Through a case study of the Salesbury family of Rhug and Bachymbyd between c.1475 and c.1660, this thesis examines how the early modern Welsh gentry established and retained their status and Welsh identity. The thesis uses the example of the Salesburys to challenge the current perception of an Anglicised gentry society in early modern Wales, particularly after the Acts of Union (1536 and 1543) with England, and argues that a Welsh identity remained fundamental to the gentry’s status in early modern Wales. The thesis incorporates a substantial proportion of the Salesbury family’s history, beginning with the earliest leases of the Bachymbyd estate in the 1470s and ending with the death of William Salesbury in 1660, who divided the family estates between his two sons. Encompassing a number of decades before and after the Acts of Union, and including significant events such as the Reformation and the English Civil War, the thesis analyses how a period of major political, social and economic change affected the Salesburys’ sense of status and identity. The thesis draws on six interconnected main themes to present concepts of gentility and Welshness which are multifaceted in nature. It begins by considering the Salesburys’ kinship relations and the importance of lineage to the Welsh gentry. Next, it looks at the Salesburys’ estates as a key part of their identity and a vital connection with their ancestors. The thesis then assesses officeholding and local politics to understand how the Salesburys engaged with central, English government while remaining rooted in their own Welsh communities. Building on local politics, the thesis next examines social relations and how the Salesburys navigated the circles of patronage in early modern society. This included maintaining a plaid, or retinue, a group of usually monolingual Welsh-speaking tenants, servants, and kin who supported the head of the family in his rivalries with other gentry families. After considering social relations, the thesis includes a detailed case study of the Salesbury plaid as described in a Star Chamber suit between two Salesbury siblings and also assesses the role of widows in the family. The thesis finishes with an analysis of the Salesburys’ cultural influences, using the linked themes of education, scholarship, and religion. These demonstrate how the Salesburys continued to engage in Welsh cultural practices and Welsh-language scholarship. Using a broad range of primary source material in English, Welsh, and Latin, and analysing the myriad aspects of gentry life in early modern Wales, the thesis presents a case study which confirms the uniqueness of the Welsh gentry as a distinct social class, while also providing a novel analysis of how they maintained their status and Welsh identity within a rapidly changing world. To use a contemporary phrase, the Salesburys were ‘Cambro-Britons’, a gentry family who valued their Welshness and their engagement with a wider British state.