Reginald acquired Wilton barony through his marriage to the heiress, Matilda Cantilupe before 1252, although at the time he was a minor under the tutelage of his father, John de Gray.
Later he was High Sheriff of Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and the Royal Forests and Constable of Chester Castle, Constable of Nottingham Castle (1265) and Constable of Northampton Castle (1267).
He was Justice of Chester in 1270 and High Sheriff of Cheshire (1270–1274). In 1281 he was again Justice of Chester.
In 1282, he was one the three commanders appointed by Edward I of England in his campaign against Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, the rebellious Prince of Wales.
This resulted in his being granted the Dyffryn Clwyd with its castle of Ruthin Castle.
He fought at the Battle of Falkirk 1298
This great lordship passed to his descendants, until Richard Grey, 6th Baron Grey de Ruthyn, 3rd Earl of Kent sold the lordship to the crown in 1508.
He was summoned to Parliament from 1295 to 1307.
His younger grandson Roger de Grey was summoned to Parliament thus becoming Baron Grey de Ruthyn. Wikipedia
He bought the Manor of Thurrock, Essex, renamed Thurrock Grey, from Isaac the Jew. Before 1201 he held th emanor of Codnor, Derby, and in 1216 he was granted the Manor of Grimston, Nottinghamshire.
A Welsh Prince who ruled part of the Kingdom of Deheubarth. Rhys was the fourth son of Rhys ap Gruffydd (The Lord Rhys) and his wife Gwenllian, daughter of Madog ap Maredudd of Powys. He married Mathilde, the daughter of Richard de Clare, 3rd Earl of Hertford. In Rhys ap Gruffydd's old age he had a great deal of trouble keeping control of his sons, and a bitter feud broke out between Gruffydd ap Rhys II and Maelgwn ap Rhys. Rhys Gryg formed an alliance with Gruffydd against Maelgwn, then in 1195 joined with another brother, Maredudd, in a conspiracy against their father and captured Dinefwr Castle. Their father however retaliated by capturing both of them and imprisoning them in Ystrad Meurig Castle.
Rhys Gryg reappears in 1204. Rhys ap Gruffydd had died in 1197 and Rhys Gryg's ally Gruffydd in 1201 and Maelgwn had taken possession of most of Deheubarth. In 1204 Rhys made an alliance with Gruffydd's sons, Rhys and Owain, and drove Maelgwn out of Ystrad Tywi which was then shared between them, with Rhys Gryg getting the Cantref Mawr. By 1211 Rhys had fallen out with his nephews, who were supporters of Llywelyn the Great and intervened on behalf of King John of England, attacking and capturing Llandovery from them with the help of English Royal troops. After John has forced Llywelyn to give up all his conquests outside the core area of Gwynedd, Rhys joined with Maelgwn to eject his nephews from the remainder of their lands. However when King John built a castle at Aberystwyth, Rhys and Maelgwn changed sides, attacked the castle and burnt it. In 1212 Rhys attacked and burnt Swansea.
The sons of Gruffydd ap Rhys, Rhys and Owain, had now made their peace with King John and gone over to the English Royal side. In 1213 and English army led by Falkes of Breauté was sent to strip Rhys Gryg of his lands and give them to his nephews. Rhys was defeated in a battle at Llandeilo and was forced to flee to Ceredigion to seek the protection of his brother Maelgwn. Later in the year he was captured by the English and imprisoned at Carmarthen.
In 1215 however the sons of Gruffydd ap Rhys turned against the king and made an alliance with their uncle Maelgwn. The English released Rhys Gryg in the hope that he would start a civil war but instead Rhys joined forces with Llywelyn the Great, and he, along with Maelgwn and the sons of Gruffydd ap Rhys were with Llywelyn in the attack which captured many castles in South Wales in December that year. At the parliament held by Llywelyn at Aberdovey in 1216, Rhys Gryg was allocated Cantref Mawr and Cantref Bychan and other lands.
Rhys supported Llywelyn during the remainder of his career. In the war of 1231 he joined with his brother Maelgwn's son, Maelgwn the Younger, to burn Cardigan and then capture the castle for Llywelyn. In 1234 he joined with Maelgwn Fychan again to attack Carmarthen, but received wounds of which he died at Llandeilo Fawr shortly afterwards.
He was buried in St. David's Cathedral and was succeeded by his son Maredudd. He left another son known as Rhys Mechyll (d.1244), who had a son named Rhys Fychan ap Rhys Mechyll and a daughter named Gwenllian Mechyll, who eventually became his heiress and married Gilbert Talbot (d.1274), grandfather of Gilbert Talbot, 1st Baron Talbot (d.1345/6). The ancient arms of the House of Dinefwr Gules, a lion rampant or within a bordure or were inherited and assumed in lieu of the Talbot paternal arms as "arms of alliance" on marriage to a great princess.
The ruler of the kingdom of Deheubarth in south Wales. He is commonly known as The Lord Rhys, in Welsh Yr Arglwydd Rhys, but this title may not have been used in his lifetime. He usually used the title "Proprietary Prince of Deheubarth" or "Prince of South Wales", but two documents have been preserved in which he uses the title "Prince of Wales" or "Prince of the Welsh". Rhys was one of the most successful and powerful Welsh princes, and after the death of Owain Gwynedd of Gwynedd in 1170 was the dominant power in Wales.
Rhys's grandfather, Rhys ap Tewdwr, was king of Deheubarth, and was killed at Brecon in 1093 by Bernard de Neufmarche. Following his death, most of Deheubarth was taken over by the Normans. Rhys's father, Gruffydd ap Rhys, was eventually able to become ruler of a small portion, and more territory was won back by Rhys's older brothers after Gruffydd's death. Rhys became ruler of Deheubarth in 1155. He was forced to submit to King Henry II of England in 1158. Henry invaded Deheubarth in 1163, stripped Rhys of all his lands and took him prisoner. A few weeks later he was released and given back a small part of his holdings. Rhys made an alliance with Owain Gwynedd and after the failure of another invasion of Wales by Henry in 1165 was able to win back most of his lands.
In 1171 Rhys made peace with King Henry and was confirmed in possession of his recent conquests as well as being named Justiciar of South Wales. He maintained good relations with King Henry until the latter's death in 1189. Following Henry's death Rhys revolted against Richard I and attacked the Norman lordships surrounding his territory, capturing a number of castles. In his later years Rhys had trouble keeping control of his sons, particularly Maelgwn and Gruffydd, who maintained a feud with each other. Rhys launched his last campaign against the Normans in 1196 and captured a number of castles. The following year he died unexpectedly and was buried in St David's Cathedral.
Rhys was the second son of Gruffydd ap Rhys, ruler of part of Deheubarth, and Gwenllian ferch Gruffydd, daughter of Gruffydd ap Cynan, king of Gwynedd. His elder brother was Maredudd ap Gruffydd, and there were two younger brothers, Morgan and Maelgwn. He also had two older half-brothers, Anarawd and Cadell, and at least two sisters, Gwladus and Nest.
Rhys married Gwenllian verch Madog, daughter of Madog ap Maredudd, the last Prince of all Powys.
His grandfather, Rhys ap Tewdwr, had been king of all Deheubarth until his death in 1093. Rhys ap Tewdwr was killed in Brycheiniog, and most of his kingdom was taken over by Norman lords. Gruffydd ap Rhys was forced to flee to Ireland. He later returned to Deheubarth and ruled a portion of the kingdom, but was forced to flee to Ireland again in 1127. When Rhys was born in 1132, his father held only the commote of Caeo in Cantref Mawr.
In April 1197 Rhys died unexpectedly and was buried in St David's Cathedral. Rhys died excommunicate, having quarreled with the Bishop of St. David's, Peter de Leia, over the theft of some of the bishop's horses some years previously. Before he could be buried in the cathedral, the bishop had his corpse scourged in posthumous penance. Rhys had nominated his eldest legitimate son, Gruffydd ap Rhys, as his successor, and soon after his father's death Gruffydd met the Justiciar, Archbishop Hubert Walter, on the border and was confirmed as heir. Maelgwn, the eldest son but illegitimate, refused to accept this and was given military assistance by Gwenwynwyn ab Owain of Powys. Maelgwn took the town and castle of Aberystwyth and captured Gruffydd, whom he handed over to the custody of Gwenwynwyn. Gwenwynwyn later handed him over to the king, who imprisoned him at Corfe Castle. Gruffydd was set free the following year and regained most of Ceredigion. In 1201 Gruffydd died, but this did not end the fighting between rival claimants. In 1216 Llywelyn the Great of Gwynedd held a council at Aberdyfi where he allocated parts of Deheubarth to several sons and grandsons of Rhys.
Rhys had at least nine sons and eight daughters. Confusingly, three of the sons were named Maredudd and two of the daughters were named Gwenllian.
Gruffydd ap Rhys II (died 1201) was the eldest legitimate son and was nominated by Rhys as his successor. He married Matilda de Braose, the daughter of Maud de Braose.
Maelgwn ap Rhys (died 1231), who was the eldest son but illegitimate, refused to accept Gruffydd as his father's successor. A bitter feud developed between the two, with several of Rhys's other sons becoming involved.
Rhys Gryg (died 1233) married a daughter of the Earl of Clare. Rhys eventually became the main power in Deheubarth, but never ruled more than a portion of his father's realm and was a client prince of Llywelyn the Great of Gwynedd.
Hywel ap Rhys (died 1231) spent many years as a hostage at the court of Henry II and on his return became known as Hywel Sais (Hywel the Saxon, i.e. Englishman).
Maredudd ap Rhys (died 1239) was also given as a hostage, but was less fortunate than Hywel. He was blinded by King Henry after the failure of the invasion of Wales in 1165, and became known as Maredudd Ddall (Maredudd the Blind). He ended his days as a monk at Whitland Abbey.
Another Maredudd (died 1227) became Archdeacon of Cardigan. His daughter Gwenllian ferch Rhys married Rhodri ab Owain, prince of the western part of Gwynedd.
Another Gwenllian (died 1236) married Ednyfed Fychan, seneschal of Gwynedd under Llywelyn the Great, and through her Rhys became an ancestor of the Tudor dynasty. Through the Tudors inter-marrying with the House of Stuart Rhys is an ancestor to the current ruling house of the United Kingdom and also an ancestor of several ruling houses in Europe.
Angharad ferch Rhys married William FitzMartin, lord of Cemais.
Other daughters married the Welsh rulers of Gwrtheyrnion and Elfael.
When Henry Tudor landed in Pembrokeshire, Wales in 1485 to make a bid for the throne, his descent from Rhys was one of the factors which enabled him to attract Welsh support (Henry flew a (Welsh) dragon banner at the battle of Bosworth Field).
Much much more at Wikipedia
Princess-consort of Deheubarth in Wales, and married to Gruffydd ap Rhys, Prince of Deheubarth. Gwenllian was the daughter of Gruffydd ap Cynan (1055–1137), Prince of Gwynedd, and a member of the princely Aberffraw family of Gwynedd. Gwenllian was the sister of Prince Owain Gwynedd (died 1170). Gwenllian's "patriotic revolt" and subsequent death in battle at Kidwelly Castle contributed to the Great Revolt of 1136.
Gwenllian was the youngest daughter of Gruffudd ap Cynan, Prince of Gwynedd and his wife Angharad. She was born in 1097 on Ynys Môn at the family seat at Aberffraw, and was the youngest of eight children; four older sisters, Mared, Rhiannell, Susanna and Annest, and three older brothers, Cadwallon, Owain and Cadwaladr. Gwenllian grew to be strikingly beautiful, and after Gruffydd ap Rhys, the Prince of Deheubarth, ventured to Gwynedd around 1113 to meet her father. She and Deheubarth's prince became romantically involved and eloped.
Gwenllian joined her husband at his family seat of Dinefwr in Deheubarth. Deheubarth was struggling against the Norman invasion in south Wales, with Norman, English, and Flemish colonists in footholds throughout the country. While the conflict between the Normans and the Welsh continued, the princely family were often displaced, with Gwenllian joining her husband in mountainous and forested strongholds. From here, she and Gruffydd ap Rhys led retalitory strikes against Norman-held positions in Deheubarth.
By 1136 an opportunity arose for the Welsh to recover lands lost to the Marcher lords when Stephen de Blois displaced his cousin Empress Matilda from succeeding her father to the English throne the year prior, sparking the Anarchy in England. The usurpation and conflict it caused eroded central authority in England. The revolt began in south Wales, as Hywel ap Maredudd, lord of Brycheiniog (Brecknockshire), gathered his men and marched to the Gower, defeating the Norman and English colonists there at the Battle of Llwchwr. Inspired by Hywel of Brycheiniog's success, Gruffydd ap Rhys hastened to meet with Gruffudd ap Cynan of Gwynedd, his father-in-law, to enlist his aid in the revolt.
While her husband was in Gwynedd seeking an alliance with her father against the Normans, Maurice of London and other Normans led raids against Deheubarth's Welsh and Gwenllian was compelled to raise an army for their defence. In a battle fought near Kidwelly Castle, Gwenllian's army was routed, she was captured and beheaded by the Normans. In the battle her son Morgan was also slain and another son, Maelgwyn captured and executed.
Though defeated, her patriotic revolt inspired others in south Wales to rise. The Welsh of Gwent, led by Iowerth ab Owain (grandson of Caradog ap Gruffydd, Gwent's Welsh ruler displaced by the Norman invasions), ambushed and slew Richard Fitz Gilbert, the Norman lord who controlled Ceredigion.
When word reached Gwynedd of Gwenllain's death and the revolt in Gwent, Gwenllian's brothers Owain and Cadwaladr invaded Norman controlled Ceredigion, taking Llanfihangel, Aberystwyth, and Llanbadarn.
Gwenllian's actions can be compared to another Celtic leader: Boadicea. This is the only known example of a medieval period woman leading a Welsh army into battle. The field where the battle is believed to have taken place, close to Kidwelly Castle and north of the town, is known as Maes Gwenllian (Welsh, meaning 'Field of Gwenllian'). A spring in the field is also named after her, supposedly welling up on the spot where she died. For centuries after her death, Welshmen cried-out Revenge for Gwenllian when engaging in battle. Gwenllian and her husband also harassed Norman, English, and Flemish colonists in Deheubarth, taking goods and money and redistributed them among the Deheubarth Welsh who were themselves dispossessed by those colonizers, like a pair of Robin Hoods of Wales, as historian and author Philip Warner writes. Gwenllian's youngest son went on to become a notable leader of Deheubarth, The Lord Rhys.
Gwenllian ferch Gruffydd is best known for her patriotic revolt and death in a battle near Kidwelly Castle in 1136. She was the daughter of Gruffydd ap Cynan, Prince of Gwynedd and Angharad ferch Owain. The youngest of eight children, she was born in 1097 at Ynys Môn. In 1113 Gruffydd ap Rhys, the Prince of Deheubarth, visited her father and the result of this meeting had an unforeseen outcome - Gwenllian and Rhys eloped. However the story isn't as romantic as it first sounds. Deheubarth was struggling against the Norman invasion of south Wales, and although she joined her husband at his family seat Dinefwr, they often led retaliatory strikes against Norman held positions, which included harassing the population settlements of the invaders and taking hold of their wealth and possessions which was then handed back to the dispossessed Welsh.
By 1136 the situation in England had altered markedly. In December 1135 Henry I of England died and, acting with a resoluteness that belied his usually easygoing nature, Stephen of Blois had snatched the crown from Henry's heir Matilda, the Empress. His actions set in place the beginnings of a 19 year civil war in England called The Anarchy. Meanwhile back in south Wales Hywel ap Maredudd, Lord of Brycheiniog, seized on this distraction gathered his army and defeated the Norman forces in the Battle of Llwchwr. Apparently inspired by Hywel's success, Gruffydd ap Rhys journeyed to Gwynedd to meet with Gwenllian's father in the hope of forging an alliance with Gruffudd ap Cynan against the Normans. It was during his absence that Maurice of London led Norman raids against Deheubarth which compelled Gwenllian to raise an army for its defence.
The battle was fought in a field near Kidwelly Castle in Gwent, and by its end Gwenllian's army had been routed. One of her sons, Morgan, was slain and another, Maelgwyn, captured and executed. Her own fate was to be captured and beheaded - a heroic but tragic end to the romance that began her marriage to Rhys. Gwenllian's death wasn’t to be the end of it however. Her brothers Owain and Cadwaladr invaded Ceredigion and took Llanfihangel, Aberystwyth, and Llanbadarn. Iowerth ab Owain of Gwent ambushed and killed Richard Fitz Gilbert de Clare, the Norman lord who controlled Ceredigion. By late September 1136 the combined forces of Gwynedd, Deheubarth, and Powys had gathered in Ceredigion, and in the Battle of Crug Mawr inflicted a resounding defeat on the Norman army.
In the field near Kidwelly, known as Maes Gwenllian (Field of Gwenllian) a spring which is said to have welled up on the spot where she was beheaded is named after her. Her defence of Deheubarth is the only known record of a woman from the medieval period leading a Welsh army into battle.