Donatus of Val

Donatus of Val was a hermit, considered a saint by the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church, who died around 535. He was born in the region of Orléans and was invited by Bishop John I of Sisteron to settle in southern Gaul. He retired as a hermit at the foot of the mountain of Lure, near Montfort, where his hermitage has been found in the midst of a complex of four chapels and churches. A cult has been rendered to him since at least the 9th century.

The Roman Martyrology commemorates him on 19 August, near Sisteron, as priest and confessor, endowed from his infancy with the grace of God in an extraordinary manner; he lived many years as an anchorite and, after being renowned for glorious miracles, went to Christ. His commemoration is on 19 August, in the Western calendar (new style). A saint of the undivided Church.