ANSBERT OF ROUEN, ST.

Archbishop of Rouen; b. Chaussy, France, c. mid-seventh century; d. Hautmont, France, Feb. 9, 693. He came from a distinguished family of Chaussy and rose to be referendarius in the court of Chlotar III (d. 673). In 673 he entered the benedictine Order at Fontenelle under Abbot wandrille, and in 679 he was himself made abbot. He succeeded Ouen in the See of Rouen in 684. He had dedicated a poem to his saintly predecessor, and he promoted his cult. About 689 he secured for Fontenelle the right to elect its abbot free from royal and episcopal interference. Soon after, he was for political reasons confined by Pepin of Heristal (d. 714) to a monastery at Hautmont, where he died. His body was returned to Rouen and buried in the abbey church, where the translation of his relics took place early in the eighth century. He is mentioned in the Roman Martyrology, and his biography, written c. 800, is fairly trustworthy.

Feast: Feb. 9.

Bibliography: Vita Ansberti, Monumenta Germaniae Historica: Scriptores rerum Merovingicarum 5:613–643, critical ed. w. levison; uncritical ed. Acta Sanctorum 2 (1863) 348–357. His poem pub. by w. wattenbach, Neues Archiv der Gesellschaft für ältere deutsche Geschichtskunde 14:171–172. According to s. loevenfeld, ed., Gesta abbatum Fontenellensium, Monumenta Germaniae Historica: Scriptores rerum Germanicarum 28 (1886) 48, A. wrote Quaestiones ad Siwinum reclausum, but this has been lost. e. vacandard, Dictionnaire d'histoire et de géographie ecclésiastiques, ed. a. baudrillart et al. (Paris 1912) 3:431–433; "Les Deux vies de saint A.," Revue des questions historiques 67 (1900) 600–612. r. aigrain, Catholicisme 1:611–612. a. m. zimmermann, Kalendarium Benedictinum (Metten 1933–38) 1:189–191.

[m. c. mccarthy]