In The Reign Of King Henry I., Bernard; In The Reign
Of King Stephen, David II.; And In The Reign
Of king Henry II.,
Peter, a monk of the order of Cluny; who all, by the king's mandate,
were consecrated
At Canterbury; as also Geoffrey, prior and canon of
Lanthoni, who succeeded them in the reign of king John, and was
preferred to this see by the interest of Hubert, archbishop of
Canterbury, and afterwards consecrated by him. We do not hear that
either before or after that subjugation, any archbishop of
Canterbury ever entered the borders of Wales, except Baldwin, a monk
of the Cistercian order, abbot of Ford, and afterwards bishop of
Worcester, who traversed that rough, inaccessible, and remote
country with a laudable devotion for the service of the cross; and
as a token of investiture, celebrated mass in all the cathedral
churches. So that till lately the see of St. David's owed no
subjection to that of Canterbury, as may be seen in the English
History of Bede, who says that "Augustine, bishop of the Angles,
after the conversion of king Ethelfred and the English people,
called together the bishops of Wales on the confines of the West
Saxons, as legate of the apostolic see. When the seven bishops
{122} appeared, Augustine, sitting in his chair, with Roman pride,
did not rise up at their entrance. Observing his haughtiness (after
the example of a holy anchorite of their nation), they immediately
returned, and treated him and his statutes with contempt, publicly
proclaiming that they would not acknowledge him for their
archbishop; alleging, that if he now refused to rise up to us, how
much more will he hold us in contempt, if we submit to be subject to
him?" That there were at that time seven bishops in Wales, and now
only four, may be thus accounted for; because perhaps there were
formerly more cathedral churches in Wales than there are at present,
or the extent of Wales might have been greater. Amongst so many
bishops thus deprived of their dignity, Bernard, the first French
[i.e. Norman] bishop of St. David's, alone defended the rights of
his church in a public manner; and after many expensive and
vexatious appeals to the court of Rome, would not have reclaimed
them in vain, if false witnesses had not publicly appeared at the
council of Rheims, before pope Eugenius, and testified that he had
made profession and submission to the see of Canterbury. Supported
by three auxiliaries, the favour and intimacy of king Henry, a time
of peace, and consequent plenty, he boldly hazarded the trial of so
great a cause, and so confident was he of his just right, that he
sometimes caused the cross to be carried before him during his
journey through Wales.
Bernard, however commendable in some particulars, was remarkable for
his insufferable pride and ambition. For as soon as he became
courtier and a creature of the king's, panting after English riches
by means of translation, (a malady under which all the English sent
hither seem to labour), he alienated many of the lands of his church
without either advantage or profit, and disposed of others so
indiscreetly and improvidently, that when ten carucates {123} of
land were required for military purposes, he would, with a liberal
hand, give twenty or thirty; and of the canonical rites and
ordinances which he had miserably and unhappily instituted at St.
David's, he would hardly make use of one, at most only of two or
three. With respect to the two sees of Canterbury and St. David's,
I will briefly explain my opinion of their present state. On one
side, you will see royal favour, affluence of riches, numerous and
opulent suffragan bishops, great abundance of learned men and well
skilled in the laws; on the other side, a deficiency of all these
things, and a total want of justice; on which account the recovery
of its ancient rights will not easily be effected, but by means of
those great changes and vicissitudes which kingdoms experience from
various and unexpected events.
The spot where the church of St. David's stands, and was founded in
honour of the apostle St. Andrew, is called the Vale of Roses; which
ought rather to be named the vale of marble, since it abounds with
one, and by no means with the other. The river Alun, a muddy and
unproductive rivulet, {124} bounding the churchyard on the northern
side, flows under a marble stone, called Lechlavar, which has been
polished by continual treading of passengers, and concerning the
name, size, and quality of which we have treated in our Vaticinal
History. {125} Henry II., on his return from Ireland, is said to
have passed over this stone, before he devoutly entered the church
of St. Andrew and St. David. Having left the following garrisons in
Ireland, namely, Hugh de Lacy (to whom he had given Meath in fee) in
Dublin, with twenty knights; Fitz-Stephen and Maurice Fitzgerald,
with other twenty; Humphrey de Bohun, Robert Fitz-Bernard, and Hugh
de Grainville at Waterford, with forty; and William Fitz-Adelm and
Philip de Braose at Wexford, with twenty; on the second day of
Easter, the king embarked at sunrise on board a vessel in the
outward port of Wexford, and, with a south wind, landed about noon
in the harbour of Menevia. Proceeding towards the shrine of St.
David, habited like a pilgrim, and leaning on a staff, he met at the
white gate a procession of the canons of the church coming forth to
receive him with due honour and reverence. As the procession
solemnly moved along, a Welsh woman threw herself at the king's
feet, and made a complaint against the bishop of the place, which
was explained to the king by an interpreter. The woman, immediate
attention not being paid to her petition, with violent
gesticulation, and a loud and impertinent voice, exclaimed
repeatedly, "Revenge us this day, Lechlavar!
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