Ansoald ( la, Ansoaldus) was the

bishop of Poitiers The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Poitiers (Latin: ''Archidioecesis Pictaviensis''; French: ''Archidiocèse de Poitiers'') is an archdiocese of the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church in France. The archepiscopal see is in the city of Poitiers. The ...

from 676 until about 696.This is according to . , write that his dates are unknown. Ansoald was probably a

Burgundian Burgundian can refer to any of the following: *Someone or something from Burgundy. *Burgundians, an East Germanic tribe, who first appear in history in South East Europe. Later Burgundians colonised the area of Gaul that is now known as Burgundy (F ...

from the region around

Autun Autun () is a subprefecture of the Saône-et-Loire department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region of central-eastern France. It was founded during the Principate era of the early Roman Empire by Emperor Augustus as Augustodunum to give ...

. He inherited land from both his parents near

Chalon-sur-Saône Chalon-sur-Saône (, literally ''Chalon on Saône'') is a city in the Saône-et-Loire department in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in eastern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department. It is the largest city in the department; h ...

. In the second version of the '' Suffering of Leodegar'', it is claimed that Ansoald was a relative of the martyred

Leodegar Leodegar of Poitiers ( la, Leodegarius; french: Léger; 615 – October 2, 679 AD) was a martyred Burgundian Bishop of Autun. He was the son of Saint Sigrada and the brother of Saint Warinus. Leodegar was an opponent of Ebroin, the Frankish Mayo ...

. Although the second version of the ''Suffering'' was dedicated to Ansoald, it was probably composed in the middle of the 8th century by Ursinus, long after his death. The '' Gesta Dagoberti'', a late and legendary source, claims that Ansoald was passing through

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

on a diplomatic mission when King

Dagobert I Dagobert I ( la, Dagobertus; 605/603 – 19 January 639 AD) was the king of Austrasia (623–634), king of all the Franks (629–634), and king of Neustria and Burgundy (629–639). He has been described as the last king of the Merovingian dy ...

died (639). The reported vision of a local hermit named John, supposedly told to Ansoald, describes Dagobert's narrow escape from Hell with the help of some saints. After the return to power of the mayor of the palace

Ebroin Ebroin (died 680 or 681) was the Frankish mayor of the palace of Neustria on two occasions; firstly from 658 to his deposition in 673 and secondly from 675 to his death in 680 or 681. In a violent and despotic career, he strove to impose the a ...

in 674 or 675, Ansoald hosted the exiled

Philibert of Jumièges Saint Philibert of Jumièges (c. 608–684) was an abbot and monastic founder, particularly associated with Jumièges Abbey. Life Philibert was born in Gascony, the only son of Filibaud, a magistrate of Vicus Julius (now Aire-sur-l'Adour). ...

and helped him found the new . His lands at Chalon he donated to the new monastery. He also founded a ''

xenodochium In the early Middle Ages, a xenodochium or (from Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the fol ...

'' (hospice) for travellers. The '' Life of Eligius'' claims that Ansoald was close to the circle of followers of

Columbanus Columbanus ( ga, Columbán; 543 – 21 November 615) was an Irish missionary notable for founding a number of monasteries after 590 in the Frankish and Lombard kingdoms, most notably Luxeuil Abbey in present-day France and Bobbio Abbey in pr ...

. According to the ''

Deeds of the Bishops of Cambrai The ''Deeds of the Bishops of Cambrai'' ( la, Gesta episcoporum Cameracensium) is an anonymous Latin history of the diocese of Cambrai. It was commissioned around 1024 by Bishop Gerard I of Cambrai and completed shortly after his death in 1051. I ...

'', Ansoald was at the royal palace when he learned of the miracles that followed the martyrdom of Leodegar. Probably around 681 or 682, he disputed the possession of the body of the martyr with Bishops Hermenar of Autun and Vindician of Cambrai. Ansoald claim the body on the grounds that he was related by blood to the martyr and that Leodegar had also previously been abbot of the in the diocese of Poitiers. Ansoald won possession of the martyr through the drawing of lots. He had a church built to house the body at Saint-Maixent, which was probably dedicated on 30 October 684. Ansoald rebuilt the church of Mazerolles. He has also been credited with the restoration work on the baptistery of Saint-Jean in Poitiers, which is the best preserved Merovingian structure in France.

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