Gilbert Hunter Doble (26 November 1880 – 15 April 1945) was an Anglican priest and Cornish hagiographer. November 26 is the 330th day (331st on leap years) of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1880 (MDCCCLXXX) was a leap year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... April 15 is the 105th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (106th in leap years). ... 1945 (MCMVL) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1945 calendar). ... The term Anglican (from medieval Latin ecclesia Anglicana meaning the English church) is used to describe the people, institutions, and churches as well as the liturgical traditions and theological concepts developed by the established Church of England, the Anglican Communion and the Continuing Anglican Churches (a loosely affiliated group of... Roman Catholic priests in traditional clerical clothing. ... The Cornish are an ethnic group associated with Cornwall, located at the extreme South West of the United Kingdom where most of the Cornish currently live. ... Hagiography is the study of saints. ...

Early life

G. H. Doble was born at Penzance, Cornwall on 26 November 1880. His father, John Medley Doble shared his enthusiasm for archaeology and local studies with his sons ^[1]. He was a scholar of Exeter College, Oxford and graduated in modern history in 1903. He attended Ely Theological College^[2]. Penzance Harbour and surrounding area as seen from the air Penzances old docks with Abbey Slip and St Marys Church behind Penzance (Cornish: Pensans) is a civil parish and port town in the Penwith district of Cornwall, England, UK. Granted various Royal Charters from 1512 onwards and incorporated... Cornwall (Cornish: Kernow) is a county in South West England on the peninsula that lies to the west of the River Tamar. ... Archaeology, archeology, or archology (from the Greek words αρχαίος = ancient and λόγος = word/speech/discourse) is the study of human cultures through the recovery, documentation and analysis of material remains and environmental data, including architecture, artifacts, biofacts, human remains, and landscapes. ... College name Exeter College Collegium Exoniense Named after Walter de Stapledon, Bishop of Exeter Established 1314 Sister College Emmanuel College Rector Ms Frances Cairncross JCR President Octave Oppetit Undergraduates 299 MCR President Maria Sciara Graduates 150 Homepage Boatclub Exeter College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of... 1903 (MCMIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Friday of the 13-day slower Julian calendar. ... Statistics Population: 15,102 Ordnance Survey OS grid reference: TL535799 Administration District: East Cambridgeshire Shire county: Cambridgeshire Region: East of England Constituent country: England Sovereign state: United Kingdom Other Ceremonial county: Cambridgeshire Historic county: Cambridgeshire Services Police force: Ambulance service: East of England Post office and telephone Post town: ELY...

Service as an Anglican priest

He was ordained in 1907 and served a long series of incumbents, in various parts of England and Cornwall as assistant curate. His Anglo-Catholic leanings were a bar to his preferment in the Church of England. In 1924, when he spoke publicly on "Re-catholicising Cornwall", a proferred appointment was withdrawn^[3]. However, in Autumn 1919, was appointed curate of the parish of Redruth in Cornwall and served there until 1925. He then served for almost twenty years as the Vicar of Wendron, also in Cornwall. In 1935, he was appointed an honorary canon of Truro Cathedral. During his parochial ministry, he was a great friend of children, especially those deprived of proper care, by familial poverty or the workhouse. 1907 (MCMVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... From the Latin curatus (compare Curator), a curate is a person who is invested with the care, or cure (cura), of souls of a parish. ... The terms Anglo-Catholic and Anglo-Catholicism describe people, groups, ideas, customs and practices within Anglicanism that emphasise continuity with Catholic tradition. ... The Church of England is the officially established Christian church[1] in England, and acts as the mother and senior branch of the worldwide Anglican Communion, as well as a founding member of the Porvoo Communion. ... 1924 (MCMXXIV) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1919 (MCMXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... A parish is a type of administrative subdivision. ... Map sources for Redruth at grid reference SW700420 Redruth (Cornish: Rysrudh) is a town in the south-west of Cornwall, Britain. ... 1925 (MCMXXV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... Wendron is a village and civil parish in the Kerrier district of Cornwall, England. ... 1935 (MCMXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... A canon (from the Latin canonicus and Greek κανωνικωσ relating to a rule) is a priest who is a member of certain bodies of the Christian clergy subject to a rule (canon). ... Truro Cathedral is a cathedral in the city of Truro in Cornwall in south-west England. ... Former workhouse at Nantwich, dating from 1780 A workhouse was a place where people who were unable to support themselves could go to live and work. ...

Historical work on Cornish studies

In between ministering to the needs of his parishioners, Canon Doble pursued a life-long study of sub-Roman Celtic Britain and Brittany, in which he gained a European-wide reputation. He was especially interested in the medieval vitae or 'lives', and additional legends, related to the early Christian holy men and women (or 'saints')^[4] of Cornwall, Wales and of Brittany. The fruit of his research was published between 1923 and 1945 in a collection of forty-eight booklets known as the 'Cornish Saints Series'. The later issues (from 1928) include historical commentaries by Charles Henderson. They have since been republished in book-form but without the Henderson Commentaries. Until Orme's Saints of Cornwall was published in 2000^[5], they were the most thorough, scholarly and reliable works available on the subject. Sub-Roman Britain is a term derived from an archaeologists label for the material culture of Britain in Late Antiquity. ... Traditional coat of arms Modern flag (Gwenn-ha-du) Historical province of Brittany région of Bretagne, see Bretagne. ... World map showing Europe A satellite composite image of Europe Europe is one of the six inhabited continents of the Earth. ... The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times, beginning with the Renaissance. ... // Today, films and television programs surrounding the lives of famous people are a major part of the entertainment industry. ... In traditional Christian iconography, Saints are usually depicted as having halos. ... Motto: (Welsh for Wales forever) Anthem: Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau Capital Cardiff Largest city Cardiff Official language(s) Welsh, English Government Constitutional monarchy  - Queen Queen Elizabeth II  - Prime Minister of the UK Tony Blair MP  - First Minister Rhodri Morgan AM Unification    - by Gruffudd ap Llywelyn 1056  Area    - Total 20,779... Traditional coat of arms Modern flag (Gwenn-ha-du) Historical province of Brittany région of Bretagne, see Bretagne. ... 1923 (MCMXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1945 (MCMVL) was a common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1945 calendar). ... 1928 (MCMXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... Charles Gordon Henderson (July 11, 1900 – September 24, 1933) was a historian and antiquarian of Cornwall. ...

Doble's primary sources were far from easy to interpret.

D.Simon Evans states in his introductory essay to Doble's Lives of the Welsh saints ^[6]:

“It is hardly necessary to dwell here on the value and significance of these lives. We may regard thm as religious romances or novels, and as is generally agreed, they were written to enhance the cause of the church or parochia, whose freedom and independence was not infrequently threatened at this time. In no sense are they “historical”; indeed they have more to offer the student of social anthropology and primitive religion. Much of what they contain is pure imagination, mingled and blended with myth, folklore and legend. But, as Doble reminds us, “Legend is history, in the sense that the legends and traditions of a people are part of its history”.

Doble also collected Cornish folklore and folksong. He was a Bard of the Cornish Gorseth, with the name 'Gwas Gwendron' (Servant of Gwendron) and received the Jenner medal of the Royal Institution of Cornwall. He was responsible for the first performance of the Cornish miracle play Beunans Meriasek since the Reformation in June 1924 (in English translation)^[7]. There have since been many acclaimed productions, including those in the original Cornish language. Canon Doble's research also led to the revival of the Hal-an-Tow event at the annual Helston Flora Day. Gorseth Kernow is a Cornish organization, which exists to maintain the national Celtic spirit of Cornwall. ... The Royal Institution of Cornwall (RIC) was founded in Truro, Cornwall, United Kingdom, in 1818 as the Cornwall Literary and Philosophical Institution. ... Saint Meriasek (Meriadek in Breton) was a 4th century Celtic Christian saint. ... 1924 (MCMXXIV) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The Furry Dance (also known as the Floral Dance or Flora Dance) takes place in Helston, Cornwall, and is one of the oldest customs still practiced in the British Isles. ...

Death

Doble died at Helston in Cornwall on 15 April 1945. Helston (Cornish: Hellys or Henlys) is a small town and civil parish in the Kerrier district of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, at the northern end of the Lizard Peninsula. ...

Manuscripts and publications

His work on the Lives of the Welsh Saints has been collected into one volume and is currently available from the University of Wales Press.^[8]. In addition to the Cornish Saints Series (reprinted by the Llanerch Press), there was also a series of histories of Cornish parishes. His personal library, including manuscript diaries, is at the Courtney Library, Royal Cornwall Museum, Truro The University of Wales Press was founded in 1922 as a central service of the University of Wales. ... This is a list of civil parishes in Cornwall, England. ... The Royal Cornwall Museum in the city of Truro in the United Kingdom is the oldest museum in Cornwall and the leading museum of Cornish culture. ...

Notes

1. ^ Catling and Rogers (1949)
2. ^ Ely Theological College opened in 1876 and closed in 1964, see History of Guyhirn
3. ^ Scott (1974)
4. ^ Most of these Saints are not so recognised by the Vatican or the See of Canterbury
5. ^ Orme (2000)
6. ^ “Our early Welsh Saints and History”(pp.13-14) see list of sources for full reference
7. ^ Malcolm Scott was cast as 'the Adult Meriasek'. Catling and Rogers give the date of the production as 1923.
8. ^ As of 13 October 2006 - see list of sources for bibliographical data on the 1971 edition.

1876 (MDCCCLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ... 1964 (MCMLXIV) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1964 calendar). ...

Sources

• Catling, Robert Mason, J. Percival Rogers (1949). G.H.Doble: a brief memoir and bibliography. Sidney Lee: Exeter.

• Scott, Malcolm (1974). "Canon Doble as I knew him (presidential address)". Journal of the Royal Institution of Cornwall VII (New Series) (Part 2).

Note on Scott: This is a personal account of Canon Doble, "not a biography". The author, Malcom Scott, when he was a lad, was befriended by Canon Doble.

• Professor Charles Thomas Canon Doble: an appreciation, fifty years on: Address by Professor Thomas in Wendron Parish Church April 30, 1995 (Typescript copy at the Courtney Library, Royal Cornwall Museum, Truro).

• Orme, Nicholas (2000). The Saints of Cornwall. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-820765-4.

• Doble, G.H. (1971). Lives of the Welsh Saints; edited by D.Simon Evans. Cardiff: University of Wales Press. ISBN 0900768681.

Note: The book covers Saints Dubricius, Iltut, Paulinus, Teilo and Oudoceus. Each study was originally published as a separate booklet April 30 is the 120th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (121st in leap years), with 245 days remaining. ... 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Saint Dubricius (also known in his native Welsh as Saint Dyfrig and in corrupt Norman-French as Saint Devereux) was the 6th century evangelist of Ergyng and much of South Wales. ... Illtud (Illtyd, Eltut, Hildutus) (d. ... Teilo was a leader of the Celtic Christian church in Wales during the 6th century. ...

External links

• English Translation of Beunans Meriasek on Wikisource