Saint Lambertus (Lambert, Landebertus), (625-688), Abbot of Abbey of Fontenelle and

Bishop of Lyon The Archdiocese of Lyon (Latin: ''Archidiœcesis Lugdunensis''; French: ''Archidiocèse de Lyon''), formerly the Archdiocese of Lyon–Vienne–Embrun, is a Latin Church metropolitan archdiocese of the Catholic Church in France. The Archbishops o ...

(678-688). His feast day is celebrated on 14 April. He was son of Erlebert (son of Charibert de Haspengau) and so nephew of

Robert I, Bishop of Tours Chrodebert I (Chrotbert, Radobertus, Robert I) (died 695), Merovingian referendary and Bishop of Tours (as Chrotbert, 660-695), son of Charibert de Haspengau and his wife Wulfgurd. Robert and his brothers Erlebert and Aldebert were the ancestor ...

. He was born in

Quernes Quernes (; vls, Kernes) is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France. Geography Quernes is situated some northwest of Béthune and west of Lille, at the junction of the D186e1 and D186 roads. Populati ...

where his father was seigneur. Because of his high rank, he was sent to the court of

Clotaire III Chlothar III (or ''Chlotar'', ''Clothar'', ''Clotaire'', ''Chlotochar'', or ''Hlothar'', giving rise to the name Lothair; 652–673) was the eldest son of Clovis II, king of Neustria and Burgundy, and his queen Balthild. When Clovis died in 657, ...

, where he soon won the respect of the king and his ministers. Despite this, he chose the life of a clergy and studied under the direction of Abbot Saint Wandrille at Fontenelle Abbey where he received the monastic habit. After Wandrill's death in 665, he was elected as his successor. The competence of Lambertus’ administration of the abbey was soon known. Kings were to take advantage of its examples and its opinions.

Childeric II Childeric II (c. 653 – 675) was the king of Austrasia from 662 and of Neustria and Burgundy from 673 until his death, making him sole King of the Franks for the final two years of his life. Childeric was the second eldest son of King Clovis ...

honored his confidence and made large donations to the abbey.

Theuderic III Theuderic III (or Theuderich, Theoderic, or Theodoric; french: Thierry) (c. 651–691) was the king of Neustria (including Burgundy) on two occasions (673 and 675–691) and king of Austrasia from 679 to his death in 691. Thus, he was the king ...

, who succeeded his brother in 675, was however, too liberal for the abbot. He did provide land in

Donzère Donzère (; oc, Donzèra) is a commune of the Drôme department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in southeastern France. It is a town located in the south of Drôme and on the left bank of the Rhône river, next to Montélimar. Geography T ...

where Lambertus built a monastery. Among his disciples were his uncle Adelbert, Saint Hermeland Indre, (later

Bishop of Toulouse The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Toulouse (–Saint Bertrand de Comminges–Rieux) ( la, Archidioecesis Tolosana (–Convenarum–Rivensis); French: ''Archidiocèse de Toulouse (–Saint-Bertrand de Comminges–Rieux-Volvestre)''; Occitan: ''A ...

), and Saint Condède, hermit of England, who founded the

Monastery of Belcinac Belcinac Monastery was founded in the second half of the 7th century by Saint Condède, a monk of Fontenelle Abbey. Condède was a disciple of Lambert, Bishop of Lyon, and was known as the hermit of England. The monastery was built on an island i ...

on an island in the Seine. Saint Genesius, Bishop of Lyon, died around the year 679, and Lambertus was elected to replace him on the recommendation of the king and with the consent of the clergy and the people. He died in 688. Lambertus was one of the early members of the Robertian family by virtue of his relationship with his uncle Robert I.

Sources

Christian Settipani Christian Settipani (born 31 January 1961) is a French genealogist, historian and IT professional, currently working as the Technical Director of a company in Paris. Biography Settipani holds a Master of Advanced Studies from the Paris-Sorbo ...

, ''Les Ancêtres de Charlemagne'', 2e édition revue et corrigée, éd. P & G, Prosopographia et Genealogica, 2015, p. 134. *

Hervé Pinoteau Baron Hervé Pinoteau (19 July 1927 – 24 November 2020) was a French historian and royalist Wiktionary:apologist, apologist. He was the author of more than 900 articles and 22 books primarily on history and heraldry. Biography Pinoteau was bor ...

, ''La symbolique royale française'', Ve-XVIIIe siècles, P.S.R. éditions, 2004, p. 45.
Medieval Lands Project, Merovingian Counts, 7th Century
{{authority control 625 births 688 deaths French abbots Bishops of Lyon