age. His heaviest stroke, however, is aimed at Malgon, the prince of North Wales, who is allowed to have been a restless and tyrannical man, although he did some acts of kindness to the church. He is called Insularis Draco, because of his residence in the island of Mona. That prince is charged with adultery, tyranny, oppression, and every vice.

sons.

The clergy are charged with ignorance, insolence, and rapaciousness: he calls them haters of the truth, and lovers of falsehood; exhibiting the worst examples to the flock, and therefore unfit to reprove them for their vices. He charges them with the most shameful avarice, sensuality, and dissimulation. He bids the people beware of such ravening wolves; or otherwise that the blind being led by the blind, they both would fall into the pit of hell. As to the few, whom he exempts from the heavy charges which he brings against the generality, he blames them for their supineness in not reproving others; and compares them to Eli, with whom God was so displeased for conniving at the wickedness of his He shews the criminality of those clergymen who neglected to fulfil the duties of their charge: and he excuses the severity of his censures, by saying, that the wound which was grown so inveterate, would not admit of a soft and lenient application. He then breaks out afresh, and calls the unfaithful clergy enemies of God, and not priests; inveterate evil doers, and not prelates; traitors, and not successors of the apostles; adversaries of Christ, and not His ministers. After enumerating the awful injunctions of Scripture; setting forth the duties of the pastoral office, with the dreadful end of unfaithful shepherds; he observes, that a priest ought not only to be pure himself, but must warn others in order that he may be free from their blood. He then concludes his address in the following words:

"Intoxicated with habitual and frequent sinning, and tossed about by the raging billows of your own vices, incessantly rolling upon you, seek with all your might to escape safe to the land of the living, upon that one plank on which alone you can be saved from shipwreck, that of repentance." He then prays "that the God of all consolation and mercy, would preserve the few faithful pastors among them; that, after subduing the common enemy, he would make them citizens of the New Jerusalem, the congregation of all the saints."

We may be disposed to blame the warmth and asperity of this old Briton, and the abruptness of his manner: but he lived in turbulent times; and things were getting to a most awful state, as it respected both the leading characters of the age, and the community at large. Lands were given freely to the church, and this might be thought to argue great liberality and respect for religion but this was not always the cause of those donations, or rather alienations. When the great men had been guilty of any enormities, in order to expiate the offence, and be liberated from ecclesiastical censures, they gave up certain parts of their property as devoted "to God and the church." Whole districts were thus alienated to the church, of which the names are retained in the old Landaff manuscript; so that the Silurian clergy, in the sixth and seventh century, were rendered exceedingly opulent. The consequence was, that wealth begot avarice and sensuality, and the ministers of the sanctuary became earthly-minded.

The warm and honest heart of Gildas was moved within him, to be obliged to witness the depravity of manners which subsisted among both the clergy and laity. There were a few* of a better disposition, as he

* Ita cuncta veritatis ac justitia moderamina concussa ac subversa sunt, ut earum non dicam vestigium, sed ne monumentum quidem in

acknowledges; and he prays the Lord to preserve such excellent characters. His language is in some instances harsh, and approaching to invective; but if we compare him with St. Jerom, and others of the ancients, some excuse may be made for one in the situation and age of Gildas; who thought it requisite to use severity, to shame and rouse his countrymen to a deep sense of their situation, and a due regard to their real interests as a Christian people and community.

Giraldus Cambrensis has a testimony* favourable to the credit and veracity of Gildas: for in the preface to one of his treatises he says, that he proposed that old writer for his imitation in preference to any other, because he was the narrator of those events, of which either he had himself ocular demonstration, or was well assured; setting forth, without attempting a laboured description, the devastation of his country; so that what he wrote is to be regarded more for its truth than its elegance. He expresses his wish to follow Gildas as his pattern, whom he desired to imitate in life and manners; to aim at wisdom rather than eloquence; to indite his subjects with animation and fervour, rather than in a polished style; and to be like him in life, rather than in expression.

As to Giraldus himself, it would have been well had he, as he professes, always followed the plain and abrupt manner of Gildas, and narrated only such things the authenticity of which he could well substantiate: but his credulity exceeded all due bounds; while it must be

supradictis propemodum ordinibus appareat; exceptis paucis, et valde paucis, qui ob amissionem tantæ multitudinis, quæ quotidie prona ruit ad Tartara, tam brevis numerus habentur ; ut eos quodammodo venerabilis mater ecclesia in suo sinu recumbentes non videat, quos solos veros filios habet.

* Giraldus's Testimony of Gildas, p. 289.

acknowledged that his style and manner will bear to be put in competition with the best writers of the middle ages.

We shall now proceed to notice some of the most remarkable incidents that befel the Britons, more especially connected with their ecclesiastical history.

About the year 562, according to Archbishop Ussher, Roderic, king of the Strath Clyde Britons, gave an invitation to Kentigern to return to his native country; and, in consequence thereof, that dignitary returned home, along with those who had borne him company, into the vale of Cluyd, in Wales. Columba was at this time come over from Ireland, preaching the gospel, and planting Christianity among the Picts; of which we shall have to speak towards the conclusion of this work, when we come to investigate the history of Christianity in the north of Britain. These two holy and laborious men are said to have met each other, for the purpose of Christian intercourse, about the year 570.

By the labours of St. Patrick and his associates, in the preceding century, Christianity was established in Ireland; many congregations were collected, and several religious institutions founded, so that by the middle of this century the Irish in general were nominally Christians. But when we advert to the state of the community as to their moral proceedings in both islands, we shall find, that the dismal portraiture of our Gildas gives us too true and just a delineation of that age.

In the days of prince Maelgon, the country was inflicted with that dreadful pestilence called Y FAD VELEN, or yellow fever, which proved so very infectious, that it spread with destructive rapidity, and proved fatal to every one that once became subject to its power. The prince of the country, himself, fell a prey to the disorder;

and its progress was so alarming, that Teilio (or Teliaus), the Welsh primate, with many of the clergy, and other persons of note, resolved to seek an asylum beyond the seas. They first betook themselves to Cornwall, in order to embark for the continent; and were hospitably entertained by Gerennius, the prince of the Cornish Britons. They were from thence conveyed to Britany, where they met with a kind reception; and continued to abide there, until they received accounts that their country was free from the ravages of the pestilence. Teliaus was no sooner apprised of the pleasing intelligence, than he sent to his countrymen, who were dispersed over the land; and, being collected together, they were furnished with vessels to convey them to their native isle, where they arrived after an absence of seven years. They experienced the same treatment from the Cornish on their return, as they had done on their departure for the continent. Gerennius, the prince, was now lying ill, and near death; Teliaus administered to him the blessed Eucharist, after which he soon expired.

Teliaus, travelling homeward, came to his episcopal seat at Landaff; and was joyfully received by his clergy and disciples, among whom are mentioned Luhil (or Lliwel), Ismael, Tyvei, and Oudoc, who afterwards succeeded him in his episcopal dignity. The Landaff manuscript states, that some years after his return he died at his seat; but another account states, that he retired to a favourite spot of his on the banks of the river Towy, where he died: that place is supposed to be Llandilo vawr, which was named after him; and from its bearing the epithet of vawr, or great, is thought to have been once his residence, if not the place of his death. There are many churches, as well as that of Landeilo, in Carmarthenshire, dedicated to the honour of this saint; and the cathedral of Landaff once bore his name.