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 THE 
 
 ECCLESIASTICAL ANTIQUITIES 
 
 Clje Cgmrg: 
 
 THE ANCIENT BRITISH CHURCH; 
 
 HISTORY, DOCTRINE, AND RITES. 
 
 BY 
 
 THE REV. JOHN WILLIAMS, M.A., 
 
 PERPETUAL CURATE OF NERQUIS, DIOCESE OF ST. ASAPH. 
 
 LONDON : 
 W. J. CLEAVER, BAKER STREET, 
 
 PORTMAN-SQUARE. 
 
 M.DCCC.XLIV.
 
 LONDON : 
 RICHARDS, PRINTER, ST. MARTIN'S LAN1
 
 SO, 
 
 V/L73 
 
 TO 
 THE RIGHT REVEREND 
 
 THE LORDS BISHOPS OF 
 ST. ASAPH, BANGOR, LLANDAFF, AND ST. DAVID'S, 
 
 THIS VOLUME 
 
 ON THE ANTIQUITIES OF THAT CHURCH 
 
 OF WHICH THEY ARE NOW 
 
 THE LIVING REPRESENTATIVES, 
 is, 
 
 WITH EVERY SENTIMENT OF DUTIFUL VENERATION 
 
 FOR THEIR APOSTOLIC OFFICE, 
 
 AND FOR THEIR 
 
 FAITHFUL DISCHARGE OF ITS HIGH AND HOLY FUNCTIONS, 
 
 AND WITH AN EARNEST PRAYER 
 
 THAT THEIR NUMBER MAY REMAIN UNDIMINISHED 
 
 UNTIL THE END OF TIME, 
 
 MOST RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED BY 
 
 THE AUTHOR. 
 
 1412658
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 The purport of the following pages is to exhibit, in one 
 view, the various features of the ancient Church of 
 Cymru during its metropolitical existence. A work of 
 this nature was always desirable, but the want of it was 
 never, perhaps, so much felt as now, when ecclesiastical 
 antiquities are so generally canvassed among Christians. 
 It is true that we are already in possession of several 
 treatises relative to the religion of our Catholic ances- 
 tors ; and the learned authors who bequeathed them to 
 us ought not to be mentioned except in terms of respect 
 and gratitude. Still we are free to confess that their 
 researches are not of a form sufficiently systematical, 
 plain, and comprehensive, to suit the cravings and 
 capacities of the ordinary reader. Subjects of main 
 interest only, such as the origin, government, or inde- 
 pendence of the Church, have been expressly investi- 
 gated, whilst particulars, apparently of minor import- 
 ance, have been left wholly untouched, or but incident- 
 ally and subserviently noticed. Some of the writers 
 may have conducted themselves also more as advocates 
 in support of their respective positions, than as candid 
 and impartial historians. Some have couched their
 
 VI 
 
 facts and opinions in a language inaccessible to the 
 community at large. And all have more or less con- 
 founded the character of the Cambrian with that of its 
 sister Churches in the northern and southern provinces 
 of Britain. Further, those who have endeavoured to 
 describe the historical progress of early Christianity in 
 the island, have either stopped with the mission of 
 Augustine, or else deviated in an Anglican direction, 
 overlooking afterwards not only the distinctive character, 
 but even the very existence of the Church of Wales. 
 Hence it was necessary, that, whosoever wished to be 
 fairly acquainted with any of its details, should cull his 
 information, by a laborious process, from different and 
 scattered fields. 
 
 These considerations denote that the accounts which 
 hitherto we have of the ancient British Church are far 
 from complete. The present volume is therefore in- 
 tended, not by any means to supersede them, but in 
 j,ome measure to supply their deficiencies, and that with 
 ' especial reference to Cymru. 
 
 The Church of the Cymry is selected, not merely 
 because former writers have delineated it less correctly 
 than its neighbours, but rather inasmuch as it was the 
 original, and therefore the legitimate communion of the 
 land. For thus may be truly applied to that people as 
 a Church, what was said of them as a nation ; " No one 
 has any right to the isle of Prydain but the tribe of the 
 Cymry, for they first settled in it," i. e. as Christians. 

 
 Vll 
 
 Possessing the primary see, their archbishops could 
 justly claim patriarchal jurisdiction over all the dioceses 
 in the island. 
 
 In our controversies with Rome we should ever bear 
 this point in mind. It is of little consequence whether 
 the provinces of York and London were represented in 
 the council of Sardica, or acknowledged the supremacy 
 of the Pope or not, as long as the Cambrian prelates 
 stood aloof, and maintained their own independence. 
 And that they did present a distinct and independent 
 bearing of this nature for several centuries, is sufficiently 
 manifested in the body of this work. 
 
 The Bardo-Druidical system of the aboriginal colony 
 had been also in like manner incorrectly sketched. 
 Hence it was deemed necessary on the present occasion 
 to clear that subject, not so much with a view to ascer- 
 tain the moral ground upon which Christianity had to 
 act, as for the better understanding of the external con- 
 dition of the infant Church. For this was materially 
 affected by the influence of the College of Bards, which 
 continued to be recognized by the civil government long 
 after the introduction of the Gospel. 
 
 It is not to be expected that English or Foreign 
 historians could have formerly known much of the real 
 state of Cymru, in consequence of the inaccessible nature 
 of domestic documents. These, until recently, were for 
 the most part buried in private libraries, and, moreover, 
 written in a language scarcely understood out of the
 
 Vlll 
 
 confines of the principality. A great portion of them, 
 hoAvever, being now published, and it being the good 
 fortune of the writer in some degree to comprehend 
 their contents, liberal and prominent use has been made 
 of them on this occasion. Indeed they are the authori- 
 ties which may be said to impart to the work its peculiar 
 character, or to form the basis on which it stands. Their 
 respective claims to credit may be gathered from the 
 notes which refer to them, and need not here be investi- 
 gated. We will merely observe, that if any are more 
 authentic than others, they are the Laws, Triads, and 
 Genealogies, which seem to have been in a manner 
 nationally drawn up or compiled. 
 
 However novel and striking these records may at first 
 sight appear to be, they nevertheless successfully bear 
 the test of inquiry. Thus among themselves they mu- 
 tually confirm each other's statements. For instance, 
 the principles of Bardism, which to some will seem too 
 good, are supported by the laws of Dyvnwal Moelmud, 
 and the excellence of these again by the testimony of 
 Caradog of Llancarvan, the historian, in the twelfth 
 century. They also explain many extraneous autho- 
 rities, which otherwise were thought hard to believe. 
 Thus the Epistle of Eleutherius was generally rejected 
 as spurious, because it contemplated a state of things in 
 Britain at the time adverse to the popular notion : but the 
 same agrees fairly with the description given of Cymru 
 in its own records. The Triads reduce into reasonable
 
 IX 
 
 dimensions the marvellous legend concerning the con- 
 version of the island, and the establishment of three 
 archbishoprics by Lucius, so that it needs not be alto- 
 gether believed, neither absolutely rejected. Moreover 
 the authorities in question are found sometimes to tally 
 exactly with the inference of persons who have merely, 
 but carefully, examined the drift of more distant docu- 
 ments. Stillingfleet, who never had an opportunity of 
 seeing the Triads, or Genealogies of the Saints, yet after 
 duly weighing the merits of his scanty materials, in 
 reference to the introduction of Christianity, comes to 
 this conclusion, so agreeable thereto : " It is certain that 
 St. Paul did make considerable converts at his cominsr 
 to Rome, which is the reason of his mentioning the 
 saints in Ca?sar's household. And it is not improbable 
 that some of the British captives, carried over with 
 Caractacus and his family, might be some of them, who 
 would certainly promote the conversion of their country 
 by St. Paul." 
 
 But though principally, yet not exclusively have these 
 documents been used. They have been seconded, and 
 their deficiencies supplied by Greek, Latin, and English 
 authorities. Sometimes statements, whether positive or 
 inferential, as to the provinces of Britain in general, have 
 been particularly applied to that of Cymru; and even 
 those which had an express reference to the north or 
 south, have been adduced for the purposes of describing 
 its usages. Care, however, has been taken that there
 
 should be reasonable ground for such an application. 
 Where it is said that some clergymen, who dwelt in the 
 isles of the ocean, and on the utmost borders of the 
 habitable world, repaired to Constantinople, in the ninth 
 century, to make inquiries about Easter, it is inferred 
 not only that they were Britons, from their insular and 
 extreme abode, but moreover Cymry, because of the 
 preference for oriental customs which that people showed 
 on other occasions, and because they were the last to 
 submit to any alteration of the paschal season. And it 
 is supposed that the mode of consecrating churches, 
 which Bede ascribes to the northern Christians, was 
 identical with that in use among the Cymry, because of 
 its peculiarity. That is, seeing it was not borrowed 
 from abroad, it is more probable that it was the original 
 and common practice of the island, than invented in 
 Lindisfarne or amongst the East Saxons, and especially 
 since something of a similar nature was moreover adopted 
 by Garmon in Wales. Nevertheless such matters are 
 not attempted to be imposed upon the Cambrian com- 
 munion without some notification of the reasons, and 
 the reader, after all, is at liberty to exercise his dis- 
 cretion concerning them. 
 
 The work, as its title denotes, divides itself into three 
 main parts, treating respectively of the history, rites, 
 and doctrine of the Church. The Introduction may 
 perhaps be considered as another, in which the rise, 
 progress, and substance of Bardism are briefly and com-
 
 XI 
 
 prehcnsivcly described. The materials used for this 
 purpose are chiefly obtained from the traditions and 
 regulations of that ancient institution, repeatedly sanc- 
 tioned as they were at its different congresses. The 
 history of the Church extends down to the end of the 
 twelfth century, and is principally drawn from the Gene- 
 alogies of the Saints, and the Bruts or Chronicles of 
 Wales. Interspersed are such notices of temporal affairs 
 as the national character of the Church seemed particu- 
 larly to require. It is indeed remarkable how the grand 
 changes in its external condition coincided in point of 
 time with, or were influenced by, civil innovations. Thus 
 its period of simplicity, holiness, and independence, may 
 be said, in a sense, to have expired with the ancient 
 monarchy. Under the princes it gradually assimilated 
 itself to the surrounding communions, until at length, 
 through the power of the English, it finally submitted 
 to the archiepiscopal see of Canterbury. And though, 
 moreover, the precise eras at which the natives aban- 
 doned some of their ancient traditions in particular for 
 Romish customs, as in the case of Easter and the Ton- 
 sure, may, from certain circumstances, be pretty well 
 conjectured, yet their transitions in respect to others are 
 not so easily ascertained, further than that they took 
 place subsequently to the mission of Augustine. There 
 were some developments too, which the Cambrian Church 
 underwent, peculiar to itself. So that several points 
 mentioned among the " Rites," cannot be warranted as
 
 Xll 
 
 existing in their stated form in any age but that of the 
 authorities which refer to them. The same is observed 
 of the singular features of "Doctrine," which appear in 
 the work. Of both departments the materials are scanty, 
 and m«uv particularly so in reference to the former stage 
 of the Church's progress. 
 
 The writer, with all his national prejudices, has stu- 
 diously endeavoured to steer throughout in the track of 
 truth. With that view he trusts that he has not pal- 
 liated or concealed the faults of his ancestors, nor attri- 
 buted unworthy motives to their Christian rivals. He 
 has carefully abstained from dressing mere inferences 
 : 1 1 1 « 1 probabilities in the language of positiveness. Finely 
 turned sentences have not been attempted, lest even a 
 florid phraseology should detract from the simplicity and 
 force of his authorities, or pervert their original meaning. 
 1 1 is aim has been to display facts rather than words. With 
 what real success, however, the public will judge. 
 
 Should any one hereafter be desirous of delineating 
 the Church in Wales during the Middle Ages, he will 
 find plenty of sources on which to draw in the produc- 
 tion- of the country. By far the greater proportion of 
 the .M\ v\ ri.in Archaiology refers to that period, abound- 
 ing moreover in statements and allusions relative to the 
 history and character of the national religion. Much 
 information may be obtained from the Eegister of 
 Llandaf. Works which would seem well calculated to 
 further Buch a design, are advertised as about to be pub-
 
 Xlll 
 
 lished under the auspices of the Welsh MSS. Society. 
 These are a " Miscellaneous Selection of Ancient Welsh 
 Manuscripts in prose and poetry, from originals collected 
 by the late Edward Williams" ; " The Lives of the 
 Welsh Saints, from various ancient manuscripts in the 
 British Museum and elsewhere"; " Chronicle of Wales, 
 in the Lambeth Library" ; " Chronicle of Wales in the 
 Thirteenth Century, compiled in the Abbey of Strata 
 Florida, — in the Record Office" ; " The inedited matter 
 in the Llyvr Cock o Hergest, in tke library of Jesus 
 College, Oxford"; "Llyvr Cock Llanelwy, or tke Red 
 Book of St. Asapk"; and tke " Registrum Prioratus de 
 Brecknock." All of course will be accompanied by 
 Engksk translations. It ougkt not to be said tkat tke 
 subject is forestalled in tke kistories of tke Church of 
 England, and therefore not to be treated again. Indeed, 
 the Welsh branch, since the union, has scarcely been 
 noticed at all in those works ; besides, it possessed still 
 in some degree a peculiarity of character which would 
 justify a separate treatise for its development : witness 
 the " Use" and " Pontifical of Bangor." Surely we 
 would gladly welcome any additional information res- 
 pecting the Church of our fathers. 
 
 Church of our Fathers ! And is it not also our own ? 
 Blessed be God, we too have the priesthood and sacra- 
 ments, by means of which we are united to Christ, and 
 in him to all his saints. Our union with him is not 
 metaphorical or moral, but real and substantial, according 
 to his desire : " Neither pray I for these alone, but for
 
 XIV 
 
 them also which shall believe on me through their word ; 
 that they all may be one, as thou, Father, art in me, 
 and I in thee, that they also may be one in us; that the 
 world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the 
 glory which thou gavest me I have given them, that 
 they may be one, even as we are one; I in them, and 
 thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one." 
 (John xvii. 20-23.) This union indeed annihilates 
 time and space, for already we " are come unto Mount 
 Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly 
 Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, to 
 the general assembly and Church of the firstborn, which 
 are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and 
 to the spirits of just men made perfect, and to Jesus the 
 Mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of 
 Bprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of 
 Abel." (Heb. xii. 22-24.) Dewi, Padarn, and Teilo, 
 are still our brethren, members of the same family, and 
 present with us, though we see them not with the eye of 
 flesh. It is this consideration which gives us such a 
 deep interest in their history. 
 
 Church of our fathers! And not without reason may 
 we use t lie expression. For where amongst ourselves 
 Bhall we find the piety, zeal and love, which actuated 
 their conduct in the cause of our common Lord and 
 Master? Where is that courage which enabled Cyn- 
 deyrri, "the amiable," after his expulsion from Penryn 
 Ethionydd, to establish the bishopric of Llanelwy, in 
 -pit- of the powerful opposition of Maelgwn Gwynedd?
 
 XV 
 
 But he walked in the path of duty, and the Church was 
 blessed. The wrath of man was made to praise God, 
 and the remainder of wrath he restrained. ( Ps. lxxvi. 
 10.) Cyndeyrn was restored to his northern diocese, 
 and saw even " the tempter of saints" relent so as to 
 bestow diverse immunities and privileges upon the see 
 which once had been the object of his hostile resistance. 
 And may we not rescue a see, so boldly and successfully 
 established, from the destruction awarded to it in high 
 places ? Truly it was founded with a view to the glory 
 of God and the salvation of man. Its extinction will 
 impede the free course of the Gospel of truth. Would, 
 therefore, that the maxim of Asaf sounded its awful 
 import in the ears of our rulers, so as to deter them 
 effectually from their sacrilegious purposes : 
 
 " ©utcuna.ue berfto Bti a&bersatentur, salutt tiomtnum mbt&ent." 
 
 Cymru could once boast of an archbishopric of its 
 own, four, if not five suffragans, and a goodly number of 
 chorepiscopi. Now, we can scarcely retain possession 
 of four humble sees. Well, therefore, under such cir- 
 cumstances, may we emphatically talk of the Church of 
 our fathers ! 
 
 And our ancient monasteries, where are they? Let 
 not the Protestant-minded Churchman startle at the 
 inquiry. Probably he would be among the very first 
 and loudest to assert the independence of early Britain, 
 and yet he would certainly find within his period of 
 liberty the actual existence of those holy retreats of 
 learning and religion, call them what he will, — monas-
 
 XVI 
 
 tenes, coUeges, or bangors. Nor were they indeed the 
 growth of Popery, for they originated before Augustine 
 ev< r Bet foot on our shores. And it was the abbot of 
 Bangor [scoed that was deputed by his Church and 
 country to express the formal renunciation of the pre- 
 tensions of the Pope, when he addressed his legate in 
 those memorable words: "We are under the govern- 
 ment of the bishop of Caerleon upon Usk, who is to over- 
 . under God, over us, to cause us to keep the way 
 Bpiritual." We may almost say that the introduction of 
 Popery was the extinction of British monasteries, at least 
 in their primitive form. 
 
 None of these remain to us, though we are equally 
 with our ancestors exposed to the wiles and temptations 
 of a wicked world. We want the " continual choral 
 songs;" we want " congregations of the faithful to cele- 
 brate with fervent devotion the sacrifice of Christ," as 
 much as they did in the days of the patron saint of 
 Cv mm. 
 
 Other treasures had our ancestors, which we grasp at 
 in vain. But they were worthy of them; and until we 
 :itt;iiii more of their holy temper and disposition, things 
 are perhaps as well as they are. Otherwise it would be 
 like casting pearls before swine. Let us duly appreciate 
 and make a proper use of what has been left to us, and 
 God will in His own good time restore us to our full 
 hi ritage. 
 
 Nerqi i-. 
 77 / ' fSt. Matthew, 1844.
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 INTRODUCTION, 
 
 The earth divided .... 
 
 Britain colonized before the death of Noah 
 
 Religion, and the arts and sciences, carried into all lands 
 
 Testimony of the Triads as to the primary colonization of this country 
 
 The three names of the Isle of Britain 
 
 Its three social tribes 
 
 One of its three national pillars 
 
 One of the three benefactors of the Cymry 
 
 One of the three awful events of Britain 
 
 Its three chief master-works 
 
 Hu Gadarn disposes the Cymry into tribes 
 
 The three inventors of song and record, and the three who reduced them 
 
 into a system of privilege and discipline 
 Poetry originated before the general dispersion 
 Arrival of the Lloegrians and Brython 
 They bring no distinctive system of their own 
 No penal enactments to enforce the general adoption of Bardism 
 The constitution of the country remodelled by Prydain 
 Date of the regular organization of the Bardic College 
 Dyvnwal Moelmud erects temples, and gives them the privilege of sane 
 
 tuary 
 Institutional Triads . 
 The different orders of Bards 
 Their costumes 
 Their privileges 
 Their temples and worship 
 Their conventions 
 Their influence 
 The Bardo-Druidic Creed 
 
 God 
 
 The Elements . 
 
 3 
 3 
 4 
 f> 
 
 (i 
 7 
 7 
 7 
 8 
 9 
 
 9 
 9 
 10 
 11 
 11 
 11 
 12 
 
 12 
 13 
 14 
 15 
 15 
 15 
 16 
 
 in 
 
 17 
 17 
 
 17
 
 XV111 
 
 The Bardo-Druidic Creed.— The Soul . 
 
 The Creation . 
 
 Animals 
 
 Man 
 
 Providence 
 
 Knowledge 
 
 Revelation 
 
 Peace 
 
 Truth 
 
 Light 
 
 Fortitude 
 
 Pride 
 
 Sacrifices 
 
 Punishments . 
 
 Rewards 
 
 The final state of the world 
 
 Rule of Duty . 
 
 Theological Triads . 
 
 Moral Triads 
 
 Corruptions of the Patriarchal Religion . 
 
 A Druid resident in every district 
 
 The Arts and Sciences 
 
 Letters 
 
 Prose 
 
 Poetry 
 
 Music 
 
 Astronomy 
 
 Mechanics 
 
 Agriculture 
 
 Commerce 
 
 Medicine 
 
 Politics 
 
 Means for promoting civilization among the Britons 
 
 How Druidism is represented hy the Greek and Latin writers 
 
 An objection answered 
 
 Continental and Irish Bardism more corrupt than the British 
 
 'I Ik n ason why 
 
 <•< inline Bardism confined to the Cymry 
 
 The three refuge-seeking tribes that came to Britain 
 
 The three invading- tribes that came to Britain and never went out of it 
 
 Two of the three invading tribes that came to Britain and went out of it 
 
 The Belgae ..... 
 
 R> ligious and moral effects of the intrusion of the " invading tribes"
 
 XIX 
 
 Extent of Cymru 
 
 Siluria the seat of government and religion 
 
 Succession of the Bards 
 
 Their discouragement 
 
 Their traditions consolidated 
 
 How these were regarded by the Christian Bards 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 INTRODUCTION OF CHRISTIANITY. 
 
 The Cymry never seen by Julius Cnssar 
 Who opposed him . 
 Bravery of the Silurians 
 Caradog . 
 
 His long success 
 
 Carried captive to Rome 
 
 His speech before the Emperor 
 
 His release 
 
 Bran detained as hostage 
 
 Various forms of religion taught in Rome 
 
 Bran embraces Christianity 
 
 Testimony of the Triads 
 
 Testimony of " the Genealogy of the Saints" 
 
 Bran returns in company with four missionaries 
 
 The Gospel first preached to the Cymry . 
 
 Account of Bran's companions 
 
 His family embrace Christianity 
 
 A son and daughter of Caradog ranked among the saints 
 
 " Pudens, and Linus, and Claudia" 
 
 Pomponia Graecina . 
 
 St. Paul .... 
 
 Christianity received especially in Siluria 
 
 The fact accounted for 
 
 Bran renders an essential service to literature 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 NATIONAL ESTABLISHMENT OF THE CHURCH. 
 
 Caradog returns to Wales 
 
 His son Cyllin succeeds to the throne 
 
 Many of the Cymry converted to the Christian faith 
 
 Godly men from Greece and Rome visit Wales 
 
 Cyllin authorizes the imposition of names in infancy 
 
 £2
 
 XX 
 
 Policy of Rome with reference to conquered countries 
 
 Owain and Coel, the sons of Cyllin 
 
 The services which they rendered to their country . 
 
 The Christians attacked by the infidels . 
 
 Defended by Eirchion Vawdvilwr 
 
 Testimony of Justin Martyr and Ircnceus as to the existence of a Chur 
 
 in Britain .... 
 
 Lleirwg ..... 
 
 Applies to Eleutherius by means of Medwy and Elvan 
 
 Tin' bishop of Rome's answer, conveyed by Dyvan and Fagan 
 
 The nature of Lleirwg's services to the Church 
 
 Extent of his authority 
 
 The prol)able occasions of his ecclesiastical changes 
 
 Dyvan, the first bishop of Llandaf, suffers martyrdom 
 
 Fagan, his successor; — his favourite aphorism 
 
 The present style of books invented 
 
 The sovereign dignity of the Silurian chiefs annexed to the Romans 
 
 Commodus, flelvius Pertinax, Severus, and Albinius 
 
 Testimony of Tertullian as to the spread of Christianity 
 
 Caracalla and Geta .... 
 
 Vitality and streugth of the Church 
 
 Testimony of Origeu 
 
 Gwerydd, Jestin, Cadvrawd, Cadgyvarch, and Gwrmael, saints 
 
 Elen, daughter of Coel Godebog 
 
 Discovers the Holy Cross 
 
 Ceneu, her brother .... 
 
 Reigns of Carausius, Alectus, Asclepiodotus, and Coel Godebog 
 
 ch 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 COUNCILS OF ARLES, SARDICA, AND ARIMINUM. 
 
 Constantius Chlorus, lieutenant of the island 
 The Dioclesian persecution 
 
 Probably confined to the Romans . 
 
 Ministers of the Cambrian Church taken from the highest class of society 
 
 Discovery of a book in the ruins of Verulam 
 
 The first martyrs in Britain 
 
 Galeriua and Constantius succeed to the empire 
 
 The persecution ceases 
 
 Constantine the Great 
 
 Gains the affections of the natives . 
 
 Promoti a the cause of Christianity . 
 
 Establishes the Archbishopric of York
 
 XXI 
 
 Constantino the Great convenes a Council at Aries . 
 British bishops present at the said Council 
 An inquiry as to the see of one . 
 Euilav rebels against Constantine 
 
 Is raised to the throne .... 
 
 His authority not universally acknowledged . 
 
 The Cymry his principal adherents 
 
 The Cymry not represented at the Council of Nice . 
 The Cymry differ from the North Britons in ecclesiastical usages 
 The Council of Sardica .... 
 
 Bishops from Britain, though probably not from Cymru, present 
 The Council of Ariminum .... 
 Testimony of Sulpitius Severus as to the presence of British prelates 
 None probably from Wales attended 
 
 Testimonies of Hilary and Athanasius as to the soundness of the British 
 faith ...... 
 
 The poverty of the British bishops explained 
 
 Decline of the Roman power in the island 
 
 Inroads of the Caledonians .... 
 
 Cunedda Wledig ..... 
 
 A munificent friend to the Church . 
 
 An extract from his Elegy .... 
 Macsen Wledig ..... 
 
 Is proclaimed emperor .... 
 
 Rewards his British supporters 
 
 Establishes the Archbishopric of London 
 
 The Romans evacuate the island 
 
 Testimony of the Triad as to the fact 
 
 The Roman polity in Britain .... 
 
 Its effects upon the genius and habits of the people . 
 
 81 
 
 81 
 82 
 83 
 83 
 83 
 84 
 84 
 85 
 85 
 85 
 85 
 85 
 85 
 
 85 
 86 
 86 
 87 
 87 
 87 
 87 
 88 
 88 
 88 
 88 
 89 
 89 
 89 
 91 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 RISE AND SUPPRESSION OF PELAGIANISM. 
 
 Owain ab Macsen elected to the sovereignty 
 Wales invaded by the Gwyddyl Fichti 
 Their sacrilegious deeds 
 Owain, Madog, Eduyved, and Peblig, saints 
 Settlement of the sons of Cunedda in Wales 
 Brychan Brycheiniog 
 
 His family 
 
 Pelagius . 
 
 Quits Britain . 
 
 95 
 96 
 96 
 
 97 
 97 
 
 98 
 98 
 99
 
 XXII 
 
 Pelagius teaches Heresy in company with Celestius 
 
 Their travels abroad 
 
 . Their condemnation 
 
 ■ Their banishment from Rome 
 
 The principal opponents and advocates of Pel 
 
 Progress of his tenets in Gaul 
 
 Their introduction into Britain 
 
 Their prevalence 
 
 The British Bishops apply to Gaul for assistance 
 
 Mission of Gannon and Bleiddian 
 
 Their success against Pelagianism 
 
 The Alleluia victory 
 
 Churches ascribed to Bleiddian 
 
 Departure of the Gallic prelates 
 
 Inroads of the Barbarians 
 
 Cystennyn Vendigaid comes to the assistance of the natives, and 
 
 their sovereign . 
 
 His services to the Church 
 
 His intimacy with Theodosius the Great 
 
 Meirig ab Tewdrig 
 
 Gannon revisits Britain in company with Severus, bishop of T 
 
 The principal teachers of Pelagianism sent into exile 
 
 Benlli and Gwrtheyrn insult Gannon 
 
 Cadell and Gwrthevyr bestow land upon the Church 
 
 Death of Gannon .... 
 
 Gwrtheyrn assumes the sovereignty 
 
 Enters into an alliance with the Saxons 
 
 The Britons transfer their allegiance to his son Gwrthevyr 
 
 Gwrthevyr is poisoned 
 
 The tragic congress at Caer Caradawg 
 
 Character of Gwrtheyrn 
 
 Sacrilegious inroads of the Saxons 
 
 The piety of Gwrthevyr 
 
 Benefactors of the Church in Wales 
 
 The progeny of Brychan and Cunedda 
 
 Statement of the Triad in reference to the former explained 
 
 How the churches founded by them would be endowed 
 
 How they would procure sites 
 
 Their missionary difficulties 
 
 Their ministerial rank 
 
 is elected 
 
 99 
 
 99 
 99 
 100 
 100 
 100 
 100 
 101 
 102 
 102 
 103 
 104 
 105 
 105 
 105 
 
 105 
 
 106 
 
 106 
 
 107 
 
 107 
 
 108 
 
 108 
 
 108 
 
 109 
 
 109 
 
 109 
 
 109 
 
 110 
 
 110 
 
 110 
 
 111 
 
 111 
 
 111 
 
 112 
 
 113 
 
 114 
 
 115 
 
 115 
 
 116
 
 XX111 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 DEFENDERS OF THE FAITH. 
 
 Emrys Wledig 
 
 Conquers the Saxons 
 
 Convenes a council at York, where it was agreed that the ruined 
 
 churches should be restored at his sole expense 
 
 Erection of Stonehenge 
 
 The three primary baptized bards of Britain 
 
 Talhaiarn, the chaplain of Emrys 
 
 Dyvrig raised to the see of Caerleon, and Samson to that of York 
 
 Emigrants from other parts of the island into Wales 
 
 Pabo Post Prydain 
 
 — — Cynvarch Oer 
 
 Pawl Hen .... 
 
 Causes of the emigration 
 
 Encroachments of the Picts and Saxons 
 
 ■ Rebellion of Pascen, son of Gwrtheyrn 
 
 The final expulsion of the Gwyddyl Fichti from North Wales 
 Christian Chiefs .... 
 Uthyr Pendragon .... 
 
 Prosecutes the war against the Saxons 
 
 Cerdic and his followers exclude Christianity from the kingdom of 
 
 Wessex 
 Caradog Yraichvras and Urien Rheged prevail against the Gwyddyl 
 
 Fichti, who had again established their independence in parts of 
 
 South Wales . 
 Emigrants from Armorica 
 Cause and effects of the emigration 
 The principal patron and adversary of the strangers 
 Arthur .... 
 
 Crowned by Dyvrig, archbishop of Caerleon 
 
 His victories over the Saxons 
 
 His popularity 
 
 His death 
 
 His zeal for the Christian religion 
 
 Emigrants into Wales during his reign 
 
 Extent of the Church 
 
 Christian reguli, who were contempories of Arthur 
 
 Cystennyn Goronog 
 
 Cynan Wledig; Gwrthevyr the Second 
 
 Maelgwn Gwynedd
 
 XXIV 
 
 Maelgwn Gwynedd, " The tempter of saints" 
 
 Quails under the rebukes of some of the objects of his oppression 
 
 Docs some service to the Church towards the close of his life 
 
 Ceredig ....•• 
 
 The Cymry confined within the limits of Wales, Cornwall, and Cumbria 
 The Lloegrian Britons generally amalgamate with their conquerors 
 Princes who patronized Christianity 
 Renowned Ecclesiastics 
 
 Dyvrig Beneurog 
 
 Cattwg Ddoeth 
 
 Illtyd 
 
 Dewi, Padarn, and Teilo 
 
 Gildas 
 
 Samson 
 
 Deiniol 
 
 Cyndeyrn 
 
 Asaf 
 
 Beuno 
 
 Cybi 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 TRIAL OF THE CHURCH. 
 
 The Cymry unmixed .... 
 
 Princes of North Wales .... 
 
 Ecclesiastical champions .... 
 
 Oudoceus ..... 
 
 Tysilio ..... 
 
 Deiniolen ..... 
 
 Arrival of Augustine the monk 
 
 He invites Dunawd to assist him in preaching to the Saxons 
 
 Dunawd refuses ..... 
 
 Two synods held relative to the claims of Augustine 
 
 At the first the native bishops refuse to change their traditions until they 
 
 should have consulted the majority of their countrymen, and ob- 
 tained their consent 
 On their way to the second they consult a hermit . 
 
 His advice .... 
 
 Tin dual proposal of Augustine 
 
 Speech of Dunawd .... 
 
 Bangoi [scoed and the monks destroyed . 
 
 Ethelfritb defeated .... 
 
 [ago ah Beli, the nominal sovereign of the island .
 
 XXV 
 
 The Church depressed 
 
 Maintains its ancient privileges 
 
 Testimony of Laurentius 
 Edwin baptized by Rhun, the son of Urien 
 Cadwallou recovers the monarchy of Britain 
 Cadwaladr Vendigaid 
 
 His services to the Church 
 
 Flees to the Continent . 
 
 Obtains assistance from the king of Armorica, with a view to re 
 
 cover his former dominions 
 
 Promoters of religion 
 
 Grwst and Nidan 
 
 Dyvnog, Cynhaval, &c, descendants of Caradog Vraich 
 
 Usteg, Eldad, Enghenel, and Dona 
 
 Eldad . 
 
 Egwad 
 
 Edeyrn 
 
 Pad rig 
 
 Idloes 
 
 Cadell 
 
 Sadwrn, Curig Lwyd, and Gwenvrewi 
 
 Edwen, a female saint of Saxon descent 
 
 145 
 
 115 
 145 
 146 
 148 
 140 
 149 
 149 
 
 149 
 150 
 150 
 150 
 151 
 151 
 151 
 151 
 151 
 151 
 151 
 151 
 152 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 SUBMISSION OF THE CHURCH. 
 
 Peace between the Cymry and Saxons . . ; 
 
 Ivor a benefactor of the Church 
 
 The first church which was dedicated to St. Michael in Wales 
 
 A flood sweeps away the church of Llancarvan 
 
 " Infidel Saxons" demolish several sacred edifices, and put to death the 
 
 bishop of Llandaf .... 
 
 Elvod alters the time of Easter . 
 The disturbances which ensued 
 Egbert and Cenulph invade Wales 
 Mervyn Vrych joins his forces to those of the Danes 
 The Saxons burn the monastery of Senghenydd 
 A pagan party destroys all the churches and monasteries in Gwent, Gla 
 
 morgan, Dyved, and Cardigan 
 The bishop of Bangor slain .... 
 Alfred invites three teachers from the college of St. David's to superintend 
 
 the university of Oxford .... 
 Rhodri Mawr divides his kingdom among his three sons 
 
 153 
 153 
 153 
 154 
 
 154 
 154 
 154 
 155 
 155 
 155 
 
 156 
 156 
 
 156 
 156
 
 XXVI 
 
 Cydiror, abbot of Llanveithin, sends six of his monks to instruct the 
 
 Scuts of Ireland .... 
 
 Tin' devastations of the "black pagans" . 
 Hywel Dda revises the laws of Wales : 
 The bishop of St. David's is killed by the English . 
 I Mssension among the sons of Hywel Dda 
 Owain destroys the monasteries of Illtyd and Cattwg 
 The sons ol Abloie, king of Ireland, destroy Holyhead 
 Rhodri ah Morgan, bishop of Llandaf, poisoned 
 The clergy enjoined not to marry 
 
 Gwgan consecrated for the see of Llandaf by the primate of England 
 I'.dgar's behaviour to the Church in Wales 
 Sacrilegious ravages of Hywel ab Ievav, Gotffrid ab Harallt, and the 
 
 Panes ..... 
 
 The Danes burn Mynyw, and slay the bishop 
 Aedan, king of Wales, improves the government and restores the churches 
 Llewelyn ab Scisyllt slain through the treachery of the bishop of Bangor 
 The church of St. David's ravaged by a body of Danes 
 Bledri, bishop of Llandaf, enjoins the clergy to instruct the people 
 Joseph, his successor, forbids the profanation of Sundays and holidays, 
 
 reforms parochial festivals, and charges the clergy to teach the 
 
 reading of the scriptures gratuitously 
 Grufydd ah Llewelyn slain through the treachery of Madog Miu 
 Menevia and Bangor laid waste by "infidels" 
 Sulien ...... 
 
 William the Conqueror comes on a pilgrimage into Wales 
 The cathedral of St. David's plundered and set on fire 
 Rhyddmarch ..... 
 
 Henry I attempts to subject the whole Cambrian Church to the jurisdic 
 
 tioii lit' Canterbury .... 
 
 The authority of St. David's maintained at different councils . 
 Final decision of the pope .... 
 Iln state of the Church of Cymru during the reigns of the several 
 
 princes rei tewed, with some observations as to the steps by which it 
 
 became ultimately united to that of England . 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 CHURCH AND BARDISM. 
 
 ipectation in the ancient world of a mighty personage 
 '1 ■ Stimony of Fiech in respect to the Irish 
 
 ( lambrian hards probably looked for a Saviour 
 Druidical priests easily embrace Christianity .
 
 XXV11 
 
 They continue for some time as ministers of the Church 
 
 The first legislative enactment in favour of the Church 
 
 The bardic institution fettered . 
 
 Candidates for the ministry trained up in monastic schools 
 
 Modifications of the ancient alphabet 
 
 Beli alters some of the laws of bardism . 
 
 The Druids, as Christian priests, officiate in their former circles 
 
 Some ecclesiastical edifices retain in their names the term " Cor" 
 
 The clergy invariably of noble parentage . 
 
 The Bardic costume partly continued by the early priests 
 
 Certain practices of Druidical origin recognized by the law of the land 
 
 subsequently to the introduction of Christianity 
 Terms borrowed from the Bardic theology to express ideas in the Christian 
 
 creed 
 The peculiar acts of Bardism impressed with the spirit of Christianity 
 Bards admissible to the Christian priesthood after the Church had been 
 
 separated from their institution 
 The regulations of Beli not universally received by the Bards 
 All the Bards obedient to the faith 
 
 169 
 171 
 171 
 171 
 172 
 172 
 172 
 173 
 173 
 173 
 
 174 
 
 174 
 
 174 
 
 175 
 175 
 175 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 CHURCH AND STATE. 
 
 The incorporation of the Church with Bardism involving its union with 
 the state 
 
 The enactments of Cyllin and Lleirwg favourable to the peculiar require- 
 ments of the Church 
 
 The king might not alter anything affecting learning and religion of hi: 
 own arbitrary will 
 
 Eleutherius advises Lleirwg accordingly 
 
 The same law continued in Wales 
 
 The Church regulates its external affairs in accordance with the civi 
 
 constitution 
 Episcopal appointments sanctioned by the king 
 Duty of the sword to protect the pastoral staff 
 The king, bishop, and abbot, have their respective tribunals 
 Supremacy of the king 
 Conditions of ecclesiastical tenures 
 Civil affairs hallowed by the Church 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 FOUNDATION AND ENDOWMENT 01 CHURCHES. 
 
 Mode of consecrating churches 
 
 177 
 
 177 
 
 177 
 177 
 178 
 
 178 
 179 
 179 
 179 
 179 
 180 
 ISO 
 
 181
 
 XXV1I1 
 
 Testimony of Constantius as to the practice of Garmon 
 
 Formal dedications to saints not yet known in Wales 
 
 The primitive mode observed among the Scots until the time of Arch 
 
 bishop Theodore .... 
 
 How the founders obtained sites 
 
 The Cymry begin to conform to the usages of their neighbours 
 Churches dedicated to St. Michael 
 
 The building of churches encouraged in the laws of Hywel Dda 
 Churches dedicated to the Apostles 
 
 By alien ecclesiastics . 
 
 Churches dedicated to the Blessed Virgin 
 
 The Cistercian monks the chief instruments in extending the name of 
 
 St. Mary in Wales . 
 
 None of the inferior Saints of the Greek or Latin calendar admitted as 
 
 patrons of Churches by the Cymry during their metropolitieal 
 
 independence . 
 Form of churches . 
 
 Their positions .... 
 
 The early churches of Britain made of interwoven branches 
 Stone churches and formal dedications of equal date 
 Peranzabuloe in Cornwall 
 Bells . 
 
 The corflan and mynwent 
 Endowment of churches 
 Early charters 
 
 Restitution for the violation of a sanctuary 
 Privilege of Llandaf 
 General immunities . 
 Tithes . 
 Things in respect of which the prerogatives of the ecclesiastical court 
 
 exceeded those of the lay court . 
 
 182 
 182 
 
 183 
 183 
 183 
 184 
 184 
 184 
 184 
 184 
 
 185 
 
 185 
 185 
 186 
 186 
 187 
 187 
 188 
 188 
 188 
 189 
 190 
 191 
 193 
 193 
 
 194 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 APOSTOLICAL SUCCESSION. 
 
 Commencement of the British succession 
 
 The influence of the Israelitish missionaries 
 
 Tends to the subsequent intercourse between the British and 
 
 Oriental Churches .... 
 
 Transmission of the Apostolical commission 
 No fundamental alteration in the usages of the Church of Britain effected 
 
 through its intimacy with the Oriental Christians 
 The authority of Aristobulus . 
 
 195 
 196
 
 Agreement of the Churches of Britain and Asia . . : 198 
 
 The Oriental Easter received in Britain before the Council of Nice . 198 
 
 Did the Greeks in the time of Cyllin introduce their orders into Britain? 198 
 Did the influence of the "godly men from Rome" affect the customs 
 
 of the native Church ? ..... 198 
 
 Eleutherius's care not to infringe the liberty and independence of Britain 199 
 An assertion of the native prelates at the conference with Augustine 
 
 explained ...... 199 
 
 The principal stream of ordination after Lleirwg's application derived 
 
 from Borne . . . . . .199 
 
 Testimony to the succession furnished by the Council of Aries . 200 
 
 St. John's order introduced by Gannon and Bleiddian . . 200 
 
 Dewi, Teilo, and Padarn, consecrated by the patriarch of Jerusalem . 200 
 
 A list of the bishops of Llandaf .... 201 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 DIOCESES AND PARISHES. 
 
 The ancient archbishoprics of Britain . 203 
 
 No primate at first in the Church .... 203 
 
 They commence in the reign of Lleirwg .... 204 
 
 Extent of the diocese of Llandaf, and nature of its endowment . 204 
 
 Extent of the archiepiscopal power .... 204 
 
 Rivalry between Llandaf and Caerleon upon Usk . . . 204 
 Mynyw . . . . . . .205 
 
 Extent of it in Dewi's time ..... 205 
 
 Churches founded by Teilo in the Menevian diocese . . 205 
 Rhydderch ab Iestin attempts to subject them to the jurisdiction of 
 
 Llandaf ...... 206 
 
 The diocese of Llanbadarn ..... 206 
 
 The diocese of Bangor ..... 206 
 
 Its original extent unknown .... 206 
 
 Assumes the dignity of an archbishopric . . . 206 
 
 Llanelwy ....... 207 
 
 Exposed to frequent incursions .... 207 
 
 Limits of dioceses originally defined by circumstances of a civil character 207 
 
 Chorepiscopi in the time and diocese of Teilo . . . 207 
 
 Bishops of Margatn ...... 208 
 
 The bishops who attended the conference with Augustine . . 209 
 
 Formation of parishes ..... 209 
 
 Their subsequent divisions and subdivisions . . . 209
 
 XXX 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 MONASTERIES. 
 
 
 Cor Eurgain .... 
 
 . 211 
 
 Founded by Eurgain 
 
 . 211 
 
 Its polity .... 
 
 . 211 
 
 Endowed by Owain ab Cyllin 
 
 . 211 
 
 Destroyed by Edgar 
 
 . 211 
 
 Bangor Wydrin .... 
 
 . 211 
 
 Statement of the Triad respecting it 
 
 . 211 
 
 Its origin .... 
 
 . 212 
 
 Its restoration .... 
 
 . 212 
 
 Padrig assimilates it to the monasteries of Egypt 
 
 . 212 
 
 Dewi, Arthur, and Ivor, its benefactors 
 
 . 212 
 
 Wrested from the native Britons in the reign of Ina 
 
 . 213 
 
 Bangor Illtyd .... 
 
 . 213 
 
 Statement of the Genealogy of the Saints as to its origin 
 
 . 213 
 
 Its character under Balerus 
 
 . 213 
 
 An inquiry into the date of Padrig's presidency 
 
 . 213 
 
 Is restored by Illtyd 
 
 . 214 
 
 Its flourishing state 
 
 . 215 
 
 — — Its polity .... 
 
 . 215 
 
 Weight of the abbot 
 
 . 215 
 
 Names of some of the abbots 
 
 . 215 
 
 Its inmates .... 
 
 . 216 
 
 • Its duration .... 
 
 . 216 
 
 Cor Emrys .... 
 
 . 216 
 
 By whom founded 
 
 . 216 
 
 Visited by Emrys Wledig 
 
 . 216 
 
 Bangor Iscoed .... 
 
 . 216 
 
 ■ Originally a school of learning 
 
 . 216 
 
 Converted into a monastery 
 
 . 217 
 
 Its celebrity as such . . . . 
 
 . 217 
 
 Title of the society . 
 
 . 217 
 
 Dunawd . 
 
 . 217 
 
 Other members . . . . 
 
 . 218 
 
 Rhos ...... 
 
 . 218 
 
 Founded by Padrig . 
 
 . 218 
 
 ■ Bestored by Dewi . ; . . 
 
 . 218 
 
 — — His austerities . 
 
 . 218 
 
 Henllan ...... 
 
 . 218 
 
 Founded by Dyvrig . 
 
 . 218
 
 XXXI 
 
 Henllan. — Some of his scholars 
 
 . 218 
 
 Mochros ..... 
 
 . 219 
 
 Llancarvan .... 
 
 . 219 
 
 By whom founded 
 
 . 219 
 
 Cattwg Ddoeth's mode of teaching 
 
 . 219 
 
 Influence of the ahhots . 
 
 . 222 
 
 ■ Inmates .... 
 
 . 222 
 
 Caerlcon ..... 
 
 . 222 
 
 Founded hy Dyvrig 
 
 . 222 
 
 Inmates .... 
 
 . 222 
 
 Ty Gwyn ar Dav .... 
 
 . 222 
 
 Founded hy Pawl Hen . 
 
 . 222 
 
 The resort of distinguished saints . 
 
 . 222 
 
 Bangor Deilo . 
 
 . 223 
 
 Llangenys .... 
 
 . 223 
 
 By whom founded 
 
 . 223 
 
 Doc win us .... 
 
 . 223 
 
 Enlli ..... 
 
 . 223 
 
 ■ Founded by Cadvan and Einion 
 
 . 223 
 
 Its celebrity .... 
 
 . 223 
 
 An account of a pilgrimage into the isle 
 
 . 224 
 
 Inmates .... 
 
 . 224 
 
 The remains of Dyvrig removed from thence . 
 
 . 225 
 
 Caerwent .... 
 
 . 225 
 
 Its founder and first president 
 
 . 225 
 
 Llanedeyrn .... 
 
 . 225 
 
 Bangor Deiniol .... 
 
 . 225 
 
 Its founder and first president 
 
 . 226 
 
 Patronized and endowed by Maelgwn Gwynedd 
 
 . 226 
 
 Inmates .... 
 
 . 226 
 
 Cor Seiriol .... 
 
 . 226 
 
 Established by king Einion 
 
 . 226 
 
 Resorted to by the Scandinavian rovers 
 
 . 226 
 
 Llanbadam Vawr .... 
 
 . 226 
 
 ■ Its founder and number of monks . 
 
 . 226 
 
 Llowes ..... 
 
 . 227 
 
 Cor Cennydd .... 
 
 . 227 
 
 Trallwng .... 
 
 . 227 
 
 By whom founded 
 
 . 227 
 
 Habits and regulations of the society 
 
 . 227 
 
 Llanelwy ..... 
 
 . 228 
 
 Established by Cyndeyrn 
 
 . 228 
 
 Courses of the monks 
 
 . 228
 
 XXX11 
 
 Caergybi .... 
 Clynnog .... 
 Welsh monasteries numerous . 
 
 Of native growth 
 
 Frequently erected on Druidical spots 
 
 Some of the abbots styled bishops 
 Celibacy not enjoined 
 
 No nunneries in Wales 
 
 Particulars from the laws of Hywel Dda 
 
 Hermits . ... 
 
 228 
 228 
 228 
 229 
 229 
 229 
 230 
 230 
 230 
 232 
 
 e present 
 
 to Pelagian ism con- 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 COUNCILS. 
 
 Aries .... 
 
 The first council at which British bishops wer< 
 
 An abstract of the canons 
 
 Sardica .... 
 
 Attended by no bishops from Cymru 
 
 Troves .... 
 
 The application of the Britons in reference 
 
 sidered 
 
 Verulam .... 
 
 Numerously attended 
 
 The Pelagian leaders permitted to address the people first 
 
 Sentence of banishment passed upon the chief promoters of Pelagianism 
 Gwrtheyrnion ...... 
 
 The conduct of Gwrtheyrn investigated and condemned 
 
 Caerevrawg • . 
 
 Restoration of the churches agreed upon 
 
 Brevi ....... 
 
 • Ineffectual harangues . 
 
 ■ Devvi summoned , . . . . 
 
 He is elevated to the archbishopric 
 
 Caerleon ....... 
 
 The decrees of Brevi confirmed . . . . 
 
 Copies sent to all the churches within the jurisdiction of Dewi 
 
 Ystradyw ...... 
 
 Tevvdwr, son of Rhun, excommunicated 
 
 Llandaf ....... 
 
 Meurig, king of Glamorgan, and his progeny excommunicated 
 
 Llancarvan ...... 
 
 Penance enjoined upon King Morgan 
 
 233 
 233 
 233 
 235 
 235 
 235 
 
 235 
 235 
 236 
 236 
 236 
 236 
 236 
 236 
 236 
 236 
 237 
 237 
 237 
 237 
 237 
 237 
 237 
 237 
 238 
 238 
 238 
 238
 
 XXX111 
 
 Llandaf . . . . . .238 
 
 Gwaednerth excommunicated .... 238 
 
 Augustinaes Ac . . . . . 239 
 
 Augustine insists upon a complete uniformity with Rome . 23!) 
 
 Refusal of the British bishops .... 23!) 
 
 A second synod convened ..... 23!) 
 
 Augustine reduces his proposal into five . . . 23!) 
 
 They are positively rejected by the Britons . . . 239 
 
 Gregory gives Augustine jurisdiction over the bishops of Wales . 239 
 
 Welsh account of the conferences with Augustine . . . 240 
 
 Llandaf ....... 210 
 
 Clydri and his progeny excommunicated . . . 24 1 
 
 Llandaf . . . . . . .241 
 
 Gwrgan excommunicated . . . .241 
 
 Llandaf . . . . . . .241 
 
 Hywel, king of Glewyssig, excommunicated . . .241 
 
 Llandaf . . . . . . .241 
 
 Hi excommunicated . . . . .241 
 
 Llandaf . . . . . . .241 
 
 Settlement of a dispute respecting a church and its territory . 241 
 
 Llandaf . . . . . . .242 
 
 Restitution imposed upon Brochwael . . . 212 
 
 Llandaf . . . . . . .212 
 
 Tewdwr, king of Brecknock, anathematized . . 242 
 
 Llanoudocui ...... 242 
 
 Restitution and penance enjoined upon Llywarch . . 243 
 
 Ty Gwyn ar Dav . . . . . .243 
 
 The Laws of Wales revised .... 243 
 
 Mainoun ....... 243 
 
 ■ Restitution and penance enjoined upon king Nowi . . 243 
 
 Gwent . . . . . . .243 
 
 Restitution and penance enjoined upon six men of the family of 
 
 Nowi ....... 244 
 
 The prominence of the Llandaf synods accounted for . . 244 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 HERESIES. 
 
 Basilidianism . . . . . . 24 . r > 
 
 Prevailed early in Gaul . . . . .245 
 
 The grounds for believing it to have been introduced into Britain 245 
 
 C
 
 XXXIV 
 
 Arianism ... .... 245 
 
 The sentiments of the British bishops strongly opposed to it when 
 
 they first entered the council of Ariininum . . . 245 
 
 Date of its introduction into Britain . . . 246 
 
 The Cymry infected by it ... . 246 
 
 Not of long continuance in this country . . . 216 
 
 Pelagianism ...... 247 
 
 Not originally derived from the Bardo-druidic-philosophy . 247 
 
 Pelagius and Celestius draw their tenets from the same source, 
 
 namely, from Ruffinus or Evagrius Ponticus . . • 247 
 
 Pelagius accordingly treated with greater leniency in the East than 
 
 by the clergy of the Latin Church .... 247 
 
 A proof that his heresy was not necessarily based on Druidism . 247 
 
 Bards among his warmest antagonists . . . 248 
 
 His heresy had no fixed or uniform consistency . . 248 
 
 Semipelagianism ..... 248 
 
 This prevails much among the clergy of Gaul . . 248 
 
 Fastidius and Faustus ..... 248 
 
 They are cleared of the charge of heterodoxy . . . 249 
 
 Timotheanism ...... 250 
 
 Asserted to have been preached in Britain . . . 250 
 
 Expressions in the compositions of the early Bards fundamentally 
 
 subversive of various heresies .... 250 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 RELATION TO OTHER CHURCHES. 
 
 The testimony of Jonas Mynyw 
 
 Advances towards Rome promoted by Elvod 
 
 Sanctioned at the synod of Ty Gwyn ar Dav 
 
 Proofs from the code of Hywel Dda 
 
 Intercourse with the Oriental Churches kepi up 
 
 The Grecian birth of Eleutherius 
 
 Elen's visit to the Holy Land . 
 
 . 251 
 
 . 251 
 
 . 251 
 
 for several centuries 252 
 
 . 252 
 
 . 252 
 
 The Church of Britain in communion with the Greek and Roman 
 Churches at an early period 
 
 Independent of all foreign jurisdiction 
 
 Its rights secured to it by the council of Aries 
 
 The Cymry maintain their ecclesiastical independence 
 
 Intercourse with the Church of Rome ceases 
 
 Objections on the subject answered 
 
 An extract from the epistle of Aldhelm to Geraint, king of Cornwall . 254 
 
 . 255 
 . 255 
 . 255 
 . 255 
 . 256 
 . 256 
 . 256
 
 Testimonies of Jerome and Theodoret as to the eastern pilgrimages of 
 
 Britons .... 
 
 Dewi, Teilo, and Padarn, consecrated in Jerusalem 
 
 Constantinople visited 
 
 A pilgrimage to the Holy Sepulchre and to Rome put on the 
 
 footing in the laws of Hywel Dda 
 The independence of the British Church upon the sees of Jen 
 
 Constantinople .... 
 Intercourse with the East promoted by means of the Church < 
 An early communication hetween Gaul and Britain 
 Veneration of the Cymry for St. John 
 
 The prelates of Britain sometimes comprehended under those 
 A ritual disagreement between the Cymry and their neighbour 
 Mutual communion 
 
 Gannon and Bleiddian introduce the liturgy of St. Mark into 
 It is not received among the Cymry 
 The oriental line of succession recovered . 
 The Church of Brittany 
 
 Declared subject to the archbishop of Tours . 
 
 The prelates of Dole succeed in maintaining their metropolitica 
 
 to a late period .... 
 A close intimacy between the Churches of Cymru and Llydaw 
 Cymru and the northern and south-eastern provinces 
 The bishopric of Whithern nearest to the Church of Rome 
 Columba ..... 
 The Cymry on friendly terms with the Irish Christians 
 The latter averse to communion with the Church of Rome 
 
 ame legal 
 salem and 
 [Gaul . 
 
 of Gaul 
 
 Britain 
 
 authority 
 
 250 
 257 
 257 
 
 257 
 
 257 
 257 
 257 
 258 
 258 
 258 
 258 
 259 
 259 
 259 
 260 
 260 
 
 201 
 261 
 2(il 
 202 
 262 
 203 
 203 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 Service of the Cambrian Church essentially identical with the "Great 
 Oriental Liturgy" . . . . . 
 
 Reasons for believing it to have been derived originally from Ephesus in 
 particular .... 
 
 Resembles the liturgy of Gaul . 
 
 Order and substance of the Gallican liturgy 
 
 The liturgy of St. Mark 
 
 The Gallic and Cambrian liturgies differ from the Roman 
 
 Outlines of the liturgy of Cymru 
 
 Talhaiarn's prayer 
 
 The Pater Noster 
 
 205 
 
 205 
 266 
 200 
 207 
 ■2(i8 
 20! > 
 269 
 269
 
 XXXVI 
 
 Outlines of the Liturgy of Cymru. — References in Taliesin's poems 
 
 Prominence of the Creed and Lord's Prayer . 
 
 The hymn " Benedicamus" 
 
 The legends of Saints .... 
 
 An inquiry into the language of the primitive liturgy 
 
 269 
 270 
 271 
 271 
 271 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 CANONICAL HOURS. 
 
 Distinctive periods of public worship in the principal monasteries coinci- 
 dent with the twenty-four hours respectively . 
 The seasons of prayer at Bangor Iscoed divided into seven 
 Testimony of Tyssilio in reference to Trallwng 
 Midnight, matins, and vespers . 
 Services of the Church in Hywel Dda's time 
 
 273 
 273 
 
 273 
 274 
 274 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 The Cymry a musical people . 
 
 Singing an ingredient of their public worship 
 
 An extract from the laws 
 
 " Songs, or Odes to God" 
 
 The service of the Church always choral 
 
 Chanting and singing expressed by the same word 
 
 Counterpoint 
 
 Testimony of Giraldus Cambrensis 
 
 Titles of old Welsh tunes 
 
 " The lay of prophet David" . 
 
 The harp .... 
 
 in Welsh 
 
 275 
 275 
 275 
 275 
 276 
 276 
 276 
 276 
 276 
 277 
 278 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 BAPTISM AND THE LORD'S SUPPER. 
 
 Baptism duly performed 
 Administered to infants 
 Catechumens prepared themselves in Lent 
 Baptism administered in rivers or wells . 
 Fonts .... 
 Sponsors .... 
 Difference between the Churches of Rome and Britain in the mode of 
 ad ministering baptism 
 
 279 
 279 
 
 280 
 280 
 280 
 280 
 
 280
 
 XXXV11 
 
 A person could not be legally examined or perform certain contracts 
 
 before baptism . . . , , 2N I 
 Taking the yoke of God . . . . .281 
 
 Confirmation . . . , ,281 
 
 Swearing- by baptism . . . . .281 
 
 Baptizing more than one infant in the same water considered " unlucky" 281 
 
 "Baptized" or "of baptism" synonymous with Christian . . 282 
 
 The eucharistical elements, and the means by which they were consecrated 282 
 
 The presence of a priest necessary .... 282 
 
 The benefits of Christ's death sometimes received without partaking of the 
 
 outward elements . 282 
 
 A bishop consecrated the bread differently from a presbyter . . 283 
 
 Part of the bread served up at the altar given to the poor . . 283 
 
 The communion administered at first on the Druidical altars . . 283 
 
 The altar of Peranzabuloe ... . 283 
 
 The altar of Dcwi .... 283 
 
 A veil over the altar ...... 284 
 
 Wax candles ...... 284 
 
 Swearing, &c. at the altar ..... 284 
 
 The eucharist administered to the sick and dying . . 284 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 MATRIMONY. 
 
 Marriageable age ...... 285 
 
 Espousals ...... 2S5 
 
 Amobrwy ...... 285 
 
 Presence of a clergyman necessary at a marriage . . . 285 
 Cowyll . . . . . .286 
 
 Egweddi ....... 286 
 
 A wife might leave her husband for three reasons . . . 286 
 
 A man might beat his wife for the same number of reasons . . 286 
 Adultery not the only cause why a man could be legally divorced from 
 
 his wife . . ... . p 286 
 
 Separation before and after seven years from the time of marriage . 286 
 
 Bigamy disallowed . ..... 287 
 
 Married men permitted to receive holy orders . . . 287 
 
 The children born to them subsequently deemed illegitimate . . 287 
 
 Hereditary succession to benefices .... 287 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 BUKIAL OF THE DEAD. 
 
 Druidical mode of burying the dead . . 289
 
 XXXV111 
 
 The grave of Bronwen . 
 
 The practice of interring in cairns and barrows continued to the sixth 
 
 century .... 
 
 Not all warriors who were so buried 
 The cistvaen retained to a late period 
 Burials in churches or churchyards 
 Wooden coffins .... 
 
 The relatives accompanied the corpse as far as the grave 
 The dead sometimes buried inside of the church 
 The mynwent and corflan 
 Private rights of sepulture 
 Swearing over a grave 
 The funeral service not known . 
 
 289 
 
 290 
 291 
 291 
 291 
 291 
 292 
 292 
 292 
 292 
 292 
 292 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 ORDINATION. 
 
 The ordinal of the British Church, according to Gildas 
 
 The lessons taken from the 1st and 2nd chapter of 1 Peter 
 
 ■ These different from what the Church of Rome prescribes 
 
 The 3rd chapter of 1 Timothy, and portions of Acts i. and Mat- 
 thew xvi. read on the day of ordination 
 
 An enquiry whether all these belonged to the same service or not 
 Candidates standing near the altar, and having their hands anointed 
 Statement of John of Teignmouth relative to the consecration of bishops 
 
 293 
 293 
 293 
 
 293 
 293 
 294 
 294 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 FESTIVALS AND FASTS. 
 
 The three principal festivals ..... 
 
 Duration of the Christmas festivities . . . . 
 
 Y Gwyliau ...... 
 
 Easter ....... 
 
 • Observed in Cymru on the 14th day of the moon of March 
 
 Altered by Elvod ..... 
 
 Kept by the Scots always on a Sunday 
 
 A visit to Constantinople on the subject 
 
 Enrys Wledigand Arthur hold a plenary court in honour of Whitsuntide 
 The officers of the household receive woollen cloth from the king, and 
 
 linen from the queen, at the three principal festivals 
 A fine imposed for slandering a priest at one of those seasons . 
 No law proceedings held . 
 
 Certain holy days mentioned in the Welsh laws 
 
 295 
 295 
 298 
 296 
 296 
 296 
 296 
 297 
 297 
 
 297 
 297 
 297 
 297
 
 XXXIX 
 
 Nativity of the Blessed Virgin . 
 
 Early commemorations 
 
 Lent .... 
 
 Sites of churches consecrated at that season 
 
 " Lent of Mary" and " Lent of the Apostles" 
 
 Sunday .... 
 
 Sunday service 
 
 Friday .... 
 
 Profanation of ecclesiastical days 
 
 Events dated by the fasts and festivals 
 
 Calendar .... 
 
 Additional Saints 
 
 Mode of ascertaining and verifying commemorations 
 
 Primitive manner of celebrating them 
 
 The time when the Saints flourished 
 
 298 
 298 
 298 
 298 
 299 
 299 
 299 
 300 
 300 
 300 
 301 
 305 
 305 
 306 
 306 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 MISCELLANEOUS PARTICULARS. 
 
 Sanctuary 
 
 Granted by Dyvnwal Moelmud 
 
 Confirmed to the Christians by Lleirwg 
 
 The accused protected in some churches for more than seven years 
 
 Forfeiture 
 
 Relics 
 
 The Cross 
 
 Venerated in Britain at an early period 
 
 Elen 
 
 Distinctive names imparted by the cross to Druidical temples 
 
 Monumental crosses 
 
 Arthur's coffin . 
 
 Soldiers bearing the cross 
 
 Matutinal devotion 
 
 Swearing 
 
 Marks 
 
 Grants of land 
 
 Excommunication 
 
 The church-door 
 
 Boundaries of land 
 
 Taking the religious habit 
 
 Vestures .... 
 
 Sacerdotal vest of the Druids 
 
 Black cowls 
 
 307 
 307 
 307 
 307 
 307 
 308 
 308 
 308 
 308 
 308 
 308 
 309 
 309 
 309 
 309 
 309 
 309 
 309 
 309 
 309 
 310 
 310 
 310 
 310
 
 xl 
 
 Vestures. — Garments of skin . 
 
 Hair coat 
 
 The Tonsure 
 
 Difference between the Britons and Romanists 
 
 Origin of the British mode 
 
 The tonsure restricted to the clergy 
 
 The Crozier 
 
 Alluded to by Jonas Mynyw 
 
 Curig Lwyd's . 
 
 St. David's 
 
 " Crozier and Gospel" 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 DOCTRINE. 
 
 The Apostles' Creed received in the Church of Cymru 
 
 The Trinity 
 
 Heaven 
 
 Hell 
 
 Angels 
 
 Devils 
 
 Creation of the world 
 
 Creation of man 
 
 Fall of man 
 
 Birth of Christ 
 
 His descent into hell 
 
 The period between his resurrection and ascension 
 
 His ascension 
 
 The coming of the Holy Ghost 
 
 The Church 
 
 The Great Sacraments 
 
 Ministers . 
 
 Sin 
 
 Virtue 
 
 Invocation of Saints . 
 
 Praying for the dead 
 
 The Holy Scriptures 
 
 Homilies . 
 
 Day of judgment 
 
 The aires of the world
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 BARDISM. 
 
 " I will shew thee, hear me ; and that which I have seen I will declare ; 
 which wise men have told from their fathers, and have not hid it, unto whom 
 alone the earth was given." — Job xv. 17, 18, 19. 
 
 We are infallibly assured that the earth was divided in the 
 days of Peleg, who was born about a century after the flood, 
 and died ten years before Noah. In some instances at least 
 division and actual possession must have been simultaneous. 
 Thus the inspired Historian, having mentioned byname the seven 
 sons of Japheth, and his grandsons by Gomer and Javan, ex- 
 pressly adds; — " By these were the isles of the Gentiles divided 
 in their lands ; every one after his tongue, after their families 
 in their nations."* 
 
 The Hebrews, who are the best expositors of the historical 
 part of the Old Testament, understand by the " isles of the 
 Gentiles, ,, t the continent of Europe and all its adjacent islands. 
 These are certainly very remote from the vicinity of Ararat, 
 nevertheless, if we admit the correctness of the comment, the 
 inference inevitably follows, that Britain, even before the death 
 of Noah, was really colonised, or constituted an integral though 
 
 * Gen. x. 5. 
 f In sacred geography, the word island does not always mean a spot sur- 
 rounded by water. It rather imports a settlement or plantation ; that is to say, 
 a colony or establishment, as distinct from an open, unappropriated region. 
 So Job xxii. 30 — " He shall deliver the island of the innocent," i.e. settlement, 
 or establishment. And Isaiah xlii. 15, — " I will make the rivers islands;" 
 rather settlements of human population.— See CalmeCs Diet, by Tai/lor. sub voc. 
 Islands ; and Parkhurst sub voc. ^
 
 uninhabited portion of a wider allotment, to receive its quota of 
 population gradually as " God should enlarge Japheth." 
 
 Whilst all mankind dwelt together, and submitted to the 
 authority of the supreme Patriarch, there existed no variety in 
 their religious creed. " The whole earth was of one language 
 (opinion), and of one speech (sentiment). 11 * Even the impious 
 enterprise, in which " the children of men 11 engaged on the 
 plain of Shinar, does not necessarily imply existing errors of 
 doctrine. Their express object was to " make themselves a 
 name,t lest they should be scattered abroad upon the face of the 
 whole earth.":}: However obstinate and lawless then, they could 
 not have generally forgotten the lessons of their early youth, 
 which they had been taught by the priests of their fathers' 
 houses. But " when they knew God, they glorified him not as 
 God, neither were thankful. Professing themselves to be wise, 
 they became fools."§ Moreover we find that the true religion 
 was maintained more or less among the doomed descendants of 
 Ham as late as the year 544 after the flood. || These circum- 
 stances afford us the strongest reasons for presuming that the 
 progeny of favoured Japheth had not lost, nor materially im- 
 paired it, when they reached their destined habitations. St. 
 Paul indeed, in his eloquent discourse at Athens, seems to inti- 
 mate that the knowledge of the true God and the practice of 
 his worship were at the dispersion extended over all the earth ; 
 — " God that made the world and all things therein, hath made 
 of one blood all nations of men to dwell on all the face of the 
 
 * Gen. xi. 1. 
 f It may be inferred from this expression, that the enterprise did not com- 
 prehend all mankind, as is popularly supposed, for in the estimation of whom, 
 could all men, united in one society, be great or famous ? The same conclu- 
 sion may be drawn from the name oSNimrod, the chief leader of the undertaking. 
 His own subjects could never have styled him the Rebel or Son of Rebellion. 
 It must be confessed that the words of Moses, as they stand in our version, 
 seem clearly to involve all mankind in the crime ; but in the Hebrew, the 
 Septuagint, and the Vulgate versions, no such meaning is expressed. In 
 every one of these the passage runs thus: " And the earth was of one lip, and 
 one voice was to them all; and it fell out during the journeying of those from 
 the east:" — where it is obvious that the announcement as to the sameness of 
 language is merely parenthetical. 
 
 \ Gen. v. 4. § Rom. i 21, 22. j| Gen. xxvi.
 
 earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the 
 bounds of their habitation ; that tiiey should seek the lord, 
 if haply they might feel after him and find him." * 
 
 The patriarchal priests were not confined to the affairs of 
 religion : they were equally the depositories of human wisdom. 
 The civil arts and sciences, in their several branches, formed a 
 prominent part of their public instructions, and these were 
 likewise carried to the different regions of the world, subject to 
 certain varieties which necessarily arose from local circum- 
 stances. There is hardly a single art or branch of science 
 traceable to any nation of high antiquity, that is not expressly 
 mentioned or clearly alluded to in the book of Job. Yet it is 
 remarkable, that all knowledge of the same is exclusively 
 ascribed therein to the search of the long-lived fathers of man- 
 kind, and to the tradition of the great patriarchs, " to whom 
 alone the earth was given. "-f- This is strong evidence that the 
 attainments of early countries were not so much the result of 
 particular geniuses, as the relics of patriarchal knowledge con- 
 veyed from the seat of dispersion. 
 
 Thus the simple and general statements of Scripture enable 
 us to form a powerful conjecture relative to the original appro- 
 priation, religion, and learning of Britain. 
 
 It is however a singular and fortunate circumstance, that this 
 conclusion should be in entire accordance with our best national 
 traditions. The historical Triads,:}: which purport to be " me- 
 
 * Acts xvii. 24, 26, 27. f Job viii. xv. 
 
 \ " The Historical Triads have been obviously put together at very different 
 times. Some allude to circumstances about the first population and early 
 history of the island, of which every other memorial has perished. The Triads 
 were noticed by Camden with respect. Mr. Vaughan, the antiquary of 
 Hengwrt, refers them to the seventh century. Some may be the records of 
 more recent date. I think them the most curious, on the whole, of all the 
 Welsh remains." — A Vindication of the Ancient British Poems, by Sharon 
 Turner,Esq. F.A.S. 1803, p. 131. 
 
 " The Triades of the Isle of Britain, as they are called, are some of the most 
 cuiious and valuable fragments preserved in the Welsh language. They re- 
 late of persons and events from the earliest times to the beginning of the 
 seventh century."— The Heroic Elegies, SfC of Llywarch Hen, by William 
 Owen, p. viii. 
 
 The Triads which wc insert above, are from a series in the second
 
 morials and records of the events which befel the race of the 
 Cymry from the age of ages,"" give us the following intimations 
 of the primary colonization of the island : — 
 
 " There were three names given to the Isle of Britain from 
 the beginning. Before it was inhabited, it was called Clas 
 Merddin (the sea-girt green sj)oi). After it was inhabited, it was 
 called Y Vel Ynys (the honey Isle). And after the people were 
 formed into a commonwealth by Prydain, the son of Aedd Mawr 
 (the great), it was denominated Ynys Prydain (the Isle of Pry- 
 dain, or Britain). And no one has any right to it but the tribe 
 of the Cymry, for they first settled in it ; and before that time 
 no persons lived therein, but it was full of bears, wolves, and 
 bisons.'"* 
 
 " The three social tribes of the Isle of Britain. 
 
 " The first was the tribe of the Cymry, that came with Hu 
 Gadarn (the mighty) into the Isle of Britain, because he would 
 not possess a country and lands by fighting and persecution, 
 but justly and in peace. 
 
 " The second was the tribe of the Lloegrians,t who came 
 from the land of Gwasgwyn ;t and they were descended from the 
 primitive tribe of the Cymry. 
 
 " The third were the Brython, who came from the land of 
 Llydaw,^ and who were also descended from the primitive tribe 
 of the Cymry. 
 
 volume of the Welsh or Myvyrian Archaiology. To the copy from which a 
 transcript was made for that work, the following note is annexed : — " These 
 Triads were taken from the Book of Caradoc of Nantgarvan, and from the 
 Book of Jevan Brechva, by me, Thomas Jones of Tregaron — and these are all 
 I could get of the three hundred — 1001." Caradoc of Nantgarvan lived 
 about the middle of the twelfth century. Jevan Brechva wrote a compendium 
 of the Welsh annals, down to 1150. 
 
 * Triad 1. 
 
 \ The dwellers about the Loire or Liger. Gwas-Gwyn or Gwas-Gwynt, the 
 country of the Veneti, about the mouth of the Loire, and not Vasconia. It was 
 the country to which the Britons sent their fleet, in order to assist the Celtae of 
 Gaul, their relations, against the arms of Caesar. Compare Triad 14 with 
 Caesar, b. g. iii. 8, 9. — Davies's Celtic Researches, p. 155. 
 
 % Letavia or Lexovia, the waterside. This name is confined at the present 
 day to Britany ; but it formerly comprehended the entire coast of Gaul.
 
 " These were called the three peaceful tribes, because thoy 
 came, by mutual consent and permission, in peace and tran- 
 quillity : and these three tribes had sprung from the primitive 
 race of the Cymry, and the three were of one language and one 
 speech."t 
 
 " The three national pillars of the Isle of Britain : 
 
 " First, Hu Gadarn, who first brought the nation of the 
 Cymry to the Isle of Britain. They came from the country of 
 Hav,\ which is called Defrobani (that is the place where Con- 
 stantinople now stands) ; and they came over Mor Tawch,§ to 
 the Isle of Britain, and to Llydaw, where they settled." || 
 
 " The three benefactors of the race of the Cymry. 
 
 " The first, Hu Gadarn, who first shewed the race of the 
 Cymry the method of cultivating the ground, when they were 
 in the land of Hav (namely, where Constantinople now stands), 
 before they came into the Isle of Britain. 1 '^ 
 
 " The three awful events of the Isle of Britain. 
 
 " First, the bursting of the lake of waters, and the over- 
 whelming of the face of all lands ; so that all mankind were 
 
 f Triad 5. 
 
 X The country of Hav, literally translated, would be " the summer country." 
 " Hav, in our old orthography (as in Lib. Land.), would be Ham ; it may im- 
 port, Harmus or Heemonia. Defrobani may either be Dy-vro-banau, the land 
 of eminences, or high points, Thrace in general ; or else Dyvro-Banwy, the 
 land or vale of the Peneus, Thessaly, Haemonia." — Davies's Celtic Re- 
 searches, p. 165. 
 
 § Mor Tawch ; lit. the hazy sea, that is, the German Ocean, the haze of 
 which is well known to mariners. Perhaps it should be the Dacian Sea, for 
 Germany, in the middle ages, frequently went by the name of Dacia. Poly- 
 dore Virgil says, that the Dacians moved from the middle of Germany to the 
 coasts opposite Britain ; that they inhabited the shore of the German Sea, and 
 from thence continually harrassed the English. " Haec itaque gens ferox, qua? 
 Germanicum nunc Oceanum accolit. — Haud enim Dacia longo Oceani maris 
 intervallo, ab Anglia discreta est." || Triad 4. 
 
 51 Triad 56. Iolo Goch, a Bard who flourished from about a. d. 1370 to 
 1420, alludes to the circumstance recorded in the Triad : 
 " Hu Gadarn— 
 After the deluge, held 
 The strong beamed plough, active and excellent."
 
 8 
 
 drowned, except Dwyvan and Dwyvach,* who escaped in a 
 naked vessel [without sails], and of them the Isle of Britain was 
 repeopled."f 
 
 " The three chief master works of the Isle of Britain. 
 
 " The ship of Nevydd Nav Neivion, which earned in it a 
 male and a female of all living, when the lake of waters burst 
 forth : 
 
 " The drawing of the avanc} to land out of the lake, by the 
 branching oxen of rlu Gadarn, so that the lake burst no more : 
 
 "And the stones of Gwyddon Ganhebon, on which were read 
 the arts and sciences of the world."§ 
 
 The words included within brackets do not belong to the 
 original Triads, but are the comment of some antiquarian, at 
 least as old as the middle of the twelfth century, inserted no 
 doubt on the authority of documents or traditions then ex- 
 isting. 
 
 The substance therefore of the preceding memorials on 
 the subject in question, is this : — That Britain was first in- 
 habited by a colony from the east, which came over under the 
 guidance of a person, in whose days, or not long previously, the 
 universal deluge took place. Thus much is clear : but we may 
 probably deduce further the following particulars : — a recogni- 
 tion of the principle which annexes Britain to the " isles of the 
 Gentiles,'" divided by the Japetidse. " No one has any right 
 to it but the tribe of the Cymry." These took possession of it 
 " justly and in peace." Also, that these primary occupants 
 were in no wise connected with those who had joined themselves 
 to the rebellious standard of Nimrod.|| They were emphati- 
 cally a " social and peaceful nation." 
 
 * The Godlike man and woman. The man in the succeeding Triad is called 
 Nevydd Nav Neivion, which imports the celestial one, the Lord of the waters. 
 " Our old bards call him Dylan ail Mor ; Dylan, or Dyglan, — son of the sea, 
 from Dy-glaniaw, to land, or come to shore — whence perhaps, Deu-calion." — 
 Celtic Researches, p. 163. 
 
 f Triad 13. J An amphibious animal. § Triad 97. 
 
 || Sanchoniathon, speaking of those people who were dispersed from Babel, 
 says, — " These are the people who are described as exiles and wanderers, and at 
 the same time arc called the Titans." — Euseb. P. E. L. i. See also, Job. c.
 
 Devotedness to the principles of justice and the arts of peace 
 involves the cultivation of primeval wisdom. During their 
 emigration, the Cymry were engaged in no broil or contention 
 which would interrupt the regularity of the machinery of in- 
 struction. When they arrived in the Island, they adopted the 
 principles of the grand division as the basis of their civil consti- 
 tution, for Hu Gadarn " collected the race of the Cymry and 
 disposed them into tribes."* He also improved the art of oral 
 tradition, as may bo learned from the following Triad : — 
 
 " The three inventors of song and record of the race of the 
 Cymry : 
 
 " Gwyddon Ganhcbon, the first man in the world that com- 
 posed vocal song (poetry) ; 
 
 " Hu Gadarn, who first adapted vocal song to the preserva- 
 tion of memory and record ; 
 
 " And Tydain Tad Awen, who first conferred art on poetic 
 song, and system on record. 
 
 " From what was done by these three men, originated Bards 
 and Bardism : and the arranging of these things into a system 
 of privilege and discipline was (afterwards) performed by the 
 three primary Bards, Plennydd, Alawn, and Gwron.^t 
 
 The order observed here relative to the origin and progress 
 of poetry, necessarily places Gwyddon Ganhebon prior to Hu 
 Gadarn in point of time, and consequently before the general 
 dispersion of mankind. The inference derives additional sup- 
 port from the peculiar expression used in reference to him : — 
 He was " the first man in the world that composed vocal song." 
 We have seen the like expression embodied in another Triad ; — 
 " The stones of Gwyddon Ganhebon, on which were read the 
 arts and sciences of the world" 
 
 The consecration of poetry for the diffusion and transmission 
 of truth, was an extremely wise and prudent measure. Verse is 
 quickly and generally learned, its influence over the feelings is 
 
 xxx. It is remarkable that whilst almost all nations have traditionally retained 
 traces of acquaintance with these wandering giants, none appear to have claimed 
 them for its ancestors. 
 
 * Triad 57. f Triad 92. 
 
 B
 
 10 
 
 great, it dwells long on the memory, and from the nature of its 
 structure almost defies perversion. 
 
 Still poetry was of the simplest kind : it was reserved for 
 Tydain, at a subsequent period, to " introduce order and 
 method"* into it. The precise form and extent of his improve- 
 ments cannot now be ascertained, but it is probable that their 
 general character may yet be traced in the peculiarity of Welsh 
 poetry. They were however regarded by subsequent Bards of 
 such mighty importance, as to merit for him the emphatic desig- 
 nation of Tad Awm, that is, Father of the Muse. It appears 
 moreover that he was sedulous in promoting his new regulations 
 among the young, for he is styled in the Triads the first of " the 
 three primary youth trainers of the Isle of Britain."t 
 
 " From what was done by these three men originated Bards and 
 Bardism." It is remarkable that in these early notices of Bard- 
 ism, the improvements are made to refer invariably to the art of 
 oral tradition. No mention is made of new doctrines. It was for 
 the purpose of preserving existing tenets that the regulations of 
 Hu Gadarn and Tydain Tad Awen were expressly made and 
 adopted. As the former of these pe^ sons, according to our 
 national traditions, lived at the time of the general dispersion 
 the doctrines of primitive Bardism must necessarily be considered 
 as identical with the general creed of the Noachida?. 
 
 The origin of Bardism is ascribed exclusively to the primary 
 colony. The two other tribes mentioned in the Triad arrived 
 in the island before they had forgotten their primitive tongue, 
 or had lost the original and sound principle of just and peace- 
 able possession. That they were here before Prydain the son of 
 Aedd Mawr, who " organized a social state and sovereignty in 
 Britain" about a thousand years before Christ, is evident from 
 the following Triad, in which he is mentioned as having deter- 
 mined the limits and tenure of each colony :— " There are three 
 principal provinces in the Isle of Britain ; Oymru, Lloegyr, and 
 Alban ; each of these is subject to the sovereignty, and is 
 governed, according to the common law of each province, under 
 one sovereign, according to the limitation of Prydain the son of 
 
 Aedd 3fawr"i 
 
 * Triad 57. i Triad 93. X Triad 2.
 
 11 
 
 It is probablo that they introduced no distinctive eystom of 
 their own. Such an idea at least is not countenanced by the 
 opinion which prevailed in Gaul in the time of Julius Caesar ; 
 " Disciplina in Britannia reperta, atque in Galliam translata 
 esse, existimatur."* Indeed the pliancy of their disposition, 
 which was frequently exhibited in later times, fully warrants the 
 supposition, that they conformed to the customs of the older 
 inhabitants, and adopted their religious institutes without 
 demur, though they suffered them not to have a deep place in 
 their feelings. t Still there were no penal enactments to enforce 
 the general adoption of Bardism. " Before the time of Prydain, 
 there was no justice but what was done by favour, nor any law 
 except that of superior force ;"J neither had the Bards a 
 " licensed system or privileges, or customs, otherwise than what 
 they obtained through kindness and civility under the protection 
 of the nation and the people. "§ 
 
 When the original principles of justice and benevolence 
 ceased to be the sole regulators of the public mind, it became 
 necessary to revise the constitution, and adapt it to the altered 
 circumstances of the times. This was undertaken by Prydain. 
 He " suppressed the dragon of tyranny, which was a tyranny of 
 pillage and contempt of equity, that had sprung up in the 
 island," || and consolidated the several states, as before intimated, 
 under a general union, which elected and acknowledged a 
 supreme head. 
 
 In his time also, it is presumed, Bardism was reduced into a 
 regular institution, and invested with rights and privileges. 
 This event is recorded in the following Triad : — 
 
 " The three primary Bards of the Isle of Britain : Plennydd, 
 Alawn, and Gwron : that is, these formed the privileges and cus- 
 toms that appertain to Bards and Bardism, and therefore they are 
 called the three primary Bards. Nevertheless there were Bards 
 
 * De Bell. Gall., 1. vi, 13. 
 f Druidical monuments occur frequently in the central counties, and in the 
 west, from Cornwall to Cumberland: whereas, comparatively, few traces of 
 them are discovered iu the eastern part of the island. 
 
 + Triad 4. § Triad 58. || Triad 55.
 
 12 
 
 and Bardism before, but they had not a licensed system ; and 
 they had neither privileges nor customs otherwise than what 
 they obtained through kindness and civility, under the protection 
 of the nation and the people, before the time of these three. 
 • [Some say that these lived in the time of Prydain the son of 
 Aedd Mawr, but others affirm that they flourished in the time 
 of Dyvnwal Moelmud, and this information they derive from 
 ancient manuscripts, entitled Dyvnwarth the son of Prydain."]* 
 
 It will be seen from the concluditory observation, that there 
 were two different opinions formerly entertained relative to the 
 date of this event. As however the extant laws of Dyvnwal 
 Moelmud contain clear allusions to the preexistence of the 
 national college of the Bards, the latter hypothesis cannot 
 possibly be admitted. 
 
 Here also it must be remarked that the regulations of 
 Plennydd, Alawn, and Gwron, as related in the Triad, wero 
 merely external, and do not appear to have affected the funda- 
 mental principles of the system at all. " There tvere Bards 
 before" though not completely incorporated, and vested with 
 exclusive privileges. 
 
 Granting, as is most reasonable, that the era of this transac- 
 tion coincides with the reign of Prydain, the annals of Bardism 
 present little of interest until the accession of Dyvnwal Moel- 
 mud. That eminent legislator, about four hundred years-f* 
 before Christ, is said to have extended its influence by creating 
 temples and giving them privileges of sanctuary. 
 
 The foregoing, as far as existing documents enable us to ascer- 
 tain, are the principal epochs in the history of British Bardism 
 prior to the introduction of Christianity. We proceed now, on 
 the authority of traditions equally credible, to give an outline of 
 the discipline, orders, costume, and privileges of the system 
 after it had assumed a somewhat fixed and definite character. 
 
 It will be remembered that the principles, which prominently 
 actuated the first leader of the Cymry, were intimated to be the 
 basis of primitive Bardism, and that the Triads, which related 
 
 * Triad 58. | Myv. Arch. vol. ii. Brut Tysilio.
 
 13 
 
 subsequent improvements, alluded to no subversion or alter- 
 ation of those principles. Accordingly the institutional Triads* 
 represent the fundamental objects and principles of the Bardic 
 system to bo search after truth, and a rigid adherence to justice 
 and peace. 
 
 " The three ultimato objects of Bardism : — To reform morals 
 and customs, — to secure peace, — and to praise all that is good 
 and excellent.'" 
 
 " The three joys of the Bards of the Isle of Britain ; the in- 
 crease of knowledge, — tlie reformation of manners, — and the 
 triumph of peace over devastation and pillage." 
 
 " The three splendid honours of the Bards of the Islo of 
 Britain ; — the triumph of learning over ignorance ; — the triumph 
 of reason over irrationality ; — and the triumph of peace over 
 depredation and plunder."" 
 
 " The three attributes (or necessary and congenial duties) of 
 the Bards of the Isle of Britain ; — to manifest truth and diffuse 
 the knowledge of it ; — to perpetuate the praise of all that is 
 good and excellent ; — and to make peace prevail over disorder 
 and violence. 1 ' 
 
 " The three necessary, but reluctant duties, of the Bards of 
 the Isle of Britain ; — secresy for the sake of peace and public 
 good ; — invective lamentation required by justice ; — and the 
 
 * "Poems Lyric and Pastoral," vol. ii. p. 230, by Edward Williams, Bard. 
 These Triads (our author says) are from a manuscript collection, by Llywelyn 
 Sion, a Bard of Glamorgan, about] the year 1560. He was one of those ap- 
 pointed to collect the system of Bardism as traditionally preserved in the 
 Gorsedd Morgan wg, or Congress of Glamorgan, when the maxims of the insti- 
 tution were in danger of being lost, in consequence of persecution. There is 
 every probability that the Triads we have inserted above were drawn up in 
 Druidical days. Their very contents appear to refer to times when the mo- 
 narchy of Britain was inviolate ; and when Bardism was incorporated with 
 the state. They moreover agree with what the laws of Dyvnwal Moelmud re- 
 late of the duties and offices of the Bards: — ''Their privilege and office 
 are to maintain, and preserve, and give sound instruction in religion, and 
 wisdom, and courtesy ; to record and preserve every excellency whether of 
 individual or nation, &c." Myv. Arch. vol. iii. Law Triad 61. " Amis are 
 incompatible with their office; — no iceapon ought to be in the hand of him, who, 
 under the privilege of God and his tranquillity, diffuses the arts and virtuous 
 sciences.'''' — Triad 107.
 
 14 
 
 unsheathing of the sword against lawlessness and depredation." 
 " There are three avoidant injunctions on a Bard : to avoid 
 sloth, because he is a man given to investigation ; — to avoid 
 contention, because he is a man given to peace ; — and to avoid 
 folly, because he is a man of discretion and reason." 
 
 For the more convenient and effectual accomplishment of its 
 designs, the institution was divided into three orders ; — the 
 Bards,* the Druids,t and the Ovates,|. and to each of these 
 were attached particular pursuits and functions. The Bardic 
 was the fundamental and predominant class, § or that into 
 which all the disciples were initiated in the first instance. 
 On being admitted into this, they assumed one or the other 
 as their inclination or qualification directed them. To this 
 primary order belonged the perpetuation of the privileges 
 and customs of the system. The Druids were such of the 
 members as devoted themselves peculiarly to the exercise of 
 religious duties. The Ovate was an honorary degree, apparently 
 intended to create a power capable of acting on emergencies, 
 on a plan different from the regular mode of proceeding ; as 
 well as of bringing within the system such kind of knowledge 
 as was unknown or foreign to the original institution. To this 
 order appertained more particularly the study of the arts and 
 sciences, and candidates could be admitted on being acquainted 
 with these, without being obliged to pass through the regular 
 discipline, || 
 
 * " The literal meaning- of the word Bardd, the Welsh of Bard, is, one that 
 maketh conspicuous ; and the idea intended to he conveyed is, a teacher or phi- 
 losopher, and its import is well defined in Mason's epithet — master of wisdom." 
 — " Bardism" by JV. Owen, prefixed to " the Heroic Elegies of Lhjwarch Hen." 
 p. xxiv. 
 
 •J- Walliee Derwydd. " The word implies one set before, or in presence." — 
 Ihid. p. xxxviii. 
 
 \ In Welsh Ovydd, " one who is initiated into first principles or elements." — 
 Dr. Puyhe^s Diet. 
 
 § A graduate of this class was called Bard of Privilege. After presiding at 
 three conventions, he was denominated Conventional Bard, or simply Bard of 
 the Isle of Britain. 
 
 || See Institutional Triads, vol. ii. p. 230, of Ed. Williams's Poems; and 
 The Laws of Dyvmcal Moelmud, in the 3rd vol. of the Myv. Arch.
 
 15 
 
 The regular disciples were called Awcnyddion. Their indis- 
 pensable qualifications aro thus declared ; — " Threo things 
 without which no man can bo a Bard ; — a poetical genius, — a 
 knowledge of the Bardic Institutes, — and irreproachable man- 
 ners."* They were twenty years on trial. 
 
 The three orders had their respective unicoloured costumes, t 
 emblematic of their several offices. The Privileged Bard wore 
 a skyblue robe, indicative of peace, % of which he was professedly 
 the advocate and herald. The dress of the Druid was white, as 
 a mark of purity and holiness. And the Ovate wore green, 
 the symbol of nature, the mysteries of which he particularly 
 studied. The disciples wore a varigated dress of the three 
 colours — blue, white, and green. § 
 
 In addition to such privileges as they enjoyed in their right 
 as free-born Britons, they were entitled by virtue of their pro- 
 fession to the following immunities : — five free acres of land — 
 exemption from personal attendance in war, — permission to pass 
 unmolested from one district to another in time of war as well 
 as peace, — support and maintenance wherever they went, — ex- 
 emption from land-tax, — and a contribution from every plough 
 in the district in which they were the authorised teachers. || 
 
 The Druids performed their religious rites within circles of 
 unwrought stones,1T in the most public and convenient situa- 
 tions. Their worship seems to have consisted chiefly in the 
 
 * Triad 233. 
 
 f " A Bard is known by his unicoloured garment ; for truth is unicoloured." 
 — Triad of Bardism, quoted in Dr. Pughe's Diet, sub voc. Barddgwccwll. 
 
 I " This colour is also the emblem of peace amongst the Nadoewesses, a 
 people west of the Mississipi, in America, as Captain Carver says." — Bardism, 
 by W. Owen, p. xxv. 
 
 § " Bardism," by W. Owen; and " The Patriarchal Religion of Britain," by 
 Rev. D. James. 
 
 || Myv. Arch. vol. iii. ; Laws of Dyvnwal Moelmud. Institutional Triads. 
 James's " Patriarchal Religion." " Touching any of the priests Levites, 
 singers, porters, Nethinims, or ministers of this house of God, it shall not be 
 lawful to impose toll, tribute, or custom, upon them." — Ezra, vii. 24. 
 
 ^I Similar temples seem to have been in use among the early Jews ; see 
 Exod. xxiv. Deuter. xxvii. " Epiphanius says, that at Shechem, there was a 
 temple, built by the Samaritans, of a circular form." — Author of Identity, &c.
 
 16 
 
 offering of sacrifices and prayer, whilst the people observed 
 strict silence. On these occasions the people were summoned 
 together by the blowing of a horn, and their meetings were pro- 
 tected by the laws of the land.* 
 
 Besides the celebration of divine worship, there were held 
 within the said enclosures regular conventions, for the purpose of 
 " maintaining, preserving, and giving sound instruction in re- 
 ligion, science, and morality. 1 ^ 
 
 These assemblies were held at the two solstices, and equi- 
 noxes ; subordinate meetings might also be held at every new 
 and full moon, and likewise at the quarter-days, which were 
 chiefly for instructing disciples.^ The ceremony observed at the 
 opening of a meeting was the sheathing of a sword on the 
 central stone, at which all the presiding Bards assisted, and this 
 was accompanied by a short and pertinent address, commencing 
 and concluding with the motto " Truth against the World. 11 
 The meeting was closed by taking up, but not unsheathing the 
 sword, with a few words on the occasion. The Bards at these 
 conventions always appeared bareheaded and barefooted in their 
 unicoloured robes. § 
 
 At these meetings disciples were graduated, and such Bards 
 as had been guilty of any crime were degraded, and the same 
 could never afterwards be readmitted. It should be said that 
 when a case of this kind came before the Bards, they departed 
 from the usual mode of closing a convention, for they covered 
 their heads, and one of them unsheathed the sword, and held it 
 on high, and having named the guilty person aloud three times, 
 proclaimed, " The sword is naked against him.' l '\\ 
 
 The influence of the Bards was very great, but they never 
 
 * Myv. Arch. vol. hi. ; Laws of Dyvnwal Moelmud. 
 
 t Ibid. 
 
 X " Bardism," hy W. Owen, p. xlvi. E. Williams's Poems, vol. ii. pages 
 1 60, 220. 
 
 ^ " Bardism," by W. Owen. " Put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the 
 place whereon thou standest is holy ground." Exod. iii. 5. 
 
 II Owen's Bardism.
 
 17 
 
 used it except in subordination to that of the Prince or Chief of 
 the tribe. They were always employed in embassies and nego- 
 tiations, and so sacred were their persons, that if they presented 
 themselves in their unicoloured robes between two armies on 
 the point of battle, the soldiers instantly laid down their arms 
 in accordance with the maxim, that " a naked weapon was 
 never to be held in the presence of a Bard.'"* 
 
 The following is a summary of the leading articles of the 
 Bardo-Druidic creed. 
 
 God. — There is but one supreme Being, the Creator and 
 Governor of the universe, of an eternal, mysterious, and imma- 
 terial nature, which pervades all space. In him consists the 
 plenitude of life, knowledge, power, and love, which are the 
 sources of all his actions and dispensations. These being in 
 themselves most beneficial and harmonious, necessarily tend to 
 annihilate the power of evil, and bring man to everlasting hap- 
 piness. t 
 
 The elements. — These are five in number, viz. earth, water, 
 fire, air, and the heavens. Out of the first four comes every 
 inanimate matter; and out of heaven God and all life, whilst 
 from the conjunction of the five proceed all things.^ 
 
 The Soul. — The soul is a lapsed intelligence under a total 
 privation of knowledge or happiness, by its falling to the lowest 
 point of existence. It is, however, of the most refined nature, 
 vital and imperishable, and is empowered to regain the state of 
 intellect and felicity, by passing regularly through all the in- 
 termediate modes of being. When it quits one body for an- 
 
 * Myv. Arch. vol. iii ; Laws of Dyvnwal Moelmud. Institutional Triads. 
 " But we shall not insist that it was the effect of the harmony of the lyres, or 
 the flowing numhers, that calmed the fierce resentment struggling in their 
 breas r ts, as Diodorus Siculus conceived; but it was in consequence of general 
 laws of warfare, common in all ages." " Bardisra," by W. Owen, p. xxvi. 
 
 f " Theological Triads," appended to E. Williams's Poems, vol. ii. p. 239. 
 " Amongst the names of the Deity, that are older than the introduction of 
 Christianity, the following may be reckoned : Duw, Deon, Dovydd, Yr Hen 
 Ddihenydd, Celi, lor, Peryv, Rheen." (English : God, Distributor, Governor, 
 the Ancient of Days, the Mysterious One, the Eternal, He. that pervadeth all 
 things, the Author of Existence.)— Owen's " Bardism," p. xxviii. 
 
 X Bardic Aphorism, quoted in Dr. Pughe's Diet. sub. voc. Nev. 
 
 C
 
 18 
 
 other, it expands itself into that form and corporiety which its 
 acquired propensities necessarily give it, or of that animal with 
 whose body it becomes clothed, wherein only such propensities 
 can possibly reside naturally.* 
 
 The Creation. — The earth was originally covered with 
 water, which gradually subsiding, land animals arose of the 
 lowest or least perfect species, thus corresponding in organiza- 
 tion with the then capacity of the soul. New orders in the 
 scale of being were successively produced from these, continually 
 improving in form, and augmenting the capacity of intellect ; so 
 that in the course of ages, man ultimately appeared the most 
 perfect receptacle of the soul on earth. t 
 
 Animals. — They originated in the lowest point of existence, 
 the meanest water worm. Land animals are of a superior 
 order, and rise in their various gradations up to man. As 
 all modes of existence below humanity are necessarily evil, so 
 no animal can pass to a lower state when it dies, but the divine 
 benevolence has so ordained that it should rise higher ; and 
 thus advancing upwards it arrives at humanity. Animals ap- 
 proach the state of humanity in proportion as they are gentle 
 and harmless in their dispositions, and to hasten their progress 
 towards happiness, divine benevolence so ordains it that these be- 
 come more than any others liable to be destroyed untimely. But 
 as man has no right to anticipate providence, he is not permitted 
 to kill any animal, but which would either immediately or even- 
 tually kill him ; and it is by this law he must regulate himself 
 when he deprives any being of life. We cannot kill an animal 
 any more than a man, but as a prevention against or a punish- 
 ment for killing.:}; 
 
 * Mavor's Hist. Eng. vol. i. p. 9. E. Williams's Lyric Poems, vol. ii. p. 23. 
 Theological Triads. * 
 
 f Mavor, p. 9. 
 
 % W. Owen's " Bardism," p. Ivi. E. Williams's Poems, vol. ii. p. 195. 
 The writer, where he has not been so fortunate as to meet with the original 
 traditions of the Bards, quotes, as near as may be, the very words of those who 
 profess to have been in possession of them. These are William Owen (Dr. W. 
 O. Pughe) F.A.S. the celebrated Welsh philologist and lexicographer, and 
 Edward Williams, or, as he was called among the Bards, Iolo Morganwg, to 
 whom Southey alludes in the following lines: —
 
 19 
 
 Man. — The last being that came into existence in this world 
 was man. He appeared with the first rising sun ; before that 
 it was perpetual night. He is destined to fill a certain place in 
 the creation, but at perfect liberty to act in such a character, or 
 able to attach himself to either good or evil, as the impulse of 
 his own inclinations shall lead him ; accountable, rewardable, or 
 punishable, for all he does. Humanity is therefore a state 
 where good and evil are equally balanced that it becomes a state 
 of liberty, and consequently of probation.* 
 
 Providence. — God is benevolence in all his laws of nature ; 
 for he has so ordered that the arrival of every being at a state 
 of bliss is by all possible means accelerated. Thus the vortex 
 of universal warfare, in which the whole creation is involved, 
 contributes to forward the victim of its rage to a higher state 
 of existence. Even the malignancy of man is rendered sub- 
 servient to thegeneral and ultimate end of divine providence, 
 which is to bring all animated beings to happiness.t 
 
 " Iolo, old Iolo, lie who knows 
 The virtue of all herbs of mount, or vale, 
 Or greenwood shade, or quiet brooklet bed, 
 Whatever love of science, or of song, 
 Sages or bards of old have handed down." — Madoc. 
 
 Both were regularly initiated into the mysteries of Bardism. William Owen, 
 in his account of the system from which we quote, says, " It is from those tra- 
 ditions that the present sketch of bardism is formed, wherein is given the 
 general scope of them ; and which I have avoided drawing to such length as 
 the materials would require to give a complete elucidation of them, as not 
 necessary to the present purpose. With respect to the traditions themselves, 
 as one of the order, I feel a propensity (a pardonable one, I hope) in common 
 with a few remaining members, to preserve amongst ourselves undisclosed, 
 except at a Gorsedd, those very curious remains, as an incitement to preserve 
 the system." — p. xxxiv. Edward Williams thus expresses himself respecting 
 Bardism or Druidism : " It has never, as some imagine, been quite extinct in 
 Britain ; the Welsh Bards have, through all ages down to the present, kept it 
 alive: there is, in my possession, a manuscript synopsis of it, by Llywelyn 
 Sion, a Bard, written about the year 1560 ; its truth and accuracy are corro- 
 borated by innumerable notices, and allusions in our Bardic manuscripts of 
 every age up to Taliesin in the sixth century." — Poems, vol. ii. p. 194. 
 
 * Theological Triads. W. Owen's " Bardism." K. Williams's Poems. 
 
 f W. Owen ; E. Williams.
 
 20 
 
 Knowledge. — No knowledge can be acquired but by experi- 
 ence. To obtain all possible knowledge, it is necessary to pass 
 through all possible modes of existence, and to experience all 
 that is peculiarly known to every one of these, each of them 
 affording such a supply of knowledge that no other possibly can. 
 Man in the states of happiness recovers the memory of all that 
 he observed and experienced in every mode of existence through 
 which he has passed.* 
 
 Revelation. — All the knowledge that in the state of human- 
 ity we have of supernal existence has been communicated by 
 celestial Beings, who, of their own benevolence, subject to that 
 of the Deity, return for a while to this world to inform man of 
 what is necessary for him to know of his duty, and of what 
 constitutes happiness in this and in future states, and what by 
 perseverance in virtue he may hope for and be assured of.t 
 
 Peace. — There is a necessity of restoring, establishing, and 
 preserving peace towards the happiness of mankind. There- 
 fore the Bards give an example by refraining from bearing arms, 
 and from all things that tend to set one party in opposition to 
 another. The Bard amid the storms of the moral world must 
 assume the serenity of the unclouded blue sky 4 
 
 Truth. — Believe nothing without examination ; but where 
 reason and evidence will warrant the conclusion, believe every 
 thing ; and let prejudice be unknown. Search for truth on all 
 occasions, and espouse it in opposition to the world. § 
 
 Light. — Light is the emblem of purity and holiness, and the 
 source of good, and that by which all truths should be illumed. 
 Every act of the Bard must be done in the face of the sun, and 
 in the eye of the light. || 
 
 * Theological Triads; W. Owen; E. Williams. 
 
 (• E. Williams; W. Owen. "According to the bardic scheme, the prophets 
 of Israel were of this description ; for none could reveal heavenly things hut 
 those who had experienced them, and who, by returning to this world, made 
 them known." W. O. " Bardism always refers its origin to Divine communi- 
 cations, and never talked of, J know not what, Religion of nature.' 1 '' — E. W. 
 
 % Institutional Triads ; Ethical Triads ; W. Owen. 
 
 § Bardic Adages ; W . Owen. 
 
 II Ibid.
 
 21 
 
 Fortitude. — Fortitude is the greatest of virtues, and in- 
 cludes all others. Man must brave all dangers rather than not 
 act to his duty, for true valour never appears to so great advan- 
 tage as in suffering unmoved, what cannot be avoided without 
 transgressing the laws of justice and benevolence. Whoever 
 subjects himself to death in the cause of these, does the most 
 meritorious act of goodness that he possibly can, and thus, 
 attaching himself to the highest degree of virtue and holiness, 
 passes to the highest and ultimate state of celestial felicity."' 
 
 Pride. — Pride is that passion, by which man assumes more 
 than the laws of nature allow him ; for all men are equal, 
 though differently stationed in the state of humanity for the 
 common good. Whoever assumes such a superiority is an 
 usurper, and he attaches himself thereby to evil in such a degree 
 that his soul falls at death into the lowest point of existence. t 
 
 Sacrifices. — Sacrifices must consist of those animals which 
 are of the least ferocity of disposition, and this is a religious 
 cooperation with divine benevolence in hastening them along 
 that course which they must pass through before they can arrive 
 at happiness. The death of criminals who surrender themselves 
 voluntarily is also sacrificial, inasmuch as they do thereby all in 
 their power to compensate for their crimes.:}: 
 
 Punishments. — Man, attaching himself to evil, falls in death 
 into such an animal state of existence as corresponds with the 
 turpitude of his soul. From this state he again by degrees 
 rises higher and higher in the scale of existence, until he arrives 
 at the state of humanity, from whence he may again fall. " Thus 
 let him fall ever so often, he again returns, as the same road to 
 happiness lies open to him, and will until he shall have no more 
 need of it. Sooner or later he will infallibly arrive at his des- 
 tined station of happiness, whence he never falls. Eternal 
 misery is in itself impossible ; it is inconsistent with the attri- 
 butes of God, who is all-perfect benevolence. § 
 
 Rewards. — If man, during the state of probation, attaches 
 
 * Ethical Triads; W.Owen ; E. Williams, f Ibid, and Theological Triads. 
 X W. Owen ; E. Williams. § Ibid, and Theological Triads.
 
 22 
 
 himself to good, he passes in the instant of death into a higher 
 state of existence, correspondent with his acquired goodness, 
 and it is impossible to fall from thence. He will advance higher 
 and higher in the scale of happiness and perfection, until he 
 arrives at his final destination. But as no finite being can ever, 
 consistently with happiness, endure the tedium of eternity, he 
 will be relieved by undergoing the most delightful renovations in 
 endless succession. These will not, like death, be dreaded, but 
 be eagerly wished for, and approached with joy, neither will 
 they destroy consciousness and memory, or there could be no 
 such thing as endless life.* 
 
 The final state of the World. — God will, sooner or later, 
 by the progressive operations of his providence, destroy all the 
 power of evil, and bring all animated beings into happiness. 
 Nevertheless, all modes of existence will remain for ever exter- 
 nally the same, as beautiful varieties of the creation, and will be 
 occupied successively by celestials, or those that inhabit the 
 circle of felicity. They, amongst other changes, will thus vary 
 and delightfully relieve what would otherwise be insupportable 
 in eternity to finite beings. All these modes of existence will, 
 when purged of their evils, be equally perfect, equally happy, 
 equal in the general estimation, and equally fathered by the 
 Creator : peace, love, and ineffable benignity, filling the whole 
 creation. All mental and corporeal affections and propensities 
 of benign tendency will remain for ever, and constitute the joys 
 of the celestial existences.t 
 
 Rule of Duty. — Our infallible rule of duty is, not to do or 
 desire anything but what can eternally be done and obtained in 
 the celestial states, where no evil can exist. The good and hap- 
 piness of one being must not arise from the evil or misery of 
 another. :j: 
 
 The foregoing tenets were for the most part delivered and per- 
 petuated in the Triadic form, a mode of composition which the 
 Bards and Druids were peculiarly fond of. The original 
 Triads are extremely curious, and exhibit evident marks of 
 
 * Ibid. f Theological Triads; E.Williams. } E.Williams.
 
 23 
 
 antiquity and genuineness. A translation of some is here sub- 
 joined : — 
 
 THEOLOGICAL TRIADS.* 
 
 1. There are three primeval Unities, and more than one of 
 each cannot exist ; one God ; one truth ; and one point of 
 liberty, and this is where all opposites equiponderate. 
 
 2. Three things proceed from the three primeval Unities ; all 
 of life, all that is good, and all power. 
 
 3. God consists necessarily of three things ; the greatest of 
 life, the greatest of knowledge, and the greatest of power, and 
 of what is the greatest there can be no more than one of any- 
 thing. 
 
 4. Three things it is impossible God should not be ; whatever 
 perfect goodness should be, whatever perfect goodness would 
 desire to be, and whatever perfect goodness can perform. 
 
 5. Three things evince what God has done and will do ; infi- 
 nite power, infinite wisdom, and infinite love ; for there is 
 nothing that these attributes want of power, of knowledge, or of 
 will, to perform. 
 
 6. The three regulations of God towards giving existence to 
 every thing ; to annihilate the power of evil, to assist all that is 
 good, and to make discrimination manifest, that it might be 
 known what should and what should not be. 
 
 7. Three things it is impossible that God should not perform ; 
 what is most beneficial, what all want most, and what is most 
 beautiful of all things. 
 
 * These Triads may be seen in the original and in its version, in E. W.'s 
 Poems, vol. ii. p. 227. " I find," says the translator, " but very little assis- 
 tance from the technology of modern (derived from the Grecian) metaphysics, 
 in my attempts to render the language of Bardism into English, and have 
 made no great use of it." Of the copy from which they are taken, he gives the 
 following account. " The Triads that are here selected are from a manuscript 
 collection, by Llywelyn Sion, a Bard of Glamorgan, about the year 1500. Of 
 this manuscript I have a transcript ; the original is in the possession of Mr. 
 Richard Bradford, of Bettws, near Bridgend, in Glamorgan. This collection 
 was made from various manuscripts of considerable, and some say of very 
 great antiquity — these, and their authors are mentioned, and most or all of 
 them are still extant."
 
 24 
 
 8. The three stabilities of existence ; what cannot be other- 
 wise, what need not be otherwise, and what cannot be conceived 
 better ; and in these will all things end. 
 
 9. Three things will infallibly be done ; all that is possible 
 for the power, for the wisdom, and for the love of God to per- 
 form. 
 
 10. The three grand attributes of God ; infinite plenitude of 
 life, of knowledge, and of power. 
 
 11. Three causes produced animate beings ; divine love, pos- 
 sessed of perfect knowledge ; divine wisdom, knowing all possible 
 means ; and divine power, possessed by the joint will of divine 
 love and wisdom. 
 
 12. There are three circles (or states) of existence ; the 
 circle of infinity, where there is nothing but God, of living or 
 dead, and none but God can traverse it ; the circle of inchoa- 
 tion,* where all things are by nature derived from death ; this 
 circle has been traversed by man ; and the circle of felicity, 
 where all things spring from life ; this man shall traverse in 
 heaven. 
 
 13. Animated beings have three states of existence ; that of 
 inchoation in the great deep (or lowest point of existence) ; that 
 of liberty in the state of humanity ; and that of love, which is 
 felicity in heaven. 
 
 14. All animated beings are subject to three necessities ; a 
 beginning in the great deep (lowest point of existence), pro- 
 gression in the circle of inchoation, and plenitude in heaven, or 
 the circle of felicity ; without these things nothing can possibly 
 exist but God. 
 
 15. Three things are necessary in the circle of inchoation; 
 the least of all animation, and thence the beginning ; the mate- 
 rials of all things, and thence increase, which cannot take place 
 in any other state ; the formation of all tilings out of the dead 
 mass, hence discriminate individuality. 
 
 * Welsh, Abred. Davies, in his " Celtic Researches," thinks it probable 
 that Abaris, the Hyperborean priest of Apollo, has some connection with the 
 word and its meaning, —p. 186. Herod. L. iv. 36. The name of Abaris be- 
 longs to the Cymry. Afpoi — Ki^poi, wcnj'ft; 0aa«, Kt/j/itptoi. Steph. Byzant. 
 De Urb.
 
 •!■> 
 
 16. Three things cannot but exist towards all animated 
 beings from the nature of divine justice ; co-sufferance in the 
 circle of inchoation, because without that none could attain the 
 perfect knowledge of any thing ; co-participation in the divine 
 love ; and co-ultimity from the nature of God's power, and its 
 attributes of justice and mercy. 
 
 17. There are three necessary occasions of inchoation (metem- 
 psychosis) ; to collect the materials and properties of every na- 
 ture ; to collect the knowledge of every thing ; and to collect 
 power towards subduing the adverse, and devastative, and for 
 the divestation of evil : without this traversing every mode of 
 animated existence, no state of animation, or of any thing in 
 nature, can attain to plenitude. 
 
 18. The three great or primary infelicities of the circle of 
 inchoation ; necessity, loss of memory, and death. 
 
 19. There are three principal indispensabilities (necessities) 
 before plenitude of knowledge can be obtained ; to traverse the 
 circle of inchoation, to traverse the circle of felicity, and the 
 recovered memory of all things down to the great deep. 
 
 20. Three things are indispensably connected with the state 
 of inchoation : no subjection to injunctive laws, because it is 
 impossible for any actions to be there otherwise than they are ; 
 the escape of death, from all evil and devastation ; and the 
 accumulation of life and good, by becoming divested of all evil 
 in the escapes of death ; and all through divine love embracing 
 all things. 
 
 21. The three instrumentalities of God in the circle of incho- 
 ation towards subduing evil and devastation ; necessity, loss of 
 memory, and death. 
 
 22. There are three connates ; man, liberty, and light. 
 
 23. The three necessary incidents of humanity ; to suffer, to 
 change, and to choose; and, man having the power of choosing, it 
 is impossible before occurrence to foresee what his sufferings 
 and changes will be. 
 
 24. The three equiportions of humanity ; inchoation and 
 felicity ; necessity and liberty ; evil and good ; all equiponde- 
 rate ; man having the power of attaching himself to either the 
 one or the other. 
 
 25. From three causes will the necessity of reinchoation fall 
 
 D E
 
 26 
 
 on man ; from not endeavouring to obtain knowledge ; from 
 non-attachment to good ; and from attachment to evil ; occa- 
 sioned by these things he will fall down to his connatural state 
 in the circle of inchoation, whence, as at first, he returns to 
 humanity. 
 
 26. For three things must man unavoidably fall into the circle 
 of inchoation, though he has in everything else attached himself 
 to good ; pride, for which he falls down to the utmost of the 
 great deep, or lowest point of existence ; falsehood (untruth), 
 to a state corresponding with his turpitude ; and cruelty, into a 
 corresponding state of brutal malignity, whence, as at first, he 
 returns to the state of humanity. 
 
 27. Three things are primitial in the state of humanity ; the 
 accumulations of knowledge, benevolence, and power, without 
 undergoing dissolution (death). This cannot be done, as of 
 liberty and choice, in any state previous to humanity ; these are 
 called the three victories. 
 
 28. The three victories over evil and devastation are know- 
 ledge, love (benevolence), and power ; for these know how, 
 have the will, and the power, in their conjunctive capacities, to 
 effect all they can desire ; these begin, and are for ever con- 
 tinued, in the state of humanity. 
 
 29. The three privileges of the state of humanity ; equipon- 
 derance of evil and good, whence comparativity ; liberty of 
 choice, whence judgment and preference ; and the origin of 
 power, proceeding from judgment and preference ; these being 
 indispensably prior to all other exertions. 
 
 30. In three things man unavoidably differs from God ; man 
 is a finite, God is infinite ; man had a beginning, which God 
 could not have ; man not being able to endure eternity, must 
 have in the circle of felicity a rotatory change of his mode of 
 existence ; God is under no such necessity, being able to endure 
 all things, and that consistent with felicity. 
 
 31. Three things are primitial in the circle of felicity ; cessa- 
 tion of evil ; cessation of want, and the cessation of perishing. 
 
 32. The three restorations of the circle of felicity; restora- 
 tion of original genius and character ; restoration of all that 
 was priinevally beloved ; and the restoration of remembrance
 
 27 
 
 from the origin of all things ; without these, perfect felicity can- 
 not subsist. 
 
 33. Three things discriminate every animated being from all 
 others ; original genius, peculiarity of remembrance, and pecu- 
 liarity of perception ; each of these in its plenitude, and two 
 plenitudes of any thing cannot exist. 
 
 34. With three things has God endued every animated beino- ; 
 with all the plenitude of his own nature; with individuality 
 differing from that of all others; and with an original and 
 peculiar character and genius, which is that of no other being : 
 hence in every being a plenitude of that self, differing from all 
 others. 
 
 35. By the knowledge of three things will all evil and death 
 be diminished and subdued ; their nature, their cause, and 
 their operations ; this knowledge will be obtained in the circle 
 of felicity. 
 
 36. The three stabilities of knowledge are : — to have tra- 
 versed every state of animated existence; to remember every 
 state and its incidents ; and to be able to traverse all states of 
 animation that can be desired, for the sake of experience and 
 judgment ; this will be obtained in the circle of felicity. 
 
 37. The three peculiar distinctions of every- being in the 
 circle of felicity are ; vocation, privilege, and character (dispo- 
 sition) ; nor is it possible for any two beings to be uniformly 
 the same in every thing ; for every one will possess plenitude of 
 what constitutes his incommunicable distinction from all others ; 
 and there can be no plenitude of any thing without having it in a 
 degree that comprehends the whole of it that can exist. 
 
 ^ 38. Three things none but God can do ; to endure the eter- 
 nities of the circle of infinity ; to participate of every state of 
 existence without changing ; and to reform and renovate every 
 thing without causing the loss of it. 
 
 39. Three things can never be annihilated from their un- 
 avoidable possibilities ; mode of existence ; essentials of exist- 
 ence ; and the utility of every mode of existence ; these will, 
 divested of their evils, exist for ever, as varieties of the good 
 and beautiful in the circle of felicity. 
 
 40. The three excellencies of changing mode of existence in
 
 28 
 
 the circle of felicity ; acquisition of knowledge ; beautiful 
 variety ; and repose, from not being able to endure uniform 
 infinity and uninterrupted eternity. 
 
 41. Three things increase continually ; fire, or light ; under- 
 standing, or truth ; soul, or life ; these will prevail over every 
 thing else, and then the state of inchoation will cease. 
 
 42. Three things dwindle away continually ; the dark, the 
 false, and the dead. 
 
 43. Three things accumulate strength continually, there 
 being a majority of desires towards them ; love, knowledge, and 
 justice. 
 
 44. Three things become more and more enfeebled daily, 
 there being a majority of desires in opposition to them ; hatred, 
 injustice, and ignorance. 
 
 45. The three plenitudes of felicity; participation of every 
 nature with a plenitude of one predominant ; conformity to every 
 cast of genius and character, possessing superior excellence in 
 one ; the love of all beings and existences, but chiefly concen- 
 tered in one object, which is God : and in the predominant 
 one of each of these will the plenitude of felicity consist. 
 
 46. The three necessary essentials of God ; infinite in him- 
 self ; finite to finite comprehensions ; and co-unity with every 
 mode of existence in the circle of felicity.* 
 
 MORAL TRIADS. t 
 
 1. The three primary principles of wisdom ; obedience to the 
 laws of God, concern for the welfare of mankind, and suffer- 
 ing with fortitude all the accidents of life.! 
 
 2. The three great laws of man's actions ; what he forbids 
 
 * " These Triads have often an air of tautology, occasioned by this very cir- 
 cumscribed mode of dictating in short aphorisms that afford not room for suf- 
 ficient explication, whence the necessity of resuming a subject in a second, 
 third, or fourth Triad ; and, perhaps, oftener on some occasions." (E. W.) 
 
 f The note inserted in page 23, relative to the copy from which the Theolo- 
 gical Triads were transcribed by E. W. applies equally to the Moral and In- 
 stitutional Triads. 
 
 % Diogenes Laertius, who flourished early in the third century, has preserved 
 this Triad in a perverted form. See page 40.
 
 29 
 
 in another; what he requires from another; and what ho cares 
 not how it is done by another. 
 
 3. Three things well understood will give peace ; the 
 tendencies of nature, the claims of justice, and the voice of 
 truth. 
 
 4. There are three ways of searching the heart of man ; in 
 the thing he is not aware of ; in the manner he is not aware of; 
 and at the time he is not aware of. 
 
 5. There are three things, and God will not love him that 
 loves to look at them ; lighting, a monster, and the pomposity 
 of pride. 
 
 6. Three things produce wisdom ; truth, consideration, and 
 suffering. 
 
 7. The three great ends of knowledge ; duty, utility, and 
 decorum. 
 
 8. There are three men that all ought to look upon with 
 affection ; he that with affection looks at the face of the 
 earth ; that is delighted with rational works of art ; and that 
 looks lovingly on little infants. 
 
 9. Three men will not love their country : he that loves 
 luxurious food, he that loves riches, and he that loves ease. 
 
 10. The three laughs of a fool ; at the good, at the bad, and 
 at what he knows not what. 
 
 1 1 . Three things corrupt the world : pride, superfluity, and 
 indolence. 
 
 The preceding epitome presents the features of patriarchal 
 truth sufficiently clear to establish original identity, yet it must 
 be confessed that the outlines throughout are not equally defin- 
 able. At what period the Bards first adopted their religious 
 peculiarities it is difficult to determine. The fact of their exis- 
 tence, however, seems to militate against one fundamental 
 theory of the system, for the Bards professedly adhered to, or 
 departed from, their primary traditions according to the evi- 
 dence that might be acquired from time to time in their search 
 after truth. But this may be accounted for on the supposition 
 that corruptions crept in when the art of oral tradition was not 
 yet sufficiently adequate to guard the primitive religion against 
 the tide of natural viciousness. It is not improbable, indeed, that
 
 so 
 
 even before the dispersion of the Noachidee, some religious 
 truths were indistinctly known, or enigmatically expressed. 
 Thus we are told that our first parents " heard the voice of the 
 Lord God walking in the garden, in the cool of the day.''''* 
 That " it repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth, 
 and it grieved him at his heart ?~\ That " God looked upon 
 the earth, and behold it was corrupt. 1 ^ Was not this propen- 
 sity for allegorical teaching, that evil imagination of the heart,§ 
 alluded to immediately after the flood \ And is it not probable 
 that a vague idea of the resurrection of the body entertained 
 by the Japetida?, was perverted into the doctrine of the metem- 
 psychosis by the Druids, who thus " became vain in their ima- 
 ginations V It was reserved for the Saviour of the world to 
 bring " life and immortality to light through the Gospel.' 1 ' 
 
 On the other hand, the just and correct views of the Druid- 
 Bards relative to the science of morals, which is recoverable by 
 the light of nature alone, clearly prove that in this respect, at 
 least, they practically adhered to the maxim of free and impar- 
 tial inquiry. 
 
 A Druid was required to be resident in every district, to 
 " give moral and religious instruction in the convention of the 
 Bards, in the palace, in the place of worship, and in every 
 family, in which he had full privilege."! This was an admir- 
 able arrangement, and as it was only insisted upon in the case of 
 the Druid, it shows the superior importance attached by the insti- 
 tution to the doctrines of religion and morality over every other 
 branch of learning. 
 
 Nevertheless, our memorials point to eras and instances in 
 which the civil arts and sciences were cultivated to an extent 
 
 * Gen. iii. 8. t Ge »- "• 6 - 
 
 t Verse 12. It would appear that the beginning of Genesis consists of 
 transcripts of some of the compositions of the primitive ages, and that tbe 
 above expressions are not exactly those of Moses. Thus, for instance, chapter 
 V begins with an appropriate title which particularly indicates a distinct and 
 independent composition. "This is the book (or record) of the generation of 
 Adam." 
 
 § Gen. viii. 21. || Myv. Arch v. iii. Laws of Dyvnwal Moelmud.
 
 31 
 
 that would not havo degraded the best ages of Greece and 
 Rome. 
 
 Letters. — Julius Caesar writes with particular reference to 
 the Gallic Druids : — " Nor do they deem it lawful to commit 
 those things which pertain to their discipline to writing; though 
 generally in other cases, and in their private and public accounts, 
 they use Greek letters. They appear to me to have established 
 this custom for two reasons; — because they would not have 
 their secrets divulged, and because they would not have their 
 disciples to depend upon written documents, and neglect the 
 exercise of memory. 11 * 
 
 This statement is conclusive as to the knowledge of letters 
 among the continental Bards, but as these are said to have re- 
 ceived their institute from Britain, it will apply more eminently 
 to the sages of this country. Nor are we dependent on this 
 inference alone : the following Law-triads of Dyvnwal Moel- 
 mud satisfactorily decide the question. 
 
 " There are three duties incumbent upon the teachers of the 
 country and the tribe, being learned men : 
 
 1. To impart instruction, etc. 
 
 2. To keep an authentic record, respecting privileges, cus- 
 toms, families, pedigrees of nobility by honourable marriages, 
 heroic actions, and everything of superior excellence of country 
 and clan, that is performed in the court and in the sacred place, 
 in peace and in war. 
 
 3. They are to be ready, at every appointed time and place, 
 to give instruction, advice, and information on sacred sub- 
 jects, by reciting the authentic records, and by writing down what 
 is given by judgment and custom, in a proper hook of records. 
 More than this is not to be required of the instructors of the 
 country who are men of reading and writing, and of scientific 
 reflection and wisdom, lest it should render them unable to 
 perform their duty as regularly inducted teachers. 11 
 
 " There are three distinguished literary characters : 
 1. He that has an acquaintance with literature, and can write 
 and read the Cimbric language correctly, impart instruction res- 
 
 * DeBell. Gall. L. vi. 14.
 
 32 
 
 pecting them, and keep a written record of the three subjects 
 of record of the Bards of the Isle of Britain ; and these are 
 pedigrees of nobility by marriages, inheritances, and heroic 
 actions "* 
 
 The knowledge of letters, and the sciences dependent thereon, 
 was an indispensable qualification for admission to the degree 
 of Ovate. t 
 
 The characters used by our British ancestors have been 
 transmitted through the same channel that we have received 
 other Bardic traditions. The original alphabet is said to have 
 consisted of sixteen letters, all of which are radical ; the rest 
 are mutations of them, formed and added thereto at subsequent 
 periods.^ The whole series amounts to forty, which are here 
 arranged in their due order, with the power of each letter, and 
 the names of the radicals. 
 
 VOWELS. 
 
 Chapters.- A A v! ^ M ^ Y O <J> V \!/ 
 Power. — a a. e e i u u y o 6 w w 
 
 Radicals.— 12 3 4 
 
 CONSONANTS. 
 
 Characters.-!/ ^JSUI/UMlKrXK&CS 
 
 Power. — b v m m v p ph mh f c ch ngh g ng 
 Name. — U mi pi fi ci gi 
 
 Radicals.— 5 6 7 8 9 10 
 
 Characters.-TlS ft > ► V> H k U K V Y ' UU 
 
 Power. — t th nh d dh n n l ll r rh s h hvv 
 Name. — ti di ni li ri is 
 
 Radicals.— 11 12 13 14 15 1G 
 
 It i3 not a little remarkable, that the above comprise, with 
 four or five exceptions, all the old Etruscan or Pelasgic letters, 
 which were probably but little different from the Greek charac- 
 ters used in the time of Osesar. § 
 
 * Myv. Arch. v. iii, Laws of Dyvnwal Moelmud. 
 
 f " Bardism," by W. Owen, p. xl. 
 
 J Some of them were invented after the introduction of Christianity. 
 
 § W. Owen's " Bardism."
 
 33 
 
 The ancient Britons usod to cut their letters upon sticks* or 
 staves, which were either squared, or formed into three sides. 
 Several of these sticks were joined in a frame, called Peithynen 
 (elite idator), and sometimes Ooelbren (a token stick), by which 
 latter term the alphabet was also generally designated. 
 
 Sometimes they graved their letters on a slate with an iron 
 style or a flint stone, and this slate they denominated Coelvain 
 (a token stone). They also coloured them on wood.f 
 
 The Bards assign a period of the remotest antiquity to the 
 origin of letters. Indeed it is evident, from the general affinity 
 which exists amongst all the ancient alphabets of Europe, that 
 they are derived from one common source, which must have 
 sprung in the east before the separation of families. 
 
 Wo may learn from the Triads quoted above, what the Bri- 
 tish Bards committed chiefly to writing. Other facts in general, 
 and particularly what related to their system, they promulgated 
 and transmitted orally in prose, as well as in verse. 
 
 Prose. — With a view to assist the memory, art was bestowed 
 even on prosaic forms of composition. The most common spe- 
 cies was the Triad, of which we have given several specimens. 
 It will appear on examination, that there is a striking resem- 
 blance between each of its three component parts, and one 
 grand or leading idea centred in the whole, by which these parts 
 are bound up, and kept inseparably together.^ 
 
 * Writing on sticks is alluded to in Ezekiel xxxvii. 16-20: " Son of man, 
 take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah, and for the children of Israel 
 his companions : then take another stick, and write upon it For Joseph," &c. 
 Also, Numbers xvii. 2. " Take of every one of them a rod — write thou every 
 man's name upon his rod." 
 
 t See an excellent essay on the Bardic Alphabet, by Taliesin Williams, sou 
 of the late E. Williams (Iolo Morganwg) in which its genuineness is most sa- 
 tisfactorily established. 
 
 X A few specimens are to be found in ancient authors. Mela, L. iii. c. 2. 
 has preserved one of them. 
 
 " Unum ex iis quag praecipiunt in vulgus effluxit ; videlicet — 
 Ut forent ad bella meliores ; 
 jEternas esse animas, 
 Vitamque alteram ad manes." 
 Diog. Laertius presents us with another; see page 40. Ausonius, who re- 
 spected, and seems occasionally to imitate, the Bards of his country, has a 
 whole poem of Triads. (Celtic Researches, p. 150.) 
 
 F
 
 34 
 
 Poetry. — The Bards divided their canons of versification, or 
 metricities, into nine Gorchanau, elements of song, or primary 
 principles, and fifteen Adlawiaid, secondary, or compound prin- 
 ciples, making in all twenty-four, to which all possible varieties 
 and combinations of metres in any language are reducible.* 
 The most ancient stanza on record is that usually designated 
 the " Warrior's Triplet," which consists of three lines rhyming 
 in the last syllable. The Poetical Institutes of the Bards thus 
 argue respecting its originality : " The most simple of all the 
 stanzas is the ' Warrior's Triplet, 1 for it has simplicity of verse, 
 rhyme, and stanza ; as the first of stanzas was the triplet, and 
 the first kind of rhyme was unirhythm. Therefore it is judged, 
 that of all the various stanzas, the ' Warrior's Triplet 1 is the 
 most venerable, for so is the first of all things ; and of stanzas, 
 the ' Warrior's Triplet 1 is the most original ."t In another 
 place it is regarded as one of the metres which were " from 
 time immemorial, that is, from the age of ages. "J 
 
 Music. — The science of music formed an essential part of 
 the Bardic profession. The principal instrument used was the 
 harp. It was played by the Privileged Bard, and a perfect 
 skill in the performance was considered a necessary qualification 
 for the office. § 
 
 Astronomy. — It is acknowledged by authors in general, that 
 the Druids professed astronomy. The British Triads record 
 the names of three who distinguished themselves in the science, 
 two of whom flourished before the era of Christianity. " The 
 three sublime astronomers|| of the isle of Britain, — Idris Gawr, 
 
 * " This system of versification is no modern thing ; for we have it in ma- 
 nuscripts of five hundred years' standing; it was completed, and received its 
 highest and ultimate polish, when every other European language, now living, 
 was yet in the dark womb of barbarity." (E. Williams's Poems, vol. ii p. 226.) 
 
 f Quoted in W. Owen's " Account of Llywarch Hen," prefixed to his 
 " Heroic Elegies," page xix. 
 
 X " Metres from time immemorial are primary canons, the warrior's triplet, 
 and recitative, judged to be ; that is, they were from the age of ages." Bardic 
 Aphorism, quoted in Dr. Pughe's Diet, voce Triban. 
 
 § James's "Patriarchal Pvcligion," p. 74-76; Davies's " Celtic Researches," 
 p. 191. 
 
 || Welsh, Seronyddion, hence probably the Saronidcs of the ancients.
 
 85 
 
 Gwdion the son of Don, and Gwyn the son of Nudd. So great 
 was their knowledge of the stars, and of their nature and situa- 
 tion, that they could foretell whatever might be desired to be 
 known, to the day of doom.' '* The memory of the first is per- 
 petuated by one of the highest and most pointed mountains in 
 North Wales, called Oadair Idris {the Chair of Idris). The 
 second has likewise imparted his name to the Galaxy, which is 
 hence commonly styled Caer Gwdion in the Welsh language. 
 
 Some have thought that the ancient British astronomers had 
 invented instruments which answered the purpose of our tele- 
 scope, from its being said by Diodorus Siculus, that in the 
 Hyperborean island (supposed to be Britain), t the moon was 
 seen as if it was but a small distance from the earth, and having 
 hills and mountains on its surface. Nor is this hypothesis un- 
 supported by the Triads, which mention Drych ab Cibddar, or 
 Oilidawr, that is, the speculum of the son of pervading glance, 
 or the searcher of mystery, as one of the secrets of the Isle of 
 Britain.:}: It is also supposed that they were acquainted with 
 the cycle of nineteen years, called the cycle of the moon, from 
 its being observed by the same writer, Diodorus Siculus, that 
 the Hyperboreans thought that Apollo descended into their 
 island at the end of every nineteen years, when the sun and 
 moon having performed their respective revolutions, return to 
 the same point, and begin to perform the same again. § Pliny has 
 moreover asserted, that the Druids had also a cycle or period 
 of thirty years, which they called an age ; and which probably 
 was the same with the great year of the Pythagoreans, or revo- 
 lution of Saturn. Some antiquarians, indeed, profess to dis- 
 cover the emblems of three different cycles even in the structure 
 of the Bardo-Druidic temple. 
 
 Mechanics. — We are furnished with the names of two 
 celebrated mechanicians who lived prior to the Christian era ; — 
 " Oorvinwr the Bard of Oeri Hir Lyngwyn, who first made a 
 
 * Myf. Arch. v. ii. Triad 89. 
 
 f For evidences in favour of this identity, see " Celtic Researches," page 
 17fi. he. 
 j Myv. Arch. vol. ii. § Diod. Sicul. I,, ii. e. 47.
 
 36 
 
 ship, sail, and helm for the Cymry, and Morddal Gwr Gweilgi, 
 mason to Ceraint ab Greidiawl, who first taught the Cymry to 
 work with stone and mortar, about the time when Alexander 
 was subduing the world."* The remains of the numerous 
 Druidical circles throughout the land, are standing monuments 
 of the skill of our ancestors in mechanics, and probably of their 
 proficiency in the science of astronomy. 
 
 Agriculture. — That the ancient Britons were not inattentive 
 to the cultivation of the soil, is proved by the statements of the 
 Greek merchantmen who traded with the island, about 500 
 years before Christ. According to them, this country abounded 
 with provisions of every kind, so that they emphatically called 
 it the " Land of Ceres.^t The Triads represent Hu Gadarn as 
 being the " first who instructed the Cymry in the way of plough- 
 ing land ;" and Coll, the son of Collvrewi, as the " first who in- 
 troduced wheat and barley into the island, where there were till 
 then only rye and oats/'J 
 
 Commerce. — Sammes, in his " Antiquities of Ancient 
 Britain derived from the Phoenicians," says, that those cele- 
 brated mercantile people discovered the British Isles about the 
 time of the Trojan war. At that period the inhabitants were 
 working the tin, lead, and copper mines, in the south, to such 
 an extent, as to supply every mart on the coast of the Medi- 
 terranean Sea.§ About six or seven centuries later, that is, 
 about 500 years before Christ, the Greeks became acquainted 
 with the source of these articles, and traded in them with the 
 natives. || 
 
 Medicine. — It was the peculiar province of the Ovate to 
 study the productions of nature, with a view to ascertain and 
 apply their medicinal qualities. Among other plants the mistletoe 
 was considered particularly medicinal, and hence was frequently 
 
 * My v. Arch. vol. ii. 91. f James's Patriarchal Religion, p. 21. 
 
 \ Triad 56. 
 
 § The prophet Ezekiel most probably alludes to the produce of this country 
 as being carried home by the merchants of Tyre, about six hundred years be- 
 fore the birth of Christ. " With silver, iron, tin, and lead, they traded in thy 
 fairs." — Ezekiel xxvii. 12. 
 
 H James's Pat. Rel. p. 20.
 
 37 
 
 called by the ancient Britons OU-iach (all heal). Its gathering 
 was attended with great solemnity. The Druid, or priest, 
 ascended the tree on which it grew in his sacerdotal robes, and 
 with a golden hook cut off the shrub, which was received in a 
 white sheet spread for that purpose underneath.* 
 
 Politics. — The first stone of the political edifice of Britain 
 was laid by Hu Gadarn, who "first collected the race of the 
 Cymry, and disposed them into tribes. "t After the arrival of 
 the Lloegrians and Brython, Prydain " established a jury over 
 the Isle of Britain," and consolidated the several states under a 
 general union, to be governed by a Cimbric monarch. Dyvn- 
 wal Moelmud in a subsequent age " systemized the laws and 
 ordinances, and privileges of the country and nation.":}: His 
 code is still extant.§ 
 
 The ancient British laws were founded on the customs of the 
 country, and were enacted in a convention of the several states. 
 These states were governed by their respective chiefs, who were 
 
 * James's Pat. Rel. p. 86 ; Pliny. f Triad 57. + Ibid. 
 
 § Whoever will duly examine this code, which is inserted in the third volume 
 of the My vyrian Archaiology, will find that it contains strong internal evidence 
 of its own genuineness. It contemplates a state of things incompatible with what 
 Britain exhibited subsequently to the arrival and settlement of the Coritaniaus, 
 Belgse, and Romans. It refers to the incorporation of the Bardic College, and 
 the practical influence, liberties, and privileges of its members. It contains no 
 allusion to Christianity, but all along recognises the Druid as the authorised 
 minister and teacher of religion. In one instance, indeed, there is a reference 
 to Christian practices, but from the manner it is introduced, as well as the very 
 late period to which it partly alludes, there can be no doubt of its being an 
 interpolation. It is said that Dyvnwal's laws were translated by Gildas into 
 Latin, and also those of Marcia, the wife of Cyhylin (the third from Dyvnwal) 
 and that this translation was communicated to Alfred the Great by Asserius, 
 Bishop of St. David's : and that Alfred translated these laws from Gildas's 
 Latin into Saxon, and called the code, the Merchenlage. (Rom. Hist. lib. i. p. 
 202 of Gale.) Caradoc of Llancarvan, in the twelfth century, says that Hy- 
 wel Dda went to Rome, a. d. 926, " to obtain a knowledge of the laws of other 
 kingdoms and cities, and the laws that the Roman emperors put in force in the 
 island of Britain, during their sovereignty. — That, after a careful research re- 
 specting every country and city, the laws of Dyvnwal Moelmud were found su- 
 perior to the whole, and, moreover, in concurrence with the law of God." (Myv. 
 Arch. v. ii.) This is another testimony to the excellent principles and ten- 
 dency of ancient Bardism.
 
 nevertheless subordinate to the supreme monarch. His exclu- 
 sive authority seems to have consisted in the power of confirm- 
 ing laws, of levying the whole force of the kingdom in case of 
 invasion, and punishing the reguli for any infraction of the 
 general ordinances. The sovereignty was hereditary, and con- 
 fined to the race of the Cymry. Sometimes, however, in cases 
 of emergency, the different states conventionally elected a 
 sovereign, who possessed the requisite qualifications for meeting 
 the public danger ; and such a general, at the head of the 
 combined forces, they styled Pendragon. 
 
 Thus it appears that our British ancestors, instead of being a 
 nation of barbarians and savages, as they are too commonly 
 represented, were really an enlightened people, far advanced in 
 civilization and intellectual improvement. A knowledge of the 
 useful arts was not, any more than theology, confined exclu- 
 sively to the Bardic college. Though the territorial or parochial 
 system was necessarily applied to none of the orders but the 
 Druid, or religious functionary, yet ample provision was made 
 for the general diffusion of the historical and philosophical 
 maxims more particularly professed by the privileged Bard and 
 Ovate. All men were freely invited to attend their conventions, 
 which were always held in the open air, on a conspicuous place, 
 whilst the sun was above the horizon ; and at these meetings 
 their traditions were publicly recited.* So averse, indeed, were 
 the Bards to secresy, that it was to be observed only when 
 peace and the public welfare demanded it, and in that case it 
 was regarded " a necessary but reluctant duty." 
 
 Some of the Greek and Latin writers give the Druids credit 
 for deep and extensive acquaintance with the arts and sciences, 
 but they paint their religion for the most part in dark and horrid 
 colours. In anticipation of an objection which this circum- 
 stance will naturally raise, we beg to remind our readers that 
 the remarks of classical authors are almost exclusively confined 
 to that form which prevailed on the Continent. The extent of 
 
 ' * " These were so far from being any thing like a;nigmatical or obscure, as 
 some have supposed, that they were just the reverse; and there is hardly such 
 a thin"- even as a figurative expression to be found in any of the traditions." — 
 W. Owvn\s Bardism, p. xxxiv.
 
 3!) 
 
 his conquests would afford to Julius Caesar, more perhaps than 
 to any of the other writers, opportunities of making himself 
 acquainted with the character and customs of Druidism, hence 
 he is considered by far the best authority on the subject. His 
 statement as to the common origin of the Gallic and British sys- 
 tems, and the practice adopted by some of the youths of Gaul, in 
 his time, of coming over to Britain for the purpose of being edu- 
 cated in the maxims of the institution, has led modern historians 
 in general to consider his gloomy description of the continental 
 religion as equally applicable to British Druidism. But has it 
 been duly considered that his testimony necessarily makes a 
 difference between the two' branches ? 
 
 " Disciplina in Britannia reperta, atque in Galliam translata 
 esse, existimatur ; et mine, qui diligentius earn rem cognoscere 
 volunt, plerumque Mo, discendi causa, proficiscuntur^* 
 
 It is evident from these words, not only that the parent insti- 
 tution was more perfect in matters of detail, but that the Gallic 
 system was even destitute of fundamental and fixed principles. 
 It placed no confidence in its own regulations. It possessed not 
 in itself the seed of propagation. 
 
 The Institutional Triads of the British Bards are in perfect 
 accordance with this view of the subject. 
 
 " For three reasons are the Bards titled Bards according to 
 the rights and institutes of the Bards of the Isle of Britain ; 
 first, because Bardism originated in Britain ; secondly, because 
 pure Bardism was never well understood in any other country ; 
 thirdly, because pure Bardism can never be preserved and con- 
 tinued but by means of the institutes and voice conventional of 
 the Bards of the Isle of Britain ; for this reason, of whatever 
 country they may be, they are titled Bards according to the 
 rights and institutes of the Bards of the Isle of Britain." 
 
 " Three nations corrupted what was taught them of the 
 British Bardism, blending with it heterogeneous principles, by 
 which means they lost it ; the Irish, the Letavian Oymry,t and 
 the Germans. ":£ 
 
 * De Bell. Gall. vi. 13. 
 f The Bretons of France. \ Institutional Triads ; E. W. Poems, ii. 230.
 
 40 
 
 A system, the principles of which are imperfectly understood, 
 readily succumbs to the dictates of depraved nature, and par- 
 takes of the character of besetting degeneracy. Hence it is 
 not difficult to conceive how the Gauls would engraft the my- 
 thology of the Massilian Greeks on exotic Druidism, or how the 
 Irish would associate with the sun and fire worship of the 
 Phoenicians the Bardic doctrine of light, and its attendant 
 rites. 
 
 The plain aphorisms of the British Institution were wrested 
 into a correspondence with the prevailing opinions of the day. 
 Thus the following Triad, preserved by Diogenes Laertius, 
 exhibits a deep tincture of Grecian Polytheism : — 
 
 ^t€eiv Qbovq 
 
 Kcu [irjcev ica/coV cpav 
 
 Kat avcptiav clokeiv. 
 
 To worship the gods, 
 
 To do no evil, 
 
 And to exercise fortitude. 
 
 The original of this Triad is still on record, and runs thus : — 
 " Tri chynnorion Doethineb ; uvuddhad i ddeddvau Duw, 
 ymgais a lies dyn, a dioddev yn lew pob digwydd bywyd. 1-1 * 
 
 " The three primary principles of wisdom ; obedience to the 
 laws of God, concern for the welfare of mankind, and suffering 
 with fortitude all the accidents of life.' 1 
 
 Nor ought we to be astonished that polytheism and idolatry 
 should have been tolerated in the Gallic Institution by those 
 who had learned a different and purer doctrine in the British 
 schools, when we duly reflect how widely Roman Catholics of 
 the present day, notwithstanding their constant appeal to anti- 
 quity, have departed from the faith and practice of the primitive 
 Church. 
 
 After all, there are reasons to suppose, that the Druidical 
 doctrines taught to the continental youths in Britain were 
 spurious. Genuine Bardism, in the time of Julius Caesar, was 
 confined to the primary colony in the western parts of the 
 island, as shall appear in the sequel. 
 
 * Ethical Triads; E. Williams's Poems, ii. 248.
 
 41 
 
 Wo have already seen that the Cymry bestowed early and 
 particular attention on the art of oral tradition. It is to this 
 that we mainly attribute the perpetuation of their Bardic sys- 
 tem in such comparative purity. Besides that its tenets were 
 embodied in poems and adages, of a structure which in itself 
 almost defied perversion, they were also recited annually at one 
 or other of the four grand meetings or conventions. Every new 
 doctrine was likewise laid before their meetings, where it under- 
 went the most severe scrutiny. If admitted at the first, it was 
 reconsidered at the second ; if then approved of, it was referred 
 to the third meeting, and being approved of by that, it was 
 ratified or confirmed ; otherwise it was referred to the Triennial 
 Supreme Convention for ultimate consideration.* It appears, 
 from the law Triads,t that even in that case it was necessary to 
 have " the consent of the country, the neighbouring country, 
 and particularly the tribe. 1 ' These measures precluded the pos- 
 sibility of perversion or interpolation taking place without 
 being detected. 
 
 The amount of national veneration for rites and customs, in- 
 dependently of their own intrinsic value and practical usefulness, 
 is generally proportionable to their antiquity and the relation of 
 their source. It was accordingly more natural for the Cymry 
 to endeavour to preserve the integrity of the Bardic system, 
 which they had been taught to regard as indigenous, and of an 
 origin coincident with their first arrival in the island, than for 
 the subsequent colonies of the Lloegrians and Brython, who had 
 received it from them. These, nevertheless, as long as they 
 were ignorant of any other system, would, and doubtlessly did, 
 conform to the established usages of the land. Hence it is 
 highly probable, that Bardism attained its meridian prevalence 
 whilst these first colonies continued free from the obtrusion and 
 intercourse of strangers, and acknowledged the same civil 
 authority. Some of the principles and practices of the Phoe- 
 nician and Greek traders were no doubt adopted by a portion of 
 the southern inhabitants, and in course of time more or less 
 
 * E. Williams's Poems ; W. Owen's " Bardism." 
 f Myv. Arch. Laws of Dyvnwal Moelmud.
 
 42 
 
 affected their religious teachers. Yet, as their rites and pre- 
 cepts were subject to the cognizance of the national Gorsedd, 
 they could not very widely err without incurring degradation, 
 and consequently forfeiting the protection of government. The 
 greatest occasion for the dissemination of false notions would be 
 afforded by the violation and breaking up of the ancient consti- 
 tution, in consequence of the invasions and permanent settle- 
 ment of foreigners. The Triads record several of these before 
 the Roman descent, the first of which is supposed to have taken 
 place about 200 years before the Christian era. 
 
 " There were three refuge-seeking tribes that came to the 
 Isle of Britain ; and they came under the peace and permission 
 of the nation of the Cymry, without arms, and without oppo- 
 sition. 
 
 " The first was the tribe of the Celyddon (Caledonians), in the 
 north. 
 
 " The second was the Gwyddyl (Irish) tribe, who dwelt in 
 Alban. 
 
 " The third were the people of Galedin, who came in naked 
 vessels to the Isle of Wight, when their country was drowned, 
 and where they had lands granted them by the nation of the 
 Cymry. They had no privilege of claim in the Isle of Britain, 
 but they had land and protection assigned them under certain 
 limitations ; and it was stipulated that they should not possess 
 the rank of native Cymry until the ninth of their lineal descend- 
 ants/ 1 * 
 
 " There were three invading tribes that came to the Isle of 
 Britain, and never went out of it. 
 
 " The first were the Coranians, that came from the country 
 of Pwyl.t 
 
 " The second were the Gwyddyl Fichti (Irish Picts), who 
 came to Alban, by the sea of Llychlyn.t 
 
 " The third, &c. 
 
 * Myv. Arch. vol. ii. 
 
 f Some think that Poland is meant, whilst others take it for Holland. An- 
 other Triad fixes the time of the Coranian invasion in the age of Lludd, the 
 son of Beli, and Brother of Caswallon (Cassivellaunus.) 
 
 t The Baltic Sea.
 
 43 
 
 u The Coranians settled about the river Humber, and the 
 shore of the sea of Tawch ; and the Gwddyl Fichti in Alban, 
 about the shore of the Llychlyn Sea."* 
 
 " There were three invading tribes that came to the Isle of 
 Britain and went out of it. 
 
 " The first were the Llychlynians,t who came here after Urb 
 Lluyddawg had taken the flower of the nation of the Cymry, in 
 number 63,000 men of war and cavalry, from the island. But 
 at the end of the third age the Cyniry drove the Llychlynians 
 over the sea into the country of Almaen (Germany). 
 
 " The second were the troops of Ganval Wyddel (the Irish- 
 man), who came to Gwynedd ( Venedotia, or North Wales), and 
 were there twenty-nine years, until they were driven into the sea 
 by Caswallon, the son of Beli, the son of Mynogan. v $ 
 
 To these we must add the Belgse,§ not mentioned by the 
 Triads, who spread themselves along the southern coasts of the 
 island, and finally settled in Ireland, under the name of Firl- 
 bogs. 
 
 As the annals of nations record the profession of no Gentile 
 religion purer than British Druidism, we presume, without enter- 
 ing into an examination of their nature and form, that the 
 several worships, introduced by the tribes enumerated above, 
 partook also of the general inferiority. The arrival of the 
 " refuge-seeking tribes 1 ' was not in itself calculated to do vio- 
 lence to any of the leading maxims of Bardism ; nor is it prob- 
 able, as long as their settlement was distinct, and their authority 
 restricted, that their doctrines spread to any considerable extent 
 out of their own pale. 
 
 The intrusion of the " invading tribes" was attended with 
 serious consequences. The regulators of the public morals, in 
 whose presence on ordinary occasions no hostile weapon was to 
 be held, were now necessitated to sacrifice temporary peace at 
 the shrine of justice and patriotism, in conformity with the fol- 
 lowing maxim : — 
 
 * " Myv. Arch. vol. ii. f The Scandinavians. + My v. Arch. vol. ii. 
 
 § " Maritima pars ah iis qui pra?dce ac belli iuferendi causa, ex Belgis trans- 
 ierant." (De Bell. Gall. v. 12.) See, also, Dr. W. O. Pughe's Die. in voc. 
 Belyiad.
 
 44 
 
 " The three necessary but reluctant duties of the Bards of 
 the Isle of Britain ; secresy for the sake of peace and public 
 good, invective lamentation required by justice, and the un- 
 sheathing of the sword against lawlessness and depredation." 
 
 The extermination of the native hierarchy, as the main spring 
 of patriotic opposition, would be the principal aim of these 
 hostile clans. Hence the more stubborn and orthodox Druids 
 would perish at their posts ; some would retire out of the reach 
 of their persecutors ; some would act on the former clause of 
 the Triad, and either observe total silence, or else veil their in- 
 structions in mystic allegories ; whilst others, of a more easy 
 disposition, would compromise with the enemy, and incorporate 
 in their creed many of his wilder theories. Thus the people 
 who had amalgamated with their conquerors, and those on their 
 immediate borders, being deprived of the plain and public in- 
 structions of their legitimate and genuine teachers, would 
 gradually and extensively become tainted with the predominant 
 superstitions, to the great detriment of the national character. 
 It appears from the Triads, and other authorities, that about 
 the period of the Roman invasion, all the island except Cymru, 
 was more or less overrun or intermixed with strangers, and 
 consequently infected by their religious notions.* Cymru then 
 comprehended the south of Scotland, the northern parts of 
 England, Wales, and Cornwall, and parts of the counties of 
 Gloucester, Worcester, Hereford, Salop, and the whole of 
 Cheshire and Lancashire. It was thus into the bosom of its 
 primitive nation, with whom it originated, and for whom it was 
 calculated, that the pure order of the Druids withdrew itself. 
 But even here the exercise of its functions was not altogether 
 free from interruption, for we have seen that North Wales was 
 invaded and temporarily inhabited by a band of Irish, and it was 
 probably molested also by the Belgse, on their passage to Ire- 
 land. The ancient throne was, however, in existence in that 
 part of Wales formerly denominated Siluria, and though its 
 
 * It would seem, notwithstanding the predominance of their religious super- 
 stitions, that these foreign settlers had, in some measure, conformed to the civil 
 customs of the Aborigines, at the time of the Roman invasion.
 
 45 
 
 practical authority was curtailed, yet it was genuine and 
 vigorous, and laid claim to all its primitive rights and privileges. 
 Under its protection also flourished Bardism in its native 
 integrity. The correctness of this hypothesis is attested by the 
 unanimous voice of our traditionary documents ; and it is re- 
 markable that all those which relate to the doctrine and insti- 
 tutes of the primitive system are invariably written in the 
 Silurian dialect. 
 
 It is a historical fact which shall be hereafter established, 
 that the " Bards of the Isle of Britain" have continued in an 
 unbroken succession down to the present day. When the 
 Cymry lost their national independence by the fall of the last 
 Llywelyn, the Bards were not only deprived of patronage, but 
 were even awed by the terror of a cruel persecution. They 
 were consequently obliged to be circumspect, and to avoid the 
 regular open Gorsedd, or Convention. This must have en- 
 dangered the traditions and learning of the institution, therefore 
 such of the Bards as were anxious for their preservation began 
 to make collections of them in books. With a view to consoli- 
 date those collections, several Gorseddau were held, from the 
 beginning of the fifteenth century, under the sanction of Sir 
 Richard Neville, and others. One was held for that purpose 
 in 1570, under the auspices of William Herbert, Earl of 
 Pembroke, the great patron of Welsh literature. What was 
 done at those meetings received considerable improvements at 
 one held by Sir Edward Lewis, of the Van, about the year 
 1580, from the arrangement of Llywelyn of Langewydd ; and, 
 lastly, a complete revisal of all the former collections was made 
 by Edward Davydd of Margam, which received the sanction of 
 a Gorsedd held at Bewpyr, in the year 1681, under the autho- 
 rity of Sir Richard Basset. This collection was pronounced to 
 be in every respect the fullest illustration of Bardism.* 
 
 The traditions collected and sanctioned at these conventions, 
 supply the principal materials from which the foregoing account 
 of Bardism has been formed. From the singularity of their 
 form and contents, as well as the systematic manner in which 
 
 * " Bardism," by William Owen, p. lxi.
 
 46 
 
 they were perpetuated, they are entitled to our respect and 
 credit in a much higher degree than those popular legends, 
 which, in their unheeded course, become necessarily incrustated 
 with fabulous matter.* 
 
 But the practical continuation of the system carries this 
 difficulty in its train. It has been said, that the Bards adhered 
 to, or departed from their original traditions, only according 
 to the evidence that might be acquired from time to time in 
 their search after truth ; how, therefore, can we be sure that 
 the representation given is applicable to the times preceding 
 Christianity ? 
 
 It must be here observed, that the Historical Triads and the 
 ancient laws of the Britons were not affected by this principle, 
 and consequently, admitting their authenticity and genuineness, 
 we have sufficient evidence of the antiquity of those customs, 
 rites, and tenets, which are supported by them. The claims of 
 many of the aphorisms, of which use has been made in the 
 present sketch, must be subjected to the same, or similar tests, 
 as those of the documents just mentioned. They have been 
 adopted by the writer under a firm persuasion of their antiquity. 
 
 It is historically proved that the Christian Bards practically 
 abandoned or reformed what appeared to them inimical to, or 
 inconsistent with, the profession of the Gospel, but at the same 
 time that they carefully preserved among themselves the ori- 
 ginal dogmas of their system, as curious relics of antiquity. 
 They seem to have added a maxim to their code which would 
 enforce or promote the observance of the latter custom : — 
 
 " Three things which a Bard ought to maintain, — the Welsh 
 language, the primitive Bardism, and the memorial of every thing 
 good and excellent. "f 
 
 * " Nothing can more evince the fidelity of Bardic Tradition, than that the 
 Romance of Geoffrey of Monmouth is never once noticed in any Bardic 
 Poem or Aphorism, and of each there are extant in ancient manuscripts 
 perhaps a thousand ; it is so late as the fourteenth century, and the latter end 
 of it, before anything of the story of Brutus appears in the writings of any 
 Welsh Poet, and every poet was not a bard." (E. Williams's Poems, ii. 222.) 
 
 t Quoted by Dr. W. O. Pughe in " An outline of the Characteristics of the 
 Welsh, &c." appended to his Dictionary.
 
 47 
 
 Among the remnants of* primitive Bardism would be the 
 Druidical Theology. That the Triads we inserted were not 
 modified by the Bards, so as to square with their Christian 
 views, is evident from the fact, that they exhibit doctrines pal- 
 pably at variance with what is to be found in their evangelical 
 poems. We need only instance Taliesin, who flourished in the 
 sixth century, and who of all others, is supposed to have ap- 
 proximated nearest the Druidical doctrine of the metempsy- 
 chosis. His Christian belief is thus expressed : — 
 
 " Multitudes there were in the confused course 
 Of hell, a cold refuge, 
 During the five ages of the world, 
 Until Christ released them from the bondage 
 Of the immensely deep abyss of abred ; — * 
 All those has God taken under his protection." 
 
 This is widely distant from the Triadic doctrine, which teaches 
 the transmigration of the soul through different animal bodies. 
 Yet that very doctrine is also implied in some of his less Chris- 
 tian poems. This circumstance, which applies equally to other 
 Christian Bards, clearly proves that they were in possession of 
 dogmas at variance with their Christian profession. We have, 
 therefore, sufficient reason to believe that the religious articles 
 we have inserted in this sketch accurately represent the creed 
 of the ancient Druids. 
 
 * It will be recollected that abred, in the Theological Triads, was rendered 
 into English by the term indication.
 
 THE ECCLESIASTICAL ANTIQUITIES OF 
 THE CYMRY. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 INTRODUCTION OF CHRISTIANITY. 
 
 " It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes 
 of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel : I will also give thee for a light 
 to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth." 
 — Isaiah xlix. 6. 
 
 We are not apprised, and have no reason to conjecture, that 
 Julius Caesar, on his arrival in Britain, saw the Cymry. The 
 armies that opposed him consisted of Coranians, Belgge, and 
 some of the Lloegrians and Brython, who had amalgamated 
 with them on the eastern coast. It was not until the reign of 
 Claudius, that the subjugation of the aborigines was really and 
 earnestly attempted. True it is that Venedotia, or North 
 Wales, had suffered severely from the wild incursion of Ganval 
 Wyddel : its creed had been adulterated, and the national spirit 
 in some degree subdued. Nevertheless, upon the Silures of 
 South Wales had no impression been yet made. " Silurum 
 gens," says Tacitus, "nonatrocitate, non dementia mutabatur."* 
 Among this people the ancient rights and prerogatives of 
 sovereignty were uncompromisingly asserted, and the doctrines 
 and rites of primitive bardism duly enforced. When Claudius 
 sent his legions into Britain, Caradog (Caractacus), prince of 
 
 * Tac. Julii Agric. vita, cap. xviii. He mentions them also as " validamque 
 et pugnacem Silurum gentem." 
 
 h2
 
 50 
 
 Siluria, was elected in a national convention to the supreme 
 command of the native forces.* " All the Britons," observes 
 the Triad, " from king to vassal, enlisted under his banner, at 
 the call of the country, against foe and depredation."t 
 
 For nine years did Caradog defy the whole power of his 
 adversaries. * The last battle he fought was in the land of the . 
 Ordovices. As if conscious that the fate of his country de- 
 pended on the issue of that single engagement, he seems to 
 have exerted himself more than usually to inspire his men with 
 courage and resolution. " This is the day," he harangued 
 them, " and this is the battle, which will prove the beginning 
 either of recovered liberty or of endless slavery "t How in- 
 scrutable are the ways of providence ! Though the Britons 
 were defeated, the event was to them truly the commencement 
 of " recovered liberty," even " the glorious liberty of the 
 children of ^od:* Some of Caradog's family were taken pri- 
 soners on the field of slaughter, whilst he himself, having fled 
 for protection to Aregwedd Voeddawg§ (Cartismandua), queen 
 
 * " The three jury monarchs of the Isle of Britain ; the first, Caswallon, son 
 of Lludd, son of Beli, son of Mynogan ; second, Caradog, son of Bran, son of 
 Lhjr Llediaith ; third, wain, son of Maxen Wledig; that is to say, through 
 the juratory election of the country and nation was the monarchy given them, 
 when they were not elders." — Triad 17. 
 
 "The three conventional monarchs of the Isle of Britain: the first, &c; 
 the second, Caradog, the son of Bran, when he was invested with the martial 
 sovereignty of all the Isle of Britain, that he might oppose the invasion of the 
 
 Romans They were called the three conventional monarchs, because 
 
 they were so privileged in a convention of the country and neighbouring 
 country, under all the limits of the nation of the Cymry, and a convention was 
 held in every dominion, and commot, and hundred of the Isle of Britain, and 
 its adjacent islands." — Tr. 34. 
 
 " Ut ceteros Britanorum imperatores praemineret." — Tac. Annal. lib. xii. 
 " Pluribus gentibus imperitantem." — Caractacus's Speech, Ibid. 
 
 f Triad, 41. X Tac - Annal. lib. xii. 
 
 § She was the daughter of Avarwy, who, in consequence of a quarrel with 
 his uncle Caswallon (Cassivelaunus), betrayed his country, and was hence 
 ranked in a Triad with Gwrtheyrn and Medrawd, as " the three noted traitors 
 of the Isle of Britain." The act of Aregwedd is recorded as one of " the 
 three secret treasons of the Isle of Britain." Independently of hereditary 
 prejudice, her conduct in betraying Caradog is accounted for by the fact of 
 her being related to the Romans by marriage.
 
 51 
 
 of the Brigantcs, was by her basely betrayed into the hands of 
 Ostorius Scapula, who sent him in triumph to Rome, 
 
 The fame of the conquered Briton had extended throughout 
 the Roman empire, and great was the concourse of people who 
 had assembled in the city to view him who had so long and 
 gallantly braved the imperial arms. As he passed along the 
 streets in the rear of his family and friends, his undaunted and 
 dignified deportment won the admiration of all. At length, 
 halting in front of the tribunal, he thus addressed the emperor : 
 " If the measure of my success had been answerable to the 
 greatness of my birth and fortune, I might have come to this 
 city rather as a friend than a captive : nor wouldest thou have 
 disdained to receive into terms of peace one descended from 
 illustrious ancestors, and ruling many nations. My present 
 destiny, as it is ill-favoured to me, so is it to thee magnificent : 
 I possessed horses, men, arms, wealth : what wonder is it if I 
 was unwilling to lose them ? Does it follow, that if ye wish to 
 govern all, all should submit to servitude I If I had surrendered 
 myself instantly, neither my condition nor thy glory would have 
 been remarkable. Oblivion will attend my punishment, but if 
 thou wilt spare my life, I shall be a lasting instance of cle- 
 mency."* 
 
 The tone of this appeal is in beautiful harmony with the pri- 
 mitive character of the nation, as delineated in our Introduc- 
 tion. Truth, justice, and freedom animate every sentence, and 
 tell favourably of the nature of the soil, which was destined 
 shortly, by means of this occurrence, to receive the seeds of the 
 blessed and everlasting Gospel. 
 
 The noble and magnanimous demeanour of the captive 
 touched the emperor, who ordered him to be unchained on the 
 spot, and set at liberty with his wife and brothers. Such is 
 the statement of Tacitus. The Triads inform us, moreover, 
 that Bran, the father of Caradog,t was detained at Rome as 
 
 * Tac. Annal. lib. xii. 
 
 f Dion Cassius says, that the father of Caradog was Cynvelyn (Cunobelinus), 
 who died before the war with the Romans had commenced. This mistake 
 arose probably from its having been observed that one of the sons of Cymtlv.i 
 and his subjects served under the command of Caradog, as noticed in the fol-
 
 52 
 
 hostage for his son seven years. Bran was a bard,* and whilst 
 in the city he seems to have strictly adhered to the principles of 
 his order, in the free investigation of matters which contributed 
 to the attainment of truth and wisdom. One of the leading 
 maxims of Bardism was- — " Coeliaw dim a choeliaw pob peth, 11 
 " To believe nothing and to believe everything :" that is, the 
 British sages, in their search after truth, were bound to believe 
 everything supported by reason and proof, and nothing without.t 
 Rome at this time afforded a wide and advantageous scope for 
 the spirit of religious and philosophical inquiry. Here some 
 greedily discussed the multiform creed of scholastic gentilism ; 
 the exclusive ceremonial of Judaism was warmly advocated by 
 others ; nor was the mild religion of Jesus without its zealous 
 preachers and consistent professors. St. Paul, not later than 
 two or three years after the arrival of the British captives, £ 
 which, according to Tacitus, happened A. D. 51, testifies that 
 the faith of the Roman saints was " then spoken of throughout 
 the whole world."§ At the same time he sends his salutation 
 to the following converts resident in the city ; — Phoebe; Pris- 
 cilla, Aquila, the church in their house ; Epenetus ; Mary ; 
 Andronicus, Junia ; Amplias ; Urbane, Stachys ; Apelles ; 
 Aristobulus's household ; Herodion ; Narcissus's household ; 
 Tryphena, Tryphosa ; Persis ; Rufus, Rufus's mother ; Asyn- 
 critus, Phlegon, Hennas, Patrobas, Hermes, and the brethren 
 which were with them ; Philologus, Julia, Nereus, Nereus's 
 sister, Olympas, and all the saints that were with them.|| Nar- 
 
 lowing Triad : " The three honest retinues of the Isle of Britain ; the retinue of 
 Belyn, the son of Cynvelyn, in the war of Caradoij, the son of Bran; the re- 
 tinue of Mynyddawg Eiddin at Catraeth ; and the retinue of Drywon, the son 
 Nudd Hael, on the course of Arderydd in the north: that is, all joined those 
 at their own expense, without waiting to he asked, and without soliciting pay or 
 reward of country or king ; and therefore were they called the three honest 
 retinues."— Triad 79. 
 
 * Sketch of the early history of the Cymry, cScc, by the Rev. P. Roberts, A.M. 
 p. 112, note. 
 
 f Mr. Owen's "Llywarch Hen." preface, p. xxvi. 
 
 % Hist. Eccles. Magdeburgica, Capellus's Hist. Apost. p. 76, and Dodwell's 
 Diss, de Rom. Pontif. Success, p. 114. Bishop Burgess's Tracts, p. 23. 
 
 § Rom. i. H. || Rom. xvi.
 
 53 
 
 cissus mentioned in this catalogue was probably the favourite 
 freedman and secretary of Claudius, and if so, it would appear 
 that Christianity had already gained a footing in some of the 
 most respectable families in Rome.* Certain it is, that when 
 St. Paul was here on his first visit, there were " saints of 
 Caesar's household."t According to the chronology of Eusebius 
 and Jerome, the Apostle arrived in Rome A. D. 56, which was 
 about two years before the return of Bran, so that the venerable 
 Bard, if not in close custody, which is not likely to have been 
 the case, had ample opportunity of becoming acquainted with 
 the doctrines of the Gospel. He might have learned them even 
 from the lips of the Apostle himself, for he " dwelt two whole 
 years in his own hired house, and received all that came in unto 
 him ; preaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus 
 Christ with all confidence, no man forbidding him."^ 
 
 Bran approached these systems, and weighed their respective 
 merits with an unfettered mind. The sound morality and sub- 
 lime mysteries of the Gospel recommended themselves preemi- 
 nently to his reason and faith. Being fully impressed that it 
 was " a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that 
 Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, 1 ^ he gladly 
 embraced his religion, and on his release introduced it among 
 his own countrymen. The fact is recorded in the following 
 Triads: — 
 
 " The three holy families of the Isle of Britain ; 
 
 " The first, the family of Bran the Blessed, son of Llyr 
 Llediaith : that Bran brought the faith in Christ first into this 
 island from Rome, where he had been in prison through the 
 treachery of Aregwedd Voeddawg, daughter of Avarwy the son 
 of Lludd. 
 
 " The second was the family of Cunedda Wledig, who first gave 
 land and privileges to God and his saints in the Isle of Britain. 
 
 " The third was Brychan Brycheiniog, who gave his children 
 and grandchildren a liberal education, that they might be able 
 to teach the faith in Christ to the nation of the Cymry, where 
 they were unbelievers."!! 
 
 * Hales on the Origin and Purity of the Primitive Church of the British 
 Isles, Ike. p. 11. 
 t Phil. iv. 22. % Acts xxviii. 30, 31. § 1 Tim. i. 15. || Triad 18.
 
 54 
 
 " The three sovereigns of the Isle of Britain who conferred 
 blessings : — 
 
 " Bran the Blessed, son of Llyr Llediaith, who first brought 
 the faith in Christ to the nation of the Cymry from Rome, 
 where he had been seven years a hostage for his son Oaradog, 
 whom the Romans had taken captive after he was betrayed by 
 treachery, and an ambush laid for him by Aregwedd Voeddawg. 
 
 " The second, Lleirwg, the son of Coel, who was the son of 
 St. Cyllin, surnamed Lleuver Mawr, who made the first church 
 at Llandaf, and that was the first in the Isle of Britain, and 
 who bestowed the privilege of country, and nation, and judg- 
 ment, and validity of oath, upon those who should be of the 
 faith in Christ. 
 
 '« The third, Cadwaladr the Blessed, who granted the pri- 
 vilege of his land and all his property to the faithful, who fled 
 from the infidel Saxons and the unbrotherly ones who wished 
 to slay them."* 
 
 The " Genealogy of the Saints of the Isle of Britain v -f- agrees 
 
 * Triad 35. 
 
 | " A variety of catalogues of saints, with their more immediate ancestors, 
 have heen collected from different sources, and apparently in different parts of 
 the principality. Two only of these catalogues have heen published. The 
 first, called " Bonedd Saint Ynys Prydain " (" The Gentility of the Saints of 
 the Isle of Britain" ), is inserted in the Welsh Archaiology, where it is pro- 
 fessed to have heen taken from the hook of Hafod Ychdryd. Its orthography 
 is ancient, and from the names it contains it would appear to have been formed 
 in Cardiganshire. The second is also published in the same Archaiology, 
 under the name of "Bonedd, neu Achau Saint Ynys Prydain" (" Gentility, 
 or Pedigrees of the Saints of the Isle of Britain "), being a collection by Lewis 
 Morris from various old MSS. in North Wales, some of which are still in 
 existence. There is also a third catalogue which has not been printed in an 
 entire form, but a great part of its contents have been made known to the world 
 in detached notices. It is styled " Achau Saint Ynys Prydain," and gives a 
 more full account of such saints as lived in Siluria, where it seems to have been 
 collected. Each of these catalogues contains a variety of detail not to be found 
 in the others ; but they also contain a great many names in common, and in 
 treating of them, their statements are seldom so conflicting but that they may 
 be reconciled." — Essay on the Welsh Saints by Rev. Rice Rees, M.A., pp. 73, 74. 
 The last-mentioned catalogue is now in the press, and will soon be published, 
 together with several other valuable records which were collected by the late 
 Mr. Edward Williams (Iolo Morganwg).
 
 with the Triads in attributing the first introduction of Christ- 
 ianity to Bran. 
 
 " Bran, the son of Llyr Llediaith, was the first of the nation 
 of the Oyinry that embraced the faith in Christ." 
 
 Another copy : — 
 
 " Bran was the first who brought the Christian faith to this 
 country." 
 
 For these interesting documents we are indebted to the 
 Bards, whose duty, according to the Moelmutian laws, was to 
 " keep an authentic record respecting privileges, customs, fami- 
 lies, pedigrees of nobility by honourable marriages, heroic 
 actions, and everything of superior excellence of country and 
 clan."* 
 
 This early reception of the Gospel in Britain is further 
 attested by Theodoret,-f* Eusebius,| and Gildas.§ The two 
 former refer the event to apostolic times, and the latter fixes 
 the date be/ore the year 61, when Buddug (Boadicea) was 
 defeated by the Romans. 
 
 The " Genealogy of the Saints " mentions the name of four 
 Christian missionaries who accompanied Bran on his return to 
 his native country, viz. Hid, Cyndav and his son Mawan, who 
 are styled " men of Israel," and Arwystli Hen, a " man of 
 Italy.' 1 As the royal convert was more immediately connected 
 with the Cymry than with any other tribe in the island, we 
 naturally infer that the glad tidings of salvation were first pro- 
 
 * Myv. Arch. vol. iii.; Laws of Dyvnwal Moelmud. 
 
 f Kai BptTravvovQ — Kai cnra£,air\u>g irav &vog Kat ytvbg aj>3pw7rwv SiZaaSrai 
 tov aravpwStvTog tovq vdfiovg aviKsiaav.— Theodoret. Sermo 9, de Legib. Opp. 
 torn. iv. p. 610. 
 
 X 'J^Tepovginrkp tov Qkecivov irapikQiiv Itti rag KoKovfitvag UptTTaviicdg vijaovg. 
 — Euseb. Demonst. Evang. lib. iii. cap. 7. Par. 1628, p. 112. 
 
 § " Interea glaciali frigore rigent insula? qua- velutlongiore tenarum secessu. 
 Soli visibili non est proxima, verus ille non de finnamento solum temporali, 
 sed de summa etiam ccelorum arce tempora cuncta excedente, universo orbi 
 praefulgidum sui lumen ostendens Christus suos radios, id est sua praseepta 
 indulget, tempore ut scimus summo Tiberii Csesaris, quo absque ullo impedi- 
 menta ejus propagabatui religio." — Gildas de Excidio Britannia, inter Monu- 
 menta S. Patrum. Bas. 1569, p. 833.
 
 56 
 
 claimed to that ancient people. This is moreover affirmed in 
 the following Triad : — 
 
 " Three ways in which a Cymro is primary above every other 
 nation in the Isle of Britain ; primary as a native, primary as 
 regards social rights, and primary in respect of Christianity."* 
 
 Caradog, though elective sovereign of the whole island, and 
 " ruling many nations, 11 was yet emphatically and peculiarly 
 prince of Siluria, and therefore his patrimonial residence must 
 have been situated in that region. A Triad justifies this natural 
 conclusion. 
 
 " The three tribe herdsmen of the Isle of Britain ; 
 
 " Bennren, herdsman in Corwennydd.f who kept the herd of 
 Caradog the son of Bran and his tribe ; and in that herd were 
 twenty-one thousand milch cows," 1 &c.| 
 
 Bran's abode is likewise referred to the same country. 
 
 " The three tribe shepherds of the Isle of Britain ; 
 
 " Collwyn, shepherd of the tribe of Bran, the son of Llyr 
 Llediaith, in Morganwg (Glamorganshire).'" &c.§ 
 
 A farmhouse in Glamorganshire, called Tiwran. is pointed 
 out by tradition as the place where Bran used to reside. Not 
 far from it is Llanilid, or the " church of Hid, 11 which is regarded 
 as the oldest church in Britain. The wake or festival of the 
 parish is still called Gwyl Geri, from Ceri, it is supposed, the 
 great-orandfather of Bran. Such a coincidence of circum- 
 stances authorises us to form a strong conjecture as to the par- 
 ticular locality where the first assembly of British Christians 
 met to worship their Lord and Saviour. 
 
 The information we possess relative to Bran's associates, 
 though extremely scanty, is yet sufficient to show us that their 
 missionary labours were not fruitless. Of Cyndav and Mawan, 
 
 * This Triad forms part of a series in the Myvyrian Archaiology, vol. iii. 
 entitled " The Cymro's Triads," which is stated to have been taken " from the 
 same book " as that which furnished a former series, headed " These are other 
 Triads of wisdom, which were collected from the different books of Rhisiart 
 Iorwerth, Davydd Benwyn, Watkin Powel, Sir Sion Grufudd of Llangrallo, 
 and Morys Davydd of Pen y Bont ar Ogwr, by me Thomas ah Ivan of Tre 
 Bryn, in the year 1679." At the end of the series is added " Hopkin Twm 
 Philip of Gelli Vid has said them." Most, if not all, the persons here enumer- 
 ated were Bards of the Glamorgan chair, in the end of the 16th and beginning 
 of the 17th centuries. 
 
 f A place in Glamorganshire. J Triad 85. § Triad t»0.
 
 57 
 
 nothing indeed is recorded besides the simple fact already men- 
 tioned. Arwystli is supposed to be the same person with Aris- 
 tobulus, spoken of in St. Paul's epistle to the Romans xvi. 10. 
 The formation of the name from the Greek would be in perfect 
 accordance with the analogy of the Welsh language. But 
 what adds the greatest support to the hypothesis is the fact 
 that in the Greek menology Aristobulus is said to have been 
 ordained by St. Paul as a bishop for the Britons. In this case, 
 the Greeks and Welsh are witnesses wholly independent of each 
 other ; so that collusion is out of the question. Dorotheus, in 
 his synopsis, likewise affirms that Aristobulus was made bishop 
 of Britain. 
 
 The menology informs us further, that Aristobulus established 
 churches, and constituted presbyters and deacons in the island.* 
 In the " Genealogy of the Saints," Arwystli is described as the 
 confessor or spiritual instructor (peri gl or) of Bran. 
 
 Hid, in the " Genealogy of the Saints," is said to have con- 
 verted many of the Cymry to the Christian faith. In the 
 " Genealogy of Iestyn ab Gwrgant,"-f- he is represented as 
 having arrived from Rome at the request of Eurgain, the 
 daughter of Caradog, and as having become chief instructor of 
 the Cymry in the Christian faith. He is said to have regulated 
 or systemized a choir of twelve saints, which she had established 
 near the church, afterwards called the church of Illtud,| and 
 to have subsequently retired to the Isle of Avallon (Glaston- 
 bury), where he died, and was buried. 
 
 The Triads intimate that the family of Bran in general em- 
 braced the Christian religion, for they speak of it as one of 
 
 * " Aristobulum quoque, cujus ipse in epistola ad Romanos (xvi. 10) memi- 
 nit, Britannorum episcopum a Paulo ordinatura in menyeis Graecorum invenio; 
 ubi Aristobuli ad 15 mum diem Martii, hujusmodi fit commemoratio. 
 Oi>ro£ r\v tig Tiov eScofiijKovra ^iaQ)]Tiov' nKoXovOnvt tie Tip ayup A.TtorjTo\o) TlavXip, 
 Ki]pvTTO)v to evayyeXiov, uq iraaav ti\v oiKovuevijv Suikoviov avrip' v<j> ov Kai 
 ■^uQOTOVUTai nriGKOTroQ uq ti\v tidv BperTctvwv %o)pMV — ofitv Kcti cfC/jXjjmac aoa- 
 rnaafitvoc, Kai TrptatvTepovQ Kai Sicxkovovq tv avrr\ KaraoT»j(T«C, ertXtiwO)). 
 Similiter et apud Dorotheum in Synopsi Aristobulum Episcopum Britannia 
 factum fuisse legimus." — Usber's Britann. Eccles. Antiq. p. 9. 
 
 f A MS. now in the press. Iestyn ab Gwrgant was a prince of Glamorgan 
 about the beginning of the eleventh century, and was the 29th in descent from 
 Caradog, the son of Bran. 
 
 % As there are several churches which bear the name of Illtud, it is not easy 
 to ascertain which is the particular one referred to here. Perhaps it should be 
 " the church of Hid."
 
 58 
 
 " the three holy families of the Isle of Britain.' 1 '' It is probable 
 that this happened at Rome. We learn from one of the Triads 
 that the whole royal family was carried captive thither : 
 
 " The three royal families that were carried prisoners, from 
 the great-great-grandfather to the great-grandsons, and not 
 one of them escaped : 
 
 " The first, the family of Llyr Llediaith. which was brought 
 captive to Rome by the Caesarians. 
 
 " The second, the family of Madawg, the son of Medron, 
 which was imprisoned by the G-wyddyl Fichti {Irish Picts) in 
 Alban. 
 
 " The third, the family of Gair. the son of Geirion, lord of 
 Geirionydd, which was confined in the prison of Oeth and 
 Anoeth by the voice of the country and nation. 
 
 " Of these not a single membi r escaped, and the captivity of 
 these families was the most complete ever known to have taken 
 place. 1 ''* 
 
 According to the old Welsh laws, the immediate ancestors 
 and heirs of a person terminated respectively with the great- 
 great-grandfather and the great-grandson ;*f so the expression 
 of the Triad must not be taken literally, as if it meant that 
 all the members of Llyr's family there enumerated were alive at 
 the time, but merely as denoting his entire existing household. 
 
 A son and daughter of Caradogare ranked among the saints. 
 The daughter Eurgain or Eigen (as she i< sometimes called) is 
 recorded as the first female saint among the Britons,^ and her 
 conversion seems to have been contemporary with the first 
 introduction of Christianity into the island. According to the 
 " Genealogy of Iestyn ab Grwrgant," she formed a college of 
 twelve religious persons, which was afterwards called after her 
 own name " Cor Eurgain' 1 (the choir of Eurgain). She is said 
 to have been married to a Roman nobleman, who was also a 
 Christian. § 
 
 * Triad 61. 
 
 f See " An Essay on Welsh Genealogies," in the " Transactions of the 
 Cymmrodovion," vol. ii. p. 122. 
 
 X Genealogy of the Saints; Cambrian Biography voce Eigen; Rees's 1 
 on the Welsh "Saints, p. 81. 
 
 § Genealogy of Iestyn ab Gwrgant. The Cambrian Biography says that 
 Eigen ,: was married to Sarllog, who was lord of Caer Sarllog, or the present 
 Old Sarum."
 
 59 
 
 St. Paul, in his second epistle to Timothy, which was written 
 during his second imprisonment at Rome, speaks of " Pudens, 
 and Linus, and Claudia,"* with whom, it would appear, Timothy 
 was personally acquainted. It is inferred, from the connexion 
 of the names, that Pudens and Claudia are identical with the 
 couple whose marriage is celebrated by Martialf in those lines : 
 
 Claudia, Rufe, meo nubit peregrine Pudenti ; 
 
 Macte esto toedis, O Hymenree, tuis. 
 Tain bene rara suo miscentur cinnama nardo, 
 
 Massica Thesaeis tam bene vina favis. 
 Xec melius teneris junguntur vitibus uhni, 
 
 Nee plus lotos aquas, littora myrtus amat. 
 Candida perpetuo reside Concordia lecto, 
 
 Tamque pari semper sit Venus cequa jugo. 
 Diligat ipsa scnem quondam ; sed et ilia marito 
 
 Tunc quoque cum fuerit, non videatur anus.J 
 
 That Claudia was of British extraction is clear from the fol- 
 lowing epigram written by the same poet : 
 
 Claudia ca?ruleis cum sit Ruffina Britannia 
 
 Edila, cur Latias pectora plebis habet ? 
 Quale decus forma? ? Romanam credere matres, 
 
 Italides possunt, Atthides esse suam. 
 Dii bene, quod sancto peperit faccunda marito 
 
 Quot sperat generos, quotque puella nurus. 
 Sic placeat superis, ut conjuge gaudeat uuo, 
 
 Et semper natis gaudeat ilia tribus.§ 
 
 Thus we have on record another distinguished Briton among 
 the early disciples of Christ, unless indeed she is the same per- 
 son with Eurgain. For this supposition there is some founda- 
 tion. In the first place, both were married to Roman noble- 
 
 * 2 Tim. iv. 21. 
 
 f It has been objected "that Claudia, spoken of by St. Paul, lived in the 
 reign of Nero, and could not be known to Martial, who was living sixty years 
 after, in the reign of Trajan. But to this it may be answered, that notwith- 
 standing the eleventh book of Martial's epigrams was part of it written in the 
 reigns of Nerva or Trajan, yet it does not follow but that some of those poems 
 might be penned a great while before. It is true the poet died in the reign of 
 Trajan, but then we are to consider that he had lived to a great age, that he 
 had formerly been an intimate acquaintance of Silius Italicus, who wrote 
 the second Punic war, and in whose consulship Nero despatched himself. . . . 
 Now, when Nero was emperor of Rome, and most probably towards the latter 
 end of his reign, the second epistle of St. Paul to Timothy was written, in 
 which the salutation of Pudens and Claudia is mentioned ; so that, notwith- 
 standing any chronological reasons insisted on, . . . St. Paul's and Martial's 
 Claudia may be the same person." — Collier's Ecclesiastical History, B. 1. 
 
 J Martial, lib. iv. epigr. 13. § lb. lib. ii. epigr. 54.
 
 60 
 
 men,~and their husbands are described as Christians. Again, 
 it has been inferred from Claudia's interest in the literary im- 
 provement of her country, that she would on her conversion 
 display equal solicitude and zeal in promoting at home the 
 knowledge of the Gospel.* With this conclusion a gre< - exactly 
 the character given of Eurgain, that she invited Hid over to 
 Britain to further the progress of religion, and regulate the 
 affairs of the Church. We may also remark, that her name 
 Eurgain, which signifies " of golden brightness,' 11 was probably 
 given to her on attaining years of maturity, with express refer- 
 ence to her surpassing beauty, in conformity with a practice 
 then observed^ by the Cymry.f This would fully coincide with 
 Martial's compliment—" Quale decus formse." 
 
 Pomponia [Graecina, tin- wife of Aulus Plautius, Claudius's 
 lieutenant, and the first Roman governor in this country, has 
 been considered, from the manner in which her name is con- 
 nected with her husband's ovation,^ t<> have been also of 
 British birth. She is likewise supposed to have been a convert 
 to the Christian faith, inasmuch as she was arraigned on account 
 of the "foreign superstition," an expression usually employed 
 by the heathen writers of that time to designate Christianity. § 
 It must be confessed that there is no allusion to this circum- 
 stance in the Welsh records, whilst tiny directly oppose the 
 idea that Pomponia first received the Gospel in Britain. Ber 
 trial took place A..D. ">7. which was before the release of Bran. 
 
 Our native^ documents are likewise silent respecting the 
 alleged arrival of St. Paul in Britain. [| The only hint which 
 would countenance that hypothesis is to be found in the head- 
 ing of certain Triads, in which there is every reason to think 
 the British Church inculcated at first the doctrines of Christ- 
 
 * Antiquitates Britannic*, ed.. II1O0. Bishop Burgess's Tracts, p. 132. 
 
 f The practice was altered by Cyllin,the son of Caiadog. See the u Genea- 
 logy of Iestyn ab Gii-ryani." 
 
 X Tacitus Annal. xiii. cap. 32. 
 
 § Suet. lib. vi. cap. 16. -^Plin. Epist. lib. x. ep. 98. Tacit. Annal. xv. 
 
 || " There is, or at least .there was. a vcrv'aiuicnt manuscript in the library 
 of Merton College, Oxford, containing a series of letters, purporting to be a 
 correspondence between the Apostle Paul and Seneca, in which there are said 
 to be some allusions to the former's supposed visit to Wales. Tbese epistles, 
 however, have been held to be spurious. They are mentioned in Pointer's 
 Miscellanies, page 214." — The Cambrian Quarterly Magazine, vol. iv. p. 468.
 
 61 
 
 ianity. These Triads are entitled " Trioedd Pawl,' 1 or " Paul's 
 Triads."* But this can be accounted for on the supposition 
 that the British missionaries received some of their instructions 
 from the Apostle at Rome. 
 
 Christianity appears to have been more particularly received 
 within the boundaries of Siluria, where lay the patrimonial do- 
 minions of Bran and his family. As that country continued 
 independent of the Roman power as late as A.D. 77, the patron- 
 age of royalty, under the blessing of heaven, could not fail of 
 securing the extension of the Church. The bardic institution 
 would likewise prove a very effectual instrument in promoting 
 the same result. In Siluria, Bardism still observed its original 
 principles, and Bran, as a member, would be bound by its rules 
 to lay the doctrine of Christianity which he had embraced 
 before a Gorsedd, or public convention, as far as was practi- 
 cable. This, it is admitted, was not a very feasible task, for 
 although the region was not finally reduced before the year 77,+ 
 yet it was in the meanwhile the scene of active warfare,! anc ^ 
 the open proceedings of the Bards would be particularly opposed 
 by the Romans, being regarded by them as the especial source 
 of patriotism, freedom, and independence. This was remark- 
 ably instanced in the conduct of Suetonius Paulinus, who so 
 cruelly massacred an assembly of Druids, and cut down their 
 sacred groves in the isle of Anglesey about the year 59. § 
 Nevertheless, we are informed that the Silurian Druids very 
 generally embraced Christianity on its first promulgation in the 
 island, and that in right of their office they were exclusively 
 elected as Christian ministers, || though their claims to national 
 
 * E. Williams's Lyric Poems, vol. ii. p. 251. f Tacit. Agric. cap. 18. 
 
 \ " Cum Romani imperitanrli libidine eos adorirentur, Carataci regis virtute 
 viribusque confisi, et Claudii Caesaris voce proritati, qui hos ita extinguendos 
 dixerat, ut olim Sugambri excisi fuerant; adeo difficili bello Romanos divexa- 
 runt, cohortibus auxiliaribus interceptis, legione, cui Marias Valens praeerat, 
 fusa, et vastatis sociorum agris, ut P. Ostorius Britannia? propraetor, bis aBrum- 
 nis, fessus et confectus diem obierit. Veranius etiam qui sub Nerone praefuit, 
 hos frustra aggressus est, nam quod habet Tacitus ilium modicis excursibus 
 sylvas populatum esse, lege Siluras cum nostro eruditissimo Lipsio, et verissime 
 leges. Nee tamen soporatum fuit hoc bellum usque ad Vespasiani tempora. 
 Tunc enim Julius Frontinus armis eossubegit, et legionario milite cohibuit." — 
 (Camden's Britannia, 1587, p. 402.) 
 
 § Tacit. Annal. lib. xiv. cap. 30. 
 
 || W. Owen's Introd. to LI. Hen. E. Williams's Lyric Poems, vol. ii. p. 203.
 
 62 
 
 privileges as such were not finally sanctioned until the reign of 
 Lies ab Coel (Lucius). 
 
 In an old British manuscript, entitled " A Dialogue between 
 a disciple and his master,"* we are informed that Bran rendered 
 an essential service to the literature of his country, by intro- 
 ducing the art of dressing skins as materials for writing, and 
 also of forming the cylinder or Man on which the parchment 
 was rolled up. The passage is as follows : — 
 
 " Disciple. — Who first made a roll for literary purpos 
 
 " Matter— Bran the Blessed, the son of Llyr Llediaith, learned 
 the way of making it at Rome ami brought it with him to Britain, 
 where he taught it to the Oymry, and also the manner of tanning 
 the skins of goats and kids, so that thej could be written upon. 
 And that mode became customary, so that the Bards alone, as 
 it were to secure it strictly, applied themselves to the old plan 
 of inscribing letters on wood, for the sake of recording and pre- 
 serving the old sciences of the nation of the Cyimy ; and hence 
 it was called Coelbren y Beirdd (tht token stick of the Bards). 
 These preserved the memory of it by cutting their songs and 
 records on wood according to the ancient art ; and that with a 
 view to maintain an authentic memorial of the primitive sciences 
 of the Cymry." 
 
 The fact recorded in this extract affords another proof of the 
 real adherence of the royal Bard to the fundamental principles 
 of his order, and the lively interest he took in the welfare of 
 his native land. Bran died, it i< -apposed, about a.d. 80, t and 
 his chaplain Arwystli A. D. 994 The prolongation of their 
 lives to such late periods was evidently a great blessing to the 
 Church, which had been without doubt the particular object of 
 their solicitude, zeal, and protection. 
 
 * The passage is quoted in the original in Taliesin Williams's Essay en 
 " Coelbren y Beirdd," or The Bardic Alphabet, p. 25. 
 
 f Cambrian Biography, X Cressy.
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 NATIONAL ESTABLISHMENT OF THE CHURCH. 
 
 " Kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers." 
 — Isaiah xlix. '2:5. 
 
 It is affirmed in the Genealogy of Icstyn ab Gwrgant that 
 Caradog, " after he had been carried captive to Rome, returned 
 to Wales." Alford likewise says, ''that Claudius sent him 
 home again, and that after many years he died in peace, being 
 a friend to the Romans."* His son Cyllin succeeded to his 
 throne, and is described as a wise and gracious sovereign, 
 deeply imbued, moreover, with the desire of extending the in- 
 fluence of the Church within his kingdom; hence he has been 
 emphatically styled Cyllin Sant, or Cyllin the Saint. In his 
 days, many of the Cymry were converted to the Christian faith, 
 through the teaching of the native clergy, and were also visited 
 by several missionaries from Greece and Rome.f 
 
 A custom had hitherto prevailed among the Cymry, of de- 
 ferring to impose names upon individuals until they arrived at 
 
 * Alford, a. i). 53, n. 7. Stillingfleet's Origines Britannica;, p. 35, ed. 1685. 
 
 f '* Cyllin, the son of Caradog, was a very wise and gentle king, and in his 
 time, many of the Cymry were converted to the Christian faith, through the 
 teaching of the saints of the choir of Eurgain ; and many godly men from 
 Greece and Rome were in Wales in his time." — The Genealogy of Iestyn ab 
 Gwrgant. 
 
 i 2
 
 64 
 
 years of maturity, when their faculties were duly developed, so 
 as to suggest a suitable and appropriate appellative. This 
 custom was authoritatively changed by Cyllin, -who enacted that, 
 in future, a person's name should be given him in his infancy.* 
 The alteration, we naturally presume, referred to baptism; and 
 the royal enactment is so far interesting, as it implies the 
 exercise of state authority in matters ecclesiastical, and the 
 wide and visible progress which Christianity had already made 
 in the king's immediate dominions. This might have happened 
 before the final subjugation of Siluria ; but it is not absolutely 
 necessary, with a view to the possi — i< >n <>t' the requisite power, 
 that it should have been so. It was consistent with the policy 
 of the Romans to entrust the conquered chiefs in a subordinate 
 degree with their former jurisdiction. Thus Tacitus relates 
 that, in the time of Ostorius, the captor of Caradog, they 
 granted, according to ancient custom, certain cities to the 
 British king Cogidunus, ami assigns as the reason, that they 
 might have even kings as instruments of slavery. t The same 
 motive would urge them to allow the Silurian princes to be 
 considered still as titular monarchs of Britain, — an inference 
 which is strongly corroborated by domestic records. Without 
 some such politic measures it would have been impossible for 
 the Romans to keep quiet possession of the island, and particu- 
 larly of Siluria, the source of native power. 
 
 Cyllin's life must have been extended to the second century. 
 He left behind him two sons, Owain and (Joel, the former of 
 whom seems to have inherited his father's dominions. It would 
 appear that he enjoyed a tranquil reign, and was on good terms 
 
 * " He it was who first caused a man's Dame to lie given him when a child, 
 for previously a name was not imposed before full age, and a knowledge was 
 obtained of the faculties." — Thr Genealogy of Jestyn ab Gwrgant. 
 
 \ " Consularium primus Aulus Plautiua propositus, ac subiude Ostorius 
 Scapula, uterque hello egregius; redactaque paulatim in formam provincial 
 proxima pars Britannia 1 , addita iusuper veteranorum colonia ; qiucdam em- 
 tales Cogiduno regi donatcc, vetere ac jam pridem recepla populi Romani consue- 
 tudine, ut haheret instrumenta servitutis et reges.'' — Tacit. Julii Agric. vita, 
 cap. xiv.
 
 65 
 
 with the Romans, whose magnificence and splendour he copied 
 in the erection of a royal palace. He rendered many and great 
 benefits to his Christian subjects in general, and particularly to 
 the establishment founded by Eurgain, which he is said to have 
 endowed with wealth for the maintenance of twelve members.* 
 
 Coel was a Bard, and is celebrated as the introducer of the 
 grinding mill with wheels among the Cymry ; whence he is 
 ranked in a Triad with Morddal and Oorvinwr, under the title 
 of " the three blessed artisans of the Isle of Britain. "t 
 
 It is not at all improbable that Coel was the eldest of the 
 two, but that being a Bard, he resigned his regal claims in 
 favour of his brother, because warfare, in which he might have 
 been engaged, was considered imcompatible with the profession 
 of Bardism.l This would account for the fact that Lleirwg 
 the son of Coel succeeded to the throne after Owain 1 s death, in- 
 stead of his own son Eirchion. 
 
 The Genealogy of Iestyn ab Gwrgant speaks of attacks made 
 about this time upon the Christians by the infidels, whereby 
 many of the former were slain. Eirchion is said to have, on 
 one occasion, encountered the assailants, and to have put 
 several of them to death with his bare fist, without the aid of a 
 single weapon, an act which obtained for him, from henceforth, 
 the appellation of Eirchion Vawdvilwr (the thumb soldier.) § 
 
 It is difficult to ascertain who those "infidels 1 '' were, — 
 whether Romans, natives, or marauders from the neighbouring 
 countries, and what was the primary intention of their assaults. 
 Certain it is, that North Britain was, about a. d. 121, and for 
 
 * " Owain, the son of Cyllin, conferred many benefits on the Christians, and 
 erected a large and magnificent palace, after the Roman manner, on the spot 
 
 where Caradog, the son of Arch, had had a palace in San Dunwyd He 
 
 granted wealth and possession to the choir of Eurgain, for the maintenance of 
 twelve saints." — The Genealogy of Iestyn ab Gwrgant. 
 
 + Triad 91. 
 
 X See Introduction, p. 1 3. 
 
 § " In the time of Eirchion, the Son of Owain, the infidels slew many of 
 the Christians, hut Eirchion went against them, and killed many of them with 
 no edged weapon,— nothing hut his hare hand, and therefore was he called 
 Eirchion Vawdvilwr." — The Genealogy of Iestyn ab Gwrgant.
 
 66 
 
 a considerable length of time afterwards, the scene of great 
 commotion, in consequence of inroads made by the Caledonians 
 into the Roman province.* It is also equally true that the Chris- 
 tians were now held in great contempt throughout the empire, 
 and cruelly persecuted by the provincial magistrates, even 
 without the warranty of imperial edicts. t That a systematic 
 attack was made upon the British Christians at this time is, 
 however, no mean evidence of their number and importance in 
 tho country. The inference receives support from contem- 
 porary writers. Justin Martyr, a.D. 140, asserts, that in his 
 time every country known to the Romans contained professors 
 of the Christian faith. + Irenseus also. a.D. Hi!', speaks of 
 Christian Churches as established among the Geltse, which 
 would comprehend several of the British tribes. § 
 
 When LleirwgH (Lucius) ascended the throne, he became 
 deeply impressed with the necessity of providing more amply 
 for the Church, regulating its external affairs as bearing upon 
 the state in a more defined and permanent manner, and more 
 clearlv distinguishing it from ancient Druidism. With this 
 view, he applied to Eleutherius, Bishop of Rome, a. d. 17.'!- 1 v 5 
 
 * Hancs Cymru, p. 114. 
 
 t Stillingfleet's Origines Britanuicac, p. 56 Burton's History of the Chris- 
 tian Church, p. 210. 
 
 + Qvli 'iv yap o\wc tori to ykvoQ avOponrwv, tin fiapta.iiov, tin EXAi/vwi', 
 lirt air\u)Q wvnvovv ovofiari Trpooayoovofiivwv, i) apaZofiiiov, i\ aoiKuiv KaXafisvuv, 
 
 1) iV (JK7]l'(U(T KTI)l'0Tp6<pli)l> OIKHVTOJV, IV 61 C pt) ClU TOV UVOpCLTOQ TOV GTaVOOiQlVTOQ 
 
 \i)aov tvyai Kal iv-^apiariai rtp Ylarpt Kai 7roi/jry tu>v oXojv yivwvrai. — S. Jutt. 
 
 Mart, cum Tryphone JucUeo Dialogvs. Ed. Thirlby. Lond. 1722, p. 388. Ed. 
 
 Paris, 1636, p. 345. 
 
 § Kai ovrt ai iv Ttppaviaig idpvpivai tKicXqaiat uXXa>e irtmartVKamv, i) JXXaif 
 7rapa£i$6aoiv, ovrt iv rale lfiqpiaig, ovrt iv KfX-oZc. — D. Ircn. Adv. Hares. 1.1. 
 c. 3, p. 52. 
 
 || " Lleurwg was also called ' Lleuvcr Mawr,' or the Great Luminary; which 
 probably was an epithet bestowed upon him at a later age, in consideration of 
 his having promoted the cause of Christianity. The Latin name corresponding 
 to this epithet was Lucius, from Lux. Lies, on the other hand, first occurs in 
 the fabulous chronicles, and is perhaps due to those later authors who formed 
 a Welsh imitation of Lucius." — Rees's Welsh Saints, p. 84. 
 
 H Burton's " History of the Christian Church." p. 262. The dates assigned
 
 67 
 
 by means of Mechvy and Elvan,* native Christians, requesting 
 to be furnished with the Roman and imperial laws, in which he 
 doubtlessly expected to find certain ordinances respecting the 
 Church. Eleutherius*sent him imreply the following letter. 
 
 " You have desired us, that we should send you a copy of the 
 Roman and imperial laws, with a design to make them the rule 
 of justice in the realm of Britain. As for the imperial laws, 
 we may dislike and disapprove them at any time ; but the law 
 of God is above all censure and exception. I mention this, 
 because, through the mercy of God, you have lately received 
 the Christian faith in the kingdom of Britain, so that now you 
 have the privilege of consulting both the Old and New Testa- 
 ment. Out of these holy volumes you may, by the advice of 
 your subjects, collect a body of law, which, under God's protec- 
 tion, may enable you to govern your realm of Britain. For, 
 according to the royal prophet, you are God's vicegerent within 
 your own dominions, ' the earth is the Lord's, and the fulness 
 thereof, the world, and they that dwell therein.' And again, 
 according to the same royal prophet, ' thou hast loved righteous- 
 ness and hated iniquity, therefore God, even thy God, has 
 anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.' And 
 elsewhere in the Psalms David prays, ' Give the king thy 
 judgments, O God,' &c. ' Thy judgments,' not any secular re- 
 gulations, not any systems of royal sanction. Now, the king's 
 sons, which follow in the text, are Christian subjects, who live 
 in peace and tranquillity under your protection, and being 
 sheltered by your administration, arc cherished, as the Scripture 
 speaks, ' as a hen gathers her chickens under her wings,' &c. 
 As for the people of the kingdom of Britain, they are your 
 subjects, and committed to your care ; amongst whom, it is your 
 part to promote unity and good understanding, to bring them 
 to a submission to the Gospel, and into the bosom of the 
 
 to the application of Lucius are different. Archbishop Usher has enumerated 
 as many as twenty-five, varying from a.d. 137 to 199. Most of the best 
 historians, however, agree in refering the event to the time of Marcus Aurelius, 
 who reigned from 161 to 180. 
 * Liber Landavensis, p. 309.
 
 68 
 
 Church ; to restrain them from disorder ; to support, protect, 
 and govern them, and screen them from the insults of injurious 
 malice. ' Woe to thee, land, when thy king is a child, and 
 thy princes eat in the morning. 1 I do not suppose that a king 
 is here called a child either for having lived too little or too 
 long, — upon the score of his first or his second infancy ; but this 
 character of disadvantage is given him for his folly and injustice, 
 for his licentious and extravagant conduct, according to the 
 royal prophet, ' the blood-thirsty and deceitful men shall not 
 live out half their days/ &c. By ' eating, 1 we are to understand 
 gormandizing, which proceeds from a luxurious appetite, and is 
 commonly attended with a train of other vices. These disorders 
 make a man incapable of the blessings of religion ; for, according 
 to King Solomon, ' Into a malicious soul wisdom shall not enter, 
 nor dwell in the body that is subject unto sin. 1 A king has his 
 royal title from the functions of government, not from the ad- 
 vantage of power. As long as you govern well, you will be ;i 
 king in propriety of language ; but if you fail in this point, tin- 
 royal character will not belong to you, and you will lose the 
 very name of a king, which I heartily wish may never happen. 
 God Almighty grant, that you may so govern the realm of 
 Britain, that you may reign with him for ever, whose repre- 
 sentative you are in your kingdom above-mentioned. 11 * 
 
 The conveyance of this letter was entrusted t<> Dyvan and 
 Fagan, both of British extraction, and both most probably 
 descendants of some of the royal captives taken to Rome with 
 Caradog. Dyvan, indeed, is ascertained to be the great grand- 
 
 * Translated by Collier. See his Ecclesiastical History, B. i. cent. ii. 
 Though several objections have been urged against the credit of this letter, it 
 has never yet been disproved. It has been popularly thought that it exhibits 
 a view of the national affairs of Britain materially different from what they 
 really were at the time under consideration. It is now, however, sufficiently 
 evident that such a view is perfectly coincident with the representation of na- 
 tive records, so that any argument founded upon that opinion must be falla- 
 cious. Moreover, the circumstance that the alleged epistle of Eleutherius, 
 though not noticed in any of the Welsh records, should yet agree with the 
 tenor of their statements as to the station and character of Lucius, is singularly 
 corroborative of the genuineness of the composition itself.
 
 G9 
 
 son of Manawydan, Bran's brother, and therefore a kinsman of 
 Lleirwg.* The selection of such persons was judicious, and 
 well calculated to promote the design of the king. 
 
 What Lleirwg by their aid accomplished, is briefly, though 
 not very intelligibly, specified in the Triads. One says, that he 
 " made the first Church at Llandaf, which was the first in the 
 Isle of Britain, and bestowed the privilege of country and na- 
 tion, judicial power and validity of oath, upon those who might 
 be of the faith in Christ."t Another Triad, speaking of the 
 three archbishoprics of the Isle of Britain, states : " The first 
 was Llandaf, of the gift of Lleirwg, the son of Coel, the son of 
 Cyllin, who first gave lands and civil privileges to such as first 
 embraced the faith in Christ.":}: 
 
 The explanation of the whole seems to be this : Christianity 
 had naturally and gradually become incorporated with Bardism, 
 and Evangelical worship was performed in the Druidical circles. 
 Still, however, the change, as it would appear, was not universal 
 even among the Silurians. The Church, though in perfect ac- 
 cordance with the primary object of Bardism, § was, nevertheless, 
 so different from the Druidical department in polity and doctrine, 
 as to require a legal sanction for the transition. This could be 
 obtained only by " the consent of the country, the neighbouring 
 country, and particularly the tribe."|| To adopt this course 
 
 • 
 
 Llyr 
 
 Llediath 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 I 
 i 
 
 Bran 
 
 1 
 ( !aradog or Caractacus 
 
 1 
 
 
 1 
 Manawydan 
 
 Ysbwyth 
 1 
 
 
 1 1 
 Cyllin Eudav 
 
 1 1 
 
 1 
 Eigen 
 
 1 
 Alwn Avlervv 
 
 1 
 
 
 Owain Coel Cynan 
 
 1 
 
 Meirchion or Eirchion Lleirwg or Lucius Cad van 
 
 t Tlia( l 35. X Triad 62. § See Introduction, p. 13. 
 
 || " There arc tliree things which must not he done, but by the consent of 
 the country, the neighbouring country, and particularly the tribe : abrogating
 
 70 
 
 was Eleutherius's advice to Lleirwg; "Out of them (the Old 
 and New Testament) by the advia of your realm take a law" 
 (ex illis Dei gratia. per consilium regni vestrisunu legem). Unless 
 this was done, the ministers of religion, though taken exclu- 
 sively out of the Bardic order, could not legally enjoy the civil 
 and temporal privileges which belonged to the Druids. Hence 
 Lleirwg secured to them the " privilege of country and nation, 
 judicial power, and validity of oath." 
 
 The principal constitutional privileges and immunities enjoyed 
 by the Druids, as we have already seen, were the following: 
 five free acres of land ; exemption from personal attendance in 
 war : permission to pass unmolested from one district to another 
 in time of war aa well as peace ; support and maintenance 
 wherever they went ; exemption from land tax ; and a contri- 
 bution from every plough in the district in which they were tin- 
 authorised teachers.* 
 
 ''Judicial power,"*! probably meant an appeal to. and redress 
 received from a court of justice. 
 
 The •• validity of oath."' 1 ; mentioned in the Triad implies th«- 
 
 the kind's law ; dethroning the soven :_ r n ; and teaching m w doctrines, <(»</ /» "• 
 regulations in the convention of the Bards. For these things (as to the Bards) 
 must not be done until the country and the irilu- understand their nature, 
 tendency, and regular order, according t" the judgment and legal illustration 
 of learned and wise nun. who are regularly inducted teachers in the til 
 convention of the Bards of the Mi- of Britain. For neither law, regulation, 
 art, nor any kind of knowledge of the sciences, can acquire any privilege unless 
 they are shewn to he true by illustration and instruction ; and thi- is to be done 
 by the decision of masters and wise men, who are duly authorised by instruc- 
 tion, sciences, and authority, according to the privileged regulations of the 
 country and the tribe." — Myv. Arch. vol. iii. Laws of Dyvnwal Moelmud. 
 
 * See Introduction, p. 15. 
 
 f Wallice Brawd — " A making clear, or current; accordance; a judgment; 
 social right."— Dr. Pughe's Diet, sub Voce. 
 
 X Briduw— " J uramenti species, quo is qui sub juramento aliquid arlirmat, 
 se Christianum esse profitetur, et per fidem in baptismo professam, se non 
 mentiri. Nostri dicerent, swearing b;/ one's faith. UsurpatUT h83C formula in 
 caussis empti et venditi. Alias dicitur Cred. Unde Rhoddi ered ar an, fidem 
 obstringere. Significat etiam et contracture sub tali juramento factum."— W i 
 ton's Leges Wallieu-
 
 71 
 
 obligation of contracts made by a Christian. It may be that 
 the mode of " swearing by the decalogue," the first kind of oath 
 among the British Christians, was now publicly sanctioned, 
 and substituted for the old Druidical forms enumerated in the 
 following Triad : 
 
 " There are three sacred objects to swear by, — the rod of 
 office (or truncheon) of the minister of religion, the name of 
 God, and hand joined in hand, and these are called hand relics. 
 There are three other modes of swearing ; a declaration upon 
 the conscience, a declaration in the face of the sun, and a strong 
 declaration by the protection of God and his truth."* 
 
 Where it is affirmed that Lleirwg " made the first church at 
 Llandaf, which was the first in the Isle of Britain," we are to 
 understand that under his authority arose the first Christian 
 edifice which differed in its structure from the Druidical enclo- 
 sures. That the early Christians did actually perform divine 
 worship in the bardic circles, is pretty evident from the fact that 
 some of these still retain in their names and other circumstances, 
 clear marks of their having been used for evangelical purposes. 
 Such is Cam Moesen, or the Carnedd of Moses, in Glamorgan- 
 shire, Cam y Groes, on the mountain of Gelly Onen, in the 
 same county, where a very ancient cross stands ; and Ty Illtud 
 in Breconshire, and many others.t 
 
 Lleirwg was nominal king of Britain. As we have elsewhere 
 observed, to concede to him the title would be perfectly agree- 
 able to Roman policy. Even about this very time, we are in- 
 formed that the emperor Lucius Verus permitted the kings 
 whom he conquered in the East to retain subordinately their 
 former power and dominions.! There is reason, however, to 
 suppose that the actual authority of Lleirwg was very circum- 
 scribed. Many of the tribes had yielded to the different expe- 
 
 * Myv. Archaiol, vol. iii. 
 
 | \V. Owen's " Llywarch Hen," Introduction, p. xxxviii. 
 
 % " Atque ut hoc ipso tempore de quo agimus, Lucium Verutn Imperatorem 
 in Oriente confecto bello Parthico, regna regibus, provincias vero comitibus 
 suis regendas dedisse, docet Capitolinus."— Ushers Britann. Eccles. Antiq, 
 cap. iii.
 
 72 
 
 clients of policy suggested by the Romans, and conformed to 
 their laws and manners.* The Cymry in general would pro- 
 bably still acknowledge him as their lord paramount ; hence in 
 an old Saxon Chronicle,-f" he is styled hex bjurwalana. or king 
 of the Britons of Wales. Some of his regulations might there- 
 fore have extended to different parts of the country, yet circum- 
 stances would confine their particular application to that part 
 of Siluria, which was afterwards known by the joint names of 
 Gwent and Morganwg, of which he was the immediate chieftain. 
 The national establishment of Christianity in that territory, 
 obtained for it subsequently the honourable designation of 
 "first archbishopric of the Isle of Britain." 
 
 Several considerations of importance might have demanded 
 the course which the British sovereign took on this occasion. 
 For instance, the distracted state of the country might have 
 prevented the full and effective operation of Bardism, and con- 
 sequently required for the Church a more distinct and public 
 patronage. The Romans looked with great jealousy upon 
 Druidism, because of its uncompromising opposition to foreign 
 invasion. This, as before remarked, was evidently exemplified 
 by Suetonius Paulinus, in his merciless attack upon the Druids 
 in Anglesea.+ The collector of the " Antiquitatea Mritannicae'" 
 asserts, indeed, that an edict was actually issued by Marcus 
 Antoninus Verus, a short time before the application of Lleirwg 
 for the extermination of the Druidic order throughout the pro- 
 vinces^ 
 
 Within the jurisdiction of Llandaf are four churches, bearing 
 respectively the names of Lleirwg, Dyvan, Fagan, and Medwy.|| 
 As there are no such traditionary traces of the ministries of 
 those persons observable in any other parts of the country, H 
 
 * A Triad says of the powerful nation of the Coranians in particular, that 
 " they combined themselves with the Crcsarians so as to become one." (Triad 15.) 
 f Cited by Usher, c. iii. 
 X Chap. i. p. 61. 
 
 § See Usher, cap. iv. ; and Collier, B. i. 
 
 || Rees's Essay on the Welsh Saints, p. 84 ; Price's " Hanes Cymru," p. 1<><>. 
 U Must we mention, as an exception, a church in Somersetshire, spoken of
 
 73 
 
 the circumstance adds weight to the inference that their eccle- 
 siastical arrangements were chiefly, if not solely, confined to the 
 patrimonial territory of Lleirwg. Dyvan is considered as the 
 first bishop of Llandaf,* and is said to have suffered martyrdom 
 on the spot which is now occupied by the church dedicated to 
 his memory.t He was succeeded in the see by Fagan,:j: one of 
 whose favourite aphorisms has been handed down to us by the 
 Bards. 
 
 " Didst thou hear the saying of Fagan, 
 When he had produced his argument ? 
 
 ' Where God is silent, it is not wise to speak.' " § 
 
 In the reign of Lleirwg is dated the invention and adoption 
 by the Cymry of the present style of books, i.e., with distinct 
 leaves, one above another, instead of the roll or volume. || 
 
 At his death it was publicly decreed that the sovereign dig- 
 nity should be wholly wrested from the Silurian chiefs, and 
 annexed to the Romans. 1T Accordingly Commodus assumed the 
 reins of government, and was complimented by his flatterers 
 with the epithet " Britannicus."** His reign nevertheless was 
 
 by Stow ? " True it is, that till this day, here remaineth in Sommerset-shire, 
 in the Deanry of Dunstor, a parish-church, bearing the name of St. Deruvian, 
 as a church either by him founded, or to him dedicated." (Stow.) Quoted in 
 Britan. Eccles. Antiq. 
 
 * See a " Chronological series of the Bishops of Llandaf," appended to 
 the " Liber Landavensis." The information is stated to have been furnished 
 to the editor by Mr. Taliesin Williams, from a manuscript by his father, Iolo 
 M organ wg. 
 
 •f Rees's " Essay on the Welsh Saints," p. 87. 
 
 X Chronological Series, &c. 
 
 $ Englynion y Clywed : see Cambrian Biography, voce Fagan. 
 
 || " After the roll, were invented books, such as are now in use, in the time 
 of Lies, the son of Coel, the first king of baptism in the Isle of Britain." (Es- 
 say on Coelbren y Beirdd, by Taliesin Williams, p. 19.) The above statement 
 is professed to have been taken from a manuscript by the author's father, who 
 is also said to have copied it from " the Book of Llywelyn Sion," an eminent 
 Bard of Glamorgan, about a. d. 1580. 
 
 51 Bal. Centur. 1 Script. Britan. cap. xxx. Joh. Fordon. Scotochron. lib. 2. 
 cap. xxxi. Boeth. Hist. lib. 5. Galfrid Moneth. lib. 5, cap. i. ii. Edit. Hei- 
 delberg. 
 
 ** Camd. Britan. p. 33, cd. 1587. Burton's " History of Wales," p. 1(>.
 
 unpopular, and the legions in Britain fell into divers mutinies,, 
 which were eventually suppressed, with considerable personal 
 toil and danger, by Helvius Pertiuax. who at length by his policy 
 obtained the imperial dignity. Severus reigned after him, but 
 was opposed by Albinus, lieutenant of Britain, at the head of 
 a select army of British youth. They engaged in Gaul, and 
 Albinus was defeated, upon which Severus came over to Britain 
 a.d. "207 ; and with a view to secure the provinces from the in- 
 cursions of the Caledonians, erected a wall of solid stone, and 
 cemented it with the strongest mortar, from the Solway Firth 
 across to Tynemouth, beyond Newcastle.* 
 
 In his reign flourished Tertullian, who -poke of British dis- 
 tricts "inaccessible to Roman anus but subdued by Christ, t 
 Tertullian founds an argument upon this statement ; we may 
 therefore rest assured that it contains a true relation of a fact ; 
 and as the Romans were ma>ters of all the island south of the 
 wall, the expression must refer to the adoption of Christianity 
 by the inhabitants of Caledonia. 
 
 Severus died at York. a.d. 211, leaving behind him two sons, 
 Caracalla and Greta. The former was born of a British mother, 
 and his claims to the sovereignty were warmly espoused by the 
 Britons, whilst, on the contrary, the Roman- held for Greta, 
 whose mother was a Roman.J A bloody war arose between the 
 two brothers, which ended in the death of Geta ; and Caracalla 
 was confirmed in the empire. His reign was tyrannical and his 
 life immoral, wherefore he incurred the public hatred, and, a.d. 
 217, was killed at a place called Edessa. 
 
 For several years subsequently the civil state of Britain i- in- 
 volved in great obscurity. Yet it is cheering to find proofs of 
 the vitality and strength of the Church in the mean tune. 
 Origen, about a.d. 236, testifies that t; the divine goodness of our 
 God and Saviour is equally diffused among the Britons, the 
 
 * Ibid; Collier's Ecclesiastical History, B. 1, cent. iii. 
 f " Britannorum inaccessa Roman is loca, Cbristo vero subdita." Tertull. 
 adv. Judcros. Lut. Par. 16H4, p. L89. 
 X " Myv. Arcb. vol. ii. Brut. Tysilio ; Brut. G. ab Arthur."
 
 75 
 
 Africans, and other nations of the world. 1- '* The British ge- 
 nealogies likewise furnish us with five illustrious names apper- 
 taining to the Cambrian Church, which connect this period with 
 the Dioclesian era. These were Gwerydd, Iestin, and Cad- 
 vrawd, sons of Cadvan great grandson of Caradog in the line 
 of his son. Eudav chief of Erging and Euas ;t and Cadgyvarch 
 and Gwrmael, sons of the above-named Cadvrawd. Being of 
 such noble descent, they were doubtlessly men of influence, and 
 in a capacity to render essential service to the Church. Cad- 
 vrawd is said to have been a Bishop. There is also a church de- 
 dicated to Gwerydd, in Gwent, of which he is considered the 
 original founder.^ 
 
 About a.d. 270, Constantius Chlorus married Elen, daughter 
 of Coel Godebog, earl of Colchester. This woman is ranked 
 
 * "Virtus Domini Salvatoris et cum his est qui ab orbe nostra in Britannia 
 dividuntur, ct cum bis qui in Mauritania, etcum univcrsis qui sub sole in no- 
 mine ejus crediderunt." (Horn. 6, in Luc. c. i.) 
 
 f " Ergyng, or Archenfield, comprehended the portion of Herefordshire, 
 S.W. of the river Wye, of which the present ecclesiastical Deanery of Archen- 
 field, or Irchenfield, constitutes a part." — Liber Landavensis, p. 31 1, note. 
 
 " Ewyas, or Euas, an ancient district comprising part of the county of 
 Hereford, about Long Town, in which neighbourhood, the names of Ewyas 
 Harold and Ewyas Lacy still remain ; the Abbey of Llantony, or Llanddewi 
 Nant Honddu, is situate in the latter. The name of a place, Coedias, in the 
 insulated portion of Herefordshire, on the borders of Breconsbire, proves that 
 this district reached thus far. Price's Hanes Cymru, p. 451 . 
 
 % Cambrian Biography, vocibus Cadvrawd et Gwerydd. " Britannos 
 susceptam fidem usque ad Diocletiani tcmpora integram et intemeratam in 
 pace servavisse, et nostri tradiderunt authores et exteri. Beda, lib. i. Hist. 
 Ecclesiastic, cap. iv. Annales Anglo-Saxonici, Ivo Carnotensis in Chrouico, 
 Gotcelinus Bertinianus. in majore Historia Vitae Augustini, cap. xxxii. Eloren- 
 tinus Wigorniensis, Galfridus Monemuthensis, Britannic. Histor. lib. v. cap. 5. 
 Henricus Huntingtoniensis histor. lib. i. Radulphus de Diceto, Johannes de 
 Taxster, Radulphus de Baldoc, Londineneusis episc, Radulphus Cestrensis, in 
 Polychrome, lib. iv. cap. 16. Thomas Rudburnus in minore Chronico, Abing- 
 donensis liber, Annales de Winchcorabe, Lacock, Kirstall, &c. Henricus 
 Marleburgensis, Johannes Geerbrandus Leydensis, in Chronic. Hollandis, lib. 
 ii. cap. 1. PonticusVirunnius, Historian Britannicslibro quinto. Johannes 
 Major, de Gestis Scotorum, HI), i. cap. I3;et Polydorus Virgilius, Historia; An- 
 glican libro secundo." — Usher, cap. vii.
 
 76 
 
 among the saints, and is celebrated for her pious zeal and devo- 
 tion, and particularly for " finding the blessed cross after it had 
 been concealed in the earth by the Jews."* She was the 
 mother of Constantine the Great, who was born a. d. 273, and 
 she was divorced from her husband, A. D. 286.t 
 
 Elen had a brother named Ceneu, who likewise spent his life 
 in the service of religion.^ 
 
 a. D. 285. The sovereignty of the island was usurped by 
 Carausius, to whom had been entrusted the defence of the 
 British seas against the piracies of the Franks and Saxons. 
 He governed the natives peaceably and with justice for seven 
 years, when he was slain by his treacherous friend Alectus, who 
 himself assumed the regal dignity. His reign was very short, 
 and Asclepiodotus, a chieftain of Cornwall, was by his country- 
 men elevated to the throne. § He was likewise soon opposed by 
 Coel Godebog, who claimed the British monarchy in right of 
 his wife, Ystravael, sister of the before-mentioned Gwerycld. 
 Iestin, and Cadvrawd. Coel having established himself on the 
 throne, and being unwilling to meet Constantius, who had been 
 sent with a powerful army to recover possession of the island, 
 submitted to him proposals of peace, wherein the annexation of 
 Britain to the Roman empire was acknowledged, and the pay- 
 ment of the usual tribute promised. These terms were received, 
 and Britain once more lost its independenee, and fell under the 
 power of Rome. 1 1 
 
 * Genealogy of the Saints. 
 
 f Usher's Britan. Eccles. Antiq. cap. viii.; Stilling fleet's Orig. Britan. p. 90. 
 
 + Recs's Welsh Saints, p. 104. 
 
 § Camd. Britan. 15S7, pp. 34, 35. Usher's Britan. Eccles. cap. x\\; Col- 
 lier's Eccles. Hist. B. l,cent. iv. Horae Britannicae, vol. ii. pp. 62, 53. Cam- 
 brian Biography. 
 
 || Myv. Arch. vol. ii. ; British Chronicle.
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 COUNCILS OF ARLES, SARDICA, AND ARIMINUM. 
 
 " Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me, in faith 
 and love which is in Christ Jesus." — 2 Timothy i. 13. 
 
 Coel Godebog died about five weeks after the conclusion of 
 the treaty, and the lieutenancy of the island was conferred upon 
 his son-in-law Constantius Chlorus. * He took up his residence 
 at York, and was greatly beloved by the natives, on account of 
 his mild and gentle disposition. Though no real convert to 
 Christianity himself, he seems to have been inclined in its 
 favour, and, as far as his authority extended, always protected 
 its professors. 
 
 In the year 303, the persecution under Diocletian and 
 Al.iximianus was at its height ; when, in the graphic language 
 of (xildas, it appeared " as if the whole Church, leaving behind 
 the dark shades of earth, ernulously hastened, in one dense band, 
 to the delightful realms of heaven, as to its own proper abode."! 
 Constantius was unwilling to abet the work of destruction, but 
 as he was only Cajsar under Maximianus, he could not 
 altogether resist or evade the will of the emperor. Hence, as 
 Lactantius observes, " the edict against the Christians was sent 
 
 * Myv. Arch. vol. ii. ; Brut Tysilio ; Brut G. ab Arthur. 
 
 f " Ita ut agmine denso certatim, relictis post tergum mundialibus tenebris, 
 ad amnena ccelorum regna, quasi ad propriam sedem, tota festinaret ecclesia.'' 
 — Gild. de Excid. Britann.
 
 78 
 
 to him without asking his consent, and he complied so far as to 
 pull down their churches."* But there were inferior officers, 
 and magistrates, who would gladly avail themselves of the 
 imperial decrees to harass the Christians in (Jaul and Britain, 
 in spite of Constantius , s opposite wishes. In all probability, the 
 cruelties of the persecution, which raged in our own land, were 
 exclusively their work, and inflicted upon the citizens of the 
 Roman towns under their immediate jurisdiction. Alban is 
 said to have been a Roman officer, at Verulam ; and Aaron 
 and Julius, citizens of the Roman colony of Caerleon. We hear 
 of none that suffered at Eboracum, or York, where Constantius 
 himself resided, nor has histor) transmitted to us the names of 
 any of the native Cymry as having on this occasion joined " the 
 noble army of martyrs."' It was a peculiarit) of the ancient 
 Welsh Church, that its ministers were always taken from the 
 highest class «if society. t According to the drift of the imperial 
 edicts, these would principally have been removed, had the 
 violence of the persecution been permitted to reach them, and 
 their names would undoubtedly have been recorded by the 
 Arwyddveirdd, or herald Bards.}, Elen, daughter of Coel, 
 and, probably, Oeneu, her brother, survived the storm. The 
 same may be said likewise nf Cadvrawd, if, as is most likely, he 
 was identical with Adelfius,§ who subscribed to the decrees of 
 
 * Lactant. de Mort. Persec. c. l.">. 
 
 t This is evident from the catalogues of the British saints, where no vulgai 
 name appears. Such a distinction may lie considered as of Druidical origin, 
 for, according to the testimony of Mela (iii. 2), the disciples of the Druids were 
 nobilissimi gentis, sons of the noblest families in the nation : and it is observ- 
 able that the Christian ministers in the infant Church of Wales were exclu- 
 sively chosen out of the Bardic order. 
 
 X The Arwyddvardd was an officer of national importance, one of whose 
 principal duties was to attend to the birth, marriage, or death, of every person 
 of high degree or descent, and to register the pedigree of his family. He was 
 recompensed for his trouble by a stipend out of every plough-laud in his 
 district. 
 
 § Cadvrawd is compounded of ead and brawd (brother), and Adelfius 
 seems to have been formed from the Greek word 'ASekfbo (brother). It was 
 frecpaently the practice of the Greeks and Romans, not merely to give their
 
 79 
 
 Aries, a.d. 314. Had any native Christians of note suffered at 
 this time, it would bo difficult to account for the preference 
 shewn by their descendants to the memory of the Roman 
 martyrs. That the British Church honourably commemorated 
 Alban, from an early period, is evident from what Matthew 
 Paris affirms relative to the discovery of a book, in the tenth 
 century, amidst the ruins of ancient Verulam. This book, he 
 tells us, contained the history of St. Alban, written in the 
 ancient British character and dialect,* which the natives used 
 when Verulam was inhabited.t We are also informed by 
 Walter de Mapes, Geoffrey of Monmouth, and Giraldus Cam- 
 brensis, that two magnificent churches adorned the memory of 
 Aaron and Julius, at Caerleon.j Such circumstances force us 
 naturally to conclude, that the natives in general, and par- 
 ticularly the Cymry, escaped the rigors of the Diocletian perse- 
 cution. The protomartyr of the Cambrian Church was Dyvan, 
 and the church of Merthvr Dyvan still indicates the fact, and 
 the exact spot where the saint fell. 
 
 In the year 305, Diocletian and Maximianus abdicated the 
 empire in favour of Galenas and Constantius. The former had 
 Ulyria, Greece, Egypt, and all the east ; whilst Africa, and the 
 west of Europe, fell to the share of Constantius, who was pro- 
 claimed emperor at York. This event put a stop at once to 
 the severities practised upon the Christians, over whom Con- 
 stantius had the supreme authority ; and they were now per- 
 mitted to enjoy the free exercise of their religion, without 
 molestation or annoy ance.§ 
 
 own terminations to British names, but even to translate them entire into their 
 respective languages : thus Lleuver Mawr (the great Luminary) was rendered 
 into Lucius from Lux, and Morgan (the seaborn) into ritXayioc. 
 
 * For this character, see Introduction, p. 32. The first deviation from it 
 appears to have taken place when monkish establishments began to prevail, 
 and the alphabet then adopted was styled Coelbren y Meneich (the alphabet 
 of the Monks). This, however, did not materially differ from the Bardic. 
 
 | Usher's Britan. Eccles. Antiq. p. HO. ed. sec. 
 
 \ Myv. Arch. vol. ii. p. 319. Girald. Cambren. in Itin. Cambr. lib. i. c. ;">. 
 
 § Euscb. Hist. lib. viii. cap. 13.
 
 80 
 
 The emperor, on his return the following year, from an 
 expedition against the Gwyddyl Fichti, or Picts of the north, 
 died at York, having previously nominated his son Constantino 
 as his successor."-' The choice thus made, was highly agreeable 
 to the Britons, as well as the Roman legions, and, as Constantine 
 was in Britain, they lost no time after his father's death in 
 confirming his election, by duly proclaiming him cmperor.f 
 
 The circumstance of his mother having been the daughter of 
 the rightful monarch of Britain, and of his own birth and ele- 
 vation to the throne having taken place in this country, 
 naturally claimed the allegiance of the natives. This was 
 indeed a bond, which, at least in the former part of his reign, 
 closely united the interests of the emperor with those of his 
 British subjects. Hence we find him actively prosecuting the 
 war which his father had commenced againsi the wild and pre- 
 datory tribes of Alban, whilst, in return, the flower of the 
 British youth assisted him in his expedition against Maxentius.} 
 
 Constantine does not appear to have had any fixed creed 
 prior to his victory over Maxentius, notwithstanding, he secured 
 to the Christians, immediately on his accession, the full enjoy- 
 ment of their religion. § From the date of that conquest, \.i>. 
 312, which is said to have been preceded by a miracle|| calcu- 
 lated to attach him more than ever to the followers of Jesus, 
 he may be considered a convert to their faith and worship, 
 
 * Euseb. de Vit. Constantini, lib. i. c. 15 ; Myv. Arch. vol. ii. ; Brut G. ;ib 
 Arthur. Eutrop. lib. 10. Menae Mai, 21. 
 
 f Eumen, Paneg. Julian. Orat.i. ad Constant. Aurel. Vict. 
 
 \ Myv. Arch. vol. ii. ; Brut G. ab Arthur. 
 
 § Lactant. de Mort. Persec. 
 
 || The popular account is, that as he was one evening marching against his 
 rival, he saw a cross in the sky, with this inscription, lv tovti# vtxa. Having 
 for some time doubted what this appearance was intended to signify, he fell 
 asleep, and in the silence of the night Christ appeared to him, bearing a cross 
 like that which he had seen in the heavens, and commanded him to frame one 
 of the same shape, and use it for his standard in battle. When he awoke, he 
 obeyed, gained a complete victory over Maxentius, and openly declared him- 
 self a convert to Christianity. — See Euseb. dc Vit. Constant, lib. ii. c. 2-\ •«:;•. and 
 Sozomen.
 
 81 
 
 though his baptism was deferred for some time afterwards. 
 His endeavours were from henceforth directed particularly to 
 the promotion of Christianity throughout the empire, and he 
 eventually succeeded in establishing it as the national religion. 
 But, independently of the general immunities which he thereby 
 secured to his Christian subjects at large, he rendered a 
 particular service to the British Church, by founding an 
 archiepiscopal see at York.* The fact is thus noticed in the 
 Triad :— 
 
 " The three archbishoprics of the Isle of Britain : 
 
 " The first, Llandaf ; founded by Lleirwg, the son of Coel, the 
 son of Cyllin, who first gave land and national privileges to 
 those who first embraced the faith in Christ. 
 
 " The second, York ; founded by the emperor Constantino, 
 who was the first of the Roman emperors who embraced the 
 Christian faith. 
 
 " The third, London ; founded by the emperor Macsen 
 Wledig (Maximus).-}*" 
 
 a.d. 314, Constantino convened a council at Aries, for the 
 sake of suppressing the heresy of the Donatists. It consisted 
 chiefly of bishops and clergy out of Gaul and Britain, in com- 
 pliance with the requests of the heretics ; because, as the 
 reason is assigned, there had been no persecution under the 
 government of Constantius4 The names of those who attended 
 upon that occasion from Britain, as given by Usher and 
 Spelman, were : — 
 
 " Eborius Episcopus, de civitate Eboracensi, provincia Bri- 
 tannia. 
 
 " Restitutus Episcopus, de civitate Londinensi, provincia su- 
 prascripta . 
 
 " Adelfius Episcopus, de civitate colonia, Londinensium, — 
 exinde Sacerdos Presbyter, Arminius Diaconus.§ 
 
 * Camden asserts, that, according to the testimony of native records, York 
 was erected into an episcopal see by Constantius Chlorus. — P. 473, edit. ]587. 
 f Triad 62. 
 
 \ Optat. de Schism. Donat. lib. i. 
 § Tom. i. Concilior. Galliae, edit. Paris, an. 1629, p. i : . 
 In Isidori Mercatoris collectione,
 
 82 
 
 ' Londinensium' is evidently an error. The usual proportion 
 of deputies who attended councils in the early Church was 
 a bishop, and a presbyter or two, for each province. Thus, 
 Hilary, speaking of the synods of his own time, says, "That one 
 or two bishops were sent for out of a province ;""* and in the 
 summons to Chrestus, bishop of Syracuse, in Sicily, the only 
 one remaining having reference to the council of Aries, it is 
 expressly desired, that he should come out of that province, 
 and to bring two presbyters with him.f As there were at this 
 time only three! provinces in Britain, and as York and London 
 were the respective capitals of Maxima Csesariensis, and 
 Britannia Prima, it is reasonable to presume, that the place 
 whence bishop Adelfius came, was the principal Roman station 
 in Britannia Sccunda, which was Caerleon upon Usk. Here was 
 a colony of the second legion, and ignorant transcribers might 
 easily commit the blunder of substituting " de civit. col. Londin/' 
 for "de civit. col. Leg. ii.' 1 
 
 We have elsewhere hinted, that Adelfius might be the same 
 person with Cadvrawd. May he not also be identified with 
 Edelfed, who is placed as the fourth bishop of Llandaf in Iolo 
 Morganwg's list? The similarity in the sound of the names, as 
 well as the coincidence of chronology, will fairly warrant tho 
 supposition. But, if that be the case, we must again alter the 
 latter subscription into de civitate\ Landavensi, unless we be 
 satisfied that the confusion of the two sees of Llandaf and 
 Caerleon had already commenced. 
 
 Ex provincia Bitania Eburius Episcopus ; ex civitate Culnia Adelfius. 
 
 In editione Petri Crabbe, 
 
 Ex provincia Britannia?, civitate Londincns. Restitutus Episcopus. 
 
 Ex provin. Byzacena, civit. Tubernicen. Eburius Episcopus. 
 
 Ex eadem provin. civitate Culucitana. Adelphius. 
 
 Usher, p. 104. 
 
 * Hilar, de Synod. 
 
 f Euseb. lib. x. cap. 5. 
 
 J Usher maintains that there were four provinces of Britain at this time. 
 and that Flavia Ccesariensis was one of them; but Stillingfleet is of opinion 
 that the authority of Camden is to be preferred in this case, according to 
 which Britannia Flavia was never to be met with before the time of Flaviue 
 Theodosius. 
 
 § Llandaf was not a Roman city.
 
 83 
 
 At the breaking up of the council, Restitutio, bishop of 
 London, is said to have conveyed a copy of the canons with 
 him.* 
 
 The good understanding, which at first existed mutually 
 between the emperor and his British subjects, did not, however, 
 continue long. When he departed from the island to war with 
 his enemies abroad, Eudav, prince of Cornwall, or, according to 
 other accounts, earl of Erging and Euas, at the head of a 
 large army of his countrymen, rebelled against the officers 
 whom he had left behind as his vicegerents, and having con- 
 quered them, took upon himself the sovereignty. Oonstantine 
 sent Trahaiarn, his mother's uncle, to oppose him, and to 
 regain possession of the provinces, but all his efforts were 
 unavailing. Trahaiarn was killed, and Eudav became more 
 firmly established on the throne. This decisive victory hap- 
 pened ten yearsf from the first appointment of his rivals to the 
 lieutenancy of the country, and, if wo date that event A.D. 312, 
 the year in which Maxentius was defeated and slain, we come 
 down to the year 322, as the time when Eudav finally triumphed 
 over them. It is said, that he governed the kingdom for the 
 long space of fifty-four years,t which, commencing with the 
 departure of Constantine, would extend to about A.D. 366. 
 Walter de Mapes and Geoffrey of Monmouth affirm, that ho 
 reigned until the time of Gratian and Valentinian, who became 
 partners in the western empire, A.D. 367.+ 
 
 It is not to be supposed, however, that all the British tribes 
 had unanimously conferred upon him the monarchical dignity, 
 
 * Godwin de Prsesul. Spelman Concil. vol.i. p. 43; Collier's Eccles. Hist. 
 B. i. cent. 4. 
 
 f It is proper here to mention that these dates arc taken from a modern 
 work entitled the " Life of Merlin." N a authorities are referred to, and though 
 it appears to have been chiefly compiled from Geoffrey of Monmouth, it differs 
 in some respects from that author, as here, where Eudav is affirmed to have 
 been the vicegerent appointed by Constantine contrary to the statement of Geof- 
 frey. As the vicegerent^*, whether of Eudav or his rivals, must have commenced 
 with the departure of the emperor, we have not scrupled to measure a period in 
 the one case from a date used in reference to the other. 
 
 X Myv. Arch. vol. ii.
 
 84 
 
 or that his authority was universally acknowledged throughout 
 the island. On the contrary, there was a strong party attached 
 to the Roman interest, not only in the army rind municipal 
 towns, but also among some of the native states, which had 
 been gradually imbibing the manners of their conquerors. 
 Hence, Constantine, although he could not overthrow his rival, 
 did not, as long as he lived, forego his own claims, and at his 
 death he transferred them to his son. It appears, as it", at length, 
 both parties deemed it politic to limit their respective exertions, 
 and to acquiesce tacitly in this twofold pretension. The prin- 
 cipal adherents of Eudav were the Cymry, whose national preju- 
 dices had been always strong, and as he was one of themselves, 
 their support, we may reasonably suppose, was enthusiastically 
 given on the occasion. 
 
 We have been thus particular on the above subject, as it may 
 enable us to form a tolerable answer to the question, whether or 
 not the British Church was represented at the famous council of 
 Nice, A.D. 325. It is the general opinion, founded on tho 
 strong ties which are supposed to have connected Constantine 
 with Britain at the time under consideration, that bishops from 
 (his country did attend that council.* .Now, the different 
 aspect which the foregoing description exhibits of British 
 affairs, removes the premises from which such a conclusion i< 
 deduced, as regards the majority of the' people. We may thus 
 maintain, on the contrary, that it is improbable that British 
 prelates would obey the summons of a man from whom their 
 fellow-countrymen had withdrawn their allegiance, and lie 
 present at a council convened by his authority. This remark 
 is intended to apply emphatically to the Cymry. among whom 
 the claims of Constantine were most fully repudiated. Bishops 
 from those localities which still acknowledged the imperial 
 jurisdiction may have attended ; and, of all others, the 
 archbishop of York, whose see had received its wealth and 
 dignity from Constantine, is least likely to have despised his 
 
 * See Stillingfleet's " Origines Bri tannics," cb. iii ; and Collier's Ecclesi- 
 astical History, B. i. cent t.
 
 85 
 
 orders. This view of the case is further confirmed by the sub- 
 sequent conformity of the North Britons with the ecclesiastical 
 usages determined at Nice, whilst the Cymry still adhered to 
 their ancient customs, which they had derived from the eastern 
 Church, as shall be shewn hereafter. 
 
 a.d. 347, a council was held at Sardica, in Illyria, under the 
 emperors Constantius and Constans, sons of Constantine the 
 Great. We have the testimony of Athanasius, that bishops 
 from Britain were present, and that they joined in the condem- 
 nation of Arius, and vindication of himself.* As, however, their 
 names have not been preserved, we are at liberty to doubt 
 whether any attended from the land of Cymru. 
 
 In the year 539, another council was convened at Ariminum, 
 in Italy, by Constantius, to decide, like the preceding, upon the 
 Arian heresy, to which he himself was favourable. Sulpitius 
 Severus says : " There were more than four hundred bishops of 
 the western Church summoned or compelled to attend, unto all 
 of whom the emperor had ordered provisions and apartments to 
 be given. But that was deemed unbecoming by the Aquitans, 
 Cauls, and Britons ; and, refusing the imperial offer, they pre- 
 ferred to live at their own expense. Three only from Britain, 
 on account of poverty, made use of the public gift, after they 
 had rejected the contributions offered by others ; considering it 
 more proper to burden the exchequer than individuals. 1 "^ 
 
 We have the same reason for excluding the bishops of Wales 
 from this council, as we had in the case of Nice, as Eudav still 
 wielded the reins of government. Had these been permitted to at- 
 tend, the emperor would not have dared to compel them to sub- 
 scribe to the doctrines of Arius. Indeed, it is gratifying to find, 
 that the faith of Britain was in general sound as to the divinity of 
 our Saviour about the time when the imperial influence was so 
 unduly exercised. This testimony is furnished by Hilary, 
 bishop of Poictiers, and also by Athanasius. The former, A.D. 
 
 * Athanas. Graecolat. torn. i. p. 560, edit. Commclin; Epist. ctiam ad solit. 
 Vit. agent. Usher's Britann. Eccles. Antiq. p. 105. 
 \ Stllpitii Severi Sacrae Historic, lib. ii. cap. lv.
 
 86 
 
 858, in his work, Be Synod is, congratulates the British 
 bishops, in common with those of Germany, upon their 
 entire freedom from all contagion of the detestable Arian 
 heresy.' Athanasius, likewise, and tin- bishops assembled in 
 the council of Antioch, A.D. 363, assure the emperor Jovian, 
 that the bishops of Spain, Gaul, and Britain, continued to 
 adhere to the Nicene faith, of which they had beeD informed by 
 letters from those bishops themselves. + 
 
 There is nothing strange in the poverty of the three bishops, 
 for it does not appear that there were yet any considerable en- 
 dowments provided for the Church in Britain, except within the 
 dioceses of Llandaf and York. It is expressly stated in the 
 Triads, that Cunedda Wledig, a chieftain who flourished about 
 this period, was "the first who gave land and privilege to God 
 and the saints, in the Isle of Britain ;"i an expression, which, 
 though not strictly and literally true, yet sufficiently proves 
 that ecclesiastical endowments had not been hitherto general in 
 the island. And though the native bishops might have been 
 elected exclusively out of the principal families, it must l>e 
 recollected that the tenure of property was at this time very 
 precarious throughout the land, in consequ snee of the continual 
 irruptions of the Scots and Picts, and the misunderstanding 
 which frequently arose between the Britons and Etonians. 
 
 The Roman power was declining daily in the island, by the 
 constant withdrawal of the legions to support the cause of the 
 emperors abroad. Though this evacuation might have been 
 
 * " Dominis, et beatissimis fiatribus, et coepiscopis Germanise prima? et 
 Germaniaj secunda\ &c. et provinciarum Britanniarum cpiscopis; Hilarius 
 scrvus Chvisti, in Deo et Domino nostro aeternam salutem .... Beat.T fidei 
 vestra litevis sumptis (quaruin leoitudinem ac raritatem de exilii mei et longi- 
 tudine et seereto intelligo constitisse): gratulatus sum in Domino ineontami- 
 natos vos et illsesos ab omni contagio detestandae hasveseos perstitisse." 
 
 f Tavri'iv iriiTiv cofioXoyijrrav o't iv "Sixain (rvx'tXOovric rrar'cptQ 'tcai ravry 
 av^i](poi Tvyxavovtri Traaai ai Kara. to~ov tKKXijrriai. at re Kara ri)v Sxavuzv, 
 Kai tiosrrai'i'a]', »ca« TaWiag, &C. Kai a'l tar' avarokag EKicXqaiai, rrant'i oXiyiov 
 twv ra. 'Apft'ou QpovovvTwv. UavTiov yap tCjv Trnoitciiifiivuii' r>j —una tyvuiKUfuv 
 ti)v yvwLujv, Kai y pa.fi fiara t-^oiitv. 
 
 I Triad 18. Nee page 53.
 
 87 
 
 agreeable to the wishes of the natives in general, it however de- 
 prived them of much succour against the ravages of their 
 Caledonian enemies. Yet were the native chieftains not 
 altogether regardless of these invasions, or void of spirit and 
 energy to oppose them. One of the most celebrated at this 
 time was Cunedda Wledig, just mentioned, son of Edeyrn ab 
 Padarn, by Gwawl, daughter of Coel Godebog. His original 
 patrimony lay in Cumberland, and some neighbouring districts, 
 where he began to exercise the prerogatives of a legitimate 
 regulus, about a.d. 328."' He was also entitled, in right of his 
 mother, to the headship of the clan of Coel Godebog in the 
 south, Ceneu and Mor,t the proper representatives of that 
 tribe, being ecclesiastics. The Church, as already intimated, 
 found in him a munificent patron; and in this respect his 
 children seem to have imitated his pious example, for they are 
 ranked in the Triad as one of " the three holy families of the 
 Isle of Britain. 1 ' 1 In the latter part of his life Cunedda retired 
 to Wales, where he died a.d. 389. A contemporary Bard has 
 written his elegy, which is printed in the Myvyrian Archaiology. 
 It is a spirited and graphic composition, written in pure and 
 elegant Welsh, and evinces how little influenced by the Roman 
 sway was the native genius of the Cymry. In the following 
 extracts is an allusion to the Christian character of Cunedda : — 
 
 " I, who am Taliesin the Druid, 
 Will award the song of praise to the baptized, 
 The Christian chief, the worshipper of the Wonderful One. 
 Where cliff and cliff meet, in the west, 
 Was the dread of Cunedda, the ardent in battle, 
 In Caer Wair and Cacr Liwelydd. 
 * * * * 
 
 Before the communion J of Cunnedda, 
 
 I might by a single nod obtain milch cows in the summer; 
 
 * Cambrian Biography. 
 
 f Mor, who was contemporary with Cunedda, is supposed to have founded 
 the churches of Llannor or Llanvor in Carnarvonshire, Llanvor in Penllyn, 
 Merionethshire, and Llanynys in Denbighshire. — See Rees's Essay on the Welsh 
 Saints, p. 1 17. 
 
 X This seems to allude to the Catholic custom of administering the Eu-
 
 I might have -'■ • da in the winter; 
 I mi^ht enjoy sparkling wine and oil; 
 I might possess a troop of captives 
 
 a.d. 383. Macsen Wledig (Maximus), who had the command 
 of the imperial troops in Britain, and who had married Elen 
 Luyddog, daughter of Eudav, withdrew his allegiance firom 
 Gratianus, and got himself proclaim 1 emperor by the sold 
 under his authority. In his attempt to obtain actual possession 
 of the empire, he was materially aided by the Britons, who to 
 the number of twenty-one thousand, or, according to other 
 
 accounts, sixty-* thousand, followe 1 him into Gaul, under the 
 
 command of Oynan, brother of Elen, and lord of Meiriadog in 
 North Wales. Saving there Gratianus, Mi 
 
 rewarded his auxiliaries with ample gifts of land in A.rmorica, 
 or Brittany, and conferred the throne upon Oynan.* He 
 founded an archbishopric in London, which was tin- third esi 
 lishment of the sort in Britain.'!' He was slain a.d. i 
 
 Not long after the above exp dition, tin- remaining legi 
 were summoned homi ist in repelling the Huns, with the 
 
 furious Alaric at their head, who were then invading Italy. 
 This took p] wording to Zosimus, in a.d. 1 < » s or i 
 
 charist to a dying person. The holy communion i' was peculiarly 
 
 styled tyo&ov, or viaticum, that is, a preparation or provision for the journey 
 into the next world. One of the Nicene canons enjoins that ;ill penitents Rhould 
 have their necessary and final tydHtov or viaticum, \\i. i re on the point 
 
 of (loath. (Concil. Nil-, can. 13.) In like manner the council of Agde says, the 
 viaticum shall not he denied to any dying penitent . ithen. can. 15.) 
 
 — See Bingham, B. xv. eh. iv. w< 
 
 * Triads,."). 14,40; Brut Tysilio ; Brut (J. ah Arthur; Nenius. 
 
 •(- See page 8 1 . 
 
 J Zosim. Hist lib. vi. cap. 5, 6. Hi- words on the subject arc thus ren- 
 dered : '• The barbarians above the Rhine, invading all parts with unrestrained 
 freedom, forced, of necessity, the inhabitants of the Island of Britain, and 
 some of the Celtic tribes, to revolt from the dominion of the Romans, ami to 
 live independent, no longer obeying the Roman laws. The Britons, the: 
 armed themselves, and facing the danger on their own account, delivered their 
 cities from the barbarians that infested them. And all Armorica and other 
 provinces of Gaul, imitating the example of the Britons, S< t themselves free in 
 like manner; expelling the Roman governors, and setting up a native form ol
 
 89 
 
 The Romans, indeed, appear to have attempted the recovery of 
 the island afterwards, but without success ; and, ultimately, 
 Honorius gave a sanction to its separation, when he addressed 
 letters to the different states, exhorting them to defend them- 
 selves. 
 
 The final abdication of Britain by the Romans, is thus noticed 
 in the Triads : — 
 
 " There were three invading tribes that came to the Isle of 
 Britain, and went out of it. . . . 
 
 The third were the Csesarians, who harrassed the island for 
 more than four hundred years, till they went to Rome to oppose 
 the irruption of the Black Horde,* from whence they never re- 
 turned to the Isle of Britain, nor did any of them remain in the 
 island, save women, and little children under nine years of age, 
 and these became Cymry.^f 
 
 It may not be improper here to take a summary view of the 
 Roman polity in Britain, and trace its effects upon the genius 
 and habits of the people. A clear knowledge of civil affairs 
 must contribute materially to the development of the national 
 character of the Church. 
 
 The Romans had established thirty-three civitates or town- 
 
 government at their own liberty. This revolt of Britain and the Celtic tribes 
 happened during the time of the usurpation of Constantinc, when the bar- 
 barians had made an incursion through his neglect of the affairs of the empire." 
 — See Rees's Essay on the Welsh Saints, p. 106. 
 
 * The northern Huns of the Crimea, who ravaged Europe, are here deno- 
 minated the black horde, from their swarthy complexions; by which they were 
 distinguished from the Weise Gothen, Visigoths, or " Wliite Goths," who in- 
 vaded the eastern empire and Persia ; as we learn from " DeGuigne's Histoirc 
 Gen. (Us Thins, 1 ' vol. ii. p. 326, in " Roberts's Early History of the Cymry," 
 pp. 122, 123. Hales's "Origin and Purity of the Primitive Church of the 
 British Isles," p. 111. 
 
 " The characteristic epithet of the Triad is a decisive mark of its antiquity 
 and fidelity. The Huns at this time were impelling the Goths on the Western 
 Empire, and making inroads into Thrace. The term is such as would at first 
 be made use of, and laid aside when the national term became familiar."— Ro- 
 berts't Early History, Sec. p. 124. 
 
 f Triad 8.
 
 90 
 
 ships throughout the Brit is] i provinces, which possessed different 
 ranks, and were entitled to different immunities. Foremost 
 stood the colonies, of which then' were nine; these were esta- 
 blishments of veteran legionaries, whose courage and faithful 
 services the emperor rewarded by allotting to them a portion of 
 the land which they had conquered. These formed each of 
 them a miniature representation of the parent city ; the same 
 customs prevailing in both, the same laws being acknowledged, 
 and the same titles conferred on the magistrates and rulers. 
 Tho next in point of rank, but equal as to privilege, were the 
 municlpla, of which th< re were two in Britain. These enjoyed 
 all the rights of Roman citizenship, w^^\ their own laws and 
 customs, nor were they obliged to receive the Roman laws unless 
 they chose it. There were ten towns invested with tin 
 Lalii, or Latin right, and these had the power of electing their 
 own magistrates, and of enacting their own laws. The re- 
 maining twelve were termed stipendiary, and were liable t<> the 
 payment of tribute until they were relieved by Caracalla.* 
 
 We thus find that there was little in the Roman constitution 
 as established in Britain fundamentally subversive of the ancient 
 customs. The chief compulsory subjection of the natives appears 
 to have consisted in the payment of tribute. t and the furnishing 
 of soldiers for foreign service.} The town- and districts not in- 
 cluded in the list just enumerated were doubtless permitted to 
 use their own laws and usages. This we know was the ease in 
 Judea, in the time of our Saviour. That the Jews could 
 exercise their own laws then is evident from the words of the 
 
 * See " Gleig's " History of England," vol. i. 
 
 f According to the Triads, the tribute exacted from the Britons amounted 
 to " three thousand pieces of silver annually." — Triad 2] . 
 
 t Camden names twelve such auxiliary troops furnished by Britain, to - 
 abroad, a few of which are the following : — 
 
 Ala Britonum iv. in .Egypto. 
 
 Cohors vn. Britonum in Armenia. 
 
 Britones cum Magistro Equitum Galliarum. 
 
 Iuvicti Juniores Britones intra Hispanias. 
 
 Britones seniores in Illvrico.
 
 91 
 
 Roman governor : " Said Pilate unto them, Take ye him, and 
 judge him according to your law.'''' (John xviii. 31.) And that 
 they did really carry those laws sometimes into effect even in 
 capital cases, appears moreover from the fate of St. Stephen, 
 whom they stoned to death. And whereas, in answer to Pilate's 
 words, the Jews said, " It is not lawful for us to put any man 
 to death," St. Chrysostom, St. Augustine, and St. Cyril of 
 Alexandria, take this expression to mean it was not lawful to 
 do so at that time during the festival.* This concession to 
 popular prejudice was part of the usual policy of the Romans, in 
 order to secure their ascendancy where severer methods would 
 have probably failed. From the same motive, they entrusted 
 to a certain extent some of the British reguli, such as Prsesa- 
 tugus and Cogidunus, with their former jurisdiction. Until 
 the death of Lleirwg, the Silurian princes were permitted to 
 retain the nominal sovereignty ; nor was a deviation from this 
 course ventured upon before the extinction of the direct and 
 lineal succession, Lleirwg dying without issue. f 
 
 The liberal measures of Agricola soon alienated the affections 
 of those who inhabited the vicinities of Camalodunum and Venta 
 Belgarum, and brought them to receive the Roman laws and 
 customs. The change was greatly facilitated by the luxuries 
 and refinements to which they were invited : these at the same 
 time enervated their courage, and extinguished almost every 
 spark of genuine patriotism within their bosoms. % This is, in a 
 particular manner, true of the Coranians, who are expressly 
 stated in the Triads, to have " coalesced with the Cyesarians so 
 as to become one. 1 ^ The same feeling communicated itself to 
 
 * Williams on the Passion, p. 187. 
 
 f Bal. centur. 1 Script. Blitan. cap. 30 ; Johan. Fordon. Scotichron. cap. 
 31 ; Boeth. Hist. lib. v. ; Galfrid. Monemuth. Hist. Britan. lib. 5, c. 1, 2. 
 
 \ Tacitus; Hanes Cymru, p. 88. 
 
 § " The three powerful oppressions of the Isle of Britain which coalesced in 
 one, and so became one oppression which deprived the Cymry of their privilege, 
 crown, and lands. The first, the Coranians, who joined themselves to the Cae- 
 sarians until they became one. The second of the three were the Csesarians. 
 The third were the Saxons, and they coalesced with the other two in opposition 
 to the Cymry. And this was from God to punish the three mighty presump- 
 tions of the nation of the Cymry " — Triad 15.
 
 92 
 
 the Belgae, and to the other states, in proportion principally to 
 the want of legitimate interest in the land, and the amount or 
 aptness of temptations in the policy of Rome, to which they 
 were exposed. Thus Britannia Prima, exclusive of Cornwall, 
 where these causes prevailed the most, seems to have yielded to 
 their power in the greatest degree. In Maxima Caesariensis, 
 Roman influence was not so strong. The names of places .-till 
 to bo met with in the northern countries of England and parts 
 of Scotland, together with the poems of Aneurin, Merddin, 
 and Llywarch Hen. who were natives of those localities, and 
 who wrote in the sixth century, prove that the language of the 
 old inhabitants maintained it- existence and purity in the midst 
 of foreign domination. This fact may be taken ;:- a conclu 
 evidence of the independent feeling of the natives at the time 
 in question, for it is well known that the Romans used even- 
 possible method to introduce their own language among ever} 
 people whom they conquered, and never considered their con- 
 quest complete unless this ted.* 
 
 But the Cymry surpassed all the other tribes in their ad- 
 herence to old customs. Being the first colony that arrived in 
 Britain, they regarded themselves as the sovereign m 
 the whole island, as the Triad expressly arhrn one has 
 
 any right to it but the tribe of the Cymry, for the] tied 
 
 in it."+ The system of Bardism, which embodied the most 
 genuine principles of patriotism, continually nourished this 
 feeling, so that all the power and policy of Rome could make 
 but a slight impression on it. Throughout the p. riod of t 
 dependance, this brave people preserved their former system 
 of clanship, and Hards recorded their pedigrees, so that when 
 the day of their emancipation arrived, tiny naturally and easily 
 emerged into an actual possession of their primitive constitution 
 in all its details. It does not appear that the Roman 1 
 prevailed at any time among the Cymry to any considerable 
 
 * See an "Essay on the several invasions of Britain, and their effects on 
 character ami language of the inhabitants," inserted in the - Transactions of the 
 Cymmrodorion," vol. ii. 
 
 t Triad 1.
 
 93 
 
 extent out of the municipal towns and military stations. Cer- 
 tain it is, that when they recovered their independence, no im- 
 perial edict whatever formed a part of their legal code. Their 
 language was also pure, for the Latin expressions inserted in 
 some of the poems of Taliesin are not the natural consequence 
 of adulteration, as the context evidently shews. Moreover, the 
 " Elegy of Cunedda," written whilst the Romans were yet in 
 the island, betrays not the slightest symptoms of corruption ; 
 the whole is pure and energetic Cymraeg. 
 
 Nevertheless, the Cymry despised not real improvements 
 which the Romans may have introduced; on the contrary, they 
 practically adopted several of them, in respect of literature, 
 architecture, husbandry, and manufacture. But this was not 
 done to the entire exclusion of their own customs : so jealous 
 were they of novelties, that their Bards were bound to perpe- 
 tuate the knowledge of ancient practices, even when the mass 
 of the people actually observed new and exotic regulations. 
 After Bran and Lleirwg, for instance, had introduced the 
 Roman books among their subjects, the old Coclbren and Coel- 
 vain were still preserved by the Bardic order, so that in conse- 
 quence the former became ultimately distinguished by the name 
 of Coelbren y Beinld (the token stick of the Bards)* But as 
 the Bards were required to search after, and adopt the truth, on 
 all occasions,! so accordingly, they embodied in their system 
 the improvements mentioned above. 
 
 " Three things which a Bard ought to make with his own 
 hands ; his Coelbren, his Roll, and his Plagawd.'^ 
 
 To an ordinary observer the perpetuation of the old British 
 Coelbren and Coelvain would be superfluous after the introduc- 
 tion of the seemingly superior materials of the Romans. The 
 
 * See page »^"J. 
 
 f One of their favourite maxims was "Gwir yn erbyn y byd" — "Truth 
 against the world." 
 
 * Williams's Essay on ' Coelbren y Beirdd,' p. 21. "When the Romans 
 gained possession ol this island, they brought here a plant called Plagawd, 
 namely, ;i si dge, which was found in the land of Asia, and the land of Ca- 
 naan."— .4 Dialogue between a Disciple and /lis Teacher. lb. p. 39.
 
 94 
 
 Bards, however, had a substantia] reason for it, since ■•wood 
 and stone can be had when and where plagawd cannot."* 
 . It does not appear thai the people generally presumed t<> 
 practise ;tn\ Btrange or foreign usage of a merol) secular charac- 
 ter, however excellent in itself, unless it was reeommended to 
 them by the example of their chiefs, or the sanction of a Bardic 
 congress. Such was their veneration for authority. 
 
 *Ibid. p. 38 Llywelyn Sion, about 158< I rdswerei 
 
 necessitated to resume th< Coelbren, aa the only possible means <>i preserving 
 their literature during the oppression of the English, and particularly during 
 the insurrection of Owain Glyndwr, when th< government prohibited learning 
 among the Cymry, and denied them the us< of paper and other writing 
 lerials. Indeed, ;ill the Bards of thai age, and long afterwards, constantly 
 allude to the Coelbrei I tin only means ol knowli ;•. 1 1.
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 RISE AND SUPPRESSION OF PELAGIANISM. 
 
 " A man that is an heretiek after the first and second admonition reject." — 
 Titus iii. 10. 
 
 Britain is said to have recovered its independence under 
 ( twain, the son of Macsen Wledig, who was elected to tho 
 sovereignty by the united voice of the country.* The expedi- 
 tion of Cynan, and the final withdrawal of the Roman legions, 
 must necessarily have left the island in a very feeble and ex- 
 posed state, f The soldiers who settled in Armorica are stated 
 
 * "The three conventional monarchs of the Isle of Britain the third, 
 
 Owain, the son of Macsen Wledig, when the Cymry obtained the sovereignty 
 from the emperor of Rome, under the privilege of their own nation," &c. — 
 Triad 34; also, Tr. 17. See page 50 [note). 
 
 f " The third general expedition was led out of this island by Elen Luyddog 
 and her brother Cynan, the lord of Meiriadog, as far as Llydaw, where the men 
 obtained land and property, and sovereignty, from the emperor Macsen Wledig, 
 for assisting him against the Romans. And those men came from the land of 
 Meiriadog, and from the land of Scisyllwg, and from the land of Gwyr and 
 Gorwennydd; and none of them returned, but they remained in Llydaw, and 
 in Ystre Gyvaelawg (forte Neustrie 8r Valois), having there formed themselves 
 into a regular community. And because of this general expedition, the nation 
 of the Cymry experienced a feebleness and deficiency of armed men, so that the 
 Gwyddyl Fichti became an oppression to them." — Triad 14. 
 
 " The three arrant traitors of the Isle of Britain, — Avarwy, the son of Lludd, 
 the son of Beli Mawr (the great), who invited Julius Cffisar and the Romans 
 into this island, and occasioned the Roman usurpation. That is, he and his 
 men became conductors to the people of Rome, and received of them a gift of 
 gold and silver annually ; and thence it came to pass that the inhabitants of 
 
 i. 2
 
 96 
 
 in the Triad to have been from Wales, and we accordingly find 
 that the Gwyddyl Fichti, or Irish Picts, were enabled, soon 
 after, to land on -*. and to occupy the whole of 
 
 North Wales, as well 'imetian counti< - ofSouth Wal 
 
 As Ireland was at this time generally Pagan,t there can 1" 
 doubt that these Pictish rovei to the doctrines 
 
 of Christianity ; it hence naturally follow.-, that their usurpa- 
 tion proved for a time unfavourable to the general growth of 
 the Cambrian Church. We have, indeed, a palpable instance of 
 their opposition to the sacred cause of learning and religion 
 in the demolition of the college or m mastery of Caerworgan, in 
 
 this island were obliged to pay thx year 
 
 as a tribute t" the I . until the I Owain the son of Ma 
 
 Wledig, and it was he who prohibited that tribute. And under ; 
 acquiescing in that a d of the Isle oi 
 
 tain, who could be ma able in war, into the country of Araria, and 
 
 distant parts of other lands, and they returned not And the Romans who 
 were in the Isle of Britain went int aly their women and little 
 
 children remained behind. Thus were t 
 
 able ti> resist oppression and encroachment, from want of men and strength." — 
 Triad 21. 
 
 "Exin Britannia, omni armato milite, militaribui - lin- 
 
 qnitur immanibus, ingenti juventutespoliata,qus comital - supradicti 
 
 tyranni ( Maximi ) domum nunquam ultra rediit, et on usu ignara 
 
 penitus, duabus primum gentibus transmarinis \ il> urn a 
 
 circione, Pictorum ah aquilone, calcal ills, mult s stupet g< mi tque i < r am 
 — Gildas, c. 11. 
 
 * The present counties of Cardigan, Pembroke, and Carmartl 
 Rees's Essay on the Welsh Saints, p. 109. " The Gwyddelians and the Fichti, 
 that had overrun Gwynedd, from the time of Maxen Wledig." — The Genealogy 
 of the Saints cited in the Cambrian Biography sub roc. Meigyr. S, 
 Brut Tysilio and Brut G. ab Arthur in Myv. Arch. rol. ii. p. 225. Bede, c. 
 xii. § 28. Genuine History of the Britons. Moon s Hist ry of Ireland, 
 chap. vii. 
 
 f "From the Irish Annals, ahout a.o. 400, it further app r< ral 
 
 Christian churches had been founded in the smith of Ireland, by th< Irish 
 saints, Eieran, Ailbe, Declan, and liar: viz. at Ardmore, and Lismore,and 
 Emly, in Minister; and at Ossi ry, and Bi J-Erin, in Leinsti r: but great part 
 of the south, and the whole of the north and west provinces were still pagan, at 
 that period.'' — Hales on the Origin and Purity of the Primitive Church of the 
 J>ritish Isles, Sec p. 123.
 
 97 
 
 South "Wales, and the capture of its principal. It is worthy of 
 observation, however, that He, whose providence brings good 
 out of evil, converted this calamity into a real blessing for the 
 Irish nation at large, for the person carried away by the depre- 
 dators was none other than the great St. Patrick himself !* 
 
 Whilst we thus contemplate a depressed and persecuted 
 Church in those localities, where the power of the Gwyddyl 
 Fichti was predominant, we cannot but rejoice at finding that 
 the rightful monarch was a sincere Christian. The circumstance 
 of his being considered a "•sainf't by his countrymen would load 
 us to infer, that he rendered some particular service to the 
 cause of Christianity. The same may be observed of his son 
 Madog,} and his brothers Ednyved and Peblig, all of whom are 
 likewise included in the Welsh Calender. The latter is consi- 
 dered to have founded the Church of Llanbeblig, mar < arnarvon, 
 which, however, lie could not have easily accomplished before 
 the Irish were deprived of their ascendancy in that part of the 
 country. § The enterprise of delivering Wales from their domi- 
 nation was undertaken between a.i>. 420 and 430,|| by the sons 
 of Cunedda, who so far succeeded as to recover a great part of 
 South Wales, and the whole of North Wales, except Anglesey 
 and some portions of Denbighshire. They divided the recovered 
 country among themselves, and gave their own names to the 
 districts they severally occupied, some of which names are re- 
 tained to this day. 11 As these princes constitute one of "the 
 
 * " It was tlic glory of the emperor Theodosius, in conjunction with Cysten- 
 nyn Llydaw, surnamed the Blessed, to have first founded the college of Illtyd, 
 which was regulated by Balerus, a man from Rome; and Padrig, son of 
 Ma won, was the principal of it, before lie was carried away a captive by the 
 Irishmen." — Genealogy of the S, tints, translated in the Cambrian Biography, 
 voce Padrig. 
 
 f Cambrian Biography, sub voc. Owain. Rees's Essay on the Welsh 
 Saint-, p. 108. Owain was a Bard, see Triad 11. 
 
 J Rees's Essay, p. 1.33. The era of Madog is placed by the Professor be- 
 tween i.d. (33 and a.d. 462. The compiler of the " Cambrian Biography" 
 that lie lived in the beginning of the fifth century. 
 
 § 1! I v,p. 1 15. 
 
 | The Silurian Acliau y Saint (Genealogy of the Saints), and Ncnnius. 
 
 « " Thus Ceredig had Ceredigion, comprising the present county of Cardi-
 
 98 
 
 three holy families of the Isle of Britain," it is natural to rap- 
 pose that the Church enjoyed much prosperity under their 
 auspices. 
 
 Another chieftain who contributed to the extension and sta- 
 bility of the Cambrian Church, about this period, was Brychan, 
 son of Aulach, who was the son of Cormac mac Cairbre, one of 
 the kings of Ireland. Aulach had. about \.i». 382, married 
 Man-hell, the sole heiress of her father Tudur or Tewdrig, king 
 of Garthmadryn, in South Wales; and in right of his mother, 
 Brychan succeeded about the year WO to this principality, 
 which from him was afterwards called Brycheiniog or Breck- 
 nock.* He is celebrated for having "brought up his children 
 and grandchildren in learning and the liberal arts, that they 
 mi<dit be able to Bhew the faith in Christ to the nation of the 
 Cymry, wherever they were without thefaith. ,, t His death oc- 
 curred about \.i). !•"' 
 
 Whilst the Church, under such powerful protection, was 
 " lengthening her cords, and strengthening her stakes " in the 
 land, her internal peace was disturbed by the introduction of 
 
 gan, with a great part of Carmarthenshire; the word Ceredigion, being the 
 plural of Ceredig, and meaning his followers. Arwystl had Arwystli, or the 
 western part of Montgomeryshire. Dnnod had Dnnodig, or the northern 
 part of Merioneth, with part of Carnarvonshire. Edeyrn bad Edeyrnioo, and 
 Mael had Dinmael, both in the eastern part of Merioneth. Coel had Coel- 
 eion, and Dogvael had Dogreilin, both in Denbighshire. Rhuvon had 
 Khuvoniog, in Denbigh and Carnarvonshires. Einion had Caereinion, in 
 Montgomery, and Oswal had Osweilin, on the borders of Shropshire. Tlbion, 
 the eldest son of Cnnedda. died in the Isle of Man ; but his son Meirion was 
 one of these adventurers, and had Cantrev Meirion." — Rett** Euay, pp. IOP, 
 
 no. 
 
 * Cambrian Biography; Essay on the Welsh Saints, p. 110. 
 
 f Triad 18; see p. 53. In the same document they art styled one of "the 
 three holy families of the Isle of Britain." '"The three holy lineages of the 
 Isle of Britain ; the lineage of Bran, the son of Llyr ; the lineage of Cnnedda 
 Wledig, and the lineage of Brychan Brycheiniog." — Triad 12, first series. 
 " His children constitute one of the three holy families of the Isle <>( Britain; 
 the second are the children of Cnnedda Wledig; and the third, the children of 
 Caw of Prydyn." — Genealogy of the Saints, second series, in Myv. Arch.Tol.ii. 
 This particular extract is marked as if taken from " the book of Bodeuhvyn, in 
 Anglesey, the property o( Ieuan ab Sion Wyn, which was written A.n. 1 ' ' 
 
 % Cambrian Biography.
 
 99 
 
 the errors of Pelagius. This heretic, whose original name was 
 Morgan, was a native of Britain, and is generally supposed to 
 have been educated at the monastery of Bangor Iscoed, in tho 
 present county of Flint.* About the end of the fourth century, 
 he quitted the land of his birth, visited his countrymen in 
 Brittany, t and thence travelled to Rome.t Here, in company 
 with Celestius, an Irishman of great subtlety and readiness of 
 wit, he began to propound principles which affected the Catholic 
 doctrines of original sin and divine grace. Pelagius was parti- 
 cularly cautious at first in the manner of delivering his senti- 
 ments, and the consequence was that their heterodox character 
 was not speedily discovered. § At the approach of the Goths, 
 A.D. 410, the heresiarchs were obliged to make a precipitate 
 flight, and seek a refuge in Sicily. Thence they passed into 
 Africa, where Celestius stayed some time in hopes of being or- 
 dained a presbyter in the Church of Carthage; but Pelagius 
 soon left it, and proceeded to Palestine, where he was received 
 with many marks of distinction by John of Jerusalem. || He 
 was summoned, a.d. 41"), to give an account of his opinions be- 
 fore a synod of bishops held at Diospolis, or Lydda : but as no 
 charge of heresy could there be fairly substantiated against him, 
 he was fully acquitted.^ The following year, however, both he 
 and his associate were condemned as heretics, by a council held 
 at Carthage, and also by another held at Milevum, in Numidia. 
 The decrees of these synods were forwarded to Rome ; but 
 Zozimus, the new pope, would not sanction them until the arch- 
 heretics had been again condemned by a more numerous and 
 august council, which was convened at Carthage, when he 
 thought fit to acquiesce in the decisions of the African prelates.** 
 
 * Ranulphus Cestrensis in Polychrome, lib. 1. cap. 31. 
 
 -f- Leland. de Scrip. 
 
 J Augustin. de Peccat. Origin, contra Pclag. c. 21. 
 
 § Ibid. 
 
 || Id. de gest. Pala;stin. contra Pelag. c. 22. Ep. 89, ad Hilarium. Usher, 
 
 pp. 127, &c. 
 
 51 Augustin. Retract, lib. 2, c. 47. 
 
 ** Id. Epist. 106, 92. Concil. Cavthagin. ad Innocent, epist. online inter 
 Augustinianas 90. Zozim. ep. 101, torn. i. Concil. p. 611.
 
 100 
 
 Thus the eastern and western Churches were now unanimous in 
 their condemnation of those doctrines which had already un- 
 settled the faith of thousands in Christendom. In addition to 
 this, the emperors Honorius and Theodosius issued their de- 
 crees, whereby both Pelagius and Celestius, with their followers, 
 were formally banished from Rome. 
 
 It is supposed thai Pelagius, after his final excommunication, 
 remained silent, and died somewhere in the east in obscurity, 
 as we hear no more about him. 
 
 The principal opponents of our countryman were Jerome and 
 Augustine, the latter of whom had the candour, notwithstanding, 
 to speak mosl highly of his moral character and piety. < ha the 
 !• hand, he found an able advocate in John, patriarch of 
 Jerusalem, and also in his successor, Prailius; and both Inno- 
 cent and Zozimus, the Roman pontiffs, were hia friends. 4 
 
 We have already intimated that the Pelagian heres) con- 
 d mainly in a denial of original sin, and of the necessity of 
 divine grace to perform good works. These tenets, - 
 able to human nature, gained, as may be expected, man\ con- 
 verts, even after their authors had been silenced. Their pro- 
 gress in Gaul was bo rapid and extensive, as to induce the 
 emperor Valentinian, A..D. !-■". to issue hi- mandate to Patro- 
 clus, archbishop of Aries, enjoining him to convene all the 
 bishops who entertained them; and provided they did not 
 recant within twenty days the} were to !»■ cast into banish- 
 ment.t 
 
 It is supposed that, in consequence of this edict, many came 
 over to Britain, and amongst them Agricola, son of bishop 
 
 * See Usher, cap. viii. ix. x.; where numerous authorities are cited in refer- 
 ence to the events noticed above. 
 
 Pelagius is said to have written the following works: M A commentary on the 
 Epistles of St. Paul, attributed to St. Jerome ; a letter to Demetria, and some 
 others in the last tome of St. Jerome; a Confession of Faith to Pope Innocent; 
 Fragments of a Treatise, of the power of Nature and Free Will, in St Augus- 
 tine. These are extant. He wrote likewise a treatise of the Power of Nature, 
 and several hooks concerning Free-will, which are lost" — Collia't E 
 Hist. B. i. 
 
 f Concilior. Gallise, torn. i. p. 54. Et Append. Cod. Theodosian. edit P 
 ann. 1631, p. 16. Usher, cap. xi.
 
 101 
 
 Severianus,* who is mentioned as the first who taught Pelagi- 
 anism among the people of this land. Agricola was assisted 
 by others, probably British Armoricans, as appears from Pros- 
 per, who speaks of the heresy as having been planted here by 
 "the enemies of God's grace returning to the soil from whence 
 they sprang 1 ' (solum suae originis occwpantes) .+ It is natural to 
 think, that they had many followers, for the fame of Pelagius'' s 
 virtues and talents would alone recommend his tenets to the 
 particular notice of his enthusiastic countrymen. Moreover, as 
 the Irish sway had recently checked the due progress of Chris- 
 tian education among the generality of the Cymry, it is possible 
 that the minds of many nominal members of the Church had 
 been tainted in a greater or less degree with the metaphysical 
 notions of their masters, and, therefore, were more easily in- 
 clined to imbibe Pelagianism.J We must also recollect that 
 most, if not all, of the Cambrian clergy were Bards, and that 
 some of the theories of Pelagius, about the freedom of the will, 
 agreed essentially with certain exploded maxims of Druidism.§ 
 A system of Christianity which embodied such doctrines would 
 be hailed with rapture by some of the warmest admirers of na- 
 tional antiquity. 
 
 In accordance with these inferences, we find that the new 
 tenets did in reality become extensively popular in our country. 
 
 * Bede's Hist. Eccles. lib. i. cap 17. Prosper in Chron. Florent. et Dionys. 
 Cons. 
 
 f Prosper centra Collator. 
 
 X According to Gamier (in his Dissert, upon Pelagianism), and Vossius (in 
 his Histor. Pelag.), Pelagius himself was an Irish-Scot. That there was some 
 affinity between the Druidical tenets of the Irish ami Pelagianism, appears 
 probable from the tenor of the British Chronicles inserted in the Myv. Arch, 
 vol. ii. In one copy, it is stated: "At that time, came Bishop Gannon and 
 Lupus of Trove-, to preach the word of God to the Britons, fur Christianity 
 was corrupted < m r since tlf pagans were amongst them." At any rate, the settle- 
 ment of those people in the country was one great cause of the spread of the 
 heresy amongst the natives. 
 
 § The Druids maintained that in the state of humanity good and evil are so 
 equally balanced, tbat liberty takes place, and the will is free: whence a man 
 becomes accountable for his actions, having a power of attaching himself either 
 to the good or the evil, as he may or may not subject his propensities to the 
 control of reason and unsophisticated nature. See Introduction.
 
 102 
 
 Nevertheless, the leading ecclesiastics adhered steadfastly to 
 " the faith which was once delivered unto the saints," though, 
 for obvious reasons, they were not sufficiently learned to con- 
 fute all the .'ubtle propositions of their adversaries. They, 
 therefore, applied for assistance to their more experienced bre- 
 thren in Gaul. According to IAher Lcmdavensis* the .Britons 
 had to send messengers frequently to that country ere- the re- 
 quired aid was granted them, a statement which refutes altoge- 
 ther the idea that the mission of the anti-Pelagian champions 
 originated with the bishop of Borne. It was a.i>. 42!>. that a 
 synod of Gallican prelates was convened, in which the case of 
 the applicants was taken into consideration, and it was deter- 
 mined that Gannon (< rermanus) bishop «>i" Auxerre, and Bleidd- 
 ian (Lupus) bishop of Troyes, should both forthwith visit 
 Britain in perso n. f Gannon was of Welsh extraction, being 
 the son of Rhedyw, and uncle of Emyr Llydaw an Armorican 
 prince,J and on that account was much better qualified for 
 the object he bad in view than if be had been a stranger to 
 
 * " Sffipe tamen ante, missis legatis a Britannis ad eos implorantibus auxi- 
 lium contra tam execrabile periculum, quia prarse doctrins bsreticoram non 
 acquiescebant, neque tamen confundere valebant"-«-p. 66. 
 
 f Constant, de Vita Germani, lib. i. cap. l!». Bede, lib. i. cap. xvii. § 39. 
 The synod is supposed to have been held at Troyes, Gamerius (diss. 2, c. 21) 
 affirms that the acts of it, which sent Gennanns and Lupus, are still in i 
 ence, with the instructions given them at their coming hither. The date 
 adopted above is from Prosper. 
 
 X Essay on the Welsh Saints, p. 123; Cambrian Biography. It would 
 appear that Armorica was not yet confined to the country between the v 
 and Loire. Nennius says, that the possessions given by Maximus to his 
 British auxiliaries extended "a stagno quod est super verticem Montis Jovis 
 usque ad civitatem qua? vocatur Cantguic, et usque ad cumulum occidentalem, 
 id est, Cruc Ochidient." Mons Jovis is the great .St. Bernard: Cangtuic. or 
 Quoentavic was situated upon the river Quenta (now Carche) near the monas- 
 tery of St. Josse and Estaples. It is mentioned by Heddius (Vit. Wilf. c. 
 xxiv), Beda (Hist. Eccl. iv. 1.), and by various other writers. The position of 
 Cruc Ochidient is not known. In the Life of Oudoceus also, inserted in the 
 Register of Llandaf, it is stated, that in his time the kingdom of Armorica 
 reached as far as the Alps. (p. 123.) This circumstance very clearly explain 
 the intimacy which subsisted between the churches of both countries at the 
 time under consideration.
 
 103 
 
 the language of the country.* It is not clear whether or not 
 his colleague could establish any such relationship. If he 
 could, it would seem, however, that by residence abroad he had 
 legally forfeited the rights of a freeborn Cymro, for a son of his 
 is represented in the following Triads as a prince of vassal or 
 alien origin. 
 
 " Three kings who had been vassals ; — Gwryat, the son of 
 Gwryan, in the north ; Cadavael, the son of Cynvedw, in 
 Gwynedd ( Venedotia), and Hyveidd, the son of Bleiddig, in 
 South Wales."t 
 
 " The three alien princes of the Isle of Britain : — Gwrgai, 
 the son of Gwrien, in the North ; Cadavael, the son of Cyn- 
 vedw, in Gwynedd ; and Hyvaidd Hir, the son of Saint Bleidd- 
 ian, in M organ wg (Glamorgan) ; that is, they were invested 
 with principality on account of their praiseworthy and gracious 
 acts and principles.''} 
 
 These " apostolical priests, 1 '' as they are styled by Constan- 
 tius, immediately on their arrival in Britain applied themselves 
 to their appointed task with zeal and devotion. They preached 
 in the churches, and fields, and highways, with such success, 
 that multitudes of the heterodox were convinced, and the weak 
 and wavering confirmed on all sides. The heads of the heresy 
 having at first kept out of the way, were at length compelled, 
 probably by a sense either of shame or despair, to meet their 
 antagonists, and discuss the merits of their different tenets at a 
 public conference. At this meeting, which, as we are informed 
 
 * Though there is no reason to suppose that the original dialect of Gallia 
 was essentially different from that of Britain. Thus the Historical Triads 
 relate of the primitive Cymry, that they came to " the Isle of Britain, and to 
 Llydaw, where they settled " (Tr. 4) ; and of the Lloegrians, and Brython, who 
 suhsequently emigrated from the latter place to Britain, it is said, that they 
 "had sprung from the primitive race of the Cymry, and were of one language 
 and one speech." (Tr. 5.) So Bleiddian, perhaps, had he been a mere Gallican 
 native, might have been able to converse intelligibly with the people of Britain. 
 Claudius Menard us, however, makes him to be a brother of Germanus ; Petrus 
 Equilinus, a kinsman. According to Eucherius, he was a brother of the cele- 
 brated Vincentius Lirinensis. (Usher, p. 175.) 
 
 f Triad 7(5, first series. 
 
 % Triad 2(>, third series.
 
 lot 
 
 by Mattheus Florilegus,* was held at Verulam, the victory was 
 decisive on the part of the Catholics ; for Gannon and Bleidd- 
 ian brought reason, learning, and Scripture to bear against the 
 arguments and sophistry of the Pelagians with such powerful 
 i ffect, as to put them completely to silence. The audience re- 
 ceived the result with acclamations, and could scarcely refrain 
 from laving violent hands on the defeated party.t 
 
 Soon after, the Gallican champions contributed to a victorj 
 of a different kind, yet bloodless. The Saxons and Picts had 
 joined their forces, and were advancing upon Wales, when, at 
 the earnesl request of the Cymry, Garmon and Bleiddian en- 
 tered the camp. It was the Baored season of Lent, and the 
 attention of the army was particularly directed to the due 
 solemnization of the approaching festival of Easter: a church 
 
 formed for tl ion, of ii n branches of tr 
 
 the bishops preached daily, the unbaptised eagerly sought the 
 laver of regeneration, whilst all, casting aside their arms, 
 trusted in the especial protection of the Lord of Hosts. When 
 the paschal solemnity - were rmon, at the head of 
 
 Cambrian soldiers, retired into a defile to wait the arrival of 
 the enemies, who. having be x apprised of their unwarlike situa- 
 tion, were now hastening their march towards the camp, in 
 confident anticipation of an easy conquest. When they came 
 
 * Flor. Hist, ad annum 446. According to II tor Boethius, it was held 
 in London. The former, however, seems to be right, being supported by an- 
 cient documents in the church of St Albans. — Usher, cap. xi. 
 f Constant, lib. i. cap. "Jo. 
 
 + It is evident from other authorities that the Britons had been disturbed by 
 Saxon parties before the time of Hengist Tims Ammianus Marcellinus in- 
 forms us that the ease was so in the beginning of the reign of Valentinian I. 
 And under the emperor Honorius, Clandian introduces Britain making tins 
 panegyric upon Stilichon : 
 
 Illius effectum cutis, ne bella timerem 
 Scotica, ne Pictum tremerem ; ne linen I 
 Prospicerem dubiis venturum Swos \ rentis. 
 
 [t appears further from the Notitia Imperii, that a "comes Saxonici littoris" 
 had been expressly appointed by the Romans to guard the Brit 
 against this foreign enemy. See Usher, p. 181; CoMer,B. i. : and SHUing- 
 faet, p. 304.
 
 105 
 
 up, the prelates shouted aloud, the army took up the cry, which 
 was reverberated by the rocks and hills — Alleluia, Alle- 
 luia, Alleluia. The Saxons and Picts, struck with panic at 
 the unexpected sound, threw down their arms, and fled in 
 every direction, leaving the Christians undisputed masters of 
 the field.* 
 
 The scene of this transaction is laid near Mold, Flintshire, 
 at a place still called Maes Gannon, or Gannon's field, and the 
 Church of Llanarmon, in the neighbourhood, is supposed to 
 occupy the very spot where the wattled edifice stood, in which 
 the army celebrated the services of Master. t 
 
 Bleiddian appears to have been less obtrusive than Garmon, 
 yet he founded the churches Llanvleiddian Vawr and Llan- 
 vleiddian Vach, both in the county of Glamorgan, + and most 
 probably in the very territory which was conferred upon his son 
 Hyvaidd. 
 
 The two bishops may have stayed in Britain about two or 
 three years, after which, having accomplished the particular ob- 
 ject of their mission, they returned to their respective dioceses 
 in Gaul. But no sooner had they departed, than the Church 
 was exposed to fresh danger from the barbarians, who had re- 
 newed their attack, and were once more spreading devastation 
 through the land.§ Cyhelyn,|| Archbishop of London, A.D. 433, 
 in the name of his countrymen, applied to Aldor, king of Ar- 
 morica, who had married a sister of Garmon, for assistance, 
 which was readily granted him in the person of Cystennyn 
 ( Constantino), the king's own brother, and a large body of 
 
 * Constant, lib. i. cap. 28. 
 
 f Britan. Eccles. Antiq. p. 170. Essay on the Welsh Saints, p. L25. 
 
 + Essay, &c. p. L26. 
 
 § This was probably the third devastation described by Gildas, the second 
 having taken place about the departure of the Romans. 
 
 So named in Brut. G. ab Arthur and two other chronicles. In BrutTy- 
 silio, he is called Cyhylyn. The Latin version of Geoffrey of Monmouth 
 makes him into Guitelinus; and William Caxton into Gosselinus : and all 
 represent him as Bishop of London. It is observable, however, that in Iolo 
 Morganwg's list of the primitive bishops of Llandaf, we have the names of 
 Cyhelyn and Givythelyn mentioned as the ninth and tenth who presided over 
 that ancienl
 
 106 
 
 troops. On his arrival, Cystennvn was elected by the con- 
 federated states, supreme monarch of the island, and generalis- 
 simo of the combined forces, and hence has he been distinguished 
 in the Triad as one of "the three foreign sovereigns of the [sle 
 of Britain."* The epithet " Bendigaid " (Blessed) has, more- 
 over, been bestowed upon him in consideration «>f the Bervici 3 
 which he rendered to tin' cause of religion. Some <»t' these are 
 specified in the Welsh documents. In the "Genealogy of the 
 Saints," he is said t<> have, in conjunction with the emperor 
 Theodosius first founded the college of Caerworgan.f As 
 there is reason to believe that this was Theodosius the Great, 
 who was a warm patron of the interests of virtue ami learning, 
 as well as a zealous promoter of Christianity, the event alluded 
 to must have happened between the year 388, when Maximus 
 was slain, and :;!>•". when Theodosius died. Oystennyn was 
 then a youn<j man, and there is nothing improbable in his 1>< in_ 
 in Britain during a period of his early life, when we duly con- 
 sider his family and kindred. Indeed, Zozimus and Orosius 
 clearly assert that he once was here, and afterwards departed 
 hence into Ganl.t It would appear, moreover, that he had 
 held an office of distinction under the Romans, for Gildas de- 
 scribes him as wearing the purple, and Bede as bearing "regium 
 nomen et insigne."§ He was also married, according to (Jeof- 
 1'rev of Monmouth, to a lady sprung from a noble race of 
 Romans. || Hence Gildas and Bede speaking of his son Emrya 
 
 • " The three foreign kings of the [sle of Britain; Gwrddyled Gawi (the 
 giant), Morien Varvawg (bearded), and Cystennvn Ycndigaid (the blessed)." — 
 Triad 44. 
 
 f See page 97, note. The infirmities of age may have induced Owain to 
 give up the sovereignty, or perhaps he was dead. 
 
 + Zozim. lib. vi. P. Oros. hist. lib. 7. cap. 40. 
 
 § Gildas, cap. 25. Bede lib. i. cap. xvi. 
 
 || Galfrid. Monemnth. lib. 6. Brut Tysilio : Brut. G. ab Arthur. Of these 
 Bruts or Chronicles which arc inserted in the second volume of the Myvyrian 
 Archaiology, it may be proper to observe that, at the conclusion of the former, 
 are added the following words : "I, Walter, archdeacon of Oxford; did tarn 
 this book out of Welsh into Latin ; and in my old age, I turned it the second 
 time out of Latin into Welsh." The editors are of opinion, that Walter 
 having translated the said chronicle, which is meagre and unadorned, into
 
 107 
 
 Wledig (Ambrosius Aurelius), represent him as probably of 
 Roman descent, — " forte Romance gentis.' 1 These circumstances 
 sufficiently account for the intimacy between Theodosius and 
 Cystennyn, and their co-operation in the advancement of learning 
 and religion. 
 
 The British monarch is stated, moreover, to have established 
 the college of Llancarvan, Glamorganshire, with the assistance 
 of Meirig ab Tewdrig, regulus of the district.* The church of 
 Llangystennyn, near Conway, is also supposed to owe its found- 
 ation to him.t He died in the year 443, and was succeeded in 
 the sovereignty by his son Constans. 
 
 Under the protection of Meirig ab Tewdrig, the cathedral 
 church of Llandaf was rebuilt, and the said king endowed it 
 liberally with divers territories, privileges, and rents, the grants 
 of which are recorded in the register of that see .J 
 
 a.d. 447. In consequence of the revival of Pelagianism, 
 Garmon, at the request of the Britons, paid a second visit to 
 this country, accompanied by Severus, Bishop of Triers, who 
 was the disciple of Bleiddian. On this occasion, the prelates 
 were not content with argument and exhortation alone, but 
 proceeded, with the consent of the community at large, to act 
 
 Latin, a more elegant Latin version, with poetical emhellishments, was pro- 
 duced by Geoffrey, and that this it was which Walter retranslated in his old 
 age, and which is printed second in order under the name of G. ab Arthur. 
 At the end of this, are the words : " The kings of the Saxons, who followed in 
 succession, I have commended to William of Malmsbury, and to Henry of 
 Huntingdon ; and to those I have thus commended to write of the kings of the 
 Saxons, and to desist with regard to the Welsh, since they are not possessed of 
 that book, which Walter, archdeacon of Oxford, turned into Latin ; and he 
 treated faithfully and completely of the before-mentioned British princes, and 
 all that I have again translated from the Welsh into Latin." The different 
 readings of two other chronicles are also inserted under the signatures of A. and 
 B. That marked ' A' is said to agree in many parts, word for word, with Brut 
 G. ab Arthur; but the one under the signature 'B' is a different composition 
 altogether from either of the others, but agreeing, nevertheless, in general as to 
 the subject. 
 
 * Cambrian Biography voce Meirig. 
 
 f Rces's Essay, &c. p. 128. 
 
 % Liber Landavensis, pp. 621, .310, 311.
 
 108 
 
 Upon the Valcntinian edict whereby the principal teachers of 
 the heresy were sent into exile.* 
 
 Though this fact remarkably evinc nbordination of the 
 
 civil states in general, to the authority and influence of the 
 Church, we must not omit to mention two instances in connec- 
 tion with the history of Gannon of an opposite character. In 
 the oik.' case, Benlli,fking of Powys, insolently refused to admit 
 the saint within his city, or to afford him accommodation for the 
 night, when he had come with the express purpose of preaching 
 to him the word of God. In the other, Gwrthej rn ( Vortigern), 
 a chief, whose dominions extended along the vale of the river 
 Wye,] endeavoured, in a council of his countrymen, to palm 
 upon him the fruit of his own incest. But these arc i xcep- 
 tions, and there were circumstances attending them which ^till 
 attested the ecclesiastical power. Benlli met with his death <>n 
 the second night ; and Oadell, his swineherd, who had offered 
 Gannon that hospitality which had been denied by his mast 
 was, in accordance with the prophetic blessing of his guest, 
 elected to succeed him in his principality. It would api 
 that Cadell upon this, appropriated a portion of land to the 
 service of the Lord, for the church of Llanarmon Dyflryn 
 Ceiriog, founded by the saint, stands in the district which 
 
 * Constant, lib. ii. Bed. lilt. i. cap. xxi. 
 
 f In one copy of Nennius, he is styled Henli in regione Jul . other \ersions 
 have in regione Dalreata ; Belinus ; Beluni; and Benty. It is uot very evi- 
 dent whether Benlli Gawr, or his son Beli, is here meant. In favour of the 
 latter, besides the support which it has from one, if not two copies of Nennius, 
 it is alleged that otherwise the statement as to the immediate succession of 
 Cadell, would be untrue. But to this it may be replied, that there is no evi- 
 dence that Beli, though a powerful chieftain, succeeded to the principality of 
 his father. It we understand here the son, it becomes probable that the Church 
 of Llanarmon was founded near the scene of his death, on a spot of ground 
 granted for the occasion by the new prince, Cadell : for it is interred from the 
 Englynion y Beddau (Stanzas of (ho Grans — Mvv. Arch. i. 82), that Beli was 
 buried in Llanarmon yn Ial. 
 
 J According to Nennius, his territories included the northern part of tbe 
 present counties of Radnor and Brecon ; and some of the Welsh geneaL . 
 state, that he was the regulus of Erging or Archenfield, in Herefordshire.
 
 109 
 
 might have been a part of his newly-acquired possessions.* 
 Again, Gwrtheyrns villainy was detected, and he was cursed by 
 Garmon, and the whole body of clergy assembled ; and further, 
 his son Gwrthevyr (Vortimer), to appease the Gallican prelate, 
 gave him the land, upon which he had suffered the insult, to be 
 his for ever. A church was erected on the spot, which, to this 
 day, goes by the name of St. Harmon.t 
 
 In addition to the churches already mentioned, Garmon 
 founded also the church of Llanvechain,| in the county of 
 Montgomery, but whether during his first or second mission, it 
 is not easy to determine. His last visit must have been of short 
 continuance, for he is said to have died in Italy, A.D. 448. § 
 
 The same year, Gwrtheyrn, who had participated in tho 
 councils of Constans, treacherously slew him, compelled his 
 brothers, Emrys and Uthyr, to leave tho country, and assumed 
 the supreme command in his own person. The two brothers 
 fled to Armorica, where they were kindly received by Budec, 
 the king. Gwrtheyrn, with a view to secure himself against 
 any power which might be raised in favour of them on the con- 
 tinent, and also to repel the prevailing irruptions of the Gwydd- 
 yl Fichti, entered into an alliance with some of tho Saxon 
 tribes. He gave them the isle of Thanet for a residence, mar- 
 ried Rhonwen, tho daughter of Hengist, one of their leaders, 
 and settled upon her the territory of Kent, and upon the son 
 he afterwards had by her, he agreed to bestow tho monarchy of 
 Britain. || The Saxons took advantage of such impolitic mea- 
 sures, and having received a considerable accession to their 
 numbers from Germany, peremptorily threatened, in case their 
 privileges were not still more extended, to sever the union, and 
 invade the country on their own account. This roused the in- 
 dignation of the British people, who, when they could not pre- 
 vail upon the sovereign to dismiss his arrogant confederates, 
 unanimously forsook him, and transferred their allegiance to his 
 son, Gwrthevyr, A.D. 456. And now commenced that war be- 
 
 * Essay on the Welsh Saints, p. 130. f Nennius, 32, Sec. and 39, &c. 
 % Essay on the Welsh Saints, p. 131. 
 § Sigon. de Occidental. Impcr. lib. 13. Usher, p. 204. 
 || Triads 48, !»1 (fust series); Tr. (i (second scries); Tr. 21, 37, 53, 100 
 (thud scries). Nennius, sec. 31. BrutTysilio. Brut G. ah Arthur. 
 
 M
 
 110 
 
 tween the two nations, which forms such a prominent part in the 
 history of Britain. Under Gwrthevyr the Britons were mainly 
 victorious, but his reign lasted a short time only, being poi- 
 soned in the year 460,* through the contrivance of Rhonwen, 
 when his father, by some unaccountable means, re-ascended the 
 throne. At the instigation of Bhonwen, her countrymen made 
 their appearance again, and stipulated with the king that a 
 congress of the nobles on both sides, should be held, at which 
 to concert anew terms of solid amity and alliance between them. 
 At this meeting, held on the plains of Caer Oaradawc (Salis- 
 bury), the Saxons, however, at a given signal from Hengist, 
 seized their dangers, which they had concealed under some part 
 of their dress, and with them barbarously massacred all the 
 unarmed and unsuspecting Britons, except Eidiol, earl of Glou- 
 cester, and Grwrtheyrn himself, who was taken prisoner. The 
 royal captive, on giving up a considerable part of his possessions, 
 recovered his liberty, and fled into his patrimonial dominions in 
 Wales, where he was followed and put to death by Emrys and 
 his brother, at the head of a large army of Cymry and Armo- 
 ricans.t 
 
 Gwrtheyrn is branded in the Triads as one of " the three 
 arrant traitors,"! one of ; ' the three notorious drunkards, 1 ^ and 
 one of " the three persons who, with their posterity, were sub- 
 jected to disgrace, and divested of privilege for ever.'"j| It is 
 also intimated, that he was privy to the design of Hengist 
 in the " plot of the long knives," which is there designated as 
 one of " the three treacherous meetings of the Isle of Britain."^ 
 The reign of Gwrtheyrn was a stormy period for the British 
 Church. The Saxons, whether they be regarded civilly as 
 friends or foes, were equally adverse to her welfare with the 
 Picts,** whilst the monarch, himself an obstinate pagan, viewed 
 the sacrilegious insults of both with indifference, if not compla- 
 cency. The Saxon treaty was, as it were, originally ratified 
 with the unrevenged blood of Vodin of London, which was shed 
 
 * Mat. Westm. f Brut Tysilio ; Brut G. ab Arthur. Xennius. 
 
 % Triad 21. § Triad 37. || Triad 100. H Triad 20. 
 
 ** Perhaps more so, as the Picts were uow partially instructed in the truths 
 of Christianity. The mission of Xinian, the great apostle of ihe south Picts, 
 is placed about the year 412.
 
 Ill 
 
 by Hengist, because the archbishop reproved the marriage 
 which his sovereign had contracted with Rhonwen.* Indeed, 
 those German tribes seem to have had all along the extinction 
 of the national religion especially in their view, and their efforts 
 to gain their purpose in that respect, wherever their power 
 predominated, were crowned with most awful success. Gildast 
 applies to their devastations the words of the Psalmist : 
 " They have cast fire into thy sanctuary, they have defiled by 
 casting down the dwelling-place of thy name to the ground/"' 
 (Ps. lxxiv. 7.) " O God, the heathen are come into thine in- 
 heritance, thy holy temple have they defiled.' 1 (Ps. lxxix. i.) 
 " The priests," says Bede,J " were slain at the altars ; the 
 prelates and people together were destroyed by fire and sword, 
 and no man dared to give them burial." But the disaster was 
 confined chiefly to the south-eastern districts of England, and 
 was even there partly and temporarily repaired by Gwrthevyr 
 during his short supremacy. We learn from Mattheus Florile- 
 gus and G. ab Arthur, that as he overcame his enemies he re- 
 stored to the natives their lost property, rebuilt the churches 
 which had been demolished, and treated men of religion with 
 great honour. § Gwrthevyr, probably on account of such ser- 
 vices, has been surnamed " Bendigaid " {the blessed), and is dis- 
 tinguished in the Triads, as one of " the three canonized kings 
 of the Isle of Britain. 11 1| 
 
 But Cymru was not, in the meanwhile, in a state of perfect 
 repose, nor even altogether free from the influence of Saxon 
 tyranny. The Gwyddyl, both in the northern and western 
 regions, though in the latter their power had been recently 
 very much circumscribed, continued still as thorns in the sides 
 of the natives. The interest of the Church, however, was ac- 
 tively promoted by Cynllo, son of Mor, who founded five 
 churches in a district comprehending parts of the counties of 
 Radnor and Cardigan, where, it would seem, he once exercised 
 the authority of a regulus ;1 by Cadell Deyrnllug,** prince of 
 
 * Hect. Boeth. Scotor. liistor. lib. 8. f Sect. 24. % Lib. i. cap. xv. 
 
 § Usher, cap. xii. Brut G. ab Arthur. Myv. Arch. vol. ii. p. 252. 
 || Cambrian Biography. 
 
 % la tlic old editions of the Welsh Common Prayer, he is styled Cynllo 
 Vif nhin, or the king. — Rces's Essay, fyc. p. 133. 
 
 ** The prince alluded to in page 108, as having succeeded Bcnlli in his do- 
 minions- " Ipse est Catcll Durnluc." Ncnnius sect 35.
 
 112 
 
 the Vale Royal, and the upper part of Powys ; by Tewdrig, 
 king of Glamorgan,* and his son Meirig; by Cystennyn Gorneu, 
 a Cornish chieftain, supposed to have been the founder of 
 Llangystennyn, in Ergyng or Archenfield, and Llangerniw on 
 the banks of the Dour ; and his sons Erbin and Digain, to the 
 latter of whom the foundation of the church of Llangerniw, in 
 Denbighshire, is attributed ;t by Cystennyn Vendigaid, as 
 already described ; by ( 3 wrthevyr's brothers, Edeyrn, Aerdeyrn, 
 and Elldeyrn,t whoso sphere of labour was in the county of 
 Glamorgan ; by Gynyr of Caer Gawch, who gave all his lands 
 to the Church; by Tudwal Bevr, a bishop in the line of Cynan 
 Meiriadog;§ by Brynach Wyddel (the Irishman), the spiritual 
 instructor of Brychan, and the founder of the churches of Llan- 
 vrynach, Brecknockshire, Llanvrynach, alias lVnllin, Glamor- 
 ganshire, Llanboidy, Carmarthenshire, and Llanvernach, Dinas, 
 andNevern, IVmbrokeshire ; || and most of all by the families of 
 Cunedda and Brychan, who, with the household of Bran, it will 
 be remembered, are emphatically styled " the three holy families 
 of the Isle of Britain. 1 ' 
 
 The progeny of Brychan employed themselves chiefly in the 
 diffusion of Christian doctrines and the establishing of churches, 
 whilst those of Cunedda, in the situation of military chieftains, 
 acted more particularly as the defenders <>{' the faith. The 
 latter, it is true, rank somewhat prior in the order of time, but 
 as the members were numerous on both sides, there were several 
 who were necessarily contemporaries. Brychan's family con- 
 sisted of twenty-four men, and twenty-five women ;H however, 
 
 * One of " the three canonized kings." In fighting against the Saxons, he 
 received a wound, and, expecting it to be mortal, he requested that a church 
 should he raised on the spot where he should expire. A church was erected 
 accordingly by his son, Meirig, which was called from the circumstance Mer- 
 thvr Tewdrig, now Mathern. — Rees's Essay, §-c. p. 184. 
 
 f Liber Landavensis, pp. 314, 315 ; Rees's Essay, &c. p. 134. 
 
 X Rees's Essay, p. 18(3. § lb. pp. 162, 133. 
 
 \\ " It may also he inferred, from the analogy of similar cases, that Henry's 
 Moat, and Pontfaen, in the neighbourhood of the throe latter, which Ecton as- 
 cribes to St. Bernard, should be attributed to Brynach, whose parishes would 
 thus form a continuous endowment, which was afterwards disturbed by the 
 Norman Lords of Cemmaes." (lb. p. 156) Brynach is said to have married 
 Corth or Cymorth, one of the daughters o( Brychan. 
 
 U Brychan was married three times. " Three wives had Brychan, namely.
 
 113 
 
 in this unusual number both chronology and the expression of 
 the Triad will require us to include his grandchildren. 
 
 The triadic statement indicates that these " shewed the faith 
 in Christ to the nation of the Cymry wherever they were with- 
 out the faith." Now, it is not to be hence inferred that the 
 Christian religion was not yet nationally or generally received 
 in Wales, or that a system of heathenism was recognised to any 
 considerable extent by a portion of the natives. The strong 
 position in which we have just viewed the Church is opposed to 
 such a conclusion. Nevertheless, the political convulsions of 
 the times would necessarily exclude some of the Cymry for a time 
 from participation in the initiatory sacrament of Christianity, 
 as had been the case probably with the soldiers whom Gannon 
 baptised previous to the " Alleluia-tic Victory." Some having 
 been incorporated into the mystical body of Christ, would, for 
 the same cause be left without religious instruction — without 
 " the benefit of absolution, 1 '' — and without spiritual food to 
 " strengthen and refresh their souls," and so " had a name that 
 they lived, and were dead. 1 '' Others, again, from their inter- 
 course with the Gwyddyl Fichti would have their Christian 
 principles corrupted, and would accordingly exhibit a sort of 
 mixed creed, like that of the Pelagians. In any of these 
 respects, might the people be properly said to be " without the 
 faith." But it is very probable that the reference in the Triad 
 is more particularly, if not entirely, made to the Irish usurpers 
 just mentioned, who, from their residence in Wales, might have 
 been mistaken for the " nation of the Cymry."* This hypo- 
 
 Eurbrawst, Rhybrawst, and Peresgri.'' (Genealogy of the Saints.) The names 
 of his progeny were : {Males) Cynawg, Cleclwyn, Dingad, Arthen, Cyvlevyr, 
 Rhain, Dyvnan, Gerwyn, Cadog, Mathaiarn, Pascen, Nefai, Pahiali, Llechea, 
 Cynbryd, Cynvran, Hychan, Dyvrig, Cynin, Dogvan, Rhawin, Rhun, and 
 Cledog. (Females.) Gwladus, Arianwen, Tanglwst, Mechell, Nevyn, Gwawr, 
 Gwrgon, Eleri, Lleian, Nevydd, Rhiengar, Goleuddydd, Gwenddydd orGwawr- 
 ddydd, Tydieu, Elined, Ceindrych, Gwen, Cenedlon, Cymorth, Dwynwen, 
 Ceinwen, Tydvyl, Enrail, Hawystl, and Tybic. — lb. 
 
 * Likely it is that Benlli and Beli, mentioned at page 108, were amongst 
 the Gwyddyl thus confounded with the native Cymry. The Rev. Mr. Price, 
 in his " Hanes Cymru," cites a document which describes Beli as fighting 
 against Meilyr ; and it is evident from the " Genealogy of the Saints," that this 
 Meilyr had a prominent part in the expulsion of the Irish. (See Cambrian Bio-
 
 114 
 
 thesis is remarkably supported by the fact, that the several 
 districts in which the family of Brychan established churches 
 were, at the time, tin' principal settlements of the Gwyddyl 
 Fichti. For though these territory a had be< n in general sub- 
 jected to the jurisdiction of the sons of Ounedda, there were 
 some still inhabited by numbers of the aliens, who had peitina- 
 ciously maintained their ground. They were doI fully expelled, 
 until Caswallon Law Hir ( oita th\ longhand), attended by his 
 cousins Meigyr, Cynyr, and Meilyr, grandsons of Ounedda^ 
 drove them out of Mona, or Anglesey, — then " the Cymrytook 
 courage, and chased them from every other part of Gwynedd, 
 so that none remained in the country bul such of them a- were 
 made slaves."' Besidi 9, a family whose origin was Irish, would 
 naturally turn their attention first to the spiritual state of their 
 own kindred, and would If much more liki ly to gain com 
 from amongst them, than from amongst tin 1 native < '} mry, espe- 
 cially at a time when both people i I each other with the 
 eye of jealousy and hatred. 
 
 But with a \i''\\ to the i ndowment, which, in a certain degree, 
 the foundation of churches aec< asarily invi would be i \- 
 
 peoted that those which the children and grandchildren of 
 Brychan established would be chiefly situate within their patri- 
 monial possessions, or in those localities over which they may 
 have gained royal authority. Ai sordingiy, wo find that they 
 founded twenty-twof in Brecknockshire and it- borders. The 
 patrimony oi' Brychan was inherited by his sons Clydwyn and 
 llhain Dremrudd, who wore the only members of the family 
 
 graph;/, voce Meigyr. Dr. 0. Pughe asserts that Beli introduced several 
 strange and irregular articles into the Bardic code of the country, which 
 would be quite in accordance with his character as an Irishman. He further 
 infers, apparently without the least suspicion that the chieftain in question 
 was otherwise than a Cymro, that according to his new regular I .ht of 
 
 the Bards to the Christian priesthood was excluded. Llywarch Hen, intr. p. lx. 
 and Diction, voce Beli. On such an hypothesis, the whole statement of Nen- 
 nius becomes perfectly intelligible. 
 
 * "Genealogy of the Saints,*' quoted in the "Cambrian Biography," voce 
 Meiu;vr. Meigyi and Meilyr are both included in the Silurian catalogue of 
 Saints. — / ' on the Welsh Saints, p. I 1 
 
 •f Including those established by Brynach ami Gastayn, the spiritual in- 
 structors of Brychan, and liis eldest son Cyuog respectively. — lb. 157. In all 
 they amount to about fifty-five.
 
 115 
 
 that embraced a military life. The former established besides 
 a certain dominion over the counties of Carmarthen and Pem- 
 broke which were occupied by the Gwyddyl Fichti, and there 
 were founded sixteen churches. Three of the family are known 
 to have settled in the Isle of Man, and some in Anglesey, in 
 both of which places there are Christian edifices dedicated to 
 their memory ; but how they came to have any territorial in- 
 terest in those countries is not equally clear. Most of the re- 
 maining churches which members of this family established are 
 situated together in the county of Denbigh.'* 
 
 In some places, however, the requisite sites might have been 
 granted by the descendants of Cunedda, and other Christian 
 chieftains, who would rejoice in thus having it in their power to 
 promote the interest of the Church. l3ut more easily would 
 they be obtained, in certain instances, by means of the matri- 
 monial alliances contracted by some of the daughters and grand- 
 daughters of Brychan with Northwallian princes. Thus wo 
 read that Gwenddydd was married to Cadell Deyrnllug, prince 
 of Vale Royal and the upper part of Powys;f that Arianwen, 
 probably a grand-daughter, became the wife of Iorwerth 
 Hirvlawdd, of Powya ;J and that Gwen married Llyr Merini, 
 son of Einion Yrth prince of Caereinion.§ Some of the con- 
 verted Irish might also have bestowed upon the church a part 
 of their usurped property, particularly in those places where 
 their power was greatest, such as the counties of Carmarthen, 
 Pembroke, Anglesey, and the Isle of Man. 
 
 In their missionary undertakings, this family had to encoun- 
 ter occasionally many and great difficulties, and some of them 
 are even ranked as martyrs. It is observable, however, that no 
 martyrdom is recorded as having been brought upon them by 
 the native Cymry, but merely by the Irish and Saxons, which 
 confirms the inference that these, if not exclusively, yet more 
 particularly, were the infidels of the Triad. Thus Cynog, tho 
 eldest son of Brychan, was murdered by the pagan Saxons, 
 upon a mountain called the Van in the parish of Merthvr 
 Cynog, in Brecknockshire.il Cyvlevyr fell a martyr by tho 
 
 * Ibid. p. 1"'7. f Myv. Arch. vol. ii.p. 43. { lb. p. 27. 
 
 § Rees's Essay, &c. p. 150. 
 || lb. p. 139. Merfhyr is the Welsh for Martyr.
 
 116 
 
 hands of the same people at a place hence denominated Merthyr 
 Cyvlevyr, in Cardiganshire.* So did Dogvan, at Merthyr Dog- 
 van, in Dyved or Pembrokeshire; and Cynbryd, at a place 
 called Bwlch Oynbryd.t Tydvyl, her brother Khun, and their 
 aged father himself, were beset by a party of Saxons and 
 Gwyddyl Fichti, and murdered at a place which was afterwards 
 called Merthyr Tydvyl. Ghven was put to death by the Saxons 
 at Talgarth, Brecknockshire; and Nevydd, son of Khun, was 
 slain by the Picts and Saxons in North Britain*! In the above 
 cases, the agents of persecution are specified ; but there \ 
 others who died equally by martyrdom, though it has not been 
 recorded from what particular quarter it was inflict d. These 
 were Clydog; Elined, whose place of martyrdom was a hill 
 called Penginger, near Brecknock; and Tybie, who is said to 
 ha\e been murdered by the pagans in Carmarthenshire^ 
 
 Some of this "holy family' 1 are described a- bishops; as 
 I >\ \ ri-r. supposed to he -rand -on of Brychan ; Nevydd, likewise 
 a grandson, the son of Rhun; and Cynin, the son of Tudwal 
 Bevr, by Nevydd, a daughter of the king. Most of the others 
 were no doubt in holy order-, eith r as priests or deacons, 
 travelling in the capacity of home missionaries, for the purpose 
 of converting the infidel, in<tnietinu r the ignorant, and oon- 
 firming the weak or wavering Christian. Dingad, in his old 
 age, devoted himself to religion within the walls of a mo- 
 nastery. ^1 
 
 With respect to the female members, about six only are re- 
 presented as founders of churches ; the rest are Bimply styled 
 saints. 
 
 * lb. p. 141. t lb- PP. I**- 1 15. 
 
 X lb. p. 150, 151, 140. ^ lb. pp. 1 16, 1 19, 152. 
 
 11 lb. p. 144,146. « lb. p. 140.
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 DEFENDERS OF THE FAITH. 
 
 " It was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should 
 earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints." — 
 
 JUDE 3. 
 
 EMRYS Wledig obtained the sovereignty of Britain A.D. 466.* 
 Following after the Saxons, who had betaken themselves beyond 
 the Ilumber, ho was grieved to witness the extensive desolation 
 to which they had reduced the temples of God. The sight 
 indeed filled his mind with most painful reflections, and induced 
 him to form a resolution, that, if he returned victorious, he 
 should lose no time in repairing the sacrilegious breaches, and 
 restoring the honour of divine worship. He came up to his 
 enemies, engaged, and conquered them, at a place called Maes 
 Beli. Hengist having fled as far as Caer Conan (Connisburgh), 
 was there captured by Eidiol, the hero of Caer Caradawg, and 
 by the advice of his brother Eldad, bishop of Gloucester, was 
 led out of the city and beheaded. t 
 
 Octa son of Hengist, and his relative Eosa, soon after sur- 
 rendered themselves to the British king, who conceded to them 
 a district bordering upon Scotland for an habitation.^ 
 
 Peace being now concluded, Emrys, with a view to carry his re- 
 cent intentions into effect, convened a council of bishops and no- 
 blemen at York, where it was agreed that the Christian edifices 
 which had been destroyed by the pagans, should all be rebuilt 
 at the sole expense of the monarch. He then visited London, 
 
 * Matt. Florilcg. f Brut Tysilio ; Brut G. ab Arthur. \ lb. et Brut B. 
 
 N 2
 
 118 
 
 Winchester, and Salisbury : and, at the suggestion of Tramor, 
 bishop of Caerlcon, commanded that the structure called by the 
 English Stonehenge, should be erected near the latter town, as 
 a worthy monument to the victims of "the 1 < »n lt kni This 
 
 was accomplished under the direction and superintendence of 
 Merddin Emrys, the king's hard, and it has ever sine- been 
 emphatically styled by the Welsh '* Gwaith Lanr\s." or the 
 work of Emrys. It is thus ooticed in the Triads: — 
 
 " The three mighty labours of the [sle of Britain ; — erecting 
 the stone of Ketti, constructing the work of Emrys, and heaping 
 the pile of < !yvrangon."f 
 
 The structure was raised on the Bite of a former conventional 
 circle, which was used both asa Bardic seal and a court of judi- 
 cature, hence its selection lately as a suitable place for the pre 
 tended - ttlemenl of national differences between the Britons 
 and Saxons. The remains display a considerable skill in ma- 
 thematics, but there is a deviation from the pure principles of 
 constructing the Bardic circles as illustrated in those of Avebury, 
 Stanton Drew, and many others. The innovation may b< 
 cribed to Irish Bardism, which was in part adopted by many of 
 the natives. This hypothesis would account for the legend 
 which was in aft< r times told of Merddin Emrys having by bis 
 magic power transported Stonehenge from Ireland. 
 
 Merddin was a Christian, as we are informed in the following 
 Triad :— 
 
 " The throe primary baptist d (or Christian) Hard- of the Isle 
 of Britain, — Merddin Emrys, Taliesin the chief of the Bards, 
 and Merddin the son of Madawg Morvryn."* 
 
 Emrys Wledig seems to have been partial to the society of 
 Bards, for he had also a renowned member of the order as his 
 chaplain, namely, Talhaiarn. who was a descendant of Coel 
 Grodebog. He composed a prayer which ever after has been 
 the formula used in the congress of the Bards of Glamorgan. 
 A saying of his has been preserved by Taliesin : — 
 " According to the language of Talhaiarn, 
 There will be baptism until the Day of Judgment. v § 
 
 * Ih. Girald. Topograph, distinct. ii. c.l 8. 
 
 f Triad 88. J Triad 126. 
 
 § My v. Arch. vol. i. Move literally, perhaps. — " There will he baptism at
 
 119 
 
 A.D. 490, Dyvrig, supposed to be the son of Papai or Pa- 
 biali, son of Brychan,* was elevated by the monarch to the see of 
 Caerleon, then vacant by the decease of Tramor. And the 
 same year, Samson, the son of Caw, lord of Owm Cawlwyd or 
 Cowllwg, a district in the north, was by him also constituted 
 archbishop of York.-f* 
 
 Such are the principal actions recorded as having been done 
 by Emrys in behalf of the Church. Nor had he much leisure 
 and tranquillity for carrying on, and extending his works of 
 piety, even after his victory over the Saxons in the north ; for 
 he had to contend with Ella and Cerdic, who, towards the con- 
 clusion of his reign, succeeded in establishing the kingdoms of 
 Sussex and Wessex respectively.! Several of the natives, being 
 thus deprived of their possessions in those localities, moved to 
 the north, but being there again sorely harassed, both by the 
 Picts and Saxons, they were finally compelled to seek an asylum 
 in Wales. § 
 
 Amongst others who thus emigrated during the present reign, 
 the following are worthy of especial note. 
 
 Pabo, a descendant of Coel Grodebog, who, from his great 
 valour in opposing the enemies of his country, was emphatically 
 styled •■ Post Prydain," or the pillar of Britain, fled to Cyngen 
 
 the day of Judgment." ' Bedydd hi ddydd mm: Talhaiarn is mentioned by 
 Nennius, " Tunc Talhaern Cataguen in poemate claruit." 
 
 * In the " Genealogy of the Saints," Dyvrig is ranked among the children 
 of Brychan. See Myv. Arch. vol. ii. pp. 29, 39. "John of Teignmouth says 
 that his mother was Eurdila (Eurddyl) the daughter of Peiban, a certain re- 
 gulus of Cambria, hut that his father's name was unknown. One of the 
 Warwick chronicles says, that his father was a king of Erging or Erchcnfichl, 
 by name, Pepiau ; and an old commentator upon the Hook of Llandaff asserts, 
 that tin.' same statement originally appeared in that document, but that a later 
 hand, wishing to make a correction, hud mutilated the manuscript. If these 
 authorities can he depended upon, the unknown person is discovered, for 
 Pabiali, the son of Brychan, is also called Papai; and the hypothesis that 
 Dyvrig was a grandson of Brychan is satisfactorily explained.''— Rees's Essay 
 on the Wils/i Saints, p. 172. 
 
 f Myv. Arch. vol. ii. p. 280 ; Brut G. ab Arthur. Malt. Florileg. 
 
 X Hughes's Boras Britannicas, vol. ii. chap, viii 
 
 § Rees's Essay on the Welsh Saints, p. 167.
 
 120 
 
 ab Cadell, the prince of Powys, by whom he was hospitably re- 
 ceived, and had lands given to him. He afterwards lived a 
 holy life, and founded the church of Llanbabo in Anglesey, 
 where a stone still remains bearing his effigy, with the following 
 inscription :— " inc JACET PABO POST PRUD corpors . . . TE 
 . . . prima/ 1 * 
 
 Cynvarch Oer, a celebrated chieftain, also a descendant of 
 Coel, but in another line, migrated from the north and became 
 a saint in Wales. He founded the church of Llangynvarch in 
 Maelor, Flintshire, which was destroyed by the Saxons in the 
 battle of J5ang<>r Orchard, \.i>. 603.t 
 
 Pawl Hen (Paulinus) waa another, who, after his removal, 
 resided for some time at Gaerworgan, and subsequently, about 
 A.D. 480, i atablished a college at Ty-Gwyn ar Dav, or Wnitland, 
 in Carmarthenshire, <>i" which he 1" came 1 1 1 « - first abbot. He is 
 the patron Bainl <>t' the church of Llangors, Brecknockshire, 
 and dt' Capri Peulin, a chapel subject t<» Llandingad, Carmar- 
 thenshire. At no greal distance from the latter, a monumental 
 stone still exists, bearing the following inscription :— 
 
 " SERVATVU FIDl.l 
 PATRIEQ : BEMFEB 
 AM LTOB HI' I'WI.iN 
 
 VTS I M it CVLTOB PEENT — 
 SDffVS SQVI." 
 
 Giraldus Gambrensis states that he was in episcopal orders, 
 and he used accordingly to be commemorated in the old Welsh 
 calendar as Polin Esgob, or the bishop. % 
 
 But besides the Pictish and Saxon encroachments which 
 compelled these Christian chiefs to retreat to the more conge- 
 nial clime of Wales, another opposition of native origin latterly 
 engaged the attention and arms of Emrys. This was promoted 
 by Pascen, son of Gwrtheyrn, to whom the sovereign had con- 
 ceded the dominions of Buellt and Gwrtheyrnion.§ He was, 
 
 * Rees's Essay on the Welsh Saints, p. 1<17. 
 
 f lb. p. L68. I lb. p. 187 
 
 § Nennius; Brut Tysilio; Brut (J. ah Arthur.
 
 121 
 
 however, eventually defeated ; but as his rebellion broke out in, 
 and was confined to, North Britain, it undoubtedly contributed 
 to the migration just mentioned, whilst its effects could scarcely 
 be felt within the borders of Wales. This latter province then 
 at the time in question afforded the safest refuge for the exercise 
 of learning and religion, though the shock of a military revolu- 
 tion of a different character was felt here also towards the end 
 of the present reign. The final expulsion of the Gwyddyl Fichti 
 from North Wales was effected by three of the grandsons of 
 Cunedda Wledig, in company with their cousin Caswallon Law 
 Hir (with the long hand), and is thus described in the " Genea- 
 logy of the Saints :"— " Meigyr, with his brothers, Cynyr and 
 Meilyr, accompanied Caswallon Law Hir, their cousin, to drive 
 the Fichti out of Mona, to which island they had retreated from 
 the sons of Cunedda, and had strengthened themselves there. 
 After cruel fighting they drove the < 3 wyddelians out of Mona, 
 in which Caswallon slew Serigi, the Gwyddelian, with his own 
 hand. This Serigi was the leader of the Gwyddelians and the 
 Fichti, that had overrun Gwynedd from the time of Macsen 
 Wledig. And after driving the strangers out of Mona, the 
 Cymry took courage, and chased them from every other part of 
 Gwynedd, so that none remained in the country but such of 
 them as were made slaves.* 
 
 In what way this circumstance affected the state and position 
 of the Church where it happened it is not easy to discover ; for 
 we reasonably suppose that even the Irish settlers were at this 
 time pretty generally acquainted with the truths of Christianity, 
 having been instructed therein by " the holy family" of Brychan 
 Brycheiniog. Their commander, Serigi, was evidently a Chris- 
 tian, for he was afterwards canonized by his countrymen, and 
 a chapel was built over his grave near the church of Holyhead, 
 which was called Eglwys y Bedd, or Llanygwyddyl.t 
 
 * Translated in the Cambrian Biography. 
 
 •f Anglice— the Church of the Grave, or the Church of the Irishman. " The 
 ruins of it, a few years ago, were removed in order to render the way to the 
 church more commodious. Here formerly was the shrine of Sirigi, who was 
 canonized by the Irish. It seems to have been held in exceeding great repute
 
 122 
 
 And yet the British adventurers would not have undertaken 
 the expedition, if they judged tliat it would have been prejudi- 
 cial to the interests of the national religion, for two at least of 
 them, Meigyr and Meilyr, are included in the catalogue of 
 saints.* 
 
 The lives and services of some of the Christian chiefs men- 
 tioned in the last chapter, were extended to the reign of Emrys 
 Wledig. To them we may now add Cyngen, son of C'adell 
 Deyrnllug, who succeeded his father in the principality of Pow j s, 
 and who is celebrated for the patronage he afforded to the 
 saints, and for the liberal endowments which he gave to the 
 Church. f Ynyr Gwent, chieftain of a district in the present 
 county of Monmouth, who founded a college or monastery at 
 Caerwent.f Geraint ab Erbin, prince of Dyvnaint or Devon, 
 distinguished in the Triad as one of " the three naval com- 
 manders of the Isle of Britain," 11 having sax score Bhips, and -i\ 
 score men in each.§ The reputation of sanctity ln> been as- 
 cribed to him, probably on account of the protection which he 
 rendered to his countrymen against the assaults of the pagan 
 Saxons. Thus Llywarch Hen, a contemporary poet, who wrote 
 his elegy, describes him as, — 
 
 " The Saxon's foe, the friend of Saints."|| 
 
 And how deeply impressed he was with the importance of such 
 a character, may be learned from a favourite expression of his. 
 which has been pres< rved in the Englynion y Clywed : — ■ 
 
 '■ Hast thou heard what Geraint sang, 
 The son of Erbin, just and skilful? 
 1 Short-lived is the hater of the saints.' "fl 
 
 And Grwynllyw Vilwr** (the soldier), chieftain of Grwynllwg or 
 
 for several very wonderful qualities and cures : lint according to an old Irish 
 chronicle, it was carried off by some Irish rovers, and deposited in the cathe- 
 dral of Christ Church, in Dublin."— History of Anglesey, London, 1775; cited 
 in Rees's Eswy, Sfc. p. 166. 
 
 * Rees's Essay, &c. p. 166. | Ih. p. 161. { lb. p. 164. 
 
 § Triad 68. |j Heroic Elegies, p. 3. 
 
 U Myv. Arch. i. p. 172. Four sons of Geraint are included in the list of 
 saints. 
 
 ** Called St. Gundleus by the Latin writers of the Middle Ages.
 
 123 
 
 Gwentlog, in Monmouthshire, who, in course of time, however, 
 surrendered his dominions to his son Cattwg, and built a church, 
 where he passed the remainder of his days in great abstinence 
 and holiness.* 
 
 A.D. 500, Emrys died, and was succeeded in the sovereignty 
 by his brother Uthyr Pendragon (generalissimo), who reigned 
 seventeen years. t He prosecuted the war against the Saxons 
 with great vigour and intrepidity, and obtained considerable 
 advantages over them in the north ; nevertheless, in the south 
 and west of England the power of the enemy generally pre- 
 vailed. % Mattheus Florilegus indeed asserts that, A.D. 511, the 
 Saxons made an united effort to gain the whole island into their 
 possession, and in their attempt spared neither persons nor 
 property ecclesiastical, but nearly swept away the whole of 
 Christianity from the land.§ An exaggerated allegation truly, 
 but no doubt mainly correct in reference to the extent of their 
 conquests. A prominent share in this work of sacrilege is at- 
 tributed to Cerdic and his followers, who are stated to have 
 slain the monks of Winchester, and converted their monastery 
 and church into a temple for Dagon, and to have excluded the 
 Christian faith from the kingdom of Wessex.|| 
 
 The Gwyddyl Fichti had lately re-established their independ- 
 ence in parts cf South Wales ; and it was, probably, early in 
 the reign of Uthyr, that Caradog Vraichvras, distinguished in 
 the Triads as one of " the three royal knights of battle, 11 ^ 
 marched against them, and recovered the principal portion of 
 Brecknockshire. About the same time also, Urien Rheged, son 
 
 * Johannes Tinmutbensis, apud Usher, p. 248. Rees's Essay, p. 170. 
 
 " The Church alluded to is supposed to be that of Newport, Monmouthshire, 
 situated in the hundred of Gwentloog, and dedicated to him under the name of 
 St. Woolos." — Rees's Essay, frc. p. 170. 
 
 f Cambrian Biography voce Uthyr. 
 
 I Hughes's Horae Britannicse, p. 194; Stillingfleet's Origincs Britannicse, 
 p. 332. 
 
 § Alatth. Florileg. apud Usher, p. 249. 
 
 || Usher, p. 249. 
 
 ^1 The two others were " Llyr Lluyddawg, and Macl ab Menwaed of Ar- 
 llechwedd; and Arthur sang, concerning them, the following stanza: —
 
 124 
 
 of Cynvarch Oer, styled a " bull of conflict,"* succeeded in 
 emancipating the rest of the country from their usurpation. 
 He is said to have studied at one time in the college of Llan- 
 carvan, and has been considered a saint by his countrymen. 
 
 Whilst these affairs were going on, the following holy persons 
 arrived from Armorica : — Cadvan, Cynon, l\idarn,t Tydecho, 
 Tegvedd, Gwyndav Hen, Hywyn, Umbravel, Trinio, Doehdwy, 
 Mael, Sulien, Gristiolus, Ethystud, Dervel, Dwywau, Alan. Lleu- 
 ddad, Llonio Lawhir. Llynab, Meilyr, Maelrys, Sadwrn, ('anna, 
 Crallo, Tanwg. Gredivael, Flewyn, Tecwyn, Trillo, Tegai, Tun.-, 
 Baglan, Llechid Tyvodwg, [lar, CTst, Dyvnig, Eithras, Llywan, 
 Durdan. These were, for the must part, children or grand- 
 children of Ethel Hael (tk liberal), and Bmyr Llydaw, both 
 Armoriean princes; and bheir emigration may be attributed to 
 the oppression of the Pranks, who, under Clovis, were at this 
 
 time establishing their dominion in Graul.J The national p - 
 
 ligion of Britain, however, was greatly benefited by the circum- 
 stance; for they nearly all of them established churches in 
 different parts of Wales: a great proportion were also founders 
 or members of monastic institutions, and some arc styled bishops. 
 
 Their principal patron appears to have been Binion Vrenhin 
 (king), a lineal descendant of Cunedda Wledig, whose terri- 
 tories are supposed to lie iii the neighbourhood of Carnarvon- 
 shire. It was with his assistance that Cadvan, the leader of the 
 
 " Lo, these are my three knights of battle, — 
 Mael Hir, and l.lyr Lluyddawg, 
 And the pillar of Cymru, Caradawg." — Tried 29. 
 
 * "The three bulls of conflict of the Isle of Britain: Cyiivar Cadgadwg, 
 the son of Cynwyd Cynwydion; Gwenddolen, the son ofCeidiaw; and Urien, 
 the son of Cynvarch ; — that is, they would rush upon their enemies like a bull, 
 and nobody could repel them.'' — 7V. 72. 
 
 f The date assigned by Usher to the visit of Padarn is the yeai 516. It 
 must, however, have been earlier, for we find that he, in company with Dewi 
 and Teilo, travelled to the Holy Land before a .d. 512, which is the year in 
 which the latter, having been consecrated by the Patriarch of Jerusalem, was 
 raised to the bishopric of Llandaf. 
 
 X Paris was made the capital of the dominions of Clovis in the year 510. — 
 Rees's Essay, Vc. p. 213,-
 
 125 
 
 company, founded the celebrated monastery of Enlli or Bardsey.* 
 On the other hand, Maelgwn Gwynedd, who succeeded to the 
 principality of North Wales, a.d. 517, rendered no inconsider- 
 able annoyance to Padarn and Tydecho, whilst engaged in their 
 pious undertakings.t 
 
 These are the only events of importance connected with our 
 subject, the date of which maybe assigned to this reign. Uthyr 
 was succeeded in the nominal sovereignty of Britain by the illus- 
 trious Arthur, who was crowned, a.d. 517, by Dyvrig, archbishop 
 of Caerleon4 According to Nennius, he gained twelve victories 
 over the Saxons, though it is difficult now to determine the 
 respective dates and localities of them. In one battle, fought 
 at a place called Llongborth,§ Geraint ab Erbin, " the strenuous 
 warrior from the woodland of Dyvnaint," fell. One of the most 
 celebrated engagements, however, in which he vanquished his 
 enemies, was that of Badon Mount, thus alluded to by an 
 ancient Bard : — 
 
 " Woe was to those infatuated men, when occurred the hattle of Badon; 
 Arthur was at the head of the hrave ; the hlades were red with blood : 
 He avenged on his enemies the blood of warriors, 
 Warriors who had been the defence of the northern kings."|| 
 
 This victory checked for a while the progress of the Saxons, 
 and kept them within the bounds of the provinces which they 
 had already subdued. 
 
 Arthur's martial prowess was the theme of general admira- 
 tion, and, accordingly, secured the confidence and co-operation 
 of his friends, whilst it inspired his enemies with terror. When- 
 
 * lb. p. 214. f lb. pp.217, 218. 
 
 X Brut Tysilio ; Brut G. ab Arthur. 
 
 § This battle, according to Dr. Owen Pughe, took place about the year 530. 
 It is difficult to identify it with any of those enumerated by Nennius, but that 
 Arthur commanded in it is evident from the following stanza by Llywarch 
 Hen: — 
 
 "At Llongborth were slain to Arthur 
 Valiant men, who hewed down with steel; 
 He was the emperor and conductor of tbe toil of war." 
 
 Heroic Elegies of LI. Hen, p. 9. 
 || These lines are supposed to have been composed by Taliesin. See the 
 original Welsh in Usher's Britann. Eccles. Antii]. p. 254.
 
 126 
 
 ever he, Morgan Mwynvawr (tht courteous), and Rhun, the son 
 of Beli, says the Triad, " went to war, none would stay at 
 home, so greatly were t It. \ b loved ; and there was neither war 
 nor battle which they would not gain, where there was no 
 treachery or ambuscade formed against them. Thence is it 
 proverbially expressed : ' The three persons who would a. -.mire 
 in. n wherever they went, Arthur. Morgan Mwynvawr, and 
 Khun, the son of Beli/ ' The three hosts who would prove 
 themselves men wherever they were, the host of Arthur, the 
 host of Morgan Mwynvawr, and the host of Khun, the son of 
 Beli." 1 
 
 At length, a.d. S l_. treachery overpowered this •• gallant 
 sovereign ; w f for he received a mortal wound whilst fighting on 
 the plains of Camlan against his owe nephew, Medrod, who. 
 
 having, during his absent n the continent, usurped the su- 
 
 preme command, now endeavoured to secure it by a base alli- 
 ance with the Saxons. "Because of this the Cymry lost the 
 crown of Lloegyr and the sovereignty of the Isle of Britain."] 
 
 Arthur is represented a> possessing a great zeal t'"r the 
 Christian religion,^ and several men of devotion retired within 
 his jurisdiction from the rage of their pagan oppressors in other 
 parts of the island. Among these we may mention Dunawd and 
 his sons Deiniol, Cynwyl, and Gwarthan, who conjointly founded 
 or re-established the coll ge of Bangor [scoed ;|| and the chil- 
 dren of Caw, the lord of Cwm Cawlwyd, who are honoured in 
 one Triad as the third " holy family of the [sle of Britain. W H 
 
 * Triad 31. f Tr. 23. ♦ Tr. 21. 
 
 § There is, however, an exception recorded, for he is, on the other hand, 
 stated, "to bare plundered St Paternus,and to have destroyed a monastery.* — 
 Hughes's Hone Britannicce, vol. ii. p. 202. 
 
 || Dunawd is thus mentioned in the Triads : — 
 
 "The three pillars of battle of the Isle of Britain : Dunawd Ffur. tin 
 of Pabo Post Pn dain ; G wallawg the son of Lleenawg ; and Cj n w lyn 1 hrn sgl ; 
 — that is, they could distribute the order of battle, and arrange the command, 
 better than all who have ever lived." — Tr. 71. 
 
 Dunawd was probably accompanied from the north on this occasion also by 
 his two brothers Sawyl and Carwyd, who became inmates of his college, and 
 by his sister Arddun. to whom some Welsh churches are dedicated. 
 
 f See p. its. note.
 
 127 
 
 Upwards of twenty churches may be enumerated as having been 
 established by them in different parts of the country. 
 
 Such migrations were the means of narrowing the bounds, 
 and cramping the energies of Lloegrian Christianity to a very 
 considerable degree. From the following document we learn, 
 that the practical efficiency of the national Church was generally 
 co-extensive with the regal authority of Arthur, and that its ex- 
 ternal affairs were conducted much in correspondence with the 
 civil government. 
 
 " The three enthroned tribes of the Isle of Britain ; one at 
 Caerleon-upon-Usk, where Arthur was supreme king, St. Dewi 
 (David), archbishop, and Maelgwn Gwynedd chief elder ; the 
 second at Celliwig, in Cornwall, where Arthur was supreme king, 
 Bedwini* archbishop, and Caradawg Vreichvras chief elder ; 
 the third at Penryn Rhionydd, in the north, where Arthur was 
 supreme king, Cyndeyrn Garthwys archbishop, and Gwrthmwl 
 Wledig chief elder. "f 
 
 The following reguli, who were contemporaries of Arthur, 
 appear to have aided in the defence of the Christian faith : — 
 Urien Rheged, Llywarch Hen, prince of Argoed ; Cynddylan,| 
 prince of one of the Powysian districts ; Gwenddoleu, a northern 
 chief, of the line of Coel Godebog ; Doged Vrenhin, or king, a 
 descendant of Cunedda Wledig ; Aneurin and Huail, sons of 
 Caw ; and Iddon, son of Ynyr Gwcnt.§ 
 
 After Arthur came Cystennyn Goronog (crowned), son of 
 Cador, prince of Cornwall. || He was a man at first apparently 
 insensible to the sacred obligations of religion ; for he slew the 
 
 * " Hast thou heard what Bedwini sang, 
 A gifted bishop of exalted rank ? 
 ' Consider thy word before it is uttered.' " 
 
 Englynion y Clywed (My v. Arch. i. 173. 
 f Triad 64. 
 
 % " The churches of Bassa have lost their privilege, 
 Since the Lloegrians have destroyed 
 Cynddylan, and Elvan of Powys." 
 
 Llywarch Hen. 
 § Cambrian Biography ; Essay on the Welsh Saints. 
 || According to Gildas, he was prince of Devon.
 
 12s 
 
 sons of Medrod, who had aspired to the sovereignty, the one 
 in a monastery, and the other at the altar in a church. Never- 
 theless, lie subsequently repented, and devoted the remainder 
 of his life to the servico of Christianity.* 
 
 The reins of government were afterwards wielded by Oynan 
 Wledig and Gwrthevyr the Second, successively; but nothing 
 of importance occurred during their supremacy, which in each 
 case was very brief, f 
 
 Maelgwn Gwynedd ascended tin- throne, .\.i>. 546. He was 
 a powerful man. and gained many advantages over hi-; enemies, 
 though the former part of his life was marked with immorality 
 of the darkest hue. In the Life of St Padarn, by John <>f 
 Teiirnmouth, he i- described as "always the tempter of saints." 
 
 Padarn himself r ived certain injuries from him; so did Ty- 
 
 d< oho. He imprisoned Elfin, a Btudent <>f the college of Qltyd, 
 in the castle of Diganwy; and opposed Cyndeyni (Kentigern), 
 in the establishment of the bishopric of Llanelwy, though !»'• 
 a\;is afterwards reconciled, and became <>n«' of bis patron 
 
 Bui potent as he was, he nevertheless quailed under the - 
 rebukes of some of the objects of bis oppression, so far as even 
 to make amends for the wrongs which he had inflicted, as in 
 the case of Tydecho, to whom he subsequently granted several 
 immunities. The invective of Grildas against Maelgwn is well 
 known, and needs not here be repeated. < >n one occasion, 
 Taliesin, who is ranked with the two Merddins, under the ap- 
 pellation of " the three principal Christian Hards of the Isle of 
 Britain, 11 presented himself before the kimr. and pronounced 
 against him this maledictory strain : — 
 
 "Be neither blessing nor success to Maelgwn Gwynedd ; 
 May vengeance overtake him for the wrongs, 
 
 The treachery, and the cruelty, he has shewn to the race of Arthur. 
 Waste lie his lands, short he his life, 
 Extensive be vengeance on Maelgwn Gwynedd. 
 A strange animal shall come from the Marsh of Rhianedd, 
 Shaggy, long-toothed, and tire-eyed : 
 This shall do vengeance on Maelgwn Gwvnedd." 
 
 * Britann. Eccles. Antic,, c. xiv. 
 
 f Brut Tysilio; Brut G. ah Arthur. 
 
 X Usher, c. xiv.; Rees's Essay. Sec sect x § Myv. Arch. vol. i.
 
 129 
 
 Yet the Bard was suffered to retire uninjured. 
 
 Towards the close of his life, Maelgwn repented of his wicked 
 course, did some service to the Church, particularly at Bangor, 
 in Carnarvonshire, which place he erected into an episcopal see.* 
 It is said that he once intended to abdicate his throne, and 
 become himself an inmate of a monastery. He died a.d. 566, 
 of the yellow plague ( Y Vad Velen), in the church of Llanrhos, 
 Carnarvonshire, whither he had taken himself for shelter. This 
 pestilence is recorded in one of the Triads, as follows : — " The 
 second pestilence was the yellow plague of Rhus, which was 
 caused by the carcases of the slain ; and whoever went within 
 reach of the effluvia fell dead immediately ."■f* 
 
 The sovereignty of the Britons was next assumed by Ceredig,| 
 a man of turbulent disposition, and who was perpetually en- 
 gaged in feuds with his own countrymen. The consequence of 
 this was, that the Saxons, in his reign, about 582, established 
 Mercia, which was the most extensive of their kingdoms, and 
 confined the Cymry within the limits of Wales, Cornwall, and 
 Cambria. § It is not, however, to be supposed, that all the old 
 inhabitants were thus driven from the territories which were 
 then occupied by the enemy. On the other hand, the Lloegrian 
 Britons, in the main, submitted to their conquerors, and adopted 
 their customs. They had already become generally incorporated 
 with the Coranians and Romans, who, as a Triad affirms, also 
 joined themselves to the Saxons in opposition to the Cymry.|| 
 And in another Triad it is particularly expressed, that " there 
 was none of the Lloegrians who did not become Saxons, except 
 such as were found in Cornwall, and in the Commot of Car- 
 noban, in Deivyr and Bryneich (Deira and Bernicia)^^ 
 
 * Rees's Essay, &c. p. 258. 
 
 | Tr. 12; Usher, p. 290; Liber Landavensis, p. 343; Williams's History 
 of Abercomvy, pp. 7, 8 ; Brut Tysilio ; Brut G. ab Arthur. 
 
 \ According to some authorities, Maelgwn was succeeded in the sovereignty 
 by his son Rhun. It may be, that both put in their claims, and were seconded 
 by their respective partisans, but that Rhun's practical government was more 
 particularly confined to his patrimonial territory of North Wales. 
 
 § Brut Tysilio; Brut G. ab Arthur; Price's Hancs Cymru, p. 321 ; Rees's 
 Essay, kc. p. 283. f| See page 91. 
 
 «1 Triad 7. We have used the term Saxons in reference to all the Ger-
 
 130 
 
 One of the greatest patrons of Christianity during the period 
 subsequent to the death of Arthur, was Rhydderch Ilael (///< 
 liberal), king of the Strath Clyde Britons. Merddin W'vllt 
 (the icild), a contemporary Bard, styles him k " the champion of 
 the faith. 11 - Owain, the son of Urien E&heged, was likewise a 
 sincere friend of the Church, as was also Khun, the son of 
 Maelgwn G-wynedd, who succeeded to the principality of North 
 Wales on the death of his lather. Both of these, in conjunction 
 with IvluiNoii Bevr, form a Triad of the "blessed princes of the 
 Isle of Britain."+ 
 
 It is now time thai we should take a concise historical \i< m 
 of some of the principal ecclesiastics, who adorned the Gospel 
 of Christ, "both by their preaching and living,* 1 during the 
 period involved in thi> ohapt< r. 
 
 The first that requires not in- i- Dyvrig, surnamed Beneurog 
 (gold '< a head '/), who was horn on the hanks of the Wye, in 
 Herefordshire.! He founded a college at Henllan, on the -am.' 
 river, where he taught a great number of persons "in the lite- 
 rary study of divine and human wisdom ; setting forth to them 
 in himself an example of religion- life, and perfect charity." 
 After seven years he removed to Mochros, his native place, 
 where, for a long time, "he regularly lived, preaching and 
 giving instruction to the clergy and people, his doctrine shining 
 
 man adventurers, as that by which they are generally known, but it is necessary 
 to observe that there are frequently three nations included in it, viz. the Saxons, 
 properly so called, the Angli, and the] Jutes. The Triads mention the names 
 of three British kings who ruled over Deivvr and Bryneich. And that they 
 lived about this time is evident from the circumstance that they slew respec- 
 tively the " dusky birds of Gwenddoleu," " Edelfled, king of England," and 
 " Gwrgi Garwlwyd, who had married a sister of Edelfled." (Tr. 39, 16.) Yet 
 the Angles had already established themselves in these territories under Ida, 
 who came over a.d. 547. And upon his death in 560 we even find Ada, his 
 son, and Ella, styled kings of Bryneich and Deivvr respectively. 
 
 * Myv. Arch. v. i. Davies's Mythology and Rites of the British Druids, 
 p. 470. 
 
 f Triad 25. 
 
 t It is maintained by some that he was born on the banks of the Gwain, 
 near Fishguard, Pembrokeshire, but the weight of evidence is in favour of the 
 place mentioned in the text. See Rees's Essay, \c. p. 171.
 
 131 
 
 throughout all Britain, as a candle on a candlestick."* A.D. 470, 
 he was appointed bishop of Llandaf, and was in 490, as already 
 shewn, raised to the see of Caerleon, which he held with the 
 bishopric of Llandaf until 512, when he resigned the latter.f 
 In the year 519, he, in conjunction with Deiniol, succeeded, 
 when former messengers had failed, in drawing Dewi from his 
 privacy, in order to confront the Pelagians at the Synod of 
 Brevi. And when he perceived the force of that holy mans 
 eloquence, he resigned Caerleon in his favour, and retired to the 
 Island of Bardsey, where he died in 52'2-l 
 
 Cattwg, the son of Gwynllyw Vilwr, gave up the principality 
 which his father had left him, and chose a life of religion and 
 learning. He became abbot or principal of the college of Llan- 
 carvan ; and so partial was Dyvrig to his society, that he fre- 
 quently resided near his establishment at a place called Garnllwyd, 
 and generally made him his companion in his travels. § As a 
 scholastic teacher Cattwg is thus celebrated in the Triads : — 
 
 " The three blessed youth-trainers of the Isle of Britain ; — 
 Cattwg, the son of Grwynllyw, at Llangarvan ; Madawg Mor- 
 vryn, at C6r Illtyd ; and Deiniol Wynn in Gwynedd : they were 
 Bards.l 
 
 He was also an attendant at the court of Arthur, where he 
 distinguished himself as the protector of innocence. 
 
 " The three knights of a righteous discretion in the court of 
 Arthur ; — Bias, the son of the prince of Llychlyn ; Cattwg, the 
 son of Gwynllyw Vilwr ; and Padrogl Paladrddellt, son of the 
 king of India. Their principles were to defend all the infirm, 
 and orphans, and widows, and virgins, and all who should put 
 themselves under the protection of God and his peace ; and 
 every one that was poor, feeble, and a stranger ; and to deliver 
 them from violence, wrong, and oppression. Bias by the civil 
 law ; Padrogl, by the law of arms ; and Cattwg, by the law of 
 
 * Life of St. Dubricius, in Liber Landavensis. 
 
 f Britann. Eccles. Antiq. c. v. et Index Chronologicus ; Lib. Landav. ; 
 Chronological series of the Bishops of Llandaf. 
 
 X Girald. Itinerar. Cambr. lib. 2, c. 4 ; Rees's Essay, &c. pp. 191, 192. 
 § Rees's Essay, &c. pp. 176, 177. || Triad 98.
 
 132 
 
 the Church, and the laws of God. And they would do nothing 
 out of respect or fear, or love or hatred, or prudence or com- 
 pliancy, or anger or mercy, in the world ; but merely what was 
 just and righteous according to the law of God, and the nature 
 of good, and fche requirements of justic 
 
 Another Triad ranks Cattwg with Illtyd and Bwrt, under the 
 
 appellation of "the three chaste knights of tl onrt of Arthur,'" 
 
 inasmuch as that " they led a life of celibacy, and devoted 
 themselv( a to the law of God and the faith in Christ."! 
 
 On account of his extensive knowledge and wisdom, he was 
 emphatically styled Cattwg Ddoeth, or the Wise; and a large 
 collection of his maxims and moral sayings, both in prose 
 and verse, is preserved in the third volume of the Myvyrian 
 Archaiology. 
 
 lie is sidered to be the founder of fourteen churches hi 
 the counties of Brecknock, Glamorgan, and Monmouth/ 
 
 IUtyd was by birth an Armorican, being the son of Bicanys, 
 by a sistor§ of Emyr Llydaw, and was, therefore, the groat 
 nephew of Gannon. Cattwg persuaded him to leave the world, 
 and devote himself to religion ;|| and he was accordingly 
 appointed by Dyvrig to preside over the college of Caer- 
 worgan.lf To this seminary, scholars flocked from all parts of 
 Christendom, — among whom were the sons of British nobles 
 and foreign princes. Illtyd was gen. 'rally known by the desig- 
 nation of •' excellent master of the Britons ;" and it is sup- 
 posed that to him Gildas alludes, when he reminds Maelgwn 
 Gwynedd of his having c ' praeceptorem pene totius Britannia 
 magistrum elegantem. 1 '** 
 
 * Triad 117. 
 
 | Tr. 122. The title of " knights " must have had reference to the pa^t 
 achievements of Cattwg and Illtyd, before they had abandoned their military 
 profession for the service of religion. 
 
 | Rees's Essay, &c. p. 177. 
 
 § By John of Teignmouth she is called Rieniguilida. In another account, 
 Illtvd's mother is stated to have been Gweryla, daughter of Tewdrig, king of 
 Glamorgan. 
 
 || Johan. Tinmuthens. in Vita Ututi. 
 
 1J Liber Landavensis, p. 313. ** Usher, p. 284.
 
 133 
 
 The foundation of several churches in various parts of Wales 
 is attributed to Illtyd. His memory is, moreover, honoured by 
 his countrymen on account of his having introduced among 
 them an improved method of ploughing. " For, before his 
 time, their land was not cultivated but with the mattock and 
 over-treading plough, as the manner of the Irish is." He is 
 hence recorded as one of " the three benefactors of the nation 
 of the Cymry.*"* 
 
 There was much similarity in the lives and actions of Dewi, 
 Padarn, and Teilo, and on that account they are more than 
 once joined together in Triads. 
 
 " The three blessed visitors of the Isle of Britain : Dewi, 
 Padarn, and Teilo. They were so called because they went as 
 guests to the houses of the noble, the plebeian, the native, ami 
 the stranger, without accepting either fee or reward, or victuals 
 or drink ; but what they did was to teach the faith in Christ to 
 every one without pay or thanks. Besides which, they gave to 
 the poor and needy, gifts of their gold and silver, their raiment 
 and provisions. t 
 
 " The three blessed Bards of the Isle of Britain : Dewi, 
 Teilo, and Padarn.|" 
 
 The Register of Llandaf and Giraldus Cambrensis state that 
 the three visited Jerusalem together, where they were conse- 
 crated by the patriarch to the order of bishops. Their peculiar 
 talents and qualifications were here distinctly manifested ; for 
 Dewi performed divine service in a more pleasing manner than 
 his companions; Padarn sang in a superior style; and Teilo 
 excelled as a preacher. § 
 
 * Triad 58. f Triad 19. 
 
 X Essay on Coelbren y Beirdd, p. 39. Two saints, Gwrhir and Ystyfan, are 
 reckoned among the Bards of Teilo. The former founded the church of 
 Llysvaen, Glamorganshire, and the latter founded Llanstyfan, Carmarthenshire, 
 and Llanstyfan, in the county of Radnor. 
 
 " Hast thou heard the saying of Ystyfan, 
 The Bard of Teilo, of quick reply, — 
 ' Man doth covet, it is God who distributes.' " 
 
 {Eng. y Clyived.) 
 ^ Liber Landavensis; Life of St. Teilo; Rees's Essay, &c. p. 195. It is
 
 13 J 
 
 Dewi was the son of Sandde ab Ceredig ab Cunedda, by 
 Non, the daughter of Gynyr of Caergawch* He waa baptized 
 
 by Ailvyw, or Albeus, bishop of Monster, who \\a>< on a visit 
 to Wales; ami he received his early education at the school of 
 Illfcyd. Having been ordained presbyter, he removed t<> the 
 college of Pawl Hen, where he spent ten yean in the study of 
 the holy scriptures. When he returned from Jerusalem he 
 founded or restored a monastery in the valley of Etosina, which 
 was afterwards called Menevia, where be devoted himself to 
 prayer and contemplation. In the meanwhile, the heresy of 
 the Pelagians ha\ ing rei ived, a general synod of all the churches 
 of Wales was convened, a.i>. 519, at Brevi, in the county of 
 Cardigan, to which, at the instance of Pawl Hen, Dewi was 
 invited. The solicitations of the messengers who were first 
 sent to him he resolutely withst 1. but at length lie was pre- 
 vailed upon by Dyvrig and Deiniol to attend the council, where, 
 by his learning and eloquence, he completely vanquished the 
 heretics. Upon this, he was unanimously chosen t<> succeed 
 Dyvrig, who now. hewed down by years, resigned the arduous 
 duties of the primacy and r< tired to the monastery of Bardsey. 
 A^ some of the people continued to profess Pelagianism, Dewi 
 convened another synod at Caerleon, where his exertions v 
 so successful that the heresy was exterminated, and the meeting 
 was hence recorded "the Bynod of victory." The primate re- 
 sided for some time at Caerleon, but afterwards, by the permis- 
 sion of Arthur, he removed the see to his beloved Menevia, and 
 there he died about A.D. 544.1 
 
 Dewi is ranked with Cattwg and Teilo, "as the three canon- 
 said, moreover, that they received appropriate gifts. Padarn had a p;e 
 staff, and a choral cap of the richest silk; Dewi had a wonderful altar of un- 
 known materials ; and Teilo, a curious bell, which sounded every hour without 
 being touched. 
 
 * Gynyr was originally the chieftain of a district in Pembrokeshire, since 
 called Pebidiog, or Dewsland, in which the town of St. David's is situated. 
 But he gave all his lauds to the Church, and his son, Gistlianus, became a 
 bishop in the place. It was doubtless in consequence of his relationship to 
 Gvnvr and Gistlianus. that Dewi was tnabled to establish the monastery of 
 Menevia, and to exercise there the office of a choiepiscopus before his elevation 
 to the archbishopric of Caerleon. — Reel's Essay, Vc. pp. 162, 1 
 
 t Kees's Essay, &c. p. 193, &c. Usher, c. v. xiii. \ v.v
 
 135 
 
 ized saints of the Isle of Britain."* One of his maxims has 
 been preserved in the Englynion y Clyvved : 
 
 " Didst thou hear what Dewi sang-, 
 Who was a grave man of extensive abilities ? 
 ' The best habit is rectitude.' "f 
 
 Padarn was the son of Pedrwnj ab Emyr Llydaw. After 
 his arrival in Wales, he became a member of the college of 
 Illtyd. He afterwards established a society at a place since 
 called Llanbadarn Vawr in the county of Cardigan, where he 
 also founded an episcopal see, of which he became the first 
 bishop, and presided over it twenty one years. At the expira- 
 tion of that time, he returned to his native country, where he 
 was made bishop of Vannes. He subscribed the decrees of the 
 council of Paris, a.d. 557, and is commended both as an abbot 
 and a bishop by Venantius Fortunatus, a Latin poet of Gaul, 
 who was his contemporary. § 
 
 " Didst thou hear what Padarn sang, 
 Who was a correct and powerful preacher? 
 ' What a man does God will judge.'"|| 
 
 Teilo was the son of Enlleu ab Hydwn Dwn ab Ceredig ab 
 Cunedda Wledig. He first studied under Dyvrig, by whose 
 assistance he attained to great proficiency in the knowledge of 
 the Bible. Afterwards, he went and abode for some time with 
 Pawl Hen, " that by conversing together on the obscure parts 
 of the Scriptures, which he did not comprehend, they might 
 understand all as truly explained." Under the patronage of 
 Dyvrig he opened a seminary at Llandaf, probably after his 
 eastern pilgrimage ; and on the resignation of Dyvrig, A.D. 512, 
 he was appointed bishop of that place. When the yellow 
 fever broke out, he emigrated to Armorica, where he was 
 honourably received by Samson the bishop of Dole. He was 
 elected, on his return, to the archbishopric of Menevia, which 
 was then vacant, but he removed the metropolitan see to Llan- 
 daf, and appointed his nephew, Ismael, to be his suffragan 
 
 * Cambrian Biography. -(• Myv. Arch. v. i. 
 
 t Or, Pedredin, as he was sometimes called. 
 
 § Usher, c. xiv. ; Rccs's Essay, &c. pp. 215, &c. 
 
 |l Englynion y Clywed ; Myv. Arch. v. i.
 
 136 
 
 bishop at the former place. " And many other persons of the 
 same rank he likewise raised to the episcopacy. Bending them 
 through the country, and giving dioceses to them to suit the 
 convenience of the clergy and the peopli 
 
 " Did>t thou hoar what TeUo saiiL r , 
 A man who ]" rfonned penance '.' — 
 1 It is not well to contend with God.' "f 
 
 The churches established by the three preceding prelates are 
 numerous, and are principally situated within the dioceses over 
 which tiny presidi d.J 
 
 Grildas was one of the numerous sons of Caw. When he 
 arrived in Wales, he became a member of the College <>f Llan- 
 
 carvan, and such was the reputation he won there, that he was 
 
 requested by Cattwg to undertake the charge of the seminary 
 for one year. This he undertook and performed to the great 
 advantage of the student-, desiring no other reward than their 
 prayers. He is said t«> have there also transcribed a copy of 
 the four evangelists, which was extant in the thirteenth century. 
 and which was much venerated by the Welsh, particularly in 
 their oaths and protestations. After this, he withdrew to a 
 small island, not far distant; but was there disturbed by 
 pirates, and in consequence, removed to Glastonbury, where he 
 wrote his " History of the Britons," and remained to the close 
 of his life. § 
 
 Samson, the son of Amwn Ddu ah Emyr Llydaw, was born 
 in Glamorganshire,!! probably after the emigration of the- Ar- 
 morican saints already mentioned. lie joined himself to the 
 congregation of Illtyd, of which, in course of time, he became 
 principal ; but afterwards he went over to Armorica. and was 
 appointed bishop of Dole. It appears from the " Concilia 
 Gallia?,' 1 that he subscribed to the decrees of the council of 
 Paris, in the year 557. He returned to his native country, and 
 died in the college of Illtyd.lF 
 
 * Usher, c. xiv; Liber Laudavcnsis, Life of St. Teilo; Rees's Essay. \e. 
 pp. 242. 8cc. 
 
 f Eng. y Clywed, Myv. Arch. v.i. ; See " Essay on the Welsh Saints." 
 
 § Usher, c.xiii; Rees's Welsh Saints, p. 225; Hughes's Ilora? Britannica?, 
 vol. ii. pp. 237, 8cc. 
 
 || His mother is said to have been Anna, daughter of Meurig ah Ttwdrig. 
 
 IT Usher, c. xiv. ; Rees's Welsh Saints, p. 243 ; Liber Landavensis. Life of 
 St Samson.
 
 137 
 
 Deiniol,* the son of Dunawd, assisted his father in the estab- 
 lishment of the monastery of Bangor Iscoed ; and in 516, he 
 founded another monastery in Carnarvonshire, of which he was 
 abbot. This place was afterwards erected by Maelgwn Gwyn- 
 edd into an episcopal see, of which Deiniol was the first bishop. 
 He founded the churches of Llanddeiniol, in Cardiganshire; 
 Llanddeiniol, or Itton, Monmouthshire ; Hawarden, Flintshire ; 
 and Llanuwchlyn, Merionethshire. Deiniol is distinguished in 
 the Triad as one of " the three blessed youth-trainers of the 
 Isle of Britain," and is, moreover, stated to have been a member 
 of the Bardic profession.! 
 
 Cyndeyrn (Kentigern) the son of Owain ab Urien Eheged, 
 was born in North Britain, where he was placed under the in- 
 struction of Servanus, an Irish saint, He founded the bishop- 
 ric of Penryn llhionydd or Glasgow, where he resided for some 
 time as primate of the Clydesdale Britons, but was afterwards 
 forced by the dissensions of the people to retire to Wales, 
 where lie was kindly received by Dewi. He here established 
 another bishopric at Llanelwy,| in Flintshire, about a.d. 550, 
 which, after a few years, he resigned to Asaf, one of his dis- 
 ciples, being himself recalled by Rhydderch Hael to his~former 
 diocese, where he died at an advanced age. He was so cele- 
 brated for the urbanity of his disposition, that he obtained in 
 consequence the appellation of Mwyngu, or " amiable, 1 '' which 
 later writers have rendered into St. Mungo.§ 
 
 Asaf was the son of Sawyl Benuchel, son of Pabo, and was 
 born in North Wales. He was a man of great virtue, learning, 
 and piety, and was remarkable for repeating frequently the 
 sentence, " They who withstand the word of God, envy man's 
 salvation."!! The church of Llanasa, in the county of Flint, was 
 founded by him. II 
 
 Beuno, grandson of Gwynllyw Vilwr, is considered as the 
 founder of no less than eleven churches. He also established a 
 monastery, a.d. 616, at a place called Clynnog, in Carnarvon- 
 
 * Called, also, Deiniol Wyn, and Daniel, 
 t Rees's Essay on the Welsh Saints, p. 258. + St. Asaph. 
 
 § .Rees's Welsh Saints, p. 261. 
 
 || " Quicunque Verbo Dei adversaretur, saluti hominum invident."— Bale. 
 Capsgrave. % Rees's Welsh Saints, pp. 265, 266.
 
 138 
 
 shire, upon land granted him by (Jadvan, the reigning prince of 
 North Wales, to whom Beuno gave a small golden sceptre as 
 an acknowledgment for the donation.* A saying of his is re- 
 corded in the " Englynion y Clywed.' 1 
 
 " Hast thou heard what Beuno sang? 
 
 Chant thy prayerf and thy creed ; — 
 
 ' From death flight will not avail.' "J 
 
 Cybi, grandson of Geraint ab Erbin, and cousin of Dewi, was 
 present at the synod of Brevi. He founded the churches of 
 Llangybi in the vicinity of Llanddewi Brevi, Llangybi, near 
 Oaerleon, and Llangybi, in Carnarvonshire. He moreover 
 established a college at Oaergybi, or Holyhead, in Anglesey, of 
 which he became president. It is popularly told that he and 
 Seiriol, who presided over a similar institution at Penmon, in 
 the same county, used to meet weekly at Clorach, near Llan- 
 nerch y Medd, to confer upon subjects of religion. § And that, 
 from the circumstance of Seiriol travelling westward in the 
 morning and eastward in the evening, and Cybi, on the contrary, 
 always facing the sun, they were called ' Seiriol Wyn, a Chybi 
 Velyn, — Seiriol the Fair, and Cybi the Tawny. || 
 
 The foregoing are a few only of the numerous saints of 
 Cymru, who fought the good fight of faith during the period 
 under consideration. To notice the rest, of whom we have any 
 account, would be incompatible with our limits, — suffice it to 
 say, that they appear to have been in general equally devoted 
 to the service of Christ, according to their respective means and 
 circumstances. We say, in general, for however harsh and 
 exaggerated the language of Gildas is, we cannot withhold 
 every degree of credit from his allegations respecting the irre- 
 gularities of some of the clergy. It is certain, however, that 
 the establishment of the Welsh Church was now nearly com- 
 pleted, so that there remained but few districts in the land, 
 comparatively speaking, in which provisions were not perma- 
 nently made for the public worship of God. 
 
 * Ibid. p. 268. 
 
 f In the original it is pader, a terra by which the Welsh designate " the 
 Lord's Prayer." [Pater Noster.] J Myv. Arch. v. i. p. 173. 
 
 § It is said that he used also to meet Elian at a place called Llandyvrydog 
 between Llanelian and Holyhead, for the same purpose. 
 
 |j Rees's Welsh Saints, p. 267.
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 TRIAL OF THE CHURCH. 
 
 "We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed ; we are perplexed, but 
 not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken ; cast down, but not destroyed." — 
 2 Corinthians iii. 8, 9. 
 
 Of the several tribes which, from its earliest colonization, suc- 
 cessively settled in Britain, none may be regarded as unmixed 
 at the present stage of our history, except the Cymry, who, 
 moreover, occupied nearly the very limits assigned to them 
 originally by the institute of Prydain.* 
 
 As our inquiry into the religious state of the former inhabi- 
 tants of Lloegyr and Alban was brief and superficial, so it is 
 not our purpose to take any notice of the establishment and 
 progress of Christianity among the Saxons, but where the sub- 
 ject bears upon, or is interwoven with, the ecclesiastical anti- 
 quities of the Cymry. 
 
 History is silent as to the date of Ceredig's death. Rhun 
 died A.D. 58G, and was succeeded in the principality of North 
 Wales by his son Beli, of whom no further record has been 
 preserved. His honours were inherited, a.d. 599, by Iago ab 
 Beli, who reigned until 603, when he was killed by the blow of 
 a hatchet, inflicted upon him by Cadavael Wyllt (the icild), a 
 deed stigmatized in the Triads, as one of " the three evil hat- 
 chet blows of the Isle of Britain."t 
 
 It will be observed, that some of the ecclesiastical champions 
 
 * Triad 2. Seep. 10. t Triad 46.
 
 HO 
 
 mentioned in the preceding chapter, lived to this period. To 
 them may be now added the families of Dingad al> Nudd llael 
 [the liberal), in the line of Macsen Wledig; of Hygarvael, the 
 son of Cyndrwyn, a Powysian prince; of Arwystli Glof {lam* I, 
 the son of Seithenin, a prince of Dyved; of Cennydd, the sob 
 of Gildas ; of Pasgen ab CTrien Etheged; of Oawrdav, the son 
 of Caradog Vreichvras ; and many others. Hut the most cele- 
 brated are Oudoceus, the bishop of Llandaf ; Tysilio, the son of 
 Brochwel Ysgythrog ab Oyngen ab Cadell; and Deiniolen, or 
 Deiniol Ail, the grandson of Dunawd, abbot of Bangor Is- 
 coed.* 
 
 Oudoceus was nephew of Teilo, and. at his death, succeeded 
 him in the see of Lhmdaf. which he governed for a while in 
 pcaco and love. Afterwards, how< \< r, a misunderstanding un- 
 happily arose between him and king Cadwgan, in consequence 
 of a certain injury which one of his clergy received from the 
 latter. The king expelled him from his dominions, and the 
 bishop, in return, left them under a curse, and confined his 
 episcopal ministrations to the kingdom of Meurig, on the other 
 side of the river Towy. After an interval, Cadwgan repented 
 of what he had done, sought the prelate's pardon, and restored 
 to him his churches with their lands, and all their dignity, pri- 
 vilege, and liberty. Oudoceus has the honour of ranking with 
 Dyvrig and Teilo, as one of the patron saints of the cathedral 
 of Llandaf. t 
 
 Tysilio is said to have been bishop of St. Asaph, to which 
 see he must have been appointed immediately after Asaf, who 
 was his cousin in the first degree. X He was, moreover, a Bard, 
 and wrote an ecclesiastical history of Britain, which is alleged 
 to have been preserved in manuscript as late as the year 1600, 
 but since lost.§ A religious dialogue, in verse, between Gwrn- 
 
 * Rees's Essay on the Welsh Saiuts, sect. xii. 
 
 f Liber Landavensis, chap, iv; Rees's Essay, p. 274. 
 
 J Thus, Tysilio's mother was Arddun, sister of Sawyl Benuchel, who was 
 the father of Asaf, and both childreu of Pabo Post Prydain. 
 
 § Correspondence of the late Rev. Evan Evans (Prydydd Hir) published in 
 the " Cambrian Quarterly," vol. i. p. oi>o".
 
 141 
 
 erth and his father Llewelyn ab Bleiddyd, of Trallwng, or 
 Welsh Pool, inserted in the Myvyrian Archaiology, was com- 
 posed by Tysilio. He was the founder of several churches, 
 some of which are beyond the limits of his diocese. These he 
 was probably enabled to establish in consequence of the con- 
 quests of his brother, Cynan Garwyn, who, according to Taliesin, 
 was victorious along the banks of the Wye, in the Isle of An- 
 glesey, on the hills of Dimetia, and in the region of Brychan.* 
 
 Deiniolen was educated at Bangor Iscoed, under the presi- 
 dency of his grandfather, and after the destruction of that 
 monastery, he retired to Bangor in Carnarvonshire, where ho 
 became abbot of the society which his father had established. 
 In 616, he founded the church of Llanddeiniolen, in the same 
 county. t 
 
 It was towards the conclusion of the sixth century that 
 Augustine, the monk, came to Britain, with the express design 
 of converting the Pagan Saxons to the faith of Christ.^ Ho 
 was admitted into episcopal orders under the titlo of " Bishop 
 of the English" ( 'Anr/lorum Eplscopns), and invested by tho 
 pope with authority over all the native prelates. § Accordingly, 
 on learning the character and position of the ancient Church, 
 he invited Dunawd, of Bangor Iscoed, who had been repre- 
 sented to him as pre-eminent among the scholars of the age, to 
 come and assist him in preaching tho Gospel to the Saxons. 
 But the abbot replied, that he did not think it worthy to preach 
 to that cruel people, who had treacherously slain their parents, 
 and robbed them of their just and legitimate property. Ho 
 maintained, moreover, that his countrymen owed spiritual sub- 
 jection to none under God, besides the Archbishop of Caerleon: 
 and on this point, he is said to have enforced his arguments, by 
 an earnest appeal to Holy Scripture. || 
 
 * Rees's Essay, &c. sect. xii. ; My v. Arch. vol. i. p. 168. 
 
 f Ibid. 
 
 \ lie appears to have received his commission from Gregory, in 596, and to 
 have landed in Kent in 597. — Wharton de vera Success. Archie]). Cantuar. 
 Angl. Sacr. i. p. 89. 
 
 § Bede, lib. i. cap. xxvii ; Soame's Anglo-Saxon Church, ch. i. 
 
 || Brut Tysilio; Brut G. ab Arthur. Leland says, that the British writers
 
 142 
 
 Bede mentions two synods as having been convened relative 
 to the claims of Augustine. At the first, which was held at a 
 place called Augustinaes ac, the Britons resolutely refused to 
 assent to the entreaties, the exhortations, and the rebukes of 
 the foreign missionary to give up their own traditions, though 
 they might disagree with those of the rest of Christendom. It 
 was not until a miracle was believed to have been performed by 
 Augustine, that they confessed that his preaching was according 
 to righteousness. But even then they would not conform until 
 they should have consulted the majority of their countrymen, 
 and obtained their consent and permission. With this view, 
 they demanded that another synod should be held, at which a 
 greater number of persons should meet. This second synod 
 was attended by seven bishops and many very learned men, 
 chiefly from the college of Bangor Iscoed. Whilst on their 
 way thither they consulted a hermit, renowned for his piety and 
 wisdom, as to the manner in which they should regard the pro- 
 posals of Augustine. He advised them to regulate their reso- 
 lutions according to his behaviour towards them at the confer- 
 ence. They were to contrive to be somewhat later in their 
 arrival than he, and if he deigned not to stand up at the 
 approach of so venerable and numerous an assembly, it was a 
 sign he was no disciple of the humble-minded Jesus, and, there- 
 fore, they were not to listen to him, but still retain their ancient 
 usages. This was an unfortunate test for Augustine ; for as he 
 continued to sit in his chair, the British ecclesiastics indignantly 
 charged him with pride, and strove to contradict everything 
 which he said. The missionary, at length relaxing in his de- 
 
 give a more ample account of the conference with Augustine than is extant in 
 Bede ; that according to them, Dunawd did at large dispute with great learning 
 and gravity against receiving the authority of the Pope or of Augustine ; and 
 that he defended the power of the Archhishop of St. David's ; and affirmed it 
 not to he for the British interest to ovvu either the Roman pride or the Saxon 
 tyrannv. He further says, that the ahhot found fault with Gregory for not 
 admonishing the Saxons of their gross usurpations against their solemn oaths ; 
 and adds, that it was their duty, if they would he good Christians, to restore 
 their unjust and tyrannical power to those from whom they had taken it. — De 
 Script, in Dinoth. See Stillingfleet's Orig. Britain,, pp. oatt^GO.
 
 143 
 
 mands, told them : " Since in many things ye act contrary to 
 our custom, and even to that of the universal church, yet if ye 
 will obey me in these three points, — that ye celebrate the Pass- 
 over at its proper time ; that ye perforin the service of baptism, 
 by which we are born again to God, after the manner of the 
 holy Roman and Apostolic Church ; and that ye preach with 
 us the word of God to the nation of the Angles; — as for the 
 other things which ye do, although contrary to our customs, we 
 will bear them all with patience." But they answered, " We 
 will perform none of these, neither will we have thee for an 
 archbishop. 11 * 
 
 The following is said to be the substance of a speech which 
 Dunawd, on one of these occasions addressed to Augustine : — 
 
 " Be it known, and without doubt unto you, that we all and 
 every one of us are obedient subjects to the Church of God, and 
 to the Pope of Rome, and to every godly Christian, to love 
 every one in his degree in perfect charity ; and to help every 
 one of them, by word and deed, to be the children of God ; and 
 other obedience than this I do not know to be due to him whom 
 you name to be pope, or father of fathers, to be claimed and to 
 be demanded ; and this obedience we are ready to give and to 
 pay to him, and to every Christian continually ; besides, we are 
 under the government of the Bishop of Caerleon-upon-Usk, who 
 is to oversee, under God, over us, to cause us to keep the way 
 spiritual. "t 
 
 * Bede, lib. ii. c. ii. 
 
 f Spelm. Concil. Brit. p. 108, ex Antiq. MS. It is urged against the au- 
 thority of this document, that its style is too modern, that it is improbable that 
 it could have been preserved through many centuries of popish ascendancy, 
 and that its statement as to the Bishop of Caerleon is not borne out by histori- 
 cal fact. On these points we may observe in reply,— first, that on comparison 
 with the prosaic works attributed to Cattwg Ddoeth, in the third volume of the 
 Myvyrian Archaiology, as well as some Triads of equally ancient date, and 
 even certain verses iu the alleged poems of Taliesin, the language will not at 
 all appear too recent. But supposing it were so ; might not the document 
 under consideration be a translation of the original protest? Indeed, it is 
 much more likely that the conference was carried on in Latin than in the native 
 lano-uage of the Britons, as the former would be understood by both parties. 
 Secondly, Sir II. Spelman tells us, that he had the MS. which contained Dun-
 
 144 
 
 When the foreign prelate perceived that all his proposals 
 were thus contemptuously rejected, he told the Britons in a 
 threatening tone, that since they would not have peace with 
 brethren, they should have war with enemies, and if they were 
 unwilling to preach the way of life to the English, they should 
 suffer by their hands the vengeance of death. This prediction 
 was shortly afterwards woefully verified, for Ethelfrith, king of 
 Northumbria, marched against them at the head of an immense 
 army. He was met not far from Chester, by Brochwel Ysgyth- 
 rog, prince of Powys, with whom stood also a group of priests 
 and monks, chiefly from the college of Bangor Iscoed, who had 
 thus come to the field of battle to pray for their country and 
 Church. The Northumbrian king, observing this novel sight 
 and fearing the effects of their supplications, immediately at- 
 tacked the unarmed ecclesiastics, and ruthlessly slew of them 
 to the number of twelve hundred persons, — fifty only having 
 saved their life by flight. The monastery of Bangor next fell 
 into his hands, and felt all the effects of his rage. But here 
 his victorious career was checked ; for the Welsh princes, having 
 combined their forces, gave him battle, and ultimately routed 
 him with great slaughter. 
 
 awd's speech from Mr. Peter Mostyn, a Welsh gentleman, and that it appeared 
 to have been an old MS. transcribed from an older, but without date or author. 
 Now this would connect it seemingly with popish times, or at least with that 
 period in which the claims of the British and Romish communions were hotly 
 discussed, so that there could be no opportunity afforded for fabrication on such 
 a subject as this. It does not look like a forgery, for in that case we might na- 
 turally expect to find a greater caution observed in the statement which refers 
 to the metropolitan see. That the document could have been preserved during 
 the sway of popery is not improbable, when we consider that the poems of our 
 earliest bards exhibit sentiments equally unfavourable to the pretensions of 
 Rome. Thirdly, the bishops of Llandaf claimed the primacy in opposition to 
 the assertions of St. David, though both parties were ready to acknowledge at 
 this time that it belonged peculiarly to Caerleon ; and this was probably the 
 reason, as they now stood on common ground, why they chose to denominate 
 their archbishop by a title in which they could mutually acquiesce. One point 
 further : the expression, " father of fathers" seems to have been an explanation 
 furnished in the first instance to the Britons, in consequence of the ignorance 
 which they would naturally betray in regard to the strange name of" Pope."
 
 145 
 
 Terms of peace were afterwards agreed upon by both parties ; 
 according to which Ethelfrith was permitted to retain his pos- 
 sessions north of the Humber, whilst Cadvan, the son of Iago 
 ab Beli was to be recognized as the nominal sovereign of the 
 island, and to have practical authority over all the southern 
 provinces.* 
 
 It would appear that during the period immediately pre- 
 ceding the late invasion, Powys was ascendant among the prin- 
 cipalities of Cymru, and hence furnished an unusual proportion 
 of saints. The destruction of its noble monastery, and pious 
 inmates, who might be considered at this time emphatically 
 as the seeds of the Church, was a severe blow to the reli- 
 gious establishment of the country at large, which even the 
 tranquil reign of Cadvan could not repair. After his death, 
 the British Church was still more depressed, in consequence of 
 the victories of Edwin, the son of Ella, who, for a short time, 
 reduced the whole of the Britons under his sway. Nevertheless, 
 thus in her low estate she was enabled successfully to maintain 
 her ancient privileges, in opposition to the encroachments con- 
 tinually made upon her liberty and independence by the Italian 
 missionaries. Laurentius, who succeeded Augustine in the see 
 of Canterbury, endeavoured, both by arguments and entreaties, 
 to gain over the Scots and Britons to adopt the Romish customs. 
 But of their obstinacy he thus complains, in a letter which he, 
 in conjunction with Mellitus and Justus, addressed on the sub- 
 ject to the former people : " Knowing the Britons, we thought 
 the Scots had been better ; but we have been informed that the 
 Scots in no way differ from the Britons in their behaviour, for 
 Bishop Daganus, coming to us, refused not only to eat with us, 
 but even to take his repast in the house where we were enter- 
 tained.""t 
 
 We may here, in reference to the history of Edwin, notice a 
 remarkable instance of the vitality and influence of the northern 
 communion, which has been recorded by Nennius, though alto- 
 gether overlooked or perverted by subsequent writers. It has 
 been almost universally inferred from the language of Bede as 
 
 * Brut Tysilio ; Brut G. ab Arthur ; Bede, lib. ii. cap. ii. 
 f Bede, lib. ii.cap. iv.
 
 146 
 
 to the share which Paulinus had in the conversion of the Nor- 
 thumbrian king, that he actually baptised him. Bede, however, 
 does not say so, whereas Nennius expressly informs us that the 
 holy sacrament was administered by Rhun, the son of Urien. 
 His words are these : 
 
 " Eadguin vero in sequenti pascha baptismum suscepit, et 
 duodecim millia hominum baptizati sunt cum eo. Si quis scire 
 voluerit quis eos baptizavit, Rum map Urbgen baptizavit eos, et 
 per quadraginta dies non cessavit baptizare omne genus Am- 
 bronum, et per prsedicationem illius multi crediderunt in 
 Christo."* 
 
 The compiler of the " Cambrian Biography,' 1 it is true, has 
 not mentioned any of the sons of Urien, who bore the above 
 appellation ; yet this is not sufficient to disprove the existence 
 of such a personage. On the other hand, it singularly happens, 
 that in a poem written by Llywarch Hen, upon the death of 
 his relation Urien, the Bard, having alluded to the sorrow of 
 
 * The above is from Stevenson's edition. It is true that Gale has the fol- 
 lowing : " Sanctus Paulinus Eboracensis Archiepiscopus eos baptizavit," with- 
 out any notice of Rhun ; but it is necessary to bear in mind that Gale adopted, 
 as the basis of his text, a MS. of the end of the twelfth or the beginning of the 
 thirteenth century, which contained much interpolation, whereas Stevenson 
 made use of one of the tenth century, which was least vitiated by extraneous 
 matter. In his preface, he affirms that upwards of twenty MSS. of different 
 ages were examined for his edition of Nennius, and that the various readings 
 gained from the collation of them were introduced at the bottom of the page. 
 It is, therefore, remarkable that all of them ascribe the administration of 
 Edwin's baptism to Rhun, the son of Urien. Two of them, indeed, apparently 
 attempt to identify that individual with Paulinus Archbishop of York ; but as 
 the editor, in reference to those two manuscripts, declares that many of the ad- 
 ditions which were written upon their margins had been introduced into the 
 text of other copies, the author of the present work is inclined to infer from 
 such a statement that the explanatory words, " id est, Paulinus Eboracensis 
 Archiepiscopus," appear in the MSS. on the margin only, but that they have 
 been coupled in the note by Stevenson with the text, merely as various readings 
 of the said manuscripts. But if this be not the case, there is every probability 
 that they originally appeared as marginal illustrations, and were afterwards 
 admitted to the text by some careless transcriber. The two MSS. in question 
 are of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries respectively.
 
 147 
 
 Eurddyl, sister of the deceased prince, turns his attention, in 
 the next place, to an individual of the name of Khun : 
 
 "Were there not given to me by Rhun, greatly fond of war, 
 A hundred swarms, and a hundred shields? 
 But one swarm was better far than all. 
 
 Were there not given to me by Rhun, the celebrated chief, a canton, 
 
 And a hundred lowing kine ? 
 
 But one gift was better far than these. 
 
 In the life-time of Rhun, the peaeeless wanderer, 
 
 The unjust will wallow in dangers ; 
 
 May there be fetters of iron on the steeds of rapine."* 
 
 Now may it not be fairly presumed, that the above was none 
 other than the " Rhun mab Urien ,1 of Nennius ? The very 
 circumstance of the name not being generally conspicuous in 
 British documents, coupled with the incidental mention of it in 
 the above lines, tends to divest it of the character of forgery 
 and interpolation in the writings of Nennius, as a stickler for 
 the honour of the ancient British Church, if he had a mind to 
 forge, would undoubtedly have selected for his purpose a more 
 illustrious name in the Calendar of Saints. It is true that 
 Llywarch Hen represents Rhun as " greatly fond of war," and 
 a " peaceless wanderer,"" a character incompatible with a 
 " steward of the mysteries of God ;" yet it is to be remem- 
 bered, that in these troublesome times, the defeated chiefs 
 among the Britons very generally devoted the remainder of their 
 lives to the service of religion, within the walls of a monastery, 
 or in the more public exercise of parochial ministrations and 
 other works of piety. Even, in this very poem, mention is 
 made of the military bearing of Dunawd,f who became after- 
 wards the celebrated abbot of Bangor. It is, therefore, not 
 improbable that Rhun, after the loss of his patrimony, should 
 have followed the general fashion, and exchanged his martial 
 armour for the peaceful garb of an ecclesiastic. 
 
 * Owen's Heroic Elegies, &c. p. 33. 
 
 f " Dunawd, the knight of the warring field, would fiercely rage, 
 With a mind determined to make a dead corpse.'' 
 
 " Dunawd, the hasty chief, would fiercely rage, 
 With mind elated for the battle."
 
 148 
 
 This interesting and important event is dated a.d. 627, which 
 was posterior to the invasion of Cymru, so that the humiliation 
 of the Church in that province was not only owing to the na- 
 tural effects of war, but also to the religious antipathy of the 
 Pagan usurper. 
 
 Cadwallon, the son of Cadvan, had been compelled by his 
 rival to flee into Ireland, where he remained seven years.* 
 After the expiration of that period, he returned ; and having 
 entered into an alliance with Penda, king of Mercia, vigorously 
 opposed Edwin, and ultimately, a.d. 633, after a desperate 
 battle, in which the Northumbrian king and his son fell, suc- 
 ceeded in recovering his former patrimony, and the monarchy 
 of Britain. t Cadwallon was nominally a Christian; nevertheless, 
 his selection of a heathen ally argues nothing favourable from 
 his successes to the cause of the Church. Llywarch Hen, j who 
 has written his elegy, affirms that — 
 
 • "he fought fourteen 
 
 Great hattles for the most fair Britain, and sixty skirmishes." 
 
 And from the poem in question it would appear that those 
 "great battles" were all fought in Cymru, which proves the 
 strong position which his opponent had previously gained there, 
 and the perils and difficulties to which the national religion 
 would be necessarily exposed, even whilst the country was in 
 course of being emancipated from his tyrannical usurpation. 
 The British monarch ably supported his power until about A.D. 
 660, when he was slain by Oswald, son of Ethelfrith.§ 
 
 * " The three faithful families of the Isle of Britain : the family of Cadwal- 
 lon, son of Cadvan, who remained with him seven years in Ireland, and during 
 that period they asked of him neither pay nor right whatever, lest they should 
 be obliged to leave him, for he could not have granted their due claims." — 
 Triad 80. 
 
 f Brut Tysilio ; Brut G. ab Arthur. 
 
 I Llywarch Hen lived to the patriarchal age of 150, which is the reason 
 why we find his name in this work connected with times so distant from one 
 another. 
 
 § Nennius, Sect. 64. According to Brut Tysilio, he died of a disease. It 
 would appear, from Llywarch Hen, as if his death was hastened by the intrigue 
 of certaiD ecclesiastics:
 
 149 
 
 His son, Cadwaladr, succeeded to tho sovereignty. He was 
 of a peaceable and pious disposition, and hence, as it would 
 seem, the epithet of " Bendigaid 1 ' (Blessed) was frequently at- 
 tached to his name. He is said to have rebuilt the church of 
 Eglwys Ael, in Anglesey, where his grandfather Cadvan had 
 been buried, and which was subsequently called Llangadwaladr. 
 The churches of Llangadwaladr, alias Bishopston, Monmouth- 
 shire, and Llangadwaladr under Llanrhaiadr in Mochnant, 
 Denbighshire, are also dedicated to him.* Cadwaladr has been 
 honoured in the Triads as one of "the three canonized kings of 
 the Isle of Britain ;"f and also one of " the three sovereigns who 
 conferred blessings, 1 ' because he "granted the privilege of his 
 land and all his property to the faithful, who fled from the in- 
 fidel Saxons and the unbrotherly ones who wished to slay 
 them."J 
 
 In order to avoid the effects of a dreadful plague, which 
 broke out in his kingdom, Cadwaladr fled to the continent, 
 where he was hospitably entertained by Alan, king of Armorica. 
 During his absence, however, the power of his enemies in Bri- 
 tain was considerably augmented by the arrival of additional 
 hordes from Germany. The royal fugitive, therefore, when he 
 wished to return home, after the cessation of the pestilence, 
 deemed it expedient to solicit assistance from Alan, with a view 
 to recover his former dominions. It does not appear that Cad- 
 waladr personally attended the expedition which was granted 
 on the occasion, but that he died before it set out, about A.D. 
 703. § He was the last of the Cymry, who assumed the title 
 of chief sovereign of the island. 
 
 " From the plotting of strangers and unjust monks, 
 As the water flows from the fountain — 
 Sorrowful will be our lingering day for Cadwallon." 
 * Rees's Essay on the Welsh Saints, p. 301. 
 f Cambrian Biography, vocibus Gwrthevyr and Tewdrig. 
 X Triad 35. See page 54 of this work. 
 
 § The British chronicles assert that Cadwaladr died at Rome, whilst Nen- 
 nius, on the contrary, would lead us to conclude that he perished in the pesti- 
 lence at home. The evidence that he repaired to the continent is however 
 sufficiently strong, though the story about his pilgrimage to Rome probably
 
 150 
 
 Since the destruction of Bangor Iscoed, the interest of the 
 Church continued to be upheld by the following persons : 
 
 Grwst, who founded Llanrwst, Denbighshire ; and Nidan, 
 who was an officer in the college of Penmon, Anglesey, and the 
 founder of Llannidan, in the same county ; both descendants 
 of Urien Rheged. 
 
 Dyvnog ;* Cynhaval, the founder of the church of Llangyn- 
 haval, Denbighshire ; Collen, who established the church of 
 Llangollen, in the same county ; and Helig Voelf {the bald), 
 originally chieftain of a tract of low land, on the coast of 
 Carnarvonshire, which was afterwards overflowed by the sea. 
 When he had thus lost his property, he embraced a religious 
 life, and his example was imitated by his sons, who retired 
 to the colleges of Bangor Deiniol, and Bangor Enlli. Their 
 names were Aelgyvarch ; Boda ; Brothen, the founder of the 
 church of Llanvrothen, Merionethshire ; Bodvan, the patron 
 saint of Aber, Carnarvonshire ; Bedwas, probably the founder 
 of a church so called, in Monmouthshire ; Celynin, who 
 established the church of Llangelynin, Merionethshire ; Bren- 
 da;| Euryn ; Gwyar ; (xwynnin, the patron saint of Llandy- 
 gwynnin, Carnarvonshire ; Peris, the founder of Llanberis, in 
 the same county ;§ and Hhychwyn, the patron saint of Llan- 
 rhychwyn, a chapel under Trevriw, also in Carnarvonshire. All 
 these w r ere descended from Caradog Vreichvras.|| 
 
 Usteg, who is said to have officiated as dean of the college 
 
 arose from his having been confounded with Ceadwalla the king of Wessex, of 
 whom both Bede aud the Saxon Chronicle relate a similar account. 
 
 * He is supposed to have been the second saint of Dyvynog, Brecknockshire, 
 Which was originally founded by Cynogab Brychan.— Rees's Essay, $-c. p. 295. 
 
 f His grandfather, Gwgan Gleddyv Rhudd (with the ruddy sword) is dis- 
 tinguished in the Triads as one of " the three centinels of the battle of Bangor 
 Orchard." — Triad 66 (first series). 
 
 t A saying of his has been recorded : 
 
 " Truly saith St. Breuda, 
 The evil is not less resorted to than good." 
 
 Myv. Arch. vol. i. p. 15 ; vol. ii. p. 30. 
 
 § Llangian, a chapel under Llanbedrog, Carnarvonshire, is dedicated to him 
 in conjunction with Cian, who was his servant. — Rees's Essay, $-c. p. 302. 
 
 || According to some, however, Collen was the son of Pctrwn ab Coleddog ab 
 Rhydderch Hael. — Rees's Essay, 8,-c. p. 302.
 
 151 
 
 of Gannon ; Eldad, his brother, who was a member of the con- 
 gregation of Illtyd, and afterwards bishop of Gloucester, where 
 he was slain by the Saxons ; Enghenel, the patron saint of 
 Llanenghenel under Llanvachraith, Anglesey ; and Dona, the 
 founder of the church of Llanddona, in the same county ; all in 
 the line of Cadell Deyrnllug.* 
 
 Eldad, a descendant of Cynan Meiriadog, and a member of 
 the college of Illtyd. t 
 
 Egwad, great grandson of Gildas ab Caw, who founded the 
 churches of Llanegwad and Llanvynydd, in the county of Car- 
 marthen 4 
 
 Edeyrn, of the family of Maelgwn Gwynedd. He was a 
 Bard, and the chapel of Bodedeyrn under Holyhead, is dedi- 
 cated to him.§ 
 
 Padrig, the son of Alvryd ab Goronwy ab Gwdion ab Don ; 
 a member of the Society of Cybi, at Holyhead, and the founder 
 of the church of Llanbadrig, in Anglesey. || 
 
 Idloes, the son of Gwyddnabi ab Llawvrodedd Varvog Coch, 
 who founded the church of Llanidloes, Montgomeryshire. 11 
 
 Cadell, the great-grandson of Llywarch Hen, to whom Llan- 
 gadell, a church formerly in Glamorganshire, was dedicated.** 
 
 Besides these, there were others of unknown genealogies, who 
 seem to have contributed in no less degree their talents and 
 energies to the furtherance of the same sacred cause. Such 
 were Sadwrn, who is considered to be the patron saint of Hen- 
 llan, in the county of Denbigh ; Curig Lwyd, a bishop, probably 
 of Llanbadarn Vawr, and the founder of the church of Llan- 
 gurig,tt Montgomeryshire, whose crozier was preserved in the 
 neighbouring church of St. Harmon in the time of Giraldus 
 Cambrensis ; and the celebrated Gwenvrewi, or St. Winefred, 
 to whom Holywell, in Flintshire, is dedicated.^ 
 
 * Rees's Essay, &c. pp. 297, 298, 302. t Ibid- P- 298. 
 
 X Ibid. § lb. || lb. H lb. Gwdion ab Don, and Llawvrodedd 
 
 Varvog Coch, are ranked in the Triads with Benren, under the appellation of 
 "the three tribe-herdsmen of the Isle of Britain." 
 
 ** Bees's Essay, &c. p. 295 
 
 H - As there was another saint of the same name, it is uncertain which of the 
 two founded the churches of Porth Curig, Glamorganshire, and Eglwys Vail a 
 Churig, Carmarthenshire. H Bees's Essay, \c. pp. 298, 307.
 
 152 
 
 Among the saints of this period, connected with Cymru, may 
 be also noticed Edwen, a female of Saxon descent, and, as it 
 appears, daughter or niece of Edwin, king of Northumbria. 
 She is said to have founded the church of Llanedwen, in An- 
 glesey ; which is not improbable, when we consider that Edwin 
 was brought up in the court of Cadvan, king of North Wales, 
 at Caerseiont, or Carnarvon.* 
 
 * Ibid, p. 303.
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 SUBMISSION OF THE CHURCH. 
 
 "The elder shall serve the younger." — Genesis xxv. 2.3. 
 
 Ivor and Ynyr, who headed the expedition to Britain, quickly 
 succeeded in recovering Cornwall, Devonshire, and Somerset- 
 shire. Peace was then concluded between the two peoples, 
 according to the terms of which Ivor received in marriage 
 Ethelburga, cousin of Centwin the king of Wessex, and was 
 allowed to retain the territories which he had already won. He 
 restored the monastery of Avallon, or Glastonbury, and also 
 endowed the church of Winchester with extensive grants of 
 land, besides other churches both in England and Wales.* 
 
 In Brut y Tywysogion,t it is stated, that between A.D. 710 
 and 720, " a church of Llanvihangel was consecrated ;" and in 
 
 * Brut y Tywysogion ; Powel's History of Camhria, p. 10. 
 
 f In the second volume of the Myvyrian Archaiology is inserted a series of 
 chronicles, two of which are called " Brut y Tywysogion," or the Chronicle of 
 the Princes, and were written by Caradog of Llancarvan, who flourished in the 
 middle of the twelfth century. Both are printed entirely, " because," as the 
 editors explain, " they have not the least identity with respect to composition 
 or course of narration." Another goes under the name of " Brut y Saeson," or 
 Chronicle of the Saxons, " not because that it is peculiarly a history of the 
 Saxons, but from its connecting with the affairs of Wales a general review of 
 the transactions of all Britain." Accompanying these is a fourth, entitled, 
 "Brut Ieuan Brechva,"or the Chronicle of Ieuan Brechva,bard and historian, 
 about a.d. 1500. The variations in the phraseology of Caradog's Chronicles 
 are accounted for on the idea that, being applied to for copies of his work, he 
 transcribed them in various proportions according to a variety of prices, for 
 
 g
 
 154 
 
 Brut y Sacson, it is said, "in 717 was consecrated a church of 
 Michael." As there is no church of St. Michael in Wales of 
 eminence sufficient to deserve this special notice, it has been in- 
 ferred that the one in question was the first in the principality 
 dedicated to the Archangel.* 
 
 Having reigned thirty years, Ivor went to Rome, leaving his 
 kingdom to Rhodri Molwynog, son of Idwal Iwrch, and grand- 
 son of Cadwaladr, who ascended the throne a.d. 720. t In the 
 September of that year, a tremendous flood occurred, which, in 
 addition to other damages, swept away the Church of Llancar- 
 van. About the same time, also, a party of " infidel Saxons" 
 attacked and demolished several churches in the dioceses of 
 Llandaf, Menevia, and Llanbadarn, and put to death Aidan, 
 the bishop of the former place, together with many wise men of 
 his jurisdiction.^ 
 
 Rhodri Molwynog was succeeded in the principality of Wales, 
 a.d. 755, by his son Cynan Tindaethwy. The same year, 
 Elvod,§ bishop of liangor, altered the time of keeping Easter 
 in North Wales ; but as the other bishops refused compliance, 
 the Saxons inarched against the Cymry of South Wales, and 
 gave them battle at a place called Coed Marchan, in which, 
 however, the latter came off victorious. Shortly after, Cyve- 
 lach, the bishop of Morganwg, or Glamorgan, was slain in an 
 engagement which occurred at Hereford between the same peo- 
 ple. In 777, the inhabitants of South Wales submitted to the 
 new regulations respecting the Paschal feast ; but on the death 
 of Elvod, a.d. 809, a fresh disturbance broke out among the 
 
 purchasers of various descriptions. It is also maintained, that some copies 
 might have heen written in an early part of his life, from which others written 
 at a more advanced period would very naturally differ, from an accession of 
 additional or more correct knowledge of facts. See Preface to Myv. Arch. 
 2nd vol. 
 
 * Rees's Essay on the Welsh Saints, p. 67. 
 
 t Brut y Tywysogion. 
 
 % Ibid. 
 
 § He is styled in the Brut, " Archbishop of Gwynedd." Nennius, the his- 
 torian, was his disciple, as appears from Gale's edition, " Ego Nennius Sancti 
 Elhodi discipulus.''
 
 1 55 
 
 ecclesiastics on the same subject, for the bishops of Llandaf and 
 Menevia, maintaining the prerogatives of their own older sees, 
 disdained to acknowledge the authority of Bangor. The fol- 
 lowing year, St. David's was burnt by the Saxons, and about 
 817, Oynan died, when the royal issue of Cunedda and Cal- 
 waladr. in the male line, became extinct.'"' 
 
 At his death, the reins of government were assumed by his 
 daughter Essyllt, and her husband, Mervyn Vrych,t a descen- 
 dant of Llywarch Hen. They had most powerful enemies in 
 the persons of Egbert, king of Wessex, and Cenulph, king of 
 Mercia, who separately brought their armies against the prin- 
 cipality, and perpetrated many devastations in the country. 
 Egbert prevailed so much, also, over his Saxon rivals, as to 
 succeed eventually in forming the Heptarchy into one kingdom, 
 by the name of England, which acknowledged his monarchical 
 authority. In order to check his encroachments upon Wales, 
 Mervyn deemed it expedient, A.D. 83b', to join his forces to 
 those of the Danes,;]: who had then just landed in the princi- 
 pality. They were, however, totally defeated, and a few years 
 afterwards, Mervyn was killed in a battle which was fought 
 between the Cymry and Berthwryd (Burchred), king of Mercia. 
 The Saxons of Mercia had previously, A.D. 831, burnt the mo- 
 nastery of Senghenydd, which is the only event, besides the 
 death of the bishop of Menevia, connected with the Welsh 
 Church, mentioned in the Bruts as having occurred during this 
 reign. § 
 
 Rhodri Mawr (the great), son of Mervyn Vrych and Essyllt, 
 commenced his reign about A.D. 843, which, like that of his 
 
 * Brut y Tywysogion. 
 
 f 'Flic pedigrees of Henry VII designate him " kino- of Man." 
 
 I These are variously denominated in the British chronicles; as " Gentiles," 
 '• pagans from Denmark," "black pagans," " the black horde." They were a 
 formidable and ferocious race, and, in conjunction with other barbarians, issued 
 from the peninsula of Jutland, the islands of the Baltic, and the shores of the 
 Scandinavian continent. Matthew of Westminster considers their invasion 
 of England as a judgment upon the people for their degeneracy in religion and 
 morality. 
 
 § Brut y Tywysogion.
 
 156 
 
 father, was one continued warfare with his neighbours, espe- 
 cially the Saxons of Mercia. In 860, a pagan party of English 
 demolished all the churches and monasteries in Gwent, Gla- 
 morgan, Dyved, and Cardigan. Ten years after, a battle took 
 place at Bangor, where the Bishop of that see was slain.* The 
 year following, Einion, bishop of St. David's, died, and Hubert, 
 an Englishman, t was appointed in his stead. About the same 
 time, Alfred ascended the throne of England, and one of his 
 first acts was to invite three able teachers, from the College of 
 St. David's, to superintend the university of Oxford, a fact 
 which tells favourably of the state of learning in the princi- 
 pality, even in these days of war and oppression. The persons 
 selected on this occasion, were Asser, who taught grammar and 
 rhetoric ; John Menevensis, who read logic, music, and arith- 
 metic ; and John Erigena, who professed geometry and astro- 
 nomy. | 
 
 Rhodri divided his kingdom among his three sons, Anarawd, 
 Cadell, and Mervyn, who are styled in the Triads as "the three 
 
 * It would appear from the Brut, that the bishop sided with the English, for 
 thus is it expressed : " The English were slain in great numbers with stones 
 hurled down upon them from the hills, and amongst them the bishop of 
 Bangor.'' 
 
 f Hubert Sais (the Englishman). — Brut. 
 
 X Asser was related to Novis Archbishop of St. David's, and is supposed to 
 be identical with Geraint Vardd Glas (the Blue Bard) author of a Welsh 
 grammar, which was extant in Rhaglan Castle, before that place was demolished 
 in the wars of Cromwell ; and also of some moral pieces, which are printed in 
 the Myvyrian Archaiology. The alleged identity chiefly rests on this : that 
 Asser (azure) is a translation of Bardd Glas, and Glas y Gaclair, which were 
 the usual appellations of Geraint. Of John Menevensis nothing particular 
 is known except that he was a man of piety and learning. It is said that John 
 Erigena, owing to the turbulent state of Wales, repaired to Athens, where he 
 tarried many years, studying Greek, Chaldee, and Arabic ; that he visited the 
 most celebrated seminaries in those days, and then returned, through Italy and 
 Gaul, to St. David's, where he was held in great esteem when Alfred sent for 
 him. (See Cambrian Register, vol. ii. p. 53 and 204.) Asser says that their 
 friends consented to their acceptance of Alfred's invitation, because they ex- 
 pected that their college would thereby receive protection against the oppression 
 of Hyveidd, king of Dyved, who had frequently plundered it before.
 
 157 
 
 diademed princes."""' Anarawd, however, the eldest, according 
 to the ancient constitution of the country, was invested witli 
 supreme authority over his brothers, and was hence emphatically 
 designated " Prince of Wales," though the honour was chiefly 
 nominal. 
 
 These entered upon their respective dominions, A.D. 87G. In 
 883, died Cydivor, abbot of Llanveithin, who had in his life 
 exhibited great concern for the welfare of the Scots of Ireland, 
 having sent over six of the wise men of his college to instruct 
 them. a.d. 893, the " black pagans," as the Bruts sometimes 
 denominate the Danes and Normans, crossing the Severn, 
 burnt Llanilltyd Vawr, Cynfig, and Llancarvan, and committed 
 great havoc in Morgan wg, Gwent, Brecknock, and Buellt.t 
 
 Anarawd was succeeded, a.d. 913, by his son Edwal Voel 
 (the bald), who reigned until 940, when he was slain, and his 
 honours assumed by Hywel Dda (the pood), son of Cadell. A 
 thorough revision of the laws of Wales was undertaken by the 
 authority of Hywel, and was accomplished in the following 
 manner : — 
 
 The king took with him Martin, bishop of Mynyw ; Mordav, 
 bishop of Bangor ; March! wys, bishop of Teilo ; and Blegwryd 
 ab Owain, chancellor of Llandaf, the brother of the bishop of 
 Morganwg ; and proceeded to Koine, with a view to obtain a 
 knowledge of the laws of different countries, to examine their 
 comparative merits, and in particular to advise with distin- 
 guished statesmen as to the means of improving the existing 
 code of Wales. Having gained their object, they returned ; 
 and Hywel summoned to him six men from every commot in 
 the principality, two of whom were clerical and four lay. They 
 met in the holy season of Lent, and " after a careful research 
 respecting every country and city, the laws of Dyvnwal Moel- 
 mud were found superior to the whole ; therefore, through the 
 learning and instructive exertion of Blegwryd, those were sys- 
 temized, and were presented for the judgment of the convention, 
 so as to obtain every possible illustration, improvement, and 
 amplification of them." This done, Hywel went to Rome a se- 
 
 * Triad 43. f Brut y Tywysogion.
 
 158 
 
 cond time, with certain of the nobility, and Lambert, bishop of 
 Mynyw ; Mordav, bishop of Bangor ; Chebur, bishop of St. 
 Asaph ; and Blegwryd, archdeacon of Llandaf ; " to procure the 
 sentiment of wise men there, and to be certified that his laws 
 were in concurrence with the law of God, and the laws of the 
 various countries and states of Christendom. 1 ' They were finally 
 put in force in all the dominions of Wales, and regarded of 
 such worth and excellency as to gain for Hywel the distinctive 
 title of " Dda," or " the Good. 11 * For the same reason, he 
 has been honoured in the Triads as one of " the three patriot 
 kings of the Isle of Britain."t 
 
 a.d. 944, Lambert, bishop of St. David's, suffered death at 
 the hands of the English ; and four years afterwards, Hywel 
 Dda died, leaving behind him four sons, Owain, Rhun, Rhodri, 
 and Edwyn.j 
 
 These took possession of his estates in South Wales, whilst 
 levav and Iaffo, sons of Edvval Yoel, ruled in North Wales. 
 A civil commotion hence ensued, which was prosecuted on both 
 sides with great zeal and obstinacy, until at length the latter 
 princes prevailed, and exercised supreme authority over all 
 Cymru. § 
 
 Owain, the son of Hywel, on some occasions directed his 
 arms against sacred institutions. Thus, A.D. 959, he destroyed 
 the monastery of Illtyd in Corwennydd, because he found it 
 occupied by Saxon students, and thence went and utterly de- 
 molished the college of Oattwg, in Nantgarvan.|| 
 
 a.d. 961, the sons of Abloic, king of Ireland, destroyed 
 Holyhead, and carried away the shrine of Cybi to their own 
 country, where it remained for a hundred years. H About the 
 same period, Padarn, the bishop of Llandaf, died, and Rhodri 
 
 * Bruty Tywysogion. f Triad 59. 
 
 + Brut Ieuan Brechva ; Brut y Tywysogion. 
 § Ibid ; Hanes Cymru, p. 410. 
 || Brut y Tywysogion. 
 
 H Ibid. In Brut Ieuam Brechva, Holyhead is said to have been ravaged 
 the year before by the sons of Eidwal Dyved.
 
 1 59 
 
 ab Morgan was appointed in his .stead, against the will of the 
 pope, but was soon removed by poison. At the same time 
 the clergy were instructed not to marry without the pope's 
 licence ; but a considerable disturbance arising in consequence 
 within the diocese of Llandaf, it was eventually deemed expe- 
 dient to withdraw the injunction, and allow them the indul- 
 gence which they had hitherto enjoyed.* 
 
 Soon after this, an important event in the history of the 
 Cambrian Church took place, namely, the consecration of Gwgan 
 for the see of Llandaf, by Dunstan, the primate of England. 
 It was accomplished through the power and under the protec- 
 tion of Edgar, who presented him on the occasion with the 
 pastoral staff. | 
 
 It is said that Edgar, who had acquired considerable au- 
 thority in Wales, founded in it many monasteries; though, 
 during one of his expeditions, his soldiers devastated a great 
 number of native churches and colleges, and plundered them of 
 their ornaments and other valuable properties. For such 
 sacrileges, and other enormities towards the Welsh Church, 
 which he had been guilty of in his youth, Edgar made a restitu- 
 tion at his death, A.D. 9754 
 
 The churches in Carnarvonshire suffered severely at the 
 hands of Hywel, the son of Ievav, who, with an army of Saxons, 
 warred against his uncle Iago. He gained the sovereignty 
 about 978, and two years afterwards he led a great party of his 
 English allies against Einion ab Owain ab Hywel Dda. Where- 
 upon Gotffrid ab Harallt§ marched his troops as far as Dyved, 
 which they laid waste, and demolished the cathedral church of 
 St. David's. The Danes, about the same time, overran and 
 pillaged Devon and Cornwall, burned the town of Bodmin, and 
 the cathedral of St. Petroc, with the bishop's house ; which 
 occasioned the episcopal see to be removed to St. German's, 
 A.D. 986, when Meredydd ab Owain was prince of Gwynedd, 
 
 * Brut y Tywysogion. f Liber Landavensis, j>. 509. 
 
 } Brut y Tywysogion ; Brut Ieuan Brecbva. 
 § He was. the general of the " black horde."
 
 160 
 
 the same people landed in Gwyr, and there burned Cor Cennydd, 
 and some churches. The year following, they arrived in Cere- 
 digion, and ravaged Llanbadarn, Llandydoch, and Llanrhystyd ; 
 thence they proceeded to Menevia, where they destroyed the 
 church, and carried away its ornaments. Afterwards they went 
 to Morganwg, and devastated the colleges of Illtyd, Cattwg, 
 Cyngar, the cathedral of Llandaf, and some of the best churches 
 in the land. They next laid waste the whole isle of Anglesey, 
 and because Meredydd was much engaged in the southern part 
 of the principality, the natives received Edwal, the son of Meu- 
 ric ab Ievav, as their prince, a.d. 992. He had been hitherto 
 under the protection of the monks of Llanveithin, and frequently 
 had their house, in consequence, been attacked by Einion and 
 Meredydd, the sons of Owain, as well as by the Danes and 
 Saxons, with a view to have him taken and put to death. * 
 
 After the death of Edwal ab Meuric, there were two military 
 candidates for the sovereignty of Wales : namely, Aedan ab 
 Blegored, in the south, and Cynan ab Hywel, in the north. By 
 the advice, and with the assistance of the former, and Iestin ab 
 Gwrgant, the Danes came to Dyved, a.d. 996, and burned 
 Mynyw, and slew Morgeneu, the bishop of that see. Soon 
 after this, Aedan became king of all Wales ; whereupon he 
 gave instructions for the better regulation of the government 
 and laws, and for the restoration of the churches which had 
 been demolished in the war. He was killed a.d. 1015, by 
 Llewelyn ab Seisyllt, who then usurped the throne of Wales. 
 Llewelyn, in his turn, was slain through the treachery of Madog 
 Min, bishop of Bangor, A.D. 1021. t 
 
 The same year, the church of St. David's was ravaged by 
 Aulaf, at the head of a body of Danes. Two years afterwards, 
 when Iago ab Edwal reigned in Gwynedd, and Rhydderch ab 
 Iestin in South Wales, two eminent prelates of the Cambrian 
 Church departed this life ; Morgynnydd, bishop of St. David's, 
 and Bledri, bishop of Llandaf. The latter is described in the 
 chronicle, as " the chief scholar of Cymru, wherefore was he 
 
 Brut y Tywysogion; Brut Ieuan Brechva. ' Ibid.
 
 161 
 
 denominated Bledri Ddocth (the wise.) So attached was ho 
 to knowledge, that he enjoined his clergy in their several 
 churches, to instruct the people in learned books, that every 
 body might know his duty towards God and man." a.d. 1030, 
 Joseph, bishop of Llandaf, issued an injunction against carrying 
 on any secular works on Sundays and holidays ; and for the 
 priests to teach the reading of the Scriptures, without pay or 
 reward. He also reformed the parochial festivals or wakes, so 
 that they were celebrated by prayer, arms, and charity, and by 
 a proper commemoration of God and his saints, and their praise- 
 worthy acts. He died A.D. 1043.* 
 
 Gruffyddd ab Llewelyn, who was now in possession of the 
 throne, reigned until 1061, when he was slain on the field of 
 battle, through the treachery of the same prelate who had 
 brought about his father's death. t 
 
 After his decease, Meredydd ab Owain ab Edwin, was made 
 prince of South Wales by Harallt (Harold) and Edward, king 
 of England ; whilst Bleddyn and Rhiwallon, half brothers of 
 Gruffydd, assumed the reins of North Wales. The latter died 
 A.D. 1068. Two years later, Menevia and Bangor were laid 
 waste by " infidels,"":}: and Bleuddyd, bishop of the former see, 
 died, and was succeeded by Sulien, " a godly and religious 
 man.""§ 
 
 Bleddyn was killed, A.D. 1072, and Trahaearn, his nephew, 
 succeeded him in the government of North Wales. About 
 1076, Sulien resigned his see, which was accepted by Abram, 
 "a wise and devout man. 1 ' A.D. 1079, Menevia was ravaged 
 by " predatory Saxons, 11 Abram died, and the bishopric was 
 forced a second time upon Sulien, " for no one knew as well as 
 he how to counsel a turbulent country and nation.' 1 1| 
 
 * Brut y Tywysogion. f Ibid. 
 
 % In one document, they are described as "predatory Saxons;" in another, 
 as " Gentiles." They were probably a mixed party of Danes and Normans, 
 which go also by the name of" black pagans," as already mentioned. 
 
 § He is further represented as "the best in counsel, instruction, and religion, 
 and the defender of all peace and righteousness." (See Bruty Tyivysogion.) 
 
 || Brut y Tywysogion ; Brut y Saeson.
 
 162 
 
 a.d. 1080, Gruffydd al> Cynan* obtained the throne of Gwy- 
 nedd ; and Rhys ab Tewdwr that of South Wales, both being 
 the right heirs to those dominions. The Bame year, William 
 the Conqueror came on a pilgrimage int<> Wales, where he be- 
 stowed gifts upon the churches, bishops, and priests, and also 
 upon the monasteries and monks. He proceeded as far as St. 
 David's, when Sulien, the primate, again resigned his charge, 
 which was accepted by Wilfrid, an rDnglishman.t 
 
 About .\. i>. los 7. the shrine of St. David's, with its gold and 
 silver treasures, was stolen by some persons unknown : and the 
 following year, the cathedral was again plundered, and the town 
 set on iiie. by Saxon pirates. Sulien. who appears to have 
 been for the third time prevailed upon to superintend the in- 
 terests of the Cambrian Church, died at tins period, and was 
 succeeded by his son Rhyddmarch. Like hia father and prede- 
 cessor, he was distinguished lor wisdom and piety, and after 
 his death, which occurred a.D. 1098, "" there was an end of in- 
 struction for disciples at that place." 
 
 In the year. 1115, IInr\ 1. with a view to bring the whole 
 Cambrian Church under the jurisdiction of Canterbury, ap- 
 pointed Bernard, a Norman. Bishop of St. David's, and made 
 him, at his consecration, profess subjection to the see of ( lanter- 
 bury, as his metropolis. Bernard, however, soon after his ap- 
 
 * Gruffydd ah Cynan built many churches in North Wales, ami in tin- close 
 of his life, he made the following grants : twenty shillings to the church in 
 Dublin, his native place, and an equal Mini tn all the utht r principal chur< hes 
 in Ireland, to the church of Menevia, to the monastery ofCaer, to the monas- 
 tery of Shrewsbury, respectively ; a larger amount to the church of Bangor; 
 ten shillings to Caer Gybi (Holyhead), as much to Penmon, Celynawg, Enlli 
 (Bardsey), Meivod, Llanarmon, Dineirth, ami many other principal churches 
 respectively. 
 
 t Ibid. 
 
 J Ibid. Sulien had other sons of celebrity, viz. loan, Artbyen, ami Daniel. 
 The former wrote an eulogy upon his father in about one hundred and fifty 
 Latin verses, which was published by the late bishop Burgess. Of Daniel, the 
 following notice oecurs in Brut y Tywysogion : " He was reconciler between 
 Gwynedd and Powys in the tumult tiny had : and there was no one who could 
 find fault with him, or otherwise than praise him, lor he was peaceable and be- 
 loved by all ; and he was the archdeacon of Powys.''
 
 163 
 
 pointment, refused to act upon this profession, and endeavoured 
 to re-establish the independent authority of St. David's. The 
 case was ineffectually argued at three several councils : viz. the 
 council of Rheims, summoned by Pope Eugenius, a.d. 1148; 
 the third council of Lateran, held a.d. 1179. by Pope Alex- 
 ander III ; and the council of London, held by Cardinal Hu- 
 gatio in the reign of Henry II. It was eventually brought by 
 Giraldus Cambrensis, the bishop elect, immediately before Pope 
 Innocent III. Here, as it could not be proved that a pall had 
 ever been sent to any of the bishops of Wales, the pope decided 
 against the claims of St. David's ; and ever since that see has, 
 together with the other Welsh bishoprics, been subject to the 
 power and jurisdiction of Canterbury.* 
 
 * Giraldus Cambrensis ; Usher's Britann. Eccles. Antiq. cap. v. In tin- 
 Ecclesiastical Register, exhibited by the pope to Giraldus, the nanus of the four 
 Welsh bishoprics are given simply, without explaining that any one of them 
 had authority over the rest, or that they were subject to a foreign metropolitan. 
 The account of this particular, as given in Giraldus's own words, is interesting: 
 " Accidit autem, ut vespera quadam, cum at Papain in camera sua Giraldus 
 accessisset; cum semper cum benignura satis ct benevolum, ut videbatur, in- 
 venire consuevcrit; tunc forte prater solitum amicabilcm magis et affabilem 
 ipsum invenit. Inter primos igitur affatus, cum de jure Menevensis Ecclesia! 
 Mctropolitico mentio facta fuisset; pracccpit Papa Registrum afferri, ubi de 
 universo fidelium orbe singulorum regnorum,tam Metropoles per ordinem,quara 
 earum quoque Suffraganea; numerantur Ecclesia! Pontificalcs. Et cum vertc- 
 returad regnum Anglorum, scriptum in hunc modum ibidem et tectum fuit: 
 'Canluariensis Metropolis Suffraganeas habet Ecclesias istas, Roffensem, Londo- 
 niensemj et cameras per ordinein. Enumeratis autem singulis Suffraganeis Ec- 
 clesiasticis Anglise; interposita Rubrica tali De Wallia, prosequitur in hunc 
 modum. 'In Wallia Menevensis Ecclesia, Landavensis, Bangoriensis, et (!<■ 
 Sancto Asaph." Quo audito, subjecit Papa quasi insultando et subridendo, 
 Ecce Menevensis Ecclesia connumeratur. Respondit Giraldus: Sed non eo 
 modo connumeratur ista vel alias de Wallia per accusativum scilicet, sicut 
 Suffraganeas de Anglia. Quod si fieret, tunc revera reputari possent subjectae. 
 Cui Papa. Bene, inquit, hoc nostasti. Sed est et aliud, quod similiter pro 
 vobis et Ecclesia vestra facit, de Rubrica, sc. interposita ; (pur quidem in Re- 
 gistro nusquara apponitur, nisi ubi transitus (it, de regno ad regnum, vel Me- 
 tropoli ad Metropolim. Vcrum est, inquit Giraldus : Et Wallia quidem portio 
 est regni Anglicani et non per se regnum. Ad quod Papa. Unum sciatis, quod 
 non est contra vos Registrum nostrum."
 
 164 
 
 The foregoing, extracted chiefly from the Brute, present na 
 with a view of the principal events which happened to th<' Cam- 
 brian Church during the supremacy of the several princes. The 
 evils enumerated wire in most instances the natural effects of 
 war. whether domestic or external. The former was caused by 
 the rivalry or ambition of contemporary reguli, and was almost 
 of perpetual duration, the only intervals of comparative tran- 
 quillity being perhaps the reigns of Hywel I Ma, and Llewelyn 
 ab Seisyllt.* The externa] quarrels of the Cymry were with the 
 Saxons principally ; then with the Danes, who fir^t Ian. led in 
 Britain, a.i>. 795. Th< se people were extremely cruel and 
 barbarous, but though they conquered England, and made 
 
 frequent attempts upon Wales, they aever su eded in gaming 
 
 a settlement in the latter country, except perhaps for a short 
 time in the [ale of Anglesey, aboul a.m. 968. They had also to 
 encounter the Normans, a.d. 1069. But so turbulent and 
 anomalous was the state of the country at large, that the 
 Welsh sometimes proceeded to the extent of employing our 
 enemy to assist them in their efforts against another. Thus, 
 about 836, they united with the Danes in opposition to Egbert: 
 Maredydd hired the Bame people when he warred against 
 Morganws, and Hywel against South Wales. Some even 
 submitted to external authority, with a view to secure their 
 dominions against the encroachments of their own countrymen, 
 as Hyveidd, k i 1 1 -r of Dyved, and Bused, king of Brycheiniog, 
 «lid to Alfred, because of the oppression of the sons of EUaodri. 
 
 * Hywel " loved tranquillity and justice, and feared God, and governed 
 conscientiously in every peaceful righteousness. He was greatly beloved l>y all 
 the Cymry. and by many of the wise men of England and other countries, 
 wherefore was he called Hywel the Good." — Llewelyn "loved peace and righ- 
 teousness, and, in his time, Cymnt was for twelve years without war, and the 
 inhabitants became rich beyond what they had been for a longtime." " He 
 placed his brother, Hywel ab Seisyllt, on the throne of Gwynedd, and so between 
 them they governed all Cymrn honourably and justly. And in their time the 
 Cymry became rich, and the earth fruitful, and the seasons genial : and peace 
 and law had thus proper place in the country ; and all families had their 
 houses, and all houses their families; and every land its tiller, and every tiller 
 his land, so that plenty and abundance happened to the whole country." — Bnt 
 >i Tywysogion ; Brut leuan «/> Brechva.
 
 165 
 
 Hywel, the son of Rhys, king of Glewysig, and Brochmail and 
 Ffernmail, sons of Meurig, kings of Gwent, likewise acknow- 
 ledged the supremacy of Alfred in return for his protection 
 against Earl Eadred, and the men of Mercia. Anarawd and 
 his brothers made a similar submission. Such impolitic mea- 
 sures on the part of the Cymry, contributed much to destroy 
 their nationality by the introduction of extraneous influence and 
 habits. We accordingly find that the principality in general 
 became tributary to Athelstan, though the inhabitants after- 
 wards recovered their independence. Edgar, in like manner, 
 appears to have acquired an ascendancy over some of the native 
 reguli, as he is seen settling their internal disputes, and ulti- 
 mately compelling them to pay him tribute.* 
 
 The proselyting spirit of the Anglican ecclesiastics would na- 
 turally urge them to avail themselves of the civil advantages of 
 their countrymen, to extend the influence of their Church. Ac- 
 cordingly, as we have seen, English monks intruded themselves 
 into colleges in Wales, and an Englishman was even appointed 
 to preside over the archiepiscopal see of St. David's as early as 
 the ninth century. Indeed, the benefit would be mutual, for 
 whilst the state afforded its protection to the Church, the latter 
 would in return do all in its power to secure the authority of 
 the state. It was doubtlessly on this principle that Edgar 
 founded religious houses in Wales, and consented to the sub- 
 jecting of Llandaf to the authority of Canterbury. Ovvain ab 
 Hywel Dda evidently dreaded the political intrigue of alien 
 Churchmen, when he attacked the monasteries of llltyd and 
 Cattwg.'f 
 
 That religion formed a prominent ingredient in the martial 
 
 * Brut y Saeson ; Brut y Tywysogion ; Brut Icuan Brechva. Harold 
 likewise seems to have gained great power over some parts of Wales. It is re- 
 lated by Giiraldus Cambrensis, that he used to set up stones in different parts 
 of the country to commemorate his victories, with this inscription, " Hie fuit 
 victor Haroldus." And the Saxon accounts assert that he and his brother 
 Tosti reduced the whole country into a state of tributary subjection, which is 
 hardly credible, as it is not supported by the authority of the Bruts, where the 
 fact would not have been left unnoticed any more than the instances of Athel- 
 sian and Edgar. f Ibid
 
 166 
 
 movements of the day is sufficiently manifest from several in- 
 stances which have been recorded in this chapter. Tims the 
 paschal question is expressly said to have not only excited dis- 
 turbances among the natives, but also to have provoked the 
 attacks of the English nation. In like manner, the papal bull 
 relative to the celibacy of the clergy, was productive <>!' no 
 small tumult in the southern portion of the principality. The 
 treachery of Madog Min, and the deaths of other prelates, 
 brought about by open foes, in som • cases on the field of battle, 
 and the assaults which were expressly made upon sacred edifices, 
 all unite to establish the truth of our assertion. 
 
 ]]ut independently of political operations, the friendship 
 which was sometimes accidently contracted between dignitaries 
 of the rival Churches, contributed greatly towards effecting an 
 union between them. For instance, Asser, who was tntor to 
 king Alfred, and afterwards bishop of Shirburne, must neces- 
 sarily have assimilated his views t<> those of th<- Anglican society. 
 and accordingly exercised his influence in the same direction 
 with the students of Cor Ddewi, and perhaps with other church- 
 men in the diocese of Menevia, if not with his relative, IS"<>\h. 
 the primate of Wal< 9. 
 
 All the above circumstances tended, in \arious degrees. t<> 
 destroy the distinctive character of the ancient British Church, 
 until at length its metropolitical dignity actually merged in the 
 sec of Canterbury.
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 CHURCH AND BARD1SM. 
 
 " The word of God increased ; and the number of the disciples multiplied in 
 Jerusalem greatly; and a great company of the priests were obedient to the 
 faith." — Acts vi. 7. 
 
 There was a general expectation throughout the ancient world 
 of a mighty personage, who should one day appear on earth. 
 This was primarily founded upon the divine promise made in 
 Eden, that the seed of the woman should bruise the serpent's 
 head,* which, being regarded as a fundamental article in the 
 patriarchal creed, was at the dispersion carried into all lands. 
 To the Jews it was afterwards successively renewed by their 
 prophets ; and more fully revealed, as the time for its accom- 
 plishment drew nigh. And even some of the Gentiles appear 
 to have received a reassurance from heaven that " the desire of 
 all nations should come/'t Such were Balaam, who predicted 
 that " there should come a star out of Jacob, and that a sceptre 
 should rise out of Israel ;"} and Job, who " knew that his Re- 
 deemer lived, and that he should stand at the latter day upon 
 the earth."§ Moreover, the extensive intercourse which the 
 peculiar people of God latterly had with the surrounding nations, 
 tended undoubtedly to confirm and explain their vaguer tradi- 
 tions, and to raise their expectations to a very high pitch on the 
 subject. 
 
 * Gen. iii. 15. t Hag. ii. 7. % Numb.xxiv. 17. 
 
 § Job. xix. 25. The promise of the golden age, or the regeneration, was 
 contained also in the Sibylline and other oracles,— the Clarian, Dodonean, Py- 
 thian, Ammoniau, &c^ 
 
 R
 
 168 
 
 The isolated state of the Britons would preclude them from 
 the advantage to be derived from this intercourse, except per- 
 haps in the case of the southern tribes, who might gain it indi- 
 rectly through the Phoenicians. The [rish probably obtained 
 much of their notion through the same channel; for that they 
 looked for a Saviour, is clear from Fiech's* Panegyric on St. 
 Patrick, where we are told — 
 
 "The diviners <> Erin predicted — 
 • N. w days "i' peace Bhall come, 
 
 Which shall endure I'm cut.' " 
 
 Nevertheless. ,-i- the Cynuy surpassed most other nation- in 
 their traditionary art, w< My conclude that they had 
 
 not wholly obscured this most essential and interesting feature 
 of the primitive religion. Indeed, we find their Druids main- 
 taining a belief that, at Bome future time, tin- power of evil and 
 devastation (cythraul, the devil) would be utterly annihilated, 
 and all animated beings brought to the eternal "circle of feli- 
 eity."*+ This seems clearly to refer to the restoration of tin: 
 golden age which the heathens expected, and which was actu- 
 ally fulfilled when "the Son of God was manifested, that he 
 might destroy the work. of the devil." They believed also that 
 celestial beings occasionally revisited the earth, to inform man 
 of his duty, and to reveal to him the knowledge of that supernal 
 existence to which he would he entitled bj a perseverance in 
 the path of virtue.* This idea would easily merge into the 
 
 Scriptural doctrine of Christ coming into the world to " tell us 
 of heavenly things/ 1 and finally to translate us into his own 
 kingdom of everlasting glory, further, it is thought that seve- 
 ral of their symbols and rites were emblematical of the Messiah 
 
 * Fiecb was a disciple of St. Patrick, and soon after his death he wrote his 
 Panegyric in Irish verse, which is admired for its simplicity, elegance, and 
 orthodoxy. It was first published by Colgan in his M Triadis Thaumatu.. 
 1647, or Lives of St. Patrick, Columba, and Bridget; and has been recently 
 republished in the u Rerun) Hibernicarum," prol. i. p. 90-96, from one of the 
 most ancient Irish MSS. the " Donnegal." — Sec Haiti's Essay on the Origin 
 attd Purity. \c. 
 
 f See Introduction. J Ibid.
 
 169 
 
 and the blessings of his reign. Thus it is not improbable that 
 they would typify him under the emblem of the misletoe, which 
 they regarded with peculiar veneration, and as sent from hea- 
 ven, if found on the symbol of the Almighty — the oak They 
 called it Oll-iach (all-heal, or the curer of all ills), by which 
 term they might intend to remind themselves and the people of 
 the benefits which the Saviour, " the plant of renown," would 
 confer on them.* They might not have altogether lost sight of 
 the primary 7 intention of sacrifices, which prefigured the death 
 and atonement of the Redeemer. 
 
 However, it is historically proved that the Druidical priests 
 of the Cymry easily embraced Christianity on its first introduc- 
 tion into the island. The relation in which the Church and 
 Bardism subsequently stood to each other, becomes therefore a 
 matter of interest, which it will be the object of this chapter to 
 trace and illustrate. 
 
 It is affirmed by two of the most eminent Welsh antiquarians 
 of modern times,t themselves members of the Bardic order, that 
 the Druids in Britain continued as ministers of the Church 
 until about the period of Garmon and Bleiddian. They do not, 
 
 * Identity of the Hebrew and Druidical Religions ; Patriarchal Religion of 
 Britain, p. 87. In reference to the oak, as the symbol of Deity, Taliesiu has 
 these lines : — 
 
 " The oak, the mover ! 
 Before him heaven and earth would tremble — 
 A severe foe ." 
 
 | Namely, Dr. W. 0. Pughe, and Edward Williams (Iolo Morgan wg). 
 The words of the former are, — " The functions of the Christian priesthood con- 
 tinued to be exercised exclusively by the different orders of the Bards, amongst 
 the Cymry, until nearly about the time of Germanus and Lupus, about the 
 beginning of the fifth century." {Introduction to LI. Hen. p. lx.) "On the 
 introduction of Christianity, the Bardd still acted as priest under the privilege 
 of his order, as his maxims were perfectly consonant, as far as they went, with 
 the doctrines of Revelation, his system still remained the same." (Diet, sub 
 voc. Bardd.) The latter asserts: " The Bards, or Druids, continued for many 
 centuries after they became Christians, the ministers of religion, even till, and 
 
 probably in some places long after, the time of Germanus and Lupus ; 
 
 tliis is pretty evident from our oldest and most authentic manuscripts." {Lytic 
 Poems, vol. ii. p. 203.
 
 170 
 
 it is true, support their assertion by any express reference to 
 authorities ; nevertheless, we may, from various circumstances, 
 reasonably infer that such was the case. 
 
 The doctrines of Christianity, bo consonant with the patri- 
 archal principles and anticipations of Bardism, and propounded 
 by Bran, who was himself a member of the order, would natu- 
 rally be received by the most enlightened Druids. The example 
 of royalty, and the disturbed Btate of the country, which pre- 
 vented the <\i\<' convening of a national Gorsedd, would protect 
 them from the ban of excommunication,* and consequently their 
 connexion with the system would -till be acknowledged. And 
 as the ancient hierarchy of the Cymry was bo distinctly marked, 
 and a-< the number ^\' converted Druids Kept pace with the spi- 
 ritual wants of the infant Church, we cannot imagine that can- 
 didates would oiler themselves unconstitutionally, — or if they 
 did, that their claims would be admitted. Nothing but oppo- 
 sition to the Gospel would have justified such a course, and of 
 thai we have no evidence whatever. The laws of Dyvnwal 
 Moelmud, which recognised the Druid as the sole minister of 
 religion. f were still in force,* and this consideration would in- 
 duce qs moreover to agree with the Welsh lexicographer, that, 
 long after the conversion of the Britons to Christianity, their 
 clergy were culled by this term.§ 
 
 * A degraded Bard was called, "a man deprived of privilege and exposed 
 to warfare." 
 
 ■|- "His (the Druid-bard's) duty is to give moral and religious instruction in 
 the convention of the Bards, in the palace, in Hor place of worship, and in evi rj 
 family, in which he has full privilege." [Laws of Dyvnwal Moelmud; 7V.71.) 
 "Men of learning (identified in another place with Druids) have the privi] 
 of teachers, that is, a rate from every plough within the district in which they 
 are authorised teachers." [lb. Jr. 193.) 
 
 % " Ille (Dunwallo Molmutius) sapientia seque ac auctoritate pollehat. et 
 leges bonas primus in hac insula instituit, quffi valuere ad tempus Hoeli Boni 
 Cadeli F. v — WottorCs Laic* Wallicrt, lib. ii. cap. xix. i. 
 
 § Introduction to II. Hen. p. xxxviii. Though we may not insinuate that 
 the ecclesiastical term cZertts was derived from e/er, which was a name given 
 to "the teachers, or learned men of the druidical order, who. under the primi- 
 tive bardic system wire by privilege employed in going periodical circuits to 
 instruct the people, answering the purpose of a priesthood," yet the similarity
 
 171 
 
 The first legislative enactment in favour of the Church as 
 such, of which we have any account, proceeded from Cyllin the 
 saint, who sanctioned the imposition of what we strongly pre- 
 sume to be baptismal names.* A more extensive alteration 
 was afterwards authorized by Lleirwg, when he legally trans- 
 ferred and permanently secured to the Christian priesthood, in 
 its distinctive character, the civil immunities and privileges 
 which belonged to the pagan Druids of old.t 
 
 The same laws continued to be uniformly and practically 
 observed among the Cymry^: until the close of the Roman domi- 
 nation ; for their jealousy of foreign interference naturally pre- 
 vented them from heedlessly varying or dividing their own pecu- 
 liar polity. On their emancipation, however, their national 
 harmony was disturbed by the ambition and rivalry of petty 
 princes, who now rose into power, and established independent 
 kingdoms in defiance of the monarchical supremacy. This cir- 
 cumstance hampered the energies and free operation of the 
 Bardic institution, § and consequently drove the Church to dis- 
 pense with the usual qualifications, in order to supply the defi- 
 ciencies of her priesthood. The example of the continental 
 communions, with which she had now frequent intercourse, 
 would reconcile her to this proceeding. Candidates for the 
 ministry were at this time trained up in monastic schools, which 
 then began to arise and multiply in the country, — a provision 
 of the Church which appears to have long since received the 
 
 of the words is remarkably singular. Cler was in use among the Britons long 
 before Christianity, and it would seem that, by adopting the second import of 
 the word, the Carthaginians committed the blunder of calling the British 
 islands, Oestrymnides, that is, islands infested by gad-flies, instead of by Cler- 
 Druids. 
 
 * See page 64. f Page 70. 
 
 J Particularly in Siluria. 
 
 § Not that Bardism, during the Roman domination, was altogether free 
 from interruption. Still, as the opposition was from without, and their civil 
 polity uniform, it would have but weakened their nationality to separate 
 Bardism from the state. Therefore, wherever the Church suffered from her 
 connexion with that system, a distinct provision was made adequate to her de- 
 mands, as in the instances of Cyllin and Lleirwg.
 
 172 
 
 sanction of government, when Cyllin endowed the college of 
 Eurgain.* 
 
 Whilst this separation was in progress, a modification of the 
 ancient alphabet was adopted in the ecclesiastical schools, which 
 was distinguished by the name of " The Monks 1 Token Stick."t 
 It was a mean between the Bardic and lloman characters, 
 approximating perhaps nearer to the latter, though angular, and 
 suitable to be engraved <»n wood, which argues that the Peithy- 
 nen was not abandoned. Another modification was shortly 
 afterwards introduced, adapted for stones, specimens of which 
 may be seen in Llanilltyd Vawr, Llangrallo, Y Merthyr Mawr, 
 Llandochan, Pen Arth. and other churchyards in the princi- 
 pality.} 
 
 About the era of Gannon and Bleiddian, as we have else- 
 where noticed, a prince of the name of Bell tunned a code of 
 regulations, which he invited the Bards to adept, wherein many 
 deviations from the original institution were discernible. As 
 this is the first alteration in the laws of Bardism which we read 
 of since the time of Lleirwg, and as it occurred just at the 
 period we naturally look for it. we may well suppose thai the 
 
 exolusive righi of the Bards to the Christian priesthood was 
 
 now authoritatively repealed. This i- the view of Dr. O.Pughe, 
 and it will be remembered that we have already advance. 1 a 
 theory respecting the origin and tenet- of Beli, which increases 
 the probability. § 
 
 Not only did the Druids continue as priests of the Church, 
 but also they officiated in their ancient circles. This will appear 
 from the fact that many of those places which we now regard 
 as Druidical temples retain, in their names and other circum- 
 stances, traces of their haying been once connected with < Ihristi- 
 anity. Thus we find Cam Moesen (the tumulus of Moses) in 
 
 * Page 65. 
 
 f " The Welsh monks were very hospitable to the primitive hards, and used 
 to receive them in their old age under the protection of their asylum. Such a 
 disposition undoubtedly occasioned the token-stick of the monks."— Essay on 
 Coelbren y brirdd, by Taliesin Williams, p. 33. 
 
 t Ibid. $ Pages 113-114, note.
 
 173 
 
 Glamorganshire, and Cam y Groes (the tumulus of the Cross) 
 on the mountain of Gelli Onen in the same county, where a very 
 ancient cross stands. A cromlech in Llanhamlach, county of 
 Brecon, goes by the name of Ty Illtyd. Another stone in Car- 
 diganshire is called Carreg tair groes (the stone of the three 
 crosses.)* It is remarkable also, that the second " principal 
 choir" of the church succeeded the second " congress of conti- 
 nued song" of the Bardic institution on the plains of Caradawg, 
 the original erection of which is considered as the second 
 " mighty labour of the Isle of Britain."t 
 
 It will be recollected, as a further confirmation of our view on 
 this subject, that the fifth century was peculiarly the era in 
 which ecclesiastical edifices be^an to be built in the land of 
 Cymru. These too in some instances retained the Bardic term 
 Cor (a round), as Cor Illtyd, Cor Cattwg, Bangor, &c. Pro- 
 bably the first churches were of a circular form, and to them 
 Taliesin alludes when he speaks of " ecclesise rotundse.^J 
 
 The selection of the clergy from the Bardic college is further 
 attested by the fact of their being, as far as we can learn, inva- 
 riably of noble parentage,§ which seems contrary to the general 
 custom of Christendom until the era of Constantine.|| 
 
 A part of the Bardic costume was continued by the early 
 priests of Britain. This was an azure garment, similar in form 
 to the Roman toga, with a hood to it, and was called Bardd- 
 
 * W. Owen's Llywarch Hen, Introduction, p. xxxviii ; Dr. Jones's History 
 of Wales, pp. 311,317. 
 
 f " The three principal choirs of the isle of Britain : Bangor Illtyd Varchawg 
 (the knight), in Caer Worgan ; Cor Emrys, in Caer Caradawg; and Bangor 
 Wydrin, in the isle of Avallen." — Triad 84. 
 
 " The three congresses of continued song of the Isle of Britain : the congress 
 of Beiscawen, in Dyvnwal; the congress of Caer Caradawg, in Lloegr; and 
 the congress of Bryn Gwyddon, in Cymru." — Essay on Coelhren y Beirdd, 
 p. 38. 
 
 "The three mighty labours, &c." See p. 118. 
 
 \ Myv. Arch. v. i. 170. 
 
 § According to the testimony of Mela (iii. 2), the disciples of the Druids 
 were nobilissimi gentis. 
 
 || Stillingfleet's Origin". Britan. p. 178.
 
 174 
 
 gwccwll. The Gauls borrowed it from the British Bards, and 
 wore it remarkably long. From them it passed into Rome, 
 where it obtained the name of Bardo-cucullus ; it was adopted 
 by the monks, and is still worn by the Capuchin friars, and 
 something like it by the graduates of the English universities.* 
 Under the influence of the connexion which we have des- 
 cribed, there were some practices of Druidical origin allowed 
 to remain, and recognised by the law of the land, even when 
 others more strictly <■ v; nn gelical had boon introduced. Such was 
 the mode of joining hand in handt in swearing, which the code 
 of Hywel Dda authorised in certain cases, as those of buying 
 and selling.: But this was n«.v. invested with a sort of ecclesi- 
 astical character, for it was enacted that it should be performed 
 in the house of God, by the baptized; and that the Church 
 should excommunicate all who wen- guilty of having violated 
 their faith there so solemnly pledged.§ 
 
 Several terms were borrowed from the Bardic theology to 
 express ideas in the creed of the Christian. Thus " Nevoedd," 
 which originally meant the delightful renovations of eternity, 
 was made to stand for c> heaven."|| " Ufern," the state of re- 
 probation in the doctrine of transmigration, and " Oerwern,* 1 
 the seat of the lowest existence, were both, under the Christian 
 system, used for " hell ;" and " Cythraul," the principle of 
 destruction, signified the " devil/'H 
 
 On the other hand, the peculiar acts of Bardism were deeply 
 impressed with the spirit of Christianity. For instance, the 
 name of our Saviour — lESU (Jesus), was adopted as the motto 
 for Cadair Cwynedd, or the chair of Venedotia.** Talhai.un. 
 the chaplain of Emrys Wledig, composed a prayer which has 
 ever since been the formula used in the Gorsedd Morganwg, or 
 Session of the Bards of Glamorgan. It is as follows : 
 
 * Dr. Puglie's Diet. sub. voc. Barddgwcctoll ; James's Patriarchal Religion, 
 70; Martial; Samme's Britannia, p. 110. 
 
 t See page 71. \ Wotton's Leges Wallicae, lib. ii. e. v. § Ibid. 
 
 || E. W.'s Poems, vol. ii. p. 107. 
 
 U Dr. Pughe's Diet, sub vocibus Triads of Bardism 
 
 * * W. Owen's Llywarch Hen, Int. p. xlvii.
 
 175 
 
 " God, grant thy protection, and in thy protection strength, 
 and in strength discretion, and in discretion justice, and in jus- 
 tice love, and in love to love God, and in loving God to love all 
 things."* 
 
 When the union between the Church and Bardism was 
 severed, the members of the latter institution were not necessa- 
 rily disqualified to receive holy orders. It was their right to 
 the priesthood in virtue of their profession, that was denied ; 
 and we accordingly find that at subsequent times several Bards 
 ranked among the bishops and clergy of the Church. Dewi, 
 Padarn, and Teilo, were " the three blessed Bards of the Isle 
 of Britain,' 1 the latter of whom was intimate with two other 
 Bards, who were saints and founders of churches, viz. Gwrhir 
 and Ystyfan.t Several others might be mentioned, even down 
 to our own days. 
 
 The new regulations which Beli proposed were not universally 
 agreed to or adopted by the Bards. Those, however, who com- 
 plied were called by the others, in derision, Beirdd Beli (the 
 Bards of Beli) and Over Veirdd (pseudo-Bards). And if a 
 right to the priesthood was one of the articles which the primi- 
 tive bards still asserted, they found it impossible, being a minor 
 body, and deprived of the support of government on this head, 
 to enforce their claim. | Yet they, as well as their conforming 
 
 * Dr. Public's Diet, voce Gweddi. f See p. 133. 
 
 + " From this period, the regular Beirdd Ynys Pri/dain are only to be con- 
 sidered a small sect, though still venerated by the people, on account of their 
 peaceable principles ; and they still possessed a considerable degree of influence, 
 as long as the Cymry enjoyed their own government ; but when that was lost, 
 by the fall of the last Llywelyn, Bardism had nearly been totally annihilated.'' 
 ( W. Owen's LI. Hen. Intr. p. lxi.) There can be very little doubt of the exist- 
 ence of Bardism to the era just mentioned ; however, for the sake of such as 
 are not extensively versed in the history of Wales, we will record a few names 
 which may exemplify our assertion: Aneurin, 510-560; Taliesin, 520-570; 
 Merddin, 530-603; Llywarch Hen, 550-640; Golyddan, 560-630; Meigant, 
 600-650; Elaeth, 640-700; Tysilio, 660-720; Cuhelyn, 770-800; Llevoed, 
 000-940; Meilyr, 1120-1160; Gwalchmai, 1 150-1190 ; Cynddelw, 1150-1200; 
 Gwynvardd Brycheiniawg, 1160-1220 ; Llywelyn Vardd, 1230-1280; Bleddyn 
 Vardd, 12.">0-1290; Madawg ab Gwallter, 1250-1300. The above dates are 
 from the Myvyrian Archaiology, vol. i.; where may be also seen several com-
 
 176 
 
 brethren, continued obedient to the faith, aiding in the diffusion 
 of learning, witnessing for Catholic truth in their poetical com- 
 positions, and by their quiet and dutiful conduct in general 
 proving themselves loyal subjects and -rood churchmen. 
 
 positions by the said Bards. We can likewise furnish an authentic list of 
 bardic names from the time when the order was altogether deprived of patron- 
 age, and exposed to rigorous persecution. The following, from a MS. of the 
 late Mr. John Bradford, is a pedigree of the Bards who presided over the chair 
 of Glamorgan :— Trahaearn Brydydd Biawr, 1300; Hywel Bwt Bach 1330; 
 Davyddab Gwilym, 1360; [euan Ben, 1370; Ieuan Tew Hen. 1I2<>; Ieuan 
 Gethinabl.ah Lleision, 1 130; Gwilym Tew, 1 160; Meredydd ab Rhosser, 1470; 
 Ieuan Deulwyn, 1480; Iorwerth Vynglwyd, 1500; Lewys Korganwg, 1620; 
 Meiryg Davydd, 1560; Daw. Id Benwyn, 1560; Llywelyn Sion, 1580; Wat- 
 cin Pywel, 1620; Edward Davydd, 1660; Davydd or Nant, 1680; Samuel 
 Jones, Ofeiriad, 1700; Davydd Hopcin, or Coetty, 1730; Sion Bradford, 1760; 
 Edward Williams (a disciple).
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 CHURCH AND STATE. 
 
 " Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake ; whether 
 it be to the king, as supreme, or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by 
 him for the punishment of evil doers, and for the praise of them that do well." 
 — 1 Peter ii. L3, 14. 
 
 The incorporation of the Cambrian Church with Bardism in- 
 volves likewise its union with the State ; and in the earliest 
 stage of its history it enjoyed civil advantages, merely as the 
 religious department of the primitive system of the country. 
 As we have seen, the first direct interference on the part of the 
 state with ecclesiastical matters, appears to have been in the 
 reign of Cyllin. The next, which was on a more extensive 
 scale, took place when Lleirwg was nominally monarch of Bri- 
 tain. They were in each case favourable to the peculiar re- 
 quirements of the Church, and confined especially to the imme- 
 diate jurisdictions of the said kings. The king, under the 
 ancient system, could alter nothing which respected learning 
 and religion, of his own arbitrary will : he could only " consent 11 
 to what had been originally proposed by the Bardic college. 
 " For neither law, regulation, art, nor any kind of knowledge of 
 the sciences, can acquire any privilege, unless they are shewn to be 
 true by illustration and instruction ; and this is to be done by the 
 decision of masters and wise men who are duly authorised, by in- 
 struction, sciences, and authority, according to the privileged 
 regulations of the country and the tribe.""' Eleutherius advised 
 Lleirwg to adhere to this custom, and moreover to see that his 
 enactments were in strict accordance with the intention of Holy 
 
 * Laws of Dyynwal Moelmud, Tr. 63. See p. 69.
 
 178 
 
 Scripture, [n the letter which he addressed to him on the 
 
 subject, he designates him " God's vicar in his own dominion-.' 
 and as such he declares it to be his duty, in relation to his sub- 
 jects, " to promote unity and good understanding amongst 
 them ; to bring them to a submission to the Gospel, and into 
 the bosom of the Church ; to restrain them from disorder ; to 
 support, protect, and govern them, and screen them from the 
 insults of injurious malice.""' 
 
 This lesson was practically observed bj all succeeding kings 
 and princes, according to their means and the peculiar circum- 
 stances of the times, until the extinction of the metropolitical 
 dignity of Wales. Even at the time when the Church was 
 Bhaking off her alliance with Bardism, and when the whole 
 country was in a state of disorganization, there was no want of 
 union among the tribes in favour of Catholicism : the Pelagians 
 were expelled from the island by common consent (omnium sen- 
 tential ).t 
 
 The British Church appears to have from the first regulated 
 its external affairs in accordance with the civil constitution. 
 Hence arose the rival claims of Caerleon and Llandaf to repre- 
 sent the ecclesiastical primacy of Cymru, as having been the 
 respective seats of the Roman and native governments. After 
 the departure of the Romans, the native monarchs resided prin- 
 cipally at Caerleon, and so stamped that sex- with pre-eminence, 
 though the influence of the kings of Glamorgan enabled the 
 partizans of Llandaf still to assert their claims. + We are ex- 
 pressly informed in the Triads that the seats of the three arch- 
 bishoprics in the time of Arthur coincided exactly with the 
 royal courts, — at Caerleon in Cymru, Celliwig in Cornwall, and 
 Penrhyn Rhionydd in the North. § 
 
 Such arrangements were marked out in the first instance by 
 the rulers of the Church, and afterwards sanctioned by the civil 
 government, under the impression, doubtless, that they were 
 the best adapted for supplying the whole nation with a propor- 
 
 * Page 67. t Constant, lib. ii. cap. 3 et 4. 
 
 X " As the Church of Rome has dignity above all the Churches of the Ca- 
 tholic faith, so the Church of Llandaf exceeds all the Churches of southern 
 Britain in dignity, and in privilege, and in excellency."— liter Landavetuis, 
 p. 373. § Triad 64. See p. 127.
 
 179 
 
 tionate share of the blessings of Christianity. This principle of 
 mutual consent, where temporalities were concerned, was 
 adopted in the foundation of sees, and the appointment of 
 bishops to fill them. For example, Maelgwn Gwynedd con- 
 firmed the bishopric of Llanelwy, bestowing upon it divers 
 lands, immunities, and privileges, though it had been founded 
 previously as a spiritual see by Cyndeyrn." Similarly, Dewi was 
 obliged to obtain the permission of Arthur to remove the me- 
 tropolitan see from Caerleon to Menevia.t And that the king 
 did sanction episcopal appointments at an early period, is 
 evident from the instances of Dyvrig and Samson, who were 
 elevated by Emrys Wledig to the sees of Caerleon and York 
 respectively. I In like manner, Oudoceus was established in 
 Llandaf by king Meurig, having been before chosen thereto by 
 bishops, abbots, and laity. § In short, then, it was by virtue of 
 the royal seal that the bishop elect was confirmed in the tempo- 
 ralities of his diocese, which were under the protection of the 
 reigning prince. 
 
 In Hywel Dda's laws, the great principle of the union be- 
 tween Church and State is declared to consist in the duty of 
 the sword to protect the pastoral staff. || It appears moreover 
 that the bishop and abbot, as well as the king, had their own 
 independent tribunals, called " prerogative courts, 1,, where they 
 were enabled to guard against encroachments upon the rights 
 and honours with which their respective establishments were 
 invested. IF Nevertheless, the supremacy of the king is distinctly 
 acknowledged : " To the king belongs the land of all the king- 
 dom."** All holders of church property were accordingly re- 
 quired, on the accession of a new king, to prove before him 
 their privileges and immunities, in order to be confirmed in the 
 
 * Willis' Survey of St. Asaph, by E. Edwards, A.M. Appendix I. 
 
 -j- Rees's Essay, &c. p. 197. 
 
 X See p. 119. § Liber Landavensis, p. 372. 
 
 || " Gladius pedum pastorale protegere debet." — Wotton's Leges Wallica-, 
 lib. ii. cap. xxviii. 
 
 H " Tres sunt curiae prserogativse : 1. Curia Regis, 2 ct Curia Episcopi, 3 et 
 Curia Abbatis. Unusquisque enim horum trium curiam auctoritate propria 
 tcnere potest." — Ibid. lib. iv. 141. 
 
 ** Ibid. lib. iv. 126.
 
 ISO 
 
 same." And if they did not fulfil the conditions of their tenure, 
 the sovereign had power to dispossess them. Those conditions 
 consisted, for the most part, either in rents, services, duties, 
 mulcts, or attendances of various degrees.t There were some 
 dignitaries, however, who were totally exempt from all, save 
 that ordinary homage which thej owed in common with everj 
 other subject. Thus the Church of Menevia La declared in 
 IlyweFs code to be entirely free.} But though the king could 
 deprive bishops and abbots of their temporalities, in ease they 
 fell short of their due allegiance, he might not alienate those 
 rights from the institutions to which tiny had been originally 
 granted, without incurring the awful censure of the Church.§ 
 
 But if the Church was protected in her rights by the civil 
 ruler, his authority was conferred upon him through the repre- 
 sentatives of Christ: so, for instance. Arthur was consecrated 
 king by archbishop Dyvrig. The affairs of the nation were 
 hallowed by the Church, and transacted under her direction and 
 guidance. Hvwel Dda would not revise the laws without the 
 aid of a proportion of the clerg] ; '-and the reason why he 
 summoned the clergy was, Lest the laity should enact any thing 
 which was contrary to Holy Scripture." And tiny met in 
 Lent ; " and the reason why they met in Lent was, because all 
 persons ought to be just in that sacred season, and should com- 
 mit no error in the time of holiness. "|| 
 
 * Ibid. lib. ii. cap. viii. 
 
 f One of the most universal tokens of subjection appears to have been the 
 obediw, which was a sum of money, or portion of goods paid to the lord upon 
 the death of a tenant. " Bona mortui episcopi omnia regi addicentur, excep- 
 tis vestimentis et jocalibus, ea?terisque ad ecclesiam pc-rtinentibus." lb. lib. ii. 
 cap. xiii. et lib. iv. HI. 
 
 + " Menevia libera est ab omni servitio."— lb. lib. ii. cap. ix. 
 
 § Liber Landavensis, passim. 
 
 I| Myv. Arch. vol. iii. p. 361. Notwithstanding, certain clauses seem to 
 have been adopted at variance with the canon law . Thus we read : " Lex ec- 
 clesiastica statuit neminem patri succedere prater filium natu maximum de 
 uxore sua legitima ptocreatum. Per leges autem Hoeli, filio natu minimo 
 pariter ac maximo hereditas adjudicatur, et per easdem decernitur quod nee 
 peccatum nee crimen patris nocebit liberis quominus ad patris hereditatem ad- 
 mitUintur." Wottorfs Leges Wallicte, lib. ii. cap. xvii.
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 FOUNDATION AND ENDOWMENT OF CHURCHES. 
 
 " But will God indeed dwell on the earth ? Behold, the heaven and heaven 
 of heavens cannot contain thee ; how much less this house that I have builded ?" 
 — 1 Kings viii. 27. 
 
 The following extract from Bede will explain the mode in 
 which the primitive Christians of this island consecrated the 
 sites and precincts of their churches. — 
 
 " The man of God, wishing by prayer and fasting to purge 
 the place of its former pollution of wickedness, and so to lay 
 the foundations of the monastery, entreated the king that he 
 would grant him the means and permission to dwell there for 
 that purpose during the whole time of Lent, which was then at 
 hand. In all the days of this time, except on the Sunday, he 
 always prolonged his fast, according to custom, until the even- 
 ing ; and even then he took only a small piece of bread and one 
 egg, with a little milk mixed with water. He said that this 
 was the custom of those from whom he had learned a rule of 
 regular discipline, that they should first consecrate with prayer 
 and fasting those places which had been newly obtained for 
 founding a monastery or church. When ten of the forty days 
 were remaining, a person came, and summoned him to the king ; 
 but that the sacred work might not be discontinued on account 
 of the king's business, he desired his presbyter Cynibill, who 
 was also his own brother, to complete the pious beginning; who 
 having readily complied, and the exercise of fasting and prayer 
 being completed, he (Cedd) built there a monastery, which is 
 now called Laestingaeu, and established it with religious cus- 
 
 s
 
 182 
 
 toms, according to the practice of Lindisfarne, whore he had 
 been educated."* 
 
 The historian, it is true, refers more particularly to the 
 northern inhabitants, who differed from the Cymry in several of 
 their usages ; yet as the one in question bears no foreign stamp, 
 it is but fair t<> conclude that it was the ancient and common 
 practice of all Britain. This view is further corroborated by 
 the testimony of Constantius, who describes Gannon as having 
 adopted a similar method in Wal< s previous to the "Alleluiatic 
 Victory."— 
 
 " The sacred days of Lent were at hand, which the presence 
 of the divines rendered more solemn, insomuch that those in- 
 structed by their daily preaching flocked eagerly t<> the grace 
 of baptism. For the great multitude of the army was desirous 
 of the water oi* the laver of salvation. A church, formed of in- 
 terwoven branches of trees, is prepared against the day of the 
 resurrection of our Lord, and though the expedition was en- 
 camped in the held, is fitted up like that <>f a city."f 
 
 It is remarkable that in both instances the time <>\' consecra- 
 tion coincided with that of Lent, which is truly characteristic 
 of a church in which eminently when "one member suffered, 
 all the members suffered with it; or when one member was 
 honoured, all the members rejoiced with it." 
 
 The spot thus made sacred was termed " Llan," which cor- 
 responds in sense with the Greek word r f{JLiV oc, and the church 
 which was immediately afterwards erected bore the name of its 
 holy founder.^ Formal dedications to patron saints were yet 
 unknown in Wales, though they were usually practised on the 
 continent^ Even among the Scots, the primitive mode was 
 
 * Eccl. Hist. iii. 23. f Constant, lib. i. cap. 28. 
 
 X This has been the belief current in the principality since the eleventh cen- 
 tury, as may be shewn from authentic documents. In confirmation of the 
 same theory, it may be further proved that churches of the class alluded to are 
 necessarily, from the nature of their endowments, the most ancient in Wales. 
 (SeeiJccs's Essay on the Welsh Saints, sect. 1.) 
 
 § In Italy and the Eastern Empire, instances occur of churches formally 
 named after saints as early as the time of Constantino ; and Bede mentions 
 two churches so dedicated even in Britain, in the beginning of the fifth cen- 
 tury, but he clearly refers the practice, in both cases, to adherents of Rome. 
 (See Lib. i. cap. v?!>, lib. iii. cap. 4.)
 
 183 
 
 observed more or less until the time of Archbishop Theodore, 
 as the following passage from Bedc would clearly imply : 
 
 " Aidan, the bishop, having departed this life, Finan, who 
 had been ordained and sent by the Scots to succeed him in 
 his bishopric, built, in the island of Lindisfarne, a church fit 
 for an episcopal see, which, however, after the manner of the 
 Scots, he did not erect of stone, but of sawn timber, covering 
 it with reeds. At a later time, it was dedicated by the most 
 reverend Archbishop Theodore in honour of the blessed apostle 
 Peter."* 
 
 The circumstances under which the primitive saints of Cymru 
 were enabled to establish places of worship, have been suffici- 
 ently developed in the preceding chapters. Being either men 
 of property themselves, or connected with Christian chiefs of 
 power, they could easily " find out a place for the Lord, an 
 habitation for the mighty God of Jacob. 1, f And although by 
 the end of the seventh century, the country was very generally 
 covered with sacred edifices, yet in course of time villages arose 
 in several districts, which demanded distinct ministrations. 
 The Cymry were now beginning to conform to the religious 
 observances of their neighbours, and so their new churches were 
 dedicated accordingly, though at first with considerable limita- 
 tions, as Michael the Archangel and a few native saints appear 
 to have been their only patrons.:}: This new era is supposed to 
 have commenced about a.d. 717, when the consecration of 
 Llanvihangel is particularly noticed in the Bruts, as before 
 
 * Lilt. iii. cap. 25. | Ps. cxxxii. 5. 
 
 X It is evident that churches dedicated to St. Michael are of a date posterior 
 to those of the former description, from the fact that fourteen of them are sub- 
 ordinate to foundations ascrihed to Welsh saints, whilst only one dedicated to a 
 native is subject to a church which hears the name of the archangel. More- 
 over, the most extensive parishes of St. Michael do not possess the characteristics 
 of endowments which distinguish the older establishments. The same may be 
 said of the churches or chapels which are alluded to above, as having been now 
 erected in honour of natives of Wales ; whilst their comparative antiquity may 
 be judged from the circumstance that the great majority of them are parochial, 
 and few of them are subject to churches dedicated to the apostles and other 
 saints whose homage was introduced at a later period.
 
 184 
 
 observed.* Then arc upwards of ninety churches and chapels 
 in AVales dedicated to St. Michael, and these are regularly 
 dispersed, — a circumstance which may argue both their nation- 
 ality and antiquity, or that they were founded by natives prior 
 to the permanent occupation of parts of the country by 
 foreigners. + 
 
 There is a strong inducement held out in the laws of Hywel 
 Dda for building churches in certain localities : 
 
 " If a church be erected in a \ illain town,} with the permission 
 of the king, and it should have a burial-ground, and a priest to 
 perform divine service, that town shall henceforward be free.*^ 
 
 English influence gradually forced upon the principality other 
 tutelar saints. Buch as the apostles and Blessed Virgin. There 
 are not many places of worship, however, dedicated to tho 
 former; and even <>f them it can be shown that nearly one-half 
 were originally founded by Welsh Baints.|| The work of dedi- 
 cation in these cases must be attributed solely to alien ecclesi- 
 astics, who probably doubted the validity or sufficiency of tho 
 primitive consecration. For granting that at this period the 
 pymry were impressed with the absolute necessity of formal 
 dedications, it is very improbable that they would refuse the 
 honour to holy men, with whose names the venerable fabrics 
 had been for centuries associated. Indeed, their disposition 
 on this head had been already sufficiently indicated by their 
 dedication of subordinate chapels to the memory of the original 
 founder of the mother church. H 
 
 The earliest instance on record of a dedication to St. Mary 
 in AVales, is that of a church which was founded near the cathe- 
 dral of Bangor, a.d. 973, bv Edsrar, king of England.** About 
 one hundred and forty were afterwards raised to her honour 
 
 * Pp. 153, 154. 
 
 f Rees's Essay on the Welsh Saints, p. 40. 
 
 X "Wallice Taiawctrev et Tir Taiogeu. Oppidnm sou \ ilia cujus iacolae 
 omnes sunt villani." — Wotton. 
 
 § Wottou's Leges Wallicse, lib. ii. cap. 8, lib. h. sect. 87. 
 
 || Rees's Welsh Saints, p. 69. 
 
 U Rees's Welsh Saints, p. 70. 
 
 ** Wynne's History of Wales : Beauties of North Wales, p. 443.
 
 185 
 
 before the Reformation, the main period of whose establishment 
 was the twelfth century. It is remarkable, however, as indi- 
 cative of the party to which they originally belonged, that the 
 great majority is to be found in those parts of the principality 
 which first became subject to the English and Flemings.* No 
 doubt the Cistercian monks were the chief instruments, under 
 the protection of the conquerors, in extending the name and 
 dignity of the Holy Virgin in Cymru.t If any churches were 
 dedicated to her by the natives, they must have been necessarily 
 few, and probably of a date posterior to A.D. 1200, which was 
 the period when she began to receive distinguished attention, as 
 may be learned from the works of the bards in the Myvyrian 
 Archaiology."+ The Cymry admitted none of the inferior 
 saints of the Greek or Latin calendar as patrons of churches 
 before the extinction of their metropolitical dignity. 
 
 We have already expressed an opinion that the first edifices 
 which superseded the Druid ical enclosures were circular. § 
 There seems to have been anciently no universal rule about the 
 form of churches; nor indeed could that be the case, whilst Jew- 
 ish synagogues, heathen temples, and public halls, were used as 
 such. || They appear, however, to have been generally oblong, 
 in the figure of a ship,^T but there were some round,'"* some 
 octagon,tt and some in the form of a cross. jj It is, therefore, 
 very probable that the British Christians took their old corau 
 as patterns in the erection of their churches, particularly as 
 they had hitherto celebrated within them the mysteries of the 
 Gospel.§§ 
 
 * Rees's Essay, &c. p. 32. 
 
 f The Cistercian order was the most prevalent in Wales, and it was a rule 
 of the fraternity that their religious houses should be dedicated to the holy 
 Virgin. — Tanner's Notitia Monastica ; Rees's Essay, $-c. p. 69. 
 
 \ Vol. i. pp. 315, 324. $ Page 173. 
 
 || Bingham's Antiquities, b. viii. ch. 3. 
 
 51 Constit. Apost. lib. ii. c. 57. 
 
 ** Euseb. Vit. Const, lib. iii. e. 38 ; Stiabo de Rebus Eccles. c. 4. 
 
 ft Euseb. Vit. Const, lib. iii. c. 5 ; Naz. Orat. 19 de Laud. Patr. p. 313. 
 
 X\ Evagr. lib. i. c. 14 ; Somnium Anastasiae apud Greg. Naz. Carm. 9, torn, 
 ii. p. 70; Cedren. Vit. Justin, in Compend. Hist. p. 390. 
 
 §§ Page 172.
 
 186 
 
 But though the Druidical temples were essentially circular, 
 they were moreover, in some instances, by the addition of pro- 
 portionate right lines from four equidistant points oi* the cir- 
 cumference, rendered cruciform. This emblem of Christianity, 
 tl the sign of the Sod of Man,"" would readily suggest the pro- 
 priety of continuing the same appropriate form to the houses 
 which should be afterwards erected to his honour. 
 
 The very circumstance which prevented uniformity in the 
 figures of churches, would likewise present a variety in their 
 positions. The most ordinary situation indeed, in the ease of 
 oblong edifices, was east and west Nevertheless, we learn from 
 Jocelinet that St. Patrick built a church in Ireland, which 
 stood even from north to Bouth, " ab aquilonali parte versus 
 meridianam plagam." And it is remarkable that a cruciform 
 temple of the Druids at Glasserniss, in the island of Lewis. 
 Scotland, lies exactly in the Bame direction. 
 
 Seeing that masonry flourished to an uncommon extent in 
 Bardic times,} it would be naturallj expected that the early 
 churches of Britain were built of stone. Such an inference, 
 however, is opposed by all the positive evidence we have on the 
 subject. Bede expressrj declares that, about the year 566, the 
 practice of constructing churches of stone was unusual among 
 the Britons.§ The church which Gannon raised, before his vic- 
 tory over the Picts and Saxons, was of interwoven branches of 
 trees (frondibus eontexta). According to some, the walls of the 
 ancient church of Glastonbury were in like manner winded and 
 
 * A specimen of the cruciform temple may l>e seen at Classerniss, in the 
 island of Lewis, Scotland. It has a circle oi twelve stones ; and three each on 
 the east, west, and south sides placed in right lines : while on the north is a 
 double row of twice nineteen stom^ in two perpendicular parallel lines, 
 forming a superb avenue, with a single elevated stone at the entrance. An- 
 other of a different description is found at New Grange, in Ireland. (Borl. Ant. 
 Corn. p. 193 ; Oliver's History of Initiation, p. 153.) 
 
 f Usher's Letters, Ep. 49. 
 
 X A Triad says that the Cymry were taught to work with stone and mortar 
 ahout the time when Alexander was suhduing the world. (Tr. 91. See Intro- 
 duction, p. 36.) 
 
 § Bede His. lib. iii. cap. 4.
 
 187 
 
 twisted together.* Bishop Finan, we are told in Bede, built 
 in the island of Lindisfarne an episcopal church after the man- 
 ner of the Scots, not of stone, but of sawn timber, covering it 
 with reeds. t And it is observable that the Welsh word adail 
 or adeilad, which now popularly denotes any sort of building, 
 has in its etymology a primary, if not an exclusive reference to 
 the wattling style. It were difficult to ascertain whether, in 
 the adoption of this custom, the Britons had any religious prin- 
 ciple particularly in view, as, for instance, " The glory of Le- 
 banon shall come unto thee, the fir tree, the pine tree, and the 
 box together, to beautify the place of my sanctuary ;"j or whe- 
 ther it was merely the result of temporal circumstances. 
 
 Bede, in one or two places, § connects stone churches and 
 formal dedications together, which may lead us to presume that 
 their introduction into the principality was simultaneous. We 
 may form some idea of the general character of those edifices 
 from that of Peranzabuloc in Cornwall, which was lately disco- 
 vered after having been imbedded in the sand from nearly the 
 period of the Norman invasion. This is considered to be one of 
 tin- earliest specimens of stone building that superseded the 
 wattled walls of the British churches. Its historian! describes 
 the masonry of the walls as being remarkably rude, but solid 
 and compact. The door-way is neatly ornamented with the 
 Egyptian zig-zag, or arrow, having on the keystone of its round- 
 headed arch a tiger's head sculptured, and two human heads 
 on the corbels of the arch. There appears to have been only 
 one small window to let in the light of day, unless, which is not 
 improbable, the building was roofless. The church originally 
 contained a very curious stone font ; and at the eastern end, in 
 a plain unornamented chancel, stood a very neat but stone altar. IT 
 
 * Malmesb. Eulog. lib. ii. Io. de Tinmoutli. Append. Chronici Glastoni- 
 ensis, MS. in Bibliotheca Cottoniana ; Usher's Britann. Eccles. Antiq. cap. ii. 
 f Lib. iii. cap. 25. 
 
 \ Laiah lx. 13. § Lib. iii. cap. 4 ; lib. v. c. 21. 
 
 || The Rev. C. Trelawny Collins, M.A. 
 11 Gwynvardd Brycheiniog, a.o. 1160-1230, speaks of — 
 
 ■ Five altars of Brevi, giving privilege to saints."
 
 188 
 
 In the nave were also stone seats, of the like simple construc- 
 tion, attached to the western, northern, and southern walls. < ){' 
 course this simplicity was not stationary; on the other hand. 
 subsequent years invested the house of God and His service with 
 all the grandeur and pomp possible. 
 
 Merddin speaks of a bell as an ecclesiastical appendage.* St. 
 Ultyd's bell was much venerated in the middle ages; and 
 though supposed t" have been ultimately 1"-:. was Lately disco- 
 vered in the town-hall at Lantwit* with the inscription, " Sancte 
 1 i.i i 1 1.. oka n;<> \<>r.i-."" in characters apparently of the au r r in 
 which thai holy man lived.1 The word " clooh " would seem 
 to ini]-l\ thai a hard Hal stone was originally mad.- uso 
 
 of by the Oymry to answer the purpose of a bell.l 
 
 Parts of the Llan were the Corflan and Mynwent. The 
 latter was the courl nexl in the church, the Conner was a more 
 outward yard, encompassing the other on every side, in which 
 they buried the dead. The extent <>f die corflan, as fixed bj 
 law, embraced an acre of ground in length, thai is, one hundred 
 and si\t\ square perches of twenty feel each.f 
 
 The sacred inclosures in which the ancienl ohnrcli 
 Britain stood, were inalienably and for ever appropriated for 
 the religious service of God. In certain districts, pious indivi- 
 duals added portions of their estates by way of freewill offering, 
 
 * " The bel] of the monks at Liandydoch," 
 
 " I predict, concerning Liandydoch, 
 
 That there will be neithci hell norhcam." 
 
 Mi/r. Art h. vol. i. p. 19 !. 
 The Patriarch of Jerusalem presented St. Teilo with a small hell, which i> 
 supposed by some t" have been at the church of Glascwm in Klvrin in the 
 time of Giraldus Cambrensis, and to have been called Bang*. Gildas also is 
 said to have sent to St. Brigid, as a token of his regard, a small hell cast by 
 himself. (Liber Landavensis; Lite of St. Teilo; Girald.Cunh.Itia.Camb. 
 Kb. i. e. 1 ; Moore's Ireland, p. 257.) 
 
 f That is. they are similar to the letters of Samson's Monument in Llanill- 
 tvd Yawr. (Seepage 170; Hughe's Hone Britannica. v.d. ii. p. 356.) 
 
 { Dr. Pughe's Diet, sub Foce. 
 
 § Wotton's Leges WaUicse, lib. ii. cap. 6; lib. iL c. I2etc. If: Dr. Pughe's 
 Diet, voce Erw.
 
 189 
 
 and sometimes even satisfactions for outrages committed against 
 the Church and clergy augmented the endowment.'"' 
 
 We subjoin specimens of early charters taken out of " the 
 Book of St. ChadV'f which is supposed to have been written 
 before the year 720. 
 
 " Tydvwlch the son of Lliwvdd arose, and Januarius the 
 hermit, to demand the land of Teilo, which was in the hand of 
 Klcu the son of Gelhig, and his family, and to redeem it, to- 
 gether with provisions for the consumption of Januarius the 
 
 * " Delicta in aula vel in Ecclesia commissa, dupliciter iuultentor. 
 
 " Qui in ecclesia principali deliquerit, xiv libras solvito, quarum dimidia 
 pars dabitur abbati, si ordinibus sacris initiatus et Uteris instructus fuerit ; et 
 altera medietas inter sacerdotes et cajteros coenobitas dividetur. 
 
 " Siqaia in coemeterio deliquerit,. vii libras solvat, eodem modo dividendas. 
 
 u Qoicnnque in capella deliquerit, septem libras solvito, qaarum dimidium 
 capellanis, et reliquum sacerdotibus.'' — Wotton's Leges Walliae, lib. i.e. 47; 
 lib. ir. sect. 2fw. 
 
 Instances are recorded in " Liber Landavensis,'' of lands having been perma- 
 nently made over to the Church, as compensations for certain offences. 
 
 f " Tradition has reported " this very ancient document " to be in the hand- 
 writing of St. Gildas. The volume is of a quarto form, and exclusive of its 
 present covers, which arc strong and thick, is 12 inches long, 9k wide, and li| 
 thick ; including the covers, it is 12| long, 10 wide, and 2\ thick. It consists 
 at present, of 118 leaves, or 230 pages, commences with the beginning of St. 
 Matthew's Gospel, and ends with Luke iii. 9,— no part of St. John's Gospel 
 remaining. It is written on thick, strong vellum, and the leaves are more or 
 less discoloured by damp and great age ; the writing, however, is quite legible, 
 the colour of the ink well retained, and the chief part of the MS. considering 
 its great antiquity, and the vicissitudes it has undergone, is in good preservation. 
 The Saxon words and names occurring in the margins, plainly show that the 
 book has been in much use for administering oaths under the government of 
 that people. There is a memorandum entered therein, stating that there was a 
 letter written by the Rev. William Higgins, precentor of Llandaff, dated Feb. 
 91b, 1057-8, and addressed to the celebrated Dugdale, mentioning that through 
 his eaie some valuable MSS. belonging to the cathedral, and particularly this 
 volume, were preserved during the civil war." — Liber Landavensis, p. 015, note. 
 
 It is stated on the margin of page 141 of the MS., that Gelhi the son of 
 Arihtiud bought it of Cingal, to whom he gave in return a very good horse; 
 and that the said Gelhi afterwards gave it for his soul to God and St. Teilo, 
 upon the altar. It was taken from Llandaf, probably by some Englishmen in 
 time of war, and given to Lichfield, where it was called by the name of the 
 patron <>f that church. The extracts which we have inserted above are written 
 •hi tin- margins.
 
 190 
 
 hermit, and his men, to be raised by a tithesmau ; and there 
 were given to Elcu, one bull, a horse, three oxen, and three 
 milch cows, being, including a mare, Dine beasts for his posses- 
 sion. May he be saved henceforth to the day of strict judg- 
 ment, who will not claim it for Tydvwlch and his family for 
 ever. 
 
 * a 
 
 " >|« Teilo, witness; Turgint, witness; Cinhilin, witness; 
 Sps, witness; and all the famil) of Teilo; of the laity, Numin 
 son of Aidan, witness; Signou bod of [acou, witness; Ber- 
 thutis, witness; Cinda, witness. Whoever will keep it. shall be 
 blessed ; whoever will break it. shall be cursed." 
 
 " This writing sheweth that Rhys, and the family of Grethi, 
 gave to < ; "d and St. T< ilo, Trevwyddoe, which is on tin- road 
 to the confluence of Cinchi ; and its rent payment is fort} loaves, 
 and a wether sheep in the summer; and in the winter, forty 
 loaves, a hog, and forty dishes of butter. God is witness; Sad- 
 wrnwydd, witness ; Nywys, witness ; Gwrgi, witness ; Cwdhwlf, 
 witness; of the laity, Oynwern, witness; Collwyn, witness; 
 Cyhorged, witness; Erbin, witness; Bwrodd, witness. Who- 
 ever will keep it. shall be blessed; and whoever will break it, 
 shall be cursed bj < rod.' 1 
 
 • This writing showeth that Rhys and Ilirv Brechva as 
 
 far as Hirvaen Gwyddog, from the desert of Gelli Math as far 
 as Gamddwr. Its rent payment is -i\t\ loaves, and a wether 
 sheep, and a quantity of butter. Almighty God is witi 
 Sadwrnwydd the priest, witness; Nywys, witness; Gwrgi, wit- 
 ness; Cwdhwlf. witness; of the laity, Oynwern, witness; Coll- 
 wyn, witness; Cyhorged. witness; Erbin, witness. Whoever 
 will keep it. shall be blessed; whoever will break it, shall be 
 cursed."* 
 
 The following, from Liber Landavensis, describes a restitution 
 made for the violation of a sanctuary : 
 
 " Meredydd, son of Khun, king of the region of Dyved, being 
 excited by excessive rage and cruelty, killed Guvrir, one of the 
 
 * Liber Landavensis, Appendix. The original of these documents is a 
 curious mixture of Welsh and Latin.
 
 191 
 
 men of St. Teilo, in the refuge which belonged to God and 
 to him, whilst he was before his altar ; due penance being re- 
 quired of him, and pardon granted on account of proposed 
 amendment in fasting, prayer, and almsgiving, with promised 
 reformation in every respect, he gave to God and St. Teilo, and 
 the church of Llandaf, and all its pastors for ever, the manor of 
 Brunus, with its church, and fish, and woods, and likewise 
 Telichclouman, and Trevcannus ; which lands were to be free 
 of all regal service, and with all their dignity, and the privilege 
 of St. Teilo, granted in all things, and complete commonage for 
 the inhabitants in field and in woods, in water and in pastures, 
 for ever, a curse being pronounced on the violators, and a bless- 
 ing on the preservers. 1 ' 1 "' 
 
 We see from the above, and there are numerous other cases 
 recorded in Liber Landave'nsis, that even the patronage of 
 churches was, under similar circumstances, transferred from lay 
 hands into those of ecclesiastics. The repetition of such grants 
 rendered particular establishments in course of time very wealthy 
 and honorable. For instance, the pre-eminent privilege which 
 Llandaf eventually acquired is thus noticed' in the register of 
 that see : 
 
 " The privilege of St. Teilo, and his church of Llandaf, is 
 granted to him and all his successors for ever by these kings 
 and princes,f and confirmed by apostolical authority, with all 
 its laws complete to itself, and its territories free from all regal 
 service, without a governor or deputy governor, without attend- 
 ance at public courts, in or out of its jurisdiction, without going 
 on military expeditions, without keeping watch over the coun- 
 try ; with its own laws altogether respecting thieves, and rob- 
 beries, rapine, murders, incendiarism, brawling, shedding of 
 blood, violation of refuge every where in the territories of the 
 holy man, assaults in the ways and out of the ways, in giving 
 judgment, and suffering it, with regard to all the people of St. 
 Teilo, in the court of Llandaf, respecting commonage of water 
 and herbage, field and wood for the people of the church of St. 
 Teilo; with a market and a mint at Llandaf, with the approach 
 
 * Lib. Land. i>. 364. f Named elsewhere in the hunk.
 
 192 
 
 of ships every where throughout the territories of St. Teilo, free 
 from kings, and all persons, except the church of Llandaf and 
 its bishop; and respecting every reproach and injury which tli" 
 king of Glamorgan and hi- men shall do to the biahop of St. 
 Teilo and his men. the said king of Glamorgan and his men 
 shall render justice to the bishop and his men, and receive 
 judgment in the court of Llandaf. Every law which may be in 
 the regal court, shall be likewise fully recognized in the episcopal 
 court at Llandaf. 
 
 For the privilege of that church ordained by apostolical an* 
 tin .lit \ is, thai it shall, with it< dignity, remain t«> posterity 
 free and quit from all burden of secular service. Whatsoever 
 by the concession of pontiffs, the liberality of princes, or the 
 
 ottering of the faithful, or b) other just mean- may belong to it, 
 
 shall be preserved to it linn and intire for ever. Whatsoever 
 it may in future by divine bounty justly and canonic-ally obtain, 
 shall always remain to it quiet and undisturbed. For it is 
 decreed that it shall not be lawful for any man whatsoever 
 rashly to disturb the aforesaid church, or take away its posses- 
 sions, or retain such as have been taken away from it, or weary 
 it with vexatious proceedings, and that all things, together with 
 the boundaries of the diocese, be preserved to it. If any secular 
 or ecclesiastical person shall therefore, in future, rashly attempt 
 to act against it, and being two or three times admonished will 
 not amend, with rendering due satisfaction, let him be deprived 
 of the dignity of his station, and know that by divine judgment 
 he is guilty of the perpetrated crime, and not partake of the 
 most holy body and blood of God, and the Lord, our Redeemer 
 Jesus Christ, and undergo severe punishment in the last judg- 
 ment. But to all who shall preserve them to the said church, 
 may the peace of our Lord Jesus Christ effect, so that here 
 they may enjoy the fruit of their good conduct, and from the 
 righteous Judge receive the reward of eternal peace." 
 
 The benefactions of Cunedda Wledig and Gadwaladr Vendi- 
 
 * Liber Landavensis, pp. 355, 356. The above is translated from llie Latin ; 
 another in Welsh of a similar substanee is immediately added in the said re- 
 gister.
 
 193 
 
 gaid were not bestowed upon individual churches, but were of a 
 more comprehensive character. Furthermore, we learn from 
 the laws of Hywel Dda, that there were certain privileges and 
 immunities attached in common to almost every church in the 
 land. Such were — the right of sanctuary, the inalienable secu- 
 rity of property, independent tribunals, and the exemption of 
 the clergy from certain offices of state. * 
 
 Tithes, however, appear to have constituted the most general 
 endowment with which the cause of Christ was invested in 
 Cymru. And if the plough ratet which the Druids received in 
 their several districts merely involved the tenth of the produce 
 of the land, then we may assign the origin of Christian tithes 
 to the era of Lies ab Cocl. Be that as it may, there can be no 
 doubt that the principle was then fully sanctioned. It is affirmed 
 by Giraldus Cambrensis that Gannon and Bleiddian taught the 
 Britons " to pay their tithes partly to the bishop, and partly to 
 their baptismal church."! Allusion is made in a former extract 
 to the office of " talesman," as existing in the days of Teilo ;§ 
 and Taliesin speaks of the paying of tithes as a duty : 
 " Due tithes and offerings will they not pay."|| 
 
 The duty being once admitted, would soon break out, in 
 
 * Sec Wotton's Leges Wallieae; and the Laws of Wales in My v. Arch, 
 vol. iii. | Pages 15, 70, and 170. 
 
 % Comher, 183 ; Soames's Anglo-Saxon Church, p. 85. § Page 190. 
 
 || Myv. Arch. vol. i. p. 26. That the Italian missionaries found the tenth 
 esteemed God's portion among the British Christians, may he inferred from 
 the following tale related of Augustine. When preaching in Oxfordshire, a vil- 
 lage priest addressed him thus : " Father, the lord of this piace refuses to pay 
 tythes, and my threats of excommunication only increase his ohstinacy." Au- 
 gustine then tried his powers of persuasion, hut the lord replied, " Did not I 
 plough and sow the land ? The tenth part belongs to him who owns the re- 
 maining nine." It was now time for mass ; and Augustine, turning to the 
 altar, said: " I command every excommunicated person to leave the church." 
 Immediately a pallid corpse arose from beneath the doorway, stalked across the 
 churchyard, and stood motionless beyond its boundary. The congregation, 
 gazing in horror and affright, called Augustine's attention to the spectre. He 
 did not choose, however, to break off the service. Having concluded, he said, 
 " Be not alarmed. With cross and holy water in hand, we shall know the 
 meaning of this." He then went forward, ami thus accosted the ghastly
 
 194 
 
 those days of religious feelings, into actual operation wherever 
 the Lord Jesus was worshipped. We may therefore fairly pre- 
 sume that its development followed the foundation of churches, 
 and that it was established as a regular and universal system 
 when the boundaries of parishes became properly defined. 
 
 In the laws of Hywel Dda, this ministerial portion is empha- 
 tically called " the tithe of Christ."* Tithes, offerings, mor- 
 tuary, marriage fees, legacies, the spoils of the altar, open 
 violence committed upon a clergyman, and an insult against a 
 graduate of the church, are enumerated in the same laws as the 
 things in respect of which the prerogatives of the ecclesiastical 
 court exceeded those of the lay court, t 
 
 stranger: " I enjoin thee, in the name of God, tell me who thou art." The 
 ghost replied : " In British times I was lord here ; but no warnings of the 
 priest could ever bring me to pay nay tythes. At length he excommunicated 
 me, and my disembodied soul was thrust into hell. When the excommunicated 
 were bidden to depart, your attendant angels drove me from my grave." Au- 
 gustine's power was now exerted in raising the excommunicating priest from 
 his narrow resting-place ; and having thus a second spectre before him, he 
 asked, " Know you this person ?" The unearthly clergyman replied, " Full 
 well, and to my cost." He was then reminded by Augustine of God's mercy, 
 and of the departed lord's torture in hell ; a scourge was put into his hand, the 
 excommunicated party knelt before him, received absolution, and then quietly 
 returned to the grave. His own return thither soon followed, although Au- 
 gustine, desirous of his assistance in preaching the Gospel, would fain have 
 prayed for a renewed term of life. — Bromton X. Script. 736. Soames's Anglo- 
 Saxon Church, p. 84, note. 
 
 * Wotton's Leges Wallicae, lib. iv. sect. 104. f lb. lib. ii. cap. 28.
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 APOSTOLICAL SUCCESSION. 
 
 " Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen." — 
 Matthew xxviii. 20. 
 
 In the first chapter of this work, we noticed that the mission- 
 aries who introduced the Christian faith into Britain were Hid, 
 Cyndav, Mawan, and Arwystli Hen, the three former being 
 of Jewish extraction, and the last a Roman, — and that this 
 took place when St. Paul was in the imperial city. Moreover, 
 we made it probable that Arwystli was none other than the 
 Aristobulus mentioned by the Apostle in his Epistle to the 
 Romans (chap. xvi. verse 10.) Be that as it may, it is expressly 
 stated that Aristobulus was consecrated bishop for Britain by 
 St. Paul himself, and that he established churches and ordained 
 presbyters and deacons in the island. Here, therefore, we have 
 a distinct recognition of one of the first links in the chain of 
 British succession. There can be no doubt that the " men of 
 Israel,"" his companions, were in holy orders, though the source 
 of their commission is not so clearly ascertained. Probably, as 
 the foundations of the Roman Church were jointly laid by St. 
 Peter and St. Paul,* — the one as the Apostle of the Gentiles," 
 taking care of the Gentile Christians, whilst the other, as " the 
 Apostle of the Circumcision," applied himself to the Jewish 
 converts,! that they were ordained by St. Peter. 
 
 * Iren. adv. Haeres. lib. iii. c. 3, p. 232. Epiph. Hue res. xxvii. p. 51, vid. 
 Ham. Dissert, v. c. i. p. 256. Cai. adv. Procul. Dionys. Ep. ad Rom. apud 
 Euseb. lib. ii. c. 25, p. 68. 
 
 f There seems to be some foundation for this hypothesis in the Acts of the 
 
 T
 
 196 
 
 The high position and dignity to which Arwystli was raised 
 as the spiritual instructor of Bran, would, simply considered, 
 lead us to infer that his notions and feelings imparted their 
 peculiar tinge to the ordinances of the infant Church. We 
 must remember, on the other hand, that his fellow missionaries 
 were more in number, and that Hid is plainly described as " the 
 chief teacher of the Cymry in the Christian faith.""* In accord- 
 ance, therefore, with these circumstances, we find that Jewish 
 prejudices prevailed over those of the "man of Italy. 1 ' This is 
 evident from the fact, that swearing by the ten commandments 
 was the form of oath which the Christians first adopted in this 
 country.f The memory of Moses is also invested with peculiar 
 prominence in the compositions of Taliesin : one poem is en- 
 titled " The Rod of Moses,' 1 ^ whilst another bears the name 
 of "the Plagues of Egypt, 1 ^ "and a third is an "Eulogy on 
 the men of Israel. 1 '! We have already seen that a Druidical 
 temple, which is supposed to have been converted into a Chris- 
 tian church, received in consequence the appellation of "the 
 tumulus of Moses."1[ Now, a mere intimacy with the Asiatic 
 or Gallic churches could not have implanted in the breasts of 
 the Cymry predilections so purely judaical ; — how else may 
 they be accounted for, except as the genuine traditions of Hid, 
 Cyndav, and Ma wan ? 
 
 Apostles (xxviii. 23-31) where we read that St. Paul, at his first coming to 
 Rome, heing rejected by the Jews, turned to tbe Gentiles, declaring to them 
 the salvation of God, who gladly received it; and that he continued thus 
 preaching the Gospel for two years together. According to the Apostolic Con- 
 stitutions, Linus was ordained bishop of Rome by St. Paul, and Clemens by 
 St. Peter, which would lead us to believe in like manner that they were thus 
 appointed to succeed the Apostles in the superintendence of their respective 
 flocks. It is a matter of fact that in the Church of Jerusalem, till the destruc- 
 tion of the temple, none were admitted but Jewish converts.— See Caves Life 
 of St. Clemens. 
 
 * Page 57. 
 
 t " There are three sacred objects to swear by. (See p. 71). — Afterwards were 
 introduced the ten commandments, the gospel of John, and the holy cross."— 
 Myv. Arch. vol. iii. p. 314. 
 
 % Myv. Arch. vol. i. p. 41. § Ibid. p. 40. 
 
 || Ibid. 46. IT Pages 71, 172.
 
 197 
 
 But this disposition of mind, no doubt tended to the establish- 
 ment of the intercourse which subsisted between the British and 
 Oriental Churches. " Many godly men from Greece " are said 
 to have visited Cymru as early as the reign of Oyllin,* the son 
 of Caradog, when in all probability Aristobulus was yet living, 
 since his death, according to Oressy, is dated as late as a.d. 99. 
 At any rate, we cannot suppose that the four missionaries were 
 all dead at the time, and that the Church was then founded 
 anew. Mawan, especially, must have been young when he first 
 came over. But even if they were all gone to their rest, or 
 Hid, Cyndav, Mawan, and the twelve saints of Eurgain, were 
 mere presbyters or deacons, still we dare not think that Aris- 
 tobulus would have so far disregarded the charge of St. Paul 
 as not to provide for the transmission of the apostolical com- 
 mission in the Church over which he presided.t To have been 
 satisfied with the succession observed by the college of Bards 
 would be tantamount to the rejection altogether of episcopal 
 ordination, which is a distinct and essential doctrine of Chris- 
 tianity. Truly the succession of bishops was in possession of 
 the British communion in the time of Irenseus, about A.D. 169, 
 or he, who expressly appealed to it against the pretensions of 
 heretics and in favour of the claims of Catholicism, would never 
 have included the Christian Celts indiscriminately within the 
 pale of true churches. % 
 
 Though there is no necessity for believing that intimacy with 
 the Oriental Christians effected any fundamental alteration in 
 the ecclesiastical usages of Britain, yet it may have to a certain 
 extent remoulded the character of some, and also introduced 
 others altogether new. Irenseus evidently identifies the creed 
 and traditions of the British Church with those of the East. — 
 
 * Page 63. 
 
 f See the epistles to Timothy and Titus. Could the bishop of Ephesus, who 
 seems to have personally known some of the saints of Britain, have had any 
 part in giving their Church a bias towards Asia ? There are not wanting au- 
 thorities which allege that Timothy was over in this country, and that he even 
 baptized King Lucius. (See Usher, cap. iii.) 
 
 t Adv. Haeres. lib. iii. c. 3.
 
 198 
 
 " Neither have the Churches which are established in the Ger- 
 manies, the Iberias, or among the Celts, otherwise believed, or 
 otherwise handed down.""* And notwithstanding the bias of 
 his companions, the authority of Aristobulus was venerated for 
 some time, if we may infer from the Triads which bear the 
 name of the Apostle who sent him. Nevertheless, congeniality 
 of feeling excited at first generally among the British Christians 
 by the Jewish emissaries, would naturally recommend to them 
 the Asiatic ordinances, and perhaps induce them to embody 
 some in their own ritual. This will account for the fact that in 
 aftertimes they referred their traditions to St. John, and swore 
 by his gospel. t We certainly know that Britain and Asia did 
 at one time agree, especially in regard to the time of keeping 
 Easter. If our Church derived this custom from the East, it 
 must have been anterior to the council of Nice,| and the reason 
 why the Cymry continued to observe the same afterwards is 
 easily explained on the supposition that they were not repre- 
 sented in that council.§ Whether the Greeks in the time of 
 Cyllin introduced their orders into Britain, we are not prepared 
 to assert : it seems as if the incorporation of the Church with 
 the Bardic system, would hardly admit of such a proceeding. 
 
 But we are informed, that there were then " many godly men 
 from Rome, - " as well. Did their influence at all affect the 
 customs of the native Church ?" Of this we have no practical 
 evidence in the customs themselves, which, on the contrary, 
 turned out at a subsequent period to be materially different 
 from those of Rome.|| It may be, that the domination of the 
 Romans in temporal matters operated unfavourably upon the 
 Cymry in that point. We have seen how they kept themselves 
 throughout, more or less, a distinct people, using their own 
 laws ; and may they not accordingly have exhibited a spirit of 
 similar jealousy in regard to religion ? That there was a sort 
 
 * Adv. Haeres. lib. iii. cap. 3. 
 
 f Beda, Hist. Eccles. lib. iii. c. 25 ; Myv. Arch. vol. iii. p. 314. 
 \ It was decreed at this council that the paschal festival should be held 
 throughout Christendom on one and the same day. 
 
 § See page 84. |j Bed. lib. ii. c. 2.
 
 199 
 
 of rivalry between the two nations on this head is sufficiently 
 apparent from the antagonist claims of Llandaf and Caerleon to 
 be the principal seat of the Cambrian Church. 
 
 We have it on record, however, that Lleirwg communicated 
 with the Bishop of Rome on the subject of the Church ; but, 
 we trust that we have clearly explained the nature of that com- 
 munication both from the Triads and from the letter of Eleu- 
 therius himself.* The pope, in the very commencement of his 
 epistle, seems to betray a consciousness of British antipathy to 
 the imperial laws, and, therefore, as if to remove every pretext 
 of jealousy on the part of the clergy of this island, which might 
 exist in consequence of that circumstance, he repudiates all 
 necessary connection between the Church and State of Rome.f 
 Further, in commissioning persons of British descent, one 
 known to be a relative of Lleirwg, to bring over his reply, and 
 to aid the king in his projects, he proves how careful he was to 
 cultivate a Catholic union between the Churches of Britain and 
 Rome, without subjecting either to a compromise of liberty and 
 independence. It is true that the native prelates are made to 
 assert at the conference with Augustine, that they had received 
 their ceremonies from Eleutherius ; J from the foregoing consi - 
 derations, however, we can conclude such to have been a mis- 
 take, arising naturally from a vague or confused idea of the 
 change which took place in the external aspect of the Silurian 
 Church consequent upon the application of Lleirwg. 
 
 Nevertheless, we cannot doubt that the principal stream of 
 ordination was now derived immediately from Rome, for both 
 Dyvan and Fagan were successively appointed bishops of Llan- 
 daf. We can furnish the names of all the prelates who hence- 
 forward filled this see. Adelfius, who subscribed to the decrees 
 of Aries, A.D. 314, we have elsewhere attempted to identify with 
 
 * Chap. ii. 
 
 f " Leges Roinanas et Caesaris semper reprobare possumus." 
 
 \ " Auctorizabant suas ceremonias non solum a saneto Eleutherio Papa, 
 
 primo institutore suo, ab ipsa pene infantia Ecclesias dicatas, verum a Sanctis 
 
 patribus suis, Dei amicis, et apostolorum sequacibus, hactenus observatas ; 
 
 quas non deberent mutare propter novos dogmatistas." — Gotcelinus in Histor. 
 
 Major, cap. 32.
 
 200 
 
 Edelfed, the fourth bishop of Llandaf, and with Cadvrawd the 
 son of Cadvan, great-grandson of Caradog.* And here we may 
 mention the testimony which the council alluded to affords to 
 the existence and validity of the Apostolical succession at this 
 time in Britain. It consists in the fact that bishops from this 
 country were summoned to attend, and permitted to vote in an 
 assembly, which has always been regarded as most legitimate in 
 its constitution. 
 
 In the fifth century, a succession from their favorite Apostle 
 St. John, was introduced among the Christians of Cymry, by 
 Garmon and Bleiddian."f They consecrated Dyvrig,^ who 
 afterwards exercised the authority of a metropolitan, and con- 
 sequently was enabled to confer the same ordination upon 
 other bishops and clergy within his province. And as he held 
 Llandaf and Caerleon together for some time, there was wanting 
 the usual rivalry of the two sees to mar the uniform transmis- 
 sion of this eastern succession. His immediate successors in 
 both sees traced their spiritual descent from the fountain head 
 of Christendom, having been admitted into episcopal orders by 
 the Patriarch of Jerusalem. § The same can be said of Padarn, 
 bishop of Llanbadarn Vawr, so that, if he afterwards assisted 
 in the imposition of hands, the Cambrian chain would be pro- 
 portionably less complicated. 
 
 It does not appear that anything materially affected the 
 succession as now established until the time when the rival 
 sees of Wales submitted respectively to the jurisdiction of Can- 
 terbury. 
 
 We subjoin a list of the prelates who successively filled the 
 oldest see in Great Britain, from the time of Lleirwg until the 
 
 * Pages 78, 82. 
 
 f Irenseus, a disciple of Polycarp, who was the disciple of St. John, was 
 bishop of Lyons, the oldest church in Gaul, and the source whence were derived 
 the ministry and ecclesiastical rites of that country. 
 
 J Genealogy of the Saints; Liber Landavensis, p. 621. 
 
 § Page 133. Does Gwynvardd Brycheiniog (1160-1230) allude to this- 
 event when he says : 
 
 " Before the relics of Dewi Greece shall tremble."
 
 201 
 
 final union of the Anglo-Saxon and Cambrian Churches in the 
 twelfth century. 
 
 1. Dyvan.— A.D. 173-180. 
 
 2. Fagan. 
 
 3. Elldeyrn. 
 
 4. Edelfed (Adeljius, present at the Council of Aries, A.D. 
 
 314.) 
 
 5. Cadwr. 
 
 6. Cynan. 
 
 7. Han. 
 
 8. Llevvyr. 
 
 9. Cyhelyn. 
 
 10. Gwythelyn. 
 
 11. Festydd.* (Probably Fastidius, " Britannorum Episco- 
 
 pus" A.D. 420, or 430 ; or, Faustus, " Rei- 
 ensis Episcopus" a.d. 463. Query, the 
 son of Gwrtheyrn, who " condidit locum 
 magnum super ripam fluminis, quod voca- 
 tur Benis.") 
 
 12. Dyvrig. Consecrated by Garmon and Bleiddian. 
 
 13. Teilo. 
 
 14. Oudoceus. 
 
 15. Berthgwyn. 
 
 16. Trychan. 
 
 17. Edilvyw. 
 
 18. Grecielis. 
 
 19. Aidan. Slain by the "infidel Saxons," a.d. 720. 
 
 20. Elwog. 
 
 21. Cerenhir. 
 
 * The list of the hishops prior to Dyvrig is from a MS. of the late Iolo Mor- 
 ganwg. Another hook gives Medwy as the third. It may he well to observe 
 that Nos. 1, 5, 6, 7, 10, and 11, may he recognised among the Archbishops of 
 London in Godwin's list, under the names of Obinus (or Dovinus in another 
 list) Cador, Conan, Hillary, Guitelnius, and Fastidius. Another list, in Iolo 
 Morganwg's hand-writing, gives thirteen bishops of Llandaf prior to Dyvrig, 
 ten of whom are in Godwin's catalogue of the bishops of London. Under- 
 neath this list is written, See " Nicholl's Paper."— Liber Landavensis, Chro- 
 nological Series, $c. p. 623.
 
 202 
 
 22. Nudd. 
 
 23. Cadwared. 
 
 24. Nobis, or Nywys. 
 
 25. Cyveiliawg. Consecrated A.D. 872. 
 
 26. Libiau. 
 
 27. Gulfrid. 
 
 28. Marchlwys, or Marchluid. In the time of Hywel Dda. 
 
 29. Pater, or Padarn. a.d. 943. 
 
 30. Rhodri ab Morgan. Poisoned. 
 
 31. Gwgan. Died a.d. 982. 
 
 32. Bledri. Became bishop in 983. 
 
 33. Joseph. Consecrated, Oct. 1st. 1022. 
 
 34. Herwald, or Herwallt. Consecrated in 105G, died 1104. 
 
 35. Urban. Consecrated A.D. 1108.
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 DIOCESES AND PARISHES. 
 
 " For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest set in order the 
 things that are wanting, and ordain elders in every city, as I had appointed 
 thee."— Titus i. 5. 
 
 The ancient archbishoprics of Britain are thus noticed in the 
 Welsh Triads :— 
 
 " The three archbishoprics of the Isle of Britain : 
 
 " The first, Llandaf, endowed by Lleirwg, son of Coel, son of 
 Cyllin, who first granted land and constitutional privileges to the 
 first Christians. 
 
 " The second, Caere vrawg (York) endowed by the emperor 
 Cystennyn (Constantine), who was the first of the Roman em- 
 perors that received the faith in Christ. 
 
 " The third, London, endowed by Macsen Wledig (Maximus). 
 
 " After that, they were Caerleon-upon-Usk, Gelliwig in Corn- 
 wall, and Caer Rianedd in the North ; and now they are Mynyw, 
 Caerevrawg, and Caer Gaint (Canterbury).""* 
 
 It does not appear that there were any primates at first in 
 the British Church. Silurian Bardism presented nothing ana- 
 logous to the office, though we read of an Arch-druid in Gaul, 
 whose authority was absolute. t The metropolitical dignity 
 would naturally have been conferred upon Arwystli Hen, had 
 it really existed in his time, whereas we find, on the contrary, 
 that it was the opinions and feelings of his fellow-labourers, 
 
 * Triad 62. 
 
 f " Hisautem omnibus Druidihus praiestunus,qui summam inter eos habet 
 auctoritatem." — De Dello Galileo, lib. vi. c. 13.
 
 204 
 
 rather than his own power, which gave a tone to the ordinances 
 of Cymru. Its first adoption, then, is dated in the reign of 
 Lleirwg ; and though the Triad may refer particularly to the 
 regular and settled formation of the royal patrimony into a 
 diocese, yet the fact of Fagan succeeding his late companion at 
 Llandaf would imply a certain pre-eminence in connexion with 
 that see at the time in question. 
 
 The extent of the diocese, and the nature of its endowment, 
 have already been described.* Nor does it appear that the 
 archiepiscopal powers of Llandaf were exercised beyond its 
 proper boundaries, even when it was a solitary province. In- 
 deed, in the days of its greatest prosperity, its claims were 
 confined to South Wales : " As the Church of Rome has dig- 
 nity above all the Churches of the Catholic faith, so the Church 
 of Llandaf exceeds all the Churches of Southern Britain, f in 
 dignity, and in privilege, and in excellency.''^ 
 
 Caerleon laid claim to the primacy of the Cambrian Church, 
 in virtue of its being the metropolis of the Roman province of 
 Britannia secunda. Hence sprung up a spirit of jealousy be- 
 tween the two sees, which varied more or less according to the 
 political feelings of both nations and their adherents. On the 
 departure of the Romans, however, when the native sovereigns 
 selected Caerleon as their principal place of residence, its archi- 
 episcopal pretensions were no longer opposed, but naturally 
 acknowledged by all the olergy of Cymru, with the exception, 
 as may be imagined, of those of the particular diocese of Llan- 
 daf. And yet some of the prelates who filled this see must 
 have regarded Caerleon as of superior dignity, inasmuch as they 
 suffered themselves to be translated thither from the former. § 
 Dyvrig, bishop of Llandaf, when he was promoted to Caerleon, 
 held both sees together for twenty-two years, and as he mostly 
 
 * Chap. ii. 
 
 f " Dextralis Britannia? ;" Wallicae " Deheu-dir," or " Deheu-barth." (See 
 Usher's Britan. Eccles. Antiq. p. 63.) 
 
 \ Liber Landavensis, p. 373. 
 
 § This will explain the reason why the Britons at their conference with 
 Augustine agreed to designate their primate by the title of " Archbishop of 
 Caerleon."
 
 205 
 
 resided at the former place, he was during the time styled arch- 
 bishop of Llandaf. Dewi, who succeeded him at Caerleon, re- 
 moved the see by permission of the monarch to Mynyw, where 
 he had before exercised the office of a chorepiscopus. As his 
 mother was the daughter of Gynyr Oaergawch, who had be- 
 stowed upon the Church the Menevian territory, his partiality 
 for that spot is accounted for.* Upon his death, Teilo, the 
 bishop of Llandaf, was appointed in his stead, but he chose to 
 make his nephew his suffragan at Mynyw, and to reside him- 
 self in the former city, where he "held supremacy over all the 
 churches of the whole of Southern Britain, according to the 
 appointment of the fathers who consecrated him at Jerusalem. 1 '! 
 
 The diocese of Menevia, in Dewi's time, as may be judged 
 from the churches attributed to him, embraced the counties of 
 Pembroke and Carmarthen. Its northern boundary in Cardi- 
 ganshire included the parishes of Llanddewi Aberarth, and 
 Llanddewi Brevi ; from whence it seems to have followed the 
 Irvon through Brecknockshire, and in Radnorshire it included 
 the parishes of Cregruna and Glascwm. From there it passed 
 southwards to the Wye, and followed that river to its junction 
 with the Severn, including the districts of Ewyas and Erchen- 
 field in Herefordshire, and the entire county of Monmouth, 
 with the exception of the lordship of Gwynllwg. Its southern 
 boundary commenced between the rivers Neath and Tawe, and 
 then passed along the hills which divide Brecknockshire from 
 Glamorganshire, as far as Blaenau Gwent : from this point, it 
 followed the present limits of Gwynllwg to the mouth of the 
 Usk.f. 
 
 The diocese of Llandaf, or as it was now often called " Plwyv 
 Teilo 11 (the parish of Teilo), § embraced all the territory south 
 of this line as far as the channel. Teilo, however, in his capa- 
 city of primate, had founded churches throughout the whole of 
 the Menevian diocese, even within a few miles of St. David's. 
 
 * Page 134. \ Liber Landavensis, p. 351. 
 
 X Rees's Welsh Saints, p. 198. 
 
 § The name for an Episcopal diocese during the three first centuries was 
 commonly Trapoiida. (See Bingham, B. ix. ch. ii. § 1.)
 
 206 
 
 This circumstance furnished Rhydderch ab Iestin, a.d. 1022- 
 1081, with a pretext for attempting to restore his ancient juris- 
 diction to Llandaf, and he accordingly withdrew from the 
 patronage of the Bishop of Mynyw all such churches in the 
 counties of Carmarthen, Pembroke, Brecon, and Radnor, as 
 bore the name of Teilo, together with several manors, land, and 
 villages. Subsequent events, however, prove that his successors 
 in power did not confirm the transfer, because, we may be sure, 
 they looked upon him as an usurper.* 
 
 North of the diocese of St. David's was that of Llanbadarn, 
 which was founded by Padarn. Its extent northwards is uncer- 
 tain, but is supposed to have included a considerable part of 
 Montgomeryshire. Very little is known of this bishopric, and 
 the last notice we have of it in the Bruts is under the year 
 720, when it is recorded that many of its churches were ravaged 
 by the Saxons. It was ultimately annexed to Menevia.f 
 
 The churches founded by Deiniol are few in number, and not 
 disposed in such a way as to afford a criterion for ascertaining 
 the extent of the diocese of Bangor4 Little, indeed, is known 
 of its early history, but there is reason to believe that it in- 
 creased in dignity under the protection and countenance of the 
 princes of North Wales, for we find one of its prelates in the 
 eighth century even assuming the rank and title of " Archbishop 
 of Gwynedd,"" and, as such, undertaking to alter the ordinances 
 of the Church. § Nor must this be attributed to any ineffi- 
 ciency, feebleness, or concession on the part of the Southwallian 
 primacy, for the bishops of Llandaf and St. David's resolutely 
 
 * Rees's Essay, &c. pp. 198, 243, 246. It is not improbable that the bishops 
 of Llandaf had, upon some occasion, obtained a transient ascendancy before the 
 time of Rhydderch. Thus it is recorded that Maredudd, king of Dyved, about 
 the end of the eighth century, gave six churches to Llandaf. Urban claimed 
 to his diocese, on the score of former occupation, so much of Carmarthenshire 
 as lay to the south of the river Towy, together with the southern part of Breck- 
 nockshire, and that portion of the country of Hereford which lay on the western 
 side of the Wye. It does not appear, however, that his claims were admitted. 
 —Ibid. pp. 249, 250. 
 
 f Rees's Essay, &c. pp. 198,216. I Ibid. p. 259. 
 
 § Brut y Tywysogion.
 
 207 
 
 withstood the usurpation of Elvod, on tho ground that they 
 themselves were respectively archbishops of older privilege.* 
 It is true his regulations were shortly afterwards received gene- 
 rally throughout Cymru, yet, notwithstanding, none of his 
 successors appears to have laid claim to his metropolitical 
 honours. 
 
 The only other diocese in. North Wales was that of Llanelwy, 
 which was founded by Cyndeyrn.f This did not enjoy the civil 
 advantages of the preceding bishopric, but, on the contrary, was 
 exposed to frequent incursions and devastations from its conti- 
 guity to England. 
 
 The limits of the different dioceses of Wales were originally 
 defined by circumstances of a civil or temporal character. The 
 archiepiscopal jurisdiction was co-extensive with the Roman 
 province of Britannia Secunda, though the particular diocese of 
 Caerleon or Mynyw was determined by the influence which its 
 principal bishops, as Dyvrig, Dewi, and Teilo, had in the land 
 by inheritance, relationship, or sanctity. Llandaf generally 
 coincided with the dominions of the kings of Glamorgan, and 
 the jurisdictions of Bangor and St. Asaph depended upon tho 
 local power of the princes of Gwynedd and Powys, and their 
 connection with the founders or their immediate successors. 
 
 But besides the prelates who presided over dioceses, there 
 were others who had no such territorial jurisdictions, but acted 
 in the capacity of chorepiscopi, or country suffragans. The 
 following list of those who, according to Liber Landavensis4 
 lived in the time of Teilo, and were stationed in divers parts of 
 his diocese, shews that this class of bishops was comparatively 
 numerous. 
 
 Aidan, a disciple of Dyvrig at Henllan, bishop in Ergyng, in 
 the reign of king Cynvyn, son of Pebiau. 
 
 Elwystyl, one of the clergy under Dyvrig, and bishop in the 
 times of Cynvyn and Gwyddai, sons of Pebiau, kings of Ergyng. 
 He appears to have been stationed in Ergyng, the same district 
 as Aidan. 
 
 * Brut y Tywysogion. f Page 137. 
 
 X See Chronological Series, &c. p. 624.
 
 208 
 
 Lunapeius, probably the same person as Junabui, founder of 
 Llandinabo, in the time of his cousin Dyvrig, and King Pebiau. 
 He is supposed to have been raised to the episcopacy by Teilo, 
 in the reign of Gwrgan, son of Cynvyn, king of Ergyng, and to 
 have been stationed in the said district. 
 
 Arwystyl, one of the disciples of Dyvrig at Henllan. He 
 was bishop in the latter part of the reign of Iddon, king of 
 Gwent, who bestowed upon him Llangoed, in Brecknockshire, 
 in which district he was probably stationed. 
 
 Uvelwy, a disciple of Dyvrig ; he appears to have been a 
 bishop in Ergyng during the reign of Gwrvodw, king of that 
 district ; Meurig, king of Glamorgan, is recorded to have given 
 him the church of Llansillow, in Herefordshire. 
 
 Comereg, bishop in Ergyng in the time of Arthrwys, son of 
 Meurig, king of Gwent, who granted him St. Kinemark's, near 
 Chepstow, with its territory, comprising a large portion of 
 Ergyng. 
 
 Gwrwan, bishop in the reign of Tewdwr, son of Rhun, king 
 of Dyved, who treacherously killed Elgystyl, son of Awst, king 
 of Brecknock, for which he was excommunicated by Gwrwan. 
 His station was probably Ystradyw. 
 
 Gwyddlon or Guodloiu, said to be son of Glywys Cerniw, 
 founder of Coed Cerniw church, near Newport, Monmouthshire, 
 in which district perhaps he was bishop. 
 
 Of this description was probably the bishopric of Margam, 
 which was established by Morgan, king of Glamorgan, in the 
 time of Oudoceus.* The following seems to be a list of its 
 prelates in succession : Morgan ab Adras, bishop and king, 
 Ystyffan, Cattwg, Iago, Cawan, Tyvodwg, Cyvelach, Mabon.-f* 
 Cyvelach was slain, a.d. 756, whereas the Welsh chronicles 
 seem to include all the dioceses of South Wales, thirty-six 
 
 * Morgan bad his palace at Margam. See a copy of an ancient MS. in 
 Williams's History of ]\Tonmouthshire, Appendix, p. 66. 
 
 f The catalogue is taken from Iolo Morganwg's collection, and headed, 
 " Bishops of Glamorgan, alias Cynffig." In Williams' History, however, the 
 bishopric is said to have had only five successions, and then to have been united 
 to Llandaf. (See Liber Landavensis, p. 625.)
 
 209 
 
 years earlier, under the names of Llandaf, Mynyw, and Llanba- 
 darn,* which confirms the supposition that Margam, or Gla- 
 morgan, had no local jurisdiction. 
 
 The seven bishops who attended the conference with Augus- 
 tine, are not positively stated to have been diocesans : some of 
 them were probably chorepiscopi. If otherwise, two at least 
 of the neighbouring bishops in the ancient provinces of Flavia 
 Oresariensis and Britannia Prima must have submitted to the 
 authority of Caerleon, which is not difficult to credit, consi- 
 dering the troubles of the times.f We are informed in the 
 "Welsh Genealogies, that a British bishop resided at Gloucester 
 at the period in question,^ and we find, moreover, from another 
 document, that there was a British bishop in Somerset as late 
 as the reign of King Ina, A.D. 688-725, § so we are not left in 
 uncertainty as to the existence of prelates out of Cymru. 
 
 It appears probable that the formation of parishes followed 
 immediately the establishment of churches, and that their limits 
 were determined by the manorial territory of the founder or his 
 patron, or by the ministerial influence of the first incumbent. 
 This circumstance would necessarily vary the dimensions of the 
 original parishes. Often, however, when they proved incon- 
 veniently large, their respective saints divided them into smaller 
 districts, and assigned the tithes of each for the support of a 
 separate minister. In progress of time, chapels of ease would 
 be erected for the accommodation of distant hamlets, and to 
 
 * Brut y Tywysogion. 
 
 f Though we read of an Archhishop of Celliwig in Cornwall, when Arthur 
 was king, yet the primate of Wales even then seems to have had some authority 
 in Devon and Cornwall, if we may judge from six or seven churches which are 
 dedicated in those places to Dewi and Non his mother. The same appears to 
 he confirmed by the following testimony of Gwynvardd Brycheinog: 
 " He (Dewi) endured buffe tings, very hard blows, 
 From the hands of an uncourteous woman, devoid of modesty. 
 He took vengeance, he endangered the sceptre of Devon, 
 And those who were not slain were burned." 
 
 Myv. Arch. vol. i. p. 270. 
 + Rees's Essay, &c. p. 293. 
 
 § A chronicle of Glastonbury quoted by Usher, who says it was written in 
 \259.—Brit. Eccles. Primordia, cap. v.
 
 210 
 
 these the parish priest, if unable to attend in person, appointed 
 curates, allowing them a certain stipend out of his own income ; 
 for he still claimed the tithes of the whole district as before. 
 After a while the district would be subdivided, and some parts 
 assigned to the curacies, which would thus become parochial 
 chapelries ; and though they were made perpetual, the minister 
 of the mother Church still retained the right of nomination.* 
 
 This latter arrangement may reasonably be assigned to the era 
 of Church extension under the native princes, which began early 
 in the eighth century, as already observed. And it proves not 
 only their wish to promote the spread of religion, but also their 
 respect for the vested rights of churches, in entire accordance 
 with the character given of them by Giraldus Cambrensis.f 
 
 But several chapelries were converted into independent rec- 
 tories by foreign conquerors, who, likewise, made in general a 
 new distribution of parishes. These are principally found in the 
 southern part of Pembrokeshire, which was occupied by a colony 
 of Flemings about a.d. 1100; in the vale of Glamorgan, con- 
 quered by Norman adventurers about a.d. 1090; and on the 
 borders of England.^ 
 
 * Rees's Essay, &c. Sect. 1 
 
 f Hoare's Giiakl. B. i. ch. 18, and B. ii. ch. 6. 
 
 t Rees's Essay, &c. Sect. 1.
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 MONASTERIES. 
 
 " They rest not day and night, saying, holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, 
 which was, and is, and is to come.'' — Revelation iv. 8. 
 
 1. Cor Eurgain. 
 
 This college was founded by Eurgain, the daughter of Caradog, 
 and called after her name ; and was situate near the church of 
 Illtyd, or rather perhaps of Hid, in Siluria. Hid ordered its 
 polity, which appears to have been in general accordance with 
 the model furnished by the apostolic college.* It consisted of 
 twelve members, who issued out into different parts of the 
 country, for the purpose of extending the influence of the 
 Church, as is evident from a statement in the " Genealogy of 
 Iestin ab Gwrgant," which says, that in the reign of Oyllin 
 " many of the Cymry were converted into the Christian faith 
 through the instruction of the saints of Cor Eurgain." Owain, 
 the son of Cyllin, endowed it with possessions and riches. 
 Very little is known of it afterwards, until the tenth century, 
 when, we are told, king Edgar destroyed it by fire.t 
 
 2. Bangor Wydrin. 
 This was a distinguished establishment, as appears from the 
 following Triad: — 
 
 " The three principal choirs of the isle of Britain ; — Bangor 
 
 * Luke xxiv. 53 ; Acts i. 14 ; vi. 2 ; xv. 2, 22. Before the formation of 
 parishes, the clergy in every country lived on common resources with their 
 hishop, and discharged their various functions under his immediate guidance ; 
 nor would he enter upon any business of importance without consulting them- 
 
 f Pp. 57, 63, 65. 
 
 U
 
 212 
 
 Illtyd Varchawg, in Caer Worgan ; Cor Emrys, in Caer Carad- 
 awg ; and Bangor Wydrin, in the isle of Avallon ; and in each 
 of these three Bangors were two thousand four hundred saints, 
 that is, one hundred were engaged alternately every hour, both 
 day and night, in celebrating the praise and service of God, 
 without rest, without intermission.' 1 - 
 
 The British traditions refer the origin of the college at 
 Glastonbury to El van. t According to William of Malmesbury, 
 an institution similar to the foregoing, consisting of twelve 
 members, and endowed with twelve portions of land, existed 
 here in the earliest period of Christianity. This did not flourish 
 long ; but we are informed that in the reign of Lleirwg, it was 
 restored to its original position by Dyvan and Fagan, with the 
 consent and authority of the monarch, who confirmed its 
 ancient charters.^: 
 
 Padrig is said to have rendered Bangor Wydrin similar in 
 character to the monasteries of Egypt, and to have become its 
 first abbot. Under him, it was further enriched with lands and 
 possessions, the gifts of kings and princes. Many natives, 
 whose names are now lost, succeeded him in his dignity, before 
 the institution finally passed into the hands of the Saxons. § 
 
 According to the records of Glastonbury, Dewi visited the 
 island with seven suffragans, for the purpose of dedicating its 
 ancient church. || An anonymous author of his life says 
 expressly that he "founded" the monastery ;^T whilst the com- 
 piler of " Brut y Tywysogion" is positive that Ivor " made the 
 great friary in the isle of Avallon" in the year 683, out of 
 gratitude to Almighty God for the victories which he had 
 
 * Tr. 84, third series. 
 
 f Cambrian Biography. Hughes's Horse Britannica?, vol. ii. p. 342. Rees's 
 Welsh Saints, p. 87. 
 
 X Usher's Britan. Eecles. Antiq. p. 55. Harding, Chronic, c. 51. 
 
 § MS. libell. de reliquis ccenobii Glaston. circa tern. R. Henrici III. script. 
 Johan. Tinmuthensis in Vita Patricii. Tabula Magna Glastoniens. MS. in 
 Bibliotheca Collegii S. Trinitatis. Cantabrig. &c. apud Usher, pp. 56, 58. 
 
 || Glastoniens. Tabula;, Glastoniens. Chronograph. Guil. Malraes., &c. apud 
 Usher, pp. 47, 59, 60. 
 
 ^1 Usher, Index chronologicus.
 
 213 
 
 obtained over his enemies.* But such statements were no doubt 
 made, in consequence of a vague knowledge as to the nature of 
 the services which those persons rendered to the establishment. 
 Its endowment was augmented by king Arthur, who was also, 
 with his wife Gwenhwyvar, buried in its holy ground. j* 
 
 Bangor Wydrin was wrested from the native Britons in the 
 reign of Ina, king of the West Saxons. A.D. 7214 
 
 3. Bangor Illtyd. 
 
 This college was situate at Oaerworgan, the Bovium of the 
 Romans, and the usual residence of the kings of Glamorgan. 
 Its origin is thus noticed in the " Genealogy of the Saints." — 
 " It was the glory of the emperor Theodosius, in conjunction 
 with Cystennyn Llydaw, surnamed the Blessed, to have first 
 founded the College of Illtyd, which was regulated by Balerus, 
 a man from Rome ; and Padrig, the son of Mawon, was the 
 first principal of it, before he was carried captive by the Irish- 
 men.'^ Who Theodosius was, his intimacy with Cystennyn, 
 and the date of the event, have been elsewhere described. || 
 
 The establishment under the direction of Balerus,. must have 
 partaken of the general character of the schools which existed 
 at that time in other parts of the empire, namely a liberal 
 instruction in the arts and sciences. The interest of the em- 
 peror gave it the name of " Cor Tewdws," or the choir of 
 Theodosius. 
 
 Padrig, according to his own "Confession, 1 ^ was taken prisoner 
 
 * Myv. Arch. vol. ii. p. 470. A similar statement is also made in " Brut 
 Ieuan Brechva," ibid. p. 471. Professor Rees, however, is of opinion that 
 Walter and Geoffrey, having previously confounded Cadwaladr with Ceadwalla 
 the king of Wessex, the compilers of the chronicles alluded to, followed in the 
 wake of the error, and assigned the history of Ina, successor of Ceadwalla, to 
 Ivor, the supposed successor of Cadwaladr. See Essay, §-c. p. 300. 
 
 f Britan. Eccles. Antiq. a p. 61 ad 64, 272, 273. 
 
 J Ibid. pp. 10, 56, 57, 58, &c. 
 
 § Translated in the Cambrian Biography, voce Padrig. || Page 106. 
 
 ^[ See Hales on the origin and purity of the British churches. Appendix No. 
 iii. Usher's Britan. Eccles. Antiq. c. xvii. According to his own account, 
 Padrig was the son of Calpurnius, a deacon formerly, the son of Potitus, a priest, 
 who was in the village of Ban a van, helouging to Tabernia. In the Silurian
 
 214 
 
 twice ; but as he was only sixteen years of age, and moreover igno- 
 rant of the Gospel, when he was first captured, he could not have 
 superintended this seminary before. He did so probably in the 
 interval between his release and second captivity, or it may be 
 after his second release and before he went as a missionary to 
 Ireland. As we are assured that he visited in the mean time 
 the most distinguished schools of learning on the Continent, 
 that he became acquainted with Garmon, and was with him in 
 Britain ;* it appears as if this stage of his life would with the 
 greatest propriety admit his academical presidency. Nor is it 
 unreasonable to suppose that, at the destruction of his monastery, 
 Padrig should a third time be carried into Ireland, where he 
 determined at once, with the divine assistance, to convert the 
 people who could be guilty of such pagan enormities. He does 
 not, it is true, assert the circumstance in express terms himself, 
 nevertheless we may perhaps trace some foundation for it in his 
 own words ; — "Hiberionem non sjionte pergebam."t 
 
 Probably we ought to read Padrig for Illtyd, in the " Genea- 
 logy of the Saints,"j as the person who was appointed by 
 Garmon to be principal of the Choir of Caerworgan, since Illtyd 
 was yet far too young for the situation, and did not assume the 
 habit of an ecclesiastic for many years afterwards.§ Illtyd 
 restored the monastery under the patronage of Meirchion, a 
 chieftain of Glamorgan, || and, according to Liber Landavensis, 
 
 catalogue of saints, he is styled the son of Mawon, and said to have been born 
 in the country of Gwyr, or Gower, in Glamorganshire. He was also called 
 Padrig Maenwyn. Nennius asserts that before he was made bishop, his name 
 was Maun, and that it was afterwards changed into Padrig. There would 
 appear nothing irreconcilable in these various statements, were we to take into 
 consideration the usual practice amongst the primitive Christians of changing 
 their names on entering into holy orders; and we would feign recognize even in 
 " Banavan Tabernia?," the words, Pen avon Tav, ' the head of the river Tav,' 
 or something similar. 
 
 •* Fiech's Panegyric, apud Hales, Appendix iv. Usher, Index Chronologi- 
 cus. Moore's Hist, of Ireland, vol. i. p. 213. 
 
 f " Confession" apud Hales. 
 
 X See the passage translated in the " Horae Britan. vol. ii. p. 161. 
 
 § Illtyd was a soldier in his younger days. See page 132. 
 
 || Britan. Eccles. Antiquit. p. 252.
 
 215 
 
 was appointed abbot by Dyvrig.* It was thence denominated 
 Cor Illtyd, Bangor Illtyd, and Llan Illtyd Vawr. 
 
 Under its present governor, the seminary flourished exceed- 
 ingly ; for it contained more than two thousand students and 
 holy men, among whom were many sons of kings and nobles."]* 
 These, according to an ancient MS. X had for their habitation 
 seven halls and four hundred houses. The course of instruction 
 adopted by Illtyd, embraced not only such sacred and profane 
 literature, as was requisite for a clerical education, but also in- 
 cluded husbandry, and other useful arts.§ In addition, there 
 was a continual performance of divine service going on, as 
 already described in the Triad. And the Book of Llandaf, more- 
 over states, that " in this monastery, they had, out of reverence, 
 bishops to sit in the chair of St. Peter, when they assembled 
 together. 1- ' || The diocesan bishop had supreme authority over 
 the interior arrangements, if we may judge from the instance 
 of Dyvrig, who " visited the residence of St. Illtyd, in the season 
 of Lent, that he might correct what wanted amendment, and 
 confirm what should be observed.""^ On the other hand, the 
 abbot seems to have much weight out of his own monastery ; 
 for we read, that he attended the synod relative to king Meurig 
 and his uncle Friog ; was one of those who elected Oudoceus 
 to succeed Teilo in his see, and confirmed him in all the pri- 
 vileges of his predecessors, and who signed the gifts which kings 
 and princes bestowed from time to time upon the bishop of 
 Llandaf and his churches.-* 
 
 An old parchment is mentioned by Dr. Nichol,tt in which 
 appear these names of the abbots of Llan Illtyd ; — Iltutus, 
 Piro, Ivanus, Cennit, Samson, Gourthaver, Congers, Elbod, 
 Tomre, Gurhavel, Nudh, Eliver, Segin, Camelauc, Bletri, and 
 many more that cannot be read. It is observable that some of 
 the foregoing were raised to the episcopacy, and were eminent 
 men in their days. 
 
 * Lib. Land. p. 313. f Triad 84. Vita Gildse apud Usher, p. 252. 
 
 \ Horae Britannica?, vol. ii. p. 355. 
 
 § Triad 56. Williams's History of Monmouthshire, Appendix, p. 45-53. 
 || Liber Laudavensis, p. 298. H Ibid. 326. 
 
 ** lb. pp. 396, 372 kc. ft Horas Britannicse, vol. ii. p. 355.
 
 216 
 
 The following persons were sometime inmates of this mon- 
 astic institution ; — Madog Morvryn, who was teacher; Pawl 
 Hen ; Dewi ; Gwenddoleu, Cov, and Nudd, sons of a northern 
 chief; Padarn ; Amwn Ddu, son of Emyr Llydaw, an Armor- 
 ican prince ; Gwyndav Hen, his brother, who was confessor or 
 chaplain ; Alan, another brother ; Lleuddad, Llonio Lawhir, 
 and Llynab, the sons of Alan ; Eigrad, Samson, and Peirio, 
 the sons of Caw ; Selyv, Cyngar, Iestin, and Cado, the sons of 
 Geraint ab Erbin ; Elfin, the son of Gwyddno ; Teon, and his 
 son Tegonwy ; Samson and Tathan, sons of Amwn Ddu ; Ma- 
 glorius, nephew of Amwn and successor of Samson in the see of 
 Dole ; Paulus and Leonorius, the former of whom was appointed 
 bishop of Leon ; Isan ; Meugan, son of Gwyndav Hen ; 
 Cawrdav, son of Caradog Vreichvras ; Usteg, the son of Geraint 
 ab Carannog, who was dean of the college ; and his brother 
 Eldad ; and Eldad the son of Arth.* Some of these are also 
 known to have studied elsewhere ; whence we may infer, that it 
 was not an unusual practice, to migrate from one college to 
 another. 
 
 Bangor Illtyd is supposed to have lasted as a monastery for 
 about six hundred years ; but the school continued for many 
 ages afterwards, still decaying more and more, until it finally lost 
 all its emoluments in the reign of Henry the Eighth.f 
 
 4. Cor Emrys. 
 According to the Bruts, the monastery of Cor Emrys was 
 founded by a person of the name of Ambri, and contained three 
 hundred inmates. Emrys Wledig visited it after his victory 
 over the Saxons, and by the assistance of Merddin erected in 
 its vicinity the stupendous pile of Stonehenge, as already de- 
 scribed in Chap. V.J 
 
 5. Bangor Iscoed.§ 
 It is said that Bangor Iscoed was established as a school of 
 
 * Rees's Essay on the Welsh Saints ; Cambrian Biography. 
 
 f Dr. Nichol apnd Hor. Britan. vol. ii. p. 355. 
 
 X Page 118, Myv. Arch. vol. ii. pp. 275, 276, &c. 
 
 § Called also Bangor in Maclor, and Bangor Duuawd.
 
 217 
 
 learning in Lleirwg's reign,* and at one time it must have stood 
 high in that respect, if it be true that Pelagius was a member.f 
 It was converted into a monastery by Dunawd, in conjunction 
 with his sons Deiniol, Cynwyl, and Gwarthan, under the patron- 
 age of Cyngen ab Cadell, prince of Powys, who moreover en- 
 dowed it with lands. | In this new character it soon attained 
 great celebrity, and according to Bede, and the British Chroni- 
 cle, such was the number of its monks, that when they were 
 distributed into seven classes under their respective governors, 
 none of these classes contained less than three hundred persons, 
 all of whom supported themselves by their own labour. § Bale, 
 and others, apply to this community the title of " Apostolic 
 order i"\\ probably because its regulations were conducted in con- 
 formity with the pattern of the apostles, who "were continually 
 in the temple, praising and blessing God flT and who " contin- 
 ued with one accord, in prayer and supplication with the women, 
 and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren."** The 
 abbot was a married man, and his wife, Dwywe, is ranked with 
 the saints. 
 
 The great majority of those who attended the conference with 
 Augustine, were, or had been, the disciples of Dunawd ;tt which 
 circumstance, in connection with his venerable age and profound 
 learning, induced them naturally to fix upon him as their prin- 
 cipal spokesman on the occasion. 
 
 * Pits, de Brit, script, num. 22 et 56. Cai. de antiquitat. Cantebrig. 1. 1, p. 
 149, Franc. Sweertius, in Academiarum Catalog. Athenis Belgicis prefixo. Bal. 
 Scriptor. Britan. Centur. 1, cap. 53. Bale and Pitsius designate it " Banno- 
 chorense Christianorum philosupliorum Collegium." 
 
 f Pelagius appears to have acquired a complete knowledge of the Latin and 
 Greek languages, and of all the different branches of learning that were in his 
 time deemed most necessary or reputable. The books which he wrote are enu- 
 merated in a note at page 100. \ Rees's Essay, &c. pp. 206, 207. 
 
 § Bed. Hist. Eccles. HI), ii. cap. 2, Myv. Arch. vol. ii. p. 364. 
 
 || Hospinian. Bale, cent. 1, cap. 53, 70, 74. 
 
 H Luke xxiv. 53. ** Acts i. 14. 
 
 ft " Septem Brittonum episcopi, etplures viri doctissimi, maxime de nobilis- 
 simo ecrummonasterio, quod vocatur lingua Anglorum Bancornahurg." Bed. 
 lib. ii. cap. 2.
 
 218 
 
 It has been recorded of the abbot, that before the battle of 
 Bangor commenced, he made an oration to the army, and ordered 
 the soldiers to kiss the ground in commemoration of the com- 
 munion of the body of Christ, and take up water into their 
 hands, out of the river Dee, and drink it in remembrance of his 
 sacred blood which was shed for them.* 
 
 Besides the persons already mentioned, the following are known 
 to have been inmates of the establishment in question : — Car- 
 wyd and Sawyl Benuchel (high-headed), brothers of the abbot; 
 Deiniolen, the son of Deiniol ; and Gwynod, Merin, Senevyr, 
 Tudglyd, Tudno, and Tyneio, sons of Seithenyn, a chieftain 
 whose territory lay on the coast of Cardiganshire .% 
 
 6. Rnos.t 
 Padrig is said to have founded a monastery at this place, which 
 was afterwards called Menevia. It was restored by Dewi, who 
 lived there with his disciples, in the exercise of great austerities. 
 He never partook of animal food, and drank only water ; he 
 also rigidly abstained from every interference in temporal affairs, 
 except when compelled by urgent necessity, for he wished to 
 devote all his time to prayer and spiritual contemplation. In like 
 manner, his disciples spent their lives in reading, praying, attend- 
 ing to the poor, and working with their hands for their common 
 bread, in due obedience to the apostolic precept, — " If any would 
 not work, neither should he eat."§ The monastery seems to have 
 become extinct, or rather to have merged into an episcopal see, 
 after Dewi had accepted the primacy of the Cambrian Church. 
 
 7. Henllan. 
 This college was situated on the banks of the Wye. and was 
 founded by Dyvrig. Among his scholars were Teilo, Samson, 
 Uvelwy, Merchwyn, Elgwored, Gwmyn, Cynwal, Arthvod, Cyn- 
 gar, Arwystyl, Junabui, Cynvran, Gworvan, Aelhaearn, Iddneu, 
 Gwardogwy, Gwernabwy, Ieuan, Aiddan, and Cynvarch. With 
 
 * Langhorni, Chr. Reg. Angl. p. 151. Humfrey Lluyd's Brev. p. 72. 
 f Rees's Essay, &c. Cambrian Biography. % Vallis Rosiua. 
 
 § 2 Thes. iii. 10. Riccinarc. Giral. Jo. Teign. Usher, p. 2-33.
 
 219 
 
 these he is also said to have instructed two thousand clergy, for 
 seven successive years, both in divine and human wisdom.* 
 
 8. Mochros. 
 This was also on the Wye, the birth-place of Dyvrig, whither 
 he removed with his numerous disciples from Henllan.f 
 
 9. Llancarvan t 4 
 The foundation of this college is ascribed to Cystennyn Llydaw, 
 and Meirig ab Tewdrig,§ and its first principal is said to have 
 been Dyvrig.|| He was succeeded by his friend Cattwg Ddoeth,1T 
 the usual tenor of whose teaching may be inferred from the 
 following specimens, which are published in the My vyrian Arch- 
 aiology : — 
 
 " The seven questions which were proposed by Cattwg 
 Ddoeth to seven wise men of his college, at Llanveithin, and 
 their several replies. 
 
 1. — Q. What is the greatest goodness which any man dis- 
 plays ? 
 Justice. Talhaiarn, the hard. 
 What is the supreme wisdom of man I 
 Not to injure another when he has the power. St. 
 
 Teilo. 
 What is the greatest mischievousness in man ? 
 Unchastity. Araion ab Cynvarch. 
 Who is the poorest man \ 
 
 He who will not presume to take of his own pro- 
 perty. Taliesin, the chief of bards. 
 Who is the richest man ? 
 
 He who will not covet another person's property. 
 G'ddas y Coed A ur. 
 
 
 A. 
 
 2.- 
 
 -Q- 
 
 
 A. 
 
 3.- 
 
 -Q. 
 
 
 A. 
 
 4.- 
 
 -Q- 
 
 
 A. 
 
 5.- 
 
 -Q. 
 
 
 A. 
 
 * Lib. Land. Life of St. Dubricius. f Ibid. 
 
 + Tbe particular spot on which this monastery stood was called Llameithin. 
 
 § Cambrian Biography, voce Meirig. 
 
 || Genealogy of the Saints; see Horse Britan. vol. ii. p. 161. 
 
 II It is said that Cattwg used to maintain daily a hundred clergymen, as many 
 paupers, and the same number of widows, besides strangers and guests who 
 frequently resorted to him, at his own expense. — Jo. Tinm. apud Usher.
 
 220 
 
 6. — Q. What is the fairest quality with which a man is 
 endowed ? 
 A. Sincerity. Cynan ah Clydno Eiddin. 
 7. — Q. What is the greatest folly in man ? 
 
 A. To wish evil to another without the power of inflict- 
 ing it. Yistyfan, the bard of Teilo"* 
 
 " Twelve questions put by Cattwg Ddoeth to his disciples. 
 1 . — Q. Who is wise I 
 
 A. He who is not angry when he is disparaged, and is 
 not proud when he is praised. 
 2.—Q. Who is discreet ? 
 
 A. He who will consider well before he divulges his 
 thoughts. 
 S.— Q. Who is strong? 
 
 A. He who can master his passions. 
 4. — Q. Who is powerful 2 
 
 A. He who can conceal his poverty. 
 5.—Q. Who is vile? 
 
 A . He who hides not his own secrets. 
 6. — Q. Who is acceptable with the people \ 
 
 A. He who can depend upon himself. 
 7. — Q. Who is cheerful I 
 
 A. He who feels not his conscience reproving him. 
 8.—Q. Who is free \ 
 
 A . He who has a trade and profession, and can thereby 
 maintain himself wherever he may be. 
 9. — Q. Who possesses good manners ? 
 
 A. He who can bear with a passionate, ill-mannered 
 person, in whose company he may be. 
 10. — Q. Who is good ? 
 
 A. He who will punish himself for the benefit of others. 
 ll.—Q. Who is happy \ 
 
 * Mvv. Arch. vol. iii. p. 38. At p. 39 there is another version, in which the 
 answer to the question, " what is the greatest inischievousness in man ?" is 
 "falsehood," attributed to Taliesin ; whilst Arawn is made to reply to the 
 question, " Who is the poorest man ?"
 
 221 
 
 A . He who will naturally hate what is bad, and naturally 
 
 love what is good. 
 12.— Q. Who is godly? 
 
 A. He who believes in God, and loves him, and finds 
 
 that his will and deed are superior to all things."* 
 
 " The counsels which Cattwg Ddoeth gave to his scholar 
 Taliesin, the chief of bards. 
 
 Consider before thou speakest, 
 
 First, what thou speakest ; 
 
 Secondly, why thou speakest ; 
 
 Thirdly, to whom thou speakest ; 
 
 Fourthly, concerning whom thou speakest ; 
 
 Fifthly, what will come of what thou speakest ; 
 
 Sixthly, what will be the benefit of what thou speakest ; 
 
 Seventhly, who may be listening to what thou speakest. 
 
 Place thy word on the end of thy finger before thou speakest it, 
 
 And turn it these seven ways before thou speakest it, 
 
 And no harm will ever result from what thou speakest. 
 * These were addressed by Cattwg Ddoeth to Taliesin the 
 chief of bards, when he was giving him his blessing."t 
 
 " The counsels given by Cattwg Ddoeth to Arawn the son of 
 Cynvarch, king of the North, on his leaving the monastery. 
 Turn a deaf ear to every bad language ; 
 Turn thy back to every bad deed ; 
 Turn a closed eye to every thing monstrous ; 
 Turn thy sight and heart to every thing beautiful ; 
 Turn thy open hand to every poverty ; 
 Turn thy mind to every generosity ; 
 Turn thy reason to the counsels of the wise ; 
 Turn thy affection to things divine ; 
 Turn thy devotion to every goodness ; 
 Turn thy whole genius with a view to excel ; 
 Turn thy understanding to know thyself ; 
 Turn all thy sciences to accord with nature ; 
 
 * Myv. Arch. vol. iii. p. 55. \ Ibid. p. 49.
 
 222 
 
 Turn all thy faculties upon what is happy ; 
 
 Turn all thy heart and might upon God the Lord. 11 "' 
 
 The abbots of Llancarvan, like those of Bangor Illtyd, exer- 
 cised great influence in the diocese of Llandaf.t 
 
 In addition to the names already mentioned, the following 
 are also found in connection with the establishment under consi- 
 deration : — Edeyrn, son of Gwrtheyrn ; Ceidio, son of Ynyr 
 Gwent ; Cynwyd Oynwydion ; Maelog and Huail, the sons of 
 Caw ; Hywgi, or Bugi, brother of Cattwg, who gave all his lands 
 for the endowment of his college ; Cy vy w, another brother, who 
 held an office in the same ; Cennydd, Dolgan, Nwython and 
 Gwynno, the sons of Gildas ; Gwodloew, grandson of Gwynllyw 
 Vilwr, a teacher ; and Mydan the son of Pasgen, the son of 
 Urien. J 
 
 10. Caerleon. 
 
 This college is supposed to have been founded by Dyvrig, and 
 according to some copies of Geoffrey of Monmouth, it contained 
 two hundred philosophers who studied astronomy, and other 
 sciences. Gwyndav Hen was president of this institution ; and 
 his son Meugan, two of whose poems are inserted in the Myvy- 
 rian Archaiology, studied here for some time after he had left 
 Bangor Illtyd. § 
 
 11. Ty Gwyn ar Dav. 
 
 When Pawl Hen removed from the monastery of Illtyd, he 
 founded a similar institution at Ty Gwyn ar Dav, or Whitland, 
 in Carmarthenshire, of which he was himself the first abbot. 
 He appointed Gredivael, and Flewyn, two of the sons of Ithel 
 Hael, as superintendents or teachers under him. As the abbot 
 had the reputation of being extensively learned in the Holy 
 Scriptures, we find that many distinguished saints, among whom 
 were Dewi, and Teilo, resorted to this monastery to share his 
 instructions.il 
 
 * lb. p. 58. f Liber Landavensis, passim. 
 
 I Rees's Welsb Saints, Cambrian Biography § lb. Myv. vol. i. pp. 159, 160. 
 
 || Rees's Welsh Saints, p. 187. Liber Landavensis, p. 334.
 
 223 
 
 12. Bangor Deilo. 
 
 This college, situate at Llandaf, was opened by Teilo, under 
 the patronage of Dyvrig.* 
 
 13. Llangenys. 
 It is stated in the " Genealogy of the Saints," that a congre- 
 gation was founded at the above place in Glamorgan, by a per- 
 son of the name of Cyngar.t He was also called Docwinus,J 
 and most probably his institution was identical with the one 
 alluded to in Liber Landavensis, the president of which, under 
 the appellation of " Abbot of Docunni," appears as a witness to 
 several grants which were conferred upon the cathedral. § 
 
 14. Enlli. 
 Cadvan, in conjunction with king Einion, founded a monastery 
 in the isle of Enlli, or Bardsey, off the western promontory of 
 Carnarvonshire, and was himself its first abbot. || So celebrated 
 was this place for sanctity, that it was proverbially called " the 
 Rome of Britain."1T The Welsh bards also denominated it the 
 land of Indulgences, Absolution, and Pardon, the Road to Hea- 
 ven, and the Gate of Paradise ;** and the bodies of twenty 
 thousand saints are said to have been buried in its sacred 
 ground : — ft 
 
 " Twenty thousand saints of yore, 
 Came to lie on Bardsey's shore.''JJ 
 
 A contemporary bard§§ gives this interesting account of the 
 
 * Cambrian Biography, sub voc. Teilo. Welsh Saints, p. 243. Horse Bri- 
 tannicae, vol. ii. p. 164. 
 
 f Rees's Welsh Saints p. 183. Cambrian Biography. 
 } Capgrave in Vita S. Cungari. § Lib. Land, passim. 
 
 || Rees's Essay, &c. p. 214. 51 Lib. Land. p. 282. 
 
 ** Cambrian Register. ft Lib. Land. p. 282. 
 
 £ Hywel ap Davydd ap Ievan ap Rhys, 1460 
 
 §§ Cattwg. The poem is said to have been his reply to some persons who 
 asked his advice as to whether they should go to Enlli to avoid the tyranny of 
 the Saxons. Myv. Arch. vol. iii. p. 3. In another place the lines are attributed 
 to Aneurin. Myv. Arch. vol. i, p. 181.
 
 224 
 
 pilgrimage of holy men, who had attended the synod of 
 Brevi : — 
 
 " When the saints of the synod of Brevi, 
 After the excellent sermon of Dewi, 
 Were hastening to the isle of Enlli, 
 By the command of the ancient prophets, 
 That they might avoid every obstruction, 
 And the tedious constraint of molestation. 
 
 Then Cybi inquired, — 
 ' What sort of life shall we pass in the ocean ? 
 What food shall he our sustenance 
 In the midst of the briny waves ?' 
 
 Cattwg told Dewi, 
 As the prophet Eli would have done ; — 
 1 God grant you his counsel, 
 Both upon sea and land. 
 Endure every hardship : 
 Indolence will not avail you. 
 Wisdom is better than vain imagination. 
 It is better to labour than to suffer want. 
 Fasting, faith, and prayer, 
 Will overcome every difficulty. 
 It is a thousand times easier for God to give, 
 Than for man to ask any thing, 
 If the book of Generi be believed, 
 Which assures us, 
 
 That there never was a man yet born, 
 But God supplied him with food. 
 
 If you worship God, he will become better and better to you : 
 But if you respect the Devil, he will use you worse and worse. 
 Fear nothing that shall happen to you, 
 Any more than the blackbird in the bush : 
 She tills not, nor does any till for her, 
 Yet none more merry than she. 
 Let us all pray to the invisible God, 
 The Lord of all lords, 
 
 That he will, for the sake of Jesus and his five wounds, 
 Carry us through all difficulties, 
 And be our support, 
 And then no one need fear.'" 
 
 Cynon, who had accompanied Cadvan from Armorica, was 
 made chancellor of this monastery.— Hywyn, another companion, 
 the son of Gwyndav Hen, was confessor.— Dochdwy was a
 
 225 
 
 bishop, and, upon the death of Cadvan, he was entrusted with 
 the care of the diocese of Llandaf ; whilst Teilo went over to 
 regulate the affairs of Bardsey. The second abbot was Lleuddad 
 ab Alan. His brother Llynab was also a member, as were 
 likewise Trinio, Sulien, and Maelerw, grandsons of Emyr 
 Llydaw; Durdan, a companion of Cadvan; Arwystli Glof, the 
 sonof Seithenyn; Meugan the Bard; Lleuddad, theson of Dingad 
 ab Nudd Hael ; Llewelyn ab Bleiddyd ; and Archbishop Dyvrig.* 
 The remains of the latter lay undisturbed in the island till, a.d. 
 1120, when they were removed by Urban to Llandaf, by the 
 permission of David, bishop of Bangor, and Griffith, prince of 
 North AVales.t 
 
 Cadwallon ab Owain Gwynedd, brother of Madog, who sailed 
 for America, was abbot about a.d. 1169, and some time after- 
 wards Robert ab Meredydd of the same family. The abbot 
 held his lands " in puram et perpetuam eleemosynam."+ 
 
 15. Caerwent. 
 The monastery of Caerwent, in Monmouthshire, was founded 
 by Tathan, son of Amwn Ddu, under the patronage of Ynyr 
 Gwent,§ to whom he became confessor. He was the first pre- 
 sident, and taught the liberal arts and sciences to a great 
 number of scholars, who flocked to him from all parts of the 
 country. || 
 
 16. Llanedeyrn. 
 A place in Glamorganshire, where Edeyrn, son of Gwrtheyrn, 
 established a religious community of three hundred members. 1T 
 
 17. Bangor Deiniol.** 
 This college of " apostolic order^tt was situate on the banks 
 
 * Rees's Welsh Saints ; Cambrian Biography. 
 
 f Life of St. Dubricius in Wharton ; Liber Landavensis, p. 329. 
 
 + Cambrian Register. 
 
 § It appears from the " Life of St. Tatheus," by John of Teignmouth, that 
 he was patronized, not by Ynyr Gwent, but by Caradog, the son of Ynyr. 
 See Usher, p. 49. || Ibid. 
 
 H Rees's Welsh Saints, p. 186. Cambrian Biography. 
 
 ** Called also Bangor Yawr, (the great), and Bangor in Arvon. 
 
 \\ Jo. Bal. cent. 1 cap. 53. Cai. de Antiquit Cantebr. 1. 1, p. 1 19. 
 
 X
 
 226 
 
 of the Menai, in Carnarvonshire, and was founded by Deiniol, the 
 son of Dunawd, who was also its first principal. Maelgwn 
 Gwynedd became his patron, and endowed the institution with 
 lands and privileges.* Deiniolen succeeded to the monastic 
 honours of his father ;t and, towards the end of the eighth 
 century, it is presumed that Elvod superintended the establish- 
 ment, for Nennius is spoken of as his disciple, j The latter is 
 also sometimes styled " Abbas Bancoriensis ;" but, as no name 
 is recorded in subsequent connection with it, the monastery, as 
 a school of learning, probably terminated with him, 
 
 Some of the children of Helig Voel (the bald), a chieftain of 
 a tract of low land on the coast of Carnarvonshire, were inmates 
 of Bangor Deiniol. § 
 
 18. Cor Seiriol. 
 
 A college at Penmon in Anglesey, established by Einion 
 Vrenhin, over which he placed his brother, || Seiriol, as the first 
 principal. It became so celebrated, that " the men of Llychlyn," 
 or the Scandinavian rovers, resorted thither for instruction in 
 the Christian faith. IT 
 
 Nidan, the son of Gwrvyw ab Pasgen ab Urien Rheged, is 
 said to have been an " officiating minister" in this monastery ; 
 and Elaeth Vrenhin,** a northern chief, spent his latter days 
 within its walls. Subordinate to it, was a cell in the island of 
 Grlanach, or Priestholm, off the coast adjacent, of which Seiriol 
 has been considered the patron saint. ft 
 
 19. Llanbadarn Vawr. 
 After he had removed from Bangor Illtyd, Padarn, according 
 to the Welsh accounts, established a similar institution in 
 Ceredigion, consisting of a hundred and twenty members, where 
 
 * Rees's Welsh Saints, p. 259. f Ibid. p. 281. 
 
 X Nennius, prolog, et apolog. 
 
 § Rees's Essay, &c. p. 298. Helig Voel's grandfather was engaged in the 
 battle of Bangor Iscoed. || According to other accounts he was his nephew. 
 
 H Rees's Essay, 8cc. p. 212. Cambrian Biography. 
 
 ** Elaeth was a bard, and a few religious stanzas attributed to him are pre- 
 served in the Myvyrian Archaiology. 
 
 if Rees's Essays, <Scc. pp. 212, 271, 295. Cambrian Biography.
 
 227 
 
 ho had the title of archbishop. John of Tcignmouth, however, 
 says that it contained eight hundred and forty-seven monks, 
 and that it was governed by an ceconomus, a provost, and a 
 dean. Cynudyn ab Bleiddyd ab Meirion is represented to have 
 been a dean of this college.* 
 
 20. Llowes. 
 Maelog or Meilig, the son of Caw, built a monastery at 
 Llowes, in the district of Elvael, Radnorshire, where after 
 having served God incessantly, with hymns and orations, with 
 watchings and fastings, he rested in peace, illustrious for his 
 virtues and miracles. t 
 
 21. Cor Cennydd. 
 
 A monastery in Gower, Glamorganshire, founded by Cennydd 
 the son of Grildas. His brother Madog, and Tudwg, the son 
 of Tyvodwg, one of the associates of Cadvan, were members of 
 it,} 
 
 22. Trallwng. 
 
 Otherwise Welshpool, Montgomeryshire ; where a religious 
 house was founded by Llewelyn§ ab Bleiddyd ab Meirion ab 
 Tibion. A dialogue in verse between him and his son Gwrnerth, 
 is inserted in the Myvyrian Archaiology, the composition of 
 which is attributed to Tyssilio. From this poem, we gather 
 that a looking for judgment, prayer, watching, almsgiving, 
 chanting the hours, confession, penance, and the administration 
 of the Holy Communion, entered into the habits and regulations 
 of the society. || 
 
 * Rees's Essay, pp. 21(5, 2(51. Usher's Britan. Eccles. Antiq. p. 275. 
 
 | Life of Gildas, in the library of Fleury, Usher's Priinordia, p. 676. In the 
 same work, it is stated that Eigrad, Gallgo, and Peithien, other children of Caw, 
 renounced all worldly pomp, and withdrew to the furthest part of the country, 
 {i.e. the isle of Anglesey), where, not far from each other, they built their seve- 
 ral monasteries, placing their sister Piethien in the midst. — Rees's Essay, Spc. 
 p. 230. % Ibid. p. 257. 
 
 § Cynvelyn, a brother of Llywelyn, founded a church at the same place, 
 which was probably connected with the monastery. 
 
 || Myv. Arch. vol. i. p. 162. In the beading oi' the poem it is premised that 
 Llywelyn and Gwrnerth were wont to meet together the last three hours of the 
 night, and the first three hours of the day, when they celebrated their matins, 
 and the other hours.
 
 228 
 
 23. Llanelwy. 
 This college was established by Cyndeyrn, and consisted of 
 nine hundred and sixty-five brethren, who were engaged as 
 follows: — three hundred, that were illiterate, tilled the ground, 
 and looked after the cattle ; three hundred more prepared diet 
 and other necessaries ; and the remaining three hundred and 
 sixty-five, who were learned, performed divine service. These 
 latter were disposed in such a manner, as, when one portion of 
 them had done, another immediately began, so that the service 
 of the church was carried on, day and night, without intermis- 
 sion. Cyndeyrn, on his being recalled to his northern see, left 
 this institution in the care of his disciple Asaf.* 
 
 24. Caergybi. 
 Cybi founded a monastery at Holyhead, in Anglesey, of which 
 he also became president. Mygnach the son of Mydno of Caer 
 Seont, or Carnarvon, was for some time registrar in it, and after- 
 wards succeeded to the abbacy. A dialogue in verse, between 
 him and Talicsin, is inserted in the Myvyrian Archaiology. 
 Padrig, the son of Alvryd, was a member of this establishment.t 
 
 25. Clynnog, 
 Founded by Beuno,! upon a plot of ground granted him by 
 Cadvan, for which he gave a golden sceptre, as an acknow- 
 ledgement^ 
 
 Such were some of the primitive monasteries of Cymru, which 
 the Church made use of to advance her interest in the land. 
 That there were many more, of which all records have perished, 
 seems indubitable. It is the testimony of Giraldus, in reference 
 to the time of Dewi, that " monasteries were built everywhere ; 
 and many congregations of the faithful, of various orders, were 
 collected, to celebrate with fervent devotion the sacrifice of 
 Christ.' 1 || John of Teignmouth says of Padarn, that he "built 
 
 * Willis's Survey of St. Asaph, by E. Edwards, A.M. vol. i. p. 38. 
 
 f Rees's Welsh Saints ; Myv. Areh. vol i. p. 46. 
 
 I Beuuo in his old age was one of the instructors of Gwenvrcwi. 
 
 § Rees's Welsh Saints, p. 2t>8. 
 
 || Girald. apud Usher, p. 253.
 
 229 
 
 monasteries and churches throughout the whole region of 
 Ceretica, 11 * one only of which we have been able to specify in 
 the foregoing account. 
 
 To insinuate that these institutions were not of native growth, 
 but were imported from abroad, would be wholly unnecessary ; 
 for Cor Eurgain, at least, was as old as the British Church itself, 
 and its general plan, no doubt, derived immediately from the 
 Apostles. Indeed the incessant performance of Divine Service 
 seems to have been copied from the employment of heaven ; — 
 " They rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord 
 God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come. 51 t It was 
 not without great propriety, therefore, that the title of " Apos- 
 tolic order" was given to some of these societies. 
 
 Though a few originated in the infancy of the Church, yet it 
 is observable that the great majority followed the relaxation of 
 the Bardic system, and assumed a character suitable to the spi- 
 ritual exigences of the times. There is also reason to suppose 
 that they were frequently erected on spots which Druidism had 
 invested with popular veneration, as was the case with Cor 
 Emrys on the plains of Caradavvg.J It would appear that the 
 ancient circles communicated to them their names, " Cor, 11 and 
 " Bangor, 11 which may imply, too, that the divine service which 
 the monks performed was choral. This, indeed, is positively 
 asserted of some, as Glastonbury, Cor Emrys, and Bangor 111— 
 tyd, where, according to the Triad, there were " continual cho- 
 ral songs. '"^ Sometimes, as at Caerworgan, mere secular schools 
 were converted into monasteries ; and yet in these new establish- 
 ments knowledge, both secular and religious, was imparted, 
 though in subservience to the adoration of God, which was the 
 most prominent feature in their character. 
 
 Certain abbots, as Pawl Hen, Lleuddad, and Cybi, are styled 
 bishops ; from which it is inferred that they exercised chorepis- 
 copal authority in their respective societies, though it is agreed 
 that all of them were ultimately subject to their diocesans. It 
 
 * Jo. Tinra. apud Usher, p. 275. f Rev. iv. 8. 
 
 X Of this description were must probably Bangor Dunawd, Bangor Wydrin, 
 and Enlli, which is said to have been called Bardscy, (i.e. Bard's isle), on ac- 
 count of its being a favorite resort for bards. § Triad 80, first series.
 
 230 
 
 happened occasionally that independent dioceses were allotted 
 to them, as at Llanbadarn, Banger, and Llanelwy, in which 
 cases their monasteries gradually subsided into Cathedral chap- 
 ters. 
 
 Though these primitive institutions followed no uniform rule, 
 yet all were equally averse to the enforcement of celibacy. Many 
 of the monks were married men, and it is remarkable that the 
 only notices we have of several of them have been transmitted 
 under the title of the " Genealogy of the Saints." Yet some 
 abstained from marriage on principle, and Cattwg and Illtyd, 
 are commendably mentioned as having " led a life of celibacy, 
 and devoted themselves to the law of God and the faith in 
 Christ."* It would appear moreover from the legends that some 
 of the female " saints" made a vow of virginity, and probably 
 they were solemnly consecrated to the service of God by bishops, 
 as was the custom in Gaul.f As there were no nunneries at this 
 period in Wales, it is presumed that these continued to live in 
 the society of their kindred at home, or else retired into a mon- 
 astery, where, with the matrons, they ministered, apart from their 
 devotional studies, in those domestic duties which are the pecu- 
 liar province of a woman. 
 
 Some of these institutions appear to have declined, or perished 
 upon the death of their first abbot, some merged into chapters, 
 and others gradually approximated in their general character to 
 the monasteries of the regular orders which were established in 
 England. The following particulars from the laws of Hywel 
 Dda will throw some light on the legal or civil aspect which they 
 wore in the tenth century. 
 
 To protect the privileges of monasteries was one of the four 
 absolute rights of the king.;!: 
 
 The abbot had an independent court, with power to take 
 cognizance of offences, and to punish them.§ 
 
 * Triad 122. 
 
 •|- Gannon was a party to a consecration of this nature, while proceeding on 
 his mission to Britain. — Sec Europe in the Middle Ages, vol. ii. chap. ii. 
 
 I The others were, the protection of public roads, the right of creating laws, 
 and of coining- money within his dominions, and of presiding in the principal 
 causes that related to himself, his crown, and its appendages. WottovCs Leges 
 Wallica, lib. i. cap. 47. § Ibid. lib. iv. 141,
 
 231 
 
 All disputes between monks were to be settled by the judges 
 of the monastery.* 
 
 If any arose between the dependants of the king, and the 
 dependants of the abbot, they were to be decided by the judges 
 of both tribunals conjointly. t 
 
 When the ordinary judges of the land differed in points of 
 law, the regular and secular canons were appointed extraordi- 
 nary judges.:}: 
 
 Hermits, and persons in holy orders, were incompetent to 
 give bail ; as were likewise monks, without the consent of their 
 abbots ; and scholars, without the consent of their preceptors. § 
 
 The solitary evidence of an abbot in a case between two of his 
 monks was admissible. || 
 
 A monk, if related to a murderer or to the murdered person, 
 was neither to pay nor to receive any part of the compensation. If 
 
 A tonsured scholar, convicted of theft, was for the first offence 
 to be merely degraded, and reduced to the rank of a layman.** 
 
 If a scholar had a son born in wedlock before ordination, that 
 son was not obliged to divide his patrimony amongst his bro- 
 thers who may have been born subsequently, and who, on that 
 account, were deemed illegitimate.ff 
 
 The abbot had a part of the wreck cast upon his land4+ 
 
 A portion of the fine exacted from any individual for the desecra- 
 tion of a churchyard or a sanctuary by fighting, accrued to the 
 abbot, where he was a man of a literary degree, and skilled in 
 ecclesiastical usages. §§ 
 
 The goods of the abbot went, upon his decease, to the cloister 
 and canons, except his heriot of twelve pounds, which the lord 
 of the territory claimed. |||| 
 
 A person on wearing the tonsure became necessarily free, and 
 therefore it was not lawful to teach the liberal arts to a vassal 
 without the consent of his lord. HIT 
 
 * Wotton's Leges, lib. iv. 141. f Ibid. 
 
 % Ibid. 140. § Ibid. lib. ii. cap. 4. 
 || The evidence was to be given at the door, or entrance, of the choir. Ibid. 
 
 lib. ii. cap. 2. H Ibid, lib.iii. cap. 1. 
 
 ** Ibid. lib. iv. 74. ft Ibid. 188. 
 
 ++ Ibid. lib. ii. cap. 17. §§ Ibid. lib. iv. 208. 
 
 HI Ibid. lib. iv. 141. Iff Ibid. 31.
 
 232 
 
 Besides monks or friars, there were also hermits, who dwelt 
 in solitary cells, and deserts, and practised the greatest austeri- 
 ties of religion. Such were Cein Wyryv, or Virgin, the daugh- 
 ter of Brychan Brycheiniog, in a certain wood beyond the 
 Severn ;* Talhaiarn, the bard, who resided at a place in Den- 
 bighshire, since called Llanvair Talhaiarn ;t Elgar, in the isle 
 of Bardsey, "who had nothing for his maintenance except the 
 support which he received through the providence of God, from 
 the fish of the sea, and what the eagles, or as we may say, angels, 
 brought to him.";}; Tewdrig, in the solitude of Tinteyrn, Mon- 
 mouthshire ;|| Baruck, who "entered into a solitary, strict, 
 course of life," and lies buried in the isle of Barry, Glamorgan- 
 shire ;§ Degeman, who " passed the river Severn upon a hurdle 
 of rods, and retired himself into a mountainous vast solitude, 
 covered with shrubs and briars, where he spent his life in the 
 repose of contemplation ^'IT and the anchorite whom the Britons 
 consulted on their way to the Augustinian synod.** 
 
 * Cressy, apud Rees's Welsh Saints, p. 153. 
 f Rees's Welsh Saints, p. lt>8. 
 J Liher Landavensis, life of St. Elgar. 
 || Rees's Welsh Saints, p. 184. 
 § Cressy, Welsh Saints, p. 304. 
 m Ibid. p. 305. 
 ** Bede, Hist. Eccles. lib. ii. cap. ii.
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 COUNCILS. 
 
 " And the apostles and elders came together for to consider of this matter."— 
 Acts xv. 6. 
 
 1. Arles, A.D. 314.* 
 
 The first council at which we know British bishops to have been 
 present, was that of Aries; and as there is little doubt that 
 Adelfius represented the Church of Cymru, it may be fit and 
 interesting to exhibit an abstract of the canons which were then 
 passed. They may be reduced into three heads : on the keep- 
 ing of Easter; on the discipline of the clergy; and on lay com- 
 munion. 
 
 I. In reference to Easter. It was decreed, 
 
 ^ That it should be everywhere observed on the same day and 
 time ; and that the bishop of Rome should give notice of it ac- 
 cording to custom.t Can. 1. 
 
 II. In reference to the clergy. 
 
 1. That no bishop should trample upon another.;*: Can. 17. 
 
 2. That travelling bishops should be allowed to perform divine 
 offices in the city they came unto. Can. 19. 
 
 3. That no bishop should consecrate another without the 
 assistance of seven, or at least three, bishops besides. Can. 20. 
 
 * This is often called " a plenary and universal council, not from the number 
 of bishops present, but from the provinces out of which they came; and so it 
 was the first general council of the Western Church."— Stillingfleet, p. 87. 
 
 f This latter part was repealed, as Binius confesses, by the council of Nice 
 which referred the matter to the bishop of Alexandria.— See Stillingfleet and 
 Collier. 
 
 \ Albaspinseus interprets this of encroaching upon another's diocese. 
 
 Y
 
 234 
 
 4. That if any were proved to have been Traditores, that is, 
 to have given up the sacred books or vessels in the time of 
 persecution, or to have betrayed their brethren, they were to be 
 deposed. However, their ordinations are declared to be valid. 
 
 Can. 13. 
 
 5. That clergymen, who put out money to usury, should be 
 
 excommunicated. Can. 12. 
 
 6. That they should not forsake the churches, where they 
 were ordained, on pain of deprivation. Can. 2 and 21. 
 
 7. That deacons be forbidden to celebrate the Lord's Supper. 
 
 Can. 15. 
 
 in. In reference to lay communion. 
 
 1. That those who renounce their military profession, now 
 the persecution was over, should be excommunicated.* Can. 3. 
 
 2. That those who drove chariots in the circus, and acted in 
 theatres, should be excommunicated as long as they continued 
 to do so. Can. 4, 5. 
 
 3. That those who were Christians, and made governors ot 
 remote places, should carry the communicatory letters of their 
 own bishop along with them, and not be barred communion, 
 unless they acted against the discipline of the Church. Can. 7. 
 
 4. That those who were received into the Church in their 
 sickness, should have imposition of hands afterwards. Can. 6. 
 
 5. That those who brought testimonials from confessors 
 should be obliged to take communicatory letters from their 
 
 bishop. Can. 9. 
 
 6 That any person who had proof of his wife s adultery 
 should be advised not to marry again whilst that wife lived. 
 
 Can. 10. . - . , „ 
 
 7. That those young women who married infidels should tor 
 
 a time be suspended communion. Can. 11. ^^^^^ 
 
 * The Latin rims thus : " Qui in pace arma projiciunt, excoimnunicentur " 
 Binius will have the reading to be "in belle" Albaspinams says that the 
 canon is directed against those " who refuse to be soldiers in time of peace; 
 whilst Baronius maintains that it is against them "that apostatize in time of 
 peace » More probably, however, it was enacted with a view to prevent the in- 
 convenience of an infidel army, which might result from the permission given 
 by Constantine to the soldiers to forsake their employment if they wished.
 
 235 
 
 8. That those who falsely accused their brethren should not 
 be admitted to communion until the point of death. Can. 14. 
 
 9. That none who were excommunicated in one place should 
 be absolved in another. Can. 16. 
 
 10. That no apostates should be admitted to communion in 
 sickness ; but they ought to wait until they recovered and 
 shewed amendment. Can. 22. 
 
 11. That those who were baptized in the faith of the Holy 
 Trinity should not be re-baptized.* Can. 8. 
 
 2. Sardica, a.d. 347. 3. Ariminum, a.d. 359. 
 
 Though British prelates attended both these councils, as is 
 evident from the testimonies of Athanasius and Sulpitius 
 Severus, yet the reasons assigned in chapter III, would appear 
 decisive that none of them came from the particular province 
 of Cymru. It may be added, in further corroboration of this 
 hypothesis, that the conduct and sentiments of the Cambrian 
 clergy were, for centuries afterwards, most unequivocally 
 opposed to that canon of Sardica, which appears to establish 
 appeals to the see of Rome.t 
 
 4. Troyes, a.d. 4294 
 
 At this council, which was numerously attended by the clergy 
 of Gaul, the application of the Britons in reference to Pelagian- 
 ism was considered ; when it was unanimously decreed that 
 Garmon and Bleiddian should immediately proceed to the assist- 
 ance of their brethren against that subtle and extensive heresy. 
 
 5. Verulam, a.d. 429.§ 
 
 The Cymry must have felt an interest in the result of this 
 
 * Sirmondus and Launoy think that this was the canon which St. Augustine 
 on all occasions pressed upon the Donatists. Origines Britannicie, cap. ii. 
 
 f Origines Britannicae, cap. iii. 
 
 J That this council was held at the place and time here mentioned, is not 
 certain, hut only probable. See note in Labbe's Cone. iii. 1508. 
 
 § Flor. Hist, ad annum 446. The date of this meeting depends, of course, 
 upon that of the Gallican synod.
 
 236 
 
 conference, though it is not probable that any of them were 
 present. We will therefore, in addition to our former account, 
 briefly observe, that a vast multitude of people, with their wives 
 and children, attended, and were judges of the controversy ; — 
 that the Pelagian leaders were surrounded by a host of ad- 
 mirers, and were conspicuous for the gorgeousness of their 
 dress ; — and that the Gallic prelates gave them the opportunity 
 of first addressing the meeting.* 
 
 6. a.d. 447. 
 
 It would appear that a council was held somewhere in Britain 
 on the second arrival of Garmon, when sentence of banishment 
 was unanimously passed upon the chief promoters of the Pela- 
 gian heresy, t 
 
 7. GWRTHEYRNION, A.D. 447- 
 
 A largo body of clergy and laity met at Gwrtheyrnion, in the 
 county of Radnor, to take cognizance of the conduct of Gwrth- 
 eyrn, who was charged with the crime of incest. Gwrtheyrn 
 was present, as well as the unfortunate partner of his guilt, who 
 endeavoured to exculpate him at the expense of Gannon's repu- 
 tation. The conspiracy however was speedily detected, and the 
 prince was cursed and condemned by the saint and the whole 
 synod. X 
 
 8. Caerevrawc, a.d. 466. 
 
 Emrys Wledig summoned a council of " the princes, earls, 
 barons, knights, bishops, abbots, and scholars" of the realm, 
 where it was agreed that all the churches destroyed in the late 
 wars should be restored. § 
 
 9. Brevi, a.d. 519. 
 
 In consequence of the revival of Pelagian ism, a general synod 
 of the bishops, abbots, and religious persons of different orders, 
 
 * Constant, lib. i. cap. 23. f lb. lib. ii. cap. 3 and 4. 
 
 X Neunius, sect. 39. § Myv. Arch. vol. ii. pp. 274, 275.
 
 237 
 
 together with the princes and other laymen of Oymru, was held 
 at Brevi, in the county of Cardigan.* Many speeches were 
 publicly delivered, but all proved ineffectual to reclaim the here- 
 tics from their false notions. Upon which Pawl Hen earnestly 
 entreated that the holy, discreet, and eloquent Dewi, who had 
 formerly studied with him, might be summoned from his mon- 
 astic seclusion. Messengers were accordingly despatched to 
 desire his attendance ; but their solicitations were unavailing, 
 until at length the aged primate himself, accompanied by the 
 abbot of Bangor Vawr, went, by whom he was persuaded to 
 sacrifice his private duties at the shrine of the public weal. On 
 his arrival, he expounded the Law and the Gospel, or delivered 
 what one of his contemporaries designates a " worthy sermon," 
 with such grace and power, that he completely silenced his ad- 
 versaries. Dyvrig now resigned the archbishopric, and Dewi 
 was unanimously elected in his stead. f 
 
 10. Caerleon, a,d. 529. 
 
 It would appear from the Annalcs Menevenses that " the 
 s ynod of Victory" was held at Caerleon. It consisted of all the 
 clergy of Wales, who there confirmed the decrees of Brevi 
 against the Pelagians, and added others for the advantageous 
 government of the Church. Dewi committed them all to writing 
 with his own hand, and sent copies to most of the churches in 
 his jurisdiction ; and these two councils are said to have fur- 
 nished, in future, the rule and standard of the whole province of 
 Cymru«i 
 
 11. YSTRADYW, A.D. 5 — .§ 
 
 At this synod bishop Gwrwan excommunicated Tewdwr, son 
 
 * According to the Utrecht MS. there were present 118 hishops, besides 
 abbots and others. We possess, however, the names of none except Dyvrig, 
 Pawl Hen, Deiniol, Dewi, Cattwg, and Cybi. 
 
 f Giraldus Cambrensis. 
 
 \ Ibid. Rees's Welsh Saints, p. 196. Giraldus says that these canons were 
 lost by means of the frequent incursions of pirates on the coasts of Wales. 
 
 § The place of this synod is conjectured to be Ystrad Yw, from its being the 
 supposed station of Gwrwan, who was a chorepiscopus in the time of Tcilo. 
 See p. 208.
 
 238 
 
 of Rhun, king of Dyved, who had treacherously killed Elgystyl, 
 son of Awst, king of Brecknock. 
 
 12. Llandaf, a.d. 5 — .+ 
 
 Meurig, king of Glamorgan, treacherously slew Cynveddw, 
 after they had both sworn, in the presence of Oudoceus at Llan- 
 daf, that there should be firm peace kept between them. The 
 bishop therefore convoked all his clergy from the mouth of Tar- 
 atyr in Wye to the Towy, together with Cyngen, abbot of 
 Llancarvan, Cadgen, abbot of Bangor Illtyd, and Sulien, abbot 
 of Docunni ; and in full synod excommunicated the king, with 
 his progeny, saying, " May his days be few, may his children be 
 orphans, and his wife a widow. 11 :}: 
 
 VS. Llancarvan, a.d. 5 — . 
 
 King Morgan, grandson of Meurig, in like manner deceitfully 
 killed his uncle Frioc, whereby, according to the articles of 
 agreement which had been previously drawn up between them, 
 he forfeited his dominions, and became liable to perpetual pil- 
 grimage. Having gone to Oudoceus to seek pardon for his 
 crime, the bishop convened a synod at the monastery of Llan- 
 carvan, similar in all respects to the preceding one, at which 
 it was unanimously adjudged, that on account of the destitute 
 state of the kingdom, Morgan should, by means of fasting, 
 prayer, and almsgiving, redeem his pilgrimage, together with his 
 perjury and murder. § 
 
 14. Llandaf, a.d. 5 — . 
 
 Here Oudoceus, in a synod of all the clergy of his diocese, 
 excommunicated Grwaednerth, for the murder of his brother 
 Meirchion, who had disputed the crown with him. || 
 
 * Liber Landavei;sis, p. 413. 
 
 f Sir Harris Nicolas dates this synod, and the two following-, a.d. 5(30. 
 
 % Liber Landavensis, p. 390. 
 
 § Lib. Land. p. 395. || lb. p. 430.
 
 239 
 
 15. Augustinaes Ac,* A.D. 603. 16. A.D. 603. 
 
 Augustine, at his first meeting with the British bishops, 
 seems to have requested not only their aid in the conversion of 
 the Saxons, hut also a complete uniformity with Rome, under 
 pretence of " catholic peace" and " ecclesiastical unity." But 
 after a long dispute on the subject, " they were not willing to 
 give assent to the entreaties, the exhortations, and the rebukes 
 of Augustine and his friends, but preferred their own traditions, 
 rather than those of all the Churches which throughout the 
 world agree in Christ." And even when at length they were 
 persuaded that he had truth on his side, " they could not re- 
 nounce their ancient customs without the consent and permis- 
 sion of their countrymen."t This was the occasion of the 
 second synod, where the indignation of the Britons at the 
 haughty demeanour of Augustine, shewed to him at once the 
 expediency of reducing his proposals, which he accordingly did, 
 to the five following : —That they should celebrate Easter at the 
 same time with the Church of Rome ;— administer Baptism after 
 the Roman fashion ; — join him in preaching to the Saxons ; — 
 receive him as their primate ; — and acknowledge the supremacy 
 of the pope. The three former he insisted upon in plain terms, 
 but they were as positively rejected by the other party, who re- 
 plied, — " We will perform none of these." 
 
 Gregory had designed that the jurisdiction of Augustine 
 should extend over the bishops of Wales, for in answer to his 
 question on the subject, he says : — " We commit to thee, our 
 brother, all the bishops of the provinces of Britain, that the un- 
 learned be instructed, the weak be strengthened by persuasion, 
 the perverse be corrected by authority." And in another 
 
 * According to Bede, this was on the confines of the Huiccii and West 
 Saxons. " Probably near Aust, or Aust-clive (Camd. Brit. Col. 237), the usual 
 passage for ferrying over the Severn into Wales, and where Edward the Elder 
 had afterwards an interview with Leoline, prince of that country ; it lying on 
 the extremity of Gloucestershire, inhabited by the Huiccii, and on the borders 
 of what was in Bede's time the kingdom of the West Saxons." — Cartes Hist. 
 Engl. i. 224. 
 
 f We recognize here a principle of the ancient laws of Wales. See p. 69, 
 in ilc.
 
 240 
 
 letter : — " Thou, our brother, shalt have in subjection, not only 
 those bishops whom thou shalt ordain, nor those only who shall 
 have been ordained by the archbishop of York, but also all the 
 clergy of Britain, by the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ." 
 Though this jurisdiction was not claimed by Augustine in direct 
 terms at the conference, yet it was clearly implied in the ex- 
 pression, — " Si in tribus his mihi obtemperare vultis ;" and that 
 the natives understood him in that sense is likewise clear, for 
 they return answer, that " they would not have him for an arch- 
 bishop." Since he acted as the pope's legate, compliance with 
 his demands would of course have been an acknowledgment of 
 the papal supremacy, as was a rejection of them a denial of that 
 doctrine. Such is the view which is presented by the venerable 
 Bede on the subject.* 
 
 In the Welsh accounts there is no allusion to the paschal and 
 baptismal questions, whilst the demand for the cooperation of 
 the Cymry in evangelizing the Saxons is prominent. And the 
 reason assigned for their refusal) was, that the Saxons were 
 their enemies, and that Gregory should have exhorted them to 
 make a restitution of the lands, which they had unjustly 
 usurped, as the first step in their preparation for the Christian 
 state. With respect to his archiepiscopal claims, they main- 
 tained, on Scriptural grounds, that they ought not to " submit 
 to him, since they had an archbishop of their own ; — that they 
 ought not to render obedience to any one in the island, except 
 the archbishop of Caerleon, inasmuch as he was chief and pri- 
 mate in the isle of Britain." And the supremacy of the pope 
 they unequivocally denied, when they declared that they were 
 " under the government of the bishop of Caerleon-upon-Usk, 
 who was to oversee, under God, over them, to cause them to 
 keep the way spiritual ."t Thus not one point was conceded on 
 the part of the Cymry to the Romish legate at either of these 
 synods. 
 
 17. Llandaf, a.d. 6 — . 
 Clydri and Idwallon were kings in Ergyng, and they mutually 
 
 * Hist. Eccles. lib. ii. cap. 2. Lib. i. cap. 27 and 29. 
 
 f Myv. Arch. vol. ii. pp. 364, 365. Spelm. Concil. Brit. p. 108.
 
 241 
 
 swore, in the presenco of Berthgwyn, bishop of Llandaf, that 
 they would preserve firm peace towards each other. After a 
 time, however, the former acted treacherously, and killed the 
 latter ; wherefore the bishop assembled all his clergy, and in full 
 synod excommunicated Clydri, " with all his progeny, and also 
 his kingdom, by making bare the altars of God, placing the 
 crosses on the ground, and dismissing the country without 
 baptism and communion."* 
 
 18. Llandaf, a.d. 6 — . 
 
 This was a full synod of the clergy of the diocese, at which 
 Berthgwyn, the bishop, excommunicated Gwrgan, who had lived 
 incestuously with his step-mother. t 
 
 19. Llandaf, a.d. 8 — . 
 
 Bishop Cerenhir assembled a complete synod of his clergy, at 
 which he excommunicated Hywel, king of Glewyssig, for having 
 treacherously murdered Gwallwn, the son of Ceidrich.J 
 
 20. Llandaf, a.d. 8 — . 
 
 Hi, son of Oynvlws, and Camawg solemnly swore, in the mon- 
 astery of Llandaf, and in the presence of Cerenhir and his 
 clergy, that their ancient enmity was forgotten. Nevertheless, 
 after a time, Hi deceitfully slew Camawg; wherefore the bishop 
 assembled all his clergy, and by their advice in council, " took 
 away all communion and participation of Christians from the 
 aforesaid murderer and perjured person, Ili. ,1 § 
 
 21. Llandaf, a.d. 8 — . 
 
 This synod consisted of the clergy and learned men between 
 Towy and Wye, and was convened in order to adjudicate be- 
 tween Brochwael, son of Meurig, and bishop Cyveiliawg, in a 
 dispute which they had respecting a certain church and its ter- 
 ritory. The decision was in favour of the bishop, and Broch- 
 
 * Liber Landaveusis, p. 425. f Ibid. p. 439. 
 
 + Ibid. p. 467. § Ibid. p. 469.
 
 242 
 
 wael was made to say, " I sacrifice to God, and do by oath con- 
 firm this church, with all its land and liberty, to God, and to 
 St. Dyvrig, St. Teilo, and St. Oudoceus, and to all bishops of 
 Llandaf for ever, without any payment to any mortal man, 
 besides the pastors of Llandaf, and with all commonage in field 
 and in woods, in water and in pastures. 1 '* 
 
 22. Llandaf, a.d. 8 — . 
 
 The family of Brochwael having inflicted some injury upon 
 that of Cyveiliawg, the bishop summoned together all his clergy, 
 " even to the inferior degrees," and would have excommunicated 
 Brochwael and all who were guilty of the outrage. Brochwael, 
 however, sought pardon and indulgence, which were ultimately 
 granted him, on his giving to God, and the bishops of Llandaf 
 for ever, " the village of Trevperen, with six modii of land, and 
 with all its liberty, and all commonage in field and in woods, in 
 water and in pastures."t 
 
 23. Llandaf, a.d. 928. 
 
 Tewdwr, son of Elised, king of Brecknock, ill-treated Libiau, 
 bishop of Llandaf, whereupon the latter assembled all the clergy 
 of his diocese, and in full synod caused the king to be anathe- 
 matized.:}: 
 
 24. Llanoudocui, a.d. 9 — . 
 
 This synod of " the clergy of the ecclesiastical order of all the 
 diocese" of Llandaf, was convened by bishop Gulfrid, on account 
 of Llywarch, son of Cadwgan, who had committed plunder in 
 the territory and refuge of Dyvrig, Teilo, and Oudoceus. Llyw- 
 arch attended, acknowledged his crime, and sought pardon with 
 bended knees and an effusion of tears. Upon which "the 
 bishop, having entered into counsel with the synod, and some 
 principal persons of the diocese of the laical order and catholic 
 
 * Libei Lamlaveiibis, p. 491. t Ibid. p. 493. 
 
 £ Ibid. p. 499.
 
 243 
 
 faith, forgave him, on his restoring to him and his men all the 
 things that he had plundered ; and remission was given, and 
 penance enjoined proportionate to his crime."* 
 
 2.5. Ty Gwyn ar Dav, a.d. 942. 
 
 This convention was held under Hywel Dda, for the purpose 
 of revising the legal code of Wales. According to " Brut y 
 Tywysogion," the king summoned to it " all the heads of tribes 
 of the country, with their family representatives, and all the wise 
 and learned men of the laity, and the clergy." In a MS. of the 
 twelfth century, belonging to the Welsh school in London, they 
 are said to have been six out of each commot, of whom four 
 were lay, and two scholastic or clerical. Whilst another MS., 
 of the Sebright collection, written about A.D. 1400, makes the 
 number to be " six of the wisest men out of every commot in 
 Cymru who were lay, and one hundred and forty men who bore 
 the crozier, namely, archbishops, bishops, abbots, and priors." 
 The presence of the clergy was considered necessary as a check 
 upon the laity, lest the latter should enact anything at variance 
 with the canon law, or the Holy Scriptures. f 
 
 26. Mainoun, a.d. 943. 
 Padarn, bishop of Llandaf, assembled the clergy of his whole 
 diocese, on account of the sacrilegious violence of king Nowi, 
 who had murdered Arcoed in the mansion of Dyvrig, Teilo, and 
 Oudoceus, at Trelech. Upon which the king with tears sought 
 pardon of the bishop and the whole synod in the church of 
 Mainoun, which was granted him on his doing suitable penance, 
 and giving the village of Guidcon in alms to God and the bishops 
 of Llandaf for ever 4 
 
 27. Gwent, a.d. 955. 
 
 A certain deacon, named Hi, having been killed by six men 
 of the family of Nowi, before the altar in the church of St. Jar- 
 
 * Liber Landavensis, p. 480. 
 
 t Myv. Arch. vol. ii. p. 484, &c. Vol. iii. pp. 3(50, 361. 
 
 % Lib. Land. p. 474.
 
 244 
 
 men and St. Febric, Padarn sent orders to all the monasteries 
 within his jurisdiction, that the priests, deacons, and clergy of 
 all degrees should assemble in synod. They accordingly met, 
 together with Nowi and his friends, in the city of Gwent, and by 
 the advice of all the doctors of both parties, the murderers were 
 delivered into the hands of the bishop, and were taken to the 
 monastery of St. Teilo, where they passed six months in iron 
 fetters. Moreover, it was agreed that each of them should give 
 to the church he had denied, his land and all his substance, and 
 also the price of his life, which was seven pounds of silver.* 
 
 Other synods are recorded in Liber Landavensis as having 
 been held prior to the final subjugation of the Welsh Church ; 
 but as they were all confined to the diocese of Llandaf, which 
 had already submitted to Canterbury, we do not think it neces- 
 sary to mention them here. 
 
 The prominence which the synods of Llandaf occupy in the 
 latter part of this chapter is remarkable, and may be chiefly 
 owing to the fulness and accuracy of its register, as compared 
 with the scanty annals of the remaining sees. 
 
 * Liber Landavensis, p. 477.
 
 245 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 HERESIES. 
 
 " There must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may 
 he made manifest among you." — 1 Corinthians xi. 19. 
 
 1. Basilidianism. 
 
 According to Irenteus, the doctrines of Basilides* prevailed in 
 Gaul immediately after the Apostolic age. It is supposed that 
 they were also introduced into Britain, but the hypothesis rests 
 solely on the recent discovery of an alleged talisman near the 
 Roman station of Segontium.f This was a very attenuated 
 plate of gold, measuring about four inches by one, and judged 
 to be of the second century. It exhibited distinctly, in Greek 
 letters, the Hebrew words AAftNAl, EAftAI, IAft, EAAIHN, 
 and afterwards followed another inscription in astral, or magical 
 characters. X If indeed this relic of antiquity involved the 
 heresy in question, yet we can scarcely impute it to any of the 
 native Christians, as the spot where it was found, though within 
 the borders of Cymru, would more naturally associate it with 
 the imperial legions. Moreover, a host of historians, both 
 ancient and modern, expressly assert that the Britons preserved 
 the faith whole and undenled down to the era of Dioclesian.§ 
 
 2. Arianism. 
 
 There can be no doubt that the sentiments of the British 
 bishops, when they first entered the council of Ariminum, were 
 strongly opposed to the Arian heresy. Their subsequent change, 
 therefore, is no argument against the soundness of the creed of 
 Britain at that particular period, though it instances a general 
 
 * He was one of the chief leaders of the Egyptian Gnostics, who blended 
 Christianity with the Egyptian and Oriental philosophy. His followers were 
 particularly addicted to the use of charms and amulets. 
 
 f Namely, at Llanbeblig, near Carnarvon. 
 
 X Cambrian Quarterly, vol. i. p. 116. § Seep. 75, note.
 
 246 
 
 abatement in the spirit to endure persecution. Nevertheless, 
 we are credibly informed by Gildas and Bede that Arianism did 
 find its way into this country, and was the cause of much con- 
 fusion in the Church.* Usher supposes this to have taken place 
 between A.D. 378 and 383, when Gratian, who was favourable 
 to the Arians, issued an edict that all sects, with the exception 
 of the Manicheans, Photinians, and Eunomians, should have 
 free exercise of faith and worship throughout his empire.t It 
 is observable, however, that the edict could have but a limited 
 effect among the Cymry, for reasons similar to those on which 
 we grounded the improbability of their church being represented 
 at Ariminum. Still we dare not exculpate them from the charge 
 of Arianism : indeed it may be a question whether they did not 
 embrace it more generally than their neighbours, seeing they 
 wanted the Nicene formula, — " that bulwark which kept heresy 
 out of the Church. 11 :}: Perhaps, however, we shall not be far 
 from the truth, if we describe the evil as pretty generally dif- 
 fused, and that to no alarming extent, throughout the several 
 provinces of Britain. The latter position is borne out by the 
 testimonies of Jerome and Chrysostom, who often speak in their 
 writings of the orthodoxy of the British Ohurches.§ 
 
 We read of no active measures as having been adopted for 
 the suppression of the Arian heresy, neither is the period of its 
 final disappearance known. It does not seem, however, to have 
 been of long continuance ; and we may reasonably presume that 
 it began to decline soon after its introduction, and that its later 
 votaries, " always fond of hearing something new, and holding 
 nothing with firmness, 11 1| eventually transferred their belief to 
 the more plausible theory of Pelagius. 
 
 * Historia Gilds, sect. 12. Bed. Hist. Eccles. lib. i. cap. 8. On the mar- 
 gin of one MS. of Gildas, belonging to the public library of the university of 
 Cambridge, is written : — " Agricola quidam homo discipulus Arriani, qui 
 perturbavit fidem Britonum." 
 
 f See Primord. p. 197, and the authorities there quoted; also O'Connor 
 Script. Ber. Hibern. vol. i. Prolegom. p. 111. 
 
 + Theod. lib. ii. cap 19. 
 
 § Hieron. torn. i. epist. 17. Id. torn. ii. epist. 85. Id. in Orthodoxi et Luci- 
 feriani Dialogo. Chrysost. Oper. torn. vi. edit. Graec. Savilian. p. 635. Ibid, 
 torn. viii. p. 111. lb. torn. p. 696. lb. torn. v. p. 979. || Gildas et Beda.
 
 247 
 
 3. Pelagianism. 
 
 Pelagius does not seem to have derived his theory about the 
 freedom of the will originally from the Bardo-druidic philosophy, 
 as is sometimes maintained. On the contrary, he left his 
 native land, and lived a long time in the best society at Rome, 
 before he was even suspected of heterodoxy. So naturalized 
 indeed was he considered in the city, that Orosius and his 
 friends, in reply to John of Jerusalem, who wished to exercise 
 authority over him, emphatically exclaimed, " that the heretic 
 was Latin, and that the heresy being better known in the Latin 
 parts, ought to be discussed before Latin judges.'' 1 * 
 
 As Pelagius and Celestius were closely linked together, and 
 their errors identical, there can be no doubt that they had 
 drawn them from the same source. Now Celestius acknow- 
 ledged, at the council of Carthage, that he had himself heard 
 the doctrine of original sin denied by Ruffinus.t This person 
 had been under the tuition of Evagrius Ponticus, the Hyper- 
 borean, author of a metaphysical work, which held forth the im- 
 peccability of man. He had also translated into Latin many of 
 the treatises of Origen, who had very high notions of the doc- 
 trine of free agency.^: We may therefore conclude that it was 
 the opinions of these men which, in another form, Pelagius more 
 immediately adopted. Hence we find that he was treated with 
 greater leniency in the East, where Origen and Rufiinus had 
 many admirers, than by the clergy of the Latin Church. Still, 
 acquaintance with Bardic theology might have predisposed him 
 in favour of his new creed, as we presume was the case with 
 many of his countrymen afterwards. 
 
 Further, that Druidism was not necessarily the basis of the 
 heresy of Pelagius, appears from this, — that he denied the doc- 
 trine of the preexistence of souls. " We do also," says he, 
 " condemn those who say that the souls have sinned in a former 
 state, or that they have lived in the celestial regions before 
 they were sent into bodies."§ 
 
 * Oros. Apologetic, p. 624, 625. 
 t Augustin. tie Peccat. Original, cap. iii. andiv. 
 
 X See Hora Britannica?, vol. ii. pp. 88, 89. § Ibid. p. 114. 
 
 Z
 
 248 
 
 Some of the warmest antagonists of Pelagianism were Bards, 
 — as Cattwg and Deiniol Wynn ;* the latter of whom was very 
 active and successful in his endeavours to suppress it at the synod 
 of Brevi. We may infer from this circumstance also, that it 
 was no attachment to the memory or tenets of the heresiarch 
 which had prompted the family of Pabo to restore the college 
 of Iscoed.t 
 
 The heresy of Pelagius had probably no fixed or uniform con- 
 sistency ; at least his disciples did not universally believe and 
 practise what he himself taught. Thus, whilst he denied the 
 preexistence of souls, many held that doctrine.:}: Again, Pela- 
 gius condemned wealth and gay attire,§ whereas his partizans 
 at the council of Verulam, as they are described by Constantius, 
 were " conspicui divitiis, veste fulgentes. 11 !! There was also a 
 milder form under which the new doctrines appeared, which 
 has hence been denominated Semipelagianism. This is said to 
 have prevailed to a considerable extent among the clergy of Gaul, 
 of whom were Hilary, bishop of Aries, and Vincentius Lirinensis, 
 the supposed brother of Bleiddian.1T Two British bishops have 
 been likewise charged with it, namely, Fastidius and Faustus. 
 The former is described by Gennadius as " Britannorum," 1 or 
 according to another reading, " Britanniarum Episcopus ;" 
 from whence it has been inferred that he was archbishop of 
 London.** But it is much more probable that he was archbishop 
 of Llandaf, which then ranked as the first see in the island. 
 And it is remarkable that, according to Iolo Morganwg's list, a 
 person named Festydd did actually fill this see at the very time 
 
 * Triad 98. 
 
 f It will be recollected that Deiniol was the son of Dunawd, and had assisted 
 him in establishing the monastery of Iscoed. 
 
 I Horoe Britannica?, vol. ii. p. 114. 
 
 § Hilar. Epist. 88 inter Augustianas. Hierom. adv. Pelag. lib. i. cap. 9. 
 
 II Constant, lib. i. cap. 23. 
 
 IT It is observable, that Hilary of Aries was intimately acquainted with Gar- 
 mon, and that Bleiddian had married Hilary's sister, and that, moreover, he was 
 of the same society with Vincentius, besides being, as is supposed, his brother: 
 so that there is every reason to believe that the anti-Pelagian champions had no 
 extreme views on the subject of predestination. 
 
 ** See Usher, p. 171, and Stillingfleet, p. 194.
 
 249 
 
 that Fastidius is reported to have lived.* Faustus was doubt- 
 less none other than the son of Gwrtheyrn of that name, who, 
 according to Nennius, built a large place on the bank of the 
 river Renis.t As his Welsh name is unknown, it has been 
 conjectured that he was moreover identical with Edeym, the 
 founder of the college of Llanedeym, and that the Rhymni, 
 which passes by that place, is the Renis4 He crossed over 
 into Gaul, and was there made abbot of Lerins, and subse- 
 quently bishop of Riez.§ 
 
 But many were probably accused of Semipelagianism merely 
 because they could not altogether assent to the doctrine of 
 Augustine, or because they opposed the ill consequences which 
 some persons drew from that doctrine. The Gallican clergy 
 evidently disclaimed all sympathy with the proper heresy of 
 Pelagius, when they commissioned two of their number to en- 
 deavour to arrest its progress in Britain. Nor, perhaps, on 
 examination, will the sentiments of the Britons just mentioned 
 appear less attached to the catholic truth. Indeed the first to 
 bring the charge of heterodoxy against Fastidius, was Cardinal 
 Norris,|| a writer of the school of Augustine, who says that he 
 discovered some tincture of Pelagianism in his book De vita 
 Christiana.^ Whereas Gennadius declares of the production in 
 question,** that its " doctrine was very sound and good ;" with 
 whom bishop Stillingfleet agrees. ft Moreover, Trithemius highly 
 commends Fastidius as " a man of great wit and eloquence, 
 an excellent preacher, and a very pious man."|J With respect 
 to Faustus, he was of such esteem among the Gallican clergy, 
 that in the council of Aries they selected him as the fittest 
 person to draw up their sentiments on the subjects of predesti- 
 nation and grace, which were then so much agitated. Accord- 
 
 * See the list quoted at page 201 of the present work. 
 
 f Nermhis calls him Faustus Sanctus. 
 
 X Notes to G unn's Nennius. Usher, p. 1002. Rees's Essay, &c, p. 186. 
 
 § Usher, cap xiii. Stillingfleet, chap. iv. 
 
 || Stillingfleet's Origines Britannicae, p. 196. 
 
 51 Hen. de Norris, Hist. Pelag. lib. i. cap. 19. 
 
 ** Called by him " De vita beata." 
 
 ft Stillingfleet, p. 196. ++ Trith. de Script.
 
 250 
 
 ingly, he wrote his books of grace and free-will, to which 
 another council at Lyons caused some things to be added. It 
 was in those books, as it is supposed, that he broached the 
 errors which arc laid at his door. Nevertheless, his reputation 
 was not yet diminished ; on the contrary, it is the confession of 
 Norris himself, that he was worshipped as a saint in the church 
 of Ricz, and his name was preserved in the calendar of the 
 Gallican church. Molanus was the first who ventured to strike 
 it out ; and Baronius followed him, but restored it upon admo- 
 nition. It cannot, however, be denied, that his books were 
 severely ensured after his death, by the Scythian monks at Con- 
 stantinople, and the African bishops who were exiles in Sardinia. 
 Afterwards, CsBSaries, bishop of Aries, wrote against his doc- 
 trine, and was chiefly instrumental in procuring its condemna- 
 tion at the second council of Orange. 
 
 4. TlMOTIIEAXISM. 
 
 It is asserted by Bale and Camden, that one Timotheus, 
 about a.d. ±28, preached among the Britons " the conversion of 
 the Godhead into flesh" in the person of our blessed Saviour. 
 But archbishop Usher thinks that they were misled on the sub- 
 ject by a copy of the chronicle of Sigebert, in which the word 
 " Britannia 1 '' occurs, instead of " Bithynia," as it is in an im- 
 proved version, edited by Aubertus Mirreus. The latter reading 
 is also confirmed by another document, which is ascribed to 
 Gennadius.f 
 
 If we look to the compositions of the early Bards, who may 
 be considered as witnesses to the faith of Britain, and especially 
 Taliesin, who was educated in the school of Cattwg, we shall 
 find sentiments and expressions fundamentally subversive of the 
 heresies of the Cerinthians, Carpocratians, Ebionites, Elxaites, 
 Valentinians, Theodotians, Sabellians, and Nestorians. Of the 
 latter in particular we may remark, that it would have found no 
 favour in this country, for the Bards seem to delight in calling 
 the Second Person in the Trinity " Mab Mair, 11 or the Son of 
 Mary. 
 
 * See Stillingfleet, p. 198, 5cc. \ Usher, p. 172.
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 RELATION TO OTHER CHURCHES. 
 
 " Endeavouring to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace." — 
 Ephesians iv. 3. 
 
 The Church of Britain was in communion with the Greek and 
 Roman Churches at a very early stage of its history, as may be 
 inferred from the visit of the missionaries in the reign of Cyllin.* 
 Yet, its incorporation with Bardism, whilst the same united it 
 to the civil state, rendered it, at the same time, necessarily 
 independent of all foreign jurisdiction. And both these posi- 
 tions are distinctly admitted in the letter which Eleutherius 
 sent to Lies ab Coel.f 
 
 These rights were secured to it by the council of Aries, a.d. 
 314, which decreed "that no bishop should trample upon 
 another, 1 "' or invade his diocese. This appears to be the only 
 foreign synod in which the Cymry were ever represented, and 
 it took place very seasonably, before the Bardic system was 
 broken up, and before the bishop of Rome began to claim 
 supremacy over Western Christendom.^ We must remember 
 
 * See p. 63. f P. 07. 
 
 X The jurisdiction of the bishop of Rome, at the time when the council of 
 Nice was held, was limited to the suburbicarian provinces in Italy and Sicily. 
 See Du Pin, de Antiq. Eccl. Discipl. Diss. i. § 14; Stillingfleet's Origines 
 Brit. c. 3 ; Bingham's Antiquities, book ix. ch. i. § 9, &c. Palmer's Origines 
 Liturg. vol. ii. p. 259 ; Hammond's Oecumenical Councils, p. 25. 
 
 A A
 
 •>.-,•' 
 
 that it was convened by the emperor, and that the canons were 
 passed by its own authority (communi concilio), without the aid 
 or consent of the pope, to whom they v. re afterwards forwarded 
 for the purpose of being, not confirmed, but promulgated in his 
 larger di ise.* 
 
 Accordingly, the Cymry maintained their ecclesiastical inde- 
 pendence entire for several centuries afterwards. Indeed, all 
 intercourse whatever with the Church of Rome seems to have 
 ceased from about this period until the arrival of Augustine the 
 monk. There are, it i- true, those who would make contrary 
 statements, but with what amount of probability, will be seen 
 on a little examination. In the firs! place then, the testimony 
 of ( iiraldus ( lambrensis is adduced, who aaj a that the pope con- 
 finned the canons of Dewi's 8ynods.t But whence did (iiraldus 
 derive his information 1 He confesses himself, that there was 
 no monument of those synods extant; and surely his mere 
 assertion, unsupported by any concurrent evidence, and made, 
 too, at a time when he had a cause depending in the court of 
 
 Rome about the a F St. David's, can be of very little weight 
 
 on the subject. Moreover, the pope's interference would ill 
 accord with the sentiments and wishes of Dewi, who hail 
 evidently shewn hi< partiality for the oriental Church in receiv- 
 ing consecration from the patriarch of Jerusalem. 
 
 Again, subjection to the Roman see has been inferred from 
 the instance of Cyndeyrn, who is said to have gone to Rome for 
 the express purpose of having the defects of his native ordina- 
 tion supplied.]: This circumstance, be it observed, rests on the 
 sole authority of a legend of the twelfth century. But, were it 
 correct, it would rather strengthen our position than otherwise, 
 proving the Scots and Britons to have usages of their own, at 
 
 * "Quae decrevimus communi concilio, charitati tua significamus, at omncs 
 sciant quid in futurum observare debeant." — Si/nodical Epistle, sent to the 
 Pope. 
 
 f Giraldus apud Usher, p. 253. It may be here remarked that the other 
 legends of Dewi's life say not a word of this. 
 
 X He was originally ordained by an Irish bishop.
 
 •loo 
 
 variance with those of Rome. How far the Cymry complied 
 with the alleged recommendation of Cyndeyrn on his death-bed, 
 that they should adopt " the customs of the Roman Church," 
 may be learned from the declaration of Augustine at a subse- 
 quent period : — " In many things ye act contrary to our custom, 
 and even to that of the universal Church." After all, the drift 
 of the story seems to attribute these deeds to him as bishop of 
 Glasgow, which would leave the province of Cymru totally 
 unaffected by the question at issue.* 
 
 The next argument in favour of the papal supremacy, is, that 
 Ninian, who converted the Southern Picts, had learned the 
 Christian doctrine at Rome ;f but, as he was not a member of 
 the Cambrian Church, we may here dismiss his case without 
 further explanation. 
 
 Further, two passages out of Gildas are cited ; where ho 
 accuses the British clergy of occupying the seat of the apostle 
 Peter with unclean feet, and of repairing across the seas to 
 compass their simoniacal ends. That Gildas, however, means 
 no more by St. Peter's chair than the ecclesiastical function in 
 general, is clear from his opposing to it the chair of Judas, into 
 which, he says, the clergy, by the demerit of their covetousness, 
 should fall ; and also from the following expressions : — " To the 
 true priest it is [equally] said, ' Thou art Peter, and upon this 
 rock will I build my Church ;' " — " To Peter and his successors, 
 the Lord says, 'And to thee will I give the keys of the kingdom of 
 heaven, 1 and likewise to every holy priest it is promised, 'What- 
 soever thou shalt bind on earth, shall be also bound in heaven ; 
 and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth, it shall be also loosed 
 in heaven/ "J Of similar import may be regarded what is said 
 in Liber Landavensis of the monastery of Illtyd, that " They 
 had in it, out of reverence, bishops to sit in the chair of St 
 
 * Britan. Eccles. Antiq. p. 358. 
 
 f That Ninian did not express the sense of the native Church, is clearly indi- 
 cated by Bede, who says that he erected Candida Casa or Whithern of stone, 
 " contrary to the usual custom of the Britons." 
 
 | Gild. sect. 66, 67, 109.
 
 254 
 
 Peter, when they assembled together."* In reference to the 
 second proposition, suffice it to observe that there is no mention 
 of Rome, and that the Britons had intercourse with other places 
 beyond the Bea. 
 
 It will now he confessed, that the preceding arguments are of 
 very little weight, compared with the undoubted acts and words 
 of Augustine, Laurentius, and Aidhelm. Having already 
 noticed tin' evidence which the histories of the former two pre- 
 sent on the subject h we will here insert an extract from the 
 epistle which Aidhelm wrote to Geraini (Geruntius), king of 
 
 Cornwall. \.1>. 692 : — 
 
 "But, besides these enormities (the Tonsure and Paschal 
 cycle ». there is another thing wherein they do notoriously swerve 
 from the Catholic faith and evangelical tradition, which is, that the 
 priests of the Demotes, or South-west Wales, inhabiting beyond 
 the bay of Severn, puffed up with a conceit of their own purity, 
 do exceedingly abhor communion with us, insomuch as they will 
 neither join in prayers with us in the Church, nor enter into 
 society with us at the table. Yea, moreover, the fragments 
 which we leave after refection tiny will not touch, but oast them 
 to be devoured by dogs and unclean Bwine. The cups, also, in 
 
 which we have drunk they will not make age of, till they have 
 rubbed and cleansed them with sand or ashes. They refuse all 
 civil salutations, or to L r i\e us the kiss of pious fraternity, con- 
 trary to the Apostle's precept, ' Salute one another with a holy 
 kiss. 1 They will not afford us water and a towel for our hands, 
 nor a vessel to wash our feet. Whereas our Saviour, having 
 girt himself with a towel, washed hi- disciples 1 feet, and left us 
 a pattern to imitate, saying, ' As I have done to you, so do you 
 
 * Liber Land. p. 2 
 
 f Chap. vi. The fact that the Cymry retained the old Asiatic Easter would 
 prove that they were not in union with the Romanists since the council oi 
 was hold, from which time the latter looked upon its observance as heretical. 
 This is further corroborated by the pertinacity with which Augustine insisted 
 upon the adoption of the Romish cycle in his conference with the Cambrian 
 bishops.
 
 255 
 
 to others.' Moreover, if any of us who are Catholics, do go 
 amongst them to make an abode, they will not vouchsafe to 
 admit us to their fellowship till we be compelled to spend forty 
 days in penance."* 
 
 It is impossible to have a stronger proof than the above, that 
 the Cymry were not in communion with the Roman Church, and 
 that their separation was the effect of choice, and not an involun- 
 tary exclusion. 
 
 To these may be added the testimony of a document supposed 
 to be the production of Jonas Myny\v,t a divine and poet, who 
 flourished about the close of the tenth century. 
 
 " Woe to the worldly priest, 
 Who rebukes not vice ; 
 
 And neglects his ministry : 
 Nor regards his flock, 
 Though he be a pastor ; 
 
 Nor pays attention to them ; 
 Nor guards his sbecp 
 From the Romish wolves, 
 
 With his pastoral staff."]: 
 
 But this may imply no more than that there was still a party 
 in Wales possessing strong feelings against the claims of the 
 Romish priesthood. It cannot be denied, that the prejudices of 
 the people in general against Rome had been before greatly un- 
 bent through the instrumentality of Elvod, when he filled the 
 see of Bangor. And afterwards this change of sentiment ob- 
 tained a sort of legal or national sanction at the synod of Ty 
 Gwyn ar Dav, as the following particulars in tho laws of Hywel 
 Dda testify: — 
 
 The absence of a man, who had gone on a pilgrimage to 
 Rome, could be lawfully supplied in a court of justice by his 
 advocate. § 
 
 * Cressy, book xix. chap. 17. 
 
 f Llyvr Darogan Bodhcnlli. According to other authorities, the composition 
 is that of Talicsin, in the sixth century. 
 
 X Myv. Archaiol. vol. i. p. 99. § Wotton's Leges WallicSB, lib. iv. sect. 107.
 
 No action might be sustained against an excommunicated 
 person, for whose restoration j » .- l j » .• 1 1 absolution was necessary, 
 within .-i year and a daj from the time he first commenced hi> 
 journey for the purpose of boi king that indulgence.* 
 
 A person, having forfeited hi< inheritance by plotting against 
 his lord, could recover it on producing letters of pardon from 
 the pope. * 
 
 In a case where a Buret} was to be denied, the judge having 
 laid hold of the relics, adjured one of the parties thus . — ' Maj 
 (Joel, tli-- pope of Rome, tli_\ lord, and these relics, presi rve thee 
 from falling into perjurj in thi^ matt 
 
 < )n the other hand, a friendlj intercours to have I 
 
 uninterruptedly kepi up between the British and Oriental 
 Churches, until about the time when the former submitted t<» 
 the authority of R [ndeed, \\«' cannot tell whether the 
 
 application of Lleirwg might not have been somewhat influ< 
 l.\ the Grecian birth of Eleutherius, a circumstance, \»- it 
 observed, which has bet □ de< m< d worthy of exprt bs mention in 
 the register of Llandaf. 
 
 In the third century, Elen, daughter of Coel < r, visited 
 
 the 1I"1\ Land, and erected a church over our Saviour's sepul- 
 chre, as w< 11 as on other Bacr< 1 spots. We have the testimony 
 of St. Jerome that many Britons travelled t-> Jerusalem in the 
 fourth century, among whom is mentioned Tecla,the founder of 
 Llandegla, Denbighshire, and Llandegle, Radnorshire-. 1 And 
 
 * lb. lib. iv. sect 107. t lb. 
 
 J lb. lib ii. c. 4. 
 
 § Thus tin.' British Church cannot be said to have been in an isolated condi- 
 tion at any time. Until the Nicene era it was in union with 1 ■« ■ tli tin 
 bodies of Christendom: afterwards it maintained an intimacy with << 
 alone: and whin the division of the Easl and West took place, its partiality 
 was transferred to Rome. 
 
 || Liber Land. p. 306. 
 
 «' Siv Usher's Britan. Eccles. Antiq. p. lit', and Rces's Welsh Snint^. 
 Appendix, No. 11. St. Jerome says that she received the name Tula at .Ii ru- 
 salem, on account of her great virtues, particularly her humility. Her former 
 name was Melania.
 
 257 
 
 Theodoret relates that several passed over into Syria, attracted 
 by the fame of Simeon Stylites.* In the beginning of the sixth 
 century the bond of union was drawn still more closely, by the 
 consecration of Dewi, Teilo, and Padarn, in the Holy City. 
 We find that the Cymry adhered to the primitive rule of Asia 
 in reference to Easter, as late as the year 755.t And even a.d. 
 842-847, some of the clergy repaired to Constantinople to enquire 
 of certain ecclesiastical traditions, and the perfect and exact 
 computation of the paschal festival.:}: And, in the laws of 
 Hywel Dda. a pilgrimage to the holy sepulchre is put on the 
 same legal footing as that to Koine. § 
 
 To prove, notwithstanding, that the Church of Britain was 
 independent of the sees of Jerusalem and Constantinople, would 
 be wholly unnecessary, since it has never been denied ; nor does 
 it appear that any of the Eastern patriarchs ever attempted to 
 extend their authority so far. 
 
 The intercourse we have described, was, doubtless, greatly 
 promoted by means of the Church of Gaul, which derived all 
 its usages originally from the see of Lyons. This had been 
 founded by missionary s from Asia; and the second bishop was 
 [renseus, the disciple of Polycarp, who was well acquainted with 
 St. John, and stood foremost in the rank of the Quartodecimans 
 of his day. || 
 
 There was a communication between the people of Gaul and 
 this island in Druidical times: indeed, a colonyfrom the former 
 country was, at a very early period, established in Britain.il 
 Nor were they apparently less intimate after the introduction of 
 Christianity, and during the Roman sway. The Cymry pro- 
 bably derived some of their Oriental customs through this 
 
 * Theod. in Philothco, she SS. Patruio Hist. cap. 26. Usher, p. 110. 
 
 f Annates Menevenses. 
 
 [ Usher's Religion of the Ancient Irish, chap. x. pp. 110, 111. 
 
 § " Tres sunt homines pro quibus absentibus advocates dari delict: primus 
 est, \ir qui peregrinatur Romam vel ad sepulcrum Christi." — Wotton's Leges 
 Wallicse, lib. W. sect. 107. 
 
 || See Palmer's Origines Liturgies, sect. !>. ^f Triad 5.
 
 258 
 
 channel; at least, the Gallic influcnco would impart a more 
 distinctive character, and greater consistency, to those which 
 they had already received from the Israelitish and Greek mis- 
 sionaries. Truly, it would seem that their veneration f'«>r the 
 beloved disciple was suggested subsequently t<> the foundation 
 of their Church, else " the Gospel of St. John" would not have 
 been adopted after " the Ten Commandments," in their scale of 
 oatha 
 
 Thai the British bishops were on terms of communion with 
 the Gallic in the beginning of the fourth century, may be 
 inferred from the meeting at Aries. Bishop Stillingfleet, 
 indeed, gathers from various authority s, thai abort this time 
 the prelates of Britain w< re gen< rally comprehended under those 
 of Gaul where they are not expressrj mentioned.? 
 
 The reign <>l' Eudav, however, checked the development of 
 the Church of Wales to a certain extent, whilst the other 
 ]>m\ inci s of Britain followed I raul in the adoption of th 
 of Mice and Sardica. That there was a ritual disagreemenl 
 between the Cymryand their immediate neighbours, which may 
 be dated from this time, is clearly illustrated by the hi-t-»ry of 
 the paschal question. Thus, from what transpired at the con- 
 ference held at Strenaeehaloh, .\.n. 664, we learn that the 
 North Britons observed Easter exactly as it had been deter- 
 mined at Nice:; whilst the Annales Menevenses indicate that 
 the inhabitants of Wales adhered to the old Asiatic <>r Jewish 
 mode as late as .\.i>. 755.§ 
 
 Yet, the Cymry were not on that account excluded from 
 communion with their neighbours, as the mission of Gannon 
 
 * Myv. Arch, vol.iii. p. 314. See page I9fi, n 
 
 f Origines Britan. p. 135. 
 
 { Horse Britann. rol. ii. p. :>«'">. RusseTs History of the Church in Scot- 
 land, vol. i. p. 50. 
 
 § The Churches of Cymru and Northambria differed also in this respect, 
 that the former had no nunneries, while in the north they were numerous. — 
 Bede's Epist ad Ecgberctum, Rees's Welsh Saints, p. 310.
 
 259 
 
 and Bleiddian plainly shews. It is true that these prelates 
 were instrumental in improving the condition of the Cambrian 
 Church, and that they introduced into it the Gallic orders. 
 Still, their interference was not of an obtrusive character : on 
 the contrary, they appear to have willingly conformed to the 
 prejudices and customs of the country, as, for instance, in the 
 matter of consecrating the sites of churches.* 
 
 In an anonymous book on the origin of ecclesiastical offices, 
 written eleven hundred years ago, it is stated that Gannon and 
 Bleiddian introduced the " ordinem cursus Gallonim, 11 or Gal- 
 lican Liturgy into Britain. t This was not, however, the primi- 
 tive course of Gaul, but the Liturgy of St. Mark, which was 
 brought into that country by Cassian, and being received in the 
 monastery of Lerins, was used by Garmon and Bleiddian. 
 Padrig is said to have chanted the same course among the Scots 
 and British of his jurisdiction.^: But, as we are informed that 
 the liturgy of Padrig was different from that of Dewi, Gildas, 
 and Cattwg,§ we may reasonably conjecturo that it found no 
 favour with the Cvmry. The supposition is corroborated by 
 the fact that the inhabitants of "Wales resolutely clung to the 
 paschal usage of St. John, even when it was viewed as heretical 
 in almost every other Church throughout Christendom. 
 
 So far was their reception of holy orders at the hands of 
 Garmon and Bleiddian from involving a compromise of their 
 ancient prejudices, that, on the contrary, it afforded a lively 
 illustration of them. For thereby they recovered the Oriental 
 line of succession, and obtained an additional treasuro from 
 " the beloved disciple. 11 )] 
 
 But there was a colony from Wales planted in Gaul about the 
 year 383, which was erected into an independent kingdom under 
 
 * Chnp. x. 
 
 f Usserii Britan. Eccl. Antiq. cap. xi. p. 185; Stillingflcct, Olivines Britan. 
 ch. iv. 
 
 % Britann. Eccl. Antiq. c;ip. xvii. § Ibid. p. 473, 474. 
 
 || See chap. xi.
 
 260 
 
 Cynan Meiriadog.* True to the principles of the mother 
 country, the emigrants also established a Church and a metro- 
 political see, without the pope's licence. Thise ' Dole,* 
 to which city, according to Lib< r Landavensis, the government 
 of all Brittany was observed to belong justly until the time of 
 the compiler 4 The first archbishop was Samson, the son of 
 Ainun Ddu ab Emyr Llydaw, by Anna, daughter of Meurig ab 
 Tewdrig, about the middle of the Bixth century. M< il of those 
 who ruled the Church in the interim diate p riod were probably 
 ordained in Wales, whilst some may have b en subject to the 
 archbishop of Tours in the countrj of the Pranks, who claimed 
 jurisdiction over Armorica.§ In a council held at Tours, \.i>. 
 567, the bishop of that see was acknowledged to be the metro- 
 politan, and it was decreed that no one should presume to 
 ordain either a Briton or a Etonian to the episcopal office in 
 Armorioa, without the consent and permission of the metropo- 
 litan or the other bishops of the province. Nevertheless, the 
 
 * P. 88. 
 
 I D trn in the department f.Isl \ . indlate previa 
 
 Brittanv. [t was lately an . and is situated in tb< N E portion 
 
 of Brittany, in a morass five miles from the Bea, and twenty- I St 
 
 Malo. 
 
 (Jnde principatus totius Britannia? Bpud Dolum juste oonstare ndeUu 
 usque bodie."— Lib. Land. p. J'>. The compiler of this work hare 
 
 been Galfrid or Jeffrey, brother of bishop Urban. 
 
 §"Cum olim tota Britannia (Minor) fuisset Turonens tanquam 
 
 metropoli suae subjecta; Britannis tandem conspirantibus contra regem Fran- 
 corum, it proprium sibi constituentibus regem, occasione I 
 quondam Eboracensis archiepiscopi, qui dum in partibus Britanniae pateretur 
 exilium, in Dolensi ecclesia cum archiepiscopalibus insignibus rninistnir.it. 
 Dolensis ecclesia contra Turonensem supercilium elationis assumpsit; Britan- 
 nis rolentibus sihi novum archiepiscopum, sicut norum renin creaverant, sus- 
 citare." — See Statement of the Clergy of Tours at tin time Giraldui demanded 
 the restitution of the jut 1 1 to Menenia; cited by Usher from the 
 
 Pope Inn-' • Hi ///. \.1>. 1 199. 
 
 •• In Turonensis u. hisce temporibus (anno videlicet dlxvii.) habiti caooae
 
 261 
 
 bishops of Dole succeeded in maintaining their independence 
 and archiepiscopal authority almost as late as did those of St. 
 David's in Wales.* 
 
 The intimacy between the Churches of Cymru and Llvdaw 
 was very close, especially in the sixth century, when a mutual 
 emigration of the bishops and clergy into either country was a 
 common practice in cases of domestic emergency. Nor did they 
 then retire to lay communion, but continued to prosecute their 
 ministerial duties, as the examples mentioned in Chapter V 
 abundantly testify. This circumstance would also argue that 
 their respective usages were essentially identical, or that the 
 details in which they differed were not of an unyielding nature. 
 
 The northern and south-eastern provinces of Britain deviated 
 in some degree from the rites and customs of the Cambrian 
 Church, in consequence of their having been represented at 
 Nice and Sardica, as well as for other reasons of a more poli- 
 tical or civil character. Still this circumstance proved no bar 
 to mutual communion as may be gathered from the history of 
 Cyndeyrn and many others. 
 
 The period at which the Christians of Cymru .stood in a posi- 
 tion of the greatest estrangement towards their immediate 
 neighbours, may be dated about the dissolution of the Roman 
 power. The Saxon troubles which ensued, creating between 
 them feelings of sympathy and condolence, seem to have drawn 
 them into bonds of closer alliance. And at a later period we 
 find that the Cymry had actually imparted to the others some 
 of their own prejudices, — for instance, preeminent respect for 
 
 i\. Metropolitan! nomine non alium quant Turonensein archiepiscopum desig- 
 natum constet; ubi cautnm est, nequis Britannum aut Romanum in Armo- 
 rico, sine metropolitan.! aut coDprovincialium voluntate aut literis, episcopum 
 ordinate prasum.it." — Usher, p. 277. 
 
 * •' Contigit ut ob Pallii giatiani quod Samson illuc attulerat, sueeedentes 
 ibi Episcopi asqne ad nostra hsec fere tempora (quibus prsevalente Turonorum 
 Arcliipia sole, adventitia dignitas evanuit) pallia semper obtinuerunt." — Giral- 
 dut in Dialogo de EcclesiA Sfeneverui.
 
 262 
 
 the authority of St. John, and antipathy to the Roman Catho- 
 lics, ae was exemplified at the conference of Strenaeshaloh.* 
 
 Perhaps the bishopric of Whithern, which had been founded 
 by Ninian, was the nearest in character and feeling to the 
 ( Ihurch of Rome. But this was afterwards considerably eclipsed 
 by the see of ( lyndeyrn al < rlasgow.t 
 
 [n reference to Columba,t who is considered as the apostle 
 of the Highlands and islands of Scotland, and the father of the 
 college of I • .11.-1 .-Hid its Culdees, we will Bubjoin an interesting 
 • 1 i .- 1 1 < » i_r 1 1 < • , supposed to have passed between him and Merddin 
 \V\llt. son of Madog Morvyrn ofOdr [lltyd.j 
 
 " Black i^ thy steed, and black thy cap, 
 Black thy pate, thy bead and all. — 
 \ii then Colum ? 
 
 I am Colum tin Scholar, 
 
 Of Scottish race, and fickle wit. — 
 
 Woe to him who drowns oot the insultex of his son reign. 
 
 * At this conference, Colman, then bishop of Northumbria, and Chad, bishop 
 
 of Essex, who conducted the cause of tluir countrymen, maintained that they 
 had received their Easter traditionally from St. John. Wilfrid, who pleaded for 
 Rome, replied that such could not be the case, as they <li'l not, like that apt stle, 
 observe it on the fourteenth day of the moon, whether it fell on the Lord's day 
 or not 
 
 f Hors Britannicas, vol. ii. p. 360. 
 
 £ Colum or Colan. In the poem he is called FJoolan,or "the Co1an,*the 
 definite particle being prefixed, as we still have YrJetu (the Jesus). So the 
 modern Scotch have The Graeme, The Bruce, and The Wallace. See Hora 
 Britann. vol. ii. p. 302. 
 
 § My v. Arch. vol. i. p. 13->. Ancurin also (ib. p 16) mentions Yscolan : 
 
 " True is the saying of Colan, 
 God proves better than the wicked predicate of him." 
 
 Odes on the Month*. 
 
 Both Merddin and Aneurin were natives of North Britain. 
 
 || Columba had a white horse, which used to carry the milk vessels between 
 his monastery and the fold. See Hone Britann. vol. ii. p. 305.
 
 263 
 
 I burnt a church, and intercepted the kine of a monastery, 
 And immersed in water the Sacred Book : 
 Wherefore I suffer a heavy penance. 
 
 Creator of all creatures, 
 Thou supreme supporter, 
 Blot out for me mine iniquity. 
 
 A full year have I been destined to occupy 
 
 The post of a wear at Bangor : 
 
 Behold thou the pain I have home from sea animals. 
 
 If I bad known before what I now do know, 
 
 How freely the wind whirls through the lofty branches. 
 
 Never would I have committed the deed." 
 
 We have before remarked how the people of Llychlyn resorted 
 for instruction to the college of Seiriol in Anglesey.* 
 
 The Cymry were likewise on friendly terms with the Irish 
 Christians. The influence and connection of the family of Bry- 
 chan might have some share in establishing or enlarging this 
 religious intercourse. Dewi was baptized by the bishop of 
 Munster, " who by divine providence had arrived at that time 
 from Ireland. 11 Dewi, Gildas, and Cattwg, according to a very 
 ancient catalogue of the saints of Ireland,! published by arch- 
 bishop Usher, introduced the ancient British liturgy into the 
 sister isle. Aeddan Voeddog, son of Caw, and disciple of 
 Dewi, passed over thither, and was appointed the first bishop 
 of Ferns. And it has been reasonably inferred that it was a 
 reference to this circumstance which induced the clergy of Mene- 
 via at a later period to assert that the bishopric of Ferns was 
 once subject to the archbishopric of St. David's.:}: 
 
 The Irish were latterly exceedingly averse to communion with 
 the Church of Borne, as may be learned from the following ex- 
 tract of a letter, which was addressed by Laurentius, Mellitus, 
 
 * Page 226. 
 
 f Probably written in the seventh century. Usher's Britann. Ecc. Antiq. 
 pp. 473, 474. Palmer's Origines Liturg. vol. i. sect. xi. 
 
 J Rees's Welsh Saints, p. 228.
 
 264 
 
 and Justus, to the bishops and abbots of Ireland: " We knew 
 the Britons, and hoped to find the Scots better disposed ; but 
 we learned by means of bishop Daganus coming into this island, 
 and Columbanus, the abbot, in Gaul, that they differ in nothing 
 from the Britons in their conversation; for Daganus, the bishop, 
 coming to us, not only would not eat with us, but not even in 
 the same lodging in which we took our meals. 11 * 
 
 * Bedc, lib. ii. c. iv.
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 LITURGY. 
 
 " Else when thou shalt bless with the spirit, how shall he that occupieth the 
 room of the unlearned say Amen at thy giving of thanks, seeing he under- 
 standeth not what thou sayest?" — 1 Cor. xiv. 16. 
 
 Having already shown that the Jewish missionaries, Hid, 
 Cyndav, and Mawan, imparted their influence to the general 
 character of the infant Church of Cymru,* we accordingly pre- 
 sume that its service was essentially identical with what is 
 distinguished as the "Great Oriental Liturgy; 1 There are 
 even reasons for believing that it was originally derived from 
 Ephesus in particular. In the first place, it appears from St. 
 Paul's second Epistle to Timothy, that the bishop of Ephesus 
 was personally acquainted with some of the saints of Britain.f 
 Secondly, the fact would forcibly explain the intimacy and simi- 
 larity which subsisted between the Church of Britain and that 
 of Gaul, since it is satisfactorily proved that the latter derived 
 its liturgy primarily from the exarchate of Ephesus, or of the 
 Churches of Asia and Phrygia.+ Thirdly, it would in like man- 
 ner show how easily the judaical tone, indicated by the adoption 
 of the decalogue for the purpose of swearing, would yield during 
 the paschal agitation to the predominance of St. John's name 
 and memory, whose chair was at Ephesus, and who kept the 
 feast of Easter on the fourteenth day, with the Jews.§ And, 
 
 * P. 196. f Compare 2 Tim. iv. 21, with Martial, lib. iv. epigr. 13 and 54. 
 X Palmer's Origines Liturgies, vol. i. sect. ix. 
 
 § Polycrates, bishop of Ephesus, in his Epistle to Victor of Rome, and the 
 Roman Church, says, that "John, who rested on the bosom of the Lord, who 
 
 BB
 
 266 
 
 lastly, the submission of Ephesus, A.D. 451, to the patriarch of 
 Constantinople might have been the cause why the British 
 clergy at a subsequent period appealed to the latter see on the 
 subject of Easter. 
 
 But whatever may have been the primary liturgy of Britain, 
 whether it was obtained from the East or from Rome, or whether 
 it was compiled by the founders of the native Church themselves, 
 there can be no doubt that it afterwards resembled that of Gaul, 
 as well as of those Asiatic countries where the authority of St. 
 John prevailed. This is evident from the testimony of Irenseus, 
 disciple of Polycarp, and bishop of Lyons ;* and also from the 
 practice of the Cymry themselves in respect of Easter. 
 
 To illustrate therefore the general character of the Cambrian 
 liturgy, we will here subjoin the order and substance of the 
 liturgy of Gaul, as described by Palmer in his valuable disser- 
 tation. 
 
 A lesson from the Prophets or Old Testament was first read, 
 then one from the Epistles, which was succeeded by the hymn 
 of the three children, Benedicite, and the holy Gospel. After 
 the Gospel was ended, the priest or bishop preached, and the 
 deacon made prayers for the people, and the priest recited 
 a collect, Post precem. Then the deacon proclaimed to the 
 catechumens to depart. After which silence was again enjoined, 
 and an address to the people on the subject of the day, and 
 entitled Prcqfatio, was recited by the priest, who then repeated 
 another prayer. The oblations of the people were next received, 
 while the choir sang an offertory anthem. The elements were 
 placed on the altar, and covered with a large and close veil, or 
 pall. Then the tablets called diptychs, containing the names of 
 the living and departed saints, were recited, and the priest 
 made a collect, " post nomina." Then followed the salutation 
 
 was a priest, and wore the petalos, who was a martyr and teacher, and fell asleep 
 at Ephesus; Polycarp, bishop of Smyrna; Thraseas, bishop of Emmania ; 
 Sagaris, bishop of Laodicea ; the blessed Papirius; Melito, bishop of Sardis; 
 all kept the feast of Easter on the fourteenth day," — Euseb. Hist. Eccles. lib. v. 
 c. 24. * Adv. Ha;res. lib. iii. cap. iii.
 
 2G7 
 
 and kiss of peace ; after which the priest read the collect, " ad 
 pacem." The mystical liturgy now commenced. It began with 
 the form " Sursum corda," &o. ; and then followed the preface, 
 or thanksgiving, called " contestation or " immolatio," in which 
 God's benefits to the human race were variously commemorated ; 
 and at the proper place the people all joined in singing the hymn, 
 " Tersanctusr The thanksgiving then continued, in the form 
 called " post sanctus," which terminated with the commemora- 
 tion of our Saviour's deeds and words at the institution of this 
 sacrament. Afterwards the priest recited a collect, entitled 
 " post mysterium," or " post secreta," which often contained a 
 verbal oblation of the bread and wine, and an invocation of God 
 to send his holy Spirit to sanctify them into the sacraments of 
 Christ's body and blood. After this the bread was broken, and 
 the Lord's Prayer repeated by the priest and people, being in- 
 troduced and concluded with appropriate prayers, made by the 
 priest^ alone. The priest or bishop then blessed the people, 
 to which they answered, Amen. Communion afterwards took 
 place, during which a psalm or anthem was sung. The priest 
 repeated a collect of thanksgiving, and the service terminated.* 
 This may be considered, then, as essentially the liturgy of 
 St. John. Another, ascribed to St. Mark, was also introduced 
 into Gaul, by Cassian, and used, among others, by Gannon and 
 Bleiddian, in their monastery of Lerins. These persons, more- 
 over, brought it over into Britain, but it does not appear to have 
 supplanted the one which already existed among the Cymry, as 
 already observed.f Padrig, however, is said to have chanted it 
 in his own diocese, which is also very probable, seeing he was a 
 disciple of Gannon, as Fiech testifies : 
 
 " He read the canon (of Scripture) with Germanus ; 
 And so the Churches (abroad) attest.":}: 
 
 We may further remark, that the forms " Gloria in excelsis," 
 
 * Origines Liturgies, vol. i. sect. ix. -f See p. 259. 
 
 + Hales's Origin and Purity of the Primitive Church of the British Isle 
 Appendix. 
 
 BB 2
 
 268 
 
 " Tersanctus," and the Lord's Prayer, — which, according to the 
 writer of the " Book on the Origin of Ecclesiastical Offices, 1 ' 1 
 alluded to before, St. Mark appointed all the people to sing,* — 
 do also occur in the Irish liturgy, of which Dr. (VConor has 
 published an account, and which is supposed to have been the 
 one used by Padrig.f That the missal of Padrig differed from 
 that of Dewi, Gildas, and Cattwg, is distinctly stated in another 
 document, apparently as old as the seventh century.:}: 
 
 What was the amount of similarity, at the period when these 
 latter worthies flourished, between the Gallic and Cambrian 
 liturgies, we are unable to relate. Thus much is evident, that 
 they both differed from the Roman. This appears, in the case 
 of the first, from the interrogations of Augustine the monk to 
 Pope Gregory, where he asks : " Why the customs of Churches 
 are different, when their faith is the same, and one custom of 
 liturgy prevails in the Church of Rome, another in those of 
 Gaul?"§ With regard to the Cambrian, it is proved by the 
 words of Augustine, which he addressed to the native bishops : 
 " In many respects you act in a manner contrary to our customs, 
 and indeed to those of the universal Church ; and yet if you 
 will obey me in these three things ; to celebrate Easter at the 
 proper time ; to perform the office of baptism, in which we are 
 born again to God, according to the custom of the holy Roman 
 and Apostolical Church ; and with us to preach the Word of 
 God to the English nation ; we will tolerate all your other cus- 
 toms, though contrary to our oicn,"\\ 
 
 * " Sed beatus Marcus Evangelista — totam .Egyptum et Italian! taliter 
 prredicavit sicut unani ecclesiam, ut oinnes sanctus, vel Gloria in excelsis Deo, 
 vel oralionem Dominican et Amen, universi tam viri quam fcemina? decanta- 
 rent." — Tract, de Cant, et cursibus Eccl. Spelman. Concilia, torn. i. p. 177. 
 
 f Olivines Liturgies, vol. i. sect xi. 
 
 I " Incipit Catalogus Sanctorum Hibemiae, secundum diversa tempore. 
 Primus ordo Catholicorum Sanctorum erat in tempore Patricii. * * * 
 Secundus ordo Catholicorum Presbyteroiutn. In hoc enim online pauci eraut 
 Episcopi, et multi Presbyteri, numero ccc. A Davide Episcopo et Gilla (al. 
 S. Gilda) et a Doco Britonibus missam acceperunt." — Apnd Usher, pp. 473-4. 
 
 § Bed. Hist. Eccl. lib. i. c. 27. ||Ib. lib. ii. c. 2.
 
 269 
 
 We may, however, trace the outlines, or discover vestiges, of 
 the liturgy of Cymru, in the early documents of the country. 
 Some of them we will here subjoin : — 
 
 A PRAYER : 
 
 Composed by Talhaiarn, the chaplain of Emrys Wledig. 
 
 " God, grant thy protection, and in thy protection strength, and in strength 
 discretion, and in discretion justice, and in justice love, and in love to love 
 God, and in loving God to love all things."* 
 
 THE PATER NOSTER, OR THE WORD OF GOD ABOVE ALL : 
 
 Paraphrased by Cattivg Ddoeth. 
 
 " Our Father Almighty, full of truth and mercy, 
 Who dwellest in the heavens, and art pure and holy, 
 Thy name he sanctified to the utmost hounds 
 Of that existence where thy goodness dwells. 
 
 " Thy kingdom come upon us ; and thy will be done 
 Truly on earth, as it is in heaven. 
 Give us, day by day, our daily bread, 
 And may our whole trust be in Thee. 
 
 " And forgive all the children of men, 
 As we sincerely forgive our bitter enemies. 
 Defend us mercifully from the temptations of sin, 
 And from all inclinations to evil, lest they lead us astray ; 
 
 " For Thou, Lord of glory, art the sovereign King, 
 And thine is the power, and true praise, and all honour. 
 Be Thou our Protector, and Lawgiver, and Governor, 
 To eudless ages, eternally, for ever and ever. Amen."f 
 
 Taliesin, who was educated in the school of Cattwg,| occasion- 
 ally introduces into his poems certain Latin expressions, which 
 seem clearly to bear a liturgical character. From these, then, 
 wo infer that the service in his time contained the " Kyrie 
 eleison;" "Gloria in excelsis ;" prayers apparently beginning 
 
 * Dr. Pughe's Diet, voce Gweddi. 
 
 f Myv. Arch. vol. iii. p. 5. Translated by the Rev. Peter Roberts. See 
 Hales' Origin and Purity, &c, p. 420. 
 
 X Taliesin must have ranked high, and been considered a correct scholar in 
 that establishment, as we may well infer from the documents which we have 
 cited in reference thereto. See pp. 219, 221.
 
 270 
 
 with •' Bex regum," - l Benedicte Domine," " Miserere mei, 
 l)ru<;'* ,-i liviim. •• Laudatum laudate Jesum; r and portions of 
 the Old and New Testament. In the holy communion the 
 priesi bit Mi d the elements, though their consecration wa< mainly 
 attributed to the words of institution.* 
 
 The Greed and the Lord's Prayer seem to ha\ xmpieda 
 
 prominenl position in the Welsh liturgy. It was an usual 
 -.i\ ing of Beuno : — 
 
 < hint tin I ' I and thy irccl." \ 
 
 So, .'in early bard : — 
 
 ■• 1 . nquin i i t all • i 
 The l>i^!i"j'- .iinl Judgi n, — 
 What i- ; i le tot tin- soul 
 
 ■| I [for die needy], 
 Whoever will chant these ibi his tool, 
 I mil the judgment will do the wry best lhin| 
 
 Aii'l in another poem the writer says: — 
 
 •• Thou diil>t ii< -t chant th_\ Pan r n 
 Eithet at Mali: 
 
 And he sp< aks, mow over, of 
 " ll,!. i seven P il 
 
 We learn from the laws <>t* Elywel Dda thai it \\a< usual in 
 tin 1 tenth century to chant the Lord's Prayer, for the souls of all 
 Christians, at the gate of the churchyard. It was also chanted 
 at the church-door, before thi --.«" 
 
 * Myv. Arch. \ol. i. pp< IT, Vo. It may be proper to state that the Latin of 
 the Bard is in general very barbarous. Some words have Welsh terminations, 
 others seem perverted tor the sake of the rhyme, and no doubt in some mat 
 
 the chief blame must be attributed t" transcril 
 
 f Myv. Arch. vol. i. p. \7X. The creed was never so mochas barely re] 
 in the Roman Church, in time of divine service, until a.o. l"l I. See Bingham, 
 book l t. eh. 2, sect. 8. 
 
 . Myv. \veh. vol i. p. 18 § Ibid. p. 183. [bid. 
 
 * ■ • Tria loca sunt ubi nemo juranxntum voluntarium pi tun 
 l. Primum est, Sec. 2. Secundum i-t. At portam ccemeterii, quia ibi
 
 271 
 
 From the .same laws we, moreover, know that there was a 
 hymn, called " Bencdicamus," which occurred somewhere before 
 the distribution of the bread in the Eucharistic office.* 
 
 It is probable that the legends of saints were recited occa- 
 sionally, in the course of public worship. Thus, one of the 
 books which were found amidst the ruins of Verulam, in the 
 tenth century, contained the " History of St. Alban,'" written 
 in the ancient British character and dialect. And this history, 
 we are informed, was the same in every respect with thai which 
 is mentioned by Bede, and which was read in the churches of 
 England. f The title prefixed to the life of Dyvrig, in IC Liber 
 Landavensis,"| " Lectiones de Vita Sancti Dubricii," would in- 
 timate further that such legends were read in detached portions. 
 
 It is difficult to ascertain in what language the primitive 
 liturgy of Cymru was performed, or what alterations it after- 
 wards underwent in that respect. To suppose that it was at 
 first composed in the dialect of the country would best accord 
 with the requirements of the Bardic College, as well as with tho 
 statement of St. Chrysostom : " Although thou didst go to tho 
 ocean, even to the noted British isles; although thou didst sail 
 to the EuxineSea; although thou didst go to the southern 
 regions; thou wouldst hear all, everywhere, reasoning about 
 subjects of Scripture, with different voice, indeed, but not with 
 different faith ; with different tongue, indeed, but with accordant 
 understanding.'^ We may add the testimony of Bede : "It 
 searches and professes one and the same knowledge of the 
 highest truth, and of real sublimity, by meditation of the Scrip- 
 tures; as well in the vulgar tongues of the English, Britons, 
 Scots, Picts, as in the Latin language common to them all."|| 
 
 Dominica debet cantari pro animabua omnium Christianorum. •"?. Tertius 
 est, Ad ostium ecclesise, quoniam ilii orationem Dominican) homo cantare tene- 
 tur coram truce." — Wotton'a Leges WalUae, lib. iv. sect, clxiv. 
 
 * II). lib. ii. cap. iv. 
 
 f Usher's Britan. Keel. Antiq. p. SO. See also p. 70 of the present wort, 
 and Hughes's Hone Britannicse, vol. ii. Appendix, No. 1. ( P. 7~>. 
 
 § Chrysost in Semi, de militate lectionis Script, torn. viii. p. :J. Edit. Savill. 
 
 |1 Bed. Hist. Eccl. lib. i. cap. I.
 
 Q?^ 
 
 Yet these declarations may refer merely to the canon of 
 Scripture, and the latter would not preclude the Latin language 
 even from that. It is remarkable, however, that in the com- 
 positions of Taliesin, Scriptural quotations, and what appear to 
 be liturgical sentences, are almost invariably expressed in Latin. 
 "Pater," and " Credo," were afterwards the names which were 
 commonly given to the Lord's Prayer and Creed, as they are 
 retained in the principality even to this day. 
 
 Perhaps we should not be far from the truth, were we to say 
 that the Cambrian liturgy assumed its foreign garb about the 
 time when the Church shook oft* its alliance with bardism; and 
 that even then the vernacular character of its exhortations, 
 homilies, and the like, was not abandoned. In the books which 
 w, iv discovered at Verulam, there were Bome things written in 
 Latin, but the " History of St. Alban." as we have seen, was in 
 the ancient Uritish language. 
 
 * Usher, p. 80.
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 CANONICAL HOUKS. 
 
 " Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of 
 prayer, being the ninth hour." — Aets iii. 1. 
 
 In the principal monasteries, though the public worship of 
 God was carried on day and night without intermission, yet its 
 distinctive periods may be said to coincide with the twenty- four 
 hours respectively, since on each of them a fresh class of minis- 
 ters officiated.* The expressions of Bede and the British chroni- 
 cles would lead us to infer that in Bangor Iscoed the seasons of 
 prayer were divided into seven.t In the heading of a dialogue 
 between Llywelyn, the founder of Trallwng monastery, and his 
 son Gwrnerth, the composition of which is attributed to Tyssilio, 
 it is affirmed that they used " to come together the last three 
 hours of the night, and the first three hours of the day, and say 
 their matins and the hours of the day for that time.":}: And in 
 
 * See page 211. 
 
 f " Tantus fertur fuisse numerus monaehorum, ut cum in septem portiones 
 esset cum prapositis sibi rectoribus portiones esset cum prsepositis sibi rectoribus 
 monasterium divisum, nulla harum portio minus quam trecentos homines habe- 
 ret, qui omnes de labove manuum suarum vivere solebant." — Bed. lib. ii. cap. 2. 
 
 " In this monastery, it is said, the number of the monks was such, that if it 
 had been divided into seven parts, there would be three hundred in each part, 
 without their priors and officers."— Brut. B. "Besides their priors and pre- 
 lates who were set over them." — Brut. G. ah Arthur. " In it, without reckon- 
 ing either the priors or officers, there were twenty-one hundred." — Brut. Ti/siliu. 
 
 { My v. Arch. vol. i. p. 102.
 
 274 
 
 the poem itself, in answer to a question of G-wrnerth whether 
 his father was asleep, the latter is made to say, — 
 " Nay, but I chant the hi 
 
 But we <lo not find the hours or seasons of prayer called, in the 
 early poems, by any distinctive Dames, with the exception of 
 those of midnight, matins, and vespers. J 5 < ■ 1 1 1 Meugant and 
 Blaeth speak of one or another of these latter in connexion with 
 religious duties.* So in the anonymous poem before mentioned: — 
 
 "Thou didst Dot chant thj Patei n<>ster, 
 Either at Biatina <t Yr-]>crs."-f 
 
 Ami in another : — 
 
 "If they will arise at Matins, and at midnight 
 Awake and j"in the Saints, 
 l j Christian will ohtain forgiv< u< 
 
 Also in a composition, attributed by some to Taliesin, but by 
 others to ( reraint Vardd GHas, about the close of the ninth cen- 
 tury, we find the following sentence : — 
 
 •• 1'. rvading principle 'jinn:: power to the sky, 
 Thon also art satisfaction for om transgression, 
 At midnight and niatins."§ 
 
 Tn Hywel Dda's time, the principal » rviet s of the Church seem 
 to have been those of morning and evening, which were n spec- 
 tively denominated mass and vespers. Mention is moreover 
 made of sun-rise as apparently an hour of prayer. || 
 
 * lb. pp. I(i0, 162. 1 lb. p. 183. { lb. p. i - 
 
 § Il>. p. 66. Dr. Pughe's Diet voce coredd. || Leges Wallicae, lib. ii. c. 1.
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 MUSIC. 
 
 " Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom ; teaching and 
 admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing 
 with grace in your hearts to the Lord." — Colossians iii. 16. 
 
 The Cymry have always been a musical people ; it is there- 
 fore probable that they would pay peculiar attention to the sub- 
 lime art of singing as an ingredient of their public worship. 
 Accordingly we read in Taliesin, — 
 
 " He is not a talented minstrel, 
 Who praises not the Creator; 
 He is not an accurate songster, 
 Who praises not the Father."* 
 
 Singing to the praise and glory of God was enjoined in the 
 Welsh laws, as the primary duty of the presiding bard, thus : — 
 " When a song is desired to be sung, it is the duty of the pre- 
 siding bard to begin with the first song addressed to God, and 
 the second to the king to whom the court belongs ; but if thero 
 be none to him that sings, let him make mention of another 
 king. After the presiding bard, the domestic bard is to compose 
 the third piece on a different subject. "t 
 
 Several compositions, which appear to have been of the former 
 kind, are inserted in the Myvyrian Archaiology under the titles 
 of " Songs, or Odes to God."J 
 
 * Myv. Arch. vol. i. p. 23. f Dr. Pughe's Diet, sub voce Bardd. 
 
 X Also several of the songs, which were sung in honour of the king, may he
 
 276 
 
 From several extracts in the foregoing chapters it is inferred 
 that the service, including the prayers and creed, was always 
 choral in the ancient British Church. It is remarkable, more- 
 over, that there i< but >>n<- word t*<>r chanting and singing in 
 Welsh,* which circumstance, when we duly consider the excel- 
 lence of our old music, would make it evident that the chanting 
 was something more than mere intonation. 
 
 It is almost impossible that the Cvmry should avoid falling 
 into something like counterpoint when they had to use both 
 hands and ten fingers in playing the harp. In Pact, a third, a 
 fifth, or a chord, are more i asilj struck on this instrument, than 
 a single note, because the Btrings li*' convenient and natural For 
 the hand. Accordingly Giraldus Cambrensis bears the following 
 testimony: — "In their musical concerts tiny do not sing in 
 unison like the inhabitants of other countries, but in many 
 separate parts ; bo that in a company of Bingers, which one fre- 
 <|iientl\ meets with in Wales, we hear as many parts and \' 
 as there are performers, who all at length unite with organic 
 melody in one consonance in the soft Bweetness of 1$ Hat." 
 '• Singing a song in four j»arts with accentuation" was one of the 
 twenty-four games, which are said to have been instituted in the 
 time of Arthur.) 
 
 In the '• Myvyrian Archaiology" are inserted the titles of 
 ancient Welsh tunes, of which we select the following, as having, 
 in all probability, been composed by those who-.' names they 
 bear, and been used in the public worship of God : — The choir of 
 Alun, the psalm oi G-wgan, the song of Padarn,* the choir of 
 Elvyw, the choir of Elvan. the choir of Delvi, the choir 
 of Cilie, the choir of Meili, the choir of Klvaen, the choir 
 
 seen under the titles, Panegyric, Reconciliation, Sec. And probably Cynddehv 
 
 expressly refers to the third class, when he says, — 
 
 " May God pour upon me a truly gifted genius, 
 An excellent ode, different, wise, and perfect." 
 * Viz. Cami. t Giraldus. In Sir ELC. Hoare, Bart. 
 
 | My v. Arch, vol. iii. p. 196. 
 
 § Padarn is said to have excelled in singing when he visited Jerusalem, and 
 to have received a present on that account. Sec p. 133.
 
 277 
 
 of Elfin, the song of Bcnno, the song of Gfwenvrewi, and 
 the choir of St. Silin. To these may be added, as ancient and 
 sacred, the strain of the saint, the gift of Jesus, and the Lay of 
 David the prophet.'"' 
 
 The musical notation of some of these tunes is also inserted, 
 but as a great part of it consists of Bardic and other strange 
 characters, no good transcript can here be made from want of 
 type. The following, however, which is chiefly composed of 
 small italic letters, may serve as an imperfect specimen. 
 
 THE LAY OF PROPHET DAVID. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 e 
 
 
 
 e 
 
 
 e 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 c 
 
 
 e 
 
 c 
 
 c 
 
 c 
 
 
 c 
 
 d 
 
 
 d 
 
 
 9 
 
 d 
 
 9 
 
 9 
 
 * 9 
 
 9 
 
 d 
 
 9 
 
 9 
 
 
 9 
 
 Finger. 
 
 
 9' 
 
 
 
 
 7 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 f 
 
 f 
 
 
 
 e 
 
 e 
 
 
 
 
 d 
 
 
 
 e 
 
 e 
 
 9' J 
 
 r c 
 
 d 
 
 d 
 
 f 
 
 e 
 
 d 
 
 c 
 
 e d c 
 
 e 
 
 
 
 
 d' 
 
 
 d' 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 c 
 
 
 
 
 9 
 
 
 9' 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 9 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 cc 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 c 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 b 
 
 d 
 
 c 
 
 9 
 
 c 9 
 
 c 
 
 
 c 
 
 9 
 
 c 
 
 
 Finger. 
 
 
 
 
 * The manuscripts arc preserved in the Welsh School in London. In refe- 
 rence to that in which the music of the " Lay of the prophet David " occurs, the 
 editors of the " Archaeology" state that it was " transcribed by a harper of the 
 name of Robert ab Huw, of Bodwigan, in Anglesea, in the time of Charles I, 
 from the original by W. Penllyn, a harper who lived in the reign of Henry VIII." 
 Some of the names of the tunes above-mentioned are taken out of the " Book of 
 Gruffydd Hiraethog, 1522."
 
 278 
 
 As those different airs are composed and arranged with refer- 
 ence to the harp, we may naturally presume that the aid of that 
 instrument was generally used in the performance of psalmody 
 in the churches of Wales.* 
 
 *"On the Staffordshire Clogg, or ancient perpetual Almanack, there are 
 hieroglyphics to express the festival days ; from the first of March a harp is the 
 symbol, showing the feast of St. David, who used to praise God on that instru- 
 ment." — Jones's Relics of the Welsh Bards, vol. i. p. 113 ; Plot's Hist, of Staf- 
 fordshire, ch. x.
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 BAPTISM AND THE LORD'S SUPPER. 
 
 " Go ye, therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the 
 Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost." — Matthew xxviii. 19. 
 
 " He took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, 
 This is my body which is given for you : this do in remembrance of me. Like- 
 wise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my 
 blood, which is shed for you." — Luke xxii. 19, 20. 
 
 There can be no doubt that the performance of baptism in 
 Britain was always "well done and according unto due order" 
 in regard to the minister, matter, and words. Nor is it probable 
 that the children of believers were ever excluded from the benefit 
 cf this holy sacrament. Indeed, the decree of Cyllin, which 
 authorized the imposition of names in infancy, can hardly refer 
 to any other circumstance.* And had not Pelagius been fully 
 persuaded of the antiquity and universality of infant baptism, he 
 would doubtless have gladly availed himself of its non-perform- 
 ance in any part of Christendom to support his theory about the 
 liberty of human nature ; whereas, on the contrary, he distinctly 
 admits the practice, though his endeavour to account for its 
 necessity is exceedingly lame and unsatisfactory.! 
 
 We infer from what is related of Garmon and Bleiddian, 
 
 * P. 64. 
 
 f In the Confession of Faith sent by him to Innocentius, bishop of Rome, 
 he says: " We hold one baptism, which we say ought to be administered with 
 the same sacramental words to infants as it is to elder persons." And Celestius, 
 in his draught of faith, gives this reason why he grants that infants are bap- 
 tized for forgiveness of sins: " That we may not seem to make two sorts of 
 baptism."
 
 280 
 
 when they were over in Britain, that the adult catechumens 
 usually prepared themselves for baptism during the penitential 
 season of Lent.* 
 
 It is probable that, before the erection of churches, baptism 
 was usually administered in rivers or wells. Thus we still recog- 
 nize " the well of Elian,'''' " the well of Cynhaval," and many 
 more, within the precincts of those parishes where the saints 
 officiated, in which they might have washed some of their disci- 
 ples for the remission of their sins. 
 
 Fonts may be regarded as necessary appendages of Christian 
 churches. The name " Bedyddvaen" (baptismal stone ) , indicates 
 the material of which they were originally made in Wales. 
 Something further concerning their form and general appear- 
 ance may perhaps be gathered from the ancient font of Peran- 
 zabuloe, which is still preserved. This is of stone, octagonal, 
 having a central shaft of the same form, and four round corner 
 shafts reaching half way up the bowl without capitals, but with 
 round mouldings at the base. Four alternate sides of the bowl 
 are panelled, bearing figures, very boldly, but rudely, executed, 
 all in a sitting posture, and clothed in long robes. Its height is 
 three feet three inches and a half ; depth of bowl one foot four 
 inches ; diameter across the top, two feet three inches and 
 a half ; and depth of interior, nine inches and a half.t 
 
 Sponsors were required, but they were not considered to con- 
 tract any affinity to their charge by the act of standing. % 
 
 In the time of Augustine, the churches of Rome and Britain 
 differed from each other in their mode of administering the 
 sacrament of baptism. In what the difference consisted we are 
 not told, but it was regarded at the time of such vital importance 
 as to warrant a formal and continued estrangement between the 
 two societies. § 
 
 * Constant, lib. i. cap. 28. 
 
 f Van Voorst's Baptismal Fonts. In that work, however, the above is styled 
 a Norman font: but Collins in his account of Peranzabuloe, speaks of it as 
 the original font of that church. 
 
 % Collectanea Cambrica, p. 178. § Bed. lib. ii. c 2.
 
 281 
 
 It is intimated in the laws of Hywel Dda, that no person 
 could be legally examined on any subject before baptism, 
 because until then he had no name to which to answer.* Ac- 
 cording to the same laws, likewise, the baptized alone were 
 entitled to plight their troth for the ratification of certain 
 bargains and contracts. This privilege was extended even to 
 children of seven years and upwards, if they had passed under 
 the hands of their spiritual pastor.f By the ceremony here 
 mentioned, a person was said to take upon him the yoke of God ; 
 and though its full meaning is not explained, it appears to be 
 a sort of confirmation after an oriental fashion. In the patri- 
 archate of Constantinople, and all the eastern Churches, pres- 
 byters have, from time immemorial, been permitted to confirm ; 
 though confirmation is there administered at an earlier stage 
 of life, even to infants immediately after baptism.^; The Welsh 
 term for confirmation, however, which is " Bedydd Esgob" 
 (bishop's baptism), would imply, that it was always per- 
 formed by a bishop, and that it was considered a completion 
 of baptism. § 
 
 In order to establish the legitimacy of a child, it was neces- 
 sary that his mother should bring him to the church where the 
 burial-place of his father was, and there, with her right hand 
 on the altar aud relics, and the left on his head, swear accord- 
 ingly, first by God, then by the altar and relics, and lastly by 
 the baptism of the child. || 
 
 Sometimes the mind of the Church, at a former period, may 
 be collected from existing superstitions. And here we may 
 remark, that it is still considered "unlucky" by many persons 
 in the Principality, for more than one infant to be baptized in 
 the same water. This feeling seems to militate against the 
 Roman rite, which appoints the water to be changed, and new 
 
 * Wottou's Leges Wallica?, lib. ii. c. 30. t TbvL 
 
 + Origiues Liturgicae, vol. ii. p. 199. 
 
 § Giraldus Cambrensis says, that the whole people of Wales were more eager 
 to obtain episcopal confirmation, and the chrism, by which the spirit was given, 
 than any other nation. || Leges Wallieae, lib. ii. c. 30. 
 
 CC
 
 282 
 
 water to be consecrated, only when that which has been m the 
 font becomes unfit for use; whilst, on the contrary, it is sup- 
 ported by the ancient and immemorial practice of the Churches 
 of Constantinople, Antioch, and the other eastern Churches. 
 
 We may further observe, as indicative of the value in which 
 this sacrament was formerly held by the ancient Britons, 
 that in their writings they almost invariably use the ex- 
 pression," baptized," or, "of baptism," to denote a Christian 
 
 or a believer. g „ 
 
 Concerning the sacrament of the Eucharist, we can coUect , a 
 few hints and observations from Taliesin and Merddin Wylt, 
 in the sixth century. The following stanzas refer both to the 
 original substance of the elements, and the means by which 
 the°y were thought to be consecrated. They seem also to imply 
 communion in both kinds. 
 
 " Of the wheat of blessed privilege, 
 
 And the ruddy wine of free privilege, 
 
 Is made the skilful body 
 
 Of Christ the Son of Alpha. 
 
 " The wafer is the flesh, 
 And the wine is the blood-flowing, 
 And the words of the Trinity 
 Consecrate them."t 
 
 From another passage we infer, that the presence rf a priest 
 was necessary for the due and effectual celebration of this 
 
 sacrament : 
 
 " He is no priest, 
 Who does not bless the wafer." % 
 
 A belief, however, seems to have been entertained, that persons, 
 under peculiar circumstances, might receive the benefits of 
 Christ's death, without partaking of the outward elements in 
 the Supper. § Thus Merddin ; — 
 
 * Origines Liturgies;, vol. ii. p. 186. 
 + Mvv. Arch. vol. i. p. 93. t Ib - P- 23 - 
 
 I It appears as if the soldiers of Bangor Iscoed substituted other materials 
 in their emergency for bread and wine. See page 218.
 
 283 
 
 " I will not receive the communion 
 From the excommunicated monks, 
 With their togte on their haunches ; 
 May God himself administer the communion to me."* 
 
 The same doctrine has prevailed in the English Church from 
 an early period until the present day, as may be learned from 
 the " Salisbury Manual, 11 and the Book of Common Prayer.t 
 
 We learn from an anecdote, which Adamnanus relates of 
 Columba, that a bishop used to break the sacramental bread 
 after a manner peculiar to himself, different from that of a 
 mere presbyter, at least in the Scottish Ohurch.j 
 
 According to Giraldus Oambrensis, the Welsh gave to the 
 poor a part of the bread which was served up at the altar. § 
 
 As long as the ministers of Christianity officiated within the 
 Druidical circles, they would celebrate the Eucharistic mys- 
 teries on the ancient altars, which were of unhewn stones. The 
 early church of Peranzabuloe had " a very neat, but simple, 
 stone altar. 11 ! The altar which Dewi received in Jerusalem is 
 said to be of unknown materials.* Probably it is the same 
 
 * Myv. Arch. vol. i. p. 149. 
 
 f " Deinde communicetur inlirmus, nisi prius communicatus fuerit, et nisi 
 de vomitu, vel alia irreverentia prohabiliter timeatur; in quo casu, dicat 
 sacerdos infirmo : Frater in hoc casu sufficit tihi vera fides, et bona voluntas ; 
 tantum crede, et manducasti." Man. Sarisb. fol. 97. 
 
 " If a man, either by reason of extremity of sickness, or for want of warning 
 in due time to the curate, or for lack of company to receive with him, or by 
 any other just impediment, do not receive the sacrament of Christ's body and 
 blood; the curate shall instruct him, that if he do truly repent him of his sins, 
 and steadfastly believe that Jesus Christ hath suffered upon the cross for him, 
 and shed His blood for his redemption ; earnestly remembering- the benefits 
 he hath thereby, and giving- Him hearty thanks therefore; he doth eat and 
 drink the body and blood of our Saviour Christ profitably to his soul's health, 
 although he do not receive the sacrament with his mouth." Communion of 
 the Sick, Rubric. 
 
 I " Hunc solus episcopus, episcopali ritu, frange panem.'' Vita Sane. 
 Colum. Russell's Hist, of the Church in Scotland, chap. i. 
 
 § See Warrington's Hist, of Wales, p. 117. 
 
 || Collins's Peranzabuloe, p. 28. ^j Liber Landavensis, p. 342. 
 
 CC2
 
 284 
 
 which Gwynvardd Brycheiniog alludes to in his "Song to Dewi,"* 
 
 where he says, — 
 
 " There was sent for him (it is a pleasure to honour it), 
 From heaven's fair mansion of blessed guests, 
 A fair altar." 
 
 The same bard says, moreover, that he had seen at St. David's — 
 " A veil over the altar." 
 
 On the altar were candles, as we conjecture, from a curious 
 remark about bees in the laws ; — "Bees derive their origin from 
 Paradise ; and because of the sin of man did they come from 
 thence, and God conferred on them his blessing ; and therefore 
 mass cannot be chanted without their wax.^f 
 
 It was frequently the custom to swear, to form an agreement 
 or treaty, and to make a grant of property, at the altar, as may 
 be abundantly learned from the " Laws of Hywel Dda," and 
 the " Register of Llandaff."$ 
 
 The Holy Eucharist was even administered to the sick and 
 dying. Thus the decease of Cunedda Wledig is emphatically 
 called his " communion."§ Gwenddydd exhorts her brother 
 Merddin : 
 
 " For the sake of the best supreme Being, 
 To receive the communion before death ;" 
 
 when he returns the answer already quoted. And one of the 
 circumstances under which, according to the Welsh laws, it was 
 allowable for a person to make use of another's goods without 
 being subjected to a fine, provided he made a suitable compen- 
 sation to the owner, was that of a sick man, when any one 
 might take the first horse that offered itself, in order to send 
 for the priest, lest he should die without communion. || 
 
 * Myv. Arch. vol. i. p. 270. 
 
 f Leges WallicK 1 , lib. iii. cap. v. sect. 10. 
 
 % Leges Wallicse et Liber Landavensis, passim. 
 
 § Myv. Arch. vol. i. p. 71. 
 
 || Leges Wallicae, lib. iv. sect. 10.
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 MATRIMONY. 
 
 " Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled ; but whoremongers 
 and adulterers God will judge." — Hebrews xiii. 4. 
 
 According to the Welsh laws, men and women became inde- 
 pendent of parental restraint, and were permitted to marry at 
 fourteen and twelve years of age, respectively.* Sometimes, if 
 not always, the parties were solemnly espoused to each other 
 before marriage ; and when that was the case, the woman in 
 the interim went by the name of " the virgin wife."t The 
 forms and ceremonies used on the occasion are not known, 
 though it is probable, that, in accordance with the usual prac- 
 tice of primitive Christendom, one of them was the bestowal of 
 a ring ; for mention is made in Taliesin of a " ringed virsrin. ,, ± 
 At this time, also, if the woman was a tenant's daughter, 
 her amobrwy, or commutation fee, was paid to the lord of the 
 land ; which fee seems to have originated in the assumed right 
 of the lord of being the guardian and disposer of the virginity 
 of the females in his territories. 
 
 We are equally ignorant of the various rites which attended 
 the celebration of a marriage. Thus much, however, is certain, 
 that the presence of a clergyman, to confer the blessing of the 
 Church upon the parties, was absolutely necessary ; and so 
 
 * Leges Wallicae, lib. ii. cap. xxx. f lb. lib. v. c. iv. sect. 42. 
 
 J "Gentle is thy ringed virgin." My v. Arch. vol. i. p. 28.
 
 286 
 
 marriage is specified as one of the things over which the i ecle- 
 siastical, rather than the civil court, had jurisdiction.* 
 
 The bride, on the first morning after marriage, might claim 
 her cowyll, that is, th< settlement which her husband made on 
 her of goods and chattels, adequate to her rank. And when 
 she afterwards made her appearance abroad, her father was 
 bound to paj her egtoeddi, or dowry, to her husband, f 
 
 There were three reasons for which a wife might Leave her 
 husband, and recover all her property.) The same Dumber of 
 reasons is specified for which a man was permitted t<> beat his 
 wife.§ Nor does il appear that a violation of conjugal faith, or 
 adultery, constituted the Bole cause why a man could be legally 
 divorced from hi- wife.|| Under ordinary circumstances, if a 
 s< paration took place before the expiration of s» > ■ n y< arsl next 
 after marriage, the husband was bound to n Btore to his wit'o 
 her dowry and settlement. I5nt it' it happened subsequently t<> 
 thai period, they were to divide the property equally between 
 them, except where the husband was of superior rank, which 
 
 * Wbtton'a Leg. Wall. lib. ii. cap. 28. No allusions {•< marriage w remoniefl 
 occur in tin.' Blabinogion, <>r ancient Romances of \\ ales. 
 
 f " Tria sunt qua puella padorem incutiant: 1. Primum est, Audire <i 
 patre buo Be illam \in> nuptum dediase. 2. Secondnm t-t, In lectum cum 
 riro buo prima rice intrare, 3. Tertium est. In publicum, postquam cum 
 riro concubuerit, prima \ itt- prodire. Pro primo maritagium (amobnoy) 
 Domino dabitur. Pro Becundo antipberna [covylt) puella dabuntur. Pro 
 tertio pater marito dotem (egweddt) solvet." Ibid. lib. ir. - ct61. 
 
 I "Tree sunt causa ob quas mulier dotem nun amittet, etiamsi \irum 
 dereliquerit : 1. Prima est, Si leprosus merit. 2. Altera, Si mariti officio 
 fungi nun potuerit 3. Tenia est, Si anhelitum tetrum habueriL" Ibid 
 sect l. 
 
 § "Tics sunt causa ob quas riro usorem suam rerberare licebit: 1. Si 
 convicium in ejusbarbam ingesserit 2. si (acinus grave contra ilium patra- 
 Miit [«/, Si bona ejus qua oon debet, alicui dederit]. 3. Si cum riro alieno 
 concubuerit" Ibid sect. 5. 
 
 || Ibid. lib. ii. cap. i. 
 
 IT Did the principle of this period influence the conduct of Bleiddian at all, 
 who became an inmate of the monastery of Lerins after Lc had been married 
 5< pen Tears?
 
 287 
 
 entitled him to a larger share. A woman caught in adultery 
 forfeited her dowry, apparently irrespective of the time she had 
 been married.* A man being separated from his wife, might 
 marry another ; and then she, from whom he was thus sepa- 
 rated, was at liberty to marry also, for no man, it was alleged, 
 ought to have two wives at the same time. In this case, how- 
 ever, it was necessary for him to give his former wife a bill of 
 divorce. f 
 
 It would appear from the laws, that married men were allowed 
 to receive holy orders, though the children born to them sub- 
 sequently were deemed illegitimate, and not entitled to share 
 in the inheritance of their property. The clause on the subject 
 is as follows : — 
 
 " There arc three sons, who ought not to share land with 
 their brothers born of the same mother and the same father. 
 1. The first, &c. 2. The second ; If a scholar should take a 
 wife given to him by his own kindred, and have a son by her, 
 and afterwards that scholar should be admitted into holy 
 orders, and, being a priest, should have another son by the 
 same wife ; the son begotten before the father's ordination 
 ought not to surrender any part of his paternal inheritance 
 to his brother begotten after the ordination, on this account, 
 because he was had contrary to law."J 
 
 We may here not inaptly notice the subject of hereditary 
 succession to benefices, which seems to have prevailed to a 
 great extent in Cymru. The following is the testimony of 
 Giraldus Cambrensis : " Their churches have almost as many 
 parsons and parties as there are principal families in the 
 parish ; the sons, after the death of their fathers, succeed to 
 the ecclesiastical benefices, not by election, but by hereditary 
 
 * Leges Wallicie, lib. ii. cap. i. | Ibid. 
 
 I Al. "There are three sons who are not entitled by law to a share of their 
 father's property. 1. The first; the son of a priest born after his father should 
 bare received holy orders. " 
 
 Al. "There are three sons who may not possess their father's estate. 1. The
 
 288 
 
 right possessing and polluting the sanctuary of God."* In 
 " Liber Landavensis," Bishop Gwgan is said to be, " by here- 
 ditary right, abbot of the dignity of the church of St. Cadoc, at 
 Lancarvan."t We may further remark that in the translation 
 of the " Elucidarius," which was a very popular work among 
 the Welsh in latter times, the original denunciation of the 
 doctrine is entirely omitted. 
 
 son of a priest ; — the son whom a priest might have after he was ordained priest." 
 See lb. lib. iv. sect, clxxxviii. 
 
 Wotton remarks: — " Triadem banc Gulielmus Saleslurius typis edidit Wal- 
 lice et Anglice a.d. 1551, ad probanda matrimonia clericoruin esse legitima. 
 Insulse satis ; cum disertis verbis illic affirmetur ilia esse illegitima. Et hie 
 fait (ut id obiter notem) unicus paragraphia harum leguin ante Excerpta 
 Spelmanniana editus, qua? vir illustrissimus Henrietta Spelmannus ex codice 
 MS t0 viri summi Jokannis Seldeni, nunc magni harum lilerarum Mecenatis 
 ThomcE Saunders Sebright, Baronetti, mendose excripsit et publici juris fecit, 
 a.d. 1639, et poslea in Tomis Conciliorum Labbeauis edita sunt. Vide torn. x. 
 p. 600." 
 
 * Description of Wales, book ii. chap. 6. \ Lib. Land. p. 506
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 BURIAL OF THE DEAD. 
 
 " And when Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, 
 and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock ; and he 
 rolled a great stone to the door of the sepulchre." — Matthew xxvii. 59, 60. 
 
 The Druidical mode of burying the dead, was to enclose them 
 in a cistvaen, or a chest made of four stones, with a large 
 horizontal one for a lid or cover. Sometimes the body was 
 placed in it entire ; sometimes it was burnt, and the ashes de- 
 posited in an urn ; but what circumstance suggested the dis- 
 tinction is not known. Over the cistvaen was erected a high 
 mound, called either a barrow or cairn, according as the mate- 
 rials of which it was composed might have been earth or stones. 
 These tumuli are generally discovered on the summits of moun- 
 tains, or near the sacred inclosures of the Druids. 
 
 This was the usual mode at the commencement of the 
 Christian era. The following notice, which occurs in one of the 
 " Mabinogion," or ancient romances of Wales, indicates that 
 the sister of " Blessed Bran," who first introduced the faith 
 into Britain, was interred after the same fashion : " A square 
 grave was made for Bronwen, daughter of Llyr, on the bank of 
 the river Alaw, and there was she buried. 1 ''* The truth of this 
 tradition was lately most clearly and remarkably established. 
 For in the very spot, which also went by the name of the " Isle 
 of Bronwen," there was found under a carnedd, in a cist of 
 
 * The Mabinogi of Bran Vendigaid.
 
 290 
 
 coarse flags, an urn of ill-baked earth, about a foot high, placed 
 with its mouth downwards, full of ashes, half calcined fragments 
 of bone, and a skull, which appeared to be that of a female.* 
 This occurred in the year 1818 : the urn and its contents were 
 afterwards deposited in the British Museum. 
 
 We are further assured from Englynion y Beddau,t that the 
 practice of interring in Cairns and Barrows on hills and plains, 
 continued, more or less, to the >i\th century. A few stanzas 
 are subjoined : — 
 
 " Win 1 -.- is the tomb on the mountain .' 
 His, who commanded hosts ; 
 It is the tomb ofTeyrnrae] Bad ab Hywlydd. 
 
 u Whose is the tombon the tide of the hill J 
 Many who know DOl put the qn< Btion ; — 
 It is the tomb ofCoel bod ofCynyelyn. 
 
 '• Whose is the tomb on yon declivity? 
 
 His, whose band had prored hostile to many ; — 
 The Bull of Conflict, may he obtain mercy. 
 
 M Whose is the tomb under the I'M 
 It is the tomb of a warrior in Cyvysgyn, 
 The tomb of Cynou son of Clyilno Eiddyn.] 
 
 " Those three tombs on tlic ridge ■■/ Cdvi, 
 I am informed by the voice of song, 
 Are, the tomb of Llinon of awful vengeance, 
 The tomb of Cynvael, and the tomb of Cynyeri. 
 
 " The tomb of the son of Osvran§ is in Camlan, 
 After much slaughter ; — 
 The tomb of Bedwirjl is on the steep of Tryvan. 
 
 * A full account of the discovery was furnished by Sir R. C. Hoare, who 
 visited the place soon after, and is given in the M Cambro-Briton," ii. 71. 
 
 f Myv. Arch. vol. i. p. 79. 
 
 X A chief of North Britain, and one of the three counselling warriors of 
 Arthur. 
 
 § Osvran was a chieftain who lived about the end of the fifth century. 
 
 || He lived in the former part of the sixth century, and is styled the supreme 
 of the three crowned chiefs of battle.
 
 291 
 
 " Whose is the tomb on the great plain ? 
 His, whose hand was proud of the martial blade ; — 
 It is the tomb of Beli ab Benlli Gawr."* 
 
 Nor were they all warriors who were thus buried after the 
 establishment of Christianity, as the following stanza will prove : 
 
 " In the tombs on the beach, which have but few ornaments, 
 Are Sanant, chaste virgin ; Rhun, foremost in the war; 
 Carwen, daughter of Cennyn ; Lledyn, and Lly wy." 
 
 The cistvaen was likewise retained to a late period, as may be 
 inferred from the following notice : — 
 
 " The grave of Owain ab Urien is quadrangular, 
 Beneath the sward of Llan Morvael ; — 
 Rhydderch Hael lies in Abererch."f 
 
 There is here also an allusion to the custom of burying in 
 churches or churchyards. And the same may be corroborated 
 by other stanzas out of the same poem ; as : — 
 
 " The grave of Ceri with the long sword is in the confine of old church, 
 In the gravelly cliff; — 
 The Bull of Conflict is in the churchyard of Corbie. 
 
 " Having worn robes of brown, red, and white colour, 
 And ridden fine and handsome steeds, 
 Owain has his grave in Llanhelcdd." 
 
 So also Llywarch Hen : — 
 
 " The churches of Bassa are enriched this night, 
 Containing the departed remains 
 Of the pillar of battle, the heart of the men of Argoed. 
 
 " The churches of Bassa afford space this night, 
 To the progeny of Cyndrwyn : — 
 The grave-house of fair Cynddylan." 
 
 The bard intimates that wooden coffins were used in his day for 
 the reception of the dead : — 
 
 * Seep. 108. I P. 1:30.
 
 " My heart bon it throbs with mis. ry 
 That the black boards Bhould be joined, to inclose 
 The fair flesh ofCynddylan, the foremost in a hundred hosts.'* 
 
 Taliesin Likewise alludes to the same practice: — 
 
 ■• My bed will be made in gravel, and 1 ■< * 1 1 1 my hands will be bound up; 
 A pillar of stone will be laid under my bead, ami a oov« imu r of wood 
 inclose i 
 
 It would appear that the relatives of the deceased accompa- 
 nied him as far as the grave, for Taliesin immediately adds: — 
 
 " M \ relations will leave me there t" be devoured by toads, 
 And wil! rob me of my worldly u • >■ »■ 1 s, and eov< r me with earUVf 
 
 It is not unlikely that the dead were sometimes buried inside 
 of the church. Three skeletons were found under the altar of 
 Peranzabuloe one of which was thought t<> be that of Piranus, 
 the patron saint of the church.} Taliesin, and tin- author of 
 " Englynion y Beddau," speak of the mynwent as a burying 
 place. But in the truth century the prop< r receptacle "l' the 
 (had was an inclosure, which encompassed the mynwent, and 
 was called corflan, as we have 1" fore remarked in chap. x. 
 
 In the same era familit a had their respective places or rights 
 of sepulture, as the laws of Hywel Dda signify. And the same 
 authority informs us further that in <•< rtain cases it was di 
 sary to swear ov< r the grave of a p rson.§ 
 
 We are not able here to delineate the order and substance 
 of the funeral service which may have been formerly used by the 
 Christians of Cvmru. 
 
 * Elegy on Cynddylan ah Cyndrwyn, a prince of that part of ancient Powys 
 that is comprehended in the vale of Shrewsbury, which town was the place of 
 his residence. He lived about the middle of the sixth century. 
 
 f Myv. Arch. vol. i. p. 100. 
 
 ► Collins's Peranzabuloe, p. 29, and appendix, Xo. vi. The feet of the three 
 were turned towards the east, and their skulls were all found deposited between 
 the legs of one which appeared to be a female. 
 
 § Leges Wallica:, lib. ii. cap. xxx. and cap. iv.
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 ORDINATION. 
 
 "Then said Jesus to them again, Peace he unto you: as my Father hath 
 sent me, even so send I you." — John xx. 21. 
 
 A FEW hints upon the ordinal of the early Church of Britain, 
 may be gained from Gildas.* We there learn that the lessons 
 were taken from the first and second chapters of the First Epistle 
 of St. Peter. And it is worthy of remark that they are dif- 
 ferent from those prescribed by the Church of Rome. That 
 part of the first chapter of the Acts which treats of the election 
 of Matthias in the room of Judas, the third chapter of St. Paul's 
 First Epistle to Timothy, and a portion of the sixteenth 
 chapter of St. Matthew about the confession of Peter, and the 
 security of the Church, are also mentioned as having been read 
 on the day of ordination. But whether they are to be confined 
 to the ordination of priests, or are partly applicable to the 
 ordering of deacons, and the consecration of bishops also, may 
 be a question. The letter of Gildas seems to refer them to one 
 and the same service, if there be no qualification in his remark 
 about tho first chapter of the Acts, " audistis forte in codem 
 die." It may be observed that a portion of the third chapter 
 of the First Epistle to Timothy, formed the Lesson employed 
 in the consecration of a bishop " secundum Gallos," and also 
 according to the " mos Romance ecclesia? ;" and that it has 
 been read as the Epistle in the Church of England for more 
 
 * Epist. Gild. sect. 100, &c.
 
 294 
 
 than a thousand years.* Likewise, the passage beginning at 
 the eighth verse of the same chapter \a still used ae the Epistle 
 in the Anglican office for the ordering of deacons. These 
 circumstances would induce us to believe that Gildas meant to 
 comprehend the three ord\ ra of the ministry together, and for 
 that purpose alluded ^discriminatory to the different rituals 
 which were used on the occasion of their respective ordinations. 
 
 We arc further informed, thai the candidates f«>r holy orders 
 stood near the altar in church, and that their hands were 
 anointed with consecrated oil. 
 
 John of Teignmouth says, thai the only ceremonies used in 
 the consecrating of bishops in Britain in the sixth century were 
 the infusion of -acred chrism on their heads, with invocation 
 of the II. »K Spirit, benediction, and imposition ofhands.f 
 
 * Martene, <!<■ antiq. eccl. Ritibua, ii. •'>:', '2. Ms. sacramentary of Leofric, 
 bishop of Exeter, in the Bodleian library, fol. 278, 
 f Johann. Timai. spud I sher, p :
 
 CHAPTER XXIV 
 
 FESTIVALS AND FASTS. 
 " I must by all means keep this feast that cometh in Jerusalem." — Acts xviii. 21. 
 
 According to the Triads,* there were "three principal festivals, 
 Christmas, Easter, and Whit-Sunday," which were celebrated 
 with demonstrations of great joy, particularly in the "three 
 principal courts of Arthur, at Cacrleon upon Usk in Cymru, 
 Cclliwig in Cornwall, and Penryn Rhionydd in the north." 
 
 The Cymry prolonged their Christmas festivities for twelve 
 days. Thus Aneurin, in his stanza on the month of December, 
 observes : — 
 
 " Merry is the cock, and the owl, 
 For twelve days, is sprightly, 
 Because the spoiler of Satan is born."-f 
 
 Hector Boethius says of Arthur, that he kept a profane 
 Christmas with his nobles at York, for thirteen days ; and that 
 such jollity and feasting at that season had their origin from 
 him.! Upon which Buchanan remarks, that the old Saturnalia 
 were renewed, only the days were increased, and Saturn's name 
 changed to Ciesar's, for the feast was called Julia.§ This 
 attempt to account for the name is preposterous, as is also that 
 which derives it from lola, which in the Gothic language sig- 
 nifies to make merry. It so happens, however, that to this 
 
 * Tr. 58, first series ; iii. third scries. f Myv. Arch. vol. i. p. 16. 
 
 I Hist. Scot. lib. ix. Stillingllcct's Orig. Britann. p. .'312. 
 § Buch. 1. v. p. 14.
 
 296 
 
 very day, Christmas tide is emphatically styled by the Welsh, 
 Y Gwyliau, or " the holidays,"" in reference to its length and 
 religious character. And there can be no doubt that this was 
 the name which it originally bore, and which has puzzled so 
 many persons to explain. It seems also as reasonable to sup- 
 pose that the Saxons in Britain would call December Giuli 
 from this circumstance, as from Ghil, which in Gothic means a 
 " wheel, 11 or anything " that turns round, 11 in reference to the 
 sun and the increase of days.* 
 
 The feast of Easter was observed by the Cymry on the four- 
 teenth day of the moon of March, the anniversary of the Jewish 
 passover, on whatever day of the week it might happen to fall. 
 This might be expected from their preference of St. John, and 
 it is moreover pretty clearly proved by the following entry 
 in " Annales Menevensis,' 1 which seems to record the discon- 
 tinuance or alteration of the custom. — A.D. 755 : " Pascha com- 
 mutata apud Britones super diem Dominicam, emendante El- 
 bodo/'t " Easter was changed to Sunday by the correction of 
 Elvod." As the Scots, though they differed from the Roman 
 Catholics in their method of calculating the paschal season, yet 
 always celebrated the festival on the Lord's day,:}: the latter 
 must have alluded to the Cymry, or their party in Ireland,§ 
 when they write to the bishops and abbots of that country : 
 " We have found certain persons of your province, in opposition 
 to the orthodox faith, endeavouring to renew an old heresy, 
 rejecting in a cloudy darkness our Easter, on which Christ was 
 sacrificed, and striving to celebrate it with the Hebrews, on the 
 fourteenth day of the moon."|| 
 
 We have already noticed the disturbances which attended the 
 attempt to alter Easter day. Nor does the question seem to 
 
 * Bed. de ratione Temp, c. 13. Loccenius, Antiq. Suec. Goth. 1. i. c. v. 
 Stillingfleet, p. 342. 
 
 -f- No. 836, MSS. Har. Brit. Museum. + Beda, Hist. Eccl. lib. iii. c. 25. 
 
 § The second order of saints in Ireland, who received their missal from Dewi, 
 Gildas, and Cattwg, are said to have observed Easter on the fourteenth day of 
 the moon after the equinox. — Usher, p. 474. 
 
 II Bed. lib. ii. c. 19.
 
 297 
 
 have been finally settled for several years afterwards ; for we 
 read in the Greek life of St. Chrysostom, that certain clergy 
 who dwelt in the isles of the ocean, and the utmost borders of 
 the habitable world, repaired to Constantinople, in the days of 
 Methodius, who was patriarch there from the year 842 to 847, 
 to inquire of certain ecclesiastical traditions, and the perfect 
 and exact computation of Easter.* As the ancient Britons are 
 here undoubtedly meant, it has been justly inferred that a secret 
 preference of the Greek Church to the Roman, in regard to the 
 right of determining in this particular point, still lurked among 
 them. 
 
 Emrys Wledig and Arthur are especially recorded as having 
 held a plenary court in honour of the feast of Whitsuntide. f 
 
 According to the laws of Hywel Dda, the twenty- four officers 
 of the royal household were entitled to receive woollen cloth 
 from the king, and linen from the queen, for their wearing 
 apparel, at Christmas, Easter, and Whitsuntide.^ 
 
 A fine was imposed upon whoever slandered a priest whilst 
 ministering in his robes at the altar, on one of the three princi- 
 pal festivals. § 
 
 No law proceedings were held at these seasons ; that is to 
 say, from Christmas Eve after vespers until New Year's Day 
 after mass, from Easter Eve after sunrise until the Lesser 
 Easter after mass, and from the Eve of Whitsunday after 
 vespers, until Trinity Sunday after mass. || 
 
 In the Welsh laws, mention is made of Holy Thursday or 
 Ascension Day. Also of the feasts of St. Mary, Michael, John 
 the Evangelist, John the Baptist (beheaded), Luke, All Saints, 
 Padrig, Dewi, Teilaw, Curig, Ffraid, and Martin.1T 
 
 * Usher's Religion of the Ancient Irish, ch. x. pp. 110, 111. 
 f Brut. G. ab Arthur. % Wotton's Leges Wallicse, lib. i. c. ii. 
 
 § lb. lib. iv. 113, 258. || lb. lib. ii. c. 4. 
 
 ^1 St. Martin is mentioned in " Englynion y Clyweid," (llw. Arch. vol. i. 
 p. 172): 
 
 " Hast thou heard the saying of Martin, 
 A saint who conferred privilege upon the people? 
 Except God there is no prophet." 
 
 DD
 
 298 
 
 In Aneurin's Odes of the Months, under September, we have 
 a reference to the nativity of the Blessed Virgin, thus :— 
 
 " A royal maid is born, 
 Who has brought us from our grievous bondage." * 
 
 Some of t^e native saints had fest ; vals appointed to their 
 honour at a very early period ; thus, for instance, we read of 
 King Ina celebiatmg t^e feast o* DeA-i at Bangor about 
 a.d. 690, roi a hundred and fifty years after his death, t 
 
 We learn from Constantius, that Lent was observed in 
 Wales, as a preparation for baptism and the feast of Easter, 
 at the time when Grarmon and Bleiddian were o\er4 Dyvrig 
 corrected the irregularities of Cor Illtyd in the season of 
 Lent.§ Hywel Dcla and Irs council adapted themselves for 
 their rational task at Ty Gwyn a- Dav by a due performance 
 of t^e Lenten exercises. || It appears from the laws which were 
 then passed, that the king and queen did some sort of penance 
 in Lent ; fo«: it is there exacted, that their chaplains should 
 have the penitential robes which they respectively v\ore on the 
 
 occasion.^ 
 
 From a singular coincidence before alluded to,** it would 
 seem that the consecration of ground for the erection of churches 
 usually took place in Lent. Indeed, the time occupied, which 
 was forty days, and the manner adopted, namely, by fasting, if 
 
 * Myv. Arch. vol. i. p. 16. It will be observed that this was some centuries 
 before churches began to be dedicated to the Blessed Virgin in Cymru. See 
 page 184. 
 
 | Powel's Hist, of Cumbria, p. 10. If the poem ascribed to Golyddan were 
 genuine, it would prove that, in about a century after the death of Dewi, a 
 belief was current that he was possessed of miraculous powers. Mr. Sharon 
 Turner, however, in his " Vindication of the Ancient British Poems," p 269, 
 supposes the said composition to have been written in the eighth century. 
 
 % Constant, lib. i. c. 28. 
 
 § Liber Landavensis, p. 326. 
 
 || Myv. Arch. vol. iii. p. 361. 
 
 f Leges Wallicae, lib. i. c. 13. c 29. 
 ** Page 182.
 
 299 
 
 not suggested by this season, would naturally fix upon it as the 
 most proper and best adapted for the purpose.* 
 
 Welsh documents mention, moreover, the " Lent of Mary 1 ' 
 and the " Lent of the Apostles," which would seem to cor- 
 respond with the " Lent of the Assumption of the Blessed 
 Virgin" and the " Lent of the Apostles St. Peter and St. 
 Paul," in the Greek Church. 
 
 The following Triad, in reference to Lent and Christmas, is 
 interesting : " Three things with which God is not well 
 pleased ; a man not improving his conduct in Lent, not in- 
 creasing his labour in the harvest, and not bettering his diet at 
 Chi-'stmas/'f 
 
 The Cymry observed e^ery Sunday as a festival; and, 
 according to Crufydd Maredudd, a.d. 1310 to 1360 : the follow- 
 ing events were believed to have taken place on that day : — 
 the creation of the angels ; the landing of Noah ; the deliver- 
 ance of the Israelites out of Egypt ; the fall of the manna ; the 
 birth of Christ ; his baptism ; his resurrection ; his bringing 
 Adam out of hell ; turning the water into wine ; and feed- 
 ing the five thousand with five loaves and two fishes. It was 
 also supposed that the final judgment would happen on the 
 same day4 
 
 Jn an anonymous poem of one of the earliest bards, we have 
 the following observations in reference to Sunday. 
 
 Quest. " Is it good to have a Sunday service ? " 
 Ans. " If thou canst obtain a Sunday service, 
 
 And the grace of God afterwards, 
 
 Blessed art thou in consequence." 
 Q. " What if I am without it ? " 
 A. " If thou be without the words of learning 
 
 On a Sunday, when there is no just cause or necessity, 
 
 Smile rot uutil the following Sunday."§ 
 
 * It is said that disciples were instructed in music during the season of 
 Lent. — See Jones's Relics of the Welsh Bards, p. 86. 
 
 f Myv. Arch. vol. iii. p. 133. J lb. vol. i. p. 459. 
 
 § lb. vol. i. p. 178. 
 
 dd2
 
 300 
 
 They appear also to have had their weekly fast, which was 
 Friday. Thus an early bard : — 
 
 " Thou didst mii on a Friday."* 
 
 It was certainly the case in later times : — 
 
 "Woe to the glutton who will be tempted t" eat on Fridaj»."f 
 
 Taliesin complains of a disorderly sei of poets, who neglected 
 to pay due honour to the days of the church : — 
 
 " They will not worship on Sundays and holidays.''} 
 
 Wo have already Been how Joseph, l>i<h<>p of Llandaff, 
 a.d. 10,'io. forbade tin- performance of any secular employment* 
 on such da] s, and corrected the abuses <>l' the parochial wak 
 
 Hie compositions of the bards, the chronicles, and the laws 
 of Wales, abundantly signify that the Cymry frequently dated 
 occurrences by their fasts and festivals. Sometimes a period- 
 ical circumstance imparted it< own name to the holiday on or 
 about which it happened. Thus the day of .John Baptist 
 beheaded (August L'!'.) was Btyled "the feast <»t' .J<>]m of the 
 swills it wood,* 1 because it was usual at that time of tin: year 
 to send th-' pi_r< t" !'• i d upon acorns in the oaken groves. || 
 
 * My?. Arch. vol. i. p. I - 
 
 f ll>. p. 617. A poem bj Graiadd a!> yi Yna.l Coch, a.d. 1260— I 
 
 J I1-. p. 26. 
 
 § Page 161. VY" •. :. Leges Wallicse, Glossar. 
 
 [Calendar. 1
 
 JANUARY. 
 
 FEBRUARY. 
 
 1 
 
 Circumcision. Medwyn, 2 Maelerw, 
 
 1 
 
 Fraid 
 
 
 
 [Gwynodl, Tyvrydog, Machraith 
 
 2 
 
 Purification of the Blessed Virgin 
 
 3 
 
 Gwenog 
 
 3 
 
 Meirion 
 
 4 
 
 
 4 
 
 
 5 
 
 
 5 
 
 
 6 
 
 Epiphany. Merin, Edeym, Ulched 
 
 6 
 
 
 7 
 
 
 7 
 
 Illtyd, Augulus, Moses 9 
 
 8 
 
 
 8 
 
 
 9 
 
 
 9 
 
 Einion, Teilo 
 
 10 
 
 
 10 
 
 
 11 
 
 Llwchhaiarn 
 
 11 
 
 Cynog 
 
 12 
 
 
 12 
 
 
 13 
 
 Cyndeyrn 
 
 13 
 
 Dyvnog 
 
 14 
 
 Beuno 3 
 
 14 
 
 
 15 
 
 Lleuddad 
 
 15 
 
 
 16 
 
 
 16 
 
 
 17 
 
 
 17 
 
 
 18 
 
 
 18 
 
 Edward 9 
 
 19 
 
 
 19 
 
 
 20 
 
 
 20 
 
 
 21 
 
 
 21 
 
 
 22 
 
 
 22 
 
 
 23 
 
 
 23 
 
 Milburgio 
 
 24 
 
 Cadog ab Brvchan, Sophias 4 
 
 24 
 
 St Matthias the Apostle. Cattwe 
 
 25 
 
 ( bn version of St . Paul, lhvy n wen 
 
 25 
 
 [Ddoeth 
 
 26 
 
 
 26 
 
 
 27 
 
 Palladius* 
 
 27 
 
 
 28 
 
 Gildas Badonicus 8 
 
 ^s 
 
 Llibio 
 
 29 
 
 (iililus ab Caw T 
 
 
 
 SO 
 
 Tybie 
 
 
 
 31 
 
 Tyssul, Aeddaa Vbeddog 
 
 
 
 MARCH. 
 
 APRIL. 
 
 1 
 
 Dewi, > 
 
 i 
 
 
 2 
 
 Gwrthwl 
 
 o 
 
 
 3 
 
 Nun, Winwaloc" 
 
 3 
 
 
 4 
 
 
 4 
 
 
 5 
 
 Caron 
 
 5 
 
 Dervel 
 
 6 
 
 
 6 
 
 
 7 
 
 1 )i i\ er 
 
 7 
 
 Bernarcb, or Brynach 
 
 8 
 
 Khiau 
 
 8 
 
 9 
 
 10 
 
 Dyvan 
 
 9 
 10 
 
 
 
 11 
 
 
 11 
 
 
 12 
 
 
 12 
 
 
 13 
 
 
 13 
 
 
 14 
 
 
 l l 
 
 
 15 
 
 Aristobulus 
 
 15 
 
 Padara" 
 
 16 
 
 
 10 
 
 
 17 
 
 Padrig, Joseph of AriinatWa 19 
 
 17 
 
 
 18 
 
 Edward 
 
 18 
 
 
 19 
 
 Cynbryd 
 
 19 
 
 
 21) 
 
 
 20 
 
 
 21 
 
 
 21 
 
 Beuno'* 
 
 22 
 
 
 22 
 
 
 23 
 
 
 23 
 
 Dyvnan 
 
 24 
 
 Timotheus" 
 
 24 
 
 
 25 
 
 Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin 
 
 25 
 
 St. Mark the Evangelist 
 
 26 
 
 
 26 
 
 
 27 
 
 
 27 
 
 
 28 
 
 
 28 
 
 
 29 
 
 Gwynllyw Vilwr 
 
 29 
 
 Senan 
 
 30 
 
 30 
 
 Cynwyl, Brioc 
 
 31 
 

 
 MAY. 
 
 j r n i ■:. 
 
 1 
 
 St. riiilip and St. James, Apostle* 
 
 i 
 
 
 
 2 
 
 
 2 
 
 Dodvan 
 
 
 3 
 
 
 3 
 
 Cwyren 
 
 
 4 
 
 
 4 
 
 
 
 s 
 
 
 5 
 
 Tndno 
 
 
 c 
 
 
 6 
 
 i lodind 
 
 
 7 
 
 
 7 
 
 
 
 8 
 
 
 8 
 
 
 
 9 
 
 Bed . 
 
 9 
 
 
 
 in 
 
 
 10 
 
 UllV.llW 1 
 
 
 11 
 
 
 11 
 
 St. Barnabas, .!/«■»//< 
 
 
 19 
 
 
 I.' 
 
 
 
 18 
 
 M.i< 1. Bnlien 
 
 13 
 
 
 
 14 
 
 
 14 
 
 ;• 1 
 
 
 is 
 
 I'.i.lam" 
 
 15 
 
 ( !onaid 
 
 
 16 
 
 ( Sana 
 
 16 
 
 Trillo, < 
 
 
 17 
 
 ( 'allian 
 
 17 
 
 lijlUn 
 
 
 18 
 
 
 18 
 
 
 
 19 
 
 
 19 
 
 
 
 •_'n 
 
 Coll. II 
 
 90 
 
 I'a.larn.'" Bdwud 
 
 
 91 
 
 ( "\ fU ;. 
 
 91 
 
 
 
 99 
 
 
 
 All.:. 
 
 
 93 
 
 
 
 
 
 - i 
 
 1 > ran, 1 
 
 94 
 
 Afa/tl - ■ .' /in lh< Hi/ 
 
 list 
 
 95 
 
 
 
 Amphibalaa* 1 
 
 
 96 
 
 Lies bapl 
 
 26 
 
 1 
 
 
 97 
 
 Melange 11 
 
 i: 
 
 John* 1 
 
 
 96 
 
 
 28 
 
 
 
 99 
 
 1) V ig 
 
 29 
 
 si. r, 
 
 
 :{(i 
 
 
 30 
 
 
 
 :tl 
 
 
 
 
 
 JULY. 
 
 1 
 
 A li 11 ST. 
 
 
 1 
 
 Jul ua, Aaron 
 
 Elined, Win 
 
 
 o 
 
 ( ludoceofl 
 
 2 
 
 
 
 8 
 
 Voadin 
 
 3 
 
 
 
 4 
 
 
 4 
 
 
 
 5 
 
 
 5 
 
 C itho" 
 
 
 i 
 
 B irvyl 
 
 6 
 
 
 
 7 
 
 
 7 
 
 Clardfc 
 
 
 8 
 
 
 8 
 
 1 . Ily.li.in. [Dog 
 
 
 '.i 
 
 
 9 
 
 
 
 10 
 
 
 10 
 
 
 
 11 
 
 
 11 
 
 Lhvni, Martin 
 
 
 12 
 
 
 19 
 
 
 
 13 
 
 Dogran 
 
 13 
 
 
 
 14 
 
 
 11 
 
 
 
 15 
 
 
 15 
 
 
 
 16 
 
 
 16 
 
 
 
 17 
 
 Cjrallo Vrenhin 
 
 17 
 
 
 
 18 
 
 
 18 
 
 Bkn 
 
 
 19 
 
 
 19 
 
 aydog.Moehta" 
 
 
 90 
 
 
 20 
 
 
 
 91 
 
 
 21 
 
 
 
 22 
 
 Alban" 
 
 22 
 
 Gwyddelan 
 
 
 93 
 
 
 93 
 
 TviU vl. Justinian 
 
 
 24 
 
 
 94 
 
 B iriUnhnncic the Apostle 
 
 
 2.5 
 
 St. Jamet the ApotA. Cyndeyro 
 
 25 
 
 
 
 96 
 
 lVris [ub Arthog, Moideyrn 
 
 26 
 
 
 
 27 
 
 
 2: 
 
 lan 
 
 
 28 
 
 S;unson 
 
 28 
 
 Ins," Melonta 
 
 
 29 
 
 Bleiddian 
 
 29 
 
 •> 
 
 
 30 
 
 
 30 
 
 
 
 31 
 
 Gannon 
 
 .;i 
 

 
 SEP'lEMBEtt. 
 
 OCTOBER. 
 
 1 
 
 Sulien 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 2 
 
 
 2 
 
 
 
 3 
 
 Mansuetus 36 
 
 3 
 
 
 
 4 
 
 Khuddlad, Marcellus'' 
 
 4 
 
 
 
 5 
 
 
 5 
 
 Cynhaval 
 
 
 6 
 
 
 6 
 
 
 
 7 
 
 Dunod 
 
 7 
 
 Cynog 
 
 
 8 
 
 Nativity of Virgin Mary 
 
 8 
 
 Ceinwen, Ceneu 
 
 
 9 
 
 Aelrhiw 
 
 9 
 
 Cadw: )adr 
 
 
 10 
 
 
 10 
 
 
 
 11 
 
 
 11 
 
 
 
 12 
 
 
 12 
 
 
 
 13 
 
 
 13 
 
 
 
 14 
 
 Tecwyn 
 
 14 
 
 
 
 15 
 
 
 15 
 
 Tudur, Brothcn, TtvLi '' 
 
 
 16 
 
 
 16 
 
 
 
 17 
 
 
 17 
 
 
 
 18 
 
 
 18 
 
 St. Lvke the Evangelist 
 
 
 19 
 
 
 19 
 
 
 
 20 
 
 
 20 
 
 
 
 21 
 
 St Matthew the Apostle 
 
 21 
 
 Llyr, U.-sula" 
 
 
 22 
 
 
 22 
 
 Mello, Cordula 
 
 
 23 
 
 Tecla" 
 
 23 
 
 
 
 24 
 
 
 24 
 
 Cadvarch 
 
 
 25 
 
 Caian 
 
 25 
 
 
 
 26 
 
 El van 
 
 26 
 27 
 28 
 
 C W} DO 
 
 
 28 
 
 
 SI. Si iiidii and Juilc, Aposths 
 
 
 29 
 
 St. Michael the Archangel 
 
 i".i 
 
 
 
 30 
 
 Nidan 
 
 30 
 
 Issui 
 
 
 NOVEMBER. 
 
 DECEMBER. 
 
 1 
 
 III s.,,„i,,lny. Clydwyn, Dinpad, Clydai, < '.11- 
 
 1 
 
 Gfwst 
 
 
 2 
 
 «.-n, (.i\.n'\i, Gwyn, Gwynno, Gwynnoro, 
 ( «-i\ : hi, Padarn, A.eihaiani, 
 
 2 
 
 Llechid 
 
 
 3 
 
 Cynddluc, Dona, Gwryd, Cedoi, Uorhaiara, 
 Crittioliu, Owenrrewi [Bhwydi/i 
 
 3 
 
 Lies 
 
 
 4 
 
 Dyvrig 
 
 4 
 
 I'.iik Tit a 31 
 
 
 5 
 
 Gwenvaen 
 
 5 
 
 ( law rdav 
 
 
 6 
 
 ( 'vlii. Bdwen, Winoc 
 
 6 
 
 
 
 7 
 
 ( \ avarwy, Jlltyd 
 
 7 
 
 
 
 8 
 
 '1\ ssilio 
 
 8 
 
 
 
 9 
 
 Pabo 
 
 9 
 
 
 
 10 
 
 ElaeLh 
 
 10 
 
 Deiniol 
 
 
 11 
 
 Rhediw, Martin 
 
 11 
 
 ( ian 
 
 
 12 
 
 
 12 
 
 
 
 13 
 
 Gredivael 
 
 13 
 
 ( fwynau, Gwynws 
 
 
 14 
 
 Meilig 
 
 14 
 
 
 
 IS 
 
 Cynvab, Macloviiu 
 
 15 
 
 
 
 16 
 
 Avail Buallt 
 
 16 
 
 
 
 17 
 
 
 17 
 
 Tydecho 
 
 
 18 
 
 
 18 
 
 
 
 19 
 
 Lluvdiaii 
 
 19 
 
 
 
 20 
 
 ( lelynin, Edmund" 
 
 20 
 
 
 
 21 
 
 Digain 
 
 21 
 
 Si. Thomat tl« Apostle 
 
 
 22 
 
 I'uliii Esgob 
 
 22 
 
 
 
 23 
 
 1 leinioli o 
 
 23 
 
 .Jntliwara 
 
 
 2J 
 
 
 24 
 
 
 
 2."> 
 
 
 25 
 
 Christmas Day 
 
 
 26 
 
 Ti ilo 
 
 26 
 
 si. Stephen the Martyr. Mai 
 
 thin 
 
 27 
 
 Gallgo 
 
 27 
 
 si. John tin' Evangelist 
 
 
 28 
 
 
 28 
 
 The Iloli/ Innocents 
 
 
 29 
 
 Baruolt 
 
 29 
 
 
 
 30 
 
 si. Andrew the Aposlle 
 
 10 
 
 Maelog, 88 ( twynnin 

 
 3«i4 
 
 NOTES 'in TIIK CALENDAR 
 i We hai Mints in the calendar which m 
 
 With the amiiiit liriti-h ( 'liunli. though tli. y il" n- -t appear in th 
 
 the Saints." Wt have also oompl oar Lord, 
 
 spostles, and added .-ill the other red-letter days which ere -till ia the 
 
 Church of England. 
 ' Supposed to be I 
 
 ■ 
 d 1 1 \ uiothi • 
 1 A Rom 
 
 I 
 
 II will I 
 I 
 
 'Of. 
 
 - \..ii -Hint, to whoa tl 
 cated: c 
 
 I A \ir-iii ; ft] An! of Llamilo, 
 
 i nockshire. 
 
 II A Britiah saint, who settled i '. B mn m em o r ated on this 
 day, and his translation to the Blandin I latl. 
 
 Apostle >'t" the B 
 
 D of Pud< • —lb, 
 
 ** The anniversar) of his death. 
 
 I. 
 
 I inverted in Britain, aft 
 T Sir Han '■ - I 
 u In remembrance "t" his i 
 Jliean Mart] rol 
 
 • I : - 
 
 \ Britiah saint in i I etsy. 
 
 -- I jliah ftiart] rol 
 
 immemorati v - . 1. 
 
 ah saint in Ireland Si Padrig. — Crmg. 
 
 A rv to the Picts. — Il>. 
 
 \. Caledonian Briton ; diacip - lopof 
 
 Ti'ul. in Lorrain. — lb. 
 '-" A Briton; bishop of Tongrees and Triers.— lb. 
 - t Harris Nicolas's Chronol 
 1. b Saints. 
 
 I rsula, daughter of Dionatos, prince of CornwalL She was martyred with 
 i thousand virgins, one of whom wasCordnla, commemorated on the following 
 day. — Crest 
 ••' King of the East An J. <. end patron saint of Crick 1. 
 
 M Sister of Lies ; mart] n il at Trimas, near Curia. — C 
 
 51 The compiler of a " 1 1 1 itory of A lya that the festival of - 
 
 D 30.
 
 S05 
 
 The wakes of the following could not be inserted in the 
 calendar, being either uncertain or moveable : — Mwrog, Janu- 
 ary or 15; Gwynio. March or May 2; Gwyrvarn, Trinity 
 Sunday; Ellyw. the Sunday next before the 1st of August 
 (O.S.); Elian, in the month of August: and Rhystud, the 
 Tuesday before Christmas. 
 
 Upwards of one hundred and sixty of the foregoing may be 
 considered more especially the saints of Cymru, their connection 
 with it being well authenticated, and the pedigrees of most of 
 them indubitably established. 
 
 The nanus of about three hundred additional saints occur 
 in different catalogues, most of whom, as founders of churches, 
 were honoured with parochial festivals, though the dates of 
 their observance have not been ascertained by the writer of the 
 present work. 
 
 It is suggested by Professor Bees that gnat assistance in 
 rtaining and verifying the commemorations may be derived 
 from a list of village fairs, which are often held in the princi- 
 pality on the Saint's day, old Btyle. For instance, we learn 
 from a catalogue of Saints in the Cambrian Register, as well as 
 from Sir Harris Nicolas's Calendar, that the festival of Gwenog 
 should be held on the 3rd of January; eleven dayst being added 
 to that date, will point out to Jan. 14, the day upon which, 
 trding to the Welsh almanacks, a fair is held at Llanwenog, 
 in the county of Cardigan. By inverting the computation, he 
 says, a satisfactory method is obtained of deciding between con- 
 tradictory statements; thus, according to the list in the Cam- 
 brian Register, the festival of Tyssul was kept on the 3rd 
 of February, while Sir II. Nicolas mentions January 31. A 
 fair, however, is held at Llandyssul, Cardiganshire, February 11 ; 
 and eleven davs, reckoned backwards from that time, will brincr 
 the calculation to January 31, proving the last of the two statc- 
 
 * Sec Re< afa Welsh Saints. 
 
 t The Welsh peasantry have seldom t;ikcn into account, that since the year 
 the discrepancy between the old and new styles has increased to twelve 
 days.
 
 306 
 
 mcnts to be the coirect one. Again, Sir H. Nicolas assigns the 
 festival of Caron to March 4 or 5, as if his authorities were 
 doubtful as to the precise time; but eleven days, counted back- 
 wards from a fair at Tregaron '>n the Kith of March, will show- 
 that the commemoration of the Saint ought t«> be kept March 
 the 5th.* 
 
 We infer from the reform which was brought about in the 
 beginning <>.' the eleventh century by Joseph, bishop of Llan- 
 daff, thai the manner in which tin-' festivals or wakes were 
 originally celebrated, was "by pra}er to Gtod, charity, alms- 
 giving, and a due i uremoration of God and hi- Baints, and of 
 
 their praiseworthy deeds.**! 
 
 All the aaintfl of I lymru, of whom we have any account, lived 
 prior to the eighth cenlury, with the exception of five, naioelj : 
 — Elvod, bishop of Bangor, k.D. 755 809 ; Cyvelach, bishop 
 or Morgan Ag, about the Bame time-. Sadyrnin, bishop of 
 
 St. David's, who died A.D. 832 ; Caradog, a hermit of Harolds- 
 ton East, who was canonized by the pope, at the solicitation <»f 
 Giraldua Gambrensis; and Gwryd, a friar, who lived about tho 
 end of the twelfth century.) 
 
 • Eta ft Welsh Saints, p.240. 
 
 f Unit y Tywysogion, Mjr. \nli. vol. ii. 
 
 \ Etees's Welsh Saints, p. 305.
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 MISCELLANEOUS PARTICULARS. 
 
 " Let all things be done decently and in order." — 1 Corinthians xiv. 40. 
 
 SANCTUARY. 
 
 DXTNWAL MOELMUD invested certain cities and temples, as 
 well as the roads leading to them, with the privilege of protect- 
 ing delinquents from the rage of their persecutors.* This right 
 of sanctuary, Lleirwg afterwards confirmed to the Christians in 
 connection with their places of worship, at the time when he 
 established their religion in hi3 dominions. t Ard in several of 
 the giants of villages and churches from the fifth century 
 downwards, which are recorded in Libe" Llandavensis, v\e find 
 particular mention made of their privilege of refuge. :f It 
 appears from the laws of Hywel Dda, that some churches could 
 legally shelter the accused for more than seven years. Wo 
 learn also from the same source, that the person who sought 
 refuge was obliged to tarry in the mynwent and corflan, whilst 
 his cattle were permitted to feed each day with those of the 
 monastery, as far as they could go, so that they returned to 
 their own stalls in the evening. If an action was successfully 
 brought against him, and he refused to make compensation for 
 his crime he forfeited the protection of the priests ard monks 
 of the place. In like manner, if he committed any offenco 
 
 * Brut (J. ab Arthur, Myv. Arch. vol. ii. 
 
 f Rog. Wendov. ad annum grat. 184. Matth. Paris. Matth. Wcstmonast. 
 ami llistor. RofTens. ad ann. 187. 
 ^ Lib. Land, passim.
 
 308 
 
 above a certain estimate within the precincts of the Banctoaiy, 
 and was prosecuted for the same, he could n<> longer enjoy 
 safety there, but might seek it in another asylum.* 
 
 The relics of the saints also poss< sa 1 the privilege of pro- 
 tecting those persons who carried them in their hand*] Bubject 
 to limitations ol the like nature as those we have noticed in tho 
 »f churches and churchyards. ' 
 
 TU! 
 
 The cross was venerated in Britain .-it an early period. 
 Archbishop Usher mentions two ■•"in< which were found some- 
 where in England, one Bilver and the other gold, having on 
 them the image of a king, with a cross, and the letters Li «., 
 which clearly imply that thej w< re Btruck in the second » nt- 
 ur\.; Iii the third century, Elen went in search of, and 
 »• found the blessed cross, aft- r it had be< □ concealed in the 
 earth by the ■' •'• rusalem. And it i- supposed, that 
 
 it was in !• i r. nee to this circumstance the cross was inserted 
 into the arm- of the city of < lolohesb r. We have already • 
 that the cross impart* d a distinctive name to some of the 
 Druid icaJ temples, on their being converted to Christian pur- 
 poses, as, Cam y Gro IC rreg tair Groee.1 [n the church- 
 yard of Lantwit Major, two l - -till remain, one 
 of them having three different inscriptions : the first, purporting 
 that it was the cross of llltyd and Samson; the second, that 
 Samson en <•;. I the cross for hi< soul ; and the third, that 
 Samuel was the engraver. Theothercross has but one inscrip- 
 tion, to the effect that it was prepared by Samson for his soul, 
 and for the bouIs of Juthael the king, and Arthma There 
 
 * Wotton's Leges Wallicae, li!». ii. cfl t Ibid. 
 
 + Britan. Eccles. Antiq. c. iii. § <■ the S :its. 
 
 || M Civea ll Jaliam Qelenam Constantini Magni matrem roam alum— is 
 it.ivi: it in memoriam crncisabilla repaxts, 
 crucem nudosam intei quataoi coronas interpositam publico in cljpeo gcrunt." 
 — Camden, *' Page 17:V 
 
 ** Rees's Welsh Saints, pp.2 2 \ I th< 1 isl inscription,
 
 309 
 
 was a leaden cross on the alleged coffin Of king Arthur, which 
 was disinterred at Glastonbury in the reign of Henry II.* In 
 a poem by Taliesin, entitled " The Battle of Gwenystrad," the 
 fallen warriors are described as holding a cross in their hands : — 
 
 " They jointly fell to the ground when they lost tbe day, 
 Their hands were on the cross, and horror was in the pale face of the 
 dead warriors." f 
 
 Also, in the " dialogue between Merddin and his sister, 1 ' 1 we have 
 an allusion to the same military practice : — 
 
 " With a hand on a sword, another on a cross, 
 Let every man take care of his life ; 
 With Cyndav there is no reconciliation." J 
 
 The following passage, from an anonymous poem, seems to 
 connect the cross in some way with the devotional exercise of 
 the morning : — 
 
 " The first thing I shall Bay, 
 When I arise in the morning, 
 Is, ' May I he clothed with the cross of Christ.' "§ 
 
 Swearing by the holy cross was adopted by the Cymiy, but 
 probably after the gospel of St. John, for it is mentioned tho 
 last in the Triad of Oaths. || Crosses occur as marks in tho 
 book of St. Chad ; and the register of Llandaf alludes to them 
 as being used on the occasion of making grants of land to 
 Churches, and of pronouncing the sentence of cxcommunication.1l 
 The laws give us to understand that there was a cross on the 
 church door, before which it was a man's duty to chant his 
 Pater Noster.** Crosses were also used to mark tho boundaries 
 
 with an interesting account of the manner in which the cross was discovered 
 hy the late Mr. Edward Williams (Iolo Morganwg), may he seen in Turner's 
 "Vindication of the Ancient British Poems." 
 
 * Leland in Assert. Arturii, fol. 22, 23, &c. Camdeu in Somersetshire, 
 p. 1 <'.<;. 
 
 f Myv. Arch. vol. j. p. 52. J lb. p. 1 17. § lb. p. 185. 
 
 || See p. li'ii, note. IT Lib. Land. 
 
 ** Le^cs YV* allien', lib. iv. Tr. 164.
 
 310 
 
 of lavds, as w< 11 as fr>r otlicr purposes appertaining thereto.* 
 Giraldus Uambrensis intimates that a person, <>n his taking the 
 relig'ous habit, begged a blessing in tin- form of a cross, with 
 his arms Btretched out. and hi- head li.-mLfinir down.f 
 
 \ l.si l l:l -. 
 
 As the Christian priests of early Britain retained the ancient 
 
 fa 1. -" \\«' have no reason to suppose that they abandoned the 
 
 sacerdotal vesl of the Druid. This was a linen robe of purr 
 while flowing do*n from the BbonMers to the ancles, differing 
 in shape from the present Burplioe, in that oie side folded 07er 
 tin' other in front, ami was fastened by a loop ami button at the 
 Bhoulder, like a cassock. The slot res were also open on tin- 
 upper side, along the arm ;i- far as lm sboulde**, disclosing a 
 tunic <>r white jacLel underneath, wh'ch had tight deeves, with 
 cufis turned up at tbe wrists, and cut in pomU 
 
 The la) monks of Bardsey arc said to have worn black <-ouls. 
 In tlu- monastery of Si, David, tbey were clothed with garments 
 of shins. Tbe legend of St Tydeoho, accoi*ding to ancient 
 MSS., says that be wore a hair coat (pais raw: 
 
 THK TON8I KB. 
 
 The Britons differed from tbe Romanists in respect to the 
 tonsure; for, whilst these polled their heads in Bach ■ manner 
 as to leave a circle of hair to represent the crown of thorns, the 
 
 former shaved an imperfect circle, from ear to ear, across the 
 
 * " (')->.. warn, limes lapideos in agio poaUns, el erooe sigoataa, lap ; s teruii- 
 nalis." " ( v.- ■•.<, eras. Sollemne rait Warns Temram Duminia cum quia 
 fuudum experiordi potestatem peteret, crucem in fondo ist<> ligere ad deno- 
 tandum fundum isium exinde in mann Domini esse; nee prius crux ista 
 dimovebatur : ant experinndi potestas concessa rait, qnam snmmam pecan 
 Petitore Dominas aeciperet." — Wotton't Leget lie///.,/. Glontr . 
 
 The following adage, taken apparently from the practice of erecting Beats 
 near cross-roads, contains a beautiful Bpirilnal truth — 
 
 '■ There is a resting place where there is a cross." 
 
 f Girald. Camh. Cambriae Descriptio. 
 
 J James's Patriarchal Religion of Britain, p.7.">. 
 
 § Jones's Relics of the Welsh Cards, vol. i. p. :». Camh. Regist. vol. iii. 
 p. 540.
 
 311 
 
 front of the head.* They might have derived this fashion from 
 one ox" the apostles, as did the Romans from St. Peter; for "the 
 aposlles were not all shaven alter one and the same manner."! 
 Or they might have borro.ved this particular form from the gar- 
 land and iiara which the Druids wore.:]: E : ther of these sup- 
 positions is much more reasonable than that which attributes it 
 to Simon Magus, Tor there is not the slightest proof besides that 
 the Britons k«?ew anything of the doctrines and practices of that 
 apostate. Moreover, they clearly repudiated such an imputa- 
 tion in this instance, alleging, on the contrary, that they derived 
 their tonsure from their own ancestors, who were men illumined 
 with d'vine grace.§ 
 
 In .he laws of Hywel Dda, to adopt the tonsure is syno- 
 nymous with receiving holy orders, which would restrict tho 
 usage to the clergy. || 
 
 THE CROZIKR. 
 
 Jonas Mynyw seems to allude to the crozier and its significa- 
 tion, in the lines quoted at page 25.3. The crozier of Curig 
 
 * See Usher, cap. xvii. 
 
 f Ceolfridus apud Bed. lib. v. c. 92. " Subdiaconus ordinatus, quatuor 
 expectant menses, donee illi coma creseeret, quo in coronam tonderi posset. 
 Habucrat enim tonsuram, more OricnUilium, Suncti Pauli Apostoli." — Bed. 
 lib. iv. c. i. 
 
 To It Kiip'aQai ti)v icapav o\ort\wg, Kara fii/iifaiv tov ayiov IctKufiov tov 
 a?t\(po6iov. km TlavXov tov ar. oaro\ov. f r.ai tUv Xourtuv. — Germanus Constant. 
 Archiepisc. 
 
 O (v rr) Kt<pa\rj tov tjpfwc 7r oacit/jitvoQ ?<tt\ovc, arirpavoQ ik tijq rtov ffn^wv 
 
 ffOVj'iliOI7fO)Q. llKOVlZ, I T1]V TOV UT.OGToXoV iltTpOV Tl^liaV lUIOUV. II). 
 
 X A Druid in bis judicial habit had a wreath of oak leaves encircling his 
 tempos, and a tiara of pure gohl in the form of a crescent placed behind it, 
 the narrow points of which were concealed behind the ears, whilst the broad or 
 middle part presented a bold front over the crown of the head." — James's 
 Patriarchal Religion of Britain, p. 77. 
 
 § " Seque tali excusationis apologia pertinaciter defendentes vivunt, quod 
 auctorum et pnecessorum suorum tonsuram imitentur, quos divina illustrates 
 gratia fuisse grandi'oquis assertionibus contestantur." — Ald/u/mus in rpist. ad 
 Britannorum Cornubiensium regem et xaccrdotes. 
 
 || Leges Wallica;, lib. iv. tr. .'51, 80, 74.
 
 312 
 
 Lwyd, as already noticed,* was extant in the time of Giraldus 
 Cambrensis. Gwynvardd Brycheiniog speaks of the "golden 
 topped crazier" of St. David.f The " crozier and gospel" occur 
 in the laws, and it would appear that they were carried by 
 bishops and abbots, to swear by when they fixed the boundaries 
 of territories. J 
 
 * Page 151. t Myr. Arch. vol. i. p. 272. 
 
 I Leges Wallicce, Glossar,
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 DOCTRINE. 
 
 " Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them : for in 
 doing this thou shalt both save thyself and them that hear thee."— 1 Timothy 
 iv. 16. 
 
 The Church of Cymru undoubtedly received all the articles of 
 the Christian faith which are embodied in the Apostles' Creed. 
 We do not, therefore, intend in this place to quote extracts which 
 will merely prove those doctrines in the main, but such as will 
 exhibit the peculiar aspects in which some of them and their 
 adjuncts were viewed, with a few other particulars of less moment. 
 In order to this, we must have recourse to the writings of the 
 bards, who, being members of the Church, would not willingly 
 misrepresent its tenets, or promulgate a different belief. The 
 "Book of the Anchorite of Llanddewi Brevi"* shall likewise be 
 largely cited, which, though somewhat later than the period of 
 our history, may yet be reasonably adopted in this instance ; for 
 
 * This is a Welsh translation of the " Liber Elucidarius." The work was 
 very much used in the Principality about the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. 
 Iorwerth Llvvyd, a.d. 1310— 13(>0, says of Hopcyn ab Thomas, that 
 " He learned the clever and noble books 
 Of the pleasant and earnest Elucidarius." — Myv. Arch. vol. i. p. 507. 
 There is a MS. copy of it in the library at Jesus College, Oxford, entitled, 
 " The Book of the Anchorite of Llanddewi Brevi." It professes to have been 
 written by Grufydd ab LI. ab Philip ab Trahaiarn of Cantrev Mawr by the 
 hand of a friend who was then an anchorite at St. David's, ad. 1346. The 
 extracts inserted in the present work are from an English translation which 
 was furnished to the writer; he cannot vouch for its accuracy, not having the 
 Welsh MS. by him. 
 
 E E
 
 314 
 
 we do not read that the doctrinal sentiments of the Welsh 
 underwent any change in the interim. Moreover, our bardic 
 documents will shew a remarkable agreement with several points 
 in that book, which may be considered to possess very peculiar 
 features. We can, therefore, hardly expect it to differ from the 
 sense of the early Church of this land, on subjects of a more 
 general and Catholic nature.* 
 
 The Trinity. 
 
 Q. " How is the Trinity in Unity understood to be ? 
 
 A. " Look upon the sun, wherein there are three things, viz. 
 fiery power, light, and heat. And they cannot be divided ; for, 
 should st thou wish to be able to take away the heat, there would 
 be no sun ; or, shouldst thou take away the light, there would 
 be no sun. By the fire, is understood the Father ; by the light, 
 is understood the Son ; by the heat, is understood the Holy 
 Ghost." t 
 
 Great virtue was ascribed to the very names and words of the 
 Holy Trinity. Thus Taliesin : 
 
 " If thou wilt only remember the names of the Trinity, 
 Nothing can prevail against thee." J 
 
 And again, speaking of the Eucharistic elements, he says : 
 
 " The words of the Trinity 
 Consecrate them."§ 
 
 According to Giraldus Cambrensis, the Welsh sat down to 
 table by threes, in honour of the Trinity. || 
 
 Heaven. 
 
 Q. "What is heaven ? 
 
 * The doctrinal phases of the Cambrian Church may have been somewhat 
 different in the latter part of her history from what they were at first : it is 
 therefore as illustrative of her latest form that we must regard the " Book of 
 the Anchorite" and the medieval poems. 
 
 f The Book of the Anchorite. % Myr. Arch. vol. i. p. 84. § lb. p. 93. 
 
 || Canibriae Descriptio.
 
 315 
 
 A . " There are three kinds of heaven spoken of, i.e. one cor- 
 poreal, which we see ; the second is a spiritual one, in which it 
 is believed the angels dwell ; the third is the intellectual heaven, 
 wherein is the Trinity.* 
 
 THE NINE JOYS OF HEAVEN. 
 
 " Day without night, or light without darkness. 
 Peace without war, or love without enmity. 
 Health without sickness, or delight without trouble. 
 Joy without sorrow, or pleasure without displeasure. 
 Riches without voluptuousness, or possession without sin. 
 Understanding without lack thereof, or knowledge without ignorance. 
 Honour without shame, or respect without disrespect. 
 Liberty without bondage, or what one willeth without its being wrong. 
 Life without death, or God and enough."! 
 
 Hell. 
 
 After God had founded the kingdom of heaven, " He created 
 the world, and in it a place of death, which is hell. ,, j The 
 pains of hell were supposed to consist in extreme cold and ex- 
 treme heat : 
 
 " Where there is groaning, 
 Where there is burning, 
 
 Without deliverance. 
 Where there is gnashing of teeth, 
 Where there is cold, 
 
 And snow and ice."§ 
 
 Angels. 
 
 " The three peculiar nines : the nine waves of the ocean, the 
 nine orders of heaven, and the nine months of gestation. 1 '' || 
 " The nine orders of heaven, majestic hosts." If 
 Q. " Why did He make the nine ranks of angels ? 
 A. "By reason of the Trinity ; because in nine there are 
 
 * The Book of the Anchorite. f My v. Arch. vol. iii. p. 130. 
 
 X The Book of the Anchorite. 
 
 § Jonas Mynyw apud Myv. Arch. vol. i. p. 99 and passim. 
 
 || Pughe's Diet, sub voce naiv. 
 
 H Attributed to Taliesin, in Myv. Arch. vol. i. p. 170. 
 
 EE 2
 
 316 
 
 three times three. And He made man of one rank, by reason 
 of unity, as He would be worshipped as One and as Three."* 
 
 The angelic orders were called seraphim, cherubim, thrones, 
 dominations, princedoms, virtues, powers, archangels, and 
 angels.f 
 
 According to some medieval poems, the angels were created 
 on a Sunday, and were addressed by the Creator, when He 
 said, " Let us make man."} In this latter point, the Cambrian 
 seems to have differed from the Anglo-Saxon Church, which 
 interpreted the passage to mean a Trinity of Divine Persons. § 
 
 Q. " What nature have angels ? 
 
 A. " That of spiritual fire, as it is said, 'He made His angels 
 of flame of fire ! , 
 
 Q. " What kind of form is that which angels have ? 
 
 A. " The same that Grod hath, after a certain fashion. For, 
 as the image of the seal remains in the wax, so the image of 
 God and His likeness in them. 
 
 Q. " With what similitude are they like to Him ? 
 
 A. "They are like Him in that they are light, and in that 
 they are incorporeal, and filled with all beauty. 
 
 Q. " Do they know, and can they do all things? 
 
 A' " They have not in their nature the seeds of any ignorance. 
 
 Q. " What hast thou to say concerning the good angels ? 
 
 A. " After the fall of the rest, they were strengthened, so 
 that they should not be able either to fall or to sin for ever. 
 
 Q. " Why could they not either fall or sin? 
 
 A. " Because they would not desire it. 
 
 Q. " Has the number of the good been less, owing to the fall 
 of the bad ? 
 
 * The Book of the Anchorite. 
 
 | This notion is said to have heen derived from a supposititious work of 
 Dionysius the Areopagite. — See MassingbercUs English Reformation, p. 156, 
 note. 
 
 X Grufydd ah Maredydd, 1510 — 1360; and Anonymous, apud Myv. Arch, 
 vol. i. pp. 459, 540. 
 
 § Soames's Anglo-Saxon Church, p. 253, note.
 
 317 
 
 A. " No : but to fill up the number of the elect, man has 
 been created in the tenth rank."* 
 
 Devils. 
 
 " The first angel was named from his fall, and was called 
 Satan, i. e. the adversary of God. 
 
 Q. " Say in what he has been the adversary of God ? 
 
 A. " When he saw that he excelled all the orders of angels 
 in glory, he dared to hold himself as high as God, or even 
 greater than Him. 
 
 Q. " What sort was he ? 
 
 A. " He was somewhat like the Lord, who yet was greater 
 than he. He wished to assume a nature that was greater than 
 that which God had given him, and through a bold discontent 
 of God, to conspire with others, and to be lord over them. 
 
 Q. "What then? 
 
 A. " From what place below the court of heaven he fell, he 
 was cast into the lowest prison. And as he was before the 
 fairest, so he afterwards became black. As he was before 
 the brightest, so he has been since the darkest. And as before 
 he was worthy of praise and honour, so afterwards he became 
 associated with every disgrace. 
 
 Q. " How long did he dwell in heaven 2 
 
 A. " Not half an hour. For he stood not firm in the truth. 
 For when he was made he fell. 
 
 Q. " Why was he not there longer ? 
 
 A. "Lest he should taste any of the sweetness of life, and 
 seek too anxiously how to possess himself of it by violence. 
 
 Q. " How did the other angels sin ? 
 
 A. "In conspiring with him. 
 
 * The Book of the Anchorite. 
 
 " Christ came to the world, lest Adam should be 
 With his people in hell with fiends most slavish, 
 To fill heaven on all sides round the exalted king, 
 The place that was lost by a most untractable angel." 
 
 Bleddyn Vardd, a.d. 1250 — 12S0.
 
 318 
 
 Q. " What excellent form would they have possessed, had 
 they overcome God \ 
 
 A. " The same which the other angels have in comparison of 
 them. 
 
 Q. " What became of them ? 
 
 A. " They were cast down together with him, the chief into 
 the lake of death in hell, others into the dark air of this world, 
 with their pains upon them as if in hell. 
 
 Q. " Why were they not all cast into hell \ 
 
 A. " That the elect might be proved through them, and have 
 a greater reward ; and that others might be deceived, and be 
 consigned to eternal fire in the last judgmellt. ,, * 
 
 Creation of the World. 
 
 Q. " What was the cause of the creation of the world I 
 
 A. " The goodness of God in making others to partake of 
 his grace. 
 
 Q. " Did he make all things together ? 
 
 A. " He divided all things in six days into portions. That is 
 to say, in three days he made the elements, and in the rest all 
 things which live in the elements."! 
 
 There is a poem in the Myvyrian Archaiology on " the works 
 of the six days," in which the different events are mentioned 
 quite in accordance with the Mosaic account. The author, 
 however, intimates that the creation was for the sake of the 
 baptized : 
 
 " When the Sovereign of faith, of mighty arm, and glorious, 
 Saw how good was his work for the host of baptism." 
 
 And, singularly, that 
 
 " Adam was the first who bore a baptismal name."J 
 
 Creation of Man. 
 
 " The revered Bardism says 
 That man, in his vigour, under the light, is a little world."§ 
 
 Q. "Of what substance was man created ? 
 
 * The Book of the Anchorite. f Ibid. % Myv. Arch. i. 540. 
 
 § Iorwerth Vynglwyd, who was a disciple of the Glamorgan Gorsedd in
 
 319 
 
 A. " Of bodily and spiritual strength. The bodily from four 
 elements, as was the world ; and man is hence called the little 
 world. For of earth is his flesh, and of water his blood, and of 
 air his breath, of fire his heat. — The spiritual substance is 
 believed to be of heavenly fire. In this is shewn the form and 
 image of God. 
 
 Q. " Why did God make man of such worthless materials ? 
 
 A. "To put the devil to shame ; that a thing of earthy mud 
 and dust should reap the glory from which he fell. 
 
 Q. " In what place was man created I 
 
 A. "In Hebron ; in the place where he died and was buried. 
 But afterwards he was placed in Paradise."* 
 
 " The All-disposer made 
 In the depth of Hebron's vale, 
 With his bright hands, 
 Adam of excellent form. 
 
 And five hundred years, 
 Without much fostering care, 
 Was he lying stretched, 
 Before obtaining a soul."f 
 
 Q. "What kind of place is Paradise, or where is it situated ? 
 
 A. "It is the most beautiful spot in the East, in which were 
 set sundry kinds of trees, to provide against sundry wants. So 
 that if man ate of the fruit of a certain tree in its season, he 
 could suffer no hunger from henceforth. And from eating of 
 another, he could suffer no thirst. Of another, he could never 
 suffer fatigue. Of another, old age. And finally, whoso should 
 have eaten of the Tree of Life, could never feel sickness, and 
 could never die. 
 
 Q. " Where was woman created ? 
 
 A. " In Paradise, from the side of man while asleep.":}: 
 
 1460, and presided therein 1500. Gregory Nazianzene and Augustine like- 
 wise speak of man under the same figure. Taliesin has two poems, headed 
 respectively " the Great World," and " the Little World." 
 
 * The Book of the Anchorite. -f- Taliesin, My v. Arch. i. 92. 
 
 X The Book of the Anchorite.
 
 S'20 
 
 " Elohim made, 
 In the court of Paradise, 
 Out of a left rib, 
 A woman of radiant beauty."* 
 
 Q. " What kind of sleep was that ? 
 
 A. " A spiritual trance ; for God took him from the heavenly 
 Paradise into a place where was shown to him how that Christ 
 should be born, and the Church be born of him ; and on the 
 spot when he awoke he prophesied of them. ,1 t 
 
 Fall of Man. 
 
 Q. " Why did the devil deceive them ? 
 
 A. "On account of envy. For he knew that man would 
 attain to the honour from which he fell through pride. 
 
 Q. " Did the serpent speak I 
 
 A. " No ; but the devil spoke by the serpent, as he now 
 speaks by the man on whom he has hold, and as the angel spoke 
 by the ass. 
 
 Q. " How long were they in paradise \ 
 
 A. " Seven hours." % 
 
 " Seven hours were they 
 Keeping the orchard, 
 Before meeting with Satan, 
 Ranger of Tartarus."§ 
 
 Q. " Why were they not longer there ? 
 
 A. " Because immediately when the woman was made, she 
 turned to evil. 
 
 Q. " In what hour was man made ? 
 
 A. " In the third hour was man made, and in it all the ani- 
 mals were named. And in the sixth hour the woman was made, 
 and immediately she took the forbidden apple, and brought 
 down death upon her husband, and to his death did she eat of 
 it. And in the seventh hour the Lord drove them out of Para- 
 dise. 
 
 *Taliesin. f The Book of the Anchorite. Jib. § Taliesin.
 
 S21 
 
 Q. " Where did Adam go then ? 
 
 A. " He returned to Hebron where he was made, and there 
 
 he begat children."* 
 
 " From thence were they driven 
 In shivering and cold, 
 To find their subsistence, 
 Into this world. 
 
 To bear through travail 
 Sons and daughters, 
 To have dominion 
 Over Asia's land."f 
 
 Q. " What was the cherubim with the sword of fire ? 
 
 A. " The sword is a sea of fire that has been around Para- 
 dise from the time that sin was committed in it unto this day. 
 The cherubim is an angelic guard like unto fire."! 
 
 Birth of Christ. 
 
 " Jesus came from Mary's womb : 
 And the night on which our Saviour Jesus was born, 
 The angelic choir of heaven was heard to sing " Gloria 
 In excelsis Deo, et in terra."§ 
 
 Q. " Why would God be born of the Virgin ? 
 
 A. " God would create men in four ways. 1. Without father 
 or mother, as Adam of the earth. 2. Of a father without a 
 mother, as Eve of Adam. 3. Of a father and mother, as every 
 one of us at this day. 4. Of a mother alone, as Christ of the 
 Virgin. And as death came into the world through Eve being 
 a virgin, so came salvation into the world through the Virgin 
 Mary. 
 
 Q. " Why of the Virgin Mary rather than any other virgin ? 
 
 A. " Because she was the first ever to make a vow to God to 
 maintain purity in this world. 
 
 Q. <; When was the fulness of time ? 
 
 A. "In the middle age of the world. 
 
 * Boole of the Anchorite. f Taliesin. \ Book of the Anchorite. 
 
 § Taliesin, or Jonas Mynyw. My v. Arch. v. p. 97.
 
 322 
 
 Q. " In what manner was he born of the Virgin ? 
 
 A. " Without impurity and without pain. 
 
 Q. " Why was he nine months in the Virgin's womb ? 
 
 A. " To show that he would bring all, who were shut up in 
 the misery of this world, to the fellowship of the nine orders of 
 angels.* 
 
 Q. " In what hour was he born ? 
 
 A. "As the prophet says, at midnight he came out of his 
 kingly habitations. 
 
 Q. " Why at night ? 
 
 A. " To bring those who were in the darkness of error into 
 the light of truth. 
 
 Q. " Did anything wonderful happen when Christ was born ? 
 
 A. " Seven extraordinary events took place. 1st. A star of 
 prodigious light appeared. 2nd. A golden circle shone round 
 about the sun. 3rd. A well of oil sprung up out of the ground. 
 4th. Peace prevailed over the whole world. 5th. A decree was 
 issued that the whole world should pay tribute to Rome. 6'th. 
 Thirty thousand of those who opposed God were slain in one 
 day. 7th. The dumb animals spoke. 
 
 Q. " I would know the meaning and virtues of these things. 
 
 A. " The stars signify the saints, and the very bright star is 
 the chief of saints, that is, Christ. The circle of gold that 
 shone round the sun signifies the Church of God. — The well of 
 oil that sprung out of the earth, is the well of mercy which 
 flowed from the Virgin Mary. There was peace in the world, 
 when he who was the true peace came upon the earth. The 
 world was registered for taxation, to show that it was subject 
 to the true Judge. Those who were slain show that they will 
 go into utter destruction who oppose their will to God and his 
 commandments. The dumb animals spoke because the people 
 of the Saracens will return to praise God."f 
 
 * It will be recollected that the nine orders of heaven, and the nine months of 
 gestation, occur together in the Triad of the " peculiar nines," p. 315. 
 f The Book of the Anchorite.
 
 323 
 
 His descent into Hell. 
 
 " Multitudes there were in the confused course 
 Of hell, a cold refuge, 
 During the five ages of the world, 
 Until Christ released them from the bondage 
 Of the immensely deep abyss of abred : — 
 All those has God taken under his protection."* 
 
 " There are three places where light once shone, but will 
 never shine again : the depth of the sea, when Moses fled before 
 the host of Pharaoh ; the bed of Jordan, when Jesus went down 
 to be baptized by John the Baptist ; and the entrance of hell, 
 when Christ went to deliver the souls of the elect."t 
 
 From several poems of the middle ages, we learn likewise 
 that our Redeemer proceeded to the gates of hell, pierced the 
 old serpent with his cross, and triumphantly carried away his 
 spoilt- 
 
 Q. "To what region went his soul after he was dead ? 
 
 A. "To the heavenly Paradise, as he says to the thief, ' To- 
 day shalt thou be with me in Paradise.' 
 
 Q. " At what time did he descend into hell ? 
 
 A. " At midnight. On the night that he arose, in the hour 
 that the angel destroyed Egypt, in that same hour, that is, at 
 midnight, Christ despoiled hell. And he made the night to 
 shine as the day, as it is said, ' The night is made as clear as 
 the day. 1 And after despoiling hell, and placing the elect in 
 Paradise, he revisited his body in the grave, and arose from the 
 dead. But some have understood with regard to the time when 
 he was dead, that when he arose he was in company with the 
 elect in hell, and that from thence he went together with them 
 to arise. And understanding it thus, he was not despoiling hell 
 the whole time he was there. ,, § 
 
 * Taliesin, Myv. Arch. vol. i. p. 170. f Myv. Arch. vol. iii. p. 134. 
 
 % lb. vol. i. passim. § The Book of the Anchorite.
 
 32* 
 
 The period between his Resurrection and Ascension. 
 
 '• Alur the space of forty days 
 He went into heaven "* 
 
 Q. " Why dost thou not mention in what place he was during 
 the forty days ? 
 
 A. " After he had arisen from the earthly Paradise, he was 
 with Elias and Enoch, ami with those who had arisen with him. 
 
 Q. " What form was he possessed of after hi- resurrection ! 
 
 A. " II'' was seven times brighter than the sun. 
 
 Q. " What form did his followers Bee ! 
 
 A. " The form in which they had been accustomed to see 
 him before hi- passion. 
 
 Q. - Was he clothed ! 
 
 A. " He had taken a robe from the olouds. And when he 
 ascended up to heaven the -•loud vanished away, being the 
 twelfth time that Christ showed himself.f 
 
 111- A* BNSION. 
 
 Q. " Did he ascend alone ! 
 
 A. •• Some rose together with him. and ascended. 
 
 Q. " In what shape did he ascend ! 
 
 .1. " In the Bhape he had before his passion, when he was 
 entering the sky; in the form in which he appeared on the 
 mount, when he was going up into heaven.} 
 
 The Coming of the Holt Ghost, 
 
 Q. " Why did he not send the Holy Ghost at the end of the 
 forty da\ - ! 
 
 A. "For three reasons: first, that the Apostles might pre- 
 pare themselves by prayer and fasting against his coming. The 
 second was. to show that whosoever shall fulfil the commands 
 of Christ will receive the Holy Ghost. The third is, that af 
 the law of love had been given to the people of God at the end 
 
 * M\v. Arch. vol. i. p.97. t The Book of the Anchorite. J lh.
 
 325 
 
 of the fifty days after their deliverance from Egypt, so in an 
 equal space of time should the faithful people be delivered, who 
 had lost the home of their father in Paradise, after Christ had 
 risen.* 
 
 The Church. 
 
 Q. " How is the Church his body, and how are the elect 
 members of him I 
 
 A. "As the body adheres to the head, and the head is lord 
 over it, so the Church, through the purity of Christ's body, has 
 been joined together unto him, and is one with him; and all 
 the just are in their order as members, and this head governs 
 them. The eyes of this head are the prophets who spoke 
 things to come, and the apostles who brought others from the 
 way of error to the light of truth. The ears are those who 
 hear. The nostrils arc the discreet wise men. What is cast 
 out from the nostrils, are the persons who, for heresy which 
 they hold, are cast by sentence of the wise from the head of 
 Christ. The teeth are the interpreters of Holy Scripture. The 
 hands are the defenders of the Church. The feet are the 
 labourers that feed the Church of God. The excrement are the 
 oppressors, who afflict the innocent, and are cast out of the 
 womb of the Church. And they are necessarily devoured of 
 the devil, just as swine devour offal and filth. And this body 
 is joined together in one by the cement of love for the body of 
 Christ,"* 
 
 The Great Sacraments. 
 
 Q. " Why did Jesus receive baptism when he was full of 
 grace and godliness ? 
 
 A . " Thereby to consecrate the water. 
 
 Q. " Why was he baptized in water ? 
 
 A. " Because that water is the opposite to fire ; and as water 
 extinguishes fire, so it washes out sin in baptism. Another 
 reason is, that water cleanses every unclean thing, and it 
 
 * The Book of the Anchorite. f lb.
 
 326 
 
 quenches thirst, and in it a shadow is seen ; so the grace of the 
 Holy Ghost washes away the filth of sin by baptism, and 
 quenches the thirst of the soul by the word of God, and the 
 shadow of God and his image are seen when we have forsaken 
 our sins." 
 
 " We are buried with him when we are sunk in the water of 
 baptism. And hence we are sunk thrice, in correspondence 
 to the Three Persons." 
 
 Q. " Why is his body made of the bread '. 
 
 A. " Because he says, ' I am the living bread.' And the 
 blood also of the wine, because be says. ' I am the true vine. 1 
 And as the body is aourished by the bread, bo is the soul sus- 
 tained by heavenly food. And as the bread is made up of 
 many grains, so is the body of Christ gathered together of many 
 fleet. And as the bread is baked by the power of the fire, so 
 has Christ been baked within the furnace of the passion. And 
 this bread is said to be flesh, because he is sacrificed for us 
 lamb. And as the wine is distilled from the malt and the 
 grains, so is Christ's body composed of many righteous. And 
 it has been pressed in the travail of the cross, as the wine in its 
 travail i- pressed. And because our souls have life in his blood, 
 therefore is the wine turned into blood, and we see the figure of 
 the bread and wine in their own form. 
 
 Q. " How is it said to be flesh and blood I 
 
 A. "The saints say, that it certainly is the body which was 
 born of Mary, which hung upon the cross, and which ascended 
 into heaven. And the reason why it remained in the form of 
 bread and wine is this, lest it should be a dreadful thing for 
 thee to take into thy mouth the blood that was seen dropping 
 out of his side, or to eat his visible body/'* 
 
 Ministers, 
 
 Q. "Do such as these (wicked priests) make the body of 
 Christ? 
 .1. "Although they are far from faultless, yet through the 
 
 * The Book of the Anchorite.
 
 327 
 
 words which they set forth, it shall be the body of Christ ; for 
 Christ himself makes it, not they. 
 
 Q. " Do they receive the Lord's body ? 
 
 A. " The sons of God themselves receive it. But with some 
 God is not present, though it be seen that they put it into their 
 mouth, but the angels carry it away to heaven. And the devil 
 casts a live coal of hell into their mouth instead of bread, and 
 the poison of serpents instead of wine, as St. Cyprian says. 
 
 Q. " Ought priests of this kind to be obeyed ? 
 
 A. " Where they command well, we ought to be obedient to 
 God, and not to them ; but where they teach evil, they ought 
 to be slighted, for God must be obeyed rather than men. 
 
 Q. " Are they able to bind and loose ? 
 
 A. " They are, unless they be forbidden by the sentence of 
 the Church ; for it is Christ himself who through their ministry 
 binds and looses. If, however, they shall have been prohibited, 
 they cannot.* 
 
 Sin. 
 
 " The three roots of all evil ; falsehood, covetousness, and 
 pride/'t 
 
 " The three contrasts of goodness ; pride, anger, and cove- 
 tousness. 11 ^: 
 
 "There are four elementary kinds of sin; the first, anger; 
 the second, covetousness ; the third, indolence ; and the fourth, 
 fear. Where one or the other of these be, there is found every 
 thing evil ; for out of them all other evils, both mental and 
 actual, grow naturally ."§ 
 
 " Three things which impair the world ; indolence, pride, and 
 extravagance."!! 
 
 " Three things which afflict the world ; envy, anger, and 
 covetousness." IT 
 
 " The three enemies of a Christian's soul ; the world, the 
 flesh, and the devil."** 
 
 * The Book of the Anchorite. 
 
 t Cattwg Ddoelh apud Myv. Arch. vol. ii. % Ih. § lb. 
 
 || lb. IT lb. ** lb.
 
 3-28 
 
 " The eight chief sins ; extortion or fraud, theft, pride, adul- 
 tery, idleness, gluttony, envy and cruelty. 1 ' 1 * 
 
 " There are three punishments for sin ; the punishment of 
 the civil law, the punishment of conscience, and the punishment 
 of Grod."t 
 
 Taliesin speaks of certain poetasters who 
 " Commended every deadly sin." 
 
 And in his " confession" he acknowledges that he himself 
 " Had practised the seven chief sins without penance or fasting, 
 And neglected rectitude of life, and the seven virtues of the Church."J 
 
 It is affirmed in an anonymous poem of an early date, that 
 the worst kind of sin is despair, and that its end will be 
 " To deserve the eternal pain of hell, 
 To have an irrecoverable fall, 
 And to lose God for ever."§ 
 
 Virtue. 
 
 " The three principal divine qualities of man ; liberality, love, 
 and forgiveness of injuries."|| 
 
 " The three principal good qualities of man ; industry, sin- 
 cerity, and humility."^ 
 
 " The eight works of mercy ; truth, sincerity, exertion, ami- 
 ableness, chastity, temperance, love, and peace."** 
 
 Religious Duties. 
 
 " Three things will dissolve every sin ; — 
 Fasting, prayer, and alms."fp 
 
 * Myv. Arch. vol. iii. p. 132. In the Anchorite's Book, Adam is said to have 
 committed the six chief sins by his transgression in Paradise. These are 
 called pride, disobedience, covetousness, theft, adultery, and murder. The 
 medieval poets speak sometimes of the seven, and sometimes of the eight chief 
 sins. 
 
 f Cattwg Ddoeth, Myv. Arch. vol. iii. p. 82. 
 
 X lb. vol. i. pp. 26, 100. § lb. p. 177. 
 
 || Cattwg Ddoeth, Myv. Arch. vol. iii. p. 77. % Ibid. 
 
 ** Myv. Arch. vol. iii. p. 132. Said here to be the opposite to the eight chief 
 sins. 
 
 ff Aneurin, Myv. Arch. vol. i. p. 16.
 
 329 
 
 " The three physicians of the soul ; fasting, prayer, and 
 alms. 11 * 
 
 " Fasting, faith, and prayer, 
 Will surmount every hardship."! 
 
 The best sort of fasting is said to consist in the abstaining 
 from the luxuries of life ; and the best alms in the affording of a 
 lodging.:}: The special objects of charity are thus enumerated : 
 
 " Three persons that should be dealt with mercifully ; the 
 stranger, the widow, and the orphan. 1 ^ 
 
 In the later ages a recital of the seven petitions of the Pater- 
 noster was urged as a means of obtaining pardon for the seven 
 chiefsins.|| 
 
 Invocation of Saints. 
 
 " To love God with an upright mind, 
 And ask the prayers of the righteous, 
 Will ohtain heaven and worldly gifts." 
 
 " What will cause me to avoid [sin] ? 
 
 Praying to God every matins, 
 And desiring to ohtain forgiveness, 
 And soliciting the aid of the saints."1f 
 
 " Through the intercession of saints, 
 And the comprehensive sense of books, 
 May the Eternal God grant to me 
 The joyous feast of the region of light."** 
 
 " The prayer of Cynllo will not be in vain. "ft 
 
 " Let them commit their cause to God and Dewi. 
 Through the intercession of Dewi and the saints of Prydyn.'^} 
 
 * Cattwg Ddoeth, Myv. Arch. vol. iii. p. 71. 
 
 f Cattwg or Aneurin. See note, p. 223. 
 
 X Cattwg Ddoeth, Myv. Arch. vol. iii. p. 41. 
 
 § lb. p. 81. || Myv. Arch. vol. i. p. 517, et al. H lb. p. 176, 177. 
 
 ** Attributed to Taliesin ; Myv. Arch. vol. i. p. 77. ft lb. p. 83. 
 
 ++ Golyddan, Myv. Arch, vol. i. p. 157. "On the supposition that all the 
 poems ascribed to that age (i.e. before a.d. 700) are genuine, a point which is 
 more than questionable, the intercession of saints is noticed only three times ; 
 namely, once respectively in two compositions which an ancient MS. attributes, 
 with an expression of doubt, to Taliesin ; and the third instance occurs in a 
 
 FF
 
 330 
 
 Praying for the Dead. 
 
 " The soul of Owain, the son of Urien, 
 May its God consider its necessity ; 
 The chief of Etheged is concealed under the green sward."* 
 
 u Whose tomb is tli a on yonder cliff? 
 UK win isc hand proved hostile to many. 
 The bull of conflict; — may he obtain mercy." - ] 
 
 The Holy Scriptures. 
 
 Gildas, in his Epistle, quotes from the following books of 
 Scripture: Old Testament, Genesis, Exodus, Deuteronomy* 
 1 Samuel, _ Samuel, 1 Kings, - Kings, 2 Chronicles, Job, 
 Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, 
 Ezechiel, Ilosca, Joel, Amos. Micah, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, 
 Haggai, Zechariah, MalachL Apocrypha, Esdras, Ecclesiafl- 
 ticus, Wisdom, ffi ic '/'■ - Matthew, John, Acts, Roman-, 
 
 1 Corinthians. 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, 
 Golossians, 1 Thessalonians, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Titus, 
 1 1* 1 i < ws, 1 P< ter, 2 Pel 
 
 This person, when he was at Llancarvan, transcribed a copy 
 of the four Gospels, which was preserved in the church of St. 
 Gattwg in the thirteenth century.§ He is supposed also to 
 have written the Book of St. Chad, which consi-t< at present of 
 the gospels of St. Matthew, Mark, and part of Luke to ch. iii. 
 v- 9.|| 
 
 Taliesin, who was educated at the same school, quotes from 
 the Old and New Testaments, and seems to have an historical 
 acquaintance with the principal events of both dispensations.^ 
 
 poem, ascribed in the Archaiology of Wales to the same author, but since 
 acknowledged to be modern. The oldest composition in which the Welsh saints 
 are spoken of superstitiously, is attributed to Golyddan, a contemporary of Cad- 
 waladr, near the close of the period in question." — Rees's Welsh Saints, p. 68. 
 
 * Myv. Arch. vol. i. p. o!»; Taliesin. ' My\. Arch. vol. i. ; 
 
 + Gildas in Epi>t. § Life of Gildas, by C'aradog of Llancarvan. 
 
 || See p. 1S9, note. «I Myv. Arch. vol. i.
 
 331 
 
 Tyssilio, and an anonymous bard about his time, both speak 
 of the " canon ;"* but it does not appear that the British clergy 
 yet recognized a distinction between the inspired and uninspired 
 writings of the Old Testament. 
 
 The Scriptures were treated with particular reverence, and 
 were deemed of paramount authority, as may be clearly inferred 
 from the following maxims, which are respectively attributed to 
 Cattwg Ddoeth and Geraint Vardd Glas : 
 
 " The word of God above all." 
 " There is no word superior to every word but the word of God."f 
 
 The former of these was so generally received, that even in the 
 sixteenth century the Welsh, when on the point of saying or 
 doing anything, or going to any place, used to express themselves 
 proverbially : " I will say or do such a thing, or I will go to 
 such a place, ' with the word of God above all. 1 "J 
 
 The general reading of the Bible seems to have been recom- 
 mended in the Cambrian Church. In the beginning of the 
 eleventh century, Bledri, bishop of Llandaf, and Joseph his suc- 
 cessor, charged their clergy to teach the people the reading of 
 the Scriptures; the latter even commanded them to do so 
 " without fee or reward," simply with a view to promote the 
 spiritual welfare of their flocks, and not from any pecuniary 
 considerations^ This last circumstance would moreover war- 
 rant the belief that the Sacred Books were in the vulgar tongue, 
 otherwise it would have been impossible for the people, by 
 reading them, to derive the spiritual benefit intended by the 
 bishops. And yet this view would be irreconcilable with the 
 
 * " Thou art well versed in the canon ; 
 Inform me of the best almsgiving." 
 
 " If the words of the canon are to be believed, 
 We ought not to contend with God."— lb. pp. 163, 176. 
 | Myv. Arch. vol. iii. pp. 5, 147, 114. 
 
 X Dr. Davies's Epistle, prefixed to XV. Salisbury's translation of the New 
 Testament. 
 
 § Brut y Tywysogion ; Brut Ieuan Brechva.
 
 S32 
 
 practice of Taliesin, who writes his scriptural extracts in Latin, 
 as wo have before intimated. 
 
 Sayings are attributed to Scriptural personages which are not 
 to be found in the Bible, as, for instance, " the three precepts 
 of Lazarus, 1 '' which shall be presently related. Sometimes the 
 bards allude to historical events of the Jewish dispensation in- 
 correctly, as in " the account of Taliesin :"* 
 
 " I was with my God in the manger of the ass; 
 I assisted Moses through the waters of Jordan. "t 
 
 Homilies. 
 
 Tlio following aphorisms appear, by their title, style, and 
 
 form, to have been of th" earliest date, and they may accord- 
 ingly be considered a< the homiletio remains of the Cambrian 
 
 Church, whilst it was yet in connexion with bardism. 
 
 Thr Triad* of St. Paul* 
 
 "1. There are three BOrtfl of men: the man of God, who 
 renders good for evil ; the man of man. who renders good for 
 good, and evil for evil ; and the man of the devil, who renders 
 evil for good. 
 
 -. Three sorts of people are the delight of God: the meek; 
 the lovers of peace ; and the lovers of mercy. 
 
 ;>. There are three marks of the children of God: humble 
 demeanour; a pure conscience; and the suffering of injuries 
 patiently. 
 
 4. The three principal things required by God: love; jus- 
 tice ; and humility. 
 
 5. In three places will be found the most of God : where he 
 is mostly sought ; where mostly loved ; and where there is the 
 least o\' self. 
 
 6. There are three sorts of lies : verbal lies ; the lies of si- 
 
 * My v. Arch. vol. i. p. 20. 
 
 f Unless Moses is here taken as the representative of the Jewish people. 
 
 { E. Williams's Poems, vol. ii. p. 252.
 
 333 
 
 lence ; and the lies of false appearances ; each inducing us to 
 believe what we should not. 
 
 7. Three things shall a man obtain by a belief in God : what 
 is necessary in this life ; a peaceable conscience ; and commu- 
 nion with heaven. 
 
 8. The three advices given by Lazarus are : " Believe in God, 
 who made thee ; love God, who redeemed thee ; and fear God, 
 who will judge thee.'' 1 
 
 9. Three ways a Christian punishes an enemy : by forgiving 
 him ; by not divulging his wickedness ; and by doing him all 
 the good that is possible. 
 
 1 0. The three great concerns of a Christian : lest he should 
 offend God : lest he should be a stumbling-block to man ; and 
 lest his love towards all that is good should fail. 
 
 1 1 . The three evidences of holiness : self-denial ; a liberal 
 disposition ; and the encouragement of all that is good. 
 
 12. The three dainties of Christian festivity: what God has 
 prepared ; what can be obtained consistently with justice to 
 all ; and what love to all can venture to use. 
 
 13. Three persons have the claims and privileges of brothers 
 and sisters : the orphan ; the widow ; and the alien." 
 
 Day of Judgment. 
 
 Taliesin has a long poem on the day of judgment,* the most 
 interesting portions of which we here subjoin : 
 
 " So, an end will come Will lie broken the bonds 
 
 To the stranded plain. Of all the planets. 
 Fifteen daysf * * * 
 
 Before the day of doom, Then will there be a mighty din 
 
 * My v. Arch. vol. i. p. 88. 
 
 f In a poem by Llyvvelyn Vardd, a.d. 1230-1280, the signs which shall pre- 
 cede the day of judgment for fifteen days are mentioned, as far as the writer 
 understands them, as follows : fifteenth day, the sea shall arise unto the sky. 
 fourteenth day, it shall penetrate into the bowels of the earth ; thirteenth day 
 another, revolution of the sea, not intelligible; twelfth, all the fishes of the deep 
 shall come to the surface ; eleventh, a dangerous vacuity, and all creatures
 
 :v.n 
 
 Upon the quaking earth, 
 When (>m\ descends 
 In the midst of the world. 
 There will be extreme fear 
 Upon the lour elements. 
 
 * * * 
 
 When the Prior* comes 
 
 With his square trumpets, 
 
 And when tlu- sea i- set on fire, 
 
 And the stones are reduced into cinders. 
 
 When the five ages come 
 
 Before the Holy One, 
 
 Many a tear will fall 
 
 Because of tin- day of judgment 
 
 * * • 
 
 There will be immediate weeping 
 
 ( >u the earth, 
 
 When the Trinity cornea 
 
 To the plain of Majesty. 
 
 * * * 
 
 From their graves >.% i 1 1 arise 
 
 All who shall bare Buffered death, 
 From the creation >>t' Adam 
 
 Until the last .lav. 
 
 Then will our Lord say 
 To the quick and dead : 
 Let those who arc mine 
 Go to the right, 
 
 Ami those who have committed siu 
 To the Kit side, 
 That they may go 
 
 To a place where is no light 
 
 To undergo a violent death. 
 In order to deliver the son of man 
 From the prison of his enemy. 
 Both my feet were struck, 
 (How di ax were my merits !) 
 Most pitiably was I tortured 
 
 From head to fl ' 
 
 Both my arms were -truck ; 
 
 They bore their burden. 
 
 Each shoulder received 
 
 St ady pain. 
 
 Thick arc the marks of spikes 
 
 Between my ej 
 
 Thick are the h 
 
 < >f tin crown of thorns on my temples. 
 
 All this I underwent 
 
 love t<i man. 
 What have you done, 
 
 Out Of love lei I 
 
 \ \e me no food, 
 Nor shelter from cold. 
 "Lord God, thou Bhouldest have re- 
 ceived it, 
 If thou hadst hut demanded it." 
 When ye -aw a poor man, 
 In the image of the Trinity, 
 raining my body, 
 In the act of asking charity, 
 If ye had -hewn DM I 
 Mt ley ye -houhl have received. 
 
 ise ye have not shewn mercy, 
 Ye have lost mercy. 
 
 trembling for fear of a deluge; tenth, men are cheerless on account of the 
 devastation of fiery streams ; ninth, sulphuric lire falling from the stars : eighth, 
 
 a sound, which will make the earth and men to quake; seventh, the rocks 
 lending ; sixth, blood oozing out of the grass and shruhs : fifth, the elements 
 failing ; fourth, the animals prowling through wilds in sorrow ; third, from 
 terror of the judgment, all will lose what they love: second day, men will 
 traverse dark places iii sorrow, conscious that they shall not survive ; the first 
 day, all men shall be brought together, with their senses perfectly restored. — 
 -M\ \ . Arch. vol. i. p. 362, * Al. PuUr.
 
 335 
 
 I went on the tree, To a very bloody cross 
 
 Have ye delivered up your Redeemer. That three days before judgment 
 
 Ye know not how to answer, Enoch shall reign. 
 
 Why ye have crucified me. Then will all flesh, 
 
 A hundred thousand of angels The men of earth, say, 
 
 Are witnesses, Woe to him who set his mind 
 
 Who came to escort me, On the bloody ground. 
 
 After my burial. As John relates 
 
 " Lord, we knew not In the Holy Scripture. 
 
 That it was thou whom we crucified ; Woe to him who trusts 
 
 Sovereign of heaven and every place, In what is not his. 
 
 We knew not who thou wert." There is not of this present state, 
 
 * * * From beginning to end, 
 
 Eloi says, One hour of the day, 
 
 The love- diffusing invisible God, Compared with the life everlasting. 
 
 The poets make frequent mention of " three hosts," which 
 shall be judged at the last day ; and from an early composition 
 we ascertain that these will comprise respectively " the pure 
 host of the righteous, of the appearance of angels, 1 '' " the mixed 
 host, like members of a community," and " the unbaptized."* 
 
 The Ages of the World. 
 
 " The first was the age of Adam and Eve ; 
 The second, the age of Noah, who floated in the ark ; 
 The third age was that of Abraham, the chief of the faithful, the father of 
 
 patriarchs ; 
 The fourth, the age of Moses from Egypt, 
 Who discovered the twelve ways through the Red Sea, 
 Who obtained of the invisible God that Pharaoh should be drowned, 
 Who during his fasting received the ten commandments, 
 On two tablets of stone, on Mount Sinai ; 
 The fifth age, the age of Jesus, and it will endure until the day of doom."f 
 
 They are enumerated somewhat differently by Nennius,! thus : 
 The first, from Adam to Noah ; the second, from Noah to 
 
 * Myv. Arch. vol. i. p. 184. 
 
 | lb p. i»i>, Taliesin, or Jonas Mynyw. | Mist. Brit. sect. <>.
 
 836 
 
 Abraham ; the third, from Abraham to David ; the fourth, 
 from David to Daniel ; the fifth, from Daniel to John the 
 Baptist ; the sixth, from John the Baptist to the day of judg- 
 ment. 
 
 FINIS. 
 
 LONDON: KICHARDS, PK1NTEK, ST. JIAHTIN'S LANE.
 
 October, 1844. 
 
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 Has in the Press, nearly ready, 
 I. 
 
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 t!)c GTijurd), 
 
 FROM THE APOSTOLICAL FATHERS, 
 
 ST. CLEMENT OF ROME, ST. IGNATIUS, AND ST. FOLYCARP. 
 
 "By. the 5ReJ). ®. J\ agStlson, Jtt.^. Liverpool. 
 
 1 vol. 12mo. 
 
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 IV. 
 
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 Lectures delivered in St. Paul's Church, Knightsbridge, during 
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 13b the Heb. 2Hm. 3. IE. Bennett, JtiL.%. 
 
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 5LAc!)rmn«T QctUflte* 
 
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 " LArrmYM*'. F.rrLEsl.^, hy the Rev. George Wvatt, (Cleaver, pp. 340,) is 
 a well-timed republication of old facts relating to the sufferings of trie clergy 
 and the character of their enemies during the Great Rebellion, which we 
 trust will not be lost upon those who imagine that dissent in our day is a 
 widely different system Dram that of the Puritans. We are aware that the 
 puritanical opposition to the Church is now COi lined mostly to words, but 
 these are BOmcient to teach us what deeds would follow if certain speakers 
 and writers had power. Can Mr. Wyatt ,-criously mean to class Roman 
 Catholics among the " sects or offshoots of Christians'"' We suggest also 
 that he is likely to raise a prejudice against his book, which it really does 
 not deserve, by commencing with characterizing, as ' happy, witty, and 
 true,' Or. Johnson's well-known aphorism as to the origin of dissent." — 
 English Churchman. 
 
 " This is a narrative of the sufferings of the Church of England under that 
 schism and dissent introduced by the dissenters from the days of Charles I. 
 downward. The author calls upon the legislature to rally around the Church 
 of their fathers, and not to encourage those heresies which now threaten to 
 subvert the ancient establishment. It is a work well worthy of the attentive 
 perusal of the members of the legislature." — Old Bell's, Sept. 21st, 1844. 
 
 *' This is an exceedingly interesting little work, and so seasonable withal, 
 that we are particularly anxious to recommend it to the notice of our readers. 
 It is interesting to all who feel any concern about the history of the Church 
 in this land, more especially to those who enjoy the high and holy privilege 
 of her membership and communion." — Hill Packet, Sept. Gth,'lM4. 
 
 "This is a timely and excellent work which, we are sure, will be useful to 
 the Church in proportion to the extent of its circulation." — Churchman's 
 Newspaper, Sept. 20th, 1S41. 
 
 " The moral aimed at by the author is to point out the real character and 
 tendency of dissent in all ages, and to refute the opinion of those who would 
 limit the extent of its malignity to the period in which it has hitherto been 
 most signally developed, and the period above referred to may rank with the 
 brightest in the annals of English Theology." — Times, Sept. 20th, 1st I.
 
 80, BAKER STREET, PORTMAN SQUARE. 
 
 (3) 
 
 " This book is historical of the Anglican Reformed Church and the clergy 
 at the time of the rebellion in the seventeenth century, when the ecclesias- 
 tical ministry laboured under such destitution and suffering. The account 
 of the numerous divines then living is interesting, and the picture drawn of 
 those fitful times, when Papists and Puritans and various other sects figured, 
 for the most part, in any but really religious characters, is both important 
 and instructive." — Hunt's London Journal. 
 
 "This volume is well written, and the author displays considerable re- 
 search in its preparation ; but one great blemish in it is, the tractarian spirit 
 which pervades it throughout. The author has no charity for those beyond 
 the pale of the Church. It is melancholy to see a man of cultivated mind, 
 and the teacher of a religion whose very essence is charity, thus resigning 
 himself to the sway of such unamiable feelings." — Metropolitan Mag. 
 
 "Mr. Wyatt could scarcely have fixed on a more interesting period of the 
 history of our Church than that which forms the subject of the present little 
 volume. The sufferings and the conduct of the English Clergy during the 
 Great Rebellion are here detailed, and the biographical form which much of 
 the work assumes, gives additional value to its pages." — English Review, 
 Oct. 1844. 
 
 "Such materials cannot fail of making an interesting book, which the 
 present certainly is, and we have special reasons for recommending it." — 
 Christian Remembrancer. 
 
 "This is an honest book, written by an honest man, one who, while he 
 claims the right of our holy Church to call herself Catholic and Reformed, 
 is not ashamed also to style her, emphatically, Protestant. The spirit in 
 which the entire volume is written, is one exceedingly creditable to its ex- 
 cellent author."— Church and State Gazette. 
 
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