6th century. Saint Gluvias may have been sent to Cornwall by his
brother, Saint Cadoc of Llancarfan. There he laid the foundation for a
monastery and a parish commemorates his name
(
Benedictines).
The church stands on the site of the hermitage of its patron, Gluvias,
who belongs to that great tide of saints which swept down from Wales and
overspilled into Brittany. He is the brother of S.Cadoc, which would
make him the son of St.Woolos of Newport and St.Gladys, one of the
daughters of Brychan. St.Petroc, the founder of Padstow and Bodmin, was
uncle to Cadoc and Gluvias, and St.Keyne would have been their great
aunt. St.Keyne gives her name to Keynsham between Bristol and Bath and
to the parish in Cornwall between Looe and Liskeard.
These family connections are a feature of the Celtic saints, but of
St.Gluvias himself we know little except that he chose this fertile
valley for his retreat, famous for its flowers as well as its granite.
His church looks down over Penryn, which lies at the side of Falmouth,
and although it is probably older and more distinguished than its
neighbour, it has not grown so large. It now has no church of its own,
but once it was a famous place of learning, receiving scholars from
Oxford to join the canons of its famous Glasney College, founded by
Bishop Bronescombe. It had a great collegiate church, dedicated to
St.Thomas of Canterbury, but there are few traces of the church and
college buildings, which were once
strongly walled.
Glasney College might have become a university if it had survived the
sixteenth century, but during the middle ages it had a great influence
on the life of the Church in Cornwall, and some of the miracle plays in
Cornish, which were composed there, are extant. Among some of the
manuscripts that have survived is a reference to St.Gluvias as a martyr,
but there is no indication of the manner in which he glorified Our Lord
by his death
(
Bowen,
John,
Mee).
The Saints of Cornwall - Catherine Rachel John.
The King's England - Cornwall - Arthur Mee.
The church of Saint Gluvias in Cornwall
Present structure dates from1883, with sections from earlier centuries.
http://homepages.tesco.net/~k.wasley/St_Gluvias.htm
Troparion of St Gluvias
Tone 2
O glorious Father Gluvias,
thou didst bring the light of Christ to Cornwall
while thy brother holy Cadoc enlightened Wales.
As thou dost intercede for all mankind,
pray to Christ our God to grant us His great mercy.