Leonard of Noblac | |
|---|---|
 Wooden statue of Saint Leonard | |
| Abbot of Noblac, hermit | |
| Died | 559 |
| Venerated in | Catholic Church Eastern Orthodox Church Anglican Church |
| Feast | 6 November |
| Attributes | Depicted as an abbot holding chains, fetters or locks, or manacles[1] |
| Patronage | Political prisoners, imprisoned people, prisoners of war, and captives, women in labour, as well as horses |
Leonard of Noblac (alsoLeonard of Limoges orLeonard of Noblet; also known asLienard,Linhart,Lenart,Leonhard,Léonard,Leonardo,Annard; died 559) is aFrankish saint closely associated with the town and abbey ofSaint-Léonard-de-Noblat, inHaute-Vienne, in theLimousin region ofFrance. He was converted to Christianity along with the king, at Christmas 496. Leonard became ahermit in the forest ofLimousin, where he gathered a number of followers. Leonard or Lienard became one of the most venerated saints of the late Middle Ages. His intercession was credited with miracles for the release of prisoners, women in labour and the diseases of cattle.
According to theromance that accrued to his name, recorded in an 11th-centuryvita, Leonard was a Frankish noble in the court ofClovis I, founder of theMerovingian dynasty.Saint Remigius,Bishop of Reims was his godfather.[2] As a disciple of Remigius, he was granted the prerogative to visit prisons and free anyone held there.[3]
Leonard secured the release of a number of prisoners, for whom he has become apatron saint, then, declining the offer of a bishopric— a prerogative of Merovingian nobles— he entered the monastery atMicy nearOrléans.[2]
Although there is no previous mention of Leonard either in literature,liturgy or in church dedications,[4] in the 12th century hiscult rapidly spread, at first through Frankish lands, following the release ofBohemond I of Antioch in 1103 from aDanishmend prison, which he attributed to the intercession of St. Leonard. Bohemond, a charismatic leader of theFirst Crusade, subsequently visited the Abbey of Noblac, where he made an offering in gratitude for his release. BishopWalram of Naumburg, who was present during Bohemond's visit, wrote up a new life of Leonard, including posthumous miracles like Bohemond's. Bohemond's example inspired many similar gifts, enabling the construction of the Romanesque church and its prominent landmark belltower. About the same time Noblac was becoming a stage on the pilgrimage route that led toSantiago de Compostela.[3]
Leonard or Lienard became one of the most venerated saints of the late Middle Ages. His intercession was credited with miracles for the release of prisoners, women in labour and the diseases of cattle. Hisfeast day is 6 November, when he is honoured with a festival atBad Tölz,Bavaria. He is honoured by the parish ofKirkop,Malta, on the third Sunday of every August.[5]
In the Alpine regions ofBavaria, St Leonard is regarded as the traditional patron of farmers. Many Bavarian communities carry out traditional processions or rides on his feast day; community members wear traditional costume, usuallydirndls for the women andLederhosen for the men.[7] Until theSecularisation,Inchenhofen became a major pilgrimage site for the cult of St Leonard, promoted by the Cistercian monks of nearbyFürstenfeld Abbey.[3]
Leonard isremembered in theChurch of England with acommemoration on6 November.[8]
Various places refer to this saint. Notable among these is the town ofSt Leonards-on-Sea inEast Sussex,England. Sussex is also home toSt Leonard's Forest. This part of England has a significant number of dedications to St Leonard. Some of the best-known are the parish church of St Leonard inHythe, Kent, with its famousossuary andSt. Leonard's, Shoreditch in London. There is a cluster of dedications in theWest Midlands region, including the original parish churches ofBridgnorth (now aredundant church and used for community purposes) andBilston, as well asWhite Ladies Priory, a ruinedAugustinian house. The largest hospital in northern mediaeval England was an Augustinian foundation dedicated to St. Leonard, inYork; its partial ruins are to be found in theMuseum Gardens although undercroft remains lie some hundred yards away and are used as a bar under the York Theatre Royal. InNewton Abbot, Devon, there is both a chapel of ease dedicated to St Leonard, first recorded in 1350, and a replacement church built in 1834. The chapel was near the bridewell (prison). There is also a church dedicated to St Leonard inWallingford, Oxfordshire; the church is Saxon in origin but it was heavily rebuilt in 1849 in the Victorian gothic revival style by architectHenry Hakewill.Clewer, Berkshire is the site of St Leonard's House (formerlySophia Lodge) & now the headquarters of Legoland Windsor, being formerly the HQ of Billy Smart's Windsor Safari Park.
Several German churches are dedicated to the saint, includingSt. Leonhard, Frankfurt.
In Italy almost 225 places are dedicated to the saint, equally distributed in the North (inFriuli, there is the oldest Italian church dedicated to this saint, 774) as well as in the South where the shrine was introduced by theNormans.[9] The shrine can be found even in Italian islands such asSicily,Sardinia,Ischia,Procida.[9] In September 2004, a national meeting of the Italian parish churches dedicated to the Saint took place in the small village ofPanza d'Ischia where a small chapel of St. Leonard was transformed into a church in 1536.[10]
The Mediterranean nation ofMalta contains a single parish dedicated to this saint, in the town ofKirkop; the parish church was founded on 29 May 1592.[11] The saint is known asSan Anard Abbati inMaltese.
In Portugal the parish and church (late 12th century) of Atouguia da Baleia (Peniche) is dedicated to St Leonard. The saint's day is commemorated every 6 November (or the closest Sunday). This is the only parish dedicated to St Leonard in the country.
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This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain. This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "St. Leonard of Limousin".Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.| International | |
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