Getulius and Companions

The Holy Martyrs Getulius and Companions, namely Caerealis, Amantius and Primitivus, suffered around the year 120 at Gabii and Tivoli, near Rome. They are commemorated on 10 June. According to tradition Getulius was the husband of Saint Symphorosa, an officer in the Roman army who resigned when he became a Christian and retired to his estates near Tivoli. His name means "of the Gaetuli", a tribe of North Africa.

Caerealis, an imperial legate sent to arrest him, and Primitivus, another officer sent after him, were converted by Getulius, and Amantius was his brother. According to the Passio, all four were tied to a stake and set alight, but the fire did not harm them; they were then clubbed and beheaded. Some say Getulius was killed on the Via Salaria and call him the father of the seven martyrs. Symphorosa buried them in an arenarium on her estate. In 867 Abbot Peter of Farfa moved his relics to his abbey, yet Rome is also thought to hold relics of him, in the principal altar of the church of Sant'Angelo in Pescheria.