Meet the man who cycled 1600 miles to raise money for a monument to Owain Lawgoch
Cross Hands man Kevin Bowen recently cycled a massive 1600-mile round trip to raise money for a monument to Welsh hero Owain Lawgoch. Read on to discover more about his fundraising campaign.
Cross Hands man Kevin Bowen has made it his mission to get a monument erected to Owain Lawgoch, a rightful heir to the Welsh throne who was murdered in France in the 14th Century.
In June, Kevin, who had previously never cycled any significant distance, completed a 1600-mile cycle trip from Cross Hands to Mortagne-Sur-Gironde in France and back to raise money for the monument and for Parkinson’s UK.
To date, he’s raised £1378 for Parkinson’s and £1216 for the monument. He now aims to continue spreading awareness of his campaign, and Owain Lawgoch’s story, to make the monument a reality.
Owain Lawgoch was a Welsh soldier who fought for France as a mercenary, but had a claim to the Welsh throne, being a descendant of Llywelyn the Great. When he announced that he was going to take the Welsh throne, the English sent an agent to assassinate him. The agent, a Scot called John Lamb, won Owain’s trust and was appointed his chamberlain – a position that gave him the opportunity to stab Owain to death in 1377.
There is a monument to Owain in Mortagne-Sur-Gironde, the town he was besieging before his death, but no monument in Wales. Living in Cross Hands, Kevin was particularly aware of Owain’s story, as the nearby Llyn Llech Owain (“Lake of Owain’s Slab”) is named after him.
The story goes that Owain was once tasked with looking after a well at the site of the lake, but he forgot to replace the slab that kept the water from flooding, and as a result, the lake was created. Another Carmarthenshire site linked with Owain Lawgoch is Castell Carreg Cennen: he is said to be sleeping with his soldiers in the cave under the castle, ready to awaken and re-take his crown when the time comes.
“I would be happy for a monument to go anywhere in Wales; his story has to do with the whole of Wales, but when you talk to people in this area, there is a strong connection with Owain Lawgoch,” says Kevin.
Knowing that Mortagne already had a monument to Owain Lawgoch, he made it his goal to cycle there, setting off on May 7 accompanied by his friend Jim Rees, who drove along in his van to take pictures and footage.
They had a tough first day: it was raining, and the cycle track was so wet that Kevin could only travel at a slow jogging pace. Arriving after 10pm at their first scheduled spot, it was too wet to camp, so Kevin spent the night sleeping in the front of the van.
“That was hard, but it was good because it gave us strength to get through the other tough days: we told ourselves if we got through that, we could get through this, and we just did it,” says Kevin.
They were delighted with the welcome they received in the French towns they passed through along the way.
“We had a fantastic response down in France,” says Kevin. “The Tourist Board gave us a hotel for two nights on the way down, yeah, and one night on the way back, they gave us a boat trip out to an old lighthouse.
“Royan cycling club came to join me on the day I was cycling into my destination – about 25 local cyclists came along and we met the mayor in the evening. Almost before the wheels of my bike stopped turning, this chap asked me if I was willing to play the song I’ve written about Owain Lawgoch.
“They put posters of me in the shops, I’d been in the local press, I was walking around Mortagne, and a lot of people recognized me. It was unbelievable to have all this happening 800 miles away from home. It was fantastic, to be honest, an experience that money couldn’t have bought.”
On June 22, he had a triumphant return to Wales, with a welcome event held in Mumbles by Wheelrights, a group that campaigns for improved facilities for cyclists in the Swansea Bay area.
But while he’s delighted with the welcome he received in France and Wales, Kevin remains clear about the purpose of his fundraising efforts.
“I didn’t want a fuss for me, I don’t expect anything for me. I want the monument. I only did this to raise awareness for the Welsh public, or anybody from around the world who’s interested in Wales, to see if they would like a monument in Wales. I think that question has been answered by the amount of money the public have put towards it, which is a strong foundation to build upon.
“Owain Lawgoch was next in line to be the King of Wales, and they tried to get him back here, but he was murdered by a Scotsman paid by the English. If more people realise that he was next in line to be the king of Wales, and what happened to him in the end, that is a massive reason to have a monument in Wales. I’m thinking of doing an annual charity bike ride locally to keep the momentum going.”
Get involved in Kevin’s campaign, donate money, and listen to his song about Owain Lawgoch here.