OF THE Ancient British Church. WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO THE CHURCH IN WALES. Josiah Ebenezer BY NEWELL, M.A. SECOND MASTER OF CARDIFF COLLEGE; MEMBER OF COUNCIL OF THE CAMBRIAN SOCIETY OF SOUTH WALES WITH A MAP. PUBLISHED UNDER THE DIRECTION OF THE TRACT COMMITTEE. LONDON: SOCIETY FOR PROMOTING CHRISTIAN KNOWLEDGE, 43, QUEEN VICTORIA STREET, E.C.; 26, ST. GEORGE'S PLACE, HYDE PARK CORNEr, s.w. NEW YORK: E. & J. B. YOUNG & CO. 1887. I HAVE endeavoured in the following pages to give a popular sketch of Ancient British Church history, free from errors and misconceptions. I have consulted original sources of information, and in my inferences have generally followed the guidance of the best modern authorities. I can scarcely hope that I have quite escaped error, but I have done my best to avoid it, and those who are familiar with the conflicting testimonies and theories which beset the inquirer will appreciate the difficulties of my task. I have paid special attention to the history of the Church of Wales, which is, perhaps, usually too much neglected. As I have lived for several years at Cardiff, I have naturally been led to dwell particularly on the history and institutions of the diocese of Llandaff, for the study of which there exist peculiar sources. The antiquities of Llantwit Major first made me feel an interest in the monastic system, which was the glory of Celtic Christianity, and which I have considered in some detail. The substance of the chief part of this little history was originally contributed to a Cardiff parish magazine, in a series of papers, which were intended as, in some degree, an historical vindication of the present position of the Church in Wales against the criticisms. of opponents. I have also incorporated some passages from a paper on "Welsh Monasteries before A.D. 681," read by me last February before the Cambrian Society of South Wales and Monmouthshire, and subsequently published in the Red Dragon, the National Magazine of Wales. As I have had to introduce Welsh names, and have found it best in general to adhere closely to their Welsh orthography, the English reader may, perhaps, at times be staggered by what appear to be unpronounceable collections of consonants. It may be useful, therefore, without burdening him with a large number of rules, to state a few which may help him to read the Welsh name with approximate correctness. Welsh pronunciation is not so difficult as it appears; the only sound which an average Englishman cannot form is 7, an aspirated . In such words as Llandaff, perhaps the best course to adopt is to ignore the difficulty altogether, and pronounce the word as if written Landaff. Ch, also, is not an English sound, but can easily be attained when once heard, being the same as ch in the Scotch loch. Other sounds are quite easy. C is always hard, as in can; dd=th in then; |