Melangell's Little Lambs
Have you ever wondered why people think of lambs as peaceful, innocent and kind little animals? Why should we look after all living things on earth?
Princess Melangell lived in the 7th Century. She did not want to marry the man chosen for her by her father. Therefore, she ran away from Ireland and lived as a hermit in the valley of Cwm Pennant in Montgomeryshire.
Suddenly, the red deer stopped grazing in the field near the river. The wild boar stopped rooting under the bushes. But the brown hare went on crouching in her nest in the grass.
The noise came closer. The red deer and the wild boar turned and fled into the woods. In her nest, the hare sat up. The grass was waving and the earth was shaking.
With one leap, the hare shot out of the grass. The hounds and huntsmen came racing towards her but with a squeal of terror, off she ran, jumping this way and that.
Prince Brochwel was not very happy because he and his men had galloped for miles over hill and dale without catching a single thing. A hare was better than nothing.
"Catch that hare!" he bellowed.
The hare raced towards a narrow wooded valley in the mountains.
Brochwel cracked his whip. With loud excited barks, the hounds ran into the trees. Brochwel leapt from his horse and ran after them.
But as soon as he entered the woods, something strange happened.
The noise stopped. Brochwel could hear no barks, no snarls, no growls. He raised his horn to his lips and blew hard. Not a sound came out!
Worriedly, Brochwel stumbled through the trees till he came to a clearing. There he saw his hounds squatting on the ground, with their tails wagging. A young woman stood in front of them. She was nursing a brown hare that lay like a little lamb in her arms.
Brochwel opened his mouth to shout, but all he could do was whisper.
"Who are you?" he asked the girl.
"I am Melangell," she replied.
A gentle rustling came from the woods behind her. Beneath the branches stood the red deer, the wild boar and a row of brown hares. They were all watching the prince, but they were not afraid. No one could harm them while Melangell was near. Brochwel dropped to his knees.
"Melangell," he said, "you are a remarkable young woman. I shall never hunt here again. From now on, the valley belongs to you and your animals."
Brochwel called his hounds and his huntsmen. Quietly, they went away.
Melangell built a church in the valley, the church of Pennant Melangell. You can still see the church today and her little lambs. Melangell's little lambs have long ears and can run fast. Why? They are brown hares! Pennant Melangell has been a place of pilgrimage for many centuries. Melangell remains the patron saint of hares and small animals.
You cannot believe anything you read when reading a legend. What about trying to find out different accounts of the legend? Why do people visit Melangell's church today? How can we find out if Brochwel, Prince of Powys, existed during the 7th Century in Wales? What evidence and sources can we use to find out?
Key Questions
Question 2
Question 3
Melangell
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