Saint
Ivo of Kermartin (17 October 1253 – 19 May 1303), also known
Yvo or
Ives, as
Erwann (in
BretonThe Breton language is a Celtic language spoken in Brittany , France.-History:Breton is a Brythonic language, descended from the Celtic British language brought from Great Britain to Armorica by migrating Britons during the Early Middle Ages. Like the other Brythonic languages, Welsh and Cornish,...
) and as
Yves Hélory (also
Helori or
Heloury in
FrenchFrench is a Romance language globally spoken by about 65 million people as a first language , by 50 million as a second language, and by about another 200 million people as an acquired foreign language, with significant speakers in 57 countries. Most native speakers of the language live in France,...
), was a
parish priestFrom the Latin curatus , a curate is a person who is invested with the care, or cure , of souls of a parish. In this sense it correctly means a parish priest. In Anglican churches, however, the term is usually used for an assistant priest or deacon...
among the poor of
LouannecLouannec is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in Bretagne in north-western France.-Demographics:The inhabitants are called Louannecains in French and Louanegad in Breton.-Breton language:...
, the only one of his station to be canonized in the
Middle AgesThe Middle Ages of European history is a period of European history covering roughly a millennium in the 5th century through 16th centuries. More specific starting and ending points are sometimes adopted by scholars to suit their respective specializations or current focus...
. He is the
patronA patron saint is a saint who is regarded as the intercessor and advocate in heaven of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, or person. Patron saints, because they have already transcended to the metaphysical, are able to intercede effectively for the needs of their special charges...
of
BrittanyBrittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Brittany was previously a kingdom and then as a duchy it was a fief of the Kingdom of France. It was at one time called Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
, lawyers, and abandoned children. His feast day is May 19. Poetically, he is referred to as "Advocate of the Poor."
Born at Kermartin, a manor near
TréguierTréguier is a port town in the Côtes-d'Armor department in Bretagne in north-western France. It is the capital of the province of Trégor.-Geography:Tréguier is located 36 m. N.W. of Saint-Brieuc by road. The port is situated about 5 1/2 m...
in
BrittanyBrittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Brittany was previously a kingdom and then as a duchy it was a fief of the Kingdom of France. It was at one time called Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
, Ivo was the son of Helori, lord of Kermartin, and Azo du Kenquis.
Saint
Ivo of Kermartin (17 October 1253 – 19 May 1303), also known
Yvo or
Ives, as
Erwann (in
BretonThe Breton language is a Celtic language spoken in Brittany , France.-History:Breton is a Brythonic language, descended from the Celtic British language brought from Great Britain to Armorica by migrating Britons during the Early Middle Ages. Like the other Brythonic languages, Welsh and Cornish,...
) and as
Yves Hélory (also
Helori or
Heloury in
FrenchFrench is a Romance language globally spoken by about 65 million people as a first language , by 50 million as a second language, and by about another 200 million people as an acquired foreign language, with significant speakers in 57 countries. Most native speakers of the language live in France,...
), was a
parish priestFrom the Latin curatus , a curate is a person who is invested with the care, or cure , of souls of a parish. In this sense it correctly means a parish priest. In Anglican churches, however, the term is usually used for an assistant priest or deacon...
among the poor of
LouannecLouannec is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in Bretagne in north-western France.-Demographics:The inhabitants are called Louannecains in French and Louanegad in Breton.-Breton language:...
, the only one of his station to be canonized in the
Middle AgesThe Middle Ages of European history is a period of European history covering roughly a millennium in the 5th century through 16th centuries. More specific starting and ending points are sometimes adopted by scholars to suit their respective specializations or current focus...
. He is the
patronA patron saint is a saint who is regarded as the intercessor and advocate in heaven of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, or person. Patron saints, because they have already transcended to the metaphysical, are able to intercede effectively for the needs of their special charges...
of
BrittanyBrittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Brittany was previously a kingdom and then as a duchy it was a fief of the Kingdom of France. It was at one time called Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
, lawyers, and abandoned children. His feast day is May 19. Poetically, he is referred to as "Advocate of the Poor."
Born at Kermartin, a manor near
TréguierTréguier is a port town in the Côtes-d'Armor department in Bretagne in north-western France. It is the capital of the province of Trégor.-Geography:Tréguier is located 36 m. N.W. of Saint-Brieuc by road. The port is situated about 5 1/2 m...
in
BrittanyBrittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Brittany was previously a kingdom and then as a duchy it was a fief of the Kingdom of France. It was at one time called Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
, Ivo was the son of Helori, lord of Kermartin, and Azo du Kenquis. In 1267 Ivo was sent to the
University of ParisThe historic University of Paris was founded in the mid 12th century, likely between 1160 and 1170 , In 1970 it was reorganized as 13 autonomous universities...
, where he graduated in
civil lawCivil law is a legal system inspired by Roman law, the primary feature of which is that laws are written into a collection, codified, and not determined, as in common law, by judges. The principle of civil law is to provide all citizens with an accessible and written collection of the laws which...
. He went to
OrléansOrléans is a commune in north-central France, about southwest of Paris. It is the capital of the Loiret department and of the Centre region.The commune is located on the Loire River where the river curves south towards the Massif Central....
in 1277 to study
Canon lawCanon Law, the ecclesiastical law of the Roman Church, is a fully developed legal system, with all the necessary elements: courts, lawyers, judges, a fully articulated legal code and principles of legal interpretation. The academic degrees in canon law are the J.C.B. , J.C.L...
. On his return to Brittany having received minor orders he was appointed "official", the title given to an
ecclesiastical judgeAn ecclesiastical court is any of certain courts having jurisdiction mainly in spiritual or religious matters. In the Middle Ages in many areas of Europe these courts had much wider powers than before the development of nation states...
, of the archdeanery of
RennesThe Parlement de Bretagne| map =|region = Bretagne|department = Ille-et-Vilaine|arrondissement = Rennes|canton = Chief town of 11 cantons|INSEE = 35238...
(1280); meanwhile he studied
ScriptureThe Bible contains the central religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. Modern Judaism generally recognizes a single set of canonical books known as the Tanakh, or Hebrew Bible, as it is written almost entirely in the Hebrew language, with some small portions in Aramaic...
, and there are strong reasons for believing that he joined the
FranciscanThe term Franciscan is commonly used to refer to members of Catholic religious orders, also known as the Orders of Friars Minor, that follow a body of regulations known as "The rule of St. Francis", or a member of one of these orders. As well as Roman Catholic there are also small Old Catholic and...
Tertiaries sometime later at
GuingampGuingamp is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in Bretagne in north-western France.-Breton language:The municipality launched a linguistic plan through Ya d'ar brezhoneg on July the 8th of 2008....
. He was soon invited by the Bishop of Tréguier to become his official, and accepted the offer in 1284. He displayed great zeal and rectitude in the discharge of his duty and did not hesitate to resist the unjust taxation of the king, which he considered an encroachment on the rights of the Church; by his charity he gained the title of
advocateAn advocate is one who speaks on behalf of another person, especially in a legal context. It is used primarily in reference to the system of Scots law, Anglo-Dutch law, Scandinavian and Israeli law. Implicit in the concept is the notion that the represented lacks the knowledge, skill, ability, or...
and patron of the poor. Having been ordained he was appointed to the parish of Tredrez in 1285 and eight years later to Louannec, where he died of natural causes, after a life of hard work and repeated
fastingFasting is primarily the act of willingly abstaining from some or all food, drink, or both, for a period of time. A fast may be total or partial concerning that from which one fasts, and may be prolonged or intermittent as to the period of fasting...
. He was buried in Tréguier, and on his tomb was supposedly inscribed in Latin:
Sanctus Ivo erat Brito / Advocatus et non latro / Res miranda populo. Roughly translated, this means: "Saint Ivo was Breton / A lawyer and not a thief / A marvelous thing to the people." It is a quip about the reputation lawyers have for thievery.
Ivo was
canonizedCanonization is the act by which a particular Christian church or group declares a deceased person to be a saint and is included in the canon, or list, of recognized saints...
in June 1347 by
Clement VIPope Clement VI , bornPierre Roger, the fourth of the Avignon Popes, was pope from May 1342 until his death.-Biography:...
at the urging of
Philip I, Duke of BurgundyPhilip I of Burgundy, also Philip II of Palatine Burgundy, Philip II of Boulogne, Philip III of Artois, Philip III of Boulogne, nicknamed Philip of Rouvres was Duke of Burgundy from 1350 until his death. Philip was the only son of Philip of Burgundy, heir to the Duchy of Burgundy, and Joanna,...
. At the inquest into his sanctity in 1331, many of his parishioners testified as to his goodness, that he preached regularly in both chapel and field, and that under him "the people of the land became twice as good as they had been before". The connexion between religion and good behaviour was especially stressed in his sermons and he is reported to have "chased immorality and sin from the village of Louannec". At the time he was believed to have been a Franciscan tertiary. Shortly after 1362, the future saint Jeanne-Marie de Maillé reported a vision of Yves (and an
ecstasyEcstasy may refer to:* MDMA , an entactogenic drug, also known as "Ecstasy", and as "E", "X", and "XTC".* Ecstasy , an illicit tablet preparation containing psychoactive drugs, particularly MDMA....
,
raptus), during which he told her, "If you are willing to abandon the world, you will taste here on earth the joys of heaven."
Ivo is often presented with a purse in his right hand (for all the money he gave to the poor during his life) and a rolled paper in the other hand (for his charge as a judge). Another popular representation of is Ivo between a rich man and a poor one. The churches of
Sant'Ivo alla SapienzaThe Church of Saint Yves at the Sapienza is a Roman Catholic church in Rome. The church is considered a masterpiece of Roman Baroque church architecture, built in 1642-1660 by the architect Francesco Borromini.- History :...
and
Sant'Ivo dei BretoniThe Church of Saint Ivo of the Bretons is a Roman Catholic church dedicated to Saint Ivo of Kermartin, patron of Brittany. It is one of the national churches in Rome dedicated to France .- History :...
in
RomeRome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated municipality , with over 2.7 million residents in , while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat to be 3.46 million. The metropolitan area of Rome is estimated by OECD to have a population of 3.7 million...
are dedicated to him.
External links