Vortigern
Studies Index
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More Saints on the Move Robert Vermaat
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Vortigern and his
family have long since been connected to Christian
saints. Vortigern himself was known is Brittany as St Gurthiern, and his saga is intertwined
with that of St Germanus. His family knows many saints as
well, most notably Vortimer and his daughter Modrun, who was initially connected
to the saints of South Wales, as I have touched upon elsewhere. But Vortigern's family also
has some saintly connections in northern Wales.
Kentigern/Catigern
We start off with St Kentigern, who apparently
lived in Strathclyde and Pictland for most of his days,
living to a great age and dying in 612. According to two
12th-century Lives, St Kentigern was connected
to Lailoken, one of the archetypes of Merlin. This might
already set us in the direction of Vortigern (connected
to the other Merlin-archetype, the 'boy' Emrys), but
there is more to it (below). The name of St Kentigern (Cunotigernos
or 'Hound-like Lord'), also written as Gonot(h)igernus,
evidently confused medieval sribes enough to make
mistaken identifications possible. Other members of
Vortigern's family got confused with him as well; Catigern's name was erroniously replaced
with Can(t)egirnus and Kyndarn at
several occasions.
Saints and rocks
As remarked above, St Kentigern was connected to
Lailoken. He fulfilled the role of protector of this
'wild' man, the same as 'Myrddin' in the Welsh legend,
who had gone crazy at the battle of Arfderyddd. Lailoken
wandered through the northern wilderness, praying on a
rock. In fact, this and other details are so similar to
the wanderings of St Gurthiern, that a coincidence can
hardly be ruled out. Both are cursed by killed their
sister's sons unknowingly, both retire to the wilderness
to fast and pray on rocks, where both are spotted by
huntsmen and betrayed to kings, after which they flee
again. Apparently, both stories drew upon some kind of
similar source. We should not look for any historical
links, for both men lived too far apart in time. I should
mention in this context that also St Germanus, while
hunting down Vortigern through Wales, also prayed and
fasted on a rock in a river. (for comparisons between the
flights of Vortigern and Gurthiern, see Saints
on the move).
Saints and lost
heads
Another interesting link is that between St Kentigern, St
Winefride and Modrun, daughter of Vortimer. Modrun seems
connected with northern Wales, where several geographical
locations are named after her. They are on the southern
Lleyn peninsula, where we can find a Madryn Castle, a Carn
Fadrun
(fort), a Carnfadryn (village) and a Cefn Madryn all
huddled together. In this area we also find a lot of
geographical names connected to her grandfather
Vortigern; Nant Gwrtheyrn, Bedd Gwrtheyrn, Castel Gwrtheyrn and the unlocated Cwm Gwrtheyrn. Both Winefride and
Kentigern share miracles like curing springs and
restoring people to life by re-attaching their severed
heads. Coincidentally (I think not), St Gurthiern also
performed such a miracle! He restored a killed youth to
life by replacing the severed head his mother was
carrying along with her. Winefride lived in Flintshire
(also connected to Vortigern through the Pillar
of Elise
at langollen and the hillfort of Foel Fenlli), where she escaped seduction by
a man who then struck her head off. It was however joined
again by St Beuno, after which she retired to a nunnery
at Gwytherin, dying in 660. The name of this town may or
may not be partly to blame for the transfer of her legend
to Tegiwg, who was daughter of Modrun and granddaughter
of Vortimer, at least according to the Bonedd
y Saint.
But to make matters
totally confusing, she was no daughter of Modrun. This is
in fact a trap where the early medieval genealogist fell
into on many occasions. Teigwg was in fact the daughter
of Ynyr Gwent, but not the daughter of Modrun! For there
were TWO persons named Ynyr Gwent... The first one, born
c.425, was the husband of Modrun ferch Gwrthefyr and the
father of Caradog, king of Gwent (Vita Tathei 6).
But the second one was born a century later (c. 540) and
was a contemporary of St Beuno, the guy who cured St
Winefred! Confused by names and places, the genealogist
made them into one person. This trap where names are
misspelt or misread, is the most common problem in
decyphering the tangle of these sources.
Which has brought us
full circle.
Bibliography 
- Bartrum, P.C.: Early Welsh
Genealogical Tracts, (Cardiff 1966).*
- Geoffrey of
Monmouth: Life
of Merlin, Vita Merlini, ed. and
trans. B. Clarke, (Cardiff 1973).
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