The original lord of
Maelienydd, a Welsh prince,
Cadwallon ap Madog, was killed by the English Sir
Roger Mortimer of Wigmore on 22 September 1179. Mortimer later made a charter as lord of
Maelienydd in 1200. The community subsequently suffered over many years due to the blood feud between the descendants of
Cadwallon ap Madog and the Mortimers. The
princes of Gwynedd gave the monastery their patronage, and twice in the 13th century the abbey granges were burnt by English soldiers and in 1231 the abbot was also fined £200 for aiding the Welsh cause in helping
Llywelyn ab Iorwerth destroy an English force near
Hay on Wye. In 1232, the Cistercian abbot was granted a license, by Pope Gregory IX, to, "to hear the confessions of, and administer sacraments to, their servants and household..". The headless body of
Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, last native
Prince of Wales by direct descent, was buried in the abbey after his death in battle nearby in December 1282. In the early 13th century, the construction of what would have been a spectacular and spacious abbey church were embarked upon, equal in scale to many a
cathedral probably by
Llywelyn ab Iorwerth. But this project was abandoned shortly after the completion of the 14 bay
nave. The ongoing political and social troubles were undoubtedly the cause and the abbey fortunes diminished even further during the significant damage inflicted during the uprising of
Owain Glyndŵr from 1401. The monastery intended to support 60 monks at the outset, only had three in residence by the time of the dissolution. == The dissolution and beyond ==