Llywelyn the Last killed at Cilmeri

December 11, 1282

Caught in the open by English forces during his uprising, the last independent Welsh prince was killed near Builth Wells, reportedly by a lone knight who did not recognize him. His head was sent to Edward I and displayed on a pike in London. Wales lost its native dynasty. The Welsh bards mourned him in verses that became the foundation of a national literature of loss and resistance.