World Timelines- The medieval Church in Wales

British Isles > Wales AD 1066-1500 Late Medieval

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Wooden crozier Copper alloy crucifix Lead papal bulla of Pope Benedict XII (AD 1334-42) Lead papal bulla of Pope Benedict XII (AD 1334-42)

Wooden crozier

Wooden crozier	Copper alloy crucifix
Lead papal bulla of Pope Benedict XII (AD 1334-42)

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	AD 1432-43 Found in St Stephen’s Chapel, London This crozier (pastoral staff) belonged to William Lyndwood and was discovered in his tomb in London. Although Lyndwood was an Englishman, he was Bishop of St. David’s in Wales from 1432-43. AD 1250-1300 Excavated at the Greyfriars, Carmarthen, Carmarthenshire, Wales King Henry III (reigned 1216-1272) or his son Edward I (reigned 1272-1307) established the Greyfriars, so the cross may have been present at, or soon after, its foundation. AD 1334-1342 Excavated at St John’s Priory, Carmarthen, Carmarthenshire, Wales St John’s Priory had its origins in the Welsh ‘clas’ (mother church) known at St Teulyddog’s. Granted to the Benedictine monks of Battle Abbey following the Norman conquest of the area, it eventually became a house of Augustinian canons. The ‘Black Book of Carmarthen’, the earliest surviving example of Welsh vernacular poetry, may have been transcribed here in the 13th century. AD 1334-1342 Excavated at St John’s Priory, Carmarthen, Carmarthenshire, Wales St John’s Priory had its origins in the Welsh ‘clas’ (mother church) known at St Teulyddog’s. Granted to the Benedictine monks of Battle Abbey following the Norman conquest of the area, it eventually became a house of Augustinian canons. The ‘Black Book of Carmarthen’, the earliest surviving example of Welsh vernacular poetry, may have been transcribed here in the 13th century.

	Length: 1900 mm
	The British Museum PE MLA 1852,0220.1

The Marcher Lords

Pilgrimage

The medieval Church in Wales

Governing Wales

Castles in Carmarthenshire

	The medieval Church in Wales In the medieval period the Church was the centre of both public and private life. Bishops and abbots were as wealthy as kings and princes and often better educated. The administration of the Church developed fast during this period, with stricter diocese (the district under the care of a bishop) and parish boundaries and the collection of tithes (one tenth of their income) from the faithful. Prior to Norman and English involvement in Wales, the Welsh Church had been Celtic. However, the new ruling classes brought the Roman Church to Wales and Welsh bishops came more firmly under the authority of Canterbury and Rome. Ecclesiastical connections abroad also intensified and religious orders such as the Benedictines, Augustinians and Cistercians from continental Europe established monasteries in Wales. In the 14th century the power of the English throne grew and Welsh-speaking members of the clergy were often eased out in favour of English clerics. In response to the increasing English repression there was great unrest in Wales and on the borders and both church and state were attacked. Subsequently, in the 15th century, with English authority reinstated, there was much rebuilding of churches to repair the devastation. View this article in the Timeline Viewer (requires Flash Player 7)

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