Saint Budoc of Dol (also Budeaux or Beuzec) was a

Bishop of Dol The Breton and French Catholic diocese of Dol existed from 848 to the French Revolution. It was suppressed by the Concordat of 1801. Its see was Dol Cathedral. Its scattered territory (deriving from the holdings of the Celtic monastery, and inclu ...

, venerated after his death as a saint in both

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period ...

(now in France) and

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...

(now in England). Saint Budoc is the patron of Plourin Ploudalmezeau in

Finistère Finistère (, ; br, Penn-ar-Bed ) is a department of France in the extreme west of Brittany. In 2019, it had a population of 915,090.

where his relics are preserved. His feast day was celebrated on 8 December, the date still used in Devon, but in Brittany this was moved to 9 December."Budoc", ''Oxford Dictionary of Saints
/ref>

Name

The name Budoc, or Beuzec, means "saved from the waters" from the Breton ''beuziñ'' meaning "drown"; but Baring-Gould finds this "fanciful". In old Celtic, ''boudi'' means "victory" and "profit".

Life

Baring-Gould suggests that the princess Azenor fled Brittany with her young son due to dynastic conflict. Arriving first in Cornwall, they then proceeded to Ireland, where Budoc became a monk. They later returned to Brittany, landing at Porspoder near Brest.Baring-Gould, Sabine. "S. Budoc, Abbot and Confessor", ''The Lives of the British Saints'', C. J. Clark, 1907, p. 329
/ref> Hagiographer G.H. Doble is of the opinion that Budoc was a once famous abbot whose chief establishment was on the Breton coast. The

vita Vita or VITA (plural vitae) is Latin for "life", and may refer to: * ''Vita'', the usual start to the title of a biography in Latin, by which (in a known context) the work is often referred to; frequently of a saint, then called hagiography * Vita ...

of Breton

Saint Winwaloe Saint Winwaloe ( br, Gwenole; french: Guénolé; la, Winwallus or ; – 3 March 532) was the founder and first abbot of Landévennec Abbey (literally " Lann of Venec"), also known as the Monastery of Winwaloe. It was just south of Brest in Brit ...

describes Budoc as a teacher living on the island of

Laurea In Italy, the ''laurea'' is the main post-secondary academic degree. The name originally referred literally to the laurel wreath, since ancient times a sign of honor and now worn by Italian students right after their official graduation ceremony ...

. Later Budoc succeeded Saint Samson and

Magloire Magloire, better known as Saint Magloire of Dol, is a Breton saint. Little reliable information is known of Magloire as the earliest written sources appeared three centuries after his death. These sources claim that he was a monk from Wales wh ...

as bishop of Dol and ruled for 26 years (according to the 10th century vita of Magloire and the 11th century 'Chronicle of Dol'). Baring-Gould distinguishes between the abbot Budoc and the successor to bishop

at Dol.

Legend

Budoc is reputed to have been grandson of the King Even of Brest. His mother, Princess Azenor of Brest, had been falsely accused of infidelity by her jealous stepmother, who had thrown the pregnant Azenor into the sea in a cask. (A tower of the Château de Brest is named for her.) Azenor invoked the help of

Saint Brigid Saint Brigid of Kildare or Brigid of Ireland ( ga, Naomh Bríd; la, Brigida; 525) is the patroness saint (or 'mother saint') of Ireland, and one of its three national saints along with Patrick and Columba. According to medieval Irish hagiogr ...

. The cask drifted for five months. Shorty after Azenor's baby was born, the cask washed ashore on the coast of Ireland. The story echoes Greek myth. A villager summoned the abbot of Beau Port, near

Waterford "Waterford remains the untaken city" , mapsize = 220px , pushpin_map = Ireland#Europe , pushpin_map_caption = Location within Ireland##Location within Europe , pushpin_relief = 1 , coordinates ...

, and the child was christened the next day. Azenor became the washer-woman of the monastery, and Budoc was raised there. Azenor's stepmother fell ill, and upon her deathbed she recanted the evil lies she had spread. Azenor's husband sailed in search of Azenor, and arriving in Ireland, the couple was reconciled, but both died before they could return to Brittany. (However, a tradition in

Cornouaille Cornouaille (; br, Kernev, Kerne) is a historical region on the west coast of Brittany in West France. The name is cognate with Cornwall in neighbouring Great Britain. This can be explained by the settlement of Cornouaille by migrant princ ...

has Azenor founding a religious establishment at

Cap Sizun The Cap Sizun (; br, Ar C'hab) is a headland forming the western extremity of the Cornouaille, in the French département of Finistère in Brittany, corresponding to the former canton of Pont-Croix. The best known sites in this region are th ...

). Budoc became a monk. He eventually left Ireland, sailing in a stone trough that landed at Porspoder.

Budoc in South-West England

Budoc is reputed to have sailed across the Plymouth Sound, until he found an inlet on the Devon side of the

River Tamar The Tamar (; kw, Dowr Tamar) is a river in south west England, that forms most of the border between Devon (to the east) and Cornwall (to the west). A part of the Tamar Valley is a World Heritage Site due to its historic mining activities. T ...

. He landed in Budshead Creek, part of the present district of

Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to ...

called

St Budeaux St Budeaux is an area and ward in the north west of Plymouth in the English county of Devon. Original settlement The name St Budeaux comes from Saint Budoc, the Bishop of Dol (Brittany). Around 480, Budoc is said to have founded a settlemen ...

. His supposed activity suggests the foundation of an early church in Plymouth.http://members.fortunecity.com/gerdewnansek/devonssaints.html
However, there is no evidence of the name in Devon prior to the 16th century. There is also an ancient church said to have been dedicated by him at Budock in

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a Historic counties of England, historic county and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people ...

, and there was once one in

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

too.

Doble, G. H. Gilbert Hunter Doble (26 November 1880 – 15 April 1945) was an Anglican priest and Cornish historian and hagiographer. Early life G. H. Doble was born in Penzance, Cornwall, on 26 November 1880. His father, John Medley Doble, shared his enthus ...

(1964) ''The Saints of Cornwall: part 3''. Truro: Dean and Chapter; pp. 3-14 Saint Budoc's feast day is celebrated in Devon on 8 December.

Troparion of Saint Budoc

''Thou wast miraculously preserved from the ocean's fury''
''and, being sustained by the hand of God,''
''thou didst devote thyself to his service, O Hierarch Budoc.''
''Being showered with both temporal and spiritual honours both in

Armagh Armagh ( ; ga, Ard Mhacha, , "Macha's height") is the county town of County Armagh and a city in Northern Ireland, as well as a civil parish. It is the ecclesiastical capital of Ireland – the seat of the Archbishops of Armagh, the ...

and in Dol,''
''thou didst labour to win souls for Christ,''
''therefore we implore thine aid,''
''begging Christ our God that he will save our souls''.

Legacy

Two stained-glass windows in the chancel of Saint-Budoc Church in Porspoder depict scenes from the life of the saint.Loukianoff, Yannick. "Saint-Budoc Church", Patrimoine D'Irois
/ref>

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Budoc 6th-century Breton bishops Bishops of Dol Southwestern Brythonic saints 6th-century Irish abbots 6th-century Christian saints Medieval Irish saints Irish expatriates in France Medieval Breton saints