Saint Deiniol (died 572) was traditionally the first

Bishop of Bangor The Bishop of Bangor is the ordinary of the Church in Wales Diocese of Bangor. The see is based in the city of Bangor where the bishop's seat (''cathedra'') is at Cathedral Church of Saint Deiniol. The ''Report of the Commissioners appointed ...

in the

Kingdom of Gwynedd The Kingdom of Gwynedd (Medieval Latin: ; Middle Welsh: ) was a Welsh kingdom and a Roman Empire successor state that emerged in sub-Roman Britain in the 5th century during the Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain. Based in northwest Wales, ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

. The present

Bangor Cathedral Bangor Cathedral ( cy, Eglwys Gadeiriol Bangor) is a cathedral in Bangor, Gwynedd, Wales. It is dedicated to its founder, Saint Deiniol. The site of the present building of Bangor Cathedral has been in use as a place of Christian worship since ...

, dedicated to Deiniol, is said to be on the site where his

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer whic ...

stood. He is venerated in

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period ...

as Saint Denoual. In

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

and Latin his name is sometimes rendered as Daniel.

Life

According to a Latin ''Life of Deiniol'', preserved in Peniarth MS226 and transcribed in 1602 by Sir Thomas Williams of Trefriw, he was the son of Abbot Dunod Fawr, son of

Pabo Post Prydain Pabo Post Prydain (''supp. fl.'' before 500) was a king from the Hen Ogledd or ''Old North'' of sub-Roman Britain. According to tradition Pabo "the Pillar of Britain" was driven out of the North in 460 and settled in Anglesey. He is said to have ...

. The family, having lost their land in the

North of England Northern England, also known as the North of England, the North Country, or simply the North, is the northern area of England. It broadly corresponds to the former borders of Angle Northumbria, the Anglo-Scandinavian Kingdom of Jorvik, and the ...

, were given land by the king of

Powys Powys (; ) is a county and preserved county in Wales. It is named after the Kingdom of Powys which was a Welsh successor state, petty kingdom and principality that emerged during the Middle Ages following the end of Roman rule in Britain. Geog ...

Cyngen Glodrydd Cyngen Glodrydd was an early 6th-century King of Powys. He was a descendant of King Cadell Ddyrnllwg. Cyngen married St. Tudlwystl, a daughter of Brychan ap Gwyngwen ap Tewdr (often confused with King Brychan Brycheiniog) and they were parents ...

. Deiniol embraced the religious life and is said to have studied under

Cadoc Saint Cadoc or Cadog ( lat-med, Cadocus; also Modern Welsh: Cattwg; born or before) was a 5th–6th-century Abbot of Llancarfan, near Cowbridge in Glamorgan, Wales, a monastery famous from the era of the British church as a centre of learni ...

Llancarfan Llancarfan is a rural village and community in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales. The village, located west of Barry and near Cowbridge, has a well-known parish church, the site of Saint Cadoc's 6th-century clas, famed for its learning. Cainnech ...

. Sir David Trevor describes Deiniol as one of the seven blessed cousins who had spent part of his early life as a hermit "on the arm of Pembrokeshire" but was called to be a bishop despite deficiencies in his formal education. Deiniol soon left Powys for Gwynedd where he founded the monastery of

Bangor, Gwynedd Bangor (; ) is a cathedral city and community in Gwynedd, North Wales. It is the oldest city in Wales. Historically part of Caernarfonshire, it had a population of 18,322 in 2019, according to the Office for National Statistics. Landmark ...

under the patronage of

Maelgwn Gwynedd Maelgwn Gwynedd ( la, Maglocunus; died c. 547Based on Phillimore's (1888) reconstruction of the dating of the '' Annales Cambriae'' (A Text).) was king of Gwynedd during the early 6th century. Surviving records suggest he held a pre-eminent positio ...

who endowed it with lands and privileges, later raising it to the rank of the official seat of a bishop, sharing a common boundary with the principality of Gwynedd. Deiniol is said to have been consecrated to that See by St. Dubricius in the year 516. Deiniol spent the remainder of his days there as Abbot and Bishop. He attended the Synod of Llanddewi Brefi in c. 545 with

Saint David Saint David ( cy, Dewi Sant; la, Davidus; ) was a Welsh bishop of Mynyw (now St Davids) during the 6th century. He is the patron saint of Wales. David was a native of Wales, and tradition has preserved a relatively large amount of detail a ...

when the subject of rules for penance was being discussed. According to the ''

Annales Cambriae The ( Latin for ''Annals of Wales'') is the title given to a complex of Latin chronicles compiled or derived from diverse sources at St David's in Dyfed, Wales. The earliest is a 12th-century presumed copy of a mid-10th-century original; later ...

'' Deiniol died in 584 and was buried on

Bardsey Island Bardsey Island ( cy, Ynys Enlli), known as the legendary "Island of 20,000 Saints", is located off the Llŷn Peninsula in the Welsh county of Gwynedd. The Welsh name means "The Island in the Currents", while its English name refers to the "Islan ...

. It is possible that this date, like the dates given for the deaths of David and Kentigern, is twelve years later than it should be, in which case the correct date is 572. The Cathedral Church of Saint Deiniol in Bangor is dedicated in his name.

Legacy

His cult in North Wales was quite extensive and several churches are dedicated to him, including Worthenbury near Wrexham and

Hawarden Hawarden (; cy, Penarlâg) is a village, community and electoral ward in Flintshire, Wales. It is part of the Deeside conurbation on the Wales-England border and is home to Hawarden Castle. In the 2011 census the ward of the same name ...

, Flintshire in the north of Wales (as well as other churches in Flintshire). There are also dedicated churches at Llangarron, Llanfor, Llanuwchllyn, Eyton, and Itton; near Cardigan Bay there is a village of Llandeiniol - "parish of St Deniol" - which was once the name of Itton. The church of Marchwiel is dedicated to Deiniol and there are also dedications at Itton in

Monmouthshire Monmouthshire ( cy, Sir Fynwy) is a county in the south-east of Wales. The name derives from the historic county of the same name; the modern county covers the eastern three-fifths of the historic county. The largest town is Abergavenny, wit ...

and Llangarron in

Herefordshire Herefordshire () is a county in the West Midlands of England, governed by Herefordshire Council. It is bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh counties of Monmouths ...

William Ewart Gladstone William Ewart Gladstone ( ; 29 December 1809 – 19 May 1898) was a British statesman and Liberal politician. In a career lasting over 60 years, he served for 12 years as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, spread over four non-con ...

dedicated

St Deiniol's Library Gladstone's Library, known until 2010 as St Deiniol's Library ( cy, Llyfrgell Deiniol Sant), is a residential library in Hawarden, Flintshire, Wales. It is a Grade I listed building and a registered charity. Gladstone's Library is Britain's ...

, a residential library in

, Flintshire, for arts students, in 1896. In the current

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 let ...

liturgical calendar for Wales and that of the Anglican

Church in Wales The Church in Wales ( cy, Yr Eglwys yng Nghymru) is an Anglican church in Wales, composed of six dioceses. The Archbishop of Wales does not have a fixed archiepiscopal see, but serves concurrently as one of the six diocesan bishops. The pos ...

, he is commemorated on the traditional date of 11 September. His name has been given to the Deiniol Centre, a shopping centre in Bangor. He may be referenced in the name of the hymn tune, ST. DENIO ("Immortal, invisible")

References

Sources

*S. Baring-Gould and John Fisher. (1908). ''The Lives of British Saints'' *C.J. Clark. ''The Saints of Wales and Cornwall and such Irish Saints as have dedications in Britain''

External links

"The Life of St. Deiniol", Peniarth MS. 225 (1602), p. 155.
{{Authority control 584 deaths Bishops of Bangor Medieval Welsh saints 6th-century Welsh bishops 6th-century Christian saints Year of birth unknown

Life

Legacy

References

Sources

Further reading

External links