January is the mis dig du – the dark angry month – according to the Welsh 12th Century poet Dafydd ap Gwilym. But the days are getting lighter one crow’s foot at a time and by the end of the month there will be a sense that change is on the horizon.
Santes Dwynwen | Saint Dwynwen

January, and the post-Christmas period, is traditionally associated with the unseen force of new life, and the promise that spring will return. Celtic tradition celebrates the festival of Imbolc at this time of year. Imbolc is also associated with love and, in particular, women. As such it is no coincidence that St Valentine’s Day and also, in Wales, St Dwynwen’s day, are both celebrated in the first two months of the new year. St Dwynwen’s day is always celebrated on the 25th of January.
In Wales, Dwynwen is the patron saint of lovers. When Maelon, the man that she loved, was turned into a block of ice to stop him from causing her any more trouble, she used one of three wishes that she was given, to free him. Secondly, she wished that true love be forever protected in her name and, thirdly, she wished that she herself would never fall in love again. All her wishes were granted. So if there is someone special that you love, remember to send them a card on the 25th of this month to celebrate that very love and to remember Dwynwen and the promise that she made to all of Wales’s lovers.
Capel Gwladys

What does any of this have to do with the Gelligaer and Merthyr Common, though? Dwynwen was a daughter of Brychan Brycheiniog, the 5th century king of the land of Brycheiniog. According to accounts of his life, Brychan came from Ireland originally, before marrying Marchell and moving to Wales. She owned the kingdom of Garthmadrun, which then became known as Brycheiniog. He had many children – around 24 in total – although different sources give a higher or lower number. Dwynwen therefore had many brothers and sisters. One of them was Tudful who established the first Christian settlement in Merthyr – and the other was Gwladys. According to legend, following a battle with Brychan Brycheiniog, Gwladys was taken by Gwynllyw son of Glywis from Gwent – the man she loved – to the Gelligaer area or possibly Boch Riw Carn, now Fochriw.
There is a version of the story that says that when Brychan Brycheiniog found the two lovers asleep in the bracken his heart melted, he forgave Gwladys and promised to build a chapel in her name as a peace offering. Gwaldys estabished her chapel on the Common in the area between Bargoed and Gelligaer and in 1906 a stone Celtic cross was found at the site. The cross dated back to the 8th century and was placed in St Catwg’s Church in Gelligaer for safekeeping. Catwg was a son of Gwaldys and Gwynllyw.
Capel Gwladys was exhumed in 1906 because the Council Authority was looking for ground to use as a graveyard. The cross was found under a decorative slab as they explored the area for a suitable location. A shallow rectangular wall, about a foot high, was built around the site and this can still be seen today. But if you look carefully at the land, you will see the remains of another, circular, wall. The circle suggests that this was a sacred enclosure of great importance during times past.
Later, a replacement cross was positioned in the the area contained by the shallow rectangular wall. As Capel Gwladys is close to Maerdy Farm, it is believed that this area of the Common was once an important one – a centre of administration even. At one time this area was called Tir Gwladys – Gwladys’s Land. It is worth visiting the outline of the chapel and its commemorative cross. Sometimes you will find a posy of flowers left in memory of someone. Maybe January – with a nod towards Gwladys’s sister Dwynwen, and with thoughts of Gwladys’s own love for Gwynllyw – is the perfect month to do so.
The Bracken where Gwaldys slept
It is noted in The Gelligaer Story (published by The Gelligaer Urban District Council in 1960) that in 1906 the area of Tir Gwaldys was still covered in field bracken, much like that mentioned in the old story itself. A lot of it was cleared from this particular area during the exhumation but it is still abundant today all over the Common.
The Bracken found here is known as field bracken and is the most ancient of ferns with fossil records indicating that it dates as far as 55 million years ago. It gives our landscape a rust-coloured hue in winter and it offers hope in the springtime as it gracefully unfurls – before turning our hillsides a vibrant, life-affirming green in summer.
Despite its beauty and impressive history, bracken comes as a mixed blessing. It offers shelter and shade to the animals but it is so dominant that it can stop other species from thriving. There are parts of Cefn Merthyr where the bracken is less dense which in turn gives space for the heather, wimberries, mosses and lichen to spread out and grow freely.
The Moon

January’s full moon is called The Wolf Moon and will appear in our skies on the 13th of this month. Capel Gwladys on the Gelligaer and Merthyr Common is a beautiful spot to see it.