Maelgwn Gwynedd Gildas What was Gildas? Gildas makes an allegorical condemnation of 5 British kings Why did he condemn them? likening them to the beasts of the Book of Revelation, What did he say about Gwynedd? describing Maelgwn as the "dragon of the island" is appropriate. Why was that an appropriate description? The Isle of Anglesey was the base of power of the kings of Gwynedd, Why did he make these condemnations? The reason for Gildas' disaffection for these individuals is unknown. Was there any speculation why he made this comments? suggests a reason other than his claim of moral outrage over personal depravity. What suggests this? That he chose only the kings associated with one king's pre-eminence Which king's pre-eminence? Maelgwn, the "dragon") Are there any other interesting aspects about this article? He says that Maelgwn is the "dragon of the island", and goes on with a litany of moral accusations, What moral accusations? I don't know.
When did Gildas make these accusations?
When did Gildas make the accusations?
In his work On the Ruin and Conquest of Britain written c. 540, Gildas makes an allegorical condemnation of 5 British kings by likening them to the beasts of the Book of Revelation, 13-2: the lion, leopard, bear, and dragon, with the dragon supreme among them. He says that Maelgwn is the "dragon of the island", and goes on with a litany of moral accusations, in the process describing him almost as a regional high king over the other kings (the power-giving dragon of the Apocalypse). The Isle of Anglesey was the base of power of the kings of Gwynedd, so describing Maelgwn as the "dragon of the island" is appropriate.  Gildas restricts his attention to the kings of Gwynedd (Maelgwn), Dyfed (Vortiporius), Penllyn (probable, as its king Cuneglasus/Cynlas appears in royal genealogies associated with the region), Damnonia/Alt Clud (Constantine), and the unknown region associated with Caninus. The Welsh kingdoms are all associated with the conquest of the Gaels by Cunedda, while Alt Clud had a long and ongoing relationship with Gwynedd and its kings.  In the course of his condemnations, Gildas makes passing reference to the other beasts mentioned in the Apocalypse, such as the eagle, serpent, calf, and wolf. The reason for Gildas' disaffection for these individuals is unknown. He was selective in his choice of kings, as he had no comments concerning the kings of the other British kingdoms that were thriving at the time, such as Rheged, Gododdin, Elmet, Pengwern/Powys, or the kingdoms of modern-day southern England. That he chose only the kings associated with one king's pre-eminence (Maelgwn, the "dragon") suggests a reason other than his claim of moral outrage over personal depravity. Neither outrage nor a doctrinal dispute would seem to justify beginning the condemnation of the five kings with a personal attack against the mother of one of the kings, calling her an "unclean lioness". CANNOTANSWER
c. 540,
Maelgwn Gwynedd (; died c. 547) was king of Gwynedd during the early 6th century. Surviving records suggest he held a pre-eminent position among the Brythonic kings in Wales and their allies in the "Old North" along the Scottish coast. Maelgwn was a generous supporter of Christianity, funding the foundation of churches throughout Wales and even far beyond the bounds of his own kingdom. Nonetheless, his principal legacy today is the scathing account of his behavior recorded in De excidio et conquestu Britanniae by Gildas, who considered Maelgwn a usurper and reprobate. The son of Cadwallon Lawhir and great grandson of Cunedda, Maelgwn was buried on Ynys Seiriol (now known as Puffin Island in English), off the eastern tip of Anglesey, having died of the "yellow plague"; quite probably the arrival of Justinian's Plague in Britain.

Name
Maelgwn (IPA: /mɑːɨlgʊn/) in a Middle Welsh name meaning 'Princely Hound'. Attested in Latin as Maglocunus in the Annales Cambriae, it derives from a Common Brittonic form reconstructed as *Maglo-kunos, a compound composed of the root *maglo- (MW. mael), meaning 'prince', attached to *cun- (cwn), an old oblique case root of *cū (ci), meaning 'hound, dog'. As the word for 'hound' was sometimes used as a kenning for warriors in early Welsh poetry, the name may also be translated as 'Princely Warrior'.

Reign
After the collapse of Roman authority in Britain, north Wales was invaded and colonized by Gaelic tribes from Ireland. The kingdom of Gwynedd began with the reconquest of the coast by northern Britons under the command of Maelgwn's great-grandfather Cunedda Wledig. Generations later, Maelgwn's father Cadwallon Long-Hand completed the process by destroying the last Irish settlements on Anglesey. Maelgwn was the first king to enjoy the fruits of his family's conquest and he is considered the founder of the medieval kingdom's royal family. He is thus most commonly referenced by appending the name of the kingdom to his own: Maelgwn Gwynedd.

By tradition, his llys (, literally hall) was located at Deganwy, in the Creuddyn peninsula of Rhos. Tradition also holds that he died at nearby Llanrhos, and was buried there. Other traditions say that he was buried at Ynys Seiriol (), off easternmost Anglesey. There are no historical records to confirm or deny these traditions.

Historical records of this early era are scant. Maelgwn appears in the royal genealogies of the Harleian genealogies, Jesus College MS. 20, and Hengwrt MS. 202. His death in a "great mortality" of 547 is noted in the Annales Cambriae. Tradition holds that he died of the 'Yellow Plague' of Rhos, but this is based on one of the Triads that was written much later. The record says only that it was a "great mortality", which followed the outbreak of the great Plague of Justinian in Constantinople by a few years.

Maelgwn was a generous contributor to the cause of Christianity throughout Wales. He made donations to support Saint Brynach in Dyfed, Saint Cadoc in Gwynllwg, Saint Cybi in Anglesey, Saint Padarn in Ceredigion, and Saint Tydecho in Powys. He is also associated with the foundation of Bangor, but hard evidence of this is lacking. In his 1723 Mona Antiqua Restaurata, Henry Rowlands asserts that Bangor was raised to an episcopal see by Maelgwn in 550, but he provides no source for the assertion.

The only contemporary information about the person is provided by Gildas, who includes Maelgwn among the five British kings whom he condemns in allegorical terms in his De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae. He says Maelgwn held a regional pre-eminence among the other four kings, going on to say that he overthrew his paternal uncle () to gain the throne; that he had taken up life as a monk but then returned to the secular world; that he had been married and divorced, then remarried to the widow of his nephew after being responsible for his nephew's death; and that he was tall.

"High king"

The evidence suggests that Maelgwn held a pre-eminent position over the regions ruled by the descendants of Cunedda, perhaps in the sense of a regional high king. There is nothing to suggest that Maelgwn held sway over any larger area. Gildas says as much in his condemnation, saying he held a pre-eminence over the other four kings similarly condemned, and also describing him as the "dragon of the island", where the Isle of Anglesey is the ancient stronghold of the kings of Gwynedd.

The fact that Maelgwn's donations to religious foundations are not restricted to the Kingdom of Gwynedd but are spread throughout northern and southern Wales in the regions where the descendants of Cunedda held sway implies that Maelgwn had a responsibility to those regions beyond the responsibilities of a king to his own kingdom.

While the context is not definitive, Taliesin also implies it, in his Marwnad Rhun () that laments the death of Maelgwn's son Rhun, where he says that Rhun's death is "the fall of the court and girdle of Cunedda".

Gildas 

In his work On the Ruin and Conquest of Britain written , Gildas makes an allegorical condemnation of five British kings by likening them to the beasts of the Book of Revelation 13:2--the lion, leopard, bear, and dragon, with the dragon supreme among them. He says that Maelgwn is the "dragon of the island", and goes on with a litany of moral accusations, in the process describing him almost as a regional high king over the other kings (the power-giving dragon of the Apocalypse). The Isle of Anglesey was the base of power of the kings of Gwynedd, so describing Maelgwn as the "dragon of the island" is appropriate.

Gildas restricts his attention to the kings of Gwynedd (Maelgwn), Dyfed (Vortiporius), Penllyn (probable, as its king Cuneglasus/ Cynlas appears in royal genealogies associated with the region), Damnonia/Alt Clud (Constantine), and the unknown region associated with Caninus. The Welsh kingdoms are all associated with the conquest of the Gaels by Cunedda, while Alt Clud had a long and ongoing relationship with Gwynedd and its kings.

In the course of his condemnations, Gildas makes passing reference to the other beasts mentioned in the Apocalypse, such as the eagle, serpent, calf, and wolf. The reason for Gildas' disaffection for these individuals is unknown. He was selective in his choice of kings, as he had no comments concerning the kings of the other British kingdoms that were thriving at the time, such as Rheged, Gododdin, Elmet, Pengwern/Powys, or the kingdoms of modern-day southern England. That he chose only the kings associated with one king's pre-eminence (Maelgwn, the "dragon") suggests a reason other than his claim of moral outrage over personal depravity. Neither outrage nor a doctrinal dispute would seem to justify beginning the condemnation of the five kings with a personal attack against the mother of one of the kings, calling her an "unclean lioness".

Literary record 
In the Historia Brittonum, Nennius says that "the great king Mailcun reigned among the Britons, i.e., in Gwynedd". He adds that Maelgwn's ancestor Cunedda arrived in Gwynedd 146 years before Maelgwn's reign, coming from Manaw Gododdin, and expelled the Scots [i.e., the Gaels] with great slaughter.

Maelgwn appears once in the Welsh Triads: In the 'Three Tribal Thrones of the Island of Britain', which describes three seats of power, each ruled by Arthur, Maelgwn is Arthur's Chief of Elders in Mynyw (St David's). The pestilence that killed him also appears as one of the 'Three Dreadful Pestilences of the Isle of Britain'. It is described as the Yellow Plague of Rhos, originating from the carcasses of the dead.

There is an incidental mention of Maelgwn in the song To Maenwyn found in the Red Book of Hergest and attributed to Llywarch Hen. The steward () Maenwyn is encouraged to resist a command to surrender his post and show his fidelity to Maelgwn.

In the Book of Llandaff, compiled c. 1125, Maelgwn Gwynedd is claimed to be one of the benefactors of the Diocese of Llandaff in its early years. One of the specific places mentioned is at Louhai (Tintern parva, some 6 miles north of Chepstow), where Maelgwn is claimed as a secular witness to its donation.

In the Black Book of Carmarthen, Dormarch, Gwyn ap Nudd's favourite hound, is recorded as previously belonging to Maelgwn Gwynedd. This is significant in relation to the mythological role of his new master in the Wild Hunt.

Fictional tradition
As a famous king of the past, Maelgwn's name figures strongly in Welsh legend. It is used more often than most in questionable accounts of history and in genuine efforts at history that either invent fictions of their own, or repeat the fictions of others as though they were true. Some of the most significant sources of misinformation about Maelgwn are:

The History of the Kings of Britain

Geoffrey of Monmouth's 12th-century pseudohistorical Historia Regum Britanniae includes Maelgwn (Malgo) as a character in its account of British history. It says that Saint David was buried at St David's on the command of "Malgo, king of the Venedotians", that Malgo addicted himself to sodomy, and that he was succeeded by a certain Careticus. It adds that Britain had groaned under the barbarians since the time of Malgo, that Malgo was the fourth king of Britain after Arthur, and that Malgo had two sons, Ennianus and Runo.

Scholars contend that there is no authority for any of this except Geoffrey's fertile imagination. Historically, Rhun ap Maelgwn was Maelgwn's son and successor (though this may be the 'Runo' Geoffrey refers to). Geoffrey appears to twist Gildas' words to obtain his reference to sodomy. In his condemnation of 5 British kings in the De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae, Gildas refers to wine as "sodomitical" but never applies that word to any person.

The Brut Tysilio

Once attributed to Saint Tysilio (died 640), the Chronicle of the Kings of Britain was written c. 1500 as an amalgam of earlier versions of the Brut y Brenhinedd, a derivative of Geoffrey of Monmouth's Historia Regum Britanniae. Among its spurious claims is that Maelgwn Gwynedd came to the crown following Vortiper, that he was succeeded by a certain Caretig, that he was the fourth king of all Britain after Arthur, and that he had two sons, Einion and Rhun.

The Iolo Manuscripts

Maelgwn Gwynedd is mentioned repeatedly in the spurious 18th century Iolo Manuscripts of Iolo Morganwg. His three Chief Bards are named, and he is proclaimed King Paramount over the other kings. A Maelgwn Hir of Llandaff is described, and said to be commonly mistaken for Maelgwn Gwynedd. Taliesin is said to have been dispossessed of his property by Maelgwn, and so cursed him. Saint Eurgain is said to be Maelgwn's daughter. Saint Cwyllog, daughter of Caw Cawlwyd of Twr Celyn, had been given lands by Maelgwn Gwynedd. In 'The Three Holy Families of the Isle of Britain', there is a story of Caw and his children who had been driven from their lands by the Gwyddelian Picts, and who then came to Wales and were given land in Anglesey by Maelgwn. Without independent and reputable verification, the material found in the Iolo Manuscripts is considered to be the product of Iolo's fertile imagination.

The Tale of Taliesin

The Tale of Taliesin (Hanes Taliesin or Ystoria Taliesin) is a genuine legendary story about Taliesin which is preserved in two principal redactions dating from the mid-16th century and the early 17th century but which probably derives from older sources. It was first printed in Lady Charlotte Guest's translation of the Mabinogion: the notes to that edition are the work of Iolo Morganwg and contain inaccuracies and some of his inventions. The story itself tells of events where the Taliesin of legend is placed in difficult or impossible situations but invariably overcomes all obstacles, usually through feats of magic. Maelgwn Gwynedd is conspicuously depicted in a negative light, being foiled in unscrupulous actions of deceit and being outwitted.

The historical Taliesin was actually a contemporary of Maelgwn Gwynedd's son and successor Rhun. An elegy for Rhun, the Marwnad Rhun () was once attributed to Taliesin by some scholars.  but is now considered to be of later provenance and is no longer accepted as his work. There is nothing to connect the historical Taliesin with Maelgwn Gwynedd, although references to the legend are found in medieval Welsh poems.

The Chronicle of the Scottish Nation

According to the account of John of Fordun's Chronicle of the Scottish Nation, written c. 1360, a certain "Maglo, King of the Britons" asks for aid from King Aydanus. There is nothing to link Maelgwn Gwynedd to the Pictish king, Fordun's claim notwithstanding. In the next section, Fordun says that later on it is "Cadwallo, King of the Britons" who is receiving aid from King Aydanus.

This story is repeated uncritically in some later histories, and subsequently "Malgo the Briton" is mentioned in Thomas Stephens' notes on an 1888 publication of Y Gododdin, with the stated suggestion that Maelgwn was an ally of "Aeddan" against the Pictish king Bridei. Fordun's Chronicle is given as one of Stephens' references.

The Pictish king Bridei

Bridei (died c. 584) was the son of a certain Maelchon (or Melcho, or Maelchú in Irish records). Aside from having a similar name, there is nothing that connects the father of Bridei to Maelgwn Gwynedd.

Of those who have promoted a connection, perhaps the most notable person of late is John Morris in his Age of Arthur, where he refers in passing and without authority, to "... Bridei, son of Maelgwn, the mighty king of north Wales, ...". Though the book has been a commercial success, it is disparaged by historians as an unreliable source of "misleading and misguided" information.

Later fiction
As a famous king of the past, Maelgwn has been associated with unsubstantiated but popular legends and stories throughout history. Modern authors have occasionally used his name as a character in fictional stories. These include the trilogies of Traci Harding, Mary Gilgannon's historical novels, and a fantasy novel by Nikolai Tolstoy.

Family and children
His father was Cadwallon Lawhir and his mother Meddyf, a daughter of Maeldaf. He had a brother and nephew, mentioned in Gildas' De Excidio, but they are unnamed. He is given various wives, including Nesta, Sanan (his nephew's wife) and Gwallwyn (possibly his cousin). It is also possible that he impregnated the Pictish princess Waelgush.

His children are variously given as:

 Alser
 Doeg
 Einion
 Eurgain (daughter)
 Rhun Hir

It is possible but highly debated whether Bridei I and his sister Domelch were children of Maelgwn. Their father is given as Máelchú, which is the Irish form of Maelgwn.

See also
Kings of Wales family trees

Citations

References 

 — English translation
 — in Latin

 — from MSS. in the Libraries of Hengwrt, and of Jesus College (English translation)

External links 
Maelgwn Gwynedd on National Library of Wales Dictionary of Welsh Biography

Characters in works by Geoffrey of Monmouth
Monarchs of Gwynedd
540s deaths
Year of death uncertain
Year of birth unknown
6th-century Welsh monarchs
6th-century deaths from plague (disease)
Gildas (Breton: Gweltaz; c. 500 – c. 570) — also known as Gildas the Wise or Gildas Sapiens — was a 6th-century British monk best known for his scathing religious polemic De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae, which recounts the history of the Britons before and during the coming of the Saxons. He is one of the best-documented figures of the Christian church in the British Isles during the sub-Roman period, and was renowned for his Biblical knowledge and literary style. In his later life, he emigrated to Brittany where he founded a monastery known as St Gildas de Rhuys.

Hagiography
Differing versions of the Life of Saint Gildas exist, but both agree that he was born in what is now Scotland on the banks of the River Clyde, and that he was the son of a royal family. These works were written in the eleventh and twelfth centuries and are regarded by scholars as unhistorical. He is now thought to have his origins farther south. In his own work, he claims to have been born the same year as the Battle of Mount Badon. He was educated at a monastic centre, possibly Cor Tewdws in South Wales under St Illtud, where he chose to forsake his royal heritage and embrace monasticism. He became a renowned teacher, converting many to Christianity and founding numerous churches and monasteries throughout Britain and Ireland. He is thought to have made a pilgrimage to Rome before emigrating to Brittany, where he took on the life of a hermit. However, his life of solitude was short-lived, and pupils soon sought him out and begged him to teach them. He eventually founded a monastery for these students at Saint-Gildas-de-Rhuys in Brittany, where he wrote De Excidio Britanniae, criticising British rulers and exhorting them to put off their sins and embrace true Christian faith. He is thought to have died at Rhuys, and was buried there.

There are two different historical versions of the life of Gildas, the first written by an anonymous monk in the 9th century, and the other written by Caradoc of Llancarfan in the middle of the 12th century. Some historians have attempted to explain the differences in the versions by saying that there were two saints named Gildas, but the more general opinion is that there was only one St Gildas and that the discrepancies between the two versions can be accounted for by the fact that they were written several centuries apart. The 9th-century Rhuys Life is generally accepted as being more accurate.

Rhuys Life
The First Life of Gildas was written by an unnamed monk at the monastery which Gildas founded in Rhuys, Brittany in the 9th century. According to this tradition, Gildas is the son of Caunus, king of Alt Clut in the Hen Ogledd, the Brythonic-speaking region of northern Britain. He had four brothers; his brother Cuillum ascended to the throne on the death of his father, and the rest became monks. Gildas was sent as a child to the College of Theodosius (Cor Tewdws) in Glamorgan, under the care of St Illtud, and was a companion of St Samson of Dol and St Paul Aurelian. His master Illtud loved him tenderly and taught him with special zeal. He was supposed to be educated in liberal arts and divine scripture, but elected to study only holy doctrine, and to forsake his noble birth in favour of a religious life.

After completing his studies under Illtud, Gildas went to Ireland where he was ordained as a priest. He returned to his native lands in northern Britain where he acted as a missionary, preaching to the pagan people and converting many of them to Christianity. He was then asked by Ainmericus, high king of Ireland (Ainmuire mac Sétnai, 566–569), to restore order to the church in Ireland, which had altogether lost the Christian faith. Gildas obeyed the king's summons and travelled all over the island, converting the inhabitants, building churches, and establishing monasteries. He then travelled to Rome and Ravenna where he performed many miracles, including slaying a dragon while in Rome. Intending to return to Britain, he instead settled on the Isle of Houat off Brittany where he led a solitary, austere life. At around this time, he also preached to Nonnita (Non), the mother of Saint David, while she was pregnant with the saint.

He was eventually sought out by those who wished to study under him, and was entreated to establish a monastery in Brittany. He built an oratory on the bank of the River Blavetum (River Blavet), today known as Saint-Gildas-de-Rhuys. Fragments of letters that he wrote reveal that he composed a Rule for monastic life that was somewhat less austere than the Rule written by Saint David. Ten years after leaving Britain, he wrote an epistolary book in which he reproved five of the British kings. He died at Rhuys on 29 January 570, and his body was placed on a boat and allowed to drift, according to his wishes. Three months later, on 11 May, men from Rhuys found the ship in a creek with the body of Gildas still intact. They took the body back to Rhuys and buried it there.

Llancarfan Life: Gildas and King Arthur
The second "Life" of Gildas was written by Caradoc of Llancarfan, a friend of Geoffrey of Monmouth and his Norman patrons. However, Llancarfan's work is most probably historically inaccurate, as his hagiographies tend towards the fictitious, rather than the strictly historical. Llancarfan's "Life" was written in the 12th century, and includes many elements of what have come to be known as mythical pseudo-histories, involving King Arthur, Guinevere, and Glastonbury Abbey, leading to the general opinion that this "life" is less historically accurate than the earlier version. For example, according to the dates in the Annales Cambriae, Gildas would have been a contemporary of King Arthur: however, Gildas' work never mentions Arthur by name, even though he gives a history of the Britons, and states that he was born in the same year as the Battle of Badon Hill, in which Arthur is supposed to have vanquished the Saxons.

In the Llancarfan Life, Gildas is presented as the son of Nau, king of Scotia. Nau had 24 sons, all victorious warriors. Gildas studied literature as a youth, before leaving his homeland for Gaul, where he studied for seven years. When he returned, he brought back an extensive library with him, and was sought after as a master teacher. He became the most renowned teacher in all of the three kingdoms of Britain. Gildas was a subject of the mythical King Arthur, whom he loved and desired to obey. However, his 23 brothers were always rising up against their rightful king, and his eldest brother, Hueil, would submit to no rightful high king, not even Arthur. Hueil would often swoop down from Scotland to fight battles and carry off spoils, and during one of these raids, Hueil was pursued and killed by King Arthur. When news of his brother's murder reached Gildas in Ireland, he was greatly grieved, but was able to forgive Arthur, and pray for the salvation of his soul. Gildas then travelled to Britain, where he met Arthur face to face, and kissed him as he prayed for forgiveness, and Arthur accepted penance for murdering Gildas' brother.

After this, Gildas taught at the school of St Cadoc before retiring to a secret island for seven years. Pirates from the Orkney Islands came and sacked his island, carrying off goods and his friends as slaves. In distress, he left the island, and came to Glastonbury, then ruled by Melvas, King of the 'Summer Country' (Gwlad yr Haf, Somerset). Gildas intervened between King Arthur and Melvas, who had abducted and raped Arthur's wife Guinevere and brought her to his stronghold at Glastonbury. Arthur soon arrived to besiege him, but, the peacemaking saint persuaded Melvas to release Guinevere and the two kings made peace. Then desiring to live a hermit's life, Gildas built a hermitage devoted to the Trinity on the banks of the river at Glastonbury. He died, and was buried at Glastonbury Abbey, in the floor of St Mary's Church.

The Llancarfan Life contains the earliest surviving appearance of the abduction of Guinevere episode, common in later Arthurian literature. Huail's enmity with Arthur was also apparently a popular subject in medieval Britain: he is mentioned as an enemy of Arthur's in the Welsh prose tale Culhwch and Olwen, written around 1100. A strongly held tradition in North Wales places the beheading of Gildas' brother Huail at Ruthin, where what claims to be the execution stone (Maen Huail) has been preserved in the town square. Another brother of Gildas, Celyn ap Caw, was based in the north-east corner of Anglesey.

De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae

Gildas is best known for his polemic De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae, which recounts the sub-Roman history of Britain, and which is the only substantial source for history of this period written by a near-contemporary, although it is not intended to be an objective chronicle.

The work is a sermon in three parts condemning the acts of his contemporaries, both secular and religious. The first part consists of Gildas' explanation for his work and a brief narrative of Roman Britain from its conquest under the Principate to Gildas' time. He describes the doings of the Romans and the Groans of the Britons, in which the Britons make one last request for military aid from the departed Roman military. He excoriates his fellow Britons for their sins, while at the same time lauding heroes such as Ambrosius Aurelianus, whom he is the first to describe as a leader of the resistance to the Saxons. He mentions the victory at the Battle of Mons Badonicus, a feat attributed to King Arthur in later texts, though Gildas is unclear as to who led the battle.

Part two consists of a condemnation of five British kings, Constantine, Aurelius Conanus, Vortiporius, Cuneglas, and Maelgwn. As it is the only contemporary information about them, it is of particular interest to scholars of British history. Part three is a similar attack on the clergy of the time.

The works of Gildas, including the Excidio, can be found in volume 69 of the Patrologia Latina.

De Excidio was usually dated to the 540s, but the historian Guy Halsall inclines to an "early Gildas" c. 490. Cambridge historian Karen George offered a date range of c. 510–530 AD.

Veneration
Gildas' relics were venerated in the abbey which he founded in Rhuys, until the 10th century, when they were removed to Berry. In the 18th century, they were said to be moved to the cathedral at Vannes and then hidden during the French Revolution. The various relics survived the revolution and have all since been returned to Saint-Gildas-de-Rhuys where they are visible at various times of the year at a dedicated "treasury" in the village. The body of Saint Gildas (minus the pieces incorporated into various reliquaries) is buried behind the altar in the church of Saint Gildas de Rhuys.

The gold and silver covered relics of Saint Gildas include:

 A reliquary head containing parts of the saint's skull 
 An arm reliquary containing bone pieces, topped with a blessing hand 
 A reliquary femur and knee 

The embroidered mitre supposedly worn by Gildas is also kept with these relics. Gildas is the patron saint of several churches and monasteries in Brittany, and his feast day is celebrated on 29 January.

Further traditions
Gildas is credited with a hymn called the Lorica, or Breastplate, a prayer for deliverance from evil, which contains specimens of Hiberno-Latin. A proverb is also attributed to Gildas mab y Gaw in the Englynion y Clyweid in Llanstephan MS. 27.

In Bonedd y Saint, Gildas is recorded as having three sons and a daughter. Gwynnog ap Gildas and Noethon ap Gildas are named in the earliest tracts, together with their sister Dolgar. Another son, Tydech, is named in a later document. Iolo Morganwg adds Saint Cenydd to the list.

The scholar David Dumville suggests that Gildas was the teacher of Finnian of Moville, who in turn was the teacher of St Columba of Iona.

Notes

References

Bibliography

 
 — English translation
 — in Latin
 
 

 Miller, Molly. "Bede's use of Gildas." English Historical Review (1975): 241–261. JSTOR

Further reading
 Luca Larpi, Prolegomena to a New Edition of Gildas Sapiens «De Excidio Britanniae», Firenze, Sismel – Edizioni del Galluzzo, 2012 (:it:Società internazionale per lo studio del Medioevo latino)
 Winterbottom, Michael ed. and trans., (1978) Gildas: The Ruin of Britain and Other Works, Phillimore, Chichester

See also
 Gildas the Albanian

External links

 
 
 
 
The Life of Gildas by A Monk of Rhuys.
The Life of Gildas by Caradoc of Llancarfan.
Gildas and The History of the Britons commentary from The Cambridge History of English and American Literature, Volume 1, 1907–21.
Vortigernstudies: Gildas (sources)

500 births
570 deaths
6th-century Christian saints
6th-century historians
Arthurian characters
Arthurian legend
Medieval Welsh literature
Northern Brythonic saints
Southwestern Brythonic saints
Sub-Roman writers
Medieval Welsh saints
Medieval Breton saints
6th-century Welsh people
Last of the Romans
6th-century Latin writers
6th-century Breton people Saint Gildas the Albanian also known as Gildas the Scot, is a spurious early British saint. Apparently identical with Saint Gildas (known as Gildas the Wise or Gildas the Historian), he was invented in the 17th century to explain away inconsistencies in mediaeval sources.

Life

Gildas was reportedly the son of Caunus, king of some southern provinces in North Britain.
According to legend his father was killed in war by king Arthur.
According to Alban Butler (1798),

Identification with Saint Gildas the Wise

"Gildas the Albanian" was invented by British historians of the 17th and 18th century, including Bishop James Ussher and Alban Butler, in an attempt to explain inconsistencies in references made by historical sources and vitae to the 5th/6th century British writer "Gildas the Wise." This was founded on a belief that Gildas the Wise was born in AD 494 and died in AD 570, and wrote his De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae between AD 564 and 570. Gildas the Albanian, Butler and others believed, lived much earlier, dying in AD 512.

By 1876, this theory had been dismissed, after it was noted that the details of the lives of the two Saints named Gildas were broadly the same:

Robert Chambers, summing up the invention and abolition of "Gildas the Albanian" in Chambers Book of Days (1883), observed:

Modern historians believe there was only one Gildas, the author of De Excidio, about whom little is reliably known, and that he lived earlier than was supposed by Butler and other 18th century historians: "it is unlikely that Gildas wrote [De Excidio...] before 480/490 or much after about 550".

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512 deaths
People whose existence is disputed