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Symmachus
Pope from 498 to 514
SaintResearchedDate unknown
Feast: 19 July (not on the universal Roman calendar; kept in the Roman Martyrology or local calendars)
Born
460
Died
19 July 514
verified
Beatified
—
not on record
Canonised
—
not on record
Who they were
Symmachus, a Sardinian baptised at Rome, was elected pope by the majority of the clergy on 22 November 498, but a faction backed by Byzantine interests set up the antipope Laurentius, and years of conflict followed.
He was generous to the people of northern Italy suffering from barbarian invasions. He died on 19 July 514 and is venerated in the Roman Church as a saint.
The miracles
There was never a formal cause: he has been honoured as a saint since before the Church's formal processes began.
Why that counted as sanctity
A pope who kept faith through a long schism.
Sources
- Catholic Encyclopedia (1913), via New Advent - Pope St. Symmachus
- Wikidata Q160935 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — Pope Symmachus (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.