Cadell ap Gruffydd was prince of the kingdom of Deheubarth in south west Wales.

Cadell was the son of Gruffydd ap Rhys

Gruffydd ap Rhys

Gruffydd ap Rhys was Prince of Deheubarth, in Wales. His sister was the Princess Nest ferch Rhys.-Early life:Following the death of Gruffydd's father Rhys ap Tewdwr in 1093, Deheubarth was taken over by the Normans, and Gruffydd spent much of his early years in exile in Ireland.In 1113 Gruffydd...

, who held part of the kingdom of Deheubarth with the remainder in the hands of various Norman

Normans

The Normans were the people who gave their name to Normandy, a region in northern France. They were descended from Norse Viking conquerors of the territory and the native population of Frankish and Gallo-Roman stock...

 lords. Gruffydd died in 1137 and Cadell's brother Anarawd ap Gruffydd

Anarawd ap Gruffydd

- Lineage :Anarawd was the eldest son of Gruffydd ap Rhys. On the death of his father in 1137 Anarawd took over the rule of Deheubarth.- Resistance :...

 took over the throne. Cadell first appears in the historical records the following year, when he helped his brother Anarawd and Owain Gwynedd

Owain Gwynedd

Owain Gwynedd ap Gruffydd , in English also known as Owen the Great, was King of Gwynedd from 1137 until his death in 1170. He is occasionally referred to as "Owain I of Gwynedd"; and as "Owain I of Wales" on account of his claim to be King of Wales. He is considered to be the most successful of...

 of Gwynedd

Kingdom of Gwynedd

Gwynedd was one petty kingdom of several Welsh successor states which emerged in 5th-century post-Roman Britain in the Early Middle Ages, and later evolved into a principality during the High Middle Ages. It was based on the former Brythonic tribal lands of the Ordovices, Gangani, and the...

 and his brother Cadwaladr ap Gruffydd

Cadwaladr ap Gruffydd

Cadwaladr ap Gruffydd was the third son of Gruffydd ap Cynan, King of Gwynedd, Wales and younger brother of Owain Gwynedd.-Appearance in history:...

 in an assault on Cardigan Castle

Cardigan Castle

Cardigan Castle is a castle located in Cardigan, Ceredigion, Wales.-History:The first motte-and-bailey castle was built a mile away from the present site, probably about the time of the founding of the town by Roger de Montgomery, a Norman baron....

.

In 1143 Anarawd was murdered by Cadwaladr's men, and Cadell took over as prince of Deheubarth, continuing the work Anarawd had started to win back the remainder of his grandfather's kingdom. In 1146 he captured the castles of Carmarthen

Carmarthen

Carmarthen is a community in, and the county town of, Carmarthenshire, Wales. It is sited on the River Towy north of its mouth at Carmarthen Bay. In 2001, the population was 14,648....

 and Llanstephan, and the following year defeated Walter Fitzwiz. In 1150 he turned north and reclaimed southern Ceredigion

Ceredigion

Ceredigion is a county and former kingdom in mid-west Wales. As Cardiganshire , it was created in 1282, and was reconstituted as a county under that name in 1996, reverting to Ceredigion a day later...

, which had been held for Gwynedd by Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd

Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd

Hywel ab Owain Gwynedd Wales Prince of Gwynedd in 1170, a Welsh poet and military leader. Hywel was the son of Owain Gwynedd, prince of Gwynedd, and an Irishwoman named Pyfog. In recognition of this, he was also known as Hywel ap Gwyddeles...

.

Cadell's career was effectively ended in 1151. When out hunting, he was attacked by a Norman force from Tenby

Tenby

Tenby is a walled seaside town in Pembrokeshire, South West Wales, lying on Carmarthen Bay.Notable features of Tenby include of sandy beaches; the 13th century medieval town walls, including the Five Arches barbican gatehouse ; 15th century St...

, who left him assuming him to be dead. In fact he survived, but was so badly injured as to be unable to resume his activities. In 1153 he left on a pilgrimage to Rome

Rome

Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...

, leaving the rule of Deheubarth to his younger brothers Maredudd

Maredudd ap Gruffydd

Maredudd ap Gruffydd was a prince of the kingdom of Deheubarth in south west Wales.Maredudd was the eldest son of Gruffydd ap Rhys by Gwenllian ferch Gruffydd, though he had two older half-brothers, Anarawd and Cadell. He was only six years old when his mother and then his father were killed...

 and Rhys

Rhys ap Gruffydd

Rhys ap Gruffydd or ap Gruffudd was 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...

. Cadell is not heard of again until 1175, when he entered the abbey of Strata Florida

Strata Florida Abbey

Strata Florida Abbey Flowers. Ystrad corrupts into Strata, while Fflur is the name of the nearby river. After the region around St. David's was firmly occupied by the Norman Marcher lordship of Pembroke by the early 12th century, with St...

after a long illness and died there.