Saint Menefrida
St Menefrida's Church, St Minver
Born5th century
Wales
Died5th century
Honored inChurch of England
Catholic Church
Feast24 July
PatronageSt Minver

Menefrida is the 5th-century Cornish saint associated with the parish of St Minver, near the Camel estuary in Cornwall, England.[1] Alternative spellings of her name include Menefreda, Menwreda, Menfre, Mynfreda and Minefreda. At the time of King Henry VIII the parish was known as St. Menifryde.[2]

Menefrida was one of the many children of the Welsh king Brychan,[1] and has been referred to as a saint since at least 1256.[3] William of Worcester records, Sancta Menefrida, virgo non martir, die 24 Novembris ("Saint Menefrida, virgin, not a martyr, 24 November"), which he copied from a calendar at Bodmin[1][2] into the notes made during his travels around Britain during the late 15th century.[4] Her feast day is 24 July.[5]

The church dedicated to St. Menefrida in St Minver is a stone building in the Transitional Norman and Early English styles.[6]

References

  1. ^ a b c William Smith; Henry Wace (30 September 2004). A Dictionary of Christian Biography, Literature, Sects and Doctrines; Julianus to Myensis. Kessinger Publishing. p. 902. ISBN 978-1-4179-4806-2. Retrieved 16 November 2012.
  2. ^ a b Frances Egerton Arnold-Forster (1899). Studies in Church Dedications: or, England's patron saints. Skeffington & son. Retrieved 16 November 2012.
  3. ^ Nicholas Orme (1996). English Church Dedications: with a Survey of Cornwall and Devon. University of Exeter Press. p. 105. ISBN 978-0-85989-516-3. Retrieved 16 November 2012.
  4. ^ "Caer Guorthigirn, Salisbury, identified by William of Worcester as Vortigern's castle". Vortigern Studies. 14 December 2008. Retrieved 16 November 2012.
  5. ^ Catholic Online. "St. Menefrida - Saints & Angels - Catholic Online". catholic.org. Retrieved 6 September 2017.
  6. ^ "Kelly's Directory 1939 – Description of St Minver, Cornwall (pp. 238 to 240)". August 2006. Retrieved 16 November 2012.

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