Saint Vigor (french: Saint Vigor, Vigeur; la, Vigor, Vigorus) (died circa 537 AD) was a French bishop and

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 ...

missionary.

Life

Born into the nobility in

Artois Artois ( ; ; nl, Artesië; English adjective: ''Artesian'') is a region of northern France. Its territory covers an area of about 4,000 km2 and it has a population of about one million. Its principal cities are Arras (Dutch: ''Atrecht''), ...

, he studied at

Arras Arras ( , ; pcd, Aro; historical nl, Atrecht ) is the prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department, which forms part of the region of Hauts-de-France; before the reorganization of 2014 it was in Nord-Pas-de-Calais. The historic centre of the ...

under Saint Vedast. His father would not grant approval for him to become a priest, so he ran away from home, taking nothing with him, accompanied by an acolyte, Theodimir. Thereafter, he became a hermit preacher at Reviers, Calvados, and worked as a

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...

. Vigor was named

bishop of Bayeux The Roman Catholic Diocese of Bayeux and Lisieux (Latin: ''Dioecesis Baiocensis et Lexoviensis''; French: ''Diocèse de Bayeux et Lisieux'') is a diocese of the Catholic Church in France. It is coextensive with the Department of Calvados and is ...

in 514. He fervently opposed

paganism Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. ...

and reputedly founded a monastery, later known as

Saint-Vigor-le-Grand Saint-Vigor-le-Grand () is a commune in the Calvados department in the Normandy region in northwestern France. International relations Saint-Vigor-le-Grand is twinned with Colden Common, United Kingdom. Population See also *Communes of ...

. In Bayeux, Normandy, he destroyed a pagan temple that was still in use and built a church on the grounds. Saint vigor

Veneration

Vigor was venerated from an early date in Bayeux, where he had been bishop. His cult as a saint is attested in 834 by mention of a relic at

Le Mans Le Mans (, ) is a city in northwestern France on the Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the province of Maine, it is now the capital of the Sarthe department and the seat of the Roman Catholic diocese of Le ...

. Around 987 Vigor's relics came to the Abbey of Saint-Riquier in Ponthieu. Saint-Ouen Abbey, Rouen held a copy of the ''Vita Vigoris''; John Howe dates the "vita"s composition to the beginning of the eleventh century. In 1032 Robert the Magnificent, Duke of Normandy, founded an abbey dedicated to Saint Vigor on the site of an older monastery destroyed by the Normans during their invasion. The successful

Norman conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Conq ...

brought his cult to England. His name appears in an eleventh-century breviary at Worcester, possibly introduced by bishop

Samson Samson (; , '' he, Šīmšōn, label= none'', "man of the sun") was the last of the judges of the ancient Israelites mentioned in the Book of Judges (chapters 13 to 16) and one of the last leaders who "judged" Israel before the institution ...

Theulf Theulf (died 20 October 1123) was a medieval Bishop of Worcester. Life Theulf was a canon of Bayeux Cathedral and a king's chaplainFulbourn, Cambridgeshire, the other in Stratton-on-the-Fosse, Somerset. His feast falls on

All Saints' Day All Saints' Day, also known as All Hallows' Day, the Feast of All Saints, the Feast of All Hallows, the Solemnity of All Saints, and Hallowmas, is a Christian solemnity celebrated in honour of all the saints of the church, whether they are k ...

(November 1), and as a result is often moved to another date. Saint Vigor is mentioned in the life (''vita'') of Saint Paternus. Image:Eglise St Vigor Neau.JPG, Église St Vigor Neau, French

Maine Maine () is a U.S. state, state in the New England and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and territories of Canad ...

. Image:Fresques 1 St Vigor Neau.JPG, Fresco at the Church of St Vigor de Neau. Image:Marly-le-Roi Église Saint-Vigor.JPG, Église Saint-Vigor at

Marly-le-Roi Marly-le-Roi () is a Communes of France, commune in the Yvelines Departments of France, department in the Regions of France, administrative region of Île-de-France, France. It is located in the western suburbs of Paris, from the Kilometre Zero, ...

Île-de-France The Île-de-France (, ; literally "Isle of France") is the most populous of the eighteen regions of France. Centred on the capital Paris, it is located in the north-central part of the country and often called the ''Région parisienne'' (; en, Pa ...

Image:Cmglee Fulbourn High Street All Saints.jpg, Church of St Vigor with All Saints at Fulbourn, England

Notes

External links

6th-century Frankish saints Bishops of Bayeux 537 deaths Year of birth unknown {{France-saint-stub