30 See "
Handbook
for Tra- Murray's
vellers in France," sect, iii.
vellers in France," sect, iii.
O'Hanlon - Lives of the Irish Saints - v6
2 The chief festival for this holy man has been
constantly celebrated on the nth of November^ and, not only was he held
in great veneration throughout France, but also in the ancient Church of
Ireland, owing to his supposed relationship with our great Irish Apostle St. Patrick. + St. Martin was born at Sabaria,s at present called Stinemanger, in
Lower Hungary. His parents were pagans, and his birth was in the year
6 or before Easter in the eleventh 316, 317.
year
the Great. 7 He became a Christian, but by an imperial decree, he was
obliged to enter the army. Having an evident vocation for the religious state, when he obtained leave to retire from military service, Martin sought St.
8 who became
Poitiers, about a. d. 360. There, he built a monastery, about two leagues from
in
was ordained an exorcist, and after a visit to Pannonia, he returned to
Hilary,
Bishop
of
Poitiers,
353,
the at a city,
called now known as 10 In the
Locociagum,^
year 371, he was chosen successor to St. Litorius,
nus. — Article xii.
'
ChronologieetdesNotes, tomex. ,p. 309; In the "Leabhar "Gallia Christiana," tome xiv. , col. 6.
Breac "
the stanza runs as follows with
" Histoire Literaire de la France," tome
place
Liguge.
as the third Bishop of
12 "
See ibid. Quinta Appendix ad Acta S. Patricii, cap. xxiii. , p. 266.
13 See ibid. Sexta Vita S. Patricii, cap. xciii. , cxliv. , pp. 86, 96, and nn. 104, 153. pp. 113, 115.
St. Gregory of Tours, in his Historia Fran-
corum," lib. i. and x. , has an account of
him, as likewise in his work on the Virtues
and Miracles of St. Martin, in Four Books.
14Another
has been assigned to St. Cassan or Cassia-
"Memoires al'HistoireEcclesias- pourservir
tique des six premiers Siecles, avec unc "
feast,
at the
of
5th August,
copy,
the English translation, by Whitley Stokes, LL. D. :—
i. ,
Luit> <Vp-otlonAr\if
T)o plAich T)e jrorvoige Comop cleip conuaige LACAptnbpeich mapciiie.
p. 417; l'Abbe Gervaise's "Vie de Saint
Martin," published at Tours, A. D. 1699.
3 At this date, a very excellent and ex-
tended biography of St. Martin may be
"
straightway, with a great —train with virginity, 5 A town of Upper Pannonia.
Apollinaris went to God's kingdom chap. iii.
"6 at Martin's translation. " Transactions of
the Royal Irish Academy," Irish Manuscript Series, vol. i. , part i. On the Calendar of
Oengus, p. xcii. At the words mop cleip is the gloss i. xxx. Lacpi mile, thus trans-
According to St. Gregory of Tours.
7 See Rev. Alban Butler's "Lives of the
Fathers, Martyrs and other principal saints," vol. xi. , November xi.
8
His feast occurs, on the 14th of lated thirty with three thousand. " p. January.
"
xcviii. — Article xiii.
9 The parochial and abbatial church of
this place was dedicated to St. Martin. An
oratory near it was greatly frequented by
pilgrims. See " Les Petits Bollandistes,
Vies des Saints," tome xiii. , p. 340.
*
Among these may be mentioned St. Sulpicius Severus, his illus- trious disciple, who wrote "Vita Sancti Martini," as also Three Dialogues to supply omissions in that Life, while he alludes, in his Epistles and in his Sacred History, lib. ii. , cap. 50, 51, to St. Martin's Acts. Also,
10
This is thought to have been the most
3
See Le Nain de Tillemont, in his work
"
Les Petits Bollandistes, Vies des
of the Constantine Emperor
or in Martin 354. By him,
11
found, in
Saints," tome xiii. , pp. 312 to 340.
4 See his Life, in the Third Volume of this work, at the 17th of March, Art. i. ,
ancient of the French monasteries.
"
His festival is held on the 13th of Sep-
June 4. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 127 Tours, and he was consecreted, on the 3rd of July. This See had been
established St. 12 who came from Rome, about the middle by Gatian,
originally
of the third
and it was at first dedicated to St. Maurice ; but, since the year 1096, it bears thenameofSt. Gatian. ** However,itspartsaretheworkofdifferentperiods, as this noble building now appears. The choir, situated under the cross and before the high altar, was commenced a. d. 1170. The nave was completed during the reign of St. Louis. The west end is of a still later date, and it has been assigned to the fifteenth century.
century.
1 * The cathedral of Tours was built St. Martin, early by
Cathedral of Tours, France.
several temples dedicated to idols, while he endeavoured to remove all super-
stitious practices of the pagans. He likewise founded various churches and
1 monasteries. St. Martin resided in the celebrated monastery of Marmoutier, ?
near the River Loire ; and there, he presided over a community of fervent
tember. After a long vacancy of the See, he succeeded the founder St. Gatian.
drawn from a photograph, by William F. Wakeman, and it has been engraved by Mrs. Millard.
"
His feast occurs, on the l8thof Decem-
ber.
13 He
' 6 See
Murray's
" Hand-book for Travel-
the See for stated by St. Gregory of Tours.
as
lers in sect. France,"
Route
governed
fifty years,
Hi. ,
53, p.
M See Rev. Alban Butler's " Lives of the
Fathers, Martyrs and other principal is set forth, by the Maurist monk, Dom. Saints," vol. xi. , November xi. Badier, in " Histoire de l'Abbaye de Mar-
' 5 The accompanying engraving was moutier. et de 1'EgliseRoyalede S. Martin de
The west front, dis- playing the character
of the
style,
tals,
height, and they are crowned with domed tops. '5 These are of a debased style, and seem to be somewhat later than the rest of
this building. The interior is Gothic in
style, and the cathe- dral measures 256 feet in length, while its
16
St. Martin was most assi- duous in visiting all
parts of his diocese, and in giving instruc- tion to his flock. He wrought many mira- cles. He destroyed
Flamboyant is referred to about 1 510. It con- sists of three lofty por- enriched with florid ornaments, niches and foliage. It has a large window surmounting. Two towers, which flank the front compart- ment, are 205 feet in
height is 85 feet.
201.
17 An account of this remarkable Abbey
123 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
[June 4.
monks. After great labours and virtues, he departed this life, on the 8th of November, if we credit some writers ; but, on the nth of that month, accord- ing to an opinion more generally entertained. The year for his death has been
l8
grove, at some distance from the monastery, and about five hundred and
21
thirty paces from the city of Tours,
Brice 22 built a chapel over St. Martin's tomb. So great was the concourse
2
of pilgrims to the spot, that St. Perpetuus, 3 the sixth Bishop of Tours, about
but, afterwards, the name of Tours' great patron was given to it, and a par- ticular city was built around the church of St. Martin. The only remaining relics of this vast cathedral, at present, are two towers, rising on either side of the Rue St. Martin. Here, the shrine of St. Martin was preserved, and his relics were under the guardianship of a select number among his disciples. St. Martin's tomb was placed behind the high altar, and this first translation of his relics—seeming to correspond with the anniversary of his ordination—is celebrated on the 4th of July. Afterwards, about the middle of the ninth century, to save it from Norman invasions, the shrine of this holy bishop was successively removed to Cormerv, to Orleans, to St. Benoit-sur-Loire, to Chablis, and finally to Auxerre, in 856. However, the people of Tours reclaimed their lost treasure, when France became more peaceable, and on the 13th of December, a. d. 887, the remains were brought to Tours, an im- mense concourse of people assisting, with several bishops and priests. There: they remained, until the month of May, 1562, when the Calvinists pillaged the shrine and burned the relics. 26 Some portions, however, have been pre- served, and they are kept in different churches. During the times of the French Revolution, that ancient church of St. Martin was utterly destroyed,
variously assigned,
to
396,
397,
'9 or
400.
20 His was interred in a little body
church and
built over St. Martin's tomb was dedicated to St, Stephen,25 the Protomartyr;
the built a year 472,
great
monastery^there.
chapel
2 and a street has been run through the space it once occupied. ?
One of those towers, to which we have alluded, contains a clock, having a domed summit, and it is called Tour de Saint Martin. , or Tour de ITiorloge. Attached to it may be seen Romanesque pillars and capitals of an earlier period. Here, it is thought, was the site of St. Martin's rock-hewn tomb, discovered in i86i,and under a house, which occupied the place of the high altar. 28 MonseigneurGuibert,thelateArchbishopofParis,madeanappealto the Catholic world, to recover possession of this spot, and to restore it, in the
interest of of art,
and of 1^ The other tower is called Tour religion.
country,
de Charlemagne, because it is believed his wife Luitgarde lies buried beneath it. These are the only two of the five towers, that once adorned the cathe- dral of St. Martin, at Tours. s° However, we cannot find any recorded Trans-
lation,
such as is set down on the
41I1
ot in the " the June Feilire," among
tome xiii. , xie Jour de Novembre, p. 339.
2S His festival occurs, on the 26th day of
December.
2° "
See Murray's Handbook for 1 ravel-
lers in France," sect, iii. , Route 53, p.
Tours. "
18 Dom. Gervaise, in his " Vie de Saint
Martin," adopts this calculation.
19 Tillemont and Lecointe place his death,
at this year.
20 Francois Chifflet and Dom. Liron have
14, n.
21
According to St. Gregory of Tours.
22 His festival is held, on the 13th of No-
28 See Murray's " Handbook for Travel- lers in France," sect, iii. , Route 53, p. 204.
2» See " Les Petits Bollandistes, Vies des Saints," tome xiii. , p. 339.
30 See " Handbook for Tra- Murray's
vellers in France," sect, iii. , Route 53, p. 204.
vember.
23 His festival
occurs,
on the 8ih of day
April.
31 '' See
Les Bollandistes, Vies des Saints,'
'
204. "2"
this date. See le Dr. Hoefer's Nouvelle ? See Les Petits Bollandistes, Vies des Biographie Generate," tome xxxiv. , p. Saints," tome xiii. , p. 339.
as then existing. His successor St.
2* The first
June 4. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 129
many historic references to St. Martin and to his cultus. Nor can allusion be made to any of those removals, which took place during the Northman dis- orders in France, since these happened, after that poetic calendar had been
Article XIV. —St. Nennoca, or Nennoc, Virgin, of Armorica. {Fifth Century. . ] There appears to have been a revival of hagiographical literature and investigation in Ireland, due to the impetus given it byyEngus the Culdee, as also to the earlier and more successful labours of Adamnan,
The scholiast on St.
to doubt, whether this transference of St. Martin meant into a bishopric, or whetherit signifiedtheremovalofhisbodyfromthesepulchretoanother place, or—as otherwise expressed—his relics being carried out of that monas-
1
composed.
tery wherein he died to the city. 3
the biographer of St. Columcille.
1
Subsequently, the love for legends grew
iEngus
up, and such a taste has diminished in too many instances the authenticity
of saintly biography, not alone in Ireland, but more especially in Great
Britain, and on the Continent of Europe. Colgan intended to have given
theActsof 2atthisdate and, wehavereasonto Nennoca, Virgin, ; therefore,
think he regarded her, as having some intimate relations with Ireland. The oldest known Life of this holy woman seems to have existed in Brittany ; but, it is not certain, that it has survived the wreck of time. The Legend of St. Nennoc's Acts was preserved, in the monastery of Quimperle Cross, in the diocese of Quimper, and province of Brittany. The writer states, that its matter had been taken from an old book, written in a rustic style. 3 This Quimper Legend was chiefly derived from oral traditions, and written in the twelfth or thirteenth century, by a monk of Ste. Croix de Quimperle, who wasnamedGurherden. * Theseaccountsappeartohavebeenchieflycom- posed, from popular Breton ballads. The Bollandists quote them, but do not deem it necessary to publish them in full. s They contain several
anachronisms,
and therefore the is of doubtful 6 The Legend very authority.
Bollandists have inserted the Acts of St. Ninnoca, Virgin, at the 4th day of
June, in their great collection. ? These are contained in a historic Commen-
tary, consisting of three sections, containing twenty-two paragraphs. Albert
8
leGrand includestheActsofSt. Ninnoc,Virgin,inhiscollectionofBreton
6 As for example, her mother Moneduc is
stated to have been the daughter of Con-
stantine, the King of Cornwall and of
Devon. It is stated, that he descended
from and that he a. d. Julius Caesar, died,
576. Again, St. Coluvnba, who departed this life in the year 597, is said to have bap-
she lived in Moreover, St. Germain of Auxeire, who died in the year 448, and who is reputed to have been sent from Ire- land by St. Patrick to Britain in the fifth written in the old Breton tongue, from century, is made a contemporary with St.
31 See "Transactions of the Royd Irish
Academy," Irish Manuscript Series, vol. i. , part i. On the Calendar of Oengus, by Dr.
Whitley Stokes, p—p. xcii. , xcviii. , xcix. *
Article xiv. See Rev. John Francis
Shearman's " Loca Patriciana," No. x. , n.
(1), p. 250.
2 She is thus
in his "
Actuum Sanctorum quae MS. habentur, or-
tized St. Nennocha, the eighth century.
noted,
Catalogus
although
Turian, Bishop of Dol, who lived in the eighth century.
7 See "Acta Sanctorum," tomus i. , Junii iv. , De S. Ninnoca Virgine, in Biittannia
Minoii, pp. 407 to 411.
8 He belonged to the Order of Preachers
of the Strict Observance.
9 See " De Sanctis Britannise Armo-
dine Mensium et Dierum. "
3 It has been suggested by the Bollandist
editor as probable, that the original had been
which the Latin translation has been liter- ally made.
4 See an account of him in Histoire Lit- teraire de la France," tome xi. , xii. Siecle, pp. 45, 46.
5 Neither does Lobineau insert these ac- counts, nor has he any mention of St. Ninnoc, in his "Vies des Saints de Bre- tagne. "
Vol. VI. —No. 3.
ricse. "
in the " Leabhar Breac " seems copy
1
130 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [June 4.
Saints,^ at the same date. Some notices of her are to be found in the work of Chatelain,10 at the 4th day of June. The chief Acts of St. Nennoke, Virgin, are met with in " Les Petits Bollandistes. "11 Accounts of St. Nenno- cha, Virgin, are to be found, in the works of Rev. Alban Butler," and of Rev. S. Baring-Gould. 13 The Rev. Alban Butler I4 makes St. Nennoc a native of Britain, where she is said first to have served God. If the following account be reliable, her period must be referred to the latter part of the fifth or to t—he
T beginningofthesixt century. daughter Brychans
—h She was to Brecan or
16
also called Brochan the regulus of Brecknock, who was the ancestor of
saints. have we alluded to him and to his children. 1 ? This Already
many
ruler of Brecheinoc, 18 now Brecknockshire, is said '9 to have lived contem-
poraneously with the Emperors Arcadius and Honorius ; however, owing to the conflicting statement's of various writers, we find nothing but confusion,
in the thread of his An Irish biography.
named Gormac 2 ° or
had a son, Aulach, it is stated, and he was father to Brecan. This Aulach was leader of an armed band, that made a descent on the Welsh coast, towards the close of the fourth century. He conquered Tewdrig, the chief ruler in South Wales, and carried off as a captive his daughter Marchella, who subse- quently became his wife. On the death of Tewdrig, about a. d. 420, their son Brecan, having come to man's estate, claimed his territory, and asserted
this claim the sword. 21 He was a by
St. 22 Brenach,
but his
converted him to the Christian faith. Afterwards, Brecan was distinguished
See "Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs
See Jones' H'story of Wales, chap. xi. , p. 307.
2I
See Right Rev. Patrick F. Moran's Early Irish Missions," p. 7.
and other principal saints," vol. vi.
June iv.
13 See ''Lives of the Saints," vol. vi. , pp.
" 22
23 See Williams' " Ecclesiastical 14 See "Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs ties of the Cymry," p. 53.
Antiqui-
36, 37.
and other principal saints," vol. vi. , June iv. 15 See a very complete account of this Welsh ruler, and his of descendants, inRev. Rice Rees' " Essay on the Welsh Saints," sect, vii. , pp. no to 113, and sect, viii. , pp.
136 to 160.
10 The Legend of our saint's Life states,
that he was a nobleman " in Combronensia
24 See " Myvyrian Archaeology," vol. ii. , p. 98.
regione," and that he was
"
ex genere Gur-
find it stated, that the wife of Brychan was
Digna, Dina or Din, who was daughter of
a Saxon king. It is not improbable, how-
ever, that Brychan may have been twice
married, and that all of his children were
not born of the same mother,
36 Acts.
thierni," while he was respected throughout the whole of Britain.
Following the Legend of St. Nennoc's
pagan,
countryman,
for his fervent piety, and he trained a numerous family in the way of perfec- tion. The Welsh writers seem to regard him, not as a foreigner, but as one of their own hereditary chiefs. His valour in the field was equalled by his wisdom in council. The Triads mention him,23 with — 24
distinguished praise. It is stated, again, that—the King of Wales named Bieochan another form
2*
for the name Brychan had a wife named Moneduc or Menduke. She
was of the Scottish race, and daughter to King Constantine. 26 According
10 Also called Claude Cbastelain, Canon of the Cathedral at Paris. He compiled, be- sides other writings, two very useful works, the Roman Martyrology translated into French, with notes, A. D. 1704, in 4to, and a work " Le Martyrologe Universe1 with
,
additions and notes, a. d. 1709, in 4to. See
an account of him, in Le Dr. Hoeffer's
** See the First Volume of this work, at the 1st day of January, Art. ii.
l8
In Sir John Prise's Description of Cam- bria now called Wales, it is stated to have consisted of three cantreds and eight comots. See " The Historie of Cambria," translated by H. Lhoyd, corrected by David Powel, p. 20.
" x»" Nouvelle Biographie Generale," tome x. , See
Les Petits Bollandistes, Vies des
cols. 64, 65.
11
See ''Vies des Saints. " tome vi. , iv Jour de Juin, pp. 455 and 456.
12
Saints," tome vi. , iv? Jour de Juin, p. 455. e20 " '
king,
Cormac,
See notices of him, in this work, at the 7th of April, Fourth Volume, Art. vi.
2
s Elsewhere, at the 1st of January, we
June 4. ]
LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 131
to
tradition,
this
couple
had fourteen all of whom were saints. 2 ? These sons,
chose to become missionaries, or monks, in various places. This however
was a cause for sorrow to their parents, who desired to have them as temporal
rulers, in that country they possessed. Its dynast felt most anxious to have
a child left as his companion, and he promised, that should the Almighty
bestow such a favour on him, he would yield a tenth part of all his gold and
landsforreligiousendowments. Heresolved,moreover,toretireforatime
into a desert place, and there on a high mountain, he built a church and
he erected an altar to God's honour. Here for forty days and forty nights
he fasted rigorously with his priests, and he bestowed alms to procure the
fulfilment of his wishes. On the night before Easter Sunday, he had an angelic
vision, in which it was intimated to him, that his wife should conceive, and
that her child should be called Nennoc, whose birth should be a source of
joy and consolation to all living in Britain. In like manner, Meneduc be-
wailed her loss of 28 the return of her husband to his house.
children, awaiting
He announced to her, in due course, the promise received from the angel, and to her great relief of mind. Thereupon, she gave thanks to God with great fervour. 2? It pleased the Almighty, that Moneduc brought forth a daughter.
constantly celebrated on the nth of November^ and, not only was he held
in great veneration throughout France, but also in the ancient Church of
Ireland, owing to his supposed relationship with our great Irish Apostle St. Patrick. + St. Martin was born at Sabaria,s at present called Stinemanger, in
Lower Hungary. His parents were pagans, and his birth was in the year
6 or before Easter in the eleventh 316, 317.
year
the Great. 7 He became a Christian, but by an imperial decree, he was
obliged to enter the army. Having an evident vocation for the religious state, when he obtained leave to retire from military service, Martin sought St.
8 who became
Poitiers, about a. d. 360. There, he built a monastery, about two leagues from
in
was ordained an exorcist, and after a visit to Pannonia, he returned to
Hilary,
Bishop
of
Poitiers,
353,
the at a city,
called now known as 10 In the
Locociagum,^
year 371, he was chosen successor to St. Litorius,
nus. — Article xii.
'
ChronologieetdesNotes, tomex. ,p. 309; In the "Leabhar "Gallia Christiana," tome xiv. , col. 6.
Breac "
the stanza runs as follows with
" Histoire Literaire de la France," tome
place
Liguge.
as the third Bishop of
12 "
See ibid. Quinta Appendix ad Acta S. Patricii, cap. xxiii. , p. 266.
13 See ibid. Sexta Vita S. Patricii, cap. xciii. , cxliv. , pp. 86, 96, and nn. 104, 153. pp. 113, 115.
St. Gregory of Tours, in his Historia Fran-
corum," lib. i. and x. , has an account of
him, as likewise in his work on the Virtues
and Miracles of St. Martin, in Four Books.
14Another
has been assigned to St. Cassan or Cassia-
"Memoires al'HistoireEcclesias- pourservir
tique des six premiers Siecles, avec unc "
feast,
at the
of
5th August,
copy,
the English translation, by Whitley Stokes, LL. D. :—
i. ,
Luit> <Vp-otlonAr\if
T)o plAich T)e jrorvoige Comop cleip conuaige LACAptnbpeich mapciiie.
p. 417; l'Abbe Gervaise's "Vie de Saint
Martin," published at Tours, A. D. 1699.
3 At this date, a very excellent and ex-
tended biography of St. Martin may be
"
straightway, with a great —train with virginity, 5 A town of Upper Pannonia.
Apollinaris went to God's kingdom chap. iii.
"6 at Martin's translation. " Transactions of
the Royal Irish Academy," Irish Manuscript Series, vol. i. , part i. On the Calendar of
Oengus, p. xcii. At the words mop cleip is the gloss i. xxx. Lacpi mile, thus trans-
According to St. Gregory of Tours.
7 See Rev. Alban Butler's "Lives of the
Fathers, Martyrs and other principal saints," vol. xi. , November xi.
8
His feast occurs, on the 14th of lated thirty with three thousand. " p. January.
"
xcviii. — Article xiii.
9 The parochial and abbatial church of
this place was dedicated to St. Martin. An
oratory near it was greatly frequented by
pilgrims. See " Les Petits Bollandistes,
Vies des Saints," tome xiii. , p. 340.
*
Among these may be mentioned St. Sulpicius Severus, his illus- trious disciple, who wrote "Vita Sancti Martini," as also Three Dialogues to supply omissions in that Life, while he alludes, in his Epistles and in his Sacred History, lib. ii. , cap. 50, 51, to St. Martin's Acts. Also,
10
This is thought to have been the most
3
See Le Nain de Tillemont, in his work
"
Les Petits Bollandistes, Vies des
of the Constantine Emperor
or in Martin 354. By him,
11
found, in
Saints," tome xiii. , pp. 312 to 340.
4 See his Life, in the Third Volume of this work, at the 17th of March, Art. i. ,
ancient of the French monasteries.
"
His festival is held on the 13th of Sep-
June 4. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 127 Tours, and he was consecreted, on the 3rd of July. This See had been
established St. 12 who came from Rome, about the middle by Gatian,
originally
of the third
and it was at first dedicated to St. Maurice ; but, since the year 1096, it bears thenameofSt. Gatian. ** However,itspartsaretheworkofdifferentperiods, as this noble building now appears. The choir, situated under the cross and before the high altar, was commenced a. d. 1170. The nave was completed during the reign of St. Louis. The west end is of a still later date, and it has been assigned to the fifteenth century.
century.
1 * The cathedral of Tours was built St. Martin, early by
Cathedral of Tours, France.
several temples dedicated to idols, while he endeavoured to remove all super-
stitious practices of the pagans. He likewise founded various churches and
1 monasteries. St. Martin resided in the celebrated monastery of Marmoutier, ?
near the River Loire ; and there, he presided over a community of fervent
tember. After a long vacancy of the See, he succeeded the founder St. Gatian.
drawn from a photograph, by William F. Wakeman, and it has been engraved by Mrs. Millard.
"
His feast occurs, on the l8thof Decem-
ber.
13 He
' 6 See
Murray's
" Hand-book for Travel-
the See for stated by St. Gregory of Tours.
as
lers in sect. France,"
Route
governed
fifty years,
Hi. ,
53, p.
M See Rev. Alban Butler's " Lives of the
Fathers, Martyrs and other principal is set forth, by the Maurist monk, Dom. Saints," vol. xi. , November xi. Badier, in " Histoire de l'Abbaye de Mar-
' 5 The accompanying engraving was moutier. et de 1'EgliseRoyalede S. Martin de
The west front, dis- playing the character
of the
style,
tals,
height, and they are crowned with domed tops. '5 These are of a debased style, and seem to be somewhat later than the rest of
this building. The interior is Gothic in
style, and the cathe- dral measures 256 feet in length, while its
16
St. Martin was most assi- duous in visiting all
parts of his diocese, and in giving instruc- tion to his flock. He wrought many mira- cles. He destroyed
Flamboyant is referred to about 1 510. It con- sists of three lofty por- enriched with florid ornaments, niches and foliage. It has a large window surmounting. Two towers, which flank the front compart- ment, are 205 feet in
height is 85 feet.
201.
17 An account of this remarkable Abbey
123 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
[June 4.
monks. After great labours and virtues, he departed this life, on the 8th of November, if we credit some writers ; but, on the nth of that month, accord- ing to an opinion more generally entertained. The year for his death has been
l8
grove, at some distance from the monastery, and about five hundred and
21
thirty paces from the city of Tours,
Brice 22 built a chapel over St. Martin's tomb. So great was the concourse
2
of pilgrims to the spot, that St. Perpetuus, 3 the sixth Bishop of Tours, about
but, afterwards, the name of Tours' great patron was given to it, and a par- ticular city was built around the church of St. Martin. The only remaining relics of this vast cathedral, at present, are two towers, rising on either side of the Rue St. Martin. Here, the shrine of St. Martin was preserved, and his relics were under the guardianship of a select number among his disciples. St. Martin's tomb was placed behind the high altar, and this first translation of his relics—seeming to correspond with the anniversary of his ordination—is celebrated on the 4th of July. Afterwards, about the middle of the ninth century, to save it from Norman invasions, the shrine of this holy bishop was successively removed to Cormerv, to Orleans, to St. Benoit-sur-Loire, to Chablis, and finally to Auxerre, in 856. However, the people of Tours reclaimed their lost treasure, when France became more peaceable, and on the 13th of December, a. d. 887, the remains were brought to Tours, an im- mense concourse of people assisting, with several bishops and priests. There: they remained, until the month of May, 1562, when the Calvinists pillaged the shrine and burned the relics. 26 Some portions, however, have been pre- served, and they are kept in different churches. During the times of the French Revolution, that ancient church of St. Martin was utterly destroyed,
variously assigned,
to
396,
397,
'9 or
400.
20 His was interred in a little body
church and
built over St. Martin's tomb was dedicated to St, Stephen,25 the Protomartyr;
the built a year 472,
great
monastery^there.
chapel
2 and a street has been run through the space it once occupied. ?
One of those towers, to which we have alluded, contains a clock, having a domed summit, and it is called Tour de Saint Martin. , or Tour de ITiorloge. Attached to it may be seen Romanesque pillars and capitals of an earlier period. Here, it is thought, was the site of St. Martin's rock-hewn tomb, discovered in i86i,and under a house, which occupied the place of the high altar. 28 MonseigneurGuibert,thelateArchbishopofParis,madeanappealto the Catholic world, to recover possession of this spot, and to restore it, in the
interest of of art,
and of 1^ The other tower is called Tour religion.
country,
de Charlemagne, because it is believed his wife Luitgarde lies buried beneath it. These are the only two of the five towers, that once adorned the cathe- dral of St. Martin, at Tours. s° However, we cannot find any recorded Trans-
lation,
such as is set down on the
41I1
ot in the " the June Feilire," among
tome xiii. , xie Jour de Novembre, p. 339.
2S His festival occurs, on the 26th day of
December.
2° "
See Murray's Handbook for 1 ravel-
lers in France," sect, iii. , Route 53, p.
Tours. "
18 Dom. Gervaise, in his " Vie de Saint
Martin," adopts this calculation.
19 Tillemont and Lecointe place his death,
at this year.
20 Francois Chifflet and Dom. Liron have
14, n.
21
According to St. Gregory of Tours.
22 His festival is held, on the 13th of No-
28 See Murray's " Handbook for Travel- lers in France," sect, iii. , Route 53, p. 204.
2» See " Les Petits Bollandistes, Vies des Saints," tome xiii. , p. 339.
30 See " Handbook for Tra- Murray's
vellers in France," sect, iii. , Route 53, p. 204.
vember.
23 His festival
occurs,
on the 8ih of day
April.
31 '' See
Les Bollandistes, Vies des Saints,'
'
204. "2"
this date. See le Dr. Hoefer's Nouvelle ? See Les Petits Bollandistes, Vies des Biographie Generate," tome xxxiv. , p. Saints," tome xiii. , p. 339.
as then existing. His successor St.
2* The first
June 4. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 129
many historic references to St. Martin and to his cultus. Nor can allusion be made to any of those removals, which took place during the Northman dis- orders in France, since these happened, after that poetic calendar had been
Article XIV. —St. Nennoca, or Nennoc, Virgin, of Armorica. {Fifth Century. . ] There appears to have been a revival of hagiographical literature and investigation in Ireland, due to the impetus given it byyEngus the Culdee, as also to the earlier and more successful labours of Adamnan,
The scholiast on St.
to doubt, whether this transference of St. Martin meant into a bishopric, or whetherit signifiedtheremovalofhisbodyfromthesepulchretoanother place, or—as otherwise expressed—his relics being carried out of that monas-
1
composed.
tery wherein he died to the city. 3
the biographer of St. Columcille.
1
Subsequently, the love for legends grew
iEngus
up, and such a taste has diminished in too many instances the authenticity
of saintly biography, not alone in Ireland, but more especially in Great
Britain, and on the Continent of Europe. Colgan intended to have given
theActsof 2atthisdate and, wehavereasonto Nennoca, Virgin, ; therefore,
think he regarded her, as having some intimate relations with Ireland. The oldest known Life of this holy woman seems to have existed in Brittany ; but, it is not certain, that it has survived the wreck of time. The Legend of St. Nennoc's Acts was preserved, in the monastery of Quimperle Cross, in the diocese of Quimper, and province of Brittany. The writer states, that its matter had been taken from an old book, written in a rustic style. 3 This Quimper Legend was chiefly derived from oral traditions, and written in the twelfth or thirteenth century, by a monk of Ste. Croix de Quimperle, who wasnamedGurherden. * Theseaccountsappeartohavebeenchieflycom- posed, from popular Breton ballads. The Bollandists quote them, but do not deem it necessary to publish them in full. s They contain several
anachronisms,
and therefore the is of doubtful 6 The Legend very authority.
Bollandists have inserted the Acts of St. Ninnoca, Virgin, at the 4th day of
June, in their great collection. ? These are contained in a historic Commen-
tary, consisting of three sections, containing twenty-two paragraphs. Albert
8
leGrand includestheActsofSt. Ninnoc,Virgin,inhiscollectionofBreton
6 As for example, her mother Moneduc is
stated to have been the daughter of Con-
stantine, the King of Cornwall and of
Devon. It is stated, that he descended
from and that he a. d. Julius Caesar, died,
576. Again, St. Coluvnba, who departed this life in the year 597, is said to have bap-
she lived in Moreover, St. Germain of Auxeire, who died in the year 448, and who is reputed to have been sent from Ire- land by St. Patrick to Britain in the fifth written in the old Breton tongue, from century, is made a contemporary with St.
31 See "Transactions of the Royd Irish
Academy," Irish Manuscript Series, vol. i. , part i. On the Calendar of Oengus, by Dr.
Whitley Stokes, p—p. xcii. , xcviii. , xcix. *
Article xiv. See Rev. John Francis
Shearman's " Loca Patriciana," No. x. , n.
(1), p. 250.
2 She is thus
in his "
Actuum Sanctorum quae MS. habentur, or-
tized St. Nennocha, the eighth century.
noted,
Catalogus
although
Turian, Bishop of Dol, who lived in the eighth century.
7 See "Acta Sanctorum," tomus i. , Junii iv. , De S. Ninnoca Virgine, in Biittannia
Minoii, pp. 407 to 411.
8 He belonged to the Order of Preachers
of the Strict Observance.
9 See " De Sanctis Britannise Armo-
dine Mensium et Dierum. "
3 It has been suggested by the Bollandist
editor as probable, that the original had been
which the Latin translation has been liter- ally made.
4 See an account of him in Histoire Lit- teraire de la France," tome xi. , xii. Siecle, pp. 45, 46.
5 Neither does Lobineau insert these ac- counts, nor has he any mention of St. Ninnoc, in his "Vies des Saints de Bre- tagne. "
Vol. VI. —No. 3.
ricse. "
in the " Leabhar Breac " seems copy
1
130 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [June 4.
Saints,^ at the same date. Some notices of her are to be found in the work of Chatelain,10 at the 4th day of June. The chief Acts of St. Nennoke, Virgin, are met with in " Les Petits Bollandistes. "11 Accounts of St. Nenno- cha, Virgin, are to be found, in the works of Rev. Alban Butler," and of Rev. S. Baring-Gould. 13 The Rev. Alban Butler I4 makes St. Nennoc a native of Britain, where she is said first to have served God. If the following account be reliable, her period must be referred to the latter part of the fifth or to t—he
T beginningofthesixt century. daughter Brychans
—h She was to Brecan or
16
also called Brochan the regulus of Brecknock, who was the ancestor of
saints. have we alluded to him and to his children. 1 ? This Already
many
ruler of Brecheinoc, 18 now Brecknockshire, is said '9 to have lived contem-
poraneously with the Emperors Arcadius and Honorius ; however, owing to the conflicting statement's of various writers, we find nothing but confusion,
in the thread of his An Irish biography.
named Gormac 2 ° or
had a son, Aulach, it is stated, and he was father to Brecan. This Aulach was leader of an armed band, that made a descent on the Welsh coast, towards the close of the fourth century. He conquered Tewdrig, the chief ruler in South Wales, and carried off as a captive his daughter Marchella, who subse- quently became his wife. On the death of Tewdrig, about a. d. 420, their son Brecan, having come to man's estate, claimed his territory, and asserted
this claim the sword. 21 He was a by
St. 22 Brenach,
but his
converted him to the Christian faith. Afterwards, Brecan was distinguished
See "Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs
See Jones' H'story of Wales, chap. xi. , p. 307.
2I
See Right Rev. Patrick F. Moran's Early Irish Missions," p. 7.
and other principal saints," vol. vi.
June iv.
13 See ''Lives of the Saints," vol. vi. , pp.
" 22
23 See Williams' " Ecclesiastical 14 See "Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs ties of the Cymry," p. 53.
Antiqui-
36, 37.
and other principal saints," vol. vi. , June iv. 15 See a very complete account of this Welsh ruler, and his of descendants, inRev. Rice Rees' " Essay on the Welsh Saints," sect, vii. , pp. no to 113, and sect, viii. , pp.
136 to 160.
10 The Legend of our saint's Life states,
that he was a nobleman " in Combronensia
24 See " Myvyrian Archaeology," vol. ii. , p. 98.
regione," and that he was
"
ex genere Gur-
find it stated, that the wife of Brychan was
Digna, Dina or Din, who was daughter of
a Saxon king. It is not improbable, how-
ever, that Brychan may have been twice
married, and that all of his children were
not born of the same mother,
36 Acts.
thierni," while he was respected throughout the whole of Britain.
Following the Legend of St. Nennoc's
pagan,
countryman,
for his fervent piety, and he trained a numerous family in the way of perfec- tion. The Welsh writers seem to regard him, not as a foreigner, but as one of their own hereditary chiefs. His valour in the field was equalled by his wisdom in council. The Triads mention him,23 with — 24
distinguished praise. It is stated, again, that—the King of Wales named Bieochan another form
2*
for the name Brychan had a wife named Moneduc or Menduke. She
was of the Scottish race, and daughter to King Constantine. 26 According
10 Also called Claude Cbastelain, Canon of the Cathedral at Paris. He compiled, be- sides other writings, two very useful works, the Roman Martyrology translated into French, with notes, A. D. 1704, in 4to, and a work " Le Martyrologe Universe1 with
,
additions and notes, a. d. 1709, in 4to. See
an account of him, in Le Dr. Hoeffer's
** See the First Volume of this work, at the 1st day of January, Art. ii.
l8
In Sir John Prise's Description of Cam- bria now called Wales, it is stated to have consisted of three cantreds and eight comots. See " The Historie of Cambria," translated by H. Lhoyd, corrected by David Powel, p. 20.
" x»" Nouvelle Biographie Generale," tome x. , See
Les Petits Bollandistes, Vies des
cols. 64, 65.
11
See ''Vies des Saints. " tome vi. , iv Jour de Juin, pp. 455 and 456.
12
Saints," tome vi. , iv? Jour de Juin, p. 455. e20 " '
king,
Cormac,
See notices of him, in this work, at the 7th of April, Fourth Volume, Art. vi.
2
s Elsewhere, at the 1st of January, we
June 4. ]
LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 131
to
tradition,
this
couple
had fourteen all of whom were saints. 2 ? These sons,
chose to become missionaries, or monks, in various places. This however
was a cause for sorrow to their parents, who desired to have them as temporal
rulers, in that country they possessed. Its dynast felt most anxious to have
a child left as his companion, and he promised, that should the Almighty
bestow such a favour on him, he would yield a tenth part of all his gold and
landsforreligiousendowments. Heresolved,moreover,toretireforatime
into a desert place, and there on a high mountain, he built a church and
he erected an altar to God's honour. Here for forty days and forty nights
he fasted rigorously with his priests, and he bestowed alms to procure the
fulfilment of his wishes. On the night before Easter Sunday, he had an angelic
vision, in which it was intimated to him, that his wife should conceive, and
that her child should be called Nennoc, whose birth should be a source of
joy and consolation to all living in Britain. In like manner, Meneduc be-
wailed her loss of 28 the return of her husband to his house.
children, awaiting
He announced to her, in due course, the promise received from the angel, and to her great relief of mind. Thereupon, she gave thanks to God with great fervour. 2? It pleased the Almighty, that Moneduc brought forth a daughter.
