The setting of the Chapel of St.Gildas is one of the most beautiful in the Blavet Valley. On a grassy bank overlooking the river, it nestles under a huge granite outcrop and is the perfect spot for a picnic. The Chapel marks the site where Gildas, an Irish monk, preached Christianity to a local, mainly pagan population during the 6th century. Gildas and his fellow monk Bieuzy, are said to have lived in a cave at the base of the rock where the chapel now stands and to have had miraculous healing powers.
Legend has it that after healing the daughter of a local Count who had been seriously injured by her husband, Gildas was under threat of death and it was no longer safe for him to remain in the area. Bieuzy, however, continued to preach and was renowned for his ability to cure rabies, which was widespread at the time. Bieuzy met an unpleasant demise when he refused to interrupt one of his sermons to cure the rabid dog of a local pagan chief who later returned and attacked Bieuzy with an axe. A rather macabre statue of Bieuzy with an axe lodged in his head can be seen inside the chapel today.
The chapel is also open to the public every afternoon except Monday from mid-July to mid-September as part of the Art in the Chapels programme. Each year the organisers invite artists from all over the world to display their work in one of 26 local chapels, of which Saint Gildas is one. The Chapels make the perfect back drop for the contemporary art on display and offer visitors a wonderful opportunity to explore the architecture of these historic buildings.
References:Trenčín Castle is relatively large renovated castle, towering on a steep limestone cliff directly above the city of Trenčín. It is a dominant feature not only of Trenčín, but also of the entire Považie region. The castle is a national monument.
History of the castle cliff dates back to the Roman Empire, what is proved by the inscription on the castle cliff proclaiming the victory of Roman legion against Germans in the year 179.
Today’s castle was probably built on the hill-fort. The first proven building on the hill was the Great Moravian rotunda from the 9th century and later there was a stone residential tower, which served to protect the Kingdom of Hungary and the western border. In the late 13th century the castle became a property of Palatine Matúš Csák, who became Mr. of Váh and Tatras.
Matúš Csák of Trenčín built a tower, still known as Matthew’s, which is a dominant determinant of the whole building.