Didier of Cahors
Encyclopedia
Saint Didier, also known as Desiderius (c. 580 - November 15, traditionally 655) was a Merovingian royal official of aristocratic Gallo-Roman extraction.
He succeeded his own brother, Saint Rusticus, as bishop of Cahors
and governed the diocese, which flourished under his care, from 630 to 655. Didier's career, like that of his brothers, is exemplary of a church and a monastic system controlled by the ruling, landholding class that was closely linked to the Merovingian monarchy. "This was no innovation of this period, but rather represented a continuation of a state of affairs which had existed since late Roman and early Merovingian times" (Lewis 1999, ch 1).
Born either in the oppidum
of Albi or at Obreges on the border of Gallia Narbonensis
and Aquitania
to a father with the expressly Christian name of Salvius and a literate mother with the Frankish name Herchenfreda, he had two brothers, named Rusticus and Syagrius
. The three boys were sent to the court of the Frankish king Clotaire II
(584-629; from 613 sole sovereign), and with other boys of noble family received an excellent education at the Merovingian court-school. Rusticus assumed holy orders at an early age and became archdeacon in the town of Rodez
before being appointed abbot of the palatine basilica
of Clotaire, who at length appointed him bishop of Cahors
, in Quercy
. The second brother, Syagrius, after long service in the palace
household of the Franks
and long familiarity with Clotaire, was made comte d’Albi and exercised juridical authority as praefectus in the city of Marseille
.
Desiderius, educated by his parents with the greatest care, combined a love of letters with a native Gallican eloquence, according to his Vita. While still adolescent he received the dignities of the royal household and turned his studies towards Roman (i.e. canon) law, with the result that a Roman gravity of demeanor tempered the gallic richness and brilliance of his discourse. Before long he was appointed treasurer to the king, an office that he retained under the new king, Dagobert I
(629-639), whose confidant he was. After the death of Syagrius (629), he is said to have obtained also the prefectship of Marseilles, but this is not certain.
Faithful to the admonitions of his pious mother, three of whose letters to him are mentioned in his Vita, Desiderius led at court the serious holy life of a monk, and administered his office with great fidelity.
In 630 his brother Rusticus, the Bishop of Cahors, was murdered, whereupon the clergy and people of that city requested from the king Desiderius as his successor. By a letter of April 8, 630, Dagobert made known his consent, and Desiderius was consecrated Bishop of Cahors. With the other bishops of his time, many of them educated with him at the royal court, he maintained an active intercourse, as his letters prove. He was a zealous promoter of monastic life and founded a monastery in the vicinity of Cahors, the church of which was dedicated to St. Amantius; later on the convent was called after its founder St Géry (i.e. Dierius, from Desiderius). He directed also a convent of women, as we see from a letter written by him to the Abbess Aspasia. Under him and with his support was likewise founded in his diocese the monastery of St. Peter of Moissac. Desiderius built three large basilicas in and near Cahors (St Maria, St Peter and St Julian) and an oratory in honor of St Martin. The finished style of his building was notable, not of vernacular materials of wood, wattle and thatch, but
By his testament (649-650) he endowed the cathedral, the churches, and the monasteries of his episcopal city with all his estates. While resident on his estates in the district of Albi he fell ill and died at his villa of Wistrilingo, which he had presented to the monastery of St Amantius. His body was carried to Cahors and interred in the church of St Amantius.
A Vita of Desiderius has been composed around the late 8th century by an anonymous author, possibly a monk from Saint-Géry near Cahors, written on the basis of older documents.
Appended to it is a collection of letters, some composed by himself and others addressed to him, as well as an account of miracles that took place at his tomb. Professor Danuta Shanzer from The University of Illinois is currently working on a first English translation of his letters for the "Translated Texts for Historians" series http://www.classics.uiuc.edu/people/shanzer/shanzer.html.
His feast is celebrated on 15 November.
He succeeded his own brother, Saint Rusticus, as bishop of Cahors
Cahors
Cahors is the capital of the Lot department in south-western France.Its site is dramatic being contained on three sides within an udder shaped twist in the river Lot known as a 'presqu'île' or peninsula...
and governed the diocese, which flourished under his care, from 630 to 655. Didier's career, like that of his brothers, is exemplary of a church and a monastic system controlled by the ruling, landholding class that was closely linked to the Merovingian monarchy. "This was no innovation of this period, but rather represented a continuation of a state of affairs which had existed since late Roman and early Merovingian times" (Lewis 1999, ch 1).
Born either in the oppidum
Oppidum
Oppidum is a Latin word meaning the main settlement in any administrative area of ancient Rome. The word is derived from the earlier Latin ob-pedum, "enclosed space," possibly from the Proto-Indo-European *pedóm-, "occupied space" or "footprint."Julius Caesar described the larger Celtic Iron Age...
of Albi or at Obreges on the border of Gallia Narbonensis
Gallia Narbonensis
Gallia Narbonensis was a Roman province located in what is now Languedoc and Provence, in southern France. It was also known as Gallia Transalpina , which was originally a designation for that part of Gaul lying across the Alps from Italia and it contained a western region known as Septimania...
and Aquitania
Aquitania
Aquitania may refer to:* the territory of the Aquitani, a people living in Roman times in what is now Aquitaine, France* Aquitaine, a region of France roughly between the Pyrenees, the Atlantic ocean and the Garonne, also a former kingdom and duchy...
to a father with the expressly Christian name of Salvius and a literate mother with the Frankish name Herchenfreda, he had two brothers, named Rusticus and Syagrius
Syagrius
Syagrius was the last Roman official in Gaul, whose defeat by king Clovis I of the Franks is considered the end of Roman rule outside of Italy. He came to this position through inheritance, for his father was Aegidius, the last Roman magister militum per Gallias...
. The three boys were sent to the court of the Frankish king Clotaire II
Clotaire II
Chlothar II , called the Great or the Young , King of Neustria, and, from 613 to 629, King of all the Franks, was not yet born when his father, King Chilperic I died in 584...
(584-629; from 613 sole sovereign), and with other boys of noble family received an excellent education at the Merovingian court-school. Rusticus assumed holy orders at an early age and became archdeacon in the town of Rodez
Rodez
Rodez is a town and commune in southern France, in the Aveyron department, of which it is the capital. Its inhabitants are called Ruthénois.-History:Existing from at least the 5th century BC, Rodez was founded by the Celts...
before being appointed abbot of the palatine basilica
Basilica
The Latin word basilica , was originally used to describe a Roman public building, usually located in the forum of a Roman town. Public basilicas began to appear in Hellenistic cities in the 2nd century BC.The term was also applied to buildings used for religious purposes...
of Clotaire, who at length appointed him bishop of Cahors
Cahors
Cahors is the capital of the Lot department in south-western France.Its site is dramatic being contained on three sides within an udder shaped twist in the river Lot known as a 'presqu'île' or peninsula...
, in Quercy
Quercy
Quercy is a former province of France located in the country's southwest, bounded on the north by Limousin, on the west by Périgord and Agenais, on the south by Gascony and Languedoc, and on the east by Rouergue and Auvergne....
. The second brother, Syagrius, after long service in the palace
Palace
A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence or the home of a head of state or some other high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word itself is derived from the Latin name Palātium, for Palatine Hill, one of the seven hills in Rome. In many parts of Europe, the...
household of the Franks
Franks
The Franks were a confederation of Germanic tribes first attested in the third century AD as living north and east of the Lower Rhine River. From the third to fifth centuries some Franks raided Roman territory while other Franks joined the Roman troops in Gaul. Only the Salian Franks formed a...
and long familiarity with Clotaire, was made comte d’Albi and exercised juridical authority as praefectus in the city of Marseille
Marseille
Marseille , known in antiquity as Massalia , is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of...
.
Desiderius, educated by his parents with the greatest care, combined a love of letters with a native Gallican eloquence, according to his Vita. While still adolescent he received the dignities of the royal household and turned his studies towards Roman (i.e. canon) law, with the result that a Roman gravity of demeanor tempered the gallic richness and brilliance of his discourse. Before long he was appointed treasurer to the king, an office that he retained under the new king, Dagobert I
Dagobert I
Dagobert I was the king of Austrasia , king of all the Franks , and king of Neustria and Burgundy . He was the last Merovingian dynast to wield any real royal power...
(629-639), whose confidant he was. After the death of Syagrius (629), he is said to have obtained also the prefectship of Marseilles, but this is not certain.
Faithful to the admonitions of his pious mother, three of whose letters to him are mentioned in his Vita, Desiderius led at court the serious holy life of a monk, and administered his office with great fidelity.
In 630 his brother Rusticus, the Bishop of Cahors, was murdered, whereupon the clergy and people of that city requested from the king Desiderius as his successor. By a letter of April 8, 630, Dagobert made known his consent, and Desiderius was consecrated Bishop of Cahors. With the other bishops of his time, many of them educated with him at the royal court, he maintained an active intercourse, as his letters prove. He was a zealous promoter of monastic life and founded a monastery in the vicinity of Cahors, the church of which was dedicated to St. Amantius; later on the convent was called after its founder St Géry (i.e. Dierius, from Desiderius). He directed also a convent of women, as we see from a letter written by him to the Abbess Aspasia. Under him and with his support was likewise founded in his diocese the monastery of St. Peter of Moissac. Desiderius built three large basilicas in and near Cahors (St Maria, St Peter and St Julian) and an oratory in honor of St Martin. The finished style of his building was notable, not of vernacular materials of wood, wattle and thatch, but
in the manner of the ancients out of squared and hewn stones, not indeed in our Gallican fashion, but just as a whole circuit of ancient walls is wont to be built; thus from the foundations to the topmost pinnacle he completed the work with squared stones' (quoted in Greenhalgh) He also built an aqueduct to serve Cahors, and rebuilt the walls and towers (castella) that protected the city, as well as the Castrum Mercurio in Cahors itself. His actions show how much the bishop acted for the public good with the authority of a count or of a patricius. Desiderius persuaded the nobles of his diocese to endow churches and monasteries.
By his testament (649-650) he endowed the cathedral, the churches, and the monasteries of his episcopal city with all his estates. While resident on his estates in the district of Albi he fell ill and died at his villa of Wistrilingo, which he had presented to the monastery of St Amantius. His body was carried to Cahors and interred in the church of St Amantius.
A Vita of Desiderius has been composed around the late 8th century by an anonymous author, possibly a monk from Saint-Géry near Cahors, written on the basis of older documents.
Appended to it is a collection of letters, some composed by himself and others addressed to him, as well as an account of miracles that took place at his tomb. Professor Danuta Shanzer from The University of Illinois is currently working on a first English translation of his letters for the "Translated Texts for Historians" series http://www.classics.uiuc.edu/people/shanzer/shanzer.html.
His feast is celebrated on 15 November.
Sources
- Desiderii episcopi Cadurcensis epistolae, ed. W. Arndt, Epistolae Merowingici et Karolini aevi 1, MGH EE 3, Berlin 1892, pp. 191–214 (latin edition).
- La vie de Saint Didier, évêque de Cahors (630 - 655), ed. R. Poupardin, Paris 1900 (latin edition with a Frensh introduction).
- Epistulae Sancti Desiderii, ed. D. Norberg, Acta Universitatis Stockholmiensis, Studia Latina Stockholmiensia 4, Uppsala 1961 (latin edition).
Literature
- J.R.C. Martyn: King Sisebut and the culture of Visigothic Spain, with translations of the lives of Saint Desiderius of Vienne and Saint Masona of Mérida, Lewiston 2008.