Torpes of Pisa (''Torpetius, Tropesius'') (french: Saint Torpès, Saint Tropez, it, Torpete, Torpes, Torpè, russian: святой мученик Тропезий) (died 65 AD) is venerated as an early

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

martyr. The town of

Saint-Tropez , INSEE = 83119 , postal code = 83990 , image coat of arms = Blason ville fr Saint-Tropez-A (Var).svg , image flag=Flag of Saint-Tropez.svg Saint-Tropez (; oc, Sant Tropetz, ; ) is a commune in the Var department and the region of Provence-Al ...

, France, is named after him. His legend states that he was martyred during the persecutions of Nero. Most of the accounts about him are considered unreliable. Nothing else is known about his life. He is first mentioned in sources dating from the 9th century.San Torpete (Torpes, Torpè)
/ref>

Legend

Elaborations of his legend state that he was a

gladiator A gladiator ( la, gladiator, "swordsman", from , "sword") was an armed combatant who entertained audiences in the Roman Republic and Roman Empire in violent confrontations with other gladiators, wild animals, and condemned criminals. Some gla ...

or knight who was an attendant to the Emperor Nero, or head of the emperor's personal bodyguard.History of Saint

His full name was ''Caïus Silvius Torpetius'' and he was a native of

Pisa Pisa ( , or ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for its leaning tower, the cit ...

. Torpes became a Christian after being converted by

Paul the Apostle Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...

. He professed his faith during a ceremony in which Nero declared

Diana Diana most commonly refers to: * Diana (name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Diana (mythology), ancient Roman goddess of the hunt and wild animals; later associated with the Moon * Diana, Princess of Wales (1961–1997) ...

to be the creator of the universe. After Torpes declared himself a Christian, Nero did not want to kill him immediately and instead asked him to renounce his faith. When Torpes refused to do so, Nero had him decapitated. Another variation of the legend states that Torpes left Rome and went to Pisa, but was recognized as a Christian by the local prefect, Satellicus, who had him executed. Torpes’ head was tossed into the Arno (and was later claimed by Pisa). His body was placed in a rotten boat with a cock and a dog, which had been placed there in order to nourish themselves on the saint's body. The boat floated towards Liguria. A holy woman named Celerina (Célèrine) had a premonition in a dream of the arrival of the saint's body, and indeed the boat reached the present-day location of Saint-Tropez, where Celerina lived. The boat landed not far from the present-day sailors' cemetery. The body was untouched by both the cock and the dog. The cock flew away towards the village later named

Cogolin Cogolin () is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. Geography Climate Cogolin has a hot-summer Mediterranean climate (Köppen climate classification ''Csa''). The average annual tempera ...

after it; the dog headed towards the village later named in its honor Grimaud.Villages de Provence Le blog d'andré (dit aussi dédé...)
The local people named their village in honor of him. The theme of the relics being transported across the sea in a small boat is a tale found in the legends of other saints of the region, such as Reparata and

Devota Saint Devota (french: Sainte Dévote; died ca. 303 AD) is the patron saint of Corsica and Monaco. She was killed during the persecutions of the Roman Emperors Diocletian and Maximian. She is sometimes identified with another Corsican saint ...

. Places on the coasts of Spain and Portugal also declared themselves to be the locations where Torpes' boat had landed. Torpes was venerated in

, Genoa, and Portugal. He became the patron saint of sailors.

Veneration

The earliest church in Pisa dedicated to him dates from the eleventh century. The

civil code A civil code is a codification of private law relating to property, family, and obligations. A jurisdiction that has a civil code generally also has a code of civil procedure. In some jurisdictions with a civil code, a number of the core ar ...

of the Republic of Pisa of 1284 established 29 April as the

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 ...

of the saint. The Pisans credit Torpes with ending a terrible

plague Plague or The Plague may refer to: Agriculture, fauna, and medicine *Plague (disease), a disease caused by ''Yersinia pestis'' * An epidemic of infectious disease (medical or agricultural) * A pandemic caused by such a disease * A swarm of pes ...

that afflicted the city in 1633. In Genoa, where the cult of Torpes was imported by Pisan merchants, the church of San Torpete is dedicated to the saint. In Saint-Tropez, his bust is honored during the festival of Les Bravades in mid-May and again in mid-June in the festival of ''Les Bravades des Espagnols'', a religious and military celebration commemorating the victory of the Tropezian militia over the Spanish in 1637.Nicola Williams, Catherine Le Nevez, ''Provence and the Cote D' Azur'' (Lonely Planet, 2007), 343.

Notes

External links

LE CHEVALIER TORPES

San Torpete (Torpes, Torpè)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Torpes of Pisa 65 deaths Saints from Roman Italy Gallo-Roman saints 1st-century Christian martyrs Year of birth missing Deaths by decapitation