Martial | |
|---|---|
 14th-century statue of Saint Martial affixed to the narthex ofLimoges Cathedral | |
| Bishop | |
| Born | unknown |
| Died | 3rd century probablyLimoges |
| Venerated in | Eastern Orthodox Church,Roman Catholicism |
| Canonized | Pre-Congregation |
| Majorshrine | Shrine of St Martial in thechurch of St Michel des Lions |
| Feast | 30 June |
| Attributes | raising the dead to life[1] |
| Patronage | prisoners,Limoges,Avignon,Cahors, against epidemics, againstergotism |
| Influenced | Valerie of Limoges |
Martial of Limoges (3rd century), whose name is also rendered asMarcial,Martialis, andMarcialis,[2] and is also called "the Apostle of the Gauls" or "the Apostle of Aquitaine," was the firstbishop of Limoges.[3] Venerated as a Christian saint, Martial of Limoges is considered to have been canonizedPre-Congregation, and his feast day is on 30 June.[2]
He appears on the Limoges coat of arms.
There is no accurate information as to the origin, dates of birth and death, or the acts of this bishop, although he is said to have come from the "East."[4] According toGregory of Tours, during the time of the Emperors DeciusPope Fabian sent out seven bishops fromRome toGaul to preach theGospel:Gatien toTours,Trophimus toArles,Paul toNarbonne,Saturnin toToulouse,Denis to Paris,Austromoine toClermont, and Martial toLimoges.[5] According tothe Golden Legend, when Martial first went to Limoges as a missionary, he visited the temple, where the priests beat him before having him imprisoned. During his morning prayers the following day, a great light surrounded him and the bars and chains burst open, releasing Martial and resulting in the prison guards requesting to be baptised by him.[6] He succeeded in converting the inhabitants to Christianity, and his memory has always been venerated there.[5]
Martial died in Limoges and was buried outside theRoman town. As his tomb became progressively more important as apilgrimage site, the monks found patronage in theBenedictine order in the 9th century. The site became the BenedictineAbbey of Saint-Martial, a great library (second only to the library atCluny) andscriptorium. The 12th-centurychroniclerGeoffroy du Breuil of Vigeois worked in its library.[7]
The Abbey of Saint-Martial, one of the great pilgrimage churches of western Christianity, was so thoroughly razed in the 19th century, that only the scattered manuscripts of its library remain. Some of said manuscripts had been bought forLouis XV and have come to theBibliothèque Nationale de France. The originalcrypt was exhumed in 1966–1970. Twelve Romanesque carved capitals were discovered built into the foundations of a barn and purchased in 1994 for the Museum of the Bishopric of Limoges.
TheMiracula Martialis, an account of 7th-, 8th- and 9th-century miracles, was written shortly after 854.
The influx ofpilgrims to the abbey where the historical Martial lay buried encouraged the creation of an elaboratehagiography during the 10th century. As the hagiography grew, Martial was moved back in time: now, sent into Gaul byPeter himself, he is said to have evangelized not only the Province of Limoges but all ofAquitaine. He performed manymiracles, among others the raising of a dead man to life, by touching him with a rod that Peter had given him.[5]
The mythology culminated in the 11th centuryforgeries ofAdemar of Chabannes, TheLife of St. Martial, attributed toBishop Aurelian, his successor, which was designed to 'prove' that Martial had been baptized by Peter, was one of theseventy-two disciples and present atthe Last Supper.[5]
In the 13th century compendium of lore, theGolden Legend, the legendary Martial appears with many miracles, casting out fiends and raising the dead and conducting mass baptisms.[6]
In the midst of a revival of his cult in the 14th century, 73 miracles were recorded between 1378 and 1388 in theMiracula sancti Martialis anno 1388 patrata.
As late as 1854, Mons. Buissas, Bishop of Limoges, petitionedPope Pius IX to bestow on Martial the honors of a disciple of Christ, but was turned down. The full discovery of Ademar's tissue of forged documents, including an imaginary church council and a papal letter, was not revealed until the 1920s, and continued for several generations to be resisted in conservativeCatholic circles.
Martial is also associated withValerie of Limoges, a martyr of the 3rd or 4th centuries, who is said to havecarried her head to him after her decapitation.
His help was invoked during an epidemic of widespreadergot poisoning in Limoges in 994.[3] Martial was particularly honored in Bordeaux, where his pastoral staff was kept in theBasilica Saint-Seurin and used in processions to invoke his aid during outbreaks of pestilence.[8] He is a popular saint throughoutLimousin. He is also venerated in Italy, whereColle di Val d'Elsa Cathedral is dedicated to him.
Aside fromergotism, he is generally invoked againstepidemics;[2] he is also a patron saint of prisoners.[9] As a patron saint of places, Limoges,Avignon, andCahors all enjoy his patronage.[2]
The Cloisters has a 12th-century stained-glass window of "Saint Martial Founding the Cathedral of Saint-Pierre."[10]
St Martial's chapel at the papal palace in Avignon [fr] was used for deliberations during conclaves.[11]Saint-Martial Temple [fr], a Gothic church in Avignon, was completed in 1402.[12]
In Brazilian folklore, he is celebrated with bonfires on the day of his liturgical feast which closes theFestas Juninas in Maranhão.[13] InSão Luís, in 2007, a monument was erected in his honor, given the popularity of his festivities, held in the city since 1928, and which annually gather thousands of people, in the Festejo de São Pedro e São Marçal, with the celebrations of thebumba-meu-boi.[13]
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Media related toSaint Martial at Wikimedia Commons