Missionary Saints of Europe

The historical saints listed below, most of whom lived between 500 and 1000 A.D. are associated with the conversion of a nation or people of Europe to the Catholic faith. Many are monarchs or chieftains who accepted Christianity and encouraged their subjects to convert. Others are missionaries who founded monasteries in pagan lands. The list also includes saints associated with early medieval kingdoms.

Saints of England (Anglo-Saxon)

Many of the most important missionary saints in Europe went forth from the Celtic and Benedictine monasteries of medieval Britain. From the fifth to ninth centuries, British monasteries were centers of scholarship and missionary activity. A more thorough discussion of British monasteries and the saints associated with them can be found on the Monks and Monasteries of Britain page. The following list of British saints covers only a few of the monarchs, bishops, and evangelists who influenced the earliest kingdoms of the British Isles.

Saints of Scotland, Wales, and Ireland (Celts)

Slavic Saints of Eastern Europe

Slavic tribes populated a large area East of German-speaking Europe. They were divided into many tribes with dissimilar histories and customs. Some, such as the Wends, Czechs, and Croats, lived very close to Germany and were incorporated into the Holy Roman Empire. Others, such as the Rus, and Serbs, were converted to Christianity by missionaries from the Byzantine Empire, rather than the Roman West. The Poles were loyal to the Western Church but lived in regions East of the HRE.

Hungarian Saints (Magyars)

The inhabitants of Hunbary were Magyars, a pagan tribe that crossed over the Carpathian mountains in the 8th century, into German territory. After warring with the Germans for several generations the converted to Christianity under St. Stephen, and settled in the Pannonian Basin.

Saints of Scandinavia

The Nordic tribes of the Baltic region were among the last European People to convert to Christianity. Although missionaries such as Ansgar traveled to the North as early as the 7th century, the conversion of the Norsemen to Christianity took many years and little progress was made before 1000 A.D. The first Norsemen to convert were those that left Norway and settled down in Christian Britain and France. They in turn influenced their fellow Norseman, and eventually the Norse kings themselves converted.

Saints of Spain (Visigoths)

The Catholic faith was already practices throughout Visigoth Spain by the romani, or native peoples of Spain. However, the ruling Visigoth aristocracy (adhered to Arian Christianity. The "conversion" of Visigoth Spain to Christianity was focused on the ruling class and army rather than the common people.

Early Saints of the Frankish Empire (Germans)

The Frankish Empire lasted from about 500 to 850 A.D., and at its maximum extent in contained most of West and Central Europe, including both Latin and German speaking populations. During this time it was the most important Christian kingdom in the West. A more complete list of Frankish saints, including Monks, monarchs, bishops and scholars can be found on the Frankish Empire and Rise of France and Germany pages.

The saints listed below are of special interest because they are missionaries or are somehow related to the have to do with the pagan Franks in the west to Christianity, and also of the conversion of Germans tribes in Frankish territories in the east.