Saint Petroc or Petrock ( lat-med, Petrocus; cy, Pedrog; french: link=no, Perreux; ) was a British prince and

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι� ...

saint. Probably born in South

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

, he primarily ministered to the Britons of

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 ...

(Dewnans) and

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 ...

(Kernow) then forming the kingdom of

Dumnonia Dumnonia is the Latinised name for a Brythonic kingdom that existed in Sub-Roman Britain between the late 4th and late 8th centuries CE in the more westerly parts of present-day South West England. It was centred in the area of modern Devon, ...

where he is associated with a monastery at Padstow, which is named after him (Pedroc-stowe, or 'Petrock's Place'). Padstow appears to have been his earliest major cult centre, but

Bodmin Bodmin () is a town and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated south-west of Bodmin Moor. The extent of the civil parish corresponds fairly closely to that of the town so is mostly urban in character. It is bordered ...

became the major centre for his veneration when his relics were moved to the monastery there in the later ninth century. Bodmin monastery became one of the wealthiest Cornish foundations by the eleventh century. There is a second ancient dedication to him nearby at

Little Petherick Little Petherick ( kw, Nansfenten) is a village and civil parish in north Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated two miles (3 kilometres) south of Padstow and 6 miles (9 kilometres) west of Wadebridge. As of the 2011 census its populat ...

or "Saint Petroc Minor". In Devon ancient dedications total a probable seventeen (plus

Timberscombe Timberscombe is a village and civil parish on the River Avill south-west of Dunster, and south of Minehead within the Exmoor National Park in Somerset, England. The parish includes the hamlet of Bickham. History The parish was part of the hun ...

just over the border in Somerset), mostly coastal and including one within the old Roman walls of

Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...

as well as the villages of

Petrockstowe Petrockstowe (or Petrockstow) is a small village and civil parish in the district of Torridge in Northern Devon, England. Its population in 2001 was 379, hardly different from the figure of 385 recorded in 1901. The southern boundary of the pa ...

and Newton St Petroc. In Wales his name is commemorated at St Petrox near Pembroke, Ferwig near Cardigan and

Llanbedrog Llanbedrog is a village and community on the Llŷn peninsula of Gwynedd in Wales. It is situated on the south side of the peninsula on the A499 between Pwllheli and Abersoch. Formerly in the county of Caernarfonshire, it had a population ...

on the

Llŷn Peninsula The Llŷn Peninsula ( cy, Penrhyn Llŷn or , ) extends into the Irish Sea from North West Wales, south west of the Isle of Anglesey. It is part of the historic county of Caernarfonshire, and historic region and local authority area of Gwynedd. Mu ...

. He also became a popular saint in

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 ...

by the end of the tenth century.

Life

The earliest ''Life'' of Petroc states that he was a younger son of an unnamed Welsh chieftain: the twelfth century version known as the ''Gotha Life'', written at Bodmin, identifies that king as Glywys 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 and ...

(Orme 2000, p. 215) and Petroc as a brother of

Gwynllyw Gwynllyw Filwr or Gwynllyw Farfog (), known in English in a corrupted form as Woolos the Warrior or Woolos the Bearded ( la, Gundleus, Gundleius or Gwenleue; 450 – 500 AD) was a Welsh king and religious figure. He was King of Gwynllwg in Sout ...

and uncle of

Cadoc Saint Cadoc or Cadog ( lat-med, Cadocus; also Modern Welsh: Cattwg; born or before) was a 5th–6th-century Abbot of Llancarfan, near Cowbridge in Glamorgan, Wales, a monastery famous from the era of the British church as a centre of learni ...

. He studied in Ireland, where later he is said to have been the teacher of Kevin of Glendalough. He made a pilgrimage to Rome, and returning to Cornwall, the wind and tide brought him to

Trebetherick Trebetherick ( kw, Trebedrek) is a village on the north coast of Cornwall. It is situated on the east side of the River Camel estuary approximately six miles (10 km) north of Wadebridge and half a mile (800 metres) south of Polzeath.Ordn ...

. He founded a monastery and school at Lanwethinoc (the church of Wethinoc, an earlier holy man), at the mouth of the river Camel on the North Cornish Coast. It came to be called Petrocs-Stow (Petroc's Place), now Padstow. St Guron founded a hermitage at Bodmin, but left for the coast upon the arrival of Petroc. St Guron's Well is located a at the western entrance to the churchyard of

St Petroc's Church, Bodmin St Petroc's Church, Bodmin, also known as Bodmin Parish Church, was a Roman Catholic Church until the reformation and is currently an Anglican parish church in the town of Bodmin, Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The existing church building i ...

. All accounts indicate that Petroc retired from Padstow to Bodmin. Petroc ministered throughout

, which included Kernow (Cornwall), and parts of Dewnans (Devon), Somerset and Dorset. He also served in Brittany. Petroc founded churches in Little Petherick and in many parts of Britain, Wales and Brittany. He is said to have converted

Constantine of Cornwall Constantine (, cy, Cystennin, fl. 520–523) was a 6th-century king of Dumnonia in sub-Roman Britain, who was remembered in later British tradition as a legendary King of Britain. The only contemporary information about him comes from Gilda ...

to Christianity by saving a deer Constantine was hunting. Constantine later established a hermitage at what is now called Constantine Bay. After thirty years, legend says that Petroc went on the pilgrimage to Rome by way of

. The place of his death was reputedly at a house belonging to a family named Rovel, thought to be a farm now called Treravel near

Veneration

With Saint Piran and

Saint Michael Michael (; he, מִיכָאֵל, lit=Who is like El od, translit=Mīḵāʾēl; el, Μιχαήλ, translit=Mikhaḗl; la, Michahel; ar, ميخائيل ، مِيكَالَ ، ميكائيل, translit=Mīkāʾīl, Mīkāl, Mīkhāʾīl), also ...

, he is one of the

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or perso ...

s of

. He was described by

Thomas Fuller Thomas Fuller (baptised 19 June 1608 – 16 August 1661) was an English churchman and historian. He is now remembered for his writings, particularly his ''Worthies of England'', published in 1662, after his death. He was a prolific author, and ...

as "the captain of Cornish saints".

Humility Humility is the quality of being humble. Dictionary definitions accentuate humility as a low self-regard and sense of unworthiness. In a religious context humility can mean a recognition of self in relation to a deity (i.e. God), and subsequent ...

is a virtue strongly associated with Petroc. One of the pervasive stories about this describes his return from the pilgrimage to Rome and Jerusalem. As he set foot home in Britain under a heavy rain, he confidently told his companions that it would clear up by morning. Instead, the downpour lasted for many days and Petroc, ashamed of his presumptuousness, is said to have left on another pilgrimage, this one of

penance Penance is any act or a set of actions done out of repentance for sins committed, as well as an alternate name for the Catholic, Lutheran, Eastern Orthodox, and Oriental Orthodox sacrament of Reconciliation or Confession. It also plays a part ...

. Legendarily he travelled as far as

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

where he is said to have tamed a wolf. In

iconography Iconography, as a branch of art history, studies the identification, description and interpretation of the content of images: the subjects depicted, the particular compositions and details used to do so, and other elements that are distinct fro ...

, he is frequently depicted with this unlikely pet. Also, like several other British saints, Petroc is often shown with a stag. In 936, King Athelstan of England annexed Cornwall and granted privilege of sanctuary to Padstow, there only being two other churches in Cornwall with this privilege. His

feast day The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word "feast" in this context do ...

is 4 June. His major

shrine A shrine ( la, scrinium "case or chest for books or papers"; Old French: ''escrin'' "box or case") is a sacred or holy space dedicated to a specific deity, ancestor, hero, martyr, saint, daemon, or similar figure of respect, wherein they ...

was always at St Petroc's Church, Bodmin. In 1177, a Breton stole his relics from Bodmin and gave them to the Abbey of St Meen. However, Henry II restored them and, though the relics were thrown out during the

English Reformation The English Reformation took place in 16th-century England when the Church of England broke away from the authority of the pope and the Catholic Church. These events were part of the wider European Protestant Reformation, a religious and poli ...

, their ivory casket is still on public display at St. Petroc's in Bodmin. His remains were reputed to have ended up in the bay of Hailemouth near Padstow. A list in the Leofric missal and another manuscript list in Exeter Cathedral record that the cathedral possessed relics of the saint. It is likely that they had been presented by King Athelstan. Petroc is remembered in the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Brit ...

with a

commemoration Commemoration may refer to: *Commemoration (Anglicanism), a religious observance in Churches of the Anglican Communion *Commemoration (liturgy) In the Latin liturgical rites of the Catholic Church, a commemoration is the recital, within the Li ...

on 4 June.

Legacy

* Saint-Perreux in Brittany is named for him. * The

Flag of Devon The Flag of Devon, properly St Petroc's Cross, is the flag of the English county of Devon. It is dedicated to Saint Petroc, The Flag Institute a local saint with numerous dedications throughout Devon. It is notable for its creation through two ...

is dedicated to Saint Petroc. This flag, designed by Ryan Sealey, was the winner of a competition organised by the BBC in 2003, and represents the traditional county. It has been used by residents, and since October 2006 by Devon County Council. * St Petrock's (Exeter) Ltd is a charity working with people who are homeless and vulnerably housed in Devon. * The St. Petroc's Society is a charity working to address homelessness in Cornwall. * St Petroc's Orthodox Monastery in

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

, which used the

Sarum Rite The Use of Sarum (or Use of Salisbury, also known as the Sarum Rite) is the Latin liturgical rite developed at Salisbury Cathedral and used from the late eleventh century until the English Reformation. It is largely identical to the Roman r ...

, was named after him from 1992 until its closure in 2012. * The 2008 merger of

North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography. Etymology The word ''north ...

and

East East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fac ...

Devon Colleges led to them being re-branded under the name Petroc in 2009.

References

Sources

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 ...

(1938) ''Saint Petrock, a Cornish Saint''; 3rd ed. endron: the author* Doble, G. H. (1965) ''The Saints of Cornwall: part 4''. Truro: Dean and Chapter; pp. 132–166 * Jankulak, Karen (2000) ''The Medieval Cult of St. Petroc'' Boydell Press (19 Oct 2000) * * Orme, Nicholas (2000) ''The Saints of Cornwall'' Oxford: U. P. (6 Jan 2000) * Stacey, Robin Chapman, review of Karen Jankulak. "The Medieval Cult of St. Petroc" ''Albion: A Quarterly Journal Concerned with British Studies'', Vol. 34, No. 1 (Spring, 2002), pp. 180–181

External links

"St. Petroc March", Coldstream Guards
{{DEFAULTSORT:Petroc 564 deaths Medieval Welsh saints People from Glamorgan Southwestern Brythonic saints Welsh royalty Welsh Roman Catholic saints 6th-century Christian saints Medieval Cornish saints Year of birth unknown Anglican saints