The Ghost of a suicide

The area of Penrhiwgoch is reputedly the scene of the traditional ghost of a fair young maiden named Bronwen, whose form was said to wander sadly along the hillsides on summer nights. The story goes that Bronwen had a lover, Gwilym, whom Bronwen's brother Cynfyn did not approve. And one night when Gwilym was waiting at their usual trysting place on Penrhiwgoch hill Cynfyn appeared brandishing a sword and calling upon the startled Gwilym to defend himself a strange and bitter battle ensued. Eventually each adversary dealt a mortal blow to the other. When Bronwen arrived a little later it was to find the two blood soaked corpses of the two young men she loved most deeply, and unable to visualise a future life without either, she picked up her brother's sword and took her own life. This tragic tale inspired a poem of sorts, "Bronwen a legend of Penrhiwgoch, Baglan" by a poet from Neath named Price, published in 1852; a poem which ends: "The morning's sun, thro' heaven's bright sheen, on Penrhiwgoch shone bright, but hapless Bronwen ne're was sen, again by mortal sight. But rustics say that in the night when the village hum is still, A fair tho' melancholy sprite still wanders on the hill."

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