‘The Houses of the Old Cross’: Valle Crucis Abbey in the poems of Gutun Owain

Day, Jenny (2023) ‘The Houses of the Old Cross’: Valle Crucis Abbey in the poems of Gutun Owain. Cîteaux – Commentarii cistercienses, 73. pp. 255-275. ISSN 0009-7497

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Abstract

The poet Gutun Owain was a frequent visitor to Valle Crucis abbey during the tenure of abbots Siôn ap Rhisiart and Dafydd ab Ieuan in the second half of the fifteenth century. This article considers some of the names and phrases that he uses to present different aspects of the abbey’s identity as, variously, a welcoming, open court, a spiritual haven, stronghold or city, and even a heaven on earth. Also discussed are the ways in which Gutun presents the abbey as an integral part of the landscape, community, historical continuum and traditions of north-east Wales, notably by means of references to ‘the (Old) Cross’ (the pillar of Eliseg) and to the abbey’s founder Madog ap Gruffudd Maelor. These, and Gutun’s references to figures representing early Welsh monasticism such as St Beuno and Abbot Dunod of Bangor-on-Dee, are contrasted with the less frequent, but respectful, references to St Bernard and St Benedict.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Gutun Owain Valle Crucis Cistercian Welsh poetry Pillar of Eliseg landscape
Subjects:	P Language and Literature > PB Modern European Languages
Divisions:	Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies
Depositing User:	Jennifer Day
Date Deposited:	11 May 2023 16:00
Last Modified:	13 Nov 2023 10:42
URI:	https://repository.uwtsd.ac.uk/id/eprint/2399

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