Abbot of Saint-Hilaire de Poitiers in the 6th century, Porchaire was a respected mediator during the troubles at the monastery of Saint Radegund. He ended his days as a hermit in the chapel of Bois-du-Seigneur before his relics were honored in a church bearing his name. Despite Calvinist and Revolutionary desecrations, a portion of his remains has been preserved in Poitiers.
Guided reading
5 reading sections
SAINT PORCHAIRE, ABBOT (End of the 6th century).
Life and diplomatic mission
Abbot of Saint-Hilaire of Poitiers in the 6th century, Porchaire was entrusted by Bishop Meroveus with a mediation mission to the episcopate of Bordeaux regarding the troubles at the monastery of Saint Radegund.
Porchaire Porchaire Abbot of the Basilica of Saint-Hilaire in Poitiers in the 6th century. , abbot of the basilica of Saint-Hilaire of Poitier Poitiers City where the saint settled and lived as a recluse. s, flourished towards the beginning of the 6th century. Neither his homeland nor his family is known. He conducted himself very worthily in this office and acquired a great reputation for virtue an d holiness. Saint Grego Saint Grégoire de Tours Historian and bishop, primary source for the narrative. ry of Tours bears witness to this when he recounts that, on the occasion of the troubles that broke out in the monaster y founded in Poi sainte Radégonde Queen of the Franks and founder of the Sainte-Croix monastery in Poitiers. tiers by Saint Radegund, Porchaire was sent by th e Bisho Mérovée King of the Franks who besieged Paris. p of Poitier s, Meroveus Gondegesile Bishop of Bordeaux in the 6th century. , to Gondege sile, Bi Bordeaux City and diocese of which Amand was bishop. shop of Bordeaux, and the other bishops of the province, with the mission of making them more lenient towards the dispersed nuns. Saint Porchaire successfully accomplished this mission.
Retirement and death
At the end of his life, he retired to the chapel of the Bois-du-Seigneur to devote himself to contemplation before dying at the end of the 6th century.
When he was advanced in age, following the example of the saints of that time, he abdicated the government of his abbey and retired to a chapel dedicated to our Savior, which bore the name of B ois-du-Seigneur Bois-du-Seigneur Place of retreat and first burial of the saint. or Sacred Wood, because a fragment of the true Cross was ke pt there. H vraie Croix The cross upon which Jesus Christ was crucified, the central object of the feast. e spent the rest of his days there in the meditation of death, in the contemplation of heavenly things, and in all the exercises of the cenobitic life. Finally, he departed from this world at the decline of the 6th century and was buried in the same place. But, subsequently, this humble chapel having become too narrow to contain the crowd of pilgrims attracted by the frequency and brilliance of his miracles, the body of the Saint was transferred to a basilica which took t he name of Sain Saint-Porchaire Site of the final translation of the relics and center of parochial worship. t-Porchaire, and which is a parish church.
Cult and translations
Due to the influx of pilgrims attracted by his miracles, his body was transferred from its initial chapel to a basilica that would take his name.
When, in the middle of the 16th century, the Protestant hordes that were devastating France made it a sacrilegious honor to profane the relics of all the churches, the mayor of Poitiers, Rog ier de Migné, a Rogier de Migné Mayor of Poitiers in 1558, protector of relics. nd the other magistrates wished, through a just foresight of the violence that the unfortunate city was to suffer, to remove the venerated deposit of the illustrious church from the fury of the public enemy. They had the Saint's tomb surrounded by a wall in 1558, which remained so well hidden that it was barely remembered when it was discovered in 1676. The most significant of the precious bones were placed, on May 26, by Gilbert de Clerambau Gilbert de Clerambaud Bishop of Poitiers who oversaw the translation of relics in 1676. d, Bishop of Poitiers, in a silver reliquary, and the lesser ones remained in their ancient burial place to habitually satisfy the devotion of the faithful there. But the misfortune that had been avoided once could not be averted in other trials of the Church. The revolutionaries of 1792 arrived. Disciples and imitators of the Calvinists through the impious greed that attacked the spoils of the altars; apostates of a new kind who did not tremble to profane, under the veil of an insane reform, the objects sacred to their respect of the day before, they seized the silver reliquary and threw to whoever wanted to pick them up the venerable remains it contained... In this sacrilegious disorder, a rib of the Saint was secretly collected by hands worthy of touching it: it was entrusted to the pious daughters of th e Visitation, and they, filles de la Visitation Religious order founded by Francis de Sales and Jane de Chantal. faithful guardians of the hidden treasure during the storms, parted with a portion of it, after the return of calm, in favor of the parish church that still bears the name of Saint-Porchaire.
Preservation and profanations
His relics, hidden during the Wars of Religion in the 16th century and rediscovered in 1676, suffered the profanations of the French Revolution in 1792.
M. l'abbé Auber M. l'abbé Auber Author of the work on the saints of Poitiers. , Lives of the Saints of the Church of Poitiers.
Hagiographic sources
The account is based on the testimonies of Gregory of Tours and the works of Abbé Auber on the saints of Poitiers.
Abbé Auber, Lives of the Saints of the Church of Poitiers.
Annexes & related entities
Structured data for exploration: events, miracles, quotes, places, attributes, patronages, and important entities cited in the text.
Key Events
- Abbot of the Basilica of Saint-Hilaire in Poitiers
- Mediator with the Bishop of Bordeaux during the unrest at the monastery of Saint Radegund
- Abdication of his office as abbot
- Retreat at the Bois-du-Seigneur chapel
- Translation of his body to a dedicated basilica
Miracles
- Frequency and brilliance of miracles attracting a crowd of pilgrims after his death