Germanus of Auxerre
Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church, Anglican Communion | |
---|---|
Feast | 31 July (universal) 3 August (Wales) |
Germanus of Auxerre (
The principal source for the events of his life is the Vita Germani, a hagiography written by Constantius of Lyon around 480, and a brief passage added onto the end of the Passio Albani, which may possibly have been written or commissioned by Germanus. Constantius was a friend of Bishop Lupus of Troyes, who accompanied Germanus to Britain, which provided him with a link to Germanus.
Early life
Germanus was the son of Rusticus and Germanilla, and his family was one of the noblest in Gaul in the latter portion of the fourth century. He received the very best education provided by the distinguished schools of
At length he incurred the displeasure of the bishop,
When in a short time Amator died, Germain was unanimously chosen to fill the vacant see, being consecrated 7 July, 418. His education now served him in good stead in the government of the diocese, which he administered with great sagacity. He distributed his goods among the poor, practised great austerities, and built a large monastery dedicated to Saints
Visit to Britain
Around 429, shortly after the Romans had withdrawn from Britain, a Gaulish assembly of bishops chose Germanus and
Constantius also recounts the miraculous healing of the blind daughter of 'a man with tribunician power'.[2] This use of the word tribune may imply the existence of some form of post-Roman government system. However, in Constantius' lifetime tribune had acquired a looser definition, and often was used to indicate any military officer, whether part of the Imperial army or part of a town militia.
Germanus led the native Britons to a victory against
Germanus and the Cult of Saint Alban
Immediately after the debate with the Pelagians, Germanus gave thanks for his victory at the grave of Saint Alban, which was likely in some sort of tomb or basilica. Some translators use the word "shrine"; this word, which is not the original Latin, would have suggested that the cult of Saint Alban had been established before Germanus' visit to Britain.[4][5][6] That night, Germanus claimed that Saint Alban came to him in a dream, revealing the details of his martyrdom. Some scholars [7] have even interpreted the relevant passage in a postscript to the Passio Albani as implying the saint's name was unknown before it was revealed to Germanus but other scholars [8] have disputed this. When Germanus awoke, he had the account written down in
Later life
Germanus may have made a second visit to Britain in the mid 430s[12][13] or mid 440s, though this is contested by some scholars[14] who suggest it may be a 'doublet' or variant version of the visit that has been mistaken as describing a different visit and erroneously included as such by Constantius, according to whom Germanus was joined by Severus, Bishop of Trier and met Elafius, "one of the leading men of the country". Germanus is said to have cured Elafius' enfeebled son by a miracle that served to persuade the population that Gaulish Catholicism rather than Pelagianism was the true faith.
According to a legend recorded in the Historia Brittonum of circa 829 it is during this second visit, around 447, that Germanus is said to have condemned for incest and other crimes Guorthigern, identified with the 'Vortigern' of Welsh tradition. Vortigern ordered his daughter to bring her child to Germanus and name the bishop as its father. The scheme having failed, Vortigern was cursed by Germanus and the council of Britons, and fled into Wales followed by Germanus and the clergy. They pursued him to a castle on the river Teifi, where they fasted and prayed for three days and three nights. Finally, fire fell from heaven consuming the castle, the guilty king, and his company.[15] While the story appears to have no historical basis, it does indicate in what reverence Germanus was held in the Church in that part of the land.
He died in Ravenna while petitioning the Roman government for leniency for the citizens of Armorica,[16] against whom Aëtius had dispatched the Alans on a punitive expedition. Germanus had famously confronted Goar, the king of the Alans, so Constantius's Life relates.
Based on the scanty evidence, some scholars have argued that his death should be dated to 442 or 448, and others that it should be dated to c. 437.[12][13]
Cult
Saint Germanus' tomb continues to be venerated in the church of the Abbey of Saint-Germain d'Auxerre, which although now part of municipal museum remains open for worship at stated times. There is a tradition of a panegyric on the Sunday nearest to or preceding his festival in July.
The
In the 2004 edition of the Roman Martyrology, Germanus is listed under July 31. He is described as 'passing at Ravenna, a bishop who defended Britain against the Pelagian heresy and travelled to make peace for Armorica'.[17]
In Great Britain
The former priory church at St Germans in Cornwall bears his name and was in late Saxon times the seat of a bishop. A few other churches in England are dedicated to the saint, including St Germain's Church, Edgbaston, in Birmingham, St Germanus' Church, Faulkbourne, in Essex and St Germanus' Church, Rame, in Cornwall, as well as the church at Germansweek in Devon. The name of the civil parish of Wiggenhall St Germans in Norfolk reflects a church dedication.
In Wales, Germanus is remembered as an early influence on the Celtic Church. In the current
Germanus is traditionally credited with the establishment of the
Fictional portrayals of Germanus
- Hilaire Belloc refers to Germanus in his humorous poem, The Pelagian Drinking Song from The four men / a farrago (1912):[20]
And then with his stout Episcopal staff
So thoroughly whacked and banged
The heretics all, both short and tall,
They rather had been hanged.
- Germanus's visit to Britain is the subject of the Welsh language radio play Buchedd Garmon (1936) by Saunders Lewis.
- Germanus appears many times in Jack Whyte series of novels 'A Dream of Eagles' (1992–2005) and the series "The Golden Eagle" (2005) .
- Germanus appears in the TV movie St. Patrick: The Irish Legend (2000) where he helps Patrick achieve his mission to convert the Irish.
- In Valerio Massimo Manfredi's 2002 novel The Last Legion and in the 2007 film based on the novel, Germanus dies in Britain after his arrival on the island to lead the Romans and Britons against the barbarian Picts. In the film, before he dies the Bishop recites his last words as a prophecy and founds the last legion of Britain, entrusting them with their standard: a silver dragon with a purple tail.
- Germanus appears in the 2004 film King Arthur, although his second and final mission to Britain took place twenty years before the year in which the movie is set. He is portrayed by Italian actor Ivano Marescotti.
References
- ^ a b c MacErlean, Andrew. "St. Germain." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 6. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1909. 26 Jan. 2013
- ^ a b c Butler, Rev. Alban, "St. Germanus, Bishop of Auxerre, Confessor", The Lives of the Saints, Vol. VII, 1866
- ^ MacErlean, Andrew. "St. Genevieve." The Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 6. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1909 This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ a b Garcia, Michael. "Saint Alban and the Cult of Saints in Late Antique Britain". www.academia.edu. Retrieved 19 November 2014.
- ^ Constantius of Lyon; Trans. Vermaat, Robert. "The text of the Vita sancti Germani". vortigernstudies.org.uk. Retrieved 19 November 2014.
- ^ a b Martin Biddle, "Alban and the Anglo-Saxon Church", in Robert Runcie (ed), Cathedral and City: St Albans Ancient and Modern, Martyn Associates, 1977
- ^ a b Wood, Ian (2009). "Germanus, Alban and Auxerre". BUCEMA Bulletin du centre d'études médiévales d'Auxerre. 13. Retrieved 20 November 2014.; Garcia op.cit
- ^ Higham, Nicholas J (2014) “Constantius, Germanus and fifth century Britain” in 'Early Medieval Europe' 22 (2), pp. 113-37; cf Thornhill, Philip "Saint Alban and the end of Roman Britain" (Revised Version 2017)[1]
- ^ Wood, Ian 2009, op.cit
- ^ Sharpe, Richard (2001). Henigand, M.; Lindley, P. (eds.). "The late antique passion of St Alban". Alban and St Albans.
- ^ Higham, Nick 2014 op.cit.
- ^ a b Thompson, E. A. (1984) Saint Germanus of Auxerre and the End of Roman Britain. Woodbridge: Boydell
- ^ a b Wood, I. N. (1984) "The End of Roman Britain: Continental evidence and parallels", in M. Lapidge & D. Dumville (eds.) Gildas: New Approaches. Woodbridge, Suffolk: Boydell; pp. 1 – 25.
- ^ Anthony A. Barrett, "Saint Germanus and the British Missions", Britannia 40 (2009), 197–217
- ^ Newell, E.J., The History of the Welsh Church, p.37, Elliot Stock, London, 1895
- ^ "St Germanus the Bishop of Auxerre", Orthodox Church in America
- ^ Martyrologium Romanum, 2004, Vatican Press (Typis Vaticanis), page 425.
- ^ National Calendar for Wales, accessed 6 February 2012
- ^ Baring-Gould, Sabine; Fisher, John (1911). The Lives of the British Saints, Volume 3. London: The Honourable Society of the Cymmrodorion. p. 77. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
- OL 7230969M. Retrieved 1 June 2015.
Further reading
- Hoare, F. R. (1965) The Western Fathers. New York: Harper Torchbooks (A translation of the "Life of St Germanus" appears on pp. 283–320)
- Bowen, E. G. (1954) The Settlements of the Celtic Saints in Wales. Cardiff: University of Wales Press
- Thompson, E. A. (1984) Saint Germanus of Auxerre and the End of Roman Britain. Woodbridge: Boydell
- Wood, I. N. (1984) "The End of Roman Britain: Continental evidence and parallels", in M. Lapidge & D. Dumville (eds.) Gildas: New Approaches. Woodbridge, Suffolk: Boydell; pp. 1 – 25.
External links
- MacErlean, Andrew Alphonsus (1913). Catholic Encyclopedia. .
- The American Cyclopædia. 1879. .