1150 - Ancient Monument

1150 - Ancient Monument

Ancient Tomb Stone - The Churchyard at Llanfihangel y Traethau
At one time the rivers Glaslyn and Dwyryd joined near the Church at Llanfihangel and entered the sea along Morfa Harlech. It was mentioned that in that period the Church was built to try, they say, to convert the inhabitants of Yr Ynys and the surrounding area to Christianity.

What is fact is that the Church was built as a relative church for the parish of Llandecwyn around the middle of the twelfth century. St Tecwyn came to this area at the beginning of the century and established a church where Llandecwyn Church stands today.

There is no other church in Wales dedicated to St Tecwyn. Adjacent to the door of Llanfihangel Church there is an ancient and interesting tombstone which has attracted the attention of many people in the past as it dates back to 1150 A.D. The Latin inscription notes - HI (c) EST SEPULECRU (m) WLEDER MAT(r)IS ODELU Q (n) IP (r) EDIVICAV (it) HANC EC (c) L (esi) A (ni) IN TE (m) P (a) R (a) R (e) EWINI REG (is). Translated - 'This is where Wleder, Odeleu's mother lies who first built this church in the time of King Owain.' Nobody knows about Wleder or Odeleu but King Owain was Owain Gwynedd. This stone is important for three reasons. a) It notes the period in which the church was first built. b) This is the only stone of its kind in Meirionnydd and there are only ten of its kind in Wales. c) It is a contemporary record of a prominent man in Welsh history

(We thank Mathew John Jones for permission to include the above text).