In 518 he welcomed the Irish monk, St Petroc, who was seeking to found a monastery in the area, which he did near Padstow.
The availability of services, however, remained occasional and infrequent until 1881, when the Lateran canons were allowed to return to the region, their first modern foundation in the United Kingdom after the Dissolution, under the authority of the Bishop of Plymouth, William Vaughan.
[2] As their numbers and presence continued to expand, the canons took a major role in serving the surviving Catholic population of Cornwall.
Construction on a new church to serve the canons and the town had been begun in 1937, but had to be suspended due to World War II and was not completed until 1965.
[3][4] When the canons had to close the abbey in 1976, due to dwindling numbers, they gave over the abbey to the Diocese of Plymouth and the complex was made part of the Roman Catholic Parish of St Mary and St Petroc, which covers a large area of North Cornwall.