Victor Maurus

Saint Victor the Moor
Martyr
Born	3rd century Mauretania, Africa
Died	c. 303 Milan, Italy
Venerated in	Eastern Orthodox Church Roman Catholic Church Lutheranism
Feast	8 May
Attributes	man being thrown into a furnace; man roasted in an oven; Moorish soldier trampling on a broken altar
Patronage	Varese, Italy; Ceriano Laghetto, Italy

Victor the Moor (in Latin: Victor Maurus) (born 3rd century in Mauretania; died ca. 303 in Milan) was a native of Mauretania and a Christian martyr, according to tradition, and is venerated as a saint.

Life

Victor, born into a Christian family, was a soldier in the Roman Praetorian Guard under Maximian. ^[1] In the "Acts", which date back to the 8th century, it is said that Victor refused to continue his military service. Dragged to the Hippodrome of the Circus in the presence of Maximian Herculean and his adviser Anulinus, he refused to betray his beliefs despite the torments to which he was subjected. Whipped and imprisoned, after an almost miraculous escape, he was again captured. He was dragged into a nearby elm wood and decapitated around the year 303. ^[2]

Veneration

Statue of St Victor in Museo del Duomo, Milan. Unknown Milanese sculptor, last decade of 15th century

His bones were later buried at an ancient basilica on the site of a former Roman mausoleum. They were later moved to the oratory of San Vittore in Ciel d'Oro, originally a free-standing chapel, commissioned by bishop Maternus to hold the relics of Saint Victor. It is now part of the Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio, built by Ambrose, fourth-century bishop of Milan, and initially called the "Basilica Martyrum". ^[3] Victor's cause was promoted by Ambrose.

Gregory of Tours in his Glory of the Martyrs said that Victor's intercession was effective in freeing captives. ^[4] In 1576, Bishop Charles Borromeo had the relics returned to the rebuilt San Vittore al Corpo. ^[1] Forensic examinations conducted in 2018 indicated a male in his mid-twenties, with clear signs of decapitation. ^[5]

Numerous churches have been dedicated to him in the city itself and throughout the Diocese of Milan and its neighbours.

His memorial day is May 8 in the Eastern Orthodox Church, Roman Catholic Church and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Victor is the patron saint of prisoners and exiles. ^[6]

References

1. Holweck, Frederick George. A Biographical Dictionary of the Saints: With a General Introduction on Hagiology United Kingdom, B. Herder Book Company, 1924. p. 1013
2. Bargellini, Piero. "San Vittore il Moro Martire", Santi e Beati, August 20, 2020
3. ""Storia della Basilica", Basilica San Vittore al Corpo". Archived from the original on 2021-11-28. Retrieved 2021-11-28.
4. "Victor 'Maurus'/the Moor, soldier and martyr of Milan", The Cult of Saints in Late Antiquity, University of Oxford
5. DiPippo, Gregory. "The Relics of St Victor Maurus in Milan", New Liturgical Movement, May 13, 2021
6. "Saint Victor Maurus of Milan", l'Arte Sacra