Biography
Gerald of Sauve-Majeure
About Gerald of Sauve-Majeure
Gerald of Sauve-Majeure, also called Gérard de Corbie, was born near Corbie in Picardy around 1025. He entered the Benedictine abbey there and later served as its cellarer. After pilgrimages and a difficult period as abbot at Saint-Vincent in Laon, he sought a new setting for monastic life.
In 1079 Gerald and companions settled on forest land near Bordeaux offered by William VIII of Aquitaine. They founded the abbey of La Sauve-Majeure, also called Grande-Sauve, and began building the church soon afterward. The New Catholic Encyclopedia records the house’s freedom from lay feudal control and its early growth. Gerald’s work helped make the forest foundation a center for Benedictine communities.
Gerald died at the abbey on 5 April 1095 and was canonized by Celestine III on 27 April 1197. The French Catholic calendar gives 5 April as his memorial and 27 April as a local Bordeaux feast marking the canonization anniversary. These dates describe different observances of one founder. His record should not be confused with other saints named Gerald or Gérard, including the bishop of Toul.
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