled by the king, but so what? Previous rulers in Wales had recovered from similar disasters. While Edward turned his attention elsewhere, Llywelyn quietly rebuilt his power.

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