Pillar of Eliseg

The Pillar of Eliseg (now standing near the Abbey of Valle Crucis) was erected by Cogen, king of Powys. This inscription not only mentions several individuals described in the Historia Britonum, but also complements the information presented in that text. A generally accepted translation of this inscription, one of the longest surviving inscriptions from pre-Viking Wales, is as follows:

[Cross] Concenn son of Catell, Catell son of Brochmail, Brochmail son of Eliseg, Eliseg son of Guoillauc. :[Cross] And that Concenn, great-grandson of Eliseg, erected this stone for his great-grandfather Eliseg. :[Cross] The same Eliseg, who joined together the inheritance of Powys . . . out of the power of the Angles with his sword and with fire. :[Cross] Whosoever repeats the writing, let him give a blessing on the soul of Eliseg.

[Cross] This is that Concenn who captured with his hand eleven hundred acres which used to belong to his kingdom of Powys . . .

[the column is broken here]

[Cross] Britu son of Vortigern, whom Germanus blessed, and whom Sevira bore to him, daughter of Maximus the king, who killed the king of the Romans. :[Cross] Conmarch painted this writing at the request of king Concenn. :[Cross] The blessing of the Lord be upon Concenn and upon his entire household, and upon the entire region of Powys until the Day of Judgement.