Saint Gildard or Gildardus, or Gildaredus also known as Saint Godard or Godardus (c. 448 – c. 525), was the

Bishop 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 488 to 525. He is venerated as a saint of the

Roman 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 ...

, and the

missal A missal is a liturgical book containing instructions and texts necessary for the celebration of Mass throughout the liturgical year. Versions differ across liturgical tradition, period, and purpose, with some missals intended to enable a pries ...

of the

Sarum Rite The Use of Sarum (or Use of Salisbury, also known as the Sarum Rite) is the Latin liturgical rite developed at Salisbury Cathedral and used from the late eleventh century until the English Reformation. It is largely identical to the Roman rite, ...

refers to him as a

confessor Confessor is a title used within Christianity in several ways. Confessor of the Faith Its oldest use is to indicate a saint who has suffered persecution and torture for the faith but not to the point of death. He is closely connected to Saint Medard, who was traditionally considered to be his brother.

Life

Earlier versions of 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 ...

contend that Saint Gildard was the twin brother of Saint Medard—that they were born on the same day, were consecrated bishop on the same day, and died on the same day. However, in 511 Gildard attended the

First Council of Orléans The First Council of Orléans was convoked by Clovis I, King of the Franks, in 511. Clovis called for this synod four years after his victory over the Visigoths under Alaric II at the Battle of Vouillé in 507. The council was attended by thirty-two ...

, convoked by

Clovis I Clovis ( la, Chlodovechus; reconstructed Frankish: ; – 27 November 511) was the first king of the Franks to unite all of the Frankish tribes under one ruler, changing the form of leadership from a group of petty kings to rule by a single kin ...

; only in 530 was Medard consecrated. Gildard is commemorated in

Rouen Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine in northern France. It is the prefecture of the Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one of ...

, with his supposed brother.

Alban Butler Alban Butler (13 October 171015 May 1773) was an English Roman Catholic priest and hagiographer. Biography Alban Butler was born in 1710, at Appletree, Aston le Walls, Northamptonshire, the second son of Simon Butler, Esq. His father died when ...

adds that he "governed the see of Rouen with great zeal during the space of fifteen years." His body was buried at St. Mary's Church in Rouen, which later was named after him. According to Butler, his body was removed during Norman incursions and moved to the Abbey of St. Medard 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 ...

, where it remains.

Cult

Church of St Medard and St Gildard, Little Bytham - geograph

According to Felice Lifshitz, the main reason for the veneration of Gildard is his association with Medard. Prior to the emergence of widespread belief in this association, no cult of Gildard was promoted, and his relics were kept in the church of Notre Dame (St. Mary) in suburban Rouen without attracting any attention. They were removed to the Abbey of St. Medard in Soissons precisely because of the supposed sibling connection; when the monks of St. Medard discovered this link, they argued successfully with

Charles the Bald Charles the Bald (french: Charles le Chauve; 13 June 823 – 6 October 877), also known as Charles II, was a 9th-century king of West Francia (843–877), king of Italy (875–877) and emperor of the Carolingian Empire (875–877). After a ser ...

that the brothers be reunited in death. Apparently the people of Rouen were not happy to see their saint go, and made the offer that the monks of St. Medard leave them the head of Gildard, for which they would give them the head of Saint Romanus of Rouen, one of their bishops, or the entire body of

Remigius of Rouen Remigius (or Remi) (died 772) was the illegitimate son of Charles Martel and probably Ruodhaid. He was also the third archbishop of Rouen from 755 to 772. Life Remigius was educated at court, but, along with his brothers, (Bernard and Hieronymus) ...

, their third archbishop. In Soissons, Gildard "was provided for the first time with literary traditions and erehis cult was promoted."

Churches named for Medard and Gildard

*Church of Saint-Médard-et-Saint-Gildard, in

Crépon Crépon () is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas region ...

Calvados Calvados (, , ) is a brandy from Normandy in France, made from apples or pears, or from apples with pears. History In France Apple orchards and brewers are mentioned as far back as the 8th century by Charlemagne. The first known record of Norm ...

, France; 12th–14th century. *Church of Saint-Médard-et-Saint-Gildard, in Fel,

Orne Orne (; nrf, Ôrne or ) is a département in the northwest of France, named after the river Orne. It had a population of 279,942 in 2019.aS n umMedardi et Gildardi de Felle'' in 1417. 12th century (today only Saint-Médard, apparently). *Church of St Medard and St Gildard, parish church in

Little Bytham Little Bytham is a village and civil parish in the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 census was 384. It lies on the B1176 road, south from Corby Glen and north from Stamford . ...

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-west, Leicestershire ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

; dating back to

Anglo-Saxon period Anglo-Saxon England or Early Medieval England, existing from the 5th to the 11th centuries from the end of Roman Britain until the Norman conquest in 1066, consisted of various Anglo-Saxon kingdoms until 927, when it was united as the Kingdom of ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gildard, Saint 450s births 545 deaths 6th-century Frankish bishops 6th-century Frankish saints