Hermenegild
Visigothic prince and Catholic martyr
Feast: 13 April (1962 Missal, III class) · not on the current Roman calendar
Who they were
Hermenegild was a son of Leovigild, the Arian king of the Visigoths in Spain. In 576 he married the Catholic Frankish princess Ingundis, and, influenced by her and by St Leander of Seville, became a Catholic. When his father persecuted Catholics he took up arms and was besieged in Seville; captured, he was stripped of his royal rank and exiled.
Imprisoned, he was ordered to receive Communion from an Arian bishop at Easter, refused, and was put to death on 13 April 585.
The miracles
There was never a formal cause: Hermenegild has been honoured as a martyr since his death.
Why that counted as sanctity
A prince gave up his kingdom and his life rather than deny the Catholic faith.
Connected on this site
- Gregory I Saint“His death was later celebrated as a martyrdom due to the influence of Pope Gregory I's Dialogues, in which he portrayed Hermenegild as a "Catholic martyr rebelling against the tyranny of an Arian father."” — Wikipedia
- Leander of Seville Saint“In 576 he married the Catholic Frankish princess Ingundis, and, influenced by her and by St Leander of Seville, became a Catholic.” — this site's research
- Catholic Encyclopedia (1913), via New Advent - St. Hermengild
- Wikidata Q346578 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — Hermenegild (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.