Miliau

The legend of St Miliau, as retold in Brittany, pictures him as a good and just prince, slain by his evil brother.

[2] Miliau was famous as a protector and benefactor of the poor, and is represented as dividing his cloak with a beggar, like St Martin of Tours.

The date 892 is sometimes given for the martyrdom of St Miliau, making him a contemporary of the Carolingian emperors, rather than the early Merovingian kings.

This seems a better fit with the alleged ancestry of St Miliau, and it is reasonable to suppose that Budic might have had two sons who quarrelled over their ranking within the kingdom.

A further confusing factor is that St Hervé, whose date of death (as an old man) is generally given as 556, is also regarded as a native of Guimiliau.

Detail from the Retable of the Passion at Lampaul-Guimiliau , showing the martyrdom of St Miliau. Blood gushes from his neck as he holds his severed head.