Tréguier Cathedral

Tréguier Cathedral (Cathédrale Saint-Tugdual de Tréguier) is a Roman Catholic church and former cathedral in Tréguier, Côtes-d'Armor, France. It is dedicated to Saint Tudwal. The church was formerly the seat of the Bishopric of Tréguier, abolished under the Concordat of 1801, when its territories were divided between the Diocese of Quimper and the Diocese of Saint-Brieuc, known since 1852 as Saint-Brieuc-Tréguier. The existence of this fine cathedral in what is effectively a small town is due to the fact that Tréguier was to become a place of pilgrimage for two men; Saint Tugdual, a Welshman and Saint Yves. We should however, note that Tréguier is no longer the seat of a bishop, the bishopric having been abolished in 1801 when it was divided between the diocese of Quimper and Saint-Brieuc. However the church is still referred to as Tréguier Cathedral. It was in the 6th century that Anglo-Saxon invasions caused Saint Tugdual to leave Wales and settle in Brittany. Tugdual had been a pupil at the monastery of Llanwit Major founded by Saint Iltud, but now, with his mother and several fellow monks, he braved the seas and settled in Brittany at a point where the rivers Guidy, Jaudy and their estuary joined and eventually and in around 532, founded a monastery there which he called "Landreguer" ("the monastery of three rivers") and around this monastery and the village of Minihy grew what was to eventually be the town of Tréguier. Tugdual was made a bishop by the Breton king, King Childebert and from the Landreguer monastery emerged a cathedral dedicated to Saint André (Andrew). The Norman invasions of the 9th century saw Tréguier and the cathedral ravaged so much that the then bishop, Monseigneur Gorennan, fled and had Tugdual's body moved to Chartres. There was no bishop in residence for 90 years, but finally, the invaders were forced out by Alan II, Duke of Brittany The bishopric of Tréguier was created in 950 but the first bishops had to be content with a cathedral made from wood until in around 970 Bishop Gratias encouraged the building of a new cathedral in the Romanesque style.