Cyllin was a legendary, and possibly historical British king of the 1st century AD, early Christian saint and the last
pendragon of
Great Britain
Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...
. His existence is based on very limited evidence.
claimed that a reference to him as a son of
Caratacus
Caratacus was a 1st-century AD British chieftain of the Catuvellauni tribe, who resisted the Roman conquest of Britain.
Before the Roman invasion, Caratacus is associated with the expansion of his tribe's territory. His apparent success led ...
was found in the family records of
Iestyn ab Gwrgant and used this as evidence of early entry of
Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...
to Britain;
Reference to Cyllin is also given in
Iolo Morganwg's "Third series" of forged
Welsh Triads
The Welsh Triads (, "Triads of the Island of Britain") are a group of related texts in medieval manuscripts which preserve fragments of Welsh folklore, mythology and traditional history in groups of three. The triad is a rhetorical form whereby o ...
.
He is also discussed in the works of
Rice Rees,
Jane Williams,
Sabine Baring-Gould
Sabine Baring-Gould (; 28 January 1834 – 2 January 1924) of Lew Trenchard in Devon, England, was an Anglican priest, hagiographer, antiquarian, novelist, folk song collector and eclectic scholar. His bibliography consists of more than 1,240 pu ...
and
John Williams (Ab Ithel)
John Williams (bardic name: Ab Ithel) (7 April 1811–27 August 1862), was an antiquary and Anglican priest. Born in Llangynhafal, Denbighshire Wales in 1811, he graduated from Jesus College, Oxford in 1835 to become the Anglican curate of ...
as brother of
Saint Eigen and father of
King Coel.
He is also noted in a manuscript giving the
genealogy
Genealogy () is the study of families, family history, and the tracing of their lineages. Genealogists use oral interviews, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kin ...
of
Taliesin
Taliesin ( , ; 6th century AD) was an early Britons (Celtic people), Brittonic poet of Sub-Roman Britain whose work has possibly survived in a Middle Welsh manuscript, the ''Book of Taliesin''. Taliesin was a renowned bard who is believed to ...
from the collection of
Thomas Hopkin of Coychurch along with one from the
Havod Uchtryd collection where he is called Cynan, a name often associated with
Conan Meriadoc.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cyllin
1st-century Christian martyrs
1st-century deaths
Briton monarchs
1st-century monarchs in Europe
Arthurian characters
Britain
Britain most often refers to:
* Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales
* The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...
Welsh mythology
Year of birth unknown