Blessed Roméo de Limoges

Romeo (died c. 1380) was a lay brother of the Carmelite Order at the monastery of Limoges. He traveled to the Holy Land with the priest Avertan, from the same monastery. They then went together to Rome to perform another pilgrimage. There, they contracted the plague and died in Lucca, Tuscany. As his name was unknown, he was buried under the name Romeo, which in the Middle Ages designated Romans or, from the Latin romaeus, a pilgrim to Rome, and later a pilgrim in general; it is under this name that he was beatified. They were given a grand funeral. They were placed in altars, and a marvelous biography was composed for them, as they had come from so far away to visit the tomb of Christ. Romeo is celebrated on March 4, and Avertan on February 25, the day of their respective deaths, estimated to be around 1380. After several translations, their bodies have rested since 1826 in the Basilica of Saints Paulinus and Donatus in Lucca. In 1842, the cult of Blessed Romeo was confirmed ab immemorabilis. Both are celebrated as blessed, Avertan on February 25.