Oudoceus
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Saint Oudoceus (
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
) or Euddogwy (
Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...
) (c.536–c.615 or 625) is generally known as the third
Bishop of Llandaff The Bishop of Llandaff is the ordinary of the Church in Wales Diocese of Llandaff. Area of authority The diocese covers most of the County of Glamorgan. The bishop's seat is in the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul (the site of a ...
in
South Wales South Wales ( cy, De Cymru) is a loosely defined region of Wales bordered by England to the east and mid Wales to the north. Generally considered to include the historic counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire, south Wales extends westwards ...
. In reality he was probably a 7th-century bishop at
Llandeilo Llandeilo () is a town and community in Carmarthenshire, Wales, situated at the crossing of the River Towy by the A483 on a 19th-century stone bridge. Its population was 1,795 at the 2011 Census. It is adjacent to the westernmost point of the B ...
Fawr.
Wendy Davies Wendy Elizabeth Davies (born 1942) is an emeritus professor of history at University College London, England. Her research focuses on rural societies in early medieval Europe, focusing on the regions of Wales, Brittany and Iberia. Career Da ...
puts his episcopal reign between about 650 and 700.


Life

Information regarding Oudeceus is largely derived from the 12th century ''Book of Llandaff'', composed to enhance the prestige of the see of Llandaff as reorganised by the Normans. His supposed consecration by the Archbishop of Canterbury is the first mention in a written source of the diocese being subservient to Canterbury. Land grants in the ''
Book of Llandaff The Book of Llandaff ( la, Liber Landavensis; cy, Llyfr Llandaf, ', or '), is the chartulary of the cathedral of Llandaff, a 12th-century compilation of documents relating to the history of the diocese of Llandaff in Wales. It is written prima ...
'' show Oudoceus as a contemporary of late 7th-century kings of South Wales. He was said to be the son of Buddig, a king of Brittany, and Anawfedd, the sister of
Saint Teilo Saint Teilo ( la, Teliarus or '; br, TeliauWainewright, John. in ''The Catholic Encyclopedia'', Vol. XIV. Robert Appleton Co. (New York), 1912. Accessed 20 July 2013. or '; french: Télo or ';  – 9 February ), also known by his ...
. His brothers were said to be the saints Ismael, Bishop of Rhos, and Tyfei, the martyr. His associations with Llandaff are very strong and it seems he was an early patron of the church there, where he is said to have placed relics of Saint Teilo, one of his predecessors as bishop. In the ''Life of St. Oudoceus'', Einion, King of
Glywysing Glywysing was, from the sub-Roman period to the Early Middle Ages, a petty kingdom in south-east Wales. Its people were descended from the Iron Age tribe of the Silures, and frequently in union with Gwent, merging to form Morgannwg. Name a ...
, is said to have been hunting a stag amongst the rocks and woods of the river Wye; when the stag reaching the cloak of Oudoceus lay down on it, the hounds were unable to touch it. Einion then made a gift of land to the saint. Einion, however, was the son of
Morgan Hen ab Owain Morgan Hen ab Owain or Morgan the Old (died 974), first known as Morgan ab Owain of Gwent and also known as Moragn Hen Fawr, was the king of Morgannwg. He ruled from AD 942 to 974. In 931, Morgan was one of the Welsh rulers who submitted to Athels ...
(died 974), thus not a contemporary. The original church at Llandaff (perhaps a monastery) may well have been an early foundation. However, it is likely to have been founded by Saint Oudoceus rather than Saint Teilo. He eventually retired to
Llandogo Llandogo ( cy, Llaneuddogwy) is a small village in Monmouthshire, south Wales, between Monmouth and Chepstow in the lower reaches of the Wye Valley AONB, two miles north of Tintern. It is set on a steep hillside overlooking the River Wye and a ...
, near
Tintern Tintern ( cy, Tyndyrn) is a village in the community (Wales), community of Wye Valley (community), Wye Valley, on the west bank of the River Wye in Monmouthshire, Wales, close to the border with England, about north of Chepstow. It is popular w ...
, and died there on 2 July, which is his feast day. He was supposedly buried at the church in Llandaff, on the site of the present
Llandaff Cathedral Llandaff Cathedral ( cy, Eglwys Gadeiriol Llandaf) is an Anglican cathedral and parish church in Llandaff, Cardiff, Wales. It is the seat of the Bishop of Llandaff, head of the Church in Wales Diocese of Llandaff. It is dedicated to Saint Peter ...
, where there was a shrine to him until 1547. He is one of the three
saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of Q-D-Š, holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and Christian denomination, denominat ...
s to whom the cathedral is dedicated.


Hagiography

Oudoceus's 12th-century
hagiographic A hagiography (; ) is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader, as well as, by extension, an adulatory and idealized biography of a founder, saint, monk, nun or icon in any of the world's religions. Early Christian hagiographies might ...
'life' in the ''
Book of Llandaff The Book of Llandaff ( la, Liber Landavensis; cy, Llyfr Llandaf, ', or '), is the chartulary of the cathedral of Llandaff, a 12th-century compilation of documents relating to the history of the diocese of Llandaff in Wales. It is written prima ...
'' tells how he was the son of King Budic of
Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, Historical region, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known ...
,Monks of Ramsgate. “Oudaceus”. Book of Saints, 1921. CatholicSaints.Info. 21 May 2016
/ref> born in that country shortly after his father's return there from exile in
Dyfed Dyfed () is a preserved county in southwestern Wales. It is a mostly rural area with a coastline on the Irish Sea and the Bristol Channel. Between 1974 and 1996, Dyfed was also the name of the area's county council and the name remains in use f ...
. His mother, Anawed, was said to be the sister of Saint TeiloNedelec, Louis. ''Cambria Sacra: Or, The History of the Early Cambro-British Christians'', Chapter XI, Burns and Oates, 1879
/ref> and Budic promised that Oudoceus could train for a life in the Church under him. So Oudoceus came to
Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
and eventually succeeded Teilo as
Bishop of Llandaff The Bishop of Llandaff is the ordinary of the Church in Wales Diocese of Llandaff. Area of authority The diocese covers most of the County of Glamorgan. The bishop's seat is in the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul (the site of a ...
.Butler, Alban. ''The Lives of the Saints'', 1866
/ref> There is no evidence that
Llandaff Llandaff (; cy, Llandaf ; from 'church' and '' Taf'') is a district, community and coterminous electoral ward in the north of Cardiff, capital of Wales. It was incorporated into the city in 1922. It is the seat of the Bishop of Llandaff, whose ...
was the centre of a
bishopric In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...
until at least the early 11th century, and it is now thought that Oudoceus could have been based at Llandeilo Fawr or at Llandogo, where he is said to have been a bishop in c.580. The "cult of Euddogwy" may thus have been a revival of the cult of an earlier saint which attempted to derive legitimacy from the connection with Llandaff.


References

{{authority control 7th-century births Bishops of Llandaff 7th-century Welsh bishops Medieval Welsh saints Burials at Llandaff Cathedral 7th-century Christian saints Medieval Breton saints 615 deaths