Saint Valeria of Milan (d. 1st or 2nd century), or Saint Valérie, according to Christian tradition, was the wife of

Vitalis of Milan Saint Vitalis of Milan ( it, San Vitale) was an early Christian martyr and saint. Biography His legend relates that Vitalis was a wealthy citizen of Milan, perhaps a soldier. He was married to Valeria of Milan. They are supposed to have been the ...

and the mother of Sts.

Gervasius and Protasius Saints Gervasius and Protasius (also Saints Gervase and Protase, Gervasis and Prothasis and in French ''Gervais and Protais'') are venerated as Christian martyrs, probably of the 2nd century. They are the patron saints of Milan and of haymakers a ...

History

"Some modern writers contend that she may have been a character in a work of fiction mistaken for history." It is said she was from a

noble family Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The characterist ...

, and at an early age was baptized, being among the first converts to Christianity in the city of Milan.Monks of Ramsgate. “Valeria”. ''Book of Saints'', 1921. CatholicSaints.Info. 28 April 2017
/ref> The reigning Pope had commanded the priests of the area to organize nine decurias, each consisting of five men and five virgins. Their duty was to gather the corpses of Christians who had been martyred in the Coliseum (Flavian Amphitheatre) and other places of martyrdom the preceding day. She was martyred for burying Christian martyrs, and then refusing to sacrifice to the

Roman gods The Roman deities most widely known today are those the Romans identified with Greek counterparts (see ''interpretatio graeca''), integrating Greek myths, iconography, and sometimes religious practices into Roman culture, including Latin lite ...

According to one tradition, shortly after the martyrdom of her husband,

, in

Ravenna Ravenna ( , , also ; rgn, Ravèna) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire from 408 until its collapse in 476. It then served as the cap ...

, she refused to join in a celebration and sacrifice to pagan gods, and was severely beaten, causing her death two days later in Milan. According to another tradition, on 3 June, Valeria was discovered by

Roman soldier This is a list of Roman army units and bureaucrats. *'' Accensus'' – Light infantry men in the armies of the early Roman Republic, made up of the poorest men of the army. *'' Actuarius'' – A military who served food. *''Adiutor'' – A camp o ...

s searching for Christians. She avowed herself to be one of the faithful. Following terrible tortures, Valeria was beheaded in the Coliseum in the company of several other martyrs. Her remains were gathered by other Christians and were deposited in the

Catacombs of Saint Sebastian The Catacombs of Rome ( it, Catacombe di Roma) are ancient catacombs, underground burial places in and around Rome, of which there are at least forty, some rediscovered only in recent decades. Though most famous for Christian burials, either i ...

Veneration

A mosaic depicting Valeria appears in the

Basilica of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo The Basilica of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo is a basilica church in Ravenna, Italy. It was erected by the Ostrogothic king Theodoric the Great as his palace chapel during the first quarter of the 6th century (as attested to in the ''Liber Pontificalis ...

. A church dedicated to her in

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city has ...

was destroyed in 1786.Borrelli, Antonio. "Santa Valeria", Santi e Beati
/ref> Canon Charles M. Ménard (1845–1896), pastor of St. Joseph Church (now Co-Cathedral) in

Thibodaux, Louisiana Thibodaux ( ) is a city in, and the parish seat of, Lafourche Parish, Louisiana, United States, along the banks of Bayou Lafourche in the northwestern part of the parish. The population was 15,948 at the 2020 census. Thibodaux is a principal city ...

, made a

pilgrimage A pilgrimage is a journey, often into an unknown or foreign place, where a person goes in search of new or expanded meaning about their self, others, nature, or a higher good, through the experience. It can lead to a personal transformation, aft ...

to Rome in 1867, marking the anniversary of the martyrdom of Saint Peter the Apostle. Longing to bring back an important

relic In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains of a saint or the personal effects of the saint or venerated person preserved for purposes of veneration as a tangi ...

for the veneration of his parishioners, he requested an audience with Cardinal

Costantino Patrizi Naro Costantino Patrizi Naro JUD (4 September 1798 – 17 December 1876) was a long-serving Italian Cardinal who became Dean of the College of Cardinals. Cardinal Benedetto Naro was his great-uncle. Biography Born in Siena, Naro was educated in the ...

. Patrizi owned two such relics: one of Saint Prosper, as well as part of the arm-bone of Saint Valeria. After much persuasion, the Cardinal agreed to relinquish the latter. The prized relic was placed in a box of pasteboard, and sealed with Cardinal Patrizi's coat of arms. The relic was then sealed in a waxen statue which represented a young woman. It was dressed in a robe of silk moire embroidered with gold and a crimson tunic of velvet and gold ornamented with fringes. It was laid in a coffin-like reliquary of oak and glass from The Netherlands, and decorated with gilded copper. On the morning of 18 April 1868, the

steamboat A steamboat is a boat that is propelled primarily by steam power, typically driving propellers or paddlewheels. Steamboats sometimes use the prefix designation SS, S.S. or S/S (for 'Screw Steamer') or PS (for 'Paddle Steamer'); however, these ...

''Nina Simmes'' arrived from

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

Bayou Lafourche Bayou Lafourche ( ), originally called Chetimachas River or La Fourche des Chetimaches, (the fork of the Chitimacha), is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed June 20, 2011 b ...

, with the reliquary of Saint Valeria. It was placed on the altar of St. Joseph Church, with solemn ceremonies attended by more than four thousand people. Since then, Valeria has been known as the Patroness of Thibodaux, and is especially invoked for protection from storms and floods. On 25 May 1916, a fire began in the

sacristy A sacristy, also known as a vestry or preparation room, is a room in Christian churches for the keeping of vestments (such as the alb and chasuble) and other church furnishings, sacred vessels, and parish records. The sacristy is usually locat ...

of St. Joseph's, and within minutes it was realized the church would not be saved. Cries of "Save Saint Valérie! Save Saint Valérie!" were heard from the onlookers. In fact, the reliquary was one of the few objects saved from the ruins. The reliquary was then brought to the Mount Carmel Convent Chapel until the new church was built, where it was installed with due reverence. The

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It documen ...

has in its collection an enameled reliquary sometimes misidentified as that of St. Valeria of Milan, but the reliquary is actually associated with

Valerie of Limoges Valerie may refer to: People * Saint Valerie (disambiguation), a number of saints went by the name Valerie * Valerie (given name), a feminine given name Songs *"Valerie", a 1981 song by Quarterflash, from ''Quarterflash'' *"Valerie", a 1982 s ...

, a different saint.

Bibliography

* ''Cross, Crozier, and Crucible'', edited by Glenn R. Conrad, The Roman Catholic Church of the Archdiocese of New Orleans, 1993.

Notes

External links

Patron Saints: Valeria of Milan
{{DEFAULTSORT:Valeria Of Milan Ante-Nicene Christian martyrs Catholic Church in Louisiana Christian saints in unknown century Saints from Roman Italy Year of birth unknown