The Newport Friars and 'Friars' Walk'. Last Prior was Father Richard Batte

This is Ann Leaver's amazing picture of ho she thinks Newport wuld have looked. Click on it to see a larger version....You can see the whole brilliant Early History of Newport here



http://www.newportpast.com

You may have to c and p if the link does not work!




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Henry Greene's drawing as still seen in 1891 of one of the remaining buildings of the Newport Friars-now demolished.

Here is a friary, perhaps similar to the Newport building juding by the remains observed in 1859.

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There are no remains left of the Austin Friars in Newport, but the new Friars Walk Shopping Mall will be located over the old site and the bus station was the site of their Fields, which were given for their upkeep by the Earls of Stafford. There is a map to come which shows the sites of four Churches of 'Novus burgo'(Newport) of the sixteenth century. Here there is a photo of a still existing Augustinian Priory, and there are photos of 'black canons' or Augustinians, who took a vow of poverty and ministered to the poor of Newport, fed and looked after their needs. This was an order based on the teachings of Augustine of Hippo and the desert fathers, hermits who originally lived n the dsert of North Africa and spent their lives in the service of God. When they were overrun by Vandals and Visigoths, they fled to Italy and from there all over Europe. The Order is still a strong force in the world today.

Above is Clare Priory ,a house of similar age to Newport's priory,although it has been added to and improved a great deal since itsfoundation. Clare Priory is one of the oldest religious houses in England; situated in the shadows of Clare Castle on the banks of the River Stour, Suffolk.
Established in 1248 at the invitation of Richard de Clare it was the first house of the Austin (or Augustinian) Friars in England.

Following its taking over by Henry VIII in 1538, the house passed through many hands and uses until the Augustinian Friars purchased the house in 1953 and returned to their origins in England.Clare Priory today acts as a Parish and as a Retreat Centre.It is the home of a mixed community of Augustinian friars and lay people, open to both men and women, seeking to live the Christian life according to the Rule of St. Augustine.
The Rule of St. Augustine emphasises the need to search for God together in order to achieve oneness of mind and heart.There are a number of friaries in England and also there is the new Augustinian Youth Ministry with events and pilgrimges and conferences all over England.

The Newport House will never be seen again. It's story is given below and you have to see how three of the five churches in Newport disappeared in Tudor Times. St Lawrence and St Thomas the parish church also disappeared. The Priory Mill is only remembered by its name-Mill Street.The Earl of Stafford built Newport Castle the same time as he built the Priory, which would have been on a smaller scale than say, Tintern. St Woolos and Our Lady and St Triocus, the Benedictine Cell of Montacute Abbey are all that remain of that time and both are now Anglican parish churches.I hope, that i getting together wha cab foud out about the Austin Friary in Newport, it ll contribute to the interest in the Austin Friars and the Friars Walk, as e remember howany of these Friars died looking after people in the plague.





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AUSTIN FRIARS OF NEWPORT

It seems that many of the Friars were very learned men, some of whom were themselves priests, and no doubt served the Mass at the Church of St Nicholas and possibly the mysterious church of St Thomas (Becket) also a new saint for this parish church, St Woolos belonging to the Benedictines of Gloucester and the brothers serving this priory. During this period, it is also the case that St Woolos remained a place of pilgrimage for the shrine of St Gwynlliw (Gundleius in Latin) which also helped the upkeep of that Church. In the thirteenth century therefore, there was still the old church of Gwynlliw (St Woollos), St Thomas’s Parish Church for the town,St Lawrences in the harbour area, and that of St Nicholas Tolentino. The last two both dedicated to recent saints of great faithfulness and witnessing to Christ’s teaching and mission.

The Friars did not involve themselves in politics. They paid their dues to the Benedictine Church on St Gwynlliw’s hill (now Stow Hill) and the great Cross of the Friars Preacher (The Dominicans who travelled out from Gloucester) Spiritually the people of Newport were well served. The Austin Friars provided valuable services for the people. They lived amongst poverty, in spite of the valuable gifts used to set the Friary up, for most of its time, funds were sparse. The remains of the priory show that this was not a huge priory, and its possessions at its seizure were very sparse. The Augustinians took their vows seriously. They nursed the sick, tried to clothe the naked, provided food or dole for the hungry and took care of widows, orphans and prisoners. It was not long before they were put to the test

The Great Plague of 1349

The Bubonic plague, which swept across the British Isles in 1349 , was as pitiless in Wales. We have already learned of the devastating effect on the brothers and priests in the Benedictine Priories at Monmouth, Abergavenny, where only two or three monks were left.

. At Whitchurch, an inquest into the death of one John le Strange revealed that John had died on 20th August 1349. His oldest son, Fulk, died 2 days before the inquest could be held on 30th August. Before an inquest could be held on Fulk's estate, his brother Humphrey was dead too. John, the third brother, survived to inherit a shattered estate, in which the 3 water mills which belonged to him were assessed at only half their value 'by reason of the want of those grinding, on account of the pestilence.' His land was deemed worthless because all its tenants were dead 'and no-one is willing to hire the land.'

The Welsh poet, Jeuan Gethin, paints a vivid picture of the fear the plague engendered in its victims:

‘A rootless phantom which has no mercy or fair countenance’
'We see death coming into our midst like black smoke, a plague which cuts off the young, a rootless phantom which has no mercy or fair countenance. Woe is me of the shilling in the arm-pit; it is seething, terrible, wherever it may come, a head that gives pain and causes a loud cry, a burden carried under the arms, a painful angry knob, a white lump. It is of the form of an apple, like the head of an onion, a small boil that spares no-one. Great is its seething, like a burning cinder, a grievous thing of an ashy colour. It is an ugly eruption that comes with unseemly haste. It is a grievous ornament that breaks out in a rash. The early ornaments of black death.'

(Jeuan Gethin died in March or April 1349.)

We can only imagine what happened in Newport, especially so close to the river. The first Prior of Newport was Thomas Leche and he probably came from the Austin Friar’s Friary at Stafford. The number of friars at Newport is not definitely known, but generally six was considered a workable number , along with lay brothers, devout men employed by the Abbey (often men who presented themselves for employment. They lived according to the Augustinian Rule (Regula Augustini) and in exchange for their food and lodging and necessities, they worked around the Friary and in the Friary parcels of land. It was a good system, for dealing with unemployment, orphans, widows and all the vulnerable. The Plague did its work. It seems a large part of Newport actually was given for the upkeep of the Friary, which did such good service, and no doubt many of the Friars, in their work of keeping the Last Rites actually died, as did many of the lay brothers. It is possible that this began the decline of the Friary, unable to collect rents or work the land for a generation or so.

1933 Argus Reports of Skeletons,who had been buried under the nave

The only archeological recording carried out on the site of the Austin Friars was in 1933, when workmen laying a pipe beside the new Kingsway Road, discovered seven skeletons. These were lying in a supine position with extended limbs and their heads to the West (they were facing East towards Jerusalem) The bodies could be part of the Friars’ graveyard, or, since most Friars were at that time buried under the nave of the church , it could be this was the site of this holy place. Apparently one piece of Stone from the Austin Friary is in Newport Museum, but not on display.

Burials at the Austin Friars

From evidence of the Austin Friars at Hull and at Leicester (more of these places are extant) citizens of all walks of life and brothers and priests were all buried together in the church in mediaeval practice. The Nave of the church (the ship in which the Faithful were kept safe from danger and ‘sailed’ to salvation, as Noah had done in his ark)was the safe place, and rushes were placed over. It is possible, however, that large numbers were buried outside because of the smell. The dead wore their ‘Sunday Best’ and from archeological finds at other place, many people seem to have worn woollen or tweed type clothes. All the coffins seem to have been made of Baltic oak-possibly even reused-but Baltic oak grows faster, straighter and is easier to work than English oak. So it is possible that in these parcels of land there may have been a forestry project somewhere local. Some of the coffins in Hull were hurriedly put together with planks roughly nailed like a packing crate, points to haste around the plague years and round about this time, it seems that coffin burials were replaced completely by shroud burials, allowing more to be packed in under the nave of the church.

Health of People in later Middle Ages

There seemed to have been a great deal of minor ill health in the skeletons found buried at Hull, which would have been ‘normal’ for the people of 14th century Newport too. There were examples of fractures and infections of the long bones and two skulls with caries. Almost a third of the Skeletons examined suffered from arthritis.

Innovations of the Austin Friars

Many Mediaeval Dominican and Franciscan Friaries taught the wonder of God by huge high naves and buildings. The Austin Friars had something similar to a largish parish church, and preferred to preach from the Preaching Cross on Stow Hill and other public places. This may have even been extant before the arrival of the Austin Friars in 1377. Thus they got to be an institution in the town, a ready source of help for the Community, and a serving church close to the people. Benedictines and Cistercians prayed around the clock for the world. They had their work and charisms, writing gospels and books for people to use, and Cistercians lived in remote areas and worked at keeping the farms and Granges going, feeding everybody and maintaining the buildings. However, the Austin Friars had reverted to the Hermit practices of St Augustine himself. There had been confusion in the early days of the order.

Augustine had started his order in the sands of the desert at his home in Carthage (morocco)However the Vandals overran the area in the middle of the 6th century, he took his monks from their tents and they crossed to Italy and safety. Around 570, St Donatus, rounded Augustinian Orders in Spain and a form of Augustine’s Rule was used to help reform other monasteries and cathedral chapters, and refocus the lives of the Clergy on poverty and the lives of Christ in the 11th century. The Augustinian Rule was also adopted by St Dominic for the Dominicans, who seem to have worked together at Newport. The Dominican Vespers are always very beautiful, for example, as afterwards the Friars would leave the Choir and enter the nave to talk to the people, wishing them a restful night. However the monks at Llanthony were ‘Canons’ and those of Newport were the newer ‘friars’ a mendicant Order. Although they had a means of support, they were dependent on what they were given and did not own property in the sense that the land in Newport (60 land parcels out of a possible 242 or so)perhaps testifying to the fact it was a fairly modest town and that the Lord Hugh Stafford, realised people would be happier having these services and being prepared to work on his ‘New Castle’ – one of the newer ones in Wales.

Owain Glyndwr attaks the Castle

C Maylam says in his paper for the GGAS, the Friary may have also been damaged in 1402 by the supporters of Owain Glyndwr, when he and his men captured the town. A report of 1403 is in existence which says there was little damage to Newport itself, but the English Royal Commissioner who compiled the report did not cross the channel! There may have been a little damage, except to the castle.

Library and possibly a school

Because of the love of learning and the commitment of the Augustinian Order to Schools, it is possible, that the Friars had a school, trained choristers to sing the Mass, Latin and theology and prepared boys for holy orders. In an age where life was hard it was a good option to dispense love to your community. There would have been a library as well. However after the Plague, all would have had to work in the fields for basic survival and the people themselves were allowed to charge higher rates for work, there being so few people, and we all know about the Peasants’ Revolt in the ensuing years when Lords tried to make the people slaves or ‘villeins’ again with disastrous results.

Austin Friars in Hull

We have learned so much from the practices of the Mediaeval Austin Friars in Newport from the excavations in different parts of the country. Hull is perhaps quite similar to Newport being near the sea as well. At the peak of their success there were only 39 Friaries in the whole of England and one in Wales at what was now called ‘New Castle’ after Hugh’s new castle was built much later than those of the Marcher Lords. This is still the name by which it was known in Welsh ‘Cas Newydd’.The Monastic Gardens were the first to go after Henry the VIII seized the lands of these holy men for building etc. However in Hull, the Friary continued to be used as a private house and garden until the mid 17th century which seems to have preserved a lot of the finds. It was a large rectangle divided by pathways and four rectangular plots, with a path around the edge and a large central feature in the middle. Some of the plots were further subdivided into beds for vegetables and herbs and fruits. A conveyancing deed of 1627 gives the dimensions of the monastic gardens as measuring 49 yards by 23 yards-dimensions accurate to within a foot. This would have likely been the scale of our Newport garden, also measured out in similar way.

Food and Monastic Diet

Fish was found to be plentiful and abundant and a major foodstuff, although butchery marks remain on bones found from cattle, pigs and sheep.Ducks would also have been reared as there were wing bones from the animals found as well. This probably points to a fish and duckpond being present in the walls of the Friary. Fish were flatfish and thornback ray.remains of domestic goose were also found. A few deer, hare, snipe and woodcock remains were also found as well as barn owls and even a single crane. Some of these would probably have been festival meals held on saints’ days and major Church Feasts. Generally what is known is that many men carried their own plate with them-possibly a piece of dough, baked hard with a rim-a ‘trencher’ and that food would be put into this. It was probably not hygienic at all, but convenient. Bread was often baked in the oven of a local baker for a small amount of money as were meals, if there was no oven or spit in a poorer house. Rabbits and chicken were plentiful and thus probably cheap to produce. Oyster shells and goat bones were also found as well as hedgehogs!

Buildings

The church building would have been rectangular and from the very small Friary at Austin Friars in Hunscote, Leicester there may have been a tower. Shards of stained glass were also found there, so St Nicholas would have been very beautiful. The roof would have been of slate rather than lead, plentiful in Wales as in Leicester.In Leicester there were burn marks around the window indicating a fire at one time.A ‘parchment pricker’ was also found in the church area as you would expect as one scribe friar would have used this to mark out lines and spaces on parchments to prepare for illuminated manuscripts.

Remains at Newport

This friary seems to have been completely eradicated by the Newport authorities over the years. When Henry the VIII’s minister, the ‘King’s Lord Visitor to the Friars’ , Richard Ingworth a new apostate Bishop of Dover on 8th September 1538. It was in their interest to do this as quickly as possible, as the Friary, although run down after the plague years, was the major source of help, a social services in the lives of ordinary people and their problems.

Father Richard Batte-the Last Prior

Father Richard Batte surrendered the Friary and it is noted he did not sign the Act of Supremacy. It was unusual as priests could be executed for not bowing to the King’s wishes, but it was normal for all to sign this document. It may be that indeed very few Friars remained by this time. There was also no inventory of possessions, possibly because there were so few. We know the land now went to a wealthy person for his own use . The land was now given to a Mr Maurice Baker and that he paid the king 14 shillings and 4 pence in rent-a very low rental, which is probably all the king could get for it. The king was not concerned with the well being of the people after all. The site of the buildings were valued for the king’s coffers at 3shillings and 4 pence as compared with Franciscans in Cardiff at 13 shillings and 4pence and the Dominicans at 10 shillings and four pence. So no doubt the buildings were in a poor state of repair by 1538.

Friars Close

These six acres of arable land called ‘Friars Close’ valued at 1539 at 10 shillings probably represents all the 60 parcels of land given to the Friary for its upkeep and service to the people, and these were never exploited for buildings.

In 1543, the land of the Austin Friars was sold to Sir Edward Carne for £453 18shillings and one and a halfpence along with the English manor of Colwinston and then the Newport land was sold off at a knockdown price to Giles Morgan in 1544.


‘Archdeacon Coxe’ s Visit 1801

Archdeacon Coxe, an Anglican Clergyman visited Newport in 1801 and described what he saw, which remained of the Austen Friars.

‘The Remains consist of several detached buildings containing comfortable apartments, and a spacious hall, with gothic windows neatly finished in free stone; the body of the church is dilapidated, but the northern transept is a small and elegant example of Gothic architechture. It is now occupied by a cider mill and the press is placed by a small recess which was once a small chapel (!) separated from the transept by a bold and lofty arch. The gardens are enclosed within the original walls’.
(Coxe:A Historical Tour Through Monmouthshire. 1801)

In the Scrapbook of William Henry Greene (6th August 1891) we can still see sketches of the remains of the Austen Friars and Friars’ Cottage.(now kept by Torfaen Museum Trust).Before 1859, there was also a drawing by Edward Lee, showing the buildings in a dilapidated conditions. Mr C Neil Maylam suggests it was drawn from the South East and shows ‘part of the cloisteral range’ (where the friars often went for prayer or recreation, or even to wash.

In 1851 in a map drawn for Newport Corporation, the drawings by Lee are referred to as ‘Cornwall and Devonshire House’ which was used by then as a pub. Using Lee’s drawing and Coxe’s description, it is says Mr Maylan in his 1966 report ‘possible to interpret the remaining buildings as the crossing of the church and part of the cloister. This enables a plan of the complex to be drawn.

The surviving buildings were demolished between 1833 and 1902 when the area was used as a timber yard. The area had become a car park before 1933 and apart from the constructions of air raid shelters during the second world war, it continued to be a car park until it became a bus station. Ordinance survey maps also show the wall alongside ‘Friars Road’ as the original close wall so the boundary walls of 1851 are the precinct walls for the monastic close.’

Austin Friars at Newport

Mr Maylan also writes about Leicester, where the remains were more plentiful. The Precinct of the Friary would have been enclosed by a wall, the eastern wall marked in the ordinance survey map. The Southern side would have been close to Commerial Street, the western wall following Corn Street (that in OS map being wrong) and the Northern side was probably the river.

Cloister at St Nicholas's

Inside was more difficult.It seems most Friaries had a cloister a rectangular in shape with a garth or garden in the middle , which was covered and often glazed.The cloister would have been on the south side of the Church if Lee’s drawing is accurate. It would form a three sided cloister with the fourth side being the church. The Friars arrived late in Newport, which would account for the strange layout of the roads, which were in existence before. And the requirement of the church to be placed facing Jesrusalem in the East would produce this odd relationship.

The distance of the street from the central area of the close would be due to the position of the Chapel of St Nicholas from which the church was extended.Auxiliary buildings would therefore be on the eastern sideof the precinct . OS maps have marked a building as a refectory on the eastern side by Mr Maylan doubts this and says it may have been a tithe barn.

The Friary was surrendered to Ingworth on 8th September 1538. He got a good clutch of money for King Henr on that trip.At Chester in August15th, North Wales for five days, August 27th South Wales, Dominicans of Brecon were relieved of their friary on August 29th, Greyfriars (Franciscan) in Ceredigion (Camarthen on the 30th) Dominicans in Haverfordwest September 2nd, Cardiff December 6th (four years after he had told them tha if they accepted Henry VIII as head of his new church, hey would be permitted to stay) and he Newport 8th September.

He had a set procedure for doing his 'visitation'. He rang the bell outside the Austin Friary, assembled the brothers in the hall in the King's name which served as a chapter house (although we know it was a smallish building and very delapidated)The Warden of the Friars would stand there with the brethren and then Ingworth would address them. He would explain he had come to 'reform' them not supress them . He read out certain injuctions about their order and Rule. Why were they not living like the hermits in the desert, perhaps? Here they of course lived in a wet and cold climate and had builigs to maintain and other people to feed and care for. It was all of course nonsense but then Ingworth told Father Batte, that if he acceeded to his demands and recognised Henry as the ne head of a brand new church, tey could remain there. Father Batte and the Brothers could not be bullied and refused to sign the 'Act of Supremacy'.Certainly no signatures were found. Possibly the Friars left their home and went to France or to Italy to other houses of their order, or if old, were taken in by those whom he himself had looked after.To deny the Church and Peter was too serious thing for them. With one fell swoop the town of Newport was denuded of its valuable resource and left as a piece of waste ground and to decay, with little or no provision left for the poor.

Tomorrow a Devotion to St Augustine of Hippo, before I go on with the Augustinian Order in Monmouthshire at the Monastery founded in Norman Times from te Celtic monastery of St Arthfael, laer called 'PETERSTONE' after St Peter, the First Pope and Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ

BENEDICTINE PRIORY AT LLANGUA/LLANKYWAN

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The rear of the ancient Church, with the pre Norman font and Devon Screen, ancient walls, oak beams and bell rope


We know, that during Earl Harold’s conquest of the Hereford and Gwent lands, prior to the Norman Conquest, it was possible that this peaceful community was scattered and fled to Britanny or France or Armorica as Gaul was then known. Constant warfare between the retaliating Welsh and English put an end to peaceful life. Generally, however, it is possible that the Saxons built an early wooden church on this site. Possibly the mud and wattle earlier buildings so popular with the Celts may have been destroyed. The late Dr Pickford pointed out that some of the stones are of older date than those put there by the Normans (Possibly Saxon?). Following the Conquest, William’s generals, his barons took large areas of the country to subdue.

In this area that Baron, as we have learned was primarily William FitzOsbern, who had his headquarters in Bristol (Bretueil) named after a place in Normandy. The late Dr Pickford also believed the monks accommodation would have been closer to the church than the castle.
So who were the Normans who supervised the building of the little Church of the Priory Cell?
Above Pre Norman font

The Church has recently been restored and saved by an organisation . It is only open every Sunday morning at 8.45 for a Church of England Service and every Sunday afternoon in August. Refreshments are available. It lies just on the road south of Belmont Abbey in studding countryside by the river.


Above note the early 14th Century Devon Screen, which the parish are hoping to have professionally restored There are four panels showing Our Lady and the Child Jesus. There are four panels altogether, which came from a ruined catholic chapel near Seaton Junction Station at Whitford . It was donated by the owner of the property to the newly restored French Urseline Nuns at St Monica’s Priory at Spittisbury. After a while the screen was sold and aquired for Llangua. It is perfectly in keeping with the church’s age and tradition.The Images are of the Virgin Mary, Our Lord, King Edmund, Martyr and a bishop.

It is described and illustrated by Frederick Bligh Bond and Dom Brede Camm in Roodscreens and Roodlofts Vol II pp 212-213.

Nave and Chancel of the Priory Church of St James. Unusual to see the chancel part on the same level as the nave, but it appears the floor has been raised several times to cope with flooding. Notice the barrel roof (although bosses are Victorian!)The Priory Church can only be lit by candlelight.

The manot and priory were given to the Abbey of Lyre before 1183. A cell of Benedictines (black monks) were placed here. The Abbey of Lyre was built in the beautiful Risle Valley in Normandy, which you travel over via a big viaduct on the Motorway to Le Mans.There is no knowledge of what the name means. However, there are some interesting stories to come out of Lire .

Abbaye de Notre Dame, Lire, Normandy

Lire Abbey, Risle Valley,Normandy, drawing and woodcut
Early Eighteenth Century
This was founded by Robert de Beaumont, 2nd Earl of Leicester (1104 – 5 April 1168). The surname "de Beaumont" is given him by genealogists, in fact the only known contemporary surname applied to him is "Robert son of Count Robert". Henry Knighton, the fourteenth-century chronicler notes him as Robert "Le Bossu" (meaning "Robert the Hunchback" in French).

He was Justiciar of England 1155-1168.
Robert was very generous to his Abbey at Lire In addition to the abbey of St. Mary de Pré, in Leicester, the earl founded in England the Cistercian abbey of Garendon in 1133, the Fontevraldine priory at Nuneaton between 1155 and 1160, the priory of Luffield, and the hospital of Brackley. He refounded the collegiate church of St Mary de Castro as a dependency of Leicester abbey around 1164, after suppressing it in 1139. Around 1139 he refounded the collegiate church of Wareham as a priory of his Norman Abbey of Lyre.

His principal Norman foundations were the priory of Le Désert in the forest of Breteuil and a major hospital in Breteuil itself. He was a generous benefactor of the Benedictine abbey of Lyre, the oldest monastic house in the honor of Breteuil. The Breteuil was the name taken by the son of William FitzOsbern after this Knight’s untimely demise in Normandy! We have seen that Fitzosbern himself had a big part in the foundation of Chepstow Priory. By 1068 FitzOsbern had gifted six priories to Lire. The property belonged to Lire for almost a hundred years before the priory was built on the site of the earlier foundation founded by Ciwa.

According a charter (ca 1070AD), Lyre owned in Landaff's bishopric The manor of Larquewen(Llankywan) and the tithes of Grosmont's forest, half of the tithe of tollgate of Strigueuil, one half of the tithe of between Waie (Wye) et Ousche(Usk-), namely cows, pigs, feathers, fish, honey and cereals. So we can see here what was produced in the surrounding lands.

Eventually, I believe the area involved was too far from the established centres at Monmouth and at Abergavenny to make for easy administration from Grosmont. In addition the Lord of Grosmont, was happy to allow the small number of monks possibly only two achieve a stone building on the site of the present Church. The original Celtic Church buildings, possibly any Saxon building was built upon. The monks were useful for all sorts of reasons. They could supervise the fishing rights on the Monnow and administrate the Mill, collect the rents and tithes, make accounts and records.

Hilaire de Llankywan was the prior in 1196 Prior Peter Maunsell was the Prior in 1268 at the time of Henry III and Brothers Robert and Thomas Turberville and Gilbert Talbot were also the monks at that time and it is unlikely that there were ever any more than two or three. During Mediaeval times, there would have been considerably more people in the Llangua area, since most people were then involved in architecture.

Secret Catholic Associations,Recusancy and St James as a Mass Centre?

An early record of Llangua Church also mentions ‘a blocked priest hole.’ This is very important as the land was owned by one of the most extreme Catholic haters in the entire country. In the the chapter ‘Dangerous Times for Catholics’ you can see the terrible persecution of Catholic Christians that went on from the time of Elizabeth until the first of the Relief Acts.
Llangua Priory Church from the Mill
John Scudamore obtained the lands and priory building from Shene at the time Henry VIII seized the Abbeys and was anxious to keep them. He and John Arnold hunted down priests all over the county and were zealous in their desire to kill priests. There was a political dimension to all this too, but in the case of the three Monmouthshire and one Herefordshire Martyrs, they were simply the sons of local people who had been led by the spirit to train and minister in the ways of the faith from the time of the Apostles. David Lewis (linked with Llantarnam) John Lloyd (linked with Trivor ) and Philip Evans (linked with Abergavenny and the Gunter’s House) were the Gwent Martyrs . After the priory was attached to Shene and later sold to Scudamore, I suspect little was done to improve the fabric of the church. From the time of Richard Gwyn, (during the reign of Elizabeth I) young local boys went off to St Omer and Douai to train as priests and come back to be pastors to their flocks.

Two things happened to panic the general population:
1.A group of desperate young men, became terrorists and persuaded Guy Fawkes to try and blow up parliament, hoping there would be an end to the persecution with a change of King! It was an act of God that this did not happen , since Guy Fawkes had packed enough explosives into the cellar of the House of Commons to blow up half of London, and the loss of life would have been terrible. It was a disaster for the Catholic population as regards public relations.

2.In the time of Charles II, Titus Oates told terrible lies and stories against Catholics, particularly priests. The fear of Spain could no longer be used to turn people against Catholics This was the time when the Anglican Church itself was under attack by Puritans and Presbyterians following the legacy of Cromwell. .The people were ‘spooked’ by these lies about ‘foreign spies’. Evidence shows that Charles II never believed any of it, especially as he remained a secret Catholic all his life, although living as an Anglican. Titus Oates was later found to be lying and was executed, but not before 120 priests had perished by hanging, drawing and quartering as well as many lay people , By the seventeenth century perhaps the Scudamoresno longer took a very great interest in the church, because to have a priest hole in the church itself meant that the Holy Mass must have been offered there, in the Church for many years by priests willing to’ lay down their lives for their sheep’. To be fair many Anglican clergy were becoming uncomfortable about the treatment of Catholics and Catholic priests and faithful.They often buried Catholics at night in their churchyards after their Requiem Masses. St Maugham’s Church was not far away and two Catholic priests were buried there-Francis Dormer (who died in 1770) and John Williams (died 1793).Perhaps they offered secret Mass at Llangua in later years, whilst Father Kemble or Fathers Lewis,Evans or Lloyd must have at one time

What other changes did the monks make?
&
The Gwent Saint Iago Shrine!!St James the Apostle

Well it seems they actually rededicated the Gwent Shrine to the Apostle James. We know St James as being in the inner circle of Christ. He was one of the the first disciples that Jesus called after Peter and Andrew with his brother John. Jesus called them ‘Sons of Thunder’ so perhaps they were a bit loud and bombastic but also courageous. James is there throughout Jesus life but takes no special role and does not become an intimate friend of Jesus like his brother John, yet receives some great insights. James is there at the Transfiguration. Jesus went up to a high mountain and sood there praying and suddenly he becomes completely filled with a bright light, the glory of God. This frightens the disciples, but they see, once and for all the Divinity of Christ. One minute he is walking and eating with them , the next he is shown to them as God. Next to him appear Elijah and Moses, Old Testament prophets who have been promised in personal contacts with God that they will see the Saviour

Above:.This statue,beautifully crafted, is of St James, himself dressed as a pilgrim on the way to Compostella. He wears the shell pilgrims badge on his hat and carries the pilgrim’s staff. St James would not have been carrying a Bible of Course, as he could not read and the Bibe was not written for some time after Jesus death. He was carrying a lantern, however, a symbol of Light, the Light of Christ.

Again, James is present at the Ascension of Jesus into heaven. These events absolutely convince the Apostles of Jesus claim to be God and remain with them for the rest of their lives. There are also James and John were present at the healing of Peter's mother-in-law (Mark1, 29), and at the raising of Jairus's daughter (Mark 5, 37; Luke 8, 51). They are described in private conversation with Jesus on the mount of Olives (Mark 13, 3) There are some letters in the Bible written by James in the New Testament. In the Acts of the Apostles written by Luke in the New Testament, he attended the ‘Council of Jerusalem’ when all the Disciples, Apostles and Peter and Paul met to discuss whether non Jewish (Gentile) converts to Christianity needed to conform to Jewish Law such as Circumcision, where Peter and Paul argued forcefully against this. (This was the first of the many Councils of the Church)

Their mother Salome - or they themselves - asked Jesus to accord them places on his right and his left when he came into his kingdom (Matthew 20, 20-28; Mark 10, 35-45), when they also declared themselves ready to drink from the same cup as Jesus - i.e. to accept martyrdom. Finally, the sons of Zebedee are specifically mentioned as present at one of the post-resurrection appearances (John 21, 2), on the lakeshore of Tiberias; and among those gathered in the upper room after the ascension (Acts 1, 13). The only certain fact recorded of James afterwards is his martyrdom (Acts 12, 1-2) at the hands of Herod Agrippa I (r. 41-44 A.D.).

He is known as James the Great to distinguish him from James the Less, or James the brother of the Lord (also called by Eusebius James the Just) who became a pillar of the Jerusalem community, and is thought to have been the first bishop of Jerusalem (Galatians 1, 19 and 2, 9).

After the Martyrdom of James
http://www.csj.org.uk/ for details of this pilgrimage A cathedral of Ammonite Catholics marks the spot where his body fell and these brothers say they have the remains and relics there. But there is also a different story-that at least part of his body or relics were taken to Galicia in Spain. This was said to have been done by the inspiration of an angel. The relics were taken inland to Isla Padron and then disappeared out of sight.

According to tradition there were miracles all along the way. Life was still dangerous for Christians during the various persecutions and the secret guardians hid his relics well. His relics were much travelled.. In the7th and 8th century documents (i.e. prior to the discovery of the tomb) refer to the belief that James spent a number of years preaching in Spain before returning to Jerusalem, and martyrdom.

His followers are believed to have carried his body down to the coast and put it into a stone boat, which was carried by angels and the wind beyond the Pillars of Hercules (the straits of Gibraltar), to land near Finisterre, at Padrón, on the Atlantic coast of northern Spain. The local Queen, Lupa, provided the team of oxen used to draw the body from Padrón to the site of the marble tomb (Arca Marmorica), a little way inland, which she had also provided. The saint was believed to have been buried with two of his own disciples, Athanasius and Theodore.

St James of the Field of Stars (Compo=stella)

The site of his tomb was forgotten for some 800 years. Then in the ninth century he was discovered by a hermit Pelayo, who saw strange lights in a field and when he went to the location, he found a stone box with the relics of Saint James , identified by its markings. The field where the box was found is called ‘Saint Iago(James) in the Field of Stars.’ When the Apostles divided the known world into missionary zones, the Iberian peninsula fell to James. There is nothing intrinsically implausible about this: Spain was already a well-established part of the Roman world, and Paul, writing in 56 or 57 (Romans 15, 24 & 28), is clear about his own desire to make a missionary journey to Spain. (On the other hand, Paul was generally reluctant to visit places that had been evangelised by others, preferring to found churches of his own, so his reference might be taken as evidence against James having preceded him to Spain ... )

The local Bishop verified them as the bones of St James. A huge 12th century Cathedral was built over the Field of Stars and every year many thousand people travel the route, through France and the ‘English’ route from Bordeaux to arrive at Compostela on St James Feast Day, the Day of his martyrdom -25th July. A book was produced at the same time as the Cathedral was built Liber sancti Jacobi-(Hymns and songs of St James and his, liturgy )Pilgrims from the Middle Ages carrying the Staff and wearing the scallop shell. Pilgrimage is the idea of freeing the body spiritually.. Modern pilgrims want the same thing. Over 100,000 people make the this pilgrimage every year . Friendships and companionships are made.

St James (Iago) of Compostella in Northern Spain
-Welsh starting point of a pilgrimage

People come off the treadmill of modern life. Pilgrims come from 90 different countries all around the world. The route is legendary and pilgrims are not drawn not just from religious people, but also people who want purpose in their life and who try to find their faith-they ‘knock on the door’ by doing this pilgrimage. Which is an ancient Channel of civilisation. They walk on average 20 miles per day, stopping at the shelters. Volunteers work there to help the pilgrims and offer-breakfast and help with blisters . Support of other pilgrims on the route is special, and necessary because many people embark on the pilgrimage , having no experience of walking! People may ride, or cycle or even come by wheelchair, but not by car.Christians make such a pilgrimage as a symbol of our journey through life to heaven and the spiritual insights received,bringing them closer to God and away from the concerns of the world. It is the descendant of the ‘White Martyrdom’ of the Celts, which is why there should be some discomfort! Many pilgrims say that St James himself has helped them and appeared to them along the way urging them on.

Iago is Spanish for ‘James’and the Invasion of the Islamic Moors

The Hostel de St Marcos in Compostella was used to house the Spanish Order of Benedictines of St James. The Order was charged with protection of Christian Pilgrims against the Moors. This is politically incorrect today but the Moors were aggressors and they were being invaded and there developed a sacred struggle against Islam, until the advent of ‘El Cid’ and the struggle of Ferdinand and Isabella , which pushed them out again. When pilgrims arrive at Compostella, they place their hands on the Pilgrims Hand on the doorway and then go to meet the Apostle behind the altar. A huge crozier with incense swings in the Abbey Church (originally to cope with the smell of the pilgrims!) This , from all who have done it, has been one of the most special and beautiful journeys of their lives.The Image and Symbol of the Journey is a powerful tradition of the earliest years after our Lord had ascended into Heaven. When pilgrims reach Compostella, they go further to the end of the land at Cap Finisterre and burn their clothes as a symbol, that they have been inwardly changed, born again and resolve to do better, before the long and uncertain trip home. When they return home is when their new life, the inward journey begins.

The Image of St James at Llangua is of wood and would have been brightly coloured. It shows St James, himself traditionally garbed as a pilgrim to Compostela holding the pilgrims staff and wearing the typical straw hat. In his right hand he holds the book of the gospel (even though of course, none of the Apostles or disciples had Bibles and he could not read anyway)It is the pilgrims dress he wears and may have been brought back by a parishioner who had done the Camino Walk to Compostella , perhaps the best known pilgrimage in the world, others being Rome, where many Welsh people went. Cologne in Germany (Shrine of the Magi) and Jerusalem, where at least three of our Welsh saints were consecrated as Bishops, David, Teilo and Padarn. The original statue was made to hold a lamp, but looks extremely good quality. On his head, he wears the hat with a scallop shell.

Next:A word about the Abbey of Lyre!