Saint Peter of Tarentaise

Peter (1102 – 14 September 1174), usually known as Peter of Tarentaise (French: Pierre de Tarentaise), was a Cistercian monk who served as the archbishop of Tarentaise (as Peter II) from 1141 until his death. In 1132, he founded Tamié Abbey as a daughter house of Bonnevaux Abbey. Peter tried to refuse an elevation to the episcopate though his superiors and Bernard of Clairvaux insisted that he accept the position. As archbishop, he had special care for the poor, the ill, and those who traveled the Alpine passes. Peter died in 1174 as he attempted to mediate between feuding monarchs after a serious but brief illness. Miracles were reported at his tomb after his death and this led Pope Celestine III to canonize Peter as a saint in mid-1191. Peter was born in 1102 on a farm near Saint-Maurice-l'Exil, not far from the Cistercian Bonnevaux Abbey. His father often offered hospitality to the monks when they had to leave the monastery on business. In 1122, he joined the Cistercians at Bonnevaux and was soon followed by his father and his brothers Lambert and Andrew. His mother and sister joined the Cistercian nuns at Saint Paul d'Izeaux. The Archbishop of Tarentaise, (also named Peter, and the first Cistercian raised to the episcopate), and Amadeus III, Count of Savoy wished to establish a shelter for pilgrims and travelers along the old Roman road from Vienne to Milan. In 1132, Peter, his abbot, and twelve other monks founded Tamié Abbey in a defile of the Bauges mountains, as a daughter house of Bonnevaux. Once Abbot John was satisfied that the monks had adequate shelter, he returned to Bonnevaux, leaving Peter as abbot of the new monastery. Peter enjoyed humbly serving and conversing with the strangers who sought the hospitality of the monks. In 1142, at the insistence of his superiors including Bernard of Clairvaux, Peter reluctantly accepted the position as the Archbishop of Tarentaise.