| Notes |
- From Here to Antiquity by Richard Woodville at: <<http://awt.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=:2664606&id=I663>>
The following sources have been used to trace the continuing line of Mathew. "Genealogy of the Earls of Llandaff"; "LDS records"; "Glamorgan Pedigrees"; Welsh Genealogies"
Sir Dafydd ap Mathew was born abt. 1400 in Llandaff Court, Glamorgan, Wales and died 1484 in Neath. Married abt. 1428 in Llandaff to Wenllian Herbert who was born 1411 in Aberqavenny, Gwent Uwch Coed, Monmouthshire, England and daughter of George Herbert of Chapel and sister to Gwilim Llwyd who married Wenllian David of Rhiwperra.
Sir Knight Dafydd Mathew
Sir David ap Mathew, buried at St. Mary's, Llandaff, Glamorgan, Wales. GGGG-son of Louis VI of France. Family line of Llandaff Court; Radyr; Dodbroke Co. Devon and of Teesenger and Pennytenny Co., Cornwall. Owned 2,232 acres of land from Henry VI in St. Fagan's and Pentyrch, Wales. His tomb, ornamented with his full length figure in alabaster, in St. Mary's Chapel, of the venerable cathedral of Llandaff, (which has ever since been the property and burial place of the family of Mathew) is one of the most interesting extant monuments of that time. An accurate description of the various monuments of the family in this chapel may be found in willis's cathedral of Llandaff, in the British Museum). "The Genealogy of the Earls of Llandaff Note-I have no idea why, in this book, the title is spelled thus: "Landaff" as well as any mentions of the Earldom of Landaff, while in the text, mentions of the Cathedral of Llandaff, as well as other references to Llandaff as a place in Wales, invariably spell it "Llandaff"), which has a picture of the tomb of Sir David, has the following to say about him: "Sir David ab Mathew", Lord of Llandaff, Seneschal of the Cathedral, saved the life of Edward IV, at the Battle of Towton, Palm Sunday, March 14, 1461, and by His Majesty was created Grand Standard-Bearer of all England. He was a great and zealous Yorkist cheiftain, whose extraordinary prowess and daring in the field, even at a very advanced age, were, contrarily to the majority of his countrymen, who favoured the Red Rose of Lancaster, used on behalf of the White Rose of York. He was murdered by one of the Tubervilles in a riot at Neath in 1484 and buried in Llandaff Cathedral, where his altar tomb may be still be seen, the effigy of him thereon measuring 6 ft. 7 in., said to have been his height. Sir David was one of the Ten Great Barons of Glamorgan, and a Marcher Lord. He received from Edward IV, the grant of the use of the word "Towton" as an augmentation over his crest.
In 1480 he restored the shrine of St. Teilo which had been pillaged and descreated by a gang of pirates from Bristol, and was presented by Bishop Marshall with St. Teilo's skull, set in a costly reliquary, to be an heirloom in his family, who carefully preserved it for about 200 years, until the death of William Mathew in 1658 at Llandeilo. Sir David was the first to adopt the surname of Mathew.
Arms of Sir David Mathew - Sable a lion rempant argent (adopted in honour of the White Rose). Crest - a blackcock proper.. Motto - Fyn Duw A Fydd. What God Willeth Wil Be.
Notes from the "Red Dragon" magazine:
An effigy of alabaster in Llandaff Cathedral, bearing date A.D. 1480 (or 1490, the broken numerals make it difficult to say), measuring six feet seven inches, is said to represent the exact life-size of Sir David Mathew, reputed as a man of splendid build and stature, using the two handed sword with amazing power. He was one of the ten great Barons of Glamorgan; a Marcher Lord, and therefore bound to receive his summons to arms only from the King and not from any Welsh potentate. He was an eminent Yorkist leader, and it is said changed his armorial bearing of the old sable lion of Gwaithvoed to a silver or white lion, in honour of the White Rose. Whether it was in recognition of their services in the Yorkist cause we cannot say, but in 1459, Sir David Mathew and Sir John Neville received conjointly the grant of the Crown Manors of Glaspool and Peterston-on-Ely, in the reign of Henry VII. It is also said that Sir David received a gift of lands from King Edward IV., whose life he had saved on the battle field of Towton, but we have not yet been able to find the Royal Charter conferring such gift. Other gifts of land he, however, received, some of which were settled first on the line of his third son Thomas, and failing him, on Reynbourn, who ranked as eldest son of Sir David. John, the eldest, having been slain at that same battle of Towton, fought on Palm Sunday, 1461, leaving an only daughter, an infant, we here hazard the conjecture that this bestowal of lands, or a similar circumstance, gave occasion for the motto adopted, but not in ariably used, by the Llandaff branch, "Not a gift, but an inheritance; an inheritance is better than a gift." This motto was often used by the Admiral Thomas Mathews, and the impression from his seal containing it, is sharp and clear on some of the old deeds. We need not continue to trace the house of Llandaff. A full pedigree from Gwaithvoed, 1055, to the second Reynbourn, A.D. 1615, may be found in the British Museum, Harleian, MSS., Press Number 2283, pg. 68. Four generations of this line took rank as Barons of Glamorgan. But, the old feudal baronages at length gave way to a new order of things; the Lords Llandaff were no longer summoned to bring "horse and arms." Titles by writ of summons were not an serving as High Sheriff of Glamorgan, appears only as "Miles Mathew, Esq..
A curious old Yorkist ballad makes reference to the banners of Neville and Mathew thus -
"The way into the North Countrie,
The Rose full fast he sought,
With him went the Ragged Staff - (Neville)
Which many men dere bought.
So then did the White Lyon (Mathew), full worthily he wrought,
Almightly Jesus bless his soul that through armes ought."
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Abt 1405 - 1484 (79 years)
