Bertrand of Comminges
Bertrand of Comminges was Bishop of Comminges, in the diocese of Toulouse, France. It is after him that the commune of Saint-Bertrand-de-Comminges, is named.
Early life
Bertrand de l'Isle was born at L'Isle-Jourdain, in 1050, to Raymond Atton, who was a military officer and Lord of L'Isle-Jourdain, and Gervaise Emma Taillefer, daughter of Count William III Taillefer de Toulouse. William IV and Raymond IV of Saint-Gilles, were his cousins. Bertrand was raised to be a knight but in adulthood he entered religious life.Religious life
Bertrand became a canon of Saint Augustine in Toulouse, and then successively archdeacon of Toulouse and Lugdunum Convenarum. In this role, which he maintained until his death, he implemented in his mountain diocese principles of the Gregorian reform, both in regard to the discipline of clergy as religious and moral life of the laity. He participated in the reform councils of Bordeaux, Clermont and Poitiers.During his long episcopate, almost half a century,
the city of Lugdunum Convenarum - which would later take his name, Saint-Bertrand-de-Comminges - was revived. It became a stop for pilgrims on the way to Santiago de Compostela. He rebuilt the cathedral, with its Romanesque cloister. The cathedral would later be dedicated in his honour. It is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Sites of the Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France.