
Cynon of Gloucester (died 1 November 876) was the Mercian Ealdorman of Gloucestershire from 1 November 856 to 1 November 876, succeeding Simkin and preceding Tewdwr.
Biography[]

Cynon at the Samhain festival in 876
Cynon was born in Gloucester, Gloucestershire, England (then part of Mercia) to a family of Saxonized Britons, and he was raised in the syncretic Christian-Celtic pagan culture dominant in Gloucester during the early Middle Ages. He succeeded Ealdorman Simkin of Gloucester after he sacrificed himself in the "Wicker Man" during Samhain (1 November) in 856, and, at Simkin's sacrifice, he fell in love with the witch Modron. He took part in one of her fertility rituals, resulting in the birth of an illegitimate daughter, Gweyndd. Cynon was a popular rulre who was welcoming to both Christians and pagans, but his designated successor, Tewdwr, was a Christian zealot who resolved to abolish the Samhain festival once he came to power. As a result, Cynon planned to assassinate Tewdwr before he sacrificed himself at the Samhain festival in 876, and he would place his lover Modron on the throne to ensure that the unity of Gloucester's pagan and Christian inhabitants would remain intact. On 31 October, Cynon ordered Gwilim to assassinate Tewdwr and frame the murder on the Viking warrior Eivor, who had come to Gloucester to meet with his blacksmith Gunnar and his new wife Brigid before they came back to Ravensthorpe with him. Gwilim drugged Eivor and kidnapped Tewdwr, making it seem as if Tewdwr was dead and Eivor was the murderer. Cynon then ordered a manhunt for Eivor to bring him to justice, while he made preparations for the sacrifice to go according to plan, and for Modron to succeed him as ruler of Gloucester.
Death[]

Cynon of Gloucester's death
However, Eivor discovered Gwilim's treachery after tracking him down to Thieves' Warren and finding that Tewdwr was still alive, and Gwilim revealed that he had been paid to "murder" Tewdwr by Cynon for unknown reasons. Eivor broke into St. Kenhelm's Church in Gloucester that same evening and confronted Cynon, who revealed his true reasons for the plot, telling Eivor that he wanted to ensure that Gloucester and his daughter (whose father was previously unknown to Eivor) had a future safe from Christian zealotry. Eivor told Cynon that Tewdwr had changed his ways since the assassination attempt and had become more tolerant, so a remorseful Cynon told Eivor that he could head to Modron's forest temple and stay her blade if he was not too late. Eivor decided to spare Cynon and leave him to his fate as a sacrificial victim rather than murder him and punish the people of Gloucester, and he rescued an unconscious Tewdwr and spared Modron as well, as he understood their fears and their reasons for the plot. Ultimately, Eivor, Modron, Tewdwr, and the others returned to Gloucester, where a regretful Cynon gave his farewells and climbed into the Wicker Man, with Tewdwr giving Eivor the honor of setting it on fire. Tewdwr then prayed aloud as the flames rose, but his prayers eventually turned to screams as he was engulfed by the flames and killed.