Hubertus
Encyclopedia
Saint Hubertus or Hubert (born c. 656 to 658, probably in Toulouse
; died 30 May 727 in Tervuren
near Brussels
, Belgium
), called the "Apostle of the Ardennes
" was the first Bishop of Liège. Hubertus is a Christian
saint
, the patron saint
of hunters, mathematicians, opticians and metalworkers, and used to be invoked to cure rabies
until the early 20th century through the use of the traditional St Hubert's Key
. Saint Hubert was widely venerated in the Middle Ages
. The iconography of his legend is entangled with the legend of St Eustace.
The Bollandists published seven early lives of this popular saint (Acta Sanctorum
November, i. 759-930), the first being the work of a contemporary. Unfortunately, it is very sparing of details.
, Duke of Aquitaine
. Bertrand's wife is variously given in hagiographies as Hugbern, and as Afre, and sister of Saint Oda
or perhaps Oda herself, the uncertainty being a mark of the low rating accorded women in Merovingian culture, where kings fathered heirs upon peasant women. Modern genealogy often lists Aude or Ode as a wife of Bertrand and mother of Hubert's brother Eudo.
As a youth, Hubert was sent to the Neustria
n court of Theuderic III
at Paris, where his charm and agreeable address led to his investment with the dignity of "count of the palace
". Like many nobles of the time, Hubert was addicted to the chase. Meanwhile, the tyrannical conduct of Ebroin
, mayor of the Neustrian palace
, caused a general emigration of the nobles and others to the court of Austrasia
at Metz
. Hubert soon followed them and was warmly welcomed by Pippin of Heristal, mayor of the palace, who created him almost immediately grand-master of the household. About this time (682) Hubert married Floribanne, daughter of Dagobert, Count of Leuven
, a great and suitable match. Their son Floribert would later become bishop of Liège, for bishoprics were all but accounted fiefs heritable in the great families of the Merovingian kingdoms..
, the animal turned and, as the pious legend narrates, he was astounded at perceiving a crucifix standing between its antlers, while he heard a voice saying: "Hubert, unless thou turnest to the Lord, and leadest an holy life, thou shalt quickly go down into hell". Hubert dismounted, prostrated himself and said, "Lord, what wouldst Thou have me do?" He received the answer, "Go and seek Lambert, and he will instruct you."
The story of the hart appears first in one of the later legendary hagiographies (Bibliotheca hagiographica latina, nos. 3994-4002) and has been appropriated from the legend of Saint Eustace or Placidus. It was first attributed to St. Hubert in the 15th century.
, for there Lambert was bishop. Saint Lambert received Hubert kindly, and became his spiritual director. Hubert now renounced all his very considerable honors, and gave up his birthright to the Aquitaine to his younger brother Odo
, whom he made guardian of his infant son, Floribert. Having distributed all his personal wealth among the poor, he studied for the priesthood, was soon ordained, and shortly afterwards became one of St. Lambert's chief associates in the administration of his diocese. By the advice of St. Lambert, Hubert made a pilgrimage to Rome in 708, but during his absence, Lambert was assassinated by the followers of Pippin. According to the hagiographies of Hubert, this act was simultaneously revealed to the pope in a vision, together with an injunction to appoint Hubert bishop of Maastricht.
He distributed his episcopal revenues among the poor, was diligent in fasting and prayer, and became famous for his eloquence in the pulpit. In 720, in obedience to a vision, Hubert translated
St. Lambert's remains from Maastrict to Liège with great pomp and ceremonial, several neighboring bishops assisting. A basilica for the relics was built upon the site of Lambert's martyrdom, and was made a cathedral the following year, the see being removed from Maastricht to Liège, then only a small village. This laid the foundation of the future greatness of Liège, of which Saint Lambert is honored as patron, and Saint Hubert as founder and first bishop.
Hubert actively evangelised among the pagans in the extensive Ardennes
forests and in Toxandria
, a district stretching from near Tongeren to the confluence of the Waal and the Rhine.
Hubertus died peacefully in Fura, Brabant, 30 May 727 or 728. He was first buried in the collegiate church of St. Peter, Liège, but his bones were exhumed and translated to the Benedictine Abbey of Amdain ("Andagium", in French "Andage", the present-day Saint-Hubert, Belgium
) in the Ardennes in 825. The abbey became a focus for pilgrimages, until the coffin disappeared during the Reformation
. His feast day is the 3rd of November, probably the date of the translation of his relics to Amdain.
and partly because of his noble birth several military orders were named after him: the Bavaria
n, the Bohemia
n and that of the Archbishop-Elector of Cologne. Saint Hubert of Liège is patron of archers; dogs; forest workers; hunting; huntsmen; Liege, Belgium; mathematicians; metal workers; Saint-Lamberge, Belgium; smelters; and trappers. Hubertus, along with Quirinus of Neuss, Cornelius and Anthony
, was venerated as one of the Four Holy Marshals
(Vier Marschälle Gottes) in the Rhineland
.
The St. Hubertus Orden (Order of Saint Hubert), a chivalric order
, was founded in 1444 by Gerhard V of Jülich and Berg
.
Toulouse
Toulouse is a city in the Haute-Garonne department in southwestern FranceIt lies on the banks of the River Garonne, 590 km away from Paris and half-way between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea...
; died 30 May 727 in Tervuren
Tervuren
Tervuren is a municipality in the province of Flemish Brabant, in Flanders, one of the three regions of Belgium. The municipality comprises the villages of Duisburg, Tervuren, Vossem and Moorsel. On January 1, 2006, Tervuren had a total population of 20,636...
near Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
), called the "Apostle of the Ardennes
Ardennes
The Ardennes is a region of extensive forests, rolling hills and ridges formed within the Givetian Ardennes mountain range, primarily in Belgium and Luxembourg, but stretching into France , and geologically into the Eifel...
" was the first Bishop of Liège. Hubertus is a Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
saint
Saint
A saint is a holy person. In various religions, saints are people who are believed to have exceptional holiness.In Christian usage, "saint" refers to any believer who is "in Christ", and in whom Christ dwells, whether in heaven or in earth...
, the patron saint
Patron saint
A patron saint is a saint who is regarded as the intercessor and advocate in heaven of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or person...
of hunters, mathematicians, opticians and metalworkers, and used to be invoked to cure rabies
Rabies
Rabies is a viral disease that causes acute encephalitis in warm-blooded animals. It is zoonotic , most commonly by a bite from an infected animal. For a human, rabies is almost invariably fatal if post-exposure prophylaxis is not administered prior to the onset of severe symptoms...
until the early 20th century through the use of the traditional St Hubert's Key
St Hubert's Key
St Hubert’s Key took the form of a metal nail or bar with a decorative head. It was used in Europe until the early 20th century as a traditional cure for rabies and was named for St Hubert, the patron saint of hunters, mathematicians, opticians and metalworkers....
. Saint Hubert was widely venerated in the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
. The iconography of his legend is entangled with the legend of St Eustace.
The Bollandists published seven early lives of this popular saint (Acta Sanctorum
Acta Sanctorum
Acta Sanctorum is an encyclopedic text in 68 folio volumes of documents examining the lives of Christian saints, in essence a critical hagiography, which is organised according to each saint's feast day. It begins with two January volumes, published in 1643, and ended with the Propylaeum to...
November, i. 759-930), the first being the work of a contemporary. Unfortunately, it is very sparing of details.
Youth
Hubert was the eldest son and apparent heir of Boggis/BertrandBoggis
Boggis, Bohggis, or Bodogisel was the Merovingians Duke of Aquitaine from the death of Chilperic of Aquitaine in 632 until his death....
, Duke of Aquitaine
Duke of Aquitaine
The Duke of Aquitaine ruled the historical region of Aquitaine under the supremacy of Frankish, English and later French kings....
. Bertrand's wife is variously given in hagiographies as Hugbern, and as Afre, and sister of Saint Oda
Saint Oda
Saint Oda of Scotland was a woman, supposedly of Scottish origin, who became a holy woman in the Netherlands.-Life:Oda was born blind and her father sent her on pilgrimage to Liège to visit the relics of Saint Lambert. While praying at Saint Lambert's grave she was miraculously cured from her...
or perhaps Oda herself, the uncertainty being a mark of the low rating accorded women in Merovingian culture, where kings fathered heirs upon peasant women. Modern genealogy often lists Aude or Ode as a wife of Bertrand and mother of Hubert's brother Eudo.
As a youth, Hubert was sent to the Neustria
Neustria
The territory of Neustria or Neustrasia, meaning "new [western] land", originated in 511, made up of the regions from Aquitaine to the English Channel, approximating most of the north of present-day France, with Paris and Soissons as its main cities...
n court of Theuderic III
Theuderic III
Theuderic III was the king of Neustria on two occasions and king of Austrasia from 679 to his death in 691. Thus, he was the king of all the Franks from 679...
at Paris, where his charm and agreeable address led to his investment with the dignity of "count of the palace
Count palatine
Count palatine is a high noble title, used to render several comital styles, in some cases also shortened to Palatine, which can have other meanings as well.-Comes palatinus:...
". Like many nobles of the time, Hubert was addicted to the chase. Meanwhile, the tyrannical conduct of Ebroin
Ebroin
Ebroin was the Frankish mayor of the palace of Neustria on two occasions; firstly from 658 to his deposition in 673 and secondly from 675 to his death in 680 or 681...
, mayor of the Neustrian palace
Mayor of the Palace
Mayor of the Palace was an early medieval title and office, also called majordomo, from the Latin title maior domus , used most notably in the Frankish kingdoms in the 7th and 8th centuries....
, caused a general emigration of the nobles and others to the court of Austrasia
Austrasia
Austrasia formed the northeastern portion of the Kingdom of the Merovingian Franks, comprising parts of the territory of present-day eastern France, western Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. Metz served as its capital, although some Austrasian kings ruled from Rheims, Trier, and...
at Metz
Metz
Metz is a city in the northeast of France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers.Metz is the capital of the Lorraine region and prefecture of the Moselle department. Located near the tripoint along the junction of France, Germany, and Luxembourg, Metz forms a central place...
. Hubert soon followed them and was warmly welcomed by Pippin of Heristal, mayor of the palace, who created him almost immediately grand-master of the household. About this time (682) Hubert married Floribanne, daughter of Dagobert, Count of Leuven
Leuven
Leuven is the capital of the province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region, Belgium...
, a great and suitable match. Their son Floribert would later become bishop of Liège, for bishoprics were all but accounted fiefs heritable in the great families of the Merovingian kingdoms..
Hubertus' withdrawal
His wife died giving birth to their son, and Hubert retreated from the court, withdrew into the forested Ardennes, and gave himself up entirely to hunting. But a great spiritual revolution was imminent. On Good Friday morning, when the faithful were crowding the churches, Hubert sallied forth to the chase. As he was pursuing a magnificent stag or hartHart (deer)
The word hart is an old alternative word for "stag" ....
, the animal turned and, as the pious legend narrates, he was astounded at perceiving a crucifix standing between its antlers, while he heard a voice saying: "Hubert, unless thou turnest to the Lord, and leadest an holy life, thou shalt quickly go down into hell". Hubert dismounted, prostrated himself and said, "Lord, what wouldst Thou have me do?" He received the answer, "Go and seek Lambert, and he will instruct you."
The story of the hart appears first in one of the later legendary hagiographies (Bibliotheca hagiographica latina, nos. 3994-4002) and has been appropriated from the legend of Saint Eustace or Placidus. It was first attributed to St. Hubert in the 15th century.
Hubertus as a cleric and bishop
Be that as it may, Hubert set out immediately for MaastrichtMaastricht
Maastricht is situated on both sides of the Meuse river in the south-eastern part of the Netherlands, on the Belgian border and near the German border...
, for there Lambert was bishop. Saint Lambert received Hubert kindly, and became his spiritual director. Hubert now renounced all his very considerable honors, and gave up his birthright to the Aquitaine to his younger brother Odo
Odo of Aquitaine
Odo the Great , Duke of Aquitaine, obtained this dignity by 700. His territory included the Duchy of Vasconia in the south-west of Gaul and the Duchy of Aquitaine , a realm extending from the Loire to the Pyrenees, with capital in Toulouse...
, whom he made guardian of his infant son, Floribert. Having distributed all his personal wealth among the poor, he studied for the priesthood, was soon ordained, and shortly afterwards became one of St. Lambert's chief associates in the administration of his diocese. By the advice of St. Lambert, Hubert made a pilgrimage to Rome in 708, but during his absence, Lambert was assassinated by the followers of Pippin. According to the hagiographies of Hubert, this act was simultaneously revealed to the pope in a vision, together with an injunction to appoint Hubert bishop of Maastricht.
He distributed his episcopal revenues among the poor, was diligent in fasting and prayer, and became famous for his eloquence in the pulpit. In 720, in obedience to a vision, Hubert translated
Translation (relics)
In Christianity, the translation of relics is the removal of holy objects from one locality to another ; usually only the movement of the remains of the saint's body would be treated so formally, with secondary relics such as items of clothing treated with less ceremony...
St. Lambert's remains from Maastrict to Liège with great pomp and ceremonial, several neighboring bishops assisting. A basilica for the relics was built upon the site of Lambert's martyrdom, and was made a cathedral the following year, the see being removed from Maastricht to Liège, then only a small village. This laid the foundation of the future greatness of Liège, of which Saint Lambert is honored as patron, and Saint Hubert as founder and first bishop.
Hubert actively evangelised among the pagans in the extensive Ardennes
Ardennes
The Ardennes is a region of extensive forests, rolling hills and ridges formed within the Givetian Ardennes mountain range, primarily in Belgium and Luxembourg, but stretching into France , and geologically into the Eifel...
forests and in Toxandria
Toxandria
Toxandria is the classical name for a region between the Meuse and the Scheldt rivers in the Netherlands and Belgium. The name is also spelled Taxandria...
, a district stretching from near Tongeren to the confluence of the Waal and the Rhine.
Saint-Hubert, Belgium
Saint-Hubert is a Walloon municipality of Belgium located in the province of Luxembourg.On 1 January 2007 the municipality, which covers 111.16 km², had 5,737 inhabitants, giving a population density of 51.6 inhabitants per square kilometre....
) in the Ardennes in 825. The abbey became a focus for pilgrimages, until the coffin disappeared during the Reformation
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
. His feast day is the 3rd of November, probably the date of the translation of his relics to Amdain.
Veneration
Saint Hubert was widely venerated in the Middle AgesMiddle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
and partly because of his noble birth several military orders were named after him: the Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
n, the Bohemia
Bohemia
Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
n and that of the Archbishop-Elector of Cologne. Saint Hubert of Liège is patron of archers; dogs; forest workers; hunting; huntsmen; Liege, Belgium; mathematicians; metal workers; Saint-Lamberge, Belgium; smelters; and trappers. Hubertus, along with Quirinus of Neuss, Cornelius and Anthony
Anthony the Great
Anthony the Great or Antony the Great , , also known as Saint Anthony, Anthony the Abbot, Anthony of Egypt, Anthony of the Desert, Anthony the Anchorite, Abba Antonius , and Father of All Monks, was a Christian saint from Egypt, a prominent leader among the Desert Fathers...
, was venerated as one of the Four Holy Marshals
Four Holy Marshals
The Four Holy Marshals are four saints venerated in the Rhineland, especially at Cologne, Liège, Aachen, and Eifel. They are conceived as standing particularly close to throne of God, and thus powerful intercessors...
(Vier Marschälle Gottes) in the Rhineland
Rhineland
Historically, the Rhinelands refers to a loosely-defined region embracing the land on either bank of the River Rhine in central Europe....
.
The St. Hubertus Orden (Order of Saint Hubert), a chivalric order
Chivalric order
Chivalric orders are societies and fellowships of knights that have been created by European monarchs in imitation of the military orders of the Crusades...
, was founded in 1444 by Gerhard V of Jülich and Berg
Duchy of Jülich
The Duchy of Jülich comprised a state within the Holy Roman Empire from the 11th to the 18th centuries. The duchy lay left of the Rhine river between the Electorate of Cologne in the east and the Duchy of Limburg in the west. It had territories on both sides of the river Rur, around its capital...
.
External links
- Catholic Encyclopedia: Saint Hubert
- Military Orders of St. Hubert - From the Catholic Encyclopedia Extract from Das Ökumenische Heiligenlexikon; illustration of Jan van EyckJan van EyckJan van Eyck was a Flemish painter active in Bruges and considered one of the best Northern European painters of the 15th century....
's: Ghent Altarpiece, 1432, with scenes from the life of Saint Hubert - Painting from the National Gallery, London The Conversion of Saint Hubert
- Saint Hubert
- Dutch guildes named after Saint Hubert can be found in 5 villages in Brabant; Leur, Liessel, Drunen, Berkel-Enschot and Loon op Zand (website Leur; http://www.st-hubertus-leur.nl, only in Dutch.