The white lady should have disposed of Rhys ap Thomas and the Weasel when she had the chance….!

Here we have another old manor house with a ghostie (a white lady). The house “….is said to have once been owned by Tudor knight Sir Rhys ap Thomas. It is thought that Sir Rhys and Derwydd Mansion provided accommodation for Henry Tudor, as well as 5,000 Welsh soldiers added to Henry’s growing army, as he travelled to Bosworth in Leicestershire in 1485….” What a pity the white lady didn’t get the bastards in their sleep!

Derwydd Manor is in the far southwest of Wales, so Henry Tudor was there not long after landing with his French force, which included some Lancastrian traitors. The above article states “….It is thought that Sir Rhys and Derwydd Mansion provided accommodation for Henry Tudor, as well as 5,000 Welsh soldiers added to Henry’s growing army, as he travelled to Bosworth….”

Well, according to this site it’s estimated Henry Tudor’s army at Bosworth comprised around 6,000 men, of whom 2,000 were French.

He eventually gained the forces of the turncoat Stanleys, but that was during the battle when they betrayed Richard III. Thomas Stanley’s force was around 3,000 and Sir William Stanley commanded some 1,000 men.

Right. According to this other site The Battle of Bosworth – History Learning Site Tudor only had 2,000 men when he landed in Pembroke. So this confirms that his force was indeed almost entirely French. Foreign invaders. If Rhys ap Thomas then provided him with 5,000 men, that means Tudor left Derwydd Manor with 7,000 men.

We’re told that he garnered many more as he marched through Wales. If he fought at Bosworth with only 6,000, what happened to these extra men? Not only that, how did he also manage to lose 1,000 between Derwydd and Bosworth. The many newbies we’re told he collected on the way to the battle seem to have become wills-o’-the-wisp? Something doesn’t add up, that’s for sure.

I have to say that dull grey render does the house no favours. It looks neglected and (to me) in need of TLC, although the interior seems to be well-presented if not to my particular taste. But having a great interior isn’t much good if the exterior is disintegrating, which I have to say this seems to be.  Such a shame. Although perhaps photographs are deceptive.

Maybe the house has never really recovered from the unpleasant experience of having the Weasel and Rhys ap Thomas under its roof. It would be bad enough to have them there singly, but together? 😲 Oh, well, the resident white lady ghost seems to like unmarried men. What her intentions are no one knows, but the Weasel was a bachelor in 1485….