thumb|Portrait of Viret in [[Theodore Beza's Icones (1580)]]
Pierre Viret (1509/1510 – 4 April 1571) was a Swiss Reformed theologian, evangelist and Protestant reformer.
Early life
Pierre Viret was born in 1509 or 1510 in Orbe, then in the Barony of Vaud, now in the canton of Vaud, Switzerland.
Preaching
William Farel, a Protestant preacher, called Viret to the ministry when he returned to Orbe. On 6 May 1531, Viret preached his first sermon. His preaching was received with astonishment and acclamation, and many were soon converted to the Reformed Faith, including Viret's parents.
thumb|right|200px|[[Bas relief of Pierre Viret.]]
In 1561, Viret moved to Southern France, possibly for health reasons.
Expelled from the city two years later, in 1567 he accepted an invitation from Jeanne d'Albret, Queen of Navarre, to introduce the Reformation to the Béarn. Linder concludes that "Viret deserves a far more prominent place in the story of the Reformation than he has been accorded thus far, especially by historians in the English-speaking world."
Translated works
Viret authored over fifty books,