JOAN PLANTAGENET, Lady of Wales and Lady of Snowdon, also known by her adopted Welsh name Siwan (c. 1191/92 – February 1237) was the illegitimate daughter of King John of England, and was the wife of Llywelyn the Great, Prince of Wales (initially King of Gwynedd), effective ruler of all of Wales. Joan has been referred to as both “Lady of Wales” and “Princess of Wales”.

Little is known about her early life. Her mother’s name is known only from Joan’s obituary in the Tewkesbury Annals, where she is called “Regina Clementina” (Queen Clemence); there is no evidence that her mother was in fact of royal blood. Joan may have been born in France, and probably spent part of her childhood there, as King John had her brought to the Kingdom of England from Normandy in December 1203, in preparation for a marriage alliance to Prince Llywelyn the Great.

Thomas Pennant, in “Tours in Wales”, Volume 2, published London, 1810, writes : “It is said that Llewelyn the Great had near this place [Trefriw] a palace; … The church of Trefriw was originally built by Llewelyn, for the ease of his princess, who before was obliged to go on foot to Llanrhychwyn, a long walk among the mountains.”

Joan was betrothed to Llywelyn the Great in 1204, and the marriage is thought to have taken place in 1205, although some of the annals of the abbey of St Werburgh in Chester say that it occurred in 1204. She and Llywelyn had at least four children together:

• Gwladus Ddu (1206–1251), who married (1) Reginald de Braose and (2) Ralph de Mortimer, with whom she had issue.
• Elen ferch Llywelyn (Helen or Ellen) (1207–1253), married (1) John the Scot, Earl of Chester and (2) Robert II de Quincy
• Susanna, who was sent to England as a hostage in 1228.
• Dafydd ap Llywelyn (c. 1212–1246) married Isabella de Braose, died at Abergwyngregyn.

Some of Llywelyn’s other recorded children may also have been Joan’s:

• Angharad ferch Llywelyn
• Marared/Margaret (born c.1202) who married (1) Sir John de Braose (called Tadody), grandson of William de Braose, 4th Lord of Bramber. She married (2) Sir Walter de Clifford and had children by both husbands.

Joan often mediated between her husband and her father. According to Brut y Tywysogion (The chronicle of the princes), when John was successfully campaigning in North Wales, “Llywelyn, being unable to suffer the king’s rage, sent his wife, the king’s daughter, to him, by the counsel of his leading men, to seek to make peace with the king on whatever terms he could.”

In April 1226 Joan obtained a papal decree from Pope Honorius III, declaring her legitimate on the basis that her parents had not been married to others at the time of her birth, but without giving her a claim to the English throne.

Joan died at the royal home at Abergwyngregyn, on the north coast of Gwynedd, in 1237. Llywelyn’s great grief at her death is recorded; he founded a Franciscan friary in her honour on the seashore at Llanfaes, opposite the royal residence. This was consecrated in 1240, shortly before Llywelyn himself died. It was destroyed in 1537 by Henry VIII of England during the Dissolution of the Monasteries.

In addition to her political achievements, Joan was also celebrated for her beauty and charm. She became a symbol of unity and peace between Wales and England, and her legacy continues to be remembered and honoured in both countries.

Who was LLYWELYN THE GREAT?