Whitland Abbey was originally a Cambro-Norman foundation, but soon came under the control and patronage of Rhys ap Gruffudd, Prince of Deheubarth. It is related in the Welsh annals that Cadwaladr, brother of Owain Gwynedd, Prince of North Wales, during the disputes which arose between him and his nephews, the sons of Owain, entrusted the custody of his newly erected Cynvael Castle to the abbot of Ty Gwyn ar Taf, who defended it with obstinate valour against the assaults of the young princes by whom it was besieged. After a determined resistance, protracted till the walls of the castle were beaten down, and the whole of the garrison either slain or wounded, the abbot effected his escape from the ruins, through the assistance of some friends in the camp of the enemy, and retired into his monastery. It was at Whitland that Rhys's son, Maredudd, ended his days as a monk after he had been blinded by order of King Henry II of England when a hostage in England. It became an important cultural centre for south-west Wales and a strong supporter of the Welsh struggle to remain free of English domination. The monastery, which was dedicated to St Mary, and had an establishment of eight monks, continued to flourish till the dissolution, at which time its revenue was estimated at £153. 17. 2.; and its site was granted, in the 36th of Henry VIII, to Henry Audley and John Cordel. A forge was later established on the site, reputed to be the oldest in Carmarthenshire. This and the Victorian house built on the site came into the possession of the Yelverton family when William Henry Yelverton married the heiress of John Morgan, the previous owner. It later passed by marriage to the Blake family, who were given royal permission to adopt the additional name of Yelverton. When Major Anthony Blake, DSO MC Royal Ulster Rifles was killed in Korea in 1951 his widow sold the estate to a Mr. Legge after which the estate was sold piecemeal to local farmers. Of the royal palace of Ty Gwyn, which was comparatively a small building, designed chiefly for a hunting seat, no vestiges are discernible, only the grass-covered foundations of the walls. References Country houses in Carmarthenshire Christian monasteries established in the 12th century 940 10th-century establishments in Wales 10th century in Wales Cistercian monasteries in Wales 1140 establishments in Europe