- Saint Leonard redirects here; you may be lookiing for Leonard of Port Maurice or Leonard of
Blakemore
Leonard of Noblac or of Limoges (also known as Lienard, Linhart, Leonhard, Léonard,
Leonardo) (died traditionally in 559), according to the romance that accrued to his name recorded in an 11th-century vita, was a Frankish noble in the court of Clovis I. He was converted to
Christianity along with the king, at Christmas 496), by Saint
Remigius, Bishop of Reims. Leonard asked Clovis to grant him personally the
right to liberate prisoners whom he would find worthy of it, at any time.
Leonard secured the release of a number of prisoners, for whom he has become a patron
saint, then, declining the offer of a bishopric— a prerogative of Merovingian nobles— he entered the monastery at
Micy near Orléans, under the direction of Saint Mesmin and Saint Lie. Then, according to his legend, Leonard became a
hermit in the forest of Limousin, where he gathered
a number of followers. Through his prayers the queen of the Franks was safely delivered of a male child, and in recompense
Leonard was given royal lands at Noblac, 21 km from Limoges, where he founded the abbey of Noblac, around which a village grew,
named in his honor Saint-Léonard de Noblac.
According to legend, prisoners who invoked him from their cells saw their chains break before their eyes. Many came to him
afterwards, bringing their heavy chains and irons to offer them in homage. A considerable number remained with him, and he often
gave them part of his vast forest to clear and make ready for the labors of the fields, that they might have the means to live an
honest life.
Diffusion of cult
In the eleventh century, although there is no previous mention of Leonard either in literature, liturgy or in church dedications,[1] his
cult rapidly spread, at first through Frankish lands, following the release of
Bohemond I of Antioch in 1103 from a Danishmend prison, where the diplomacy was inspired by Leonard of Noblac. Bohemond, a charismatic leader of
the First Crusade, subsequently visited the Abbey of Noblac, where he made an offering in
gratitude for his release. Bohemund's example inspired many similar gifts, enabling the Romanesque church and its visible
landmark belltower to be constructed. About the same time Noblac was becoming a stage in the pilgrimage route that led towards
Santiago de Compostela. Leonard's cult spread through all of Western Europe: in
England with its cultural connections to the region, no fewer than 177 churches are dedicated to him. Leonard was venerated in
the Low Countries, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, particularly in Bavaria, and also in Bohemia, Poland, and elsewhere.
Pilgrims and patronage flowed to Saint-Leonard de Noblac. Leonard or Lienard became one of the most venerated saints of the late
Middle Ages. His intercession was credited with miracles for the release of prisoners, women in labor and the diseases of cattle.
His feast day is November 6, when he is honored
with a festival at Bad Tölz, Bavaria.
Veneration
Since the vita written in the eleventh century, is entirely a didactic romance, without historical value (Catholic Encyclopedia), one may approach the legendary Saint
Leonard, whose bones lie in the Romanesque collegial church, by means of the historic village, instead of the other way around.
The growing tide of pilgrims passing on their way to Santiago inspired romances to publicize more than one locally-venerated
saint along the pilgrim routes. Saint Martial is an example of another saint of the
Limousin whose dramatic vita helped attract pilgrims to his shrine. The village below the shrine of Saint Leonard, perched
on its hilltop site, had its origins in the eleventh century, when under the jurisdiction of the château of Noblac it was first
encircled with walls, a necessity of life in the region. It developed as a small center of commerce in the thirteenth century,
based on forges and foundries and leatherworking, with communal consuls who were in charge of
defending its rights and privileges -its "liberties" in the medieval sense. A
history of the commune, written by the local antiquary and historian of the Limousin, Louis Guibert in 1890, was reissued in
1992.
Today Saint-Leonard de Noblat, Haute-Vienne, population 4766 in 1999, is one of
the UNESCO World Heritage Sites connected with the routes to Santiago.[2] It retains the Romanesque collegial church and it belltower,
52m tall. Its old houses follow a medieval street pattern. In the 19th century, a papermill and a porcelain manufactory were
added to its commerce. No longer attracting visitors as a stop on the route to Santiago, it is now attracting them as an
overnight stop on the Tour de France. The town is also famous for its native son, the
scientist Joseph Louis Gay-Lussac (1778 – 1850); there is a small museum in his
honor. The various places named Saint Leonard or St
Leonards refer to this saint.
Gallery
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St Peter and St. Leonard (Linhart)
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Notes
External links
Further reading
- Guibert, Louis. 1890. Histoire de Saint-Leonard-de-Noblat (reprinted 1992) [1]
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