Reginard was

bishop of Liège A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

in the

Low Countries The term Low Countries, also known as the Low Lands ( nl, de Lage Landen, french: les Pays-Bas, lb, déi Niddereg Lännereien) and historically called the Netherlands ( nl, de Nederlanden), Flanders, or Belgica, is a coastal lowland region in N ...

from 1025 to 1037, and had the city's first stone bridge over the

Meuse The Meuse ( , , , ; wa, Moûze ) or Maas ( , ; li, Maos or ) is a major European river, rising in France and flowing through Belgium and the Netherlands before draining into the North Sea from the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta. It has a t ...

built, the Pont des Arches.

Life

The earliest sources are contradictory on Reginard's background, but it seems likely that he was originally from

Liège Liège ( , , ; wa, Lîdje ; nl, Luik ; german: Lüttich ) is a major city and municipality of Wallonia and the capital of the Belgian province of Liège. The city is situated in the valley of the Meuse, in the east of Belgium, not far from b ...

itself or the area of the

County of Loon The County of Loon ( , , ) was a county in the Holy Roman Empire, which corresponded approximately with the Belgian province of Limburg. It was named after the original seat of its count, Loon, which is today called Borgloon. During the middle ag ...

Godefroid Kurth Godefroid Kurth (1847–1916) was a celebrated Belgian historian and pioneering Christian democrat. He is known for his histories of the city of Liège in the Middle Ages and of Belgium, his Catholic account of the formation of modern Europe in ' ...

, "Réginard", ''

Biographie Nationale de Belgique The ''Biographie nationale de Belgique'' ( French; "National Biography of Belgium") is a biographical dictionary of Belgium. It was published by the Royal Academy of Belgium in 44 volumes between 1866 and 1986. A continuation series, entitled the ' ...

''
vol. 18
(Brussels, 1905), 855-861. His ecclesiastical career, however, began in

Bonn The federal city of Bonn ( lat, Bonna) is a city on the banks of the Rhine in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, with a population of over 300,000. About south-southeast of Cologne, Bonn is in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ruhr r ...

, where he was appointed to a

canonry A canon (from the Latin , itself derived from the Greek , , "relating to a rule", "regular") is a member of certain bodies in subject to an ecclesiastical rule. Originally, a canon was a cleric living with others in a clergy house or, later, i ...

Heribert of Cologne Heribert of Cologne ( 970 – 16 March 1021), also known as Saint Heribert, was a German Roman Catholic prelate who served as the Archbishop of Cologne from 999 until his death. He also served as the Chancellor for the Emperor Otto III since ...

, with whom he had studied at

Gorze Abbey Gorze Abbey was a Benedictine monastery in Gorze in the present arrondissement of Metz, near Metz in Lorraine. It was prominent as the source of a monastic reform movement in the 930s. History Gorze Abbey was founded in around 757 by Bishop Chrod ...

in the

Duchy of Lorraine The Duchy of Lorraine (french: Lorraine ; german: Lothringen ), originally Upper Lorraine, was a duchy now included in the larger present-day region of Lorraine in northeastern France. Its capital was Nancy. It was founded in 959 following t ...

. In 1025

Emperor Conrad II Conrad II ( – 4 June 1039), also known as and , was the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire from 1027 until his death in 1039. The first of a succession of four Salian emperors, who reigned for one century until 1125, Conrad ruled the kingdoms ...

nominated him as bishop of Liège in succession to Durandus. According to the chroniclers of St Laurence's Abbey, Liège, he acquired the appointment through

simony Simony () is the act of selling church offices and roles or sacred things. It is named after Simon Magus, who is described in the Acts of the Apostles as having offered two disciples of Jesus payment in exchange for their empowering him to imp ...

but repented and tendered his resignation to the Pope, who insisted that he retain the nomination. In the first year of his episcopacy, he was criticised by Gerard, bishop of Cambrai, for his laxity in simply releasing suspected heretics after they had made an orthodox

profession of faith A profession of faith is a personal and public statement of a belief or faith. Judaism Among the Jews, the profession of faith takes the form of '' Shema Israel'' (שמע ישראל in Hebrew), ''Shema Israel Hachem Elokenu, Hachem Ekhad''; is ...

, and for allowing someone excommunicated in Cambrai to be buried in consecrated ground in Liège. According to the chronicler

Anselm of Liège Anselm of Liège (1008 – c. 1056) was a chronicler of the eleventh century of the Prince-Bishopric of Liège. Biography He was educated at the episcopal school of Liège, and became canon and dean of the cathedral, where he enjoyed the friendshi ...

, in 1026 refugees from famine-stricken lands to the west of Liège sought succor in the city, and Reginard encouraged others to support them while providing doles of food for 300 of them at his own expense. In 1036, Reginard and Gerard together consecrated the newly rebuilt church of

Lobbes Abbey Lobbes Abbey was a Benedictine monastery in Wallonia in the municipality of Lobbes, Hainaut, Belgium. The abbey played an important role in the religious, political and religious life of the Prince-Bishopric of Liège, especially around the year 1 ...

.Joachim Vos, ''Lobbes: Son abbaye et son chapitre'', vol. 2 (Leuven,

Peeters Peeters is a Dutch-language patronymic surname, equivalent to Peters. It is the most common surname in Belgium (33,275 people), and is particularly common in the province of Antwerp, but also in Flemish Brabant and Belgian Limburg. Notable people wi ...

, 1865), pp. 1-2
On Google Books
/ref> In 1037 he provided troops from Liège to support

Gothelo I, Duke of Lorraine Gothelo (or Gozelo) ( 967 – 19 April 1044), called the Great, was the duke of Lower Lorraine from 1023 and of Upper Lorraine from 1033. He was also the margrave of Antwerp from 1005 (or 1008) and count of Verdun. Gothelo was the youngest son of ...

's forces in their struggle against the invading

Odo II, Count of Blois Odo II () (983 – 15 November 1037) was the count of Blois, Chartres, Châteaudun, Beauvais and Tours from 1004 and count of Troyes (as Odo IV) and Meaux (as Odo I) from 1022. He twice tried to make himself a king: first in Italy after 1024 and t ...

, culminating in the Battle of Bar-le-Duc. Reginard was a particular patron of St Laurence's Abbey in Liège, reconsecrating their church in 1034 and granting the community numerous charters, as well as showing favour to the Church of St Bartholomew in Liège. Reginard died on 5 December 1037 and was buried in Saint Lambert's Cathedral. In 1569, his tomb was opened and he was found to have been buried with his

crosier A crosier or crozier (also known as a paterissa, pastoral staff, or bishop's staff) is a stylized staff that is a symbol of the governing office of a bishop or abbot and is carried by high-ranking prelates of Roman Catholic, Eastern Catholi ...

beside him and a small silver

chalice A chalice (from Latin 'mug', borrowed from Ancient Greek () 'cup') or goblet is a footed cup intended to hold a drink. In religious practice, a chalice is often used for drinking during a ceremony or may carry a certain symbolic meaning. Re ...

next to his head. About a century after his death, a ''Vita Reginardi'' was composed by Renier, a monk of Saint Laurence's, which historians consider to have very little value as a source.

References

{{Reflist 1037 deaths Prince-Bishops of Liège 11th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the Holy Roman Empire