Baruc facts for kids

Baruc (Welsh: Barrwg Welsh pronunciation: [ˈbarʊɡ]; also known as Barruc, Barrog or Barry) was a Welsh saint from the 500s. He is remembered for his connection to Barry Island in Wales. His story tells us about early Christian times in Wales.

Saint Baruc was a student of another famous Welsh saint, Saint Cadoc. One day, they were traveling from an island called Flat Holm. Baruc forgot to bring Cadoc's reading materials. Cadoc sent him back to get them. Sadly, Baruc drowned in the Bristol Channel on his way back.

He was buried on Barry Island in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales. You can still see the old ruins of a chapel built for him on Friars Road, Barry Island. People celebrate his special day, called a feast day, on September 27th.

Baruc's name lives on in Barry today. A Welsh-language primary school there is called "Ysgol Gymraeg Sant Baruc." Also, an area in Barry used for elections is known as the Baruc Ward.

Exploring St Baruc’s Chapel

In the summers of 1894 and 1895, people started digging on Barry Island. They were exploring the area. During these digs, they found the ruins of St. Baruc's chapel. It looked like no other buildings were there before the digging started.

How Old is the Chapel?

Experts believe the chapel was built around the early 700s. It stood for many centuries, even with some changes over time. It was eventually covered by sand sometime in the 1600s.

The chapel was quite small and built simply. It used local stones from the area. Originally, it had a rounded end, called an apse, and a square window. Later, the apse was removed. The chapel was made a bit longer. A new square wall was built with an early English-style window. This window used different types of stones.

Chapel Walls and Floors

The walls of the chapel were about 2 feet 2 inches thick. Inside the main part of the church, there were two or three different floors. The first floor was just earth. Later, a layer of clay covered this. On top of that, there was a concrete floor.

In the rounded end of the chapel, the floor was well-paved. It used flat stones called Lias stone slabs. Underneath these, there seemed to be parts of an even older floor. Outside the chapel, on the north and south walls, there were two simple supports called buttresses.

Chapel Measurements

Here are the sizes of the chapel:

• Length of the main part of the church 19 feet 9 inches (6.02 meters)
• Width 11 feet (3.35 meters)
• Length of the original rounded end 11 feet 6 inches (3.51 meters)
• Width of the rounded end 9 feet 2 inches (2.79 meters)

The Wishing Well

About 300 yards south of the chapel, you can find St. Baruc's well. This well was used as a wishing well. People believed that if you dropped a small offering into the well and made a silent wish or prayer, it would come true. But there was a rule: you couldn't speak to anyone until a stranger spoke to you first!

In September 1895, the well was cleaned out. Many offerings were found inside. These included bent pins, a brass buckle, a small clock wheel, and bits of rags, tape, and string. Most often, people offered bent or straight pins.

Ancient Burial Ground

To the south and east of the chapel, a very large grave area was discovered. Digging in different spots showed that thousands of bodies had been buried there over time. This huge number of burials on an island that usually only had one or two houses is interesting. It suggests that Barry Island was seen as a special, holy place. People might have brought bodies from other places to be buried there.