Saint Cewydd was a

pre-congregational saint In the Catholic Church, the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, previously named the Congregation for the Causes of Saints (), is the dicastery of the Roman Curia that oversees the complex process that leads to the canonization of saints, passi ...

Wales in the Early Middle Ages Wales in the early Middle Ages covers the time between the Roman departure from Wales c. 383 until the middle of the 11th century. In that time there was a gradual consolidation of power into increasingly hierarchical kingdoms. The end of the ea ...

(6th century). He is known as the Welsh 'Rain Saint', like Medard in France,

Gildas Gildas (English pronunciation: , Breton language, Breton: ''Gweltaz''; ) — also known as Gildas Badonicus, Gildas fab Caw (in Middle Welsh texts and antiquarian works) and ''Gildas Sapiens'' (Gildas the Wise) — was a 6th-century Britons (h ...

in Brittany and Swithin in England. It would appear that a pre-Christian rain day might have been associated with a date in July, when, if it rained on that day, it was believed rain would continue for forty days. Very little is known of his life due to the scarcity of records in the early Dark Ages in Wales. He is known mainly from churches associated with him, which are on

Anglesey Anglesey ( ; ) is an island off the north-west coast of Wales. It forms the bulk of the Principal areas of Wales, county known as the Isle of Anglesey, which also includes Holy Island, Anglesey, Holy Island () and some islets and Skerry, sker ...

(Wales),

Lancaut Lancaut is a deserted village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Tidenham, in the Forest of Dean district, in Gloucestershire, England, located alongside the River Wye, around two miles north of Chepstow. It occupies a narrow-necked ...

Chepstow Chepstow () is a town and community in Monmouthshire, Wales, adjoining the border with Gloucestershire, England. It is located on the tidal River Wye, about above its confluence with the River Severn, and adjoining the western end of the ...

(Wales/England border),

Cusop Cusop is a village and civil parish in Herefordshire, England that lies at the foot of Cusop Hill next to the town of Hay-on-Wye in Wales. It is a short walk from Hay, the distance between bus stops, and can be reached by walking or driving o ...

(Wales/England border),

Kewstoke Kewstoke is a civil parish and village in Somerset, England, within the unitary authority of North Somerset, located next to the strip of coast called Sand Bay. Its population in the 2011 census was 1,690. History The parish was part of the W ...

(Somerset, England), Steynton in Rhos (

Pembrokeshire Pembrokeshire ( ; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. It is bordered by Carmarthenshire to the east, Ceredigion to the northeast, and otherwise by the sea. Haverfordwest is the largest town and ...

, Wales),

Aberedw Aberedw is a village and community in Radnorshire, Powys, Wales. The community covers an area of . Its population was 229, according to the 2011 census; a 4.57% increase since the 219 people noted in 2001. The 2011 census showed 4.8% of the popul ...

(Radnorshire, Wales], Disserth yn Elfael (

Radnorshire Radnorshire () was Historic counties of Wales, one of the thirteen counties of Wales that existed from 1536 until their abolishment in 1974, later becoming a Districts of Wales, district of Powys from 1974 to 1996. It covered a sparsely populat ...

, Wales), Llangewydd and

Laleston Laleston () is a village and a community in Bridgend County Borough, south Wales, directly west of Bridgend town centre. The village takes its name from the Norman Lageles family who settled in the area. Buildings of note in the village include ...

(

Bridgend Bridgend (; or just , meaning "the end of the bridge on the Ogmore") is a town in the Bridgend County Borough of Wales, west of Cardiff and east of Swansea. The town is named after the Old Bridge, Bridgend, medieval bridge over the River Og ...

, Wales), Capel Cewy, Mynachlogddu (Pembrokeshire, Wales). Ecclesiastical records in the

Book of Llandaff The Book of Llandaff (; , ', or '), is the cartulary of the cathedral of Llandaff, a 12th-century compilation of documents relating to the history of the diocese of Llandaff in Wales. It is written primarily in Latin but also contains a signific ...

refer to a religious establishment of ''lann ceuid'', probably at

, which is likely to have been established by 625 AD and was recorded there by 703AD.Charles Parry, A Survey of St James’s Church Transactions of the Bristol and Gloucestershire Archaeological Society 199
volume108
pages 53–103. His

feast day The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word "feast" in this context does n ...

is 1 July, but South Wales tradition records 15 July as Dygwyl Cewydd – Feast of St Cewydd (originally 2 July before the Julian/

Gregorian calendar The Gregorian calendar is the calendar used in most parts of the world. It went into effect in October 1582 following the papal bull issued by Pope Gregory XIII, which introduced it as a modification of, and replacement for, the Julian cale ...

change).

References

External links

* http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=2655 {{Authority control 6th-century Welsh people Welsh Roman Catholic saints Medieval Welsh saints Children of Brychan Year of birth unknown 6th-century Christian saints