GUGLIELMO PINCHON, saint. - Bishop of St-Brieuc. Born c. 1184, died at St-Brieuc on 23 July 1234. He was ordained priest around 1206, bishop of St-Brieuc in 1220; he continued the construction work on the Cathedral, begun under Bishop Pietro (d. 1212).
Having come into conflict with the duke of Brittany, Pierre de Dreux, known as Mauclerc, over the abolition of the tierpage and the refusal to restore the unlawfully exacted tithes (Assemblies of Redon, 1227), he was punished by the confiscation of his property. The conflict spread throughout Brittany, which was placed under interdict (bull of Gregory IX, 23 May 1228). G. withdrew to Poitiers, where he deputized for the ailing bishop until the duke’s submission (bull of absolution of Gregory IX, 30 May 1230), then returned to St-Brieuc. He was buried in his Cathedral. Innocent IV canonized him at Lyons on 15 Apr. 1247. Together with St Brieuc, he is the principal patron of the diocese. Feast day: 29 July.
