Denis For other uses, see Denis (disambiguation). the River Seine. Roman Paris lay on the higher ground of the Left Bank, away from the river. According to Christian tradition, Saint Denis (also called Dionysius, Dennis, or Denys) is a Christian martyr and saint. In the third century, he was Bishop of Paris. 1.1 Martyrdom He was martyred in connection with the Decian per- secution of Christians, shortly after 250 AD. Denis is Denis, having alarmed the pagan priests by his many said to have picked his head up after being decapitated, conversions, was executed by beheading on the highest walked ten kilometres (six miles), while preaching a ser- hill in Paris (now Montmartre), which was likely to have mon of repentance the entire way, making him one of been a druidic holy place. The martyrdom of Denis many cephalophores in hagiology. He is venerated in the and his companions is popularly believed to have given Roman Catholic Church as patron of Paris, France, and the site its current name, derived from the Latin mons [1] as one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers. The medieval and martyrium “The Martyrs’ Mountain”, although the modern French name “Denis” derives from the ancient name is possibly derived from mons mercurei et mons [5] name Dionysius. martis, Hill of Mercury and Mars. After his head was chopped off, Denis is said to have picked it up and walked ten kilometres (six miles) from the summit of 1 Life the hill, preaching a sermon the entire way, making him one of many cephalophores in hagiology. Of the many accounts of this martyrdom, this is noted in detail in the Golden Legend and in Butler’s Lives Of The Saints.[6] The site where he stopped preaching and actually died was marked by a small shrine that developed into the Saint Denis Basilica, which became the burial place for the kings of France. Another account has his corpse being thrown into the Seine, but recovered and buried later that night by his converts.[2] 2 Veneration Veneration of Saint Denis began soon after his death. The Beheading of Denis and of his companions, tympanum of the north portal of the Basilica of St Denis. bodies of Saints Denis, Eleutherius, and Rusticus were buried on the spot of their martyrdom, where the con- [3] struction of the saint’s eponymous basilica was begun by Gregory of Tours states that Denis was bishop of the [7] Parisii and was martyred by being beheaded by a sword. Saint Geneviève, assisted by the people of Paris. Her The earliest document giving an account of his life and Vita Sanctae Genovefae attests the presence of a shrine martyrdom, the “Passio SS. Dionysii Rustici et Eleutherii” near the present basilica by the close of the fifth century. dates from c. 600, is mistakenly attributed to the poet Dagobert I, great-grandson of Chlothar I had the first Venantius Fortunatus, and is legendary. Nevertheless, it Royal Basilica built. The Merovingian tradition was orig- appears from the Passio that Denis was sent from Italy to inally to bury kings as Clovis and Chlothildis in Paris, convert Gaul in the third century, forging a link with the Abbey St-Genevieve/Genovefa as Clovis had ordered its “apostles to the Gauls” reputed to have been sent out under constructionm in 502 AD. Yet Chilperic I had his own the direction of Pope Fabian. This was after the perse- mother Dowager Queen Aregunda at Saint Denis. His cutions under Emperor Decius had all but dissolved the grandson was clearly following a family tradition. Are- small Christian community at Lutetia.[4] Denis, with his gunda’s (death about 580 AD) tomb was discovered in inseparable companions Rusticus and Eleutherius, who 1959 and her burial items can be seen at Saint-Germain- were martyred with him, settled on the Île de la Cité in en-Laye museum. 1 2 4 CONFUSION WITH DIONYSIUS THE AREOPAGITE 3 Feast Last Communion and Martyrdom of Saint Denis, by Henri Bel- lechose, 1416, which shows the martyrdom of both Denis and his companions October 9 is celebrated as the feast of Saint Denis and companions, a priest named Rusticus and a deacon, Eleutherius, who were martyred alongside him and buried with him. The names Rusticus and Eleutherius are non- historical. The feast of Saint Denis was added to the Roman Calendar in the year 1568 by Pope Pius V, al- though it had been celebrated since at least the year 800. 4 Confusion with Dionysius the Late Gothic statue of Saint Denis, limestone, formerly poly- Areopagite chromed (Musée de Cluny) Since at least the ninth century, the legends of Dionysius the Areopagite and Denis of Paris have often been con- fused. Around 814, Louis the Pious brought certain writ- ings attributed to Dionysius the Areopagite to France, A successor church was erected by Fulrad, who became and since then it became common among the French leg- abbot in 749/50 and was closely linked with the accession endary writers to argue that Denis of Paris was the same of the Carolingians to the Merovingian throne. Dionysius who was a famous convert and disciple of Saint Paul.[7] The confusion of the personalities of Saint De- In time, the “Saint Denis”, often combined as “Montjoie! nis, Dionysius the Areopagite, and pseudo-Dionysius the Saint Denis!" became the war-cry of the French armies. Areopagite, the author of the writings ascribed to Diony- The oriflamme, which became the standard of France, sius brought to France by Louis, was initiated through an was the banner consecrated upon his tomb. His venera- Areopagitica written in 836 by Hilduin, Abbot of Saint- tion spread beyond France when, in 754, Pope Stephen Denis, at the request of Louis the Pious. “Hilduin was II, who was French, brought veneration of Saint De- anxious to promote the dignity of his church, and it is nis to Rome. Soon his cultus was prevalent throughout [7] to him that the quite unfounded identification of the pa- Europe. Abbot Suger removed the relics of Denis, and tron saint with Dionysius the Areopagite and his con- those associated with Rustique and Eleuthére, from the sequent connexion with the apostolic age are due.”[10] crypt to reside under the high altar of the Saint-Denis he [8] Hilduin’s attribution had been supported for centuries by rebuilt, 1140-44. the monastic community at Abbey of Saint-Denis and one In traditional Catholic practice, Saint Denis is honoured of origins of their pride. In Historia calamitatum, Pierre as one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers. Specifically, Denis Abelard gives a short account of the strength of this be- is invoked against diabolical possession and headaches[9] lief and the monastery’s harsh opposition to challenges and with Sainte Geneviève is one of the patron saints of to their claim. Abelard jokingly pointed out a possibility Paris. that the founder of the Abbey could have been another 3 Dionysius, who is mentioned as Dionysius of Corinth by [6] This is the iconographic detail by which he may be iden- Eusebius. This irritated the community so much that tified, whether in the thirteenth-century sculpture at the eventually Abelard left in bitterness. As late as the six- Musée de Cluny (illustration, in Veneration below) or in teenth century, scholars might still argue for an Eastern the nineteenth-century figure in the portal of Nôtre Dame origin of the Basilica of Saint-Denis: one was Godefroi de Paris, part of Viollet-le-Duc's restorations (illustration, Tillman, in a long preface to a paraphrase of the Letters in infobox). of the Areopagite, printed in Paris in 1538 by Charlotte [7] Vadnal, Jane (June 1998). “Images of Medieval Art and Guillard.[11] Most historians do not dispute this point.[4] Architecture: Saint Denis”. Excerpt from “Sacred and Legendary Art” by Anna Jameson, 1911. Retrieved 2007- 01-16. 5 Depiction in art [8] Suger, “De rebus in administratione sua gestis,” xxxi, and “De Consecratione,” v. Denis’ headless walk has led to his being depicted in art [9] Miller, Jennifer. “Fourteen Holy Helpers”. Retrieved decapitated and dressed as a Bishop, holding his own (of- 2007-01-16. [7] ten mitred) head in his hands. Handling the halo in [10] A. Hamilton Thompson, reviewing Sumner McKnight this circumstance poses a unique challenge for the artist. Crosby, The Abbey of Saint-Denis, 475-1122. Vol. I, in Some put the halo where the head used to be; others The English Historical Review 58 No. 231 (July 1943:357- have Saint Denis carrying the halo along with the head. 359) p 358. Even more problematic than the halo was the issue of how much of his head Denis should be shown carry- [11] “Georgii Pachymerae... Paraphrasis in decem Epistolas B. Dionysii Arepagitae"; see Beatrice Beech, “Charlotte ing. Throughout much of the Middle Ages, the Abbey Guillard: A Sixteenth-Century Business Woman,” Re- of St Denis and the canons of Notre-Dame Cathedral naissance Quarterly No. 36, 3 (Autumn 1983:345-367) were in dispute over ownership of the saint’s head. The p. 349. Abbey claimed that they had the entire body, whilst the Cathedral claimed to possess the top of his head which, [12] See Gabriel Spiegel, The Cult of St Denis and Capetian they claimed, had been severed by the executioner’s first Kingship, in Saints and their Cults, Stephen Wilson (ed), blow.[12] Thus while most depictions of St Denis show 1985. p.144ff him holding his entire head, in others, the patrons have [13] Whatling, Stuart. “Photographs of Le Mans Cathedral - shown their support for the Cathedral’s claim by depicting Outer Clerestory Windows - Bay 111, Panel B5”.