Saint Materiana | |
---|---|
Born | c. 440 Gwent, Wales |
Died | early 6th century (?) Minster, Cornwall |
Venerated in | Anglican Communion Catholic Church Eastern Orthodox Church [1] |
Major shrine | Minster, Cornwall |
Feast | 9 April |
Attributes | crown; widow's robe |
Patronage | Minster, Cornwall Tintagel, Cornwall Trawsfynydd, Wales |
Saint Materiana (also spelled Madrun, Madryn, Merteriana, Merthiana, and other variations) is a Welsh saint, patron of two churches in Cornwall and one in Wales.
The name Materiana was corrupted to "Marcelliana" in medieval times. Another spelling of her name sometimes used is "Mertheriana" or "Merthiana", resembling the Welsh merthyr - "martyr". Matrona was a widespread Roman name, and there is no evidence of any purported connection with a pre-Christian goddess named Modron. Materiana is said to have been a princess of the 5th century, the eldest of three daughters of King Vortimer the Blessed, [2] who, after her father's death, ruled over Gwent with her husband Prince Ynyr.
The Hymn to St Materiana in use at Tintagel calls her "Materiana, holy Mother" and prays her to "Over thy people still preside, over thy household, clothed in scarlet vesture of love and holy pride" and continues "Thy children rise and call thee blessed, gathered around thee at thy side." The 'Hymn to St Materiana' is not an ancient hymn, and of Anglican use.
Materiana's primary patronal church is the parish church of Minster, dedicated under the name "Merteriana." The churches were established some time earlier than the settlement at Boscastle (in Norman times when a castle was built there). Until the Reformation, St Materiana's tomb was preserved in the church. Traditions of the saint were recorded by William Worcestre in 1478: he states that her tomb was venerated at Minster and that her feast day was 9 April. [3]
The first church at Tintagel was probably in the 6th century, founded as a daughter church of Minster. By 1258, Materiana was recorded as Tintagel’s patroness by 1258. [4]
The current St Materiana's Church was restored by architect James Piers St Aubynin 1870. The north doorway dates to around 1080. [5] There are two memorials which portray St Materiana: a statue in the chancel and a stained glass window in the nave. The Cornish historian Charles Thomas proposed that the Norman church of Tintagel and its dedication to St Materiana were due to the patronage of William de Bottreaux, lord of Boscastle rather than the Earl of Cornwall. [6]
The parish feast traditionally celebrated at Tintagel was 19 October, the feast day of St Denys, patron of the chapel at Trevena. [7]
The parish church at Trawsfynydd is dedicated to a St Madryn, Princess of Gwent, who is usually identified with Materiana. [8]
Tintagel or Trevena is a civil parish and village situated on the Atlantic coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The village and nearby Tintagel Castle are associated with the legends surrounding King Arthur and in recent times have become a tourist attraction. It was claimed by Geoffrey of Monmouth that the castle was an ancient residence of King Arthur.
North Cornwall is an area of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is also the name of a former local government district, which was administered from Bodmin and Wadebridge 50.516°N 4.835°W. Other towns in the area are Launceston, Bude, Padstow, and Camelford.
Boscastle is a village and fishing port on the north coast of Cornwall, England, in the civil parish of Forrabury and Minster. It is 14 miles (23 km) south of Bude and 5 miles (8 km) northeast of Tintagel. The harbour is a natural inlet protected by two stone harbour walls built in 1584 by Sir Richard Grenville and is the only significant harbour for 20 miles (32 km) along the coast. The village extends up the valleys of the River Valency and River Jordan. Heavy rainfall on 16 August 2004 caused extensive damage to the village.
Lesnewth is a civil parish and village in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is about six miles east of Tintagel Head and two miles east of Boscastle.
St Juliot is a civil parish in north-east Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The parish is entirely rural and the settlements within it are the hamlets of Beeny and Tresparrett. - plus a part of the adjacent village of Marshgate. The parish population at the 2011 census was 328.
Saint Piran's Chapel is a long, single storey slate construction in the hamlet of Trethevy in the parish of Tintagel, Cornwall, UK. It is a chapel-of-ease in the Anglican parish of Tintagel.
Trethevy is a hamlet in north Cornwall, England, United Kingdom.
Saint Nectan's Glen is an area of woodland in Trethevy near Tintagel, north Cornwall stretching for around one mile along both banks of the Trevillet River. The glen's most prominent feature is St Nectan's Kieve, a spectacular sixty foot waterfall through a hole in the rocks. The site attracts tourists who believe it to be "one of the UK's most spiritual sites," and tie or place ribbons, crystals, photographs, small piles of flat stones and other materials near the waterfall.
A Seaside Parish is a British television documentary made by Tiger Aspect Productions for BBC Two which was first broadcast in 2003. Following the success of A Country Parish, the programme concerns the life of a new incumbent and general parish life in the village of Boscastle and the adjoining district, a picturesque but isolated community in North Cornwall.
Forrabury and Minster is a civil parish on the north coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The parish was originally divided between the coastal parish of Forrabury and inland parish of Minster until they were united on the 1st of April 1919.
Lesnewth Hundred is one of the former hundreds of Cornwall, Trigg was to the south-west and Stratton Hundred to the north-east. Tintagel, Camelford, Boscastle, and Altarnun were in the Hundred of Lesnewth as well as Lesnewth which is now a hamlet but in pre-Norman times was the seat of a Celtic chieftain who was said to rule the whole of Trigg.
The Parish Church of Saint Materiana at Tintagel is a Church of England parish church in the Church of England Diocese of Truro in Cornwall, England, UK. It stands on the cliffs between Trevena and Tintagel Castle and is listed Grade I.
Lewtrenchard is a village and civil parish in the West Devon district, in the county of Devon, England. Most of the larger village of Lewdown is in the parish. In the Domesday Book of 1086, a manor of Lew is recorded in this area and two rivers have the same name: see River Lew. Trenchard comes from the lords of the manor in the 13th century.
The civil parishes to which the Forrabury and Minster parish churches belong were united in 1919 to form Forrabury and Minster parish, within Cornwall, England, UK. The main settlement in the parish is Boscastle. The two rectories had been united in 1800.
Saint Madron or Maddern was a Pre-Congregational Saint, monk and hermit.
St Julitta's Church, St Juliot is a Grade II* listed parish church in the Church of England Diocese of Truro in St Juliot, Cornwall.
St Michael and All Angels’ Church, Lesnewth is a Grade II* listed parish church in the Church of England in Lesnewth, Cornwall.
St Denis's Church, Otterham is a Grade II* listed parish church in the Church of England Diocese of Truro in Otterham, Cornwall.
Saint Julitta, or Saint Juliot, is a male Celtic saint to whom two Cornish churches are dedicated. He is believed to have settled at the site of Tintagel Castle at the end of the 5th century and established a small monastic community. In some accounts he is a member of the Children of Brychan and St Nectan and the holy female Hermit, St Keyne, are thought to have been his companions. He is the patron of the parish churches of St Juliot and of Lanteglos by Camelford. The Norman chapel of Tintagel Castle is dedicated to St Julitta. At Jetwells near Camelford is a holy well. Jetwells derives from "Juliot's well".
Camelford and Boscastle is an electoral division of Cornwall in the United Kingdom which returns one member to sit on Cornwall Council. It was created at the 2021 local elections, being created from the former divisions of Camelford and Tintagel. The current councillor is Barry Jordan, a member of the Conservative Party.
Media related to Saint Materiana churches in the United Kingdom at Wikimedia Commons