Remigius (or Remi) (died 772) was the illegitimate son of

Charles Martel Charles Martel ( – 22 October 741) was a Frankish political and military leader who, as Duke and Prince of the Franks and Mayor of the Palace, was the de facto ruler of Francia from 718 until his death. He was a son of the Frankish statesma ...

and probably

Ruodhaid Ruodhaid was a mistress of Charles Martel with whom she had the following children: * Bernard (c. 720–787) * Hieronymus, son of Charles Martel (c. 722- after 782) * Remigius, Archbishop of Rouen (d. 771) * Aldana, wife of Theoderich, Count of Au ...

. He was also the third

archbishop of Rouen The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Rouen (Latin: ''Archidioecesis Rothomagensis''; French: ''Archidiocèse de Rouen'') is an archdiocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in France. As one of the fifteen Archbishops of France, the Ar ...

from 755 to 772.

Life

Remigius was educated at court, but, along with his brothers, (

Bernard Bernard (''Bernhard'') is a French and West Germanic masculine given name. It is also a surname. The name is attested from at least the 9th century. West Germanic ''Bernhard'' is composed from the two elements ''bern'' "bear" and ''hard'' "brav ...

and

Hieronymus Hieronymus, in English pronounced or , is the Latin form of the Ancient Greek name (Hierṓnymos), meaning "with a sacred name". It corresponds to the English given name Jerome. Variants * Albanian: Jeronimi * Arabic: جيروم (Jerome) * Basq ...

) was denied any share of his father's patrimony which was apportioned among Charles' legitimate sons. In 737, he was sent with his half brother

Pepin the Short the Short (french: Pépin le Bref; – 24 September 768), also called the Younger (german: Pippin der Jüngere), was King of the Franks from 751 until his death in 768. He was the first Carolingian to become king. The younger was the son of ...

to strengthen Charles' hold on Burgundy. In 755, Remigius became

Archbishop of Rouen The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Rouen (Latin: ''Archidioecesis Rothomagensis''; French: ''Archidiocèse de Rouen'') is an archdiocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in France. As one of the fifteen Archbishops of France, the Ar ...

. In 760, he accompanied Pepin to Italy, with his two brothers to mediate between Pope Paul I and

Desiderius Desiderius, also known as Daufer or Dauferius (born – died ), was king of the Lombards in northern Italy, ruling from 756 to 774. The Frankish king of renown, Charlemagne, married Desiderius's daughter and subsequently conquered his realm. Des ...

. Upon his return, he brought with him an instructor from

The Schola Cantorum of Rome The Schola Cantorum was the trained papal choir during the Middle Ages, specializing in the performance of plainchant for the purpose of rendering the music in church. In the fourth century, Pope Sylvester I was said to have inaugurated the first ...

to teach his clergy Roman chants. Remigius died in 772; in 1090, his relics were translated to the Abbaye Saint-Ouen de Rouen. During the turmoil of the Reformation in 1562 his reliquary was lost. His feast day is January 19.Walsh, Michael. "Remigius of Rouen", ''A New Dictionary of Saints'', Liturgical Press, 2007
He was instrumental in implementing the Roman rite and chant in the Gallic church.

References

Sources

Genealogie der Franken (German)
771 deaths 8th-century Frankish bishops Archbishops of Rouen 8th-century archbishops Year of birth unknown 8th-century Frankish saints {{France-saint-stub