Venantius Fortunatus, Saint. — Born c. 530 near Treviso, died at Poitiers shortly after 600.
He studied at Ravenna, made a pilgrimage to the tomb of St Martin (565) in Tours, where he remained for some time. During a journey to Poitiers he became acquainted in a convent with St Radegund, daughter of the king of Thuringia, and her adopted daughter Agnes, who exercised great influence over him. Thus he became a priest and later bishop of Poitiers. Owing to his pleasant character he formed many friendships, not least that of Gregory of Tours. He left a collection of miscellaneous Carmina in 11 books, containing without any precise order hymns, elegies, epigrams, epitaphs, etc. In Book 11 are his famous hymns in honour of the Holy Cross, written on the occasion of the gift of a particle of the Cross by Justin II to Radegund. These are the hymns of the Roman Breviary: the Pange lingua and the Vexilla Regis (11, 2 and 11, 6). In Book 10 there is an Expositio orationis dominicae and his famous poem De navigio suo (10, a), which describes a trip on the Moselle. In Book 11 there is his Expositio Symboli, i.e. an extract from the Commentarius in Symbolum Apostolorum by Rufinus. Outside the collection of miscellaneous Carmina there is transmitted a poem: De excidio Thoringiae, which describes the end of the royal house of Thuringia. A hymn in praise of Mary: «Quem terra, pontus, sidera» and another: «In laudem S. Mariae», together with the hymns: «Tibi laus perennis auctor» and «Agnoscat omne saeculum», have been claimed for V. against F. Leo by G. M. Dreves. Moreover V. wrote an epic poem: De vita s. Martini, and chose lives of saints in prose, among which: Life of St Flavius of Poitiers; Life of St Germanus of Paris (d. 576) and the Life of St Radegund (d. 587). Feast on 14 Dec. in some French and Italian dioceses.