Elzéar of Sabran, T.O.S.F., Baron of

Ansouis Ansouis (; oc, Ansoís) is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.Ariano, was born in the castle of Saint-Jean-de-Robians, near

Cabrières-d'Aigues Cabrières-d'Aigues (; Provençal: ''Cabrièras d'Egues'') is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. See also * Côtes du Luberon AOC *Communes of the Vaucluse department * Étang ...

Provence Provence (, , , , ; oc, Provença or ''Prouvènço'' , ) is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which extends from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the Italian border to the east; it is bor ...

, southern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

, in 1285. He died in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, 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), ma ...

, on September 27, 1323. He was a

tertiary Tertiary ( ) is a widely used but obsolete term for the geologic period from 66 million to 2.6 million years ago. The period began with the demise of the non-avian dinosaurs in the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, at the start ...

of the Franciscan Order as well as a ruler, diplomat and military leader. He was recognised as a saint in the Catholic Church.

Biography

In his youth, Elzéar was given a thorough training in the Christian faith as well as in the sciences under the supervision of his uncle, William of Sabran, at the Abbey of St. Victor in

Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...

, where his uncle ruled as the

Abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. The ...

.Carr, Gregory. "St. Elzéar of Sabran." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 5. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1909. 30 September 2021 Acceding to the wish of King Charles II of Naples, at the age of ten, Elzéar was betrothed to the twelve-year-old Delphine of Glandèves, daughter and heiress of the Count of Puy-Michel. Three years later they were married at the castle of Puy-Michel. Upon their wedding night, Delphine advised her new husband that she had taken a private vow of

chastity Chastity, also known as purity, is a virtue related to temperance. Someone who is ''chaste'' refrains either from sexual activity considered immoral or any sexual activity, according to their state of life. In some contexts, for example when ma ...

. Having grown up together, they regarded each other as brother and sister, rather than husband and wife. Even though he had the right in

canon law Canon law (from grc, κανών, , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. It is th ...

to make her abandon this commitment, Elzéar chose to respect her desire to live in virginity and even copied her example in making the same vow. Together they joined the

Third Order of Saint Francis The Third Order of Saint Francis is a third order in the Franciscan tradition of Christianity, founded by the medieval Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi. The preaching of Francis and his disciples caused many married men and women to w ...

. Elzéar and Delphine lived at a castle in

Ansouis Ansouis (; oc, Ansoís) is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.prayer Prayer is an invocation or act that seeks to activate a rapport with an object of worship through deliberate communication. In the narrow sense, the term refers to an act of supplication or intercession directed towards a deity or a deified ...

, mortification of the flesh and in

charity Charity may refer to: Giving * Charitable organization or charity, a non-profit organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being of persons * Charity (practice), the practice of being benevolent, giving and sharing * C ...

towards the unfortunate. At the age of twenty he moved with his wife from Ansouis to

Puimichel Puimichel (; oc, Puegmichèu) is a commune in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department in southeastern France. Population See also *Communes of the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department The following is a list of the 198 Communes of France, c ...

for greater solitude, and formulated for his servants rules of conduct that made his household a model of Christian virtue. Upon the death of his father in 1309, became Count of Ariano in Italy. There he gained by kindness the trust and support of his subjects, who had despised their

Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norm ...

conquerors. In 1312 he marched to

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 ...

at the head of the army of King

Robert of Naples Robert of Anjou ( it, Roberto d'Angiò), known as Robert the Wise ( it, Roberto il Saggio; 1276 – 20 January 1343), was King of Naples, titular King of Jerusalem and Count of Provence and Forcalquier from 1309 to 1343, the central figure of I ...

, which was mobilized to aid in expelling the

Emperor Henry VII Henry VII ( German: ''Heinrich''; c. 1273 – 24 August 1313),Kleinhenz, pg. 494 also known as Henry of Luxembourg, was Count of Luxembourg, King of Germany (or '' Rex Romanorum'') from 1308 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1312. He was the first em ...

from that city. Returning to Provence after the war, he again set up a household in which piety and faithful practice of the Catholic faith were expected of all the members of his house. In 1317 Elzéar went to

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

to become the

tutor TUTOR, also known as PLATO Author Language, is a programming language developed for use on the PLATO system at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign beginning in roughly 1965. TUTOR was initially designed by Paul Tenczar for use in ...

of Duke Charles, son of King Robert, and later became Charles' castellan, when Charles became

Vicar A vicar (; Latin: '' vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pre ...

General of the Kingdom of Sicily. He was sent as ambassador to the King of France in 1323 to obtain the hand of Marie of Valois in marriage for Charles, edifying a worldly court by his

heroic virtue Heroic virtue is a phrase coined by Augustine of Hippo to describe the virtue of early Christian martyrs and used by the Catholic Church. The Greek pagan term hero described a person with possibly superhuman abilities and great goodness, and "it ...

s. While serving in that post he died, shortly after accomplishing his mission. His body was returned to his domain, and he was buried in the Franciscan

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.

in the church of the

Friars Minor The Order of Friars Minor (also called the Franciscans, the Franciscan Order, or the Seraphic Order; postnominal abbreviation OFM) is a mendicant Catholic religious order, founded in 1209 by Francis of Assisi. The order adheres to the teachi ...

Apt, Vaucluse Apt (; Provençal Occitan: ''At / Ate'' in both classical and Mistralian norms) is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. It lies on the left bank of the Calavon, east of Avigno ...

. The tomb was destroyed during the French Revolution."Saint Elzéar", The Met
/ref> The decree of his canonization was signed by his

godson In infant baptism and denominations of Christianity, a godparent (also known as a sponsor, or '' gossiprede'') is someone who bears witness to a child's christening and later is willing to help in their catechesis, as well as their lifelon ...

Pope Urban V Pope Urban V ( la, Urbanus V; 1310 – 19 December 1370), born Guillaume de Grimoard, was the head of the Catholic Church from 28 September 1362 until his death in December 1370 and was also a member of the Order of Saint Benedict. He was the ...

, and was carried out by his successor,

Pope Gregory XI Pope Gregory XI ( la, Gregorius, born Pierre Roger de Beaufort; c. 1329 – 27 March 1378) was head of the Catholic Church from 30 December 1370 to his death in March 1378. He was the seventh and last Avignon pope and the most recent French pop ...

about 1371.

Countess Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

Delfine was also

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 ...

by Pope Urban at that time. Their

liturgical Liturgy is the customary public ritual of worship performed by a religious group. ''Liturgy'' can also be used to refer specifically to public worship by Christians. As a religious phenomenon, liturgy represents a communal response to and partic ...

feast day, which they share, is celebrated by the Franciscan Third Order on 26 September.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Elzear of Sabran 1285 births 1323 deaths People from Provence People from Vaucluse Medieval French saints Medieval French nobility French Roman Catholic saints Members of the Third Order of Saint Francis Franciscan saints Counts of France 14th-century Christian saints History of Catholicism in France 14th-century French people Elzéar