BattlefieldsOwain Lawgoch's Threatened Invasion
Medieval

Owain Lawgoch's Threatened Invasion

1372
Pembrokeshire, Wales
Also known as: Owain ap Thomas ap Rhodri 1369-1378 · Welsh pretender in French service
Era
Medieval
Battle Type
Naval Engagement
Location
Pembrokeshire, Wales
Status
Unregistered
The Combatants

Who Fought

Defeated
Owain Lawgoch's French fleet
Forces
English/Welsh coastal defenders: forces indeterminate.
VS
Victor
Indecisive (invasion never reached Wales)
Forces
Owain Lawgoch's French fleet: c. 3,000–5,000 men
Outcome
French-backed Welsh invasion fleet twice turned back; Owain assassinated 1378
The Battle

History & Significance

Owain Lawgoch ("Red Hand"), great-nephew of Llywelyn the Last and the legitimate Welsh dynastic claimant, served the French crown and twice launched invasion fleets aimed at Wales (1369, 1372). Both were diverted by strategic necessity. He was eventually assassinated in 1378 by an English spy, John Lamb, while besieging Mortagne in France. Had he landed, Wales might have risen — he had real dynastic legitimacy. His story is the forgotten prologue to Glyndŵr's rebellion a generation later.

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