Saint Constantine is the name of one or many

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

Pictish Pictish is an extinct Brittonic Celtic language spoken by the Picts, the people of eastern and northern Scotland from late antiquity to the Early Middle Ages. Virtually no direct attestations of Pictish remain, short of a limited number of geog ...

saints.

Identification

;South-west Britain A Saint Constantine is revered in

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

and

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

. Based purely on similarity of a common name, some have identified him with the monarch Constantine of Dumnonia, despite the latter's condemnation for immoral behaviour by

Gildas Gildas (English pronunciation: , Breton language, Breton: ''Gweltaz''; ) — also known as Gildas Badonicus, Gildas fab Caw (in Middle Welsh texts and antiquarian works) and ''Gildas Sapiens'' (Gildas the Wise) — was a 6th-century Britons (h ...

. If this is correct, he must have mended his ways. He gives his name to the

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...

of Milton Abbot in Devon and the villages of Constantine and Constantine Bay in Cornwall, also extinct chapels in

Illogan Illogan (pronounced ''il'luggan'', ) is a village and civil parish in west Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, two miles (3 km) northwest of Redruth. The population of Illogan was 5,404 at the 2011 census. In the same year the population of ...

and Dunterton. The saint at Constantine Bay was almost certainly the 'wealthy man' of this name mentioned in the ''Life of

Saint Petroc Petroc or Petrock (; ; ; ) was a British prince and Christian saint. Probably born in South Wales, he primarily ministered to the Britons of Devon (Dewnens) and Cornwall (Kernow) then forming the kingdom of Dumnonia where he is associated with ...

''. He was converted to

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

by that holy man at nearby

Little Petherick Little Petherick () is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of St Issey, in north Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated south of Padstow and west of Wadebridge. Little Petherick lies in the valley of Little Petheri ...

after the deer Constantine was hunting took shelter with him. A Constantine "King of the Cornishmen" also appears in the ''Life of

Saint David David (; ; ) was a Welsh Christian prelate who served as Bishop of Mynyw during the 6th century. He is the patron saint of Wales. David was a native of Wales, and tradition has preserved a relatively large amount of detail about his life. ...

'' as having given up his crown in order to enter this saint's monastery at

St David's St Davids or St David's (, , "Saint David, David's Welsh toponymy, house”) is a St David's Cathedral, cathedral City status in the United Kingdom, city in Pembrokeshire, Wales. It lies on the River Alun, Pembrokeshire, River Alun and is ...

.
Ὁ Ἅγιος Κωνσταντίνος ὁ Μάρτυρας βασιλέας τῶν Σκώτων
'' 9 Μαΐου. ΜΕΓΑΣ ΣΥΝΑΞΑΡΙΣΤΗΣ. ;Scotland and Ireland The conversion of a Constantine is recorded in the ''

Annals of Ulster The ''Annals of Ulster'' () are annals of History of Ireland, medieval Ireland. The entries span the years from 431 AD to 1540 AD. The entries up to 1489 AD were compiled in the late 15th century by the scribe Ruaidhrí Ó Luin� ...

'' in 588 and a Constantine appears in the ''Breviary of Aberdeen'' as entering a monastery in Ireland incognito before joining

Saint Mungo Kentigern (; ), known as Mungo, was a missionary in the Brittonic Kingdom of Strathclyde in the late sixth century, and the founder and patron saint of the city of Glasgow. Name In Wales and England, this saint is known by his birth and baptis ...

(alias Kentigern) and becoming a missionary to the

Picts The Picts were a group of peoples in what is now Scotland north of the Firth of Forth, in the Scotland in the early Middle Ages, Early Middle Ages. Where they lived and details of their culture can be gleaned from early medieval texts and Pic ...

. He was

martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', 'witness' Word stem, stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an external party. In ...

ed in Scotland about 576 and

John of Fordun John of Fordun (before 1360 – c. 1384) was a Scottish chronicler. It is generally stated that he was born at Fordoun, Mearns. It is certain that he was a secular priest, and that he composed his history in the latter part of the 14th ...

tells how he was buried at

Govan Govan ( ; Cumbric: ''Gwovan''; Scots language, Scots: ''Gouan''; Scottish Gaelic: ''Baile a' Ghobhainn'') is a district, parish, and former burgh now part of southwest Glasgow, Scotland. It is situated west of Glasgow city centre, on the sout ...

(where his shrine can still be seen today). Although revered on the same day as the Cornishman, the date has probably been transferred from one to the other. The ''Life of Saint Kentigern'' names a Constantine as the son and successor Riderch Hael, king of Alt Clut, later known as Strathclyde.

Veneration

Saint Constantine Church in Constantine Village Kerrier Cornwall

;South-west Britain The cult of Saint Constantine (of Dumnonia) centred on the two places bearing his name, both of which may have originally supported

monastic Monasticism (; ), also called monachism or monkhood, is a religious way of life in which one renounces worldly pursuits to devote oneself fully to spiritual activities. Monastic life plays an important role in many Christian churches, especially ...

establishments. However, Dr. Lynette Olson (1989) has challenged Charles Henderson's assertion (Henderson 1937) that there was a monastic establishment at Constantine, Kerrier, Cornwall. The ruined chapel at Constantine Bay also has a nearby holy

well A well is an excavation or structure created on the earth by digging, driving, or drilling to access liquid resources, usually water. The oldest and most common kind of well is a water well, to access groundwater in underground aquifers. The ...

(uncovered in 1911). Taking the waters there was said to bring rain during dry weather. The chapel's splendid font is now in the parish church at

St Merryn St Merryn () is a civil parishes in England, civil parish and village in north Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is about south of the fishing port of Padstow and northeast of the coastal resort of Newquay. The village has a primary schoo ...

. The name of the village of Constantine is recorded as ''Sanctus Constantinus'' in the

Domesday Book Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...

. However, the monasteries seem to have declined into

es, after the

Norman Conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Normans, Norman, French people, French, Flemish people, Flemish, and Bretons, Breton troops, all led by the Du ...

. The present Kerrier building is 15th century and bears no remnants of Constantinist iconography. The saint's day is generally celebrated on 9 March. An annual "Feast" is held in the village of Constantine, on the Sunday nearest to 9 March.

References

Sources

* * Doble, G. H. (1962). ''The Saints of Cornwall'' Vol. 2: saints of the Lizard district. Dean & Chapter of Truro, pp. 15–24. * Geoffrey of Monmouth; Thorpe, Lewis (translator) (1966). ''The History of the Kings of Britain''. London: Penguin Books. . * * Orme, Nicholas (2000) ''The Saints of Cornwall''. Oxford University Press {{DEFAULTSORT:Constantine (British Saint) Christian missionaries in Scotland Saints' days Southwestern Brythonic saints