Germanus of Auxerre

(c. 378–448)

   Saint and Bishop.

   Germanus was consecrated Bishop of Auxerre in 418. There are many legends about his life, but some events are certain. He visited Britain in 429 to combat the heresy of pelagius and he made a second visit some years later to lead the British against the Picts and the Saxons. Later he visited Ravenna. It is said that he was an influential teacher. St patrick is thought to have been instructed by him in Gaul and he is believed to have encouraged the ascetic St Geneviève in her holy practices.

   G. Le Bras (ed.), Saint Germain d’Auxerre et son Temps (1950) [no English translation available];

   E.A. Thompson, Saint Germanus of Auxerre and the End of Roman Britain (1984).