The Abbot and Glyndwr
Valle Crucis is rather light on myths involving the Abbey itself. Individuals, such as St Collen were said to live close by, and so their adventures can be said to be attributable by association. Those tales are told elsewhere in these pages.
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However, one tale which stands out for a number of reasons, is the curious story of the abbot and Owain Glyndwr. It is told in the magnificent Chronicle by Elis Gruffudd, otherwise known as the 'Soldier of Calais' and a native of Gronant Uchaf in Flintshire. Written up sometime in the mid-16th century, within English Calais, it is part of a quite extraordinary body work - some 2400 pages in total. It is, as far we can tell, the only source for this tale, but Gruffudd is certainly writing of a story he had heard as young man.
It is said that soon after Glyndwr's mysterious disappearance after the failure of his uprising between 1400-1413, the abbot of Valle Crucis was out walking early one morning.
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In the grounds of the Abbey he met a horseman, making his way wearily through the mist. On meeting, the horseman pulled up, resting his hand upon the pommel of his saddle.
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'You're out early this morning, abbot.' said the horseman.
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The abbot, on recognising the man as the great Glyndwr, Prince of Wales, replied, 'No, my lord, Owain, it is you who are early - one hundred years too early.'
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With a frown, the horseman rode on, not to be seen again.
It is said that this was a prophecy, a vision of the rise of the Tudor Dynasty that came to power under the Welsh born Henry Tudor, on the field of Bosworth in 1485. Elis Gruffudd was a great supporter of Henry VII, seeing him as a saviour of the Welsh and their identity. Gruffudd alludes to the belief that Owain Glyndwr was the ancestor of Henry VII whose family suffered for their allegiance to Glyndwr in the Welsh Uprising.
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