Relic of Saint Pirminius - Speyer Cathedral - Speyer - Germany 2017

Saint Pirmin (latinized ''Pirminius'', born before 700 ( according to many sources), died November 3, 753 in Hornbach), was a Merovingian-era monk and missionary. He founded or restored numerous monasteries in Alemannia (

Swabia Swabia ; german: Schwaben , colloquially ''Schwabenland'' or ''Ländle''; archaic English also Suabia or Svebia is a cultural, historic and linguistic region in southwestern Germany. The name is ultimately derived from the medieval Duchy of ...

), especially in the Alsace, along the Upper Rhine and in the

Lake Constance Lake Constance (german: Bodensee, ) refers to three Body of water, bodies of water on the Rhine at the northern foot of the Alps: Upper Lake Constance (''Obersee''), Lower Lake Constance (''Untersee''), and a connecting stretch of the Rhine, ca ...

region.

Biography

Pirmin was probably from the area of Narbonne, possibly of Visigothic origin. Many Visigoths fled to Francia after the Arab conquest of Spain at the beginning of the 8th century. From 718 onwards, he was abbot of the monastery ''Quortolodora'' in

Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,

(

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 ...

) and, together with its pupils, the minister of the church inside the

broch A broch is an Iron Age drystone hollow-walled structure found in Scotland. Brochs belong to the classification "complex Atlantic roundhouse" devised by Scottish archaeologists in the 1980s. Their origin is a matter of some controversy. Origin ...

Het Steen Het Steen is a medieval fortress in the old city centre of Antwerp, Belgium, one of Europe's biggest ports. The surviving structure was built between 1200 and 1225 as a gateway to a larger castle of the Dukes of Brabant which was demolished i ...

. (In the 12th century, this church was dedicated to Saint Walpurga.) After a while Pirmin was invited by count Rohingus to stay at his '' villa'' in Thommen, near Sankt Vith in the

Ardennes The Ardennes (french: Ardenne ; nl, Ardennen ; german: Ardennen; wa, Årdene ; lb, Ardennen ), also known as the Ardennes Forest or Forest of Ardennes, is a region of extensive forests, rough terrain, rolling hills and ridges primarily in Be ...

. Pirmin gained the favour of Charles Martel, mayor of the palace of Francia. He was sent to help rebuild Disentis Abbey in what is today Switzerland. In 724, he was appointed abbot of Mittelzell Abbey on

Reichenau Island Reichenau Island () is an island in Lake Constance in Southern Germany. It lies almost due west of the city of Konstanz, between the Gnadensee and the Untersee, two parts of Lake Constance. With a total land surface of and a circumference of ...

, which had earlier founded. Later, for political reasons, he was banished to Alsace. In 753, he died in the abbey at Hornbach, where his body is entombed.

Missionary and other activities

Pirmin's missionary work mainly took place in the Alsace and the upper area of the Rhine and the Danube. Besides actively preaching and converting, he also founded or reformed many monasteries, such as those at

Amorbach Amorbach () is a town in the Miltenberg district in the ''Regierungsbezirk'' of Lower Franconia (''Unterfranken'') in Bavaria, Germany, with some 4,000 inhabitants. It is situated on the small river Mud, in the northeastern part of the Odenwald ...

, Gengenbach, Murbach, Wissembourg,

Marmoutier :''See Marmoutier Abbey (Tours) for the former abbey in Tours.'' Marmoutier (; ) is a commune in the Bas-Rhin département in Grand Est in north-eastern France. The origin of the place is the former Marmoutier Abbey, of which the abbey church st ...

, Neuweiler, and Reichenau. Pirmin secured endowments from area nobility: Odilo of Bavaria financed the foundation of Niederaltaich Abbey, Werner I of what became the Salian dynasty endowed the new abbey at Hornbach. The most important of Pirmin's books is ''Dicta Abbatis Pirminii, de Singulis Libris Canonicis Scarapsus'' ("Words of Abbot Pirminius, extracts from the Single Canonical Books"). The book collects quotations from Church Fathers and scriptures, presumably for use by missionaries, or reading during monastic meals. Written between 710-724, it contains the earliest appearance of the present text of the Apostles' Creed.

Biography

Missionary and other activities

References

External links

See also