Enciclopedia Cattolica

CADOC, SANTO

Cadoc, Saint

Volume III · p. 181 · 1949

English translation · Testo originale italiano

CADOC, santo. - Di Llancarvan, santo del Galle̋s, del sec. vi, eremita, abate, poeta (appassionato di Virgilio), e signore feudale a un tempo.
CADOC, santo. - Di Llancarvan, santo del Galle̋s, del sec. vi, eremita, abate, poeta (appassionato di Virgilio), e signore feudale a un tempo.

Machine translation of the 1948–1954 Italian original. The original text is authoritative.

The most ancient Life of him that has come down to us was written by a cleric, Lifris, at the end of the 11th century, but it clearly reflects the ancient traditions of the great monastery he founded. There it is said that his mother was of Irish origin, that he was a disciple of an Irish hermit named Meuthi, and that he then went to attend the monastic schools of Ireland “to acquire all the learning of the West.” Returning to his homeland with various followers, among whom Finnian of Clonard who remained with him for some time, he founded the great monastery of Llancarvan (or Nantcarvan) in southern Wales, already quite flourishing in the first half of the 6th century. He is a representative figure of that period of intense religious and cultural exchanges (important in particular for Latin culture) between Christian Britain and Ireland.

BIBL.: J. F. Kenney, The sources for the early history of Ireland, I: Ecclesiastical, New York 1929, pp. 179-80; L. Gougaud, Christianity in Celtic Lands, London 1932, passim.