Leodegar of Poitiers (; ; 615 – October 2, 679 AD) was a martyred Burgundian Bishop of Autun. He was the son of Saint Sigrada and the brother of Saint Warinus.

Leodegar was an opponent of Ebroin, the Frankish Mayor of the Palace of Neustria, and the leader of the faction of Burgundian nobles. His torture and death made him a martyr and saint.

Early life

Leodegar was the son of a high-ranking Burgundian nobleman, Bodilon, Count of Poitiers and Paris and St. Sigrada of Alsace, who later became a nun in the convent of Sainte-Marie at Soissons. His brother was Warinus. He was soon elected abbot, and initiated reforms including the introduction of the Benedictine rule. His authority at Autun placed him as a leader among the Franco-Burgundian nobles.

Leodegar became one of the leaders of the opposition against Ebroin, mayor of the palace in Neustria. Ebroin accused Leodegar before King Clothar III, but the king then died in 673, while the trial was still going on. Ebroin now installed Clothar's youngest brother, Theoderic III, as king. As the mayor denied the nobles of Neustria and Burgundy access to the king, they called in the middle brother, Childeric II, who had been king of Austrasia since 662 and now assumed rule over Neustria and Burgundy as well. Ebroin was interned at Luxeuil and Theoderic sent to St. Denis.

Leodegar, who had supported this change, soon ran into conflict with the new king as the latter surrounded himself with advisors from Austrasia. The bishop also criticized the king for his uncanonical marriage to his first cousin Bilichild. After finding himself on the losing side in a hereditary dispute, the king banished Leodegar to Luxeuil as well.

When Childeric II was murdered at Bondi in 675, by a disaffected Frank, Theoderic III was installed as king in Neustria, making Leudesius his mayor. Ebroin took advantage of the chaos to make his escape from Luxeuil and hasten to the court. In a short time Ebroin had Leudesius murdered and became mayor once again, still Leodegar's implacable enemy.

A dubious drawn from the same lost source (Krusch 1891), and also two later ones (one of them in verse).

Cultural significance

Historically there was a custom among wealthy British merchants to sell in May, spend the summer outside of London, then to return on St Leger's Day. This gave rise to the saying used in regards to financial trading markets, "Sell in May and go away, and come on back on St. Leger's Day".

In numismatics

There are few types of thalers, ducats, and guldens were minted in the XV-XVI centuries in the Canton of Lucerne, Switzerland. Obverse has the image of Saint Leodegar facing left, sitting on a gothic throne, nimbate, wearing mitre and episcopal regalia, and a soldier to the left, wearing military attire and sword, gouging the right eye of the saint with a hand drill.

See also

  • Liber Historiae Francorum
  • List of Catholic saints
  • Saint Leodegar, patron saint archive
  • Saint-Léger de Cheylade Church

Notes

Sources

Primary sources

  • Liber Historiae Francorum, edited by B. Krusch, in MGH SS rer. Merov. vol. ii.
  • Passio Leudegarii I & II, edited by B. Krusch and W. Levison, in MGH SS rer. Merov. vol v.
  • Vita sancti Leodegarii, by Ursinus, then a monk of St Maixent (Migne, Patrilogia Latina, vol. xcvi.)
  • Vita metrica in Poetae Latini aevi Carolini, vol. iii. (Mod. Germ. Hist.)
  • Epistolae aevi Merovingici collectae 17, edited by W. Gundlach, in MGH EE vol iii.

Secondary sources

  • J. Friedrich, Zur Geschichte des Hausmeiers Ebroin, in the Proceedings of the Academy of Munich (1887, pp. 42–61)
  • J. B. Pitra, Histoire de Saint Léger (Paris, 1846)
  • Patron Saints Index: Saint Leodegarius
  • La Vie de Saint-Léger, written ca 980