Wenna
St Wenna's Church, Morval
Diedc. 492 AD
Talgarth
Feast18 October
PatronageSt Wenna's Church, Morval
St Wenn

Wenna (Welsh: Gwen) was a medieval princess and Christian martyr who flourished in Wales and Cornwall. Later venerated as a saint, she is honored at multiple churches in Cornwall and Devon.

Life

According to the 12th-century Life of Nectan, Wenna was one of the twelve daughters of Brychan, a legendary king of Brycheiniog (modern-day Wales).[1] Her siblings included Nectan, Mabyn, Ninnoc, and numerous other Brythonic saints.[2] According to tradition, she was martyred by Saxons at Talgarth in 492.[3][4]

Veneration

Two churches and two chapels have been dedicated to a saint by the name of Wenna: a 12th-century chapel at Cheristow in Hartland parish, the 13th-century parish church of St Wenn, a 14th-century chapel at St Kew, and the 15th-century parish church of Morval.[1] The dedication of the parish church of Morval, however, is sometimes attributed to another Saint Wenna, a 5th-century queen of Cornwall and sister of Saint Non.[5] Wenna may have also had a holy well dedicated to her at St Wenn, but no specific records corroborate this.[1]

Her feast day is 18 October, which is shared with the other Saint Wenna.[3]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Orme, Nicholas (6 January 2000). The Saints of Cornwall. Oxford University Press. p. 251. ISBN 978-0-19-154289-3.
  2. ↑ Nash Ford, David. "Children of Brychan Brycheiniog". Early British Kingdoms. Retrieved 27 November 2023.
  3. 1 2 Bond, Andrew; Mabin, Nicholas (1979). Saints of the British Isles. Bognor Regis, West Sussex: New Horizon. p. 134. ISBN 978-0-86116-211-6.
  4. ↑ The Book of saints; a dictionary of servants of God canonised by the Catholic church; extracted from the Roman & other martyrologies (3rd ed.). St Augustine's Abbey (Ramsgate, England): New York, Macmillan; London, A. & C. Black. 1934. p. 131. Another St. Gwen, of the family of the great chieftain Brychan of Brecknock, suffered death at the hands of the heathen Saxons about A.D. 492.
  5. ↑ Nash Ford, David. "St. Wenna of Talgarth". Early British Kingdoms. Retrieved 27 November 2023.


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