pedigrees in
Theophilus
Jones
,
Hist. Brecknock
, 3rd ed., ii, 238-40, iv, 269-70. This family, though not originally belonging to the
Glanbrân
clan (see
Gwynne
of
Llanelwedd
), became later connected with it.
The surname ‘
Gwyn
’ first appears in the
Garth
family
c.
1545
. A
REES
GWYNNE
of
Garth
was
coroner of Brecknock
in the
17th cent.
, and had a son
MARMADUKE
GWYNNE
(
1643?
-
1712
), a careerist of the first water. He went up to
Gray's Inn
in
1665
, was ‘called’ in
1667
, and m. a daughter of
Peter
Gwilym
of
Glascwm, Rads.
, a
London
merchant
; she brought him £20,000. Returned
M.P.
for
Radnorshire
in
1680
, he escaped unseating only by the
Dissolution
of
1681
. In
1706
, he became
second justice of North-west Wales
, but was removed from office in
1708
. He was accused of corruption, and was certainly guilty of exceedingly sharp practice by which he acquired the manor of
Builth
and the greater part of the hundred of
Builth
(
W. R.
Williams
,
Welsh Judges
, 112). His son,
MARMADUKE
GWYNNE
(
1670
-
1702
) predeceased him, and his possessions passed to his daughter
MARY
GWYNNE
, who m.
HOWELL
GWYNNE
(d.
1708
), of a cadet branch of
Glanbrân
owning (besides land in
Monmouthshire
)
Tŷ-mawr
(
Llanfihangel Bryn Pabuan
) — a house built by
Thomas
Huet
(q.v.)
, and
Bryn-iouau
(variously spelt); it was thus that
Garth
was brought into the
Glanbrân
nexus. There appears to have been at this stage a family settlement:
Garth
and
Llanelwedd
(however
Llanelwedd
may have come to hand) went together to
Marmaduke
, the heir of this marriage, while the other estates went to the younger son,
RODBERICK
GWYNNE
(a misalignment at the top of page 270 in vol. iv of
Theophilus
Jones
, op. cit., has made nonsense of the pedigree at this point), who was destined in
1734
to become, by bequest, owner of
Glanbrân
itself.
The heir of
Garth
and
Llanelwedd
, as has just been said, was
MARMADUKE
GWYNNE
(
1694?
-
1769
). He entered
Jesus College
,
Oxford
5 May 1710
, aged sixteen, and
Lincoln's Inn
in
1711
, was
sheriff ofRadnorshire
in
1718
, and m.
Sarah
, daughter of
Daniel
Evans
of
Peterwell
(
Meyrick
,
Cardiganshire
, 2nd ed., 222). According to
Jackson
,
Life of Charles Wesley
, i, 514, she was one of six sisters, each of whom had £30,000. She and her husband certainly lived in great state at
Garth
, keeping a
chaplain
and twenty servants, and seldom having fewer than ten to fifteen guests staying at the house.
Gwynne
, for
that matter, is today remembered only for his connections with
Methodism
. We are told (
Life of Selina, Countess of Huntingdon
, i, 110-11) how his intention of arresting
Howel
Harris
was converted into a friendship with
Harris
, which in turn led to friendship with the
Wesleys
— the
Journals
of both brothers have frequent references to the family.
Marmaduke
Gwynne
favoured
Harris
's marriage with
Anne
Williams
of
Skreen
, and interceded with her father on
Harris
's behalf (see
T.L. 1172, 1180, 1184
at
N.L.W.
). He was at
John
Wesley
's second Conference (
Bristol
,
1745
), and his daughter
SARAH
GWYNNE
(
1726
-
1822
) in
1749
m.
Charles
Wesley
. After the marriage,
Gwynne
went to live at
Ludlow
; he d. in
1769
(
D.N.B.
, under
Wesley
,
Charles
);
Mrs.
Gwynne
was in
1771
living at
Park
, near
Builth
(see
Traf. Cymd. Hanes Bed.
,
1935
, 22-3). There were nine children, six daughters (names in pedigree 22 on page 248 of
Theophilus
Jones
, op. cit., iv — but the sixth name should be ‘
Margaret
,’ not ‘
Mary
’;
Charles
Wesley
speaks of her as ‘
Peggy
’) and three sons; two or three of the daughters appear to have been at times rather a trial to
Charles
. There would be little point in dwelling on the sons,
HOWELL
(d.
1780
),
MARMADUKE
(d.
1772
), and
RODERICK
(d.
1770
), further than to say that this
Marmaduke
's descendants became the ultimate heirs of his two brothers.
Garth
ceased to be the family residence, but there were
Gwynnes
at
Llanelwedd
in the present century.
Emeritus Professor Robert Thomas Jenkins, C.B.E., D.Litt., Ll.D.,
F.S.A., (1881-1969), Bangor
