;*Wct/
^ ^^
(-3
THE LIVES
OF
THE BRITISH SAINTS
They are all gone into the World of Light !
And I alone sit lingering here !
Their very memory is fair and bright
And my sad thoughts doth clear.
It glows and glitters in my cloudy breast,
Like stars upon some gloomy grove,
Or those faint beams in which this hill is drest
After the sun's remove.
I see them walking in an air of glory
Whose light doth trample on my days ;
My days, which are at best but dull and hoary,
Mere glimmering and decays.
HENRY VAUGHAN : Silex Scintillans, 1655.
THE LIVES
OF
THE BRITISH SAINTS
THE SAINTS OF WALES AND CORNWALL AND
SUCH IRISH SAINTS AS HAVE DEDICATIONS
IN BRITAIN
By
S. BARING-GOULD, M.A.,
AND
JOHN FISHER, B.D.
IN FOUR VOLUMES.
VOL. I.
t-Z Q
LONDON :
Published for the Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion
By CHARLES J. CLARK, 65, CHANCERY LANE, W.C.
1907
H>efcicatefc to tbc fl&emors of jfour [pioneers
in Celtic 1bacjiolocj.
To
The Rev. RICE REES, B.D., FELLOW OF JESUS COLLEGE, OXFORD, AND PRO-
FESSOR OF WELSH AT S. DAVID'S COLLEGE, LAMPETER.
NICOLAS ROSCARROCKop ROSCARROCK IN S. ENDELION'S, CORNWALL, GENT.
ALBERT LE GRAND, PRIEST OF THE ORDER OF PREACHERS, PROVOST OF
THE DOMINICAN CONVENT AT RENNES.
JOHN COLGAN, O.F.M., OF THE CONVENT OF S. ANTONY, LOUVAIN.
Q. A. P. D.
Aeterna fac, cum Sanctis Tuis, in gloria munerari.
Publishers' Note
THIS work, which is new, and entirely distinct from
The Lives of the Saints, by Mr. Baring-Gould, issued
in 1872-77, is published on the initiative, and under
the auspices of THE HONOURABLE SOCIETY OF
CYMMRODORION. The funds of the Society, not
being available for the purpose of producing a work
of this magnitude, the COUNCIL took the course of
instituting a Special Subscription Fund, to meet the
necessary heavy expense of printing and publication.
In response to their appeal a sufficient number of
subscribers were obtained to warrant a commence-
ment of the undertaking, and it is hoped that
further support will be forthcoming in order to
ensure the publication of the remaining volumes at
intervals of not more than six months. On behalf
of the Society, E. VINCENT EVANS, Secretary.
vi
Preface
IN treating of the Welsh, Cornish, and such Irish Saints as have left
their traces in Britain and Brittany, one is met with the difficulty
that there is no contemporary record of their lives and labours, and
that many of them had no such records left, or if left, they have
disappeared. Such Lives as do remain were composed late, at a time
when the facts had become involved in a mass of fable, and those
who wrote these Lives were more concerned to set down marvels
that never occurred than historic facts. In most cases, where this
is the case, all that can be done is to sift the narratives, and eliminate
what is distinctly fabulous, and establish such points as are genuinely
historical, as far as these may be determined, or determined approxi-
mately. It is a matter of profound regret that so many of these Saints
are nuda nomina, and, to us, little more. And yet what is known
of them deserves to be set down, for the fact of their names remaining
is evidence that they did exist, and did good work in their generation.
In 1330, Bishop Grandisson of Exeter had to lament that the
Lives or Legends of so many of the Saints to whom Churches in Devon,
and especially in Cornwall, had been dedicated were lost through
the neglect of the clergy, and he ordered that duplicates at I ^.st of
such as remained should be made, under penalty of a mark as fine
for neglect. Unhappily the collection then made has since disappeared.
Grandisson himself drew up a Legendarium for the Church of Exeter,
but into that he introduced hardly any local Saints, contenting
himself with such Lives as were inserted in the Roman Breviary.
In the Introduction will be found enumerated the principal sources
viii Preface
we have drawn upon for materials in the compilation of the Lives
here presented. That we have been correct in our judgment as to
dates, and other particulars, we cannot be confident. Conjecture
must come in, where certain evidence is lacking.
The last volume will contain an Appendix of unpublished Pedigrees
and original texts of Lives, in prose and verse, hitherto unpublished.
We have to thank many kind helpers in this difficult and arduous
work. We can name only a few : Principal Sir John Rhys, Pro-
fessor Anwyl, Mr. Egerton Phillimore, Dr. J. Gwenogvryn Evans, and
the Abbe Duine, of Rennes ; also Sir John Williams, Bart., and Mr.
W. R. M. Wynne, of Peniarth, for permission to make transcripts of
unpublished materials, and the Cambrian Archaeological Association
for allowing the reproduction of some illustrations from its Journal.
The authors of this work cannot allow their first volume to appear
without an expression of lively gratitude to the Honourable Society
of Cymmrodorion for so generously undertaking the publication of a
book that appeals to a limited circle of students only. Without the
Society having done this, it is doubtful whether the work would
have ever seen the light.
Contents of Volume I
I INTRODUCTION PAGE
i. The Welsh and Cornish Saints I
ii. Lesser Britain ........ 39
iii. On Welsh and Cornish Calendars 65
iv. The Genealogies of the Welsh Saints 86
II THE LIVES
S. Aaron S. Byrnach 101
List of Illustrations
PAGE
Map of Monastic Foundations in Wales 35
Map of Irish Settlements in Brittany 45
Map of Cornish Dedications between 80-8 1
S. Aaron. From Statue at S. Aaron, Cdtes du Nord . . facing r iO4
Map showing Churches of the Companions of S. Achebran . . 106
S. Aelhaiarn. From Fifteenth-Century Stained Glass at Plogonnec,
Finistete . . . . . . . . . no
S. Alban. From the Altar Screen at S. Albans Cathedral . . 140
S. Allen. From Statue at Scaer . . . . . . . 147
S. Amwn. Bust of, at Plescop . . . . . . 156
S. Anne. At Porte S. Malo, Dinan 160
Bona Dea. At Museum, Rennes 160
S. Anne's Well, Whitstone 164
ix
List of Illustrations
PAGE
S. Arthmael. From Stained Glass at S. Sauveur, Dinan. . . facing 172
From Stained Glass at Ploermel . . . . ,, 172
S. Asaph. From Fifteenth-Century Glass in Chancel Window Llan-
dyrnog Church, Denbighshire . . . . . 184
S. Aude. From Statue at Guizeny . . . . . .,,188
S. Austell. Statue on West Front of Tower, S. Austell . . . ,, 190
S. Beuno's Head. From Window at Penmorfa, Carnarvon . - ,, 216
Well, Clynnog ,, 216
S. Beuno's Chest at Clynnog . . . . . . . ,, 218
S. Beuno. From the Open-air Pulpit of the Abbey, Shrewsbury . ,, 220
S. Brendan. Statue at Tregrom 246
S. Brendan, or Branwaladar. From Statue at Loc-Brevelaire . . 250
S. Brendan's Chapel and Statue. Inisgloria, Co. Mayo . . . ,, 258
Cloghan. N. Blasket Island, Co. Kerry . . 258
S. Brigid. Statue at Lagonna, Guimerch .... 286
,, Statue at S. Gerans .... 286
Statue at SS. Dredeneaux ..... 286
S. Brychan. From Stained Glass Window, S. Neot, Cornwall . . 320
S. Azenor and S. Budoc. Front Carving at Plourin . . .
Finnau, yn llesgedd f henaint,
Hoffwn, cyfrifwn yn fraint,
Gael treulio yno [Enllt] mewn hedd
O dawel ymneillduedd
Eiddilion flwyddi olaf
Fy ngyrfa, yn noddfa Naf.
Byw arno, byw iddo Ef
Mwy'n ddiddig mewn bedd-haddef ;
A dot cymundeb a V don,
Byd ail, o tuydd bydolion.
Heb dyrfau byd, heb derfyn
Ond y gwyrddfor, gefnfor gwyn.
O'n boll fyd, Enlli a jo
lack wlad fm haul facbludo.
ISLWYN, Saint Enlli.
XI
Introduction
I. THE WELSH AND CORNISH SAINTS
SINCE 1836, when appeared An Essay on the Welsh Saints, by the
Rev. Rice Rees, nothing has been done in the same field, although
material has accumulated enormously. That work was an attempt
made, and successfully made, to throw light on a subject hitherto
unstudied and dark. Archbishop Ussher had, indeed, in his
Britannicarum Ecclesiarum Antiquitates, Dublin, 1639, dealt with
the early history of the Church in the British Isles in a masterly
manner. But he was unacquainted with the Welsh language, and the
Welsh MSS. were not accessible to him. Nevertheless, with really
wonderful perspicuity he arrived at results that were, in the main,
correct. He dealt with only such of the Welsh Saints as had had the
good fortune to have their Lives written in Latin, and of such there
are few, and of these few all were not accessible to him. Moreover,
these Vita do not always tell the truth, the whole truth and no-
thing but the truth.
The importance of the saintly pedigrees is not to be ignored.
Ecclesiastical preferments were made according to tribal law. The
family to which a saint belonged had to be fixed, and this was done
by the pedigrees. Then a claimant to a foundation or benefice of the
saint had to establish his descent from the family of the saint, without
which he was deemed ineligible to enter upon it.
This condition of affairs existed at the time of Giraldus, at the end
of the twelfth century, for he bitterly inveighs against the hereditary
tenure of ecclesiastical benefices. 1 And he says that the same con-
dition of affairs existed in Armorica. S. Malachi (d. 1148) complained
of the same abuse in Ireland.
It was with ecclesiastical property as with that which was secular.
1 Description of Wales, Bk. II, ch. vi. All members of the family, lay as
well as cleric, had a right to support out of the benefice. Willis Bund, The
Celtic Church of Wales, 1897, pp. 284 et seq.
VOL. I. * B
2 Introduction
Right to inherit one as the other had to be established by proof of
descent. The pedigree was the title-deed appealed to in both cases.
Before the fifth century, indeed, the genealogies are mostly fictitious.
But it was precisely these fictitious pedigrees which possessed no legal
value from the fifth century upwards ; however, when the great rush
was made into Wales by those who had been dispossessed of their
lands by the Picts in the first place, and secondly by the Saxons,
these records became of supreme importance. The new comers
settled down on newly acquired territories, and from thenceforth the
pedigrees had to be determined and carried on from generation to
generation with the strictest regard to accuracy, for tribal rights,
both secular and ecclesiastical, depended on them.
" Inheritance in land and all tribal rights could only be asserted by
proof produced of legal descent. And it is clear that such proof con-
tained in the production of a genealogy could not be left to irrespon-
sible persons. Consequently, in every Celtic race each branch of a
family maintained a professional genealogist, who kept a record of
the family descent from the original tree. But further, for the check-
ing and controlling of these records, the chief or king had his special
recorder, who also made entries in the book kept for the use of the
chief. In Ireland, the High King always had such an officer, to
register, not only the descent of the royal family, but also of all the
provincial kings and principal territorial chiefs in every province ;
in order that, in case of dispute, a final appeal could be made to this
impartial public record. This officer was an olambh, and it was his
function periodically to visit the principal courts and residences of
the chieftains throughout the land, and to inspect the books of family
history and genealogies ; and on his return to Tara, or wherever the
High King might reside, to enter into the monarch's book the acces-
sions to these families and their expansion.
" So also, every provincial chief and king had his olambh, and in
obedience to an ancient law, established before the introduction of
Christianity into the land, all the provincial records were returnable
every third year to the Convocation at Tara, where they were com-
pared with each other, and with the monarch's book, the Saltair of
Tara." 2
Our Heralds' Visitations, undertaken every few years through the
land to record pedigrees, were analogous, though the heralds con-
cerned themselves, not with rights to land, but to the bearing of
arms.
1 O'Curry, Lect. on the MS. Materials of Anc. Irish Hist., Dublin, 1861, pp.
203-4.
The Welsh and Cornish Saints 3
What Rice Rees did in his Essay was to show the value of the
pedigrees, and the care with which they had been kept, and how
trustworthy they were in determining the stocks and the generations
to which the saints belonged. Here and there, owing to identity or
similarity of names, errors arose, but this was exceptional. Rees laid
great stress on the undoubted fact that in Wales as in Ireland a
foundation took its title from its founder. A saint fasted for forty
days on a site, and thenceforth it was consecrated to God, and be-
came his own in perpetuity. Dedication during the Age of the Saints
meant ownership, and implied therefore much more than is now
ordinarily understood by the term. It was " proprietary " dedication.
In a poem by the Welsh bard, Gwynfardd Brycheiniog (flor. c. 1160-
1220), written in honour of S. David, in which a number of churches
" dedicated " to him are named, it is repeatedly stated that " Dewi
owneth " (Dewi bien) such and such church, some of which churches,
among them, Llangyfelach and Llangadog, had evidently been " re-
dedicated " to him.
But although this is certainly true, yet it does not apply to all the
churches named after a saint. For a piece of land granted to a saint's
church when he was dead also acquired his name. A saint was a
proprietor for all ages, whether on earth or in heaven. Thus, all the
Teilo, Dewi and Cadoc churches were not personally founded by
these three saints, but were, in most cases, acquisitions made by
the churches of Llandaff, Menevia and Llancarfan in later times.
Nevertheless, in general, the presumption is that a church called after
a Celtic saint was of his own individual dedication. It is hardly
possible for us to realise the activity and acquisitiveness of the early
< Vltic saints. They never remained long stationary, but hurried
from place to place, dotting their churches or their cells wherever
they could obtain foothold. No sooner did an abbot obtain a
grant of land, than, dropping a few monks there to hold it for him,
he hurried away to solicit another concession, and to found a new
church.
The Lives of SS. Cadoc, David, Senan, and Cieran show them to have
In-i-n incessantly on the move. S. Columba is reported to have estab-
lished a hundred churches. S. Abban Mac Cormaic erected three
monasteries in Connaught, then went into Munster, where he founded
another ; then migrated to Muskerry, where he built a fifth. Next
he made a settlement at Oill Caoine ; then went to Fermoy and reared
a seventh. Again he passed into Muskerry and established an eighth.
Soon after he planted a ninth at Clon Finglass ; thereupon, away he
went and constructed a tenth, Clon Conbruin. No sooner was this
^ Introduction
done than he went to Emly again to found monasteries, how many
we are not told. Thereafter he departed for Leinster, and laid the
foundations of another, Cill Abbain. Then to Wexford, where he
planted " multa monasteria et cellse." Not yet satisfied, he found
his way into Meath, and established there two monasteries. After
that the King of the Hy Cinnselach gave up to him his cathair, or
dun, to be converted into a home for religion. This abbot must
have been the founder of some twenty monasteries and cells. And
he is not unique. All the saints did the same as far as they were able.
They did not content themselves with this in their own lands ; they
crossed the seas to Cornwall and to Brittany, and made foundations
there as well.
When we come to the extant Lives of the Celtic Saints, we have to
regret that so few of those which are Welsh have come down to us.
The majority of these are contained in the MS. volume in the
Cottonian Collection in the British Museum, Vespasian A. xiv, of the
early thirteenth century.
This was laid under contribution by John of Tynemouth, who, in
the first half of the fourteenth century, made a tour through England
and Wales in quest of material for the composition of a Martyrologium
and a Sanctilogium. Of his collection only one MS. is known to exist,
now in the British Museum, Cotton MS., Tiberius E. i, and this was
partly destroyed, and where not destroyed injured by fire in 1731 ;
but of this more hereafter.
The MS. Vespas. A. xiv contains the following Latin Lives :
S. Gundleus, S. Cadoc, S. Iltut, S. Teilo, S. Dubricius (two lives),
S. David, S. Bernach, S. Paternus, S. Clitauc, S. Kebi (two lives),
S. Tatheus, S. Carantocus, and S. Aidus.
The twelfth century Book of Llan Ddv adds the following :
S. Oudoceus, S. Samson, and S. ^Elgar the Hermit.
Capgrave gives a few more Lives : S. Caradoc, S. Cungar, S.
Decuman, S. Gildas, S. Jutwara, S. Justinian, S. Keyne, S. Kentigern,
S. Kened, S. Machutus, S. Maglorius, and S. Petroc, but of these only
Caradoc belongs exclusively to Wales. There are besides Latin Lives
of S. Winefred (two), S. Monacella, and S. Deiniol.
Of prose Lives written in Welsh there are only a few, namely,
those of S. David, S. Beuno, S. Winefred, S. Llawddog or Lleuddad,
S. Collen, S. Curig, and S. leuan Gwas Padrig ; but there is a fair
number of poems written in honour of saints, which are of the
nature of metrical Lives or panegyrics. They are mostly by authors
of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, but the information they
supply of the saints themselves is of a varying quality. The Cywy.
The Welsh and Cornish Saints 5
ddau extant are to the following : S. Cawrdaf, S. Cynog, S. Doged,
S. Dwynwen, S. Dyfnog, S. Einion Frenhin, S. Llonio, S. Llwchaiarn,
S. Mechell, S. Mordeyrn, S. Mwrog, S. Peblig, and S. Tydecho, not
to mention others to whom there are Latin and Welsh prose
Lives.
John of Tynemouth, in his peregrination, cannot have visited
North Wales, as he does not take into his collection S. Asaph and
S, Deiniol, and he certainly omitted Devon and Cornwall.
In 1330 Bishop Grandisson, of Exeter, wrote to the Archdeacon of
Cornwall, complaining of the neglect and accident which had caused
the destruction or loss of the records of the local Cornish Saints, and
he directed that those which remained should be transcribed, two or
three copies made, and should be transmitted to Exeter, to ensure
their preservation ; and he further enjoined that the parish priests
who failed to do this should be fined. 3 Yet when Grandisson in
1366 drew up his Lcgcmlnriwn for the use of the Church of Exeter, he
passed over all these local saints without notice with the exception of
S. Mt-lor and S. Samson. Had John of Tynemouth visited Exeter, he
would have used the material collected by Grandisson, now unhappily
lost.
From Brittany we obtain some important Lives of Saints who
crossed from Wales and settled there, as Gildas, Paul of Leon, Sam-
son, Mal<>, Maglorius, Tudwal, Leonore, Brioc, and Meven. Ireland
furnishes a good many Lives, and these of value, as the revival of
Christianity, after a relapse on the death of S. Patrick, was due to an
influx of missionaries sent into the island from Llancarfan and Men-
cvia ; as also because of the close intercommunication between Ireland
and Wales. Very few Welsh Saints found their way to Scotland, at
least permanently, and the only saint who may be said to belong to
Walis as \\vll as to Scotland, whose life has been preserved, is Cyn-
deyrn (Kentigern).
When we come to estimate the historical value of these Lives, we
must remember that none of them are contemporary. The nearest to
approach is that of S. Samson, composed by a writer who took his
information from a monk aged eighty, who had heard stories of
Samson from his uncle, a cousin of Samson, and who had conversed
with the mother of the saint. All the rest are much posterior,
composed, mostly in the eleventh and twelfth centuries, and later
by writers who piled up miracles, and altered or eliminated such
particulars as they considered did not comport with the perfection
3 Register of Bp. Grandisson, ed. H. Randolph, Pt. I, p. 585.'
6 Introduction
of the hero, or did not accord with their notions of ecclesiastical
order. Joscelyn, in his Life of S. Kentigern, admits having done
this.
One flagrant instance of bad faith is found in the Life of S. Gundleus.
The facts relative to the history of the father of S. Cadoc are given in
the Vita S. Cadoci, but as they displeased the panegyrist of Gundleus,
he entirely altered them, and represented the early life of the saint
in a totally different light from that in which it is revealed to us in the
other document. Other writers, again, deliberately forged Lives to
support certain pretentions of the see or monastery to which they
belonged.
In the ninth century the diocese of Dol had been made metropo-
litan, with jurisdiction over all the sees of Brittany, removing them
from being under the archiepiscopal authority of Tours. But several
endeavoured to slip away and revert to Tours. Among these was that
of Curiosopitum, or Quimper. To justify this, a Life of S. Corentinus,
the founder, was fabricated, which represented him as receiving con-
secration and jurisdiction from S. Martin of Tours, who had died half
a century before his time.
Some Lives were composed out of scanty materials, mere oral tra-
dition. Rhygyfarch wrote his Life of S. David apparently between
1078 and 1088. The cathedral and monastery had been repeatedly
ravaged and burnt by the Northmen, and the records destroyed ;
nevertheless, some records did remain " written in the old style of
the ancients." To what extent he amplified by grafting in
legendary matter picked up orally we are unable to say.
With regard to the miraculous element in the Lives, that occupies
so large a part, we are not disposed to reject it altogether. The
miracles are embellishments added, in many instances, by the redactor,
as a flourish to give piquancy to his narrative. He often could not
appreciate a plain incident recorded in the early text that he had
under his eyes, and he finished it off with a marvel to accommodate
it to the taste of the times in which he wrote. He dealt with a com-
monplace event much as a professional story-teller treats an inci-
dent that has happened to himself or an acquaintance. He fur-
bishes it up and adds point and converts it into a respectable anecdote.
To the mediaeval hagiographer an incident in a saintly life was not
worth recording unless it led up to a miraculous display of power.
Very often the miracle is invented, either to account for the possession
of a certain estate by a monastery, or as a deterrent to the sacrilegious
against violation of sanctuary, and these stand on the same ground
as the terrible " judgments " in Puritan story-books on profaners of
The Welsh and Cornish Saints
the Sabbath. A little criticism can generally detect where fact ends
and fiction begins.
In Joscelyn's Life of S. Patrick we are told that the natives of one
place made a pitfall in his way, covered it with rushes and strewed
earth over them, hoping to see Patrick fall into the hole over which
he would ride. But a girl forewarned the saint, and he escaped the
pitfall. Joscelyngoes on to say that in spite of the caution given to
him, Patrick rode over it, and the rushes were miraculously stiffened
to sustain him. Here is an obvious addition.
Some lepers clamoured to Brigid for beer, as she was a notable
brewer. She jestingly replied that she had no liquor to dispose of
but her bath-water. The writer of her Life could not leave the anec-
dote alone, and he tacked on the statement that the water in which
she had bathed was miraculously converted into ale. Where the hand
of the editor has been so obviously at work, we have deemed it suffi-
cient to tell the tale, omitting his addition, but calling attention to it
in a footnote. Where, however, the miraculous is so involved with
the historic record as to be inseparable from it, we give the tale as
presented in the original.
Certain miracles seem to be commonplaces grafted into the Lives
promiscuously. Such is that of the boy carrying fire in the lap of his
gabardine from a distance to the monastery, when that at the latter
had become extinguished. There may well be a basis for this story.
Fire was scarce, and most difficult to kindle from dry sticks. If that
on a hearth went out, live coals would be borrowed from the nearest
village, and a lad from the abbey would be sent for it. The so-called
incense pots found in tumuli of the bronze age were probably nothing
else but vessels for the conveyance of live coals, and with such every
household would be provided. A boy might well convey fire in such
a vessel in the lap of his habit. It would be too hot for him to carry
in his hand.
Nor are we disposed entirely to relegate to the region of fiction the
tales of dragons that recur with wearisome iteration in the Lives of
the Saints. In some cases the dragon is a symbol. When Meven
and Samson overcome dragons, this is a figurative way of saying that
they obtained the overthrow and destruction of Conmore, Regent of
Domnonia. In other cases it may have had a different origin. It
may possibly refer to the saint having abolished a pagan human sac-
rifice by burning victims in wicker-work figures representing mon-
sters. In the legend of SS. Derien and Neventer, we read that the
saints found a man drowning himself because the lot had fallen on his
only son to be offered to a dragon. He was pulled out of the water,
the boy was rescued, and the dragon abolished.
# Introduction
Such sacrifices, we have reason to believe, were annually offered by
the non-Aryan natives for the sake of securing a harvest, the ashes
being carried off and sprinkled over their fields. Caesar speaks of
human victims enclosed in wicker-work figures and consumed by
fire, and there are indications, as Mr. Eraser has shown in The Golden
Bough, that this was practised throughout Europe and the East. It
has left its traces to this day in Brittany. Wicker-work figures are
represented on a cross-shaft at Checkley, Staffordshire. That the form
assumed by these cages of woven osiers were that of a mythical mon-
ster is not improbable. Caesar indeed says that in Gaul the shape
given to them was that of a man, but this need not have been so
invariably.
Or take the story that recurs in so many of the legends of the saints,
of the Saint Corentine, or Neot, or Indract, that he had for his supply
a fish out of a well, that was miraculously restored to life daily, to
serve him as an inexhaustible provision. There were two sources
whence this fable sprang, we may suppose. Possibly enough, on the
tombstone of the saint was cut the early symbol of the fish. Pos-
sibly, also, there may have been cut on it an inscription like that of
Abercius of Hierapolis : " Faith led me everywhere, and everywhere
she furnished me as nourishment with a fish of the spring, very large,
very pure, fished by a holy virgin. She gave it without cessation to
be eaten by the friends (i.e. the Brethren). She possesses a deli-
cious wine which she gives along with the bread." This is alle-
gorical. The Fish is the 'I^i)?, the symbol of Christ. The
Virgin is the Catholic Church, though some have supposed the
reference to the Blessed Virgin Mother.
The epitaph of Pectorius of Autun is even more obscure, but it
turns on the same theme. " Celestial race of the Divine Fish, fortify
thy heart, since thou hast received, amidst mortals, the immortal
source of Divine Water. Friend, rejoice thy soul with the everflowing
water of wisdom, which gives treasures. Receive this food, sweet as
honey, of the Saviour of saints, eat with delight, holding in thy hand
the Fish." 4 The reference is to the Eucharist, through which Christ,
the Divine Fish, communicates Himself to His faithful, born of water
to Him. In the case of Abercius we possess his legend, drawn up
probably in the sixth century, and it is significant that it is based on
the inscription which it misinterprets and has converted into an
extravagant and fabulous narrative.
Numerous treatises have appeared on the monument of Abercius, of which
Mr. Ramsay discovered two fragments. The whole matter is summed up in
an article in Cabrol (F.), Diet. d'Archtologie Chretienne, Paris, 1903, i, pp. 16-87.
The Welsh and Cornish Saints 9
In a very similar manner may an inscription, or merely the symbol
of the Fish, have furnished material for the myth of the fish in the
well that recurs in so many saintly legends.
But there was another source. In Irish mythology, ancl it was
doubtless the same in the myths of other Celtic races, the Eo Feasa, or
" Salmon of Knowledge," that lived in the " Fountain of Connla,"
played a part. Over this well grew some hazel trees which dropped
their nuts into the well, where they were consumed by the salmon,
and the fish became endowed with all the wisdom and knowledge
contained in the nuts. In a poem by Tadhig O' Kelly we have this
passage :
" I am not able to describe their shields
Unless I had eaten the Salmon of Knowledge
I never could have accomplished it."
Aengus Finn, as late as 1400, employs the same expression and applies
it to the Virgin Mary, " She is the Salmon of Knowledge, through
whom God became Man." 5 Consequently, in Celtic myth, the eat-
ing of the mystic fish signified the acquisition of superhuman know-
ledge.
It is also possible that in some poetical story of the life of the saint
the fact of his daily communicating was put figuratively as of his
daily partaking of the Fish from the Living Well, the Fish that never
died, but was ever present to be partaken of by the faithful. This in
process of time would be misunderstood, and give rise to the fable,
which agreed singularly with the Celtic symbol.
It may be thought that we have dealt too liberally with the fables
that are found in the Lives. But we hold that in a good many cases
the fabulous matter is a parasitic growth disfiguring a genuine historic
fact, and therefore we have been unwilling to reject them.
Probably, in Roman Britain, there were bishops in the principal
towns, as London, Lincoln, York and Caerleon, and the Church was
organized in the same manner as in Gaul, each bishop having his see,
loosely delimited. The Christianity that entered Britain was almost
certainly through the soldiery and the Romano-Gallic merchants and
settlers in the towns. But it spread into the country, and the native
British accepted the Gospel to some extent.
But when the Wall was abandoned, and there was a rush made
south by the refugees to Wales, and when others came flying before
the swords of the Saxons and Angles, the whole ecclesiastical frame-
5 O'Curry, Manners and Customs of the Ancient Irish, 1873, ii, pp. 143-4;
Rhys, Hibbcrt Lectures, 1888, pp. 553-4.
j Q Introduction
work went to pieces. There were no more sees. Bishops were among
those who escaped into Wales or crossed the seas to Armorica and
Spanish Gallicia, but they had no longer any territorial jurisdiction.
In the desolation and confusion of the times, this was inevitable.
As the Church in Wales began to recover from the shock, it gravi-
tated about new centres, monastic institutions, of which the heads
might or might not be bishops. It was so in Ireland after Patrick's
time, where no such a thing as a territorial organization was attempted
till centuries later ; there monasteries were attached to tribes and
ministered to their religious requirements. Bishops were retained by
the abbots, but they had no jurisdiction, they were subject to abbot
or abbess, and were retained for the purpose of conferring orders, and
for that alone. It began in this way in Brittany, but there the proxi-
mity to and influence of the Gallo-French Church, and the insistence
of the Frank kings, rapidly brought the Celtic Church there into the
approved shape. Such a tribal organization was in conformity with
Celtic ideas, and followed on that which existed in Pagan times.
Then there had been the Secular Tribe with its chief at its head,
and alongside of it what may be called the Ecclesiastical Tribe,
composed of the Bards and Druids.
With the acceptance of Christianity, the saints simply occupied the
shells left vacant by the Druids who had disappeared. Among the
Celts ah 1 authority was gathered into the hands of hereditary chiefs.
Of these there were two kinds, the military and the ecclesiastical
chief, each occupying separate lands ; but the members of the ecclesi-
astical tribe were bound to render military service to the secular
chief ; and the ecclesiastical chief on his side was required to provide
for the needs of the secular tribe by educating the young of both
sexes, and by performing religious ceremonies. Every tenth child,
tenth pig, calf, foal, went to the saint, and his tribe was thus recruited.
Of S. Patrick we are told :
Fecit ergo totam insulam in funiculo distributionis divisam cum
omnibus incolis utriusque sexus decimari omneque decimum caput tarn
in hominibus, quam in pecoribus in partem Domini jussit sequestrari.
Omnes ergo mares monachos, faeminas sanctimoniales efficiens ; numerosa
monasteria aedificavit, decimamque portionem terrarum, ac pecudum,
eorum sustentationi assignavit. Infra brevi igitur temporis spatium nulla
eremus, nullus pene terrae angulus aut locus in insula fuit tarn remotus,
qui perfectis monachis aut monialibus non repleretur. 6
In certain cases an even more liberal grant was made to the Church,
as in Leinster, where, as the Colloquy of the Ancients informs us,
Vita S. Patricii, A eta SS. Boll. Mart., ii, c. 17.
The Welsh and Cornish Saints 1 1
" the province dedicated to the saint a third of their children, and a
third of their wealth." 7
There was an economic reason which compelled the Celts to estab-
lish great congregations of celibates. Neither in Ireland nor in Wales
was the land sufficiently fertile, and the cultivatable land sufficiently
extensive to maintain the growing population.
When no new lands were available for colonization, when the three
field system was the sole method of agriculture known, then the land
which would support at least three families now would then main-
tain but one. To keep the equipoise there were but migration, war,
and compulsory celibacy as alternatives. And we must remember
that multitudes of refugees were pressing into Wales from North and
East, far more than that mountainous land could sustain.
A story is told in the preface to the Hymn of S. Colman that shows
how serious the problem was even with the aid of the compulsory
celibacy of the monasteries. In 657 the population in Ireland had
so increased, that the arable land proved insufficient for the needs of
the country ; accordingly an assembly of clergy and laity was sum-
moned by Diarmidh and Blaithmac, Kings of Ireland, to take counsel.
It was decided that the amount of land held by any one person should
be restricted from the usual allowance of nine ridges of plough land,
nine of bog, nine of pasture, and nine of forest ; and further the
elders of the assembly directed that prayers should be offered to the
Almighty to send a pestilence " to reduce the number of the lower
class, that the rest might live in comfort." S. Fechin of Fore, on being
consulted, approved of this extraordinary petition, and the prayer
was answered by the sending of the Yellow Plague ; but the ven-
geance of God caused the force of the pestilence to fall on the nobles
and clergy, of whom multitudes, including the kings and Fechin of
Fore himself, were carried off. 8
On the Steppes of Tartary, where also the amount of land that can
be placed under cultivation is limited, for the purpose of keeping
down the population, great Buddhist monasteries have been estab-
lished, and the children are set apart from infancy, by their parents,
to become Lamas.
The duties of the saint were to instruct the young of the
tribe, to provide for the religious services required, and to curse the
enemies of the head of the Secular Tribe. The institution of
schools for the young was certainly much older than Christianity
in Britain and Ireland. We know from classic authorities, as
7 Silva Gadelica, Loncl. 1892, ii, p. 218.
8 O'Donovan, Annals of the Four Masters, 1851, i, p. 131.
12
Introduction
well as from the Irish writers of the heroic legends, that the
Druids formed communities, that these were presided over by an
Arch-Druid, that in them were educated the sons of the kings and
nobles, and that the heads of these schools had lands for their
support. By no other way can we explain the marvellous expansion
of the educational establishments which took place after Ireland
became Christian, than on the supposition that the saints entered
in upon an institution already existing, and brought into it a new life.
S. Cyndeyrn at Llanelwy had in it 965 monks. At Bangor Iscoed,
according to Bede, there were seven choirs, numbering 300 in
each. S. Lasrian is said to have ruled over 1,500 disciples, S. Cuana
had 1,746 scholars under him. At a later period, S. Gerald of
Mayo had in his establishment 3,300.
Some of these great schools or monasteries contained females as
well as males, and the double monasteries so prevalent among the
Angles were formed on the Celtic model. S. Brigid at Kildare ruled
such a double house of monks as well as nuns. As many of the pupils
tarried on to prepare for the clerical life, and some of the damsels
resolved on embracing the ecclesiastical profession also, these young
people were thrown together a good deal, and the results were not
always satisfactory. Accordingly, one or other of the saints induced a
sister, or a mother, or some other approved matron, to establish a
girls' school, subject to his supervision, yet at a distance from his
college for youths, sufficient to prevent the recurrence of scandal.
The course of instruction in these schools consisted in the quad-
rivium, arithmetic, music, geometry and astronomy. Of S. Catwg
it is said that his master Meuthi during twelve years instructed him
in Donatus and Priscian, i.e., in grammatical learning. 9 The psalter
had to be acquired by heart. The Book of Ballymote contains a
schedule of the studies in these great colleges during the twelve years
that a pupil was supposed to spend in them. 10
That the saint was expected to minister in sacred things to those
of the tribe stands to reason. If his first duty was to be the educa-
tion of the young, his second was to conduct worship, and to bury
the dead. To the monastery the people went, especially at Easter,
to receive Communion and to bring their oblations. The churches
were small, usually of wattle and dab, 11 and could not contain large
Ducange, Glossarium ad scriptores medics et infinite Latinitatis, s.v. Quad-
rivium. The tradition of " the seven liberal arts " of the trivium and quadri-
vium was current in Wales in at least the fifteenth century. lolo MSS., p. 327.
1 O'Curry, Manners and Customs of the Ancient Irish, Lond. 1873, ii, pp.
I 7 I ~3-
" More Britonum ecclesiam, et cateras officinas, de lignis levigatas . . .
The Welsh and Cornish Saints \ 3
jgations. But crosses were erected as stations in different
localities occupied by the tribe, from whence the saint preached,
and where probably he also ministered the sacrament. 12 There
would seem to have been only one cemetery in each tribe that was
consecrated, and to which the bodies of the members of the tribe were
conveyed. This, however, is not so certain.
Something more will have to be said about the third obligation of
the saint, that of cursing the enemies of his tribal chieftain.
We shall have to quote Irish sources to illustrate what was
customary in Wales, as the religious systems were identical in both,
and as authorities are more copious in Ireland than in Wales.
The Hy Many in the fifth century were becoming too populous for
their district. Now, at that time the Firbolgs occupied Connaught.
Maine Mor and his people coveted their land ; accordingly, they called
on S. Grellan to curse the Firbolgs. He did so, and then the Hy
Many defeated them and took possession of Connaught. Attributing
their success to his imprecations, they bade him impose on them
dues for ever ; and this he did. " A scruple out of every townland,
the tirst-born of every family, every firstling pig or firstling lamb,
and the firstling foal. Let the Hy Many protect my Church and
frequent it, refuse not their tribute, and my blessing shall be on the
race. It shall never be subdued carrying my crozier that shall be
the battle-standard of the race." 13
We may take a remarkable illustration from the Life of S. Findchua,
of the manner in which the saints were called in, as Balaam was by
Balak, to curse the enemies of the tribe to which they were attached.
Findchua had been baptized by S. Ailbe of Emly. He made a
nt to the son of the King of the Deisi of his place in heaven. So
hr hud. he supposed, to earn for himself another place. To do this he
had made for him seven iron sickles, on which he hung for seven years.
The men of Meath were attacked by pirates from the sea, coming
iv and committing great depredations, so Findchua was sent for
to curse them. When the saint heard that ambassadors for this
pin pose \\viv coming to him, he ordered for their entertainment " a
1 of ale sufficient to intoxicate fifty men," and meat in propor-
tion. Then he came down from his sickles and went with the dele-
,1-diticare jam incohabant." Vit. S. Kentigerni, Pinkerton, Lives of Scottish 55.,
ed. Metcalfe, Paisley, 1889, ii, p. 51.
12 Venerabilis pater Kentegernus antistes habebat in consuetudinem ut
in locis quibus pnrdicando populum adquisitionis nomini Christi subdiderat
triumphale vexillum sanct;i> crucis erigeret." Ibid. p. 86.
13 O'Donovan, Tribes and Customs of the Hy Many, Dublin, 1843.
! ^ Introduction
gates to Tara. He found the men of Meath in great distress because
tin- pirates had landed and were spreading over thecountry. " Then,"
we read, " the cleric's nature rose against them, so that sparks of
blazing fire burst forth from his teeth." Led by the saint roaring
his incantations, the men of Meath rushed against their assailants
and exterminated them, " slaying their gillies, burning their ships,
and making a cairn of their heads." In return for this service Find-
chua was granted a dun, with the privileges that went with the pos-
session of such a fortress, also the King's drinking horn, to be
delivered to him every seventh year.
When war broke out against Leinster, the aid of Findchua was
again invoked ; and we are expressly told that he was sent for only
because the Druid, whose proper function it was to curse the enemy,
was too old to do the job. The King of Leinster was in his dun at
Barrow ; Findchua advised him to march against the enemy, and he
himself would lead the van. Then a prophetic fury seized on him,
" a wave of Godhead " it is termed, and he thundered forth a metrical
incantation that began
"Follow me, ye men of Leinster."
Then " wrath and fierceness " came on the saint. The result was
that victory declared for the arms of the men of Leinster. The
leader of the enemy, Cennselach, threw himself on the protection of
Findchua, and surrendered to him " his clan, his race, and his pos-
terity." In return for his services, the King of Leinster granted the
saint a hundred of every kind of cattle every seventh year.
We have, in the case of Findchua, not only an instance of getting
possession of a dun, but also of becoming the tutelary saint over an
entire tribe that occupying Wexford.
Again war broke out, this time between Ulster and Munster, and
the King of the latter sent to Findchua for assistance. " Then Find-
chua drove in his chariot with his staff in his hand, without waiting
for any of the clerics, until he got to the dun," where the King was.
Again he marched at the head of the army, brandishing his crozier,
and again victory was with those who trusted in him. For his aid
he was granted a cow from every farm, and a milch-cow to the clerk
who should carry the crozier in battle, thenceforth, whenever it led
to battle. The King of Munster, moreover, agreed to rise up before
Findchua's comarb. 14
We need follow the story no further. Suffice it to say that in
later life the saint got a glimmer of thought that being mixed up
14 " Book of Lismore," Anecdota Oxoniensia, Oxf. 1890, p. 241. The title
given to S. Findchua was " The slaughterous hero," p. 240.
The Welsh and Cornish Saints i 5
with so much bloodshed was not quite in keeping with the new reli-
gion so imperfectly assimilated, " and he repented of the battles
which he had fought, and the deeds which he had done for friendship
and for love of kindred," and, we may add, for very liberal payment.
When Diarmid Mac Cearboil went to war against the Clan Niall of
the north, whom S. Columba (Columcille) had stirred up against
him although he was a Christian, he took with him in his cam-
paign a Druid to perform enchantments and pronounce curses on the
enemy ; and the Hy Niall had the saint with them to work his counter
charms and deliver his counter curses. 15
The office of cursing originally formed part of the duties of the
Druid. He was a functionary called in likewise at the conclusion of
contracts. When two individuals entered into a compact, the Druid
was present to utter imprecations on him who should break the agree-
nu-nt. Beside the Druid, the file or poet was cailed in, and he gave
a guarantee that he would compose a lampoon against the trans-
gressor. This was part and parcel of a process that was legal. When
S. Patrick, S. Carantoc, and the rest of the Commission revised the
laws of Ireland, the least possible interference was made with existing
.-Mirial and legal systems.
As the Druid ceased to be esteemed, insensibly the Saint stepped
into his functions. He had thrust on him the duties formerly dis-
charged by the Druid. From being professional curser of the tribal
foes, it was but natural that the saint should take on him to curse
who interfered with the privileges of his monastery, broke
sanctuary, or even gave him personal offence.
It was held that a curse once launched could not be recalled, it
must full and blight ; if it did not strike him at whom it was directed,
it recoiled and smote the saint or bard who had pronounced it. For
instance, S. Cieran of Clonmacnois encountered King Diarmid Mac
Cearboil, who had offended him, and he cried out against him, " I
will not deprive thee of heaven and earth, but a violent death I wish
thee, by wound, by water, and by fire." The king at once offered to
pay any price desired by the saint to escape such a fate. " Nay,"
said S. Cieran, " the missile that I have delivered, by that same I
myself would be hurt to my death, if it fell not on thee." 16
Columba visited S. Loman with the White Legs, who hid his books
t his visitor should ask to have them as a loan. Thereupon Columba
sed the books that they should no more profit the owner, and
hen Loman went for them he found that the wet had so stained
16 O'Donovan, Tribes and CMS/, of the Hy Many.
16 Silva Gadelica, ii, p. 78.
1 6 Introduction
them that they were well nigh illegible. S. Patrick cursed Brenainn
that he should have neither son nor successor. A saint's curse by
no means struck only the living ; it affected after generations. Thus
S. Patrick cursed the sons of Efc for stealing his horses, that their
descendants should fall into servitude. 17 S. Malo cursed a man to
nine generations who had spoken abusively of him. 18
Some jugglers performed their tricks before Patrick. He had no
food to give them, so he sent to King Loman hard by for some meat.
At the time Patrick's deacon, Mantan, was cooking the King's dinner.
Loman and Mantan declared that they would not spare any of the
meat for those mountebanks. Thereupon Patrick cursed them, that
Loman's race should never after produce a king or a bishop, and that
Mantan should never become noted as a saint, but that sheep and
swine should run over his grave. 19
In the same way David cursed Joab : " Let there not fail from the
house of Joab one that hath an issue, or that is a leper, or that leaneth
on a staff, or that falleth on the sword, or that lacketh bread." 20
When we consider that at least some, if not all, of the non-Semitic
inhabitants of Canaan belonged to the same stock as that which
formed the substratum of the population in Ireland and Great Britain,
we need not.be surprised to find the same ideas relative to the force
of a curse prevalent in Palestine as in Ireland. A curse, once launched,
as already said, could not be recalled. If wrongfully pronounced,
then it reverted and fell on the -head of him who had pronounced it ;
but no amount of repentance, no amends made, could render it inno-
cuous. S. Patrick cursed the Hy Ailell because his horses were
stolen. The bishop he had set over them implored his pardon. He
wiped the hoofs of Patrick's horses in token of submission, but all in
vain. The curse must fall.
It is worth while to show how the conviction of the efficacy of a
curse remains unshaken to the present day.
George Borrow, in his Wild Wales, mentions his encounter with an
Irish woman. " When about ten yards from me, she pitched for-
ward, gave three or four grotesque tumbles, heels over head, then
standing bolt upright, about a yard before me, she raised her right
arm, and shouted in a most discordant voice ' Give me an alms, for
the glory of God ! ' ' On entering into conversation with this woman,
he learned that she had been a well-to-do respectable widow with a
farm and two sons. One day she refused charity to a beggar woman,
17 Tripartite Life, p. 109.
" Vita I 1 "* " in Bulletin de la Soc. Arch, d'llle et Vilaine, t. xvi, p. 304.
19 Tripartite Life, p. 203. 20 2 Sam. iii, 29.
The Welsh and Cornish Saints 1 7
who thereupon cursed her. In vain did she send after the mendicant
to entreat her to remove the curse, and promised to reward her if she
would ; this was refused. " All the rest of the day I remained sitting
on the stool speechless, thinking of the prayer which the woman had
said, and wishing I had given her everything I had in the world, rather
than she should have said it." Thenceforth all went ill with her,
the family, the farm. She became as one possessed, and in chapel
" I would shout and hoorah, and go tumbling and toppling along the
floor before the Holy Body." Her sons took to drink, one was con-
victed and sent to prison, she lost everything and became a homeless
pauper. 21
In Wales, till not so long ago the Holy Well of S. Elian was em-
ployed for invoking a curse on offenders. In Brittany, those who
have been wronged appeal to S. Yves to this day to punish the wrong-
doer.
\\ V must not be too shocked at this cursing as practised by the
Celtic saints. It was a legal right accorded to them, hedged about
with certain restrictions. It was a means provided by law and custom
to enable the weak, who could not redress their wrongs by force of
arms, to protect themselves against the mighty, and to recover valu-
ables takfn from them by violence. A man who considered himself
aggrieved, and could not forcibly recover the fine, went to a Druid
in Pagan times, to a saint in Christian days, and asked him to " ill-
\\ish " tin- \irong-doer, just as now he goes to a lawyer and solicits a
gammons.
We will now pass to a feature in the lives of several of the Celtic
saints that needs explanation. This is the practice of " fasting
against " an offender. There was a legal process whereby a creditor
might recover from the debtor, or the wronged might exact an eric or
fine from the wrong-doer ; and this was by levying a distress.
In Wales, as in Ireland, there was no executive. The law could be
rtained, and the amount of the fine decreed, but the creditor or
aggrieved was left to his own devices to obtain the redress adjudi-
cated. The court did nothing to enforce its judgments. Conse-
quently, a man who could not enforce the penalty vi et armis was left
to choose between two courses : either he might get a saint to curse
the debtor or wrong-doer, or else he might take the matter into his
own hands by " fasting against " the offender.
The process was this. He made formal demand for what was due
to him. If this were refused, and he were unable otherwise to enforce
21 Borrow, Wild Wales, Lond. 1901, pp. 691-702.
VOL. 1. C
! 8 Introduction
payment or restitution, he seated himself at the door of the debtor
and abstained from food and drink.
In India the British Government has been compelled to interfere,
and put down this process of dharna. The fact of the levy of a fast
against a man at once doubled the eric or fine due for the offence.
In India it was the etiquette for the debtor to fast also ; but in Ire-
land the only means that one man had of meeting a fast against him
without yielding was to fast also. The fast seemed to have extended to
the whole family ; for when S. Patrick fasted against King Laoghaire,
the king's son ate some mutton, to ttie great scandal of his mother.
" It is not proper for you to eat food," said the Queen. " Do you not
know that Patrick is fasting against us ? " " It is not against me
he is fasting," replied the boy, " but against my father." 22 Hardly
ever did any chief or noble dare to allow the fasting to proceed to the
last extremities, because of the serious blood feud it would entail, as
also because of the loss of prestige in the clan that would be his.
S. Patrick boldly had recourse to the same method to obtain his
demands from King Laoghaire. Again, he found that Trian, an
Ulster chief, maltreated his serfs. Trian had set them to cut down
timber with blunt axes, and without providing them with whet-
stones. The poor fellows had their palms raw and bleeding. Pat-
rick remonstrated with their master, but when he would not listen,
he brought him to a proper sense of humanity by fasting against
him. 23
We find the same thing in Wales. S. Cadoc was offended with
Maelgwn Gwynedd. Some of the king's men had carried off a very beau-
tiful girl from his land, the daughter of the steward of the establish-
ment. The men of Cadoc's ecclesiastical tribe went in pursuit, and
in revenge massacred three hundred of Maelgwn's attendants. The
king, " in raging and furious anger," marched against Cadoc's tribe
to wreak vengeance. Cadoc could not resist by force of arms, so he
and all his men instituted a fast against the king, who at once gave
way. 24
An odd story is that of the men of Leinster, who sent a deputation
to the great S. Columba to obtain of him the promise that they should
never be defeated by any foreign king. Columba demurred to
giving them this assurance, whereupon they undertook a fast against
him, and he gave way. 25
S. Caimin of Iniskeltra, being engaged by the King of Ulster to
22 Tripartite Life, p. 557. 23 Ibid t p 21Q
24 Cambro-British Saints, p. 94.
25 Book of Leinster, quoted in Anecdota Oxon, The Book of Lismore, p. 308.
The Welsh and Cornish Saints ig
obtain the destruction of the army of the King of Connaught, fasted
against Connaught for three whole days and nights.
King Diarmid and Tara were cursed by S. Ruadhan, assisted by
eleven saints of Ireland. In the narrative there is a point of interest
connected with this practice of fasting. The twelve saints instituted
tluir fast against the King, fasting alternate days. Thereupon he,
in retaliation, fasted against them, and so long as one kept even with
the other, neither could get the mastery, so the saints bribed the
king's steward, with a promise of heaven, to tell his master a lie, and
to assure him that he had seen the twelve eating on their fast day.
\Yhrn Diarmid heard this, he broke his fast, whereupon the saints
got ahead of him and triumphed. 26
Another remarkable story is that of Adamnan, the biographer of
S. Columba. Irghalach son of Conaing had killed Adamnan's kins-
man Niall. The saint thereupon fasted upon Irghalach to obtain a
violent death for him. The chief, aware of this, fasted against Adam-
nan. The saint not only fasted, but stood all night in a river up to
Ins neck. The chief did the same. At last the saint outwitted the
chief by dressing his servant in his clothes and letting Irghalach see
him eat and drink. The chief thereupon intermitted his fasting, and
so Adamnan got the better of him, and obtained his death. When
the Queen heard how he had been over-reached, she was in terror lest
the saint should curse her unborn child. So she "grovelled at his
Urt." imploring mercy for the child. Adamnan consented only so
far to curse it, that it should be born with one eye. 27
\\V have spoken particularly of this levy of a distress by fasting,
tor it gives us the clue to the extravagant asceticism, not of the early
(Yltic saints only, but of the yogis and fakirs of India.
The Celtic saints were perfectly familiar with the law just described ;
tlu v put its process into operation against the chiefs with excellent
effect. By no great effort of mind they carried their legal concep-
tions into their ideas of their relation with the Almighty. When they
desired to obtain something from a chief , they fasted against him, and
God was to them the greatest of all chieftains, so they supposed that
to obtain a favour from God they must proceed against Him by levy-
ing a distress.
This lies at the root of all fakir self-torture in India. The ascetic
dares the Almighty to let him die of starvation. He is perfectly
assured that He will not do it, lest He should fall into disrepute among
2 * Silva Gadelica, ii, p. 82.
27 " Fragmentary Annals," ibid., pp. 442-3.
20
Introduction
the people, assured also that He will be brought to submit, however
reluctant He may be, in the end, just as would a human chieftain.
This, indeed, is frankly admitted in the Tripartite Life of S. Pat-
rick. Patrick was ambitious of obtaining peculiar privileges from
God, notably that of sitting in judgment over the Irish people at the
Day of Doom. To obtain this he instituted a fast. When in a con-
dition of nervous exaltation he fancied that an angel appeared to
him and intimated that such a petition was offensive to God, and he
offered him some other favour in place of it. Patrick stubbornly
rejected all compromise, and continued his fast, as the writer says,
" in a very bad temper, without drink, without food." After some
time he fancied that the angel approached him again, offering fur-
ther concessions. " I will not go from this place till I am dead,"
replied Patrick, " unless all the things I have asked for are granted
to me." In the end he fell into such a condition of exhaustion of
body, that he became a prey to hallucinations, thought the sky was
full of black birds, and deluded himself into the belief that the Al-
mighty had given way at all points. 28
A like story is told of S. Maidoc of Ferns, who desired to obtain
some outrageous privileges that no successor of his should go to hell,
that no member of his community or tribe should be lost eternally,
and that till the Day of Judgment he might be able daily to deliver
a soul from hell. He fasted against God, to wring from Him these
privileges, and continued his fast for fifty days, and deluded himself
into the belief that he had forced the Almighty to grant everything. 29>
There is a story of three scholars in the Book of Lismore that also
illustrates how completely this legal notion of transacting business
with the Almighty affected the minds of the early Celtic Christians.
Three scholars resolved on reciting daily the Psalter, each taking a
third ; and they agreed among themselves that in the event of one
dying, the others should take his Psalms on them in addition to
their own. First one died, then the other two readily divided his
fifty Psalms between them. But presently a second died, and the
third found himself saddled with the daily recitation of the entire
Psalter. He was highly incensed against heaven for letting the other
two off so easily, and overloading him with obligations. Then, in his
resentment, regarding God as having treated him unjustly, we are
informed that he fasted against Him.
In India the fakirs possess power over the people who flock to them
28 Tripartite Life, p. 115. Tirechan. the most trustworthy of the biogra-
phers of S. Patrick, speaks of this fast.
29 Cambro -British Saints, p. 243.
The Welsh and Cornish Saints 2 i
M treat the gods to obtain for them abundant harvests, or the
burning of an enemy's house, the recovery of a sick child, or the
wholesale destruction of an enemy's family. A man who sits on
spikes, has voluntarily distorted himself, or who lives half buried in
tlu- earth, is supposed to be all powerful with the gods. Why so ?
iiise through his self-tortures he has wrung a legal power over the
.j"ls to grant what he shall ask. The very same race which underlies
the Hindu population of India underlay the Goidel in Ireland and the
Brython in Britain. That race which to this day sets up menhirs
UK! dolmens there, strewed Ireland and Cornwall with them at a
remotely early period. That same race has scattered these remains
Moab. \Ve nnd the same legal and religious ideas in India and
in Ireland ; as also in Moab, which is likewise strewn with dolmens.
Balaam reimports himself just as would a Christian saint many cen-
niries later in Erin, because these ideas belong to the non- Aryan
I vernian race everywhere. Monachism among the Celts, doubtless,
;ved an impulse from such books as the Historia Lausiaca of
Palladius, and the Life of S. Martin by Sulpicius Severus ; but it
;ot originate from the perusal of these books. It had existed as
Jtcm, from a remote antiquity, among the pagan forefathers of
saints.
I.\<r\ tiling conduced to engage the Christian missionaries in a
contest <>f ascetic emulation with the medicine men of Paganism.
They strove to outstrip them, for if they fell short of the self-torture
practised by the latter, they could not hope to gain the ear of the
princes and impress the imaginations of the vulgar. In the instance
S Findchua we have a man emerging from Paganism, practising
! rightful austerities, and eagerly invoked to occupy the place hitherto
aed to the Druid. Surely he simply trod the same path as that
:nn sued by the necromancers before him. Of S. Kevin it is said that
'named for seven years without sleep, and that he held up one
arm till it became rigid, and a blackbird laid and hatched her eggs
in his palm. 30 S. Ere is said to have spent the day immersed in a
S. Ita to have had only earth for her bed.
This immoderate and astounding self-torture enabled the saints in
( eltic lands, with all confidence, to appropriate to themselves the
keys of heaven and hell, and to give assurance of celestial felicity to
whom they would, and denounce to endless woe whoever offended
them. S. Patrick is said to have promised heaven to a story-teller,
who had amused him with old bardic tales, and to a harper for having
10 Irish Liber Hymtiomm, ii, 192 ; Giraldus Camb., Top. Hibern., ii, 48 ;
Book of Lismore, p. 334.
22
Introduction
performed well on his instrument. 31 As we have already seen, the
twelve saints of Ireland promised heaven to the unfaithful steward
on condition that he should tell his master a lie, and so deceive him
to his destruction. S. Carannog threatened to shut heaven against
S. Finnian unless he would get into the tub he had prepared for him
as a bath. 32 Senan of Iniscathy threatened King Lugaidh to deprive
him of heaven if he thwarted him, and he left assurance with his
community that no man buried in his churchyard should go to hell. 33
S. Finnian of Clonard made the same promise relative to his own
burial ground. 34
So much, then, for the ferocious self-torture exercised by the early
Celtic saints. But in many cases there was a nobler motive in the
hearts of these venerable fathers than one of mere following in the
traces of their pagan predecessors, and outrivalling them. A clue
to their conduct may be found in an incident related of S. Columba.
One day he saw a poor widow gathering sting-nettles. He asked
her the reason. She replied that she had no other food. The old
man trembled with emotion, went back to his cell, and bade his
attendant give him thenceforth nettles only to eat. He had come
among the Picts to be an apostle, to poor as well as to rich, mean as
well as noble, and he would not fare better than the lowliest among
those to whom he ministered. The story goes on to say that the
disciple, seeing the aged master become thin and pinched on this
meagre diet, employed a hollow elder stick with which to stir the
nettles, over the fire, and he surreptitiously introduced a little butter
into the hollow of the stick, that ran down and enriched the por-
ridge. 35
There are, moreover, remarkable instances among the Irish ascetics
of their standing high above a narrow formalism. Some travellers
came to Ruadhan of Lothra during Lent, and he at once produced a
meat supper, and, to exhibit true hospitality, not only sat down at it
himself, but bade his monks do the same. Some travellers came to
S. Cronan, and he at once produced all he had for their refreshment,
and sat down with them. " Humph ! " said a stickler for rule, " At
this rate, I do not see much chance of Mattins being said." " My
friend," said Cronan, " in showing hospitality to strangers we minister
to Christ. Do not trouble about the Mattins, the angels will sing
them for us." 36
11 Silva Gadelica, ii, pp. 137, 191.
12 Breviary of Uon, 1516. ^ook of Lismore, pp. 210, 214.
14 Ibid., p. 219. 35 ifa d p
34 Vit.T SS. Hibern. in Cod. Salamavtc., p. 548.
The Welsh and Cornish Saints 23
At the same time that the saints were vastly hospitable they re-
fused to regale kings and their retinue when this was demanded as a
right. It was one of the conditions of subjection to a secular prince
to have to find him in food when he called, and to furnish his beasts
with provender. Compliance with the demand established a dan-
gerous precedent, for vassalage brought with it liability to military
service. It was accordingly stubbornly resisted.
When Maelgwn Gwynedd was hunting in the neighbourhood of
S. Brynach, he sent to the saint a command to prepare supper for
him and his attendants. " But the holy man being desirous that he
and his brethren and also his territory should be free from all tribute,
asserted that he did not owe the king any supper, nor would he obey
in any manner to his unjust command." Naturally this produced
an explosion of anger, but it ended in the saint furnishing the
meal, which the king formally acknowledged as being accorded
him out of charity, and not as a due. 37
S. Senan absolutely declined to pay tax to Lugaidh, the petty local
king. Then the king sent his race-horse to be turned out on Senan's
pasture, saying he would take his dues in this manner. Accidentally
the horse was drowned, and this led to violent threats on the king's
part and demand for compensation.
The three obligations required of a monk were obedience, chastity,
ami ix>verty. Obedience, according to the Life of S. David, must
be implicit. 38 According to the Penitential statutes of Gildas, a monk
who neglected executing at once the orders of his superior, was de-
prived of his dinner. If he forgot an order, he was let off with half a
meal. If he should communicate with one whom the abbot had ex-
communicated, he was put to penance for forty days. 39 According
to the rule of S. David, if a brother should even say of a book that it
was his own, he was subjected to penance. 40 This, however, may
be a later addition, for certainly, as we see by instances in the Lives
of the Saints, it was not an universal rule. With regard to trans-
gressions of the rule of chastity, great severity was shown, as the
Penitential Canons show. A nun, who had transgressed, when she
died, was sunk as an accursed thing in a bog. 41
It is difficult to say with any amount of confidence how many were
the offices of devotion performed by the monks during the day and
night, because so many of the Lives are late, and writers described
J7 Cambro-British Saints, pp. 10-12. > Ibid., p. 128.
19 Preefatio Gildee de Panitentia, caps, ix, xi, xii ; in Haddan and Stubbs.
Councils, i, pp. 113-114.
40 Cambro-British Saints, p. 128. 4 i Book of Lismore, p. x.
2 4 Introduction
the routine in the early monasteries very much as it was known to
them in Benedictine abbeys of a far later date. They would seem to
have had the Mass said, not daily, but on Sundays, and daily to have
recited the entire Psalter ; not, however, invariably in choir, but
privately in most cases. They had, however, common offices : one
only of these has been preserved, and is found in the Book of Mulling.
It is that of Vespers, and is in part illegible. It began with an invi-
tatory, then came the Magnificat, then something that cannot be
deciphered, followed by three verses from a hymn of S. Columba.
Then ensued a lesson from S. Matthew, followed by three stanzas
from a hymn by S. Secundinus, and three from a hymn by Cum-
mian Fota. Then the three final verses of the hymn of S. Hilary
of Poitiers, the Apostles' Creed, Lord's Prayer, and a Collect. 42
Whether the Laus perennis formed an institution in the great
monasteries generally cannot now be determined. We learn from
Joscelyn's Life of S. Kentigern that it was the order at Llanelwy.
It is spoken of as customary in Llantwit, Bangor Iscoed, Salisbury,
and Glastonbury. But the authorities are late. The institution
(dyfal gyfangan) is mentioned in the Triads and the lolo MSS., 43
but neither can be trusted. If it were established, then it would
show how close a relation was maintained between Britain and the
East, and how that a movement there communicated itself rapidly
to our isle.
The archimandrite Alexander, an Asiatic by birth, renounced the
world about the year 380 and became a member of the convent of
the archimandrite Elias. He remained in it four years, then be-
came a solitary in the desert for seven, and then suddenly was trans-
formed into a missionary who traversed Mesopotamia in all directions.
He gathered about him a congregation of 400 monks on the right
bank of the Euphrates. Later he established another in Constanti-
nople near the Church of S. Menas, then one at Gomon, and died
about 430. Alexander was a man of intense energy and of narrow
views. The Bible, and the Bible only, literally interpreted, was to
be the rule of his order. Because he found therein, " Go ye into all
the world and preach the Gospel to every creature," it was to be a
missionary confraternity. Because our Lord said, " Sell all that thou
hast, and distribute unto the poor," therefore the monks were to be
entirely penniless. Because He said, " Men ought always to pray and
not to faint," on that account worship should be perpetual. But
human nature did not allow each man to remain day and night in
12 Liber Hymnorum, 1898, p. xxii.
43 Myv. Arch., pp. 393, 408 ; lolo MSS., p. 150.
The Welsh and Cornish Saints 2 5
yer, consequently the work of incessant prayer and psalmody
should be the function of the community. This was the capital point
of his rule, and this constitutes an important feature in the history of
Monachism. It created so much astonishment in men's minds, that
the name given to the Order was aKoi^rjroi, the Unsleeping Ones.
It would be indeed remarkable if the Laus perennis could have
reached Britain as early as the beginning of the sixth century.
The instruction given in the Celtic institutions was altogether
oral. " There were no books except a few manuscripts, and they
were highly prized. The instruction was generally given in the open
air. It the preceptor took his stand on the summit (of the rath en-
closure), or seated his pupils around its slopes, he could be conveniently
heard, not only by hundreds but even by thousands. The pupils were
rasily accommodated, too, with food and lodging. They built their
own little huts throughout the meadows, where several of them some-
times lived together like soldiers in a tent. They sowed their own
grain ; they ground their own corn with the quern or hand-mill ;
they iishcd in the neighbouring rivers, and had room within the com-
mon lands to graze cattle to give them milk in abundance. When
MipplU-s ran short, they put wallets on their backs, and went out in
thtir turn to seek for the necessaries of life, and were never by the
pro pie refused abundant supplies. They wore little clothing, had no
l.<.ks to buy, and generally, but not always, received their education
gratuitously. 44
Tlu- routim- in Clonard can be gathered from the Life of S. Finnian.
\Ve are told that on one occasion he sent his disciple Senach to see
what all his pupils were doing. Senach's report was : " Some are
engaged in manual labour, some are studying the Scriptures, and
others, notably Columba of Tir-da-Glas, are engaged in prayer." 45
( Kvinjj to the scandals which had arisen through women being in
the same monastery or college with men, the abbots often swung to
the opposite extreme. S. Senan would not suffer a female, however
aged, to enter the isle in which he lived with his monks. In some
monasteries the interior within the rath, with its churches and dining-
hall, was interdicted to women, and this interdiction had subsisted at
Lamlevenec from the close of the fifth century for four hundred
years. 44 At the close of the sixth century the rule was in full rigour
the monastery of S. Maglorius at Sark. Some went even further,
4 Healy, Insula Sanctorum et Doctontm, 1896, p. 202.
1 Vita SS. Hib., Cod. Salamanc., p. 200.
De la Borclerie, Hist, de Bretagne, i, N p. 517.
2 6 Introduction
like- S. Malo, who would not allow even a layman to come within the
embankment. 47
That in spite of every effort to raise artificial barriers, a very pure
morality did not always reign among the monks and pupils, appears
from the Penitential of Gildas ; indeed, that reveals a very horrible
condition of affairs. 48
The diet of the monks consisted of bread, milk, eggs, fish. On
Sundays a dish of beef or mutton was usually added. 49 Beer and
mead were drunk, and sometimes so freely that in the Penitential of
Gildas provision had to be made for the punishment of drunkenness.
At Ynys Byr, or Caldey Isle, where the abbot tumbled into a well
when drunk, we are assured that S. Samson by his abstinence gave
great offence to the monks. " In fact," says his biographer, " in the
midst of the abundant meats and the torrents of drink that filled the
monastery, he was always fasting, both as to his food and his drink." 50
The liquor drunk was not only ale, but also " water mixed with the
juice of trees, or that of wild apples," that is to say, a poor cider ;
and we are assured that at Landevenec nothing else was employed. 51
At Llantwit Major " it was usual to express the juice of certain herbs
good for health, that were cultivated in the monastery garden, and
mix this extract with the drink of the monks, by pressing it, by means
of a little tube, into the cup of each ; so that when they returned
from the office of Tierce, they found this tipple ready for them, pre-
pared by the pistor." 52 This was clearly a sort of Chartreuse.
Few features are more amazing in Irish or Welsh ecclesiastical
history than the way in which whole families embraced the religious
life. In a good many cases they could not help themselves ; the for-
tunes of war, a family revolution, obliged members of a royal family
to disappear as claimants to a secular chieftainship, and to content
themselves with headships of ecclesiastical institutions. But reli-
gious enthusiasm was also a potent power determining them in their
choice. We see this among the Northumbrians. Bede says that
the same phenomenon manifested itself there ; for chieftains who were
entirely undisciplined in religion all at once posed as saints, founded
monasteries, and placed themselves at the head of these institutions. 53
Into these monasteries they invited their friends and dependents,
7 Vita i ma 5. Maclovii, i, c. 40.
18 Haddan and Stubbs, Councils, i, p. 113.
w Reeves, Life of S. Columba, 1874, p. cxvii.
10 Vita i S. Samsonis, in Acta SS. O. S. B., sac. i p 17;
1 Vita S. Winwaloei, ii, c. 12.
61 Vita i S. Samsonis, i, c. 16
53 Hist. Eccl. v, 23.
The Welsh and Cornish Saints 2 7
who brought in their wives and families. Bede was so concerned at
this condition of affairs that he wrote to Archbishop Ecgbert, of
York, to entreat him to put a stop to such irregularities, as he with
his Latin ideas considered them. He says that in Northumbria
there were many nunneries over which the chiefs set their wives.
In the Irish monasteries, as at Iona r the brethren constituted a
monastic family, divided into three classes : (i) The Elders, seniores,
dedicated to prayer and the instruction of the young, and to preach-
ing ; (2) The lay brothers, operarii, who were principally engaged in
manual labour ; and (3) The students and servitors, juniores alumni,
or pnenili familiares. 6 * When S. Samson constituted his monastery
at Dol, he had, as his biographer says, the same three classes : mon-
aclii. i//.sTi/>///i. ftimuli. When he went to Paris to visit Childebert
554), he was attended by seven monks, seven pupils, and seven
servitors. 55
The head of the monastic family was called abbot, abba pater, pater
spirititiilis, or simply pater, very often senex. He lived apart from
tin- rest of the monks, probably on higher ground than the others, so
that he might command the entire community with his eye. Under
him \vas the ceconomtis or steward, often mentioned in the Lives of
the Saints, notably in those of S. David, S. Cadoc, and S. Samson.
:uty was to look after the temporal affairs of the monastery,
and in the abbot's absence he took his place. Below the ceconomus
' he pistor or baker, who was not limited to making the bread of
the community, but had oversight over all the food required. S.
Samson was invested with this office in Ynys Byr, and was accused
of having been extravagant, and wasting the money belonging to the
convent. 56 The only other office of significance was that of the cook,
coqnus.* 7 Among the pupils, the students were not limited to study :
they divided among them the looking after the sheep and oxen, and
the grinding of the corn in the mill. 58 They were set an A B C to
acquire, but this probably means, not only the letters, but the rudi-
ments of Christian belief. They had also to acquire the Psalms of
David by heart, as already stated.
The monks were habited in a tunic and cowl ; the tunic was white,
and the cowl the natural colour of the wool. In addition, in cold
and bad weather, a mantle (amphibalits) was worn, sometimes called
54 Reeves, Life of S. Columba, 1874, p. cvii.
53 Vita II' 1 *, eel. Plaine, ii, c. 20, p. 66.
:>8 Vita I, i, c. 35.
Book of Lismore, p. 207. &8 Ibid., pp. 206, 207, 269.
2 8 Introduction
a casula, or chasuble. 59 A good many of the abbots, and even monks,
seem to have delighted in clothing themselves in goat or fawn skins. 69
The Greek tonsure, which is called that of S. Paul, consisted in
shaving the entire head ; the Roman tonsure, as that of S. Peter,
was restricted to the top of the head, leaving a band of hair round it.
The tonsure of the Britons and Scots consisted in shaving all the
front of the head from ear to ear. As we see by the Bayeux tapestry,
a non-ecclesiastical tonsure was practised by the Normans in the
eleventh century, which was that of shaving the back of the head.
The meaning of a tonsure was the putting a mark on a man to desig-
nate that he belonged to a certain class or tribe, just as colts or sheep
are marked to indicate to whom they belong. The knocking out of
certain teeth, the deforming of the skull, and tattooing among Indian
and other savage races, has the same significance. All men are born
alike, and to discriminate among them, artificial means must be
had recourse to. Circumcision among the Jews, Egyptians and
Kaffirs, has the same meaning.
The tonsure was known in pagan Ireland, and was probably
almost certainly general among all Celtic races, the Druids being
tonsured to mark the order to which they belonged ; and each tribe,
if it did not wear its tartan, was distinguished by some sort of trim-
ming of the hair.
The Celtic tonsure for ecclesiastics was possibly purposely adopted
from that of the Druids ; but this is not certain, as " adze-head "
was a term applied to the Christian clergy as derisive, because their
long faces and curved bald crowns bore a sort of resemblance to a
tool, the so-called celt. Probably it was the Druidic tonsure with a
difference. 61 It was this tonsure, so unlike that adopted by the
monks of the Rule of S. Benedict, which caused such indignation
among the Latin missionaries. They could not away with it. It
was the tonsure of Simon Magus.
Another point of antagonism between the Latin ecclesiastics and
those of the Celtic Church was the observance of Easter. The Celtic
rule has been repeatedly explained, and here we will only give it in
brief from the lucid account of Mr. Hodgkin, in his account of
S. Columbanus in Gaul. " In this matter the Irish ecclesiastics, with
true Celtic conservatism,adhered to the usage which had been universaj
in the West for more than two centuries, whilst the Prankish bishops
19 Reeves, Life of S. Columba, p. cxviii ; Book of Lismore, pp. 218, 219, 273.
80 Cambro-British Saints, p. 128.
1 Three kinds of tonsure are mentioned by the early Irish writers : the
monastic (berrad manaig), the servile (berrad mogad), and the Druidical forms
(airbacc giunnae). Tripartite Life, i, p. clxxxv.
The Jfelsb and Cornish Saints 29
lutitully following the see of Rome, reckoned their Easter day accord-
ing to the table which was published by Victorinus in the year 457,
and which brought the Roman usage into correspondence with the
usage of Alexandria. The difference, much and earnestly insisted
upon in the letters of Columbanus. turned chiefly on two points :
(i) The Irish churchmen insisted that in no case could it be right to
celebrate Easter before the vernal equinox, which determined the
first month of the Jewish calendar ; (2) they maintained that since
tin- I'ussmvr had been ordained to fall on the night of the full moon,
in no case could it be right to celebrate Easter on any day when the
moon was more than three weeks old. In other words, they allowed
the great festival to range only between the I4th and the 2oth day of
tin- lunar month, while the Latin Church, for the sake of harmony
with the Alexandrian, allowed it to range from the I5th to the 22nd.
In theory it would probably be admitted that the Irishmen were
nearer to the primitive idea of a Christian festival based on the Jewish
Passover; but in practice to say nothing of the unreasonableness of
i nating discord on a point of such infinitely small importance by
harping as they did continally on the words ' the I4th day', they
their opponents the opportunity of fastening upon them the
nanir ol Oimrto-decimnn, and thereby bringing them under the ana-
thema pronounced by the Xi(Tene Council on an entirely different
form oi dissent." % -
As has been frequently pointed out, in the earliest monasteries the
abbot had under him one or more bishops, subject to his jurisdiction.
This condition of affairs did not last very long. The kings and chiefs
had been accustomed to have their Druids at their sides, to furnish
them with charms against sudden death and against sickness, and
to bless their undertakings and curse their enemies. The abbot
could not be with the chief or king ; as head of a tribe he had to
rule a territory, and attend to the thousand obligations that belonged
to his position. Accordingly, a bishop was sent to the chieftain to
do the work of medicine-man for him ; this was the beginning of a
change in the system, approximating it to that of the Church in the
Empire. The bishop about the person of the chief eclipsed the abbot,
and became the chief man in ecclesiastical matters belonging to the
tribe. The Lebar Brecc describes the duties of a bishop : " A bishop
for every chief tribe for ordaining ecclesiastics and for consecrating
lurches, for spiritual direction to princes and superiors and ordained
arsons, for hallowing and blessing their children after baptism (i.e.
** Italy and her InOadcrs Oxford. 1895. vi, pp. 115-6.
20 Introduction
confirming), for directing the labours of every church, and for leading
boys and girls to cultivate reading and piety." And the same author-
ity gives as the duties of every priest in a small church : "Of him
is required baptism and communion, that is the Sacrifice, and sung
intercession for the living and the dead, the offering to be made every
Sunday, and every chief solemnity, and every chief festival. Every
canonical hour is to be observed, and the singing of the whole Psalter
daily, unless teaching and spiritual direction hinder him." 63
We will now pass to a consideration of what is of importance re-
lative to the saints of Cornwall. Here a very remarkable condition
of affairs is found to exist. The whole of Penwith, or the Land's End
District, and the Lizard promontory as well, seem to have been laid
hold of, and its churches founded by Irish saints.
Then again, in all the north-east and east of Cornwall, even down
to the sea at Looe, are found saints of the Brychan family of Breck-
nock. Unhappily, we have no early history of Cornwall that can
account for this. Only a glimmer of light comes to us through such
few Lives, or notices of Lives, as remain.
But if the historians hold their peace, the stones cry out, and testify
to a very extensive colonisation by Irish.
We have scanty notices that Caradog Freichfras, who was prince
of Gelliwig, the territory about Callington, about 480 conquered
Brecknockshire. He was himself related to the royal family of
Brychan through his mother. Whether he entered into any compact
with the ecclesiastics of that family and bade them occupy East and
North-east Cornwall, on condition that they vacated all their holdings
in Brecknock, or whether he drove them out, and they fled to Cornwall
to the Irish colonists there, we do not know ; but certain it is that
the Brychan family is represented very fully there. The Brychan
family was Irish, and that there were Irish inhabiting the region to
which they moved we shall proceed to show. We know from an
entry in Cormac's Irish Glossary that in the time of Crimthan the
Great the Irish held/Map Lethain in the lands of the Cornish Britons, 64
*>., 366-378.
The lapidary inscriptions give us Irish names, and bear also the
Ogam script. The Maccodechet stone at Tavistock shows that a
portion of the Deceti sept from Kerry was settled there. We find
their names on monuments both in the west of Ireland and in Angle-
sey. Another stone is that of Dobunnus, son of Enobar. Dobunnus
3 Tripartite Life, i, p. clxxxiii.
4 Three Irish Glossaries, by W. Stokes, Lond., 1862, p. xlviii.
The Welsh and Cornish Saints 3 I
meets us again several times in Kerry. The Cumregnus stone at
Southill has the Goidelic Manci on it, and one of the Lewannic stones
the no less Irish ingen ; the other bears the name of Ulcagnus, the
Irish Olcan, that we find in Kerry as Olacon. 65 The Endellion stone
to Breocan also has its relatives in Kerry and also in Pembrokeshire.
It can hardly be by accident that Cormac represents Map or Mac
Lethain as a fortress of the Irish in Cornwall. This shows that it had
been erected by the Hy Liathain, who occupied a tract of country in
Minister close to Kerry. And if we suppose that the Brychan family
< It-rived from the Hy Brachain in Thomond, then their original seat
was separated from Kerry by the estuary of the Shannon only. But
it is not only the family of Brychan that is represented in North-east
< '< -rim-all ; the closely related family of Gwent was also there. To
this belonged Petroc of Padstow. Cadoc has also left his mark
tlu-rr, so has Glywys, and possibly Gwynllyw at Poughill. The
Stowford stone inscribed to Gungleus looks as though it marked the
ig- place of one of the same family. On account of the way in
which the Saxons and Normans supplanted the Celtic saints with
fresh dedications from the Roman Martyrology in Devon, we are not
able to determine to what an extent North Devon was settled with
-lastical foundations from Brycheiniog and Gwent. But Bry-
nach, son-in-law of Brychan, is found at Braunton, Nectan, a reputed
son, at Hartland and Wellcombe. In Cornwall it is otherwise. We
find them extending from Padstow Harbour to the Tamar, and south
ir as to the river Fal.
Let us now turn to the west of Cornwall, to Penwith, or the Land's
End district, and to Meneage, that of the Lizard. Here the whole
district is ecclesiastically Irish. But, indeed, the invasion extends
further east, as far as to Newquay, for we have near that S. Piran
and S. Carannog, which latter, though not actually Irish by birth,
laboured long in the Emerald Isle, and in the south it seems to have
^tivtohed with breaks to Grampound.
Happily we have some account of the invasion that took place
there. This is in the Life of S. Fingar, written by a monk named
Anselm, probably of S. Michael's Mount. There were in existence
other records, to which Leland refers, and which he had seen, and from
which he made all too scanty extracts, but these are lost for ever.
From such sources we learn that in the reign of Tewdtjg, King of
Cornwall, who had palaces or duns at Reyvier on the Hayle river,
and at Goodern near Truro, and, if we may judge by the place-name,
5 Studies in Irish Epigraphy, by R. A. S. Macalister, London, 1897.
* 2 Introduction
*
a court at Listewder in S. Kevern, a fleet of Irish arrived in Hayle
Harbour, and that he fell upon them when they landed and killed
a number of them. Some took refuge on Tregonning Hill, and en-
trenched and maintained themselves there. In the end the Irish
must have got the upper hand, for they meted out the whole of the
present deaneries of Penwith, Kerrier and Carnmarth between them,
and extended their foundations into Powder as well. Whereupon
they elevated those of their party who had been killed by Tewdrig to
the position of martyrs. Had the Irish been expelled, Fingar would
not have received a cult, but have been regarded as a free-booter
who had met with his deserts.
The occasion of this migration is matter of conjecture, but this
seems to best explain it.
The Hy Bairrche, descendants of Daire Bairrche, second son of
Cathair Mor, King of Leinster and of all Ireland, had occupied the
country between the Slaney and the Barrow, whilst the Hy Cinn-
selach, who held what is now the county of Wexford, had been
growing in numbers and power, and had become straitened between
the Slaney and the sea.
Some time about the middle of the fifth century, Crimthan, King
of the Hy Cinnselach, invaded the Hy Bairrche territory and ex-
pelled the Hy Bairrche, although Mac Daire. the King, was his own
son-in-law. There was no alternative ; as chieftain, he must allot
habitations and land to the men of his tribe, and that could only be
done by dispossessing a neighbour. It was an obligation not to be
evaded. The expelled family sought and obtained assistance, and
many and furious battles were waged between them. In 480 the
Hy Bairrche defeated the Hy Cinnselach at Kilosnadh, and in 485,
in another battle, Eochaidh of the Hy Bairrche slew Crimthan, his
own grandfather. Again ensued battles at Graine in 485, 489, and
492, in which latter Finchadh, King of the Hy Cinnselach, was slain
The Kings of Munster had become involved in the contest. In
489 in a desperate fight at Kelliston in Carlow, Aengus Mac Nadfraich,
King of Munster, fell fighting against the Hy Bairrche. On the
death of Eochaidh, his son Diarmidh succeeded, but the strife with
the Cinnselach was chronic.
Now it is precisely about this period of internecine war and of
mutual expulsion of defeated rivals, 490-510, that the great influx
of colonists from Leinster to West Cornwall took place, and it was
from the district of the Hy Bairrche and of the Hy Cinnselach. With
the limited means at our disposal, we are unable to fix the date closely,
but we know that colonists arrived when Tewdjfit was King in Corn-
I
2
The Welsh and Cornish Saints 3 3
\\aii. and his date can be approximately determined from the Life
of S. Petroc. We have further a certain number of Irish Lives of
the Saints of Leinster that help to fix the period. When looked into,
it will be seen that the saints who settled in West Cornwall came
almost rmii-dy from Wexford and Waterford and Ossory. The
reason of their coming from Ossory we will now consider. This
emigration was also apparently due to political causes.
Tin- kinus of Minister had claimed from Ossory what was called
tlu- " Eric of Edersceol " since the first century. This consisted in
an annual payment of three hundred cows, as many horses, the same
number of swords with gold-inlaid hilts, and purple cloaks, all to be
delivered up at Samhain, the pagan Winter Feast, i.e., November I,
at Cashel. And the south of Ossory was especially charged with this
intolerable burden. It was resisted repeatedly.
sory is divided by mountain ridges into three great plains : to
the north is the Magh Arget-Ros, the middle is occupied by the Magh
Krishna, and southernmost of all is the Magh Feimhin. Ossory
is the Land between the Waters the Suir and the Barrow. It
was the s.-at of the great tribe of the Hy Connla, divided into three
septs.
During the first part of the second century, a distinguished chief
ot the race of Connla arose, named Aengus. He disputed the right
of Mun>ti T to either jurisdiction or tribute in any part of Ossory. A
battle was fought and the Munster men were completely defeated.
The eihrt of this victory was the entire emancipation of the middle
ami south plains, on which the Eric of Edersceol had been levied.
In or about 170, when Eochaid Lamdoit was king of Ossory, the
Munstrr men burst into the plains, with resolve to exterminate the
Hy Connla. The Ossorians, in their distress, appealed to Cucorb,
kim, r ot Leinster, and he sent Lughaidh Laoghis, at, the head of a
ge force, to assist the Ossorians. The Munster men were defeated
ith grt-at slaughter, but the kingdom of Ossory had to pay for this
tance by the cession of a large portion in the north-east, which
theiKvtmth constituted the kingdom of Leix, under the overlordship
of Leinster.
Another cession of territory took place later to the Hy Bairrche,
who occupied the barony of Slieve Marghie in Queen's County. Ossory
was consequently becoming contracted, and thrust more and more to
the south, where most exposed to the attacks of Munster. Then
Core, king of Munster, about 370 encroached on Magh Feimhin,
and established his fortress therein at Cashel. At the same time he
revived the claim for the Eric of Edersceol, and to enforce it occupied
VOL. i.
34
Introduction
the whole of the southern plain. This was the beginning of a terrible
time for the Ossorian royal family, and indeed for all the inhabitants
of the central and southern plains. Lughaid, the prince of the Hy
Duach, one of the septs of the Hy Connla, was, somewhat later,
removed from Magh Reighna, and sent in banishment among the
Corca Laighde, in the south-west of the county of Cork, or West
Carberry.
Presently the Ossorians rose in a body, and, headed by such of
their princes as were not detained in Munster, made a desperate
struggle to recover their independence. They apparently met at first
with some success, but very speedily Aengus Mac Nadfraich, grand-
son of Core of Cashel, entered Magh Feimhin and swept through it
to drive the Hy Duach out of the middle plain. At the same time a
kinsman, Cucraidh, great-great-grandson of Core, burst into Magh
Reighna and Magh Airghet Ros from the north-west.
Aengus annexed the whole of Magh Feimhin, from which he ex-
pelled the Ossorians, and he peopled it with the Deisi, who were then
settled in what we now call Waterford. As to Cucraidh, he was
given all the remainder of Ossory, the two upper plains, as a kingdom
under the overlordship of Munster. For seven generations this
intrusive dynasty occupied upper Ossory.
Aengus had been baptized by S. Patrick in 470, and he fell in battle
489. We may set down this invasion and partition of Ossory as
taking place about 460-480. We know that some of the Ossorian
princes fled north, but what became of the people generally ? May
we not suppose that it was at this time, when life was impossible in
the Land between the Waters, that they took ship and crossed into
Cornwall ? But it is not there only that we find them but in Brittany
as well. It is certainly significant that among the saints of Western
Cornwall and of Western Brittany we find so many Ossorian names.
That the same sort of thing went on in Alba from Dal-Riada we know
for certain. The Irish colonists and conquerors of the Picts gave
their name to Scotland.
The Saints of Wales belong to eight great families.
i. That of Maxen Wledig, or Maximus the Usurper, 383-388. He
is held to have married Elen, daughter of Eudaf, a petty prince in
Arfon, and Aurelius Ambrosius probably claimed descent from
Maximus. From the same stock came Rhydderch Hael, the prince
who established himself supreme over the Cumbrian Britons ; also
Ynyr Gwent, prince of Gwent, who resided at Caerwent. This family
would seem to have represented the Romano-British civilisation.
The pedigree has been disturbed by confounding Elen, the wife of
The Welsh and Cornish Saints 3 5
Our
MONASTIC FOUNDATIONS IN WALES
Maxell, with S. Helena, the wife of Constantius and mother of Con-
stantine the Great.
2. That of Cunedda, which came from the North, from the defence
of the Wall, and which had been seated in the ancient Roman Valentia.
This family is said to have expelled the Gwyddyl from Gwynedd,
Ceredigion and Mon, and to have also occupied Merioneth, Osweilion
and Denbigh. From it proceeded the royal line of Gwynedd, which
only came to an end with the last Llewelyn. From this family pro-
ceeded those important saints, Dewi and Teilo.
3. That of Cadell Deyrnllwg in Powys, which sent out a branch
into Glywyssing. Cadell became prince of Powys with his seat at Wrox-
Introduction
eter or Shrewsbury, in the fifth century, in consequence of a revolt of
the Romano-British and Christian subjects of Benlli against their
prince, who favoured paganism. Cadell was grandfather of Brochwel
Ysgythrog. This family died out in the male line in Cyngen,
murdered at Rome in 854. It produced several saints, notably
S. Tyssilio of Meifod ; and its branch in Glywyssing afforded the
still more illustrious S. Pedrog and S. Catwg.
4. That of Brychan, king of Brycheiniog. This was an Irish
family. Anlach, father of Brychan, made himself master of Breck-
nock. The family produced an incredible number of saints, who are
found not only in their native district, but also in North-east and
East Cornwall.
5. That of Caw of Cwm Cawlwyd in North Britain. Caw, however,
was son of Geraint ab Erbin, Prince of Devon. Owing to the inroads
of the Picts, the family of Caw was forced to abandon Arecluda
and fly to Gwynedd, where they were well received by Cadwallon
La whir (v. Life of Gildas), and Maelgwn, his son, who gave them
lands, mainly in Mon, but apparently with the proviso that they
should enter religion, so as not to form any small principalities
which might be politically disadvantageous to the interests of the
crown of Gwynedd. To this family, which never after its expul-
sion from the North obtained any secular importance, belonged
Gildas, the famous abbot of Ruys.
6. That of Coel Godebog. According to Skene, he was king in
North Britain, and from him Kyle now takes its name. He was
ancestor of a large and important family, of Llyr Merini, prince in
Devon and Cornwall, of Urien Rheged, and of the poet Llywarch
Hen. From him descended a great many saints, but none of any
great importance. Pabo Post Prydynn, and Dunawd, and Deiniol of
Bangor, are the most conspicuous.
7. That of Cystennin Gorneu, a stock that, like the family of Maxen
Wledig, derived from an usurper of the purple, Constantine the Tyrant,
408-411. It was from this stock that issued the family of Caw, given
above (5). It would seem to have supplied Domnonia (Devon and
Cornwall) with princes, who were called either Constantine or Geraint.
The saint of this family that proved most remarkable was S. Cybi,
unless we prefer the notorious Constantine whom Gildas denounced
for his crimes and immoralities, but who was afterwards converted.
8. That of Emyr Llydaw from Armorica. The Welsh pedigrees
derive Emyr from Cynan, son of Eudaf and brother of Elen, wife
of Maximus. But this is certainly imaginary. All that we really
know about Emyr is that probably, on account of an usurpation
The Welsh and Cornish Saints 3 7
by one of his sons, the others had to fly from Armorica and
take iviuge in South Wales, where they were well received by Meurig,
king of Morganwg, who gave to several of them his daughters in
marriage. The Bretons pretend that this eldest son, who sent his
brothers living, was Llywel, or Hoel, " the Great ". From Emyr pro-
ceeded some men of great mark, as S. Samson, S. Padarn, and, by a
laughter, S. Cadfan and S. \Vimvaloe.
To tin- number may perhaps be added that of Gwrtheyrn Gwrtheneu,
but it did not proceed beyond the second generation, and then only
through daughters.
For centuries, due partly to the sneer of Bede, and partly to the
1 contempt with which the Latin Church regarded all missionary
work that did not proceed from its own initiative, the English Church
looked to Augustine of Canterbury as the one main source from
whom Christianity in our island sprang, and Rome as the mother
who sent him to bring our ancestors to Christ. That he did a good
and grrut work is not to be denied; he was the Apostle of Kent,
where the Britons had all been massacred or whence they had been
driven. Hut Kent is only a corner of the island. And it was for-
ii how much was wrought by the Celtic Church, even for the
Teutonic invaders, tar more than was achieved by Augustine.
It was the Church in Wales which sent a stream of missionaries to
Ireland to complete its conversion, begun by Patrick, a child per-
:he Celtic Church of Strathclyde, though Professor Bury
thinks ot Smith Britain. It was from Ireland that Columcille
went to lona to become the evangelist of the Picts. From Llanelwy
went forth Ki-ntigi-rn with 665 monks and clerics to restore Chris-
tianity in Cumbria, which extended from the Clyde to the Dee. It
Mom lona that the missioners proceeded who converted all
Noithumnria. Mercia. and the East Saxons and Angles. Honour to
whom honour is due, and the debt of obligation to the Celtic saints
in the British Isles has been ignored or set aside hitherto.
But they did more. To them was due the conversion of Armorica.
Kvidenee >hows that nothing, or next to nothing, was done for the
original inhabitants of that peninsula by the stately prelates of the
Gallo- Roman Church. They ministered to the city populations of
Nantes and kennes and Vannes, and did almost nothing for the
scattered natives of the province. They were left to live in their
heathenism and die without the light, till the influx of British colonists
changed the whole aspect, and brought the people of the land into
the told of Christ.
In Waits, whenever the Norman prelates could, they displaced the
Introduction
Celtic patrons from their churches, and rededicated them to saints
whose names were to be found in the Roman Calendar. The native
saints were supplanted principally by the Blessed Virgin, but in a
number of instances by S. Peter. To take a few instances from one
diocese only, that of S. Asaph. Llanfwrog (S. Mwrog), Llannefydd
(S. Nefydd), and Whitford (S. Beuno), have been transferred to S.
Mary. Northop (S. Eurgain), and Llandrinio (S. Trinio) to S. Peter ;
Guilsfield (S. Aelhaiarn), and Llangynyw (S. Cynyw) to All Saints.
The two southern cathedrals have received rededications, S. David's
to S. Andrew, and Llandaff to S. Peter. Bangor was rededicated to
S. Mary, but S. Asaph has escaped.
In Cornwall, Altarnon has been taken from S. Kon and given to
S. Mary, S. Neot's at Menhenniot to S. Anthony, S. Finnbar at Fowey
has been supplanted by S. Nicholas, S. Merryn by S. Thomas a Becket.
At Mawnan, S. Stephen was coupled with the patron when the church
was rededicated. S. Dunstan, on a like occasion, was linked with
S. Manaccus at Lanlivery and Lanreath. S. Elwyn had to make way
for S. Catherine, and S. Ruan for the apocryphal S. Christopher.
The same process has been going on in Brittany, as we shall see in
the sequel.
The Celtic Saints may have employed methods which to us seem
strange and uncouth, but they were in accordance with the spirit of
their times ; they were not free from the legal conceptions prevalent
in their race, and these coloured their procedure, and carried them
to commit acts hardly in accordance with the Gospel, but they were
whole-hearted in their devotion to Christ, and with a fervour of zeal
in their hearts which was a consuming fire. They accommodated
themselves to superstitions, only that they might divest these usages
of their evil accidents and direct them into harmless currents. They
sacrificed themselves, their comforts, their everything that makes
life sweet and joyous, for the sake of their Divine Master, and to win
a barbarous people to the precepts of Christ. They were but human,
fallible and sometimes faulty, but what they undertook to do, that
they succeeded in doing. The Spirit of God, ever present in the
Church, calls to action in different ways according to the needs of
the time, and the habits of those among whom work has to be done.
" There are differences of administrations, but the same Lord. There
are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh
all in all." ' Spiritus ubi vult spirat ; et vocem ejus audis, sed nescis
unde veniat, ant quo vadat : sic est omnis, qui natus est ex Spiritu.*'
4 i Cor. xii. 5. 67 s . j hn iii, 8.
Lesser Britain 39
II. LESSER BRITAIN
A KNOWLEDGE of the migrations to Armorica, and the colonisation
of that portion of what is now called Brittany, is essential for the
appreciation of the history of Wales and all south-western Britain
in the fifth and sixth centuries.
The Armorican peninsula had been occupied from prehistoric
times by a non-Aryan race, probably speaking an agglutinative
tongue, a people that erected the rude stone monuments strewn
broadcast over the land, a people whose dominating religious senti-
ment was the cult of the Dead. These were subjugated by the Gauls,
moving into and occupying the Armorican peninsula in five invading
dans, the Veneti, the Nanneti, the Redones, the Curiosoliti, and the
mi. These invaders did not exterminate the natives, they
reduced them to servitude, and refused them the right to bear arms.
That the religion and religious practices of the conquered race in-
fluenced the dominant Gaul is what we might expect. The influence
of a conquered race never does die out so soon as the conquerors are
established. It affects, moulds and modifies the religion and ritual
(it the conquerors. And the testimony of the sepulchres in Armorica
pn>\vs that such was the case there. \
Caesar conquered Armorica, and well nigh exterminated the free-
born Gaulish Veneti. Thousands were massacred, and their wives
and children were sold into foreign bondage. 1
In KC. 52. when Vercingetorix, besieged by Julius Caesar in Alesia,
appealed to all Gallic patriots to rise against the Romans, each of
the Aimoric tribes furnished a contingent of three thousand men,
pf the Veneti, too exhausted and broken, who were incapable
of sending any. 2
The Gauls settled in Armorica as a dominant race rapidly assimi-
luted the customs, religion, and adopted the language of their Roman
conquerors. They seem even to have abandoned Celtic names for
those of Rome, as among the inscriptions of the period recovered,
hardly more than two preserved personal names of Celtic origin.
Under the later emperors, the fiscal exactions in the provinces
became so intolerable that commerce and agriculture languished.
Lactantius says : " The number of those who received pay had
become so greatly in excess of those who had to pay, that the colonials,
" Itaque omni senatu necato, reliquos sub corona vendidit." De Bella
Gallico, iii, 16 ; Dion Cass.. xxxix, 43.
a De Bella Gallico, vii, 75.
Introduction
crushed by the enormity of the imposts, abandoned the cultivation
of their lands, and tillage reverted to forest." 3 He adds details.
"The fields were measured to the last clod; the vine stocks and
tree boles were all counted ; every beast, of whatever kind, was in-
scribed, each man's head was reckoned. The poor people of town and
country were swept together into the towns, the market-places were
crowded with families. Every proprietor, together with the free-men
of his household and his serfs, was registered ; torture and the lash
were applied on all sides. Sons were forced to give evidence against
their fathers, and they were placed on the rack to extort this from
them. The most faithful slaves were constrained by torture to
testify against their masters, and wives in like manner against their
husbands. In default of other evidence, men were themselves
tormented to give evidence against themselves, and when at
last they were overcome by pain, they were inscribed for goods they
did not possess. No exception was allowed for age and infirmity.
Sick and weakly men were all enrolled on the register as taxable. . . .
And yet full confidence was not reposed in the tax-collectors. Others
were sent in their traces to find out fresh occasion for imposts. More-
over, every time the tax was raised, not as if something had been
discovered which had hitherto escaped the charge, but these new
agents piled up the dues so as to give proof of their own activity.
The result was that the cattle dwindled, men died, and yet payment
was extorted for the dead as from the living, so that finally one could
neither live nor die without being taxed." 4
These exactions became more oppressive as the Empire became
feebler. The Gallo-Roman landed proprietors, the free-men, were
constrained to abandon their villas, which they were no longer in a
position to maintain, and to retire within the walls of Nantes. Rennes
and Vannes.
The great towns of Aleth, Corseul, Carhaix, Vindana (Audierne), Vor-
ganium, etc., fell into ruins. The bishops of the three cities absorbed
the magisterial office, and became civic as well as ecclesiastical rulers.
But their authority hardly extended beyond the walls of the towns ;
and if they attempted anything towards the conversion of the abori-
ginal inhabitants, it was in a half-hearted, desultory fashion that
produced no lasting results. To add to the general misery, bands of
sea rovers, described as Frisians, probably Saxons, descended on
the coast, plundering, butchering and burning.
At length the tyranny of the Empire could be endured no longer,
3 De Mortibus Persecutorum, vii. * Ibid., xxiii.
Lesser Britain 41
and just as the wave of German invasion began- to wash over Eastern
Gaul, the Armoricans rose in the West, and expelled the Roman
magistrates, inspired, as Zozimus informs us, by the example of the
insular Britons. 5 Rutilius, in his Itinerary, informs us that Exu-
IK Tuntius, prefect of the Gauls, succeeded in reducing the Armoricans
in 415-20, but this success was temporary. Sidonius Apollinaris
attributes the same success to Litorius, praefectorial lieutenant in 435
;(>, 6 and to Majorian, lieutenant of Aetius in 446.'
The efforts of Aetius were by no means as successful as they are
i presented by Sidonius, for in the very next year, 447, the same Ma-
jorian, despairing of being able to reduce the Armoricans, invited the
Barbarous Alans to invade the country and to exterminate a people
he was himself unable to subdue. 8 This proposal would have been
rarru-d into effect but for the intervention of S. Germanus of Auxerre.
I" 453>" says Jornandes, " the Armoricans supplied a contingent
to the confederation that defeated Attila on the plains of Chalons." 9
A little later, after 468, we hear of Britons in Armorica near the mouth
ot the Loire. In that year a certain Arvandus, prefect of Gaul,
vhelmed with debt and ripe for any expedient for recovering
himselt. intrigued with Euric, king of the Visigoths, and was arrested
and tried tor high treason in the ensuing year. At the trial a letter
nt Ins was produced, in which he exhorted Euric not to make peace
with the Emperor Anthemius, but " as the Britons established upon
the Loire " were the most able auxiliaries that the Empire possessed,
Ivised Kuric to fall on them, and rid himself of them, before pro-
ceeding overtly to attack the imperial power." 10
Antheniins thm called on these Britons (solatia Britonum postu-
lavit) to make common cause with him against the Visigoths, and
lesponded by sending twelve thousand men, under their King,
minx up the Loire to Bourges, to the assistance of the Count
Paul, who was assembling an army against Euric. But the Roman
d was leisurely in his proceedings, and Riothimus remained for
nearly a twelvemonth at Bourges, during which time Sidonius Apolli-
naris entered into correspondence with him about some captives the
ns had taken."
Riothimus, at last, impatient at his enforced inactivity, marched
5 T'ndcr the date of 408.
Carmen VIII. v. ^45 et seq, ; Avitus, Pancgyr., ii.
7 Carmen I', v. 211-2.
Prosp. Aquit., Chron., A.D. 44^. 9 De rebus Gothicis, xxxiii.
" Britannos supra Ligerim sitos impugnare oportere demonstrans."
Sidon. Apollin., Epist., \, j.
11 Hid., iii, y.
. 2 Introduction
against the Visigoths, whom he encountered at Deols. He was
defeated and compelled, along with the survivors of his host, t<
refuge among the Burgundians. 12
That these Britons at the mouth of the Loire were Christians
appears most probable, for at a provincial council held at Tours in
461, only a few years previous to this, appeared Mansuetus, bishop
of the Britons (episcopus Britannorum), who sat with Eusebius of
Nantes and Athenius of Rennes. This is the first intimation we have
of British settlers in Armorica, and in sufficient numbers to send a
contingent of twelve thousand men against the Visigoths.
We are not told that Britons were involved in the risings in 408, 415,
435, 446, but we are afforded the significant hint that they revolted,
" following the example of the insular Britons." That British colon-
ists were settled at the mouth of the Loire early in the fifth century
is accordingly established.
But had they, at this time, begun to settle in other parts of Ar-
morica ? We have no contemporary records to show that they had,
but there are many indications that they had done so.
According to the Gloss on Fiacc's Hymn on S. Patrick, " Patrick
and his father, Calpurn, Concess his mother . . . and his five sisters
... his brother, the deacon Sannan, all went from Ail Cluade over
the Ictian Sea (the English Channel) southward to the Britons of
Armorica, that is to say, to the Letavian Britons, for there were
relations of theirs there at that time." 13
The statement is late, but it embodies an early tradition. It is
not said to what part of Armorica these emigrants went, but as we
hope to show, when dealing with S. Germanus the Armorican, there
is some ground for supposing it was to Cornugallia.
According to the Life of S. Illtyd, he was son of Bicanys, an Ar-
morican of British blood, driven from Armorica apparently by some
family quarrel which deprived him of his land. 14 Illtyd cannot
have been born later than 460. So also Cadfan, with a large party
of refugees, came to Wales early in the sixth century, and we can
hardly suppose them to have been flying from a country recently
occupied. Cadfan has left his traces in Cornouaille and in Leon.
Again, we have Budic, a king of Cornugallia, living as a refugee in
South Wales, and that in the sixth century, but at the very beginning
of it. 15
12 Greg. Turon., Hist., ii, 18 ; Fernandes, De rebus Gothicis, xlv.
13 Tripartite Life of S. Patrick, Rolls Series, ii, 473-5. Liber Hymn., ii,
p. 177. See also preface to Hymn of S. Sechnall, Liber Hymn., ii, 3.
14 Cambro-British Saints, p. 158. 15 Book of Llan Ddv, p. 130.
Lesser Britain 43'
Some little weight may be allowed to the catalogue of the princes
of Cornubia or Cornugallia in the Cartulary of Landevennec. 16 The
Cartularies of Quimperand of Quimperle give the same list, but obvi-
ously derived from the same source. They reckon three kings of
the Britons in Cornubia as reigning before Grallo, who ruled from
about 470 to about 505. Allow fifteen years for each reign, and this
tfiv-> u> 435 for the first.
What is more convincing is that when the colonists arrived at a
later period, they found the land already parcelled out into pious
and tret's. There was occasion for a great migration taking place in
tin- tilth century, but immigration had probably begun earlier.
I'li'lrr the date 364 Ammianus Marcellinus says : " At this time
tlic trumpet, as it were, gave signal for war throughout the Roman
w>rM : and the Barbarian tribes on the frontier were moved to make
incursions on those territories which lay nearest to them. The
Picts, Scots, Saxons and Attacotti harassed the Britons with in-
int mva>ions."
( hving to the weakness of Britain, that had been partly Romanised,
and which was ill defended by a few legions, the island became a prey
to Invaders, It was fallen upon from all sides. The Irish, or Scots
as tin \ were then called, poured over the western coast and occupied
nearly tin- wlu.K- ot Wales. The Picts broke over the Wall from the
north, and the Germans invaded and planted themselves on the east
and south-east. Large bands of Irish swept over Devon and Corn-
wall. Their inscribed stones with ogams, as has been already shown,
can be traced into South Devon.
From Irish records we find that after 366 Crimthan the Great was
warring in Alba, Britain, and exacting tribute from it. 17
In 308, according to Ammianus, matters had reached a critical
:n Britain. Theodosius was sent into the island, and he drove
tin- Picts out of London. The relief was temporary. No sooner was
he gone than they returned. It is of this period of protracted misery
that (iildas writes: "Britain groaned in amazement under the
city of two foreign nations, the Scots from the north-west, and
Picts from the north." According to him the Britons appealed
o Rome, and a legion was sent into the island, which inflicted severe
on the invaders. It was, however, almost immediately with-
5
' Cart. Land., i-d. De la Borclerie, Rennes, 1888, pp. 172-3.
" Capessivit postea imperium Crimthanus Fidlogi filius . . . qui septern-
em annos regnavit, et Albania, Britannia et Gallia victorias retulisse illa-
rumque regionum incolas vetusta docuraenta produnt." (Keating, from
Minister documents.)
A A Introduction
drawn, and then, " their former foes, like ravening wolves rushing
upon the field left without a shepherd, wafted across by the force of
the oarsmen, and the blast of the wind, broke through the boun-
daries, spread slaughter on every side, and overran the whole country."
Again a legion was sent, but was withdrawn with a notice that no
further assistance would be accorded to the island. " No sooner
were they gone," continues Gildas, " than the Picts and Scots landetf
from their boats, in which they had been borne across the Cichian
Valley (the Irish Channel)." The Britons " left their cities, aban-
doned the protection of the Wall, and dispersed in flight ; and the
enemy pursued them with more unrelenting cruelty than before, and
butchered our countrymen like sheep."
"The power of the Cruithnians (Picts) and of the Gaels (Scots)
advanced into the heart of Britain," says Nennius, " and drove them
to the Tin (Tyne). . . . Their power continually increased over
Britain, so that it became heavier than the Roman tribute ; because
the object aimed at by the Northern Cruithnians and Gaels was the
total expulsion of the Britons from their lands." 18
" Great was the power of the Gael over Britain," says an early
Irish writer, Cormac, b. 831, d. 903. " They divided Alba (i.e.,
Albion = Britain) amongst them in districts . . . and their residences
and royal forts were built there." He mentions Glastonbury as in
their hands, and the fort of Mac Lethain in the hands of the Cornish
Britons. 19
In the meantime the Saxon pirates had ravaged and depopulated
Armorica. Sidonius Apollinaris shows us what devastation they
wrought, and how they extended their attacks as far south as the
Saintonge. 20 To more completely sweep the country they planted
stations along the coast from which they penetrated inland, burning
and slaughtering. 21 The results of these raids are revealed by the
spade at this day. All the old sites of Roman-Gaulish towns in
Brittany lie buried under beds of ashes. 22
Finally, as Procopius says, the region of Armorica was the most
desert in all Gaul. 23 This peninsula accordingly offered a field for
settlement by Britons flying from the swords of the Picts and Scots.
The exodus began in the fifth century, but it was renewed, and the
18 Irish Nennius, ed. Todd & Herbert, 1848, p. 73.
19 Glossary of Cormac, ed. W. Stokes, 1862, pp. xlviii, xlix.
20 Sidon. Apoll., Paneg. Aviti, vv. 370-2, 348-50.
21 Greg. Turon., Hist. Franc., ii, 18, 19 ; v, 27 ; x, 9.
!2 De la Borderie, Hist, de Bretagne, t. i, 221-225.
23 De Bello Gothico, iv, 20.
Introduction
Britons came over in great masses when the Angle, -Jute and Saxon
obtained a foothold in Britain and rolled back the natives to the
Severn.
Three main principalities had been founded in Armorica before
the new rush of colonists, flying from the Saxons. These were the
principalities of Dumnonia, Cornubia and Venetia, afterwards called
Bro-weroc. There was another very soon absorbed into Dumnonia,
that of Leon, and Po-her was a county in the folds of the Monts
d'Arree and the Montaignes Noires which eventually fell to Cornubia,
but which was for a while closely connected with Dumnonia. It is
reasonable to suppose that natives of insular Dumnonia, or Devon,
flying before the inrush of the Irish, had settled Armorican Dumnonia
and given to it the name it bore. So, also, we may suppose that
Cornubia received its settlers from Cornwall, whence also the natives
were driven by the Irish, who seized on the Land's End and Lizard
districts, as also by a great body of emigrants from Gwent. Caerleon
may have furnished the settlers who gave the name to Leon.
Vannes, Nantes and Rennes remained Gallo-Roman cities, as
hostile in feeling to the new colonists as they were to the new Frank
kingdom.
At first, probably, the settlers maintained a political connexion
with the mother country. This is implied by a passage in the Life
of S. Leonore, " Fuit vir unus in Britanicia ultra mare, nomine Rigal-
dus, qui in nostra primus venit citra mare habitare provincia, qui
dux fuit Britonum ultra et citra mare usque ad mortem" 24
What makes this probable is that we meet with the names of the
Dumnonian princes Geraint and Selyf or Solomon, in Armorica, as
though certain lands had been reserved to them as royal domain in
the newly settled lands. But if this recognition of the British princes
was at first allowed it cannot have endured for long.
How completely Armorica became settled from Britain appears
from many allusions. Thus in the Life of S. Illtyd we read : " Let-
avia. . . sumpsit originem a matre Britannia. Erudita fuit a matre,
filia." 25
The biographer of S. Padarn, a late writer, gives us the traditions :
" Corus ecclesiasticus Monachorum Letaviam deserens Brittanit
meditabantur oras appetere. . . . Caterva sanctorum ad originem
unde exierunt, transmittit sub ducibus." 26
The Book of Llan Ddv, with reference to Guidnerth, of Gwent, wl
24 De Smedt, Catalogus Codicum Hagiograph. in Bibl. Nat. Parisiens. ii, 153,
16 Cambro-British Saints, p. 158. 2 Ibid., p. 189.
Lesser Britain 47
the murder of his brother was sent on pilgrimage, says that he
departed for Armorica, as " Guidnerth himself and the Britons and
the archbishop of that land were of one tongue and of one nation,
although divided by a tract of land." 27
\\Y are obliged to repose largely on inference with regard to
the earliest settlement of Britons in Armorica prior to the migration
of the first half of the 6th century. But when we come to the
tinit- of the Anglo-Saxon invasion, it is otherwise, we have document-
vidence concerning that.
(iiMas. alter describing in his inflated style the miseries of his
e Britain, goes on to say: "Some of the wretched remnant
consequently captured on the mountains and killed in heaps.
< Uht-rs, overcome by hunger, came and yielded themselves to the
luinies, to be their slaves for ever, if they were not instantly slain,
which was equivalent to the highest service. Others repaired to
parts beyond the sea, with strong lamentation, as if, instead of the
oarsman's call, singing thus beneath the swelling sails, 'Thou hast
^'ivi-n us like- sheep appointed for eating, and among the Gentiles hast
Thou scattered us.' " Gildas does not say whither the British
.rees betook themselves, that we learn from other sources.
Eginhanl. writing under the date 786, says : " At the period when
tt Britain was invaded by the Angles and Saxons, a large por-
i its inhabitants traversed the sea and came to occupy the
"imtry of the Veneti and the Curiosoliti, at the extremity of Gaul." 29
Procopius says : " The isle of Britain is inhabited by three nations
that are very numerous, each having its own king, the Angles, the
Saxons) and the Britons. These nations possess such
.in abundance of men, that annually a number of them quit the isle
iloni; with wives and children, and emigrate to the Franks, who
i to them as dwelling the most distant portion of their empire." *
Procopius. living at Byzantium, was ill-informed. There is no
nee of Saxons and Angles settling in the extremities of Gaul, 4
;h there is of " Frisians " ravaging the north coast of Brittany.
Krnold Nigellus, in 834, also speaks of the migration to Armorica,
.;nd says that it was conducted peaceably.
The author of the Life of S. Winwaloe says : " The sons of the
Britons, leaving the British sea, landed on these shores, at a period
*' Book of Llan Ddv, p. 181.
18 De excidio Brit., <!. Williams, p. 57.
" Cum ab Anglis et Saxonibus Britannia fuisset invasa, magna pars
incolarum ejus mare trajicentes, in ultimis Galliae finibus, Venetorum et Curio-
solitarum regiones occupavit." Annul., ann. 786.
30 De Bella Gothico, iv, 20.
CS'^l/W/y
7
Introduction
when the barbarian Saxon conquered the Isle. These children of a
beloved race established themselves in this country, glad to find
repose after so many griefs. In the meantime, the unfortunate Britons
who had not quitted their country, were decimated by plague. Their
corpses lay without sepulture. The major portion of the isle was
depopulated. Then a small number of men who had escaped the
sword of the invaders abandoned their native land, to seek refuge,
some among the Scots, the rest in Belgic Gaul." 31 Wrdistan wrote
this in the ninth century, but he rested his statements on early
authorities, though for this particular fact he quotes only popular
tradition, " ut vulgo refertur."
To about the years 460 or 470, in documents relating to Armorica,
that name prevails, and the inhabitants are spoken of as Veneti, Ossismi,
Curiosoliti, Redones, or Naneti. But from that date all is altered.
The name of Armorica disappears, the ancient peoples are no more
spoken of, but the land is entitled Lesser Britain, and the inhabi-
tants are Britons. 32
The linguistic evidence is conclusive as to the extent and com-
pleteness of the colonisation. " The Armorican Breton tongue was
not only closely akin to that of the insular British or Welsh, it was
identical with it." 33 Now, if there had been a mere infiltration of
colonists, the result would have been a fusion of the British with the
base Gallo-Latin of the inhabitants. But this did not take place.
The Gallo-Roman population had disappeared out of the country
places, and remained only in the towns. Those natives who clung
to the fields and woods were of the original non-Aryan stock, and
probably still retained their agglutinative tongue.
M. de Courson 34 first promulgated the theory that the settlers in
Breton Cornubia were refugees from the North of Britain, and he
was followed by M. de la Borderie. According to him the Otadini
of the Wall fled before the Picts and found a home in Armorica,
and founded the settlement of Cornubia there. He relied on no
31 Britannia insula, de qua stirpis nostra origo olim, ut vulgo refertur,
processit . . . Longe ab hujus moribus parvam distasse sobolem suam non
opinor, quae quondam ratibus ad istam devecta est, citra mare Britannicum,
terram tempore non alio quo gens barbara dudum, aspera jam armis, moribus
indiscreta Saxonum maternum possedit cespitem. Hinc se cara soboles in
istum conclusit sinum, quo se tuta loco, magnis laboribus fessa, ad oram con-
cessit sine bello quieta." Vita S. Winwaloei, i, i.
33 De la Borderie, Hist, de Bretagne, i, p. 248.
" J. Loth, L' Emigration bretonne en Armorique, p. 92.
34 De Courson, La Bretagne, Paris, 1863, p. 163 ; De la Borderie, Hist, de
Bretagne, i, pp. 301-2. J. Loth, in Revue Celtique, t. xxv, p. 91 et seq.
Lesser Britain 49
better foundation than this : that there was a Corstopitum on
the Wall near Newcastle, and that the name of Quimper was Curio-
sopitum. Also : that a troop raised among the Cornovii of the
Severn Valley had been sent to guard the Wall, as noticed in the
Notitia Dignitatum, " Sub dispositione ducis spectabilis Britanni-
arum, per lineam valli, Tribunus cohortis Cornoviorum." The
Notitia gives us information relative to the disposition of troops
dating the period between the reign of Constantine and the retreat
of the Roman armies.
Now if Cornovii from the Severn basin had been stationed on the
Wull, when the troops were recalled, they would go whither summoned.
If they dispersed, they would return to their own homes. Moreover
Corstopitum is not the same name as Curiosopitum, of the Coriosoliti.
What we do know is that Cunedda and a large body of men, who
did hold the Wall, after the withdrawal of the Roman legions, when
unable to keep out the barbarians any longer, took refuge, not in
Armorica. but in Gwynedd, where they drove the Irish out of all the
north and west of Wales, and established themselves in Gwynedd
and Ceredigion. and portions of Powys. It is more probable that
the native Britons of Cornwall founded the Armorican Cornubia,
when forced to migrate by the occupation of the entire west of the
peninsula by the Irish from Ossory, and the whole north-east and
the Tamar down to the mouth by the settlers from Brecknock, who
were also of Irish extraction. It is significant that something like
fifty saintly Celtic patrons in Cornwall should also be culted in Finis-
tere, whereas there is not a trace of any saint from the district of the
Otadini having ever effected a colonisation there. But no argument
can be based on identity of names, for the name Cornubia for
Cornwall does not occur earlier than the end of the 7th century.
Previously the whole peninsula is spoken of as peopled by the
Dumnonii.
( >n settling in Armorica, the colonists from the beginning organized
themselves into tribes. But the tribal system had to be modified to
meet the new conditions.
The ancient tribe consisted of those who were united by blood.
In all the Celtic tribes the tie of kinship, of blood relationship, was
that which bound them together. But in process of time this went
through considerable modification, and upon blood-relationships other
links were forged, those of mutual rights and mutual protection.
" This new idea of mutual protection very soon entered most forcibly
into tribal development, and almost eclipsed the original idea of the
tie of blood-relationship being the basis of tribal society. The tribe
VOL. I. -R
Introduction
was to a great extent reorganised upon these new ideas, which played
the most important part in the later tribal development." This
alteration was forced on the colonists, as annually fresh arrivals
came to the coast, and solicited adoption into the already constituted
plebes, if they were not numerous enough themselves to form an
independent plebs.
Thus the tribe was reorganised on a broader basis. It formed a
plou, the Welsh plwyf, consisting of the original band that had come
over, made up of tribesmen, under their hereditary chief, who dis-
posed of his clansmen in their trefs, and the settling of controversies
among them took place in the chieftain's Us. That the regular can-
tref was formed is improbable, the trefs were fewer, and were multi-
plied as fresh settlers arrived and placed themselves under the
jurisdiction of the chief and were received into his tribe by adoption.
The artificial character of the organisation apparently may be traced
in the settlement of Fragan, the father of S. Winwaloe. He was
married to Gwen Teirbron, she being an Armorican Briton by birth.
So as to have as many pious, nuclei for tribal formations, he not
only established one near S. Brieuc, and a second in the county of
Leon, but also constituted a plou for his wife, Gwen, near S. Brieuc,
and another near his own place in Leon.
The consolidation of the pious under sovereign princes came some-
what later. The first to exercise sovereign jurisdiction in Dumnonia
was Rhiwal, about the year 5I5, 36 but he did not venture to do so
without the permission of the king of the Franks. 37
Rhiwal, who died about 520, was succeeded by his son Deroc, who
ruled till about 535, and to him succeeded his son Jonas, who died
about 540, leaving a son Judual. Conmore, Count of Poher, married
the widow of Jonas, and usurped the rule over Domnonia. Judual,
fearing for his life, fled to S. Leonore, who facilitated his escape to
the court of Childebert. This Frank king confirmed Conmore in his
35 Willis Bund, The Celtic Church of Wales, p. 59.
se .< Riwalus Britanniae dux filius fuit Derochi . . . Hie Riwalus, a transma-
rinis veniens Britanniis cum multitudine navium, possedit totam minorem
Britanniam tempore Chlotarii regis Francorum . . . Hie autem rexit Britan-
niam tempore Dagoberti filii Clotharii." Ex Cod. MS. S. Vedasti Dom Morice,
Preuves, i, 211 ; Mabillon, Acta SS. O.S.B., saec. ii. The statement that
Rhiwal possessed all Little Britain is an exaggeration. This is the Rhiwal who
received and welcomed S. Brioc. De la Borderie supposed they were distinct
personages because he placed the period of S. Brioc earlier than need be, misled
by the assumption that Brioc had been a disciple of Germanus of Auxerre.
37 Le Baud, Hist. Bretagne, 1638, p. 65. The passage is quoted under S. Brioc
further on. Also the late Chvon. Briocense, quoted by De la Borderie, Hist.
Bret., \, 353.
Lesser Britain
5 1
usurpation, made him his lieutenant in Brittany, and retained Judual
in honorary restraint at Paris, till S. Samson obtained leave in 554
to organise an insurrection for the overthrow of Conmore, who was
killed in 555, and then Judual was elevated to the throne of Dom-
nonia. The pedigree of the princes of Domnonia, as well as can be
made out, is as follows :
Khiwal arrived in Domnonia
c. 455, established himself chief
; 15, d. c. 520.
Deroc, prince in Domnonia,
c- 520-535-
Conmore, Count = = Jonas,
of Pohcr, then, 540, da. of Budic I,
regent of Dom- of Cornubia.
killed 555.
- 535-540.
Judual, b. c. 534, Aurilla m. Miliau,
pl.urd on the Prince of Cornubia.
throne 555, d. 580.
Juthael = Pritella, da. of the
580-60:; I Count of Leon.
S. JudiL-.irl, monk, kinj; in
: throned same year
tfl l>n>tlur Haeloc.
d 610, married
Moron^ abdicated 640,
Haeloc.
usurper 605,
resigned 610,
d. c. 615.
S. Judoc, abb. . .
in Ponthieu, d.
c. 668.
S. W
abbot in Fla
d. 717.
nnoc,
nders,
Lon was probably, as already said, colonised from Gwent, or at
all events the chief who consolidated the settlement there under his
rule, and gave the name to the land, probably came from Gwent. His
name was Withur. In the Life of 5. Paul of Leon he is mentioned as
the chief ; he died probably about 525. According to the Life of 5.
.[/, Deroc, son of Rhiwal, exercised rule in Leon, perhaps by
usurpation in the old age of Withur. It is singular that no mention
is made of him in the Life of S. Paid. About the year 520 Deroc
U i aim Prince of Domnonia.
Perhaps the next chief was Ewen, who is mentioned in the Life of
S. Goulvcn as having his Us or court at Lesneven, and who was engaged
in repelling an invasion of Saxon or Frisian pirates on the coast.
But if so, he has been confounded by the writer of the Life with
another Ewen of Leon who lived much later. Soon after, Conmore,
Count of Poher, began his encroachments by annexing Leon, and
thenceforth it formed a portion of Domnonia.
Cornubia, or Cornugallia, was formed into a principality earlier
5 2 Introduction
than Domnonia. The Cartularies of Landevennec, Quimperle and
Quimper give the following list of the princes : (i) Rivelen Mor
Marthou; (2) Rivelen Marthou ; (3) Cungar ; (4) Gradlon Mur ;
(5) Daniel Dremrud ; (6) Budic et Maxenri duo fratres. [Horurn
primus rediens ab Alamannia interfecit Marchell 38 et paternum
consulatum recuperavit.] 39 (7) Jan Reith, Hue rediens Marchel
interfecit ; (8) Daniel Unva ; (9) Gradlon Flam ; (10) Cungare
Cherovnoc ; (u) Budic Mur, and six others to Alan Caniart, who
died 1040, and to Hoel V, who died 1084.
The list is mainly fabulous. The contest of one king with
Marchell, attributed in the Cartulary of Quimperle to Budic, is attri-
buted in that of Quimper to Jan Reith. According to the Life of S.
Melor, Jan Reith did not succeed Budic, but preceded him, and was
the father of Daniel. We must admit the existence of Grallo the
Great, who ruled from about 470 to about 505. After him confusion
reigns in the Catalogue. Budic certainly did not take refuge in
Alamania. We have no means of determining who Grallo was, and
whether Budic was of his family.
Budic had two sons, Miliau and Rivold. Miliau reigned for seven
years, which were years of prosperity in the land. He was assassi-
nated by his brother Rivold in or about the year 537, and Rivold
then married his brother's widow, and obtained the assassination of
his nephew Melor in 544. Rivold himself died in the same year ;
and then it was that Budic II, who had been a refugee in Demetia,
returned to Cornubia and became king. We are now on safer ground.
He seems to have lived till 570, when he left a son, Tewdrig, who
was driven "from his principality by Macliau, bishop of Vannes and
count of Bro-weroc. Tewdrig, however, raised a body of men,
attacked Macliau and killed him in 577, and recovered his principality.
Of this there is nothing in the catalogue of princes, and we may well
question whether any reliance can be placed on the names that occur
earlier.
Daniel Dremrud may perhaps be recognised as the founder of
Plou Daniel in Leon. Jan Reith is probably purely mythical.
After the death of Tewdrig the history of Cornubia remains a
blank for a tract of time. If there were princes, they left no trace in
history.
38 Gregory of Tours, in his Libri Octo Miraculantm, Lib. i, mentions a bar-
barian chief of the name of Marchil Chillor, who besieged Xantes in 497. Is it
possible that this can be the same man ?
89 This passage is in the list in the QuimperU Cartulary. That of Quimper
agrees with that of Quimperle.
Lesser Britain
53
The pedigree of the princes of Cornubia, for what it is worth, as made
out from the Lives of S. Melor and S. Oudocui, is as follows :
Jan Keith, first
^ttler in ("ormibia.
|
Daniel
Dremrud.
Grallo th
I
c. .
Budk
I
I
Cyb
plan
. A u r i 1 1 a =
i Jonas,
I'rince of
Miliau, mur-
dered by his
brother.
Rivold, da. and = Conmore,
usurper, widow of regent of
537-544. Jonas. Domnonia,
1 )omnonia.
530-537-
d. 555.
Bin
1C II
S.
M
elor
0.
d.
544-
1
expelled
1 via.
m.
S. Ismael, S. Oudocui,
Bishop. B. Llandaff .
577<
;lvna>tks of Brittany have been thrown into the utmost con-
fusion by historians attempting to construct pedigrees on the prin-
rij.lt- that all Brittany was subject to a single king from the latter
part of thr tilth ri-ntury, and by acceptance of the fable of Cynan
i .lot: 1 " as a basis for their reckonings. Taking Geoffrey of
Monmnutlfs preposterous nonsense as if it were genuine history,
tlu'v have proceeded to extravagances in no whit less absurd.
In thr eighteenth century Gallet, a priest of Lamballe, drew up a
:l(^\ <>f the house of Rohan, and with the object of flattering the
family drrivol its descent from Cynan Meiriadog and from the family
of S. Patrick.
dalkt \va< (juitr unaware that Brittany in the early period of its
: v was not an undivided kingdom, and that it comprised inde-
pendent principalities and equally independent counties. In the
manufacture of the genealogy he collected all the material he could,
all the names of counts and princes he was able to find in the records
40 The table o ('yuan Meiriadog had its origin in this. Xennius says that
Maxnmis had takrn soldiers from Britain to assist him against Gratian, he
did not send them back to Britain, but he planted them from the pond on the
Mon-; Jrvis (the Gt. S. Bernard) to the city of Cantquic and to the western hill
of (.'rue Oehidient. The next to speak of this is' Eudo, Bishop of Leon in 1019,
and lie names Conan Meriadoc. Then came Geoffrey of Monmouth and de-
veloped the whole story. See De la Borderie, Hist, de Bretagne, ii, 441-63.
But he ijoes too far in saying " le glorieux Conan Meriadec doit prendre place
dans la brumeuse phalange des monarquesimaginaires." He makes no allowance
for genuine \\Vlsli traditions.
5 4 Introduction
of the duchy, and he set to work to link them together by imaginary
ties.
Whatever document came to hand and would serve his purpose,
Gallet accepted it with impartial disregard of its historic value. He
took Geoffrey of Monmouth in grave earnest. He looked at Colgan's
Trias Thaumaterga, and picked out from his notes what he had to say
about the sisters of the Apostle Patrick, and about his residence in
Letavia. He got hold of Capgrave's Nova Legenda Anglice. He read,
besides, the Life of Gildas by the monk of Ruys, and that also fur-
nished him with some names.
Unhappily Dom Morice, in most matters sensible, was led away
by Gallet, and in his Histoire Ecclesiastique et Civile de Bretagne, Paris,
1750, he inserts a pedigree that identifies Cynan Meiriadog with
Caw of Cwm Cawlwyd, and further marries him to Darerca, sister
of S. Patrick.
The pedigree, as he gives it, will be found on the opposite page.
The assumptions and absurdities of this pedigree are marvellous.
Cynan Meiriadog, who accompanies Maximus into Gaul in 383, has
to wife a sister of S. Patrick, and his grandson Grallo marries another
sister. By her Cynan is father of Gildas, who died in 570.
Having ascertained from the Life of S. Cybi that Erbin was son of
Geraint and father of Solomon, which is a mistake according to the
Welsh genealogies, for by them Geraint was son, not father, of Erbin
he intercalates Conan Meriadoc, whom he identifies with Caw,
between Geraint (Gerenton) and Erbin (Urbien). Next, he identifies
Weroc I, who died in 550, but whom he throws back to 472, with
Riothim, who assisted the Emperor Anthimius against the Visigoths
in 468, and was defeated and killed. Moreover, he gives forty-one
years for three generations. But the pedigree is so preposterous,
that it does not deserve serious notice being taken of it. Yet it was
accepted by Deric and printed with amplifications in his Ecclesi-
astical History of Brittany.
Moreover, this fictitious pedigree has infected the hagiologists of
Brittany. For instance, Garaby, in his Vies des Saints de Bretagne,
1839, under Dec. 30, has Sainte Tigride, Reine de Bretagne, and
relates how she was daughter of Calpurnius and Conchessa, sister of
S. Martin of Tours, and continues, " Ses belles qualites la firent de-
mander, en 382, pour epouse, par Grallon, compagnon d'armes de
Conan, puis due de Domnonia, comte de Cornouaille, et enfin, en
434, troisieme roi de Bretagne."
It is astounding how the imagination of modern as well as ancient
martyrologists runs riot. Grallo never had anything to do with
Lesser Britain
55
(icn-nton Prince <!' Albanie.
Miivant Inyomar, pere do
Conan.
Conan autrement Conis, Cono, Coun,
Conomagle, Cathon, etc., suivit, le tyran
Maxime dans les Gaules 1'an 383, et fut
gratifie par cet usurpateur d'une portion de
rAnnoriqno. II epousa Darerca, soeur de S.
Patrice, et mourn vers 421.
I
1
I
I
|
I
1
Cuile, Comte
Rivelon,
Urbien,
Gildas,
plusieurs enfants
cinq
de Cornou-
Comte de
alias
ne 421.
qui prirent la
filles.
aille.
Cornouaille,
Congar.
part de 1'exlisr.
aprds son
tore,
Salomon, roi des Bretons
armoriquains. rpousa la
tille de Flavins Patricius,
Remain, mort c. 434.
I
Grallo, usurpatenr apres
Salomon, epousa Tigriilin,
soenr de S. Patrice et mort
c. 445.
Audrien on Aldor,
Denims on Daniel
in. c. 4'<4-
1
Constantin roi des S. Kebius. Rengilide=Bican Cheva-
Bretons insulaires Her de 1'isle
-t pftrede Anrelins (pere et mere
Ambrosins. de S. Iltut).
K reel i ou Guerch Eus^be.mort Budoc al. Cybidan
<>u Kiothime det. c. 490, Dubric, epousa
par les Goths 47-'. epousa Anaumed fille de
A>pasia. Ensic, m. c. 509.
|
Maxena. Guitcael.
ou Hoeloc
IvMtli. on Riwal,
t"-pon>a Alma
Pom]
Ismael Tyfei S. Oucloc
ivecpjede moine et evequede
Menevia, Martyr. Llandaff.
C. 544-
Conmore Dinot,
ou Urbion. pre de S.
Kinede.
Hoel ou Rigual
Haeloc, epousa
Rima tille de
Mael.uwn. tne par
Canao 547.
S. Leonore. Canao, Macliau,
S. Tudgual. tue 560. Comte et
eveque, tue
par son
neveu
Theodoric
577-
Budic S. Seve.
tue par son
frdre Canao
547-
1
Weroc
Canao
1
tue par Theodoric.
547-
Introduction
Domnonia, and he never was sole king over Armorica. That Grallo,
who actually died about 505, should have been companion in arms
in 383 with his grandfather, who was also his brother-in-law, is absurd,
but the amazing thing is that sensible men writing ecclesiastical
history and hagiography should not have seen these anachronisms
and avoided them. 41
The genealogy of the Counts of Bro-weroc, as well as can be made
out, is as follows :
Weroc I (parentage unknown),
d. c. 550.
Canao,
550-560.
Macliau B.
Vannes, Count
560-577.
1 1 1
Three sons
murdered by
Canao 550.
Trinna =
S. Ti
Gild
= Con more,
Regent at_
Domnonia,
d - 555-
em or or
is Junior.
Weroc II,
577-594-
James, killed with
his father 577.
Vannes, or Bro-weroc, was colonised from Britain at a very early
period, but the first chief of whom we hear was Weroc I, who ruled
from about 500 to 550. He was succeeded by his son Canao, who
murdered three of his brothers and would have killed another, Mac-
liau, if the latter had not fled for his life and taken refuge with Con-
more, regent of Domnonia. Canao fell in 560, and was succeeded
by his brother Macliau, who was killed in 577, and was in turn suc-
ceeded by his son Weroc II.
Such is the epitome of the early history of Domnonia, Leon, Cor-
nubia and Vannes. This latter was not esteemed more than a county,
as the British settlers did not obtain possession of the city itself till
Macliau, who had got himself chosen bishop, united Bro-weroc under
his rule along with the city itself on the death of his brother.
But it relapsed after his death, for in 590 the Bishop Regalis com-
plained that he was as it were imprisoned by the Britons within the
walls of the city.
Venantius Fortunatus praises Felix, bishop of Nantes (550-582),
for having " defeated the British claims, and maintained the covenant
sworn to," and he speaks of the Britons as " ravishing wolves," and
congratulates him at being able to hold them off. 42 There was
no love lost between the bishops and denizens of the old Gallo-Roman
41 The pedigree in my Lives of the Saints of the Princes of Cornouaille and
Domnonia is very inaccurate. At the time it was drawn up I lacked sufficient
original material. (S. B. G.)
43 " Pro salute gregis, pastor per compita curris. Exclusoque lupo tuta tcne-
tur ovis, insidiatores removes, vigil arte Britannos." Yen.. Fort., Misccll., iii,
c. 8.
Lesser Britain 57
cities and the independent Britons who occupied the whole country
round.
These latter were careful to keep on good terms with the Frank
kings. We have seen how Rivold of Domnonia would not assume
rule till he had received permission to do so from Clothair. The
usurper Conmore obtained commission to rule in Armorica as lieu-
tenant for that king. The bishops and abbots did not venture to accept
.grants of land till these were ratified by the King in Paris. Thus
Withur sent S. Paul thither to have his concession of lands confirmed.
Brioc in like manner had his ratified, so also had S. Samson. It was
not till the battle of Vouille in 507 that Clovis and his Franks became
masters of Nantes and of the greater part of Aquitania, but he did not
gain dominion over the Britons of Armorica. Procopius says, " The
Franks, after their victory over the last representatives of Roman
authority in Gaul, finding themselves incapable of contending against
Alaric and the Visigoths, sought the friendship of the Armoricans
and entered into alliance with them." 43
Not till 558, when Canao of Bro-weroc gave asylum to Chramm,
son of Clothair, king of Soissons, did the Britons embroil themselves
with the Franks. Hitherto they had been practically independent,
and, at least till the death of Clovis in 511, under their own kings ; 44
after that they rendered acknowledgment of being feudatories to
the Frank kings.
After the secular organisation came that which was ecclesiastical.
Kinsmen of the settlers who were in the ecclesiastical profession came
i\vr, and were accorded patches of land on which to plant their lanns,
and monastic institutions sprang up, that supplied missionaries to
the natives who had hitherto been left in paganism, and ministered
as well to the colonists, and served as schools for the education of
thr young. Every monastery had its minihi, or sanctuary, about it,
to which runaway slaves, those pursued in blood-feud, and refugees in
war, might fly and enter thereby the ecclesiastical tribe. Something
like fifty-three of these minihis still bear the name in Brittany. 45
The Latin was the mother church, corresponding to the arnoit
church of the Irish. Subject to these were the trefs, each with its
chapel, and served from the mother church. Thus the vast parish
<>! Xoyala, in Morbihan, till 1790 comprised the treves of Gueltas,
1:1 n, Itdh <;,>thico, i, 12.
44 " Chanao regnum integrum accepit. Nam semper Britanni post mortem
Chlodovechi regis sub potestate Francorum fuerunt, et duces eorum comites,
non reges appellati sunt." Greg. Turon., Hist. Func., iv, 4.
45 P. De la Vignc-Villencuve, in Mttn. de la Soc. Arch, d'llle et Vilainc, 1861.
5
Introduction
Kerfourn, Croixanvec, S. Thuriau and S. Geran. That of Pluvigner
consisted of a conglomeration about the mother church of nine
treves, Camors, Baud, Languidic, Landevant, Landaul, Brech,
Plumergat, Brandivy and La Chapelle-Neuve. But here, owing to
later colonisation of British on a plou that had been settled by the
Irish, several of these treves became independent lanns.
In many districts in Brittany the term lann has fallen away.
This was due to the devastation caused by the Northmen in the ninth
century, when the country was laid waste, and the inhabitants fled,
some far inland into France, some to England, where they were
afforded protection by Athelstan. When they returned the old
order had changed. The lanns were no longer monastic churches
with their treves dependent on them, and the parish was organised
on the Latin system, and was called after the founder simply, without
the prefix lann.
But this was not all. Not every Armorican mother church bore
the title of Lann, for the founders came with colonies and at once
established tribes, and the place where each secular chief settled was
not called a lann, for there was in the new lands no such a demand
for " sanctuary " as in the old, at least not at first, and the settle-
ment took its name as a tribal centre, plou. Thus we have Ploermel,
the plou of Arthmael. He was an ecclesiastic and a monk, and we
might have supposed that his headquarters would have been desig-
nated a lann. But it was not so. In Wales, where the princes were
tyrannous, and internecine feuds were habitual, there the llan, the
sanctuary of refuge, was a most important feature of the ecclesiastical
order, and it afforded a means to the saint for recruiting his tribe.
But in Armorica, where the British colonists bore down the natives,
and there was no resistance, and there was room at first for expansion
without fratricidal war, there the plou became of more importance
than the lann.
The monastic founders had each his loc, corresponding perhaps
to the Irish till. It was the place of retreat for Lent, and when
the Saint desired to escape from the daily worry of management
of a monastery and a colony. These Iocs were originally in
very solitary places, in islands, or in the depths of the forest.
But about a good many of them villages and even towns have
grown up.
As was the case in Wales, so in Brittany, in addition to the trevial
churches, there are numerous chapels in a parish. In that of Noyala,
already mentioned, there are nine. In that of Ploemeur there were
something like thirty-six.
Lesser Britain 59
The chapel was erected either to commemorate some event that
had taken place on the spot, either in the life of a saint, or on the
scene of a battle ; or else it was erected in fulfilment of a vow made
in a moment of danger; or, again, was due to a dream connected with
the place ; or to the finding there of an image ; or, lastly, a chapel was
erected for the accommodation of a noble family which had its chateau
there. The chapel was not a part of the organism of the tribe or
aiterwards of the parish. It was an outcrop.
These chapels are extremely numerous in Brittany. They are for
the most part opened only once or perhaps twice in the year, when
Mass is said in them, on the occasion of the " Pardon " = Patronal
Feast. Yet some of them are magnificent monuments of architec-
ture, far surpassing the parish churches of the district in which they
aiv situated.
It was due, probably, to the close and friendly relations maintained
with the Franks, and association with them, that we hear of no strife
engendered in Brittany over Celtic peculiarities in ecclesiastical
matters. In the monasteries, indeed, the Celtic tonsure was em-
ployed till the year 890, and clergy, even bishops, were often married ;
l>ut the difference in the time of the celebration of Easter does not
appear to have existed. Apparently, the British Church in Armorica
quietly accepted the Roman computation. Had it been otherwise,
tiould certainly have heard of the fact. 46
( hie curious document has come to light that shows how strained
were the relations between the Gallo-Roman bishops of the old cities
in early period and the clergy of the new colonies from Britain.
515 and 520 Licinius, Metropolitan of Tours, Eustochius,
bishop of Angers, and Melanius, bishop of Rennes, issued a monitory
lett.-r addressed to a couple of British priests named Lovocat and
( atliiei u. requiring them to desist from certain practices that offended
their ideas of what was seemly. " We have learned, by the report of
the venerable priest Sparatus, that you do not desist from taking
about certain tables into the cabins of your compatriots, upon which
you celebrate the divine Sacrifice, in the presence of women called
ConhospiUf, and who, whilst you are administering the Eucharist,
administer to the people the Blood of Christ. . . . And we have
deemed it our duty to warn you, and supplicate you by the love of
Christ, and in the name of the Unity of the Church, and of our common
laith. to renounce this abuse of tables, which, we doubt not on your
word, to have received priestly consecration ; and these women,
46 See further, under S. Gwenael.
60 Introduction
whom you call conhospitce, a name which one cannot hear or pro-
nounce without shuddering." 47
There was probably a good deal of exaggeration in this charge.
The three prelates had only the word of Sparatus to go upon, and
he bore these British priests a grudge. They had, as yet, no churches,
or the churches were few and far between, and they went their rounds,
ministering to their fellow immigrants the Bread of Life, as they
were in duty bound. They carried with them portable altars. This
was customary among the Celts, and was adopted throughout the
Latin Church in the eighth century. S. Leonore, on his voyage to
Armorica, carried his altar-stone with him. S. Carannog cast his
into the Severn sea, and it was washed up on the Cornish coast. The
custom of having portable altars was introduced from lona into the
Northumbrian Church, and the earliest known example is that of
about 687, in Durham Cathedral. 48
But early in the sixth century these portable altars were novelties,
and were accordingly condemned by the three bishops above named.
As to the conhospita, they were doubtless the wives of Lovocat
and Cathiern, for the Celtic clergy were usually married. Indeed,
married bishops and priests appear in Brittany many centuries later.
The first order of saints in Ireland, according to the of ten- quoted
Catalogue of the Orders, " muliarum administrationem et consortia
non respuebant " ; 49 it was later, when the Irish Church became
monastic, that the women were excluded. The three bishops mis-
understood the position of these women. They supposed them to
be the mulieres subintroductte who had given so much trouble from
the Apostolic period. 50 That these British priests allowed the women
to administer the chalice to communicants is perhaps a libel, a bit
of spiteful gossip retailed by Sparatus.
Owing to the troubles in the South of Ireland at the close of the
fifth century, when the Ossorians were expelled their land by Aengus
MacNadfraich and Cucraidh, who gave it over to be peopled by the
47 Cognovimus quod vos gestantes quasdam tabulas per diversorum civium
vestrorum capanas circumferre non desinatis, et missas, ibidem adhibitis muli-
eribus in sacrificio divino quas conhospitas nominatis, facere praesumatis, sic ut
erogantibus vobis Eucharistiam, illae vobis positis calices teneant, et sanguinem
Christi populo administrare praesumant." Lovocat et Cathiern, par Duchesne,
Revue dc Bretagne et de Vendee, 1885, p. 6.
48 Smith, Diet. Christian Antiquities, i, 69 ; Darcel, " Les Autels portatifs,"
in Didron, Annalcs Archeologiques, xvi, 77-89.
49 Vita SS. Hib. Cod. Sal., col. 161.
50 Gildas refers to the custom, " Religiosam forte matrem seu sorores domo
pellentes et externas veluti secretiori ministerio familiares indecenter levi-
gantes vel potius . . . humiliantes." De Excid., ed. Williams, p. 164.
Lesser Britain 6 1
i-
Southern Deisi, there would seem to have been an exodus of
dispossessed Ossorians. and they appear to have settled, some in
Cornwall and others in the west of Brittany. But it was not
from Ossory alone that a migration took place. The Hy Bairrche
were driven out of their territory between the Slaney and the
w by the Hy ( innselach about the middle of the fifth century,
and internecine war was chronic in Leinster to the close of that
iry.
\\Y find settlements of Irish saints, all from Leinster and Munster,
the coasts of Finistere and L6on, with churches under the
invocation of Conlaeth of Kildare, Senan of Iniscathy, Setna, Fiacc
ttv. Ronan, Ciaran of Saighir, Ciannan, Brendan of Clonfert :.
and the cult of S. Brigid was widely diffused there.
Hut there is another curious phenomenon connected with the Irish
A cluster of these is found in the department of Ille-
et -Yilaine. The mouth of the Ranee and the Bay of Mont S. Michel
tless favourite places for landing. Up the Ranee seven
Iri-h bishops, with pious women accompanying them, plodded at the
i-t -inning of the sixth century, planting churches all the way,
and finally readied Rheims in 509, where they were received by S.
KVmigius.-' 1 Tlu-si- came from the South of Ireland, and were quite
" -ndi'iit of another srttlrment, unique in its way, made from
Ulster.
in was founded by Seit. the Irish master of S. Kentigern
\ ; S, Maccaldus. bishop of Man, is venerated as founder
Mankind, near Montfort. In the twelfth century the church
t'-u-d as that of S. Ma^aldus. 52
cald or Maughold had been a robber chief ; he was converted
S I 'at rick, and in punishment for his crimes sent adrift in a coracle
without oars, and with his feet chained. 53 He drifted to the Isle of
Older S. Uhebran and S. Cn-nnanus MacGoll.
iM>n. I'onilli' </( Routes, t. vi, s. nom. S. Maugand.
1 1 lu- punishment of sending adrift on the sea was not uncommonly exer-
Tli'- criminal was clothed in a vile garment, his feet bound with an iron
tetter, and the fetter-key was cast into the water. He was placed in a navis
pellis, a coracle whose wicker framework was covered with hide only one-
fold deep, and without food, oar or rudder, committed to the winds and waves.
Muirchu Maccu-Mactheni, in Tripartite Life, p. 288. In the case of aggravated
manslaughter, according to the Senchus Mor, this was the punishment. When
I uiclia. son of Domnall, was killed by the men of Ross, his brother Dormchadh
a>krd advice of S. Columcille as to what punishment he should deal out to the-
people oi Ros-,. S. Columcille sent two of his clerics to the spot, and they or-
dered that sixty couples of the men and women of Ross should in this manner
be sent adrift on the sea. O'Curry, MS. Materials of Ancient Irish History,
iblin. 1861, p. 333.
6 2 Introduction
Man, and we may suspect that the Patrician bishops there, Coindrus
and Romulus, recommended him to go abroad and practise penance
and learn the monastic rule in Armorica, where his past history was
unknown. Hard by the settlement of Maughold is that of another
Irishman, S. Uniac, as now called, but the patron is S. Toinnau. 54
It is not possible to identify him ; he can hardly be Toimen, bishop
of Armagh, who belongs to a later period. He became bishop in
622 or 623. S. Brendan also had a monastery on Cesambre,
and a foundation at S. Broladre, and at S. Brelade in Jersey.
Professor Zimmer has pointed out some evidences of Irish influence
in Brittany. " In 884 the Breton monk Wrmonoc, in his monastery
of Landevenec in Brittany, wrote a Life of S. Paul of Leon, who lived
at the beginning of the sixth century. This Life is based on written
sources, and the associates of S. Paul who had come with him from the
south-west of Britain are quoted, with their full names. On one of them,
Quonocus, there is the additional remark : ' Whom some, adding to
his name after the fashion of the people over-sea, called Toquonocus ' ;
and further on we read that the name Woednovius in the same way had
a second form, Towoedocus. We meet with several other instances.
. . . During the sixth and seventh centuries the custom prevailed in
Ireland, and especially in the monasteries, of forming familiar names
from the full name form, which always consisted of two components,
such as Beo-gne, Lug-beo, Find-barr, Aed-gen, and Aed-gal. It was
done by taking one component of the full name and adding the
diminutive ending -an, -idn (e.g. Beoan, Findan, Finnian, Aedan), or
by prefixing mo-, to-, and often adding oc as well, like Maedoc ( = Mo-
Aed-oc), Molua, Tolua, Mernoc, Ternoc. Thus a person of the name
of Beogne was familiarly called Beoan (' little Beo '), Mobeoc (' my
little Beo '), or Dobeoc (' you little Beo ') ; in the same way, Lugbeo,
Luan, Molua, Moluan, Tolua, Moluoc all denote the same person ;
similarly, Becan, Mobecoc, Tobecoc, Ernan, Mernoc, Ternoc, etc.
How strong must the influence of the Irish element at the beginning
of the sixth century have been in the monasteries of Brittany and
of the south-west of Britain, if British monks imitated this truly
Irish way of forming familiar names ! It is, then, not surprising that
among the Breton saints of the sixth and seventh centuries we find
a dozen or more who by tradition and name are Irish." 55
Again : in the middle of the sixth century the bards of Ireland,
54 De Corson, op. cit. s.v. S. Uniac. In the tenth century (913) the name is
given as S. Toinanus ; in the fourteenth century, S. Thonnanus. He has his
Holy Well in the parish.
56 The Celtic Church in Britain and Ireland, Lond., 1902, pp. 68-9.
Lesser Britain 6 3
their consternation, discovered that one of their famous traditional
tales, concerning a cattle raid of some historic importance, was lost.
Fragments were to be found, but not the tale entire. After Ireland
had been ransacked for it in vain, they met in council, in 580, and
appointed a commission to proceed to Brittany and visit the Irish
settlers there, and inquire whether any of them had carried off a
complete copy of the great tale. The commission went to Armorica
and returned, having succeeded in recovering the desired work. 56
Now, this surely shows that the Irish settlers had remained to stay,
for unless they had done so they would hardly have carried off their
HHiiantic and historic literature with them.
Much difficulty exists in the identification of the saints in Brittany,
owing to the various forms their names assume. Some, we are
xpressly told, had double names ; Brioc was also Briomaglus, Kenan
was known as well as Colledoc, and Meven had a second name, Conaid.
But it is in the mouths of the people that great transformation
has taken place. Gorlois becomes Ourlou, Conlaeth is now Coulitz,
Judoc is Josse, and Brigid is rendered S. Berch'et. Guethenoc is
transformed to Goueznou, and Gwen is translated into Candida in
Lower and Blanche in Upper Brittany. Beudoc is softened to Bieuzy,
and Fingar into S. Venner.
It is certainly a fact deserving of consideration that, whereas
Armorica may have been, and probably was, colonised by refugees
from ail tin- south coast of Britain, nevertheless its ecclesiastical
usation should be due solely to the Welsh. There is no trace
whatever of British saintly founders from other portions of Britain.
The Str.ithrlyde family of Caw may be accounted Welsh, for it
settled in Anglesey or Mon by the generous hospitality of
O'Cmry, .VS. Matcnals <>/ .Indent Irish History, Dublin, 1861, p. 8. The
passage is in tlu- Book of Leinstcr, and runs thus : " The Files (poets) of Erinn
MOW callt-d together by Senchan Torpeist (chief poet of Erinn and of S.
:i of Unnmacnoise) to know if they remembered the Tain bo Chuailgne
in full ; and they said that they knew of it but fragments only. Senchan then
spoke to his pupils to know which of them would go into the countries of Letha
to harn the Tain, which the Sai had taken eastwards after the Cuilmenn. Emine,
andson of Ninine o Muirgen, Sanchan's own son, set out to go to the East."
^ The date would be about 580. Letha is the Letavia of the Lives of the Welsh
Saints, or Llydaw, i.e. Armorica, though sometimes it is used for or confounded
with Latium. Here it is certainly Armorica. The going East means that the
traveller crossed either to Alba, or from Wexford or Waterford to Forth Mawr
>. David's and thence travelled to the next crossing to Brittany. The
Cuilmenn. the great collection of history, is unhappily now lost. It is
n frrrcd to in the Brehon Laws, and in an ancient Irish Law Glossary. Ibid.
p. 9,
6 4
Introduction
Mat-lgwn. But this family is only represented in Morbihan and
Cotes du Nord by Gildas and his sons.
The principal Welsh saints who have made their mark in Brittany
are Brioc, of Irish origin, but born in Ceredigion, Cadoc, Curig,
Carannog, David, Paulus Aurelianus, Arthmael, Edeyrn, Teilo,
Tyssilio, Gudwal, and Non. There were others, of Armorican extraction
on one side or the other, who had their education in Wales, as Illtyd,
Samson, Malo, Maglorius, Meven, Tudwal, and Leonore.
Other founders were natives of Armorica, but of British origin, as
James (Jacut), Gwethenocand Winwaloe, Gwenael and Goulven. Of
the chieftains who held rule we know but little, and almost nothing of
whence they came. But we do know that Rhiwal of Domnonia was
from South Wales, for he was a kinsman of Brioc of Ceredigion and
of Hywel. Withur of Leon was cousin of Paul, who came from
Penychen in Glamorganshire. Btidic of Cornubia was for some
years a refugee in South Wales, where he married. Possibly
enough, he went to the land whence his forefathers had come.
As in Wales and in Cornwall, so has it been for long an accepted
procedure in Brittany that the national saints should be displaced
from their niches to make way for others who are foreign, Italian for
the most part, but who have received the imprimatur of Rome ; so
also have the diocesan calendars been weeded of the Celtic saints.
S. Avee, though she gives her name to a parish, has had her church
transferred to SS. Gervasius and Protessus. S. Cynan (Kenan) has
been rejected where lie his bones, for Caius, the pope. S. Derrien
has retired to make room for Pope S. Adrian ; S. Budoc or Bieuzy,
the friend and disciple of Gildas, has been supplanted by S. Eusebius.
At Laurenan, the titular saint Renan has been set aside for S. Renatus,
and at Audierne, S. Rumon is replaced by S. Raymond Nonnatus.
At S. Brieuc, the founder fades before the more modern S. Guil-
laume Pichon.
In the united dioceses of Treguier and S. Brieuc not a Celtic saint
is admitted into the calendar during the months of January, February,
June, July, August, September and December. In March only one,
Paul of Leon. On the other hand, the calendar is invaded by foreigners.
Of Italians there are fourteen in January and February, whereas of
early Breton saints but five are admitted in the entire year.
In that striking story of Ferdinand Fabre, L'Abbe Tigrane, the
Bishop of Lormieres is represented in his Grand Seminary turning
out the Professors as not sufficiently ultramontane to please him, and
when the teachers murmur, he blandly asks with what do they re-
proach him. " With what ? " asks the Professor of Ecclesiastical
On JJ^elsk and Cornish Calendars 65
History. " In your passion for reform you have, so to speak,
abolished the Proper of the Diocese, one of the most ancient and
nio^t glorious of the Martyrologies of France."
At Treguier, the founder, S. Tudwal, is eclipsed by the Advocate
S. Yves " advocatussed non latro " ; yet everywhere, to the Breton
pr<> pie, each saintly founder might appeal in the words of the apostle,
inscribed under the statue of Tudwal at Treguier: " Et si aliis non
sum apostolus, sed tamen vobis sum ; scitis quae praecepta dedi-
(U-riiu vobis per Dominum Jesum." 57
III. ON WELSH AND CORNISH CALENDARS
IN drawing up calendars of the Celtic saints of Wales and Cornwall
considerable difficulties have to be encountered. A good many of
tin- saints who founded churches, or to whom churches have been
dedicated, do not find their places in any extant ancient calendars;
and it is not possible to rely on many of the modern calendars that
do insert the names of the early Celtic saints, as trustworthy. Too
often these names have been inserted arbitrarily and without authority.
\\ < will .ni\v a list of such calendars as exist, and which have served
miv or less for the composition of the calendar that we have drawn
up : and for attribution of day to each Saint.
I. THE WELSH CALENDAR
The Patronal Festival or Wake of a parish was ordinarily called
in Welsh r,u'\7 Mtthsttnt, "The Feast of the Patron," and in more
t t inu-s it began on the Sunday following the festival proper, and
l.st-d the whole of the week, though in the early part of last century
it seldom exceeded the third or fourth day. There were but few, if
any. parishes wherein its observance survived the sixth decade of
l.i-t century. It lost its distinctively religious character with the
1\ tormation. and thenceforth became merely an occasion for a fair,
rustic t;ame> and sports, and every kind of merry-making. Where
there are to-day several fairs held in a parish, that on the Feast of
Patron is frequently spoken of as the Fair of such-and-such a
Saint's Festival, e.g. Ffair Wyl Deilo at Llandeilo Fawr. The fair was
held. Old Style, on the Saint's Festival, as entered in the calendar ;
New Style, it is eleven days later. To take S. Teilo's Fair at Llandeilo.
It was formerly held on his day, the Qth of February ; now it is on
tile Jotll.
57 i Cor. ix. 2 ; i Thess. iv, 2.
VOL. I. T?
66 Introduction
There are, however, instances of the fairs being held, or, more
correctly, begun, on the eve of the Saint's Festival ; e.g. at Llanrwst
(S. Grwst, December i), a fair was held November 30, O.S., now it is
December n ; at Tregaron (S. Caron, March 5), fairs are now, or
were, held on March 15, 16 and 17 ; and at Llanrhaiadr ym Mochnant
<S. Dogfan, July 13), fairs are held on July 23 and 24. Similarly,
fairs were held at Nevin (S. Mary) on eves of the Festivals of the
B.V.M., and at Abergele (S. Michael) on Michaelmas Eve. Sometimes
the fair date was not altered, N.S., as at Llanwnen (S. Gwynen, Decem-
ber 13) and Llandaff (S. Teilo, February 9) ; and in like manner, old
fairs on Festivals of the B.V.M. were still kept, N.S., on those days
at Rhuddlan and Swansea.
From this it will be seen that one cannot always rely upon the fair
day in fixing the Saint's Day when the calendars are at variance, as
they not infrequently are.
The following Welsh calendars have been made use of in the
present work :
A. British Museum Cotton MS. Vespasian A. xiv, of the early
thirteenth century. The calendar, which is at the beginning of the
MS., is a very legible one. The festivals entered are not many, but
they are those of the principal Welsh Saints.
B. British Museum Additional MS. 14,912, of the fourteenth
century, prefixed to a copy of Meddygon Myddfai. Imperfect ; begii
with March, which is indistinct, and the months of November aiu
December have been transposed. It contains the festivals of bu1
few Welsh saints.
C. British Museum Additional MS. 22,720, of about the fifteenth
century. The festivals of Welsh Saints are but few, and are in a
somewhat later hand. The Welsh entries are in the earlier part of it.
D. Peniarth MS. 40, written circa 1469. It is printed in Dr. J.
Gwenogfryn Evans' Catalogue of Welsh MSS., i, pp. 374-5. It
contains but few festivals of Welsh Saints.
E. Peniarth MS. 191, of about the middle of the fifteenth century.
It is printed in Dr. J. Gwenogfryn Evans, ibid., i, p. 1019. December
is wanting. Sometimes the festivals are a day late.
F. A calendar in the Grammar of John Edwards, Junior, of
Chirkeslande, now in the Plas Llanstephan Library. It is dated 1481,
and occurs at fo. 83 of the MS.
G. Peniarth MS. 27, part i, of the late fifteenth century, by Gutyn
Owain. It is in part stained ; January very illegible ; a somewhat
full calendar.
H. Peniarth MS. 186, of the late fifteenth century, also by Gutyn
On Welsh and Cornish Calendars 67
( Kvuin. Printed in part in Dr. J. Gwenogfryn Evans, ibid., i, p. 1013.
It is considerably fuller than G.
I. Mostyn MS. 88, written 1488-9, also by Gutyn Owain. It is
printed in Dr. J. Gwenogfryn Evans, ibid., i, pp. 16-17. These three
calendars are not mere copies of each other.
J. Jesus College (Oxford) MS. cxli = 6, of the fifteenth century,
printed in Dr. J. Gwenogfryn Evans, ibid., ii, p. 36. Imperfect, only
May October. It is apparently one of Gutyn Owain's calendars.
K. Jesus College MS. xxii=y, of the late fifteenth century, printed
in Dr. J. Gwenogfryn Evans, ibid., ii, p. 38.
L. lolo MSS., pp. 152-3, taken from " a MS. written circa 1500,
in the possession of Mr. Thomas Davies, of Dolgelley." December is
imperfect. This is one of the fullest of the Welsh calendars.
M. Sir John Prys, Yny Ihyvyr hwnn, London, 1546, reprinted
^or, 1902, under the editorship of Mr. J. H. Davies, M.A., for
the Guild of Graduates of the University of Wales, from the unique
in the Plas Llanstephan Library. The work is to all intents
and pmjxDses a Prymer, and was probably the first book ever printed
in the Welsh language. The calendar is often inaccurate, but con-
tains a few rare entries.
X. Pcniarth MS. 60, of the sixteenth century. This does not
i-ontain many entries.
O. Pcninrth MS. 172, of the sixteenth century, printed in Dr. J.
<' \\vii<>t;li-yn Evans, ibid., i, pp. 967-8.
P. Pcninrth MS. 192, of the sixteenth century. It begins with
December 17, and is followed by January to September 15. The
innaindrr is lost. The entries are not many.
Q. Plds Lltinstt'pluin MS. 117, of the middle of the sixteenth cen-
tury. printrd in Dr. J. Gwenogfryn Evans, ibid., ii, pp. 571-2.
R. 7Y<is I.liinstcfyhtni MS. 181, written circa 1556, and printed in
Dr. J. ( iurnc^tryn Evans, ibid., ii, pp. 770-1. It is a complete calen-
dar, but lupins with May and ends with April. It belongs to North
Wai
A Demetian calendar, of which there are three MS. copies :
(<0 (\-rlnhiu-r MS. 44, of the second half of the sixteenth century,
and (b and c) Panton MSS. 10 and 66, of the eighteenth century ;
and four printed copies : (a) Y Greal, 1806, pp. 287-8, (b) Cambrian
Register, 1818, iii, pp. 219-21, (c) Y Gwyliedydd, 1825, PP- 343~4, and
Irclurologia Cambrensis, 1854, pp. 30-2. This is a list, not a
calendar proper, and the entries are not arranged in any order, except
in the Cwrtmawr MS. as printed in Dr. J. Gwenogfryn Evans, ibid.,
ii, p. 936. November, with its fifteen entries, is by much the fullest
6 8 Introduction
month. July and September have no entries. Some of the entries
are peculiar to this calendar ; others supply details of the saints that
are not found elsewhere. The following, among others, are note-
worthy festivals : Rhystyd, Padarn and Teilo (movable), " Fidalis
and Bidofydd " (April 26), Pumpsaint, Cynddilig, Gwryd Frawd (the
three on All Saints' Day), " the Festival of the man who died on
Trinity Sunday, preceded by a great vigil on the Saturday night,
when it is customary to bathe for the cure of the tertian ague." The
words " Gwyl y gwr a fu farw " (probably the correct reading) of the
last quoted entry are converted in some of the copies into " S. Gwry-
farn " and " Y Gwyryfon " (the Virgins). The list may be described
as a Demetian calendar, as most of the saints commemorated belong
to Dyfed, but more especially Cardiganshire. The first entry is
" Gwyl Geitho," which probably gives a clue to its origin.
T. British Museum Additional MS. 14,882, written in 1591 by
" William ap W m ." This is a perfect calendar.
U. Peniarth MS. 187, written in 1596, and printed, but only in
part, in Dr. J. Gwenogfryn Evans, ibid., i, p. 1014. This is a full
calendar. Some of the entries are curious, e.g. for January, " The
first day of this month the tops of the mountains appeared to Noah " ;
7th, " Christ turned the water into wine " ; loth, " Nebuchadnezzar's
war against Jerusalem."
V. Hafod MS. 8, of the late sixteenth century, printed in Dr. J.
Gwenogfryn Evans, ibid., ii, p. 311. It is a meagre calendar.
W. MS. marginal entries in the calendar to a copy of the Preces
Privates, published in 1573, in the Library of S. Beuno's Jesuit College,
near S. Asaph. The entries are in at least three different hands, of
the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries, and are by persons
who lived in north, or rather north-east, Wales, for the majority of
the festivals, as well as fairs, entered belong to that part.
X. Peniarth MS. 219, circa 1615, in the handwriting of John Jones
of Gelli Lyfdy. It is printed in Dr. J. Gwenogfryn Evans, ibid., i,
pp. 1043-5, where its festivals are entered with those of Peniarth
MSS. 27, 186 and 187.
Y. The calendar prefixed to the Llyfr Ply gain, or Prymer, of 1618
(fifth edition). This is a full calendar, but a leaf was missing for
April and May in the copy seen. It frequently corroborates L in some
of its isolated entries.
Z. The calendar prefixed to the Llyfr Ply gain, or Prymer, of 1633,
edited by Dr. John Davies.
ZA. The calendar prefixed to Allwydd neu Agoriad Paradwys i'r
Cymrv, a Roman manual published at Liege in 1670. The Welsh
On Welsh and Cornish Calendars 69
saints are marked with an asterisk to distinguish them from saints of
the Roman calendar.
ZB. Welsh almanacks of the latter part of the seventeenth century
and the eighteenth century give the festivals of Welsh and other
saints more or less fully. The first Welsh almanack was that pub-
lished for 1680, at Shrewsbury. We have consulted a great many
from that for 1692 down. From about 1780 these festival entries
became fewer and fewer, and have gradually disappeared almost
entirely from the ordinary Welsh almanack.
Zc. Wm. Roberts (Nefydd), in his Crefydd yr Oesoedd Tywyll,
Carmarthen, 1852, gives the festivals of such Welsh saints as occur
in the Welsh almanacks of the eighteenth century.
ZD. The calendar in Williams ab Ithel, Ecclesiastical Antiquities
of the Cymry, London, 1844, pp. 301-3. It is based upon the festivals
given in Rees, Essay on the Welsh Saints, 1836, and is not always correct.
To these may be added the following, which, however, contain but
few Celtic or W r elsh entries :
A Welsh Martyrology in Trinity College, Dublin, Library (MS. 50),
of which Mr. H. Bradshaw speaks with enthusiasm in his Collected
>S pp. 477-8. "It turns out to be one of the most precious
monuments of the Welsh Church yet discovered." It was written
thael, and the initial letters were painted by Johannes, brother
of Rhygyfarch (died 1097). It is actually the Martyrologium Hierony-
mitimnn, with entries of Celtic saints, Irish and British. The MS.
was once in the possession of Bishop Bedell, who lent it to Archbishop
T, and it was owing to this happy accident that it was saved
from the destruction which befell almost the whole of Bishop Bedell's
library after the outbreak of the Civil War in 1641.
\Ve are indebted to Mr. R. Twigge for kindly examining this Martyro-
logy for us. It unfortunately contains no other entries of Celtic
saints than these : March 17, S. Patrick ; July 28, S. Samson ; Sep-
tember 17, " In Britannis Socris et Stephani " ; December 17,
" Depos. Judichaili Confess."
A Martyrology of British Saints, " very peculiar," in the Bodleian
Library, of the fourteenth century (MSS. Gough Coll., 1833), imper-
fect ; from March 17 to May 23 is all that exists.
A Llanthony Abbey Calendar, in the Library of Corpus Chris ti
College, Oxford.
We give below a calendar of the Welsh saints carefully compiled
from the foregoing, noting in each case the particular calendars whicli
contain the commemoration. They often vary, but the oldest calen-
dars may be presumed to be the most reliable.
Introduction
The ordinary festivals of the Western Church have not been
included.
JANUARY.
7-
8.
9-
10.
ii.
12.
13-
S. Gwynhoedl, C. (zd).
S. Machraith, C. (zd).
S. Medwy, B.C. (zd).
S. Maelrys, or Maelerw, C. (zd).
S. Tyfrydog, C. (vza).
S. Bodfan, C. (Y). 17-
S. Gwenog, V. (s, Addit. MS. 18.
14, 886).
S. Tewdrig, K.M. (za).
14.
S. Edeyrn, C. (zd).
S. Merin, C. (zd).
S. Ylched (zd).
S. Gwrddelw, C. (x).
S. Llwchaiarn, C. (LS).
S. Llwchaiarn, C. (ILMUWXYZ).
S. Cyndeyrn, or Kentigern, B.C.
(uwYza).
S. Elian, or Elien, C. (HILMRTUWY).
S. Erbin, K.C. (HIMQRTUWXY).
S. liar, B.C. (DENVZ).
S. Saeran, C. (IKPRUMY).
S. Tygwy, C. (z).
S. liar, B.C. (Y).
15. S. liar, B.C. (s).
S. Llawddog, or Lleuddad, Ab.C.
(z).
S. Sawyl, C. (Addit. MS., 14, 886).
1 6. S. Carannog, C. (A).
19-
20
21.
22.
23-
24.
25-
26.
2 7 .
28.
29.
30.
S. Elli, Ab.C. (Lvxvzza).
S. Catwg, or Cadoc, Ab.C. (ALNV
XYZza).
S. Dwynwen, V. (HiRXYza).
S. Silin, B.C. (s).
S. Tybie, V.M. (zd).
S. Aeddan Foeddog, or Aidan,
B.C. (zd).
S. Ewryd, C. (FMX).
S. Melangell, or Monacella, V.,
Abss. (HILTUX).
S. Tyssul, B.C. (zd).
SS. Y Trisaint, or The Three SS.
CC. (v).
FEBRUARY.
5-
6.
7-
8.
9-
10.
1 1.
12.
S. Ffraid, or Bridget, V. Abss. (in
most of the Calendars).
S Ina, Knt. C. (s).
S. Seiriol, Ab.C. (HYZ).
S. Dilwar, V. (Q).
S. Tyssul, B.C. (s).
S. Dilwar, V. (GHiouxYZza).
S. Meirian, or Meirion, C, (F).
S. Ciwa, V. (MX).
S. Teilo, B.C. (MX).
S. Cigwa, or Ciwa, V. (AY).
S. Einion, K.C. (HQUwxvza).
S. Teilo, B.C. (ACDELNVYza).
S. Einion, K.C. (o).
14.
15-
16.
17-
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23-
24.
25.
26.
2 7 .
28.
S. Dyfnog, C. (GIKMOPQRUWXYZ).
S. Meugan, C. (i).
S. Dochow, P.C. (A).
S. Ffinan, B.C. (za).
S. Cowrda, C. (xx).
S. Tyfaelog, C, (Mxvzza).
S. Llibio, C. (FHOQTUVYZza).
S. Maidoc, B.C. (A).
On Welsh and Cornish Calendars 7 i
MARCH.
9>
[O.
i i.
i .'.
i 5.
S. Dewi. or David, B.C. (all the
Calendars).
S. Gistlian, B.C. (A).
S. C.wrthwl. or Mwthwl, C. (SYZ).
S. Non, or Nonita, Wid. (ACELQS
UVXYZ).
S. Gistilian, B.C. (c.).
S. Caron, B.C. (ELSYZ).
S. Cieran, B.C. (AC).
S. Sannan, C. (LYZ).
S. Deifer, or Dier, C. (za).
S. Rhian. B.C. (c).
S. Sannan, C. (v).
:ur. C. (YZ).
14.
'5-
1 6.
17-
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23-
24.
25-
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
S. Cynog (za).
S. Padrig, B.C.
S. Cynbryd, M. (GILMQVWXYZ).
S. Cynbryd, M. (HR).
S. Elwad, C. (x).
Gwynllyw Filwr, or Gundleus,
K.C. (v).
S. Gwynllyw Filwr, K.C. (ALXza).
APRIL.
S. Tyrnog. C. (o).
rnog, C. (GHiPRUwxYZza).
S. iK-rfel Gadarn, C. (BGHILMOPQ-
RfvwxYzza).
S. Hrynach, or Byrnach, Ab.C.
(ALSVZa).
SS. Llywelyn and Gwrnerth, CC.
(GHILMOyRL'XYZZa).
y-
=
t4. S. Caradog, Mk.C. (A).
13- S. Padarn, B.C. (Aza).
16.
17-
18.
19-
20.
21.
22.
23-
2 4 .
25-
26.
27-
28.
29.
30.
S. Padarn, B.C. (BLSWZ).
S. Padarn, B.C. (E).
S. Beuno, Ab.C. (FGHIKLOQSUV-
wxza).
S. Beuno, Ab.C. (ERZ).
S. Dyfnan, C. (zza).
S. Dyfnan, C. (xx).
S. Meugan, C. (Q).
SS. Fidalis (Vitalis on 28th) and
Bidofydd, CC. (s).
S. Sannan, C. (za).
S. Cynwyl, C. (zd).
Introduction
MAY.
I.
S.
Asaph, B.C. (Lzza).
S.
Tyfriog, Ab.C. (s).
2.
3-
4-
S.
Melangell, V. (Luzza).
5-
6.
7-
8.
9-
S.
Gofor, C. (L).
S.
Melyd, or Melydyn, C.
(Q.W).
S.
Ylched (F).
IO.
12. SS. Mael and Sullen, CC. (M).
13. SS. Mael and Sulien, CC. (EHIJLQ-
Rsuwxzza).
14.
15. S. Carannog, Ab.C. (sza).
16. S. Carannog, Ab.C. (LZ).
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23-
24.
25-
26.
27.
28.
30.
31-
S. Carannog, Ab.C. (u).
S. Cathan, or Cathen, C. (zd).
S. Anno (LUXYZ).
S. Collen, C. (GHIJLOQRTUWXYZ).
S. Collen, C. (M).
SS. Dyfan and Ffagan, CC. (zd).
S. Garmon, B.C. (LUYZ).
S. Melangell, V. (EGHIJLMOPQRT-
UXYZ).
S. Garmon, B.C. (NX).
Translation of S. Dyfrig, or Dub-
ricius, Ab.C. (za).
S. Erbin, C. (GHIJLMOPQTUXYZ).
S. Tudglud, C. (GHLOQTUWXYZ).
JUNE.
1. S. Tegla, V. (GHIJLMOPQRUXYZ).
2. S. Cwyfen, C. (z).
3. S. Cwyfen, C. (FGHIJLMOQRUWX-
Yza).
S. Tegla, V. (K).
4. S. Cwyfen, C. (K).
S. Pedrog, or Petroc, Ab.C.
(LUYZZa).
5. S. Tudno, C. (xwx).
6. SS. Y Trisaint, 'CC. (FX).
7-
8.
9-
10.
n.
12.
13-
14.
IS-
16..
S. Rhychwyn, C. (xwx).
S. Sannan, B.C. (GHIJLOUWXYZ).
S. Dogfael, C. (zd).
S. Ceneu, C. (KL).
SS. Curig and Julitta, MM. (DS).
S. Trillo, C. (GHIJKLPQRTUWXYZZa)
SS. Curig and Julitta (or Hid, Eli-
dan), MM. (in most of the Cal-
endars).
S. Ismael, B.C. (A).
17. S. Mylling, B.C. (LRUXYZza).
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23-
24.
25-
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
Decollation of S. Gwenfrewi, or
Winefred, V.M. (GHIJKMOPQR-
TUWXYZZa).
Translation of S. Brynach, or Byr-
nach, B.C. (A).
S. Twrog, C. (XYZ).
S. Tyrnog, C. (LTIYZ).
S. Eurgain, Matron (HJTUXYZ).
S. Trunio, C. (H).
On Welsh and Cornish Calendars 73
JULY.
3.
4-
5.
6.
7-
8.
9-
ia
ii.
14.
S. Ccwydd y Gwlaw, C. (L).
S. Cewydd, C. (B). Gwyl y Gwlaw
(K).
S. Oudoceus, B.C. (za).
S. Peblig, C. (u).
S. Peblig, C. (GHIJLMQTXYZZa).
S. Erfyl, or Urfyl. V. (HILQXYZ).
S. Dochelin, C. (A).
an. ('.
S. Doewan, C. (M).
S. Dogfan, or Doewan, C. (GHIJL-
QRL'XYZZa).
S. Dwyiuvm, V. (Q).
inon, B.C. (M).
nllo. K.C. (M).
S. Elyw (M).
S. Garmon, B.C. (JQYZ).
Cewydd, C. (D).
1 6.
17. S. Cynllo, K.C. (jLUXYZza).
S Eliw (L).
1 8.
19-
21.
-M-
25. S. Cyndeyrn, C. (zd).
S. .Mordeyrn, C. (zd).
5. Peris, C. (zd).
S. Samson, B.C. (F).
29. S. Bleiddian, or Lupus, B.C. (zd).
30. S. Garmon, B.C. (p).
31. S. Garmon in Yale, or Germanus,
B.C. (FGHIJLMOQRTUWXYZ).
AUGUST.
Kihurdd or Alniolhu, V.M. (zd). l6
18.
4. S. Hui.n, C. (zd).
it ho. Ab.C. (s).
-nil... K.C. ( V ).
S. Ffagan, C. (zd).
S. Hvchan, C. (zd).
S. Iliog in Hirnant, C.
I XYZ).
(HJLOQRT-
II. S.
Lhvni (s).
(Vl)i, Ab.C. (Q).
19- S. Clintacus, or Clydog, K.M.
(zazd).
20.
21.
22. S. Gwyddelan, C. (LUWXYZ).
23. S. Tydfil, V.M. (zd).
24.
*S-
26.
27. S. Decumanus, M. (zazd).
S. Meddwid, or Moddwid (LUXYZ)
28.
29.
30. S. Decumanus, or Degyman, M.
(A).
31.
74
Introduction
SEPTEMBER.
S. Silin ( = Giles), Ab.C. (GHIJKLO-
QRTUXYZZa).
S. Sullen, C. (GHIJLMOPQTUXYZ).
S. Rhuddlad, V. (Loxvzza).
S. Idloes, C. (Lwvzza).
S. Dunawd, Ab.C. (zd).
S. Cynfarch, C. (LYZ).
S. Aelrhiw (zd).
Gwyl y Ddelw Fyw, " The Festi-
val of the Living Image " (H,
later hand, LRXYZ).
S. Eigion, B.C. (L).
S. Deiniol or Daniel, B.C. (GHIJK-
LOPQRTU WXYZZa) .
S. Tegwyn, C. (zd).
17-
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23-
24.
25-
26.
27.
28.
29.
30.
S. Gwenfrewi, V.M. (YZ).
S. Gwenfrewi, V.M. (L).
Ordination of S. Padarn, B.C. (A).
S. Tegla, V. (JQW).
S. Mwrog, C. (GHIJKLMOQRUX).
S. Tegla, V. (LYZ).
S. Caian, C. (zd).
S. Meugan, C. (GHiLMORUXYZza).
S. Mwrog, C. (T).
S. Tyrnog, C. (Q).
S. Elfan, C. (zd).
S. Meugan, C. (JT).
S. Barruc, C. (A).
S. Nidan, C. (HLTUXYZ).
OCTOBER.
9-
10.
1 1.
12.
13-
14-
S. Garmon, B.C. (HIJKLMOQRTU-
XYZ)
S. Silin, AbvC. (GHIJLMOQRTU-
XYZ).
S. Cynhafal, C. (GHIJKLMOQRTUW-
XYZ).
S. Keina, V. (za).
S. Cain, or Ceinwen, V. (LMV).
S. Cammarch, C. (LZ).
S. Cynog, M. (YZ).
S. Cynog, M. (L)
S. Tanwg, C. (YZ).
S. Tanwg, C. (LQUX).
S. Brothen, C. (Q).
S. Tudur, C. (YZ).
S. Brothen, C. (zd).
S. Tudur, C. (L).
16.
17-
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23-
24.
25-
26.
2 7 .
S. Llyr, V. (s).
S. Urw, or Wrw, V. (s).
SS. Y Gweryddon, or Eleven
Thousand VV. (GHIJLMQRTUXY).
SS. Gwynog and Noethon (or Nwy-
thon), CC. (GHIJMQTUX).
SS. Gwynog and Noethan, CC.
(LYZ).
SS. Y Gweryddon, VV. (o).
S. Cadfarch, C. (vzza).
SS. Gwynog and Noethon, CC. (o).
29. S. Teuderius, C. (A).
30. S. Issui, M. (zd).
31. S. Dogfael, C. (HLMOQUYZza),
On Welsh and Cornish Calendars 7 5
NOVEMBER.
1. S. Cadfan, Ab.C. (zcl). 10.
S. Callwen. V. (s).
S. Cedol, C. (zd). n.
S. Clydai, V. (s).
S. Clydwyn, or Cledwyn, K.C. (zd).
S. Cynddilig, C. (s).
S. Dingad, C. (zd). 12.
S. Dona, C. (zd).
S. Gwenfyl, V. (s).
S. Gwenrhiw, V. (UXY).
S. Gwryd, Friar (s).
S. Gwynlleu, B.C. (s.). 13.
S. Morhaiarn, C. (zd). 14.
S. Peulan. C. (z).
S. Uhwydrys. C. (zd).
SS. Y Pumpsaint, CC. (s).
2. S. Aelhaiarn. C. (AZ).
S. Peulan, C. (Y). 15.
3 Cly.loiJ. K.M. (ALMYZ).
S. Clydyn, or Clydau. C. (s).
S. Cristiolus, C. (FGHILMQUWXYZ).
S. Gwenfaen. V. (L).
Translation of S. Gwenfrewi, or 16.
\Vinofred, Y.M. (ORTUXYZZa). 17.
vyddfarch, H.C. (Q). 18.
4. S. Gwi-nta.-n. V. (H). 19.
S. Gwi-nfivwi. V.M. (Q). 20.
( yii. Ab.C. (GIKI.MOQRSUWXY- 21.
zza). 22.
S. Guvnturn. V. (F)
jfbi, Ai.r. (HS).
S. Kdweii. V. (LS). 23.
S. Illtyil. Ah.C. (Aza). 24.
7 S. Cybi. Ab.C. (A). 25.
S. Cynnar. Ab.C. (GHILMOQTUW- 26.
xvz). 27.
8. S. Cynfanvy, C. (LYZ). 28.
S. Tyssilio, Ab.C. (GHILMOQTUW- 29.
xvzza).
9. S. Pabo Post Prydain, C. (tvzza). 30.
S. Tyssilio. Ab.C. (s).
S. Cynfanvy, C. (u).
S. Elaeth, K.C. (FTU).
S. Cynfarwy, C. (x).
S. Edern, or Edeyrn, C. (FLUYZ).
S. Elaeth, K.C. (x).
S. Rhediw, C. (zd).
S. Cadwaladr, K.C. (FGHIKLMOQ-
RUXYZ).
S. Meilig, C. (s).
S. Meilir, C. (M).
S. Padarn, B.C. (LUXYZ).
S. Gredifael, C. (HLUXvza).
S. Dubricius, or Dyfrig, Ab.C.
(AX).
S. Gredifael, C. (TZ).
S. Mechyll, C. (K).
S. Meilig, C. (LYZ).
S. Cynfab, C. (zd).
S. Machudd, i,e. Machutus, or
Malo, B.C. (LYZza).
S. Mechell, or Mechyll, C. (FLOYZ)
S. Meugan, C. (s).
S. Afan, B.C. (szd).
S. Afan, B.C. (LYZ).
S. Meugan, C. (R).
S Llwydian, C. (zd).
S. Celynin, C. (zd).
S. Digain, C. (GiLOQUWYZza).
S. Deiniolen, C. (LTUXYZza).
S. Gredifael, C. (Q).
S. Polin, B.C. (szd).
S. Deiniolen, C. (zd).
S. Tauanauc, or Tyfanog, C. (A).
S. Teilo, B.C. (zd).
S. GallgO, C. (FGHILMOQRTUXYZZa).
S. Baruc, H.C. (za).
S. Sadwrn, C. (HLQSUYZza).
7 6
Introduction
DECEMBER.
i. S. Grwst, C. (KLQRUXvzza).
S. Llechid, V. (FLYZ).
2.
3-
4-
5. S. Cowrda, or Cawrdaf, K.C.
(HLOQUYZ).
S. Gwrda (za).
S. Justinian, or Stinan, H.M. (A).
6.
7-
8. S. Cynidr, B.C. (AMYZ).
9-
10. S. Deiniol, B.C. (zd).
11. S. Cian, C. (zd).
S. Ffinan, B.C. (v).
S. Peris, C. (FHTUwxYzza).
Dydd lias Llywelyn, " The day on
which Llywelyn was slain " (K).
12. S. Fflewyn, C. (FYZE).
Llywelyn (z).
13. S. Ffinan, B.C. (BYZ).
SS. Gwynan (-en) and Gwynws,
CC. (szd).
14-
1 6.
17. S. Tydecho, C. (HiMOPQRUWxYZza).
1 8. S. Tegfedd, V. (x).
19.
20.
21.
22.
23-
24.
25-
26. S. Maethlu, C. (zd).
S. Tathan, or Tatheus, Ab.C.
(Aza).
27.
28.
29.
30.
31. S. Gwynin, C. (zd).
S. Maelog, C. (FS).
II. THE CORNISH CALENDAR
No Celtic Calendars for the West of England have been pre-
served, and the Exeter Calendars almost wholly ignore the local
saints whose names are not found in the Roman Martyrology.
1. In 1478, however, William of Worcester made a journey through
Devon and Cornwall, and examined the Calendars of Tavistock,
Launceston, Bodmin, and S. Michael's Mount. From these he made
extracts. His Itinerary has been preserved in Corpus Chris ti College
Library, Cambridge. William wrote an execrable hand, and scribbled
rather than wrote in his notebook, which he never transcribed.
Nasmith published the Itinerary in 1778, having deciphered the scrawl
with great patience, and, on the whole, correctly. But he made
many mistakes, and he made occasional slips. Thus, in transcribing
the Calendar of Bodmin, he omitted from May 28 to July 31. He
saw under May 28 the entry " S. Germanus Episc. Conf.," and the
same entry under July 31, the first being the entry of Germanus of
Paris, and the latter that of Germanus of Auxerre. By an oversight
he did not transcribe all that intervened. Through the courtesy of
the Librarian we have been able to collate Nasmith's edition with the
original text.
2. A Calendar of Exeter Cathedral of the twelfth century (MS.
On Welsh and Cornish Calendars 77
Hurl. tS(>3). In this there arc ;i few Celtic saints, as S. David, S.
Cieran. S. Petrock, S. Nectan. S. Sidwell, S. Rumon ; but some are
later additions. It i- printed by Hampson. i. p. 449.
3. The Calendar of the Leofrir Mis>al. This belonged originally
to < dastonbnry, but to Glastonbury after it had ceased to be the
Rome of the British and Irish Churches, and had been refounded by
the West Saxon King Ina, in 708, and given a Romano-Saxon com-
plexion. The Leofric Missal was in use in the Church of Exeter from
to 1072, The MS. is in the Cathedral Library ; but it has been
ally and accurately published, under the editorship of the Rev.
F. E. Warren, Oxford, 1883. The Calendar is sadly disappointing, as
into it few local and Celtic saints were admitted. Gildas, Patrick,
<>n, Aedan these are about all.
4. A Calendar in the Grandisson Psalter, circ. 1337 (Add. MS.
.()). This is the same as the Calendar to the Ordinale of Bishop
n. and was in use in the Church of Exeter till 1505, when
hi-> Ordinale was superseded by that of Sarum. This Calendar has
!>eeii edited and published by the Rev. H. E. Reynolds, with the
Ordinale. Kxeter, 1882.
5. In the Cathedral Library, Exeter, is a thirteenth-century Calendar,
bur on examination it proves to have belonged to the Church of
ester. It gives S. Petrock and S. Gudwal, but very few other
saints of the Celtic Church.
o. A Martyrology for the Church of Exeter, drawn up by Bishop
n in 1337 ; it is now in the Corpus Christi College Library,
Cambridge. It includes some more Celtic names, but not
many.
~. \ Legeiularium for the Church of Exeter was compiled also b}~
tiandisson in 1366. This is preserved in the Library of the Dean
iiul Chapter. Kxeter. It is a bitterly disappointing book. Grandis-
>n wrote in 1330 requiring all the clergy of parishes in Cornwall to
nd three transcripts of the legends of the patron saints of their
chinches to Exeter for preservation, as many of these legends had
been lost by accident or carelessness. One might have expected that
he would have made use of the material forwarded to him. On the
irv. he has employed none, with the exception of that concerning
mson and S. Melor. Grandisson was a thoroughly Roman-minded
prelate, the friend of John XXII at Avignon, who had appointed him
to the see of Exeter in contravention of canonical rule, without con-
sulting the chapter. The Bishop drew the material for his Legen-
darinm, and the names of the saints he was pleased to commemorate,
almost exclusively from the Roman Martyrology, and from
7 8
Introduction
approved Latin lectionaries. A copy of this Martyrology is in Arch-
bishop Parker's Collection, Corpus Christ! College, Cambridge.
8. A Calendar in the Book of Hours, of Pilton, near Barnstaple,
drawn up in 1521 by Thomas Oldeston, who was prior from 1472.
It is in the Bodleian Library, Rawlinson Liturg. MSS. (g. 12).
9. The Rev. R. Stanton, in his Menology of England and Wales,
Supplement, 1892, refers to a Martyrology written between 1220 and
1224, in the British Museum, MSS. Reg. 2 A. xiii, as " probably for
the South West of England." However, it proves when examined
to have been compiled for the church of Canterbury.
10. Nicolas Roscarrock of Roscarrock, in the parish of Endelion,
in Cornwall, a friend of Camden, the antiquary, composed a MS.
Lives of the Saints of Britain and Ireland, according to Mr. Horstman's
opinion, between the years 1 608-1617. x He enters a number of
Cornish saints, and gives the days on which they were locally com-
memorated, as well as some legends concerning them. The volume is
unhappily defective ; the MS. from folio 402 to the end has had some-
thing like eighty leaves torn out. To the " Lives " is prefixed a
Calendar. Roscarrock relied mainly on Whytford and Demster for
his entries, but he was further assisted by a Welsh priest, Edward
Powell, for his Welsh entries. The Calendar is complete. So are
the Lives as far as Simon Sudbury, which is begun, but the rest torn
away. For matter Roscarrock had recourse to Capgrave and to
Surius, and easily accessible works, and the bulk of his MS. is there-
fore of little value. But its worth comes in when he deals with the
Cornish and the Welsh saints. He gives the days of these in the
body of his work, though not always in the Calendar. The MS. was
in the Brent- Eley Collection, having been in the hands of Lord William
Howard, in whose house Roscarrock died. It has been acquired by
the University Library, Cambridge, and is numbered Addit. MS. 3,041.
We have available for consultation a large number of English
Calendars ; those in MS. are too numerous to be here recorded, and
for the most part serve our purpose but rarely. The principal MSS.
and such as are published and accessible are these :
1. The Sarum Missal. Missale in usum . . . ecclesice Sarum. Ed.
F. H. Dickenson, Burntisland, 1861-83. An English translation, The
Sarum Missal, published by the English Church Printing Co., London,
1868.
2. The Hereford Missal, printed in 1502 ; reprinted by W. G.
Henderson, Leeds, 1874.
3. The York Missal, published by the Surtees Society, Durham, 1875.
1 Capgrave, Nova Legenda, ed. C. Horstman, Oxford, 1901, i, p. x.
On Welsh and Cornish Calendars 79
4. The Missal of Robert de Jumieges, Bishop of London, 1044-50,
and Archbishop of Canterbury in 1051. Edited for the Henry Brad-
shaw Society by H. A. Wilson, London, 1896.
5. The Peterborough Calendar, 1361-90, in the Archaologia, vol.
li (1888).
6. The Lincoln Calendar, before 1500, in the Archaologia, vol. li
(1888).
7. Missale ad usum ecclesia West Monasteriensis. Edited for the
Henry Bradshaw Society by Dr. J. Wickham Legg, Lond. 1891-7.
8. Liber Vitce of Newminster and Hyde Abbey, Winchester. Edited
by W. de Gray Birch, for the Hampshire Record Society, 1892. A
Hyde Calendar of the thirteenth century, very full, is in the Bodleian
Library, MSS. Gough.
9. Hampson, Medii JEvi Kalendarinm, Lond. 1841. This contains :
(a) a Metrical Calendar, of which three copies exist in the British
Museum ; (b) The Exeter Calendar noted above (MSS. Harl. 863),
with additions in italics from another copy (MSS. Harl. 1,804) ;
(c) A Calendar of 1031 (MSS. Cotton, Vitellius, A. xviii) ; (d) A
ndar (MSS. Cotton, Titus, D. xxvii) ; (e) An English Calendar in
Norman-French, that belonged to Ludlow Church (MSS. Harl. 273).
10. A Sherborne Calendar, published for the S. Paul's Ecclesiologi-
cal Society, 1896, by Dr. J. Wickham Legg. The original MS. is in
the possession of the Duke of Northumberland. It was written
between 1396 and 1407.
11. The Oxford Calendar has been published by W. Anstey, in the
Rolls Series. Munimenta Academica, 1868.
12. The Canterbury Cathedral Calendar, circ. 1050 (MSS. Arundell,
155) ; another 1220-46 (MSS. Cotton, Tiberius, B. iii) ; another early
in the fourteenth century (MSS. Add. 6,160).
13. A Martyrology, Roman with addition of English saints, of the
fourteenth century, in the Bodleian (MSS. Gough, liturg. 4).
14. A Gloucester Calendar, fifteenth century (MSS. Add. 30,506) ;
another, thirteenth century, in the Bodleian (MSS. Rawlinson, Litt.
f. i) ; another in Jesus College, Oxford, also of the thirteenth century
(MS. ex).
15. The Bath Abbey Calendar, fourteenth century (MSS. Add.
10,628).
16. A Worcester Calendar, fifteenth century (MSS. Harl. 7,398).
17. Bishop Grandisson's Psalter (MSS. Add. 21,926), drawn up for
use in the Province of York. Grandisson was Canon of York 1309-27.
It differs from the Calendar in the Exeter Ordinale.
18. The Martyrology of Christ Church, Canterbury, of which two
8 o Introduction
copies exist. The earlier, of the thirteenth century, is in the British
Museum (MSS. Arundell, 68) ; the other, of the sixteenth century, is
in the library of Lambeth Palace (MSS. Lambeth, 20).
19. A Martyrology that belonged to the Bridgetine Monastery of
Syon, in Middlesex (MSS. Addit. 22,285).
20. A Norwich Martyrology of the fifteenth century (MSS. Cotton,
Julius, B. vii).
21. Martyrologium Anglicanum in Martene, Ampl. Coll. vi, pp.
652-8.
22. A Martyrology contained in a Sarum Breviary of the fourteenth
century (MSS. Harl. 2,785) is imperfect. It runs from November 28
to June 17.
23. Bedce Venerabilis Libellus Annalis sive Kalendarium Anglicanum,
is really a Martyrology of the Abbey of S. Maximin at Treves.
Martene, Ampl. Coll. vi, pp. 637-49.
24. A Calendar of English, Scottish and Irish saints. A MS. of the
twelfth century in the Bodleian Library (Douce Coll. 50). It is im-
perfect. It begins with March and ends with October.
The list might be extended to a great length, but only by including
Calendars of no particular value. The English Calendars contain
hardly any Celtic names, except of some few favourites as Patrick,
David, Samson and Brigid.
In addition to the Calendars and Martyrologies above given, the
following works have been consulted :
1. John of Tynemouth, Sanctilogium, 1350, in MS. Cotton, Tiberius,
E. i. This has been partly destroyed and all grievously injured by
fire, but the lives were used by Capgrave, and have been printed by
the Bollandists from a transcript, which was supplied to them by
the Monastery of Roseavallis. John of Tynemouth had seen the
MS. of Lives of Welsh Saints, now in the British Museum, MS.
Cotton, Vesp. A. xiv, and he condensed the lives therein.
2. Capgrave, Nova Legenda, London, 1516 ; his MS. is in the British
Museum (MS. Cotton, Otho, D. ix). It has suffered from fire, and
is not completely legible. Capgrave merely printed from John of
Tynemouth, with some additions. A new and excellent edition by
Horstman, Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1901.
3. Whytford's Martyrologe, 1526 ; an English rendering of the
Bridgetine Martyrology of Sion House, but with additions. Printed
for the Henry Bradshaw Society, 1893.
4. Wilson's Martyrology, ist ed. 1608 ; 2nd ed. 1640.
Wilson says :
The JVelsh and Cornish Calendars 8 r
I have thought it most convenient for the more full accomplishment and
perfecting of a Martyrologie, that where any day falleth out to be altogether
there to place one or more of the foresaid ancient saintes, whose
publifke celebrity hath not byn hitherto kept; and thereof to make a
commemoration only, noting the same with the syne of an Asteriske or
Starre in the Marvjent.
5. Bishop Challoner published his Memorial of British Piety in
17(11. Challoner took on himself to find fault with Wilson's book,
hut Wilson had the decency to note arbitrary attribution of saints to
days, whereas Challoner made no such distinction, so that his book
is misleading and worse than useless, for he has led others astray.
His book is simply crowded with blunders. He says :
A^ to the appointing our British Saints their respective Days throughout
the year, where our Calendars or other Monuments gave us Light, we have
geuerallv endeavoured to follow it : but where we could not find the Days
on which they were formerly honoured, we have commemorated them on
such other Day-. a< otherwise might have been vacant: thus we have not
ne /><n /';/ the vear pass without commemorating one or more-
into.
The consequence is that we are unable to trust any single entry,
and on looking closely into this wretched compilation, we find that
ChalloiuT has dealt most arbitrarily with the saints, dotting them
about just where he willed, and dissociating them from their well-
established festivals. His sole principle was that of filling gaps.
.. Wint't'red's Day is June 22, but as he required that day for S,
Alban. he shitted her to June 24. S. Almedha's Day is August I,
but Clialloner transferred her to August 2. On October 23 he enters r
lavi-tork. in Devonshire, the Commemoration of S. Rumon,
Bishop."
Now, wt- know from William of Worcester that in the Tavistock
idar the days observed for S. Rumon were January 5, August 28,
and August 30. This latter day is also given in the Exeter Martyro-
Init October 23 never was held as a day of commemoration of
S. Rumon. at Tavistock or anywhere else.
His attribution of S. Jutwara to December 23 is wanton in its
recklessness, for S. Jutwara was commemorated at Sherborne and
elsewhere on July 13. He had but to look in Whytford to learn that,
and lie misled Williams ab Ithel, who in his Welsh Calendar, relying
on Challoner. noted Jutwara on December 23. Challoner in this,
however, follows Wilson.
His Irish entries are almost invariably wrong. S. Nessan is in-
serted on June 24, whereas he should have stood on July 24. S. Ere
VOL. I.
8 2 Introduction
I
of Slane he sets down on April 16, whereas every Irish Martyrology
has him on November 2.
On October 16 he notes S. Cyra, Virgin of Muskerry, whereas Ciara
or Cera of that day was the mother of a family by her good husband
Dubh.
Nor are his Welsh entries any better. S. Cyngar, or Docwin, he
inserts on November 5, in place of November 7. S. Paulinus of Ty
Gwyn he gives as " a man of God of the Isle of Wight," converting
the Candida Casa into the chalk island ! and he makes him there
educate S. David. He gives as his day December 31, in place of
December 23. Deiniol of Bangor he puts down on November 23,
whereas the Welsh Calendars give September n. Justinian the
Hermit-martyr, near S. David's, he plants on August 23, in place of
his proper day, December 5.
The consequence is that we can never trust Challoner. It is better
to leave a saint without a day of commemoration rather than follow
this reckless martyrologist, of whom one can only predicate this, that
he is generally wrong.
6. A Roman and Church Calendar, drawn up by the Rev. Dr. Lingard,
but without bearing his name. It was printed by C. P. Cooper in his
Account of the Most Important Records, London, 1832, vol. ii, p. 483,
and was also used by Sir Harris Nicolas, first of all in his Notitia
Historica, London, 1824, and again in his Chronology of History,
London, 1838 ; again by Simms (R.) in his Genealogist's Manual,
London, 1861. In all these, misprints, such as on February 9, Telcan
for Teleau, i.e. S. Teilo, Bishop of Llandaff, are servilely repeated.
The original work was executed by Dr. Lingard as well as he was
able from the scanty materials then available. These were, as he
says, the printed York and Salisbury Missals, that of S. Paul's, London
(MSS. Harl. 2,787), the above-mentioned English Martyrologies of
Wilson and Capgrave.
7. Sir Harris Nicolas not only reprinted Dr. Lingard's Roman and
Church Calendar, but he added a valuable "Alphabetical List of
Saints " in his Chronology of History, one of Dr. Lardner's series, 1838.
He added many names of Welsh and English saints, having employed
for the purpose eleven MS. Calendars in the Harleian Collection, two
in the Cottonian, and two in the Arundell Collection of MSS.
It is much to be regretted that he did not specify from which MSS.
he drew his information for each entry. Although he doubtless took
great pains to be correct, yet in some instances he allowed himself
to be misled by Lingard, who in turn was misled by Wilson.
An instance of the manner in which a false attribution perpetuates
The Welsh and Cornish Calendars 8 3
tself is that of S. Indract. The Salisbury, Norwich, and Aletemps
Calendars give as his day May 8. Now Wilson inserted him on
February 5, but put an asterisk to the name to indicate that he had
no authority for so doing. Challoner followed suit. So did the
Bollandist Fathers in 1648. Lingard followed again, and so Indract
has got fairly established on February 5, a day on which he was com-
memorated in no church in England in ancient times.
Wilson gives S. Guier on April 4, but honestly intimates that this
insertion was purely arbitrary. Challoner accepted this, and so did
the Bollandists in 1665. Lingard could do no other, and of course
has been followed. Even the Truro Church Calendar, 1900, gives
Guier on April 4.
Wilson, with an asterisk, enters S. Merwyna, Virgin, on May 13.
This did not suit Challoner, who wanted the day for S. Cadoc or
Cathmail, who had not the smallest claim to it, so he shifted S.
Mri WVIKI to March 30. Lingard followed Wilson as the more trusty
<>t the two, and Sir Harris Nicolas gives May 13 as S. Merwyna's
Day. But it must be clearly understood that at Rumsey Abbey,
where her body reposed, neither on May 13 nor on March 30 was any
commemoration of her made.
From what has been said it will be seen that the Martyrologies
and Calendars since Wilson compiled his need a complete overhaul-
ing.
8. The Ada Sanctorum of the Bollandists were begun in 1643, and
the work is not yet complete. The month of January was composed
of 2 vols. at first Antwerp, 1643 ; February, 3 vols., 1648 ; March,
3 vols., 1668 ; April, 3 vols., 1675 ; May, 8 vols., 1680-8 ; June,
7 vols., 1695-1717 ; July, 7 vols., 1719-31 ; August, 6 vols., 1733-43 ;
September, 8 vols., 1746-62 ; October, 13 vols., 1765-70, 1780-6,
1794, 1845, 1853, 1858, 1861, 1864, 1867, 1883; November, t. i,
1887, t. 2, pt. i, 1894.
There has been a new edition, ed. by Carnandet, Paris, 16 vols.
and incomplete. This edition is not a faithful reproduction ; there
are additions and excisions.
The great merit of this collection is that the Bollandist Fathers give
their authorities for the attribution of the several saints to their par-
ticular days. But they have trusted too far to Wilson, who had not
the means at his disposal to give to his Martyrology that exactness
which he doubtless would have desired, and who was too free in
putting down by guesswork obscure local saints on days upon which
they never had received a cult.
9. Analecta Bollandiana. A supplement to the Ada Sanctorum,
Introduction
and edited by the Bollandist Fathers. Some thirteen volumes have
appeared, and the issue is still in progress.
It contains : (i) hitherto unedited documents on the lives of the
saints ; (2) ancient Martyrologies reprinted ; (3) lives of saints pre-
termitted in the earlier volumes of the Ada Sanctorum; (4) newly
discovered texts, better than those already printed ; (5) variants to
those published ; (6) critical' notes ; (7) descriptive catalogues of
MS. collections of hagiographa ; (8) liturgical memorials ; (9) review
of hagiographical works annually issuing from the press.
10. Butler (Alban). The Lives of Fathers, Martyrs, and other
Principal Saints, 1745 and 1789 ; repeatedly reprinted.
This collection was written for edification, and the author was
devoid of the critical faculty. He touched up and altered the lives
as suited his purpose, which was to furnish wholesome reading. He
accordingly cut out everything of which he disapproved ; and being
entirely destitute of any sense of poetry, he eliminated precisely
those incidents in the lives of the heroes of Christianity that give
them beauty and arrest the attention. He took no trouble to make
sure that he had set down his biographical notices on the days upon
which local saints received veneration.
11. " Britannia Sacra, or the Lives of the Most Celebrated British,
English, Scottish, and Irish Saints, who have flourished in these
Islands ; Faithfully collected from their Acts and other Records of
British History," London, 1745.
When it is known that this work is by Challoner, we know also
how to estimate it.
12. The Menology of England and Wales, by Richard Stanton, of
the Oratory, London, Burns and Gates, 1887, with a Supplement,
1892. This is a valuable compilation, if not very critical.
It contains an incomplete list of MS. Calendars in the British Museum
and elsewhere.
Father Stanton says : " No fewer than 108 Calendars have been
examined for the purpose of ascertaining, as nearly as possible, the
names of those servants of God who received from our ancestors the
public honours of Sanctity."
We do not print a Calendar of Cornish Saints, but refer to the
Transactions of the Devonshire Association for 1900, pp. 341-389,
where there is one fairly complete.
The principal Irish Calendars and Martyrologies are these :
i. The Felire of Oengus. This is a Metrical Calendar, attributed
to Oengus the Culdee, a contemporary of Aed Ordnaithe, king of
Ireland, 793-817 ; but it is certainly considerably later, as it includes
tl
'
The Welsh and Cornish Calendars 85
a commemoration of the supposed author. It includes also S. Sin-
clu-11. who died in 982. It has a gloss by the O'Clerys, and has been
piil>li>lied by tin- Royal Irish Academy, Dublin, 1871, edited by
Dr. \Yhitley Stokes.
1 IK- Martyrology of Tallagh, attributed to S. Maelruan, who died
in 788. He may have made the original calendar, but it has received
addition-;, inr it contains the name of Coirpre, abbot of Clonmacnoise,
who died about 899. It is imperfect, lacking November, and the first
M 'lays of December. It has been published, not very correctly,
and uncritically, by Dr. Kelly, the editor; Dublin, 1857.
I'he .Martyrology of Donegal, so called because drawn up by the
i Irish scholar and antiquary, Michael O'Clery, one of the
1620. He laid under contribution the Cashel Calendar,
which was compiled in 1030, but which is now lost. It has been edited
by Dr. James Todd : Dublin, 1864.
4. I IK- Drummoiid Calendar of the twelfth century. This is an
ln-h <', dnii lar rather than Scottish. It has been published by Bishop
Forbes, of Brechin, in his Kalcndars of Scottish Saints, Edinburgh,
This calendar is of the twelfth century.
[he Book of Obits, of Dublin Cathedral, edited by Crosthwaite
and To.Kl : Dublin, 1843.
1'he Martyrology of Gorman, abbot of Cnocnan-Apostol ; drawn
i i !<><) ami 1174. It has been edited by Dr. Whitley Stokes,
tor the Hmry Bradshaw Society; London, 1895.
7. Sanctorum (/itontmitcim Vita et Passiones, una cum eorum Diebus
MS. of the thirteenth or fourteenth century (vi, B. i, 16), in
y of Trinity College, Dublin. Some folios are missing.
8. Officia Donrinicalia totius anni, cnm Kalcndario ; Psalterium
atinnni. cum Lcctimulnis c ritis Sanctorum quorundam precipue
!. MS. written in 1489 (xii, B. 3, 10), in the same
library,
9. Calendar of Down, of the fifteenth century. Bodleian Library,
Oxford (MSS. dinonici. Liturg., 215).
^ 10. (\il (l /,^ns pnf. Quorum Sanctorum Ibernia, by Henry FitzSimon,
S.J., in tlie sixteenth century, Library of Trinity College, Dublin
(MSS. xii, B. 3, 10).
ii. John Colgan, Adu Sanctorum Veteris et Majoris Scotia seu
Hihcrniu- Sanctorum Insults, Louvain, 1645. This is carried to the
end of March only.
In i "47 he issued his Triadis Thaumaturga, sive Divorum Patricii,
t Br^ida Ada. Unhappily he never completed his
Acta Sanctorum of Ireland, as he died at Louvain in 1648.
8 6 Introduction
Most of his MSS., materials laboriously collected, were dispersed when
the French revolutionary soldiers swept over the Netherlands.
12. Lives of the Irish Saints, by John Canon O'Hanlon, n.d,,
volume for September was issued 1900. The failure of the health of
the aged author has caused the work to remain incomplete and to
break off at October 21. A laborious compilation, and the author is
careful to give references, but it is woefully uncritical.
Scottish Calendars may be consulted, but they render assistance
only to a limited degree.
Bishop Forbes, of Brechin, has published the most important
Kalendars of Scottish Saints ; Edinburgh, 1872. This contains eleven,
among these the Drummond Calendar, which is Irish.
Since then the Foulis Breviary of the fifteenth century has been
published ; Longmans, London, 1902.
Brittany Calendars are of far greater importance. We refer
for these to the monograph on the subject : Breviaires et Missels
des jEglises et Abbayes Bretonnes de France anterieurs au xvii e siecle,
par 1'Abbe F. Duine. Rennes : Plihon et Hommay, 1906.
IV. THE GENEALOGIES OF THE
WELSH SAINTS
THE principal sources and authorities, in MS. and in print, for the
genealogies of the Welsh saints are the following :
1. The Bonedd in Peniarth MS. 16, of the early thirteenth century ;
imperfect at the end.
2. The Bonedd in Peniarth MS. 45, of the late thirteenth century.
These two early Bonedds have never been published.
3. The Bonedd in Peniarth MS. 12, in the fragment of Llyfr Gwyn
Rhydderch, of the first half of the fourteenth century ; printed in
Y Cymmrodor, vii, pp. 133-4.
4. The Bonedd in Hafod MS. 16, circa 1400, now in the Cardiff
Free Library ; a little imperfect towards the end. It is printed,
with but few inaccuracies, in the Myvyrian Archaiology, pp. 415-6,
and the missing entries supplied from a Mawddwy MS. It is also
printed, but very inaccurately, in the Cambro-British Saints, pp. 265-8,
from the copy in Harleian MS. 4181, of the early eighteenth century.
The Genealogies of the Welsh Saints 87
5. The Bonedd in Cardiff Free Library MS. 25, a transcript made
by John Jones of Gelli Lyfdy in 1640 from a MS. (now lost) supposed
by him to have been of about the eleventh century. A copy, with few
variations, of No. I ; also imperfect at the end.
6. The Bonedd in Plas Llanstephan MS. 28, written in 1455-6.
7. The Bonedd in Peniarth MS. 27, part ii, of the late fifteenth
century.
The Achau printed in the lolo MSS., pp. 100-146, from three
Glamorgan MSS. :
(a) pp. 100-14, from a Coychurch MS. transcribed or compiled
about 1670.
(b) pp. 115-34, from a Llansannor MS. (previously Coychurch),
of about the same date apparently.
(c) pp. 135-46, from a Cardiff MS., of which the date is not
given, but probably the seventeenth century.
A good deal of interesting information, of later date it would appear
than the originals, has been worked into these Achau. Mistakes of
fact and spelling are frequent.
There is a transcript of pp. 100-134 by Sir S. R. Meyrick, made in
in the Aberystwyth University College Library.
9. The so-called Bonedd y Saint in Myv. Arch., pp. 417-31, in
reality an alphabetical compilation made by Lewis Morris in 1760
in nn a number of MS. Bonedds. A copy of it, with additions in
<i\v;illttT Mi-chain's hand, at Aberystwyth.
10. The Achau, atrociously printed, in Cambro-British SS., pp.
71, from Harleian MS. 4181 (early eighteenth century).
Mxuvnth century MS. copies of Saintly Pedigrees are very numerous.
As supplementing the foregoing must be mentioned the following :
1. The Old-Welsh Pedigrees in Harleian MS. 3859, circa noo,
printed in Y Cymmrodor, ix, pp. 169-83.
These, as well as some of the other genealogies enumerated here,
have been very carefully indexed by Mr. Anscombe in the Archiv fur
CMscke Lexikographie for 1898, 1900 and 1903.
2. The Cognatio de Brychan in
(a) Cott. Vesp. A. xiv, of the early thirteenth century ; and
(b) Cott. Dom. i, circa 1650.
3. Progenies Keredic Regis de Keredigan in Cott. Vesp. A. xiv.
2 (a), (b) and 3 have been very carefully reproduced by the
Rev. A. W. Wade-Evans in y Cymmrodor, xix (1906).
4. The Brychan catalogue and pedigrees in Jesus College (Oxford)
MS. xx = 3, of the early fifteenth century ; printed in y Cymmrodor,
viii, pp. 83-90.
8 8 Introduction
5. Bonedd Gwyr y Gogledd (the Descent of the Men of the North)
in Peniarth MS. 45 ; printed in Skene's Four Ancient Books of Wales,
ii, P- 454-
6. The Pedigrees in Mostyn MS. 117, of the end of the thirteenth
century, appended to the copy of Geoffrey of Monmouth's Historia ;
printed in Dr. J. Gwenogfryn Evans' Report on Welsh MSS., i, p. 63.
To these authorities may be added Nicolas Roscarrock, fifth son of
Richard Roscarrock in S. Endellion in Cornwall, who compiled a
Lives of English Saints (including Welsh) between 1610 and 1625,
and in the Welsh Saints his authority was a Welsh priest, Edward
Powell, who placed his MS. collection at his disposal, and in these
MSS. were pedigrees of Welsh Saints. Roscarrock's MS. is unhappily
mutilated at the end, many pages having been torn out to cover
jam-pots. The volume was in the Brent Eley Library, but on the
dispersion of that collection, it was acquired for the University Library,
Cambridge. Roscarrock studied at Exeter College, Oxford, and took
his B.A. degree in 1568. Carew, in his Survey of Cornwall, p. 229,
tells us of " his industrious delight in matters of History and
Antiquity." He died in 1633 or 1634, at an advanced age.
The Genealogies of the Welsh Saints 89
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LIVES OF THE BRITISH SAINTS
S. AARON, Martyr
THE earliest authority for S. Aaron is Gildas, De excidio Britannia,
10 (ed. Hugh Williams). He says, " God, therefore, as willing
that all men should be saved, magnified His mercy unto us, and called
siniuTs. no less than those who regard themselves righteous. He of
Hi-- own free gift, in the above mentioned time of persecution, as we
conclude, 1 lest Britain should be completely enveloped in the thick
darkness of black night, kindled for us bright lamps of holy martyrs.
The graves where their bodies lie, and the places of their suffering,
had thrv not, very many of them, been taken from us the citizens
on account of our numerous crimes, through the disastrous division
caused by the barbarians, would at the present time inspire the minds
of those who gazed at them with a far from feeble glow of divine love,
ak of Saint Alban of Verulam, Aaron and Julius, citizens of
eon, and the rest of both sexes in different places, who stood
in in with lofty nobleness of mind in Christ's battle." Some writers
have been pleased to discredit the words of Gildas in reference to
Aaron and Julius, but surely without reason ; as Professor Williams
wdl says : " One finds it difficult to understand why this story must
be doubted. There must have been a tradition to this effect at
Caerleon in the sixth century, and in the Book of Llan Ddv we find
evidence of the very local tradition that has been said to be wanting.
The Index of that book mentions about eighteen place-names begin-
ning with Merthir (modern Welsh, Merthyr), one of which is ' Merthir
lun (lulii) et Aaron.' A merthyr means, as its Latin original mar-
tyrium denotes, ' place of martyr or martyrs,' that is, a church built
in memory of a martyr, and generally over his grave." Again, " We
can hardly doubt that such a name as Merthyr, from martyrium, is
as old as llan, or cil, or disert, if not indeed older.
" Ut conicimus." The words imply that Gildas was not certain as to the
exact period when the Martyrdom took place.
101
IO2 Lives of the British Saints
" This at once carries it beyond the sixth century. Now the boun-
dary of this particular merthir 1 is : ' The head of the dyke on the
Usk, along the dyke to the breast of the hill, along the dyke to the
source of Nant Merthyr, that is Amir ' (pp. 225, 226, 377). Here
we have a merthyr of Julius and Aaron in the neighbourhood of
Caerleon." 2 The date of the martyrdom may be placed during the
Persecution of Diocletian, 304.
The passage in the Book of Llan Ddv alluded to by Professor Williams
is important. In the reign of Meurig, King of Glywyssing and
Morganwg, the contemporary of Fern vail, who died in 775 according
to the Annales Cambria, Nud was Bishop of Llandaff, and a grant
was made to him of all the territory of the martyrs Julius and Aaron
" which formerly had belonged to Saint Dubricius." (Immolamus
. . . totum territorium sanctorum martirum iulii et aaron quod prius
fuerat sancti dubricii in priori tempore.) 3 This certainly shows that
in the sixth century there was a Merthir Julii et Aaron at Caerleon,
under the jurisdiction of Dubricius. It was in fact solely on the
strength of his possession of this church that the fable grew up
in later times 'that Dubricius had been " Archbishop " of Caerleon.
Giraldus Cambrensis mentions two churches, with their convent
and society of canons, at Caerleon, dedicated to Aaron and Julius. 4
Bede paraphrases the words of Gildas, but, not understanding that
his " urbs Legionum " was Caerleon on Usk, transferred the mar-
tyrdom to Chester. 5 But Bede was very ill informed conce
British matters.
According to Bishop Godwin (1595-1601) there existed in
recollection of the generation preceding that in which he wrote, two
chapels called after Aaron and Julius, on the east and west sides of
the town of Caerleon, about two miles distant from each other. Pro-
bably S. Julian's, now a farm house, but once a mansion the resi-
dence of Lord Herbert of Cherbury occupies the site of S. Julius's
Church.
The reputed site of S. Aaron's chapel is near the Roman camp of
Penrhos, between the Afon Lwyd and the Sor Brook that flows into
the Usk above Caerleon, and here stone coffins have been found,
showing that it was a place of Christian interment.
Soon after the Norman Conquest there was a church in Caerleon
1 In the text " Territorium."
z Gildas, ed. Hugh Williams, note p. 27.
8 Book of Llan Ddv, p. 225.
4 I tin., ch. v. They are also mentioned by Walter Mapes, and Geoffrey of
Monmouth. s Hist. EccL, i, 7.
rning
i the
S. Aaron 103
itself dedicated to Julius and Aaron, which was granted by Robert
de Chandos to the Priory of Goldcliff, founded by him in IH3- 1
Llanharan, moreover, a chapelry in Llanilid parish, in Glamor-
ganshire, is dedicated to S. Aaron, according to the lolo MSS. ; 2
and according to the same authority the Corau of SS. Julius and
Aaron at Caerleon belonged to the Cor of S. Dyfrig. 3
There is a Cae Aron (his field) near Caerleon, and a Cwm Aron
(liis dingle) in the parish of Llanfrechfa, in the neighbourhood.
The two saints are commemorated together on July I, according to
\\1iytford, who says, " In englond the feest of saynt Aaron andsaynt
lulr martyrs, y t in the passyon of saynt Albane were couerted, and
tliis day with many other Chrystyans put to dethe." Wilson also
in both editions of his English Martyrologie, 1608 and 1640, on the
same day ; also Nicolas Roscarrock.
S. AARON, Hermit, Confessor
A SAINT, presumedly from Wales, in the first half of the sixth century
in Armorican Domnonia, where he is venerated. He is locally
known as Aihran ; the Latin form of the name is Aaron. He made
a settlement a few miles north-east of Lamballe, where he is still
! Meliorated as titular saint of the parish. To the west, in Cotes
tlu Xonl, is a chapel dedicated to him, that may indicate his presence
tlu-iv i<>r a while, at Pleumeur-Gautier, on the tongue of land between
tin- KiviT Trieux and that of Tre"guier. But he would seem to have
retired in old age to an islet near the ancient city of Aleth, at the
ni 'ut li of the Ranee. Off this coast are several islands, the largest
brini; (Y-sambre, on which a colony of Irish monks was settled under
an abbot named Festivus. 4
The islet, now occupied by the town of S. Malo, was then much
more considerable in extent than at present. It has been reduced by
> Dugdale, Monasticon, v, pp. 727-8 ; Tanner, Notitia Monas., 1787. Jan-
Originum Cisterciensium, torn. i. Vindobon, 1877, p. 190.
VSS., p. 222. According to other accounts to Julius and Aaron con-
jointlv.
i., p. 1 5 1 . This is in agreement with the statement in the Book of Llan Ddv.
encrunt ad insulam quae vocatur September, ubi sacerdos fidelis
icrviens, Festivus nomine, cum schola plurima habitabat." Vita S. Ma-
chnti, auct. Bili, ed. Plaine, cap ^
104 Lives of the British Saints
the action of the sea. At the time when Aaron was there, a vill or
two was situated on it ; they have been submerged. 1
The town of Aleth was either abandoned by its ancient inhabitants
or was occupied only by pagans. Bili, author of a Life of S. Malo,
asserts the former, but this is inconsistent with the rest of the narra-
tive, and is in contradiction with the statement in another Life
which says, " Ci vitas ilia eo tempore populis et navalibus commerciis
frequenta." 2
According to the most trustworthy Lives of S. Malo, this latter saint,
on leaving Britain with his companions, came to that isle where w;
Aihran or Aaron, and there remained for a considerable time ti
elected Bishop of Aleth ; but Bili says that it was not till later that
he paid Aaron a visit. The former authority is best ; according to
it, " ingressus insulam vocabulo Aaronis, ab ipso monacho nuncu-
patam, exceptus est ab ipso officiosisime." 3
Here Aaron lived, as says Bili, " desiring to avoid the sight am
conversation of bad men." Possibly his mission had not been ven
successful, and he himself may have been broken with age. He
gladly welcomed Malo as coming from Wales, and as having the ener^
of youth, to enable him to overcome the obstacles that had beei
perhaps too great for himself. Aihran died in the middle of the sixtl
century.
The chapel of S. Aaron at S. Malo stands on the highest point oi
what was once the island that bore his name. It is surrounded
lofty houses, and has been threatened with destruction. Mass is sak
in it every year on June 22.
There was formerly a chapel of S. Aaron at Ploemeur in Morbihan,
in the hamlet now called Saint Deron. At S. Aaron (Cotes du Nord)
is a statue of him. He is represented habited in a long monastic
garment, girded with a cord, his head bare. His right hand holds a
book, in the left is a pastoral crook. Although titular saint of the
parish, he has been displaced to make way for S. Sebastian, and his
pardon suppressed. There is a fine painting in the Cathedral of S.
Malo representing the reception of Machu by S. Aaron. According
to the Breviary of S. Malo, printed in 1537, a Missal of S. Malo, fifteenth
century, and the Missals of 1609 and 1627, his day is June 22.
1 " Asinam habebat, et quocunque mittebatur exiebat, maximeque ad villam
Laioc, quam nunc mari deglutiente derelictam esse videmus, et ad illam villam
quae vocatur Guoroc." Ibid.
* Vita S. Maclovii, cap. 10, in Acta SS. O.S.B. saec. i, p. 219 (ed. 1733).
* Vita S. Maclovii, cap. 15, ed. De la Borderie.
S. AARON.
From Statue at S. Aaron, Cotes du Nord.
S. Achebran 105
S. ACHEBRAN, Confessor
IN Domesday, Lanachebran is the name of the manor of S. Kevern
in the Lizard district of Cornwall. " Canonici Sancti Achebranni
tenent Lan- Achebran et tenebant tempore regis Eduardi."
Achebran is presumedly the Irish Aed Cobhran, one of the sons of
Bochra ; and his brothers were Laidcenn and Cainrech. 1 Bochra
was the name of the mother. Their father's name is unknown. The
three brothers were commemorated as Saints of Achad Raithin in
Ily MacGaille, in Waterford. But Aed Cobhran had a special com-
memoration on January 28, as having a cell under Inis Cathy. He
was consequently associated with S. Senan, if he belonged to the
period. His cell was not in the island of Inis Cathy, but at
Kiliush. on the mainland, in Clare. He is there forgotten ; there
an two old churches in the place, but both are named after S. Senan.
This is due to Aed Cobhran not having founded his church, but to
his having occupied one belonging to S. Senan.
It is probable that Achebran came to Cornwall along with S. Senan
and the party that attended S. Breaca, and that he made his settle-
ment in the Lizard district. Cobhran became Kevern, for the Irish
bh is sounded like v. In later times he seems to have been forgotten
or mistaken for S. Cieran, from whom he is wholly distinct. If we
are not mistaken, he settled permanently in France, where his name
was still further corrupted into Abran.
Flodoard (d. 966), in his History of the Church of Rheims, says :
" Delata sunt etiam tune temporibus ad ecclesiam beati Remigii
memoria Sancti Gibriani a pago Catalaunensi, ubi peregrinatus fuisse
tur et humatus. Advenerunt siquidem in hanc provinciam
tun fratres ab Hibernia peregrinationis ob amor em Christi gratia :
i scilicet, Gibrianus, Helanus, Tressanus, Germanus, Veranus,
Abranus, Petranus, cum tribus sororibus suis Fracla, Promptia,
Possenna, eligentes sibi super fluvium nomine Maternam, opportuna
degencli loca." -
This arrival took place whilst S. Remigius presided over the Church
of Rheims (459-530), and Sigebert of Gemblours fixes the date at
The Rheims Breviary merely says that it was during the reign
Clovis I (481-511), so that the date given by Sigebert is approxi-
mately right.
Leland, quoting from the lost life of S. Breaca (I tin., iii, p. 15), says :
Breaca venit in Cornubiam comitata multis Sanctis, inter quos
1 Martyrology of Oengus, ed. Whitley Stokes, 1871, p. clxxiii. Caenrich =
<'uimk'ch (?)
2 Flodoard, Hist. Ecclesiast. Rem., lib. iv, c. 9 (ed. de Douai, 1617, p. 638).
nosci
septe
hi s(
a
106 Lives of the British Saints
fuerunt Sinninus abbas, qui Romae cum Patrick) fuit, Maruanus
monachus, Germochus rex, Elwen, Crewenna, Helena." In one
MS. Thecla is added. It is possible to recognise some of these among
those who went to Rheims. Sinninus is Sennen, or Senan of Inis
Cathy, who probably brought Aed Cobhran with him. Germochus
may be the Germanus of Flodoard. Helena is probably his Helanus.
Promptia we suspect is Crewenna, the Goidelic hard c becoming p, and
+S. Vr&n
S. Germ&in clu Pmel
CHURCHES OF THE COMPANIONS OF S. ACHEBRAN.
Flodoard's Fracla is Leland's Thecla. The party may be traced on
or near the Ranee, rendering it probable that they landed at Aleth.
S. Helan is recognised at S. Helan and the adjoining parish of
Lanhelin near Dinan. Tressan is seen at Tressaint, further up the
river, and S. Veranus is discoverable at Trevron and Evran ; also at
S. Vran, near Merdrignac. S. Abran has a chapel at Perret ; Petran
is commemorated at S. Pern ; and there is a chain of Germanus
foundations in Ille-et-Vilaine. We are somewhat disposed to identify
Aed Cobhran with the Abran who has a chapel at N. Dame de Guer-
mene in Perret, near Gouarzec (Cotes du Nord), where he is com-
S. Adwen 107
lemorated on December 3. He is there represented in monastic
ibit, girded about the waist by a cord ; his head is bare, his hood
thrown back over his shoulders. His feet are covered by his habit,
his right hand he carries a curved stick or pen-bras ; in his left
id is a closed book. The statue is of the fifteenth century. There
a parish of S. Abran or Abraham in Morbihan, but in the ancient
liocese of S. Malo ; it was annexed to the diocese of Vannes in 1801.
It is not necessary to accept Flodoard's statement that the party
msisted of actual brothers and sisters after the flesh ; they probably
rere spiritual brethren.
In the Life of S. Ailbe we are informed that this illustrious saint,
i his way home from Rome, founded a monastic establishment,
which he placed the sons of Guil, previous to his reaching Dol. 1
Germanus, one of the seven who visited Remigius, is inserted in the
Irish Martyrologies as MacGoll, and it is possible enough that Ailbe
did for a while associate with this party of seven on the river Ranee-
The time would suit, as Ailbe was in Gaul at the very beginning of
the sixth century. Moreover Aed Cobhran and his brothers were of
the MacGaille territory.
The day of Aed Cobhran, as already said, in the Irish Martyrologies,
is January 28, but he is also commemorated along with his brothers
on November 28. In that of Donegal he is mentioned as of Cill-Ruis
or Kilrush, in the county of Clare, but he is no longer there remem-
bered. 2 Cill-Ruis was in the diocese of Iniscathy, which seems to
indicate, as already mentioned, that he was a disciple of S. Senan,
who is the Cornish Sennen. He is commemorated in the Felire of
is, and in the Martyrology of Tallagh as well.
S. ADWEN, Virgin
tf the Inqnisitio Nonarum she is entered as S. Athewenna. The
parish of Advent in Cornwall is locally called S. Anne or S. Tane.
In 1340 it is entered as Capella Sanctae Athewenna^. 3 Leland (Co//.,
* v I 53) gives Adwen as one of Brychan's children who settled in
1 Vita S. Albei, A eta SS. Hibern. ex Codice Salmanticensi, Edinb. 1888. col. 244.
Letters containing information relative to the Antiquities of Clare, in Pro
gress of the Ordnance Survey in 1839, ii, p. 2.
3 Maclean, Deanery of Trigg Minor, ii, p. 297.
1 -
io8 Lives of the British Saints
North Cornwall. He derives this from a legend of S. Nectan pre-
served at Hartland. So does William of Worcester (ed. Nasmith,
1778), from a notice of Brychan he found at S. Michael's Mount.
Among the daughters of Brychan known to the Welsh there is only
one that might with any degree of probability be identified with her,
and that is Dwynwen, and Mr. W. Copeland Borlase conjectured that
the chapel of Advent was originally Llanddwynwen. 1 But this is
mere conjecture. The church is annexed to Lanteglos, and owing
to this circumstance meets with no notice in the Exeter Episcopal
Registers.
Dr. Borlase states that Advent parish church was originally dedi-
cated to S. Tathan, as this name occurs, says he, in old deeds. Sii
John Maclean quotes deeds in which the name is spelt S. Tawthai
(1559), S. Adwen (1572), " Tathen alias Adventte " (1601), etc.* Bui
the Inquisitio Nonarum is the better authority for the dedication.
See further under S. DWYNWEN.
S. AEDDAN, see S. AIDAN
S. AELGYFARCH, or ELGYFARCH, Confessor
NOTHING is known of this saint further than that he was one of the
twelve sons of Helig ab Glannog, 3 whose territory, called Tyno Helig,
was overflowed by the sea in the sixth century. The La van Sands,
between Anglesey and Carnarvonshire, formed a portion of the terri-
tory, which extended to the Great Orme's Head. After the loss of
his land, Helig and his sons devoted themselves to religion. Most of
them founded churches in various parts of Wales. They are said to
have been members of the monastery of Bangor Iscoed in the first
instance, but afterwards some of them went to Bardsey. No churches
are dedicated to S. Aelgyfarch, nor is his name to be found in any
Calendar.
1 The Age of the Saints, pp. 153-4, 159. Truro, 1893. ^ r - Borlase supposes
that Adwen is a corruption of Llan-dwyn, becoming Ladwyn and then Adwen.
Carew calls her Athawyn, Survey, p. 92.
2 Deanery of Trigg Minor, sub nom. Advent, ii, p. 318.
3 Myv. Arch., p. 418 ; lolo MSS., p. 124.
(S. Aelhaiam 109
S. AELHAIARN, or ELHAIARN, Abbot, Confessor
THE parentage of this Aelhaiarn is unknown. He was a disciple of
Dyfrig at Matle. 1 He appears as witness to several grants made
to this saint, as that of Lann lunabui, 2 and that of Cum Barruc, 3
and that of Cil Hal. 4 He also witnessed the grant of Penally to
Dyfrig. 5 When, later, Cinuin, the king, regranted Cum Barruc to Bishop
Elgistil, the same witnesses, both clerical and lay, are quoted, and
the grant is apparently only a reaffirmation of the original transfer. 6
When a grant was made to Bishop Comeregius, Aelhaiarn signed as
Abbot of Lann Guruoe, i.e. Lann Guorboe. 7 As such he also wit-
nrssed the grant of Lann Loudeu to Bishop lunapeius. 8
Lann Guorboe has been supposed to be Garway, but incorrectly ;
it was in campo Malochu. Mais mail Lochou, now represented by
the name Mawfield for an older Malefield in Testa de Nevill and the
Malvern Charters, was the name of Inis Ebrdil, and denoted the
country between the Dore valley and the Wye from Moccas down to
about Hereford, and the Worm. Guorboe = Gwrfwy in modern Welsh.
For this note on the locality of Lann Guorboe we are indebted ta
Mr. Egerton Phillimore. Whether he migrated to Brittany with S.
Teilo and so many bishops, abbots, and clerics on the breaking out
of the Yellow Plague in 547 we do not know. Teilo, we do know,
;ved grants from King Budic of Cornouaille, and it is significant
that adjoining Plogonnec, near Quimper, where S. Teilo receives a
cult, is S. Alouarn, who has given his name to a castle and to a canonry.
Alouarn, apparently, is the hermit with staff, bearing a Celtic bell,
represented in the same window with Teilo at Plogonnec, in glass of
the fifteenth century. On his way through Cornwall along with
?eilo, Aelhaiarn may have founded Lanherne, but the parish church
dedicated to the more important S. Maughan or Mawgan.
S. AELHAIARN, Confessor
AELHAIARN (" the Iron Eyebrow ") lived in the seventh century, and
was a brother to SS. Llwchaiarn and Cynhaiarn.
The pedigrees of the Welsh saints show great variations on the
1 Book of Llan Ddv, p. 80.
2 Ibid., p. 73. 3 Ibid., p. 74. 4 Ibid., p. 75.
5 Ibid., p. 77. Ibid., p. 163. 7 Ibid., p. 166.
8 Ibid., p. 164.
i io Lives of the British Saints
part of the copyists in the genealogy of these brothers. 1 The saint's
own name is written Ael-, E1-, and Al-haiarn, and out of the number
of forms his father's name assumes, Hygarfael appears to be the
best attested. This Hygarfael was a son of Cyndrwyn, a prince of
that part of ancient Powys which included the Vale of the Severn
about Shrewsbury, and he is said to have been " of Llystin Wynnan
(or Wennan) in Caereinion in Powys," probably to be identified with
Llysin, a township in the parish of Llanerfyl, Montgomeryshire.
The church of S. Aelhaiarn is by the same authorities said to be in
" Cegidfa," i.e. " the hemlock-field," in Powys. The parish is called
to-day in English, Guilsfield. It is near Welshpool.
Three other dedications have been given to this church S. Giles
(wrested from the parish name), All Saints (Browne Willis), and S.
Tyssilio, the last from its having been from very early times a capella
under the mother church of Meifod, as also from the fact that its
festival, November 8, agreed with that of S. Tyssilio.
After Aelhaiarn was also named the ancient parish of Llanaelhaiarn
in Merionethshire, which has for more than 350 years been annexed
to the parish of Gwyddelwern. Its church or chapel is now extinct,
but one of the townships still bears the name Aelhaiarn. It is given
as " Eccl'ia de Lanhehaearn " in the Taxatio of 1291,2 and the instru-
ment, " Unio capellse de Llanalhaern ad vie. de Gwithelwern," dated
1550, is preserved in the Red Book of S. Asaph. 3
The dedication here is to be accounted for by Aelhaiarn having
been a pupil of S. Beuno, and Beuno was for a while settled at Gwyddel-
wern ; so also his foundation at Guilsfield is explained, as Beuno was
near the Severn before he moved to Gwyddelwern. When the master
quitted Powys altogether, Aelhaiarn left as well, and accompanied
him into Lleyn.
To Aelhaiarn is also dedicated the important church of Llanaelhaiarn,
under the dominating height of Tre'r Ceiri in Carnarvonshire, and
near Beuno's monastery at Clynnog. Here, and at his Well, a little
-distance to the north, the pilgrims rested on their way to Bardsey,
and paid their devotions. Locally the church is called Llanhaiarn,
and is said to be dedicated to S. Elern, both corruptions. There is
in the parish a large farm called Elernion (a name formed like Cere-
digion and Edeyrnion), which is believed to be so named after him.
Pennant, in his Tours, says the church is " dedicated to S. Aelhaiarn,
or the Saint with an iron eyebrow, from a legend too absurd to relate.
it is a fine well, once much frequented for its reputed sanctity." 4
1 Peniavth MSS., 16 and 45 ; Myv. Arch., pp. 418, 421-2, 424-5 ; lolo MSS.,
104 ; Cambro-British Saints, p. 267.
* P. 286. 3 Fol. 2. collations section. * Ed. 1883, ii, p. 384.
S. AELHAIARN.
From Fifteenth-Century Stained Glass at Plogonnec,
Finistere.
1$. Aelhaiarn 1 1 1
he legend is given by John Ray in his Itineraries. " We were
1 a legend of one St. Byno, who lived at Clenogvaur, and was wont
to foot it four Miles in the Night to Llaynhayrne, and there, on a stone
in the midst of the River, to say his Prayers ; whereon they show
you still the Prints of his Knees. His Man, out of Curiosity, followed
him once to the Place, to see and observe what he did. The Saint
corning from his Prayers, and espying a Man, not knowing who it
was, prayed, that if he came with a good Intent, he might receive the
Good he came for, and might suffer no Damage ; but if he had any
ill Design, that some Example might be shown upon him ; whereupon
presently there came forth wild Beasts, and tore him in pieces. After-
wards, the Saint perceiving it was his own Servant, was very sorry,
gathering up his Bones, and praying, he set Bone to Bone, and Limb
to Limb, and the Man became whole again, only the part of the Bone
under the Eyebrow was wanting ; the Saint, to supply that Defect,
applied the Iron of his Pike-staff to the Place, and thence, that Village
was called Llanvilhayrne. But for a punishment to his Man (after
he had given him Llanvilhayrne} he prayed (and obtained his Prayer)
that Clenogvaur Bell might be heard as far as Llanvilhayrne Church-
yard, but upon stepping into the Church it was to be heard no longer ;
this the People hereabout assert with much Confidence, upon their
own experience, to be true. The Saint was a South Wales Man, and
when he died, the South Wales Men contended with the Clenogvaur
Mm for his Body, and continued the Contention till Night ; next
ling there were two Biers and two Coffins there, and so the
South Wales Men carried one away, and the Clenogvaur Men
the other." l
The story of the restoration of Aelhaiarn out of his bones, one small
bone being missing, is an adaptation of a very ancient myth. It
occurs in the Prose Edda of Thor on his journey to Jotunhein. 2 It
is found elsewhere. The duplication of the body of Beuno has its
counterpart in the triplication of that of Teilo.
Browne Willis says, under Llanaelhaiarn, " Fanum Sancti Elhayarn
Acolyti ut fertur Sancti Beunonis." 3 This will account, as already
pointed out, for the juxtaposition of S. Aelhaiarn 's foundations to
those of S. Beuno Llanaelhaiarn to Clynnog, Carngiwch, and
1 Itineraries of John Ray, Lond., 1760, pp. 228-30. In Peniarth MS. 75
(sixteenth century) it is said that Aelhaiarn was one of seven persons whom
Beuno raised to life again.
3 Thorpe, Northern Mythology, "Lond., 1851, i, p. 57. Mallet, Northern Anti-
quities, ed. Bohn, 1847, P- 436.
3 Survey of Bangor (1721), p. 273.
112 Lives of the British Saints
Pistyll ; the now extinct Llanaelhaiarn to Gwyddelwern ; and Guils-
field to Berriew and Bettws Cedewain. 1
S. Aelhaiarn's Well is an oblong trough of good pure water, by the
road side, in which the sick were wont to bathe, and there are seats
of stone ranged along the sides for the accommodation of the patients
awaiting the " troubling of the waters," when they might step in, full
of confidence, in expectation of a cure.
This " troubling of the waters " is a singular phenomenon. At
irregular intervals, and at various points in the basin, the crystal
water suddenly wells up, full of sparkling bubbles. Then ensues a
lull, and again a swell of water occurs in another part of the tank. 2
The Well now supplies the village with water. It was walled round
and roofed by the Parish Council in 1900, after an outbreak of
diphtheria in the village. The entrance is now kept locked. S.
Beuno's Well at Clynnog is similar to it in many respects ; this latter
is in a ruinous condition.
Rees gives November i as the day of S. Aelhaiarn, his authority
apparently being Browne Willis. 3 The Calendar in Cotton Vesp. A.
xiv, however, gives the festival of " Aelhaiarn of Cegidfa in Powys "
as November 2, but the entry is in a later hand than the original
MS. So also the Welsh Prymer of 1633.
At Guilsfield, a mile and a half from the Church, is a Holy Well,
a lovely secluded dell, where still a concourse gathers to drink tl
water on Trinity Sunday.
S. AELRHIW
THIS is a name given by Rees 4 in his list of saints of uncertain date,
and to whom Rhiw church in Carnarvonshire is said to be dedicated,
with September 9 as festival. No such saint, however, occurs among
the genealogies of the Welsh saints. Browne Willis, in his Survey of
Bangor, 5 gives against the church " S. Eelrhyw, or Delwfyw. Sept. 9.
1 In Cardiff Library MS. 51 is mentioned a '' Llech Alhayarn," apparently
situated somewhere in Denbighshire (Gwenogfryn Evans, Report on Welsh MSS.,
ii, pp. 253-4).
2 This is locally called " the laughing of the water," and it is said in the place
that the water laughs when any one looks at it.
3 Essay on the Welsh Saints, p. 275 ; Survey of Bangor, p. 273.
4 Welsh Saints, p. 306.
5 P. 274; Cambrian Register, iii, p. 224 (1818).
Aelrhiw 113
Fanum in clivo situm." In the latter part of the entry we have an
explanation of the name of Rhiw Church.
Cathrall, again, in his History of North Wales, 1 gives the church as
dedicated to S. Aelrhyw, and adds that there is a well there called
Ffynnon Aeliw, the waters of which were supposed to be efficacious in
the cure of cutaneous disorders, particularly one of that description
denominated Man Aeliw (the mark or spot of Aeliw). In the alter-
native dedication given by Willis we have Y Ddelw Fyw, or the
Living Image, which occurs in several Welsh Calendars of the
sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, with festival on September 9,
and to which there is a number of allusions in mediaeval Welsh litera-
ture. The Living Image was a rood or crucifix, which, it was alleged,
miraculously bled when certain Jews nailed the Image to the
cross. 2 The church of Rhiw is evidently dedicated to Y Ddelw
Fyw, in other words, to the Holy Rood ; and Aelrhyw and Aeliw
have the appearance of corruptions of the name. But the
Living Image more particularly had in mind by the Welsh was a
rood or crucifix in Mold Church (S. Mary). It is mentioned in two
odes, of the late fifteenth century, to Rheinallt ab Gruffydd, of Tower,
in the parish of Mold. The one, by Hywel Cilan, in praising Rheinallt's
valour in fighting the English, says :
I roi sawd lorus ydyw
Urddal i Fair a'r Ddelw Fyw.
(To give battle he is a S. George,
Of the Order of Mary and the Living Image.)
The other, by Tudur Penllyn, contains these lines :
Gwiw ddelw'r wirgrog a addolaf ;
Y Ddelw Fyw o'r Wyddgrug a fu ddialwr,
Ag ynte i hunan a wnaeth gyfran gwr.
(The worthy image of the true cross will I worship ;
The Living Image of Mold was the avenger,
And he himself did a man's part.)
rhyming Welsh Calendar in Cardiff MS. 13, circa 1609, comme-
>rates the Festival of the Image thus :
Gwyl y Ddelw Fyw a phawb a'i clyw,
Yn enwedig pawb a i'r Wyrgrig.
(The Feast of the Living Image, and everybody hears of it,
Especially everybody who goes to Mold.)
Vol. ii, p. 120 (Manchester, 1828).
Robert Owen, A"y;;-y, p. no (Carmarthen, 1891), thought the Image " must
e been a clumsy replica of some Italian Madonna."
VOL. I. I
114 Lives of the British Saints
Dafydd ab Gwilym, in the fourteenth century, in one of his poems,
exclaims, " Myn y Ddelw Fyw ! " " By the Living Image ! " A
S. AFAN, Bishop, Confessor
S. AFAN BUELLT, as he is generally called, was the son of Cedig ab
Ceredig ab Cunedda Wledig, by S. Tegfedd or Tegwedd, the daughter
of Tegid Foel (the Bald), lord of Penllyn, in Merionethshire. 2
Sometimes he is said, but wrongly, to have been the son of Ceredig.
He lived in the early part of the sixth century. The epithet Buellt
or Buallt (hodie Builth) indicates his connection with the cantref or
hundred of that name in Brecknockshire. According to a sixteenth
century manuscript, 3 the hundred then comprised fifteen parishes,
covering practically the whole expanse of the county north of the
Eppynt. The Rural Deanery of Builth appears to be conterminous
with it. Two of the churches within this Deanery are dedicated to
Afan, viz. Llanafan Fawr and Llanafan Fechan (or Fach). The latter,
which is otherwise called Llanfechan, is now subject to the former,
One other church is dedicated to him, that of Llanafan-y-Traw
in the Deanery of Llanbadarn Fawr, Cardiganshire. It has
supposed that there once existed a See of Llanafan Fawr ; but it i
very improbable. At any rate, if it ever existed, it must have been
for a very short period. The supposition is due to an inscription,
in a very good state of preservation, at Llanafan Fawr, which reads
thus : HIC IACET SANCTUS AVANUS EPiscoPUS. It is deeply cut in
capital letters of the Lombardic type, slightly ornamented, on the
very hard top-stone of a plain oblong altar tomb in the churchyard ;
but its date is not older than the end of the thirteenth or the
fourteenth century. 4
There is here nothing to show when or where Afan was Bishop. He
1 Works, ed. 1789, p. 437. We are indebted to Mr. J. Hobson Matthews,
Monmouth, for most of these extracts. To "Yr Wydd Gryc" in the parish list
in Peniarth MS. 147, circa 1566, is added, " y Ddelw fyw."
2 Peniarth MSS. 1 6, 27 and 45 (last leaves Cedig out) ; lolo MSS., pp. 102,
no, 125 ; Myv. Arch., pp. 415, 418. Afan as a man's name is probably a loan
from the Latin Amandus. It occurs also as a river name.
* Peniarth MS. 147; see Dr. J. Gwenogfryn Evans' Report on Welsh MSS., i,
p. 918.
4 Westwood, Lapidarium Wallice, p. 72.
SS. Afarwy and Afrogwy 115
is traditionally said to have been murdered by Irish pirates by
Danes, according to another account on the banks of the Chwefri,
and that the tomb here marks the site of his martyrdom. In the
neighbourhood are a brook called Xant yr Esgob, a dingle called
("win Esgob, and a small holding called Derwen Afan (his Oak). The
rectory is called Perth y Sant (the Saint's Bush).
Rees says that " it is not improbable that he was the third Bishop of
Llanbadarn ; and his churches are situated in the district which may
be assigned to that Diocese." l
Haddan and Stubbs were disposed to accept the existence, for a
short time, of a See of Llanafan, " either coincident with Llanbadam
(tin- seat of the Episcopate being transferred for the time from Llan-
badarn to Llanafan Fawr), or taken out of it." 2 If it ever existed
it was soon merged in that of Llanbadarn, and then both in that of
S. David's, probably not long after 720. It is, however, far more
probable that Afan was a bishop without other diocese than his own
Llan.
The Demetian Calendar (S.) gives S. Afan's Festival as November 16,
but the Calendars in the lolo MSS. and the Welsh Prymers of 1618
and 1633 gi ye tne I7th. Nicolas Roscarrock gives November 16.
Browne Willis enters S. Afan, with festival on December 17, as patron,
with SS. Sannan and levan or John, of Llantrisant, Anglesey. 3 He
made a mistake in the month.
SS. AFARWY and AFROGWY
THESE saints are given as children of Caw, lord of Cwm Cawlwyd, in
two lists only of his children, contained in two MSS. belonging to
Thomas Trueman. 4 The names cannot be identified with any of
those mentioned in other lists. One name is probably a corruption of
the other.
1 Essay on the Welsh Saints, p. 209.
a Councils, etc., i, p. 146. See also Basil Jones and Freeman in their History of
David's, 1856, p. 266.
3 Survey of Bangor, 1721, p. 279.
4 lolo MSS., p. 142.
I 1 6 Lives of the British Saifits
S. AFRAN
REES x gives Llantrisant, Anglesey, as dedicated to " SS. Sannan,
Afran, and leuan." Angharad Llwyd, again, in her History of Angle-
sey, 2 gives the church as dedicated to " SS. Afran, lefan and Sanan."
The only Welsh saint with a name approximating Afran is Gafran, if
we are to include him among the saints. We have here clearly a
mistake for Afan. Browne Willis 3 enters against the church the
following, " Fanum tribus Sanctis dicatum, viz. S. Sanan, June 13,
S. Afan, Dec. 17, S. levan or John, Aug. 29 " ; and in Peniarth MS.
147, circa 1566, there is a list of the parishes of Wales, in which is
added to the parish-name Llantrisant, " Sannan and Afan and Evan." 4
S. AIDAN of Ferns, Bishop, Confessor
THIS saint, in the Welsh Genealogies of the Saints, is called Aidan,
Aeddan and Aeddan Foeddawg. By this latter name he is mentioned
in the Myvyrian alphabetical catalogue of Welsh Saints. 5 Another
authority gives him as Aidan y Coed Aur, 6 and the same says further
that Aidan's Bangor had "seven choirs with 2,000 members, called
after the seven days of the week." 7 The name Aidan is a diminutive.
Professor Rhys makes the Old Irish Oed, later Aedh, Aodh, Haodh,
Anglicised Hugh, represent the Welsh Udd = Dominus. 8
Aidan occurs also under the form Madoc, Mo-aid-oc ; the suffix
oc is a diminutive equivalent to an ; and the prefix mo is an Irish
term of endearment, of very frequent occurrence. This double form
of name has led to confusion. S. Eltain of Kinsale is also called
Moelteoc ; and Luan is the same as Moluoc.
The genealogists have entered him twice, once under the form
Aidan ab Caw, and again as Madog ab Gildas ab Caw, or rather,
ab Aneurin ab Caw ; 9 but Gildas and Aneurin are identical. Further
confusion has arisen through his identification with a second of the
Welsh Saints, p. 324. z p. 279 (Ruthin, 1833).
Survey of Bangor, p. 279.
Dr. J. Gwenogfryn Evans, Report on Welsh MSS., i, p. 912.
Myv. Arch., pp. 420-1. 6 lolo MSS., p. 137.
Ibid., p. 151. 8 Welsh Philology, p. 216.
lolo MSS., pp. 83, 108, 137.
S. Aidan 117
same name, who was also Bishop of Ferns, but lived some thirty
years, or a generation, later. In the Irish Martyrologies there are
some twenty Aeds commemorated, and some twenty-three Aidans,
and some of these were from the same part of Ireland as Aidan of
Ft rns. It is not possible to admit that Aidan was son of Caw ; he
must have been grandson, as his chronology makes him live a genera-
tion later than Gildas ab Caw.
The main authority for his life is a Vita beginning, " Fuit vir
quulain." Colgan published this from a parchment copy obtained
horn Kilkenny. 1 It is also given by the Bollandists from two MSS.
in the Ada Sanctorum, Jan., t. ii, pp. 1112-1120. The same exists
among the Cottonian MSS. in the British Museum, Vesp. A. xiv, and
has been published by Rees in his Cambro-British Saints, pp. 232-50.
It is also published in the Vita SS. Hibern. from the Salamanca
t, 1888, cols. 463-488. A condensation likewise by John of
Tynemouth in Capgrave's Nova Legenda Anglice.
Mention is also made of him in the Life of S. David, 2 and in that of
loc. 3 In the Book of Llan Ddv, an Aidan is spoken of, a com-
panion to S. Dyfrig, 4 but this is certainly a different man. There
is further mention of him in the Life of S. Molaisse.of Devennish. 5
In the Book of Leinster he is given among the Saints who had double
names. 6 In the Vita Scti. Davidis he is spoken of as " Maidoc qui
ianus ab infantia ", 7 and in the Acta Sti. Edani in the Salamanca
as " Edanus qui et Moedoc dicitur." 8 Capgrave, from John
nemouth, says, " Sanctus iste in Vita Sti. Davidis ' Aidan '
vocatur, in vita vero sua, ut superius patet ' Aidus ' dicitur, et apud
Meneviam in ecclesia Sti. Davidis appellatur ' Moedock ' quod est
icum." 9
The epithet Foeddawg in the Welsh Genealogies is a reduplication
of his name.
From the fusion of the two Aidans, both Bishops of Ferns, into one
the Vita, great anachronisms have ensued. Aidan is represented
a boy hostage with King Ainmire, 568-571, and as being associated
nenev
hibem
Tl, .
SS. Hibern.. ii, pp. 208 et seq.
Catnbro-British Saints, pp. 106, 108-9 as " Aidus " in the same, pp. 232-
3 Ibid., p. 48. O\ j,
4 Book of Llan Ddv, p. 80.
5 Sylva Gadelica, London, 1892.
6 Book of Lismorc, Anecd. Oxon., p. 301. Aed otherwise Maidoc of Ferns.
7 Cambro-British Saints, p. 133.
Acta SS. Hibern., Salamanca Codex, col. 463.
Ed. 1901, p. 22. The " Life " in Capgrave is a condensation of that be-
ginning, " Fuit vir quidam."
i i 8 Lives of the British Saints
with S. Ruadhan in the cursing of Tara in 554, when an established saint
not under thirty years of age. He is further represented as contem-
porary with Guair Aidhne, King of Connaught, who died in 662. His
confessor was Molua of Clonfert, who died in 591 according to the
Annals of Tighernach, or 604 according to those of the Four Masters.
He was intimate in his relations with Brandubh, King of Leinster,
who died in 601, and whom he survived.
What increases the difficulty of discrimination between the Acts of
the first and the second of the name, both Bishops of Ferns, is that
the second, though some thirty years younger, was for some time
the contemporary of the elder, and probably was associated with him
at Ferns.
The Annals of the Four Masters put his death as occurring in 624.
The Chronicon Scotorum gives two dates, 625 and 656, thereby dis-
tinguishing two saints of the same name, and the Annals of Tighernach
give also 625. He is not to be confounded with Aed Mac Bricc who
was Bishop of Kilaire, and who died in 588.
We will now endeavour to take the Life of S. Aidan in order, putting
aside what obviously refers to the second of the name at Ferns, who
was the son of Setna of the sept of the Colla Uais, and whose mother
was Eithne, granddaughter of Amalghaid, king of Connaught.
At an early age Aed ab Gildas was committed to S.David, at Cilmuine
for instruction. An anecdote is told of his early submission to orde
One day he neglected to bring indoors the book in which he had been
studying, and rain came on. David was very angry at the prospect of
the book being injured, and ordered Aed as punishment to prostrate
himself on the sand of the shore, probably at Forth Mawr. Then he
forgot all about him, till some time later, when he noticed his absence,
and asked where the boy was. His pupils reminded him of the penance
he had imposed on Aed, and David at once sent for him, but only just
in time to save him from being covered by the rising tide. 1
When the Irish settlers were expelled from the portion of Pembroke-
shire and Carmarthenshire that lies between Milford Haven and the
mouth of the Towy, S. David seems to have been invited to make
religious settlements there, and he took with him his disciple Aidan,
who was still young. According to the story, the steward of S. David
entertained a lively dislike for Aidan, and annoyed him in many ways.
On one occasion, when David was building, probably Llanddewi Velfrey,
near Narberth, he despatched Aidan with a waggon and a pair of oxen
to bring back the material he needed from beyond the Cleddeu. The
steward furnished him out of spite with a yoke that did not fit the
1 Cambro-British Saints, p. 236.
ie,
en
^t
nrs
';:
S. Aidan 119
ks of the beasts ; nevertheless, Aidan succeeded in his task, and
his is recorded as miraculous. He did more, he discovered a ford across
the eastern Cleddeu, namely that where now stands Llawhaden Bridge.
Aidan here founded the church that, under the above corrupt form,
still bears his name. The steward next bribed one of Aidan's fellow
students to murder him while they were together in the forest felling
trees.
David was privately informed of what was proposed, and, starting
from his bed, ran with only one foot shod in the direction taken by the
woodfellers, and caught them up at the river, where he sharply interro-
gated the companion of Aidan and brought him to confess his purpose. 1
A cross was erected on the spot, and it is possible that this may be the
cross of an early character now standing in the east wall of Llawhaden
church.
While Aidan was in these parts, and Cadoc was with him, an invasion
took place the biographer says of Saxons but it is more probable
that it was of Irish, endeavouring to recover the lands from which they
had been expelled, though it is possible enough that Saxon pirates may
lm\v assisted them. Aidan and Cadoc gathered their countrymen
together, and surrounded the enemy, who were encamped in a valley,
rolled down stones upon them, and exterminated them to the last man.
There is a chapel of S. Cadoc in the parish of Llawhaden.
A story is told in the Life of S. Cadoc of a quarrel with King Arthur
relative to rights of sanctuary, and into this story a Maidoc is intro-
duced ; 2 but as, according to the Annales Cambrics, Arthur fell in
537, we cannot allow that this Maidoc is our Aidan. The whole
story is, however, probably a fabrication.
After the death of S. Patrick, the Christianity of Ireland notably
declined. He and the band of ardent missionaries who had worked
with him had converted the chieftains, and the obsequious clansmen
had submitted to baptism. The apostle had gone up and down
through the land, sowing the seed of the Word, and establishing
churches. Christianity had been accepted but not assimilated ; it had
overflowed Ireland, but had not sunk into and saturated the soil. The
first apostles, Patrick and his fellow workers, had done their utmost,
t they had been a handful only of earnest men. Patrick had done
wise thing in recommending many of his most hopeful disciples to go
abroad to Gaul, to Britain, to Rome, to be more fully instructed in the
truths of the religion of Christ, for he had not been able to establish
at nurseries of teachers in Ireland itself. As he and his fellow
1 Cambfo-British Saints, p. 236.
2 Vita S. Cadoci, Cambro-British Saints, p. 48.
i 2 o Lives of the British Saints
workers failed in health and through age, and finally obtained their
reward, the Christianity which had been but a varnish, cracked in all
directions, and the underlying, unchanged paganism revealed itself
once more, and a national apostasy was threatened.
The evidence has been collected by Dr. Todd, in his St. Patrick, 1
and it is unnecessary to reproduce it here. The fact, however, has
been contested by Professor Zimmer. 2 The Catalogus Ordinum
Sanctorum in Hybernia secundum diversa tempora, drawn up, probably,
not later than the eighth century, was first published by Ussher, and
has been repeatedly reprinted. It divides the Saints into three orders :
to the first belong Patrick and his assistants, three hundred and fifty
in number, observing but one Mass, and with one rule as to Easter,
and this order continued to the time of Tuathal Maelgarbh (533). The
Second Order was monastic, and celebrated different Masses derived
from S. David, S. Cadoc and from Gildas, and this order lasted from
the reign of Diarmid (544) to that of Aedh, son of Ainmire, who fell in
599. Ainmire (565-71), we know, was so concerned at the decline of
Christianity in the land that he invited over Gildas, and doubtless
others, to revive it, and to this appeal a ready response was accorded.
From the great monasteries of Menevia and Llancarfan poured a
stream of zealous clergy who set themselves to recover what was lost
and to build up on the foundations laid by Patrick and the Saints
the First Order. Their method of procedure was somewhat differenl
from his. Instead of being mere itinerant evangelists, they plantec
monasteries throughout the island, to which cells were affiliated, am
from these centres radiated the light of the Gospel, and to them were
drawn the young of the tribes to which they attached themselves, and
of which they became the recognized ecclesiastical heads ; and to these
young people they taught the law of God. Many of those nurtured
in their schools went out into secular life, bearing ever on them the
impress of their early education, others remained in the monastery,
and became fellow workers, and later, successors to the great abbots
who had started the work.
When the summons came to the Welsh and Breton monasteries, then
Gildas started, and Aidan is numbered in the Catalogue among the
Saints of the Second Order. 3
1 Todd (J. H.), 5. Patrick, Apostle of Ireland, Dublin, 1864, pp. 107-11.
2 The Celtic Church in Britain and Ireland, Lond., 1902, pp. 635.
3 Ussher gives " The two Finans, two Brendans, Jarlath of Tuam, Comgall,
Coemgen, Ciaran, Columba, Cainech, Eoghan Mac Laisre, Lugeus, Ludeus,
Moditeus, Cormac, Colman, Nessan, Laisrean, Barrindeus, Coeman. Ceran,
Coman (Endeus, Aedeus, Byrchinus)." Ussher brackets the three last as not
being in one of the two copies he had before him. In the Catalogue in the Sala-
manca Codex, the order is, " Finian, Endeus, Colman, Congall, Aedeus,
S. Aidan i 2 i
Aidan was, as we have seen, the son of Gildas, and the disciple of
>avid, and was accordingly admirably calculated for the work. But
encounter chronological difficulties. Gildas crossed to Ireland in
35, and if Aidan died in 625, he would then be aged sixty. If so, then
Aidan was begotten by Gildas after he was an abbot, as he retired to
Ruys in 520. But it is more probable that Aidan was grandson, and
not son of Gildas. Whether Aidan had founded a monastery in Wales
before crossing, we are not told, but it is probable that he had, and
that it was at Llawhaden, a sweet spot, under the bold rocky height
at that time crowned by a Caer, but afterwards by the imposing castle
of the Bishops of S. David's.
It is said that when Aidan departed for Ireland he took with him
a hive of bees, as he had been informed that they were scarce in that
island. Under this figure he is shown to us passing over, and carrying
with him his swarm of busy honey gatherers, monks. Apparently he
took boat at Forth Mawr, whence in the evening light the mountains
of Wexford are visible. He arrived off the Irish coast at a critical
moment, when the natives had seized on some strangers who had just
landed, were plundering them, and threatened them with death. The
arrival of Aidan, with a large number of men in the same vessel, over-
a\\vd the wreckers, who ran away. Aidan, resolved not to let the
matter rest thus, proceeded at once to lodge a complaint with the chief,
whose name was Diuma.
The chief received him with overwhelming hospitality, and persisted
in taking him on his shoulders and carrying him. x He then generously
gave Aidan large possessions on which to found churches and monas-
teries. 2
This chief seems to have been Dyma, son of Fergus or Fintan, who
married to Cumaine, mother of Guaire, king of Connaught. By
Dyma had become the father of S. Caimen of Iniskeltra, who died
562.
Aidan's principal field of labour was among the Hy Cinnselach, of
fexford. His headquarters were, however, at Ferns. He became
timately attached to S. Molaisse, of Devenish. When the latter
it had a mind to visit Rome, he passed through Ferns. " Maedoc
in, Columba, Brendan Brychinus, Cainech, Caemgen, Laysrian, Laysreus,
;eus and Barideus." (Ussher, Britann. Eccl.Antiquitates, Dublin, 1639, ii, pp.
13-5 : Cod. Sal., coll. 161-4.)
" Accipiens eum in humeris suis, ad terrain de navis portavit." Yitce
. Hib., Codex Sal., coll. 468.
* He granted to Aidan the land of Ardladhran. The site has not been satis -
:torily identified.
122 Lives of the British Saints
(Aedh) went to meet him, and give him welcome, and afterwards
ministered to him with meat and drink, with bed and intimate con-
versation. Soon these two high saints agreed that when either of them
in secret craved a boon (from Heaven) the prayer of both should
take the same direction ; also that any whom Molaisse might bless
should be blessed of Maedoc also, and that whomsoever Molaisse
should curse should be cursed also of Maedoc, and likewise e contrario.
All behests whatever the one saint should ask, both were to co-operate
to their fulfilment." 1
Shortly after his arrival in Ireland Aidan is said to have re-
marked : "I forgot, before leaving, to inquire of David who should
be my confessor in this land." He resolved on making Molua of
Clonfert his " soul-friend."
Aidan did not confine his energies to the territory of the Hy Cinnse-
lach. He crossed Waterford Harbour, and entered the country of the
Nan-Desies, and founded a monastic settlement at Dessert Maimbre,
the site of which is not surely determined. Whilst he was there,
and was on one occasion taking his turn at grinding at the quern, a
beggar approached and asked for flour. Aidan gave him some. Then
the man retired, disguised himself, and, pretending to be blind, came
and asked again for flour. This exasperated Aidan, and he cursed hi
that a blind man should never lack among his descendants. 2
There were many wolves about the monastery. One night they
carried off a calf. The cow that had lost her calf was inconsolable, and
Aidan's cook came to him to say that the poor beast lowed and was
restless. Then Aidan blessed the head of his cook and said to him,
" There, go and offer your head to the cow." The man did so, and
the cow licked his head, and " loved him like a calf." 3 Aidan then
returned among the Hy Cinnselach and founded several monasteries,
but made Ferns his central seat, and this is supposed to have taken
place about 570.
One day fifty British bishops crossed over from Wales to visit the
disciple of S. David. They arrived in Lent, and were taken into the
guest-house, thoroughly exhausted by their journey. To them were
brought fifty bannocks with leeks and whey for their dinner. But
this did not please them, they demanded pork or beef. The steward
reported the matter to Aidan. " Can this be permitted in Lent ? " he
inquired dubiously. " Of course they shall have it," answered the
bishop. So they were supplied with butcher's meat.
1 Silva Gadelica, ii, p. 27. A prophecy of the coming of Maidoc is put into
the mouth of Finn Mac Cumhal. Ibid., ii, p. 168.
2 Cambro-British Saints, p. 239 ; Cod. Sal., col. 470.
3 Cambro-British Saints, p. 239.
S. Aidan 123
Before they departed, these bishops deemed it expedient to apologise
and explain : " You see," said they, " that bullock you killed for us
had been suckled on milk, and ate grass only, so that its flesh was
actually milk and vegetables in a condensed form. But we felt con-
scientious scruples about those biscuits, for they were full of weevils."
Aidan was too good and courteous a man to make answer to this
quibble. 1
Aidan is said to have visited S. Fintan Munu and found most of
tin.- brethren there very ill. S. Fintan invited Aidan to per-
form a miracle and cure them. According to the legend, Aidan
did this, but on the next day they were all as bad as they had been
before, and the legend writer explains this by saying that Fintan
thought it more wholesome for their souls to be ill, and so begged Aidan
to let them all once more be sick. The fact would seem to be that
Aidan attempted a miracle and failed. 2
Aidan is said to have been associated with S. Ruadhan of Lothra
in the cursing of Tara and of King Diarmid, son of Fergus Cearbhall,
in 554, but this is chronologically impossible, as Aidan was not then in
In-hind ; the Aidan who lent his voice and presence to that unholy
conjuration must have been Aedh Mac Bricc, who died in 588. There
is no mention of the conjuration in the Life of S. Aidan, but that is
not the main objection, as the scandal of the iniquitous proceeding
would have deterred a panegyrist from inserting it.
Aidan survived S. Ita, who died in 570, and S. Columcill, who died
in 57^). He was summoned by his old master, David, to visit him
before his death, and gladly went when called. We may associate him
with Brandubh, of the Hy Cinnselach, who was king of Leinster, and
a liberal contributor to the endowment of Ferns and other foundations
of the Saint.
Camuscaech, 3 son of Aedh Mac Ainmire, king of Ireland, made a
raid into Leinster, with the object of carrying off Brandubh's wife,
rossed the River Rye, and Brandubh, taken by surprise, was
obliged to fly. However, he secretly surrounded the wooden house in
which was Camuscaech and set it on fire. Camuscaech hastily dis-
guised himself as a bard, and, climbing to the ridge piece by the smoke
holf. managed to escape, but was pursued and caught, and his head
nit off.
1 Gloss on the Felire of Oengus.
1 Vitae SS. Hib., Cod. Sal., coll. 474-5.
3 The account of these events is given in the historical treatise, Borumha
Laighean. See O'Hanlon, Irish Saints, i, pp. 547-8 ; and Heating's History of
Ireland, ed. O'Connor, 1841, ii, p. 68 ; O'Donovan, Annals of the Four Masters
124 Lives of the British Saints
King Aedh, to avenge the death of his son, but under the pretext ot
coming to exact the Boromha tribute from the Leinster men, crossed
the Rye, and marched at the head of a large force against Brandubh.
The King of Leinster called S. Aidan to his assistance, to curse his
enemy, and the Battle of Dunbolg was fought in 598. In it the Irish
head king was slain, and his army completely routed. Soon after this
victory, the men of Leinster revolted against Brandubh, and fought
the king in a battle at Camcluain, and Saran Soebhdhearc, who had
headed the rebels, slew Brandubh in 601. After that, Saran endeav-
oured to make his peace with S. Aidan, who cursed him that his right
hand might rot off to the stump. Saran was frightened, and begged
Aidan to impose on him a penance. Aidan bade him go to the tomb of
Brandubh, whose body had been removed to Ferns, and pray there
for forgiveness. According to the legend, a voice issued from the
tomb, " You brute, Saran, you are forgiven." But he lost his hand all
the same. Probably he had received a wound in the wrist in the
battle, and this gangrened. 1
A pretty story of S. Aidan is told. He was riding one day in his
chariot, and the clerical charioteer, looking over his shoulder, said to
him : " I wonder who will be bishop after you ? " Now some boys
were about, playing at being soldiers, and the chariot was on a wa
barred by a gate. " Who will succeed me ? " said the prelate, " wh
the boy who has the courtesy to leave his play, and open for us." Th
a lad, seeing that the aged bishop was going along the road that
barred, ran forward and flung the gate open for him. Aidan asked
name, and the boy said that he was called Cronan, and then begged
that he might be taken into the school at Ferns. To which Aidan
replied, " Follow me." 2 The boy was afterwards known as Mochua
Luachra, who is identified with Dachua, bishop of Ferns, after the
second Aidan, and died 652. The story was clearly made ex post
facto. It was remembered that this Dachua had opened the gate to
Aidan, and at the same time had asked to be taken as his disciple, and
then it was fabled that Aidan had foretold his elevation.
On another occasion Aidan noticed how clever with his fingers a lad
named Cobban was, and he took the child's hand in his and blessed it.
Cobban became a famous architect. He afterwards built churches for
S. Moiling and S. Abban. 3
1 Cod, Sal., col. 482. " O Sarane, brute, ignoscitur tibiquod fecisti."
British Saints, pp. 246-7.
2 Cod. Sal., col. 477. Cambro-British Saints, pp. 245-6.
3 See on him O'Curry, Manners and Customs of the Ancient Irish, London,
873, iii, pp. 34-6, 39-42, 44-5-
S. Aidan 125
Once S. Aidan was stooping by the riverside washing his hands.
>me men looking on discussed the question whether the Saint ever
lost his temper. " We will soon put that to the proof," said one of
thfin, and, giving the old man a thrust, sent him headlong into the
water. Aidan quietly got out and made no reprimand, whereupon
th man who had thus behaved, ashamed of himself, apologised for
his practical joke. 1
S. Aidan died on January 31, on which day he is commemorated in
all the Irish Martyrologies, but he does not seem to have had any
plate- in the Welsh Calendars. 2 John of Tynemouth, however,
ts that in his time the feast of S. Aidan was observed at S. David's.
The Annals of Boyle state that he died in 600, but Colgan regarded
is the right date. This is the date given, as already observed, by
thi- Four Masters, and in the Annals of Tigheniach. In those of Ulster
tin- two dates are given, 625 and 656, the latter date belonging to his
>or and namesake.
When we come to examine into the chronology of the Life of S.
Ai Ian, we have to lay aside the story of his having been a boy hostage
to Ainmire (568-71). This belongs to the second Aidan. So also his
association with Guaire Aidhne (662) is impossible.
It is not possible to reconcile his chronology with the dates of Gildas =
Aneurin, his reputed father. Gildas retired from the world in 520
according to our computation, and although Celtic bishops and abbots
did sometimes possess wives, it is not probable that Gildas had one
after 520. But Aidan died in or about 625. We are therefore
inclined to correct the Welsh genealogies into making Aidan grandson
in the place of son of Aneurin-Gildas.
idan crossed into Ireland, if summoned by Gildas, in 565, but
mst then have been very young, and we should propose the date
He does not come into contact with Irish princes till associated
Aedh, son of Ainmire, between 572 and 599. He was on familiar
is with Brandubh, king of Leinster, till the death of that king in
He w r as intimate with S. Fintan Munu, who died in 634, and his
mi-friend," Molua of Clonfert, died in 591. The year 625 is there-
some where about the date of Aidan 's death,
one point in the history of Aidan it is well to pause, before leaving
In his Life it is asserted that King Brandubh, in a Synod of
clergy and laity, decreed that the Archbishopric of all Leinster should
be for ever in the See and Chair of S. Aidan, that is to say at Ferns, and
that the Saint should be at once consecrated Archbishop.
1 Acta SS. Hibern., Cod. Sal., col. ;S 4 .
2 Nicolas Roscarrock gives him on this day under the name of Modoack.
126 Lives of the British Saints
But such a thing as a division of Ireland into metropolitan Sees did
not exist at that time, and as Dr. Todd has pointed out, the author, if
he wrote in Latin, or the translator, if the original were in Irish, ren-
dered the word ard-epscop by the seemingly equivalent archiepiscopus.
But the Irish word implies no more than that he was made a
chief bishop in honour, and not that jurisdiction was conveyed
with it. An ard-file is an eminent poet, an ard-anchoire an exalted
anchorite. 1
In Ireland Moedoc is contracted into Mogue, and in English Aedh
is always rendered Hugh. The shrine of S. Mogue is in the
Museum of the Royal Irish Academy and is called the Breac Moedoc.
S. Aidan's Well is in the townland and parish of Clongeen, in Wexford
County.
In Pembrokeshire he is the patron, not only of Llawhaden (Llan-
aedan) but also, as Madog, of the churches of Nolton, Haroldston West,
and Solva S. Aidan under Whitchurch. For churches dedicated
elsewhere to him under the name Madog see under S. Madog ab
Gildas.
Ffynnon Fadog, S. Madog's Well, is on the way from S.
David's to Porth Mawr and Ty Gwyn. It is an unfailing gush of
cold water. The farm of Trefeithan, near S. David's, perhaps be
his name and is Tref-Aedan. He is sometimes given 2 as patron
Llanidan in Anglesey, with wake on September 30, but this is a mista
In Cornwall the only church that perhaps commemorates him, alte
into Hugh, is Quethiock, and it is remarkable that there the feast is
observed on November 2, which in the Irish Calendars is the day of
another Aidan who is thought to have had a church in Monaghan, but
of whom nothing is known. At Quethiock was formerly a holy well
in the wall of the church ; at the " restoration " of the building it was
filled up and built over, but it is hoped will shortly be reopened.
Under the name of Maidoc, he had a chapel at S. Issey, and Smithick,
the old name for Falmouth, is supposed to be derived from a chapel to
S. Mithic or Maidoc.
In art, the Saint should be represented as a bishop carrying a hive
of bees.
J. W. Wolf has dealt with the mythological elements in the legendary
life of S. Aidan in " Irische u. Schottische Heiligenleben ", in Zeitschrifl
fur Deutsche Mythologie, Gottingen, i (1853), pp. 344-58.
1 Todd, Life of S. Patrick, pp. 14-18.
2 E.g., B. Willis, Bangor, 1721, p. 281.
S. Aidan 127
S. AIDAN of Mavurn, Bishop, Confessor
AIDAN who was a disciple of S. Dyfrig or Dubricius * cannot possibly
have been the Aidan or Maidoc, Bishop of Ferns, of the foregoing
notice. He was with Dyfrig at Hentland, and afterwards was
consecrated bishop. King Cinuin, son of Pepiau, made a donation
to him of Mavurn in the Dore valley. 2
When the Church ol Llandaff obtained possession of all the churches
of Dyfrig and his disciples, it got hold of Mavurn, and when the com-
piler of the I4th century additions to the Book of Llan Ddv drew up his
conjectural list of the bishops of that see, he assumed that Aidan had
been one of them, and successor to Uvelviu. 3
This Aidan, with his name taking the form of Maidoc, may have been
associated with Catwg in the quarrel and reconciliation with King
Arthur recorded in the Vita S. Cadoci. Catwg had given refuge to a
certain Ligessauc, son of Eliman, surnamed Lauhir, who had killed three
of Arthur's men. Catwg retained him in Gwynllywg for seven years
before Arthur discovered where he was concealed. Then Arthur was
highly incensed, as this was exceeding the time limit allowed for sanc-
tuary, and Catwg had to send a deputation to Arthur to settle terms
for the man. The deputation was composed oi S. David, S. Teilo,
S. Dochu, Cynidr and Maidoc. It proceeded to the banks of
the Usk, and Arthur held communications with the commissioners
by shouting across the river. At last it was promised that Catwg
should pay to the king a blood fine of three of the best quality of ox
for each man slain, but this was rejected, and it was decided that
Catwg should pay one hundred cows.
When this number had been collected and driven to the bank,
Arthur refused to receive them, unless they were all of one quality
of colour, the fore part red, and white behind. Catwg found it im-
possible to comply. The story goes on to say that Arthur despatched
Cai and Bedwyr into the mud of the Usk to meet the men of Catwg
in the middle of the stream, as he sulkily consented finally to receive
the cattle. According to the legend, when the cows were passed over
into the possession of Arthur, they were transformed into bundles of
fern. This probably means no more than that he accepted fern-
coloured cattle.
Then Arthur granted to Catwg the right of sanctuary for seven
irs, seven months and seven days. 4
1 Vita S. Dubricii in the Book of Llan Ddv, p. 80.
2 Book of Llan Ddv, p. 162. 3 Ibid., pp. 303, 311.
4 Cambro-British Saints, pp. 489.
128 Lives of the British Saints
As, according to the Annales Cambrice, Arthur died in 537, this
incident, if it ever did occur, took place too early for Aidan, the disciple
of David, afterwards Bishop of Ferns, to have been the Maidoc of the
story.
S. AILBE, Bishop, Confessor
THE materials for the life of this remarkable man are obtained from
a very unsatisfactory biography, more than ordinarily surcharged
with the miraculous lenient, and containing anachronisms. Of this
several MS. copies exist, with slight variations. It is contained in
the Codex Kilkenniensis, but wanting one folio. Another copy is in
the Library of Trinity College, Dublin (E 3, n). Another in the Fran-
ciscan Convent, Dublin. Another again in the Burgundian Library,
Brussels (2324-40, fol. 33). It is on this that the Life in the Ada
Sanctorum of the Bollandists has been composed (the original is not
printed), September 12, iv, pp. 26-31. But this is the Life in the
Codex Salmanticensis, published in A eta Sanctorum Hibern., Edinburgh,
1888.
Further material is obtained from the Life of S. Patrick, that of
S. Cieran of Saighir, and those of S. Colman of Dromore, S. Columba
of Tir-da-glas, S. Declan and S. Findchua.
Among the most glaring anachronisms are these. Ailbe is made a
convert of S. Palladius before the coming of S. Patrick, about 439, and
is reported to have visited S. Samson at Dol in or about 550. He is
represented as one of the prejt>atrician prelates of Ireland, and yet as
receiving a grant from Scanlan Mor, King of Ossory, 574-604. But
the historical impossibilities concern mainly his early life, and his
period can be pretty accurately determined by that of the princes with
whom he was brought into contact, and by that of his disciples, who
belong to a generation later than himself. According to the Welsh
genealogies Ailbe or Elfyw was a son of Dirdan, a " nobleman of Italy,"
probably of Letavia, Armorica, often confounded with Latium. His
mother was Banhadlen, or Danadlwen, daughter of Cynyr of Caer-
gawch. and sister of S. Non. 1
1 lolo MSS., pp. 107, 141, 144 ; Myv. Arch., p. 418. Mab Elfyw is the name
of a commote of Cantref Mawr in Ystrad Tywi, Carmarthenshire, but it prob-
ably did not derive name from him.
S. Ailbe 129
This would make him belong to the same generation as S. David.
Cynyr of Caerga\vch= Anna da. Gwrthefyr,
I who fell in 457.
Dirdan=Banhadlen Non = Sant G\ven = Sclyf S. Gistlian S. Sachvrn Hen
I I I Bishop. I
S. Ailbe, S. David, S. Cybi, S. Sadyrnin.
B. of Emly, B. of Menevia, d. c. 554.
d. c. 530. d. c, 589.
But the Irish have a strange and improbable account of his origin.
His father was named Olchu or Olchais, who was in the service of
Cronan, a chieftain of Eliach, now Eliogarty, in Tipperary. His
mother was a maidservant in the household, who loved Olchu, " not
wisely but too well." Olchu, on finding that she was about to become
a mother, and fearing the wrath of the chief, ran away. On the birth
of the child, Cronan ordered the little bastard to be exposed, and it
was cast behind a rock, where a she-wolf took pity on it and suckled it.
Many years after, when Ailbe was a bishop, he was present one day at
a wolf hunt, when one old grey beast fled for refuge under his gabardine.
"Ah, my friend ! " exclaimed Ailbe. " When I was feeble and friend-
less thou didst protect me, and now I will do the same for thee." x
He was found by a man named Lochan, who gave him the name
Ailbe from the rock (ail) under which he lay ; the she-wolf, however,
whined and was sore troubled to lose her nursling ; but " Go in peace,"
said Lochan to the beast, " I shall keep the boy."
A few years later Lochan gave the child to be fostered by some
British who had settled in Eligoarty, perhaps at Ballybrit, which was
a part of the territory of Eile O 'Carroll in Munster. 2 Lochan was
son of Laidhir, one of the Aradha, a Leinster tribe settled near Lough
Derg, and his mother was a kinswoman of Olchu, the child's father.
Whilst Ailbe was with the Britons, his opening mind received ideas,
and he became thoughtful ; he loved to look on the spangled heavens
and to question the origin of the starry host. " Who can have formed
these lights ? " he inquired. " Who can have set them in their places,
and ordered the sun and moon to run their courses ? O ! that I might
know Him ! "
A Christian priest overheard him thus speaking, and took and
baptised him, after having given him suitable instruction. 3 It is
1 Vita in Cod. Sal., col. 235,
8 Shearman, Loca Patriciana, Dublin, 1882, p. 466.
3 " Cum ergo hanc prudentem orationem sanctus puer Albeus orasset, Palla-
dius de propinquo audiens eum, salutavit ilium, et secundum sui cordis deside-
VO1. I K
130 Lives of the British Saints
possible that the Irish story may have been invented to explain his
name, as Ailbe might be supposed to derive from ail, a rock, and beo,
living. A very doubtful etymology, but sufficient for the starting of a
fable.
It will be seen from the Irish story, the childhood of Ailbe is said
to have been passed among Britons. There can be little doubt that
a good many from Wales did pass over into South Ireland, and especi-
ally members of the Brychan family or clan, indeed if any reliance can
be placed on the Tract on the Mothers of the Saints ten of the reputed
sons of Brychan and two of the daughters founded churches and
received a cult there. 1
Moreover, two of the sisters of S. David, daughters of Sant and
S. Non, were honoured there, Mor as the mother of S. Eltin of Kinsale,
and Magna, mother of Setna. 2
That intermarriages between the Irish and the British were by no
means rare may be judged by the story of S. Lomman. Patrick
landed at the mouth of the Boyne, and proceeded up the country,
leaving his nephew Lomman to take care of the boat. After awaiting
the return of his uncle eighty days, Lomman ascended the river to
Ath-Trim and was taken into the house of Fedlimid, son of Laogaire,
King of Ireland, who received him hospitably, because his wife was a
British woman, as had been also his mother. 3 It is, accordingly, by
means necessary to regard the Irish story and the Welsh account
referring to different persons. The only thing to be rejected is tl
story of the illegitimate origin of Ailbe, and his being found under
rock.
It would seem that the British with whom Ailbe was were not very
perfect Christians, for they took no trouble to instruct him in rudi-
mentary truths, and it was but by chance that a priest took him in
hand. After a while the British settlers resolved on returning to their
native land, and intended leaving Ailbe behind ; but, finally, moved
by his entreaties, they consented to take him to Britain with them.
How long he remained in Britain we are not told, nor where he was,
but he is known in Wales as Ailfyw or Elfyw, who founded a church,
now a ruin, called S. Elvis, in Welsh Llanailfyw, or -elfyw, near S.
rium, docuit eum in hiis omnibus etbaptizavit ilium." VitaSS.Hib.,co\. 237. The
copy quoted by Ussher is not quite the same : " Quidam Christianus sacerdos
missus a sede apostolica in Hiberniam insulam multis annis ante Patricium ut
fid em Christi ibi seminaret," etc., Ussher, ii, p. 781.
1 Loca Patriciana, Geneal. Tab. vii.
* Mor and Magna may be the same, as Magna is said to have been the mother
of Maelteoc, perhaps the same as Eltin.
8 Todd, S. Patrick, pp. 257-62, from the Book of Armagh.
S. Ailbe 131
David's, consequently near where lived his aunt, S. Non. This founda-
n cannot, however, have taken place till much later.
Before long Ailbe felt a desire to prosecute his studies abroad, and
;o visit Rome. His adventures on the continent form a tissue of fable
and absurdity, and it is doubtful whether any historic truth underlies
this part of the story, which was thrust into his " Life " for a set
purpose, as we shall presently see.
According to the legend he studied the Scriptures under a Bishop
Hilary at Rome. 1 The Bollandists suppose that this was Pope
Hilary (461-8). But Bishop Hilary is not represented in the story
as pope, for Clement is spoken of as being the then ruling pontiff, and
there was no such Bishop of Rome after Clemens Romanus who died
circa 100 and Clement II (1046-7). According to the story, Ailbe
sought consecration as bishop from Clement, but the Pope refused
to put his hand between heaven and so sacred and gifted an individual
as Ailbe, who was accordingly consecrated by angels. All that can
be gathered from this is that he did not receive episcopal consecration
from the Roman Church but in some monastic establishment. The
story was, however, invented for a purpose.
In the eleventh or twelfth century, the kings of Munster and Con-
naught were desirous of having archbishops in the south of Ireland,
that their bishops might not be subject to Armagh, the archbishop of
which was generally a clansman of the Northern O 'Neils. They accord-
ingly set up an agitation among the clergy of the south, to claim to
have archbishops of their own. In order to support this claim, the
stury was fabricated that the south of Ireland had been evangelised at
least thirty years before the arrival of S. Patrick, and that by the
instrumentality of bishops consecrated at Rome. 2 For this purpose
also the lives of the four bishops, who were supposed to have preceded
Patrick, viz. Ailbe, Ciaran, Ibar, and Declan were interpolated, with
result that havoc was made of their chronology. The inter-
ator of the Acts of S. Ailbe thought he would do better for his
ro than have him obtain commission from the Pope ; he made him
receive that direct from heaven. On his way back to Ireland from
Rome, Ailbe founded a religious colony, where not stated, and preached
to the Gentiles and converted many. He did more ; he struck a rock,
and thence issued four rivers which watered the whole province. In
1 " Albeus Romam perrexit ibique apud Hylarium episcopum divinam didiscit
scripturam " ( Vita SS. Hib., col. 240). According to the legend he meets with lions
in the woods as he is on his way to Rome ; and Bishop Hilary set Ailbe to be his
swim-herd for three years.
a Todd, S. Patrick, pp. 220-1.
Fat
h r
rec
132 Lives of the British Saints
the monastery there founded he left the sons of Guill. Dr. Todd
supposes that it was to Gauls that Ailbe preached, and that he filled
his religious houses with their sons. But the meaning does not seem
to be this. Immediately after making this foundation he went, says
the author of the Life, to Dol and visited S. Samson ; and his monastery
was near where was a great river. There is a gross anachronism in
making Ailbe visit S. Samson at Dol, for that Saint was not there till
about 546. x But the writer seems to have had an idea of whereabouts
his hero did spend some time. The sons of Guill (Meic Guill) 2 were
probably German, Gibrian, Tressan, Helan, Abran, and others who
visited S. Remigius at Rheims, about 509. 3 We are disposed to think
that the visit of Ailbe to the Continent did not take place as early as
represented in the Life, but rather at this period.
As these Saints have left their traces along the Ranee and the upper
waters of the Vilaine, we may suppose that Ailbe's settlement was in
these parts. We have evidence of a colony of Irish saints in these
parts in the fact of churches there with Irish dedications. Next we
have Ailbe in Menevia. Entering a church, he found the priest unable
to proceed with the Sacrifice, a sudden dumbness had fallen on him.
Ailbe pointed out the cause. A woman in the congregation bore in
her womb one who was to become a great bishop, in fact, S. David
and it was unbecoming that a priest should celebrate in the presem
of a bishop. 4
The same story is told in the Life of S. David by Rhygyfarch, am
the priest there is said to have been Gildas, 5 as also in the Life
Gildas by Caradoc of Llancarfan. 6 As Patrick is said to have pro-
phesied the birth of S. David thirty years previously, when on his way
to his great mission in Ireland, we see at once an anachronism in
making Ailbe a pre-Patrician Apostle of Ireland.
Ailbe remained in Menevia till David was born, his cousin if we
accept the Welsh genealogies, and it was he who baptised and fostered
him. 7 He now returned to Ireland, and, instead of landing in Water-
1 " Deinde venit Albeus ad civitatem Dolomoris (Dol-mor) in extremis
finibus Lethe " (Letavia=Llydaw). Vita SS. Hib., col. 244.
2 O'Gorman, Martyr. July 30.
3 See above under S. Achebran.
4 " Ideo non potes offere quia hec mulier habet in utero episcopum ; hie cst
David Cilli Muni. Sacerdos enim coram episcopo non debet, nisi illo jubente,
celebrare." Vita SS. Hib., col. 245.
5 Lives of Cambro-British Saints, p. 120.
6 Ed. Prof. Hugh Williams for the Cymmrodorion Society, p. 400.
7 " Pater filium suum ipsum David obtulit sancto Albeo in eternam." Vita
SS. Hib., col. 245. In the Vita S. David he is called Heluus.
S. Ailbe 133
d, as would seem most convenient ior one shipping from Menevia,
left his boat in the north among the Dal-Riadans, where he placed
,e of his disciples, Colman, at Kil-roiad, now probably Kil-root in
Antrim. The Dal-Riadan King, Fintan Finn, had recently been engaged
in war against the men of Connaught, who had captured his castle and
three sons. On the arrival of Ailbe in his land the King at once sought
him and entreated him to accompany his host to battle and show his
power by cursing the enemy, after the usual Druidic method. Ailbe
consented, and success attended the King, who nearly exterminated
the men of Connaught, 1 and recovered his wife and sons.
Ailbe now visited S. Brigid at Kildare (d. 525), and was well received
by IUT. Thence he went south to Minister, where he sought Aengus
Mac Nadfraich, the king, at Cashel. Here it was that he is reported
to have met S. Patrick, and that the altercation took place between
Patrick on one side and SS. Ibar, Ailbe and Ciaran on the other, who
\\riv unwilling to recognise his supremacy over all Ireland. In the
end some agreement was come to, and it was settled that Ailbe should
be bishop over Munster, with his seat at Imlach Jubhair or Emly.
Archbishop Ussher supposes that this meeting took place in 449, but
it is more than doubtful if it ever took place. The whole story of the
controversy and the settlement seems to have been an invention
foisted into the Life, in connexion with the claims made by the bishops
of southern Ireland to obtain archiepiscopal jurisdiction for Cashel, in
opposition to Armagh. 2
Ailbe appears to have enjoyed the favour of Aengus Mac Nadfraich
to such an extent, that when Endeus desired to settle in Aran, he
sought Ailbe's intercession with the King to grant the island to him.
Aengus was, however, loath to make the grant till he had seen the
island ; but when he had done so, and perceived what a bare inhospit-
able rock it was, he consented, and made over Aran to Endeus. As
Aengus fell in the battle of Ochla in 489, this must have occurred some-
about 480. The intercession of Ailbe is the more noticeable,
use Enda was brother-in-law to Aengus, whose first wife,
jrca, was Ailbe's sister. Enda died very aged about 540. Another
who sought a site for a monastery from Ailbe was Sincheall, son of
Cennfionnan, of a renowned Leinster family. Ailbe had formed a
settlement at Cluain-Damh on the banks of the Liffey, and this he
abandoned to Sincheall, who however later moved to Cill-achadh-
droma-fota, now Killeigh in King's County. Sincheall died in 548,
according to Duald Mac Firbis, the Annals of the Four Masters, and
" Gentes Connactorum delevit." Cod. Sal., col. 247.
2 Haddan and Stubbs, ii, p. 290.
134 Lives of the British Saints
those of Ulster, so that here again we have a means of fixing approxi-
mately the period at which Ailbe lived.
Ciannan, bishop of Duleek, is named as a disciple of Ailbe, and he,
according to the Ulster Annals, those of Inisfallen, and those of the
Four Masters, died in 489. Colgan however doubts if his death can
have taken place at so early a date. 1
Other disciples were S. Gorman of Dromore and S. Nessan of
Mungret. The date of Colman's death is not known, but from his
Acts it is apparent that he was contemporary with Diarmid Cearbhal,
king of Ireland, who died in 538. Nessan died in 551, according to
the Annals of the Four Masters, but in 561 according to those of Clon-
macnoise.
Ailbe baptised that extraordinary Saint, Findchua of Bri-gobann,
and received as fee for so doing seven golden pennies, 2 and this took
place while Eochaid was king of Connaught, and Aengus Mac Nad-
fraich was king of Munster, an anachronism, as Eochaid was kii
about 550, sixty years after the death of Aengus.
On one occasion Ailbe visited a religious community of women
Accadh-Ceroth, and found them in sore trouble. They had
given a boy to foster named Cummine, son of Echelach. But he
not do justice to his bringing up. He had associated with himsel
some wild bloods, and had taken a vow on him called dibherc, 3 whic
would appear to have been like that of the Thugs, to murder right ai
left. 4 At the instigation of the pious virgins, Ailbe sought the youi
man out, and induced him to abandon the life to which he had vow(
himself.
Another disciple of Ailbe was Aengus Maccridh of Mochta, who
lived through the Yellow Plague of 547-50.
He was consulted by S. Seethe 5 of Ardskeagh, in the county of
Cork. The story was told that she was short of oxen for ploughing,
whereupon Ailbe sent her a pair of stags, and these served her for
many years. At last, wearied with bearing the yoke, they went of
their own accord to Emly to beg the Saint to release them. A more
probable story is one that she begged of him a copyist to transcribe
for her the Four Gospels, and with this request he cheerfully com-
1 Trias Thaum., p. 217.
2 Book of Lismore, Oxford, 1890, p. 232.
3 Dibhirceach, diligent, violent.
4 " Votum pessimum vovit, scilicet dibherc . . . exivit Cummine cum suis
sociis, et jugulaverunt homines." Cod. Sal., col. 251.
5 In the Vitae SS. Hib., Cod. Sal., her name is given as Squiatha. She is
commemorated on January i.
S. Ailbe 135
led. He had also the visitation of another house of pious women ;
le names of two of these, Bithe and Barrach, are given.
Ailbe was dissatisfied with the liturgy in use, and sent two disci-
ples, one, Lugaid, was probably the son of Aengus Mac Nadfraich, to
Rome to obtain a better copy. He also drew up a monastic Rule.
He frequently visited Ossory, and received a grant of lands from
Scanlan Mor, its king, who died in 604, but is held to have begun
his reign in 574. If this be true, it throws the date of Ailbe very late
in the sixth century, and this is for other reasons impossible to allow.
We are informed that, weary with the duties of his office, Ailbe medi-
tate 1 flight to the Isle of Thule. This is Iceland, and it is certain that
Irish hermits did occupy the Westmann Islands off the south coast
before the arrival of the Norse colonists in 870, as Irish bells and other
ecclesiastical relics were discovered there by the new settlers. x When,
however, Aengus Mac Nadfraich heard of Ailbe's intention, he gave
orders that all the harbours should be watched to prevent the de-
parture of the bishop.
The seat of Ailbe's bishopric and principal monastery was Emly,
beside a lake that at one time covered two hundred acres, but has now
been drained away, and the bottom turned into pasture. The land
around is fertile, and the place is in the county Tipperary, near the
River Glason. Till Cashel rose into importance it was of some con-
sideration. Now it has sunk to a village. The A eta Sancti Ailbei
end : " No one could well relate the humility and the meekness of
S. Ailbe, his charity and pitifulness, his patience and long-suffering,
his fastings and abstinence, his assiduous prayer and nightly vigils.
He fulfilled all the commandments of Christ. On account of these
good works S. Ailbe passed away to join in choirs of the angels singing
their sweet songs, even to Jesus Christ, our Lord, to whom be honour
and glory through the ages. Amen." 2
The Annals of Ulster and Inisfallen give 526 (527) as the date of
Ibe's death, but the former repeats the entry under the years 533
541. The latter is the date given by the Four Masters. The
Chronicon Scottorum has the Rest of Ailbe of Imlech Ibhair at the date
531. The date 541 is that of the death of another Ailbe, of Sencua.
S. Declan, the Apostle of the Nan-Decies, is represented as an inti-
ite friend of SS. Ailbe and Ibar. Yet Declan must have been junior,
made a close compact of friendship with S. David, who had been
baptised by Ailbe. Declan was half-brother to Colman and Eochaid,
1 Landnama-bok in Islendinga-Sogur, Copenhagen, 1842, i, pp. 23-4.
2 Vitae SS. Hib., Cod. Sal., col. 260.
136 Lives of the British Saints
who were sons of his mother by Aengus Mac Nadfraich. 1 Conse-
quently there are many indications pointing to the apostolic labours
of Ailbe having taken place during the close of the fifth century and
the beginning of the sixth ; and it is significant that there is in his
Life no mention of his having had any dealings with succeeding kings
of Munster, though this may be in part accounted for by the humili-
ation of Munster after the battle of Killosnad, or Kellistown, in 489.
When the Irish Annals are so uncertain as to the actual date of Ailbe's
death, it is in vain to attempt to give it with any precision. In the
Felire of Oengus, Ailbe is commemorated on September 12. On th<
same day in the Martyrology of Tallagh, and the Martyrology of Dot
gal; and on that day O'Gorman enters: "To the starry heavens,
whither we shall go, (belongs) Ailbe of Imlech Ibair."
Roscarrock in his Calendar gives Ailbe on September 12.
In the second edition of Wilson's English Martyrology on Februai
27 is a " S. Eloius, confessor and bishop of Menevia, in Pembroke
Wales." Wilson, however, was very arbitrary in his attribution of da]
Whytford is more correct ; in his Martiloge (1526) he has on Septei
ber 12, among the Additions, " In yrelond ye feest of saynt Abbey
bysshop and confessor of synguler prfectyon and many myracles."
Among the " Sayings of the Wise," printed in the lolo MSS., occurs
the following :
Hast thou heard the saying of Elfyw,
A very wise man without his equal ?
"Let every sort go to where it belongs." 2
(Eled rhyw ar barth pa yw.)
A metrical Rule of S. Ailbe instructing Eoghain, son of Saran,
Cluain-Caolain, is in the Royal Irish Academy Library, Dublin, MS. 23,
N. II, p. 186. Ailbe is invoked in the Stowe Missal, published by
Warren. 3
S. AILFYW, see S. AILBE
S. ALAN, Confessor
ALAN FYRGAN, son of Emyr Llydaw, was obliged, with his father, to
fly Armorica. The portion of Brittany from which this family came
1 Eochaid succeeded his father and died 523. Annals of the Four Masters.
2 lolo MSS., p. 258. There is an old Welsh tune called "Cor Elfyw."
3 The Liturgy of the Celtic Church, Oxford, 1881, pp. 238, 240.
S. Alan 137
>, as we learn from the Life of S. Samson, Broweroc, or the County of
Cannes, which was occupied by the British from an early period. For
>me reason unknown to us, but probably a family quarrel, Emyr
.lydaw and all his sons fled to Wales. Alan, it has been supposed,
itered the College of S. Illtyd. He had three sons, Lleuddad, Llonio
Lawhir and Llyfab, who are also said to have been members of Illtyd's
College. Rees 1 seems to have been the first to incorporate him among
the Welsh Saints, as his name never occurs so much as once in any of
the earlier saintly genealogies, nor, so far as we have noticed, in any
of the later ones. He only occurs therein in the pedigree given his
three sons. His epithet Fyrgan appears under a variety of corrupt
forms in the late copies.
In the only notice that occurs of him in Welsh literature he
assumes a totally different role from that of a monk. In the
" Triads of Arthur and his Warriors " we are told that one of the
" Three Disloyal Hosts (Aniweir Teulu) of the Isle of Britain " was
" the Host of Alan Fyrgan, which turned back from its lord on the road
at night, leaving him and his servants at Camlan, and there he was
slain " 2 (in 537).
An Alan is venerated in the diocese of Quimper as having been
bishop there, but he appears in no genuine list of the Bishops. An
Allorus appears as third bishop of Quimper in the list in the Quimper
Cartulary ; Corentine was the first, then came Goennoc, and then S.
Allorus. 3
No Allan occurs in this catalogue, and S. Allan of Quimper is doubt-
less this Allor. Corentine signed the decrees of the Council of Angers
in 453, so that the date of Allor would be about 500.
The legend of S. Alan is appropriated from that of S. Elan de Lavaur,
Toulouse, which is itself a fraudulent composition. The Church
Lavaur possessed the relics of a petty local Saint, named Elan, of
/horn no record remained, and some one connected with the church
liberately adapted and altered the genuine Life of S. Amandus of
;tricht to suit the Gascon saint ; he did more, he manipulated, as
i, certain records of donations to the church of Maestricht, to serve
le purpose of the clergy of Lavaur, to enable them to lay claim to
ic estates in their own neighbourhood, coveted by them. This
life was then further appropriated by the Church of Quimper for
Saint, Alain, of whom nothing was known.
1 Essay on the Welsh Saints, p. 221.
2 For the Triads see Skene, Four Ancient Books of Wales, ii, pp. 456-64, where
ley are printed from Peniarth MS. 45, of the late thirteenth century.
3 Bulletin de la Commission diocesain de Quimper, 1901, p. 33.
138 Lives of the British Saints
Another Alain is venerated at Corlay (Cotes du Nord) ; he is regarded
as having been a priest, but nothing is known of him. His Feast is
there observed on December 27. (Abbe Chastelain quoted by Tresvaux
in his edition of Lobineau, Vie des Saints de Bretagne, Paris, 1836, p.
xli.)
At Corlay is the Holy Well of the Saint, as also his statue of the
fourteenth century, representing him in sacerdotal vestments on his
knees, a book under his left arm, and his hands joined in prayer.
Corlay was formerly in the diocese of Quimper, but is now in that of
S. Brieuc.
S. ALBAN, Martyr
THE earliest authority for the protomartyr of Britain is Gildas, who
says, " Alban of Verulam . . . through love hid a confessor when pursued
by his persecutors, and on the point of being seized, imitating in this
Christ laying down his life for the sheep. He first concealed him in
his house, and afterwards exchanged garments with him, willingly
exposed himself to the danger of being pursued in the clothes of the
brother mentioned. Being in this way well pleasing to God, during the
time between his holy confession and cruel death, in the presence of
the impious men, who carried the Roman standard with hateful
haughtiness, he was wonderfully adorned with miraculous signs, so
that by fervent prayer he opened an unknown way through the bed
of the noble river Thames, similar to that dry little-trodden way of
the Israelites, when the Ark of the Covenant stood long on the gravel
in the middle of Jordan ; accompanied by a thousand men, he walked
through with dry foot, the rushing waters on either side hanging like
abrupt precipices, and converted first his executioner, as he saw such
wonders, from a wolf into a lamb, and caused him together with himself
to thirst more deeply for the triumphant palm of martyrdom, and more
bravely to seize it." l
The next authority is Bede. Bede says, speaking of the persecution
under Diocletian, " At that time suffered S. Alban, of whom the priest
Fortunatus (ctrc. 580) in the praise of Virgins, where he makes mention
of the blessed martyrs that came to the Lord from all parts of the
world, says :
' In fruitful Britain's Isle was holy Alban born.' *
1 Gildas, ed. Hugh Williams, cc. 10, n.
z " Egregium Albanum foecunda Britannia profert." Venant. Fortunat.,
Poem. VIII, iv, 155.
S. Alban 139
" This Alban, being yet a pagan, at the time when the cruelties of
wicked princes (Diocletian and Maximianus) were raging against the
Christians, gave shelter in his house to a certain cleric, flying from the
persecutors. He observed this man to be engaged in constant prayer
and vigil night and day; when suddenly, the Divine grace illumining
him, he began to imitate the example set before him of faith and piety,
and being little by little instructed by this man's holy admonition, he
rejected the darkness of idolatry, and became a Christian in all
sincerity of heart.
" The aforesaid cleric had been for some days entertained by him,
when it came to the ears of the wicked prince, that this holy confessor
of Jesus Christ, whose time of martyrdom had not yet come, was
concealed in the house of Alban. Thereupon he sent some soldiers
to institute a strict search for him. When they arrived at the martyr's
house, S. Alban immediately presented himself before them, instead of
his guest and master, in the habit or mantle which he wore, and was
led bound before the magistrate. It happened that this latter, at the
time, was standing at the altar and was engaged in offering sacrifice to
devils. When he saw Alban, vastly incensed at his having thus
voluntarily put himself in the hands of the soldiers, to shelter his guest,
he commanded him to be dragged up to the images of the demons,
before which he stood, saying, ' Because you have chosen to conceal a
man who is a rebel and sacrilegious, in place of giving him up to the
penalty that is his due, you shall undergo the penalty allotted to him,
if you abandon the worship of our religion.' Alban, who had declared
himself a Christian to the persecutors, was not at all daunted at the
threat, but putting on the armour of the spiritual warfare, he openly
that he would not obey the command. Then said the magis-
te, ' Of what family and race are you ? ' ' How can it concern you
of what stock I come ? ' answered Alban. ' If you desire to hear the
truth of my religion, be it known to you that I am now a Christian
under Christian obligations. I am called Alban by my parents/ he
replied ; ' and I worship the true and living God, who created all
things.' \
" The magistrate hearing these words, was inflamed with anger and
said, ' If you will enjoy the happiness of eternal life, do not delay to
offer sacrifice to the great gods.' Alban replied, ' These sacrifices
which you offer to demons can neither profit those to whom offered,
nor avail to obtain the wishes and desires of those that offer them. On
the contrary, whosoever shall do sacrifice to these images, will have
everlasting pain for his recompence.'
" On hearing this, the judge ordered the holy confessor to be scourged
threat, t
declared
trate, '<
140 Lives of the British Saints
by the executioners, trusting that he might thereby break his con-
stancy ; when words proved unavailing, he being most unjustly tortured
bore the same patiently, nay rather joyfully, for the Lord's sake.
When the judge perceived that he was not to be overcome by tortures,
or withdrawn from the exercise of the Christian religion, he ordered
his execution. On being led forth, he came to a river which, with a
most rapid course, ran between the wall of the town and the arena
where he was to be executed. There he beheld a multitude of people
of both sexes, and of many ages and conditions, doubtless assembled
to attend the blessed confessor and martyr, and these had so occupied
the bridge over the river, that he could hardly pass over that evening.
In a word, nearly all the town had poured forth, leaving the magistrate
unattended in the city. S. Alban, urged by his desire after a speedy
martyrdom, approached the stream, and, raising his eyes to heaven,
the channel was immediately dried up, and he saw that the water was
gone and made way for him to pass. Amongst others the executioner
saw this, and moved by divine inspiration, hasted to meet him at the
place of execution, and, casting down his sword, fell at his feet, praying
that he might rather die with the martyr, or, if possible, in his room.
Whilst thus, from a persecutor he was changed into a companion in
the Faith, and the other executioners hesitated to take up the sword
that was lying on the ground, the reverend confessor, attended by the
multitude, ascended a hill, about five hundred paces off, which was
adorned with .all sorts of flowers. The sides of this hill were not
perpendicular, but sloped gently into the beautiful plain, a worthy
place to be the scene of a martyr's sufferings. On the top of the hill
S, Alban prayed that God would give him water, and immediately a
living spring broke out before his feet. . . . The river having performed
its holy function, resumed its natural course. Here the head of our most
courageous martyr was struck off, and here he received the crown of
life, which God hath promised to them that' love Him. But he who
dealt the wicked stroke was not permitted to rejoice over the deceased,
for his eyes fell on the ground together with the martyr's head.
" At the same time the soldier was also beheaded who had refused
to give the stroke to the holy confessor. Of whom it was apparent,
that although he was not regenerated by baptism, yet was he cleansed
by the baptism of his own blood, and rendered worthy to enter the
Kingdom of Heaven. Then the judge, astonished at the novelty of so
many miracles, ordered the persecution to cease. The blessed Alban
suffered death on the twenty-second day of June, near the city of
Verulam, which is now by the English nation called Verlamacestir, or
Varlingacestir, where afterwards, when peaceable Christian times were
S. ALBAN.
F i oin the Altar Screen at S. Allans Catiiedral.
S. Alba?i 14.1
tored, a church of wonderful workmanship and suitable to his martyi -
m, was erected." *
The Abbey of S. Alban's, erected on the scene of the martyrdom, was
nd -d by Offa in 793.
When we look at Bede's narrative, we can hardly doubt that he had
e early document which he employed and adorned with rhetorical
ourish. There are in it some obscure passages, apparently not due to
him, but which he transcribed without himself understanding them,
and therefore copied literally.
The miraculous element is easily eliminated. In the incident of
the drying up of the stream, all that is needed is to remove the word
"immediately" in the direct narrative, which follows Bede's rhetorical
amplification. The stooping of S. Alban to slake his thirst at a little
spring sufficed as basis for the fable of his having miraculously called
it forth ; and the absurdity of the executioner's eyes falling out when
Alban's head touched the ground is due to a statement in the original
that the man who dealt the blow was blind to the light of faith which
had illumined the eyes of him who had been commissioned to execute
Alban.
Much has been made of the blunder of Gildas relative to the Thames
as the river that divided before Alban when he passed to his death.
Th'- "river" actually was the little stream, the Ver, which runs
between the present Abbey Church and the site of old Verulam. The
Ver is nowhere unfordable, and at midsummer is the- merest dribble.
Possibly enough, the summer when Alban suffered was unusually
rainless, and the stream may have been quite dry. Gildas had never
been in that part of Britain, overrun by, and in the possession of, the
ons, and it is not surprising that he should have blundered about
name and character of the river. Bede knew more about the
raphy of England than did Gildas ; he therefore does not give the
e Thames to the river, and excinds the extravagancy about the
ter standing up as a wall whilst the martyr passed over, if such a
statement occurred in the original Acts from which he drew his account.
Gildas, also, had these Acts under his eye, and the addition of the
standing up of a wall of water is almost certainly due to him.
The Acts certainly existed when Gildas wrote at the close of the
Slightly condensed from Bede, H. E., i, 7. The Bishop of Bristol (Browne)
When you go to S. Albans, you see the local truth of the traditional
lils. Standing on the narrow bridge across the little stream, you will realize
blocking of the bridge by the crowd of spectators nearly 1,600 years ago ;
you can see Alban in his eagerness to win his martyr's crown, pushing his
ty through the shallow water, rather than be delayed by the crowd on the
Ige." The Church in these Islands before Augustine, S.P.C.K., 1897, P- 57-
142 Lives of the British Saints
sixth century. But whether in their original form, as drawn up soon
after the martyrdom, if so drawn up, we cannot say, for we cannot be
quite certain how many of the statements of Gildas are due to his
rhetorical style. The Acts used by Bede were certainly late, for
they were already loaded with fable.
We come now to the notice in the Life of S. Germanus of Auxerre,
describing the visit made in 429 by Germanus and Lupus to Britain.
This is to the effect : " The priests sought the blessed martyr Albanus
in order to render thanks by his mediation to God ; when Germanus,
having with him relics of all the apostles and of different martyrs,
offered prayer and commanded the grave to be opened in order to
place there the precious gifts." l
Now if this passage had stood in the original Life of Germanus by
Constantius, it would have been an important testimony. But it did
not stand there, it is an interpolation of the first half of the ninth
century ; it is not found in any of the copies of the unadulterated Life,
by Constantius. 2
Gildas is the authority for Alban having suffered in the persecution
of Diocletian, and Bede follows him in this.
It has been objected that Eusebius and Lactantius assert that
Constantius, the father of Constantine, and to whose share in the
Empire Britain fell, took no part in the persecution. 3
But, says Professor Hugh Williams, 4 " In his anxiety to exonerate
the father of onstantine the Great, Eusebius may be regarded
having gone too far when he said that he destroyed none of the chur<
buildings. Lactantius expressly states that the churches, as me
walls which could be restored, were pulled down by him, but that he
kept intact and safe the true temple of God, that is, the human body.
It must be remembered that Constantius was only Caesar in the ' parts
beyond the Alps/ and that he did not visit Britain until A.D. 306, the
year of his death at York. The Caesar's power was limited, which
would render the name of Maximian, as a rabid persecutor, especially
after the fourth Edict of 304, the more potent name with many govern-
ors and magistrates. Constantius was bound to conform to the
policy of the Augusti in carrying out edicts which bore his own name
1 Vita Germani Autis., iii, 25.
2 Levison (W.), Bischof Germanus v. Auxerre, in Neue Archiv d. Gesellscha/t
/. dltere deutsche Geschichtskunde, B. xxix, 1903 ; BibL de l'cole des Charles,
t. xliii, 1882, p. 556 ; Narbey, f.tude critique sur la vie de S. Germain d' Auxerre,
Paris, 1884; Baring-Gould, " Life of Germanus," by Constantius, in Y Cymm-
rodor, Lond., 1904.
3 Eus., H. .,viii, 13; Vita Const., i, 13 ; ~La.ct.,De MortePers., xv.
4 Note in his ed. of Gildas, p. 26.
ite
s
: re
S. Alban 143
as well as theirs. When, therefore, it is known that many martyrdoms
did take place in Spain, though that country belonged to Ccnstantius,
it is not unreasonable to suppose that Britain had witness of the same
sufferings, especially before 306, when he himself arrived in the island."
There is a circumstantiality about Bede's account which shows that
he had material on which to build up his florid narrative.
The A nglo-Saxon Chronicle gives 286 as the date of the year in which
S. Alban suffered, but Bede is more likely to be right in placing it in
the persecution of Diocletian. He is followed by Henry of Hunting-
don, Matthew of Westminster, the latter adding flourishes of his own.
In addition, we have the Ada Sanctorum Albani et Amphibali, by
William, a monk of S. Alban's, dedicated to Simon, who was Abbot of
that Monastery from 1167 to 1188, but apparently written before
Simon was promoted to the Abbacy. William states that his book
was merely a translation from an English Life of the Saint. 1
He says that the author concealed his name through fear of the
enemy, but wrote what he had seen or heard from others. However,
on examination, this Pdssio S. Albani proves to be entirely founded
on that of Bede, amplified by a long account of the conversion of S.
Alban through the instrumentality of Amphibalus, a priest whom he
had protected from the persecutors, and had concealed in his house.
Then follows a detailed account of Alban's conduct before the judge,
and of his imprisonment and death, as well as of the escape of Amphi-
balus.
This is followed by two chapters on the conversion and martyrdom
of many of the inhabitants of Verulam, who had fled with Amphibalus
to Wales, where he preached the Gospel to the Welsh and Picts. Finally
have the capture and martyrdom of Amphibalus, followed by the
lal chastisement of his persecutors. 2 This took place at Verulam,
which place Amphibalus had been reconducted from Wales.
The author concludes, " Ne vero posteri super meo nomine reddantur
inino soliciti, sciant quia si voluerint verum mihi ponere nomen,
miserum, me peccatorem ultimum nominabunt. Romam autem
>ficiscor ut illic gentilitatis errore deposito, et lavacro regenerationis
jpto, veniam merear assequi delictorum. Libellum quoque istum
;ram examini Romanorum, ut si qua in eo secus quam debuit forte
)latum fuerit, hoc per eos dignetur in melius commutare."
" Cum liber Anglico sermone conscriptus passionem martyris Albani con-
jns, ad vestram notitiam pcrvenisset, ut cum verbis latinis exprimerem
;cepitis."
a " Distorquentur labia, varia deformitas vultus apprehendidit, obrigescunt
ligiti, nervi officiis non funguntur ; ardent linguae," etc.
144 Lives of the British Saints
This is sufficient to reveal the whole as an impudent forgery. William,
the compiler, actually the fabricator of the Passio, pretends that he
added nothing to the original except the name of Amphibalus, which
he took from Geoffrey of Monmouth (lib. v, cap. 5). This supposed
original book which William used was, as we have seen, in the English
language. But in Matthew Paris' Life of Abbot Eadmer the story
is told of a very ancient book in the British tongue having been dis-
covered in a recess of a wall, and of how it was interpreted by ont
Unwona, an aged monk ; and it proved to be a Passion of S. Alban.
The fact would seem to be that the monks of S. Alban 's were dis-
satisfied with the brief story of the death of their Saint, as given b)
Bede, and set one of their number to compose a fuller story, and, t(
give credence to it, pretended to have found an ancient book of the
Martyrdom composed by an eyewitness, whilst still a pagan.
William had not the wit to make this author write in British, but
makes him a Saxon. Matthew Paris knew better. The outline of
story is as in Bede, all the rest is mere invention.
A condensation, of William of S. Alban's work is in Capgrave's
Nova Legenda Anglia, under the heads of " Alban " and " Amphi-
balus." There is a Saxon Passio S. Albanis and a Saxon Vita S.
Albani, but both are derived from Bede. William of S. Alban's
Passion is printed in the Ada SS. Boll., Jun. iv, pp. 149-59. Then
are other MS. Lives or Passions of S. Alban ; Radulph of Dunstable
composed a Latin Metrical Life of SS. Alban and Amphibalus. H*
wrote it at the request of the aforesaid William, who, however, di(
before its completion. 1 Matthew Paris (1236-53) also wrote a Vita
Sti. Albani.
None of the Lives are of any historical value. The sole authorities
of any worth are Gildas and Bede. But they are instructive for all
that. They show the manner in which Lives were amplified, miracles
fabricated, and martyrdoms multiplied by late redactors. Thus,
although there is no evidence that others suffered with Alban save the
executioner, 2 William of S. Albans makes those sent after Amphibalus
slaughter a thousand in Wales, without respect to age or sex. " Ira
commoti, sine respectu aetatis, sanguinis aut reverentiae, vicini vicinos
1 Wright, Biographia Britannica Liter aria, Anglo-Norman Period, 1846,
pp. 212-5.
2 Gildas does however add : " Ceteri vero sic diversis cruciatibus torti sunt
et inaudita membrorum discerptione lacerati, ut absque cunctamine gloriosi in
egregiis Jerusalem veluti portis martyrii sui trophaea defigerent. Nam qui
superfuerant silvis ac desertis abditisque speluncis se occultavere. " But this
does not necessarily apply to Britain but to the persecution throughout the
Empire.
S. Alban 145
et amicos neci tradunt ; et atrociter in ore gladii mille viros pro Christo
occidunt."
The Legend by John of Tynemouth, taken into Capgrave's Nova
Legenda, is derived partly from Bede, and partly from the Life by
William of S. Albans.
In a so-called Martyrology of S. Jerome, in a Berne Codex of about
770, " S. Albinus Martyr " is commemorated on June 22, " along with
others, 889 in number." Here we see how a story expands and
adopts extravagant details. Bede expressly says that after the death
of Alban the persecution ceased in Britain. He represents the magis-
trate as deterred by the miracles that had taken place ; actually what
induced him to stop was probably that he saw that the use of force
advanced instead of serving to hinder the cause of Christianity.
Almost all English Calendars have S. Alban on June 22, and he
occurs in some of the Welsh Calendars on the same day. He is entered
in the Vannes Missals of 1530 and 1535 ; and in the Vannes Breviary
of 1589 ; and in the S. Malo Breviary of 1537.
Whytford in his Martiloge says, on June 22, " In brytayne ye feest
of saint Albane a martyr that in the tyme of ye emperour Dioclecian
after many turmets suffred at verolame deth, heded by the sworde and
with hym was a soudyour put to deth because he refused to do ye
< cucyon upon hym." And O 'Gorman has inserted him on the
same day in his Irish Martyrology. In the Reformed Anglican Calen-
dar on June 17.*
^ The Abbey of S. Alban 's, as already said, was founded by Offa, the
king of the Mercians, in 793. William of Malmesbury says : " The
relics of S. Alban, at the time obscurely buried, he ordered to be rever-
ently taken up and placed in a shrine, decorated to the fullest extent
)yal munificence with gold and jewels. A Church of most beau-
workmanship was then erected and a company of monks assem-
."-
In Monmouthshire, the church of Christ Church on the height above
Caerleon, on the left bank of the Usk, was formerly dedicated to S.
Alban. The high ground above the junction of the Afon Lwyd is
still called Mount S. Alban.
Devonshire, Beaworthy Church is dedicated to him.
o church bears his name in Cornwall. He is patron of Tattenhall
near Chester ; of a church also in Worcester ; of S. Alban's, Wood
1 In the Preces Privates, 1564, the Book of Common Prayer, 1564, 1573, and
1617 on June 17, but in the latter also on July 29. See Lord Aldenham's paper
on S. Alban in the Transactions of S. Paul's Ecclesiological Soc., iv, p. 32.
1 Chron. Reg. Anglia, i, 4.
VOL. I. T,
14.6 Lives of the British Saints
Street, London, founded in the tenth century ; Earsdon in Northumber-
land as under Tynemouth, a priory of S. Alban's Abbey ; Wymondham
in Norfolk, as well a priory of S. Alban's ; Worksop Priory in Notting-
hamshire, and Wickersley in Yorkshire ; Withernwick in east Yorkshire ;
Frant in Kent, and perhaps originally Almondbury in Yorkshire.
Camden so thinks. In Brittany he is supposed to be patron of several
parishes and chapels. This is, however, due to a mistake : he has been
confounded with and has superseded S. Albinus, who was a native
of the Diocese of Vannes, and became bishop of Angers, and died
circ. 550.
S. ALLECCUS, or GALLGO, Confessor
ACCORDING to the Life of Gildas by the monk of Ruys, Alleccus, or
Allectus, was a brother of that saint. He says : " Mailocus,
Alleccus and Egreas, with their saintly sister (Peteova), after con-
temning all the wealth and luxuries of the world, strove with the
whole bent of their soul to reach the celestial country, and devoted
their lives to fastings and prayers. At last they were called to God,
and received the reward of their labours. They were buried in the
oratories which they had built, and are preserved there, famous am
illustrious for their constant miracles, and destined to rise again ii
glory." *
Alleccus, or Allectus, there can be hardly a doubt is the Gallgo,
Gallgof ab Caw, of the Welsh pedigrees, 2 to whom Llanallgo, a chaj
subject to his brother's church, Llaneugrad, in Anglesey, is dedicated.
Gallgo was for a while a saint at Llantwit and Llancarfan. 3 He
appears to be the Calcas ab Caw who is mentioned in the Tale oi
Culhwch and Olwen as having been in the service of King Arthur.
Probably, owing to the insults dashed in the face of Maelgwn Gwynedd
by Gildas, his brother, Alleccus may have been forced to leave Anglesey,
and then perhaps retired to Ireland for a time. Colgan conjectured
that he is the saint named Oilleoc in the Irish Martyrologies, but
hesitated between him and Elloc, one of the reputed sons of Brychan. 5
1 Gildas, ed. Hugh Williams, p. 327.
2 lolo MSS., pp. 101, 109, 116, 137, 142-3 ; Myv. Arch., p. 425.
3 lolo MSS., pp. 101, 1 1 6.
4 Mabinogion, ed. Rhys and Evans, p. 107 ; eel. Guest, 1877, P- 22 4-
5 Ada SS. Hibern., Jan. 29, p. 188. The situation of Cluan Etchen, of which
Oilleoc was saint, has not been determined.
S. ALLEN.
From Statue at Scaer.
S. Allen 147
It is possible that Alleccus may have been with Gildas at an early
period in Ireland, till the latter was recalled by the murder of his
brother Huail.
The day of S. Gallgo, or Alleccus, is given as November 27 in most
of the Welsh Calendars from the fifteenth century ; also by Nicolas
Roscarrock. Oilleoc, or Oileac, of Cluan Etchen, is venerated in the
Irish Calendars on July 24.
The Wake at Llanallgo was, however, held on the first Sunday in
May. 1 Near the church is Ffynnon Allgo, his holy well. Its waters,
which are strongly impregnated with sulphate of lime, were formerly
held in high veneration for the cures ascribed to them, and are still, we
Klicve, regarded as highly beneficial in some chronic diseases. Ad-
joining the west end of the church is Capel y Ffynnon, the Well Chapel,
a small edifice anciently appropriated to the use of the votaries of
the patron of the spring. 2
S. ALLEN, Confessor
S.ALLEN is the nameof a parish in Cornwall in theDeaneryof Pyder.
The name is given in the Exeter Episcopal Registers as Allun or Alun.
In that of Bishop Bronescombe, 1261, the church is Ecclesia S t! . Alluni;
in that of 1274 Ecclesia de S tl> . Aluno ; so also in 1274, 1284 ; in that
of B. Bytton, 1302 ; in the Taxation of Pope Nicolas, 1288-91 ;
in the register of B. Stapeldon, 1314 ; and in those of B. Grandisson,
1349, and B. Brantyngham, 1376, 1383, 1384, 1392.
Leland (I tin., ii, 77 ; iii, 2) gives the forms Aleine, Alaine and Alein.
It is not possible, with any approach to confidence, to determine who
the Saint was who is patron of the parish. He can hardly be Alan,
son of Emyr Llyclaw.
The Feast at S.Allen is on February 22; but also on the Fifth Sunday
after Easter. Whether he be the Elwyn, one of the Irish immigrants
came over with Breaca, may be doubted. See under S. ELWYX.
S. ALMEDHA, see S. EILIWEDD
S. ALUD, see S. EILIWEDD
S. AMAETHLU, see S. MAETHLU
1 Nicolas Owen, Hist. Anglesey, 1775, p. 57; Ang. Llwyd, Hist. Anglesey,
1833, p. 21-,.
- Ang. Llwyd, op. cit., p. 215.
148 Lives of the British Saints
S. AMBROSIUS, Abbot, Confessor
THE Church of Amesbury claimed to have been founded by one Am-
brosius, but whether this were an abbot, or whether he were Aurelius
Ambrosius who headed the revolt against Gwrtheyrn ; whether this
latter, after having led the Britons to battle against the Saxons, in his
old age became a monk and founded a religious house over which he
ruled as abbot at Amesbury, is all uncertain, and never will be cleared
up ; but the latter supposition is not improbable. Aurelius Ambrosius,
or Ambrosius Aurelianus, is the only one of his countrymen against
whom the venomous Gildas does not inveigh. " After a certain
length of time the cruel robbers returned to their home " he is speak-
ing of the Saxons. " A remnant, to whom wretched citizens flock from
different places on every side, as eagerly as a hive of bees when a storm
is threatening, praying at the same time unto Him with their whole
heart, and, as is said, ' Burdening the air with unnumbered prayers/
that they should not be utterly destroyed, take up arms and challenge
their victors to battle under Ambrosius Aurelianus. He was a man of
unassuming character, who alone of the Roman race chanced to
survive in the shock of such a storm (as his parents, people undoubtedly
clad in the purple, had been killed in it), whose offspring in our days
have greatly degenerated from their ancestral nobleness. To these
men, by the Lord's favour, there came victory." 1
In the Welsh Pedigrees, Ambrosius is Emrys Wledig, or as Nennius
calls him, Embreis Guletic.
Nennius tells the marvellous tale of Vortigern being unable to lay
the foundations of his castle in Gwynedd, and sending to find a boy
whose father was unknown in order to sprinkle his blood on the found-
ations to make them firm. Messengers were sent throughout the Isle
of Britain in the quest, and they came to a place in Glywyssing where
they heard boys playing at ball, and a dispute having arisen among
them, one sneered at the other, " O boy without a father, thou hast
no good at all." The messengers asked, " Whose son is the lad to
whom this is said ? " Those who were playing ball replied : " We
know not. His mother is here." The mother of the boy of whom this
was spoken said : " I know not that he has a father, nor do I know how
he happened to be conceived in my womb."
Then the messengers took the lad to the king, who would have
sacrificed him, according to the counsel of his Druids, but he escaped
by telling Vortigern that the reason why his foundations gave way was
1 Gildas, De Excidio Brit., ed. H. Williams, p. 61.
S. Ambrosius 149
that they were laid in a morass wherein were red and white dragons
or maggots in deadly contest.
Then the boy said, "Ambrosius is my name . . . my father was a Roman
consul, and this shall be my fortress." Then Vortigern left the castle
to Ambrosius, and also the government of all the east of Britain, and
went with his Druids to the land of Gwynnwesi, in the north, and
built a fortress there, which city is named Caer Gwrtheyrn. 1
The fable is foisted in clumsily, and is incoherent. The boy's father
is known. Ambrosius knows it, his mother does not. All we can
make out of it is that Vortigern seems to have thrown himself on the
still strong Pagan element among the Britons, and to have sought the
death of Ambrosius, who headed the Romano-British party, and that
he was defeated.
The Caer of Ambrosius is near Beddgelert, and is called Dinas
Emrys, on a height, and contains foundations of a number of cytiau.
Attn tin- xpulsion of Gwrtheyrn from the position of Pendragon or
duet. Ambrosius assumed it, and obtained considerable success against
the Saxons and Jutes.
The Welsh accounts make Ambrosius son of Cystennin, whom they
derive from ("yuan Meiriadog, 2 brother of Elen, wife of Maximus ; and
they make Cystennin Gorneu the brother of Aldor, or Audroen, father
of Emyr Llydaw, the ancestor of a noble army of Saints who drifted
a Unit between Armorica and South Wales. They make, moreover,
Kinrys, or Ambrosius, brother of Uthyr Bendragon, the father of
IT.'
Much ( on fusion has arisen among the Constantines. The name
M'ems to have been greatly affected by the Britons or Romanised
Britons. There \vas a Constantine who was a common soldier in the
Roman army stationed in Britain, who assumed the purple in 407, and
was put to death in 409 ; consequently it is not possible that this can
have been the Constantine, father of Ambrosius and of Uthyr. If there
be .my reliance to be placed on the Welsh pedigrees, much disturbed
and vitiated by Geoffrey of Monmouth's fabulous narrative then the
lather <>t Ambrosius Aurelianus was Cystennin Llydaw, or Bendigaid,
a petty prince of Armorica. 4
1 Irish Xennius, ch. xix ; Latin Xcnnius, cc. xl-xlii.
1 Geoffrey's Brut, ed. Rhys and Evans, p. 126; the thirteenth century
Mostvn MS., 117 (Evans, Report on Welsh MSS., i, p. 63).
3 (Geoffrey's Brut, ibid., p. 126; Triads in Red Book of Hergest inMabinogion,
ed. Rhys and Evans, p. 298.
4 The Welsh pedigrees attribute to Maximus and Helen a son named Con-
stantine. Perhaps this was the Tyrannus.
150 Lives of the British Saints
Professor Hugh Williams sums up all that we can obtain from Gildas
concerning Ambrosius Aurelianus. (i) He was a Roman, a member
of one of the few old aristocratic families then remaining in Britain.
(2) His ancestors had worn the Imperial purple ; he may have been a
descendant of some tyrannus who had assumed the title of Augustus
in Britain. (3) He was a vir modestus, which implies kindness of
disposition with unassuming manners ; the mention of this quality
goes far to prove that the information had come to Gildas from some
one personally acquainted with the victorious leader. (4) His
descendants, grandchildren probably, were intimately known to
Gildas. 1
Bede 2 merely reproduces what was said by Gildas. There is no
mention in the pedigrees of Ambrosius having been married and having
a family, and it would be in accordance with the character of the man
as sketched by Gildas, that in his old age he should become a monk.
If so, then he may perhaps be regarded as the traditional founder of
Amesbury. Camden, in his Britannia, so regards him, and as having
died at Amesbury. 3
Dr. Guest conjectured that Ambrosius was the father of Owain
Finddu, who is usually given as a son of Maxen, and he tries to identify
him with the Natan-leod of the Chronicle, who was killed in 508, but
the attempt is not successful.
The monastery, according to Camden, contained three hundred
monks, and was destroyed by " nescio quis barbarus Gormundus."
This Gormund was Gorman, son of Cormac Mac Diarmid, king of
the Hy Bairche, who in the middle of the sixth century destroyed
Llanbadarn Fawr and other churches, and did much havoc in Britain.
Geoffrey of Monmouth converted him into a king of Africa.
Nicolas Roscarrock enters him as " S. Ambrias, Abbot, Confessor,
founder of Amesbury, which was destroyed by Gormund ; there were
three hundred monks in the monastery." He does not give the
day on which the founder of Amesbury was culted.
1 De Excid. Brit., p. 60.
2 Hist. EccL, i, c. 16.
3 " Ambresbury, i.e. Ambrosii vicus . . . ubi antiques quosdam Reges
sitos esse historia Britannica docet, et Eulogium ibi trecentorum monachorum
ccenobium fuisse refert, quod nescio quis barbarus Gurmundus diripuit . . .
Ambrosius Aurelianus qui nomen fecit, Romano imperio jam prope confecto,
purpuram, ut P. Diaconus testatur, in Britannia induit, patriae labenti suppetias
tulit, . . . et tandem collatis in hac planitie signis, animam patrioe reddidit."
Britannia, 1594, p. 186.
S. Amphibalus 151
S. AMBRUSCA, Virgin
IN Crantock village, Cornwall, according to Dr. Oliver's Monasticon
(P- 438). a chapel dedicated to S. Ambrusca formerly stood in the
churchyard ; and an ancient covered well, dedicated to the Saint,
existed near the village. The well has been destroyed, and a modern
villa called S. Ambrose occupies the site ; the water still rises, and is
led by a pipe to supply a drinking fountain beside the road. Old people
remember the Holy Well in its original position. On the further side
of the road is a boggy meadow in the midst of which is the site of the
chapel.
Wh.) was S. Ambrusca ? Whether Dr. Oliver has given the name
correctly, which is by no means certain, as he was not always accurate,
unable to say. She may have formed one of the company of
S. Carantoc. Her name does not occur in any Welsh or Irish or
Breton Calendars. The root of the name is ambhr, strong.
S. AMO, see S. ANNO
S. AMPHIBALUS, Confessor
THE authority for the Life of S. Amphibalus is the account of the
vr.lom of S. Alban (which see). But Capgrave in his Nova Legenda
a separate account of him, extracted from the Vita S.
i printed in the Ada SS. Boll., Jun. v, p. 131.
The story has been already given under the heading of S. Alban.
is, in De Excidio Brit. (c. xi), 1 relates that Alban of Verulam,
having given hospitality to a confessor of Christ flying the pursuit of
-Idiery. was so touched by the grace of God, that he presented
himself before the persecutors in the sacerdotal vestment of the
confessor, and suffered martyrdom in his room.
The story in Bede (Hist. Eccl., I, vii) is not an amplification of
the words of Gildas, but taken from original Ada. The vestment
in Gildas is vestes, in Bede caracalla. Till Geoffrey of Monmouth
1 Ed. Hugh Williams, for the Cymmrodorion Society.
152 Lives of the British Saints
wrote his fabulous history, the name of the confessor was unknown,
and this writer conferred on him the name of Amphibalus. 1
William of S. Albans, in his Life of SS. Alban and Amphibalus,
written between 1166 and 1188, pretends that he made use of a Saxon
Life of the two saints, but acknowledges that he was indebted to
Geoffrey for the name of Amphibalus.
Amphibalus is, however, the name of a vestment or chasuble, and
it has been conjectured that Geoffrey called the Confessor after the
habit which he surrendered to Alban. But M. J. Loth 2 has pointed
out another and more probable origin. " It seems to be certain,"
says he, " that the passage which so lightly led him into error is found
in the Epistle of Gildas. In that, one reads almost at the beginning,
in the Imprecatio against Constantine, king of Damnonia, that, among
other crimes committed by him, he had done this ; ' in duarum veneran-
dis matrum sinibus, ecclesiae, carnalisque, sub sancti abbatis amphi-
balo, latera regiorum tenerrima puerorum vel praecordia crudeliter
duum . . . inter ipsa sacrosancta altaria nefando ense hastaque pro
dentibus laceravit.' "
Geoffrey had read the passage above, and the conjecture is changed
to certainty when one looks at lib. ix, cap. iv, of his History. There
we read : " Et (Constantinus) pnedictos filios Modredi cepit : et
alterum juvenem Gwintoniae in ecclesiam sancti Amphibali fugientem
ante altare Trucidavit ; alterum vero Londoniis in quarumdam fratrum
ccenobio absconditum, atque tandem juxta altare inventum crudeli
morte afficit."
What Gildas wrote was that Constantine had killed the royal youths
under the garb of a holy abbot. Then Geoffrey, mistaking one letter,
reading in fact " sancti abbatis Amphibali," for " sancti abbatis
amphibalo," converted Amphibalus into a personal name.
Matthew of Westminster (1377) says that " Amphibalus hastened
into Wales, to become a martyr there," but his testimony is of no
value, and Amphibalus is wholly unknown in Wales.
The day of S. Amphibalus is that of his Translation, June 25. In
1178, a certain Robert Mercer, of Redburn, pretended that he had
seen S. Alban in a vision, who pointed out to him the spot where Amphi-
balus and his companions lay, and told him that the time had come
when they should be treated with due honour.
Accordingly a search was made at the spot indicated and the bodies
of Amphibalus and nine companions were discovered and translated
with great devotion by the Abbot Simon to the church of the monastery.
1 Hist. Brit., cap. v, 5.
2 J. Loth, Saint Amphibalus, in Revue Celtique, vol. xi (1890), p. 348.
S. Amwn Ddu 153
Tlu-re can be no doubt entertained that the whole was a fraud. Per-
Mnver came on an old cemetery at Verulam and invented the
divam to rx plain the discovery.
The story of the transaction is told by Matthew of Paris and Roger
Hoveden, and in the Gesta Abb. S. Albani. It is an unpleasant revela-
tion of roguery. It followed soon after the invention of the Eleven
Thousand Virgins at Cologne and was stimulated by it. In 1155,
Gerlach, abbot of Deutz, was excavating an old burial ground, and
for eight years went on manufacturing forged tombstones for "Virgins "
e bones he found, and to help out the fraud an hysterical nun,
heth of Schonau, was induced to announce revelations concerning
these remains of the dead. She died in 1165, and a greater rogue, the
Bed H.nnann Joseph, continued the revelations.
j\\\Z up of relics on a large scale created much excitement,
and the Abbot Simon of S. Albans, by the assistance of Mercer, got
: " Invention " of his own.
- Amphibalus occurs on June 25 in the Additions of the Canterbury
,/c-// .U>. 155), and in the S. Alban's Calendar of the
nth century MS. Reg. 2, B. vi). He is in the Martiloge of
\\livtfonl, and in tlu- MS. Calendar of Nicolas Roscarrock.
S. AMWN DDU, Confessor
AMWN the Black was a son of Emyr Llydaw, son of Aldor. 1 Amwn
quitted the district about Vannes, 2 which had for some time been
colonised by immigrants from Britain. Already in 461 the Britons
-ettled about the mouth of the Loire. In that year a British
bishop. Mansuetus, attended the Council of Tours. 3
His see is not mentioned, but he probably came thence, where we
find Britons in considerable numbers not much later. In 470 the British
)lonists under their King Riothimus came to the assistance of the
1 In the earlier genealogies of the Welsh Saints, e.g., those in the thirteenth
ntury, Pcniarth MSS. 16 and 45, and Hafod MS. 16 (c. 1400), his name
hvays occurs as Annun Ddu, the Welsh assimilation of Antonius. There was an
Annun ab Ceredig, uncle to S. David (Cambro-British Saints, p. 275). Amwn
probably = Ammonius.
raweg, for Broweroc, see note 3, p. 155.
3 Labbe, Sacrosancta Concilia, torn, iv, p. 1053.
- - - v^^
154 Lives of the British Saints
Emperor Anthemius, and after ascending the Loire in their vessels,
were attacked by Euric at Bourg-en-Deols, near Chateauroux, and
utterly defeated. 1
Sidonius Apollinaris also represents the Britons as settled about
the mouths of the Loire. 2
Now if British settlers were able to send a large army against the
Visigoths in or about 470, we may well allow them some fifty years to
have been settled in a portion of lower Brittany. Others arrived later
in greater numbers, flying from the swords of the Saxons, but the
colonisation of Armorica by the Britons had begun earlier.
We know nothing of the causes which drove Emyr Llydaw out of
Armorica ; he fled to Wales, where his sons married daughters of Meurig,
king of Morgan wg, or Glamorgan. We may place the period when
Emyr fled with his family in the latter part of the fifth century.
Samson, bishop of Dol, died 567-70, and was probably born about
490-500. He was son to Amwn the Black, and is represented as the
child of his old age.
Amwn married Anna, daughter of Meurig, and he is said to have
enjoyed the friendship of S. Dyfrig as well as of S. Illtyd. Amwn
was not disposed at first to suffer his son Samson to become a re-
ligious, but the inclination of the lad was so decided in this direction
that he had to yield, and being away from his own possessions, the
ecclesiastical life was that which offered most promise to a young man.
Samson became a member of the congregation of S. Illtyd at Llan-
twit Major, and of S. Dyfrig at Ynys Byr. Whilst there he heard that
his father was seriously ill, and desired his son to visit him. Samson,
through a perverted idea that he had broken with all family ties, at
first resolved to disregard the summons, but was reprimanded by Pirus,
or Piro, the abbot, and reluctantly consented to go.
On his arrival he found the sick man with his relatives crowded
round his bed ; 3 Samson turned them all out, with the exception of his
mother Anna, and the deacon he had brought with him. He then
urged his father to make confession of his misdeeds. Whereupon
Amwn, in the presence of these three, 4 revealed a mortal sin he had
committed, and which he had kept secret from his wife and from others.
Then yielding to the solicitations of Anna, he vowed to dedicate the
rest of his days to God, and to have his head shaved. Anna, with the
1 Jornandes, De rebus Geticis, c. 45. 2 Epist., i, 7.
" Invenerunt Ammonem, Sancti Samsonis pattern, a suis vicinis circum-
datum in lecto aegrotantem." Vita i ma , in Acta SS. Boll., Jul., t. vi, p. 580.
4 " Praesentibus illis tribus supradictis quod in se celaverat publicavit in
medium." Ibid.
S. Amwn Ddu 155
impetuosity of a woman, and without consideration of consequences,
said : " Do not let us be alone, let us dedicate at the same time all our
children and our estate to God."
Thereupon she presented to Samson his five brothers and a young
sister. Samson accepted them all except the girl. " She," said he,
" will hanker after worldly pleasures, and I reject her. However, as
she i- a human being, rear her up.'' 1
At the same time Samson's uncle and aunt, Umbrafel and Derveila,
embraced the religious life, together with their three sons. He then
took his uncle and father with him to Ynys Byr, that he might supervise
their religious training.
When some Irish monks came to the monastery on their way back
from Rome, Samson was induced to go with them to Ireland, but he
did not remain there long. He, however, founded a monastery there.
When he returned t<> Wales he found that his father and uncle had made
progress, but Umbrafel was the most hopeful of the two. He
accordingly sent him to Ireland to be abbot over his monastery, but
took his father with him into retreat in a wild district near the Severn.
( >n leaving this retreat with the ultimate intention of settling in
Armorica, Samson crossed the sea, probably to Padstow Harbour, and
proceeding south-east formed an important settlement at Southill.
He had his father still with him.
When he considered the political conditions in Armorica ripe for
i-ing a revolt against the regent Conmore, in 547 or thereabouts,
Samson crossed over. Amwn must at this time have been still with
him, for we are told that Samson left him in charge of his monastery, 2
which we locate at Southill.
hear nothing further of Amwn, save that he was buried at
Llantwit Major, where he w r as, for a while, a member of S. Illtyd's
"choir." 3
Probably he had found the government of a monastery beyond his
- , at an advanced age ; and he left Southill to sink into a simple
)nk again ; he is, however, said to have had a " choir " of his own as
/ell. a cell of S. Illtyd's, but this may refer to the establishment at
Southill. 4
I-ta pusilla quam vos videtis et habetis ad mundanas voluptates data
t ; tumen nutrite cam, quia homo est." Vita i" 14 , in Ada 55. Boll., Jul.,
vi. p. 580.
" Monasterii illius perfecte construct! suo patri praesulatum praecipit," etc.
id., p. 585-
3 I oh MSS., pp. 107, 132, 141. He is spoken of as having been " King of
wee," probably Broweroc, the British settlement about Vannes.
4 I oh MSS., P ". 151.
156 Lives of the British Saints
In Brittany, near Vannes, precisely in the district of Broweroc
whence Amwn possibly came, at Plescop (Plou-escop), a certain Amon,
receives a cult. The story there told is that Amon arrived at Plescop
from foreign parts and solicited shelter and food. As he was refused
even milk, he cursed the place, that thenceforth the cows should yield
none. Next morning he was found dead in some bushes. A chapel
was erected over his grave, and his relics were translated in 1456. l
According to Garaby, 2 his day is April 30, but at Plescop, the
Pardon de S. Amon is on the last Sunday in October. In the chapel,
which is only just outside the village, is a statue of the Saint, of the
eighteenth century, and he is represented as a warrior. An oak
carved bust of him is also preserved there, that contains the upper
portion of his skull, which is dolichocephalous, and perfectly black.
This was formerly carried in procession on the day of the Pardon, on a
bier, but at the Revolution the papers authenticating the relic were
lost or destroyed ; consequently it is no more carried nor exposed to
the veneration of the people, although there can be no moral doubt as
to it being the genuine relic translated in 1456. The bust is much in
character like the statue, and both were probably carved by the same
man.
As no authentic life or legend of S. Amon exists, the period at which
he lived and died is open to conjecture. Garaby supposes he was a
returned Crusader. But this was the merest guess. The peasants of
Plescop know nothing relative to the period when Amon came among
them. Ogee says: " In 1456, the inhabitants of this parish found the
body of Saint Humon, a Breton knight, hidden among the bushes.
It was elevated with great solemnity and a chapel was built on the
spot in his honour." 3 But there is nothing known of such a knight,
and Ogee seems to have mistaken the translation of the body and the
erection of the chapel for the date of the death of Amon. It is just pos-
sible that Amwn Ddu may have left his charge of Samson's monastery in
Cornwall to return to his native land. And this conjecture receives
some confirmation from the fact that he has received no cult in Corn-
wall. He came apparently from Broweroc, the neighbourhood of
Vannes, and it is probable, if he returned to Brittany, that he would
seek that part whence he had been driven when young. If so, then
it is conceivable also that the people, having known him only as a
warrior, and not as a monk, when he died among them, represented
him as a man of war.
1 Le Mene, Hist, des Paroisses de Vannes, 1894, torn, ii, p. 101.
2 Vies des Bienheuveux et des Saints de Bretagne, S. Brieuc, 1839, p. 106.
* Ogee, Diet, historique et geographique de Bretagne, ed. Rennes, 1843, ii, p. 292.
BUST OF S. AMWN.
Plescop.
S. Anef 157
As to the story of the stranger having been refused milk, and cursing
^escop, that is a mere piece of popular invention to account for the
fact that the pasturage of the parish is unsuitable for milch kine.
From the popular tradition nothing further can be concluded than that
a certain man named Amon came from foreign parts and died there
almost immediately after his arrival, and that at an uncertain date.
S. ANDRAS, Confessor
HE lived in the fifth century, and was the son of S. Rhain Dremrudd
ab Brychan Brycheiniog. 1
Llanandras, in the Diocese of Llandaff, is said to be dedicated to
him. This, to-day, is the parish church of S. Andrew Major, in the
Deanery of Penarth. Llanandras is also the Welsh name for Presteigne,
in the County of Radnor and Diocese of Hereford, the parish church
<f which is now regarded as dedicated to the Apostle. Prob-
ably both are dedicated to the Apostle, whose name in Welsh takes
the form Andreas.
S. ANEF, or ANE, Hermit
HE was one of the sons of Caw, lord of Cwm Cawlwyd, in the North,
who, not being able to withstand the constant incursions of theGwyddyl
Ffichti, was obliged to leave his territory, and come with his numerous
family, most of whom embraced the religious life, to Anglesey, where
settled on lands given them by Cadwallon Lawhir and Maelgwn
wynedd. This was about the beginning of the sixth century. He is
said to have been a hermit in Anglesey, and to him is dedicated the
apel of Coedana (Coed-aneu, or -ane) in that county, now subject to-
1 lolo MSS., pp. 121, 140.
mini
they
Gwv
158 Lives of the British Saints
Llangwyllog. 1 Sometimes it is said to be dedicated to S. Blenwyd,
or Blenwydd, another son of Caw. 2
If he be the same as Angawd, son of Caw, he was at one time in the
service of Arthur, according to the tale of Culhwch and Olwen. 3
The Angar of the " Sayings of the Wise " may also possibly mean
the same person :
Hast thou heard the saying of Angar,
Son of Caw, the celebrated warrior ?
" The heart will break with grief." 4
(Bid tonn calon gan alar.)
Another brother, S. Ceidio, is patron of Rhodygeidio (Rhodwydd
Geidio), under Llanerchymedd, in the same neighbourhood.
S. Ane's Festival does not occur in any of the Welsh Calendars, but
Miss Angharad Llwyd, in her History of Anglesey, gives it as January
S. ANEURIN, Abbot, Confessor
ANEURIN, the son of Caw, was one of a large family. The numbers
vary in the several genealogies, the lowest being ten and the highest
twenty-one. There are in the lolo MSS. 6 eight lists of the sons of
Caw. Aneurin's name does not occur in all of them, but there are
reasons for identifying it with another name included, that of Gildas.
In these lists, when Aneurin occurs Gildas does not, except in one
instance, 7 where we have both names. The epithet " y Coed Aur "
(of the Golden Wood) is sometimes added after both Aneurin and
Gildas. We are expressly told 8 that Euryn y Coed Aur was another
name for Gildas, who was also called Gildas the Saint and Gildas the
Prophet ; and we also find Euryn and Aneurin identified. 9 So the
Myv. Arch., pp. 417, 420-1. lolo MSS., pp. 107, 137.
Browne Willis, Bangor, p. 282. Lewis Morris, Celtic Remains, p. 39. Lewis,
Topographical Dictionary of Wales, s.v. Coedanna.
Mabinogion, ed. Rhys and Evans, p. 107. 4 lolo MSS., p. 256.
P. 194 (1833).
Pp. 109, 116, 136, 142-3. 7 P. 143.
8 Ibid., pp. 117, 137. There was also an Euryn y Coed Helig, one of the
twelve sons of Helig ab Glannog, ibid., p. 124.
9 Ibid., p. 1 1 8.
ao
:
S. Aneuriti 159
ity of Aneurin with Gildas may be taken as established. 1 Prob-
ably, as has been suggested, Gildas was his "ecclesiastical appellation "
hen he became a " saint," that is, a monk, the name being regarded
an English rendering of his earlier name Euryn or Aneurin. 2 Gildas
has certainly not the appearance of a Welsh name. Neither Gildas
nor Aneurin is included in the Genealogies of the Saints printed in the
.!/ vryr/tf ;/ A rchaiology.
Some Welsh writers have identified Aneurin-Gildas with Aneurin
" the Chief of Bards " (Mechdeyrn Beirdd) and author of those very
obscure poems the Gododin and the three Gorchans (also Gododinian),
which bear his name, and are to be found in the thirteenth century MS.,
iheBook of Aneurin, now in the Cardiff Free Library. Stephens, in
his posthumous edition of the Gododin, while rejecting the identification
<if the two Aneurins, tries to make out, 3 but unsuccessfully we believe,
that the bard was the son of Gildas. This he thought would " remove
all the chronological difficulties which beset the authorship of the
Gododhi."
There is nothing really known about Aneurin the Bard beyond
what may be gleaned from his own writings, which is very little. We
arc not given the slightest clue there as to his parentage ; and the
is do not appear to contain any reference whatever to either Caw
<>r his sons. Caw was lord of Cwm Cawlwyd, which seems to have
modern Renfrewshire. He was driven out of his territory by the
\wdclyl Ffichti, or Pictish Goidels, and he and his family found an
asylum in Wales. Some of them remained with their father in North
Wales, where they were given lands at Twr Celyn in Anglesey by Mael-
izwn Gwynedd, whilst the rest made for South Wales, where we are
told they were granted lands by King Arthur, and became saints in
various Bangors there. Aneurin became a saint of Catwg's
ngor at Llancarfan, with which, as we learn from his Lives, Gildas
as connected.
We know that Gildas died in 570, having been born probably in
76, or, as some suppose it, 493. Maelgwn Gwynedd, who is generally
ipposed to have died in 547, was venomously attacked by him circa
The chronological position of Aneurin-Gildas in the Genealogies
xes him as belonging to this same period, which is too early for
<
here
1 lolo Morgan wg, in a note in the lolo A/55., p. 270, identified them. On
83, 118, 254, S. Cenydd, the son of Gildas, is said to be the son of Aneurin.
* En fin (from aur, gold), meaning " golden " ; and the An- of Aneurin would
be an intensive (equivalent to en-}, and not, as more commonly, a negative
prefix. Gildas is to be referred to gild, derived from gold.
* P. 9. Edited for the Hon. Society of Cymmrodorion by Prof. Powel, 1888.
160 Lives of the British Saints
identification with Aneurin the Bard. The Gododin describes the
Battle of Catraeth, which Stephens takes to have been that of Aege-
sanstane or Daegstan, which took place in 600 or 603. 1 Skene, how-
ever, would divide the poem into two, the first part alone relating to
the battle of Catraeth, which he identifies with the " bellum Mia-
thorum " of Adamnan, and gives 586-603 as its date. The second
part contains an allusion to the death of Dyfnwal Frych or Domnall
Brecc, king of the Dalriadic Scots, who was slain at the Battle of
Strathcarron in 642, and which the bard witnessed. He regards this
second part as a continuation of the original Gododin by a pseudo-
Aneurin. 2 Out of the 363 " golden-torqued warriors " that fought
at Catraeth only three escaped with their lives, says the author, besides
himself.
The Welsh Triads state that Aneurin the Bard was treacherously
killed by Eiddyn ab Einygan, who dealt him on the head one of " the
three atrocious axe-strokes of the Isle of Britain " ; 3 whereas Aneurin-
Gildas died in his bed at Ruys in Brittany.
We therefore conclude that Aneurin ab Caw and Gildas ab Caw are
one and the same person ; but that Aneurin the Bard, of whose pedi-
gree the Welsh know nothing, lived considerably later.
There are no churches dedicated to him under the name Aneurin.
See further under S. GILDAS.
S. ANNA, or ANNE, Widow, Abbess
THERE are four Annas mentioned in the Welsh pedigrees: (i) Anna,
daughter of Uthyr Bendragon. (2) Anna, daughter of Meurig ab
Tewdrig. (3) Anna, daughter of Vortimer the Blessed. (4) Anna,
daughter of Brychan Brycheiniog. 4
Some authorities make Anna, daughter of Uthyr Bendragon, to have
been the mother of Cynyr of Caer Gawch, and afterwards wife of Amwn
Ddu, and mother of S. Samson. Another makes her wife first to Amwn
and then to Cynyr. 5
Gododin, p. 42.
Four Ancient Books of Wales, ii, pp. 359-70.
Ibid., ii, p. 463 ; Myv. Arch., pp. 390, 405.
lolo MSS., p. 140. This Anna must be a scribe's blunder.
Myv. Arch., p. 423 ; lolo MSS., pp. 107, 141. She is also, on the same page,
said to have been the mother of S. David.
w
S. Anna 161
Another, again, 1 makes Anna, daughter of Meurig ab Tewdrig, the
wife of Aimvn, and the same says that the wife of Cynyr was Anna,
daughter of Gwrthefyr Fendigaid, or Vortimer. 2
The Life of S. Samson says only that Anna, the wife of Amwn, was
" of the province of Dementia (a/. Deventia) which adjoins that of
Demetia." The Vita 2 da (of S. Samson) says " de Vcenetia provincia,"
and the Vita 3' fl gives this name as " Methiana."
It is clear that there has been confusion between three Annas, and
that Cynyr's father married Anna, daughter of Uthyr, and that Cynyr
married another Anna, daughter of Vortimer. Whereas Amwn
married a different Anna, the daughter of Meurig, and some of her
Bisters were the wives of the brothers of Amwn.
\Yhat we know of the second Anne is derived from the lives of S.
and our best authority is the First Life, written in the seventh
century, published by Mabillon (Ada 55. Ord. 5. Benedicti., Scec., i,
nd by the Bollandists (July 6). Afrellawasa younger sister,
and was married to Umbrafel, brother of Amwn the Black. She was
the mother of three sons, born before Anne had any child. Amwn and
his wife were in sore trouble at being without offspring. But one day,
when in church, they heard a discourse upon the merits and powers of a
in scholar (librarius) in the North, to whom great numbers re-
d. So Amwn and his wife started to consult him, with presents
in their hands, just as now Hindoos might journey to some famous
fakir. After a toilsome bit of travel they reached the place where the
\ ned man was, and found him in the midst of a throng of sup-
pliants, some deriving healing, some requiring discovery of objects
that had been lost, some benedictions on a new undertaking, some a
rcible curse pronounced against an enemy. They told the great man
hat they desired to have a son, whereupon the " Librarius " advised
Amwn to make a rod of silver as tall as his wife, and give it as alms for
is soul and for that of Anna. Amwn promptly declared that he would
ive three such rods. The medicine man then bade them retire into
hospitium." These rods of metal of a man's height meet us
,u r ain in the legend of S. Brioc ; and should apparently be brought into
connection with the stones, each set up pro anima sua, which are
found in Celtic countries.
In course of time Anne bore a son, and he was named Samson,
rom his birth, Anne urged her husband to dedicate him to the Lord
at least so says the " Life " but this seems to be an adaptation of
the story of Hannah and the child Samuel. Amwn was unwilling to
1 lolo MSS., p. 132. a Ibid., p. 129.
VOL. I. M
1 6 2 Lives of the British Saints
consent. Having got a son, he resolved on keeping him, but his
reluctance was overcome when other children followed.
That Samson was a child of their old age is improbable ; the statement
is an importation from the history of the birth of the Biblical Samson.
For his education, Samson was entrusted to S. Illtyd, and he remained
at college till Amwn was very ill, and sent for his son.
Amwn recovered, and at the instigation of Samson both he and his
brother Umbrafel were tonsured ; and their respective wives, Anna
and Afrella, received consecration as widows. Samson then dismissed
the two latter into different parts to found monasteries and to build
churches.
His mother was especially fervent in accepting his commission. She
is reported to have answered: "Not. only do I desire, and lovingly
embrace the charge laid on me, but I require of Almighty God, to Whom
you have dedicated me, that you shall consecrate the monasteries and
churches you bid me construct."
To this Samson cheerfully consented. As to his father and uncle,
he found them a little rough and intractable, therefore he took them
away with him, so as to superintend their training.
Samson next determined on seeking " a vast desert " near the
Severn. There he remained awhile, till he was consecrated bishop,
when he resolved on quitting Wales. He took his course round the
Bristol Channel, 1 visiting his mother and aunt on the way and dedi-
cating their churches. That of S. Anne was probably Oxenhall, on a
confluent of the Severn. It is now in Gloucestershire. We know
nothing further about Anne, whether she ended her days in her native
land, or followed her son into Cornwall, and further into Brittany.
Nor have we any means of determining the day of commemoration of
S. Anne.
The cult of Anne, reputed mother of the Blessed Virgin Mary, came
into fashion at the beginning of the fifteenth century. It was almost
unknown till the fifteenth century, when she was brought into pro-
minence by the mooting of the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception.
The name Anne is taken from an Apocryphal Gospel, the Protevan-
gelium of S. James, of no authority whatever. The earliest known
representation of S. Anne, mother of the Blessed Virgin, in Northern
Europe, is on a seal of 1351 belonging to a convent in Westphalia. 2
1 " Citra Sabrinum mare," Vita \* M ; "circa Habrinum mare," Vita 2<to.
2 Vincens (Ch.), De I' icono graphic de S. Anne, Paris, Chaix, 1892. Schmitz,
" Die Anna-Bilder," in der Katholik, tome vii (1893). Schaumkell (E.), Der
Cult der H. Anna, Freiburg-im-Baden, Mohr, 1893 ; Acta SS., Jul., tome vii,
PP. 233-9.
S. Anna 163
The cult of this S. Anne was at first confined to the east. The first
mention of her outside of Syria and Jerusalem is at Constantinople,
where, according to Procopius, 1 in the middle of the sixth century,
Justinian erected a church in her honour. This was restored by
Justinian II a century and a half later. 2
The earliest trace of her cult in Rome is in a fresco in the Capella
Palatina, supposed by Mr. G. J. Turner to have been placed there by
l'<.pe Cun-tuntine, a Syrian by birth, after a visit made to Constanti-
n .pit- in ;
V tin- close of the ninth century appeared an Encomium on SS.
Joachim and Anna, from the pen of Cosmas Vestitor. George of
:nedia spoke her praises, so did Peter of Argos.
The first occurrence of S. Anne in a liturgical document is in a tenth
MY Sacramentary, " undoubtedly of Roman origin, and was
al>ly written for some Greek monks in Rome ; in its Holy Saturday
litany the first two names after the confessors are S. Anne and S. Eliza-
! , \vho have precedence even before all the Roman virgin martyrs." 4
Hut tlu- veneration of S. Anne, thus introduced, was confined to
Koine. In or about 800, however, her body was supposed to have
: discovered in a cave at Apt, and the elevation took place in the
presence of Charlemagne.
trace of any cult can be found in England till the marriage of our
Rirhard II with Anne of Bohemia, when the name spread, and by a
: ipt of Pope Urban VI, dated June 21, 1381, the veneration of the
MothT of Our Lady was ordered to be introduced; the command
forwarded by the Archbishop of Canterbury to the bishops under
metropolitan jurisdiction. 5 S. Anne is, however, found inserted
in the Exeter Martvrology of 1337, drawn up by Bishop Grandisson,
the friend of John XXII. Whilst staying with the Pope at Avignon,
lie had doubtless heard of the devotion to her relics at Apt, near by.
<r i;,Si S. Anne became a popular saint, and churches having
':<T dedications were rededicated to her in the fifteenth century.
And thenceforth her name appears in Calendars, previously it was
-piouously absent from them.
Among hymns in honour of S. Anne none date from an earlier period
1 DC (Fdificiis Justiniani, i, 3; iii. 185 ; in the Corpus Scriptontm Histonce
.iiitiiKr. Bonn, 1838.
Bamlurius. Impcrinm Occidental, ii, 656-7; Du Cange, ' Constant! nopolis
istiana, lib. IV. vii, 4, p. 143.
" Ha- Introduction of the Cultus of S. Anne into the West," in The English
' Review, xviii (1903), pp. 109-11.
4 Ibid., p. in.
5 B. Brantyngham's Register, ed. Hingi-ston-Randolph, 1901, p.
164 Lives of the British Saints
than the thirteenth or fourteenth century. In France there was a
Brotherhood of S. Anne in the thirteenth century.
Nevertheless there was no great extension of the cult till the period
just before the Reformation. Trithemius in his work, De Laudibus
S. Anna, which appeared in 1494, speaks of her memory as diu
neglecta. Valerius Anselm, in his Chronicle, under the year 1508 says
that till about that date Anne was little thought about ; and Tri-
themius speaks of the cult as quasi novum. Luther in his violent
fashion exclaimed, " How old is this idol, S. Anne ? Where was she
till some ten, twelve, forty years ago ? " and again, " We Germans
have been always inventing new saints and helpers in need, as is the
case of SS. Anne and Joachim, novelties not over thirty years old." *
The day of S. Anne, mother of the B.V.M., is July 26.
At Whitstone in Cornwall, where there is not only a church, but also
a Holy Well of S. Anne, the parish feast is on Easter Day. The way ii
which S. Anne in Brittany has stepped into the place of one of the
Bonse Deae, tutelary earth goddesses, and themselves representing the
Celtic or pre-Celtic Ane, mother of the gods, 2 may be judged from the
illustrations we give. The first represents a statue of a Bona Dea of
the Gallo-Romano period found at Rennes ; the second is an im;
above the Porte S. Malo at Dinan, representing S. Anne, bearing or
one arm the Blessed Virgin Mary, on the other Christ.
The genealogies of Coel Godebog, 3 of Rhodri the Great, 4 king oi
all Wales, consequently of all the royal families of Gwynedd, Po^
and Dyfed, also of S. Beuno, 5 S. David, 6 and S. Catwg, 7 are trace(
1 Schaumkell, Der Cult d. H. Anna, 1893.
2 Cormac (b. 831, d. 903), "Ana is mater deorum hibernensium, well she
used to nourish the gods, from whose name is said anae, i.e. abundance, and
from whose name are called the Two Paps of Ana, west of Luchair (County Kerry) ,
also Bu-anann, nurse of the heroes ... as Ann was mother of the gods, so Bu-
anann was mother of the Fiann." W. Stokes, Three Irish Glossaries, London,
1862, pp. xxxiii, 2, 5.
3 Harl.MS. 3859. A genealogy drawn up in the tenth century, but the MS.
of late eleventh or early twelfth century.
4 Ibid. The genealogy is traced up to Aballac, the son of Amalech, "qi
fuit Beli Magni filius et Anna mater ejus quam dicunt esse consobrina Mariae
Virginis Matris D'ni n'ri Ih'u Xp'i." Y Cymmrodor, ix, p. 170.
6 Cambro-British Saints, p. 21. Traced to " Belinus the son of Anna, who
was cousin to the Virgin Mary, the mother of Christ."
6 Ibid., pp. 102, 144. Traced to a " son of the sister of Mary."
7 Jesus Coll., Oxford, MS. 20, early fifteenth century. S. Catwg's pedigree
is traced back to Caswallon " the son of Beli the Great, the son of Anna. This
Anna was a daughter of a Roman Emperor, and said by the men of Egypt to
have been first cousin to the Virgin Mary." In the Cognatio of Brychan Bry-
cheiniog, his mother's ancestry is traced up to a certain "Annhun rex Gre-
corum " (Cambro-British Saints, p. 273). In the above noted Jesus Coll. MS. 20,
he appears as "Annwn du vrenhin groec." (Y Cymmrodor, viii, p. 83.)
S. ANNE'S WELL, WHITSTONE.
S. Anno 165
back to Anna, sister or cousin of the Blessed Virgin. This is none
other than the Great Earth Mother ; in the same way the Anglo-Saxon
kings derived their ancestry from Wuotan, and the Norse kings from
Odin, and the kings of Rome from Mars.
The great expansion given to the cult of S. Anne in Brittany is due
to a misconception and to a religious speculation. In 1625, whilst
ploughing a field at Keranna, in the parish of Plunevet, in Morbihan,
a farmer named Yves Nicolayic turned up out of the ground a statue,
probably a Bona Dea of the pagan Armoricans, numbers of which
have been found of late years, and, knowing nothing of the pre-Christian
religion of the early Armoricans, he rushed to the conclusion that it
represented S. Anne.
The Carmelites, who had been zealous advocates of the cult of the
ier of Our Lady, saw their opportunity and promptly seized on the
occasion. In 1637 they had constructed a chapel for the image, and had
organised pilgrimages to it, which met with great success. The image
dr>troyed at the Revolution, but the pilgrimages continue, and
;inc is esteemed the patroness of the Bretons.
The name of S. Anne occurs, as already said, in no early calendars.
It obtained admission in the fourteenth or fifteenth century, the day
being July 26 ; this was ordered to be observed by Gregory XIII in
1584. As already mentioned, Oxenhall, on a stream flowing into the
Severn, in Gloucestershire, is dedicated to S. Anne, and is the only
rlnnvli hearing that dedication that can by any probability be supposed
n foundation of the mother of S. Samson.
Siston, near Bristol, is also dedicated to S. Anne.
S. ANNO, or AMO
THIS Saint's name occurs only in the alphabetical catalogue of the
Welsh Saints in the Myvyrian Arcluriology. 1 It is there given as
Amo, but whether a male or female Saint we are not told. Two
ches are mentioned as being dedicated to the Saint. One is Llan-
amo in Radnorshire, which is to-day usually called Llananno. It is
subject to Llanbadarn Fynydd, and is sometimes said to be dedicated
to an imaginary S. Wonno. The other church mentioned is " Rhosyr
Mon," that is, Newborough, in Anglesey, called Llanamo in a MS.
1 P. 418.
Amo
chur,
1 66 Lives of the British Saints
belonging to Robert Vaughan of Hengwrt ; but it is added " Llannano
is the name in the neighbourhood." The Saint is classed by Re~
among those of uncertain date. 1 The Festival of S. Anno, May 20,
entered in the calendars in the lolo MSS. and Peniarth MS. 187,
and in some calendars of the eighteenth century.
S. ANNUN, or ANHUN, Virgin
ANXUN, or Anhun, lived in the fifth century, and was the handmaid
(llawforwyn) of S. Madrun, daughter of Gwrthefyr Fendigaid, or
Vortimer, and wife of Ynyr Gwent. 2 In the lolo MSS. her name is
misspelt Annan. 3
In con junction with her mistress she is said 4 to have founded the
church of Trawsfynydd, in Merionethshire. The following is the legend
told about its foundation. Madrun, accompanied by her maid Anhun,
was making a pilgrimage to Bardsey, and reaching the place now called
Trawsfynydd at dusk, very tired, rested themselves for the night
under shelter of a thicket. In their sleep they both dreamt that they
heard a voice calling to them, " Adeiledwch Eglwys yma " (Build
here a church). In the morning when they awoke, the one told her
dream to the other, and they were greatly astonished to find that they
had both dreamt the same dream. They, thereupon, in obedience to
the supernatural command, built the church, which was afterwards
dedicated in their honour. 5
Browne Willis, 6 however, gives the church of Trawsfynydd as dedi-
cated to S. Madrun alone, with festival on June 9.
Annun, or Anhun, was also a man's name. The name is derived from
Antonius or Antonia.
1 Welsh Saints, p. 306.
2 Hafod MS. 16, Peniarth MS. 76 (sixteenth century), Myv. Arch., pp. 418,
428. 3 p. I45-
4 Rees, Welsh Saints, p. 164.
' Enwogion Cymru, p. 25 (Liverpool, 1870).
e Survey of Bangor, 1721, p. 277.
S. Arddun Benasgell 167
S. ANNUN DDU, see S. AMWN DDU
S. ARANWEN, Matron
\KAXWKN was one of the numerous daughters of Brychan Brych-
t -in log. 1 Rees 2 thinks that she was probably a granddaughter of his.
Shf \va> tl it- wife of lorwerth Hirflawdd, son of Tegonwy abTeon, of the
lint- <it IUli Muwr, Kingof Britain. 3 lorwerth is, in the Vespasian Cogna-
tion, said to have been "King of Powys, thence called lorwerthion."
5, Aranwcn is said to have been mother of Caenog Mawr, 4 from whom
ipposed to be derived the parish name Clocaenog, and Caenog and
Esgyn Gaenog in Gwyddelwern, in the county of Denbigh ; but this
.-it correct. Caenog was her brother-in-law. 5 There are no
(Indicated to her. nor does her name appear in the Calendars.
S. ARDDUN BENASGELL, Matron
. ARDDUN, who usually bears the epithet Penasgell, that is, " Wing-
led." lived in the sixth century, and was a daughter of S. Pabo
Iain (or rather, Prydyn, " Pictland"), a king in the North,
on losing his territory in wars with the Gwyddyl Ffichti, or
< " *ddic Picts, retired to Wales, where he was well received by Cyngen
idfll Deyrnllwg, Prince of Powys, from whom, as well as from his
son Hrodiwfl Ysgythrog.he received grants of land. Arddun had as
!>mtlu'rs SS. Dunawd and Sawyl Benisel. She married Brochwel
lnog, Prince of Powys, to whom she bore, among other children,
^ilio. She is included in late catalogues only of the Welsh Saints, 6
1 Cognatio in Cott. Vesp. A. xiv, and Cott. Dom. i ; Jesus Coll. MS. 20 ; lolo
in, 121, 140; Myv. Arch., pp. 417, 419. i n the Domitian Cogn.
tered as " Arganwen apud Powis," and in the Jesus MS. as " Wrgrgen
gwreic loroerth hirblant."
* Welsh Saints, p. 146.
3 Pedigrees in Mostyn MS. 117 (thirteenth century)
yv Arch., p. 417. * Mostyn MS., already referred to.
lolo MSS., pp. 109. 126; Myv. Arch., pp. 417, 43I .
i 6 8 Lives of the British Saints
but no churches are attached to her name, though the Cambrian Bio-
graphy 1 says " some Welsh churches are dedicated to her." Dolard-
dun, an old manor house in the parish of Castle Caereinion, Mont-
gomeryshire, is believed to be called after her. 2 There was another
Arddun, the wife of Cadgor ab Gors(lwyn, and also a Ceindrych
" Benasgell." But, indeed, other women in all ages have a claim
to be called wingheaded or flighty.
S. ARIANELL, Virgin
ARIANELL, or Arganhell, was a daughter of Guidgentivai, a man of
royal family, probably in Gwent ; she was possessed by an evil spirit,
in other words, was deranged. She had to be kept in bonds to be
preserved from throwing herself into the river or into the fire, and from
biting and tearing her clothes and all about her.
The father appealed to S. Dubricius, who cast forth the evil spirit
and restored the girl to soundness in the presence of her father and
relatives. When thus recovered, she devoted herself to religion under
the supervision of the saint, and remained a virgin consecrated to God
until her death. 3
There was a stream of the name that had its rise in S. Maughan's
parish, Monmouthshire, and is mentioned in the Book of Llan Ddv as
forming the bounds on one side of the territory of Lann Tipallai, which
the editors of the Book of Llan Ddv suppose to be the Parsonage Farm,
west of S. Maughan. 4 But the grant made was to Dubricius by Britcon
Hail, 5 and no mention is made in it of the damsel Arganhell, so
that we cannot be sure that this was the site of the place of monastic
retreat of the saintly maiden. The stream Arganhell is apparently
that which rises near Newcastle (Castell Meirch) and runs nearly
due west to -east, keeping north of S. Maughan's Church, and empties
into the Monnow. It has lost its ancient name. The other brook
that flows into the Trothy passing through HendrePark retains its
name, Bawddwr.
1 P. II (1803). 2 Myv. Arch., p. 417.
3 " Quae in tantum vexabatur quod vix funibus cum ligatis manibus poterat
retineri quin mergeretur flumine quin comburetur igne, quin consumeret omnia
sibi adherentia dentibus." Book of Llan Ddv, pp. 82-3.
4 Ibid., pp. 75, 372; cf. p. 173. 6 Ibid., p. 171.
S. Arthen
169
S. ARIANWEN, see S. ARANWEN
S. ARILDA, Virgin, Martyr
THIS Saint is noticed in a Martyrology in the British Museum, A.D.
4 MS. Reg. A. xiii, as honoured at Gloucester Abbey. In
t m old i>:>em on this Abbey, printed at the end of Hearne's edition of
: t of Gloucester's Chronicle, are these lines :
Thes wonderfull workes wrought by power divine,
Be not hid, nor palliat, but flourish daylie
\Yitness hereof is Arilde that blessed Virgin
Which martyrized at Kinton nigh Thornebury,
Hither was translated, and in this monastery
Comprised, and did miracles many one,
As whosoe list to looke may find in hir Legion.
Unhappily her " Legion " is lost.
Tin.- place of her martyrdom was Kington by Thornbury in Glouces-
ire. Both the period to which she belonged and the stock,
\\hcther English or British, are unknown.
\Yhvttorcl gives as her day, July 20. " In englonde at glocester
feest of saynt Aryld a virgyn and martyr."
S. ARTHEN, Confessor
S. AKTHEN, or Arthan, was one of the sons of Brychan Brycheiniog,
cl his name in the Cognatio and most lists occurs as the fourth son. 1
the Domitian Cognalio he is entered, " Arthen qui erat pater Kynon
n Manan." There was a church once dedicated to him in
\vynlly\vg, but " was destroyed by the Pagan English," and he
as buried in " Manaw." 2 This church was no doubt the extinct
lamirtlu'n, near Marshfield, Monmouthshire. Rhiw Arthen, near
bi-rystwyth, is supposed to have been called after him, but with
eater probability after Arthen (or Arthgen), " King of Ceredigion,"
who died in 80 7. 3
1 lolo MSS., pp. 108, in, 119, 140 ; Myv. Arch., pp. 417, 419.
* See the same references. Nicolas Roscarrock says that he was a saint in
of Man ; this was due to his supposing that Manaw stood for that island,
but there was a Manaw Gododin in North Britain.
1 Annalcs Cambria, p. n.
170 Lives of the British Saints
Possibly his name is perpetuated in the Brecknockshire hill-name
Cefn Arthen, within his father's territory. As to his name, the vocable
arthcm (common gender) means a bear's whelp, arthen being the
feminine form of the same. His name under the form Arthan occurs
in one list only.
S. ARTHFODDW, Confessor
ARTHBODU, hodie Arthfoddw, was one of the disciples of S. Dyfrig at
Hentland, and may be also at Mochros, orMoccas, in Herefordshire. 1
He was the founder of Lann Arthbodu, in Gower, possibly the Pen-
nard (S. Mary) of to-day. 2 It was merely a cell. There was an
Artbodgu, the son of Bodgu, who in the old Welsh genealogies
of Harleian MS. 3859 is given as fifth in descent from Cunedda
Wledig. 3 <~ U+ C^
S. ARTHMAEL, or ARTHFAEL, Abbot, Confessor
ON the Cross at Llantwit is the inscription testifying that Samson the
Abbot made the cross for his own soul and for those of luthael
the king and Artmail or Arthmael. It has been supposed that
the cross is of later date than the sixth century, and that it was not
erected by S. Samson to the memory of King luthael and his
companion Arthmael, but at a time posterior, and that the luthael and
Arthmael thereon named belonged to this later date, and to the
house of Morganwg ; moreover the style of decoration supports this
view. The coincidence of names at two periods is remarkable, for
S. Samson's great work was the restoration of the princely line in
Domnonia, the placing of luthael on the throne in 555, and Arthmael
was his great helper in the work.
The authorities for the Life of S. Arthmael are these : The Lections in
the Breviary of Rennes, fifteenth cent., that of Leon, 1516, the Breviary
of S. Malo, 1537, and that of Vannes, 1589. The original in the
1 Book of Llan Ddv, p. 80.
2 Ibid., p. 144 ; Col. Morgan, Antiquarian Survey of East Gower, 1899, p. 202.
3 Y Cymmrodor, ix, p. 181.
S. Arthmael 171
Breviary of Leon, 1516, exists in a copy made by Benedictines of the
seventeenth or eighteenth cent., printed by Roparz, Notice sur Ploermel,
P. 163. That from the Breviary of S. Malo, printed at Paris, 1489,
is in the Ada Sanctorum, Aug., t. iii, pp. 298-9. Albert le Grand
s the Life from the Breviaries of Leon and Folgoet the latter no
longer exists also from the Legendarium of Plouarzel, which has also
;>peared. Albert le Grand is usually very reliable in what he
.icts from documents no longer accessible, though reckless in
attribution of dates. The earliest text we have is that of the Rennes
. lary, and this is later than the twelfth century, but is probably
I on an earlier life.
Arthmael was born in Morganwg, in the cantref of Penychen. We
not told the names of his parents, but this we obtain from the
~h genealogies. From one in the lolo MSS., p. 133, we learn that
,iel, Dwyfael, and Arthfael were sons of Hywel, son of Emyr
I.lyilaw. cousins of S. Cadfan ; they were members of S. Illtyd's " choir,"
afterwards were with S. Cadfan in Bardsey. Arthmael was
Mingly first cousin of S. Samson, S. Padarn, S. Maglorius, S. Malo,
and brother probably of S. Tudwal of Treguier, and perhaps also of
Leonore.
According to the Life in the Breviaries, he was educated in a monas-
under a certain abbot Caroncinalis, more properly Carentmael, but
dnl not become a monk. He lived as a secular priest, till one day enter-
tlu' church he heard the deacon read the gospel : " Whosoever he
vou that forsaketh not all that he hath cannot be My disciple."
'his seemed to him to be spoken to himself. He therefore resolved on
I'mndoning his own land, his parents, and his property. He went to
irontmael and told him his purpose. The abbot agreed to depart also,
id a large body of colonists left South Wales together with Caroncinalis
id Arthmael. They landed in the mouth of the Aber Benoit in Finis-
'. the principality of Leon, and went inland till they formed a
tt lenient where is now Plouarzel.
< arentmael is said to have been a near kinsman of Paul of Leon,
it he has left no impression in the district where he settled, and
he is not numbered among the Breton Saints.
Arthmael remained at Plouarzel some years till the death of Jonas,
king of Domnonia, in or about 540, when Conmore married the widow,
and obliged Judual, or luthael, the prince, to fly for his life to the court
of Childebert. ArthmaeJ, like Leonore and other Saints of Armorica,
got on bad terms with the regent Conmore, and he was obliged to
l-a\v and go to Paris, where he did his utmost to induce Childebert to
lisplace Conmore and restore Judual. His efforts were unavailing,
172 Lives of the British Saints
till the arrival of Samson, whose energy and persistence in the same
cause broke down finally the King's opposition, and they were suffered
to return to Brittany, and organise an insurrection on behalf of Judual.
This succeeded, and Conmore was killed in battle in 555. Judual
rewarded Arthmael for his services by giving him land on the Seiche,
now in Hie et Vilaine, where is the village of S. Armel. Here he
established a monastery. A dragon infested the neighbourhood ; he
went to it, put his stole about its neck, and conducted it to the river.
He bade the monster precipitate itself into the stream, and was at once
obeyed. This is a symbolic way of saying that he subdued Conmore,
the old dragon of Domnonia.
Passing one day by the valley of Loutehel, the people complained
to him that they lacked good water, and with his staff he miraculously
produced a spring. He would seem to have established another
monastery at Ploermel, near the pretty lake called 1'Etang du Due, in
a well-wooded rolling country. Whether he died and was buried there
or in his territory near the Seiche, and where is his tomb in the church,
is uncertain. How long this was after the restoration of Judual we do
not know, but it was somewhere about 570.
He was formerly patron of Ergue- Armel, near Quimper, but has
been supplanted by S. Allorius. There is a fountain of the Saint at
Loutehel, and another prettily situated near the road to Vannes at
Ploermel. At this latter place is a window of stained glass of the
sixteenth century, representing the story of the Saint in eight compart-
ments : i. S. Arthmael bidding farewell to his parents. 2. S. Arth-
mael healing a leper. 3. The messenger of Childebert summons
Arthmael to court. 4. Arthmael performing a miraculous cure. 5
Arthmael and his companions bid farewell to King Childebert. 6. S.
Arthmael with his stole round the dragon. 7. S. Arthmael precipita-
ting the dragon into the river. 8. The death of the Saint. 1 Arthmael
became one of the most popular Saints of Brittany.
In addition to the parish churches of Plouarzel, Ploermel and S. Armel
Loutehel, and Ergue- Armel, those of Languedias and Langoet were
dedicated to him, and he had chapels at Bruz, at Fougeray, Lantic,
Radenac, S. Jouan de ITsle, S. Glen, Sarzeau, and Dinan. His day is
most generally regarded as August 16, Missal of Vannes, 1530 ; Breviary
of Vannes, 1589 ; MS. Calendar of S. Meen, fifteenth century ; Breviary
of Dol, 1519 ; Proper of Vannes, 1660 ; and the MS. Breviary of
S. Melanius, Rennes, 1526, Albert le Grand, and Dom Lobineau.
On the other hand August 14 is his day in the Breviary of S. Malo,
1 Roparz (S.), La Legende de S. Armel, S. Brieuc. The window is engraved in
La Legend? de S. Armel, S. Brieuc, 18155, c - xii > P- 133-
S. Arthneu 173
1537' ancl m tnat f Leon, 1516 ; August 15, a Missal of S. Malo,
fifteenth century; August 17, the Quimper Breviary of 1835; July
27, the Vannes Breviary of 1757.
The name Arthmael has become in Breton Arzel and Armel and
Ermel. He does not seem to have received any cult m Wales, but in
Cornwall Arthmael had a chapel, and was represented on the screen
( I 53 1 )- h a d an altar, and was commemorated annually at Stratton. 1
S. Arthmael is represented in stained glass of the end of the fifteenth
ginning of the sixteenth century in the church of S. Sauveur,
Dinan, habited as an ecclesiastic with an amice over his shoulder and
a cap on his head, and with a green dragon at his feet, bound by his
At Ploermel, in like manner in brown habit ; but at Languedias
statue of the seventeenth century that represents him as an
abbot, trampling on a dragon, which he holds bound with his stole.
Arthmael is invoked for the healing of rheumatism and gout.
\ "II would seem to have brought with him from Brittany a
ition for this saint. There is a fine statuette of him in Henry
VII '- Chapel, Westminster, where he is represented as trampling on
ragon. and mailed, with gauntlets on his hands. This is a
;ice to his designation as " Miles fortissimus " in the legend as
in the Breviary of Leon, 1516, and in the Rennes Prose of 1492,
in which he is invoked as " armigere " against the enemies of our
salvation. On Cardinal More ton's monument in the crypt of Canter-
burv Cathedral he is also represented, but the figure there has been
usly mutilated, head and hands have gone.
Ermyn's Hotel, Westminster, stands on S. Ermyn's Hill. This
t mentioned in 1496 as S. Armille's, and later on the name is
ioun.l as Armell, Armen, Ermyne and Armet. There was a chapel
in the seventeenth century, which is now represented by the
modern parish church of Christchurch, Westminster.
For the Bibliography of S. Arthmael, see F. Duine, Saints de la
, iii, S. Armel, Paris, Le Dault, 1905.
S. ARTHNEU, or ARTHNE, Confessor
'HIS Saint's name is inserted in the alphabetical catalogue of tl o
Welsh Saints in the Myvyrian Archaiology only, 2 but without any
genealogical particulars. Llanarthney, in the Vale of Towy, Carmar-
1 ("roukling, The Blanchminster Charity, Lond., 1898. In this it is said that
:?neday, or Feast of the Saint, was observed at Stratton, but the day is not
P. 418.
174 Lives of the British Saints
thenshire, was probably dedicated to him originally. 1 Rees and
others give it as dedicated now to S. David. There once existed a
Capel Dewi in the parish. In the twelfth century Book of Llan Lav
the parish name is written Lann hardneu. 2
S. ARYAN, Confessor
THERE is a church in Monmouthshire bearing this title. In the four-
teenth century procurations added to the Book of Llan Davit is called
Ecclesia de Sancto Aruyno. 3 But in 955, this church seems to be that
spoken of as Ecclesia Sanctorum Jarmen et Febric, 4 to which fled a
deacon for sanctuary when he had basely murdered a man who was
binding up his wounded thumb. The circumstances were these. The
deacon accosted a reaper in a field, and they came to words, when the
reaper struck at the deacon with his hook and sliced off one of his
fingers. The deacon begged the man to bind up the wound, and whilst
the latter was so engaged, he stabbed him to the heart with a knife, and
then ran to the church for refuge. The relatives of the murdered man
broke into the church and killed the deacon before the altar. Bishop
Pater was furious. He summoned a Council, and threatened the King
with excommunication, unless the culprits were delivered up. King
Nogui surrendered the six men, and the bishop confined them in prison
at Llandaff, fast chained for six months, and then only released them
on condition that they paid a heavy fine in money, and surrendered all
their possessions to the church. 5 As these lay near S. Arvan's, there
can exist no doubt that this was the church called that of SS. Jarmen
jand Febric. Surely this was one of the most iniquitous judgments
.ever delivered.
S. ARWYSTL, Confessor
THE various late genealogies of the Welsh Saints mention three
Saints of the name of Arwystl, or Arwystli.
i. Arwystl, or Arwystli Hen ("the Aged"). He is said to have been a
man from Italy, who came with Bran ab Llyr Llediaith as his confessor
1 Welsh Saints, p. 329. 2 P. 279, ed. Evans and Rhys.
3 Book of Llan Ddv, p. 322. 4 Ibid., 219.
Sinodo judicante diffinitum est ut unusquisque eorumsuum agrum, suam-
que substantiam insuper et pretium animae suae hoc septem libras ar^cnti
redderet ecclesiae quam maculaverat." Ibid., p. 220.
S. Arwystl 175
(pcriglawr] to the Isle of Britain, to teach the Faith in Christ. 1 Two
others are said to have accompanied him, Hid and Cyndaf. 2 Arwystl,
>r Arwystli, is, by many writers now out of date, identified with Aristo-
bulus, mentioned by S. Paul in his Epistle to the Romans, xvi, 10, who,
in the Greek Menologies, is said to have been ordained bishop by S. Paul
and sent by him to Britain. 3 But the story has no foundation what-
, \vr, and the name Arwystl, or Arwystli, cannot possibly be squared
with Aristobulus. In Mediaeval Welsh it appears as Arguistil, and
occurs frequently in that form in the Book of Llan Ddv* Arwystl,
which occurs also as a common Welsh vocable, means a pledge or
urity.
Arwystl, a son of Cunedda Wledig, who in the filth cen-
tury came from the North with his sons and settled in Wales.
He is included among the Welsh Saints only once, in a passage
in the lolo MSS., 5 where it is stated that he " won a district,
whicli was given him, and he called it after his own name, Arwystli ;
and he himself is there called Arwystl of Arwystli." The district-
name is preserved in that of a Rural Deanery in Montgomeryshire. No
( IHIK lu-s are mentioned as having been dedicated to him ; in fact,
there is no authority for including him among the Welsh Saints.
Cunedda list in the document referred to is an unwarranted
insertion.
3. Arwystl, or Arwystli Gloff (" the Lame "), whose name is given as
that of one of the ten sons of Seithenin ab Seithin, " King of Gwyddno's
Plain, whose land was submerged by the sea ; and they became Saints
in Bangor Fawr in Maelor, on the banks of the Dee." 6 Arwystl after-
wards became an inmate of Bardsey Bangor. He married Tywanwedd,
or Tywynwedd, daughter of Amlawdd Wledig, and by her had seven
liildren, who were at first saints in Bangor on Dee, and, after its
ruction, in the Bardsey Bangor.
Kie country called Gwyddno's Plain is better known as Cantre'r
elod, or the Bottom Hundred, and is said to form the Cardigan
of to-day. The story of its submersion is told in its oldest form
le Black Book of Carmarthen. 7
1 lolo MSS., pp. 108, 135. 2 Ibid., pp. 100, 115, 135.
Hadclan and Stubbs, Councils, etc., i, p. 24.
Seethe ; idexto the edition by Evans and Rhys ; cf. VitaS. Cadoci, Cambro-
ish Sain's, p. 83.
lolo MSS., p. 122. Nicolas Roscarrock, from a MS. of E. Powell, priest,
CUTS. " s. Arwistle, lord of Arwistly, second son of Cunedag, who had eleven or
t \\.-l\r brothers and one sister, most whereof were patrons in Wales."
* lolo MSS., pp. 108, 141-2, 145. On p. 124 he is wrongly said to have been
son of Owain Danwyn.
Skcne, Four Ancient Books of Wales, ii, p. 59.
i 7 6 Lives of the British Saints
In the older genealogies, however, Arwystl is never included as a
saint, but merely as the father of saints, such as Deifer of Bodfari,
Teyrnog of Llandyrnog, etc. ; and his name is in them spelt Hawystyl
and Awystyl Gloff . So his title to saintship cannot stand.
4. There is one Arwystl, however, who is entitled to saintship
Arguistil or Arwystl, the disciple of S. Dubricius at Hentland and
Moccas, and who was consecrated by him bishop.
He obtained a grant of LannCoitfrom I don, son of Ynyr Gwent, 1
and there is good reason to suppose that this is Lancaut on the Glouces-
tershire side of the Wye, occupying a peninsula almost completely
surrounded by the river. In the time of Idon it was doubtless included
in the kingdom of Gwent Iscoed. No details are given in the Book of
Llan Ddv as to its locality. It must have been devastated by the
Saxons, and then, perhaps, the Church of Llandaff laid claim to another
Llangoed on the strength of the name.
Arwystl became associated with S. Teilo ; perhaps, when the Yellow
Plague broke out, he was one of those who accompanied him to
Brittany, for we find there a S. Argoestle, in the Diocese of Vannes,
named in a deed of 1280, patron of a church ; the name has now been
softened to S. Allouestre. 2 The foundation is not far from the Gildasian
monastery of the name.
As nothing was known of the Argoestle from which the parish took
its name, S. Arnulf, bishop of Metz, has been substituted for him as
patron. The foundation was made near the old Roman road from
Corseul to Vannes.
Probably in 556 Arwystl returned to Wales with S. Teilo, and as
his church was deserted, the territory depopulated by the plague, he
seems to have attached himself to Llandaff, for he witnessed several of
the grants made to S. Teilo. In later times, when the fable had been
given currency that Dubricius had been the first bishop of Llandaff,
and when Llandaff laid claims to all the possessions of Dubricius and
his disciples, then Arwystl was worked into the series of bishops of
Llandaff. 3 He does not seem to have survived S. Teilo, as his name
does not occur as a witness during the rule of S. Oudoceus.
The whole matter of the interpolation of the list of bishops, and of
the absorption of the Dubricius churches by Llandaff, shall be dealt
with fully when we come to the Life of Dubricius.
1 Book of Llan Ddv, p. 166.
2 Le Mene, Paroisses de Vannes, Vannes, 1894, ^> P- 344-
3 Book of Llan Ddv, pp. 303, 311.
S. Asaph
177
S. ASAPH, Bishop, Confessor
>. ASAPH lived during the latter part of the sixth and the beginning
seventh century. Like SS. David, Deiniol, Samson, and a few
others of the Welsh Saints, he bore a Biblical name, which assumed
in Welsh the forms Assaf or Asaf and Assa or Asa. 1 The genealogies
of the Welsh Saints invariably give his father's name as Sawyl (occa-
sionally, Sawel) Benuchel, the son of Pabo Post Prydyn, 2 but in the
\vry early genealogies in Harleian MS. 3859 (compiled apparently in
tlu- latter part of the tenth century) he appears as " Samuil pennissel
map Pappo post priten," 3 with the epithet " Penisel " (of the low head)
for " Penuchel " (of the high head). The later genealogists confounded
him with the Glamorganshire chieftain (dux), Sawyl Benuchel, described
in a Triad as one of " the three overbearing ones of the Isle of Brit-
tany," 4 and who with his men took upon him to annoy S. Cadoc and
his clerics. 5 They were punished by being all swallowed up by the
earth, and he could not therefore have been the Sawyl who became
a saint or monk of Bangor on Dee.
The following brief genealogical table will be of service :
S. Pabo Post
1
Prydyn.
= Gwenasedd
da. Rhiain
Rhieinwg.
r~
dun
we!
throg.
S. Dunawd
Dwywai da.
Gwallog ab
Lleenog.
S. Cerwydd.
Sawyl BeniseU
niol, S. Cynwyl.
B.
. G
S. Gwarthan.
Guitcun. S. Asaph.
Catguallaun Liu.
S. Asaph's grandfather, Pabo, " the Pillar of Prydyn " (Pictland),
hailed from the North. Having been worsted by the Gwyddyl Ffichti,
or Pictish Goidels, he retired into Wales, where he was welcomed by
Cyngen, king of Powys, who gave him land. He was the father of
Dunawd, Cerwydd, Sawyl, and Arddun, and from being a king
1 It was locally pronounced Hassa in the eighteenth century. Willis, Survey
f^h, 1720, p. 127. Aseph occurs in Welsh pedigrees.
- Peniarth MSS. 12, 16 and 45 ; Hafod MS. 16 ; Myv. Arch., pp. 417-8;
i/o MSS., pp. 1 02, 125, 128 ; Cambro-British Saints, p. 266.
:1 V c \ mmrodor, ix, p. 179. In Peniarth MS. 74 (sixteenth century) he is
lk-d " Sawl Ben Isel."
1 M : . Arch., p. 389.
5 Vita S. Cadoci in Cambro-British Saints, pp. 42-3, where his name occurs
" Sauuil pennuchel." Another Sawyl Benuchel is mentioned in Geoffrey's
it. rd. Rhys and Evans, p. 82.
VOL. I. N
I 7 8 Lives of the British Saints
became a religious at his son's (Dunawd) Bangor on the Dee, of which
Sawyl was also a member.
S. Asaph's mother was Gwenassedd, or Gwenaseth. 1 The older and
later pedigrees differ entirely as regards the name of her father. From
the older genealogies, e.g., in Peniarth MSS. 16 and 45 (thirteenth
century) and Hafod MS. 16 (c. 1400), we learn that she was the daugh-
ter of Rhiein (Rhiein Ha el or Rhein) of Rhieinwc ; that is, Rhiain
{Rhain) or Rhiain Hael of Rhieinwg. The district name means " the
land of Rhiain " (cf. Morganwg), which shows that he was a person of
sufficient importance to bestow his name upon a district. Rhieinwg
or Rheinwg was an ancient name of Dyfed, but it took the name from
a person who, we know, lived at an earlier period than Gwenassedd's
lather ; so that here we are confronted with a distinct district, wherever
it may have been situated.
This puzzled the later genealogists, and they not only converted
Rhiain or Rhain into Rhun, but went a step further by identifying this
Rhun with Rhufawn, son of Cunedda Wledig, who has given name to
the cantref of Rhufoniog, in Denbighshire, situated on the western side
of the Elwy of the (ancient) parish of S. Asaph. He is thus noticed
in the lolo MSS. 2 :
" Rhufawn, the son of Cunedda Wledig, received the cantref which
was called after him Rhufoniog ; and he is called Rhufawn of Rhu-
foniog, and also Rhun Hael of Rhufoniog, because he was the most
generous man in Wales in his times."
S. Asaph's nephew, Cadwallon Llyw (or Lliw), may possibly be
identical with the Cathwallanus of Jocelin's Life of S. Kentigern,
c. 23, who granted that saint land to found his monastery at
Llanelwy.
Jocelin says S. Asaph was " distinguished by birth," and it may be
observed that he was a nephew of S. Dunawd, founder of Bangor on Dee,
and a cousin of S. Deiniol, founder and first Bishop of Bangor. He was
very probably a native of the cantref of Tegeingl in Northern Flintshire
{represented by the old Deanery of the name, now divided into those
of S. Asaph and Holywell, with part in that of Mold), for there his
memory chiefly lingers in the topography. When quite a boy he was
placed as a disciple under S. Kentigern or Cyndeyrn, the exiled bishop
of the Britons ol Strathclyde, at his college on the Elwy, founded
about 560, which had become so famous that " the number of
those who enlisted in the army of God amounted to 965, who professed
in act and manner the monastic rule according to the institution of the
holy man." " Nobles and men of the middle class brought their chil-
1 In one notice (lolo MSS., p. 125) she is made to be his grandmother, wife
of Pabo. * P. 122.
S. Asaph 179
dren to the Saint to be brought up in the nurture of the Lord." l Here
he soon became distinguished as the ablest and most popular member.
There was a Vita Sancti Asaph in the Red Book of 5. Asaph, the
original of which has long been lost. There is an imperfect transcript of
the MS., of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries in the Episcopal
Library at S. Asaph, but unfortunately the so-called Life is merely a
fragment, and what now remains is practically a Life of S. Cyndeyrn. 2
\Vh;it is told us therein about S. Asaph is very little, and is to be found
in the involved prologue. The author says : " I have sought, with
diligent love, the Life of the most glorious Confessor and Pontiff, Asaph,
our Patron, in various places, in monasteries, cathedrals, and Baptismal
Churches." He then proceeds to summarise what had been told at
length in the Life of the Blessed Kentigern about the foundation of
the See, and supplements it with a little about S. Asaph's election and
consecration, " the sweetness of his conversation, the symmetry,
:r, and elegance of his body, the virtues and sanctity of his heart,
and the manifestation of his miracles."
There is no clue as to who the hagiographer was, but he was very
probably one of the cathedral clergy, who lived between the beginning
<>t tiio twelfth and the beginning of the fourteenth century, and com-
pilnl the Life (" hoc opusculum," as he describes it), in popular form,
from various written sources, to demonstrate the sanctity of the two
Saints, and edify the faithful. It would thus supply the Legenda for
lint's Day. Possibly it was also intended to support the change
from Llanelwy or Elvensis to S. Asaph. According to the prologue
it wa^ compiled, in addition to the various documents in Welsh, out
of an extant Life in Latin (ex uno libro Latino), which was in all
probability the "little book of his Life " referred to and quoted from
celin. The latter, now lost, may have been based upon a Life
written probably by a disciple of S. Asaph himself.
Most of what is known about S. Asaph is to be gleaned from the
of S. Kentigern, especially that by Jocelin, a monk of Furness,
written about 1180. We are there told that among the brotherhood
. Ancient Lives of Scottish Saints, translated, p. 232 (Paisley, 1895).
- Mil- l.ihcr Rubcr Assavcnsis, generally called in Welsh " Coch Asaph," is
said to have been originally compiled during the episcopate of Dafycld ab Bleddyn,
as consecrated in 1314 (Willis, S. Asaph, p. 51). See Archceologia Cam-
cnsis for 1868 for its contents. The Vita covers pp. 42-6. Soon following
ie prologue " two great leaves " are said to be wanting in the original, and it
as also imperfect at the end. There is another transcript of the MS. made in
1602. in the Peniarth Collection (MS. 231), of which considerable use was made
by Hacldan and Stubbs in their Councils, etc., vol. i. Gwallter Mechain (d. 1849)
saw the original MS. (imperfect, beginning at p. 53) in the possession of a
Merionethshire person.
i 8 o Lives of the British Saints
at Llaneiwy was "one Asaph by name, distinguished by birth and
presence, shining in virtues and miracles from the flower of his earliest
youth. He sought to follow the life and teaching of his master, as may
be learnt more fully by reading a little .book of his Life, from which
I have thought fit to insert in this work one miracle, because the
perfection of the disciple is the glory of the master. For on one occa-
sion, in the time of winter, when the frost had contracted .and con-
gealed everything, S. Kentigern, having according to his custom recited
the Psalter naked in the coldest water, and having after putting on his
clothes gone out in public, he began to be greatly oppressed by the
intensity of the cold, and in a measure to become entirely rigid. . . .
The holy father therefore ordered the boy Asaph to bring fire to him,
at which he might warm himself. The Lord's child ran to the oven
and begged that coals might be given him. And when he had nothing
in which to carry the burning coals, the servant said to him either in
joke or seriously : ' If thou wish to take the coals, spread out thy
dress, for 1 have nothing at hand in which thou mayest carry them.'
The holy boy, fervent in faith, and trusting in the sanctity of the
master, without hesitating, having gathered up his dress, held it out,
and received into his lap the live coals, and carrying them to the old
man cast them forth in his sight from his bosom, without any sign of
burning or corruption being apparent on his dress. 1 The greatest
astonishment, therefore, took hold upon all who were present because
the fire carried in the dress had not in the least burnt combustible
material. A friendly dispute arose between the father and his holy
disciple concerning this sign, for the one seemed to maintain his ground
by assertions to which the other as justly objected. The bishop
ascribed the working of the sign to the innocence and obedience of the
holy boy ; the boy asserted that it was done on account of the merits and
sanctity of the bishop, obeying whose command and trusting in whose
holiness he had ventured to attempt it. ... S. Kentigern, therefore,
who up to this time had held the venerable boy Asaph dear and beloved,
from that day henceforward regarded him as the dearest and best loved
of all, and as soon as he conveniently could, raised him to holy orders." 2
When, as the result of the great Battle of Arderydd in 573, Rhydderch
Hael established himself as the first monarch of the Kingdom of
Cumbria, he recalled S. Cyndeyrn to resume his ecclesiastical primacy
1 This was not an uncommon miracle among the Welsh Saints ; cf. the case
of S. Caffo in the Vita S. Kebii, and that of S. Cadoc in the Vita S. Tathei,
Catnbro-British Saints, pp. 186, 261.
2 Metcalfe, ut supra, pp. 234-5. The little known to the Bollandists o!
S. Asaph is to be found in Acta Sanctorum, Maii, i, p. 82.
S. Asaph 181
over that region as Bishop of Glasgow, which he held until his death
iji (.12. Before leaving Llanelwy he solemnly addressed the brother-
hood, and, "with the unanimous consent of all, appointed S. Asaph
, tfovcniment of tlu- monastery, and by petition of the people,
and by the canonical election of the clergy, successor of his bishopric.
When the sermon was ended he enthroned S. Asaph in the
< athrdral seat, and again blessing and bidding them all farewell, he
unit forth by the North door of the church, because he was going
forth to combat the northern enemy. When he had gone out that
was closed, and all who saw or heard of his going out or departure
iled his absence with great lamentations. Hence the custom
UP in that church that that door should not be opened except
,i year, on the festival of S. Asaph, that is, on the Kalends of May,
\vo reasons. First, in deference to the sanctity of him who had
forth ; secondly, because thereby was indicated the great grief
of those who had bewailed his departure. Therefore, on the day of
,ij.h that door is opened, because when he succeeded the blessed
Kent ii;nn in the government their mourning was turned into joy.
I ; n>m that monastery a great part of the brethren, to the number of
: niK in no wise able or willing, so long as he lived, to live without
him. went with him. Only 300 remained with S. Asaph." :
S. ("vndeyrn mu>t be regarded as the first Bishop of Llanelwy, as
well as the founder of the religious establishment there. Jocelin says
that " in the church of the monastery he established the Cathedral
< hair of his bishopric, the diocese of which was the greater part of the
in country, which by his preaching he won for the Lord." 2 A
document, some centuries later, printed in the lolo MSS., differs in
that it makes S. Asaph "the first Bishop in Bangor Assaf." 3 S.
< "vndeyrn's name has never been associated with the nomenclature of
either cathedral or diocese, which were originally known, and still are
b\ Welsh-speaking people, as Llanelwy, " the Church on the Elwy "
mdaff). 4 The English name S. Asaph (never S. Asaph's) is not
i to have occurred earlier than the beginning of the twelfth
century, since which time both names have coexisted. In mediaeval
documents the bishops of the Diocese are variously styled Episcopi
lie, id sitfn, pp. 246-7.
: cf. also the Red Book Vita, p. 45. " Monasterium Sedem
Cathedralem constituit."
:l P. u.s. Another, p. 102, says that " his Church is Bangor Asaf."
In raiK-ni provincia [Tegenia] est Cathedralis ecclesia a nostratibus Lan
Hgnensis, ab Anglis Assaphensis dicta, inter Cluydam & Elguim fluvios fabri-
-ata." Humphrey Lhuyd, Commentation Biitannicce Descriptions Fragmen-
tm, f. 55b (Cologne, 1572).
I 8 2 Lives of the British Saints
Elguenses, Eluenses, Lanelvenses, Assaphenses, and Assavenses. S.
Asaph's fame in time far eclipsed at Llanelwy that of his great master
Cyndeyrn. The latter was a stranger, and his residence there was but
short, circa 560-73. The great veneration in which S. Asaph's
memory came to be held may be well accounted for by his connection
with the immediate district, his eminent virtues and piety, and,
possibly, munificent benefactions by his family to Llanelwy ; but what
must have contributed more than anything else was the fact that the
cathedral church was the depository of his ashes. That his body in the
thirteenth century lay there is certain, for in a letter of Edward
the First, dated probably from Rhuddlan in 1281, proposing the
translation of the Cathedral Church to Rhuddlan, where it would be
more secure and better protected, it is said, " sed tanquam ilia quae in
nullius bonis sunt, praedonum incursibus et latronum insidiis, una
cum corpore sancti Assaphi gloriosissimi confessoris, subjacent peri-
culis infmitis." 1 Whether the monastery was elevated or not
to a Cathedral Church, and the See founded, in S. Cyndeyrn's or S.
Asaph's time, the latter's name alone has become associated with the
diocese, the limits of which, at some unknown date, were made conter-
minous with the principality of Powys. S. Asaph is supposed to have
been succeeded by S. Tyssilio, but there is no really authentic record
of the See until 1143, when Gilbert was consecrated bishop by Theo-
bald of Canterbury.
The topography of Tegeingl, S. Asaph's probable native canfref,
presents several places bearing his name. Besides the city name there
are Llanasa (his Church) ; Pantasa (his Hollow or Glen), in the parish
of Whitford adjoining, but now in the ecclesiastical parish of Gorsedd ;
and Ffynnon Asa (his Holy Well), in the parish of Cwm. His name
is coupled with S. Cyndeyrn's in the dedication of the parish church of
S. Asaph, which, like most of the Vale of Clwyd churches, consists
of two equal and parallel aisles, known as " Eglwys Gyndeyrn "
(north) and " Eglwys Asa " (south), respectively. 2 Llanasa also has
parallel aisles, which are said to be similarly dedicated. 3 There
appears to be some uncertainty as regards the dedication of the Cathe-
dral Church, whether to the two Saints conjointly, or to S. Asaph
alone. Browne Willis gives it as dedicated to S. Asaph alone, with
Patronal Festival May I. 4 All the evidence goes to show that S.
1 Haddan and Stubbs, Councils, etc., i, p. 530 ; Willis, S. Asaph, p. 156.
2 Willis, 5. Asaph, pp. 20, 126.
3 Thomas, History of the Diocese of S. Asaph, ist ed., p. 293. Willis, how-
ever, in his Survey of Bangor, 1721, p. 357, gives the church as dedicated to
S. Asaph alone. So Rees, Welsh Saints, p. 335. 4 Ibid., p. 357.
S. Asaph 183
Asaph was regarded as the Patron of the Diocese consequently of its
Cathedral Church. In his fragmentary Life he is styled, " Glorios-
i^imus Confessor et Pontifex Asaph Patronus noster." Bishop
I.I vuvlvn ab Madog of S. Asaph, in his will, dated 1373, says, " Imprimis,
confisus nu-ritis & precibus Sanctissimi Asaph Episcopi & Confessoris,
unique mei, lego animam meam Deo," etc. ; l and Bishop Bache
in his will, dated 1394, commits his soul " Deo & Beato Asapho
. ssori glorioso & omnibus Sanctis." 2
There is a modern church dedicated to S. Asaph in Birmingham,
tin- parish of which was formed in 1868.
Thnv is a cottage near the village of Rhuallt, in the parish of Tre-
hion, adjoining that of S. Asaph, which bears the name of Onen
Asa (S. Asaph's Ash-tree). Within comparatively recent years there
was a \\vll-known spot in the High Street at S. Asaph where " the
schoolboys used to shew a mark on a black stone, in a pavement of the
about the middle of the hill betwixt the two churches, which
tli. \ said W9S the print of S. Asaph's horse-shoe, when he jumpt with
him from Onnan-Hassa, which is about two miles off." 3 A similar
legend appears to have been associated with two other Welsh Saints,
\: ini.m Fivnhinand Cynllo, forOl Troed March Engan, at Llanengan,
a ml (>1 Traed March Cynllo, at Llangoedmore, are represented to be
their horses' hoof-prints. So with Carreg Cam March Arthur (the
\\ith the impress of the hoof of Arthur's steed), under Moel
I'amina. 4 With the name Onen Asa may be compared that of
tin; place-name, still in use, Daniel's (or Deiniol's) Ash, in the parish
nt Hawarden. Both may have been preaching stations.
MIIOII Asa is a natural spring remarkable for the great volume
;t throws up from the limestone rock, and for its extreme
oldnos. It is considered the second largest well in Wales, next to
S. \\ iiK'i'iv.l's. and is said to yield no less than seven tons of water per
minute. The stream, some forty yards from the spring head, turns a
large mill-wheel, and forms a fine waterfall at Dyserth, about a mile
and a half from the well. Dr. Johnson, when he paid a visit to the
waterfall, says that the well was " covered with a building," 5 which
lias now disappeared ; and Pennant describes it as being in his day
" inclosed with stone, in a polygonal form." 6 Its water was considered
1 Willis, S. Asaph, p. 241.
Ibid., p. 212. S. Asaph is the only .Welsh Cathedral that escaped Norman
iv-ilrclu\ition. The Cross Keys, now the arms of the See, and suggestive of a
IVtriiu' (Indication, are a modern blunder for a key and crozier in saltire.
Ibid., pp. 134-5. * Edward Pugh, Cambria Depicta, p. 11 (London, 1816).
5 /)!! v ,>/ a Journey into Xorth Wales in the year 1774, p. 77 (London, 1816).
Touts in Wales, ii, p. 113, ed. 1883.
184 Lives of the British Saints
to be beneficial in rheumatic and nervous complaints, and people
used to bathe in it. In a field belonging to Llechryd, in the parish of
Llannefydd, is another well called Ffynnon Asa. It forms the source
of the brook Afon Asa, which runs into the Meirchion, a tributary of
the Elwy. The field, as " Kae ffynnon Assaphe," is mentioned in an
indenture dated February 16, 1656. S. Asaph has another Holy Well,
in the Vale of Conway. In a will dated 1648 mention is made of a
meadow called " Gweirglodd Ffynnon Asaph," in Erethlyn, in the
parish of Eglwys Fach, Denbighshire. 1
The year of S. Asaph's death is generally given as 596, 2 but this is
manifestly too early. He died on May i, which occurs as his Festival in
but very few of the Welsh Calendars the lolo MSS. one (from a MS.
written circa 1500), that in the Welsh Prymer of 1633, and the one pre-
fixed to Allwydd Paradwys (1670) ; also by Nicolas Roscarrock. 3 In the
Martyr ology of Aberdeen his Festival is observed on the same day :
" KT Maii. In Vallia Sancti Aseph discipuli Sancti Kentigerni de quo
ecclesia cathedralis in eadem prouincia cujus pacientia et vite sanctitudo
illius regionis incolis viuendi normam egregiam et fidei constantiam
admonuit." 4 To this it may be added that " the only trace of his
cultus in Scotland is in the parish of Strath, in the Isle of Skye, in
which there is a chapel called Asheg. . . . There is no doubt that
it was primarily dedicated to S. Asaph. . . . Among the excellent
springs with which this parish abounds one is considered superior tx
all, and is called Tobar Asheg, or S. Asaph's Well." 5
A fair, long since discontinued, was held at S. Asaph on his Festival.
The confirmation of the fair to be held on the vigil, day, and morro^
of the Festival of SS. Philip and James was obtained by Bishop
Dafydd ab Bleddyn in 1321. 6 It was a source of revenue to the Dei
and Chapter, who received the tolls of the same. Willis adds that the
regard had to the day in his time " appeared from appointments oi
payments of money, and other orders relating to usages and custoi
in this Church (the Cathedral), which commenced on this Festival." 7
1 Arch. Camb., 1887, p. 158.
2 E.g., Pennant, supra, ii, p. 128 ; Willis, 5. Asaph, p. 35.
3 The ist May as his Day is in Wilson's Martyrologie, ist ed. 1608, and 21
1640. Curiously, not in WTiytford. But he is in the modern Roman Martyrology,
and Pope Pius IX, by a Rescript, ordered the Sunday following May i to be
observed as a double of the Second Class.
4 Forbes, Kalendars of Scottish Saints, p. 130. For his Proper see Dr,
Stevenson, The Legends and Commemorative Celebrations of S. Kentigern, his
Friends and Disciples, from the Aberdeen Breviary and the Arbuthnot Missal,
Edinb., 1874, pp. 24-5.
5 Forbes, op. cit., p. 271.
6 Willis, 5. Asaph, pp. 51, 184. 7 Survey of Bangor, p. 339.
S. ASAPH.
From Fifteenth-Century Glass in Chancel Window,
Llandyrnog Church, Denbighshire.
S. Aude 185
I Despite S. Asaph's eminence as a Welsh Saint, mediaeval Welsh
erature has but little to say about him. Not so much as one poem
appears to have been written in his honour. lolo Goch, Owen
Glyndwr's laureate, mentions him as " Assa Iwyd " (the Blessed),
and invokes his protection for himself. L Lewis Glyn Cothi, a fifteenth
century Carmarthenshire bard, also invokes his protection for Caio,
his natale solitm. In another passage he exclaims, " Myn bagl Assa ! "
(" By S. Asaph's bacillus or pastoral staff ! ") ; and in another he
uses the expression " pryd Asa," by 'which the Saint's traditional
handsomeness is implied. 2
He is credited with having written " Ordinationes Ecdesice suce, and
the Life of his master Kentigerne." 3 He very probably did write the
Life of his master, but it has not come down to us in its original form.
It may have formed the basis of the Lives by the anonymous monk
and Jocelin in the twelfth century. The following saying is attributed
to him, and " would bee often in his mouth "-
Quicunque verbo Dei adversantur,
Saluti hominum invident. 4
He is represented in fifteenth century glass in Llandyrnog church, in
the Vale of Clwyd.
S. AUDE, 5 Virgin, Martyr
THE identification of this virgin Saint presents peculiar difficulties.
Apparently the Aude or Haude venerated in Leon is the same as the
twara of the Sherborne Calendar. The name Jutwara or Aud-
a, is Aed-wyry, or Aed the Virgin, but at Sherborne the Welsh
e went through modification to suit English mouths.
The legend of S. Aude in the L6on and Folgoet Breviaries is the
same with certain small differences as that by John of Tynemouth in
pgrave's Nova Legenda Angliae, of Jutwara.
1 Gweithiau lolo Goch, ed. Ashton, pp. 355, 533 (Oswestry, 1896).
2 Gwaith Lewis Glyn Cothi, pp. 311, 371, 533 (Oxford, 1837). "Bagl Asaf "
also occurs in a eulogy of Bp. Wm. Hughes (1573-1601) by Wm. Lleyn.
3 Bp. Godwin, Catalogue of Bishops of England, London, 1615, p. 544.
" Bale out of Capgraue " (Ibid., ad loc.). The apothegm is quoted by Bp.
Richard Davies at the end of his Epistle to the Welsh, prefixed to the Welsh New
(tanu-nt of 1567. It has been put into Welsh thus by some one
Y neb a ludd ddysgu crefydd,
Trwy genfigen etyl rybudd.
The name is from the Welsh Aidd, zeal, warmth, ardour, cognate to the
h aed, ead, and the Gaelic cud.
I 8 6 Lives of the British Saints
Porpius Aurelianus.
S. Paulus Aurelianus,
B. of Leon, d. c. 560.
S. Sativola,
V.M. at
Exeter.
S. Wulvella,
V. Abbess in
Cornwall.
S. Aod or da
J utwara
V.M.
S. Joavan, Ab. Batz,
B. Leon, d. 554.
It will be advisable to tell the story as given by the latter, noting
the differences, and then to point out some curious coincidences which
link it on to that of Paulus Aurelianus, or Paul of Leon. Jutwara,
born of noble parents, lost her mother, and her father married again.
She had a brother named Bana and three sisters, Eadwara, Wilgitha,
and Sativola. All these sisters were Saints.
Jutwara grew pale as wax, and her step-mother asked her the cause.
She replied that she was suffering from pains in her chest. The step-
mother advised the application of a cream-cheese ; and then told Bana
a scandalous story affecting his sister ; " atque in argumentum fidei
interulam puellae a pectore ejus extrahere suadit : dicens earn pro-
fluente de mamillis lacte madidam fore."
The young man rushed to find his sister, and meeting her as she
was returning from church, charged her with incontinence. She was
staggered at this accusation. " Interulam ejus, ut doctus fuerat,
extraxit : quam madidam inveniens " in a blind fury, he drew his
sword and cut off her head. Not only did a fountain spring up on the
spot, but a great oak grew there as well. After many years the tree
was overthrown by a gale, and fell against a house that was near, so
that the branches interfered with exit and entry. The owner of the
house and his boy set to work to hack the boughs away, when the
stump, relieved of the burden, righted itself, and carried up the lad who
was clinging to a branch uncut off.
According to the Leon version of the story, of which however we
have only Albert le Grand's arrangement, the name of the father was
Galonus, presumably a settler from Britain, living at Tremaouezan,
near Landerneau, in Leon. He had a son Gurguy, and a daughter Aude.
Gurguy went to the court of Childebert ; and on his return found that
his father had married again, a lady of good family whom he had met
in Britain. The step-mother poisoned his mind against his sister, told
him she had been incontinent, and he rushed to find her, at a well
washing clothes. He cut off her head, and found her bosom stuffed
out with milk-curds, which she had purposed giving to the poor. She
took up her head, walked to the hall, put on her head again, reproached
her brother, and forthwith died.
.
m
S. Ancle 187
'11 ic story goes on to relate that Gurguy repented and went off to
. Paul at Leon and was bidden by him retire as a penance into a forest
IK ,u Landerneau, and there fast and pray for forty days. The penance
accomplished, Gurguy returned to S. Paul, who admitted him as a
monk into his monastery, and finally sent him to be superior to a cell
IK- had established at Gerber, afterwards called Le Relecq, and changed
hfe name to Tanguy.
:i follows a legend of the bringing of the head of S. Matthew to
Hi it tuny, and the founding by Tanguy and S. Paul of a monastery on
a headland, the extreme western point of Finistere. This is a gross
:ronism, as the relics of S. Matthew were not brought to Brittany
till 830. 1 This episode may accordingly be dismissed.
What is true is that S. Paul founded the monastery of Gerber, after
tailed Le Relecq, about 560 on the spot where the final battle
utfht between Judual and Conmore, usurper of Domnonia, in 555,
in which Conmore was slain. It acquired its name Le Relecq, or abbatia
dereliquiis, from the number of bones found about on the battlefield,
N being the Breton for bones of all sorts, not necessarily of Saints. 2
ul i^ave Tanguy a dozen monks as his companions. The new
name imposed on him is derived from Tan, fire, as that of Aude is from
flame.
Now if we look at the Life of S. Paul of Leon, an early document, we
find that he had as his father one Porphius, 3 and that he came from
lVmi-( >hen, i.e. Cowbridge, in Glamorgan, and that he had three holy
the name of one of these was Sicofolla, and he had brothers
Xotalius and Potolius. 4
"lla is, we may suspect, the Sativola of the Exeter Calendars,
>j>ularly called Sidwell. If this be so, then we obtain the names of
mi's other sisters. It is true, the author of his Life says there were
ily three that were saints, whereas in the Life of S. Jutwara there
re tour named. The curious coincidence is that Tanguy in Leon is
.ted as in close relationship with S. Paul.
Ka.lwara and Jutwara may be only two forms of the same name
1-wyry. The sister called, in the Life of S. Jutwara, Wilgitha, is
>wn in Cornwall and Devon as Wulvella, and she is the reputed
mdress of Gulval.
"Chronicon Britannicum," in Dom Morice, Preuves, i, p. 3.
11 (Abbe), Le livre d'or des Eglises de Bretagne, Nos. 19-20, Les
1>. 9-
3 In Achau'r Saint (Cambro -British Saints, p. 270) the name is Pawlpolius,
inti-d by Rees Pawlpolins.
Vita, ed. Dom Plaine in Analecta Boll., 1882.
Lives of the British Saints
It is possible that Lanteglos by Camelford may have been dedicated
originally to Jutwara, as Laneast, hard by, is to the sisters Wulvella
and Sidwell. The church is now supposed to be dedicated to S.
Julitta. There is a Holy Well, in fair preservation, with remains of a
chapel at Jut wells, which may be a contraction for Jutwara's or Aod's
well. The day of the Translation of the body of S. Jutwara from
Halinstoke to Sherborne Abbey was observed on July 13. Where was
-)-Halinstoke ? Can it have been Helstone or Helsbury, the former in
Lanteglos, the latter the stone camp dominating it ? Nicolas
Roscarrock says that holding her head in her hands, she turned to
look back on the hill where she had been martyred.
July 13 was given in the Sherborne Calendar and by Whytford.
What seems confirmatory of the dedication is that at Camelford in
Lanteglos parish, a fair is held on July 17 and 18, i.e. within the week
or octave of the feast of the Translation of S. Jutwara.
The day of her martyrdom according to Nicolas Roscarrock was
January 6, but he also gives the day of her translation, July 13.
The sequence for S. Jutwara's day is in the Sherborne Missal,
liturgical notes on which have been issued by Dr. Wickham Legg, for
the S. Paul's Ecclesiological Society, 1896. It recites the incidents
of her legend. It concludes with the invocation : " Virgo sidus
puellaris medicina salutaris, salva reos ab amaris, sub mortis nubecula."
In the Breviary of Leon, 1705, the feast of S. Aude is marked on
November 28, as a semi-double. Statues of SS. Tanguy and Aude are in
the chapel near the ruins of the abbey of S. Matthieu, also in the church
of Kernilis. A statue of S. Aude of the sixteenth century, perhaps
earlier, is at Guizeny. It is probably she who is represented with a
scimitar, her sister S. Sidwell is on the next panel but one, at Ashton,
Devon, on the screen, certainly at Hennock beside S. Sidwell with her
head in her hands.
In art she might well be represented holding a cream-cheese, or a
sword, with an oak tree at her side, if the identification with Jutwara
be admitted. In Allwydd neu Agoriad Paradwys, 1670, S. Juthwar
V.M. is inscribed on December 23, but this is borrowed from Wilson's
English Martyr ologie, 1608, and he puts an asterisk to the insertion to
show that he had no authority for it. The insertion there was purely
arbitrary.
S. Aude, Virgin, is entered inWhytford's Martiloge,on NovemberiS,
a slip apparently for November 28.
S. AUDE.
From Statue at Guiztny.
S. Austell 189
S. AUGULUS, Bishop, Martyr
AUGULUS, Bishop of London and Martyr, is in the Roman Martyro-
logy, that of Usuardus, those also of Rhabanus Maurus, Wandelbert of
I'rum, Ado of Vienne, the thirteenth century Martyrology of Christ-
church, Canterbury, Arundel MS.. No. 60, also a martyrology written
between 1220 and 1224, MS. Reg. 2, A. xiii, etc. 1
Nothing whatever is, however, known of him. The day is February
- \Vhytford in his Martiloge gives on that day, " In brytayne at
aii.uust the feest of saynt Agge a martyr and abysshop" ; also Nicolas
Roscarrock.
S. AUSTELL, Monk, Confessor
i: LI. was a disciple of Mevan or Mewan, and accompanied him
and S. Samson from South Wales. When Samson made a foundation
at (iolant near Fowey, previous to crossing into Armorica, Austell
must have been there as well, for he planted his llan where stands now
tin- beautiful church that bears his name, and hard by that of his
master. On the tower he is represented as a hermit or pilgrim with
aff and beads, on the right hand of the Saviour, and on the left is
nson habited as Archbishop of Dol, in pall with archiepiscopal
crazier.
Austell followed Mewan and Samson to Brittany. Mewan was sent
Samson with a message acrpss the forest of Bracilien to Vannes,
d on the way Mewan made friends with a settler from Britain, who
rsuaded him to found a llan near his place, and promised him all
territory on his death. This was the origin of the famous abbey of
If fen.
\Vlu-n Mi-wan was dying Austell stood by with streaming eyes, the
abbot bade him cease weeping, and not be discouraged, as he
uld follow him in seven days. Accordingly, seven days after,
ustt'll was found dead in his bed.
The brethren knowing the friendship of long standing that existed
between the two, resolved to lay Austell by his abbot.
( >n opening the stone coffin, they found that the dead man, whom
had laid on his back with folded hands over his breast, had moved
one side so as to allow space for his faithful companion. S. Austell's
1 lladi'.an and Stubbs, Councils, etc., i, Appendix B., p. 27, et scq.
i go Lives of the British Saints
day is June 28. " Septimo die, quod est quarto kalendas Julii in
pace obdormiens requievit" 1
Tresveaux in his additions to Lobineau gives the fifteenth century
Calendar of S. Meen, and this has the commemoration as on the Vth
calends, or June 27.2
Gaultier du Mottay quoting the same authority gives June 2g. 3
Clearly both have misread the original.
S. Austell (Austolus) does not seem to have founded any churches
in Brittany ; he was content to be eclipsed by the greater luminary,
S. Mevan. But in Cornwall he has a church of great beauty.
According to Sir Harris Nicolas, the Feast of S. Austell was formerly
kept on Trinity Sunday, but Nicolas Roscarrock, a better authority
because he wrote in or about 1610, and was a Cornish man, says that
the Feast was kept on Thursday in Whitsun Week. There is no
separate Life of this Saint ; all we know of him is from the Life of
S. Mevan or Mewan. This has been published by Dom Plaine. It is
subsequent to the tenth century, and is contained in the Analecta
Bollandiana, tome in" (1884), and is from a MS. that belonged to
the Abbey of S. Meen, but is now in the Bibliotheque Nationale
at Paris.
The death of S. Austell took place about 627.
Nicolas Roscarrock from local tradition says that " S. Austell and
S. Meven were great friends, whose parishes joyne."
S. AVIA, see S. EWE
S. BACH
BACH AB CARWED or Carwyd was the founder of Eglwys Fach,
" if the story be true," as the compiler of the alphabetical catalogue in
the Myvyrian Archaiology adds, 4 the more obvious signification of the
name being the " small church." The parish is situated partly in
Denbighshire and partly in Carnarvonshire, and the church is now given
as dedicated to S. Martin. Bach's name does not occur in any of
the lolo MSS. lists. Rees 5 places him in the second half of the seventh
1 Vita Sti. Mevenni, ed. Plaine, p. 16.
2 Vies des Saints de Bretagne (ed. 1836), tome i, p. xxviii.
3 " Essai d'Iconographie Bretonne," in Bulletin de la Societe Polym. des Cotes
du Nord, tome iii, 1857-6. Calendar, p. 353 ; also p. 127.
4 P. 419. 5 Welsh Saints, p. 306.
S. AUSTELL.
Statue on West Front of Tower, S. Austcll.
S. Bach i 9 i
century. He is supposed to have been a Northern chieftain and
warrior, who, retiring into North Wales, fixed upon this sequestered
spot, and dedicated the close of his life to religion. According to the
local tradition the present tower of the church formed his dwelling or
cell.
Edward Lhuyd in his Itinerary of Wales (1698-9) says that Bach
killed a certain wild beast which was the cause of much annoy-
ance to the inhabitants on the banks of the Carrog near the church.
The beast was a kind of wild boar, and they called it Carrog. A little
aiti-r the slaughter Bach happened to kick the monster's head, but
through contact with one of its tusks bruised his foot, and died of the
wound (cf. the case of Diarmait in the Irish legend). Another version
represents this monstrous boar, which played the part of a mediaeval
>n, as having been killed by the united action of the inhabitants.
Tin -re is yet another tradition, which attributes its slaughter to S. Beuno,
who paid Eglwys Fach a special visit for the purpose. According to
this, Carrog somewhat resembled a flying serpent , which made its appear-
in the daytime, kidnapping and eating children. S. Beuno, from
1 mrch tower, directed an arrow to the tender spot on its throat
the only vulnerable part on its body and this took fatal effect. There
is a tumulus, called Bedd Carrog, at Eglwys Fach, which tradition
points out as the monster's grave. 1
The word carrog means a brook or torrent, and is the name of
>me half a dozen streams in Wales. A good number of the Welsh
river names bear a " swine " signification, or are in some way or another
associated by legend with swine.
In the Taxatio of 1291 the church is called " Eglewys Ewach," and
in the Valor of 1535 the living occurs as " Rectoria de Vach." These,
-11 as later forms, show that the name is really Eglwys y Fach,
meaning " the church in the nook or angle," which accurately describes
its situation in the Conway Valley. If dedicated to a S. Bach, who
founded it in the seventh century, its name most probably would have
Uanfach. There is another Eglwys Fach, in Cardiganshire, which
licated to S. Michael the Archangel.
S. BACHLA, see S. BAGLAN AB ITHEL HAEL
1 Lewis Morris, Celtic Remains, pp. 25-26 ; Silvan Evans, Welsh Dictionary..
( arrog ; \Villiams, Eminent Welshmen, s.v. Bach ', Bye-Gones for 1896 :
Willis, Survey of S. Asaph, ed. Edwards, i, p. 284.
192 Lives of the British Saints
S. BAGLAN AB DINGAD, Confessor
THERE were two Welsh Saints named Baglan. One was Baglan the
son of Dingad ab Nudd Hael by Tenoi, the daughter of Lleuddun
Luyddog of Dinas Eiddyn, i.e. Edinburgh. 1 He was a brother to
SS. Lleuddad, Eleri, Tegwy, and Tyfriog. They were all saints at
one time of Llancarfan, and afterwards went with S. Dyfrig to Bardsey.
Rees places him in the second half of the sixth century. 2 He founded
Llanfaglan, near Carnarvon, which is now under Llanwnda. He is
connected in the genealogies with Coed Alun. Llanfaglan is situated
in Maenor Alun on the Menai Straits, near their southern extremity.
The church has been wrongly supposed by some, from its name, to be
dedicated to the Magdalene. Baglan Church in Glamorganshire, is
sometimes 3 said to have been founded by him, but wrongly we think.
There is a Welsh proverb now generally quoted in the following
form, " Ffordd Llanfaglan yr eir i'r nef," " The way of Llanfaglan one
goes to heaven." In the Red Book of Hergest collection of proverbs
(apparently its earliest known occurrence) it is written, " Ffordd
ylanfaglan yd eir y nef." The English equivalent would seem to
be " None go to heaven on a feather bed." Llanfaglan Church
is picturesquely situated, surrounded by trees, in the centre of a
large field washed by the Menai Straits, and there never appears to
have been any public roadway towards it. It is now practically
abandoned, a new church, more conveniently situated, having been
built to replace it.
Baglan is mentioned in the Life of his brother S. Llawddog or
Lleuddad (Llanstephan MS. 34), to whom he attached himself, and
together served God. From it we gather that he was Dingad's
eldest son.
S. BAGLAN AB ITHEL HAEL, Confessor
THIS saint's father was a prince of Llydaw, or Armorica, of which
country he was also a native, and for this reason was called Baglan
Llydaw. He was a brother to SS. Tanwg, Twrog, Tegai, Trillo,
Fflewin, Gredifael, and Llechid, and all or nearly all of them accom-
panied S. Cadfan to Bardsey. 4 Rees places him in the first half of the
sixth century. 5 He founded Baglan Church in Glamorganshire, which
1 Peniarth MSS. 16 and 45 ; Hafod MS. 16 ; Myv. Arch., pp. 418, 427 ; lolo
MSS., pp. 103, 113, 139.
2 Welsh Saints, p. 275. 3 e.g., lolo MSS., p. 103.
4 Myv. Arch., p. 418 ; lolo MSS., pp. 112, 133, 139.
5 Welsh Saints, p. 223.
S. Bag/an 193
also, but wrongly, been attributed to S. Baglan ab Dingad. Near
tin- church there is a well " famous for curing rickety children ;
but, according to the vulgar opinion, only on the three first Thursdays
in May." l
Edward Lhuyd, in his Reliquice, has the following note on Baglan
Church : " Its name from St. Baglan, which tradition says was a disciple
<t St. Illtud, and one time carried fire in the skirt of his garment from
.ittwg without singeing it. Illtud seeing, took it for a miracle,
and jjavi- him a staff with a head of brass (which was preserved a
! relirk till of late years, which had a wonderful effect upon the
sick), and said it should guide him to a place where he should find a
bearing three sorts of fruit, there he should build a church for
himself. In a short time he came to the place where the church now
:,d found a tree with a litter of pigs at the root, a hive of bees in
tin body, and a crow's nest in the top ; but not liking the situation, it
being on a proclivity, intended to build it at some distance in a level
plain, but what was built by day fell in the night, and was at last
1 to take the hilly place where it now is." The present church
level ground a little below the spot where the old church is
M mated. He adds, " Under the North part of Mynydd y Ddinas is
ing, formerly much resorted to by rickety children, and especially
n tlmr Thursdays in May, Ascension Day to be one of them without
:,iil."
There is a small brook in the parish called Nant Baglan.
A place called Carn Baglan, situated somewhere in the neigh-
bourhood of Tenby, is mentioned in the Book of Llan Ddv*
In the Celtic Litany of the tenth century, now in the Library of the
and Chapter of Salisbury, and published by Mr. Warren, 3 occurs
the name of Bachla, who is invoked. He appears also in the Celtic
Litany of the same period, published by Mabillon from a Rheims MS. 4
M. J. Loth supposes him to have been a disciple of S. Winwaloe
at Landevenec, and that he is honoured as Balag at Penflour near
Chateaulin. " Bachla," says he, " has given Bala, as Machlow, Malo,
is Machteth, ' a servant maid,' becomes matez, as Mochdreb has
become Motreff, near Carhaix." 5
There is a Ploubalay in Cotes du Nord near Matignon. Of Balay
thing is known. But in the Cartulary of Landevenec, Bachla is not
Carlisle, Topographical Dictionary of Wales, 1811, s.r. Baglan. 2 P. 126.
Celtique, 1888. p. 88. * Vetera Analecta, ed. 1723, it p. 669.
Kente Celtique, 1890, p. 138.
Vol. ..
i 94 Lives of the British Saints
the form of name given to the pupil of S. Winwalos but Biabil. 1 He-
lived an eremitical life, and as many miracles attested his merits, he
was regarded as a saint.
Bachla cannot be identified with Biabil, he is more probably the
Baglan ab Ithel Hael, who, having come from Armorica, may have
returned to it.
S. BANHADLEN, Matron
S. BANHADLEN was the daughter of Cynyr of Caer Gawch, 2 by, accord-
ing to Rees, 3 Mechell, daughter of Brychan, his first wife. This state-
ment is made apparently on the authority of Owen Pughe's Cambrian
Biography ; 4 but it is quite wrong. In the Vespasian Cognatio we
have this entry, " Marchel filia Brachan uxor Gurind barmbtruch de
Merionyth." From this we learn that Marchell (not Mechell) was the
wife of Gwrin Farfdrwch, of Meirionydd, a descendant of Cunedda
Wledig, 5 and a totally different person from Cynyr of Caer Gawch.
Banhadlen became the wife of Dirdan, " a nobleman of Italy,"
also reckoned among the Saints, 6 and was the mother of S. Ailbe. Her
name is sometimes wrongly given as Danadlwen. No churches are
dedicated to her, nor is her Festival known. As a common noun
banhadlen means the broom.
S. BAR, see S. FINBAR
S. BARRUC, Monk, Confessor
CRESSY in his Church History of Brittany, Rouen, 1668, says, " Baruck r
a Hermit, whose memory is celebrated in the Province of the Silures and
Region of Glamorgan. He lyes buried in the Isle of Barry, which took
its name from him," and he adds, " In our Martyrologe this Holy
Hermit Baruck is said to have sprung from the Noble Blood of the
Brittains, and entering into a solitary strict course of life, he at this
time (A.D. 700) attained to a life immortal!.' '
Cressy's dates are set down, like those of Albert le Grand, very
1 Cart, de Landevenec, Rennes, 1888, p. 159. " Fuerunt duo ex discipulis
sancti Uningualoei in pago Enfou in ploe Ermeliac, nomina eorumsanctus Bia-
bilius et sanctus Martinus, jussu abbatis sui degentes vitam heremicam, et in
finein Claris miraculis sancti effecti."
2 Tolb MSS., pp. 107, 146.
3 Welsh Saints, p. 162, cf. p. 147. 4 P. 241.
5 See also the O. Welsh genealogies in Harl. MS. 3859.
8 lolo MSS., p. 314.
S. Bar rue i g 5
arbitrarily. Bairn. i> tin -monk o! that name who was a disciple of
t\vtf. ami \vlin is nu-iitioned in the Vitu S. Cadoci. 1
" It happened that the blessed Cadoc on a certain day sailed with
two ot In- <li-ciple-, namely Harruc and (iiialehes, from the island ot
;,!. which is now called Holme, to another island named Barry.
When, therefore, he prosperously landed in the harbour, he asked his
-aid .li-nple- for his Enchiridion, that is to say, his manual book ; and
they < onle-si .1 that they had lost it through forget fulness, in the afore-
suid inland. On hearing this, he at once commanded them to go
aboard a ship, and row back to recover the codex, and blazing with
fury broke into the following invective, saying, ' Go, and never
nn ! Then the disciples, making no delay, at the command ol
then master quickly entered the boat, and rowed out to the afore-
mentioned i>land. When, having recovered the volume, they were on
ther k about midnmrse. and were seen in midsea by the man
-I MI tint; on top ot a hill in Harry, the boat unexpectedly upset,
and they were drowned.
body of Barme bein cast by the tide on the shore of Barry,
\\.i- there found, and was buried in that island, which bears his name
t" ti lay. Hut the body of the other, that is to say, Gualehes,
t by the sea to the Isle of Echni and was there buried." The
:>1,1 j- not to the credit of Catwg, but his curse is an after
invention. Naturally he wanted his book back, and would not ill-wish
the men who were to recover it for him ; but the writer of the Life, to
enhance tin- - n-dit of his hero, as he thought, made him predoom the
.hath, that the accident might seem to be a fulfilment
ot hi- word.
: i.ind is an islet about a mile and a half in circumference,
-itu.ited in a -.m.lv hay. and separated from the mainland by a narrow
isthmus, which at low water is dry. It is treated as being in the parish of
posite, which is said to have taken its name from it. Barry,
a t iny village, is now celebrated for its extensive docks.
In Norman times William de Barri founded the Castle of Barry on the
island, and from him was descended Giraldus de Barri, better known as
(iiraldus Camhrensk Leland, writing of the island, says, "Ther is
in the midle of it a fair litle Chapel of S. Barrok, wher much Pilgrimage
usid. 1 There are no traces of it now to be seen. The hermit
been buried in it. Towards the south of the island, at
1 Cambro-British Saints, pp. 63-4.
" Hnjuscemodi invectionem in cos cum furore inurens, inquit : Itc nunquam
ivditurus." Vita S. Cadoci, Cambro-British Saints, p. 63.
3 I tin., iv, f. 62.
1 9 6 Lives of the British Saints
a spot called Nell's Point, is the saint's holy well, once much resorted to.
Great numbers of women visited it on Ascension Day, and having
washed their eyes with its water, each would drop a pin into it. As
many as a pintful were once found on cleaning the well out.
In the Vita S. Cadoci (written in the early thirteenth century),
already quoted, the island is said to have been so called from
S. Barruc. Its name occurs there as Barren. 1
The lolo MSS. credit S. Barrwg with having founded Barri and
Penmark, 2 in Glamorganshire. The parish church of Barry is now
dedicated to S. Nicholas, and Penmark to S. Mary. Rees 3 adds
Bedwas, in Monmouthshire, but see the next notice. There is a
Ffynnon Farrwg near the church there.
Cum Barruc = Cenubia, in the Valley Dore, Herefordshire, is
mentioned several times in the Book of Llan Ddv. It was probably
identical with Lann Cerniu.
His Festival in the Calendar in Cotton MS. Vesp. A. xiv, is on Sep-
tember 27 ; on which day he is also given by Wilson in both editions
of his Mariyrologie, 1608 and 1640, also by Nicolas Roscarrock, but
in the Calendar prefixed to Allwydd Paradwys, 1670, November 29.
Browne Willis gives September 26.
The Irish abbot Barri, mentioned in the Life of S. David as having
ridden S. David's favourite horse across the sea from Pembrokeshire
to Ireland, is Finbar. They have been wrongly identified by some
writers.
S. BEDWAS, Confessor
BEDWAS was one of the twelve sons of Helig ab Glannog, of Tyno
Helig, whose lands the sea overwhelmed. The Lavan Sands of to-day
form a portion of the territory, on losing which Helig and his sons
devoted themselves to religion and became saints, or monks, in Bangor
on Dee. Some of them afterwards went to Bardsey. 4 Rees 5 classes
him with the saints of the middle of the seventh century. He
may, if he ever existed, have been the original founder of Bedwas,
in Monmouthshire. Browne Willis, Coxe, Rees and others ascribe it to
S. Barrwg, and the lolo MSS. to S. Tewdrig. 6
In the Book of Llan Ddv 7 a brook called Betguos or Betgues is men-
tioned as forming the boundary of, apparently, Llangoven, Monmouth-
shire, on the further side of the county. Betgues would yield later
Bedwes, which also occurs for Bedwas.
1 Pp. 45, 63-4 ; Barren in MS., and not Barreu.
P. 220. 3 Welsh Saints, p. 342.
* lolo MSS., p. 124. 5 Welsh Saints, p. 302. P. 148. ' P. jo;.
S. Be/ems 197
S. BEDWINI or BEDWIN, Bishop, Confessor
H.\v this bishop ( aim- to be reckoned among the Welsh Saints it is
ult to say. Hi- name does not occur in any of the usual genealo-
nor does he appear to have been connected in any special manner
\\ itli Wales. In the references t he-re are to him in Welsh literature he
i- 1 with Kin^ Arthur, and generally with Cornwall. "The
U ..f. Aithui -amlhis Men "state that t here were Three Throne-tribes
eol Britain. Tin- one at Celliwig, now Callington, in Cornwall,
had Arthur as supreme kin.u. Bishop Bedwini as chief bishop, and
hfras as chief elder. Another Triad makes Celliwig one
of the three archbishoprics ot Britain.- o\ vr which Bedwini presided as
bishop. Hi> name occurs again in two of the Mabinogion tales
in that ot ( ulhwch and Olwen (as Bedwini). where he is mentioned as
the one " who bK-ssed Arthur's meat and drink," and in the Dream Of
Rhonabwy (as Bedwim. :t In these tales Arthur figures as the Cham-
pion ot Britain, and the persons among whom the bishop appears are
mythological as could well be.
On. '..I the >l Sa\m^,t the Wise " is attributed to this Saint thus :
H.i^t th. ni hr.ml tin- saving of Bechvini,
Who \\,i> a bishop. jjcHxl and K'ravc ?
i thy \\unl ln-forr uttering it." *
(Khagrcithi.i 'th ,m cyn noi ddodi.)
as a Badwin, Badwini, or Bedwin, first Bishop (673-^0) of
the East An-han M of Klmham, now included in that of Norwich, 5
hut troin Norwich to Callington is a far cry.
flien- are no churches dedicated to this saint, nor is his festival
S. BELERUS. Confessor
41 \\v read: "The religious foundation of
th.- Kmpnor Tewdws (Theodosius) and ("vstennin of Llydaw was
i Illtv.l. when- Belerus. a man from Rome, was superintendent,
and Padrig, the son oi Mat won, principal, before he was carried away
caj)tivc by the Irish." The college mentioned is that of Caerworgorn,
which was also called Cor Tewdws.
nly Theodosius who was in Britain was he who was sent thither
Valentinian. then at Amiens, against the Picts and Scots.
Skl ' ; it-nt liks. -.]>.4V,; M\ ,-. Arch., p. 407.
< Rhys ami Hvun-v M.ihinogion. pp. 112, 148.
triplet occur-, in a slightly different form in Myv.
Jit. Early English Chinch ///</,.v ,;nl ,!.. p. age : Ha.l.iau ami Stubbs,
Council^, ni. p.
i g 8 Lives of the British Saints
He was beheaded in Africa in 370. His son Theodosius the Great
was Emperor along with Gratian, 379, sole Emperor, 392, and died
395. His grandson Theodosius II was Emperor of the West, 423-425.
The last of these is probably meant, and Cystennin is Constantine, who
was proclaimed in Britain 433, and who reigned till 443. The found-
ation of Caer Worgorn accordingly took place between 423 and 443.
The foundation of a college in Britain is by no means as improbable
as appears at first sight. One of the first cares of Agricola after he had
pacified Britain was to establish schools for the education of the young
sons of the chiefs in the liberal arts. " He affected," says Tacitus,
" to prefer the national spirit of the Britons to the acquired talents of
the Gauls ; so that their people, who refused at first to speak the
language of the Romans, soon became eager to acquire their
eloquence." * There was an university at Autun in Gaul as early
as the reign of Tiberius ; later there were others at Rheims,
Toulouse and Treves. Gaul produced from its schools the great
rhetoricians Votienus Montanus at Narbonne, Domitius Afer at
Nimes, Julius Africanus at Saintes.
In 425 Theodosius II founded the university of Constantinople with
thirty professors, three rhetors, ten Latin grammarians, five Greek
rhetors and ten Greek grammarians, a philosopher and two legal
professors (Cod. Theodos., xiv, 9, 3 ; xv, i, 53). The law was signed
by Valentinian III as well as by Theodosius. Whether the same was
done in the West we do not know. This was the final act in the
regulation and organization of public education in the Empire. 2
With the schools so extensively developed in Gaul, it is inconceivable
that they should not also have been established and encouraged
in Britain. And that Theodosius and Valerian should have done
something towards this is conceivable enough.
A good deal of discredit has been cast on the lolo MSS., perhaps
undeservedly. lolo Morganwg was a stonemason, and most assuredly
knew nothing of the imperial system of education in the colonies. He
cannot have imagined the statement above quoted. The MSS. he
copied were in most cases late, but he was a faithful transcriber on the
whole.
We are disposed to accept the tradition that Caer Worgorn was a
school not founded but favoured by the Emperors Theodosius and
Valentinian, and encouraged by the tyrant Constantine.
Belerus, " a man from Rome," has been thought to have been
Palladius ; but this is phonetically impossible. But as Palladius was
1 Agricola, 21.
2 Boissier, La Fin du Paganism, Paris, 1891, i, pp. 172-231.
.S'. Belerus 199
ither born in Britain, or brought into close relation with it, we may
here give an account of him.
A Palladium was " magister officiorum " at the time of Julian's entry
into Constantinople, after the death of his cousin and predecessor
' "Jisiantmv. ;0i. One of Julian's first measures was to send a com-
mission to ( alcedon, to try a number of persons implicated in the
nt civil war. Among these was Palladius, and the judges banished
liim \<> Britain. on the suspicion of his having prejudiced Constantius
ins1 Julian's half brother, Gallus, and thus having been the occasion
ol tin- death ot this young prince. 1 Julian perished in 363, when prob-
ably Palladius was recalled but it is possible that he may have married
and settled in Britain, and that there was born Palladius, who was to be
tin- t:iM mi innary sent to Ireland. We cannot, of course, offer more
than the conjecture that this latter Palladius was the son of the Master
<! the Offices, banished to Britain, but it would seem not improbable,
and would explain his lively interest in British affairs. 2
At what tune he went to Rome we know not, but we find him urging
-tine to send Germanus and Lupus to Britain, to encounter
the Pelagians. Thi> was in 429.' But if he be the Belerus of Welsh tra-
dition. he mu>t have been before this appointed head of Caer Worgorn,
Mij)jH)xin- Midi a college to have existed before 423. His abandonment
"t this monastic college was perhaps due to the Irish marauders who
attacked and destroyed it.
The next notice we have of Palladius is of his mission to Ireland.
Prosper <>t Aquitaine in his Chronicle, under 431, says : " Palladius
d by Pope Celestine, and sent by him to the Scots who
ve<l in (bust, as their first Bishop."
1 hat there were some scattered believers in Ireland at this time is
than probable. Indeed it would be strange if it had not been so,
vas the intercourse between Ireland and Britain and the
Continent.
lll( \nnn!>h. written before 700, says : " Verily indeed was
;////,*. lib. ii. cap . ;. /oMinus. Hist., lib. ii, cap. ;;.
onnexion is luggested bv Slu-arman, Loca Patriciana, p. 403. "~Arch-
her quotes an ancient authority to the effect that Palladius was a
itain.
l.< P.-hi-Mims Srvt-riani episcopi Pelagian! filius ecclesias Britannia?
manual. one corrumpit. Sed ad actionem Palladii diaconi papa
^tmiix (MTinanum \uti.sidon-nsem episcopum vice sua mittit et deturbatis
teanoi a,l catholicum fidem dirigit." In the Book of Armagh,
Una converted into Archdeacon of Ccclestine. For this there is no
-Mu.rchu lurthrr saya that " Palladius was sent ad hanc insulam
Mam, which a a garbling of tlu- words of ProsTxr, who savsthat Palla-
Inis wai M-nt tn tbOM in Ir.-lan.l " L.-lirvm- in Chrwt "
2OO Lives of the British Saints
Palladius the Archdeacon of Celestine Pope, Bishop of the city of Rome,
who then held the Apostolic See, the forty-fifth in succession from S.
Peter the Apostle. This Palladius was ordained and sent to convert
this island, lying under wintry cold. But God hindered him, for no
one can receive anything from earth unless it were given him from
heaven ; for neither did those fierce and savage men receive his doctrine
readily, nor did he himself wish to spend time in a land not his own ;
but he returned to him who sent him. On his return hence, however,
after his first passage of the sea, having begun his land journey, he
died in the territories of the Britons."
The Second Life of S. Patrick in Colgan's Trias Thaumaturga gives
some additional details.
" The most blessed Pope Celestine ordained bishop an archdeacon
of the Roman Church named Palladius, and sent him to the island of
Hibernia, after having committed to him the relics of the blessed
Peter and Paul and other Saints, and having also given him the volumes
of the Old and New Testaments. Palladius, entering the land of the
Scots, arrived at the territory of the men of Leinster, where Nathi mac
Garchon was the chief, who opposed him. Others, however, whom
the Divine mercy had disposed towards the worship of God, having
been baptized in the name of the Sacred Trinity, the blessed Palladius
built three churches in the same district, one of which he called Collfine,
in which, even to the present day, he left his books which he had
received from Celestine, and the box of relics of the blessed Peter and
Paul and other saints, and the tablets on which he used to write, which
in Scottish are called from his name Pall-ere or Pallao-ere, that is the
Burden of Palladius, and are held in veneration.
"Another, to wit, Tech-na-Roman (the House of the Romans) ; and
the third Domnach Ardech, or Aracha, in which are (buried) the holy
men of the family of Palladius, Silvester and Salonius, who are
honoured there. After a short time Palladius died in the plains of
Girgin, in a place called Fordun, but others say that he was crowned
with martyrdom there."
The Fourth Life, after giving much the same account up to the burial
of Silvester and Salonius, adds : " But Palladius seeing that he could
not do much good there, wishing to return to Rome, migrated to the
Lord in the region of the Picts. Others, however, say that he was
crowned with martyrdom in Hibernia."
Fuller particulars as to his departure are given in the Scholia to the
hymn attributed to S. Fiacc of Stetty, but which is considerably later.
" He (Palladius) founded some churches, viz., Teach-na-Roman,
Killfme, and others. Nevertheless he was not well received bv the
S. Be/erus 201
people, but was forced to go round the coast of Ireland towards the
north, until, driv.-n l.y a great tempest, he reached the extreme part of
Mohaidh toward- the south, where he founded the church of Fordun.
I'ledi jx ln> name there."
In tin- Irish original version it is said that he reached Cen Airthir,
and Dr. Todd SOggCSts that this is Kinnaird Head, on the north-east
<>t Aberdeen-lmv.
The Scottish versions are entirely untrustworthy, they do not date
Lack rail H r than the fourteenth century.
Dr. Todd lias shown pretty conclusively that, in the later lives of
S, I '.i trick, a fusion has taken place between the acts of the great
apostle and a lo>t Lite of Palladius.
In tlu- .uenuiiu- early records of S. Patrick, as in his own Confession,
there is no mention of his having been a disciple of S. Germanus, nor
ot his .ommission by Pope Celestine, all this belongs to the earlier
'ie Palladia, who. as we learn from Tirechan, 1 was also named
I'atririus. at the time a common name. 2
Proie .,r Zimmer 3 has suggested that Palladius is but the Latin
ot the name Sucat attributed to S. Patrick. Muirchu mac
Ma< htheni. who wrote shortly before 698, says : " Patricius, who was
liet.ot British nationality, was born in the British Isles." 4
JrMi hymn ot S. Fiacc, states that Patrick when a child was
nam< and in a gloss on the passage there is the note that the
num. tixh. ; ,nd meant dens belli vel fortis belli, because su in
rtis, and cut = helium.*
" Tim- says /immer, " Palladius is a Roman rendering of the
.-til us. . . . Sucat either changed his name himself on his
journey to Italy, or, what is more in accord with his scanty education,
IK made ti lends select for him a Roman equivalent for the British
Professor Zimmer identifies Palladius with the Patrick of the
Conit-xjMiiN and" Letter to Coroticus," which we consider a position
wholly untenable/ 1 \\V would rather suggest that in Britain Patri-
1 "Palladius -pi-co|.u- j>riino mittitur, qui Patricius alio nomine appella-
batur."
1 Gibbon s.iys, " 'I'll.- in. -an. -t Mibjccts of the Roman Empire " (at the close
of the fifth century) " assumed the illustrious name of Patricius, which by the
;Mon of Ireland has been communicated to a whole nation." Decline
and Fall, viii, p. 300. c-d. Milman and Smith.
3 The Celtic Church in ttritain and Ireland, tr. A. Meyer London, 1902, pp.
4 Tripartite Life, < ii. p. 494. & Ibid., ii, p. 412.
8 Dr. Zimmer's Thesis has met with a crushing rejoinder from the pen of
)fessot Hugh \Yilliams, Zeitschrift fur Celtische Philologie, iv (1903).
2 o 2 Lives of the British Saints
cius bore both names, his Latin and his vernacular name, and that
later in life, and when he left Britain, he ceased to be known by the
name of Sucat.
Let us endeavour, following Dr. Todd, to reconstruct the history of
S. Palladius.
Prosper of Aquitaine in his Chronicle, under 429, says that " Agricola
son of Severianus, a Pelagian bishop, corrupted the churches of
Britannia by insinuation of his doctrine ; but by the instrumentality of
the deacon Palladius (ad actionem Palladii diaconi), Pope Celestinus
sends Germanus, bishop of Auxerre, in his own stead (vice sua) to
displace the heretics and direct the Britons to the Catholic Faith."
And in the year next but one following, i.e., 431, " Palladius was
consecrated by Pope Celestinus, and sent to the Scots believing in
Christ, as their first bishop."
Commenting on the first passage, it deserves remark that Palladius
is not called a deacon of the Roman Church, and we should infer that
he was the deacon of Germanus. What is probable is, that Germanus,
having been chosen by the bishops of Gaul to go to Britain, sent his
deacon to announce this to Celestine, and to ask his blessing on the
undertaking.
The expedition of Germanus and Lupus to Britain lasted only one
year, and they returned to Gaul.
In the third year, 431, Celestine ordained Palladius bishop to those
of the Scots, i.e. Irish, who already believed in Christ. Palladius then
went, as we may presume, to Wales and crossed over from Porth Mawr
to the Hy Garchon territory in Wicklow, where he founded three
churches, but being much opposed by Nathi mac Garchon, the chief,
he was obliged to leave. Nathi was of the Dalmessincorb family.
" It is possible," says Professor Bury, " that we may seek the site
of a little house for praying, built by him or his disciples, on a high
wooded hill that rises sheer enough on the left bank of the River Avoca,
close to a long slanting hollow, down which, over grass and bushes, the
eye catches the glimmer of the stream winding in the vale below, and
rises beyond to the higher hills which bound the horizon. Here may
have been the ' House of the Romans,' Tech na Roman ; and Tigrency,
the shape in which this name is concealed, may be a memorial of the
first missioners of Rome. But further west, beyond the hills, we can
determine with less uncertainty another place which tradition associates
with the activity of Palladius, in the neighbourhood of one of the royal
seats of the lords of Leinster. From the high rath of Dunlavin those
kings had a wide survey of their realm. . . . More than a league
eastward from this fortress Palladius is said to have founded a church
S. Belerus 203
which is known as the ' domnach ' of the High field, Domnach Airte,
m ;i hilly region which is strewn with the remnants of ancient genera-
tions. The original church of this place has long since vanished, and
its precise site cannot be guessed with certainty, but it gave a perma-
nent name to the place. At Donard we feel with some assurance that
:! at one of the earliest homes of the Christian faith in Ireland,
not tin earliest that existed, but the earliest to which we can give a
name.
"There was a third church, seemingly the most important which
Palladium is said to have iminded, Cell Fine, ' the Church of the Tribes/
in which hi> tablets and certain books and relics which he had brought
irom Rome were preserved. Here, and perhaps only here, in the
plan-, unknown to us, where his relics lay, was preserved the memory
dladius. a mere name. Whatever his qualities may have been
he was too short a time in Ireland to have produced a permanent
impression." '
Mrpartm- irom tin south of Ireland by boat, Palladius proceeded
north with the intent to visit I'lstei , but, according to one account,
Irivi n by a ^torm to the coasts of Alba and died there. But, as
Professor Bury has pointed out, it is more probable that Palladius did
the Pi.-ts iii Palaradi.i. and that it was there that he died; not,
indeed, that tie was there martyred, but that he fell sick and died a
natural death.
When the later compilers ot the Life of S. Patrick fused but very
clumsily the two Patricks into one, they reproduced the story of the
in- into Wicklou and the ill reception met with there, and the
Mibsequent boating north to Ulster; but Patrick was made to land
th-re. where -as they fabled that Palladius had been driven east to Alba.
On the death of Palladius, his companions, Augustine and Benedict
returned to their homo, and brought the news of the event to Ebronia
a- J-.boi ia, where S. Patrick heard of the failure of the mission. There
difficulty in locating this place, all that we can say with confidence
about it is that it was in Gaul. Palladius is commemorated on July 6
in the Arbuthnot and Aberdeen Calendars. He is unnoticed in
the Irish Ma it vrologies. It must be clearly understood that the
identification of Palladius and Belerus is most uncertain, and is not a
little tanta<ti'\
1 Bury, Life of 5. Patrick, I.on.!.. 1.^,5, pp. 56-7.
204 Lives of the British Saints
S. BELYAU, Virgin
As Mr. Egerton Phillimore has shown, 1 the Breconshire Church
Llanvillo, in Welsh Llanfilo, clearly took its name from and is really
dedicated to Belyau, who was, according to the Cognalio of Cott. Vesp.
A. xiv, one of the daughters of Brychan Brycheiniog. The church is
usually given as dedicated to S. Milburgh, but this is a mere guess.
It is called in ancient charters Lanbilio and Lanbiliou. Belyau was
one of Brychan's unmarried daughters.
S. BEON or BENIGNUS, Confessor
AT Glastonbury in 1091 was elevated and translated the body of a
hermit named Beon, who had been buried in the cell he had inhabited
in the Isle of Feringmere in the Marshes.
As the Glastonbury monks desired to make the most of their place
and of the relics they possessed, besides pretending to have there the
tomb of King Arthur, they claimed to have also the bodies of
S. Patrick, S. David, and Gildas, and they converted the Irish settler
Beon into Benignus, archbishop of Armagh and successor to S. Patrick.
On the occasion of the Translation they had an epitaph inscribed
on his tomb, which they pretended had covered him in Feringmere.
William of Malmesbury, who informs us of this in his book on the
Antiquities of Glastonbury, says : " In the year 460 Saint Benignus
came to Glastonbury. He was disciple of S. Patrick, and his third
successor in the episcopate, as is recorded in their Acts. Benignus, by
the counsel of an Angel, leaving his country and pontificate and aban-
doning his dignity, having undertaken a voluntary pilgrimage arrived
at Glastonbury, God being his guide ; and there he encountered S.
Patrick. Of how great favour he was in with God is manifested by
many tokens. This is testified at Feringmere, where a spring rose at
his prayers, and a great flourishing tree grew out of his dry staff. Here,
finally, after great anguish he came to a blessed end, in the said island,
and there rested till the days of William Rufus, when he was translated
to Glastonbury."
The Life of S. Beon or Benignus was written by William of Malmes-
bury, and this formed the substance of a Life by John of Tynemouth,
1 See his note in Owen, Pembrokeshire, iii, p. 325.
S. Beon 205
printed in Capgrave's Nova Legenda Anglice. According to this,
Benignus, after having spent many years in Ireland as a bishop, at
t he summons of an angel departed on pilgrimage, and came to Glaston-
bury where he found S. Patrick, 1 who said to him : " Go, my brother,
content with your staff, and wheresoever it begins to bud, leaf and
bloom, there abide, it is ordained for your resting place."
Thru Brnignus, attended by a boy, Pincius,\vent through the marsh
and willow tangled waste, till they came to an islet or toft in the marsh
< ailed Ferramere, and there his rod rooted itself and put forth leaves.
At tli;it time " the river which now flows by it," took another course,
and Benignus had to send his boy Pinch some distance for water.
One day Pinch was bringing a pitcherful ; the weather was hot, and
he lay down half-way and fell asleep. Whilst he snored a mischievous
trllnw stole the pitcher. Pinch awoke, and when he found the vessel
. set up a howl, and presently, laughing, the practical joker showed
nd restored it. Pinch took the pitcher to his master and told
him that the Devil had played him a trick, but had surrendered the
vessel when he cried out to the God of Benignus.
The hermit, compassionating the labour imposed on Pinch, thrust
^taff into the soil and elicited a copious spring. Benignus was
wont at nielli to walk along a causeway he had constructed to Glaston-
bury to pray there in the church of S. Mary. One night he found his
passage obstructed by a monstrous form. He addressed it in these
' You bloody beast ! 2 what are you doing here ? " The
lemon replied : " I have been awaiting you, you toothless old man,
hoping to deceive you." Thereupon Benignus went at him manfully,
ht him by the scruff of the neck, belaboured him with his staff, and
flung him into a well probably a mere hard by, where he sank and
never again seen, and this well or mere was held to be bottomless.
There can be little doubt that this was a practical joke played on the
old fellow and it turned out badly for the performer. When he felt
'hat his time was come, Benignus summoned his disciples to him and
announced to them that his hour was at hand ; then raising his eyes
to heaven, he expired in their arms on November 3.
In the year 1091, his body was translated to Glastonbury, where
persons troubled with intestinal worms, threw them up in the
of the congregation. 3
" Glastoniam vrnu-Ms, sanctum Patricium invenit," Vit. apud Capgrave ;
" Glastoniam Deo duce pcrvenit ; ubi et sanctum Patricium invenit," Gulielm.
Malmesb.
" Cruenta bestia
" Plurimi etiam colubros et diversa dolorum genera visceribus habentes,
palam, vidente populo, evomuerunt."
206 Lives of the British Saints
One of the brethren at Glastonbury, who was ill of a fever, \vas
sceptical, and when advised to invoke the newly translated saint,
replied : " It can do no harm, if it does me no good." l
In the night Benignus visited him, in a paroxysm of wrath at his
slighting expression, and soundly boxed his ears. 2 At the same time
he informed the sceptic that one of the brethren had stolen one of his
(the Saint's) teeth, and that he would serve him worse unless it were
restored. This threat when reported produced the required effect.
As the name given to the anchorite on his tomb was Beon, it is clear
that the man was not Benignus, the Irish form of which is Benen.
Beoan or Beon is a common name in Irish Calendars, saints so named
occur on February i, August 8, October 26 and 28, and Beogaison
July 27, and this name is quite distinct from Benen or Benignus.
That this peppery hermit was an Irishman is probable enough, that
he was identical with S. Benignus of Armagh, cannot be allowed.
Benignus is commemorated on November 9, this testy old saint on
November 3.
The Syon College MS. Martyrology (Add. MS. 22,285) has, on June
27 : " Apud glasconiam translacio sancti benigni confessoris." Whytfdrd
misread the name and entered in his Martiloge : . " At Glassenbury
the translacyon of sayt Bemonus a Confessor." But in his additions
for the same day : " The feest also of Saynt Benygne a confessor."
S. BERNACH, see S. BRYNACH
S. BERRYS
THIS saint's name is entered in the Myvyrian alphabetical Bonedd,*
compiled by Lewis Morris in 1760, but occurs in no other list. He is
there given as the patron of Llanferres, Denbighshire, a name variously
spelt, Lanverreys in the Taxatio of 1291, and Llanferrys and Llanferreis
in two late sixteenth century parish lists. 4 The patron of the church
is generally said to be S. Britius or Brice, 5 the disciple of S. Martin of
" Re enim vera sicut michi prodesse non valet, ita nee michi nocere potest"
2 " Alapam ingentem in faciem ejus dedit."
3 Myv. Arch., p. 419.
4 Dr. Gwenogfryn Evans, Report on Welsh MSS., i, p. 914,
6 E.g., Browne Willis, Bangor, 1721, p. 364 ; Bp. Maddox's Book Z (1736^43)
in the Episcopal Library at S. Asaph ; Pennant, Tours in Wales, ed. 1883, ii.
p. 28 ; Lewis Morris, Celtic Remains, p. 3?
S. Berwyn 207
ours, who afterwards became his successor in the bishopric, and
whose festival is November 13. Such is undoubtedly the case. In
soni.- laic >ixteenth century marginal notes to the Calendar in a copy
ol tin- Preces Privatae of 1573, the wakes of Llanferres are entered
-t November 13 ; and in the early part of last century they \\viv
li.-M on the Sunday next before November 22. 1
YYS Hivwis, in Glamorganshire, is by some believed to be called
5. Brice, but by others after the De Braose family, which
appears to be the more probable. In the Taxatio of 1254 (Norwich)
it occurs as Egelespriwes. and in that of 1291 as Eglis prewis.
S. BERWYN, Martyr
, otherwise Gerwyn, is reckoned by the Welsh genealogist-
unions the sons of Brychan, and he is said to have settled in Cornwall,
when- a church is dedicated to him, and to have been slain in the
I>lr oi <iiT\vyn ; but he is also spoken of as son of Brynach Wyddel or
tin.- Irishman. l>v forth one of the daughters of Brychan, and therefore
son of the King of Brecon. 2 In the late Welsh genealogies
his name always occurs as Gerwyn, 3 the result of misreading the
initial letter of his name. Nicolas Roscarrock in his MS. Lives oi the
s calls him Breuer or Berwine, and says that his foundation was
is now called S. Breward or Simonsward, and that he was
litionally held to have been the brother of S. Endelienta
lenefreda.
> far accords with the Welsh Pedigrees that Mwynen, who is
linver or Menefreda, was daughter of Brynach. Roscarrock further
that folk at Simonsward reported that the tradition of their
>rs was that he was slain there, and he adds, " There was a
growing in our memorie in the place of his martyrdom which was
much regarded and reverenced and thought to have contynued
since his death."
5. Breward Feast is on February 2 ; Old Style this would be January
V 'iii-ylicdydd, x, p. 335 (1833). Bp- Maddox, ut supra, gives Nov. 13.
As son of Brychan in both versions of the Cognatio, " Berwin in Cornwallia "
i " Berwyn apud Cornubiam ' ' ; and as son of Brynach in lolo MSS. , pp. 121. 141.
3 lolo MSS., pp. in, 119, 140; Myv. Arch., pp. 419, 425.
2 o 8 Lives of the British Saints
20. The parish of S. Breward had its church dedicated by Bishop
Briwere or Brewere of Exeter (1223-1224). Oliver in his Monasticon l
states that the church " Ecclesia Sancti Breweredi de Hamathethi "
was granted to Tywardreath Priory in the time of Andrew the Prior.
Unfortunately this document is undated, but it must have been before
1154, when Osbert was prior, who appears to have succeeded Andrew
immediately. A charter of William Peverel of the twelfth century
also calls the church that of S. Brewaredus. 2
S. BEULAN, Confessor
A CHURCH in Anglesey is called Llanbeulan, and is generally sup-
posed to be a foundation of Peulan, son of Paul Hen. 3
On the other hand Mommsen, in his Introduction to Nennius, says
that it undoubtedly takes its name from Beulan, 4 a priest, at whose
command Nennius compiled his history for the use of his son Samuel.
But as Nennius made his compilation about 796, or perhaps 800, we
can hardly suppose that this Beulan gave his name to a church, as the
age of the saintly founders was over.
We shall therefore refer to Peulan for the church of Llanbeulan.
S. BEUNO, Abbot, Confessor
THE authority for the history of S. Beuno is a short life in Welsh.
A copy of it occurs in Llyvyr Agkyr Llandewivrevi, a MS. written in
1346 at Llanddewi Brefi, in Cardiganshire, now in Jesus College Library,
Oxford. The MS. was published by Professors Morris Jones and
Rhys in 1894, and forms one of the works included in the Anecdota
Oxoniensia series, issued by the Clarendon Press ; it is found pp. 119-
127. The Life is also printed in the Cambro-British Saints, pp. 13-21,
but less accurately.
1 Oliver, Monasticon Exon., p. 34. 2 Ibid., p. 42.
3 Peulan was a disciple of S. Cybi, and came with him to Anglesey.
4 .Von. Germ. Hist. Chron. Minora, iii, p. 137.
S. Beuno
209
pies of the Life are to be found in Llanstephan MSS. 4 and
2~ (circa 1400), Peniarth MS. 15 (fifteenth century), and a number of
MSS. of the sixteenth century and later.
A translation of the Life was printed at the end of the Life and
Miracles of S. Wenefrede, edited by Bp. Fleetwood, 2nd edition, 1713.
In the MS. in Llyvyr Agkyr Llandewivrevi the Life is described as
being " u portion of the Life of Beuno and his miracles." It is
-trnn^ly national and anti-Saxon in tone. S. Beuno also figures
in the Vita S. \\ inefredce.
Th< Cywydd i Feuno Abad by Rhys Goch Eryri (flor.
fourteenth century) which has been printed in Y Brython, 1860, pp.
451 -'. Another Cywydd to " S. Beuno of Clynnog," by Sir John
(flor. fifteenth century), has been printed in Y Geninen, 1900,
p. 143. There is yet another Cywydd to him by Sion Ceri (flor.
nth century) in Jesus College MS. I7 = CI. These poems add
hut little to what is contained in the Life. In Latin documents
Mine is usually given as Beurionus.
Cynfarch Gul=Xyfain da. Brychan.
LleiuUlun Luyddog (Leudonus of Leudonia)
Anna da. Uthyr Bendragon .
ab I 'ru-ii
S.Cyr
B. Gla
d. 612
i Di-nw.
drvrn,
LSgOW,
Medrod =
<! 537-
r
Two p
niurdt
Constz
c- S3
Cywvllog
da. Caw
n
rinces
red by
inline,
Peril cren =
= Bugi. Tenoi =
= Dingad ab Nudd
Hael.
Tyfriog. | Eleri
Lleuddad. Baglan.
1
Tegwy.
Temic.
r~ n
S. Beuno, Wenlo(?)=Tevyth or
d. c. 635. 1
S. Winefred.
According to the pedigree of the saint given at the conclusion of the
Life lie was son of Bugi, son of Gwynllyw, son of Tegid, son of Cadell
1 >eyrnll\vtf. His father's name also occurs in the genealogies as Bengi
i ml Hywgi. 1
The pedigree i^iven in the Vita S.Cadocidoes not agree with this.
Bengi and Bugi are found in the earliest, Hywgi in the later MSS. Byuci
a name in the Book of Llan Ddv, p. 279, which would appear later as
VOL. I. p
2 i o Lives of the British Saints
Cadoc or Catwg is made son of Gwynllyw, son of Glywys, son of Solor,
son of Nor, son of Owain, son of Maximian (Maximus); 1 and accord-
ing to the Life of S. Gwynllyw, this saint was son and successor to
Glywys. The older genealogies give Gwynllyw ab Glywys ab Tegid ab
Cadell. 2 Anyhow, Beuno was closely related to Catwg, and also to
Cyndeyrn.
It seems clear that the royal family of Gwent issued from that of
Powys, and this will explain the fact stated in the Life of Beuno
- that Bugi lived in Powysland by the Severn. His wife was named
Beren, and she was the daughter of Llawdden. 3 Their place of resi-
dence was Banhenig, near the river, the identity of which has not
been fully established. 4
In their old age they had a son, whom they named Beuno, and sent
him to Caerwent to be educated by Tangusius, who had probably suc-
ceeded Tathan as master of the college founded by Ynyr Gwent.
Here he " obtained a knowledge of all the Holy Scriptures ; after-
wards he learned the service of the Church and its rules, and took
orders, and became a priest."
Ynyr Gwent is represented as resigning his royal position and
becoming, in his old age, a disciple of Beuno, to whom he granted lands
in Ewyas. This is Llanfeuno, a chapelry now under Clodock, near
Longtown.
Whilst here, Beuno heard that his father was ill, and committing the
charge of his foundation in Ewyas to three of his disciples, he departed
for Powys. " And his father, after receiving the communion, making
his confession, and rendering his end perfect, departed this life."
Beuno now made a foundation in the township of his father, and set
an acorn by the side of his grave, that grew in time to be a mighty oak,
of which one branch curved down to the ground, and then rose again,
" and there was a part of this branch in the soil, as at present ; and if
an Englishman should pass between this branch and the trunk of the
1 Cambro-British Saints, p. 81.
2 Peniarth MS. 16 (early thirteenth century) ; Peniarth MS. 12 (early four-
teenth century) ; HafodMS. 16 (circa 1400) ; cf. Jesus Coll. MS. 20 (early fifteenth
century).
3 She was otherwise called Peren (Peniarth MS. 12 ; Hafod MS. 16 ;
Cambro-British Saints, p. 267) ; and Perferen (Pen. MSS. 16 and 27 ; Myv.
Arch., p. 41 8). Llawdden is Lleuddun Luyddog of Dinas Eiddyn (Edinburgh), the
eponymus of Lothian. Her sister Tenoi is given as wife of Dingad ab Nudd Hael,
and a mother of saints. But there is a chronological impossibility involved.
4 Trelystan, near Welshpool, has been suggested. Near Trelystan Chapel
are Badnage (formerly Badnich) Wood and Cottage, and within the chapelry a
dingle called Cwm yr Henog. It was much more probably Llanymynch, where
there is a S. Bennion's Well, and, in the neighbourhood, the township of
Tredderwen.
S. Beuno 211
he would immediately die ; but should a Welshman go, he would
in no way suffer."
Thence Beuno went to visit Mawn, " son of Brochwel " l Ysgythrog,
king of Powys. The relationship is wrong. Mawn or Mawan was
brother, and not son of Brochwel. Mawn granted him Aberrhiw, now
Berriew . in Montgomeryshire, near Welshpool, where an upright stone
remains, called Maen Beuno, marking the spot where Beuno is supposed
to haw preached to and instructed the people. It stands in the level
land bet WITH the junction of the Luggy and the Severn, and the
khiw and tin- same river, a little off the high road from Welshpool to
NYwtown.
(hie day, when Beuno was walking by the Severn, "he heard
a vokv nn the other side of the river, inciting dogs to hunt a hare,
and the voice was that of an Englishman, who shouted ' Kergia !
- which in that language incited the hounds. And when
' h-anl the voice of the Englishman, he at once returned,
and coming to his disciples, said to them, ' My sons, put on your gar-
im-nts and your shoes, and let us leave this place, for the nation of the
man with the strange language, whose cry I heard beyond the river
nr.uini; <>n Ins hounds, will invade this place, and it will be theirs, and
they will hold it as their possession.' "
Then h- commended his foundation at Berriew to a disciple named
Khithwlint, and departed to Meifod, where he remained with Tyssilio
forty days and as many nights, and where he is said to have founded
a church on land granted him by Cynan, son of Brochwel. However,
lid not remain there. Two such shining lights as himself and
Tyssilio could hardly abide together, and Cynan gave him lands at
(iw vddelwern, near Corwen, in Merionethshire. The name shows
that at one time the Irish were in occupation here, and, indeed, the
-tron^ stone camp of Caer Drewyn, that commands Corwen and the
valley in which is Beuno's church, with its ruined cytiau, looks very
much as if it were of Irish construction.
But the " Life " gives another explanation of the name. It says
that (Iwyddelwern was so called because that there Beuno raised an
Irishman to lite. He was probably Llorcan Wyddel, mentioned as
i ^ix persons said to have been so raised by him.
He did not long remain on this spot, for he quarrelled with the
1 in -i)l lews " of Cynan, who were hunting in the neighbourhood.
1 " Vawn vab Brochwel."
1 Probably " Charge ! " The story brings the English west of Offa's Dyks
at the end of the sixth century.
212 Lives of the British Saints
Actually they were grandsons of Cynan, sons of Selyf. 1 Coming to
Gwyddelwern, they imperiously demanded food for themselves and
their party. They induced Beuno to kill a young ox for their refection,
but the meat did not cook in the pot to their liking, and the youths 
