The School at Whitland
Paulinus directed a monastic school at a site usually identified as Whitland (Ty Gwyn), rendered in the sources as Wincdi-Lantquendi. The school was a significant centre of formation in the early-to-mid sixth century, active while its most famous pupils were young men.
Among his students were Saint Teilo, later patron of Llandaff, who is said to have been born around the year 500, and Saint David. It was at Paulinus's school that Teilo met and became a close companion of David. The presence of two of the foremost saints of Wales as fellow pupils marks the school as a formative institution of the Welsh church.
The Synod of Llanddewi Brefi
The Synod of Llanddewi Brefi, held around 545 in Ceredigion, was convened to address the Pelagian heresy. According to tradition, it was Paulinus who advised Saint Dubricius, the senior bishop present, to invite David, then only a minor abbot, to the gathering.
David was initially reluctant to attend, but on Paulinus's recommendation he was invited and delivered an eloquent address. Dubricius afterward retired in David's favour, a turning point that established David as the leading ecclesiastical voice in Wales. Paulinus is thus identified as the figure who directly facilitated David's emergence to prominence.
Ministry and Legacy
Beyond his teaching, Paulinus is remembered as a hermit and as a founder of churches and chapels in the region around Llandovery. Rhigyfarch's Life of Saint David also relates that when Paulinus became blind, his former pupil David miraculously restored his sight.
A sixth-century inscribed stone discovered at Caeo in Carmarthenshire, now housed in the Carmarthen Museum, honors him with an epitaph that refers to him as a preserver of the faith, a constant lover of his country, and a champion of righteousness.
Identity and Scholarly Debate
The scholar G. H. Doble proposed that Paulinus of Wales and Saint Paul Aurelian might be the same person. Paul Aurelian was a distinct figure born in Glamorgan, who studied under Saint Illtud at Llantwit Major, trained on Caldey Island alongside Samson of Dol and Gildas, and later emigrated to Brittany where he became the first bishop of the See of Leon.
Hywel David Emanuel considered the identification of Paulinus with Paul Aurelian doubtful, and modern scholarship generally treats the two as separate individuals. Claims that Paulinus founded the church at Paul in Cornwall are likewise described as dubious. He is distinct from Paulinus of Nola and Paulinus of York.
