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Fagan (saint)

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Saint Fagan redirects here. For the Welsh village named for him, seeSt Fagans.

Saint Fagan
St Fagan's ChurchinTrecynon
Bishop&Confessor
Diedc. 2ndcentury
CanonizedPre-Congregation
FeastUsually unobserved
Patronage

Fagan(Latin:Faganus;Welsh:Ffagan), also known byother namesincludingFugatius,was a legendary 2nd-century Welshbishopandsaint,said to have been sent by thepopeto answerKing Lucius's request for baptism and conversion toChristianity.Together with his companionSt Deruvian,he was sometimes reckoned as theapostleof Britain.

King Lucius's letter (in most accounts, toPope Eleutherius) may represent earlier traditions but does not appear in surviving sources before the 6th century; the names of the bishops sent to him does not appear in sources older than the early 12th century, when their story was used to support the independence of thebishopsofSt DavidsinWalesand the antiquity of theabbeyatGlastonburyinEngland.The story became widely known following its appearance inGeoffreyofMonmouth'spseudohistoricalHistory of the Kings of Britain.This was influential for centuries and its account ofSSFagan and Deruvian were used during theEnglish Reformationto support the claims of both theCatholicsandProtestants.Geoffrey's account is now considered wholly implausible, but Christianity was well-established inRoman Britainby the third century. Some scholars therefore argue the stories preserve a more modest account of the conversion of aRomano-Britishchieftain,possibly by Roman emissaries by these names.

Fagan is the patron saint of a number of churches, and gives his name to the villageSt FagansnearCardiff,now the home of aWelsh National History Museum.Hisfeast daydoes not appear in any medieval Welshcalendar of the saintsand is not observed by theAnglican,Catholic,orOrthodoxchurches inWales.

Name[edit]

St Fagan's name appears as "Phagan"(Medieval Latin:Phaganus) inWilliam of Malmesbury's workOn the Antiquity of the Glastonbury Church,[1]written between 1129 and 1139.[2]It is given as "Fagan" (Faganus) inGeoffrey of Monmouth'spseudo-historicalHistory of the Kings of Britain,[3]written around 1136 and sometimes supposed to have been the source of the name's later insertion into William's account.[4]The name has been variously connected withLatinpaganus( "rural,pagan"),Frenchfaguin( "faggoter,wood gatherer "), andOld Englishfagin( "joyful" ).[5]Wade-Evansproposed that the name was a confusion with the Italo-BritishrhetoricianBachanorPachanwho appears in thelifeofSaint Cadoc.[6]

The entry onPope EleutheriusinPetrus de Natalibus's late 14th-century collection ofsaints' livesgives Fagan's name as "Fugatius",[7]an emendation subsequently copied byPlatina[8][9]and many others.[10]These names were further misspelled in later sources in a variety of ways.[10]

Sources[edit]

The story ofPopeEleutherius's late-2nd-centurymissionto theapocryphalKingLuciusofBritain(Welsh:Lles ap Coel) dates to at least the 6th-centuryrecensionofThe Book of Popesknown as the "Felician Catalog" but the names of the missionaries themselves don't seem to have appeared before the 12th century. They aren't given byBede's 8th-centuryEcclesiastical History of the English People[11][12]or by the 9th-centuryHistory of the Britonstraditionally credited toNennius.[13][14]William of Malmesbury's 'third edition' of theDeeds of the Kings of the English(c. 1140) records of the priests sent to Lucius that "the rust of antiquity may have obliterated their names".[15][16]

However, the workOn the Antiquity of the Glastonbury Church,[1]initially written byWilliambetween 1129 and 1139,[4][17]andGeoffrey of Monmouth'sHistory of the Kings of Britain[3][18]both include the names of Fagan and his companion. A contemporaneous or even earlier source is the letter of the convent ofSt David'stoPope Honorius IIpreserved inGerald of Wales'sc. 1203Book of Invectives[19][20]which appears to date from the 1120s.[24]Geoffrey claimed to have derived his own account from a 6th-century treatise bySt Gildason "the victory ofAurelius Ambrosius";[3][18]given the content of his story, the claim is generally discounted.[2]After these, the story began to be broadly repeated. Further details appeared in theIolo Manuscriptscollected byEdward Williams,[2]although his many alterations and forgeries render their historicity suspect.[citation needed]

The discrepancy in William's accounts ledRobinsonto conclude that the appearance of the missionaries' names in the earlier book was a spurious addition by the abbey's scribes, of a piece with the passages in the present text that include a patently fraudulent "Charter ofSt Patrick",that describe AbbotHenry of Blois(d.1171) as "of blessed memory", and that mention a fire which occurred at the abbey in 1184.[4]Robinson andBartrumproceed to treat Fagan as an invention of Geoffrey subsequently taken up by others.[4][25]Baring-Gould,Rees,andMullinsmodify this somewhat: while admitting the general falsehood of the account in Geoffrey, they suggest that thenamesof Fagan and his companions were probably genuine but that—in the absence of more detailed surviving records—they had been taken up and added to the legendary accounts of King Lucius.[2][26][27]

Legend[edit]

Main article:Lucius of Britain

Accounts of St Fagan and his companionDeruvianjoined a long-standing narrative concerningKingLuciusofBritainand his conversion toChristianityaround the time of theRoman EmperorsAntoninus PiusandMarcus Aurelius,a time ofgeneral tolerance towards the religion.St Gildashad described the firstapostlesas arriving during the reign of theemperorTiberius.[28]William of Malmesbury's cautious account in theDeeds of the Kings of the Englishallows thatSt Philipmay have reached the island but quickly leaves such "vain imaginations" in favor of praising the ancientwattlechapel of St Maryerected byPope Eleutherius's nameless missionaries, which he called "the oldest I am acquainted with in England".[15][16](The precise antiquity of the church was part of a bitter dispute over seniority between the abbey andWestminsterover the primacy of their foundations.)[4]

The current text ofOn the Antiquity of the Glastonbury Churchis rather more florid: Philip is not said to have come himself but to have sentJoseph of Arimatheain precisely AD 63. His initial community died out and the area left to "wild beasts" but "Phagan" andDeruvianfound it miraculously preserved, merely reviving its community in AD 166, directed by theArchangel Gabrieland joining their names to theActs of the Apostles.They were said to have providedpilgrimswith 40 years ofindulgences,[1][4]a wildly anachronistic detail, but one quite profitable for the abbey.[4]

The accounts in Geoffrey and Gerald make no special mention of Glastonbury. Instead, Gerald's letter from the clerics at St David's says that Fagan and "Duvian" were the first apostles of all Britain, baptising its king Lucius and then converting all his subjects after their arrival in 140. It says 27 pagan leaders were replaced by the same number of bishops and 3 archbishops placed over them, including one atSt Davids.It advances these points in favor of its independence fromCanterbury,a particular project ofBishop Bernard(r.1115–c. 1147).[19][20]Geoffrey also treats Fagan and "Duvian" as the first apostles to Britain, noting their conversion of Lucius's petty kings and success at "almost" removing paganism from the whole island until theGreat PersecutionunderDiocletian.He states that the pagan temples were remade into churches and 28"flamens"and 3"archflamens"were replaced by 28 bishops under the 3 archbishops ofLondon(overLoegriaandCornwall),York(overDeiraandAlbania), andCaerleon(overWales). Fagan and "Duvian" were then said to have personally returned to Rome for confirmation of their work, returning again with still more clerics. This all supposedly occurred before the death of Lucius in 156.[3][18]Gerald elsewhere concedes that the archbishop was initially at Caerleon but claims it was eventually moved toMenevia(St Davids). He states the early archbishops administered twelvesuffraganseach and each oversaw one of the five Roman provinces of Britain:Britannia Prima(Wales),Britannia Secunda(Kent),Valentia(Scotland), Flavia (Mercia), and Maxima (York). He further concedes, however, his knowledge of the time was mostly based on "common report" and not certain history.[20]

TheBook of Llandaffcomposed around 1125 names neither emissaryfromRome but gives "Elvan"(Elvanus) andMedwin(Medwinus) as the names of Lucius's messengers bearing his lettertothe pope.[29][30]The two accounts were later combined, so thatElfanand "Medwy"are sent off and honored inRomeand then return with Fagan and Deruvian. Fagan and Dyfan were also sometimes credited with the initial establishment atCongresbury,which was removed in 721 toTydenton(present-day Wells).[2]

In theIolo Manuscripts,Fagan was called anItalianwho came to Britain as abishopand enthroned himself at "Llansantffagan".[2]A separate manuscript credits him with the foundation of the churches at "Llanffagan Fawr" (present-daySt FagansnearCardiff) and at "Llanffagan Fach" (present-dayLlanmaesnearLlantwit Major). Theirparish churchesare now dedicated toSaint MaryandSaint Cadoc,respectively.[2]A third manuscript conflates Deruvian withDyfan—wrongly, inBartrum's estimation.[31]"Dyfan" is then made the firstbishop of Llandaffand themartyratMerthyr Dyfan.Fagan is then made his successor at Llandaff.[32](Baring-Gouldrefers to the pair aschorepiscopi.)[2]A fourth lists the following triplet among the "Sayings of the Wise":[32]

Didst thou hear the saying of Fagan
when he had produced his argument?
'Where God is silent, it is wise not to speak.'[33]

Life[edit]

Arguing in favor of a partial historicity to these figures,Reesnoted that all but Elfan had long-standing associations withparish churchesin the area aroundLlandaff,though he admitted none seemed as grand or preëminent as one might expect were they actually theapostlesof Britain.[27]Bartrumreplied such dedications must be assumed to post-date Geoffrey's popularity.[25]

Legacy[edit]

St Fagans,a village nearCardiffinWales,continues to bear his name,[26]although following theNorman invasion of Walesa new parish church was erected east of the old chapel and dedicated toSt Mary the Blessed Virginin 1180.[34](This is now aGrade II*listed building.)[35]The 16th-century antiquarianJohn Lelandrecorded in his travel notebooks that a nearby chapel remained dedicated to Fagan and was sometimes also used as the parish church,[36]but this was in ruins by the time of theEnglish Civil Wara century later.[37]St Fagan'sWellwas nearby and considered particularly restorative for "the falling sickness".[37]

St Fagan's Churchin the village ofTrecynonnearAberdareinGlamorganwas a new foundation erected from 1851 to 1853.[38]It was destroyed by fire in 1856.[38]Rebuilt by 1856,John Griffithestablished it as a separate parish from Aberdare's ancient one,[39]which had been dedicated toSt John the Baptistprior to the completion ofSt Elvan'sin 1852.[citation needed]

Thefestivalof St Fagan does not appear in any surviving medieval Welshcalendar of the saints,[2]but he had some importance following his description as an apostle: the BlessedJohn Sugar,martyred in 1604, invoked "Fugatius" and "Damianus" from the gallows as authorities for the antiquity ofBritish Catholicism.[40]Late sources place it on 3 January (with St Dyfan) atGlastonbury;[26][41]on 10 February[2]atLlandaff;[26][41]on 8 August;[2]and (with St Dyfan) on 24 or 26 May.[2]This last date—the traditional day of the baptism of King Lucius by the missionaries[2]—is sometimes given as an observance of theEastern Orthodoxdiocese ofThyateira and Great Britain,[42]although in fact St Fagan's Day is currently unobserved by any of the majordenominationsof Wales.[43][44][45]His feast day is listed, with a link, under Wikipedia's Eastern Orthodox Liturgics for May 26.

References[edit]

  1. ^abcGulielmus Malmesburiensis [William of Malmesbury].De Antiquitate Glastoniensis Ecclesiæ.Archived3 February 2015 at theWayback Machine1129–1139. Hosted at the University of Zurich'sCorpus Corporum.(in Latin)
  2. ^abcdefghijklmnBaring-Gould, Sabine & al.The Lives of the British Saints: The Saints of Wales and Cornwall and Such Irish Saints as Have Dedications in Britain,Vol. III, pp. 9–10.Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion (London), 1911.
  3. ^abcdGalfridus Monemutensis [Geoffrey of Monmouth].Historia Regnum Britanniae[History of the Kings of Britain], Vol. IV, Ch. xix–xx.c. 1136.(in Latin)
  4. ^abcdefgRobinson, Joseph Armitage."William of Malmesbury 'On the Antiquity of Glastonbury'"inSomerset Historical Essays.Oxford University Press (London), 1921. Hosted atWikisource.
  5. ^Gold, David L."Jewish Dickensiana, Part One: Despite Popular Belief, the NameFaginin Charles Dickens'sOliver TwistHas No Jewish Connection "inStudies in Etymology and Etiology,p. 767.University of Alicante Press (San Vicente), 2009.ISBN9788479085179.
  6. ^Bartrum, Peter C."Bachan" inA Welsh Classical Dictionary: People in History and Legend up to about A. D. 1000,p. 38.National Library of Wales, 1993. Emended 2009.
  7. ^Petrus de Natalibus."Eleutherius Papa" [ "Pope Eleutherius" ] inCatalogus Sanctorum[Catalog of the Saints], Vol. V, Ch. xlvi.a.1406, 1st printed (Vicenza), 1493. Reprinted Giacomo Giunta (Lyon), 1543.(in Latin)
  8. ^Platina.Vitæ Pontificum Platinæ Historici Liber de Vita Christi ac Omnium Pontificum qui Hactenus Ducenti Fuere et XX[Platina the Historian's Lives of the Popes: A Book on the Life of Christ and All the Popes Since who Are Two Hundred and 20], p. 25.Johann von Koln & Johann Manthen von Gerresheim (Venice), 1479.(in Latin)
  9. ^Platina. Translated by Paul Rycant asLives of the Popes, from the Time of Our Saviour Jesus Christ to the Reign of Sixtus V.(London), 1685. Edited and reprinted asThe Lives of the Popes from the Time of Our Saviour Jesus Christ to the Accession of Gregory VII,Vol. I, pp. 33–34.by Griffith, Farran, Okeden, & Welsh (London), 1888.
  10. ^abJacobus Usserius [James Ussher].Britannicarum Ecclesiarum Antiquitates, Quibus Inserta Est Pestiferæ Adversus Dei Gratiam a Pelagio Britanno in Ecclesiam Inductæ Hæreseos Historia[Antiquities of the Britannic Churches, into Which Is Inserted a History of the Pestilent Heretics Introduced against the Grace of God by Pelagius the Briton into the Church], Ch. IV. (Dublin), 1639. Reprinted inThe Whole Works of the Most Rev. James Ussher, D. D. Lord Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland,Vol. V, pp. 74 f.Hodges, Smith, & Co. (Dublin), 1864.(in Latin)
  11. ^Beda Venerabilis[The Venerable Bede].Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum[The Ecclesiastical History of the English People], Vol. I, Ch. IV,&Vol. V, Ch. XXIIII.731. Hosted atLatin Wikisource.(in Latin)
  12. ^Bede. Translated by Lionel Cecil Jane asThe Ecclesiastical History of the English Nation,Vol. 1, Ch. 4,&Vol. 5, Ch. 24.J.M. Dent & Co. (London), 1903. Hosted atWikisource.
  13. ^"Nennius".Edited byTheodor Mommsen.Historia Brittonum,Vol. II,Ch. xxii.c. 830.Hosted atLatin Wikisource.(in Latin)
  14. ^"Nennius".Translated byJ.A. Giles& al. asNennius's History of the Britons,§22,fromSix Old English Chronicles of Which Two Are Now First Translated from the Monkish Latin Originals: Ethelwerd's Chronicle, Asser's Life of Alfred, Geoffrey of Monmouth's British History, Gildas, Nennius, and Richard of Cirencester.Henry G. Bohn (London), 1848. Hosted atWikisource.
  15. ^abGulielmus Malmesburiensis [William of Malmesbury].Gesta Regum Anglorum.c. 1140.(in Latin)
  16. ^abWilliam of Malmesbury.Translated byJ.A. GilesasWilliam of Malmesbury's Chronicle of the Kings of England from the Earliest Period to the Reign of King Stephen,p. 21.Henry G. Bohn (London), 1847.
  17. ^Newell, William Wells."William of Malmesbury on the Antiquity of Glastonbury, with Especial Reference to the Equation of Glastonbury and Avalon" inPublications of the Modern Language Association of America,Vol. XVIII, No. 4.1903.
  18. ^abcGeoffrey of Monmouth.Translated by J.A. Giles & al. asGeoffrey of Monmouth's British History,Vol. IV, Ch. XIX–XX,inSix Old English Chronicles of Which Two Are Now First Translated from the Monkish Latin Originals: Ethelwerd's Chronicle, Asser's Life of Alfred, Geoffrey of Monmouth's British History, Gildas, Nennius, and Richard of Cirencester.Henry G. Bohn (London), 1848. Hosted atWikisource.
  19. ^abGiraldus Cambriensis [Gerald of Wales].De Inuectionibus[On Invectives], Vol. II, Ch. X, inY Cymmrodor: The Magazine of the Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion,Vol. XXX, pp. 143–6.George Simpson & Co. (Devizes), 1920.(in Latin)
  20. ^abcGerald of Wales.Translated byW.S. DaviesasThe Book of Invectives of Giraldus CambrensisinY Cymmrodor: The Magazine of the Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion,Vol. XXX, pp. 17–8.George Simpson & Co. (Devizes), 1920.
  21. ^Davies (1920),pp. 19–38.
  22. ^abEvans, J. Wyn"Transition and Survival: St David and St Davids Cathedral" inSt David of Wales: Cult, Church, and Nationpp. 35 f.Boydell Press (Woodbridge), 2007.ISBN9781843833222.
  23. ^Barrow, Julia."The Statutes of St Davids Cathedral 1224–1259" inSt David of Wales: Cult, Church, and Nation,pp. 317 ff.Boydell Press (Woodbridge), 2007.ISBN9781843833222.
  24. ^Gerald actively employed the story of King Lucius in defense of the antiquity and status ofSt David'sbut several factors point to the letter's composition underBishop Bernard,[21][22]including the local clerics' identification with the Normans[22]and description of themselves as a convent instead of achapter.[23]
  25. ^abBartrum (2009),"Ffagan", p. 298.
  26. ^abcdMullins, Daniel J.Early Welsh Saints,p. 30. Carreg-Gwalch Press, 2003.
  27. ^abRees, Rice.An Essay on the Welsh Saints or the Primitive Christians Usually Considered to Have Been the Founders of Churches in Wales,pp. 82 ff.Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, Green, & Longman (London), 1836.
  28. ^Gildas.De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae[On the Ruin and Conquest of Britain]. Translated byThomas HabingtonasThe Epistle of Gildas the most ancient British Author: who flourished in the yeere of our Lord, 546. And who by his great erudition, sanctitie, and wisdome, acquired the name ofSapiens. in 8 vols. T. Cotes for William Cooke (London), 1638. Edited and reprinted byJohn Allen Gilesas"The Works of Gildas, Surnamed 'Sapiens,' or the Wise", §VIII, inSix Old English Chronicles of Which Two Are Now First Translated from the Monkish Latin Originals: Ethelwerd's Chronicle, Asser's Life of Alfred, Geoffrey of Monmouth's British History, Gildas, Nennius, and Richard of Cirencester.Henry G. Bohn (London), 1848. Hosted atWikisource.
  29. ^"De Primo Statu Landavensis Ecclesiæ, et Vita Archiepiscopi Dubricii"[On the First State of the Llandaffan Church and the Life of its Archbishop Dubric "] inThe Liber Landavensis, Llyfr Teilo, or the Ancient Register of the Cathedral Church of Llandaff: From MSS. in the Libraries of Hengwrt, and of Jesus College, Oxford,p. 65.William Rees (Llandovery), 1840.(in Latin)
  30. ^Translated byWilliam Jenkins Rees."On the First State of the Church of Llandaff" inThe Liber Landavensis, Llyfr Teilo, or the Ancient Register of the Cathedral Church of Llandaff: From MSS. in the Libraries of Hengwrt, and of Jesus College, Oxford,Ch. II, §1, pp. 309 ff.William Rees (Llandovery), 1840.
  31. ^Bartrum (2009),"Duvianus (1)", p. 236.
  32. ^abWilliams, John.The Ecclesiastical Antiquities of the Cymry: or the Ancient British Church; Its History, Doctrine, and Rites,p. 73.W.J. Cleaver (London), 1844.
  33. ^Given by Baring-Gould in Welsh asLle taw Duw nid doeth yngan.[2]
  34. ^Mortimer, Dic.Cardiff: The Biography,p. 291.Amberley Publishing (Stroud), 2014.
  35. ^"Church of St Mary the Blessed Virgin, St Fagans".Cadw, 28 January 1963. Hosted atBritish Listed Buildings.Accessed 1 February 2015.
  36. ^Leland, John. Edited by Thomas Hearne asThe Itinerary of John Leland the Antiquary,2nd ed., Vol. IV, p. 43.James Fletcher (Oxford), 1744.
  37. ^abRees, William.Cardiff: A History of the City,p. 190. 1969.
  38. ^ab"St. Fagan's Church, Windsor Street, Trecynon".Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales, 20 November 2014. Accessed 1 February 2015.
  39. ^Archives Wales:"Glamorgan Archives: Aberdare, St. Fagans Ecclesiastical Parish Records"Archived4 March 2016 at theWayback Machine.National Library of Wales, 2013. Accessed 1 February 2015.
  40. ^Gillibrand, Christopher (16 July 2014)."+ Blessed john sugar, Priest, 1604".The Site of the Tyburn Tree.Retrieved6 February2015.
  41. ^abChalloner, Richard.A memorial of ancient British piety: or, a British martyrology.W. Needham, 1761. Accessed 14 Mar 2013.
  42. ^Latin Saints of the Orthodox Patriarchate of Rome,"May".Accessed 17 October 2012.
  43. ^The Church in Wales. "The Book of Common Prayer for Use in the Church in Wales: The New Calendar and the CollectsArchived15 December 2014 at theWayback Machine".2003. Accessed 18 Nov 2014.
  44. ^The Catholic Church in England and Wales. "Liturgy Office: Liturgical Calendar".Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales, 2014. Accessed 1 February 2015.
  45. ^"Saints of the British Isles".Archdiocese of Thyateira and Great Britain (London), 2015. Accessed 1 February 2015.

External links[edit]

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