Saint Quentin ( la, Quintinus; died 287 AD) also known as Quentin of Amiens, was an early

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words '' Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρ ...

saint.

Hagiography

Martyrdom

The legend of his life has him as a Roman citizen who was martyred in

Gaul Gaul ( la, Gallia) was a region of Western Europe first described by the Romans. It was inhabited by Celtic and Aquitani tribes, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, most of Switzerland, parts of Northern Italy (only durin ...

. He is said to have been the son of a man named Zeno, who had senatorial rank. Filled with apostolic zeal, Quentin traveled to Gaul as a missionary with Saint

Lucian Lucian of Samosata, '; la, Lucianus Samosatensis ( 125 – after 180) was a Hellenized Syrian satirist, rhetorician and pamphleteer who is best known for his characteristic tongue-in-cheek style, with which he frequently ridiculed superstiti ...

, who was later martyred at Beauvais, and others (the martyrs Victoricus and Fuscian are said to have been Quentin's followers). Quentin settled at

Amiens Amiens (English: or ; ; pcd, Anmien, or ) is a city and commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme department in the region of Hauts-de-France. In 2021, the population of ...

and performed many

miracle A miracle is an event that is inexplicable by natural or scientific lawsOne dictionary define"Miracle"as: "A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divi ...

s there. Because of his preaching, he was imprisoned by the prefect Rictiovarus, who had traveled to Amiens from

Trier Trier ( , ; lb, Tréier ), formerly known in English as Trèves ( ;) and Triers (see also names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle in Germany. It lies in a valley between low vine-covered hills of red sandstone in the ...

. Quentin was

manacle Handcuffs are restraint devices designed to secure an individual's wrists in proximity to each other. They comprise two parts, linked together by a chain, a hinge, or rigid bar. Each cuff has a rotating arm which engages with a ratchet th ...

torture Torture is the deliberate infliction of severe pain or suffering on a person for reasons such as punishment, extracting a confession, interrogation for information, or intimidating third parties. Some definitions are restricted to acts ...

d repeatedly, but refused to abjure his faith. The prefect left Amiens to go to Reims, the capital of ''Gallia Belgica'', where he wanted Quentin judged. But, on the way, in a town named ''Augusta Veromanduorum'' (now

Saint-Quentin, Aisne Saint-Quentin (; pcd, Saint-Kintin; nl, label=older Dutch, Sint-Kwintens ) is a city in the Aisne department, Hauts-de-France, northern France. It has been identified as the ''Augusta Veromanduorum'' of antiquity. It is named after Saint Q ...

), Quentin miraculously escaped and again started his preaching. Rictiovarus decided to interrupt his journey and pass sentence: Quentin was tortured again, then beheaded and thrown secretly into the marshes around the

Somme __NOTOC__ Somme or The Somme may refer to: Places *Somme (department), a department of France *Somme, Queensland, Australia *Canal de la Somme, a canal in France *Somme (river), a river in France Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Somme'' (book), a ...

, by Roman soldiers.

First ''
inventio ''Inventio'', one of the five canons of rhetoric, is the method used for the ''discovery of arguments'' in Western rhetoric and comes from the Latin word, meaning "invention" or "discovery". ''Inventio'' is the central, indispensable canon of rh ...
''

Five years later, a blind woman named Eusebia, born of a senatorial family, came from Rome (following a divine order) and miraculously discovered the body. The intact remains of Quentin came into view, rising from the water and emitting an odor of sanctity. She buried his body at the top of a mountain near ''Augusta Veromanduorum'' (because the chariot on which the saint's body lay could not go further) and she recovered her sight. A small chapel was built nearby.

Second ''inventio''

The life of bishop

Saint Eligius Saint Eligius (also Eloy, Eloi or Loye; french: Éloi; 11 June 588 – 1 December 660 AD) is the patron saint of goldsmiths, other metalworkers, and coin collectors. He is also the patron saint of veterinarians, the Royal Electrical and Mechani ...

(mainly written in the seventh century), says that the exact place of the tomb was forgotten and that the bishop, after several days of digging in the church, miraculously found it. When he found the tomb, the night sky was lit and the odor of sanctity was evident. This was said to be in 641. Recent archaeological research shows this to be false, because the location of the tomb had been marked by a sort of wooden monument since the middle of the fourth or the beginning of the fifth century. Eligius distributed the nails with which Quentin's body had been pierced, as well as some saint's teeth and hair. As he was a skillful

goldsmith A goldsmith is a metalworker who specializes in working with gold and other precious metals. Nowadays they mainly specialize in jewelry-making but historically, goldsmiths have also made silverware, platters, goblets, decorative and servicea ...

, he placed the relics in a shrine he had fashioned himself. He also rebuilt the church (now the Saint-Quentin basilica).

Devotion

The devotion of Saint Quentin was important during the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

, especially in Northern France—as evidenced by the considerable number of place names derived from the saint's (see Saint-Quentin (disambiguation)). The tomb was an important place of pilgrimage, highly favoured by

Carolingians The Carolingian dynasty (; known variously as the Carlovingians, Carolingus, Carolings, Karolinger or Karlings) was a Frankish noble family named after Charlemagne, grandson of mayor Charles Martel and a descendant of the Arnulfing and Pippi ...

(the church was one of the richest in Picardy).

References

External links

Saint Quentin
at ''Saints.SQPN.com''
Catholic Online: Saint QuentinSaint of the Day, October 31: ''Quentin of Amiens''
at ''SaintPatrickDC.org'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Quentin 287 deaths 3rd-century Christian martyrs 3rd-century Gallo-Roman people Gallo-Roman saints Year of birth unknown Legendary Romans