Saint Lul

Saint Lullus (also known as Lull or Lul, born AD 710 – died 16 October 786) was the first permanent archbishop of Mainz, succeeding Saint Boniface, and first abbot of the Benedictine Hersfeld Abbey. He is historiographically considered the first official sovereign of the Electorate of Mainz. Lullus was born in Wessex around AD 710. He was a monk in the Benedictine monastery of Malmesbury Abbey in Wiltshire. His earlier name may have been "Rehdgerus" (possible in a multitude of spellings including Ratkar, Hredgar, Raedgar, etc.). During a pilgrimage to Rome in 737, he met Saint Boniface and decided to join him in his missionary work in northern Germany. In 738, Lullus joined the Benedictine monastery of Fritzlar, founded by Boniface in 732. There, his teacher was abbot Saint Wigbert, who had also come from England. In 741, Charles Martel died, and in this year the most important phase of Boniface's career started, with Lullus as his closest assistant. Many of the biographical facts about Lullus derive from the Boniface Correspondence: he is attested as a deacon in 745-46, as Boniface's archdeacon in 746-47, and as priest in 751, though he was probably ordained before that. The correspondence evidences that Lullus was trusted enough to be Boniface's messenger (he went to Rome twice on his behalf), including in the secret negotiations over Boniface's successor at Mainz. Lullus exchanged letters (and gifts) with Edburga of Minster-in-Thanet and Leoba, among others. Since he was the youngest of Boniface's associates and was not yet tied to a specific place, he grew to be his closest associate. Moreover, a study by Michael Tangl, cited by Theodor Schieffer, suggests that Boniface, whose eyesight had begun to fail him early in the 740s, may have used Lullus's services in reading and writing the letters that were such an important part of his work. Tangl suspects that Lullus likely cooperated with Boniface on some of the most important letters.