Saint Quentin ( la, Quintinus; died 287 AD) also known as Quentin of Amiens, was 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 ...
saint.
Hagiography
Martyrdom
The legend of his life has him as a
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
citizen who was martyred in
Gaul
Gaul ( la, Gallia) was a region of Western Europe first described by the Romans. It was inhabited by Celtic and Aquitani tribes, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, most of Switzerland, parts of Northern Italy (only during ...
. He is said to have been the son of a man named Zeno, who had senatorial rank. Filled with apostolic zeal, Quentin traveled to Gaul as a missionary with Saint
Lucian
Lucian of Samosata, '; la, Lucianus Samosatensis ( 125 – after 180) was a Hellenized Syrian satirist, rhetorician and pamphleteer
Pamphleteer is a historical term for someone who creates or distributes pamphlets, unbound (and therefore ...
, who was later martyred at
Beauvais
Beauvais ( , ; pcd, Bieuvais) is a city and commune in northern France, and prefecture of the Oise département, in the Hauts-de-France region, north of Paris.
The commune of Beauvais had a population of 56,020 , making it the most populous ...
, and others (the martyrs
Victoricus and Fuscian are said to have been Quentin's followers). Quentin settled at
Amiens
Amiens (English: or ; ; pcd, Anmien, or ) is a city and commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme department in the region of Hauts-de-France. In 2021, the population of ...
and performed many
miracle
A miracle is an event that is inexplicable by natural or scientific lawsOne dictionary define"Miracle"as: "A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divin ...
s there.
Because of his preaching, he was imprisoned by the prefect
Rictiovarus
Rictius Varus (Rictiovarus, Rixius Varus, Rexius Vicarius) was a Vicarius in Roman Gaul at the end of the 3rd century, around the time of the Diocletianic Persecution. The ''Roman Martyrology'' contains many references to the prefect Rixius Varus, ...
, who had traveled to Amiens from
Trier
Trier ( , ; lb, Tréier ), formerly known in English as Trèves ( ;) and Triers (see also names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle in Germany. It lies in a valley between low vine-covered hills of red sandstone in the ...
. Quentin was
manacle
Handcuffs are restraint devices designed to secure an individual's wrists in proximity to each other. They comprise two parts, linked together by a chain, a hinge, or rigid bar. Each cuff has a rotating arm which engages with a ratchet that ...
d,
torture
Torture is the deliberate infliction of severe pain or suffering on a person for reasons such as punishment, extracting a confession, interrogation for information, or intimidating third parties. Some definitions are restricted to acts c ...
d repeatedly, but refused to abjure his faith.
[ The prefect left Amiens to go to Reims, the capital of ''Gallia Belgica'', where he wanted Quentin judged. But, on the way, in a town named ''Augusta Veromanduorum'' (now ]Saint-Quentin, Aisne
Saint-Quentin (; pcd, Saint-Kintin; nl, label=older Dutch, Sint-Kwintens ) is a city in the Aisne department, Hauts-de-France, northern France. It has been identified as the ''Augusta Veromanduorum'' of antiquity. It is named after Saint Qu ...
), Quentin miraculously escaped and again started his preaching. Rictiovarus decided to interrupt his journey and pass sentence: Quentin was tortured again, then beheaded
Decapitation or beheading is the total separation of the head from the body. Such an injury is invariably fatal to humans and most other animals, since it deprives the brain of oxygenated blood, while all other organs are deprived of the i ...
and thrown secretly into the marshes around the Somme __NOTOC__
Somme or The Somme may refer to: Places
*Somme (department), a department of France
*Somme, Queensland, Australia
*Canal de la Somme, a canal in France
*Somme (river), a river in France
Arts, entertainment, and media
* ''Somme'' (book), a ...
, by Roman soldiers.
First ''
inventio
''Inventio'', one of the five canons of rhetoric, is the method used for the ''discovery of arguments'' in Western rhetoric and comes from the Latin word, meaning "invention" or "discovery". ''Inventio'' is the central, indispensable canon of rh ...
''
Five years later, a blind woman named Eusebia, born of a senatorial family, came from Rome (following a divine order) and miraculously discovered the body.[ The intact remains of Quentin came into view, rising from the water and emitting an ]odor of sanctity
The odour of sanctity (also spelled odor), according to the Catholic Church, is commonly understood to mean a specific scent (often compared to flowers) that emanates from the bodies of saints, especially from the wounds of stigmata. These saints a ...
. She buried his body at the top of a mountain near ''Augusta Veromanduorum'' (because the chariot on which the saint's body lay could not go further) and she recovered her sight. A small chapel was built nearby.
Second ''inventio''
The life of bishop Saint Eligius
Saint Eligius (also Eloy, Eloi or Loye; french: Éloi; 11 June 588 – 1 December 660 AD) is the patron saint of goldsmiths, other metalworkers, and Coin collecting, coin collectors. He is also the patron saint of veterinarians, the Royal Elect ...
(mainly written in the seventh century), says that the exact place of the tomb was forgotten and that the bishop, after several days of digging in the church, miraculously found it. When he found the tomb, the night sky was lit and the odor of sanctity was evident. This was said to be in 641. Recent archaeological research shows this to be false, because the location of the tomb had been marked by a sort of wooden monument since the middle of the fourth or the beginning of the fifth century.
Eligius distributed the nails with which Quentin's body had been pierced, as well as some saint's teeth and hair. As he was a skillful goldsmith
A goldsmith is a Metalworking, metalworker who specializes in working with gold and other precious metals. Nowadays they mainly specialize in jewelry-making but historically, goldsmiths have also made cutlery, silverware, platter (dishware), pl ...
, he placed the relics in a shrine he had fashioned himself. He also rebuilt the church (now the Saint-Quentin basilica).
Devotion
The devotion of Saint Quentin was important during the Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
, especially in Northern France—as evidenced by the considerable number of place names derived from the saint's (see Saint-Quentin (disambiguation) Saint-Quentin may refer to:
Places Canada
*Saint-Quentin, New Brunswick
*Saint-Quentin Parish, New Brunswick
*Saint-Quentin Island, in Trois-Rivières, in Québec
France
* Saint-Quentin, Aisne, in the Aisne department
* Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, ...
). The tomb was an important place of pilgrimage, highly favoured by Carolingians
The Carolingian dynasty (; known variously as the Carlovingians, Carolingus, Carolings, Karolinger or Karlings) was a Frankish noble family named after Charlemagne, grandson of mayor Charles Martel and a descendant of the Arnulfing and Pippin ...
(the church was one of the richest in Picardy).
References
External links
Saint Quentin
at ''Saints.SQPN.com''
Catholic Online: Saint Quentin
Saint of the Day, October 31: ''Quentin of Amiens''
at ''SaintPatrickDC.org''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Quentin
287 deaths
3rd-century Christian martyrs
3rd-century Gallo-Roman people
Gallo-Roman saints
Year of birth unknown
Legendary Romans