Robert Gwin (

fl. ''Floruit'' (; abbreviated fl. or occasionally flor.; from Latin for "they flourished") denotes a date or period during which a person was known to have been alive or active. In English, the unabbreviated word may also be used as a noun indicatin ...

1591) was a Welsh

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

priest and author.

Life

Gwin was from the

diocese of Bangor The Diocese of Bangor is a diocese of the Church in Wales in North West Wales. The diocese covers the counties of Anglesey, most of Caernarfonshire and Merionethshire and the western part of Montgomeryshire. History The diocese in the Welsh kingd ...

in Wales, and received his education at

Corpus Christi College, Oxford Corpus Christi College (formally, Corpus Christi College in the University of Oxford; informally abbreviated as Corpus or CCC) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1517, it is the 12th ...

, where he was admitted to the degree of B.A. on 9 July 1568. In 1573 he went to the

English College at Douay The English College (''College des Grands Anglais'') was a Catholic seminary in Douai, France (also previously spelled Douay, and in English Doway), associated with the University of Douai. It was established in 1568, and was suppressed in 1793. ...

and studied

divinity Divinity or the divine are things that are either related to, devoted to, or proceeding from a deity.divine

. He was ordained priest in 1575, and sent back to Wales on the mission on 16 January 1575-6, having just before that date taken the degree of B.D. in the university of Douay. He lived chiefly in Wales, and was much esteemed for his talent in preaching. A document in the archives of the

English College at Rome The Venerable English College (), commonly referred to as the English College, is a Catholic seminary in Rome, Italy, for the training of priests for England and Wales. It was founded in 1579 by William Allen on the model of the English College, ...

says that he ‘tam scriptis quam laboribus maximum in afflictissimam patriam auxilium contulit’. By an instrument dated 24 May 1578 Pope Gregory XIII granted him a licence to bless

portable altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, churches, and other places of worship. They are used particularly in paganism, ...

s, etc., because at that time there were in England only two

Catholic bishops In the Catholic Church, a bishop is an ordained minister who holds the fullness of the sacrament of holy orders and is responsible for teaching doctrine, governing Catholics in his jurisdiction, sanctifying the world and representing the Chu ...

, both of whom were in prison, namely, an Irish archbishop and Dr. Watson, bishop of Lincoln. Gwin, who appears to have been alive in 1591, wrote several religious works in the

Welsh language Welsh ( or ) is a Celtic language family, Celtic language of the Brittonic languages, Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people. Welsh is spoken natively in Wales, by some in England, and in Y Wladfa (the Welsh colony in Chubut P ...

, according to

Antonio Possevino Antonio Possevino (Antonius Possevinus) (10 July 1533 – 26 February 1611) was a Jesuit protagonist of Counter Reformation as a papal diplomat and a Jesuit controversialist, encyclopedist and bibliographer. He was the first Jesuit to visit Mu ...

, who gives no titles. He also translated from English into Welsh ''A Christian Directory or Exercise guiding men to eternal Salvation'', commonly called ''The Resolution'', written by Robert Persons, the Jesuit. Gwyn may have written Y Drych Cristianogawl, the first book to be printed in Wales.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gwin, Robert Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown 16th-century Welsh Roman Catholic priests People from Bangor, Gwynedd Alumni of Corpus Christi College, Oxford Religious writers Translators to Welsh 16th-century Welsh writers 16th-century male writers