Emma of Anjou
Princess of Gwynedd / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Emma (or Emme) of Anjou (c.1140–c.1214)[1] was an illegitimate daughter of Geoffrey Plantagenet, Count of Anjou, and half-sister of King Henry II of England. She was married to Dafydd ab Owain Gwynedd, a Welsh prince.[2] She is occasionally confused with Emma de Laval (1200-1264), the daughter of Guy V de Laval.[3] 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.[4]
Emma had four children by Dafydd:
- Owain
- Einion
- Gwenllian
- Gwenhwyfar, who married one Meurig ap Roger,[1] the son of a Powys nobleman who had allied himself with Henry II[5]
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.[1] After Henry's death in 1189, she continued to attempt to protect her children's interests by making representations to Henry's heirs.[6]
In 1196, Emma and her husband, at the request of their son, Owain,[1] gave property to Haughmond Abbey.[7] Shortly afterwards, Dafydd was deposed by his nephew, Llywelyn the Great, and was forced into exile in England, where he died in 1203.