Did the Clergyman Meet an Alien ET?

The sleepy village of Bodfari in North Wales

Was this an Alien abduction attempt?

Here is a strange tale indeed. Buried in the memoirs of a clergyman is a tale of his childhood and a meeting with (and a near abduction by), some "strange beings". One would assume that being a Clergyman, he is likely to be truthful in what he wrote. He does not claim to know what these "beings" were, other than the fact that they were terrifying and plainly not human. The incident is said to have taken place in the 1700s, so the thought that they could have possibly been Aliens from another planet would probably not have occurred to him, but the similarities between this story and modern day tales of UFOs and "Alien sightings" is plain to see.

The Clergyman in question is the Rev. Dr. Edward Williams. He was born in 1750, barely three miles away from where I live (North Wales in the UK), at a place called Glan Clwyd, Bodfari, and died in 1813.

The Village Church, Bodfari

Dr. Williams was well known and liked in the area, and later on in his life, he published his autobiography. The story it told of his life was unremarkable, and very much as you would expect a Country Clergyman's life to be.

However, amongst his childhood reminiscences is a tale so strange that it begs to be explained in rational terms. On the face of it, there doesn't seem to be a rational explanation for it. Modern eyes reading the story might assume that this was a UFO related encounter with extraterrestrial aliens. Back then they were perhaps perceived as Welsh Pixies - "Y Tylwyth Teg" (The Fair Folk), but whatever the truth of the matter, it nevertheless provides food for thought.

An early Illustration of "Y Tylwyth Teg" (The Fair Folk) - Welsh Pixies

The Strange Beings - ET?

The story is best told in his own words, so here it is, as he wrote it.

"On a fine summer day (about midsummer) between the hours of twelve at noon and one, my eldest sister and myself, our next neighbours children Barbera and Ann Evans, both older than myself, were in a field called Cae Caled near their house (Llanelwyd), all innocently engaged at play by a hedge under a tree and not far from the stile next to that house, when one of us observed on the middle of the field a company of - what shall I call them? - Beings, neither men nor women nor children dancing with great briskness.

They were in full view less than a hundred yards from us, consisting of about seven or eight couples: we could not well reckon them, owing to the briskness of their motions and the consternation with which we were struck at a sight so unusual.

They were clothed in red, dress not unlike a military uniform, without hats, but their heads tied with handkerchiefs of a reddish colour, sprigged or spotted with yellow, all uniform in this as in habit, all tied behind with the corners hanging down their backs, and white handkerchiefs in their hands held loose by the corners.

They appeared of a size somewhat less than our own, but more like dwarfs than children. On first discovery we began, with no small dread, to question one another as to what they could be, as there were no soldiers in the country, nor was it time for May dancers, and as they differed much from all the human beings we had ever seen.

Thus alarmed we dropped our play, left our station and made for the stile. Still keeping our eyes upon them we observed one of their company starting from the rest and making towards us with a running pace. I being the youngest was last at the stile, and though struck with an inexpressible panic, saw the grim elf just at my heels, having a full and clear, though terrific view of him, with his ancient, swarthy and grim complexion.

I screamed out exceedingly; my sister also and our companions set up a roar, and the former dragged me with violence over the stile on which at the instant I was disengaged from it, this warlike Liliputian leaned and stretched himself after me but came not over".

The Investigation

Following their lucky escape, the terrified children ran all the way back to the house, and gabbled out the story to their concerned parents. A small task force consisting of several men was assembled and sent out to investigate. They arrived en-masse at Cae Caled field, but found nothing. The field was empty. Whoever or whatever had been there was gone.