Today, October 17th, is
The Feast Day... of
St Richard Gwyn,
Martyr.
Born in 1537, in Montgomeryshire, Wales
he was hung, drawn and quartered on
October 15th, in 1584 (aged 47), in
Wrexham, Wales.
Venerated in the Roman Catholic Church, he was
Beatified on December 15th, in 1929, by Pope
Pius XI, and Canonized on October 15th,
1970, by Pope Paul VI.
Richard Gwyn also known by his anglicized name, Richard
White, was a Welsh teacher at illegal and underground
schools.. and a bard who wrote both Christian and
satirical poetry in the Welsh language.
A Roman Catholic during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I of
England, Gwyn was martyred by being hanged, drawn
and quartered for high treason at Wrexham in 1584.
He was canonized by Pope Paul VI in 1970 as one of the
Forty Martyrs of England and Wales. Since its creation
in 1987, St. Richard Gwyn has been the Patron Saint
of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Wrexham. Along
with fellow lay martyr St. Margaret Clitherow,
Gwyn is the co-patron of the Latin Mass
Society of England and Wales.
Early life
While little is known of Richard Gwyn's early life --- it is known
that he was born about 1537 in Llanidloes, Powys, Wales,
and, reportedly "descended of honest parentage,
bearing the surname of Gwin (sic)."
Only at the age of 20, "he did frame his mind to like of good
letters", and accordingly matriculated at Oxford University,
"where he made no great abode", and did not complete a
degree. He then went to St John's College, Cambridge,
"where he lived on the charity of the College", and its
then Master, the Roman Catholic Dr. George Bullock.
During his time at University, Gwyn's fellow students began
calling him by the alias of "Richard White", "as being the
English equivalent of his name". In the early part of the
reign of Elizabeth I, Bullock was forced to resign the
mastership in July 1559 and Gwyn was forced to
leave the college.
After leaving the university, Gwyn found that, "need and
poverty compelled him to become a teacher before he
could perfectly lay the foundation to be a learner,"
and returned to his native district in Wales.
Gwyn served successively as schoolmaster in the Wrexham
area villages of Gresford, Yswyd, and Overton-on-Dee while
continuing to study the liberal arts, theology, and history.
Gwyn married Catherine, a young woman from
Overton-on-Dee. They had six children, three
of whom survived him.
Despite repeated threats of both fines and imprisonment,
Gwyn made every effort --- to avoid attending Anglican
Sunday Services and taking the Oath of Supremacy.
As a recusant in a small village, Gwyn's adherence to the old
faith, was common knowledge. Gwyn also made no effort to
hide his opinions and openly exhorted his neighbours who
had conformed, to return to the Catholic Church.
At the time, Bishops of the Established Church were under
considerable pressure from Queen Elizabeth I to arrest
recusants, especially schoolmasters, who exercised
great influence and Welsh bards who, like Richard
Gwyn, were acting as secret messengers on
behalf of Roman Catholic priests... and
recusants within the Welsh nobility
and commons.
In this way, the Bards of Wales were highly important within
the Welsh Catholic underground and were how news was
spread about secret Masses and pilgrimages.
For these reasons, William Downham, a former Roman Catholic
priest of the Augustinian Brothers of Penitence who had
conformed to Anglicanism and been appointed by the
Queen as Bishop of Chester, and his officers, "began
to molest", Gwyn, "for refusing to receive at their
communion table".
The Bishop and local statesman Roger Puleston put
considerable pressure upon Gwyn, who reluctantly
agreed, "greatly against his stomach", to receive
Communion at Anglican services the following
Sunday. The next Sunday, however -- as Gwyn
left St Mary the Virgin Church in Overton-on
-Dee following the Anglican service there,
he was assaulted and pecked all the way
back to his home by a flock of crows
and kites.
Soon after, Gwyn became so gravely ill that his life was
despaired of. Gwyn promised God that if his life were
spared, he would return to the Catholic Faith, and
never again violate his conscience by attending
services at a Protestant church. Soon after,
seminary priests, including Robert Gwin,
began arriving in North Wales.. from
Catholic Europe. Gwyn made his
Confession and returned to the
religion of his childhood.
Incensed by Gwyn's return to Catholicism, Bishop Downham
and the Protestants of Overton made Gwyn's life so
unbearable that the schoolmaster and his family
fled the Diocese of Chester on foot.
After crossing the River Dee and finding a new home in
Erbistock.. Gwyn set up the Welsh equivalent to an
Irish hedge school inside a deserted barn, where
he secretly taught the children of local Catholic
families. In time however, Gwyn was forced to
flee from Erbistock as well, to avoid arrest.
On a Wednesday night early in 1579, Richard Gwyn was
arrested by the Vicar of Wrexham, Hugh Soulley -- a
former Roman Catholic priest who had conformed
to Anglicanism and married, during a visit to the
city's Cattle Market.
Gwyn was confined to Wrexham Jail, where he was offered
his liberty if he would conform to the Established Church.
When he refused, Gwyn was told that he would appear
before the magistrates the following day. That very
night, Gwyn escaped and remained a fugitive for
a year and a half.
Imprisonment and Recapture
After eighteen months on the run, Gwyn was on the way one
afternoon in July 1580 into Wrexham in order to deliver a
secret message that a priest was urgently needed.
On his journey, Gwyn was recognized on the public highway
by David Edwards, a wealthy Puritan cloth merchant. Even
though English law at the time did not permit what is now
called a citizen's arrest, Edwards ordered Gwyn to stop.
When the latter refused, Edwards drew his dagger and
attacked Gwyn, who defended himself with his staff
and struck the Puritan such a severe blow on the
head that Edwards was thrown to the ground.
Gwyn thought, at first, that he had killed Edwards and stood
in silent horror until the Puritan began showing signs of life.
Gwyn - then took to his heels. Edwards followed in pursuit
and cried, "Stop thief! Stop thief!" The Puritan's servants
were cutting hay nearby and, hearing their master's
cries, they surrounded Gwyn and seized him.
David Edwards brought Gwyn into his own house, and kept
him there in heavy bolts and chains while the magistrates
were summoned. After the magistrates took charge of
him, Gwyn was taken to Wrexham prison and lodged
in an underground dungeon known as "The Black
Chamber" (Middle Welsh: Siambrddu).
After laying on the cold ground in the Black Chamber for two
days, Gwyn was brought before the Justice of the Peace,
Robert Puleston, who ordered that Gwyn be sent to
Ruthin Castle and, "very straitly guarded as being
vehemently suspected of high treason."
For this reason, Gwyn spent his first three months in Ruthin
Castle wearing, "strong handbolts on his arms, and a huge
pair of bolts on both heels, which were so placed that he
could not lie on his side, but, whenever he would sleep,
must needs lie on his back or his belly."
At the Michaelmas Assizes in 1580, Gwyn was offered his
freedom if he would agree to attend Anglican services
and to give up the names of the Catholic parents in
Erbistock whose children he had taught. Gwyn
refused and was returned to Ruthin Castle.
By this time, however, Gwyn's jailer,
"understanding that he had merely
a prisoner for religion to deal with
remitted some part of his former
rigour towards him."
Around Christmas 1580, all the prisoners at Ruthin Castle
were transferred to Wrexham Jail, where the new jailer
greeted Gwyn, "with a great pair of shackles, which
was compelled to wear both night and day all the
year following."
When brought before the next Assizes,
Gwyn again refused to conform.
"Brawling in Church"
When the May Assizes were held at Wrexham, in 1581, the
Chief Justice of Chester, Sir George Bromley, ordered that
Gwyn be "taken to church" by force. Gwyn was carried
upon the shoulders of six men into St. Giles' Church in
Wrexham. Gwyn was carried around the font and laid
in heavy shackles before the pulpit to hear the
sermon of an Anglican clergyman named
Thomas Jones.
However, Gwyn, "so stirred his legs that with the noise of his
irons the preacher's voice could not be heard." Sir George
Bromley ordered that, as punishment, Gwyn was to be
placed in the stocks between 10am and 8pm.... and
sermonized the whole time by Anglican ministers.
One Anglican clergyman, who had a very large red nose,
attempted to debate with Gwyn concerning the Keys of
the Church, which the minister alleged were given just
as much to him - as to St. Peter the Apostle. "There is
this difference", Gwyn replied, "namely, that whereas
Peter received the Keys to the Kingdom of Heaven,
the keys you received were obviously those of the
beer cellar."
At 8:00 pm, Gwyn was finally released from the stocks
and limped back to his cell, followed the whole way
by the jeering laughter .....of David Edwards, the
Puritan cloth merchant who had arrested him.
At his next court appearance, Gwyn learned he had been
indicted and would be tried for the additional charge of
"brawling - during divine service." However, as James
Garm... clerk of court, began to read the indictment
before the jury he found himself unable to continue
doing so ----- and handed it to someone else.
When Sir George asked Garm what was the matter, the clerk
replied, "I do not know what has happened to my eyes, but
I cannot see." Bromley replied, "Speak softly lest the
Papists make a miracle of that." Richard Gwyn, was
found guilty by the jury and fined 100 marks (£140).
In September 1581, Gwyn was moved to Denbigh Castle and
was again brought before Sir George Bromley. Gwyn was
fined £280... for refusing to attend Anglican Sunday
Services, under the penal statute setting the fine
for that offence at £20 per month. This fine was
in addition to Gwyn's previous fine of £140
for "brawling during divine service".
Gwyn replied - that he had some funds and could make
some payment toward his fines. When Bromley asked
what amount he could pay, Gwyn said -- "sixpence".
Outraged, Bromley ordered that Gwyn be returned
to prison ...with extra irons.
Three recusants
At that same assizes, Gwyn was soon joined at Denbigh
Castle by two other Catholic prisoners, John Hughes
and Robert Morris. In the spring of 1582, they were
returned to Wrexham and brought before the
Assizes. Instead of being charged or tried
with an offence.. the judge had ordered
that the three recusants were to hear
a sermon by an Anglican clergyman,
whose name does not survive, but
who is described as a Zwinglian
and as the illegitimate son of
a Roman Catholic priest.
"Their complaint to the judges proving vain", all three
prisoners started to heckle the minister (one in
Welsh, the second in Latin, and the third in
English) until the whole exercise had
to be abandoned.
At the same assizes, a complaint was filed against the sheriff,
Edward Hughes of the Holt - alias Edward ap Thomas - for
showing allegedly excessive leniency towards the three
recusant prisoners. In response --- a committee of four
overseers was appointed, which included both Hugh
Soulley and David Edwards, "in order to see to it
.....that no one had access to the prisoners
except their wives, and that no relief
was given them."
From his position on the committee, Puritan cloth merchant
David Edwards continued his persecution of Richard Gwyn.
On one occasion, as Gwyn was standing in irons, holding
his infant child at the door of Wrexham Jail, Edwards
crossed the road -- and threw Gwyn backward onto
the stones. It is said that Edwards left the imprint
of the nails on his boots upon Gwyn's face and
severely endangered the infant's life.
On another occasion, Edwards instructed his wife and
daughter - to testify before Judge Jevan Lloyd of Yale
(Plas yn Iâl) that they had seen Richard Gwyn outside
Wrexham Jail. The jailor, however, M. Coytmore was
able to prove in court that the man they had seen
outside the Jail was Judge Jevan Lloyd, rather
than Richard Gwyn.
When the Michaelmas Assizes were held at Holt in 1582,
Gwyn, Hughes, and Morris were indicted and tried for
high treason --- based on the allegedly perjured
testimony of Lewis Gronow of Meriadoc, and
Robert Clarke, the new Vicar of Wrexham.
The case for the prosecution, however, seems to have broken
down. Also, that following Christmas, the new sheriff, Jevan
Lloyd of Yale, relieved the committee of overseers of their
offices and loaded Gwyn, Hughes, and Morris down with
heavy irons.
Torture
In May 1583 an order was given for the removal of Gwyn,
Hughes, and Morris to the jurisdiction of the Council of
Wales and the Marches along with the Roman Catholic
priest John Bennett and the layman Henry Pugh. The
following November --- all five suffered torture at
Bewdley and at Bridgnorth Castle -- by being,
"laid to the manacles (a kind of torture at
the Council, not inferior to the rack at
the Tower of London)."
At about seven or eight on the morning of 27 November 1583,
Gwyn was interrogated by Richard Atkyns, the Attorney-
General of Wales and the Marches, at the latter's
own home.
In particular, Atkyns demanded to know Gwyn's opinion of the
1570 papal bull Regnans in Excelsis, in which Pope Pius V
had declared Queen Elizabeth I excommunicated -- and
deposed for both heresy and religious persecution of
the Catholic Church in England and Wales, as well
as in Ireland.
Gwyn replied, "Notwithstanding that Bull (the which I never
saw), I believe and confirm that she is our lawful Queen."
Atkyns, however, was unmoved and, from nine o'clock in the
morning until dinner time that very day, Gwyn was tortured
by being put into manacles. According to a contemporary
account, Gwyn "bestowed all the time of his torments in
continual prayer, by craving of God for his tormentors'
mercy and forgiveness, and --- for himself... safe
deliverance from their malice by the merits
of Jesus Christ His Passion; and this he
did with a loud voice."
It is written, however, that Gwyn's interrogators, "seemed to
be tormented with his words, as if they were possessed".
Sir George Bromley responded in a rage, "There is no
more pity to be had on thee than a mad dog!
Wretches like you should all be hanged!"
Gwyn replied, "I pray you put me to death... and therein
you shall do me greater pleasure than to kill me
continually with torments."
Gwyn then fell to praying in silence and made no further
answer to the demands of the interrogators, until --- at
dinnertime, the interrogators finally took Gwyn down
and left him alone with the manacles.
Immediately after dinner, Gwyn was visited by the Councillors
of Wales and the Marches; Sir George Bromley, Henry
Townsend, Fabian Phillips, William Leighton of Plaish
Hall, and Simon Thelwall. They were accompanied
by deputy solicitor Thomas Evans and Thomas
Sherer, the Keeper of the Judicial Seal of
Montgomery and Examiner before the
Council of the Marches.
After a brief examination, the Councillors departed, and Sherer
continued the interrogation accompanied by threats of further
torture. Although Gwyn remained in the same room with the
manacles for two hours afterwards and fully expected to
be laid to them a second time, "God protected him from
any further cruelty at that time."
Soon afterwards, Gwyn, Hughes, and Morris were returned to
Wrexham Jail, where the 1584 spring assizes were allowed
to proceed without any further efforts to prosecute them.
Trial and Preliminary hearing
On Friday 9 October 1584, Richard Gwyn, John Hughes, and
Robert Morris were arraigned at Wrexham before a panel of
judges headed by the Chief Justice of Chester, Sir George
Bromley, as well as Simon Thelwall, Piers Owen, Dr. Ellis
Price, Roger Puleston, Jevan Lloyd of the Yale, and
Owen Brereton.
Upon coming before the court, Gwyn made the Sign of the
Cross, "for which he was mocked and derided by a young
man, Francis Bromley, a relative of the Chief Justice."
As the indictment was read aloud by the clerk of court, all
three prisoners learned that they stood accused of high
treason under the Act of Supremacy 1558, and the
Religion Act 1580. Like all other British subjects
tried for the same offence prior to the Treason
Act 1695 - Richard Gwyn, John Hughes, and
Robert Morris were forbidden the services
of a defence counsel and forced to act
as their own attorneys.
When the prisoners were asked by the court how they wished
to be tried, Gwyn responded, "We will be tried by you, who
are the justices of the bench; for you are wise and
learned, and better able to discern the equity of
our cause than the simple people of our own
country, altogether unacquainted in
such matters."
It has been suggested... that Gwyn's reason for requesting a
bench trial rather than a trial by jury, "was to save the jury
from the guilt of his blood, but no notice was taken of his
request, as was inevitable, and a jury was empanelled."
According to Malcolm Pullan, "No one wished to sit on the
jury so a collection of the local anti-Catholic riff-raff
had to be paid to do jury service."
Testimony
Lewis Gronow deposed "that the said three prisoners were in
hand with him on a Sunday in July an. Dom. 1582, to become
a Papist; secondly that he had heard them ''acknowledge",
Pope Pius V, "to be the Supreme Head of the Church;
thirdly, that he had heard" Richard Gwyn "in plain
terms to affirm the Pope now living to have the
same authority which Christ gave to Peter."
Edward Erles also "deposed that he had heard" Gwyn
"rehearse certain rhymes of his own making against
married priests and ministers; secondly, that he
called the Bible a babble; thirdly - that he
termed Justice Bromley ustus y fram;
and fourth that he defended the
Pope's authority."
Howell David, the cousin of Gwyn's codefendant John Hughes,
deposed against Gwyn --- "that he had heard him complain of
this world; and secondly, that it would not last long, thirdly,
that he hoped to see a better world; and, fourthly, that he
confessed.. the Pope's supremacy." The same witness
also gave evidence against his own kinsman, John
Hughes and, very likely, for this reason, Howell
David "had managed to secure his property."
The three prisoners then pointed out that Lewis Gronow,
witness for the prosecution, had previously been upon
the pillory for procuring the perjured testimony of Mr.
Tudor Robert in another case. Richard Gwyn also
denied ever having met Lewis Gronow.
John Hughes then called a witness of his own, who asserted
that both Lewis Gronow and Edward Erles had been bribed
with sixteen shillings each, for bearing false witness in a
previous case.
According to Malcolm Pullan, "The jury were understandably
disturbed by this revelation, but the trial continued."
An Elizabethan English account of the trial "corroborates
this and says that the money was given them by Jevan
Lloyd of Yale, the year he was Sheriff" ...and their
perjured testimony on promise of bribery had
been arranged by the Vicar of Wrexham.
In response, however, Justice Simon Thelwall, "asked various
questions", of the defendants, "with a view of showing the
jury that all three prisoners were obstinate Papists".
Thelwall then, "roved over the insurrection in the north", the
excommunication of the Queen by Pope Pius V in the papal
bull Regnans in excelsis, "Story and Felton", Nicholas
Sanders and the Second Desmond Rebellion,
"Campion and his fellows....... Arden and
Sommerfield, Francis Throckmorton;
aggravating the prisoners to be of
one religion with the person's
before named and recited".
In response, Gwyn, Hughes, and Morris,
"protested their innocence."
Deliberation and verdict
The jury was, reportedly... so visibly unhappy with the
contradictory evidence they had heard that, before
they retired for deliberation, Sir George Bromley
threatened them "with dire consequences, if
they did not bring in a guilty verdict after
they retired for the night".
Sir George "appointed the pronotary to read the commission
from the Privy Council"; which was signed by Sir Thomas
Bromley, the Lord Chancellor, Sir Henry Sidney, Lord
President of the Marches, Sir Francis Walsingham,
the Queen's Principal Secretary, Sir James Croft,
and many other senior officials. This further had
the effect of "terrifying the simple men with the
sight of the commission from higher powers".
The jury then retired for their deliberations
to St Giles' Church, where they remained
with their keeper, all the following night.
After an hour of deliberation, however, two members of
the jury "were sent for to confer with the judges, to
know of them, whom they should acquit, and
whom they should find guilty."
At 8am on Saturday October the 10th, 1584, the jury returned
with a verdict. Richard Gwyn and John Hughes were found
guilty of high treason. Robert Morris "was acquitted --- to
his great sorrow" ....and publicly wept.
Gwyn replied to the verdict by saying in Ecclesiastical Latin,
Non audent aliter dicere propter metum Judeorum ("They
dare not say otherwise for fear of the Jews"), a
reference to John 7:13.
Sentencing
As Sir George Bromley was absent, Simon Thelwall.... then
proceeded to pass sentence. John Hughes was reprieved
and Richard Gwyn was condemned to death by hanging,
drawing and quartering upon the following Thursday,
15 October 1584. As the capital sentence was being
pronounced upon him, Richard Gwyn, "did not
change countenance". When the judge was
finished, Gwyn calmly asked, "What is all
this? Is it any more than one death?"
Catherine Gwyn and Mrs. John Hughes then arrived, each
carrying a newborn baby... both of whom had recently
been conceived by the defendants due to the Jailer,
Mr. Coytmore, who had granted both recusants an
unauthorized parole, in order to visit their wives.
As Judge Thelwall proceeded to admonish both women not
to follow their husbands' example, Catherine Gwyn angrily
replied, "If you lack blood, you may take my life, as well
as my husband's; and if you will give the witnesses a
little bribe --- you may call them; they will bear
evidence against me, as well as they did
against him."
Mrs. Hughes spoke similarly, and both women were
accordingly imprisoned for contempt of court, but
soon afterwards, were released on bail.
Last days and Death
On Tuesday October 13th 1584, Richard Gwyn was visited in
Wrexham Jail by "a gentleman", who, "in the Sheriff's name
offered to discharge him of all his troubles --- if he would
acknowledge the Queen Supreme Head of the Church
within her own dominions; but the man, being
constant, refused to purchase his own
liberty so dear." On the same day,
Gwyn, "sent his signet or seal
of brass, off his finger to a
gentleman, his very
familiar friend."
On Wednesday 14 October 1584 Catherine Gwyn visited her
husband, who blessed and kissed twenty-four silk laces,
- coloured white as a pun regarding his surname. Gwyn
instructed his wife to give twelve of the laces as gifts
in his name to twelve underground Roman Catholic
priests. Gwyn then instructed his wife to give the
other dozen laces as gifts to twelve members of
the local Welsh nobility, "to whom he was
greatly beholden.
Gwyn then bent a single penny, which he blessed and
instructed his wife to deliver to his spiritual director.
Gwyn also "caused his garters to be given [to] two
priests of his very familiar acquaintance."
Final day
On the morning of Thursday 15 October 1584 Catherine Gwyn
saw the Puritan cloth merchant David Edwards passing by
Wrexham Jail - and cried out, "God be a righteous judge
between thee and me!" According to a contemporary
account, however, Richard Gwyn, "rebuked her,
saying that, if they did not forgive now freely,
all their labours would be lost."
At about 10:00 in the morning, Gwyn heard, a great noise in
the backside of", Wrexham Jail and demanded to know
what it was. He was told that it was Mrs. Coytmore,
the Jailer's wife, making, "lamentation for him".
The Coytmores had grown very fond of Richard Gwyn during
his imprisonment and, possibly as punishment for his many
acts of leniency, Mr. Coytmore had been ordered to act as
Gwyn's executioner.
Despite this, however, when he learned of the reason for Mrs.
Coytmore's weeping, Gwyn said to his wife, "I pray thee,
Catherine, go and comfort her."
As Catherine left to fulfill his request, Gwyn went down to
the ground floor of Wrexham Jail. Even though this was,
according to Malcolm Pullan, the level was... "where
common thieves were kept", all of the prisoners,
among whom - were "diverse children", were
weeping over Gwyn's execution. Gwyn laid
his hands upon the head of each prisoner
and, "prayed God to bless them". Gwyn
then beheld a large number of people
outside the jail who had also come
to say goodbye to him.
Reaching his hands through the window, Gwyn grasped each
person by the hand and took leave of them one by one. One
local member of the Welsh nobility who had been Gwyn's
pupil, especially "made great lamentations", but Gwyn
told him, "Weep not for me, for I do but pay the rent
before the rent-day."
Gwyn then distributed five shillings in small silver coins,
which a local recusant had sent to be given away by
Gwyn's own hands, to the poor from the door of
Wrexham Jail. Before leaving for the place of
execution, Gwyn gave his wife 11 shillings
and his rosary, which, according to a
contemporary account, "was all
the wealth he left her."
Soon after, the Sheriff, Piers Owen, came in to tell Gwyn to
prepare - for death. Gwyn kissed his wife and Mrs. John
Hughes goodbye and blessed his infant son, who was
only one month old, by making the Sign of the Cross
upon his forehead.
John Hughes and Robert Morris asked leave to be present at
Gwyn's execution, which was refused. So instead, all four
knelt to receive his blessing. Gwyn prayed for God to
stand by them and then went to the sled which had
been provided, instead of a hurdle, to drag him to
the place of execution.
Martyrdom
As Gwyn stepped through the prison door, he said, "In the
name of Jesus". Upon arriving at the sled, he first made
the Sign of the Cross before his arms were tied behind
his back. As Gwyn was laid upon the sled, a heavy
rain began to fall and continued until the moment
of Gwyn's death. Meanwhile, Gwyn prayed the
rosary the whole way to the gallows, "using
the end of a string wherewith he held up
his irons, instead of beads."
As Gwyn arrived at the gallows, which had been erected in
the Beast Market of Wrexham, he turned to the people
and said, "God is merciful to us; behold the elements
shed tears for our sins."
Gwyn then climbed the ladder to the gallows, where
Mr. Coytmore, who had been ordered to serve as
the executioner, knelt down and asked for his
forgiveness. Gwyn replied, "I do forgive thee
before God, and I wish thee no more harm
than I wish my own heart."
Owen Brereton then asked Gwyn if he would like a priest.
Gwyn replied, "Yea, with all my heart, but I will have
no minister."
Sheriff Piers Owen then asked Gwyn, "whether he repented
of his treasons and asked the Queen's forgiveness". Gwyn
replied, "I never committed any treasons against her any
more than your father or grandfather did, unless it be
treason to fast and pray."
The Vicar of Wrexham then asked Gwyn, "if he acknowledged
the Queen's supremacy over the Church", and Gwyn replied,
"that he acknowledged her to be lawful Queen of England".
Stunned, the Vicar asked why Gwyn had not mentioned this at
his trial. Gwyn responded, "The question was not asked me;
but I told the Council at another time... that I was her poor
subject, that I prayed for Her Majesty. Mine examinations
are to be seen --- and my hand to the same; search the
records, and you shall find this to be true. Moreover,
that I offered to go out of the realm, to pleasure
them, or into rocks and deserts, yea if it were
possible, under the ground, to use my
conscience.. in the least offensive
manner I might, or into whatever
place it might pleasure my
Prince to send me; but
nothing would serve."
Addressing the crowd, Gwyn expressed his forgiveness of
David Edwards and all others who had harmed him. He
requested the prayers of all those present. Gwyn then
addressed the crowd, saying, "My dear countrymen,
remember your souls and do not lose them for this
vile transitory muck which Christ hath so dearly
bought. This - is but one hour's pain to me. And
what is that in respect to the torments of Hell
which shall never have an end?"
The Sheriff then ordered Coytmore to proceed and all those
present ...fell to their knees to pray for Gwyn. Coytmore
allowed Gwyn to continue exhorting all those present
to reconcile themselves to the Catholic Church.
Coytmore again, asked Gwyn's forgiveness, and Gwyn
replied by kissing the executioner's hand and saying,
"I do forgive thee ----- with all my heart; God and our
Blessed Lady and St. Michael forgive thee; it is all
one to me, that thou do this deed as another."
Just before the ladder was turned from under him and Gwyn
was hanged, he turned to the crowd, and also said, "I have
been a jesting fellow, and if I have offended any that way,
or by my songs, I beseech them - for God's sake - to
forgive me."
Gwyn then said in Ecclesiastical Latin, "Deus propitius esto
mihi peccatori!" ("God, be merciful to me a sinner!"), a
quote of Luke 18:13. And the ladder was turned out
from under him. For some time... he hung silently,
beating his breast with both hands. Meanwhile,
Mr. Coytmore pulled upon Gwyn's shackles,
in which he had been hanged, in the hope
of putting him out of his pain.
Fully aware of the Jailer's intentions, Sheriff Piers Owen
ordered Mr. Coytmore to cut Gwyn down as soon as he
was unconscious. As the inexperienced Mr. Coytmore
made a mess of disembowelling the prisoner and
burning his entrails before his face, Richard
Gwyn revived, but made no sound and
continued to beat his breast in
penitence, "until the sheriff's
men held his arms back
by force."
At last, Gwyn raised his head, looked down at his own
mangled torso, and cried out in Middle Welsh, "O Duw
gwyn pybeth y diw hun?!" ("Holy God, what is this?!")
M. Coytmore answered, "It is.... the
execution of the Queen's Majesty."
Richard Gwyn then said his last words, also in Welsh, mere
moments before his head was severed, ""Iesu, trugarha
wrthyf!"" ("Jesus, have mercy on me").
After the execution of Richard Gwyn, his head and one of
his quarters were spiked upon Denbigh Castle. The other
three quarters were similarly displayed at Wrexham,
Ruthin Castle, and Holt Castle.
Within seven months of Richard Gwyn's execution, Lewis
Gronow confessed to having committed perjury in return
or a bribe. The Elizabethan English account of the case
alleges that, shortly afterwards, Sir George Bromley
lost the use of his reason and, "became an idiot".
Simon Thelwall died soon afterwards, as did most of the
members of the jury. Furthermore, the Puritan cloth
merchant David Edwards allegedly "died a fearful
death" during Lent of 1585. Mr. Christopherson,
the crier of the court, also lost the use of his
reason and was left catatonic.
The anonymous author of the account "sees in
all these events ---- the finger of Providence."
The Roman Martyrology -- places
St Richard's feast on 17 October.
Every year, St. Richard Gwyn is honoured by the Catholics
of Wrexham, by a religious procession to the site of his
execution in the former Beast Market of the city.
Saint Richard Gwyn can be venerated at the Roman Catholic
Church of Our Lady and Saint Richard Gwyn, in his native
town of Llanidloes.
From Carol IV by Saint Richard Gwyn:
Nid wrth fwyta cig yn ffêst
A llenwi'r gêst Wenere
A throi meddwl gida'r gwynt,
Yr aethon gynt yn Saintie.
"Not by eating flesh speedily
And filling the paunch on Fridays
And turning one's opinion with the wind
Were folk made Saints of old."