Crispin of Soissons

About Crispin of Soissons

Crispin of Soissons is remembered alongside Crispinian as a Christian shoemaker and martyr. The local tradition, still retold by the Diocese of Soissons, portrays the two making shoes for poor people before their arrest. When threatened with death and offered wealth for sacrificing to the gods, they refused.

The Catholic Encyclopedia cautions that their elaborate martyrdom story is late and unreliable, and that even their supposed brotherhood is unproved. Its account distinguishes the enduring cult from the dramatic tortures described in the legend. Shoemakers, saddlers and tanners came to honor the two martyrs as patrons of their trades.

A diocesan altar booklet points to their October 25 commemoration in early martyrologies, including Usuard's ninth-century compilation. It also records a sealed, undated packet attributed to the martyrs, placed in an altar at the Little Sisters of the Poor's house in Saint-Quentin on August 3, 1931. Such records document how their relics were received and honored.

Crispin's name acquired another life in Shakespeare's Henry V. Before battle, the king imagines survivors remembering their shared ordeal each year on Crispin's feast. The speech binds the saint's day to the soldiers' future stories, wounds and fellowship. These are words spoken by Shakespeare's king, not words preserved from the martyr.

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Prayers for Crispin of Soissons