Justinian, or Stinan, the Latin form of his name, was born in Brittany in the 6th century. At some point in his life he made his way to Wales, where h
Justinian, or Stinan, the Latin form of his name, was born in Brittany in the 6th century. At some point in his life he made his way to Wales, where he settled on Ramsey Island. The island was already associated with saints, for its earlier names were Ynys Dewi, or Dewi’s Island, or Ynys Tyfanog, St Dyfanog’s Island. There was already a holy man called Honarius in residence, living there with his sister and her maid. Justinian demanded that the women be sent to the mainland and Honarius seems to have accepted this ruling amicably enough. Justinian soon became close friends with St David and visited him often in the monastery where the cathedral now stands. He was less impressed however by the lax behaviour of some of the monks, and decided to isolate himself on Ramsey. According to legend, he took an axe and chopped up the land bridge that linked the island and the mainland. As he worked, the axe became blunter and the lumps of rock remaining became larger and larger. They are still visible today in Ramsey Sound, where the waters foam over them at high tide. Long feared as a hazard to shipping, they are known as ‘The Bitches’ and the largest piece of all is known as The Axe. St Justinian’s reputation for piety attracted a number of followers, who lived and worked on the island with him. His insistence on the most extreme forms of asceticism soon turned them against him and they beheaded him. A spring of water gushed up from the ground where his head fell and this became a famous healing well. Writing in the 14th century, John of Tynemouth says of its waters ‘quaffed by sick folk, conveys health of body to all’. A man suffering from a swelling in his stomach drank from the well, became sick and vomited up a large frog, enjoying good health from that moment on. The story of Justinian’s execution goes on to relate another, even more remarkable miracle. To the astonishment of his killers, the saint picked up his head and walked across the sea to th
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Location: Pembrokeshire Coast Path, St Davids, Haverfordwest SA62 6PT, UK
Photo credit: © Roger Hollingsworth / Alamy / Afripics
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Keywords: chapel, coast, davids, justinian, pembrokshire, ramsey, ruin, saint, st, stinan, wales
