Martin of Tours This article is about the French saint. For the Caribbean minority faith. island, see Saint Martin. For other uses, see Saint Martin As the son of a veteran officer, Martin at fifteen was re- (disambiguation). quired to join a cavalry ala. Around 334, he was sta- tioned at Ambianensium civitas or Samarobriva in Gaul Martin of Tours (Latin: Sanctus Martinus Turonensis; (now Amiens, France).[2] It is likely that he joined the 316 – 8 November 397) was Bishop of Tours, whose Equites catafractarii Ambianenses, a heavy cavalry unit shrine in France became a famous stopping-point for listed in the Notitia Dignitatum. His unit was mostly cer- pilgrims on the road to Santiago de Compostela in Spain. emonial and did not face much combat.[3] Around his name much legendary material accrued, and he has become one of the most familiar and recognis- able Christian saints. As he was born in what is now Szombathely, Hungary, spent much of his childhood in Pavia, Italy, and lived most of his adult life in France, he is considered a spiritual bridge across Europe.[1] His life was recorded by a contemporary, the hagiographer Sulpicius Severus. Some of the ac- counts of his travels may have been interpolated into his vita to validate early sites of his cult. He is best known for the account of his using his military sword to cut his cloak in two, to give half to a beggar clad only in rags in the depth of winter. Conscripted as a soldier into the Roman army, he found the duty incompatible with the Christian faith he had adopted and became an early conscientious objector. 1 Life 1.1 Soldier St Martin leaves the life of chivalry and renounces the army Martin was born in 316 AD in Savaria in the Diocese of (fresco by Simone Martini) Pannonia (now Szombathely, Hungary). His father was a senior officer (tribune) in the Imperial Horse Guard, a According to his biographer, Sulpicius Severus, he served unit of the Roman army, later stationed at Ticinum (now [2] in the military for only another two years, though many Pavia), in northern Italy, where Martin grew up. scholars believe that these two years, “are in fact not At the age of ten he attended the Christian church against nearly enough to bring the account to the time when he the wishes of his parents, and became a catechumen. would leave, that is, during his encounter with Caesar Ju- Christianity had been made a legal religion (in 313) in the lian (the one who has gone down in history as Julian the Roman Empire. It had many more adherents in the East- Apostate). Jacques Fontaine thinks that the biographer ern Empire, whence it had sprung, and was concentrated was somewhat embarrassed about referring to [Martin’s] in cities, brought along the trade routes by converted Jews long stint in the army, [because of the perennially tenuous and Greeks (the term 'pagan' literally means 'country- relation between the Christian conscience and war].”[4] dweller'). Christianity was far from accepted amongst the Such scholars hold that Martin would have remained in higher echelons of society; among members of the army the army for the entirety of his prescribed twenty-five the worship of Mithras would have been stronger. Al- year term, and that, in their opinion, such service need not though the conversion of the Emperor Constantine, and have obliged him to violate his Christian conscience by the subsequent programme of church-building, gave a shedding blood on the battlefield. Regardless of whether greater impetus to the spread of the religion, it was still a or not he remained in the army, academic opinion holds 1 2 1 LIFE that just before a battle with the Gauls at Borbetomagus Roman classical culture in the area: (now Worms, Germany), Martin determined that his faith prohibited him from fighting, saying, “I am a soldier of "[W]hen in a certain village he had demol- Christ. I cannot fight.” He was charged with cowardice ished a very ancient temple, and had set about and jailed, but in response to the charge, he volunteered cutting down a pine-tree, which stood close to to go unarmed to the front of the troops. His superiors the temple, the chief priest of that place, and a planned to take him up on the offer, but before they could, crowd of other heathens began to oppose him; the invaders sued for peace, the battle never occurred, and and these people, though, under the influence Martin was released from military service.[5] of the Lord, they had been quiet while the tem- ple was being overthrown, could not patiently Martin declared his vocation, and made his way to the city allow the tree to be cut down”.[9] of Caesarodunum (now Tours), where he became a disci- ple of Hilary of Poitiers, a chief proponent of Trinitarian Sulpicius affirms that Martin withdrew from the city to Christianity.[6] He opposed the Arianism of the Impe- live in Marmoutier (Majus Monasterium), the monastery rial Court. When Hilary was forced into exile from Pic- he founded, which faces Tours from the opposite shore tavium (now Poitiers), Martin returned to Italy. Accord- of the Loire. Here Martin and some of the monks who ing to Sulpicius Severus, he converted an Alpine brigand followed him built cells of wood; others lived in caves on the way, and confronted the Devil himself. Having dug out of the rock. Martin introduced a rudimentary heard in a dream a summons to revisit his home, Martin parish system. Once a year the bishop visited each of his crossed the Alps, and from Milan went over to Pannonia. parishes, traveling on foot, or by donkey or boat. He con- There he converted his mother and some other persons; tinued to set up monastic communities, and extended the his father he could not win. While in Illyricum he took bounds of his episcopate from Touraine to such distant sides against the Arians with so much zeal that he was points as Chartres, Paris, Autun, and Vienne. At Vienne, publicly scourged and forced to leave.[6] Returning from according to his biographer, he cured Paulinus of Nola of Illyria, he was confronted by the Arian archbishop of Mi- a disease of the eyes.[6] lan Auxentius, who expelled him from the city. Accord- ing to the early sources, Martin decided to seek shelter In one instance, the pagans agreed to fell their sacred fir on the island then called Gallinaria, now Isola d'Albenga, tree, if Martin would stand directly in its path. He did so, in the Ligurian Sea, where he lived the solitary life of a and it miraculously missed him. Sulpicius, a classically hermit. educated aristocrat, related this anecdote with dramatic details, as a set piece. Sulpicius could not have failed to know the incident the Roman poet Horace recalls in sev- 1.2 Bishop eral Odes, of his narrow escape from a falling tree.[10] Martin was so dedicated to the freeing of prisoners that With the return of Hilary to his see in 361, Martin joined when authorities, even emperors, heard he was coming, him and established a monastery nearby. This site was they refused to see him because they knew he would re- developed into the Benedictine Ligugé Abbey, the oldest quest mercy for someone and they would be unable to monastery known in Europe.[7] It became a centre for the refuse. evangelisation of the country districts. He travelled and preached through western Gaul: “The memory of these apostolic journeyings survives to our day in the numer- 1.3 On behalf of the Priscillianists ous local legends of which Martin is the hero and which indicate roughly the routes that he followed.”[2] The churches of other parts of Gaul and in Spain were being disturbed by the Priscillianists, an ascetic sect, In 371 Martin was acclaimed bishop of Tours, where he named after its leader, Priscillian, bishop of Avila.[6] The impressed the city with his demeanour. He had been First Council of Saragossa had condemned Priscillian and drawn to Tours by a ruse — he was urged to come to min- his supporters as heretics. Priscillian and his supporters ister to someone sick — and was brought to the church, had fled, and some bishops of Hispania, led by Bishop where he reluctantly allowed himself to be consecrated [8] Ithacius, brought charges before Emperor Magnus Max- bishop. According to one version, he was so unwilling imus. Although greatly opposed to the Priscillianists, to be made bishop that he hid in a barn full of geese, but Martin hurried to the Imperial court of Trier to remove their cackling at his intrusion gave him away to the crowd; them from the secular jurisdiction of the emperor. Along that may account for complaints by a few that his appear- with St. Ambrose (December 7), Martin rejected Bishop ance was too disheveled to be commensurate with a bish- Ithacius’s principle of putting heretics to death—as well opric, but the critics were hugely outnumbered. as the intrusion of the emperor into such matters. He As bishop, Martin set to enthusiastically ordering the de- prevailed upon the emperor to spare the life of the heretic struction of pagan temples, altars and sculptures. Schol- Priscillian. At first, Maximus acceded to his entreaty, but, ars suggest the following account may indicate the depth when Martin had departed, yielded to Ithacius and or- of the Druidic folk religion in relation to the veneer of dered Priscillian and his followers to be beheaded (385).