SAINT DAVIDS CATHEDRAL, PEMBROKESHIRE

St. David's Cathedral		The Porch

St Davids or St David's in Pembrokeshire, is a catheral city. It is the resting place of Saint David, Wales's patron saint.  Wikipedia tells us that David is said to have been born to Saint Non around 500 AD, at the place where the Chapel of St Non now stands. He was baptised by Saint Elvis at Porthclais, and was brought up by his mother at Llanon. He may also have been educated at the "Ty Gwyn", Whitesands by Saint Paulinus. David is thought to have founded an earlier community somewhere to the west of modern St Davids, before establishing a new church and monastery at a place then known as "Glyn Rhosyn" on the banks of the Afon Alun, where the current Cathedral now stands.  Following the Norman Conquest the city became a marcher borough, and the new hundred (unit of local government) was named "Dewisland". The cathedral was rebuilt during the Norman era and much of the earliest sections that are still extant, date back to the twelfth century. However, it is thought that this cathedral would have followed the layout of medieval structure and it continued to host its many ancient relics, including the remains of David.  At its height, the city was visited by many pilgrims, including noblemen and kings such as William the Conqueror in 1081, Henry II in 1171, and Edward I and Queen Eleanor in 1284.  The monastery became a Cathedral in the twelfth Century. The cathedral raised a vast income from visiting pilgrims in the Middle Ages. The Reformation saw both the income and importance of St Davids begin to fade as pilgrimages fell out of favour; this was exacerbated by the appointment of a number of English Bishops who were seemingly less concerned with the welfare of the cathedral or the city. Perhaps most infamously, Bishop William Barlow sold the lead from the roof of the Bishop's Palace in 1536, beginning a long period of neglect for St Davids.