REMIGIUS OF ROUEN, ST.

Frankish archbishop; d. Rouen c. 772. A natural son of charles martel, he was educated at Court and created archbishop of rouen in succession to Rainfroi c. 754. His brother, pepin iii, sent him on a political mission to Pope paul i in 760, during which he visited also King desiderius of the lombards. One result of this mission was the introduction of the Roman chant and liturgy into the French Church, under Pepin and then charlemagne (see gallican rites). Remigius brought Roman monks back with him to instruct his diocese in gregorian chant and liturgical practice. A legend says that Remigius was entrusted with the task of transferring the relics of St. benedict from Fleury (saint-benÔit-sur-loire) to monte cassino, but that he was prevented from doing so by a miracle. He was present at the council at attigny in 765. His body was transferred from Rouen cathedral to Saint-Médard of Soissons, and then back to Saint-Ouen at Rouen in 1090, subsequently disappearing in the sack of that abbey by the Huguenots, 1562. His name was inserted in the calendar of saints of the Rouen Breviary on Jan. 19, 1627.

Feast: January 19.

Bibliography: e. martÈne and u. durand, Thesaurus novus anecdotorum, 5 v. (Paris 1717) 3:1665–70. b. de gaiffier, Analecta Bollandiana 23 (1904) 197, for a 13th-century vita. Acta Sanctorum Jan. 2:599–600. a. r. collette, Histoire du bréviaire de Rouen (Rouen 1902). h. netzer, L'Introduction de la messe romaine en France sous les carolingiens (Paris 1910). j. l. baudot and l. chaussin, Vies des saints et des bienheureux selon l'ordre du calendrier avec l'historique des fêtes, ed. by the Benedictines of Paris, 12 v. (Paris 1935–56); v. 13, suppl. and table générale (1959) 1:384–385.

[p. b. corbett]