E07830: The anonymous Gallic Chronicle of 452, written in Latin in Gaul in the mid 5th c., mentions the life and miracles of *Germanus (bishop of Auxerre, ob. c. 448, S00455).
online resource
posted on 2019-11-15, 00:00authored bydlambert
Gallic Chronicle of 452, 114
Germanus episcopus Altisiodori virtutibus et vitae districtione clarescit.
'Germanus bishop of Auxerre became famous for his miracles and the strictness of his life.'
Text: Mommsen 1892, 660 (Burgess 2001, 78). Translation: David Lambert.
Literary - Other narrative texts (including Histories)
Language
Latin
Evidence not before
452
Evidence not after
460
Activity not before
418
Activity not after
448
Place of Evidence - Region
Gaul and Frankish kingdoms
Place of evidence - City name in other Language(s)
Tours
Tours
Toronica urbs
Prisciniacensim vicus
Pressigny
Turonorum civitas
Ceratensis vicus
Céré
Cult Activities - Miracles
Miracle during lifetime
Cult Activities - Protagonists in Cult and Narratives
Ecclesiastics - bishops
Source
The Gallic Chronicle of 452 was written by an unknown author who is generally located by scholars in southern Gaul on the basis of the prominence of southern Gallic events in the Chronicle. The last event mentioned in the Chronicle is the invasion of Italy by Attila in 452. It is therefore assumed to have been compiled at around that date, hence its modern title. For full discussion see Muhlberger 1990, 136-192; Burgess 2001, 52-65.
The Gallic Chronicle of 452 is a continuation of the chronicle of Jerome, beginning when Jerome's concludes (in the 370s), and has the same chronological system, which makes simultaneous use of years from the birth of Abraham, Olympiads, and regnal years of Roman emperors (Burgess 2001, 52, 57-60).
Discussion
The reference to Germanus of Auxerre appears in the chronicle among the entries for the years 432/3. Germanus is one of two Gallic bishops for whom the chronicler implies sainthood by referring to his miraculous powers (virtutes), the other being Martin of Tours (E03523).
Bibliography
Editions:
Mommsen, T., Chronica Gallica a.CCCCLII, in: Chronica Minora saec. IV. V. VI. VII., vol. 1 (Monumenta Germaniae Historica: Auctores Antiquissimi 9; Berlin: Apud Weidmannos, 1892), 646-662.
Burgess, R., "The Gallic Chronicle of 452: A New Critical Edition with a Brief Introduction," in: R.W. Mathisen and D. Shanzer (eds.), Society and Culture in Late Antique Gaul: Revisiting the Sources (Aldershot: Ashgate, 2001), 52-84, pp. 67-82.
English translation:
Murray, A.C., From Roman to Merovingian Gaul: A Reader (Peterborough, Ontario: Broadview Press, 2000), 76-85.
Further reading:
Muhlberger, S., The Fifth-Century Chroniclers: Prosper, Hydatius, and the Gallic Chronicler of 452 (Leeds: Francis Cairns, 1990).