Gilbert of Sempringham
11th-century founder of the Gilbertine Order
Feast: 4 February (not on the universal Roman calendar; kept in the Roman Martyrology or local calendars)
Who they were
Gilbert, son of a Norman knight and an English mother, was born with a deformity and sent to study in France. Returning, he held the livings of Sempringham and Tirington, and gave Tirington's income to the poor. Ordained against his will, he refused the archdeaconry of Lincoln as a sure way to perdition.
He founded the Order of Gilbertines at Sempringham, and died there in 1189.
The miracles
The Catholic Encyclopedia does not describe the miracles approved in the cause.
Why that counted as sanctity
A humble priest who founded an English religious order and served the poor.
- Catholic Encyclopedia (1913), via New Advent - St. Gilbert of Sempringham
- Wikidata Q1271395 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — Gilbert of Sempringham (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.