St. Patrick (Padrig) in Wales
Everybody knows that St. Patrick (Padrig) is the patron saint of Ireland, but many don’t realize that he was actually born in what is now Wales. During the Roman occupation of Britain, many Britons converted to Christianity, and they were among the first to set out to preach Christianity to a pagan world. St. Patrick, or Padrig as he is known in Welsh, was born sometime in the late 4th or early 5th century. He attests in his own writings that his birth name was Maewyn Succat and he was born in the town of Bannavem Taburniae. Many towns all over Britain claim to be Padrig’s birthplace, but the most credible is the village of Banwen, in Wales’ Dulais Valley. By his own account, when he was 16 years old, Padrig was captured by Irish raiders and taken as a Read more…
St. Peblig’s Church
St. Peblig’s Church, or in Welsh, Llanbeblig, is located in Caernarfon in Gwynedd. It is one of the oldest churches in Wales and certainly one of the oldest religious sites. St. Peblig’s is currently adjacent to visible remains of the Roman fort of Segontium. Founded in 433, the church was was built over the top of Roman ruins, including a temple to Mithras, and its graveyard contains graves of Roman soldiers. Peblig is the Welsh name for Publicius, whose father was Magnus Maximus, known in Wales as Macsen Wledig and the ruler of the western Roman empire starting in 383 AD. Peblig’s mother was the daughter of a Welsh chieftain, whom according to legend Macsen saw in a dream while in Rome and eventually came to North Wales, only to find her father ruling from the remains of the Roman fort. Read more…
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