JULIAN THE HOSPITALLER, St. — Neither the date nor the place of his birth can be fixed; his biographical details are purely legendary, and the legend appears from the 12th century onwards in multiple versions.
He is said to have been born in France (Le Mans, Anjou), in Belgium (Ath), around the middle of the 7th century, or in Italy (Naples). He is said to have killed his parents as the result of a tragic mistake: upon learning of his crime, he came to Rome to seek absolution and built a hospital for pilgrims on the Gardon River in Provence or in the place called Isola on the banks of the Potenza River, near Macerata. The cult, initially private, spread into various liturgical books only at a very late date, as in the *Missal of Aquileia* of 1519 (on 29 January). Even the dates of his feast vary: 13 January, 12 February, 31 March, 31 August. The Belgian national church in Rome is dedicated to him.
The legend of G. has also exerted a notable influence on art: among many works, mention may be made of the stained-glass windows of Chartres from the 13th century, the 15th-century triptych preserved in Burgos; the frescoes of the cathedral of Trento from the 14th century and of the Palazzo Comunale of Assisi (early 15th century); the 15th-century wooden group in the chapel of St. G. at Boussoit-sur-Haine in Belgium.
FOLKLORE. — The ‘popular legend of St. G.’ is said to have arisen in the Middle Ages, probably in French or Belgian territory, and has vividly struck the imagination of the common people. He is invoked by those about to undertake a journey, to avoid bad encounters and ensure a good lodging. Besides being the patron of travelers, he is also the protector of innkeepers and of the cities of Ghent and Macerata. Already in the *Decameron* (Second Day, 11th story) the *Paternoster* of St. G. is mentioned, which still survives in the oral tradition of various Italian regions. St. G. has inspired popular poems, which follow the narrative as given in the *Golden Legend*; one of these, from Abruzzo, in 171 verses, was published by *Percopo*; another, in about thirty ottava rima stanzas, is preserved in incunabula of the Biblioteca Casanatense (no. 1764), the University Library of Bologna (no. 21), and the Marciana Library of Venice (Misc. 1945, 14) and continued to be printed in crude popular booklets until the 18th century. The main episodes of the legend are concisely narrated in a popular “oration” in hendecasyllabic verse, widespread from Calabria to Romagna. Flaubert took up the theme and developed it literarily in one of his *Trois contes* (Paris 1886).