Basilica of Saint Severinus of Bordeaux

The Basilica of Saint Severinus is a church built in Bordeaux at the dawn of the 11th century. In 1998, UNESCO designated the Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France as a World Heritage site, including the three main churches of Bordeaux: the basilica of St. Severinus, the basilica of St Michael and the St. Andrew's cathedral.

History

Ancient origins
The basilica is built upon a Christian necropolis dating to the 4th century CE. The epitaph of Flavinus was engraved beneath a representation of a chrism on the lid of a sarcophagus dating to between 365 and 385 CE, testifying to the Christian presence in Bordeaux to Late Antiquity. This epitaph was extracted during an excavation of the necropolis in 1909. Today, it is housed in the Museum of Aquitaine in Bordeaux.

Foundation legends
Named after the fourth bishop and patron saint of Bordeaux, the history of the basilica begins with the founding of the Abbey of Saint Severinus in the 4th century CE.[citation needed]

Saint Severinus, born in the Levant, arrived in Bordeaux in the 4th century CE and met Bishop Amandus. Gregory of Tours tells the story in his work In Gloria Confessorum: "the Bishop Amandus who governs the church of Bordeaux has a dream one night in which the Lord says to him, 'Lift up and go meet my servant Severin...', and now Saint Severin was coming to meet him. Approaching one another, they greeted each other by name, threw themselves in each other's arms, prayed, kissed and entered the church singing psalms". Thus Severinus became bishop of Bordeaux.

Another legend involving the basilica is that of the Oliphant of Roland (nephew to Charlemagne and famous for his death at Roncevaux) being placed on the altar by the emperor while carrying the remains of the valiant knight. The famous Song of Roland recounts this: "Vint a Burdeles, la citet de... Desur l’alter seint Sevrin le baron Met l’oliphan plein d’or e de manguns: Li pelerin le veient ki la vunt". A Great Step in the Way of Compostela in the Middle Ages, the pilgrims are invited to pass by Saint Severinus to contemplate this relic.