Cefndir yr ardal o gwmpas eglwysi Llaneugrad a Llanallgo
Roedd Eugrad, Gallgo a’i chwaer, Peithian, yn rhan o deulu Caw, gyda Gildas yn frawd arall. Mae Gildas yn enwog am ysgrifennu De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae, sef cofnod hanesyddol cynnar - os nad y cynharaf - am hanes Prydain. Mae’n cael ei gydnabod fel un a fu’n fyfyriwr yn Llanilltud Fawr
Roedd teulu Caw yn byw yn wreiddiol yn Ystrad Clud yn yr Alban, a oedd yn rhan o’r ‘Hen Ogledd’. Daeth Cristnogaeth i Brydain yn ystod y cyfnod Rhufeinig. Roedd tri esgob o Brydain yng Nghyngor Arles yn 314. Pan ddymchwelodd yr Ymerodraeth Rufeinig, tynnwyd y llengoedd yn ôl tua’r flwyddyn 420 a dywedwyd wrth y Prydeinwyr am amddiffyn eu hunain. Daeth y Prydeinwyr dan ymosodiad yn dilyn hynny. Ymosododd yr Eingl a’r Sacsoniaid o ogledd Ewrop ar arfordir dwyreiniol Prydain ac ymgartrefu yno, ac ymosododd y Pictiaid a’r Scotiaid o’r gogledd drwy Ystrad Clud a Cumbria, gan nad oedd Mur Hadrian bellach yn eu hamddiffyn. Fe wnaeth teulu Caw ffoi i’r de, a rhoddodd Maelgwn Gwynedd (a fu farw yn 547) dir iddynt yn Nhwrcelyn ar yr amod y dylai’r dynion aros yn ddiwair fel na fyddai tywysogaethau bach yn datblygu i niweidio ei deyrnas yng Ngwynedd. Cyrhaeddodd Gallgo gyda gweddill ei frodyr a’i chwiorydd ar ddechrau’r 6ed ganrif.
Sefydlodd Eugrad ei lan neu fangor o fewn milltir i un Gallgo. Mae gwaith ysgrifenedig Rice Rees ym 1836 yn awgrymu bod llan Peithian yng Nghapel Llugwy wrth ymyl anheddiad Brythonaidd-Rufeinig Din Llugwy. Mae Ffynnon Gallgo rhwng Llaneugrad a Llanallgo. Roedd hwn yn lle cysegredig cyn i’r ffoaduriaid gyrraedd o’r gogledd. Roedd y Celtiaid yn dod at ei gilydd i addoli mewn coedwigoedd ac mewn ffynhonnau ac yn enwedig wrth darddiad afonydd. Roedd ganddynt ddiddordeb hefyd mewn pennau, gan eu gweld fel symbol o’r unigolyn cyfan. Taflwyd penglogau neu bennau wedi eu torri i mewn byllau. Yn aml, roedd pennau’n cael eu cerfio mewn pren neu garreg. Ym 1983 daethpwyd o hyd i ben carreg yng nghymdogaeth yr eglwys a’r ffynnon.
Gan hynny, sefydlwyd ein heglwysi bron i 15 canrif yn ôl gan ddynion a oedd yn chwilio am le tawel i weddïo a myfyrio ar eu cyfoeth yng Nghrist. Ers canrifoedd, mae ein heglwys yn dyst iddynt hwy a’r cenedlaethau ffyddlon a’u dilynodd, a’r dreftadaeth honno rydym ninnau hefyd wedi ymuno â hi.
Y Royal Charter
Bydd Eglwys Sant Gallgo hefyd yn cael ei chysylltu am byth â llongddrylliad llong stêm y Royal Charter. Ar 26 Hydref 1859, roedd y llong bron â chyrraedd Lerpwl ar ddiwedd ei thaith dros ddeufis o Awstralia, pan darodd storm enfawr yr arfordir.
Roedd y storm mor ffyrnig fel na wnaeth yr un cwch peilot fentro allan i’w helpu i gyrraedd y porthladd. Gwrthdarodd y llong â’r tir oddi ar arfordir Moelfre, y pentref cyfagos, gan golli tua 450 o fywydau, a llai na 50 yn cael eu hachub. Bu llawer o ddynion dewr o’r ardal leol yn helpu gyda’r ymdrech achub.
Daethpwyd â chyrff y dioddefwyr i’r eglwys wrth iddynt gael eu canfod, a daeth yr eglwys yn gorffdy.
Ysgrifennodd Charles Dickens, a oedd yn ohebydd ar y pryd, am y drasiedi, ac am weithredoedd y Rheithor, y Parchedig Stephen Roose Hughes, a fu’n gofalu’n dyner am yr ymadawedig. Arweiniodd straen y digwyddiad at farwolaeth gynnar Stephen Roose Hughes. Mae’n gorwedd ymysg y rhai y canfuwyd eu cyrff ar lan y môr. Mae cofeb fawr i’r trychineb wedi ei lleoli ym mynwent Llanallgo
Background history of the area around the Llaneugrad and Llanallgo churches
Eugrad, Gallgo and sister Peithian, were of the family of Caw, Gildas was another brother. Gildas, who is famous for his writing of De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae a very early, if not the earliest British history. He is credited as having been a student at Llanilltud Fawr (Llantwit Major to-day)
The family of Caw lived originally in the valley of the Clyde in Scotland, then a part of northern Wales (Yr Hen Gogledd). Christianity came to Britain during the Roman occupation, There were three British bishops at the Council of Arles in 314. When the Roman Empire collapsed the legions were withdrawn around 420 and the Britons were told to defend themselves. The British then came under attack. The Angles and the Saxons from northern Europe attacked and settled of the eastern coast of Britain and the Picts and Scot attacked from the north through Strathclyde and Cumbria no longer defended by Hadrian’s Wall. The family of Caw fled south where Maelgwn Gwynedd (died 547) gave them land in Twrcelyn on condition that the men should remain celibate so that no small principalities should develop to damage his kingdom of Gwynedd. Gallgo arrived with the rest of his brothers and sisters at the beginning of the 6th century.
Eugrad established his llan or bangor within a mile of that of Gallgo. Rice Rees writing in 1836 suggests that Peithian’s llan was at Capel Llugwy adjacent to the Romano-British settlement of Din Llugwy. Between Llaneugrad and Llanallgo lies Ffynnon Gallgo. This was a sacred place before the arrival of the refugees from the north. The Celts gathered for worship in woods and at wells and especially at river sources. They also had an interest in heads seeing them as symbolic of the whole person. Skulls or decapitated heads were thrown into pools. Often heads were depicted in wood or stone. In 1983 a stone head was found in the neighbourhood of the church and the well.
Thus, our churches were established nearly 15 centuries ago by men who sought a quiet place to pray and contemplate their riches in Christ. For centuries our church bears witness to them and the faithful generations who followed them and into that heritage we too have entered.
The Royal Charter
St. Gallgo’s Church will also be forever associated with the wreck of the Royal Charter, a steamship. On the 26th of October 1859. the ship was approaching Liverpool nearing the end of its two month voyage from Australia, when a massive storm struck the coast.
The storm was so fierce that no pilot boat dare venture out to assist their entry to port. The ship ran aground off the coasty of Moelfre, the nearby village, with the loss of approximately 450 lives, and less than 50 saved. Many brave men from the local area assisted in the rescue attempt.
The bodies of the victims were brought to the church as they were found, and the church became a mortuary.
Charles Dickens, at the time a reporter, wrote of the tragedy, and of the actions of the Rector Reverend Stephen Roose Hughes who carefully cared for the deceased. The strain of the event led to the early death of Stephen Roose Hughes. He lies amongst those whose bodies were recovered from the sea. A large memorial to the disaster is situated in the churchyard at Llanallgo