Saints and Stones: St. Asaph Cathedral
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Llanelwy is the Welsh name for the place called St. Asaph. It means the sacred religious enclosure on the banks of the River Elwy. The legend of the founding of the church and monastery between the year ca.560 A.D. and ca.573 A.D. is to be found in The Life of St. Kentigern written by Jocelyn, a monk of Furness Abbey in ca.1180. St. Kentigern was the bishop of Strathclyde who was driven into exile and founded a monastery at Llanelwy where he remained until his return to Scotland in 573 A.D. St. Asaph replaced him as abbot-bishop.

The earliest parts of the present building date from the 13th Century when a new building was begun on the site after the original stone cathedral was burnt down in 1282. The present building was largely built in the reign of Henry Tudor and greatly restored in the 19th Century. In the eastern window of the north aisle there are pictures of St. Kentigern and St. Asaph.

About St. Asaph Cathedral

New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia: Ancient Diocese of Saint Asaph
Wikipedia: St. Asaph Cathedral
Wikipedia: Saint Asaph
New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia: St. Asaph

Journey to St. Asaph Cathedral

St. Asaph Cathedral is located in the town of St. Asaph off the A525 in Denbighshire in northeast Wales.

Ordnance Survey Map (SJ0381874358)

Visitors Information

Visitors information for St. Asaph Cathedral may be found at the The Church in Wales St. Asaph Cathedral website. General tourist information for the area may be found at the Go North Wales website.

Additional Photos of St. Asaph Cathedral

Reader Board, St. Asaph Cathedral
St. Asaph Cathedral, Site of 6th Century Monastery Founded by St. Kentigern
West End Entrance, St. Asaph Cathedral
South Transept and Treasury, St. Asaph Cathedral
Monument Outside St. Asaph Cathedral Dedicated to Early Bishops
Window and Carved Faces, St. Asaph Cathedral
Window and Carved Faces, St. Asaph Cathedral
Window and Carved Faces, St. Asaph Cathedral
Close-Up of Carved Face, St. Asaph Cathedral
Stained-Glass Window of St. Kentigern and St. Asaph, St. Asaph Cathedral

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