Godfrey of Amiens (French: Geoffroy d'Amiens) (1066–1115) was a bishop of Amiens. He is a saint in the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Life

Godfrey was born to Frodon his father in 1066 in Moulincourt, in the

Diocese of Soissons The Roman Catholic Diocese of Soissons, Laon, and Saint-Quentin (Latin: ''Dioecesis Suessionensis, Laudunensis et Sanquintinensis''; French language, French: ''Diocèse de Soissons, Laon et Saint-Quentin'') is a diocese of the Latin Rite of the R ...

. When his mother died, his father decided to take up the monastic life. The third child in a noble family, Godfrey taken at the age of five, by his uncle, the Bishop of Soissons, who sent him to be educated in the Benedictine abbey of Mont-Saint-Quentin where his godfather Godefroid was abbot. While at Saint Quentin, Godfrey was given the charge of the sick, and appointed ''hospitaller'', to receive the poor at the gate. At the age of 25, he was ordained priest by the

Bishop of Noyon The former French Catholic diocese of Noyon lay in the north-east of France, around Noyon. It was formed when Saint Medardus moved the seat of the bishopric at Vermandois to Noyon, in the sixth century. For four centuries it was united with the ...

and became the abbot of the Abbey of Nogent-sous-Coucy, Champagne in 1096.Butler, Alban. "St. Godfrey, Bishop of Amiens", ''The Lives of the Saints'', Vol.XI, 1866
Page 1 When he arrived, the place was overrun by weeds, but he rebuilt it, establishing a hostel for pilgrims. He declined both the abbacy of Saint-Remi and the bishopric of Reims, before being compelled to accept the office of bishop of

Amiens Amiens (English: or ; ; pcd, Anmien, or ) is a city and commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme department in the region of Hauts-de-France. In 2021, the population of ...

. King Philip and the Council of Troyes chose Godfrey in part because he was skilled in business affairs. Godfrey was noted for his rigid austerity with himself, those around him. He enforced clerical celibacy, and his opposition to drunkenness and simony, led to an attempt on his life. Godfrey would have preferred to

Grande Chartreuse Grande Chartreuse () is the head monastery of the Carthusian religious order. It is located in the Chartreuse Mountains, north of the city of Grenoble, in the commune of Saint-Pierre-de-Chartreuse ( Isère), France. History Originally, the c ...

to maintain a life of penitence, and in 1114 moved to a monastery. However, in 1115, he was called back to his post. He fell sick and took refuge in the abbey of Saint Crépin in

Soissons Soissons () is a commune in the northern French department of Aisne, in the region of Hauts-de-France. Located on the river Aisne, about northeast of Paris, it is one of the most ancient towns of France, and is probably the ancient capital o ...

, where he died November 8, 1115.

Veneration

*Godfrey of Amiens is remembered on November 8. *A street in

is named after him.

Notes

Sources

*(fr) Essai sur Saint Geoffroy, évêque d'Amiens - Guérard - 1843 *(fr) Histoire de la ville d'Amiens depuis les gaulois jusqu'à nos jours - R.de Hyacinthe Dusevel - 1848 - Amiens (France) - Page 259 - (Gallica) *(fr) Le livre des saints et des prénoms - Alain Guillermou - 1976 - Page 146 {{DEFAULTSORT:Godfrey Of Amiens 1066 births 1115 deaths Bishops of Amiens 12th-century Christian saints Medieval French saints