Tancred Tancredi (1185 – 9 September 1241), also called Tancred of Siena, was an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

ecclesiastic, a

missionary A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...

, one of the first generation of

Dominican friars The Order of Preachers ( la, Ordo Praedicatorum) abbreviated OP, also known as the Dominicans, is a Catholic mendicant order of Pontifical Right for men founded in Toulouse, France, by the Spanish priest, saint and mystic Dominic of Cal ...

, and a personal friend of

Dominic of Osma Saint Dominic, ( es, Santo Domingo; 8 August 1170 – 6 August 1221), also known as Dominic de Guzmán (), was a Castilian Catholic priest, mystic, the founder of the Dominican Order and is the patron saint of astronomers and natural scient ...

. He is often confused with contemporary and fellow Dominican Tancred of Bologna, since the two of them are impossible to always distinguish in the sources. Tancred has been accredited many conversions and even

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 divi ...

s and by some accounts is

beatified Beatification (from Latin ''beatus'', "blessed" and ''facere'', "to make”) is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a deceased person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in their nam ...

. Tancred was born in

Siena Siena ( , ; lat, Sena Iulia) is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena. The city is historically linked to commercial and banking activities, having been a major banking center until the 13th and 14th centur ...

to wealthy parents of the Tancredi clan. They oversaw his extensive education, sending him first to the

University of Bologna The University of Bologna ( it, Alma Mater Studiorum – Università di Bologna, UNIBO) is a public research university in Bologna, Italy. Founded in 1088 by an organised guild of students (''studiorum''), it is the oldest university in continuo ...

and thence to

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, where he received his doctorate. He returned from Paris to Siena, where he first heard the preaching of Dominic in the Sienese cathedral. According to later reports, he had a vision of the

Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of ...

standing beside Dominic and after the sermon she approached Tancred and beseeched him to "follow that man; and do not depart from him." In the Hospital of Saint Mary Magdalene Tancred received the

habit A habit (or wont as a humorous and formal term) is a routine of behavior that is repeated regularly and tends to occur subconsciously.

from Dominic and embarked upon a life of religion. In an early incident related by Tancred to

Jordan of Saxony Jordan of Saxony, (referred to in Latin as Jordanis, also known as de Alamania; c. 1190 – 1237), was one of the first leaders of the Dominican Order. His feast day is February 13. Life Jordan belonged to the noble German family of the Cou ...

, Dominic was visiting the prior's church when a young relative of Stephen Orsini, Cardinal Abbot of Fossanova, was carried past in a litter after falling from a horse. According to Jordan, it was unknown if he was alive or dead, but at the insistence of Tancred, Dominic prayed to God for the boy's life and he was miraculously healed. This story was amplified by later retellings. The boy is Napoleon, Stephen's nephew, and Stephen faints upon hearing the news, falling into Dominic's arms. At Tancred's urging, it is Stephen who prays to God and receives a miracle: the boy, dead, is brought back to life. Tancred was probably the prior of

San Sisto Vecchio The Basilica of San Sisto Vecchio (in Via Appia) is one of the over sixty minor basilicas among the churches of Rome, and a titular church since 600 AD. As such, it is connected to the title of a Cardinal priest, currently Antoine Kambanda. Bas ...

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

until it was converted into a Dominican nunnery. He was transferred to

Santa Sabina The Basilica of Saint Sabina ( la, Basilica Sanctae Sabinae, it, Basilica di Santa Sabina all'Aventino) is a historic church on the Aventine Hill in Rome, Italy. It is a titular minor basilica and mother church of the Roman Catholic Order of Pre ...

to continue serving as prior. In 1222, after the death of Dominic the previous year, Tancred left Italy for the Holy Land as the superior of a group of friars, appointed by Jordan of Saxony to establish a mission there. Tancred founded several houses in the

Latin East The Crusader States, also known as Outremer, were four Catholic realms in the Middle East that lasted from 1098 to 1291. These feudal polities were created by the Latin Catholic leaders of the First Crusade through conquest and political in ...

and it is claimed that he won many converts, to Christianity and to mendicancy. Though Tancred did not remain at the head of the Dominicans in the Holy Land, he did remain there until his death in 1241. The Dominican historian and hagiographer Gregory Lombardelli, wrote the first biography of Tancred, ''Vita de Tancredo Tancredi''. He ascribes to him several works of as yet unpublished literature: commentaries on the

Scriptures Religious texts, including scripture, are texts which various religions consider to be of central importance to their religious tradition. They differ from literature by being a compilation or discussion of beliefs, mythologies, ritual pra ...

and on Peter Lombard's ''

Book of Sentences ''The Four Books of Sentences'' (''Libri Quattuor Sententiarum'') is a book of theology written by Peter Lombard in the 12th century. It is a systematic compilation of theology, written around 1150; it derives its name from the '' sententiae'' ...

''. These were probably written during the period after his return to Siena and before his entrance into the order.

References

*O'Daniel, Victor F. (1928)
"Tancred Tancredi."
''The First Disciples of Saint Dominic: Adapted and Enlarged from Father Anthony Touron's ''Histoire Abrégée des Premiers Disciples de saint Dominique''.'' Somerset, Ohio: The Rosary Press. *

(1964)
''The Libellus of Jordan of Saxony''
trans. by Francis C. Lehner from H. C. Scheeben in ''Monumenta Ordinis Fratrum Praedicatorum Historica'', XVI, 25–88. Washington, D.C.: The Thomist Press. {{DEFAULTSORT:Tancredi, Tancred 1185 births 1241 deaths People from Siena Italian Dominicans Italian Roman Catholic missionaries Roman Catholic missionaries in Palestine (region) University of Bologna alumni University of Paris alumni Italian expatriates in France Italian expatriates in the Crusader states