Folklore and Legends of South Wales - the Baby of Worm's Head

History and folklore are an integral part of Welsh history. Told by oral and written recitations, they serve as a link to the past and the means to spark the imaginations off future generations.

In a series of articles, I hope to pass on to you a small part of Welsh traditional folklore. Some of the legends have been told in many different versions, subject to the storyteller's interpretation. The legends all have their roots in South Wales, focusing primarily on Swansea, the Gower and Carmarthenshire areas.

I feel that the best thing about the legends I have chosen to pass on to you is you can visit the sites today. Most are accessible as a nice walking tour and can be shared by all I hope you enjoy these bits of folklore as much as I do!

The Baby of Worm's Head

The inhospitable and harsh nature of the promontory of the Gower peninsula known as Worm's Head is hardly a nurturing place for a beast, let alone a human. But it was here that a special child known as Cenydd was to grow up.

King Arthur was ruler of the land and was based at Loughor. The infant Cenydd was bought before the king. The child was crippled by a bad leg, made so by the sin of an incestuous relationship of his mother.

The King's courtiers advised Arthur that the child must be executed, as it was evil. But Arthur felt the God alone should determine the child's fate. The baby was placed in a wicker basket, and cast adrift on the Loughor river, carried down the estuary and out to sea.

A terrible gale blew during the night and tossed the basket about, moving it toward the jagged rocks of Worm's Head. Just as the basket was about to be thrown against the rocks and destroyed, the baby was rescued by a flock of seagulls and carried to safety on the cliff tops. The gulls laid the child on a bed of soft feathers and protected him from the storm.

For eight long days and nights, the gulls shielded their charge from the wind and cold. On the ninth day an angel from heaven came to visit the baby. He laid the gift of a brass bell near the child. The bell, which now rests in the chapel at Burry Holms, was called the Titty Bell.

The bell was said to have allowed the baby to suckle it for nourishment and later a deer provided milk for the growing baby. After a time, an angel came to the child, who was now a small boy, and instructed him to eat a diet of five kinds of herbs, Cenydd was taught daily by an angel in all that was good and holy, and he remained on Worm's Head for 18 years, as God commanded.

In Cenydd's 18th year, God told him to leave his home and go to another headland to the north where he would find a fresh water spring. Cenydd did as God asked, even though his crippled leg was very painful to him during the long journey.

At the headland Cenydd was told to build a chapel and live there, to give the water and pass on the word of God to all who visited him. This he did, sharing God's word and the water of the spring.

People came from near and far to hear Cenydd and to receive the blessings of this wise man. He later assisted Saint David to build churches and perform good works in God's name. Saint Cenydd's chapel is in ruins, but he lives on in the church and village of Llangennith. And from the village you can see Worm's Head, where the boy who was cast out as evil, became one of God's Holiest messengers.