Owain Ddantgwyn

Owain Ddantgwyn (Owain with the White Teeth) (? - 517?) was a king of Rhôs, small kingdom of the Wales, and perhaps also of the Gwynedd. He was the son of Einion the Impetuous and father of Cuneglas. It may be that it occupied in a very episodical way the throne of Gwynedd during the interègne Cadwallon/Maelgwn before being assassinated by this last.

One knows almost nothing of this king, but certain historians advance that by considering a series of disconcerting coincidences, it could have been true the King Arthur. It is the theory which David Sims supports while advancing in particular that he lived exactly at the good time and was occis by its nephew Maelgwyn (which could thus have been Mordred, the incestueux son and assassin of Arthur).

In Rhôs moreover three sites are being called “Camlan” who was according to the tradition the name of the place where Arthur and Mordred fought their ultimate battle. In addition, his/her Cuneglas son (or Cynlas Goch in Welsh) was made call “the son of the Bear” by Saint Gildas in the chronicle of this last. However “Arthur” could as well come from the Celtic root “ Arz ” as of Latin “ Arctos ” or “ Arctus ” or “ Artorius ” which means all “bears”.

Let us add finally that the father of Owain had as a nickname “ Yrth ” (the Impetuous one) which could have given “ Yrthr ” (either “ Uther ”). Lastly, the head of the royal household of Gwynedd carried the title of PEN Draig is “dragon Chief” because Gwynedd was regarded as the most powerful kingdom of Great Britain at the time. Einion the Impetuous one could thus in all logic have been called Yrthr PEN Draig what would have given Uther Pendragon, which was in the legend the father of king Arthur.

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