Helig ap Glanawg (standard modern Welsh orthography: Helig ap Glannog) is a legendary figure described in various accounts dating to at least as early as the 13th century as a 6th-century prince who lived in

North Wales North Wales ( ) is a Regions of Wales, region of Wales, encompassing its northernmost areas. It borders mid Wales to the south, England to the east, and the Irish Sea to the north and west. The area is highly mountainous and rural, with Snowdon ...

. Post-medieval tradition says that the

river Conwy The River Conwy (; ) is a river in north Wales. From its source to its discharge in Conwy Bay it is long and drains an area of 678 square km. "Conwy" was formerly anglicised as "Conway." The name 'Conwy' derives from the old Welsh words ''c ...

once reached the sea by the

Great Orme The Great Orme () is a limestone headland on the north coast of Wales, north-west of the town of Llandudno. Referred to as ''Cyngreawdr Fynydd'' by the 12th-century poet Gwalchmai ap Meilyr, its English name derives from the Old Norse word for ...

Llandudno Llandudno (, ) is a seaside resort, town and community (Wales), community in Conwy County Borough, Wales, located on the Creuddyn peninsula, which protrudes into the Irish Sea. In the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 UK census, the community � ...

, and to the west lay the great cantref of Gwaelod which stretched all the way to Puffin Island, off

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 ...

. Helig ap Glanawg was said to have lived here when his land was inundated by the sea, which formed the Lavan Sands which lie between the Great Orme's Head and the

Menai Strait The Menai Strait () is a strait which separates the island of Anglesey from Gwynedd, on the mainland of Wales. It is situated between Caernarfon Bay in the south-west and Conwy Bay in the north-east, which are both inlets of the Irish Sea. The s ...

off the north coast of Gwynedd. The legend states the remains of Llys Helig, said to be his palace but in fact the remnants of a

glacial moraine A moraine is any accumulation of unconsolidated debris ( regolith and rock), sometimes referred to as glacial till, that occurs in both currently and formerly glaciated regions, and that has been previously carried along by a glacier or ice s ...

, can be seen at exceptionally low tides, this being near the Conwy channel, about a mile or so off the coast at

Penmaenmawr Penmaenmawr (, ) is a town and community in Conwy County Borough, Wales, which was formerly in the parish of Dwygyfylchi and the traditional county of Caernarfonshire. It is on the North Wales coast between Conwy and Llanfairfechan and was an ...

. The earliest known use of the name Llys Helig for this rock formation is the Halliwell Manuscript, published in 1859, which is believed to date to around the beginning of the 17th century, eleven centuries later.

Sons

After the disaster both Helig and his numerous sons are said to have embraced a religious life. These sons, according to various sources, were: * Celynnin, who has a church dedicated to him at Llangelynnin in the Conwy valley, and there is another at Llangelynnin near Llwyngwril, a few miles south of Llanaber *

Rhychwyn Rhychwyn was a 6th century saint of North Wales and the patron saint of Llanrhychwyn. Rhychwyn (sometimes recorded as Rhochwyn), was a son of Helig ap Glannog Helig ap Glanawg (standard modern Welsh (language), Welsh orthography: Helig ap ...

, the saint associated with St Rhychwyn's Church, Llanrhychwyn * Bodfan, to whom the church at Llanaber, in Gwynedd, is dedicated * Brothen, who founded

St Brothen's Church, Llanfrothen St Brothen's Church, Llanfrothen, is a redundant church at the edge of the village of Llanfrothen, Gwynedd, Wales. It is designated by Cadw as a Grade I listed building because it is "a fine Medieval church retaining much of exterior and in ...

* Peris, who founded the churches at

Llanberis Llanberis () is a village, community (Wales), community and electoral ward in Gwynedd, northwest Wales, on the southern bank of the lake and at the foot of Snowdon, the highest mountain in Wales. It is a centre for outdoor activity, outdoor ac ...

and

Nant Peris The Llanberis Pass (; alternative English name, Pass of Llanberis) in Snowdonia carries the main road (A4086) from the south-east to Llanberis, over Pen-y-Pass, between the mountain ranges of the Glyderau and the Snowdon massif. At the bottom o ...

* Boda and Gwynin, who founded the church at

Dwygyfylchi Dwygyfylchi () is a village in Conwy County Borough, Wales. It is part of the community (Wales), community of Penmaenmawr which has a population of 4,353. The electoral ward of Capelulo which includes Dwygyfylchi had a population of 1,485 in 201 ...

, near Penmaenmawr

Legend possibly of the same origin as that of Cantre'r Gwaelod

Rachel Bromwich Rachel Bromwich (30 July 1915 – 15 December 2010), born Rachel Sheldon Amos, was a British scholar. Her focus was on medieval Welsh literature, and she taught Celtic Languages and Literature in the Department of Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic ...

discusses what she refers to as the folk-tale of

Cantre'r Gwaelod , also known as or , is a legendary ancient sunken kingdom said to have occupied a tract of fertile land lying between Ramsey Island and Bardsey Island in what is now Cardigan Bay to the west of Wales. It has been described as a "Welsh Atla ...

, another alleged sunken kingdom but in

Cardiganshire Ceredigion (), historically Cardiganshire (, ), is a county in the west of Wales. It borders Gwynedd across the Dyfi estuary to the north, Powys to the east, Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire to the south, and the Irish Sea to the west. Ab ...

. As with Llys Helig, there are tales of remains being seen of the sunken kingdom. Bromwich believes that the two stories influenced each other, and that "The widespread parallels to this inundation theme would suggest that the two stories are in fact one in origin, and were localized separately in Cardiganshire and in the Conway estuary, around two traditional figures of the sixth century. She also notes that the Halliwell Manuscript gives Helig the title "Lord of Cantre'r Gwaelod". In the book ''New Directions In Celtic Studies'' Antone Minard wrote that "The Welsh legends of Cantre'r Gwaelod and Llys Helig (Helig's Court) contain the same details of audible bells beneath the waves and ruins which are visible at the equinoctial tides, which are the anchors of credulity in the story".

References

External links

Llys Helig and the legend
{{DEFAULTSORT:Helig ap Glanawg Flood myths Legendary monarchs Welsh mythology 6th-century Welsh people