Viral Portal News: Bardsey

Bardsey: The island with 20,000 saints and 4 year-round residents

Unknown 12:27 PM 20000 , Bardsey , Island , Residents , Saint's , yearround

<div class="easy-ads"><div class="easy-ads-lite easy-ads-lite-bidvertiser-top" style="display:block;text-align:center;"><ins class="adsbygoogle" style="display:block;" data-ad-client="ca-pub-3942681860132668" data-ad-slot="4831328630" data-ad-format="auto"></ins><br/></div><br/></div><br/><ul><li style="text-align: justify;"><strong>An almost deserted island has become a place of interest: it only has 4 year-round residents, 300 sheep and 20,000 graves</strong></li><br/><li style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Bardsey island was a once thriving place and considered one of the holiest in Britain</strong></li><br/><li style="text-align: justify;"><strong>As young people began to move to the mainland, the population dwindled</strong></li><br/></ul><p style="text-align: justify;">A once superior mainland is now home to about 200 grey seals, 300 sheep and four humans year-round. This is Bardsey Island – the island whose sheep-to-person ration has outweighed that of New Zealand.</p><br/><p style="text-align: justify;">Located 55 miles from Ireland across the Irish Sea, Bardsey has no cars, paved roads, indoor toilets or electric grid. It has caught the attention of some nature-loving travelers who are looking for something different.</p><br/><p style="text-align: justify;">However, this intriguing Welsh isle has not always been like this.</p><br/><p style="text-align: justify;">“For much of its history, the island has been superior to the mainland,” Colin Evans, who runs regular (weather permitting) boat trips to Bardsey and was interviewed by Amanda Ruggeri from <a href="http://www.bbc.com" target="_blank">BBC</a>, said.</p><br/><p style="text-align: justify;">“The center of power has changed,” he explained.</p><br/><p style="text-align: justify;">Bardsey is now known as the “island of 20,000 saints.” Or graves, if you wish. The island’s largest population lie underground.</p><br/><p style="text-align: justify;">Bardsey, according to legends, as reported by BBC, was considered sacred for many years. Some even say that it was the real Avalon where King Arthur was buried. It has also been said that a monastery was founded there by Welsh kings.</p><br/><div class="easy-ads"><div class="easy-ads-lite easy-ads-lite-bidvertiser-middle"><br/><br/></div><br/></div><br/><p style="text-align: justify;">But of all the things that have been said about Bardsey, one legend or story still resonates today: that whoever dies on the island will not go to hell. The story came from St. Leuddad. This traditional belief has helped make the island one of the holiest places in Britain early on during the Middle Ages.</p><br/><p style="text-align: justify;">In the 16th century, based on <a href="http://www.earthables.com" target="_blank">Earthables</a>‘ report, drastic changes took place. Monks left with the 1536 Dissolution of the Monasteries. This was when Bardsey became a go-to spot for pirates. Order was not in place for quite some time but when it was re-established, the mainland became the ruler of the island.</p><br/><p style="text-align: justify;">For a while, in the 19th century, residents earned a living from selling crabs, lobsters and oysters but when 1931 rolled in, the population dropped to less than half of what it had been a century earlier: 54 residents.</p><br/><p style="text-align: justify;">No one really knows for certain what drove the population down but Earthables reports that in a local newspaper published in 1925, there was an article called: “Life Too Dull: Why Bardsey is being deserted.” The article revealed that the young people of Bardsey wanted to access the “kinema.” Kinema refers to the new movie houses that were being constructed in the mainland.</p><br/><p style="text-align: justify;">Modern changes are slowly occurring in Bardsey. Solar panels are being built and are able to sustain refrigerators. There is also a new satellite broadband link that allows residents to communicate with those that are in the mainland.</p><br/><p><a href="http://kickerdaily.com/bardsey-the-island-with-20000-saints-and-4-year-round-residents/" rel="nofollow">Kicker Daily News</a></p><br/><div class="easy-ads"><div class="easy-ads-lite easy-ads-lite-bidvertiser-bottom" style="display:block;text-align:center;"><ins class="adsbygoogle" style="display:block;" data-ad-client="ca-pub-3942681860132668" data-ad-slot="4831328630" data-ad-format="auto"></ins><br/></div><br/></div>

An almost deserted island has become a place of interest: it only has 4 year-round residents, 300 sheep and 20,000 graves Bardsey island was...