Mérault of Ension

Mérault of Ension was a monk of Boismé in France, probably of the sixth century, founder of a community of Benedictines at Boismé. He is venerated as a saint in the Western Church.

Born at Boismé, he became a monk at the abbey of Ension, then returned to Boismé, where he founded a chapel and a community of Benedictines. Pilgrimages were made to him. A legend tells that he won by cunning a contest for a larger parish, and his rival cut off his head; the saint is said to have washed his head at the fountain and set it back on his shoulders. For this reason the water of his fountain is used for headaches; the fountain was restored in 2013, and the legendary accounts of him were then gathered.

The antiquity of his veneration is shown by a charter of 1058, which says that his body rests in the church that bears his name. A street in Boismé is also named after him. He may be connected with Méraut (or Merald), abbot of Vendôme, whose feast is 23 February and who is said to have gone south under pressure from the Normans; but the sources give no sure day for Mérault of Ension.