Llangorse Crannóg - The Welsh Palace Complex of King Elisedd ap Tewdwr [889 - 916 A.D.]

Since the 8th century the Welsh Kings of Brycheiniog had controlled a territory centered on Llangorse lake. They founded and patronized a monastic community on its shores. In and around 889 A.D, Brycheiniog’s king, Elisedd ap Tewdwr, began to build a new residence in Llangorse lake. The new royal settlement took the form of a crannóg, an artificial island constructed from boulders, scrub, and timbers. It would have been joined to land by a long raised walkway. The island made a platform for a few domestic buildings and a great timber hall. Many powerful men in contemporary Ireland resided in crannógs but this seems to have been the first known in Wales. The kings of Brycheiniog traced their ancestry back to Ireland, so perhaps this was meant to underscore Elisedd’s Irish ancestry and set him apart from the other Welsh kingdoms. This was likely built with the know-how of Irish architects and the sweat of labor-owing locals, so it demonstrated the king’s ability to extract dues from his subjects and thus display his power. It was likely a royal residence, stayed in for a portion of the year by the royal family, their guards, their servants, and other court followers. Perhaps it was stayed in around religious holidays for close access to ceremonies at the monastery, perhaps around easter time.

A sleeve fragment of silk embroidered linen was found in the island’s excavation, so I included a small weaving workshop in the royal residence. A fragment of a house shaped reliquary and a copper book mount was found on the site as well, so I included a court priest’s house. Remains of hunting, feasting, and food renders were found on the site so I included two cowsheds, a butcher pit, and a tax storage building. Greyhound-like hunting dog bones were found on the site so I included a hunting dog house.

The Crannog may have served as an emergency retreat for the royal family. Vikings raided into Brycheiniog in 896 A.D and the sons of Rhodri the Great (king of Gwynedd) were then unifying Northern Wales under their rule and becoming a serious threat to the still independent kingdoms of the south. In 881 A.D. Elisedd allied with Alfred the Great of Wessex to oppose one of Rhodri’s sons who allied with the Vikings settled in York.

In 916, the complex came to a firey end. Elysedd’s son and successor was blamed for the murder a mercian abbot and in retaliation Llangorse Crannóg was burned and destroyed by Æthelflæd, Queen of Mercia.