The 25th of January doesn’t mean much to many however in Wales it is the date of our Valentines Day.
Today is the day we celebrate our Patron Saint of Lovers – St Dwynwen. Who is she?
Dwynwen was a 4th century Welsh Princess, supposedly the prettiest daughter King Brychan Brycheiniog. She had 24 sisters and they lived in the area which is now Mid Wales- South Wales the Brecon Becons. A beautiful part of wales full of mountains, waterfalls, and rivers.
Dwynen had fallen in love with a local boy called Maelon Dafodrill however her father and King had promised her to another. Unsupringlsy so Dwynwen was upset and ran to the woods to cry and weep for her broken heart. As she did she prayed to God for help.
Not long after she was visited by an angel that gave her a potion to drink which would allow her to forget Maelon and turn him into a block of ice.
Then God granted her 3 wishes.
Her first wish was too thaw Maelon, the second was that God was to help all lovers and her final wish was that she should never marry.
To repay God for helping and her wishes she become a Nun and moved to a convent on the Llanddawyn Island a small Island off the southern coast of Angelsey.
On this Island she build her own Church called St Dwynwen’s, which is situated next to the Nunnery she founded inthe 5th century!
We celebrate this day by creating carved woodern spoons called Love Spoons, as well as the usual valentines day stuff.
This is my photo of Ynys Llanddawyn