Emma of Anjou
Emma of Anjou | |
|---|---|
| Born | c.1140 |
| Died | c.1214 |
| Other names | Emme of Anjou, Agnes of Anjou |
| Spouse(s) | Dafydd ab Owain Gwynedd, King of Gwynedd |
| Father | Geoffrey Plantagenet, Count of Anjou |
| Relatives | Henry II of England |
Emma (Emme, or Agnes[1]) of Anjou (c.1140–c.1214)[2] was an illegitimate daughter of Geoffrey Plantagenet, Count of Anjou and half-sister of King Henry II of England.[3] She was wife and consort to Dafydd ab Owain Gwynedd, a Welsh prince who was King of Gwynedd from 1170 to 1195.[4]
Life
Emma married Dafydd in the summer of 1174, after an unsuccessful rebellion by the queen, Eleanor of Aquitaine, and her older sons had led her half-brother the king to disperse Eleanor's court in Aquitaine and bring Emma back to England.[5]
Emma had four children by Dafydd:
- Owain
- Einion
- Gwenllian
- Gwenhwyfar, (sometimes called Wennour) who married one Meurig ap Roger,[2] the son of a Powys nobleman who had allied himself with Henry II.[6]
In 1176, after her husband's rule in the Kingdom of Gwynedd had been challenged by his brother, Emma is known to have visited King Henry II and received a gift of manors in Shropshire and Worcestershire.[2] After Henry's death in 1189, she continued to attempt to protect her children's interests by making representations to Henry's heirs.[7]
In 1196, Emma and her husband, at the request of their son, Owain,[2] gave property to Haughmond Abbey.[8] Shortly afterwards, Dafydd was deposed by his nephew, Llywelyn the Great, and was forced into exile in England, where he died in 1203.[3]
Confusion
Emma of Anjou is occasionally confused with Emma de Laval (1200-1264), the daughter of Guy V de Laval.[9]
References
- ^ Griffith, John Edwards. Pedigrees of Anglesey and Carnarvonshire Families, with Their Collateral Branches in Denbighshire, Merionethshire, and Other Parts. United Kingdom, Bridge Books, 1914.
- ^ a b c d Plantagenet Ancestry: A Study In Colonial And Medieval Families, 2nd Edition, 2011. Douglas Richardson. p. 4. ISBN 978-1-4610-4513-7.
- ^ a b Messer, Danna R. (2026-01-08), "Emma [Emma of Anjou] (d.1212x14), noblewoman and princess, consort of Dafydd ab Owain Gwynedd, king of Gwynedd", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, doi:10.1093/odnb/9780198614128.013.90000380792, ISBN 978-0-19-861412-8, retrieved 2026-01-08
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: work parameter with ISBN (link) - ^ John Edward Lloyd. "Dafydd ab Owain Gwynedd (died 1203), king of Gwynedd". Dictionary of Welsh Biography. National Library of Wales. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
- ^ Lisa Hilton (2008). Queens Consort: England's Medieval Queens. Weidenfeld & Nicolson. p. 137. ISBN 9780753826119.
- ^ Cylchgrawn Hanes Cymru. University of Wales Press. 2002. p. 16.
- ^ Thirteenth Century England. Boydell Press. 1986. p. 84. ISBN 978-1-84383-122-8.
- ^ Eyton, Antiquities of Shropshire, Volume 10, p. 249
- ^ John McNeill; Daniel Prigent (2003). Anjou: medieval art, architecture, and archaeology. British Archaeological Association. p. 160. ISBN 978-1-902653-68-6.