Constantius of Lyon, in his Life of *Germanus (bishop of Auxerre, ob. c. 448, S00455), recounts how Germanus and his companion *Lupus (bishop of Troyes, S00418) visited the shrine of *Albanus/Alban (martyr of Verulamium, S01364) and Albanus subsequently protected their crossing of the Channel. Written in Latin at Lyon (south-east Gaul) between c. 460 and c. 480.
E05846
Literary - Hagiographical - Lives
Constantius of Lyon, Life of Germanus of Auxerre 16, 18
For a full account of Constantius' Life of Germanus, see E05841.
After Germanus and Lupus have triumphed over the British Pelagians, and Germanus has carried out the healing miracle of E05881, Germanus and Lupus visit the shrine of Alban (§ 16):
Conpressa itaque peruersitate damnabili eiusque auctoribus confutatis animisque omnium fidei puritate conpositis, sacerdotes beatum Albanum martyrem acturi deo per ipsum gratias petiuerunt.
'When this damnable heresy had been thus stamped out, its authors refuted, and the minds of all reestablished in the true faith, the bishops visited the shrine of the blessed martyr Alban, to give thanks to God through him.'
After a narrative of Germanus' subsequent activities in Britain (§§ 16-18), including his defeat of an invasion by the Picts and Saxons, and a number of miracles (on which see E06862 and E07553), Constantius narrates the departure of Germanus and Lupus back to Gaul (§ 18). Here, as in most of his narrative of the visit, Constantius keeps Lupus firmly in the background, and does not mention him by name.
Conposita itaque opulentissima insula securitate multiplici, superatisque hostibus uel spiritalibus uel carne conspicuis, quippe qui uicissent Pelagianistas et Saxones, cum totius merore regionis reditum moliuntur. Tranquillam nauigationem merita propria et intercessio Albani martyris parauerunt quietosque antistites suorum desideriis felix carina restituit.
'Thus this most wealthy island, with the defeat both of its spiritual and of its human foes, was rendered secure in every sense. And now, to the great grief of the whole country, those who had won the victories over both Pelagians and Saxons made preparations for their return. Their own merits and the intercession of Alban the martyr secured for them a calm voyage; and a good ship brought them back in peace to their expectant people.'
For Germanus' next miracles in Britain, see E06862 and E07553. After Germanus' return to Auxerre, Constantius describes how he found the city crushed by excessive taxes and therefore decided to seek a remission of taxes from the Praetorian Prefect (§ 19). He begins a journey to Arles, during which his next miracle occurs: E07554.
Text: Borius 1965.
Translation: Hoare 1954.
Martyr shrine (martyrion, bet sāhedwātā, etc.)
Place of martyrdom of a saint
MiraclesMiracle after death
Power over elements (fire, earthquakes, floods, weather)
Protagonists in Cult and NarrativesEcclesiastics - bishops
Source
Germanus of Auxerre (PCBE 4, 'Germanus 1', pp. 878-883) was the most important and revered episcopal saint of 5th-century Gaul. The Life of Germanus was written some years after his death (traditionally dated to 448, but perhaps earlier) by Constantius, a literary figure, possibly a cleric, attested in Lyon in the 460s and 470s (PCBE 4, 'Constantius 3', pp. 521-522). The precise date when he composed the Life is not documented, but it must have been sometime between the 460s and the early 480s. For full discussion of the authorship and date of the Life of Germanus, see its overview entry: E05841.Discussion
The mission of Germanus and Lupus of Troyes to Britain in 429 is narrated in Life of Germanus 12-18. For a contemporary reference to it, see Prosper of Aquitaine, Chronicle 1301. Further details about Germanus' visit to the shrine of Alban appear in the Passion of Alban 10-11 (E07536), where the account of Germanus' visit is more detailed than the one in Constantius' Life.The Life of Germanus is the earliest datable work to refer explicitly to the shrine of Alban or to Alban himself, though a reference to an unnamed martyr by Victricius of Rouen in the late 4th century (E08583) has often been taken to be an allusion to Alban.
Bibliography
Editions:Borius, R., Constance de Lyon, Vie de saint Germain d'Auxerre (Sources chrétiennes 112; Paris: Cerf, 1965), with French translation.
Levison, W., Vita Germani episcopi Autissiodorensis auctore Constantio, in: Passiones vitaeque sanctorum aevi Merovingici V (Monumenta Germaniae Historica, Scriptores rerum Merovingicarum 7; Hannover and Leipzig, 1919), 246-283.
English translation:
Hoare, F.R., The Western Fathers (London, 1954), 283-320. Reprinted in T.F.X. Noble and T. Head (eds.), Soldiers of Christ: Saints and Saints' Lives from Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages (University Park PA: Pennsylvania State University Press, 1995), 75-106.
David Lambert
15/05/2019
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00418 | Lupus, bishop of Troyes, ob. 479 | Certain | S00455 | Germanus, bishop of Auxerre, ob. 445/450 | Germanus | Certain | S01364 | Albanus/Alban, martyr of Verulamium (Britain) | Albanus | Certain |
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