St. Fittick was of Scottish or Irish descent. He may have been a son of the Dalriadan King Eugene IV, brought up on Iona. Equally, he may have been born into a noble Irish family. What is certain is that, as a young man, he went to France. Scottish tradition suggests he was sent by the Bishop of Meaux to bring Christianity to the Picts in the North of Scotland. He was swept from his ship during a storm and was washed ashore at Nigg Bay where he refreshed himself from a well, which took his name, and built a church. This church was rebuilt in 1242, again in the early 18th C. but abandoned in 1829.
St. Fittick is the Patron Saint of gardeners, having performed a miracle in France whereby he instantaneously cleared a large area of forest for cultivation. He is also the Patron Saint of Paris taxi drivers. St. Fittick's Day is usually celebrated on the 30th August, although it is celebrated on the 1st September in Ireland.
St. Fittick's Well on Balnagask Headland was noted for its curative properties but was long ago lost to coastal erosion.
