Samson of Dol
Saint Samson of Dol (born late
5th century) was a
Christian religious figure who is counted among the seven founder saints of
Brittany. Born in southern
Wales, he died in
Dol-de-Bretagne, a small town in north Brittany.
Samson was of noble blood, the son of Amon of
Dyfed and Anna of
Gwent. His father's brother also married his mother's sister, and their son
Saint Magloire was his cousin. As part of the prophecy concerning his birth, his parents placed him under the care of Saint
Illtud, abbot of
Llantwit to become a
monk. Samson later became
abbot of Llantwit's daughter house on
Caldey Island. He was ordained
bishop by Bishop
Dubricius on the Feast of the
Chair of Saint Peter (
February 22) at the beginning of
Lent, which can be calculated to have fallen in the year
521, the only certain date in Samson's life. If the usual practice was observed and he was 35 years old at the time of his ordination, this would mean he was born in
486. However, he is recorded as having been in attendance at a church Council in
Paris held at some time between
556 and
573. Had he been born in 486, he would have been at least 70 years old at the time.
Following his ordination, Samson travelled to
Cornwall, the
Channel Islands, and Brittany. In Cornwall, he founded a monastery that was located at either South Hill or Golant, and, in Brittany, he founded the monastery of Dol. Samson also participated in Breton politics, successfully petitioning the
Merovingian king,
Childebert I, on behalf of King
Judwal. He was buried, with his cousin Magloire, in the Cathedral of Dol. He is one of the seven founder saints of Brittany, with
Saint Pol Aurelian,
Saint Tugdual (Tudwal),
Saint Brieuc,
Saint Malo, Saint Patern, and Saint Corentin.
The primary source for his biography is the
Vita Sancti Samsonis, written sometime between
610 and
820, but clearly based on earlier materials. Not only does it preserve such details about Samson such as his abstinence from alcohol â€" unlike many of his contemporaries, such as the Abbot Pyr who was killed when he fell down a well while drunk â€" but valuable details about
Celtic Christianity in Britain during Samson's time. This document details the contacts churchmen in Britain had with both Ireland and Brittany, describes their belief, and offers facts that have been used to prove both that religious communities were headed by abbots where the bishops served in a subordinate role, and that these communities were actually headed by bishops as was the usual practice in the rest of Europe. This
Vita was later used as a model for the writing of other
hagiographies in Brittany.
