The English Monarchy in Wales

KING Edward I conquered Wales in 1282 when the last Welsh prince, Llewelyn ap Gruffydd ab Llewelyn, was killed by an English soldier. Llewelyn’s head was cut off and sent to Edward. The immediate effect of the death of Llywelyn was the Statute of Rhuddlan in 1284 by which Edward I formally annexed Wales to the English crown and, amongst other things, forbade Welshmen from taking up a craft in the municipal boroughs, effectively cutting off Welsh people from the higher incomes which were reserved for the conquering English. 
During the 15th century Wales still retained its separateness in that it had only partly been a Feudal society and the organisation of Welsh administration was still that of pre-conquest days. Wales had been annexed to the lands of the English monarchy, but still had an economy and society which was different to that of England.
The 15th century saw the Tudor family, which had Welsh connections, take the throne of England when Henry VII, with distant ancestors from Wales, defeated Richard III at Boswell, in 1485.The success of the Tudors was based on Henry’s Army, raised in Pembrokeshire. This tied Welsh lords to an alien monarchy, causing them to finally throw in their lot with England. While Henry VII saw no need to change political structures, Henry VIII revolutionised the Medieval English state and incorporated Wales into it. This work was largely inspired by Thomas Cromwell, Henry VIII’s chief minister between 1532 and 1540. The purpose was to strengthen the power of the Tudor monarchy and inevitably led to the Acts of Union of 1536 and 1542.
An English parliament, without any representatives from Wales, passed the Acts which “incorporated, united and annexed” Wales to England. It transformed the lordships into 13 counties, introducing Justices of the Peace and giving Wales representation in Parliament, but with less representatives per shire and borough than in England. Wales had already been dominated by English law, but the Acts went further and ruled that “all justices...shall proclaim and keep...all...courts in the English tongue; .no person or persons that use the Welsh speech or language shall have...any office...within this realm of England, Wales or over the king’s Dominion...unless he or they use and exercise the English speech or language”. 
From that point on, the English monarchy ruled Wales as if it was part of England. In the last seven hundred years, we have had 21 Princes of Wales, six of them dying before they could become King. The longest wait to become King was 60 years for Albert, son of Queen Victoria, while the shortest reign as King was King Edward VIII who lasted from Jan.20th, 1936, to Dec 10th when he abdicated. The Present Prince has waited 44 years to become King and it is worth asking if he will make it before the monarchy is abolished.

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