Bishop David, Uncle of King Arthur

Characters Mythology

David was a very famous and important figure from Wales in the Arthurian period. Not only was he important historically, but he was also supposedly someone from Arthur’s own family. According to one major Arthurian source, David was the uncle of King Arthur. Who was David really, and is there any basis for the tradition that he was Arthur’s uncle?

Statue of Saint David in St David's Cathedral, Wales

Who Was David?

This historical figure, commonly called Saint David, is the patron saint of Wales. He was active in Wales throughout much of the sixth century. He was the bishop of Menevia, or Mynyw, in West Wales. As well as founding many religious communities across much of South Wales, he also travelled to Dumnonia and even Brittany.

One of the most significant events of his life was when he succeeded Dubricius as the most preeminent bishop of South Wales. This occurred at the Synod of Brefi in the southeast of the region.

According to legend, at this synod, David spoke out against the teaching of Pelagianism. His peers overwhelmingly supported him and elected him the chief bishop of the region. Dubricius retired and David took the archbishopric to his own territory in Menevia.

As early as the tenth century, we find evidence in the poem Armes Prydein that David was held to be the chief of all British saints.

The Family of David

What do we know about the family of Saint David? We do not have any records about him that are anywhere near contemporary. The primary source for his life comes from the Life of Saint David, written in about 1100 by a figure named Ricemarchus, or Rhygyfarch.

According to this source, David’s parents were Sanctus and Nonita. Many scholars understand these to be symbolic names, simply meaning ‘saint’ and ‘nun’. Sanctus is presented as the son of Ceredig, son of Cunedda Wledig. Some later versions of his genealogy insert another figure, Cedig, between Sanctus and Ceredig.

David’s mother, Nonita, is more commonly called Non in the Welsh records. She is made the daughter of a figure named Cynyr of Caer Gawch. The identity of Cynyr himself is somewhat of a mystery, since there were several figures with that name in this era.

According to the Life of Saint David, David was an only child, since Non never had relations with anyone else after giving birth to David.

When Did David Live?

The issue of when David lived is somewhat controversial, although all authorities agree that his career predominantly took place in the sixth century. Something which has wide acceptance is the approximate date of his death, which scholars agree was towards the end of the sixth century.

The Annales Cambriae, a Latin chronicle written in Wales in the tenth century, places his death in 601. A number of Irish annals place his death between 587 and 589. Most scholars today accept that his death occurred at about that time, between the late 580s and c. 600. This is supported by David Farmer, Patrick Sims-Williams, and Rachel Bromwich.

On the other hand, the issue of his birth is far more controversial. The Life of Saint David claims that he died at the age of 147. In line with this, some versions of the Annales Cambriae place his birth in the 450s.

The Life of Saint David tells us that David was born thirty years after the famous Saint Patrick travelled to Ireland. This has traditionally been dated to about 432, but the problem is that there is clear evidence that this was taken from the dates of Palladius, an early preacher who travelled to Ireland. In reality, we simply do not know when Patrick travelled there, but everything indicates that it was in the second half of the fifth century.

This would indicate that David was born towards the close of the fifth century, or possibly even the beginning of the sixth. We cannot be sure, but if we accept that his death was towards the end of the sixth century (as most authorities do), then he cannot have been born much before this.

Connection to King Arthur

David did not appear in many Arthurian sources. However, there are two major connections that he had to the legendary king.

Chief Bishop of Arthur’s Court

The simpler one appeared in the Welsh Triads, a collection of traditions mainly about the Arthurian period.

One of these triads speaks of the Three Tribal Thrones of the Island of Britain. The first royal court is described this way:

“Arthur the Chief Lord at Menevia, and David the chief bishop, and Maelgwn Gwynedd the chief elder.”

Arthur is the chief lord of all three of the courts mentioned in this triad. According to this, David was the chief bishop at this royal court. This makes sense historically, since Menevia really was the seat of his bishopric, regardless of Arthur’s historicity or his power over that area.

View of St David's Cathedral, the seat of David’s bishopric. Photo by Antony McCallum

Uncle of King Arthur

Another connection that David has with Arthur is seen in the Historia Regum Britanniae. This was written by Geoffrey of Monmouth in c. 1137. Geoffrey does not say very much about David. In fact, he only mentions him once. However, in this one appearance, he includes a very interesting detail:

“But Saint Dubricius, from a pious desire of leading a hermit's life, made a voluntary resignation of his archiepiscopal dignity; and in his room was consecrated David, the king's uncle, whose life was a perfect example of that goodness which by his doctrine he taught.”

Without making a big point of it at all, Geoffrey includes the fleeting remark that David was the king’s uncle. He does not offer any more information about how exactly the two figures were related.

Fortunately, the Latin word used by Geoffrey is more specific than the English ‘uncle’. He used the word ‘avunculus’. This specifically refers to a maternal uncle. Therefore, this shows that David was related to Arthur through Arthur’s mother.

What Was the Familial Connection?

Presumably, this meant that David was the brother of Arthur’s mother. Alternatively, perhaps it might be used slightly more broadly to mean that David was her brother-in-law, married to her sister.

This is unlikely though, since he was a bishop and there is no record of him marrying or having children. Therefore, it does appear to be that he was supposed to be the brother of Arthur’s mother.

An alternative possibility is that the word is used more broadly to refer to an older relative, such as a great-uncle. Nonetheless, scholar Peter Bartrum noted that there was no trace of this alleged relationship in any of the surviving genealogies.

The only connection that we find in the Welsh records is something that is only seen in a few manuscripts. In these, we find the claim that Non, the mother of David, was the daughter of Anna the daughter of Uthyr Pendragon.

The problem is that this would make David’s mother the niece of King Arthur, meaning that Arthur would be the great-uncle of David. This is effectively the opposite of what Geoffrey described.

The Son of Gwrgan Fawr

One possible explanation for this is related to the theory that King Arthur can be identified with the historical Athrwys ap Meurig of southeast Wales. His maternal grandfather was a king named Gwrgan Fawr, or Gurcantus the Great.

Recall that the names given to David’s parents, Sanctus and Nonita, appear to be symbolic names rather than real, personal names. On this basis, one theory proposes that David’s father can actually be identified with Gwrgan, the maternal grandfather of Athrwys.

In the Book of Llandaff, a collection of grants of land from kings to the church covering much of the Arthurian period, there is a certain Deui who appears as a witness to one of the land grants. This is a variant spelling of ‘Dewi’, a very common form of Saint David’s name. He is a chronological match for Saint David, and in one place he was called ‘head priest’, attesting to his importance. In fact, he is the only person in the entire Book of Llandaff referred to as ‘head priest’.

Given that this Deui matches the name, date, and area of activity of Saint David, not to mention his evident importance, it seems reasonable to conclude that this figure from the Book of Llandaff really was David of Menevia.

Deui’s Father

With this being the case, it is notable that Deui is called the son of Circan. The name ‘Circan’ is very rare, so much so that it is likely to be a corrupt form of a different name. In fact, even just the prefix ‘Cir’ is extremely rare in medieval Welsh names, to the point of being almost non-existent.

It is noteworthy that the letter ‘c’ was often exchanged for the letter ‘g’, and vice versa. Furthermore, there are a number of examples of ‘ur’ being swapped with ‘ir’. One example in seen in the Book of Llandaff itself, where one of the bishops is named variously as ‘Tirchan’, ‘Turchan’, ‘Terchan’, and ‘Torchan’.

Regarding the name ‘Gwrgan’, we see this spelt as ‘Gurcant’ and ‘Gurcan’ in the Book of Llandaff. Based on this evidence, it is reasonable to interpret ‘Circan’ as a corrupt form of this more familiar name.

Chronologically, the Deui who appears in the Book of Llandaff as the son of this Circan would fit perfectly as the son of Gwrgan Fawr. There is no definitive evidence of this, but Gwrgan is the only known figure with that name at that time.

If Deui – that is, Saint David – was the son of Gwrgan Fawr, then that would quite simply make him the maternal uncle of Athrwys. This would provide a logical explanation for what Geoffrey wrote concerning David being the maternal uncle of King Arthur.

David’s Life

Although we cannot be sure of the historicity of many of the details about this bishop, the following is a summary of the events described in the Life of Saint David.

Birth and Youth

Sanctus, a king of Ceredigion, travelled to Dyfed and violated a young woman named Nonita. While she was pregnant, she went into a church. But as she was listening to the sermon, the preacher became mute. This occurred because her child, still in her womb, was destined to be greater than all other preachers in Britain.

After being born, he was baptised by a bishop named Elvis, or Eilfyw, and then he was raised at a place called Vetus Rubus. Some scholars have favoured identifying this as Henfynyw in Ceredigion.

Stained glass depiction of David as a youth, with his mother Nonita (here called ‘Non’) from Briton Ferry

Early Career

After he grew up, David was ordained as a priest and then went to an island to live alongside Paulinus, a disciple of Germanus (that is, Germanus the bishop of the Isle of Man, not the earlier Germanus of Auxerre).

Interestingly, a number of other sources (such as the Life of Saint Paul of Leon and the Life of Saint Illtud) stated that David studied under Illtud. He had a very famous and popular school in Llanilltud Fawr in southeast Wales.

Although the Life of Saint David itself does not mention Illtud in this capacity, this is very plausible with everything else we know about that era. Perhaps he studied under both Paulinus and Illtud, or maybe both David and Paulinus were educated together by Illtud.

A Miracle Worker

The hagiographies of medieval saints very regularly attribute miracles to the saints whose lives they describe. David is no different. After living with Paulinus for ten years, David is said to have cured his blindness.

Thereafter, he travelled around southern Britain and founded twelve monasteries. During this period, he came to the kingdom of Ergyng and encountered Peibio (also spelled ‘Pepiau’ or ‘Pebiau’). This king was said to have been suffering with blindness like Paulinus. As in the former case, David cured this king.

This king is commonly identified with Pepiau the grandfather of Dubricius. However, for chronological reasons, this is impossible. Since David was probably born in about 500, and this event occurred some ten years after he had already been ordained priest, this is unlikely to have occurred any earlier than about 535.

The Jesus College MS 20 recorded the existence of a Pepiau who was actually the grandson of Dubricius and thus the great-great-grandson of his earlier namesake. The Welsh tale Culhwch and Olwen also attests to the existence of a king of this name in the sixth century, long after the reign of Pepiau the grandfather of Dubricius.

Thus, it is evident that the Pepiau with whom David interacted was actually this grandson of Dubricius, not Dubricius’ grandfather of the same name, as commonly believed.

Companions

After healing Pebiau, David returned to Vetus Rubus, the place where he grew up. There, he encountered a relative named Guisdianus or Guistilianus. He seems to have been the paternal cousin or fraternal nephew of David.

An angel then appeared to David and told him to go to a certain location, where he then lit a fire. With him were his three loyal disciples. They were Aidan, Eliud (better known as Teilo) and Ismael.

This place was called Rosina Vallis. From humble beginnings, this location ended up being one of the most prominent places in medieval Wales.

The Monastery of Saint David in Menevia

At this site, David and his disciples built a monastery. This became the site of David’s religious community in Menevia, which later became one of the most important religious sites in the country.

Many people came to this monastery to be educated by David. A king named Constantine (probably Custennin Gorneu, the father of Erbin and great-great-grandfather of the Constantine criticised by Gildas in De Excidio) abandoned his kingdom to pursue a religious life. He travelled to David’s monastery, before then moving on to a distant land after what was apparently only a fleeting visit.

An Irish abbot named Barre also visited David at Menevia. According to one version of the Life of Saint David, about a third or a fourth of the inhabitants of Ireland were followers of David. The historicity of this statement appears very doubtful.

Visiting Jerusalem

According to the Life of Saint David, David travelled with Teilo and Paternus on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. There, the patriarch of Jerusalem consecrated the three of them as bishops.

This event is supported by other records. For example, the Life of Saint Padarn, which described the life of the Paternus who allegedly travelled with David, refers to this same visit to Jerusalem. The Life of Saint Teilo also referred to this. Therefore, the visit by these three religious figures is supported by the hagiographies of all three of them.

In addition, the Welsh Triads described David, Teilo and Padarn as the Three Blessed Visitors of the Island of Britain.

The Synod of Brefi

According to this document, a heresy known as Pelagianism began to spread in Britain (conversely, many modern scholars believe that the real issue at hand was the penalties that should be imposed for certain sins). A synod was convened at a place called Brefi with all the bishops in the country, as well as countless others. However, because of the immense crowd, it was impossible for everyone to hear.

Because of this, Paulinus recommended that Saint David be summoned, since he was not presently at the synod and yet would be very useful due to his height. David was only persuaded to come after several attempts.

This is an interesting contradiction to the account in the Life of Saint Cadoc, in which David was said to have convened the synod himself.

Once David arrived, he started preaching against Pelagianism (although this was likely not the true topic of the synod, according to scholars). As he was doing so, the Life of Saint David reported that the ground beneath him rose up, creating a new hill. Thus, everyone in the crowd could miraculously see and hear him. Later, a church was established on that very spot, known as Llanddewi Brefi.

Furthermore, David was henceforth consecrated archbishop of Britain, and his religious site in Menevia was declared a religious metropolis.

Stained glass depiction of David before a crowd of onlookers

The Date of the Synod of Brefi

In modern reference works, the Synod of Brefi is variously dated to about 540, 550 or 560. Yet, this important event in David’s life is not explicitly dated in any of the medieval sources we have. So, where do those suggested years come from, and what does the evidence really show?

The Life of Saint David places this event relatively close to the end of David’s life. However, a more specific terminus ante quem is the Synod of Victory. This is dated to 569 (see below) and is placed in David’s Life shortly after the description of this first synod. This suggests that the Synod of Brefi occurred not too long before 569.

Furthermore, we can date this event from the other direction by using the Life of Saint Cadoc. From genealogical evidence, Cadoc’s birth can be dated to c. 520. His Life explicitly places at least twenty-two years between his birth and the Synod of Brefi. This would give an earliest possible date of 542 for the synod.

Given that various events described in the Life before that point likely occurred over several years, despite the time span which they cover not being explicitly stated, the synod likely occurred quite some time after 542. For instance, the time it took Cadoc to build his first monastery is not mentioned, nor was the time gap between the completion of that monastery and his trip to Ireland.

Therefore, the evidence indicates that the Synod of Brefi occurred quite some time after 542, but not too long before 569. A date of around 560 seems reasonable.

In the Arthurian Legends

This event is also seen in the Arthurian legends. Although the Synod of Brefi was not mentioned by name, a clear reference to it is seen in Geoffrey of Monmouth’s Historia Regum Britanniae. There, we read:

Here, we read of David becoming the archbishop of Britain in the place of Dubricius. This account takes place at about the time of Arthur’s special coronation, some twelve or thirteen years after the Battle of Badon.

The Final Years of David’s Life

Some time after this, another synod occurred. This is known as the Synod of Victory. This one was held at Caerleon in southeast Wales. It appears in the Annales Cambriae, a tenth-century chronicle about events in medieval Britain. There, the Synod of Victory is dated to 569. This synod solidified the decisions made at the previous one.

After this, there was no further information about the activities of David before his death. The Life of Saint David claimed that he reached the age of 147. As we have already seen, most scholars believe that he died in approximately 587.

In the Arthurian Legends

The death of David is also mentioned in the Historia Regum Britanniae. This was the only other appearance of David in Geoffrey’s landmark Arthurian text. This second appearance of his was placed not too long after the death of Arthur himself.

While describing the reign of Constantine, the successor of King Arthur, Geoffrey mentioned that Saint Daniel (also known as Deiniol) died. The Annales Cambriae records his death in 584. Geoffrey then went on to say:

“At the same time also died David, the pious archbishop of Legions, at the city of Menevia, in his own abbey; which he loved above all the other monasteries of his diocese, because Saint Patrick, who had prophetically foretold his birth, was the founder of it. For during his residence there among his friars, he was taken with a sudden illness, of which he died, and, at the command of Malgo, king of the Venedotians, was buried in that church.”

According to this, David died at about the same time as Daniel (this supports a date in the 580s for his death, in line with that of Daniel, rather than in the early 600s). This occurred during the reign of Constantine after Arthur’s death, and his burial in Menevia occurred by the command of Maelgwn Gwynedd.

While this contradicts the popular dates for Maelgwn’s reign, it is consistent with some of the earliest chronological information about him, which as Rachel Bromwich highlighted, places him in the late-sixth century.

Conclusion

In summary, Saint David was a very prominent religious figure from the sixth century, the time of King Arthur. Even as early as the tenth century, David was held to be the chief of all the saints of Britain. He was allegedly the uncle of King Arthur. While the supposed connection between them is unclear, this may be explained by David being the son of King Gwrgan Fawr of Ergyng.

David was allegedly a prominent religious figure throughout most of his career, but he rose to his highest prominence at the Synod of Brefi, which likely occurred in about 560. There, he became the archbishop of the Britons. Later legend put this at the time of Arthur’s special coronation. Finally, he died in about 587, which the Arthurian legend places in the reign of Arthur’s successor Constantine.