Saint Maurice

Maurice is said to have been the commander of the Theban Legion: a legion made up entirely of Egyptian Christians, stationed on the eastern borders of the empire and then moved to Gaul by Diocletian. The story, which reaches us through a fifth-century passio, says that the army made camp at Agaunum, in the Swiss Valais, and that the soldiers were ordered to take part in the sacrifices and to crack down on the Christians of the area. They refused. Maximian ordered a decimation: one man in ten killed. They refused again. He ordered a second decimation. In the end he had them all killed. It has to be said honestly: there is no historical proof that either Maurice or his legion existed, and scholars have argued for centuries over whether there is a real event behind that story, perhaps a smaller one, or not. What is certain is the enormous scale of the cult. At Agaunum rose the Abbey of Saint-Maurice, founded in 515: it is the oldest monastery in the West still active without interruption — fifteen hundred years. The name Maurizio became Moritz, Morris, Maurice, Mauricio, and it traveled everywhere. In Italy he is the patron of the House of Savoy — the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus is theirs — and of a great many cities, including Turin, of which he is co-patron, and Asti. If your name is Maurice, today is your name day.