St. Gildas

Gildas was a British monk of the sixth century, often called “the Wise.” He studied in Wales and later lived as a hermit on the Isle of Houat in Brittany. His writings, especially De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae, document the moral crisis of Britain after the Roman withdrawal and call rulers and clergy to repentance.

Though few details of his life are certain, Gildas became a symbol of prophetic witness in troubled times. He is venerated in Wales, Brittany, and across the British Isles as a father of monastic renewal and faithful preaching of God's law.