ENGLISH SAINTS AND MARTYRS HONOURED IN THE MONTH OF JUNE
ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS JUNE
June 1
St. Wistan, 850 A.D. Wistan (d.c. 850), Martyr of England. A grandson of the king of Mercia, he was supposedly murdered by Bertulph, king of Mercia and his godfather, for opposing the ruler's planned marriage to Wistan's mother. Originally buried at Repton, his remains were translated to Evesham Cathedral
St. Tegla. Patron saint of a church and well in Ciwyd, Wales.
St. Ronan. A Celtic bishop who promoted the faith in his native Cornwall, England, and in Brittany, France. Ronan is also associated with St. Rumon in some accounts.
Bl. John Storey, 1571 A.D. Martyr of England. A Doctor of Law, John studied at Oxford, was president of Broadgate Hall and a professor of law, and was an active Catholic in the reign of Queen Mary Tudor. Married about 1547, he entered Parliament and was vocal in his opposition to various anti-Catholic laws then being proposed by the governments of King Edward VI and Queen Elizabeth I. Arrested and imprisoned, he managed to escape but was captured by Elizabeth’s agents in Antwerp, returned for a trial, and executed at Tyburn.
St. Candida. The village Whitchurch Canonicorum in Dorset, mentioned in the will of King Alfred as Hwitn Cyrcian, presumably takes its name from St. Wite, and its church is dedicated in her honor (the Latin form "Candida" is not recorded before the sixteenth century). In the north transept of the church is her shrine.
June 2
St. Adalgis, 686 A.D. A missionary and monastic founder, born in Ireland. As part of the heroic undertakings of the early Irish monks, Adalgis, who was a disciple of St. Fursey, sailed from his home to France. He did missionary work in Arras and Laon and founded a monastery in Picardy.
St. Bodfan, 7th century. Patron saint of Ahern, in Gwynredd, Wales. He saw the formation of Beaumaris Bay in a natural inundation and became a religious.
June 3
St. Kevin. Known in Ireland as Coemgen as well as Kevin, according to tradition he was born at the Fort of the White Fountain in Leinster, Ireland, of royal descent. He was baptized by St. Cronan and educated by St. Petroc. He was ordained, and became a hermit at the Valley of the Two Lakes in Glendalough. After seven years there, he was persuaded to give up his solitary life. He went to Disert-Coemgen, where he founded a monastery for the disciples he attracted, and later moved to Glendalough. He made a pilgrimage to Rome, bringing back many relics for his permanent foundation at Glendalough. He was a friend of St. Kieran of Clonmacnois, and was entrusted with the raising of the son of King Colman of Ui Faelain, by the king. Many extravagant miracles were attributed to Kevin, and he was reputed to be 120 years old at his death.
St. Cronan, 617 A.D. A disciple of St. Kevin called “the Tanner.”
St. Glushallaich, 7th century. Irish hermit who was a disciple of St. Kevin. Glunshallaich was buried in St. Kevin’s graveyard in Glenadalough, Ireland.
June 4
St. Petroc. Petroc was born in Wales, possibly the son of a Welsh king. He became a monk and with some of his friends, went to Ireland to study. They immigrated to Cornwall in England and settled at Lanwethinoc (Padstow). After thirty years there, he made a pilgrimage to Rome and Jerusalem, at which time he is also reputed to have reached the Indian Ocean where he lived for some time as a hermit on an island. He then returned to Cornwall, built a chapel at Little Petherick near Padstow, established a community of his followers, and then became a hermit at Bodmir Moor, where he again attracted followers and was known for his miracles. He died between Nanceventon and Lanwethinoc while visiting some of his disciples there.
St. Breaca, 5th or 6th century. Disciple of St. Brigid, also called Breque, Branca, and Branka. She went from Ireland to Cornwall, England, about 460. There Breaca and her companions settled on the bank of the Hoyle River.
St. Buriana, 6th century. Irish hermitess of Cornwall, known for penitential practices and holiness. She is venerated at Buryan, opposite the Isles of Scilly.
St. Walter, 1150 A.D. Benedictine abbot. Born in England, he served as a monk and then became the abbot of Fontenelle, France, the famed Benedictine spiritual center. Pope Innocent II (r. 1130-1143) noted his zeal and holiness.
St. Cornelius, 1176 A.D. Archbishop of Armagh, Ireland, also called Cornelius Mac Conchailleadh or McConchailleach. An Irishman, he joined the Augustinians at Armagh in 1140 and was made abbot in 1151. In 1174, he was made bishop. Cornelius died in Canbery, Savoy, France, while returning from a pilgrimage to Rome.
St. Croidan, 6th century. A disciple of St. Petroc with St. Medan and Degan.
June 5
St. Tudno, 6th century. Welsh saint after whom Llandudno in Gwynedd, Wales, is named. He figures in various Welsh Christian legends.
St. Eoban, 754 A.D. Benedictine monk and martyr of Irish descent, a companion of Sts. Willibrord and Boniface. Eoban was martyred with Boniface at Dokkum, Holland.
June 6
Bl. Walter Pierson, 1537 A.D. Carthusian martyr of England. A member of the Carthusian Charterhouse of London, he served as a lay brother and was arrested with his companions by English authorities for opposing the religious policies of King Henry VIII (r. 1509-1547). With six other Carthusians, he was starved to death in prison.
St. Cocca, Patroness of Kilcock on the borders of Counties Meath and Kildare in Ireland also called Cucca or Cuach.
St. Jarlath. St. Jarlath, Bishop is regarded as the founder and principle patron of the Archdiocese of Tuam in Galway, Ireland. He belonged to the Conmaicne family, perhaps the most important and powerful family in Galway during that period. Jarlath was trained by a holy man and ordained a priest along with his cousin. He then founded the monastery of Cluain Fois, just outside Tuam, and presided over that monastery as abbot-bishop. Later, Jarlath opened a school attached to the monastery, one which soon became known as a great center of learning. St. Brendan of Clonfert and St. Colman of Cloyne were among his pupils at the school. Jarlath died around 550 A.D.
St. Gudwal, 6th century. Welsh bishop who founded Plecit Monastery, near Locoal, and monasteries in Brittany, France. Also called Gurval, he may be the Gudwall who succeeded St. Malo at Aleth. His relics are venerated in Ghent, Belgium.
Bl. John Davy, 1537 A.D. Carthusian martyr of England. A member of the Carthusian Charterhouse of London, he was an opponent of the Act of Supremacy of King Henry VIII. and was arrested and starved to death in Newgate Prison with six Carthusian companions. John was beatified in 1886.
Bl. Robert Salt, 1537 A.D. Carthusian martyr. Robert was a lay brother in the Carthusian community of London who, with six other members of the order, was starved to death at Newgate by order of King Henry VIII of England after they resisted his Dissolution of the Monasteries.
June 7
St. Robert of Newminster. Robert of Newminster, Saint, Abbot, (Benedictine) Cistercians (1100-1159) A priest from North Yorkshire who took the Benedictine habit at Whitby and obtained permission to join some monks of York who were attempting to live according to a new interpretation of the Benedictine rule at Fountains abbey (1132). Fountains soon became Cistercian and one of the centres of the White Monks in N. England. Newminster abbey in Northumberland was founded from it in 1137, and Robert became its first abbot. He is described as gentle and merciful in judgement.
St. Willibald, 786 A.D. Bishop and missionary. A native of Wessex, England, he was the brother of Sts. Winebald and Walburga and was related through his mother to the great St. Boniface. After studying in a monastery in Waitham, in Hampshire, he went on a pilgrimage to Rome (c. 722) with his father, who died on the way at Lucca, Italy. Willibald continued on to Rome and then to Jerusalem. Captured by Saracens who thought him a spy, he was eventually released and continued on to all of the holy places and then to Constantinople (modern Istanbul, Turkey), where he visited numerous lauras, monasteries,
and hermitages. Upon his return to Italy, he went to Monte Cassino where he stayed for ten years, serving as sacrist, dean, and porter. While on a visit to Rome, he met Pope St. Gregory III (r. 731-741), who sent him to Germany to assist his cousin St. Boniface in his important missionary endeavors. Boniface ordained him in 741 and soon appointed him bishop of Eichstatt, in Franconia. the Site of Willibald's most successful efforts as a missionary. With his brother Winebald, he founded a double monastery at Heidenheim, naming Winebald abbot and his sister Walburga abbess. Willibald served as bishop for some four decades. His Vita is included in the Hodoeporicon (the earliest known English travel book). An account of his journeys in the Holy Land was written by a relative of Willibald and a nun of Heidenheim.
June 8
St. Bron, 511 A.D. Bishop and disciple of St. Patrick. Bron was the bishop of Cassel-lrra, near Sligo, Ireland. He continued St. Patrick's missionary efforts and introduced literary and artistic standards in Irish monastic life.
St. William of York. Bishop. William of York was the son of Count Herbert, treasurer to Henry I. His mother Emma was the half-sister of King William. Young William became treasurer of the church of York at an early age and was elected archbishop of York in 1140.
St. Edgar the Peaceful, 975 A.D. English king and patron of St. Dunstan, who served as his counselor. England underwent a religious revival in his reign, and he is venerated at Glastonbury. However, his daughter, St. Edith of Wilton, was borne by one of two religious women with whom he had an affair.
St. Levan, 6th century. Celtic saint sometimes listed as Levin or Selyr. He went to Cornwall, England, as a missionary and is revered there.
St. Muirchu, 7th century. Irish confessor. He is noted for writing the lives of St. Brigid and Patrick. In some lists he is called Maccutinus.
June 9
St. Columba, 521-597 A.D. Born probably in Donegal Ireland of royal descent he studied at Moville under St. Finnian then in Leinster at the monastery of Clonard under another St. Finnian. He was ordained before he was twenty-five and spent the next fifteen years preaching and setting up foundations at Derry, Durrow, and Kells. Possibly because of a family feud which resulted in the death of 3000 and for which he considered himself partly responsible he left Ireland at 42 and landed on the island of Iona off the coast of Scotland. There he built the monastery which was to become world famous. With SS Canice and Comgall he spread the gospel to the Picts; he also developed a monastic rule which many followed until the introduction of St. Benedicts. He died on Iona and is also known as Colm, Colum and Columcille.
St. Baithin, 598 A.D. Abbot and cousin of St. Columba, also listed as Comm or Cominus in some lists. Baithin was abbot of Tiree Abbey in Ireland, succeeding St. Columba as abbot of lona in Scotland in 597. He wrote about his saintly cousin and is said to have died on the anniversary of St. Columba's death.
St. Cummian, 8th century. Benedictine bishop of Ireland also called Cumian or Cummin. He traveled to Bobbio, in Italy, and remained there as a monk.
June 11
St. Tochmura. Irish virgin. She is venerated in the diocese of Kilmore, Ireland, and is considered a special patron of women in labor.
St. Blitharius, 7th century. Companion of St. Fursey. A native of Scotland, Blitharius went with St. Fursey to France to undertake missions and evangelization. He is venerated in Champagne, and is sometimes called Blier.
June 12
St. Ternan, 5th century. Missionary and bishop, sometimes called Torannan. According to tradition, he was a disciple of St. Palladius and was perhaps consecrated bishop by him in 432. He worked for many as a missionary bishop among the Picts in Scotland and he is honored as the founder of the abbey of Culross, in Fifeshire, where he died.
St. Chirstian, 1138 A.D. Bishop and brother of St. Malachy of Armagh. His Celtic name was Croistan O'Morgair. In 1126, Christian was named the bishop of Clogher, in Ireland.
St. Cominus. Patron saint of Ardcavan, Ireland, an abbot.
St. Cunera. A British virgin venerated in Germany.
St. Eskill, 1080 A.D. English missionary to Sweden, a companion of St. Sigfrid, his kinsman. Eskill went with St. Sigfrid to Sweden. There he was consecrated as the bishop of Strangnas and evangelized Sodermanland. King Sweyn the Bloody, the pagan successor to the murdered Christian King Inge, revived pagan practices. Eskill denounced a pagan festival and was stoned to death by order of the king.
Sts. Marinus, Vimius, & Zimius. The “Three Holy Exiles’ they were Benedictines at the Scottish St. James Abbey in Regensburg, Germany. They became hermits at Griestatten.
June 13
St. Damhnade. Virgin venerated in Ireland.
June 14
St. Cearan, 870 A.D. Irish abbot called “the Devout,” also known as Ciaran. He was abbot of Bellach-Duin now Castle Kerrant, County Meath.
St. Dogmael, 6th century. Welsh monk of the house of Cunedda, the son of Ithel ab Ceredig ab Cunedda Wledig. He preached in Pembrokeshire, Wales, and then went to Brittany, in France. Several churches bear his name.
St. Elgar, 1100 A.D. Hermit on the isle of Bardsey, off the coast of Cearnarvon, Wales. He was born in Devonshire, England, and spent many years as a captive in Ireland.
St. Nennus. Abbot. From Ireland, he became abbot of monasteries on the isles of Arran and Bute. Nennus was the successor of St. Enda
June 15
St. Vouga, 6th century. Irish bishop also called Vougar, Veho, and Fiech. He gave up his post and went to Brittany, France, where he lived as a hermit near Lesneven.
St. Trillo, 6th century. A Welsh saint of whom little is known beyond his status as patron saint of two sites in Gwynedd, Wales. In some lists he is called Drel or Drillo.
St. Edburga of Winchester, 960 A.D. Benedictine abbess, the daughter of King Edward the Elder and his third wife Edgiva, and the granddaughter of Alfred the Great. She became a nun at Winchester Abbey, then abbess, and was known for her miracles. Her shrine is at Pershore, in Worchestershire, England.
Bls. Thomas Green, Thomas Scryven, and Thomas Reding, 1537 A.D. English Carthusian martyrs. Thomas Green studied at St. John's College, Cambridge, entering the London Charterhouse of the Carthusians where he took vows and received ordination. Arrested for opposing King Henry VIII's (r. 1509-1547) claim of spiritual supremacy over the English Church, Thomas was imprisoned with two other Carthusians, the lay brothers Thomas Scryven and Thomas Reding, and four other companions. All were starved to death at Newgate Prison.
June 16
Bl. William Greenwood, 1537 A.D. Carthusian martyr of England. A lay brother in the Carthusian London Charterhouse, he was arrested for opposing the policies of King Henry VIII (r. 1509-1547) and starved to death in Newgate Prison with six companions.
St. Cettin, 5th century. Bishop and disciple of St.Patrick also called Cetagh. Cettin was consecrated a bishop to help St. Patrick.
St. Colman McRhoi, 6th century. An abbot and disciple of St. Columba. He founded the monastery of Reachrain, now Lamboy Island, in Dublin, Ireland, ruling as abbot.
St. Curig, 6th century. Welsh bishop in the see of Llanbadarn. Several churches in Wales are dedicated to Curig.
June 17
St. Herve, 575 A.D. Welsh bard who was is a popular patron in Brittany, France. Herve, sometimes called Harvey or Hervues, was the son of the bard Hyvarnion, and was born blind. Raised by his uncles because his mother was a hermitess, he was taken to Brittany. There he built an abbey at Lanhourneau, and he
was venerated as a miracle worker and bard. He is invoked against eye trouble, and he is depicted with a wolf. Tales and legends associated Herve with a wolf.
St. Adulf, 680 A.D. Bishop and missionary, venerated with his brother, Butulf. They were nobles of Saxon or Irish lineage who became monks. Both went as missionaries to Germany. There Adulf was made the bishop of Utrecht. Butulf returned to England and founded a religious house in 654, becoming widely respected for his holiness.
St. Briavel. The patron of a parish in Dean Forest, Gloucestershire, England.
St. Nectan. Hermit and martyr also called Nighton or Nectaran. Possibly a native of Wales or Ireland, he is best known through legends. He lived as a hermit in Devonshire, England, founding churches there and in Cornwall, England. The patron saint of Hartland, Devonshire, he was much venerated during the Middle Ages and his shrine was a popular place for pilgrims until its destruction during the Reformation in the sixteenth century. He was reported beheaded by robbers, and in some traditions was a relative of the chieftain Brychan.
St. Moling, 697 A.D. Bishop of Ferns, the successor of St. Aidan. Born in Wexford, Ireland, he is also listed as Dairchilla, Molignus, Moling, or Myllin. Moling was a monk at Glendalough and then founded an abbey at Achad Cainigh, which became Teghmollin, or Tech Molin, St. Mullins. He was buried there.
June 19
Bl. Humphrey Middlemore, 1572-1591 A.D. Carthusian martyr of England. He was hanged at Tyburn with two monks of the London Charterhouse.
Bl. William Exmew, 1535 A.D. Carthusian martyr. An Englishman, he was educated at Cambridge and entered the Carthusians, eventually becoming sub-prior of the London Charterhouse. Owing to their refusal to accept the reforms of King Henry VIII (r. 1509-1547), William was executed with Blesseds Sebastian Newdigate and Humphrey Middlemore. They were beatified in 1886.
Bl. Thomas Woodhouse, 1573 A.D. English martyr. A resident of Lincolnshire, he received ordination as a secular priest and took up a post there. Forced to resign from this post, he became a tutor in Wales. He was arrested in 1561 for celebrating a Mass and was sent to Fleet Prison. During the period of his incarceration, which lasted twelve years, he entered the Society of Jesus Thomas was tried in 1570. He was hanged at Tyburn.
Bl. Sebastian Newdigate, 1535 A.D. Carthusian martyr of England. Born at Harefield, Middlesex, England, he studied at Cambridge and was married. His wife died in 1524 and he became a priest. Before entering the Carthusians in the London Charterhouse, he also served as King Henry VIII’s privy counselor. When Sebastian and fellow monks refused to accept the declaration of King Henry VIII’s Supremacy over the Church of England, they were arrested. Sebastian was executed at Tyburn on June 19 with Blesseds Humphrey Middlemore and William Exmew.
June 20
St. Govan, 6th century. Hermit who lived on a cliff at St. Govan’s Head, Dyfed, Wales. He was a disciple of St. Ailbhe and in some lists is called Cofen or Gonen.
Bl. Anthony Turner, 1679 A.D. Martyr of England. The son of a Protestant minister, he was born in Leicestershire and educated at Cambridge. A convert to Catholicism, Anthony went to Rome and joined the Jesuits in Flanders and was ordained in 1661. He returned to England and labored in Worcester until he was arrested in the so-called Titus Oates affair. Convicted on perjured evidence, he was hanged, drawn, and quartered at Tyburn on June 20. Anthony was beatified in 1929.
Bl. William Harcourt, 1679 A.D. Jesuit martyr of England, also called William Barrows. Born in Lancashire in 1609, he studied at St. Omer, France, where in 1632 he became a Jesuit. Returning to England in 1645, he labored in London on behalf of the Catholic mission for more than thirty years. Condemned falsely for complicity in the so-called Popish Plot, he was executed at Tyburn with five other Jesuits, He was beatified in 1929.
Bl. Thomas Whitbread, 1679 A.D. English Jesuit and martyr. A native of Essex, England, he studied at St. Omer, France, and entered the Jesuits in 1635. Back in England and using the alias Thomas Harcourt, he served as provincial of the Jesuit mission until his arrest on the entirely false charges of complicity in the Popish Plot. Thomas was tried for sheltering the plotters and was convicted of the charge of attempting to murder the king. He was hanged, drawn, and quartered at Tyburn.
Bls. John Fenwick and John Gavan, 1679 A.D. Jesuit Martyrs of England. John Fenwick was born in Durham and educated at Saint-Omer. He became a Jesuit in 1656. John Gavan was born in London and entered the Jesuits in 1660. They were involved in the Titus Oates Plot hysteria, falsely charged with complicity, and put to death at Tyburn with three Jesuit companions.
June 21
St. John Rigby, 1600 A.D. Martyr of England, a layman executed at Southwark. He was born near Wigan, England, and was reconciled to the Church. Admitting that he was a Catholic, he was arrested and placed in Newgate Prison. He was hanged, drawn, and quartered at Southwark on June 21. John is one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales and was canonized in 1970 by Pope Paul VI.
St. Corbmac, 6th century. An abbot and disciple of St. Columba, who made him the superior of Durrow Monastery.
St. Maine. Founder of Saint-Meon in Brittany, France. He was a disciple of St. Samson. Maine, who also is listed as Meen, Mevenus, Mavenus, or Mewan, was either Welsh or Cornish.
June 22
St. Aaron. Aaron was a native of Britain. He went to Brittany, where he became a hermit on Cesabre (St. Malo) island. He attracted numerous disciples, among them St. Malo of Wales, and became their Abbot.
St. Alban. St. Alban was the first martyr of England, his own country (homeland). During a persecution of Christians, Alban, though a pagan, hid a priest in his house. The priest made such a great impression on him that Alban received instructions and became a Christian himself. In the meantime, the governor had been told that the priest was hiding in Alban's house, and he sent his soldiers to capture him. But Alban changed clothes with his guest, and gave himself up in his stead. The judge was furious when he found out that the priest had escaped and he said to Alban, "You shall get the punishment he was to get unless you worship the gods." The Saint answered that he would never worship those false gods again. "To what family do you belong?" demanded the judge. "That does not concern you," said Alban. "If you want to know my religion, I am a Christian." Angrily the judge commanded him again to sacrifice to the gods at once. "Your sacrifices are offered to devils," answered the Saint. "They cannot help you or answer your requests. The reward for such sacrifices is the everlasting punishment of Hell." Since he was getting nowhere, the judge had Alban whipped. Then he commanded him to be beheaded. On the way to the place of execution, the soldier who was to kill the Saint was converted himself, and he too, became a martyr.
St. Thomas More, 1535 A.D. St. Thomas More, Martyr (Patron of Lawyers) St. Thomas More was born at London in 1478. After a thorough grounding in religion and the classics, he entered Oxford to study law. Upon leaving the university he embarked on a legal career which took him to Parliament. In 1505, he married his beloved Jane Colt who bore him four children, and when she died at a young age, he married a widow, Alice Middleton, to be a mother for his young children. A wit and a reformer, this learned man numbered Bishops and scholars among his friends and by 1516 wrote his world-famous book "Utopia". He attracted the attention of Henry VIII who appointed him to a succession of high posts and missions, and finally made him Lord Chancellor in 1529. However, he resigned in 1532, at the height of his career and reputation, when Henry persisted in holding his own opinions regarding marriage and the supremacy of the Pope. The rest of his life was spent in writing mostly in defense of the Church. In 1534, with his close friend, St. John Fisher, he refused to render allegiance to the King as the Head of the Church of England and was confined to the Tower. Fifteen months later, and nine days after St. John Fisher's execution, he was tried and convicted of treason. He told the court that he could not go against his conscience and wished his judges that "we may yet hereafter in heaven merrily all meet together to everlasting salvation." And on the scaffold, he told the crowd of spectators that he was dying as "the King's good servant-but God's first." He was beheaded on July 6, 1535.
St. John Fisher. St. John Fisher was born in Beverly, Yorkshire, in 1459, and educated at Cambridge, from which he received his Master of Arts degree in 1491. He occupied the vicarage of Northallerton, 14911494; then he became proctor of Cambridge University. In 1497, he was appointed confessor to Lady Margaret Beaufort, mother of Henry VII, and became closely associated in her endowments to Cambridge; he created scholarships, introduced Greek and Hebrew into the curriculum, and brought in the world-famous Erasmus as professor of Divinity and Greek. In 1504, he became Bishop of Rochester and Chancellor of Cambridge, in which capacity he also tutored Prince Henry who was to become Henry VIII. St. John was dedicated to the welfare of his diocese and his university. From 1527, this humble servant of God actively opposed the King's divorce proceedings against Catherine, his wife in the sight of God, and steadfastly resisted the encroachment of Henry on the Church. Unlike the other Bishops of the realm, St. John refused to take the oath of succession which acknowledged the issue of Henry and Anne as the legitimate heir to the throne, and he was imprisoned in the tower in April 1534. The next year he was made a Cardinal by Paul III and Henry retaliated by having him beheaded within a month. A half hour before his execution, this dedicated scholar and churchman opened his New Testament for the last time and his eyes fell on the following words from St. John's Gospel: "Eternal life is this: to know You, the only true God, and Him Whom You have sent, Jesus Christ. I have given you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do. Do you now, Father, give me glory at your side". Closing the book, he observed: "There is enough learning in that to last me the rest of my life."
June 23
Saint Ethelreda (Audrey), 679 A.D. Around 640, there was an English princess named Ethelreda, but she was known as Audrey. She married once, but was widowed after three years, and it was said that the marriage was never consummated. She had taken a perpetual vow of virginity, but married again, this time for reasons of state. Her young husband soon grew tired of living as brother and sister and began to make advances on her. She continually refused. He eventually attempted to bribe the local bishop, Saint Wilfrid of York, to release Audrey from her vows.
Saint Wilfrid refused, and helped Audrey escape. She fled south, with her husband following. They reached a promontory known as Colbert's Head, where a heaven sent seven day high tide separated the two. Eventually, Audrey's husband left and married someone more willing, while Audrey took the veil, and founded the great abbey of Ely, where she lived an austere life. She eventually died of an enormous and unsightly tumor on her neck, which she gratefully accepted as Divine retribution for all the necklaces she had worn in her early years. Throughout the Middle Ages, a festival, "St. Audrey's Fair", was held at Ely on her feast day. The exceptional shodiness of the merchandise, especially the neckerchiefs, contributed to the English language the word "tawdry", a corruption of "Saint Audrey."
St. Thomas Garnet, 1608 A.D. English Jesuit martyr. A nephew of the Jesuit Henry Garnet, he was born in Southwark, England, and studied for the priesthood at St. Omer, France, and Valladolid, Spain. Initially ordained as a secular priest, he joined the Jesuits in 1604 and worked to advance the Catholic cause in Warwick until his arrest in 1606. He was exiled after months of torture but returned in 1607 and was soon arrested. He was hanged at Tyburn. Beatified in 1929, he was canonized in 1970 and is included among the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales.
St. Moelray, 493 A.D. Abbot of Nendrum Monastery, installed by St. Patrick. A native of Ireland, Moelray, also called Moeliai, instructed Sts. Finian and Colman.
St. Peter of Juilly, 1136 A.D. Benedictine monk and preacher. Originally from England, he became a friend of St. Stephen Harding and was his companion at Molesme. Later, he was named confessor and chaplain to the nuns of Juilly les Nonnais who were under the care of St. Humbeline, sister of St. Bernard of Clairvaux. Peter also possessed a reputation for being a brilliant preacher and a miracle worker.
June 24
St. Bartholomew of Fame, 1193 A.D. A Benedictine hermit and miracle worker associated with Durham, England. He was born in Whitby, in Northumbria, England, and was called Tostig. After going to Norway, Bartholomew was ordained and returned to Durham, where he entered the Benedictine Order. He became a hermit on the island of Fame, on the coast of Northumbria, remaining there for forty-two years. Bartholomew was noted as a miracle worker.
St. Germoc, 6th century. Confessor of the faith, an Irish chieftain. He was the brother of St. Breaca. Germoc settled in Cornwall, England.
June 25
St. Adalbert, 740 A.D. A missionary in Ireland whose tomb became a center for pilgrims. Adalbert was born in Northumbria, England, and was educated at Rathmelgisi Monastery. Accompanying St. Willibrord and others to Friesland, he gained many converts in an area called Egmont. Adalbert was also a companion of St. Egbert to Ireland. It is believed that he became St. Willibrord's successor as the abbot of Epternach. Adalbert's shrine was noted for miracles after his death.
St. Selyf, 6th century. Hermit in Cornwall. He is perhaps to be identified with St. Solomon, who has the same feast day.
St. Moloc, 572 A.D. Scottish bishop and missionary, sometimes called Lugaidh, Molvanus, Molluog, or Murlach. The son of a Scottish noble, he was educated in Ireland under St. Brendan the Elder and evangelized the Hebrides region of Scotland. He died at Rossmarkie, Scotland. His shrine was at Martlach, and he is venerated in Argyll.
St. Molonachus, 7th century. Bishop of Lismore, in Argyl, Scotland. He was a disciple of St. Brendan.
June 26
St. Corbican, 8th century. An Irish recluse in the Low Countries, now Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg. He gave his life to educating the local peasants.
June 28
St. Almus, 1270 A.D. Cistercian abbot also called Alme and Alanus. He was a monk in the English Cistercian monastery at Melrose when he was elected abbot of Scotland's Balmerino monastery, founded by Ermengardis, the widow of William I of Scotland.
St. John Southworth, 1654 A.D. One of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales. He was born in Lancashire and became a priest in 1619 in Douai. Sent to England that same year, he was arrested but released through the intercession of Queen Henrietta Maria. He joined St. Henry Morse, subsequently working diligently during the plague of 1636. Arrested again, he was martyred by being hanged, drawn and quartered at Tybum. His relics are in Westminster Cathedral in London, discovered there in 1927. Pope Paul VI canonized him in 1970.
St. Austell, 6th century. Confessor and disciple of St. Newman of Cornwall, England. Modern scholars believe that Austell was a woman named Hoystill, a daughter of Brychan of Wales.
St. Crummine, 5th century. Bishop and disciple of St. Patrick of Ireland. St. Patrick placed Crummine over the church in Lachan County, Westmeath.
June 30
St. Airick, twelfth century. Hermit and companion of St. Godric. Airick was a noted recluse in England. St. Godric is recorded as being his friend and deathbed companion.
St. Eurgain, 6th century. Virgin foundress of Wales. The daughter of chieftain Caradog of Glamorgan, Wales, she founded Cor-Eurgain, later called Llanwit.
Bl. Philip Powell, 1594-1646 A.D. Benedictine English martyr. Born in the Gwent district, southeast Wales, or at Tralon, England, he was educated in London and then entered the Benedictines in Douni in 1614. Ordained in 1621, he was sent to assist the English mission and spent two decades in the area of Devon, Somerset, and Cornwall before being arrested. He also served as a chaplain in the Civil War. Philip was executed at Tyburn by being hanged, drawn, and quartered; he was beatified in 1929.