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424 15. family and friendship in the west
Through a remarkable religious inversion, virginity, not fecundity, has
become the salvation of the family. Indeed, it may be symptomatic of Avitus’
perspective that we know nothing of one sister who may have had children. 71
Avitus’ poem is not only remarkable for the light it sheds on the bishop’s
family, but also for what it implies about the origins of what have been
called Adelsheiliger, aristocratic saints. The Adelsheiliger are often associated
with the Germanic aristocracy of the late Merovingian and Carolingian
periods. 72 The origins of a concern with saintly relatives must, however,
long antedate this. The Consolatoria de castitatis laude constitutes the most
remarkable hymn to sanctity among the members of a late Roman family.
Moreover, in his concern to commemorate the death-date of his sister,
Apollinaris was intent on celebrating a date which could easily have developed
into a saint’s festival. 73 Nor does Avitus provide the earliest example
of family interest in holy relatives. Sidonius had already noted the importance
of Frontina to Aper’s family. 74
The writings of Gregory of Tours throw complementary light on the
phenomenon of family saints among the aristocracy in the mid to late sixth
century, illuminating the issue through narrative. Not only could Gregory
boast relationship with seventeen previous bishops of Tours, 75 he could
also claim descent from one of the Lyons martyrs of 177, 76 and he portrayed
as saints his great-grandfather, Gregory of Langres, 77 as well as two
uncles, Gallus of Clermont 78 and Nicetius of Lyons. 79 Although he is
careful to avoid too bald a statement of his relationship with the saints of
his family, it is clear that for Gregory the sanctity of his kin was a matter of
considerable pride and importance. 80 Few Germanic families of the eighth
or ninth century could boast as many saints as could that of Gregory of
Tours. From the seventh century, only the hagiography relating to Gertrude
of Nivelles seems concerned with the notion of a family saint. 81 For the
seventh-century Pippinids and their descendents, the eighth-century
Carolingians, Gertrude had a significance not unlike that of the female relatives
of Avitus of Vienne. In short, the Adelsheiliger, aristocratic saints,
were a development of late Roman family piety – perhaps more specifically
of the piety of the Christian aristocracy of sub-Roman Gaul. They were
not, in origin, Germanic.
In its development of the notion of Adelsheiliger, the Merovingian aristocracy
of the seventh and eighth century seems to have drawn on traditions
71 Avitus, Carm. vi lines 19–23 refers to the four children of Audentia: three of them, Avitus,
Apollinaris and Fuscina, are well evidenced in Avitus’ works. 72 Graus (1965); Prinz (1967).
73 Fuscina was indeed remembered as a saint: Vita Fuscinulae, ed. Catalogus codicum hagiographicorum latinorum
in Bibliotheca Nationali Parisiensi iii (Brussels 1893) 563–5. 74 Sid. Ap. Ep. 4.21.4.
75 Greg. Tur. Hist. v.49; Mathisen (1984). 76 Greg. Tur. Hist. i.29.31; Liber Vitae Patrum vi 1.
77 Greg. Tur. Liber Vitae Patrum vii. 78 Greg. Tur. Liber Vitae Patrum vi.
79 Greg. Tur. Liber Vitae Patrum viii. 80 Wood (1994) 36–46.
81 Vita Geretrudis, ed. B. Krusch, MGH, SRM 2 (Hanover 1888).
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