Saint Ailbe

St Elvis  is a 6th century) Celtic saint, who goes under a few names, so lets meet him. Ailbe  Ailfyw, Elfyw, Elfeis, Elvis, Elouis.

If I was to quote the background of his birth you would float in enormous long Welsh words and still not know anything about the lineage.  But suffice it to say that his mother was the daughter of the sister of Saint Non and that he was a great figure in the Irish church.

In the stories that have been written down through the centuries, he evangelised Southern Ireland, founding the see of Emlech and from King Angus of Munster Ailbe obtained the island of Aran for Enda.

If we follow his genealogy a bit further he was the nephew of Non and therefore a cousin of Saint David.

"A church near St. David's called Llanailfyw or St. Elfeis, was dedicated to him.  St.Elvis Farm and St. Elvis Church are near the Preseli hills."

Baring-Gould who was a Victorian priest/archaeologist wrote massively on history and his quote above, has more or less written the  evidence about Ailbe's connection with the area round St. Davids.

One of the stories written about this saint was that he was raised and suckled by a she-wolf and retired to the 'Land of Promise' a mixture of the 'happy other-world" of the Celts and the paradise of Christians. Religion is of course all about myth making, societal order of course, and obviously hierarchy.  

But all that is yesteryear, stories repeated and written down till they begin to twist and twirl into fantasy as the monks wrote them down.

Elvis Farm definitely exists, you must walk along for about a mile down the farm road.  Always walk when the honeysuckle is out and the sweet smell wafts on the breeze. Wild honeysuckle seems to grow all over this part of Wales.  Try not to be run over by the milk lorry as he comes down, you will come across the cows who dedicate their milk for our consumption further on down in the fields.  I remember them coming from the milking parlour, at least 50, in single file they walked and Paul who was with me was too scared to cross them but they were more interested in the green grass than charging him.

You will arrive at the farm stead, a megalithic stone stands at the gate, the farm buildings ahead of you.  One of the farm buildings would be the old church I believe but did not check.  Go through the gate and the double chambered cromlech greets you.  It is surrounded by farm detritus.  Its capstones tumbled, and you can laugh at that 19th century farmer who tried to dynamite it out of existence, for his foolishness.

Was this long driveway quarried or maybe blown up by dynamite?

The double chambered cromlech huddled against the farm buildings

The pointed capstone, featured on so many capstones. Did it signify anything? some say that it is a female stone representing genitalia.

Probably a prehistoric stone and  according to the air surveys of the area there are ground marks showing the extent of the prehistoric settlement.

There is reference to how the farmer blew two stones up here.