Desideratus or Desiderius of Verdun (, also ''Didier''; 480 – 8 May 554) was

Bishop of Verdun The Diocese of Verdun (; ) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in France. It is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Archdiocese of Besançon. The Diocese of Verdun co ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

from 529 to 554. He is venerated as a Catholic saint, with his feast day on 23 August.

Life

Desideratus was a member of the aristocratic

Gallo-Roman Gallo-Roman culture was a consequence of the Romanization (cultural), Romanization of Gauls under the rule of the Roman Empire in Roman Gaul. It was characterized by the Gaulish adoption or adaptation of Roman culture, Roman culture, language ...

family of

Syagrii The Syagrii were an aristocratic family in late antique Gaul during the fourth and fifth centuries. The family was particularly associated with Gallia Lugdunensis (Lyons), and their family seat was located in the area of Augustodunum (Autun). Impor ...

, the son of Gundobaud of Burgundy, and the father of Saint

Syagrius of Autun Saint Syagrius (; died 600 AD) was a bishop of Autun. His feast day is August 27 (September 2 in some martyrologies). He was bishop of Autun from around 560 until his death and travelled to Nanterre with Guntram for the baptism of Chlothar II. He ...

. The name of Desideratus' wife is unknown; she is said to have been "a noble woman from

Toulouse Toulouse (, ; ; ) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department and of the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region. The city is on the banks of the Garonne, River Garonne, from ...

," possibly a daughter of

Vandal The Vandals were a Germanic people who were first reported in the written records as inhabitants of what is now Poland, during the period of the Roman Empire. Much later, in the fifth century, a group of Vandals led by kings established Vandal ...

King

Gesalec Gesalic ( Gothic: 𐌲𐌰𐌹𐍃𐌰𐌻𐌰𐌹𐌺𐍃, romanized: ''Gaisalaiks'', "dancing with spears"), ''Gesaleico'' in Spanish and Portuguese, ''Gesaleic'' in Catalan, ( – 513), was a king of the Visigoths from 507 to 511, and died i ...

. According to some sources they had four children: Gondoald, Count of

Meaux Meaux () is a Communes of France, commune on the river Marne (river), Marne in the Seine-et-Marne Departments of France, department in the Île-de-France Regions of France, region in the Functional area (France), metropolitan area of Paris, Franc ...

, Syagrius, Bishop of Autun, Didier, Duke of Toulouse, and Salvius, Bishop of

Albi Albi (; ) is a commune in France, commune in southern France. It is the prefecture of the Tarn (department), Tarn Departments of France, department, on the river Tarn (river), Tarn, 85 km northeast of Toulouse. Its inhabitants are called ...

Gregory of Tours Gregory of Tours (born ; 30 November – 17 November 594 AD) was a Gallo-Roman historian and Bishop of Tours during the Merovingian period and is known as the "father of French history". He was a prelate in the Merovingian kingdom, encom ...

relates that the

Merovingian The Merovingian dynasty () was the ruling family of the Franks from around the middle of the 5th century until Pepin the Short in 751. They first appear as "Kings of the Franks" in the Roman army of northern Gaul. By 509 they had united all the ...

King,

Theuderic I __NOTOC__ Theuderic I ( 487 – 534) was the Merovingian king of Metz, Rheims, or Austrasia—as it is variously called—from 511 to 534. He was the son of Clovis I and one of his earlier wives or concubines (possibly a Franco-Rhenish Pr ...

, "had done much harm to Desideratus," and had him tortured, removed from office, and forced to flee. When he returned he found that the people had been impoverished. Desideratus solicited a loan from Theuderic's son and successor

Theudebert I Theudebert I () (–548) was the Merovingian king of Austrasia from 533 to his death in 548. He was the son of Theuderic I and the father of Theudebald. Sources Most of what we know about Theudebert comes from the ''Histories'' or ''History of ...

, promising repayment when business had been restored. Theudebert loaned Desideratus seven thousand gold pieces. When Desideratus went to repay the money, Theudebert refused saying "It is enough for me that, when you asked that I should make a loan, those who were poor and in dire distress were returned to prosperity."

Death

Desideratus "was killed by Sirivald, for reasons of rivalry and revenge. Subsequently, Desideratus's son Syagrius organized a punitive expedition in 554 to assassinate Sirivald in a villa. After murdering a first person by mistake, they returned and fulfilled their mission.Ernest Lavisse, ''Histoire de France'', t. II, Livre II, chap.IV La Justice, les impôts, le service militaire

References

6th-century Frankish bishops Bishops of Verdun Year of birth unknown 554 deaths Year of birth uncertain {{france-bishop-stub