Saint Nicetius (french: Saint Nizier) (c. 525 - c. 566) was a

bishop of Trier The Diocese of Trier, in English historically also known as ''Treves'' (IPA "tɾivz") from French ''Trèves'', is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic church in Germany.Migrations,

Frankish Frankish may refer to: * Franks, a Germanic tribe and their culture ** Frankish language or its modern descendants, Franconian languages * Francia, a post-Roman state in France and Germany * East Francia, the successor state to Francia in Germany ...

supremacy began in what had been

Roman Gaul Roman Gaul refers to GaulThe territory of Gaul roughly corresponds to modern-day France, Belgium and Luxembourg, and adjacient parts of the Netherlands, Switzerland and Germany. under provincial rule in the Roman Empire from the 1st century ...

. Considerable detail of the life of this zealous bishop is known from various sources, from letters written either by or to him, from two poems of

Venantius Fortunatus Venantius Honorius Clementianus Fortunatus ( 530 600/609 AD; french: Venance Fortunat), known as Saint Venantius Fortunatus (, ), was a Latin poet and hymnographer in the Merovingian Court, and a bishop of the Early Church who has been venerate ...

and above all from the statements of his pupil

Aredius Aredius (c. 510–591), also known as Yrieix and Saint Aredius, was Abbot of Limoges and chancellor to Theudebert I, King of Austrasia in the 6th century. He founded the monastery of Attanum, and the various French communes called St. Yriei ...

, later Abbot of

Limoges Limoges (, , ; oc, Lemòtges, locally ) is a city and Communes of France, commune, and the prefecture of the Haute-Vienne Departments of France, department in west-central France. It was the administrative capital of the former Limousin region ...

, which have been preserved by

Gregory of Tours Gregory of Tours (30 November 538 – 17 November 594 AD) was a Gallo-Roman historian and Bishop of Tours, which made him a leading prelate of the area that had been previously referred to as Gaul by the Romans. He was born Georgius Florenti ...

.Kirsch, Johann Peter. "St. Nicetius." ''The Catholic Encyclopedia''. Vol. 11. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1911. 28 Mar. 2015
/ref>

Life

Pastoral work

Nicetius came from a

Gallo-Roman Gallo-Roman culture was a consequence of the Romanization of Gauls under the rule of the Roman Empire. It was characterized by the Gaulish adoption or adaptation of Roman culture, language, morals and way of life in a uniquely Gaulish context ...

family; he was a native of

Aquitaine Aquitaine ( , , ; oc, Aquitània ; eu, Akitania; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Aguiéne''), archaic Guyenne or Guienne ( oc, Guiana), is a historical region of southwestern France and a former administrative region of the country. Since 1 January ...

.Fletcher, Richard A.">Richard A. Fletcher, Fletcher, Richard A.
, ''The Barbarian Conversion'', University of California Press, 1999, /ref> From his youth he devoted himself to religious life and entered a

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...

Theuderic I __NOTOC__ Theuderic I (c. 485 – 533/34) was the Merovingian king of Metz, Rheims, or Austrasia—as it is variously called—from 511 to 533 or 534. He was the son of Clovis I and one of his earlier wives or concubines (possibly a Franc ...

(511-34) had encouraged clerics from Acquitaine to work in the Rhineland. The king came to esteem Nicetius despite his often remonstrating with him on his wrongdoing without, however, any loss of favour. After the death of Bishop

Aprunculus of Trier Saint Aprunculus of Trier (also known as Abrunculus) (died probably 526) was Bishop of Trier from the death of his predecessor, Fibicius, whether in 511 or 525, and served in that capacity until his own death, which is presumed to have occurred be ...

, an embassy of the clergy and citizens of Trier came to the royal court to elect a new bishop. They desired

Saint Gallus Gall ( la, Gallus; 550 646) according to hagiographic tradition was a disciple and one of the traditional twelve companions of Columbanus on his Hiberno-Scottish mission, mission from Ireland to the continent. Deicolus was the elder brother ...

, but the king refused his consent. It was through Theuderic's patronage that Nicetius was confirmed as bishop. About 527 Nicetius set out as the new bishop for Trier, accompanied by an escort sent by the king, and while on the journey had opportunity to make known his firmness in the administration of his office. Trier had suffered terribly during the disorders of the Migrations. One of the first cares of the new bishop was to rebuild the

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...

church, the restoration of which is mentioned by the poet Venantius Fortunatus. He imported Italian craftmen to work on churches. Archæological research has shown, in the cathedral of Trier, the existence of mason-work belonging to the Frankish period which may belong to this reconstruction by Nicetius. A fortified castle (''castellum'') with a chapel built by him on the river

Moselle The Moselle ( , ; german: Mosel ; lb, Musel ) is a river that rises in the Vosges mountains and flows through north-eastern France and Luxembourg to western Germany. It is a bank (geography), left bank tributary of the Rhine, which it jo ...

is also mentioned by the same poet. Bishop Nicetius replanted vineyards on the slopes above the Moselle, to restore the area's wine business. The bishop devoted himself with great zeal to his pastoral duty. He preached daily, opposed vigorously the numerous evils in the moral life both of the higher classes and of the common people, and in so doing did not spare the king and his courtiers. Disregarding threats, he steadfastly fulfilled his duty. He excommunicated King

Chlothar I Chlothar I, sometime called "the Old" ( French: le Vieux), (died December 561) also anglicised as Clotaire, was a king of the Franks of the Merovingian dynasty and one of the four sons of Clovis I. Chlothar's father, Clovis I, divided the kin ...

(511-61), who for some time was sole ruler of the Frankish dominions, on account of his misdeeds; in return the king exiled the determined bishop in 560. The king died, however, in the following year, and his son and successor

Sigebert I Sigebert I (c. 535 – c. 575) was a Frankish king of Austrasia from the death of his father in 561 to his own death. He was the third surviving son out of four of Clotaire I and Ingund. His reign found him mostly occupied with a successful civ ...

, the ruler of

Austrasia Austrasia was a territory which formed the north-eastern section of the Merovingian Kingdom of the Franks during the 6th to 8th centuries. It was centred on the Meuse, Middle Rhine and the Moselle rivers, and was the original territory of the F ...

(561-75), allowed Nicetius to return home. Nicetius took part in several synods of the Frankish bishops: the synod of Clermont (535), of Orléans (549), the second synod of Council of Clermont (549), the

synod of Toul The Council of Toul was a Frankish synod convoked by Theudebald, King of Austrasia, that convened in Toul on 1 June 550. It is not known how many bishops attended. It extended to the ecclesiastical provinces of Reims and Trier and perhaps beyond. ...

(550), at which he presided, and the synod of Paris (555).

Correspondence and personal life

Nicetius corresponded with ecclesiastical dignitaries of high rank in distant places. Letters are extant that were written to him by Abbot

Florianus Marcus Annius Florianus (died 276), also known as Florian, was Roman emperor from the death of his half-brother, Emperor Tacitus, in July 276 until his own murder in September of that year. Florianus was the maternal half-brother of Tacitus, ...

of Romain-Moûtier (Canton of

Vaud Vaud ( ; french: (Canton de) Vaud, ; german: (Kanton) Waadt, or ), more formally the canton of Vaud, is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of ten districts and its capital city is Lausanne. Its coat of arms b ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

), by Bishop Rufus of

Octodurum Martigny (; german: Martinach, ; la, Octodurum) is the capital city of the district of Martigny (district), Martigny, cantons of Switzerland, canton of Canton of Valais, Valais, Switzerland. It lies at an elevation of , and its population is app ...

(now

Martigny Martigny (; german: Martinach, ; la, Octodurum) is the capital city of the district of Martigny, canton of Valais, Switzerland. It lies at an elevation of , and its population is approximately 15000 inhabitants (''Martignerains'' or "Octodurie ...

, in the Canton of

Valais Valais ( , , ; frp, Valês; german: Wallis ), more formally the Canton of Valais,; german: Kanton Wallis; in other official Swiss languages outside Valais: it, (Canton) Vallese ; rm, (Chantun) Vallais. is one of the cantons of Switzerland, 26 ...

, Switzerland), and by Archbishop Mappinius of

Reims Reims ( , , ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French department of Marne, and the 12th most populous city in France. The city lies northeast of Paris on the Vesle river, a tributary of the Aisne. Founded by ...

. The general interests of the Church did not escape his watchful care. He wrote an urgent letter to Emperor

Justinian Justinian I (; la, Iustinianus, ; grc-gre, Ἰουστινιανός ; 48214 November 565), also known as Justinian the Great, was the Byzantine emperor from 527 to 565. His reign is marked by the ambitious but only partly realized ''renovat ...

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...

in regard to the emperor's position in the controversies arising from

Monophysitism Monophysitism ( or ) or monophysism () is a Christological term derived from the Greek (, "alone, solitary") and (, a word that has many meanings but in this context means "nature"). It is defined as "a doctrine that in the person of the incarn ...

. Another letter that has been preserved is to Chlodoswinda, wife of the Lombard King

Alboin Alboin (530s – 28 June 572) was king of the Lombards from about 560 until 572. During his reign the Lombards ended their migrations by settling in Italy, the northern part of which Alboin conquered between 569 and 572. He had a lasting effe ...

, in which he exhorts this princess to do everything possible to bring her husband over to the Catholic faith. In his personal life Nicetius was very ascetic and self-mortifying; he fasted frequently, and while the priests and clerics who lived with him were at their evening meal he would go, concealed by a hooded cloak, to pray in the churches of the city. He founded a school of his own for the training of the clergy. The best known of his pupils is the later Abbot of Limoges,

, who was the authority of Gregory of Tours for the latter's biographical account of Nicetius.

, wrote the oldest Nicetius

Vita Vita or VITA (plural vitae) is Latin for "life", and may refer to: * ''Vita'', the usual start to the title of a biography in Latin, by which (in a known context) the work is often referred to; frequently of a saint, then called hagiography * Vit ...

, and praised the fearless advocacy of the Bishop.

Veneration

Nicetius was buried in the church of St. Maximin at Trier. In the diocese of Trier, he is revered as a saint. His

feast day The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word "feast" in this context d ...

is celebrated at Trier on 1 October; in the ''

Roman Martyrology The ''Roman Martyrology'' ( la, Martyrologium Romanum) is the official martyrology of the Catholic Church. Its use is obligatory in matters regarding the Roman Rite liturgy, but dioceses, countries and religious institutes may add duly approved ...

'' his name is placed under 5 December.Hubertus Seibert : Nicetius, bishop of Trier. In: ''New German Biography'' (NDB). Volume 19, (Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1999), p.197. The genuineness of two treatises ascribed to him is doubtful: "De Vigiliis servorum Dei" and "De Psalmodiæ Bono".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nicetius 520s births 560s deaths Year of birth uncertain Year of death uncertain 6th-century Gallo-Roman people Medieval German saints 6th-century Frankish bishops 6th-century Christian saints Roman Catholic bishops of Trier 6th-century Frankish saints Gallo-Roman saints Saints of Germania 6th-century Frankish writers 6th-century Latin writers Latin letter writers