Which Welsh prince is associated with the grass-eating incident involving Henry II?

• A. Rhys ap Gruffydd
• B. Llywelyn the Great
• C. Owain Glyndwr
• D. Gruffudd ap Llywelyn

Answer: (A)

The question tests knowledge of a famous medieval Welsh anecdote about Henry II and a Welsh prince, used to illustrate how Welsh rulers navigated English power. The grass-eating incident is a legend tied to Rhys ap Gruffydd, the Lord Rhys, a powerful prince of Deheubarth in the 12th century. Chroniclers recount a dramatic moment in which Rhys used a symbolic gesture involving grass to demonstrate hospitality, defiance, or a particular stance toward Henry II during the king’s campaign in Wales. This association with the episode makes Rhys ap Gruffydd the most fitting answer, given his prominence in Henry II’s Welsh affairs and the time period of the anecdote.

The other figures come from different eras or contexts and aren’t linked to this specific tale: Llywelyn the Great is a later Welsh prince who played a major role in resisting English expansion but isn’t the figure in this grass-eating episode; Gruffudd ap Llywelyn is from an earlier century, before the Norman-era encounters with Henry II; Owain Glyndŵr is a much later figure leading a 15th-century uprising.