St Sadwrn’s Church, Llansadwrn, Anglesey
On the twenty-ninth of September, the Orthodox Church venerates Saint Sadwrn Farchog, the brother of Saint Illtud. Although, like Illtud, Sadwrn hailed from Brittany, he is primarily venerated in northern Wales among the saints of Anglesey, where he made his eremitical residence late in life.
Sadwrn [also Saturnus] and Illtud were both children of Bigan Farchog ap Aldrien and his wife Rheinwylydd ferch Amlawdd. He was sent to be schooled under a certain Saint Germain who is described as a bishop of Manaw; this may or may not have been Saint Germain of Auxerre. When they reached adulthood, both of Bigan’s sons seem to have had a turn for the martial life, at least early on – hence the use of the cognomen ‘Farchog’ for all three men, Bigan and his sons both.
Like Illtud, Sadwrn married and had a family to begin with. His wife was also his first cousin, the Breton princess Cenaf, with whom he had a son, Crallo. He lived with them in Brittany for awhile, before he fell within the ambit of the holy Saint Cadfan, who apparently had a deep impact on the noble soldier. When Cadfan crossed the English Channel into Britain, so too did Sadwrn and his whole family. At first they settled in Glamorgan. However, Sadwrn took a yearning to become an anchorite and so left his wife and infant son there and went into Ynys Môn – that is, Anglesey – and made a solitary oratory and cell for himself at Llansadwrn. This is where he reposed.
His wife Cenaf would go on to remarry and bear another son, Eilian. (This is probably not the same Eilian as the Cornish saint, but going this far back in history with confused identities, one never really knows.) All three, Cenaf, Crallo and Eilian, would themselves go on to become holy anchorites locally venerated in Glamorgan. As for Sadwrn’s legacy, his oratory and cell are now the site of a church at Llansadwrn. Sadwrn is also honoured with a holy well at Llandudno in Clwyd. As can be seen from these two sites, despite his being a Breton who lived most of his life in the south of Wales, his primary cultus is in north Wales and he is honoured with the saints of Gwynedd. Holy hermit Sadwrn, honourable knight and solitary monastic, pray unto Christ our God for us sinners!
The remoteness of the Welsh mountains was thy desert, O Father Sadwrn,
Where thou didst serve God in fasting and humility.
May thy continual intercession avail for us sinners
That our souls may be saved.
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