Austol Explained

Honorific Prefix:Saint
Austol
Feast Day:28 June
Venerated In:Eastern Orthodox Church[1]
Roman Catholic Church
Anglican Communion
Major Shrine:St Austell

Austol (Welsh: Austel; Latin: Austolus) was a 6th-century Cornish holy man who lived much of his life in Brittany.

He was a friend of Mewan, who founded the Saint-Méen Abbey in Brittany. Mewan is said to have been his godfather. The parish and town of St Austell in Cornwall is named in his honour. He is regarded as a saint and is honoured with a Breton feast day on 28 June and a Cornish feast day on the Thursday of Whitsun. According to the "Life" of St Mewan, Austol died within a week after the death of Méen. Before the Reformation, the parishes of St Austell and St Mewan celebrated together because of the friendship between the two saints.[2]

Sources

Notes and References

  1. Hutchinson-Hall Orthodox Saints p. 209
  2. Ellis, P. B. (1992) The Cornish Saints. Penryn: Tor Mark Press, p. 5