Patroclus of Troyes

Saint Patroclus of Troyes, Martyr, was a wealthy Christian of the city of Tricassinum (today Troyes) in Gaul, who received martyrdom about the year 259, in the time of the emperor Valerian. He is remembered on 21 January.

His parents left him a considerable estate not far from the city, where he led a life of prayer. He was known for his charity, and the Lord gave him the gift of working wonders. He is said to have brought Sabinian of Troyes to the faith. His Passion follows in many parts the Passion of Saint Symphorian of Autun. The “Passion of Saint Patroclus of Troyes” attributes his death to the emperor Aurelian: when Patroclus refused to worship the Roman gods, the emperor ordered him taken to the water and beheaded there, so that his body might not rest on dry land. The guards took him to the Seine, but their eyes were clouded and Patroclus managed to escape briefly across the river. The guards argued over whether their prisoner had been delivered by his God or by magic. In the end he was recaptured and beheaded at Troyes.

Two old beggars, who often received alms from Patroclus, took his body and watched over it until evening. Then Eusebius, the archpriest of that place, and the deacon Liberius came secretly by night, wrapped the body in linen and buried it discreetly, then kept vigil with the two old men. Gregory of Tours tells that a small chapel was built over the grave at Saint-⁠Parres-⁠aux-⁠Tertres. Bruno I, archbishop of Cologne, carried the relics from Troyes to Cologne in 962 and moved them in 964 to Soest in Germany, where they are kept in the church of Saint Patroklus. He is patron of Soest, where a polychrome statue of the saint stands on the facade of the town hall. In art he is shown as a warrior pointing to a fish with a pearl in its mouth and is invoked against demons and fever.