The Itinerary of Archbishop Baldwin through
Wales
by Geraldus Cambrensis
Book I
Chapter III
Ewyas and Llanthoni
In the deep vale of Ewyas,58
which is about an arrow-shot broad, encircled on all sides
by lofty mountains, stands the church of Saint John the
Baptist, covered with lead, and built of wrought stone; and,
considering the nature of the place, not unhandsomely
constructed, on the very spot where the humble chapel of
David, the archbishop, had formerly stood decorated only
with moss and ivy. A situation truly calculated for
religion, and more adapted to canonical discipline, than all
the monasteries of the British isle. It was founded by two
hermits, in honour of the retired life, far removed from the
bustle of mankind, in a solitary vale watered by the river
Hodeni. From Hodeni it was called Lanhodeni, for Lan
signifies an ecclesiastical place. This derivation may
appear far- fetched, for the name of the place, in Welsh, is
Nanthodeni. Nant signifies a running stream, from whence
this place is still called by the inhabitants Landewi
Nanthodeni,59
or the church of Saint David upon the river Hodeni. The
English therefore corruptly call it Lanthoni, whereas it
should either be called Nanthodeni, that is, the brook of
the Hodeni, or Lanhodeni, the church upon the Hodeni. Owing
to its mountainous situation, the rains are frequent, the
winds boisterous, and the clouds in winter almost continual.
The air, though heavy, is healthy; and diseases are so rare,
that the brotherhood, when worn out by long toil and
affliction during their residence with the daughter,
retiring to this asylum, and to their mother's60
lap, soon regain their long-wished-for health. For as my
Topographical History of Ireland testifies, in proportion as
we proceed to the eastward, the face of the sky is more pure
and subtile, and the air more piercing and inclement; but as
we draw nearer to the westward, the air becomes more cloudy,
but at the same time is more temperate and healthy. Here the
monks, sitting in their cloisters, enjoying the fresh air,
when they happen to look up towards the horizon, behold the
tops of the mountains, as it were, touching the heavens, and
herds of wild deer feeding on their summits: the body of the
sun does not become visible above the heights of the
mountains, even in a clear atmosphere, till about the hour
of prime, or a little before. A place truly fitted for
contemplation, a happy and delightful spot, fully competent,
from its first establishment, to supply all its own wants,
had not the extravagance of English luxury, the pride of a
sumptuous table, the increasing growth of intemperance and
ingratitude, added to the negligence of its patrons and
prelates, reduced it from freedom to servility; and if the
step-daughter, no less enviously than odiously, had not
supplanted her mother.
It seems worthy of remark, that all
the priors who were hostile to this establishment, died by
divine visitation. William,61
who first despoiled the place of its herds and storehouses,
being deposed by the fraternity, forfeited his right of
sepulture amongst the priors. Clement seemed to like this
place of study and prayer, yet, after the example of Heli
the priest, as he neither reproved nor restrained his
brethren from plunder and other offences, he died by a
paralytic stroke. And Roger, who was more an enemy to this
place than either of his predecessors, and openly carried
away every thing which they had left behind, wholly robbing
the church of its books, ornaments, and privileges, was also
struck with a paralytic affection long before his death,
resigned his honours, and lingered out the remainder of his
days in sickness.
In the reign of king Henry I., when
the mother church was as celebrated for her affluence as for
her sanctity (two qualities which are seldom found thus
united), the daughter not yet being in existence (and I
sincerely wish she never had been produced), the fame of so
much religion attracted hither Roger, bishop of Salisbury,
who was at that time prime minister; for it is virtue to
love virtue, even in another man, and a great proof of
innate goodness to show a detestation of those vices which
hitherto have not been avoided. When he had reflected with
admiration on the nature of the place, the solitary life of
the fraternity, living in canonical obedience, and serving
God without a murmur or complaint, he returned to the king,
and related to him what he thought most worthy of remark;
and after spending the greater part of the day in the
praises of this place, he finished his panegyric with these
words: "Why should I say more? the whole treasure of the
king and his kingdom would not be sufficient to build such a
cloister." Having held the minds of the king and the court
for a long time in suspense by this assertion, he at length
explained the enigma, by saying that he alluded to the
cloister of mountains, by which this church is on every side
surrounded. But William, a knight, who first discovered this
place, and his companion Ervistus, a priest, having heard,
perhaps, as it is written in the Fathers, according to the
opinion of Jerome, "that the church of Christ decreased in
virtues as it increased in riches," were accustomed often
devoutly to solicit the Lord that this place might never
attain great possessions. They were exceedingly concerned
when this religious foundation began to be enriched by its
first lord and patron, Hugh de Lacy,62
and by the lands and ecclesiastical benefices conferred upon
it by the bounty of others of the faithful: from their
predilection to poverty, they rejected many offers of manors
and churches; and being situated in a wild spot, they would
not suffer the thick and wooded parts of the valley to be
cultivated and levelled, lest they should be tempted to
recede from their heremitical mode of life.
But whilst the establishment of the mother church
increased daily in riches and endowments, availing herself
of the hostile state of the country, a rival daughter sprang
up at Gloucester, under the protection of Milo, earl of
Hereford; as if by divine providence, and through the merits
of the saints and prayers of those holy men (of whom two lie
buried before the high altar), it were destined that the
daughter church should be founded in superfluities, whilst
the mother continued in that laudable state of mediocrity
which she had always affected and coveted. Let the active
therefore reside there, the contemplative here; there the
pursuit of terrestrial riches, here the love of celestial
delights; there let them enjoy the concourse of men, here
the presence of angels; there let the powerful of this world
be entertained, here let the poor of Christ be relieved;
there, I say, let human actions and declamations be heard,
but here let reading and prayers be heard only in whispers;
there let opulence, the parent and nurse of vice, increase
with cares, here let the virtuous and golden mean be
all-sufficient. In both places the canonical discipline
instituted by Augustine, which is now distinguished above
all other orders, is observed; for the Benedictines, when
their wealth was increased by the fervour of charity, and
multiplied by the bounty of the faithful, under the pretext
of a bad dispensation, corrupted by gluttony and indulgence
an order which in its original state of poverty was held in
high estimation. The Cistercian order, derived from the
former, at first deserved praise and commendation from its
adhering voluntarily to the original vows of poverty and
sanctity: until ambition, the blind mother of mischief,
unable to fix bounds to prosperity, was introduced; for as
Seneca says, "Too great happiness makes men greedy, nor are
their desires ever so temperate, as to terminate in what is
acquired:" a step is made from great things to greater, and
men having attained what they did not expect, form the most
unbounded hopes; to which the poet Ovid thus alludes.
"Luxuriant animi rebus plerumque secundis, Nec
facile est aequa commoda mente pati;
And again:
"Creverunt opes et opum furiosa cupido, Et eum
possideant plurima, plura petunt."
And also the poet Horace:
" - scilicet improbae Crescunt divitiae, tamen
Curtae nescio quid semper abest rei. Crescentem sequitur
cura pecuniam Majorumque fames."
To which purpose the poet Lucan says:
" - O vitae tuta facultas Pauperis, angustique
lares, o munera nondum Intellecta Deum!"
And Petronius:
Non bibit inter aquas nec poma fugacia carpit
Tantalus infelix, quem sua vota premunt. Divitis hic
magni facies erit, omnia late Qui tenet, et sicco
concoquit ore famem."
The mountains are full of herds and horses, the woods
well stored with swine and goats, the pastures with sheep,
the plains with cattle, the arable fields with ploughs; and
although these things in very deed are in great abundance,
yet each of them, from the insatiable nature of the mind,
seems too narrow and scanty. Therefore lands are seized,
landmarks removed, boundaries invaded, and the markets in
consequence abound with merchandise, the courts of justice
with law-suits, and the senate with complaints. Concerning
such things, we read in Isaiah, "Woe unto them that join
house to house, that lay field to field, till there be no
place, that they be placed alone in the midst of the
earth."
If therefore, the prophet inveighs so much against those
who proceed to the boundaries, what would he say to those
who go far beyond them? From these and other causes, the
true colour of religion was so converted into the dye of
falsehood, that manners internally black assumed a fair
exterior:
"Qui color albus erat, nunc est contrarius
albo."
So that the scripture seems to be
fulfilled concerning these men, "Beware of false prophets,
who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are
ravenous wolves." But I am inclined to think this avidity
does not proceed from any bad intention. For the monks of
this Order (although themselves most abstemious) incessantly
exercise, more than any others, the acts of charity and
beneficence towards the poor and strangers; and because they
do not live as others upon fixed incomes, but depend only on
their labour and forethought for subsistence, they are
anxious to obtain lands, farms, and pastures, which may
enable them to perform these acts of hospitality. However,
to repress and remove from this sacred Order the detestable
stigma of ambition, I wish they would sometimes call to mind
what is written in Ecclesiasticus, "Whoso bringeth an
offering of the goods of the poor, doth as one that killeth
the son before his father's eyes;" and also the sentiment of
Gregory, "A good use does not justify things badly
acquired;" and also that of Ambrose, "He who wrongfully
receives, that he may well dispense, is rather burthened
than assisted." Such men seem to say with the Apostle, "Let
us do evil that good may come." For it is written, "Mercy
ought to be of such a nature as may be received, not
rejected, which may purge away sins, not make a man guilty
before the Lord, arising from your own just labours, not
those of other men." Hear what Solomon says; "Honour the
Lord from your just labours." What shall they say who have
seized upon other men's possessions, and exercised charity?
"O Lord! in thy name we have done charitable deeds, we have
fed the poor, clothed the naked, and hospitably received the
stranger:" to whom the Lord will answer; "Ye speak of what
ye have given away, but speak not of the rapine ye have
committed; ye relate concerning those ye have fed, and
remember not those ye have killed." I have judged it proper
to insert in this place an instance of an answer which
Richard, king of the English, made to Fulke,63
a good and holy man, by whom God in these our days has
wrought many signs in the kingdom of France. This man had
among other things said to the king; "You have three
daughters, namely, Pride, Luxury, and Avarice; and as long
as they shall remain with you, you can never expect to be in
favour with God." To which the king, after a short pause,
replied: "I have already given away those daughters in
marriage: Pride to the Templars, Luxury to the Black Monks,
and Avarice to the White." It is a remarkable circumstance,
or rather a miracle, concerning Lanthoni, that, although it
is on every side surrounded by lofty mountains, not stony or
rocky, but of a soft nature, and covered with grass, Parian
stones are frequently found there, and are called
free-stones, from the facility with which they admit of
being cut and polished; and with these the church is
beautifully built. It is also wonderful, that when, after a
diligent search, all the stones have been removed from the
mountains, and no more can be found, upon another search, a
few days afterwards, they reappear in greater quantities to
those who seek them. With respect to the two Orders, the
Cluniac and the Cistercian, this may be relied upon;
although the latter are possessed of fine buildings, with
ample revenues and estates, they will soon be reduced to
poverty and destruction. To the former, on the contrary, you
would allot a barren desert and a solitary wood; yet in a
few years you will find them in possession of sumptuous
churches and houses, and encircled with an extensive
property. The difference of manners (as it appears to me)
causes this contrast. For as without meaning offence to
either party, I shall speak the truth, the one feels the
benefits of sobriety, parsimony, and prudence, whilst the
other suffers from the bad effects of gluttony and
intemperance: the one, like bees, collect their stores into
a heap, and unanimously agree in the disposal of one
well-regulated purse; the others pillage and divert to
improper uses the largesses which have been collected by
divine assistance, and by the bounties of the faithful; and
whilst each individual consults solely his own interest, the
welfare of the community suffers; since, as Sallust
observes, "Small things increase by concord, and the
greatest are wasted by discord." Besides, sooner than lessen
the number of one of the thirteen or fourteen dishes which
they claim by right of custom, or even in a time of scarcity
or famine recede in the smallest degree from their
accustomed good fare, they would suffer the richest lands
and the best buildings of the monastery to become a prey to
usury, and the numerous poor to perish before their
gates.
The first of these Orders, at a time when there was a
deficiency in grain, with a laudable charity, not only gave
away their flocks and herds, but resigned to the poor one of
the two dishes with which they were always contented. But in
these our days, in order to remove this stain, it is
ordained by the Cistercians, "That in future neither farms
nor pastures shall be purchased; and that they shall be
satisfied with those alone which have been freely and
unconditionally bestowed upon them." This Order, therefore,
being satisfied more than any other with humble mediocrity,
and, if not wholly, yet in a great degree checking their
ambition; and though placed in a worldly situation, yet
avoiding, as much as possible, its contagion; neither
notorious for gluttony or drunkenness, for luxury or lust;
is fearful and ashamed of incurring public scandal, as will
be more fully explained in the book we mean (by the grace of
God) to write concerning the ecclesiastical Orders.
In these temperate regions I have
obtained (according to the usual expression) a place of
dignity, but no great omen of future pomp or riches; and
possessing a small residence64
near the castle of Brecheinoc, well adapted to literary
pursuits, and to the contemplation of eternity, I envy not
the riches of Croesus; happy and contented with that
mediocrity, which I prize far beyond all the perishable and
transitory things of this world. But let us return to our
subject.
The Itinerary of Archbishop Baldwin through
Wales
by Geraldus Cambrensis
Chapter II
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