'Fitting tribute' as peak named after princess; Ceremony marks campaign success.

Byline: MARTIN WILLIAMS

A MOUNTAIN has been renamed in honour of a Welsh princess.

Carnedd Uchaf, a peak on the main ridge of the Carneddau range in Snowdonia, is now known as Carnedd Gwenllian following a campaign by the Princess Gwenllian Society.

Gwenllian was orphaned months after her birth in 1282 when father Llywelyn, the last ruling prince of Wales, was killed. Her mother died during her birth.

Wales came under the control of Edward I and Gwenllian, as heir to the Welsh throne, was snatched from her home, reputedly in her cradle, and taken to an abbey in Lincolnshire, where she was confined for the rest of her life.

Other mountains in the area are already named after her mother, father and uncle.

The national anthem was sung as dignitaries, including Elfyn Llwyd MP, gathered to mark the event on Saturday in Beaumaris.

Princess Gwenllian Society member Kathryn Pritchard Gibson, who lives in what is believed to be the house where Gwenllian was born, Pen y Bryn at Abergwyngregyn, said the renaming was a fitting tribute to the princess.

"It's good to remember somebody who was taken in that way and never allowed to have a life. She was just locked behind the world, never allowed out from that monastery," she said.

"The mountains here are named after her mother and father and uncle, so to rename another is a great tribute and almost brings her home in a way."

Society secretary Mallt Anderson added: "Gwenllian was Prince Llywelyn ap Gruffydd's only child, and on the orders of King Edward I, the little girl was taken as a one-year-old baby and imprisoned in an English convent - the Abbey at Sempringham, Lincolnshire, where she was kept until she died in 1337, aged 54. For 600 years Welsh history disappeared."

To avoid confusing mountain walkers, the old name will remain on maps in brackets.

The Ordnance Survey (OS) agreed to put Gwenllian on the map after a campaign by the society and consultation with groups such as the National Trust and Snowdonia National Park Authority.

OS spokesman Paul Beauchamp said: "Any changes to the map need to be carefully considered because they are relied on by the emergency services and mountain rescue teams to help find stranded climbers.

"As agreement has been reached, we are delighted to reflect the name change and to be playing a role in reuniting Princess Gwenllian with her father, mother and uncle among the peaks of her homeland."

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