Cadfan of Wales, Abbot (AC)
(also known as Catamanu, Catman)
Died probably at Bardsey in the early 6th century. A missionary from Letavia (probably in Brittany but possibly in southeastern Wales) to Wales, Cadfan founded monasteries at Towyn in Merionethshire and Llangadfan in Montgomeryshire, and later a monastic center on the island of Bardsey (Ynys Enlli), where he was first abbot. Bardsey developed into a great center of monasticism. It is said that as he went from Towyn to Llangadfan he passed through Pistyll Gadfan, Eisteddfa Gadfa, and Llwbyr Gadfan.
His holy well could be found in the churchyard at Towyn, near his chapel (since destroyed), where many were cured of rheumatism, scrofula, and skin diseases. It continued to attract pilgrims long after the Reformation. Baths and changing-rooms were added until it went into disuse about 1894.
In the church at Towyn, there is a stone pillar, called the Cadfan stone, with an ancient inscription that marks the place of his burial:
"Beneath a similar mound lies Cadfan, sad it should enclose the praise of the earth. May he rest without blemish."
A Cadfan also has an active cultus in Finistère and Côtes du Nord, Brittany. While it is generally held that this is the same Cadfan (the reason for thinking that he was a Breton), there are still problems in making the connection between the two. The question may never be settled. The Breton Cadfan is the patron of a church at Poullan, near Douarnenez. There is an extant statue of him in military garb at Briec (Benedictines, Delaney, Farmer).