TOUCHSTONE
GREAT EXPLANATIONS FOR PEOPLE AT PLACES
Cadw:
Pan-Wales heritage interpretation plan
Celtic saints, spiritual places and pilgrimage
Cymynrodd
y Seintiau
Celtaidd
The Legacy
of the
Celtic Saints
Interpretation plan
April 2011
TOUCHSTONE
GREAT EXPLANATIONS FOR PEOPLE AT PLACES
Cadw:
Pan-Wales heritage interpretation plan
Celtic saints, spiritual places and pilgrimage
Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd
The Legacy of the Celtic Saints
Interpretation plan
Prepared by
Touchstone Heritage Management Consultants,
Red Kite Environment and Creu-ad
April 2011
Touchstone Heritage Management Consultants
18 Rose Crescent, Perth PH1 1NS, Scotland
+44/0 1738 440111  +44/0 7831 381317  [email]  www.touchstone-heritage.co.uk
Michael Hamish Glen FAHI FSAScot FTS, Principal  Associated practice: QuiteWrite
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Contents
1 Foreword 2
2 Introduction 6
3 The archaeology of the saints 9
4 The history of the saints 11
5 The legends of the saints 14
6 Our approach – a summary 20
7 Stakeholders and initiatives 24
8 Interpretive aim and objectives 27
9 Interpretive themes 28
10 Market and audiences 30
11 Our proposals 33
12 Chosen locations and saints 37
13 Interpretive media 42
14 Cluster studies 49
15 Pilgrimage destinations 64
16 Visitor packages 66
17 Potential partnerships 69
18 Monitoring and evaluation 70
19 Appendices: Appendix A: Relevant sources 73
Appendix B: The brief in full 77
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1 Foreword
A legacy in stone
There are now around 600 carved stone monuments in Wales dating from the fifth to early
twelfth centuries. These can help us to trace the evolution of the early medieval church in
Wales and the development of a range and hierarchy of sites across Wales, mostly on the sites of
churches today. They can also contribute to our understanding of the art and beliefs of the
period.1
It is not simply the stones that speak. The many place names in Wales that begin
with ‘Llan’ and incorporate the name of a saint, or are simply named after saints,
represent just as much of the legacy of the Celtic saints.
Celtic saints are an integral part of the history, culture and psyche of Wales. The
origins of Christianity in Wales date from the Roman period. As Christianity evolved
and changed during the early medieval period (from about 400 to 1100) the role of
saints, often originally monastic founders, increased. The fifth and sixth centuries
are sometimes called The Age of the Saints and the origins of some sites can be
firmly dated to this period, others probably. During the seventh to eleventh
centuries, the power and wealth of many of these churches grew into major
centres of faith as well as political power.
While some early monastic churches grew into this central role, many of the saints
that were celebrated in early Wales were celebrated for their retreat from settled
society. Sites such as Bardsey, St David’s and Pennant Melangell, founded in remote
places, became focal points of pilgrimages which commemorated these early
saints.
The Celtic saints, like all saints of the first millennium were not ‘canonised’ but
became recognised as saints for their devotion to preaching and prayer. Some
saints renounced the world to the extent that they were accorded the title
‘martyr’. Saints’ cults were later promoted, usually at a local level, sometimes on
a wider basis, taking account of the traditions of their piety, their family
connections and the influence of the churches associated with them.
The churches of early medieval Wales had a distinctive life and culture. Although
the Christianity of the Celtic saints in Wales had its origins in the Roman period, it
continued to be enriched by contacts with Gaul, Italy and further afield as well as
contacts with Ireland and other Celtic language-speaking regions. Holy wells and
trees may be relics of a pagan past but the Christian stone monuments are real.
However, many of the tales of the saints are just that – memorable legends of
memorable times and deeds used to promote the saints’ cults. These are stories
with a purpose, which was not the writing of history, but a celebration of the
widespread devotion to the saints and the power of their churches.
This subsequent tradition has left a rich and beautiful legacy of literature and
imagery. Some saints are, however, clearly historic figures and a few sources give
1
From this report, Chapter 3, The archaeology of the saints by Professor Nancy Edwards
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us a remarkable glimpse into the real world of the early monastic saints, to set
alongside the later literature of devotion to their cults. Latin was the language of
the church in the time of the Celtic saints but from the twelfth to the fourteenth
centuries, most records on church and legal matters were written in Middle Welsh
which evolved with few substantive changes into modern Welsh. The place-names
which show the dedication of churches to saints remain easily recognisable to
people with a knowledge of Welsh and in many ways make the Celtic saints a
feature of everyday life in Wales.
According to the stories of the Celtic saints, they lived simply and their beliefs may
have absorbed some of those of earlier times, particularly their respect for the
natural world. Holy wells and trees may be relics of a pagan past.
The Christian stone monuments are real, but many of the tales of the saints are
just that – memorable legends of memorable times and deeds used to promote the
saints’ cults. None was an accurate chronicle but there is some authoritative
material written about (and by) the saints. That does not in any way diminish the
power and continuing popularity of the tales, but they are stories with a purpose,
not history. Latin was the language of the church in the time of the Celtic saints
but from the twelfth to the fourteenth centuries, most records on church and legal
matters were written in Middle Welsh which evolved with few substantive changes
into modern Welsh.
A living legacy
In a Wales which is, paradoxically, both increasingly multi-faith and increasingly
secular, many people maintain or develop a strong adherence to Christianity;
others retain or gain an ‘affiliation’ as a result of upbringing or later home life, but
are not ‘practising’ Christians. They may indeed question aspects of Christianity
while accepting its ubiquity and continuing, if changing, role in society.
Alongside those who would identify with the Christian community at large, lots of
people have no religious beliefs at all and may indeed be antagonistic to organised
religion. However, many of them have an ambivalent attitude to places, people
and events with connotations of religion, faith, spirituality or belief. They clearly
‘mean something’ and can engender enquiry or even fascination.
For those brought up in a nominally Christian society, ‘religion’ is an integral part
of their tangible and non-tangible environment. It is an integral part of the history
of those countries where church and state battled for supremacy, where religious
leaders from abbots to archbishops enjoyed secular power as well as spiritual
authority and where local clerics often determined community life. This is
particularly true in Wales where Christianity has evolved from Roman times through
the early days of the Celtic saints and the flowering of the church in later medieval
times to the Reformation and then into modern times when non-conformity has
played a large part in the cultural and social environment.
Christianity manifests itself in myriad ways from the landmark church on the corner
to allusions to the Bible, from Halloween to the celebration of St David’s Day, from
Christmas cards to school nativity plays, from St Valentine’s Day (or St Dwynwen’s
Day in Wales) to weddings and funerals. The influence of ‘the church’ may have
waned substantially in Britain and other countries but it is still pervasive in many,
and what may appear secular, ways.
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Tourists to places – even if they don’t expect to – find themselves visiting churches
and cathedrals which, as historically important or architecturally interesting
buildings, define communities in different ways. Some people find great solace in a
quiet church or a sacred site while still professing atheism. Children love stories of
Biblical times, of martyrs and religious heroes and – very often – of early saints.
The Celtic tradition of spirituality is enjoying a huge revival. With its emphasis on the
pervasiveness of the divine in the world around us, its legacy of incomparable artwork and the
energy, vision and charm of its saints, Celtic Christianity appeals to the present day search for
purity of spirit in a tarnished civilisation. It is not easy to come close to the Celtic saints. With a
very few exceptions, their biographies were written in medieval times, centuries after their
lifetime. However, the sites where Celtic monks, nuns and missionary couples lived and worked
can still be seen in the more remote parts of Britain. Their huts, holy wells and chapels are
often set in beautiful landscapes: sheltered valleys, dramatic headlands and rocky islands.
Archaeology, the study of sites, of place names, inscribed stones and early texts can provide us
with further clues about how these men and women lived.2
Today, even allowing for the hyperbole of Elizabeth Rees’ publisher, interest in the
early church in Wales, its relative simplicity and lack of rich trappings is attracting
increased interest from those who wish to associate with what might be described
as ‘green’ ethics. These would include spirituality rather than ‘religion’, simplicity
rather than ceremony and respect for natural resources.
In Wales, as in Ireland, and more so than in England and Scotland, the ‘presence’
of the Celtic saints is widespread – in place names, in the dedications (the names)
of churches in a host of communities and in the stories of saints and places that
many children learn. Despite the influence of the saints of Rome, of the
Reformation, the rise of non-conformity and of secularism, the Celtic saints are, so
to speak, alive and well in contemporary Wales.
This interpretation plan aims to help visitors and residents understand and
appreciate some of the sacred sites, their relics and the stories of their associated
saints. Using the evidence in the landscape and the inheritance of legends, the
plan will encourage visitors and residents in today’s Wales to explore the spirit of
the past and enjoy the many tales of the Celtic saints.
A legacy in practice
In order to provide the plan with a thematic basis, we have devised four themes
which, collectively, embrace the narrative of the people in the story, the places
associated with them, the institution they served and the opportunities to explore
all three today. We propose four themes under the headings:
♦ The early church in Wales
♦ Remembering the saints
♦ Seeking out the saints
♦ Pilgrims’ paths
The plan will propose a range of media and other mechanisms for interpreting
Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd / The Legacy of the Celtic Saints. It will also
2
From the publisher’s description of Celtic Saints in their Landscape by Elizabeth Rees
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propose how people can combine an interest in the saints, sacred places and
pilgrims’ paths with an interest in the wider Welsh landscape by using the network
of rights of way and more recently-defined pilgrimage routes in what might be
called ‘inspirational exploration’.
The four pilgrimage destinations that we propose should be included in the
interpretation plan are:
♦ Bardsey Island
♦ Holywell
♦ Pennant Melangell
♦ St David’s
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2 Introduction
Touchstone Heritage Management Consultants, Red Kite and Creu-ad wish to thank
Cadw for inviting us to prepare an interpretation plan to explain and promote
Celtic saints, spiritual places and pilgrimage as one strand in Cadw’s pan-Wales
interpretation strategy.
We should also like to thank Professor Nancy Edwards of Bangor University and Dr
Jonathan Wooding, Dr Karen Jankulak and Dr Jane Cartwright of the University of
Wales / Trinity St David for acting as our expert advisors, contributing to our
deliberations and recommendations and preparing important overviews of the
archaeology, history and legends of the saints.
We are grateful to the many people we have spoken to, formally and informally,
during the preparation of this plan. Appendix A lists a number of relevant historical
sources.
We have chosen as a working title, Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd / The Legacy of
the Celtic Saints, to capture both the physical evidence of the saints and their
followers and the continuing part in the cultural inheritance of Wales that the
legends of the saints continue to play.
2.1 The brief
The brief (attached in full as Appendix B) sets out the objectives for the plan and
places it in the context both of the Spiritual and Inspirational Landscapes
interpretation strand (within the Pan-Wales heritage interpretation plan) and of
the overarching interpretive strategy for all of Cadw’s properties. It was confirmed
in initial discussions that the Celtic saints, spiritual places and pilgrimage should
be set within the overall background of Wales as a whole. That context
encompasses both tangible and non-tangible elements of Welsh history, geography
and cultural heritage.
The job of this interpretation plan is to consider eight hundred years or more of the
influence of the Celtic saints on the physical, historical, cultural and spiritual
landscape of Wales and how best to help visitors seek out, appreciate, understand
and cherish this ‘legacy’ whether or not they have any religious beliefs.
This plan must go beyond the scope of most interpretation plans, not least because
it encompasses an abstract element which might be called, loosely, spirituality,
which is not a frequent component of site-based interpretation, and because it also
demands some definition of the indefinable, of personal convictions - and none.
We hope that this plan will provide the framework for telling stories about the
Celtic saints and their place in the landscape, history and culture of Wales,
introduce narrative into the interpretation and inspire visitors to develop further
their own appreciation of the unique, stimulating and emotively-charged legacy of
the Celtic saints in Wales, irrespective of their own beliefs or lack of them.
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2.2 Our considerations
In developing our approach, we have given consideration to a wide range of issues,
some of which were raised in our submission and others at the briefing meeting in
November 2010. We have also taken account of the excellent Strategic Statement
on the Welsh Historic Environment issued by the Minister for Heritage in the Welsh
Assembly Government. It takes the broadest of views of what constitutes the
historic environment and emphasises strongly that it is a story both of people and
for people. That is particularly true of the Celtic saints.
Part of the purpose of this plan will be to demonstrate that Wales is as rich from
the legacy of its early saints as it is from the inheritance of later times. However,
two important caveats must always be to the forefront and they present challenges
to interpretation. First, while the history of people, places and events following
the Norman invasion is taken from largely contemporary records, the stories of the
saints, with a number of important exceptions, rely on accounts written many
years or usually several centuries after the saints themselves lived. What many
people ‘believe’ about the saints is based on legend and mythology, well-honed in
later writing and oral tradition over a long period of time.
Secondly, apart from stone monuments, there is comparatively little physical
evidence of any kind on many sites associated with saints and even less that
provides proven links with the saints. A church named after a Celtic saint is simply
that; it seldom records the presence of the saint at that place and even if it did,
there is usually no way in which that link can be proved. Some saints were known,
from legend and later-written ‘history’, to have travelled and left their influence
in several places but the proof does not generally exist.
A further caveat is that some people can be uncomfortable with anything that is
overtly religious or appears to proselytise. This has had a bearing on the approach
we have taken in preparing this plan, both in avoiding certain terminology and in
seeking greater ‘inclusiveness’. The past belongs to everyone.
In developing our approach we considered many matters in order to provide
parameters for the plan and took either firm or provisional views upon them. Our
principal conclusions are noted below:
Who are the audiences?
The brief requires that we embrace a range of audiences in our proposals.
However, the plan will give greatest consideration to the expectations and needs of
the principal audiences identified by Cadw and other stakeholders – the
independently-minded family and adult couples. Other audiences, including those
with developed or special interests, will also be included in our proposals.
In order to reach visitors and residents, it is important to consider where they are
or will be and therefore to relate interpretive material to a series of geographical
locations and to make it available in these locations. These locations are chosen to
match the principal sites that continue to attract pilgrims and other visitors today.
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Who were the saints?
However appealing it may be to relate the ‘history’ of the saints, it must be made
clear in the implementation of this plan that we rely entirely on oral history and
legend, and stories written long after the saints lived, linked to place and church
dedications, for our knowledge of the Celtic saints whose tales have often inspired
people.
What are sacred places?
The use of the term ‘spiritual’ implies a personal sense of spirituality which may or
may not exist among any or all visitors. The term ‘sacred’ is more objective, more
widely used, where apposite, of sites round the world, and implies a place
deserving respect because it reflects other people’s beliefs. Most sites associated
with saints have revealed little if any archaeological evidence of their occupation
and use in the early medieval period.
What is pilgrimage?
Today’s pilgrimage reflects today’s times but the motivations for going on
pilgrimage are probably no different from those in the past. The pilgrimage routes
that we consider for inclusion in this plan are those which lead to, or link, sites
associated with Celtic saints and were used from medieval, if not early medieval,
times. Modern pilgrimage routes that dovetail with those from the past will, of
course, play a part.
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3 The archaeology of the saints
This chapter has been contributed by Professor Nancy Edwards, Bangor University
The archaeology of the early medieval saints in Wales is only very rarely directly
connected with the saints themselves. At Pennant Melangell there is the twelfth-
century stone shrine of the saint, but this is a unique survival. Furthermore only
the most important sites, such as St David’s, and saints, such as Deiniol of Bangor,
were mentioned in early medieval documentary sources, but many centuries after
they lived, and only one saint’s life associated with Wales (St Samson of Dol) can
be dated before the end of the eleventh century.
In general saints’ lives were written to promote the cult of the saint concerned and
can tell us more about the period in which they were written than the time in
which the saint may actually have lived. Other later medieval sources include
poems to specific saints in Welsh, such as Canu Cadfan (The Song of Cadfan).
Nevertheless, important archaeological evidence for the early medieval church in
Wales does survive which can contribute significantly to the understanding and
appreciation of sites and landscapes by a range of visitor groups.
First and foremost, there are now around 600 carved stone monuments in Wales
dating from the fifth to early twelfth centuries. These can help us to trace the
evolution of the early medieval church in Wales and the development of a range
and hierarchy of sites across Wales, mostly on the sites of churches today. They
can also contribute to our understanding of the art and beliefs of the period as well
as other cultural and linguistic developments and the nature of broader contacts
with Ireland, England, the Continent and the Viking world.
There are around 150 inscribed memorial stones dating from the fifth to earlier
seventh centuries, mainly in Latin, others in the Irish Ogam alphabet, some in both.
Not all are necessarily Christian, but most would have marked the graves of early
Christians in Wales, both rulers and clergy, men and occasionally women, and they
reflect the continuing heritage of the Christianity of Roman Britain while also
showing links with the world beyond Wales. Some are marked with Christian
symbols: chi-rhos or crosses.
From the late sixth century onwards fashions in commemoration changed and by
the later eighth century a variety of different types of carved stone monument
began to be produced, including elaborately decorated and inscribed crosses,
cross-slabs, and pillars, as well as simple cross-carved stones which were mainly
used as grave-markers. Most of this later sculpture is concentrated on what would
have been the most important churches of the period, such as St David’s and
Llantwit Major, and testifies to the wealth of these foundations and their
significance to local rulers, as well as to local and regional communities and
further afield.
The distribution of these monuments can also help to elucidate the wider
landscape of the early medieval church and their presence at church sites and in
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other locations can act as a focus for telling a variety of stories about Wales in the
early middle ages and beyond.
As far as the visitor is concerned, other early medieval archaeological evidence is
much less easy to identify and may not be visible. A handful of early medieval bells
survive, mainly in museums (e.g. National Museum Wales) and on some church
sites. Some early medieval monastic foundations are associated with writers and/or
illuminated manuscripts, such as Llandeilo Fawr with the eighth-century Gospels of
St Chad (now in Lichfield Cathedral) and Llanbadarn Fawr with the Welsh and Latin
poetry and Life of David composed by members of the family of Sulien in the late
eleventh and early twelfth centuries.
However, often we are dependent upon much less tangible or datable evidence,
such as curvilinear church-yards. Excavated graves, for example Llanychlwydog and
Bardsey Island, may have been securely dated to the early middle ages by
radiocarbon or other means and any surviving skeletal evidence, when analysed,
can in itself produce fascinating evidence about people’s lives. However this is no
longer visible to those visiting the sites on which it was found, though information
can be given as part of site interpretation.
Holy wells at or near church sites have no surviving evidence of their possible early
medieval use; associated surviving structures tend to be very late medieval
(Holywell) or eighteenth century (Llangybi, Penmon) in date. Sometimes, saints
have left their mark on the wider landscape in the form of locational place-names,
for example St David and St Melangell, but dating these names is very difficult
indeed.
There are no surviving remains of standing church fabric in Wales prior to the
Romanesque, dating mostly to the twelfth century. However, many churches at
major sites associated with the saints, for example St David’s and Bangor
Cathedrals, Penmon and Clynnog Fawr churches, are important medieval buildings
in their own right and are an integral part of Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd / The
Legacy of the Celtic Saints. This is also true of saints’ capeli y bedd (grave-chapels)
where they survive, for example Clynnog Fawr and Holyhead, and fragmentary
shrines, for example Pennant Melangell and St David’s.
Other than the church sites themselves, there is little archaeological evidence for
pilgrimage routes, though there are occasionally cross-carved stones along the
route, as at Pistyll (Llŷn) and at Fishguard South and Llanrhian on the road to St
David’s. An exception is the (probably) thirteenth-century inscribed stone from
Llanelltyd, near Dolgellau.
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4 The history of the saints
This chapter has been contributed by Dr Jonathan Wooding and Dr Karen Jankulak,
University of Wales / Trinity St David
The early church in Celtic Britain (Wales, Cornwall and North Britain) grew out of
the church of Roman Britain, though it retained continuing productive links to the
churches on the continent. Our knowledge of the first centuries of Christianity in
Wales is limited to a handful of references in mostly later texts, but increasingly
supported by archaeological discoveries. Excavation at churches that are adjacent
to villa sites in the Vale of Glamorgan (Llantwit Major, Llandough near Penarth and
Llancarfan) suggests continuity of Roman Christianity into the post-Roman period in
the south east of Wales. This model contradicts an older, but still widely-believed,
model that the early church in Wales was ‘re-introduced’ by seaborne missionaries
in the ‘age of the saints’ that followed the Roman period.
The south eastern continuity of Roman Christianity is consistent with some
significant early textual sources. The first of these is Gildas’ On the Ruin and
Conquest of Britain (De excidio et conquestu Britanniae), which records the
martyrdom of Aaron and Julius at what is almost certainly Caerleon. The language
of this text, as well, strongly suggests continuity of a Roman education into the
post-Roman period. The second source is the Life of St Samson (Vita S. Samsonis),
a seventh/eighth-century Life of a saint who, it says, was born and raised in South
Wales, studying under Illtud at his famous school at Llantwit Major, before
proceeding to a more austere monastery on what is almost certainly Caldey Island,
to live as a hermit by the Severn, and finally travelling to Brittany via Cornwall,
ending his life as Bishop of Dol.
The third significant source is the Vita S. Dauid by Rhygyfarch (who died in 1099),
which contains in its text an account of the monastic rule of St David that
compares closely with criticisms made by Gildas in a letter to St Finnian in Ireland
(a letter cited by St Columbanus on the continent in a letter to the pope, so
Gildas’s views must have been well-known and regarded) of a contemporary
monastic community (sixth century). The phraseology of Gildas’ comments and
David’s rule indicate that they were referring to a common rule - indeed Gildas and
David are two very recognisable figures, most probably here in genuine
confrontation. (Gildas is a figure who also has high recognition in the ‘Arthurian’
context). Although Rhygyfarch’s Life of St David (late eleventh century) was
written long after David’s lifetime, Rhygyfarch had access to earlier written
sources.
The historical narrative of Welsh Christianity is thus one that can be situated at its
beginning in the spectacular Roman and Christian remains of South and Southwest
Wales. The earliest Roman Christians can be located with reference to the major
sites of Caerleon (where the amphitheatre is the likely setting for the martyrdom
of two Roman martyrs) and Caerwent, the civic capital. The earliest well-attested
monastic churches claim in one way or another to be associated with St Illtud’s
school at Llantwit Major (a large and complex site with great potential as a tourism
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hub). Llantwit, in the Life of Samson, is also represented as a distinctly ‘worldly’
monastery, which engages with the everyday world.
Llantwit is contrasted with the austere ‘desert’ monasticism of Caldey. Like
Llantwit, Caldey is a site possessed of outstanding resources for the visitor:
unusually complete remains of a medieval priory and church, and the presence of a
living monastic community with potential for the visitor to experience the sound,
as well as the visual, dimension of monasticism. The criticisms by Gildas of more
austere monasteries also intrinsically draw St David’s into this narrative which
contrasts the monastery concerned with the needs of the world to that which
attempts to be separate from it.
The dichotomy here between the ‘worldly’ and the ‘desert’ is the embryo of the
distinction made in the later first millennium between the ‘mother church’ (clas)
and the eremitic community (colidei or ‘culdees’). The Life of Samson, the writings
of Gildas and Rhygyfarch’s Life of St David thus tie the events of the sixth /
seventh century firmly to the later story of the clas. The way in which scholars of
the clasau, such as Rhygyfarch, Lifris of Llancarfan and Caradoc of Llancarfan (both
authors of Lives of St Cadog), interpreted the deeds of earlier monks provides some
of the tension points of the Latin Lives. Manuscripts from the clasau of Llanbadarn
Fawr and Llancarfan / Llandaff provide images for interpretation. It is also worth
mentioning links to Cornwall and Brittany, especially given the number of saints
sharing or said to have shared cults between these areas. The monastery Samson
founded in Cornwall is a known site with early remains (St Kew). The number of
twinning arrangements of Welsh towns with Breton partners offers potential links
to develop
Llancarfan, close to Llantwit, was an early literary centre. It has a distinctive
landscape and significant medieval remains. As well as works such as the Life of
Cadoc and its attached archive of charters, the school of Llancarfan produced the
writers who created the Book of Llandaff, with its documentary record - partly
historical, partly not - of the churches of South Wales. The records of St Dyfrig
(Dubricius) in the Book of Llandaff connect with the narrative of the Life of St
Samson where, as ‘archbishop’, he seems to exercise jurisdiction over both the
church of Llantwit and the monastery of Caldey. The Life of Elgar (Vita S. Elgari),
written around 1120, in the Book of Llandaff is concerned with documenting the
extraordinary life of a hermit on Bardsey, who was Llandaff’s witness to the
recovery of the remains of Dyfrig for the cathedral of Llandaff. He is a tangible
‘foreground’ figure who can be interestingly set alongside the more distant Dyfrig.
The distinction between a ‘worldly’ monasticism, concerned with the care of
everyday people, and its extreme counterpart of monks who sailed away over the
sea, provides a second key narrative. The early role of early Britons such as St
Patrick and St Finnian (the correspondent of Gildas) highlights the fact that Wales
may be presented as in many ways the ‘cradle’ of early Christianity in Britain - a
narrative that the older ‘missionary’ model obscured. The roots of movements such
as the extremely austere eighth-century Irish ceili Dé may be seen early on in the
rule of David. David and Patrick, national saints with high recognition, are figures
that can be placed in key roles in this narrative.
Intrinsic to the monastic theme is what is widely seen as the ‘Celtic’ tradition of
‘monastic pilgrimage’—not so much pilgrimage in the modern sense as the early
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medieval idea of ‘travel / self-exile, for the love of God’ (peregrinatio pro amore
Dei). This idea is certainly seen in the spirituality of early Britons such as Samson,
Patrick and, later, in the figure of Elgar; but it is really also the call that motivated
figures such as David. It persists into the second millennium in Wales. The mystical
content of the Life of Elgar of Bardsey sits alongside an eyewitness report of a
hermit who formed his vocation in the light of his experience of captivity from
Devon, enslavement in Ireland, and isolation on Bardsey during a time of
devastation of Gwynedd - all of which are consistent with historical events. It is
Wales’ most remarkable account of the inner life of a hermit of the pre-Norman
church.
The claim in the Life of Elgar that visiting Bardsey is equivalent in difficulty to
visiting Rome is a clear response by Llandaff to the Pope’s statement that a visit to
St David’s was worth half a visit to Rome. This story is one of a number in which
there is complex and continuing response to the monasticism of the early Welsh
church and its saints and in which something more than a ‘flat’ picture of the
saints can be created. The Synod of Llanddewi Brefi as told by Rhygyfarch is
another such story, again taking in a key site with ‘hub’ potential. The bases from
which the stories were written (Llanbadarn Fawr, St David’s, Llancarfan and
Llantwit) all have good potential as hubs, to which the report refers later.
The two narratives here are ones in which continuing Roman Christianity and a
distinct early medieval monasticism allow Wales to be seen as central to:
♦ The rise of Christianity in post-Roman Celtic Britain
♦ The emergence of what is often labelled ‘Celtic’ monasticism
♦ A landscape of saints’ histories and legends that is multi-layered, not simply a
‘legendary’ history.
♦ Key figures, whom the visitor can recognise (such as David, Patrick and Gildas),
can contextualise less well-known figures who have detailed histories such as
Samson, Elgar and Dyfrig.
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5 The legends of the saints
This chapter has been contributed by Dr Jane Cartwright, University of Wales /
Trinity St David
The literature of medieval Wales is rich in hagiographical lore: numerous Latin and
Welsh Lives survive which record the medieval traditions associated with various
saints who were popular in Wales (both native and universal saints). Place-names,
genealogies, calendars, artistic representations and Middle Welsh poetry also shed
light on the cults of the Welsh saints and help us uncover what people in Wales
believed to be true of the early Celtic saints; how the saints were venerated in
medieval Wales and how the saints’ perceived powers and miracles were woven
into the fabric of everyday life in Wales.
Medieval poetry in particular frequently eulogises local Welsh saints and describes
what took place at some of the sites – occasionally describing the buildings, holy
wells, shrines or images of the saints. It is certainly plausible that many of the
poems were performed at the sites themselves and their aim was to raise the
profile of particular local saints, as well as attract pilgrims, and profit, to the
churches, holy wells and shrines (in a similar fashion to the prose Lives). As well as
recording medieval hagiographical traditions that would otherwise have been lost,
poems sometimes provide us with first-hand accounts of medieval pilgrimages. To
the modern pilgrim / tourist visiting the sites, the miracles and legends associated
with the saints add colour and interest to their visit and help contextualise the
material culture.
According to the genealogy De Situ Brecheniauc, Brychan Brycheiniog had twenty-
five daughters and eleven sons of all of whom were Welsh saints. Progenies Keredic
records that David’s lineage (via Cunedda Wledig) was one of the most important
saintly families in Wales and, since David’s grandmother Meleri was one of the
daughters of Brychan Brycheiniog, these two important families were linked, and
David was born into a vast network of saints. For good measure the Welsh Life also
claims that he was related to the son of the Virgin Mary’s sister.
Latin prose vitae of the following saints are extant: David, Illtud, Teilo, Euddogwy
(Oudoceus), Samson, Gildas, Gwynllyw, Cadog, Brynach, Padarn, Clydog, Dyfrig,
Cybi, Tatheus, Carannog, Aedh, Brendan, Pedrog, Cyngar, Gwenfrewi and Melangell
and there are Welsh bucheddau for David, Beuno, Gwenfrewi, Collen, Ieuan Gwas
Padrig, Curig, Llawddog and Ursula. It is generally assumed that the Latin versions
preceded the Welsh texts: the Welsh Life of St David, for example, was composed
towards the end of the eleventh century by Rhygyfarch of Llanbadarn Fawr and this
was adapted into Welsh in 1346 by the anchorite of Llanddewibrefi. The Book of
the Anchorite of Llanddewibrefi also includes the Welsh Life of Beuno which is
generally thought to be an adaptation of an earlier Latin original, now lost.
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The Middle Welsh Lives of Collen, Ieuan Gwas Padrig, Llawddog and Curig all occur
in a sixteenth-century manuscript3 as well as other manuscripts. Although the first
three saints are native saints, the Life of Curig is in fact a Welsh adaptation of the
Latin Life of SS. Cyriacus and Julitta, but appended to this is a curious section of
text outlining specific lands in Wales given to Curig by Maelgwn Gwynedd, Mael of
Maelienydd and Ceredig of Ceredigion. The purpose of the text is to confirm the
land grants and emphasise Curig’s protection over his specific territory. This is
reminiscent of the Life of Melangell which is preoccupied with confirming the
rights of sanctuary at Pennant Melangell rather than advertising the importance of
the Romanesque shrine and relics at Pennant.
This mix of foreign and native elements is also found in the traditions associated
with St Ursula. According to local oral tradition in Ceredigion, St Ursula was a
Welsh princess and set sail on her final pilgrimage to Rome with 11,000 Welsh
virgins from the west-Wales coast near her church at Llangwyryfon (the Church of
the Virgins). Her Welsh legend was translated from Latin by Sir Huw Pennant about
1514 and is preserved in a single manuscript4. Having initially refused to marry a
pagan prince, she is reluctantly forced to agree, so that her father’s kingdom is not
destroyed. She manages to delay the event by succeeding in persuading the tyrant
to allow her to go on one final pilgrimage and she is welcomed in Rome by the
British Curig (rather than Pope Cyriacus).
On her return Ursula and the maidens call at Cologne, but the city is under siege
and all of Ursula’s virginal companions are brutally murdered. The pagan prince
responsible for the murders apologizes to Ursula when he notices her great beauty
and requests her hand in marriage, but since she adamantly refuses his offer, he
takes out his bow and arrow and shoots her. Ursula is depicted shielding her
companions under her cloak and holding the arrow with which she was martyred in
modern stained glass at her church in Llangwyryfon and a plaque in her church at
Cologne commemorates the Welsh connection.
The Lives of at least twenty-five international saints were adapted into Middle
Welsh and many of these saints became associated with particular shrines and
pilgrimage sites. Since sanctity was locally conferred in Wales, many of the
international saints’ cults took on a local flavour and it is possible that the
medieval populace did not differentiate between ‘native’ and ‘non-native’ saints in
the same way that we do today, particularly in the late Middle Ages. The saints’
popularity was often linked to the important services they provided to the faithful.
St Margaret of Antioch, for example, is commemorated in Welsh poetry and various
medieval versions of her Life are extant, for example the White Book of
Rhydderch, written about 1350, which also contains the Mabinogion legends. She
was patron saint of childbirth and her Life promises that those who venerate
Margaret will give birth to healthy children. It was believed that if women held a
copy of her Life or strapped the text to their thighs as they gave birth, this would
relieve their labour pains.
3
Aberystwyth, NLW MS Llanstephan 34
4
NLW MS Peniarth 182
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Mary Magdalene, who is referred to in Welsh poetry as ‘meddyges Iesu’ (Christ’s
physician) is depicted holding a jar of ointment in a medieval wall painting at
Illtud’s church at Llantwit Major (Llanilltud Fawr) and her Middle Welsh Life is
preserved in thirteen Welsh manuscripts. The church and holy well at
Cerrigydrudion were, no doubt, originally dedicated to Ieuan Gwas Padrig before
they became associated with Mary Magdalene, but Ieuan’s Life records that he was
guided to the spot where he built the church by a roebuck and that he himself
decided to dedicate the church to Mary Magdalene.
Acting through the agency of local shrines and statues, even the cult of the Virgin
Mary took on a regional significance. Various medieval poems survive which
describe pilgrimages to sites in Wales where there were famous statues of Mary (for
example at Pen-rhys, Pwllheli, Pilleth and Llanystumdwy) and the poet Hywel
Rheinallt referred to her as a ‘brenhines fro’ (local or regional queen). Indeed,
Mary was believed to have come to Wales. Traditions survive that she visited
Cydweli, Aberdaron, Rhiw, and Llanfair.
At Llanfair in Merionethshire, where a church is dedicated to her, she reputedly
walked towards Hafod-y-llyn and knelt at the roadside two miles south east of
Harlech. Her knee prints were left on the rock and a holy well sprang forth.
Pilgrims crossing to Bardsey Island, referred to by the twelfth-century poet Meilyr
Brydydd as ‘Ynys Fair firain’ (fair Mary’s island), would climb down Mary’s steps at
Aberdaron, Llŷn, and drink from her well; a natural spring in the rocks marks the
spot where she was supposed to have visited and left her hand print.
Of the many native female saints of Wales, only Gwenfrewi and Melangell have
official prose Lives. The legend of Gwenfrewi (Winefride) is related in two twelfth-
century Latin Lives – one of which is anonymous and the other was composed by
Prior Robert of Shrewsbury. The saint’s relics were translated from Gwytherin to
Shrewsbury in 1138 and a fragment of finger bone is still displayed in a silver
monstrance at Holywell on special occasions. The Middle Welsh buchedd most
closely resembles the version by Prior Robert, although it is not identical to it and
one wonders whether the Welsh text may have been linked to the Cistercian
monastery at Basingwerk which profited from Gwenfrewi’s well throughout most of
the Middle Ages.
According to Gwenfrewi’s legend she was decapitated by Caradog because she
refused his advances and her holy well sprang forth from the pool of saintly blood
spilled on the ground. St Beuno, Gwenfrewi’s uncle and spiritual director, placed
her head on her shoulders and she miraculously came back to life, but thereafter a
large scar was visible as a reminder of her martyrdom. She went on to become
abbess of a community of nuns, first at Holywell and later at Gwytherin, and each
year she would send Beuno a magic cloak which remained dry, despite the fact that
it was miraculously transported to him by the flow of the river. For this reason he
was known as Beuno ‘Cassul sych’ (Beuno of the dry cloak / chasuble).
A statue of Gwenfrewi appears in Henry VII’s chapel at Westminster Abbey and the
building of the well chapel at Holywell has frequently been attributed to the
generosity and religious convictions of Henry VII’s mother, Margaret Beaufort
(1441–1509), although the importance should be emphasised of Thomas Pennant’s
sponsorship of the rebuilding work at Holywell, during his time as Abbot of
Basingwerk (1481–1522). Medieval Welsh poetry certainly gives the impression that
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the building of the current Perpendicular well chapel was overseen and financed by
Pennant. Tudur Aled, for example, wishes that Pennant might soon finish enclosing
the well and be rewarded for his endeavours by being made either Bishop of York
or Bishop of St David’s and [name] ap Hywel in his awdl to Gwenfrewi states that:
O law Tomas urddaswin
Yr aeth y gost ar waith Gwen:
Diwan adeilad, da iawn y dylud,
5
Da y darparwyd, iti darperir.
From the hand of Thomas [provider of] noble wine
came the cost of Gwen’s work:
A sturdy building, full well do you deserve it,
well was it prepared, prepared for you.
The Lives of Gwenfrewi describe a whole host of physical illnesses which were
cured at the well – from piles to epilepsy.
The Poets of the Princes Cynddelw, Llywelyn Fardd and Gwynfardd Brycheiniog
record miracles and events associated with SS Tysilio, Cadfan and David
respectively, but it is in the work of the Poets of the Gentry that prolific
references to the Welsh saints appear. Hywel Rheinallt’s poetry may be taken as a
reflection of popular religious practice in fifteenth-century Caernarvonshire and
north Wales. He composed poetry celebrating the cults of St Cawrda at Aber-erch,
Dwynwen on Llanddwyn Island (Anglesey) and Einion Frenin at Llanengan. Einion is
claimed to have been a king in Llŷn (and brother to St Seiriol). Hywel Rheinallt
refers to Einion’s grave at Llanengan and claims that thousands of people from
Gwynedd have been healed at the grave site.
The same poet refers to St Dwynwen’s church on Llanddwyn island as ‘seren y sir’
(the star of the county) and describes how pilgrims from Gwynedd visited the
church and holy well in August leaving offerings of gold and wax. Dafydd Trefor
(who lived from about 1460 to 1528) in his cywydd to Dwynwen gives the
impression that the image of the saint was draped in gold and valuable offerings
and provides a vivid description of miraculous healings that took place at the holy
well:
Minteioedd ym min tywyn:
Merched o amrafael wledydd,
Meibion fil fyrddion a fydd,
Cleifion rhwng ei ffynhonnau,
Crupliaid a gweniaid yn gwau,
Bronnydd fel lluoedd brenin,
Pobl o’r wlad, pawb ar ei lin,
Taprau cwyr, pabwyr er pwyll,
Pibau gwin, pawb â’i gannwyll,
Crysau’n llawn brychau gerbron,
6
Miragl wrth godi meirwon!
5
Gwaith [name] ap Hywel ap Llywelyn Fychan, ed A. Cynfael Lake (Aberystwyth: CAWCS, 1999), p
70. English translation Jane Cartwright, Feminine Sanctity and Spirituality in Medieval Wales
(Cardiff: University of Wales Press, 2008), p 74.
6
Gwaith Syr Dafydd Trefor, ed Rhiannon Ifans (Aberystwyth: CAWCS, 2005), p 67; English
Translation Cartwright, Feminine Sanctity, p 90.
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Crowds on the edge of the seashore:
Girls from various regions,
An innumerable myriad of men are to be found [there]
Sick people, cripples and the weak
bustling between the holy wells,
Hill slopes [covered with people] like a king’s army,
People from the countryside, everyone on his knees,
Wax tapers, candle wicks for health of mind,
Pipes of wine, everyone with his candle,
Shirts covered in stains nearby,
A miracle as the dead are resurrected!
Other local saints, who do not have prose Lives, are commemorated by poets such
as Dafydd Epynt. Only one poem to St Cathen of Llangathen in Carmarthenshire
appears to have been passed down and this is recorded in a single manuscript in
the poet’s own hand. In vivid detail Dafydd Epynt describes suffering from a form
of malaria that was common in boggy areas of Wales in the fifteenth century and
he appeals to St Cathen to heal him, noting that it was believed at that time that
Cathen was buried at Llangathen: ‘Gwared fi ar gwr dy fedd’ (Heal me at your
graveside) 7. Cathen was claimed to be one of Wales’s soldier-saints.
St Illtud reputedly gave up his military career for the religious life. He is generally
considered to be one of the most important of the early British saints and founder
of a monastic school at Llanilltud Fawr. According to the early seventh-century Vita
Samsonis, St Samson of Dol’s parents took him to Llanilltud specifically to study
under Illtud. SS David, Gildas and Paul Aurelian were also his pupils. His twelfth-
century Latin Life describes how Illtud lived in a cave fasting on meagre quantities
of barley bread and fish and drew water from a nearby well. One day he heard the
sweet sound of a bell that was being taken as a gift to St David. He admired the
bell, but was unwilling to ask for it.
When the bell arrived in St David’s, no matter how often St David shook it, it
remained completely silent, so David had the bell sent to his master St Illtud. Oral
tradition records that Illtud’s bell could be heard ringing above the house of
anyone who was about to die in the parish of Llanilltud Fawr. The poet Lewys
Morgannwg recorded similar events to those found in the prose Life of Illtud,
including the miracle which involved Illtud driving back the sea with his crozier. His
Latin Life claims he died at Dol in Brittany, but the second Life of Samson records
that Illtud passed away at Llanilltud Fawr. It is also claimed that he died at ‘Bedd
Gŵyl Illtud’, a tumulus at Penpont in Breconshire.
Numerous Welsh saints were popular in other Celtic regions and their legends were
often transferred wholesale to Brittany or Cornwall. Although there are no
medieval Welsh or Latin Lives of St Non, a late medieval Breton miracle play Buez
Santez Nonn elaborates on Non’s experiences and claims that she died and was
buried at Dirinon in Brittany. A fifteenth-century silver reliquary box at her church
in Dirinon reputedly contains fragments of her arm bones and an elaborate tomb
depicts a carved recumbent figure of Non holding a book.
According to the Lives of St David, Non was raped by Sant and gave birth to David
in the middle of a thunder storm, but the sun shone brightly over Non’s head.
7
Gwaith Dafydd Epynt, ed O. Thomas (Aberystwyth: CAWCS, 2002), pp 32, 94.
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Although the location is not mentioned in the Lives of David, it is traditionally
claimed to be near the site of St Non’s well on the Pembrokeshire coastal path near
St David’s. Modern stained glass in the church at the site depicts Non’s arrival in
Brittany in a boat with the young St David, thus connecting the Welsh and Breton
traditions and a similar window is found in Non’s church at Dirinon.
A poem by Lewys Glyn Cothi is the only extant medieval source which describes the
church and holy well at the site. The poem provides a valuable description of a
Welsh woman’s pilgrimage to St David’s. Edudful ferch Gadwgan visits Non’s chapel
and washes her head in the holy water, worships an image (possibly of St Non) and
leaves candles on the altar at St Non’s before proceeding to St David’s where she
leaves an offering. The description of the building is not detailed, but it provides us
with a rare glimpse of late medieval pilgrimage to the site and stresses the
importance of Non’s well and chapel in association with the cathedral.
Edudful Dduwsul a ddaw
ar Dduw i wir weddïaw;
bwrw ei phwys yn eglwys Non,
bwrw ei phen lle bo’r ffynnon,
dyrchaf dwylaw yn llawen,
addoli oll i’r ddelw wen,
ennyn y cwyr melyn mawr,
a’i roi oll ar yr allawr;
oddyno heibio’dd â hi
I glos da eglwys Dewi;
offrymu, cusanu’r sant,
8
iddo gŵyr rhudd ac ariant;
On Sunday Edudful comes
to pray sincerely to God;
She visits Non’s church,
puts her head in the well
raises her hands merrily,
worships the holy image,
lights the large, yellow candles,
and puts all of them on the altar;
From there she passes to
the good close of St David’s church;
makes an offering of crimson wax
and money and kisses the saint.
The legends of the saints, recorded in poetry and prose, provide valuable insights
into the history and culture of medieval Wales and undoubtedly have an important
role to play in the interpretation of spiritual places and pilgrimage sites across
Wales.
8
Gwaith Lewys Glyn Cothi, ed Dafydd Johnston (Cardiff: University of Wales Press, 1995), p 371.
English translation in Cartwright, Feminine Sanctity, p106.
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6 Our approach – a summary
Saints, sites and routes
Because the Celtic saints have made such a notable contribution to the cultural
heritage of Wales, because the places linked with them are held in high regard for
many reasons and because pilgrimage is of wide interest, our approach in devising
this Interpretation Plan is that it should be wholly inclusive, irrespective of visitors’
and residents’ attitudes to faith and religion and any associations with them. This
Plan is not intended to invite people to do other than to understand – and to take
pleasure from - the place of the saints in the story and landscape of Wales.
As we have said in the foreword, interest in the saints, sacred sites and pilgrimage
transcends matters of belief. Enjoyment of the tales of saints does not require any
profession of faith. Appreciation of sites associated with the saints can evoke as
strong a sense of place among those with other or no religious affiliations as people
of faith; the saints are historical figures. Following a pilgrimage route can be as
rewarding for unbelievers as for believers.
However, there is an increasing interest in the whole ‘culture’ of the Celtic saints
and that there are many faith-based initiatives which embrace, or could embrace,
stories of the Celtic saints. These, too, are not the exclusive domain of Christianity
or any of its denominations; they are open to all to take part in and to gain from.
6.1 The responses as a narrative
Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd / The Legacy of the Celtic Saints can be
encompassed in one overarching narrative or story:
♦ The stories of the Celtic saints, the sites of their churches and the routes that
pilgrims follow to these sacred places form an important and intriguing part of
the cultural heritage of Wales.
Within this narrative, we have selected four themes to illustrate it and these are
introduced in detail in Chapter 6. However, they can be summarised here:
♦ The early church in Wales: The origins of Christianity in Wales from its arrival
during the Roman occupation, its expansion thereafter, the rise of monasticism
and the development of a network of Christian sites across Wales.
♦ Remembering the saints: The Celtic saints, both men and women, through the
stories told about them long after their lifetimes, the places associated with
them, and the many churches named after them, have provided a lasting legacy
that enriches the cultural heritage of Wales.
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♦ Seeking out the saints: The places associated with the Celtic saints of Wales are
often in remote, beautiful and serene locations and offer opportunities for
contemplation and reflection in what might be called spiritual (but not
necessarily religious) landscapes.
♦ Pilgrims’ paths: From medieval times, pilgrims made their way to sacred sites
associated with well-known Celtic saints and today’s pilgrims continue to seek
out these places, in some cases creating new routes.
6.2 The value of the legacy
The value of Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd / The Legacy of the Celtic Saints can
expressed as a series of benefits:
♦ The stories of the saints help people to appreciate the life and dedication of
holy men and women, the evolution of Christianity in early medieval and later
Wales, and the historic and religious characteristics in these times.
♦ The sites where the saints are reputed to have lived, prayed and preached
continue to evoke a powerful sense of place and help people to understand how
the natural heritage played an important role in the lives and beliefs of the
saints.
♦ The network of pilgrims’ paths invites people to make continuing use of them
today and to appreciate the strength of belief that encouraged medieval pilgrims
to seek out sacred places.
♦ Understanding and appreciating the life and times of the saints encourages
people to develop a greater interest in the landscape, history, language and
cultural life of early Wales and contrast it with today.
♦ Understanding and appreciating the stories of the saints brings to life many
sacred places and gives added meaning to the many important carved stones,
crosses and other relics that remain from that period.
6.3 Regions and areas
We have chosen to segment the landscape of Wales into four regions and, within
them, ten areas where there are greater concentrations of physical evidence of the
saints. This arrangement embraces three elements:
♦ The broad landscape character areas associated with particular saints or groups
of saints
♦ The main topographical regions of Wales
♦ The boundaries of tourism-promotion regions (and local authority areas)
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The regions and areas are:
♦ North Wales - Isle of Anglesey, Llŷn Peninsula, Harlech area, Holywell area
♦ Mid Wales –Llangynog area, Aberystwyth / Cardigan area
♦ South West Wales –St David’s area, Nevern area, Pembroke area, Llandeilo area
♦ South East Wales – West Glamorgan, Vale of Glamorgan, Chepstow area
A list of chosen sites and saints is given in Chapter 10. Our choice has been
dictated principally by the presence of physical evidence in the form of carved
stones, crosses and other memorials.
6.4 Sacred sites
There are several important sacred sites or areas that continue to attract pilgrims
and many others who have an interest in the Celtic saints. Five which we have
identified as being the focus for potential interpretive initiatives are those below,
the first and last of which we have selected as cluster studies:
♦ Bardsey Island and the Llŷn Peninsula
♦ Holywell
♦ Pennant Melangell area
♦ Around St David’s
♦ Llantwit Major (Llanilltud Fawr) area
Our proposals later in this report consider the early medieval routes but they may
well dovetail with interpretation on recent routes which have been established
under a series of regional and local initiatives driven by faith groups working with
tourism interests.
6.5 Delivery
Reference was made in the Foreword to two levels of delivery of interpretation:
♦ National level, under the direct responsibility of an appropriate organisation
♦ Site-related level, undertaken by regional or local organisations
We set out in Chapter 10 a range of interpretive media and mechanisms and
ascribe them to appropriate levels of implementation. Allied to this, we propose
that site-based interpretation about the saints, the sites and the pilgrims’ paths is
delivered through a series of ‘hubs’ at places and / or existing facilities where
there are key destinations, organisations and other venues that are actively
involved in tourism and matters of practical faith. At this stage, no approaches
have been made to potential hubs.
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6.6 Cluster studies
To demonstrate how the associations noted above, and the four themes we have
identified earlier, can be made to work for a particular area, we have prepared
cluster studies for the Llŷn Peninsula and Llantwit Major area which are set out in
Chapter 14.
6.7 Pilgrimage destinations
There are four principal pilgrimage destinations that have their origins in medieval
times:
♦ Bardsey Island
♦ Holywell
♦ Pennant Melangell
♦ St David’s
These are dealt with in Chapter 15.
6.8 Links with other plans
In selecting locations for inclusion in interpretation, we have also considered where
they might relate to other interpretive initiatives. For example, in the area around
Llantwit Major, there are two Cadw properties and our proposals link these with
other sites in the locality. In the Llŷn Peninsula, there are already well-trodden
paths to Bardsey Island and we make proposals linking all the sites in this area. We
set out a list of potential partners for implementing this Interpretation Plan in
Chapter 14.
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7 Stakeholders and initiatives
Many organisations in Wales are engaged in activities to interpret culture and
heritage for residents and visitors. Faith and church groups, local authorities,
national parks, AONBs, Landscape Partnership Scheme projects and many
community groups funded through the Rural Development Programme and the
Heritage Lottery Fund are producing interpretive materials, organising activities or
working closely with communities and interest groups. A few of the projects have
developed interpretation specifically relevant to Celtic saints and some have
prepared leaflets about churches and also developed church and pilgrimage trails.
Many have shown an interest in developing projects that relate more closely to the
theme of this plan. A selection of these groups is described briefly below.
Adventa, a community development project in Monmouthshire funded through the
Rural Development Programme, focuses on developing projects and activities in
four themes – activities in the landscape, churches, local foods, and arts and
crafts. It has produced a churches trail leaflet for visitors and other guides that
celebrate landscape and local arts and crafts.
The Bardsey Island Trust has managed the island since 1979. Its aims include
encouraging people to visit the island as a place of natural beauty and pilgrimage,
to undertake study and educational programmes, to protect the buildings and
archaeological sites, to promote the artistic and cultural life of the island, to
protect the wildlife and delicate ecosystem of the island and to engage in farming
to benefit the island’s diverse habitats.
The interpretation strategy of the Brecon Beacons National Park Authority
(BBNPA) acknowledges the importance of religious influences in the park, and
presents themes and subthemes that provide a framework for their interpretation.
It includes early Christianity (Sts David and Illtud) and the rise of the non-
conformist movement. Although no interpretation has been produced to date on
these themes due to lack of resources, the authority would like to pursue
interpretation on the cultural elements of the Brecon Beacons story in the future.
Bible Society has purchased the redundant church of St Beuno at Llanycil near Bala
and plans to make this the Faith Heritage Centre for Wales. The centre will also
make links with other aspects of Welsh heritage, especially that of links between
faith and culture. An interpretation plan has been written for this site.
Ceredigion County Council has a Faith Heritage Initiative that is funded through
the tourism strand of the Rural Development Plan and which has included
interpretive projects at a number of faith related sites in the county.
The Churches Tourism Network of Wales is a support and advisory group that
encourages churches in Wales to develop tourism and visitor services. It helps by
providing information and training for church communities and ideas for how a
church can be part of a wider visitor experience for an area. It works in partnership
with many organisations with the aim of recognising and promoting the value of the
7500 or so churches and chapels in Wales as a critical part of Welsh heritage.
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The Heather and Hillforts Landscape Partnership Scheme project, together with
Denbighshire Countryside Service, is developing projects and activities in the
Denbighshire and Clwydian Range AONB areas including audio trails, long distance
routes and interpretation projects. One project is the Brenig Way, which runs from
Corwen to Llyn Brenig. The route follows ancient drovers’ roads and includes
churches, holy wells and other ancient sites along the way.
There are many organisations and projects in Wales funded by the Heritage
Lottery Fund that are helping to reveal and restore the heritage of Wales and
bring it alive for communities and visitors. One project, in particular, is relevant to
this plan. St Illtud’s Church in Llantwit Major has received a major grant to
transform the ruined thirteenth century Galilee Chapel, adjoining the church, into
a new learning and exhibition centre that will house a unique collection of early
medieval carved stone crosses and other sculpture. Llantwit Major was first
established as a place of worship in the fifth century, and St Illtud is reputed to
have founded a school that is recognized as one of the earliest centres of Christian
learning. The Church is integral to the story of Christianity in South Wales and has
strong links with Caldey Island, St David’s, Llancarfan and Llandaff.
An important issue for church and religious tourism is that many churches are
closed at times other than during services. However, through the efforts of the
CTNW, many more churches are now unlocked during the day and provide
information and interpretation about the stories that they hold. The Open Church
Network in Wrexham, for example, has worked with 16 churches in the Wrexham
area to link them in a trail to help explain the fascinating history of this part of
North Wales. Open church projects and church tourism trails have been developed
in rural Wales such as The Living Stones Heritage Trail in north Montgomeryshire.
The Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority (PCNPA) runs the Oriel y Parc
centre in St David’s which is partly a visitor centre for the Park and a gallery and
arts centre. It has run a series of guided walks and other activities from the centre
to explore St David’s Head, and would like to see this developed further as spiritual
trails exploring the stories of saints such as St Non, St Justinian and St David. It has
produced interpretation leaflets in the past on ‘Saints and Stones’ and ‘Priors and
Pilgrims’ but has insufficient resources to develop these further. PCNPA would
welcome enhanced interpretation of the ‘St David’s experience’ perhaps through
joint funding with other organisations. Activities could include drama productions
of the stories of the saints – in the form of ‘mystery plays’ – which could be
enacted at Oriel y Parc and the Bishop’s Palace. There is already a Breton one
about St Non which could act as a model.
Planed is a community development agency operating in Pembrokeshire involved in
a wide range of work that helps to build sustainable communities and a thriving
rural economy. One of its successful projects is the Saints and Stones group based
in Pembrokeshire (see PCNPA above). The group (see below) has developed a
number of trails along the ancient pilgrim routes to St Davis’s linking to churches
along the route. It is also planning a celebration of the 900th anniversary of
pilgrimage to St David’s in 2023, and would like to see more of the traditional, and
contemporary, pilgrimage routes linked together.
The Saints and Stones Group in Pembrokeshire is currently discussing the proposal,
noted above, under the title Pilgrimage to St David’s 1123-2023, to reinstate the
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medieval pilgrim ways to St David’s and to develop them for the benefit of visitors
and the rural economy of Wales. The proposal addresses the concept of pilgrimage
against its historical background and in terms of twenty-first century needs and the
criteria for promoting heritage projects. It considers the needs for routes and
signage, accommodation en route, publicity and publications, employment
opportunities, likely partnerships and the need for help with costs and
organisation.
The Tywi Afon yr Oesoedd (River through Time) Landscape Partnership Scheme
project is based in Llandeilo. The project focuses on building and landscape
conservation but also undertakes projects that encourage visitors to discover the
landscape of the Tywi valley. The project has commissioned artists to work with
communities to produce artwork and exhibitions that celebrate the landscape. It
has produced a series of walks leaflets including a sculpture trail and a churches
trail. It has also produced an illustrated guide – ‘Exploration Tywi’ – that
encourages discovery of the valley, its culture and its landscape.
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8 Aim and objectives
We propose that the overall aim of interpretation implemented as an outcome of
this Interpretation Plan should be:
♦ To help visitors and local people to understand and appreciate the contribution
made to the cultural heritage of Wales by the Celtic saints, and the stories about
them, and to encourage them to visit and enjoy the places associated with
them.
8.1 Interpretive objectives
To support the aim, we propose that the interpretive objectives should be ...
♦ To encourage visitors and local people to explore the landscapes of the Celtic
saints in Wales and to appreciate why the sites are now associated with them
♦ To encourage visitors and local people to learn more of the fascinating stories
about the Celtic saints, to appreciate that they are based on legend and later
written accounts and how they have contributed to the cultural heritage of
Wales
♦ To encourage visitors and local people to consider and understand the religious,
archaeological, historical and geographical contexts of sites associated with the
Celtic saints
♦ To encourage visitors and local people to follow the pilgrimage routes which
lead to the key sites associated with Celtic saints and to savour the experience
of walking, cycling or otherwise travelling in what were once wild places
♦ To encourage tourism, arts and religious organisations to give greater
consideration to the contribution of Celtic saints to the cultural heritage of
Wales and to help visitors to make connections between the saints and the
landscapes of today
♦ To encourage children, young people, and life-long learners to ‘stop and think’
and to make connections linking the stories of the Celtic saints, the physical and
cultural geography, and religious heritage, of Wales
♦ To relate, in tourism and arts-related terms, the interpretation of Cymynrodd y
Seintiau Celtaidd / The Legacy of the Celtic Saints to other aspects of the
cultural and spiritual landscape.
The aim and objectives relate, principally, to the categories of visitors and local
people without a specialist interest. There is obviously a further objective in
relation to the specialist:
♦ To help extend the knowledge and awareness of visitors and local people with a
special interest in the Celtic saints, the period in which they lived and their
religious and cultural legacy.
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9 Interpretive themes
The aim and objectives suggest the following themes which are there to guide the
interpreters and should be implicit rather than explicit in any interpretive media.
The first, overarching, narrative is:
♦ The Celtic saints, the sites associated with them and the routes that pilgrims
follow to sacred places collectively form an important part of the cultural
heritage of Wales.
Supporting this overarching theme are four topic-based themes:
♦ The early church in Wales: The early church in Wales: The origins of
Christianity in Wales from its arrival during the Roman occupation, its expansion
thereafter, the rise of monasticism and the development of a network of
Christian sites across Wales.
♦ Remembering the saints: The Celtic saints, both men and women, through the
stories told about them long after their lifetimes, the places associated with
them, and the many churches named after them, have provided a lasting legacy
that enriches the cultural heritage of Wales.
♦ Seeking out the saints: The places associated with the Celtic saints of Wales are
often in remote, beautiful and serene locations and offer opportunities for
contemplation and reflection in what might be called spiritual (but not
necessarily religious) landscapes.
♦ Pilgrims’ paths: From medieval times, pilgrims made their way to sacred sites
associated with well-known Celtic saints and today’s pilgrims continue to seek
out these places, in some cases creating new routes.
9.1 Sub-themes
A number of sub-themes can be devised to extend the scope of the principal
themes. Some may apply only to one area or be related to one key character. They
could include, for example:
The early church in Wales
♦ The Roman army brought Christianity to Wales and it began then to be adopted
by native people as an increasing focus for their religious beliefs.
♦ Many of the saints are thought to have come from local ruling families or
developed connections with local rulers who gained prestige from these
associations.
♦ Many of the Celtic saints devoted their life to prayer and scholarship, others
travelled among their people, many are thought to have gone to Brittany and
some are reputed to made pilgrimages to Rome.
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Remembering the saints
♦ Stories about female Celtic saints such as Dwynwen, Melangell and Winefride are
still told today.
♦ St David was recognised as the leading saint in Wales more than a thousand years
ago.
♦ The names of many Celtic saints are remembered through the places and
churches named after them.
♦ Legends of the saints were often recorded in documents written by scholars long
after the saints died.
Seeking out the saints
♦ The saints’ interest in aspects of nature often appears as an element in the
stories and legends about them.
♦ Many places associated with the Celtic saints are still important sites of Christian
worship and practice such as Bardsey and Caldey Islands and St David’s.
♦ Many tourist destinations in coastal and rural Wales are close to places
associated with the Celtic saints and this provides opportunities for visiting the
early church sites while on holiday
Pilgrims’ paths
♦ Pilgrimage routes in Wales are part of the country’s long heritage and can hold a
fascination for those without religious affiliations as well as those of faith.
♦ Taking part in pilgrimages combines good fellowship and, often, good exercise,
with interest in the saints and, for many, strong religious beliefs.
♦ There is a growing interest in developing new pilgrimage routes such as the
Cistercian Way which links monastic sites which would have been used for
overnight accommodation by medieval pilgrims.
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10 Market and audiences
Many organisations in Wales have knowledge of their visitor and resident markets at
a local, regional or national level. Demographic profiles are available for Wales as a
whole and for principal regions. Foreknowledge, desires, expectations, experiences
and satisfaction levels of visitors have been widely surveyed but not a great deal is
known about the personal aspirations and emotions of visitors to and within Wales.
For a topic that is at least partially abstract, aesthetic and even spiritual as
Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd / The Legacy of the Celtic Saints there is little
formal research upon which to base target audiences which are, as a result,
generic rather than specific.
10.1 Markets
The tourism market in Wales is made up, predominantly, of visitors from other
parts of the UK, substantially from the English Midlands and north west England.
The great majority of visitors rate ‘scenery’ and ‘heritage’ as key components of
Wales’s attraction for them but the proportion of incoming tourists who have more
than a passing interest in the Celtic saints is not known. Anecdotally, given the
increasing number of pilgrimage-related initiatives, it appears that there is a
growing interest in matters related to faith, ancient sites and pilgrims’ routes. The
list of ‘top places’ includes the Pembrokeshire coast, the Llŷn Peninsula and other
coastal areas. Many of these landscapes are associated with the Celtic saints.
Other important factors in the overall appeal of Wales are historic sites of all
kinds, wild (if safe) countryside and coast, and sites with a special sense of place,
many of which feature, directly or indirectly, in the stories of the Celtic saints.
Of the nine million visitors who come to Wales, around one million are from
abroad, representing not only a significant market sector but also one that, in
general, has an expressed interest in finding out about the country, its scenery,
heritage, language and ancestors.
VisitWales welcomes all visitors, including those whose interests lie mainly in
spending time, usually in modestly-priced accommodation, at the many coastal
resorts. However, it is keen to attract many more of what it calls ‘independently-
minded’ families – those who will seek out the special and often unique qualities of
Wales.
Discussions with tourism marketing, arts organisations, community development
organisations and other groups reveals more about the nature of the market,
particularly for cultural tourism in Wales. Research carried out by the North Wales
Tourism Partnership, for example, found that:
29% of tourists visited for a specific cultural activity and are the ‘pure cultural
tourists’. They are well prepared, they will have read information before their visit
and know what they are coming for. They will visit specific sites or attractions for a
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purpose and will be focused in their visit itinerary. They visit for cultural
enlightenment, as well as for entertainment. They tend to be older adults only.
70% of tourists are ‘casual cultural tourists’ or ‘accidental cultural tourists’. For
casual cultural tourists the cultural context is important but so are other non-
cultural factors. The destinations must have a variety of opportunities for activity
and must include shopping. Their purpose for visiting is for general interests with
some cultural activity. They are generally adults only or with older children.
‘Accidental cultural tourists’ pay little attention to specific cultural aspects before
deciding where to go, but are still interested in visiting a cultural site if it is within
the area of their general visit. They will not have researched much before their
visit and are happy to pick up information that may encourage them to visit other
attractions. They tend to be adults-only groups or families with older children.
The largest group of ‘cultural’ tourists are adults travelling as couples or in groups.
They are mostly aged 35+ with or without children and in social groups A, B and C1.
This research also showed that the internet is now the most dominant source of
information for finding out about destinations, and it is used by people of all ages.
People may start by searching tourist board sites but are comfortable using search
engines for accommodation and independent review sites. An individual event may
be the driver for planning a cultural visit but the general cultural backdrop for the
destination is important for making a visit decision.
Other organisations consulted provided more anecdotal information about the
market. Some people enjoy taking tours with specific themes – gardens, churches
or other cultural topics – but most people are more relaxed about their visits,
picking off destinations on a whim rather than as an organised visit. People who
come to an area for another purpose are often interested in organised tours if they
are available. During the Ryder Cup in 2010 many visitors, particularly from
America, joined tours with themes such as churches, saints and genealogy.
Websites are increasingly drawing the interest of potential visitors. Sites that carry
more of an explanation of culture, rather than simply information, are particularly
useful. The ‘People’s Collection’ - www.peoplescollection.co.uk/ - provides high
quality cultural interpretation that can help to increase people’s understanding
about the culture of Wales and can also be a valuable part of the planning for a
visit. ‘Inspirational Wales’ – www.inspirationalwales.com/ is another website which
encourages ‘virtual visitors’ to explore the cultural heritage of South West Wales.
Churches do not stand apart, of course, they cross-cut with a range of other potential heritage
and wider themes such as: saints and legends, castles, coast, family history, walking routes, and
so on. Church tourism can also help to spread visitor activity beyond the obvious ‘honeypot’
attractions, and there is potential for churches and their stories to play a part in the
strengthening of secondary visitor destinations, building upon aspects of history, community and
sense of place.9
9 From Unlocking the Potential of Church Tourism by Andrew Duff in Tourism Insights, September
2009
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Many organisations, including tourism partnerships and the community
development projects, confirm that the Welsh landscape and its culture are the
main attractions for visitors, with many enjoying the opportunities the landscape
provides for activities and pursuits. Many people also like to sample a number of
activities in one visit, which might include a tour of castles or gardens, a walk in
the hills and a visit to a Cadw or National Trust site. There is an opportunity to
provide interpretation that links aspects of culture, heritage and landscape that
provides a dynamic picture of Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd / The Legacy of the
Celtic Saints in their landscape.
10.2 Audiences
We propose that the following audiences represent the principal target markets for
the proposals in this interpretation plan:
♦ The independent-minded family, attracted to Wales (or to parts of Wales away
from home) at least partly by its cultural heritage and with at most a passing
interest in, and knowledge of, sites linked to Celtic saints for a variety of
reasons including location, setting, related stories or religious associations.
♦ The independent-minded family, attracted to Wales (or to parts of Wales away
from home) at least partly by its cultural heritage, and with an expressed or
strong interest in, or knowledge of, sites linked to Celtic saints for a variety of
reasons including location, setting, related stories or religious associations.
♦ Adult visitors and local people with at most a passing interest in, and knowledge
of, sites linked to Celtic saints for a variety of reasons including location,
setting, related stories or religious associations.
♦ Adult visitors and local people with an expressed or strong interest in, or
knowledge of, sites linked to Celtic saints for a variety of reasons including
location, setting, related stories or religious associations.
♦ Visitors and local people with a special interest in the sites linked to Celtic
saints in the context of their involvement in religious belief or practice.
It would be possible to make a distinction between those with, on the one hand,
any level of interest or knowledge (or none) in the Celtic saints, and on the other
hand, any level of interest or involvement in religious belief and practice. In
reality, it will be necessary for all interpretive media to address both groups, some
or all of whom may have different levels of interest or knowledge between one
aspect and another. A person with strong Christian beliefs may know about Celtic
saints but nothing about sites associated with them, a regular visitor may be an
enthusiast for the sites but know little about their religious significance.
However, where it is practicable to provide a hierarchical approach, different
types of interest can be addressed at different levels.
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11 Our proposals
Our approach is predicated on creating the greatest level of general interest and
that must involve two key elements – storytelling and people. As a general rule,
people react and respond more to other people than to anything else. People of all
ages love stories and stories involving people have, therefore, the most impact.
11.1 The power of the story
We propose, therefore, that the interpretation of Celtic saints, sacred places and
pilgrims’ paths should be based on telling stories of people at places and, in
support, stories of the places themselves, where they add to appreciation and
understanding. The people involved would be the saints – as we know them from
the legends and, where known, those with whom they came into contact.
We have determined that, for a variety of practical reasons, the interpretation
should be based on Wales as a single geographical region. However, when the
principles of this plan, or interpretive media, are being implemented, it may be
that they are applied to a smaller area than Wales as a whole. This could well be
the case in relation to, for example the Llŷn Peninsula, or Pembrokeshire. At this
stage, however, we believe that an all-Wales approach provides a more realistic
and practicable base for many purposes.
However, this does not preclude the use of other points of focus linked, for
example, to particular places, to the influence of key sites, to the chronology
involved or, of course, to the saints themselves.
What will be important is the quality of the story told, and that will depend upon
the calibre and specialist knowledge of the writers and designers employed to
implement this plan’s proposals. If the title of this plan were applied, for example,
to the whole of Wales ...
Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd
The Legacy of the Celtic Saints
Sacred places and pilgrims’ paths in Wales
... our proposals would be that the content of related media would include, for
example, but not necessarily in the following order:
♦ Stories and legends of specific Celtic saints taken from the stories told of them
over the years
♦ Descriptions and illustrations of the key places associated with the saints, the
inscribed stones and sculpture that remains, and why they places have continued
to inspire people to visit
♦ The role of the Celtic saints and their cults in the development of the early
Christian church in Wales over several hundred years from the Roman period
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♦ Examples of early accounts and stories of the saints (almost all from the
eleventh century onwards) taken from written sources including poetry
♦ Descriptions of the medieval pilgrims’ paths and how to enjoy them today
♦ References to other elements inherited from medieval Wales such as sacred
music and poetry
It will be important to weave a story around the chosen saints and sites rather in
the format of a television programme, a magazine article, or a website, effectively
illuminating the overall narrative with sidebars, ‘pop-ups’, boxed sections,
quotations and, of course, tales of the saints themselves.
In visual terms, the approach should be full of interest with chosen highlights that
will catch the attention of different readers of text or website. The same
technique can be used in audio text with ‘digressions’ or ‘interruptions’ to the
main flow to maintain the interest of different audience groups.
The following graphic is a representation of this approach. Where sound can be
part of the interpretation, then music or song, or spoken passages of text or
poetry, will provide an added dimension that will appeal to many if not all.
The harp and
Melangell Can you believe it?
[St Winefride story]
[Llio Rhydderch]
People at peace with their maker
[Story of the Celtic saints]
Sit and watch the sea!
[St Non] Ancient and modern
Where did these pilgrims
holy men and [Pilgrims’ routes]
women come
from?
March hares? [The origins of the
[St Melangell] saints]
Holy well Let’s see the
[Llandeilo] evidence
[Early carved and inscribed
St David – still stones]
playing for Wales
[Story of patron saint]
Ynys Enlli –
a place that’s still special
[Bardsey Island]
A St Valentine in Wales?
[Story of St Dwynwen]
Faith echoes
The story is on
through simple chants
[Plainsong]
the stone
[Llantrisant stone]
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In telling the story and introducing all the points of interest, it will be essential to
involve visitors and local people by, for example:
♦ Encouraging them to visit sites and consider today’s landscape and how much it
has or has not changed in the last fifteen hundred years
♦ Encouraging them to follow the pilgrims’ paths on foot, by bike or by car to
experience the journeys of early pilgrims
♦ Encouraging them to take photographs of sites of their choice and add them to
saints-related and other appropriate websites / add them to social networking
sites / take them to a local centre / enter a competition etc
♦ Encouraging them to write descriptions, or compose their own written tributes,
in response to the sites associated with Celtic saints and contribute them as
above
The value of cartoons in storytelling
For many years, the power of cartoons as a storytelling medium has been
acknowledged, using the power of gentle humour to point to morals and messages.
We feel there could be an opportunity to employ a cartoon technique in some
media – the interpretive maps and websites for example - to catch immediate
attention, to draw out key aspects of stories and to provide entertainment with an
underlying message – the legacy that the saints have left.
The inspiration for this has come from figures and ornaments derived from early
medieval art such as that in the St Chad Gospels (in Llandeilo Fawr in the early
ninth century, now in Lichfield, and figures on sculpture such as the warrior at
Llandyfaelog Fach. In addition, Celtic patterns and motifs remain very popular and
offer another starting point for designs used in printed and digital interpretive
media. We understand Cadw is considering a symbol for use on sites and trails
associated with the Celtic saints.
We have prepared a few indicative examples of a cartoon approach for this
report10. They follow broadly the style as portrayed in the St Chad Gospels. Their
idealised figures are decorated with patterns and motifs, but the examples here
have been kept as simple as possible.
There examples illustrate:
1. a saint
2. St Winefride by the well.
3. a bell
4. an angel
5. a bishop
6. pilgrims
7. a scholar/monk (which could be St Gildas)
8. an ascetic (which could be St David)
9. St Melangell
10
The illustrations are © Lynne Denman, Creu-ad and authorised only for use in this report
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1 2 3
4
5 6
7
8 9
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12 Chosen sites and saints
There are many sites in Wales associated in one way or another with Celtic saints.
However, some display little or no physical evidence from early medieval times and
the selection we have chosen represents the majority of those where there is
something for visitors to see. We have grouped together sites in ‘area clusters’ so
that visitors can visit several within a short radius and which are as inclusive as
possible in terms of the interests and enthusiasms of visitors and local people. We
have also included pilgrimage routes to the early medieval sites although most if
not all of these routes date from later medieval times. No modern pilgrimage
routes are included.
Many of the sites are accessible at all or most times but where early medieval
inscribed stones and other carved stone monuments, for example, are within
churches, access may depend on contacting a local key holder or even making
contact ahead of time. Arrangements can also change depending upon local
circumstances.
Entries are shown under four regions, within which they are grouped by ‘area
cluster’. Those centres we propose as Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd / The Legacy
of the Celtic Saints hubs (see Section 13) are clearly identified. However, at this
stage, we have not made approaches to owners / managers of potential hubs.
There are stories about many of the saints. Stories are the lifeblood of
interpretation but great care must be taken, when using these stories in
interpretation, to emphasise that they are not historically accurate. However, to
lose the mythology would be to lose much of the appeal of the saints for many
people. Many legends of the saints were set out in Chapter 5 and a well-used (but
not necessarily academically-sound source of stories is The Lives of the British
Saints by Sabine Baring-Gould and John Fisher, published in 1907.
The Legacy of the Celtic Saints – chosen locations and saints
Location Saint(s) On-site evidence and stories Accessibility
North Wales - Anglesey
St Seiriol’s Well, St Seiriol Two Viking Age crosses, font, cross- Possible
Penmon Church carved stone. Fine Romanesque church, Parking nearby
well, views of hermitage on Ynys Seiriol.
Stories of saint.
Ynys Llanddwyn, St Dwynwen Holy well, ruined late medieval chapel, Not practicable
Newborough St Beuno good folk tale about eel in the well. Parking on mainland
[tidal island] Stories of St Dwynwen, saint’s day 25
January, celebrated by lovers (cf St
Valentine)
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Location Saint(s) On-site evidence and stories Accessibility
North Wales – Llŷn Peninsula
Bangor St Deiniol EM sculptural fragments, Easy
Cathedral C12th. Life of St Deiniol from Parking in town
the end of the middle ages.
Bardsey Island St Cadfan EM cross and cross-carved stone in the Possible but not
St Dyfrig chapel. Site of EM graves. Well? Later practicable
ruins of St Mary’s Abbey. Stories of Sts Parking on mainland
St Deiniol
Cadfan and Elgar.
Elgar the hermit
‘20,000 saints’
Bardsey Pilgrim Saints associated See cluster study in Chapter 13 See individual sites
Route with local
Potential The churches en
Legacy of the Celtic route
Saints hub at
Aberdaron
St Beuno’s Church, St Beuno C8th or 9th sundial. Fine late medieval Steps at one
Clynnog Fawr pilgrim church with Capel Beuno, a entrance
capel y bedd, site of grave of saint until Parking on road
late C18th. Cross-carved stone in the
Church open at
chapel. Holy well nearby. Saint’s life.
times, but not capel
y bedd
Llanaelhaearn St Aelhaearn Early Christian sculpted stones in church Possible
Church and churchyard. Parking nearby
Llangian Church St Cian C5th or 6th inscribed funerary Possible
monument. Parking nearby
St Cybi’s Well, St Cybi Holy well, C18th. Cross-carved stone in Not possible
Llangybi [Cadw] churchyard. Stories of saint. Parking on road
St Beuno’s Church, St Beuno Font with Viking Age ornament in Steep path to
Pistyll picturesque church. Another cross- door
carved stone nearby. Parking on road
Closed most of time
North Wales – Harlech area
St Tanwg’s Church, St Tanwg Three inscribed stones, one cross-carved Good
Llandanwg stone, one small Viking Age cross. Parking nearby
Picturesque church in beautiful setting.
Church often open
in summer
St Derfel’s Church, St Derfel Site of shrine of St Derfel with large Good
Llandderfel near wooden statue of horse or stag. That of Parking
Bala the saint burnt after the Reformation in
London – a good story. Stories of saint.
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Location Saint(s) On-site evidence and stories Accessibility
St Cadfan’s Church, St Cadfan Unique cross-carved stone with Welsh Good
Tywyn memorial inscriptions Fine C12th Parking
church. EM sundial at nearby leisure
Usually open
centre. C12th poem about St Cadfan.
North Wales – Holywell area
St Winefride’s Well, St Winefride Holy well (site first mentioned in Easy access
Holywell [Cadw] (Gwenfrewi), Domesday Book), fine late medieval well No car park
Potential The St Beuno chapel and chapel. Finger bone in
Admission charge
Legacy of the Celtic monstrance and fragments of early
Saints hub medieval wooden shrine sometimes on
display
Good C12th stories.
Holywell still a destination for pilgrims.
Whitford [Cadw] St Cwyfan (?Irish Cross known as Maen Achwyfan, Viking Good
St Kevin) Age with some pagan mythological Open site
iconography. Early inscribed stone
Parking nearby
nearby in Whitford church.
Tremeirchion, St St Beuno Well, later medieval or later Good
Asaph superstructure. Roadside parking
Mid Wales – Llangynog area
St Dogfan’s Church, St Dogfan C 9th/10th cross-slab with later Good
Llanraeadr-yn- inscription. Fragment of EM font. Parking
Mochnant
St Tysilio and St St Tysilio Late C11th / early C12th cross-slab, site Good
Mary’s Church, of major foundation associated with Parking
Meifod, Welshpool later medieval rulers of Powys. Large
graveyard which in C12th had three
churches. C12th poem Canu Tysilio.
St Melangell’s St Melangell Romanesque shrine of Melangell. EM Good
Church, Pennant excavated church site with C12th fabric Parking
Melangell and possible site of saint’s grave.
Possible The Legacy Excellent late medieval saint’s life.
of the Celtic Saints Surrounding landscape with features
hub associated with the saint.
Pennant Melangell still a destination for
pilgrims.
Mid Wales – Aberystwyth / Cardigan area
St Padarn’s Church, St Padarn Two Viking Age crosses, fine later Good
Llanbadarn Fawr medieval church. Association with Parking
Potential The family of Sulien who wrote poetry in
Legacy of the Celtic Welsh and Latin and produced surviving
Saints hub illuminated MSS – good story.
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Location Saint(s) On-site evidence and stories Accessibility
St David’s Church, St David C6th inscribed stone, collection of cross- Good
Llanddewibrefi carved stones. A now fragmentary Parking
inscribed stone recorded as naming St
David set into wall. Good late C11th
story of St David’s connection with site.
South West Wales – St David’s area
St David’s Cathedral St David Porth-y-Tŵr: Large collection of EM Good
and Close [Cadw in crosses and grave-slabs. Includes cross- Parking
part] slab commemorating sons of Bishop
Donation
Potential The Abraham who was killed in a Viking raid
Legacy of the Celtic on monastery – good story.
Saints hub Many stories and legends.
St David’s still a destination for pilgrims.
St Non’s Well and St Non Ruined chapel, cross-carved stone and No access,
Chapel well with modern superstructure. In late difficult path
C11th Life of saint where Non gave birth View only
to St David.
Parking bay
South West Wales – Nevern area
Churches and St Brynach EM cross-carved stones, eg at Pontfaen, Varied
redundant churches, St David Llanychlwydog, Llanllawer (also well),
Gwaun Valley Llanychaer (pillar with crucifixion).
St Dogmael’s St Dogmael Latin and Ogam-inscribed stone and two Good
Church, Llandudoch cross-slabs in St Thomas’s Church Parking
adjacent to later Abbey, the site of the
EM monastery. Collection of cross-
carved stones in adjacent coach-house.
St Brynach’s Church, St Brynach Two Latin and Ogam-inscribed stones, Good
Nevern one Viking Age cross and another cross- Parking
Potential The carved stone. Fine medieval church and
Church always open
Legacy of the Celtic botanically rich graveyard. Pilgrim’s
Saints hub cross in rock nearby. According to C12th
saint’s life, St Brynach buried in church.
Good stories in Life of St Brynach.
South West Wales – Pembroke area
St Govan’s Chapel, St Govan Chapel, site of well. Stories of saint. None
Bosherston Parking nearby
Caldey Island St Illtud Early Ogam stone reused in late C8th / Possible with
Potential The St Paulinus early C9th as a cross-carved inscribed help
Legacy of the Celtic St Samson memorial stone in church found on site Parking near jetty /
Saints hub of later medieval Abbey. C8th Life of St pier
Samson describes stay in hermitage.
Carew Cross, Carew None Viking Age cross (on site of EM hill fort Good
[Cadw] as well as later castle). Roadside parking
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Location Saint(s) On-site evidence and stories Accessibility
St Nicholas’s St Teilo Two fine C9th crosses and fragment. Good
Church, Penally Parking
St Ishmael’s Church, St Ishmael Cross-carved stones and fragment of Possible
St Ishmael’s cross. Picturesque church. Bishop house Parking nearby
associated with St David’s.
South West Wales – Llandeilo area
Llanarthne St David C11th cross slab with inscription Possible
Parking nearby
St Teilo’s Well, St Teilo Well, two cross-slabs. This church is the Possible
Llandeilo one associated with the gospels of St Parking nearby
Chad and has a turn-the-page exhibition
of the MS. Stories of saint.
South East Wales – Swansea area
St David and St St Cyfelach Cross-base, two cross-carved stones. Possible
Cyfelach’s Church, Parking nearby
Llangyfelach
Margam Stones None Extensive display of early inscribed Good
Museum, Port Talbot stones, crosses and cross-slabs from site Parking
[Cadw] and surrounding area
Potential The
Legacy of the Celtic
Saints hub
South East Wales – Bridgend and Vale of Glamorgan
St Teilo’s Church, St Teilo Large collection of crosses and cross- Good
Merthyr Mawr carved stones. Parking nearby
St Cadoc’s Church, St Cadog One small fragment of sculpture in Good
Llancarfan, Barry ?St Elli parish church. C12th Life of St Cadog Parking poor
good source of stories.
South East Wales – Llantwit Major (Llanilltud Fawr) area
St Illtud’s Church, St Illtud Large collection of crosses and cross- Good
Llantwit Major St Gildas carved stones. Inscription on one names Parking in road
Potential The St Paulinus Illtud. Also various local rulers named.
Legacy of the Celtic St Samson C12th Life of Illtud and C8th Life of
Saints hub Samson. Excellent stories. Stories of Sts
Gildas and Paulinus.
St Stephen and St St Tatheus Cross head - only a tiny fragment. C12th Good
Tathan’s Church, life of St Tatheus. Parking
Caerwent
St Arvan’s Church, St Arvan Cross slab in church Easy access
St Arvan’s Parking in road
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13 Interpretive media
The potential range of media that could be used for interpreting Cymynrodd y
Seintiau Celtaidd / The Legacy of the Celtic Saints is considerable because of the
unusual nature of the narrative which embraces a range of topics including:
♦ The saints themselves
♦ The early church in Wales
♦ The early medieval period
♦ Faith and belief
♦ Sacred sites in the landscape
♦ Early medieval inscribed stones, crosses, cross-slabs, cross-carved grave-markers
etc
♦ Pilgrimage routes and destinations
Some media could be ‘dedicated’ to the narrative, in many cases a range of
different vehicles could be used to embrace it, particularly when implemented by
potential partners.
It will be important throughout, that media always relate to a national overview –
in terms of geography, archaeology, the early medieval era and ecclesiastical
history - and that detailed interpretation about individual saints, places and routes
is set in this context. While the narrative will, of course, concentrate on the saints
in Wales, there is an opportunity where appropriate to include stories of the links
which saints had with Cornwall, Brittany and Ireland – and vice versa. Some of
these were mentioned in Chapters 4 and 5.
The range of organisations that could be involved in providing interpretation
embraces faith groups, tourism interests and others, but we believe it is essential,
because of the importance of the subject, that some media be produced at a
national level under the aegis of an appropriate organisation. That organisation
could also, of course, guide others at a regional or local level, in implementing
parts of the Interpretation Plan and, where appropriate, by providing funding
assistance.
We have divided our proposals between ‘conventional’ print-based and graphic
media which continues to be sought and used by visitors (and residents), digital
media which is increasingly used by people of all ages, often before visits are
undertaken, and other mechanisms for interpreting Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd
/ The Legacy of the Celtic Saints.
The speed of development of digital media appears to be exponential at the
moment but its overall role is now proven even if some equipment has not yet
faced the test of time. Web-based interpretation is particularly appropriate for the
target audiences of independently-minded families and adults.
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The use of Welsh
All media should be prepared in Welsh and English versions but it is essential that it
should be written or compiled from a Welsh perspective and then interpretations in
English prepared. Full use should be made of quotations from literature or other
sources, in Welsh (and English), in text and in sound.
Where original text from early documents is quoted in sound, in Latin or Welsh,
this should be clearly introduced to help listeners to acclimatise to the language
before any translations are given.
Important considerations
It is essential that media are available – and relevant – for use:
♦ Before visitors to a region or area set out; the better informed they are about
possibilities and options for understanding Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd / The
Legacy of the Celtic Saints the more they will be able to appreciate and enjoy it
♦ During their visits in different forms; many visitors make instant decisions or
change plans when alerted to something they were not aware of, or were not
able to find out about before arriving
♦ After their visit; many visitors want to follow up aspects of what they have
experienced and enjoyed when they get home and have more time
A further consideration is that all media, particularly websites, should take account
of educational audiences, particularly schoolchildren, whose particular needs
should be considered when planning content and links.
In addition, the content of media must address those of many different faiths and
none, making no presumptions about prior knowledge of the Christian faith, its
history and practices.
Finally, it is essential that the content of all media stresses that the stories of the
saints are based on later accounts and legend and not on historical fact and that
associations of saints with particular places may or may not be factually correct. It
will be important to monitor levels of accuracy in all media, particularly on
websites where the content is more susceptible to frequent changes and,
therefore, to the inclusion of inaccuracies and the introduction of outdated ideas
about the Celtic saints
13.1 Priority mechanisms
National level
We propose that the following dedicated media, ie media solely or largely about
Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd / The Legacy of the Celtic Saints, be considered
within an overall menu of interpretive media:
Interpretive maps
We propose that a single interpretive map, covering the whole of Wales, be
produced in print for wide distribution centrally and regionally. The production of
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the map could involve, for example, the regional tourism partnerships and pan-
Wales faith groups but should be overseen and managed by an appropriate
organisation with national responsibilities.
Interpretive maps combine a range of features which, in this context, could
include:
♦ A brief introduction to the area or site (in this case all Wales) and purpose of the
interpretation
♦ A pictorial map of the country
♦ A series of topic-based interpretive ‘nuggets’ to illustrate the map
♦ A series of topic-based panels to provide additional background information
♦ Details of access by road, ferry, foot, cycle etc
♦ Details / sources of church etc opening hours
♦ Sources of further information
The interpretive map principle is very close to that illustrated in the visualisation
of content provided in Chapter 8. The range of content and the concentration on
people makes it highly accessible and if one element does not catch immediate
attention, others certainly will, depending upon users’ own interest.
Promotional dispensers
We propose that simple dispensers be produced to display and dispense the
interpretive maps and which can be placed on counters etc at a series of regional
hubs and other outlets. The dispensers could be attached to an A4 backing board
that introduced the concept and appeal of Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd / The
Legacy of the Celtic Saints. Their production could involve the same faith and
regional tourism involvement but again should be overseen by an appropriate
national organisation.
Websites
We propose that, in parallel with the map, a national website be developed to
embrace the interpretation of Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd / The Legacy of the
Celtic Saints for the whole of Wales. It should use the same content and graphics as
the map and be downloadable in sections to domestic printers, those located in
hubs, and to MP4 equipment using Bluetooth or other means. As with the map, the
management of this project should be overseen by an appropriate national
organisation to ensure a national picture is presented and one which is accurate
and informative, and avoids repeating misconceptions.
However, the website could be augmented by audio and video material including:
♦ Spoken excerpts from early and contemporary writers and poets
♦ Excerpts from performances of early sacred music and song
♦ Archive material from television and radio
It could also draw in the connections with Cornwall, Brittany and Ireland and
provide links to appropriate sites relating to these areas.
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We would also propose that the website had an interactive map to allow those
using it to seek out information related to the place(s) they intend to visit which
could provide specific interpretation material about Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd
/ The Legacy of the Celtic Saints.
Interpretive cartoon strips
A mechanism which could be used in interpretive maps and other publications, and
on website, is the cartoon strip which appeals to all audiences can help to
emphasise, in the case of the Celtic saints, that the stories are not factual but are
based on legend and later records. We illustrated a possible style earlier which
reflects the style of illustration in the early medieval period and is ‘sympathetic’,
ie it does not make fun of the subjects but is likely to engender interest and gentle
amusement.
Material for children
The cartoon approach would be particularly appropriate for use in material
produced for children which should include shortened and simplified versions of the
stories, and brief quotations where appropriate but not be ‘dumbed down’. Aural
material for children, downloadable from websites or available on CDs, with or
without accompanying printed material, could include short quotations in Welsh
and English with explanations about the use of the languages – and Latin.
Local level
We propose that the following dedicated media, ie media solely or largely about
Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd / The Legacy of the Celtic Saints, be considered for
use at a local level; the list should be regarded as a menu from which items can be
chosen according to their suitability and practicability. They include:
Interpretive panels
♦ On-site, self-contained panels – but only
for sites in the two study areas (or
others chosen on the same principles) in
order to draw together the stories at
the various sites to achieve cohesion.
The panels should reflect and
summarise the overall thematic
approach but deal with only one or two
elements of the whole narrative, ie
those relevant to the site itself. They
could feature an imaginative design but
should add to the enjoyment of a site
and not intrude upon it. Ideally, the panels would incorporate a solar- or
battery-powered sound store with excerpts of music, song, prose or poetry. An
example of a simple but effective panel is shown.
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Interpretive seats
♦ On-site commissioned
seats, which themselves
are a response to the
landscape, embodying a
brief interpretive
message and a sound
store. The length of any
inscribed text should be
short but a small
interpretive panel could be included. The seats could
also be linked into downloaded and / or downloadable
digital material Examples of seats installed on sites are
shown. It is important that the seats meet artistic, interpretive and structural
criteria.
Interpretive rests
♦ As an alternative to seats, resting points could be provided at sites where
visitors could stop for a few moments to consider the site or the view. They
could incorporate very brief elements of text and could incorporate sound stores
– or be linked into downloaded and / or downloadable digital material.
13.2 Supporting mechanisms
National level
We propose that the following be considered:
♦ Interpretive guide book / map for all Wales, printed and /or downloadable to
printers from a parallel all-Wales website (which could incorporate the four
regional websites referred to above)
♦ Links from the website to webpages relating to individual saints, places and
routes
♦ DVD versions of interpretive map / website with music, song, spoken prose and
poetry
Local level
♦ Commissioned installations embodying creative responses to the sacred sites;
these could be designed to reflect the style and content of early medieval
carved stones but should not attempt to mimic them
♦ Branded markers where access is recommended from the Coastal Path or other
walking / cycling routes, to link sites associated with one or more saints
♦ Downloadable portions of the website, incorporating video and audio, and
suitable for uploading to MP4 players from a variety of local sources or which can
be accessed ‘on the move’ by means of accessing specific websites
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♦ Local guided tours and story walks with personal interpretation of the history of
the Celtic saints at locations such as Bardsey Island, the area round Pennant
Melangell, the area around St David’s and the Llantwit Major area
♦ Events of various kinds with or without a faith element to encourage visitors and
local people to ‘interact’ with the stories of the saints
Other mechanisms
Other media which could incorporate elements relating to the topic, for example:
♦ Joint national or regional promotional initiatives with tourism partnerships, faith
groups and broadcasting organisations etc
♦ More general tourist and / or descriptive publications / websites / downloadable
tours etc
♦ Interpretive panels on wider topics where it was appropriate to include
references to aspects of Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd / The Legacy of the
Celtic Saints themes
♦ Local initiatives with church and faith groups, community centres and other
faith-linked organisations
♦ Competitions open to the public as a whole or in sections to produce their
responses to sacred sites in pictures, photographs, words or music with winning
entries which could be displayed, with an explanation about the project, in a
variety of settings including local hotels, b&bs, pubs, shops etc and, of course,
church and other places
♦ Invitations to the public to make contributions to the website via social
networking media
♦ Events and activities of various kinds from storytelling sessions and role-playing
to workshops and debates on the mythology of the saints
♦ Initiatives related to life-long learning courses both formal and informal
♦ Initiatives related to appropriate aspects of the school curriculum
Distribution points and The Legacy of the Celtic Saints hubs
As the principal medium we propose for ‘promoting’ Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd
/ The Legacy of the Celtic Saints theme will be an interpretive map, supported by
a website, it is essential that there are easily-accessible distribution points for the
map. Most will be staffed but not necessarily by staff with any involvement in
faith-related matters.
We propose that organisations with a direct involvement in the places associated
with the saints, or with faith-based initiatives, should be recruited to act as
Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd / The Legacy of the Celtic Saints hubs, where staff
(if available) will be able to explain the approach and augment the content of the
map / website for visitors and for residents. There would need to be at least one
hub in each of the key areas of the geographic regions we have identified and we
have suggested a number in the list of potential partners. However, at this stage,
we have made no approaches to their owners or managers
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We would propose that the staff of the hubs – and volunteers where appropriate -
should receive training about the themes and how they can be delivered. Such staff
could act as Speakers for the Saints and, in addition to meeting visitors and
residents, could organise events, devise trails and undertake other activities to
explain the special characteristics of their local saints and sacred places and how
they still have relevance in the cultural and spiritual inheritance of Wales.
The organisations which we suggest could be approached to act as hubs are
identified in Section 13.
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14 Cluster studies
Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd / The Legacy of the Celtic Saints is a strategy for
interpreting the impact of the Celtic saints, their sacred sites, and pilgrimage
routes rather than providing a detailed interpretation plan for numerous sites
around Wales. Because of this, we are presenting two cluster studies that indicate
how the overall national narratives can be reflected in a particular area. These
studies also present a model for how interpretation might be delivered at area
level throughout Wales.
The cluster studies relate to two areas – the Llŷn Peninsula and the area round
Llantwit Major. The first has been selected partly because of its obvious national
significance within and beyond Wales and helps to illuminate the themes in this
plan. It is an area with rich associations with the saints and a developed network of
routes which are and can be used by pilgrims on their way to Bardsey Island.
The second area has been selected for several reasons. It is where there is the best
evidence of Christianity’s arrival in Wales with the Roman garrison at Caerleon,
Llantwit Major itself was a very important focus for the early church in Wales and
Llandaff has links at the end of the early medieval period with St Elgar who is also
linked to the Llŷn Peninsula partly because of the importance of the sacred sites.
Again, it can be linked with all of the national themes.
Purpose of the cluster studies
The purpose of the cluster studies is to indicate an approach that could be taken to
using the plan at a local level. They are not intended to prejudice proposals linked
to other areas or which are being developed in the areas concerned. In the plan we
have identified several groupings of sites associated with the story of the early
church in Wales. These are based on geographical logistics but they also have
strong thematic relationships.
We are aware that grouping of early Christian sites will interlink with sites and
themes taken from other aspects of the Spiritual and Inspirational Landscapes of
Wales. This may influence thinking about projects, which might have cross-cutting
themes. However, these cluster studies assume that the implementation is only
related to this particular plan.
Think nationally, interpret locally
The cluster studies demonstrate how a local proposal can relate to the overall plan
and especially to the core themes:
♦ The early church in Wales (A timeline and key ideas associated with the early
church, including links to the tradition of scholarship)
♦ Remembering the saints (The legacy including stories, which have been invented
at a later date)
♦ Seeking out the saints (Sites associated with saints and place names that have
subsequently been used to indicate a reverence for individual saints)
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♦ Pilgrims’ paths (The routes that date from the Celtic period and new paths of a
later or recent date)
Structuring an interpretive project
The diagram below shows the inter-relationship between the various elements
involved in the cluster studies and therefore how an area interpretive project
might be structured. This key provides a fuller explanation of the boxes:
1. Associations are those that link specific with the area
2. National themes are those that provide the overall narrative
3. Geographical regions are the four broad (administrative) segments of Wales
4. Defined areas are those related to the pilgrimage destinations / cluster studies
5. Individual sites are those where there is physical evidence from early medieval
times, sacred places and sites visited by pilgrims
6. Stories of saints refer to narratives linking specific saints to individual sites
7. Stakeholder activity covers a wide range of regional and local initiatives
related, or which could be related, to implementing the national themes
8. Local projects are both existing and new proposals for interpretation projects,
which fit within the framework of this plan
9. Interpretive media are the mechanisms by which the stories are delivered and
will include on- and off- site media, including digital and online media
10. Hubs are places within the geographical area where visitors can access
interpretive media
1 Associations
3 Geographical regions 6 Stories of saints
2 National themes
4 Defined areas 7 Stakeholder activity
9 Interpretive media
5 Individual sites 8 Projects
10 Hubs
If a proposal is to be developed around a group of sites, we suggest that a cluster-
based interpretation plan is commissioned as a first step in clarifying the project
and to develop a coherent, costed proposal.
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14.1 Cluster study – Llŷn Peninsula
Llŷn is an important area for interpreting the history of the early church in Wales.
The main focus of this history is the island of Bardsey (Ynys Enlli), associated with
settlement by the Saints Cadfan, Dyfrig and Elgar and numerous other unnamed
holy people reputed to be buried there. Associated Christian sites and holy wells
were established on the mainland. By the eleventh to the twelfth centuries Bardsey
had become a focus for pilgrimage and this led to the continued importance of
many of the churches along the northern and the southern routes to the island.
These churches, originally built of timber, were later built in stone from the
twelfth century onwards and, later still, rebuilt or extended.
The table below creates a timeline showing how the early Christian church in Wales
unfolds in Llŷn. It indicates original artefacts that can still be seen at each site.
Llŷn Peninsula- Timeline
Site Roman Early Medieval Later Links to Notes
period - to medieval period medieval present day
C4th period, C4th C10th – period Links with
– C9th C12th C13th – proposed
Written C15th modern
evidence of pilgrim
pilgrim route
routes from
c 1100
Bangor C12th Life of St Pilgrimage
Cathedral sculptural Deiniol Northern
Gwynedd Two fragments
Museum, Bangor inscribed
stones
Llanfaglan Inscribed Church Pilgrimage
Church stone building Northern
Clynnog Fawr C8th/9th Church Pilgrimage
St Beuno’s Sundial Holy well building Northern
Church Cross carved Life of St St Beuno’s
stone in Beuno capel y bedd
chapel
Llanaelhaearn Two Pilgrimage
Church sculpted Northern
stones - in
church and
churchyard
Llangybi Church Two well Holy well Holy well Pilgrimage
chambers (present Northern
Carved cross building
in C18th)
churchyard
Pistyll Church Viking Church Pilgrimage
period font building Northern
Cross carved
stone
nearby
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Site Roman Early Medieval Later Links to Notes
period - to medieval period medieval present
C4th period, C10th – period day
C4th – C9th C12th C13th – Links with
Written C15th proposed
evidence of modern
pilgrim pilgrim
routes route
from c
1100
Llangwnadl Bell from Cross Church Pilgrimage
Church church now carved building Northern
in National stone in
Museum church wall
Aberdaron Two C6th Church Pilgrim
Church inscribed building routes join
stones from Start point
Capel for Bardsey
Anelog
Bardsey Island Cross- Ruins of St C19th Pilgrimage
(Ynys Enlli) carved Mary’s Abbey chapel destination
stone in Canu Cadfan
chapel Life of St Elgar
Graves from
Viking
period
excavated
Llandanwg Three One cross Church Southern
Church inscribed building pilgrimage
Near Harlech stones
One cross
carved
stone
Oriel Plas Glyn Two Southern
y Weddw, inscribed pilgrimage
Llanbedrog stones
Llangian C5th/C6th Southern
Church Inscribed pilgrimage
funerary
monument
1 Associations
These sites have associations with the following saints:
♦ St Deiniol (Bangor & Ynys Enlli)
♦ St Beuno (Clynnog Fawr & Pistyll)
♦ St Cybi (Llangybi)
♦ Sts Cadfan Dyfrig (Ynys Enlli)
♦ St Elgar (Ynys Enlli)
♦ St Gwynhoedl (Llangwnnadl)
♦ St Aelhaearn (Llanaelhaearn)
♦ St Tanwg (Llandanwg, nr. Harlech)
♦ St Cian (Llangian)
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2 National themes
The sites can be linked into the four themes:
♦ The early church in Wales
♦ Remembering the Saints
♦ Seeking out the Saints
♦ Pilgrims’ Paths
3 Geographical region
All the sites fall within:
♦ North Wales
4 Defined area
All the sites fall within:
♦ Llŷn Peninsula (including Bangor)
5 Individual sites
The following sites are included in the area:
♦ Bangor (Cathedral and Gwynedd Museum)
♦ Llanfaglan (near Caernarfon)
♦ Clynnog Fawr Church
♦ Llanelhaearn Church
♦ Llangybi Church
♦ Pistyll Church
♦ Llangwnnadl Church
♦ Aberdaron Church
♦ Bardsey island
♦ Llandanwg (near Harlech) Church
♦ Plas Glyn y Weddw (Llanbedrog)
♦ Llangian Church
6 Legends of saints
Stories associated with the early saints in Wales have been gathered over the
centuries and date from a later period than that of the saints they refer to11.
A useful story that creates a powerful link between North and South Wales is that
of St Elgar, whose (reputed) relics - his teeth - were taken from Bardsey Island to
Llandaff in 1120 and whose Life contains visions of the early saints.
11
A source that draws on authentic material is A W Wade-Evans’s Vitae sanctorum britanniae et
genealogiae published in 1944 by the Board of Celtic Studies of the University of Wales.
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7 Stakeholder interests
The following organisations12 have an existing or potential interest in the context of
this plan:
♦ Bardsey Island Trust
♦ Church in Wales – Diocese of Bangor
♦ Church Tourism Network Wales
♦ Countryside Council for Wales
♦ Dwyfor Council
♦ Gwynedd Council
♦ Gwynedd Museum and Art Gallery
♦ Llŷn AONB
♦ Llŷn Landscape Partnership Project
♦ Nant Gwrtheyrn
♦ National Trust
♦ North Wales Tourism Partnership
♦ Plas Glyn y Weddw
♦ Ramblers’ Association
♦ Roman Catholic Church
♦ St Asaph Cathedral
8 Interpretive media
Examples of potential media which could be used for this area include:
♦ Inclusion in national (and regional / local) Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd / The
Legacy of the Celtic Saints interpretive maps
♦ Links to national (and regional) Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd / The Legacy of
the Celtic Saints websites
♦ Use of the hubs for internet access and interpretive material
♦ Branded markers where access is recommended from the Coastal Path or other
walking/cycling routes
♦ Interpretive seats at sites, where appropriate; they could include element that
is ‘collectable’ as part of doing the trail
♦ First person interpretation, including story walks linked to organised visits eg
special services and events
Existing interpretation:
There is very little existing relevant interpretive material. Some mention of the
subject is on panels related to the Coastal Path, such as the panel outside the Post
Office at Clynnog Fawr.
The Llŷn Coastal Path Leaflet (Countryside Council for Wales and Gwynedd Council)
refers to the ‘footsteps of early pilgrims’ and that ‘the earliest Christians built the
12
Contact details can be provided for a number of these
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numerous ancient churches’. St Beuno’s, Clynnog Fawr, Pistyll Church and St
Hywyn’s, Aberdaron are mentioned in this context.
Some churches have a
‘Pilgrim Path’ marker but
not all.
The church of St Gian at
Llangian has a Cadw-funded
interpretation panel in the
porch of the church.
St Gwynhoedl’s church already
has a small replica of the
Llangwnnadl Bell, now in the
National Museum of Wales.
More could be made of this
artefact as a symbol of this site
or of the whole project in Llŷn.
Some churches, including St Beuno at Pistyll, St Hywyn at
Aberdaron and St Gwynhoedl at Llangwnnadl, have a
sales area with souvenirs and information about the
church and the area.
The management of Plas Glyn y Weddw are
planning to improve the interpretation of the two
ancient stones that stand in their main entrance
porch. This will be a part of the bigger
interpretation project planned for the Plas.
9 Hubs
Several places have been identified that could function as interpretation hubs for
the story of the early church in Llŷn and for presenting the way in which this story
cross cuts with other aspects of the heritage of the area.
A number of these centres already have a significant number of visitors every year.
The Aberdaron centre will complete the provision around the whole of Llŷn. These
centres would be good places for visitors to access the central story of the early
church in Wales and to provide detailed interpretation for that story in Llŷn.
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Gwynedd Museum and Art Gallery, Bangor has an archaeological collection
including stones from the early Christian period.
Nant Gwrtheyrn on the north coast of Llŷn has over 30,000 day visits a year, in
addition to residential Welsh language courses and other events. Its heritage centre
tells the story of the Nant and of slate quarrying in the area.
Oriel Plas Glyn y Weddw on the south coast of Llŷn has two early stones there as
well as an art gallery and café. It welcomes at least 80,000 day visitors, runs
courses and is currently applying for funding to develop an outdoor interpretation
hub and performance amphitheatre. The proposed Y Winllan amphitheatre and
outdoor interpretation hub would offer opportunities for live interpretation of
various kinds.
Aberdaron Coastal Visitor Centre (National Trust) has recently received funding
from the Welsh Assembly Government and ERDF. The centre will provide an
experience to visitors and a hub to encourage visitors to enjoy other parts of the
Llŷn Peninsula and Snowdonia. The centrepiece will be a low-carbon visitor centre
providing audio-visual displays taking visitors on a journey along the Llŷn Peninsula.
10 Local projects
A number of projects are in place or are planned:
♦ Proposed pilgrim route from Basingwerk to Bardsey
♦ The Llŷn Landscape Partnership Project is supporting the development of cross
cutting projects that interpret the coast and the heritage of Llŷn, that includes a
support for a pilgrim route
♦ Plas Glyn y Weddw has ambitious plans for Y Winllan and for the development of
the gallery and café. In 2008, the gallery bought an adjacent 12-acre forest
which formerly included sculpture trails as part of the gallery until it was sold
off. It plans to re-open the trails, introduce an amphitheatre and car park and
link to the coastal pathway.The National Trust is developing the new Coastal
Centre of Excellence at Aberdaron.
Individual sites – accessibility and other details where known
Bangor Cathedral
♦ Wheelchair access; parking nearby; train and bus services
♦ Open Monday to Friday, 12.00 –14.30, Saturday 10.30 – 13.00
Gwynedd Museum, Bangor
♦ Wheelchair access to shop and gallery; parking nearby; train and bus services
♦ Open Tuesday to Friday, 12.30 to 16.30pm, Saturday 10.30 to 16.30
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Clynnog Fawr Church
♦ Three entrances to church, one with steps; parking on A499
♦ Open at times
♦ Some interpretation
St Beuno’s Well
♦ On right side of A499 leading south out of Clynnog; not easy to find; access by
road and walking directly from Llŷn Coastal Path
Llanelhaearn Church
♦ At junction of A499 and B4417; short link on B4417 from Llŷn Coastal Path; short
path from road; three parking spaces
♦ Not usually open
St Cybi’s Well
♦ By road from A499 off a minor road about three miles south of Llanelhaearn; not
easy to find; signed from road but across a field
Pistyll Church
♦ On B4417 off the A499 and near Llŷn Coastal Path; steep concrete path to door;
parking on road or track
♦ Open when visited
♦ Greetings and postcards; information sheet
Llangwnnadl Church
♦ On minor road off the B4417 between Aberdaron and Tudweiliog; quite difficult
to find; possible wheelchair access along path; parking on road near the church
♦ Open when visited
♦ Book and leaflet; souvenir items for sale
Aberdaron Church
♦ Easy path from road; parking in village pay car park
♦ Open when visited
♦ Leaflet Sauntering around St Hywyn’s; other local information inside church
Bardsey Island
♦ Viewed from Uwchmynydd (end of Llŷn) and from the Coastal Path
♦ Minor road to Uwchmynydd from B4413 between Sarn Mellteyrn and Aberdaron;
ferry daily in summer, in clement weather, from Pwllheli or Porth Meudwy; not
suitable for disabled people
♦ Open in summer when weather permits crossing
♦ Existing interpretation not known
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Llandanwg (near Harlech)
♦ On minor road from A496 between Harlech and Llebedr; on coastal walking
route; Cambrian Line train stops nearby
Plas Glyn y Weddw (Llanbedrog)
♦ Access from Coastal Path and from A499 between Pwllheli and Abersoch;
wheelchair access through café; stones in porch and can be seen through the
door
♦ Open 10.00 – 17.00 daily except Tuesday
♦ Website & leaflet
14.2 Cluster study – Llantwit Major area
The Llantwit Major area – and the broader south east of Wales - has an important
role in the development of early Christianity in Wales. One of the reasons for its
prominence is that it includes fertile parts of the country easily accessed by sea
and land. Some of the settlements associated with the early church are near to the
coast or in places often close to Roman sites.
In South East Wales, Gwent and the Vale of Glamorgan, it is possible to trace the
origins of the early church in Wales from the introduction of Christianity by the
Romans which, after they left, led to the fifth and sixth century foundations of
monastic settlements or clas and their development until the ninth century. Some
of these establishments, such as that at Llantwit Major, were associated with
scholarly learning, others such as Llandaff with growing episcopal power in the
eleventh and early twelfth centuries. Other than some stones and cross fragments,
the documentary and physical evidence is from the twelfth century and the later
medieval period.
The timeline table below indicates how individual churches and sites link into this
history.
Llantwit Major (Llanilltud Fawr) area - Timeline
Site Roman period Early medieval Medieval Later Links to Notes
- to C4th period, C4th – period medieval present day
C9th C10th – C12th period
C13th – C15th
Caerleon Martyrdom of Cadw site
National Roman Saints Julius
Legion Museum and Aaron,
possibly in
amphitheatre
Probably late
C3th
Caerwent Roman temple May have been Fragment of a
Church of St makes link seat of early cross head
Stephen and St with pagan bishop of C12th Life of
Tathan religion Archenfield St Tatheus (St
Tathyw)
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Site Roman period Early medieval Medieval Later Links to Notes
- to C4th period, C4th – period medieval present day
C9th C10th – C12th period
C13th – C15th
St Arvan’s Church. Circular Carved cross Origins of
St Arvans churchyard fragments present church
possibly C9th building
origin
Llandaff Reputed to be Carved cross
Cathedral, Cardiff founded in fragments
Saints Dyfrig, C6th near Chapter
Teilo and House door
Euddogwy 1107 earliest
part of
present
building
1120 –relics of
St Elgar moved
from Bardsey
in Book of
Llandaff
Llandough Roman graves Roman graves Roman graves
C5th-C6th C10th-C11th
monastic site pillar cross in
churchyard
Llancarfan C7th – C9th Small Major school
foundation sculptural of later first
fragment in millennium
church
Life of St
Cadog
Medieval wall
paintings
Church of St Many stones Collection of
Illtud, Llantwit Life of St crosses and
Major Samson cross-carved
stones.
C6th
leadership of Life of St
St Illtud Illtud
St Teilo’s Church, Large
Merthyr Mawr collection of
crosses and
cross-carved
stones
1 Associations
The sites have associations with the following saints:
♦ Sts Julius and Aaron (Caerleon)
♦ St Tatheus or Tathwy (Caerwent)
♦ St Arvan (St Arvans near Chepstow)
♦ Sts Dyfrig, Teilo, Euddogwy (Llandaff, Cardiff)
♦ St Cadog (Llancarfan)
♦ St Illtud (Llantwit Major)
♦ St Teilo (Merthyr Mawr)
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2 National themes
The sites can be linked into three of the four themes:
♦ The early church in Wales
♦ Remembering the Saints
♦ Seeking out the Saints
3 Geographical region
All the sites fall within:
♦ South East Wales
4 Defined area
All the sites fall within:
♦ The Llantwit Major area
5 Individual sites
The following sites are included in the area:
♦ Caerleon (Cadw site - including the Legionary Museum)
♦ Caerwent (Cadw site)
♦ St Arvans (near Chepstow)
♦ Llandough (near Penarth)
♦ Llancarfan (near Cowbridge)
♦ Llantwit Major
♦ Merthyr Mawr (near Bridgend)
♦ Llandaff (Cardiff)
6 Stories of saints
♦ Stories associated with the early saints in Wales have been gathered over the
centuries and date from a later period than that of the saints they refer to. They
have to be used with care, emphasising that they are simply stories13.
The story that links North and South Wales is that of St Elgar, whose (reputed)
relics - his teeth - were taken from Bardsey Island to Llandaff in 1120.
7 Stakeholder interests
The following organisations have an existing or potential interest in the context of
this plan:
♦ Cardiff City Council
♦ Church in Wales
♦ Church Tourism Network Wales
♦ The Galilee Chapel project at Llantwit Major
♦ Llandaff Cathedral
13
A source that draws on authentic material is A W Wade-Evans’s Vitae sanctorum britanniae et
genealogiae published in 1944 by the Board of Celtic Studies of the University of Wales. For the
story in this part of Wales the lives of St Illtud, St Cadog and St Samson provide useable material.
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♦ National Museum Wales
♦ Newport City Council
♦ Roman Catholic Church
♦ Vale of Glamorgan Council
♦ South Wales Tourism Partnership
8 Interpretive media
Examples of potential media which could be used for this area include:
♦ Links to central website
♦ Use of the hubs for internet access and interpretive material
♦ Local interpretive map
♦ Branded markers where access is recommended from cycle or walking routes
♦ Interpretive seats at sites, where appropriate; they could include an element
that is ‘collectable’ as part of doing the trail
♦ First person interpretation, including story walks linked to organised visits eg
special services and events
Existing interpretation:
There is very little existing interpretation relevant to
this plan. Both Caerwent and Caerleon have
comprehensive interpretation of their substantial
Roman history and the remains that can be seen at
each site.
At other sites there is occasional explanation of
features. St Arvan’s church (right) has a tenth century
stone cross slab with a brief explanation in a picture
frame.
St Stephen and St Tathan’s church in Caerwent has a
fragment of a twelfth century cross head which was
found in the graveyard. There is an extract of a formal
description of the stone but no other interpretation.
The interpretation of the Roman remains in Caerwent
is extensive and provides a vivid picture of Roman life
in the village.
At Llandaff there is a metal plaque at St Teilo’s well
near the cathedral explaining the association between
St Teilo, and two other Celtic saints, and the
cathedral. Inside the Cathedral there is a tomb of St
Teilo and a reliquary with a reputed fragment of his
skull. There is a short description of the tomb and the
life of St Teilo. There is no existing evidence of the
relics of St Elgar which were transferred to the
Cathedral from Bardsey in 1120.
At Llantwit Major there is a plaque on the church gate with an explanation of the
church's origins and its associations with St Illtud. There are other similar plaques
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on buildings in the village. A major interpretation project is planned to be
implemented during 2011 to install interpretation in the Galilee chapel.
St Teilo’s church in Merthyr Mawr has a fine collection of stone crosses and slabs
from many periods starting in the fifth century, that are housed in an open building
in the churchyard (below left). The collection has a Cadw-funded interpretation
panel with explanation of the origin of each of the stones (below right).
9 Hubs
Several places have been identified that could function as interpretation hubs for
the story of the early church in the Llantwit Major area and for presenting the way
in which this story cross cuts with other aspects of the heritage of the area.
♦ The Galilee Chapel, Llantwit Major: this project is already underway and has
secured funding to rebuild the ruined Galilee Chapel as a centre for
interpretation and study.
♦ Llandaff Cathedral, Cardiff: The cathedral has a fascinating history and is a
major Christian centre. It would be an ideal focus for Celtic saints'
interpretation.
♦ National Roman Legionary Museum, Caerleon: The museum is a major visitor
attraction though currently it has no information on Roman Christian history.
There is opportunity for inclusion of Christian interpretation in the exhibitions
and distribution of leaflets and maps.
10 Local projects
♦ The Galilee Chapel, Llantwit Major (right). In 2010
the Heritage Lottery Fund awarded a second phase
grant to the Galilee Chapel project to restore the
chapel and transform it into a centre of learning and
research into Celtic Christianity in Wales.
The church is believed to be Britain’s earliest centre
of learning, established by St Illtud as a monastic
school. The project will renovate the chapel as a
centre of education and as a museum for one of the
finest collections of Celtic stones in Wales.
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Individual Sites – accessibility and other details where known
Caerleon
♦ Easy wheelchair access to Museum; car park by Roman Amphitheatre
♦ Museum open 10.00 to 17.00, Monday to Saturday, 14.00 to 17.00, Sunday.
Caerwent
♦ Good access into church with ramp at entrance; car park at west end of village
for Roman site tour; small car park for church
St Arvan’s Church
♦ Easy wheelchair access to church; parking in road next to church
♦ Open when visited
Llandaff Cathedral
♦ Steps and ramps into the church; car parking near cathedral and access paths to
main entrances
♦ Open 9.00 to 18.00 Monday to Saturday; services on Sunday.
♦ Collection of information sheets in many languages; shop / information area;
very helpful volunteers
Llandough Church
♦ Car park across road with fairly easy access to church; pillar cross in churchyard.
♦ Locked at time of visit
Llancarfan
♦ Parking in road next to church.
♦ No access at time of visit as church undergoing restoration, including a series of
medieval frescos found recently
Church of St Illtud, Llantwit Major
♦ Easy wheelchair access at eastern end to main entrance; car parking in roads
around the church
♦ Locked at time of visit
♦ Current metal plaques will be augmented by interpretation and learning centre
following HLF funded restoration of the Galilee Chapel
St Teilo’s Church, Merthyr Mawr
♦ Easy access to collection of stones at rear of church; car parking near church
along narrow lane with flat path to church
♦ Interpretation panel explaining the history of the stones
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15 Pilgrimage destinations
In our foreword, we identified several sites as important pilgrimage destinations
since medieval times:
♦ Bardsey Island
♦ Holywell
♦ Pennant Melangell
♦ St David’s
♦ Ramsey Island
Each has its own characteristics and each continues to attract pilgrims today. For
many people of faith, going on a pilgrimage is an important way of proclaiming
their beliefs but, as in medieval times - if we are to believe even a little of
Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales – it also provides like-minded company and, if
undertaken at least partly on foot or bicycle, healthy activity as well. For this
reason, as we suggested in the interpretive sub-themes in Chapter 9, following
pilgrimage routes has a wider constituency than simply those of confirmed religious
affiliation.
From later sources, it is clear that sites associated with the Celtic saints attracted
pilgrims from early Medieval times, but documented evidence came later and it
was only in later medieval times that routes and pilgrimage were recorded. Many
pilgrims on their way to shrines visited monasteries on the way as there they could
find overnight accommodation and food – ecclesiastical B&Bs. The Cistercian Way,
a recently-defined route for modern-day pilgrims, incorporates many of the former
monasteries which are now the focus of evocative monastic landscapes, such as
Strata Florida.
Bardsey Island
Bardsey Island remains one of the most popular destinations for pilgrims for a
number of reasons. It is, of course, a most important site associated with the Celtic
saints and one which pilgrims have visited for many hundreds of years. It is reached
through the attractive Llŷn Peninsula where, in addition, there are many other
sites with associations with Celtic saints.
We have used the Llŷn Peninsula, including Bardsey Island, as one of our ‘cluster
studies’, set out in Chapter 14.
Holywell
St Winefride’s Well at Holywell is not only a ‘memorial’ to a Celtic saint, it is also a
shrine recognised by the Roman Catholic Church and remains a much-visited site of
pilgrimage. The story of St Winefride (Gwenfrewi), referred to in Chapter 5, is full
of all the ingredients that make legends so powerful but she was a real person and
the well has been a place of pilgrimage and healing since early Medieval times.
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The present building housing the well dates from the sixteenth century and is listed
as Grade 1 for its architectural merit and interest. There is also an interpretive
exhibition and an audio-trail and the site is open all year.
Pennant Melangell
There has been a church at Pennant Melangell for over 1200 years and it stands in a
peaceful setting in the Tanat Valley, deep in the Berwyn Mountains. Parts of the
building date from the twelfth century. The fifteenth century carved oak screen
tell the colourful story of St Melangell who is the patron saint of hares as a result of
her encounter with Prince Brochwel. The church is noted for its unique twelfth
century shrine of the saint. The church is listed Grade 1 and there are various
publications available in it.
St Melangell's Church has always been a pilgrims' church and the nearby Saint
Melangell Centre is a Christian retreat.
St David’s
St David’s is a prime destination for pilgrims and has been since early medieval
times. In 1123, Pope Calixtus II authorised St David’s, and Santiago di Compostella,
as major centres for pilgrimage – two journeys to either equalled one to Rome!
Henry II of England came to St David’s on his way to conquer Ireland. From then on,
the cult of St David flourished, even after the Reformation partly because of its
association with Welsh nationhood. With the 900th anniversary of papal
authorisation in 2023, plans are afoot to develop the network of pilgrim routes to
St David’s.
Close to St David’s are St Non’s Well and Chapel and St Patrick’s Chapel, both of
which are usually included in pilgrimages to St David’s, its Cathedral and other
monuments. References to the Saints and Stones Group’s proposal are given in
Chapter 7.
Ramsey Island
The island is the hermitage island of St David, Ynys Dewi, and reached by boat in
the summer (limited sailings in winter) from near St David’s. Visitors can see St
Justinian’s Chapel from the harbour on the way.
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16 Visitor packages
One of the requirements of the brief is to propose a number of total visitor
packages covering pre-visit decision information, welcome, orientation,
inspirational visit guidance and encouragement to visitors to explore further.
Our proposals for interpretive media incorporate all these elements in different
ways:
National (and area) websites should include:
♦ Adequate pre-visit information including sources of further information from
routes and accommodation to specific places of interest
♦ Over-arching inspirational visit guidance
♦ Overall encouragement to explore further and sources of information to support
this guidance
National (and area) interpretive maps should include:
♦ Overall pre-visit information including sources of further information –
particularly the related websites which will be more detailed in this respect
♦ Implicit welcome
♦ General orientation with clear maps and sources of further information
♦ Clearly-articulated inspirational visit guidance
♦ Embodied encouragement to explore further with sources of information to
support this
♦ Information or sources of information on opening times of churches etc and
operation of ferry services
Interpretive panels should include:
♦ Implicit welcome
♦ Well-articulated stories appropriate to the site
♦ Guidance for further visiting directly relevant to the site or story
Interpretive seats should include:
♦ Implicit welcome
♦ Well-articulated mini-stories / quotations etc appropriate to the site
National and local support services should include:
♦ Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd / The Legacy of the Celtic Saints hubs providing
a welcome to visitors, further orientation, information, interpretation and
guidance
♦ Inclusion of appropriate guidance information, introductory interpretation and
encouragement to explore, in national or regional publications and websites
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produced by tourism partnerships and similar groups, broadcasting and faith
organisations etc
♦ Inclusion of appropriate welcome, orientation, visit guidance, interpretation
and encouragement to explore in any material designed for digital
downloading either from websites or other sources
♦ Provision of appropriate information and interpretation in churches, at
pilgrimage and monastic sites, and other faith-linked venues
♦ Guided tours and other activities such as faith-based workshops near locations
associated with Celtic saints and pilgrimage
Working with others
However, one of the challenges of interpreting the legacy of the Celtic saints is
that the overall story is dispersed in time, geography and personalities and, except
in areas where there is considerable ‘density’ of material – and obvious landscape
appeal, such as the area round St David’s, or those chosen for our cluster studies,
is not easy to package in a way that provides a compelling attraction in its own
right.
Our proposals for national and area websites and interpretive maps (with
appropriate digital spin off in downloads etc) will provide much of the required
package, particularly when linked with other sources of information relating to
visitor facilities. Other media suggested above will support these two key
mechanisms.
Although all the interpretive mechanisms we have proposed will help to provide
‘packages’ for visitors, we believe that many people within and visiting Wales are
more likely to incorporate their interest in the Celtic saints with other attractions
and activities and, for that reason, we believe that much of the success of this
overall project will depend upon its being integrated with the promotional,
informational and interpretive work that is more general, whether on a national,
regional or local basis – as we have suggested earlier
This would be also be apposite in the cases of the two other projects related to
Spiritual and Inspirational Landscapes – those concerned with Monastic Landscapes
in particular and with Artistic Responses to the Landscape. Working in association
with these other projects and with the wider promotion and interpretation of the
landscape in Wales, will provide a broader context for Cymynrodd y Seintiau
Celtaidd / The Legacy of the Celtic Saints which can only be to the advantage of
that project and to the wider appreciation of Wales as a whole.
16.1 Compiling packages
When considering the compilation of specific regional or local packages within the
overall narrative of Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd / The Legacy of the Celtic
Saints, we suggest that the organisations responsible should:
♦ Use existing sources to assemble the names of saints who are associated with the
area; the information in Appendix A will be helpful in this respect.
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♦ Ensure that the information collected is clearly identified as legend or folk
history, or obtained from documents produced after the time of the saints
♦ Agree the specific interpretive and marketing aims of the package within the
overall narrative of Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd / The Legacy of the Celtic
Saints
♦ Decide which of the four themes is or are most appropriate for the package
♦ Select the principal or most evocative stories and associated places to illustrate
the themes, with particular reference to what residents and locals can go and
see
♦ Commission, where appropriate, skilled interpretive writers and designers to
prepare whatever graphic / printed / digital material is required
♦ Commission, where appropriate, contemporary (local) artists to contribute to
whatever material is produced or to produce public art
♦ Ensure that distribution of printed or digital material is considered in advance
and supplies / content kept updated
16.2 Wider links
Using different funding sources relating the international cooperation, it could be
possible to develop joint packages with interests in Brittany and Ireland to present
a wider picture of the Celtic saints, emphasise the links many of them had with
countries other than their own and promote opportunities for people to explore the
stories in combination with visits to other nations.
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17 Potential partnerships
Cadw has been charged with the overall responsibility for developing this and
related interpretation plans but, for a variety of reasons, will not be in a position
to implement the proposals on its own. It will look to other organisations with
complementary interests to bid for funding to undertake interpretive initiatives or
simply to adopt the principles within their own work.
The range of bodies which, potentially, could play a part is considerable and the
list below identifies a range of them. We propose that those identified with [H]
would act as Cymynrodd y Seintiau Celtaidd / The Legacy of the Celtic Saints hubs
where staff could also act as Speakers for the Saints.
National organisations
♦ Bangor University
♦ Bible Society
♦ Church in Wales
♦ Church Tourism Network Wales
♦ National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth [H]
♦ National Museum of Wales, Cardiff [H]
♦ University of Wales Trinity / Trinity Saint David
Regional organisations
♦ Brecon Beacons National Park Authority
♦ Ceredigion County Council
♦ Clwyd-Powis Archaeological Trust
♦ Dyfed Archaeological Trust
♦ Glamorgan-Gwent Archaeological Trust
♦ Gwynedd Archaeological Trust
♦ Gwynedd Museum and Art Gallery, Bangor [H]
♦ Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority
♦ Snowdonia National Park Authority
♦ South West Wales organisations
♦ Wrexham Open Churches Network
In addition, there are many websites that play a part in presenting and interpreting
the Celtic saints, sacred places and pilgrims’ paths.
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18 Monitoring and evaluation
As a precursor to monitoring and evaluation of interpretation, it is important to set
targets and performance measures, not least to give yardsticks against which to
judge performance. However, in the case of this interpretation plan, this presents
a number of challenges:
Many of the proposals in the plan relate to actions and activities which cannot
easily be measured. For example:
♦ As we said in our introductory sections, this plan deals with a mix of aesthetics
and perceptions, neither of which are easy to monitor, let alone measure
♦ References to Celtic saints, sacred places and pilgrims’ paths in tourism
promotional material are likely to encourage visitors as much to areas as to
specific sites, and many sites, even then, will have no formal admissions
perimeter or visitor counts.
♦ It is notoriously difficult to determine the more personal thoughts and reactions
of visitors (including local people) to Celtic saints and sacred places, and
therefore constructing a data base against which to measure future research will
be problematic and expensive, as will the later research itself.
♦ The manner in which a variety of organisations may implement all or parts of
this plan is likely to be extremely varied, to include as target markets visitors
and / or local people, and to be linked to, or integrated with, other activities
which will make largely impossible any monitoring and evaluation, in isolation,
of the plan’s effectiveness.
There appears to be no detailed knowledge of tourists’ (or local people’s) interests
or detailed evaluation of their intellectual satisfaction from visits to specific or
generic sites. Motivations and principal attractions are surveyed but they are so
general as to be of little assistance in the case of this plan and its implementation.
Monitored sites
Where specific visitor sites are involved, such as archaeological remains or historic
buildings, then there would be opportunities to monitor and evaluate the
effectiveness of the plan although, even there, disaggregating the ‘Celtic saints
and sacred places’ element from other motivations and satisfactions will present
challenges of their own. Where the plan forms a part of other activities, it may be
possible to attribute any success to the impetus provided by the plan or to specific
elements within it.
However, where new interpretive media are created and installed, whether in
physical or digital form, then there are mechanisms for judging their success which
should be put in place. These include.
♦ Pre-testing of new interpretive media from graphic panels, installations, printed
material, websites and digitally-downloaded material.
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♦ Monitoring of the use of such interpretive media (including use by different
audiences and those with accessibility challenges).
♦ Evaluation of the use of different media.
♦ Evaluation of the interpretive approach as a whole.
There are many methods that can be used to undertake each of these activities and
we identify a number of them below. The list is not exhaustive but indicates some
of the methods that can be employed to take stock of different elements of the
interpretive approach. Wherever possible, pre-change data should be obtained in
order to provide for immediate comparisons and to establish base lines of ‘graphs’
for continued monitoring and evaluation.
18.1 Pre-testing
Pre-testing is something that many organisations fail to do because ‘deadlines’ are
cited as the need to get things on the ground, or out in the public domain. On the
principle of ‘getting it right, rather than getting it now’, we advocate strongly that
Cadw, and / or its partners in implementing this plan, test out new media before
committing final expenditure and implementation work. A further benefit of this
approach is in ensuring that the local community is given a chance to feed into the
development process both by commenting and by participating.
In terms of printed and similar material, this process is now simpler and cheaper
with the availability of computer-derived artwork that can be produced
inexpensively and, in the case of printed material, easily circulated. In the case of
interpretive panels or similar media the artwork can be laminated to last for the
brief period necessary. Reactions can be sought from selected or random users /
viewers, from ‘focus groups’ or otherwise chosen groups of people, or by other
means that ensure wide pre-implementation appraisal and approval.
With any sound stores, or downloaded audio / video tours, sample scripts or ‘sound
bites’ should be tested by visitors and local people over a period to ensure, as far
as possible, that they meet their expectations of a visit as well as promoting the
promoter’s aspirations. The same applies to websites, DVDs etc.
18.2 Monitoring
Once media are in place, then monitoring their use and / or success can be done in
a variety of ways, often in conjunction with evaluation. For example, the following
largely quantitative checks could be instituted:
♦ Maintaining accurate checks of questions asked – and the type of questioners – as
well as of material issued and advice given at tourist information centres and
site admission points
♦ Maintaining accurate records of printed material distributed and replenished
♦ Maintaining accurate records of publications issued, website ‘hits’ and material
downloaded, audio / video tours downloaded and comments made etc
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♦ Making observation of visitors’ and local people’s use, behaviour, time spent etc
when viewing specific and installed media
♦ Making observation of visitors’ use of printed material
♦ Maintaining records of number of visitors to key sites and special events.
♦
18.3 Evaluation
The more time-consuming and, therefore, costly, aspects of the work of appraising
success are those that involve qualitative research, which can include:
♦ Face-to-face interviewing of visitors (and local people) at key sites, using
interpretive media and / or attending events or guided walks / tours / trips
♦ Distribution of questionnaires for self-completion
♦ Use of focus groups, private and public meetings etc.
♦ Analysis of questions asked and answered (or not) by visitors at tourist
information centres and key sites
♦ Analysis of unsolicited written communications by email, letter or otherwise
The depth of analysis of visitors’ and local people’s perceptions and reactions goes
beyond any conventional tourism survey which seldom if ever cover interpretation,
although many comments may have a bearing upon interpretation, or the lack of it.
However, evaluation of this plan’s implementation would make a suitable subject
for a piece of more academic research.
Few organisations undertake any or more limited monitoring and evaluation of
interpretation and only occasional pre-testing is undertaken. In a commercial
environment, such appraisal of the potential success, as well as actual success, of a
product would be undertaken as part of the overall marketing function. The same
should be done by any organisation responsible for spending substantial sums on
activities of public benefit.
Pre-testing, monitoring and evaluation will provide essential data and anecdotal
material that will inform the development of the interpretive approach and guide
it throughout its implementation over succeeding years. It is recommended that
Cadw, and / or its partners, dedicate appropriate time and resources to the
evaluation process in order to determine those initiatives that are successful in
developing and maintaining the audience for Celtic saints, sacred places and
pilgrims’ paths. This will help to ensure that resources can continue to be
effectively targeted.
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19 Appendices
The following appendices are referred to in the text:
♦ Relevant sources
♦ The brief in full
Appendix A: Relevant sources
Two sets or sources are appended, one relating to the archaeology of the saints
(provided by Professor Nancy Edwards) and the saints (provided by Dr Jonathan
Wooding).
The archaeology of the saints
General on Wales c AD 400-1100
Davies, W., 1982, Wales in the early middle ages, Leicester
Arnold, C. J. and Davies, J. L., 2000 Roman and Early Medieval Wales
Redknap, M. 1991, The Christian Celts, Treasures of late Celtic Wales, Cardiff
Christianity and the Church
Petts, D., 2009, The Early Medieval Church in Wales, Stroud
Edwards, N. (ed), 2009, The Archaeology of the Early Medieval Celtic Churches, Leeds
Edwards, N. and Lane, A. (eds), 1992,The Early Church in Wales and the West, Oxford
Victory, S., 1977, The Celtic Church in Wales
Thomas, C., 1971, The Early Christian Archaeology of North Britain
Petts, D., 2003, Christianity in Roman Britain, Stroud
Edwards, N., 1996, Identifying the archaeology of the early church in Wales and Cornwall, in J.
Blair and C. Pyrah (eds), Church Archaeology, Research Directions for the Future, York, 49-62
James, H., 1993, The cult of St David in the middle ages, in M. Carver (ed), In Search of Cult,
Woodbridge, 105-112
Art
Lord, P., 2003, The Visual Culture of Wales: Medieval Vision, Cardiff, Chs 1-2
Sculpture and inscriptions
Redknap, M. and Lewis, J. M., 2007, A Corpus of Early Medieval Inscribed Stones and Stone
Sculpture in Wales, Vol I, South East Wales and the English Border, Cardiff
Edwards, N., 2007, A Corpus of Early Medieval Inscribed Stones and Stone Sculpture in Wales, Vol
II, South West Wales, Cardiff
Edwards, N., 2013, A Corpus of Early Medieval Inscribed Stones and Stone Sculpture in Wales, Vol
III, North Wales, Cardiff
Nash-Williams, V. E., 1950, The Early Christian Monuments of Wales, Cardiff
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Holy Wells
Bord, J. and C .,1985, Sacred Waters, Holy Wells and Water Lore in Britain and Ireland, London
Cope, P., 2008, Well Kept Secrets, New photographs of the holy wells of Wales, Brigend
‘Celtic Christianity’ – up to present day
Bradley, I., 1999, Celtic Christianity, Making myths and chasing dreams, Edinburgh
Meek, D. E., 2000, The Quest for Celtic Christianity, Edinburgh
Pennant Melangell
Montgomeryshire Collections, 82, 1994, collection of articles about this iconic site.
The saints
1. Gildas, Ruin of Britain (sixth century).
Winterbottom, M. (ed and transl), Gildas (Chichester: Phillimore, 1980)
Williams, H. (ed.), Gildas (1899) online at Christian Classics Ethereal Library,
http://www.ccel.org/ccel/pearse/morefathers/files/gildas_01_intro.htm
Describes:
Martyrs at Caerleon
Dissolute kings, some historical figures
2. Gildas, Letter to Finnian (sixth century)
Winterbottom, M. (ed and transl), Gildas (Chichester: Phillimore, 1980)
Williams, H. (ed.), Gildas (1899) online at Christian Classics Ethereal Library
http://www.ccel.org/ccel/pearse/morefathers/files/gildas_01_intro.htm
Describes distinction between ‘worldly’ and ‘desert’ monastery, reflected later in clas model
Likely direct reference to St David’s rule
References to this letter in Irish collections of Canon Law and in Columbanus’ letter to Pope
Gregory the Great in AD 600
3. Life of St Samson (seventh or eighth century)
Taylor, T. (transl), The Life of St Samson (SPCK, 1925) reprinted by Llanerch
Taylor translation available online at Trinity Saint David website, Celtic Christianity e-library (down
at the moment, soon back online – will be linked off my webpage
http://www.trinitysaintdavid.ac.uk/en/schooloftheologyreligiousstudiesandislamicstudies/staff/
drjonathanwooding/
Describes:
Monastery at Llantwit Major
Distinction between ‘worldly’ and ‘desert’ monastery
Caldey Island monastery
St Kew monastery in Cornwall
Church in Brittany
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4. Rhygyfarch, Life of St David (c. 1090)
Translations of longer (earlier) text:
Wade-Evans, A.W., Life of St David (London: SPCK, 1923)
Sharpe, R and Davies, J.R. in Wooding and Evans (ed.), St David of Wales – Cult, Church and Nation
(Woodbridge: Boydell, 2007).
Sources from St David’s include early rule, almost identical to that used by Gildas
Account of early Synod at (Llanddewi) Brefi that may be partly historical
References to St David’s and Henfynyw sites
Important manuscripts survive from family of Rhygyfarch at Llanbadarn
5. Life of St Elgar
Translations:
Rees, W.J. (ed and transl), The Book of Llandaff (on Celtic Christianity e-library)
By Jankulak, K. and Wooding, J. M, in Wooding, J. M. (ed.), Solitaries, Pilgrims and 20,000 Saints
(Lampeter 2010).
Describes:
Process of becoming a hermit
Process of identification of relics
Inner spirituality of British hermit
6. Confession of Patrick
White, N. (transl), St Patrick (1919) – available online
Hood, A.B. (transl), St Patrick (Chichester: Phillimore, 1978)
O’Loughlin, T., Exploring St Patrick (London: DLT, 2005)
First-hand account of labours of fifth-century Briton, of Roman descent, in Ireland.
Evidence of inner spirituality of post-Roman British Christian.
Some possible further sources to explore:
Antiphonary of Bangor
Early monastic liturgical collection from near where Finnian worked, evidence of monastic office of
possible comparable type to Wales
Penitential of Finnian
Foundational manual of penance by a British monk (sixth cent)
Llandaff Charters
In preparation
Jankulak, K. and Wooding, J.M., Early Christianity in Celtic Britain (SPCK, 2011), which is a set of
extracts and discussion of most of the above.
Wooding, J.M., Saints and the Sea in the Celtic Lands (Cardiff: UWP, 2012)
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Further bibliography
Bieler, L. (ed. and transl.), The Irish Penitentials (Dublin, 1979)
Davies, J. R., The Book of Llandaff and the Norman Church in Wales (Woodbridge, 2005)
Davies, Wendy (ed.), The Llandaff Charters (Aberystwyth, 1979)
Flaubert, P. (ed.), La vie ancient de Saint Samson de Dol (Paris, 1997)
Huws, Daniel, Medieval Welsh Manuscripts (Cardiff, 2000)
Evans, J. Wyn and J.M. Wooding (eds), St David—Cult, Church and Nation (Boydell, 2007)
Henken, E., Traditions of the Welsh Saints (Cambridge, 1987), pp. 296-300.
Hood, A.B. (transl), St Patrick (Chichester: Phillimore, 1978)
Jankulak, K., ‘Adjacent Saints’ Dedications and Early Celtic History’, in S. Boardman and J.R. Davies
(eds), Saints’ Cults in the Celtic World (Woodbridge, Boydell, 2008), pp. 91-118.
Jankulak, K and J. Wooding ‘The Life of St Elgar of Ynys Enlli’ in J.M. Wooding (ed.), Solitaries,
Pastors and 20,000 Saints: Studies in the Religious History of Bardsey Island (Ynys Enlli),(Lampeter,
Trivium Publications, 2010), pp. 15-47.
Knight, J. ‘From Villa to Monastery: Llandough in Context’, Medieval Archaeology 49 (2005) 93-107
Lloyd, J.E. A History of Wales from the Earliest times to the Edwardian Conquest, 2 vols (London,
1911)
O’Loughlin, T., Exploring St Patrick (London: DLT, 2005)
Pryce, H. (ed. and transl.), Acts of the Welsh Rulers 1120-1283 (Cardiff, 2005)
Taylor, T. (transl), The Life of St Samson (SPCK, 1925) reprinted by Llanerch
Wade-Evans, A. (ed. and transl) Vitae sanctorum Britanniae et genealogiae (Cardiff 1944)
Wade-Evans, A. Life of St David (London: SPCK, 1923)
White, N. (transl), St Patrick (1919) – available online
Williams, H. (ed.), Gildas (1899)
Winterbottom, M. (ed and transl), Gildas (Chichester: Phillimore, 1980)
Wooding, J.M., ‘Island and coastal churches in medieval Wales and Ireland’, in Jankulak, K and
Wooding, J.M. (eds), Ireland and Wales in the Middle Ages (Dublin, 2007), pp. 201-28, pp. 207-8.
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Appendix B: The brief in full
Celtic Saints, spiritual places and pilgrimage Interpretation Plan
Summary
Cadw, the Welsh Assembly Government’s historic environment service is seeking quotations to
produce an interpretation plan for the sites associated with the Celtic saints, spiritual places and
pilgrimage.
Context
After a major review of the interpretative provision at its 127 sites across Wales, Cadw is developing
an overarching interpretation strategy for its estate. Cadw is also leading on the implementation of
a significant Heritage Tourism Project, part-funded by the EU Convergence Programme.
Consequently, Cadw is developing a pan-Wales Heritage Interpretation Plan.
The Plan will focus on a number of chronological and/or thematic story strands which create a
cohesive picture of the story of the Welsh historic environment. One story strand concerns the
Spiritual and inspirational landscapes and this headline story has been subdivided into three
interconnected story strands. These are: Celtic saints, spiritual places and pilgrimage, Churches,
chapels and monastic landscapes and Artistic responses to the landscape.
The interpretation plan for the story strand for Celtic saints, spiritual places and pilgrimage should
detail how the stories of the Celtic saints, spiritual places and pilgrimage can be told.
Although Christianity arrived in Wales with the Romans it was not widely adopted until the sixth
century AD when it was re-introduced by an influx of missionary monks from Ireland and continental
Europe. Most early monastic sites have been lost, but the names of the saints have lived on as place
names and through associations with special places, many of which later became the foci of
pilgrimage trails.
The plan should detail how the stories the Celtic saints, spiritual places and pilgrimage can be told
at individual sites and through visitor oriented packages. Two areas in which the stories can focus
have been identified as Pembrokeshire and NW Wales.
Plans for the Churches, chapels and monastic landscapes and Artistic responses to the landscape
will be commissioned separately through the Interpretative Framework.
The contractor will need to be aware of the wider context, historically and geographically in which
their proposals need to sit and of the significance this aspect of Welsh history continues to have in
contemporary culture and thinking.
Requirements
Cadw needs an interpretation plan for the theme of ‘Celtic saints, spiritual places and pilgrimage’.
The interpretation plan needs to:
♦ Identify the key elements of the story of Celtic saints, spiritual places and pilgrimage and the
key sites or destinations which can help bring that story alive. Note: some sites identified may be
problematic in terms of general public access and some will certainly pose challenges for people
with disabilities. These issues and, where feasible, suggestions as to how to address them, should
be highlighted in the Plan.
♦ Propose strong interpretive themes and relevant stories.
♦ Be firmly grounded in historical fact.
♦ Offer interpretation proposals which acknowledge each site’s unique qualities and deliver
interpretation which makes each site a ‘complete visit’ in itself.
♦ Propose, in addition, an appropriate number of total visitor packages, covering pre-visit decision
information; welcome; orientation; inspirational visit; a desire to explore further.
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♦ Propose interpretation which is focused on a broad audience base, from special interest to the
family holiday market. Note: information about the existing visitor profile will be made available
by Cadw and relevant Tourism Partnerships; the potential to attract new audiences, including
special and local interests, is also a factor.
♦ Propose interpretation which is participative and involves the audience.
Note: Some of the sites in question are unstaffed and some are often open to extreme weather
conditions. The proposals need to be realistic in terms of audience and use media appropriate to
the site, the story and the audience.
Outputs
Cadw requires an Interpretative Plan for Celtic saints, spiritual places and pilgrimage by 27th March
2011. A first draft would be required for comment by early Feb 2010.. The Plan will:
♦ Recommend how to tell the story of Celtic saints, spiritual places and pilgrimage; to identify the
sites key to telling that story; and analyse the key audiences.
♦ Propose interpretative interventions appropriate to the target audiences and the sites in
question.
♦ Identify key themes and sub-themes.
♦ Comprise interpretative planning for individual sites, the relationship between sites and the
wider Spiritual and inspirational landscapes story strand and other interconnected plans.
♦ Recommend means of motivating visitors to the site/s and to explore further.
♦ Acknowledge that some sites may have a story to tell relating to more than one of the proposed
headline story strands. In such cases interpretative proposals may need to take account of other
strands or topic areas.
♦ Recommend evaluation and monitoring techniques to measure the effectiveness and use of the
interpretation in line with interpretative objectives.
Deliverables
The consultant will need to:
♦ Familiarise themselves with the key sources relating to the story strand and the interpretation
and tourism developments relevant to the project. Information will be made available by the
client, but the contractor may also need to obtain access to additional historical reference
material.
♦ Engage in dialogue and discussion with heritage and tourism interests relevant to the subject
area and the locality.
♦ Engage in dialogue, liaison and negotiation with other organisations and/or consultants
undertaking other interpretation or heritage promotion projects.
♦ Work in association with an expert relevant to the story strand.
♦ Embrace Cadw’s conservation and interpretation principles.
♦ Meet with a steering group, led by Cadw, drawn from regional heritage and tourism interests, at
agreed milestones during the commission and present the completed plan and recommendations
to the steering group and, if deemed appropriate, an invited audience of sector interests.
Cadw
1 October 2010
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