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Melor (also known in
Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
as Melorius; in Cornish as Melor and in Cornu-English as Mylor; in
French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...
as Méloir; and other variations) was a 10th-century
Breton Breton most often refers to: *anything associated with Brittany, and generally **Breton people **Breton language, a Southwestern Brittonic Celtic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken in Brittany ** Breton (horse), a breed **Gale ...
saint In Christianity, Christian belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of sanctification in Christianity, holiness, imitation of God, likeness, or closeness to God in Christianity, God. However, the use of the ...
who, in England, was venerated in Cornwall and at
Amesbury Abbey Amesbury Abbey was a Benedictine abbey of women at Amesbury in Wiltshire, England, founded by Queen Ælfthryth in about the year 979 on what may have been the site of an earlier monastery. The abbey was dissolved in 1177 by Henry II, who founded ...
, Wiltshire, which claimed some of his
relic In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains or personal effects of a saint or other person preserved for the purpose of veneration as a tangible memorial. Reli ...
s.


Identity

There were probably two or three Breton saints named Melor who were conflated, and a handful of late medieval hagiographies record legends relating to him. Several churches in Brittany and two in Cornwall are dedicated to Melor; the primary cultic center was at
Lanmeur Lanmeur (; ) is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in north-western France. A hamlet in the commune called Kerouac () has been established as the source of the name of the American writer Jack Kerouac. A street in Lanmeur has b ...
. After his relics were acquired by Amesbury Abbey, he was adopted as a co-patron saint.


Breton legend

Melor's legend makes him a
prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...
who was only seven when his uncle, Rivod, murdered his father,
St Miliau St Miliau or Miliav is a Breton saint and eponym of the village of Guimiliau, where he is particularly venerated. He is said to be a good saint to invoke in cases of rheumatism. St Miliau is a figure of some importance in Breton cult and legen ...
or Milio. Riwal wished the child's death also, but was dissuaded from carrying out his intentions by a council of
bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...
s. At their intervention, he decided instead to maim the boy, cutting off his right hand (later replaced by a
silver Silver is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag () and atomic number 47. A soft, whitish-gray, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and reflectivity of any metal. ...
prosthesis In medicine, a prosthesis (: prostheses; from ), or a prosthetic implant, is an artificial device that replaces a missing body part, which may be lost through physical trauma, disease, or a condition present at birth (Congenital, congenital disord ...
) and left foot (replaced with one of
bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals (such as phosphorus) or metalloid ...
). Melor was then sent away to
Quimper Quimper (, ; ; or ) is a Communes of France, commune and Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Finistère Departments of France, department of Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in northwestern France. Administration Quimper is the ...
Abbey to be educated. Here, his metal limbs began to work as if they were natural, and to grow along with him. By the time the prince was fourteen, Rivod decided that he must die and ordered his guardian, Cerialtan, to kill him. The boy was
decapitate Decapitation is the total separation of the head from the body. Such an injury is invariably fatal to humans and all vertebrate animals, since it deprives the brain of oxygenated blood by way of severing through the jugular vein and common c ...
d. Rivod is said to have touched the severed head and to have died three days after. Melor was subsequently buried at
Lanmeur Lanmeur (; ) is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in north-western France. A hamlet in the commune called Kerouac () has been established as the source of the name of the American writer Jack Kerouac. A street in Lanmeur has b ...
in Brittany. The cult of St Melor in Brittany grew to considerable importance and there are a number of place names and dedications to him. Locmélar (hermitage of Melor) is a parish in Finistère. The parish of
Saint-Méloir-des-Ondes Saint-Méloir-des-Ondes (; Gallo: ''Saent-Mleï'', ) is a commune in the Ille-et-Vilaine department in Brittany in northwestern France. It is located near Saint-Malo. The parish was named after St Melor a Breton and Cornish saint, by the mon ...
, in eastern Brittany, was founded by the monks of
Mont Saint-Michel Mont-Saint-Michel (; Norman: ''Mont Saint Miché''; ) is a tidal island and mainland commune in Normandy, France. The island lies approximately off France's north-western coast, at the mouth of the Couesnon River near Avranches and is i ...
in the early 11th century.


Melor in Britain

Melor's cult probably spread to
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, ...
from Brittany. There are churches dedicated to him at Mylor and
Linkinhorne Linkinhorne () is a civil parishes in England, civil parish and village in southeast Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The village itself is situated at and is approximately northwest of Callington, Cornwall, Callington and south of Launce ...
in Cornwall, and at
Amesbury Amesbury () is a town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. It is known for the prehistoric monument of Stonehenge which is within the parish. The town is claimed to be the oldest occupied settlement in Great Britain, having been first settl ...
in Wiltshire. In the 10th century, Melor's body is said to have been taken on tour to England. When it was placed on the
altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religion, religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, Church (building), churches, and other places of worship. They are use ...
at
Amesbury Abbey Amesbury Abbey was a Benedictine abbey of women at Amesbury in Wiltshire, England, founded by Queen Ælfthryth in about the year 979 on what may have been the site of an earlier monastery. The abbey was dissolved in 1177 by Henry II, who founded ...
, it was prevented from being removed by the saint's own power. This legend was likely invented to explain the presence of Melor's relics at Amesbury. It seems likely that, along with those of other Breton saints such as Branwalader and
Samson SAMSON (Software for Adaptive Modeling and Simulation Of Nanosystems) is a computer software platform for molecular design being developed bOneAngstromand previously by the NANO-D group at the French Institute for Research in Computer Science an ...
, they had been collected by King Athelstan, and given by him to
monasteries A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone ( hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which m ...
in which he had a special interest. Amesbury was to become among the most famous of English medieval monasteries but, despite the
nun A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service and contemplation, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 5 ...
s producing their own version of Mellor's ' vita',
William of Malmesbury William of Malmesbury (; ) was the foremost English historian of the 12th century. He has been ranked among the most talented English historians since Bede. Modern historian C. Warren Hollister described him as "a gifted historical scholar and a ...
could not discover any information about its patron. In the publication "Notes on the Parish of Mylor" (1907) is the following reference to the saint: "This St Melior or Melioris is reputed to have been the son of Melianus, Duke of Cornwall, and is said to have been slain for embracing Christianity, August 28, A. D. 411, by his pagan brother-in-law Rinaldus, or Remigius, who first cut off Milor’s right hand, then his left leg, and finally his head". But the book later quotes another source (the Somersetshire Archaeological Society, 1898) thus: "If we may credit the ''Legenda Sanctorum'' compiled by Bishop Grandisson, Meliorus was the son of Melainus, King of Cornwall, by his wife Aurella, a lady of Devon; that at seven years of age he lost his royal father; that his uncle Rivoldus by his father's side returning from abroad cruelly treated the youth and at length contrived his decapitation". During the restoration of Mylor church in the late 19th century, an obelisk of granite which had been serving as a flying buttress was discovered to be the 17½-foot granite cross which had purportedly stood on St Mylor's grave. It was replaced in the churchyard on what was reckoned to be its original site. The poet
Charles Causley Charles Stanley Causley CBE FRSL (24 August 1917 – 4 November 2003) was a Cornish poet, school teacher and writer. His work is often noted for its simplicity and directness as well as its associations with folklore, legends and magic, especi ...
published "The Mystery of St Mylor" in his 1988 collection ''A Field of Vision''.


Feast day

The
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 does n ...
of Prince Melor is 1 October. This is the date celebrated at
Exeter Cathedral Exeter Cathedral, properly known as the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter in Exeter, is an Anglican cathedral, and the seat of the Bishop of Exeter, in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Exeter, Devon, in South West England. The presen ...
, although there are also alternative dates used in Cornwall. The feast days of St Melorus of Mylor are 3 January, 1 October and 25 October (Mylor feast used to be on 28 August but was transferred to the Sunday nearest 25 October).''Cornish Church Guide'' (1925) Truro: Blackford; pp. 10 & 14 Bishop Melor's day is 4 December.


References


Bibliography

*Farmer, David Hugh (1978) ''The
Oxford Dictionary of Saints The ''Oxford Dictionary of Saints'' by David Hugh Farmer is a concise reference compilation of information on more than 1300 saints and contains over 1700 entries. It is published by Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is ...
''. Oxford: Oxford University Press * *
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 enthu ...
(1964) ''The Saints of Cornwall: part 3''. Truro: Dean and Chapter; pp. 20–52
Notes on the Parish of Mylor
*"A Field of Vision",
Charles Causley Charles Stanley Causley CBE FRSL (24 August 1917 – 4 November 2003) was a Cornish poet, school teacher and writer. His work is often noted for its simplicity and directness as well as its associations with folklore, legends and magic, especi ...
, Macmillan, 1988 {{Authority control Christian saints in unknown century Medieval Breton saints Year of birth missing Year of death missing Amesbury Abbey