Celtic and Old English Saints 20 April =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= * St. Caedwalla of Wales * St. Gundebert =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
St. Caedwalla of Wales, King (Cadwallader, Cadwallador) ----------------------------------------------------------- Died in Rome on April 20, 689. Saint Caedwalla, descendent of King Ceawlin of Wessex, became the King of the West Saxons in 685 or 686 by conquest. He subjugated Sussex, made Surrey and Kent dependencies, and conquered the Isle of Wight, whose pagan inhabitants he annihilated. Nevertheless, while still a pagan, he showed himself to be less cruel than many other conquerors of his time, especially after he came under the influence of Saint Wilfrid (f.d. October 12) to whom he gave 300 hides of the conquered Isle of Wight. Under Caedwalla, Wessex became a powerful kingdom, but in 688, he was converted by Saint Wilfrid, resigned his throne, and went to Rome for baptism. He was baptized there on Easter Eve, April 10, 689, by Pope Saint Sergius I (f.d. September 8) and took the name Peter. Caedwalla, aged about 30, died a few days later still wearing the white robe of the neophyte, and was buried in Saint Peter's on April 20. Still to be seen on his tomb in Saint Peter's is his metrical epitaph, ordered by Sergius and written by Archbishop Crispus of Milan, preserved on the original stone. Saint Bede (f.d. May 25) writes of his sanctity. Saint Caedwalla is the first of four Anglo-Saxon kings to die in Rome. Do not confuse with Cadwallador, King, celebrated on November 12 (Benedictines, Delaney, Farmer). Another Life: This King must not be confused with the King of the Welsh Britons who allied himself with the heathen King Penda of Mercia, defeating and killing Edwin of Northumbria at Hatfield, and then being defeated and dying in battle with St. Oswald at the Battle of Heavenfield. This King Cadwalla was a Saxon, although his name suggests that he must have had some British connections. He was a descendant of Ceawlin, King of Wessex, and defeated other claimants to the throne, even making forays into the land of the South Saxons, where he may have first met St. Wilfrid. He certainly met him again in the Isle of Wight. The Jutes had colonised the Isle of Wight, and they were still pagan; in fact this island was the last bit of England to receive the Christian faith. Cadwalla, though not yet a Christian, was determined to wipe out the Jutes and settle Saxons in their place, but once the campaign had begun, he was persuaded to make over a quarter of the island, three hundred hides of land, to the Church. Perhaps it was St. Wilfrid's presence that helped him make this decision, for it was that holy bishop who received this donation and sent a priest to the island. Cadwalla was a violent and ruthless King, but he had a respect for the Christian faith and its clergy, and Bede tells us that two young princes, brothers of Arwald the Jutish King of the Isle of Wight, were allowed to be instructed and baptised before their execution at the request of the priest Cynebert. Eventually, he decided that he would visit the tombs of the Apostles and be baptised at Rome, and so he abdicated and set off on his pilgrimage. Cadwalla, who was baptised by Pope Sergius on Holy Saturday, had prayed that he would die in grace in the Holy City. His prayer was granted and he fell ill while still wearing his baptismal robes and died on the Wednesday of Easter Week 689. Baptism had released him from all his sins, and he had attained the heavenly kingdom. Pope Sergius caused him to be buried in the mausoleum on the left of the entrance to St Peter's and a fulsome epitaph to be placed on his grave, from which we learn he was thirty when he died, and that "candidus inter oves Christi". (He was clothed in white and went to graze among Christ's Sheep). ( Bowen, Baring Gould, Fisher, Farmer, Bede, Stanton). St. Gundebert, Martyr ---------------------------------------------------- 8th century; feast day formerly April 29. According to tradition, Saint Gundebert, brother of Bishop Saint Niard of Rheims, left his monastery in order to migrate to Ireland. He was martyred there by pagan invaders (Benedictines). Sources: ======== Baring-Gould, S. & Fisher, J. (1907) The Lives of the British Saints. 4 volumes. Charles J Clarke. Benedictine Monks of St. Augustine Abbey, Ramsgate. (1947). The Book of Saints. NY: Macmillan. Bowen, Paul. When We Were One: A Yearbook of the Saints of the British Isles Complied from Ancient Calendars. Delaney, J. J. (1983). Pocket Dictionary of Saints, NY: Doubleday Image. Farmer, D. H. (1997). The Oxford Dictionary of Saints. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Stanton, R A (1887) Menology of England and Wales, Burns & Oates. These Lives are archived at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/celt-saints ¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤ ------------------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/celt-saints/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/celt-saints/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
