The “Lost” Relics of Saint Véran and Saint Lambert
The Story of Their Rediscovery and the Historic Celebrations in Vence

The years of the French Revolution were marked by chaos, upheaval, and uncertainty across the country, but few institutions suffered as profoundly as the Catholic Church. Revolutionary authorities, driven by a mix of ideological fervor, political necessity, and deep-seated resentment, set out to dismantle the Church’s power and presence in French society. Across France, churches were closed or repurposed, monasteries dissolved, and religious communities dispersed. Sacred spaces were ransacked, relics shattered, statues defaced, and archives burned. Thousands of irreplaceable artworks, manuscripts, and liturgical objects, many of them centuries old, were destroyed, sold off, or melted down. What had been built, preserved, and venerated over generations was, in just a few short years, systematically desecrated and in many cases lost forever. 2

Vence was not spared the revolutionary upheaval sweeping across France. Radical anticlerical figures soon came to dominate the local government, among them a surgeon named Courmette, who is said to have threatened the Bishop of Vence, Jean-Baptiste Pisani de La Gaude, with a hunting rifle. In 1791, Courmette and several other committed revolutionaries were elected to the municipal council.

It was during this turbulent period that Vence Cathedral lost two of its most cherished historic treasures: the 15th-century reliquary busts of its patron saints, Saint Véran and Saint Lambert. For almost three hundred years, these busts had protected the bones of the two saints. They were now sent to the mint to be melted down. For a long time, it seemed that the relics themselves had vanished as well.

This is the story of their disappearance and rediscovery.

The 15th Century Reliquaries of Saint Véran and Saint Lambert

In 1463, Vence was hit by a serious outbreak of plague, part of a much larger epidemic that spread across eastern Provence and the County of Nice. This was not an isolated tragedy. Over the centuries, plague would return again and again, sweeping through the region in successive waves. Communities around Vence were affected in different ways, among them Tourrettes, Cagnes, Saint-Paul, and Villeneuve, while Nice endured especially heavy losses. In the countryside, the fear of infection was so great that some small settlements were temporarily deserted, such as nearby La Gaude, whose residents left their hamlet and took shelter in Saint-Jeannet.

During the epidemic, the people of Vence turned to their patron saints, Saint Véran and Saint Lambert, in prayer. When the danger had passed, and Vence seemed to have escaped the most devastating effects of the disease, the survival of the town was attributed to the intercession of both saints, who were believed to have protected Vence while many neighboring communities suffered far more deeply.

You can read more about Saint Véran in this article: Faith and Legends – Uncovering the 5th-Century Mystique of Saint Véran of Vence.

A short time later, a reliquary bust of Saint Véran was created in gratitude for the saint’s protection of Vence during the plague. The earliest known account comes from Jacques Barcillon, who, in is 17th century unpublished manuscript, The Life of Saint Véran, names the artist as Laurens de Pardis and dates the work to October 1495. The date would place the bust’s completion during the episcopate of Jean de Vesc or his brother and successor, Aymar de Vesc. At this same time, Saint Véran’s remains were removed from the Roman sarcophagus where they had rested for almost a thousand years. Most of the relics were placed in a cypress chest, while the skull was set apart in the silver reliquary bust, gilded above and adorned with a miter.

A similar bust of Saint Lambert was commissioned not long after the one made for Saint Véran, though it appears to have been a more modest work, fashioned from gilded copper rather than silver. Far less is known about this reliquary than about Saint Véran’s. A canon of the church, Christophe Malamaire, is said to have paid for the reliquary himself. It is believed to have also been the work of Laurens de Pardis. No details have survived concerning the exact date or circumstances of its inauguration.

You can read more about the relics, reliquaries, and busts of Saint Véran and Saint Lambert in this article: Devoiton, History and Art – The Relics, Reliquaries and Busts of Saint Véran and Saint Lambert of Vence.

In the centuries that followed, the busts of Saint Véran and Saint Lambert remained closely woven into the story of Vence. They were associated with some of the town’s most important moments, beginning with the devastating plague that led to their creation. They took on renewed significance in 1592, during the French Wars of Religion, when Vence was besieged by François de Bonne, Lord of Lesdiguières, who commanded King Henry IV’s Protestant forces in southern France. During the siege, the busts of both saints were placed high on the cathedral’s bell tower and were credited with saving the town from defeat.

You can read more about the 1592 siege of Vence in this article: Faith, Fire, and Betrayal in the French Wars of Religion – The 1592 Siege of Vence.

Gold and Silver Liturgical Objects Sent to the Mint

In 1790, shortly after the beginning of the French Revolution, a nationwide decree required all churches to inventory their gold and silver liturgical objects and determine which items were not strictly necessary for worship. On March 3, 1791, a second decree ordered that these objects be sent to the nearest Hôtel des Monnaies (mint), with gold and gilt pieces directed specifically to the Paris mint. This measure was further confirmed and organized by a subsequent law issued on March 27th.

Not long afterward, likely between April and June of 1791, Bishop Pisani became the last bishop of Vence when he was expelled from the town after refusing to publicly swear an oath of loyalty to the new Constitution, along with the “refractory” priests of the diocese—those who likewise refused to take the oath.

In the autumn of 1793, the French Revolution entered one of its most radical phases, commonly known as the period of “dechristianization.” Revolutionary leaders and local political societies sought to weaken the Catholic Church’s influence, which they associated with the monarchy and the old social order. Beginning in October and November, churches across France were closed or repurposed, religious symbols were removed, and priests were pressured to abandon public worship.

A decree of November 6, 1793, allowed municipalities to suspend Catholic services if they chose, and in many towns, churches were transformed into civic meeting halls or “Temples of Reason.” At the same time, revolutionary festivals were introduced to replace traditional religious celebrations, including the symbolic Festival of Reason, which exalted enlightenment ideals and the authority of the new republican state.

These developments were quickly reflected in Vence. On December 2, 1793, Chabert, president of the local Popular Society, organized a large republican banquet intended not only as a civic celebration but also as a public demonstration of revolutionary loyalty. George Castellan, in his book Histoire de Vence et du Pays Vençois (The History of Vence and the Vencois Region), records that on December 5, 1793, two members of the Committee of Surveillance formally petitioned the Municipality of Vence to enforce a national directive issued from Paris concerning the seizure of church silver and bells.

The Municipality, in turn, sought the endorsement of the local Society of the Sans-Culottes, the town’s radical revolutionary club, whose president at the time was a certain Mr. Savornin. Although not legally required, this approval was politically crucial. The Society praised the citizens of Vence, noting “avec une satisfaction des plus douces que le peuple est en cette communauté mûr pour la raison et la vérité” (“with the utmost satisfaction that the people of this community are ripe for reason and truth”), a phrase indicating that they were considered sufficiently enlightened and revolutionary-minded to accept such an anti-clerical measure without resistance.

An inventory was subsequently drawn up listing all of the Vence cathedral’s silver objects (described as “instruments of fanaticism”), including chalices, ciboria, candlesticks, and other liturgical vessels. Courmette began collecting the items and packing them into crates. One report says that the two 15th-century reliquaries of Saint Véran and Saint Lambert only fit into a crate “by hammering them with kicks.”

These acts served both practical and symbolic purposes: they provided much-needed metal for the financially strained revolutionary government while simultaneously removing visible reminders of the old religious order. In total, 71 items weighing 55 kilograms were collected in Vence and dispatched 10 days later to Grasse, which served as a regional depot for precious metals before they were transferred to Paris for melting. Such regional depots were a standard feature of the Revolutionary collection system, allowing metals to be pooled, recorded, and forwarded under state supervision. For many inhabitants, these events marked a profound transformation of public life in Vence, as the ceremonies and symbols of the new Republic abruptly replaced long-standing religious traditions.

A Punishment From Heaven

The story continues that soon after these events, Courmette contracted typhus when an epidemic spread through Vence and the surrounding areas. In his article “La curieuse destinée des reliques des saints Véran et Lambert” (“The Curious Destiny of the Relics of Saints Véran and Lambert”), Denis Ghiraldi says, “he died in atrocious suffering within a few days.” He goes on to quote a local source: “His body began to decompose almost immediately after his last breath, giving off such an odor that no one dared approach it. He was slipped into a sack, and it was with great difficulty that bearers could be found, even when paid, to carry him to the cemetery, all the more so as a torrential rainstorm broke out at the moment when the procession set out.” Ghiraldi adds that “… the majority of the people of Vence saw in this tragic and dishonorable end a punishment from heaven.“

In recognition of this prompt compliance, the authorities of Vence received a letter of thanks from the War Bureau of the Var, based in Grasse, confirming that their revolutionary obligations had been efficiently fulfilled. Among the signatories of the confiscation inventory was Pierre Abou, both a priest and a municipal officer (an indication of the complex and often pragmatic accommodations made by certain members of the clergy during the Revolution).

The Story of the “Lost” Relics

During these turbulent years, the precious relics (bones) of both Saint Véran and Saint Lambert disappeared. No official record explained their fate. Some feared they had been seized and destroyed along with so many other sacred objects during the Revolutionary confiscations. Others, more hopeful, believed they had been deliberately hidden (perhaps even somewhere inside the cathedral) to protect them from overzealous revolutionaries. Quiet rumors circulated through Vence, passed from neighbor to neighbor in lowered voices, suggesting that the relics had been concealed just in time, beyond the reach of the revolutionaries. Others whispered that the relics might be lost forever.

What was certain, however, was their absence. The reliquaries, which once held the bones of both saints, were gone, and with them one of the most important and symbolic representations of the physical presence of the town’s two patron saints, figures who had anchored Vence’s religious life for centuries. For many inhabitants, the loss was deeply felt, both spiritually and personally.

Adding to the unease was a darker legend that took hold during these years of fear and uncertainty: it was said that anyone who might one day discover the hidden relics and dare to touch them would die within the year. Whether born of superstition, a warning intended to keep curious hands away, or simply a reflection of the times’ anxiety, the rumor persisted, adding to the mystery surrounding the relics’ disappearance.

The Search for the Relics

In 1896, Henri-Louis Chapon was appointed Bishop of Nice. In the following years, he made several pastoral visits to Vence and became curious about the fate of the relics that had disappeared during the French Revolution. In a pastoral letter, published in the March 27, 1914 edition of a small, local Catholic magazine entitled “La Semaine Religieuse,” he wrote:

“Until recent times, the old Cathedral possessed of these pious relics only very incomplete remains. During my first pastoral visits, I was painfully struck by this, and I remained all the more concerned because nothing, either in the history of the Church of Vence or in its oral traditions, explained this disappearance. The most likely explanation was that, under the threat of persecution or invasion, devout and foresighted hands had hidden this sacred treasure to protect it from the danger of profanation. The memories gathered and preserved by a few elderly people, although somewhat vague and imprecise, moreover seem to confirm this hypothesis.”

You can read more about this letter and download copies in both French and English in this article: Lettre Pastorale de Monseigneur l’Évêque de Nice à l’Occasion des Fêtes de l’Invention des Reliques de St-Véran et St-Lamber, à Vence.

He entrusted the investigation of the missing relics to Father Bouchard, the archpriest of Vence Cathedral. Unfortunately, Bouchard died before being able to do so. Instead, it was his successor, Father Marius-Emile Baude, the former dean of the parish of nearby Le Bar, who took up the task in 1913. While reviewing documents in the parish archives, he came across an old Latin manuscript describing the life and miracles of Saint Lambert. This document is believed to date to the 11th century. At the bottom of the document, Baude discovered a remarkable handwritten addition, written in Latin.

Fidem facio et testor quod ad majorem omnipotentis Dei gloriam die
Xbris 1793 extraxi sacras reliquias SS. Verani et Lamberti, positas in
teca argentea et reverenter collocavi in arca lignea deaurata, præ-
sente Paulo Pons presbytero et Petro Geoffroy, in quorum fidem manuum
nos signavimus Vincii die 10 Decembre 1793
Paulus Pons Pbr. B. Geoffroy
Petrus Abouy Pbr. et Procurator hujus Ecclesiæ

This Latin translates into: “I affirm and testify that, for the greater glory of Almighty God, on December 10, 1793, I removed the holy relics of Saint Véran and Saint Lambert placed in a silver reliquary, and respectfully gathered them in a gilded wooden chest, in the presence of Paul Pons, priest, and Pierre Geoffroy, who also act as witnesses, and we have signed with our own hand in Vence on December 10, 1793.” It was signed by the aforementioned priest, Pierre Abou, Paul Pons (another priest), and Pierre Geoffrou, a layman of the parish.

You can read an in-depth account of this document and download copies of it in various formats and translations in this article: Uncovering the Life of a Beloved Saint – The 12th-Century Manuscript Behind the Legacy of Saint Lambert.

As suspected, Abou and the others had hidden the relics (or at least most of them) of Saint Véran and Saint Lambert to prevent them from falling into the hands of the revolutionaries, who would most certainly have destroyed them. But where had they placed this chest? Where were the relics now? Baude discovered a second document, hidden among a volume of baptismal, marriage, and burial records, which contained more information.

“In the year 1814, on the 30th of April, I received from Mr. Pierre Abou, priest, former beneficiary, and capiscol of the cathedral chapter of Vence, the gilded wooden chest containing the relics of Saint Véran, which he assured me were the same that existed before 1792, the time of the Revolution in France. He had removed this chest from the Chapel of the Holy Relics, now the Chapel of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, so that they would not be desecrated by the impious during the Revolution. We have returned the same chest to its secure location behind an iron grille, where it was previously deposited and preserved at the back of the said chapel, behind what is now the painting of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. In witness whereof, in my capacity as parish priest delegated in this ecclesiastical district, now part of the diocese of Aix, and responsible for the recovery and verification of the relics, I have signed in Vence, on the year and day above. SAVORNIN, parish priest, ABOU, priest.”

Were the lost relics of Saint Véran and Saint Lambert finally coming home? More evidence was found in the parish register of 1825 through 1865. On page 98, there is a report signed by Mr. Blacas (vicar general), Father Jean Pierre Chaix (canon and parish priest), and J.-B. Blacas (vicar) stating that on September 9, 1839, they had verified the relics of Saint Véran and Saint Lambert and then returned them to the wooden chest. Saint Véran’s relics were placed in five white silk pouches and Saint Lambert’s in three.

It was clear that several men had been aware of the whereabouts of the relics over the last century, namely Father Savornin, Father Chaix, and the Vicars Blacas. They had verified them and held them in their hands.

It was also known that on December 21, 1841 Father Chaix, the parish priest of Vence from 1827 until 1852, had presented a reliquary containing relics of Saint Véran and Saint Lambert to the Marquis de Panis, his son and his daughter-in-law. The relics were given as a thank you for the Panis’ gift of a gold cloth veil for the Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament.

Father Charles Joseph Maurel, who succeeded Father Chaix and served as the parish priest of Vence from 1852 to 1865, had reportedly removed the large iron grille that protected the hidden relics in 1858. The grille was moved to the sacristy to protect the cathedral’s safe.

Another note, this one from Father Bruny, revealed that he had taken a relic of Saint Lambert from one of the pouches and sent it to the priest of Vidauban. So, here was yet another man who knew all along where the relics were hidden and had kept it a secret for some unknown reason.

The Relics are Found in 1913

Why had all these men kept quiet about the relics and allowed them to remain hidden? Why had they not restored them to a public place in the cathedral for all to see? Why had they told no one where these precious relics were? No one knew. Why was it not until Bishop Chapon arrived in the 1890s that anyone inquired whether the relics had survived the French Revolution and where they were? Anyone in the church over the last 100 years could have read the note that Pierre Abou left at the bottom of the 11th-century manuscript, which contained information about the whereabouts of the relics.

Father Baude was determined to locate the relics and bring the saints home.

On June 7, 1913, Father Baude, along with the mayor of Vence, Mr. Bougearel, two parish vicars (Fathers Xavier Giraud and Marcel Carganico), and a few others, had the large painting, which was hanging above the altar in the Chapel of the Sacred Heart in the cathedral, removed. Behind it was the door of a cupboard. When the cupboard was opened, a large gilded wooden box, two other wooden chests, and wooden busts of Saint Véran and Saint Lambert were removed.

Three days later, on June 10th, the three chests were opened in a public ceremony attended by Monsignor Chapon, numerous civil and religious authorities, and a large contingent of the faithful public. Inside the large gilded wooden box were the white silk pouches containing the relics of Saint Véran and Saint Lambert. Relics of other saints were found in the other two wooden chests, most likely removed from various reliquaries that were seized and melted down during the French Revolution. Certificates attesting to the authenticity of the relics had been placed in one of the smaller wooden chests.

Bishop Chapon wrote of the day: “The excavations undertaken and directed by him (Father Baude) did not take long to reveal to us, sheltered by a thick wall, the sarcophagi containing the bones of Saint Véran and Saint Lambert. The two skeletons, including the heads, were found there intact and admirably preserved. Precise, detailed reports, bearing the signatures of our predecessors or of their vicars general, attested the authenticity of these holy relics. Few churches possess of their patron relics more distinguished and of more incontestable authenticity. We were able to see it ourselves when we last visited, in the month of June, the church and parish of Vence, and it was a consolation for us to join our thanksgiving and prayers with those of the crowd that had gathered at the news, to venerate the treasure restored to its worship.”

For days and weeks, the small town of Vence was abuzz with excitement, energy, and lively chatter. All anyone could talk about was the discovery of Father Baude. The faithful filled the church, and more people gathered in the streets and squares, all eager to hear stories about the two patron saints of Vence. Children who had never heard of these saints before were suddenly captivated by the legends. Jacques Daurelle, in his 1934 book Vence et Ses Monuments, says that, “Even the most skeptical and unbelieving felt stirred by the memory of the past, by the evocation of all the marvelous events that, over the centuries, had marked the history of Vence.”

At Bishop Chapon’s direction, Canon Chanvillard prepared a detailed inventory on September 4th. Five (or six, accounts differ) sachets contained the relics of Saint Véran: the skull, two femurs, two tibias, two radii, one ulna, and twenty-two vertebrae. Three (or five, again, accounts differ) sachets held those of Saint Lambert: the skull, twenty ribs, two radii, one ulna, the bones of one foot, two shoulder blades, one sacrum, two kneecaps, and nine vertebrae.

The Celebrations for the Relics

Grand celebrations to mark the discovery and homecoming of the relics were organized on Easter Thursday, April 16th of the following year, 1914. Bishop Chapon’s letter in the March 27, 1914, edition of the small, local Catholic magazine “La Semaine Religieuse” was an open invitation to the faithful (as well as the general public) to attend the upcoming celebrations.

The Archbishop of Aix presided over the ceremonies, which were attended by the Abbot of Lérins, ten bishops, and over two hundred and fifty priests. Pilgrims from towns all over the region traveled to Vence for the solemn ceremonies.

A small booklet, published shortly after the celebrations, commemorated the events of these days. Titled Fête de l’Invention des Reliques de Saint Lambert et de Saint Véran, it is divided into three parts: 1. A detailed account of the ceremonies by G. Adami; 2. A speech by Mgr Félix Guillibert, the Bishop of Fréjus, given that day; 3. A sermon by Abbé Thellier de Poncheville given at the high mass on that same day.

Adami’s account of these ceremonies held on April 16, 1914, is particularly well-written. He describes the town of Vence and its inhabitants with a careful, almost poetic attention to detail, and clearly conveys how the rediscovery of the long-lost relics of Saint Lambert and Saint Véran became a shared moment for the entire community. In his telling, the event brought together clergy and townspeople alike and re-established a tangible connection with the town’s past.

The ceremonies of April 16th actually began even earlier. They were preceded in the Vence Cathedral by a mission and a triduum (a three-day period of special religious services) to “prepare the faithful for it.” The Bishop of Nice ordered that, on the evening of April 15th, the bells of every church in the diocese were to be rung simultaneously to mark the Angelus, the traditional evening prayer.

Adami recounts how the townspeople of Vence were up before sunrise, decorating the town with garlands and banners they had been preparing for months. As early as 6:00 a.m., they began to gather in the cathedral, where the “lost” relics were displayed for all to see, for a Mass at 6:30 a.m. The Abbot of Lérins delivered the Mass standing between two modern silver-plated busts of the saints, commissioned in the 1820s. The Mass was followed by a Holy Communion for all those present.

Around 8:00 a.m., a procession began from the cathedral, winding its way through the streets of Vence. Adami speaks of “the variety of the streamers, garlands, flags, lanterns, the large scarlet letters of the inscriptions” which decorated the path. The crowds were enormous. Adami continues:

“Never, within the memory of the people of Vence, had the town seen such a crowd. Thousands of pilgrims arrive from every direction. I see some coming from Ventimiglia, Menton, Monaco, Nice, Antibes, Cannes, Fréjus, Toulon, Draguignan, Fayence, Grasse, Sospel, Saint-Martin-Vésubie, Venanson, Villars, Mons, etc., etc. As for the surrounding countryside, I was assured that all its inhabitants had come to Vence. There are more than two hundred priests; all the youth organizations of the diocese are represented: Boy Scouts in striking uniforms, young guides in dark attire, gymnasts in ceremonial dress.”

The band of the Saint-Pierre Partonage of Nice performed, as did the choir school of the Cathedral of Nice. Adami continues, “Vehicles of every kind unload groups of travelers at every moment: carts, hired carriages, automobiles, buses follow one another minute by minute, and it is a miracle that pedestrians can find a way through without congestion to reach the meeting place.“

By 9:15 a.m., a contingency of ten bishops, thirty assisting canons, and two hundred priests, from all over the south of France, had arrived. A reception was held in Place Victor-Hugo (now Place Anthony Mars). Present for the ceremonies were Mgr Bonnefoy, Archbishop of Aix; Mgr Belmont (Clermont-Ferrand); Mgr Daffra (Ventimiglia); Mgr Béguinot (Nîmes); Mgr Félix Guillibert (Fréjus); Mgr Fabre (Marseille); Mgr Castellan (Digne); Mgr Scoffier (Metropolis-titular see); Mgr Chapon (Nice); Dom Marie Patrice Léron (Abbot of Lérins). (Note: The bishops of Ajaccio and Monaco were listed in a same-day newspaper article as intending to attend the ceremonies, but they do not appear in the list published afterward in L’Invention des Reliques. Their absence from the later account may indicate that they were unable to attend, or simply that they were not present at the moment described.) These dignitaries were greeted by the Vence parish priest and mayor. François-Anatole de Cabrières, Cardinal-Bishop of Montpellier, was originally scheduled to preside over the ceremonies, but for reasons that have never been clear, he was unable to attend.

A procession from the cathedral to the Place Saint-Michel (just beyond the walls of the old town) began around 9:30 a.m. The route passed through Place du Cimetière-Vieux (now Place Godeau), Rue de l’Évêché, Rue and Place du Peyra, Avenue des Templiers, Place Nationale (now Place du Grand Jardin), and along avenues Marcellin-Maurel, Victor-Hugo, and Torreille. The busts and reliquaries of the two saints were carried through the streets by proud Vence inhabitants.

A large, elegantly decorated platform was erected on Place Saint-Michel. At 10:00 a.m., the Archbishop of Aix celebrated a grand messe pontificale (Pontifical High Mass), using full episcopal ceremonial — miter, crozier, assistants, incense, and the other solemn rites — making it the principal liturgical act of the day. The Mass was accompanied by singing from the combined choirs of the Cathedrals of Nice and Monaco, numbering more than 250 singers, under the direction of Father Carlavan. During the service, Father Thellier de Poncheville addressed the congregation. Adami describes him thus: “The voice of the young orator, strong and well paced, carries to the farthest edges of the square. All eyes are fixed on this priest with his ardent gaze and broad, measured gestures, who, wherever the Church of France celebrates its great feasts, makes the crowds hear his warm and enthusiastic words. Here, he is superb in eloquence and conviction. At every moment, applause rises toward him, and it seems as though our souls are joining with his.”

“Honor to you,” said Poncheville, “bishops and Catholics, whose presence here gives the relics of the saints an adornment more beautiful than the splendor of their reliquary. What a moving sight, and what unforgettable lessons… These magnificent ceremonies do nothing but rekindle in us pride in our faith in the imperishable Church and the certainty of the survival of those who are no more… These two men, Saint Lambert and Saint Véran, hold in your hearts a place from which nothing has ever driven them out. You have made within your souls an ideal resting place for them.”

After the Mass, a cantata was performed, accompanied by the Catholic youth association’s brass and wind band from the parish of Saint-Pierre in Nice.

After lunch, the ceremonies resumed. Around 2:30 p.m., the faithful gathered once more in Place Saint-Michel, where the Bishop of Fréjus delivered the panegyric of the saints. Following the service, Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament was given, after which the busts, reliquaries, and relics again passed through the streets of Vence and were returned in procession to the cathedral. This time, the route followed Rue Saint-Michel, Avenue Marcellin-Maurel, Place du Peyra, Rue du Marché, and Place Surian. Upon reaching the cathedral porch, the solemn hymn Te Deum Laudamus was sung, followed by the blessing given by the assembled bishops. To conclude the ceremonies, a “popular” cantata was performed.

The day ended with lights in the windows of Vence, which Adami recounts beautifully: “Little by little the sun declines. Shadow now falls over lovely Vence. One might think that all is over. But suddenly thousands of lights shine in the windows and on the balconies; the flower garlands appear all red under the glow of lanterns and colored lamps. It is the evening celebration. Not a single home is without lights, and in the streets, I look at this symbolic illumination. It seems to me that each of these lights is a flame of love for the patron saints of the town.” A final display of fireworks brings the day to an end.

You can read more about this booklet and download copies of it in both French and English in this article: Fête de l’Invention des Reliques de Saint Lamber et de Saint Véran.

Press from all over the region attended and published enthusiastic reports. The Petit Niçois, a small local paper, reported:

“Never had the ancient cathedral seen such a procession. People came from all over: Le Broc, La Gaude, Gattières, Coursegoules, Bézaudun, Saint-Paul, and La Colle, with nearly the entire population of each village turning out. In the afternoon, the celebration was resplendent. The crowd was even larger, and from every direction came cars, carriages, carts, and wagons. It was a beautiful and marvelous spectacle, at times moving, although — paganism never losing its rights — small taverns and fairground stalls selling nougat and échaudés had been set up around the religious enclosure.”

It was only a few months later that World War I began, and the citizens of Vence once again turned to their two patron saints for protection and comfort.

Today the relics and reliquaries of Saint Véran and Saint Lambert are visible in the Vence Cathedral.

A Dream From Aix? The Legend of Mr. Baunaud

It is worth mentioning that there is an interesting legend in Vence regarding these missing relics. In this version of the story, an upholsterer from Aix-en-Provence who specialized in repairing religious ornaments, Mr. Baunaud, along with his friend Mr. Paulet, arrived at the cathedral to offer his services. This was after Father Baude had discovered the documents about the relics, but before he had removed the painting to find them.

Mr. Baunaud told Father Baude that he had had a strange dream the night before in which he found some important relics behind a painting in the Vence Cathedral. Father Baude took Mr. Baunaud into the Vence Cathedral, where he had never been before. He led him to the Chapel of the Holy Angels and asked him if this was the place he had seen in his dream. Baunaud hesitated for a few moments and then said, “Well, it could be the one he had seen.”

Father Baude then accompanied Mr. Baunaud to the Chapel of the Sacred Heart, and here Baunaud did not hesitate. “This is indeed the chapel,” he said, “and this is definitely the painting I saw in my dream.”

Father Baude replied that this was the chapel where he believed the relics were hidden, based on the documents he had found. No other sources confirm this story, and it’s remembered locally as a legend rather than a documented fact.

The Story of Little Marie Carle

Shortly after the relics of Saint Véran and Saint Lambert were discovered and returned to their rightful place in the Cathedral of Vence, a story emerged about a little girl named Marie Carle and a miracle that supposedly took place. This is the story Jacques Daurelle tells in a small booklet published in 1914 titled Vence:

Little Marie Carle lived with her mother, father, and two siblings in the old town of Vence in the early 1900s. Her father, Honoré, worked in the fields, and her mother had a small fruit and vegetable shop on the edge of Place Surian. The oldest daughter, Sérapine, who was twelve at the time of these events, helped her mother in the shop and ran errands for her. The boy, Alexandre, aged nine, was still in school. Marie had been born disabled and was never able to stand or walk. She was just three and a half years old when the relics of Saint Véran and Saint Lambert were recovered in 1913. Like everyone else in the town, she heard endless talk about the two saints, who were said to have performed miracles while alive. She heard they could heal the sick.

Each day, Marie would sit in front of her mother’s shop and greet the people who arrived. The Cathedral of Vence was visible to her from where she sat. She had heard that the newly discovered wooden busts of Saint Véran and Saint Lambert had been placed in a room of the cathedral with a window overlooking the square below.

She told her mother, “Mother, I want to go to the church to see Saint Véran and Saint Lambert. Can you carry me?” Her mother replied that she was simply too busy to do so. “Then give me some paper and a pencil so that I can write to Saint Véran and Saint Lambert and ask them to come and heal me.” Her mother complied, and soon Marie (being unable to actually write, of course) was scribbling and drawing on the paper. She gave the letter to her mother when she was finished.

Every day, the same thing would be repeated. Marie would ask her mother if the saints had received her letters and if they would be coming to see her soon. Until one day, Tuesday, August 19, 1913, to be exact, when Marie’s mother heard her calling to her from in front of the shop. “Mama! Mama! Saint Véran and Saint Lambert are looking at me!”

The parish priest had opened the window in the room where the two saints’ statues were kept. Placed on high pedestals, the wooden busts were clearly visible from the square.

Marie’s mother walked to the front of the store only to find Marie was gone. She nearly fainted from shock and astonishment when she saw little Marie running towards the church. Numerous neighbors, including Mr. and Mrs. Servelle, who ran a small shop next to the church, witnessed the events. They later said that Marie, who they described as having legs “no thicker than a thumb,” was running around the square like a little rabbit, asking everyone for flowers she could take to Saint Véran and Saint Lambert before going into the church to see them.

Is this story true? Is there any semblance of truth to the events as described above? Perhaps something, but not exactly like this, did occur? Who knows. Daurelle did not claim to be an eyewitness to this story, but it supposedly took place while he was writing his book. There should therefore be plenty of contemporaneous accounts or evidence corroborating these events. There does not seem to be.

After Daurelle tells the story, he says, “We recount the event as it happened, leaving it to the ecclesiastical authority to evaluate and give it the value it deserves. Saint Véran and Saint Lambert performed many miracles in the past. Why wouldn’t they continue to perform them today to show the people of Vence that they are still the city’s protectors and benefactors?”

Although this is said to have happened fairly recently in the overall scheme of things, just over 100 years ago, I have been unable to find much further documentation or corroboration of it anywhere. Daniel Petite mentions the incident in his 2001 book, Vence – Parcourue Pour Vous…, but only with a passing glance and with the words “reportedly.” There is no information about it online. I am unable to find any accounts of the story in any contemporary newspapers. I am therefore quite skeptical of this “miracle.” But it is a nice story.

Access

Vence can easily be reached from just about anywhere in France by taking the A8 until you get to Cagnes-sur-Mer. If you are coming from the east, get off on Exit 48, and if you are coming from the west, you’ll want Exit 47. Take the M336, then the M36, and finally the M236 north into Vence. The most accessible parking is in the Parking du Grand Jardin, right next to the old town. Parking Toreille and Marie Antoinette Parking are both close by as well.

There are two buses that run from Nice to Vence: #9 and #655. Just be careful with #9; it can be a bit confusing because it has two routes leaving Grand Arenas in Nice. One route stops at the Polygon Riviera mall, which is still about 8 km from Vence. Look at the route displayed at the top on the front of the bus. It should say “L’Ara,” which is the last bus stop in Vence. All the #9 buses returning to Nice from Vence go all the way to Grand Arenas.

There is no train service directly to Vence. You can take the train to Cagnes-sur-Mer, then either the #9 or #655 bus from Cagnes-sur-Mer to Vence.

The Vence Office de Tourisme is just across the street from the Grand Jardin. While you can visit the old town at any time, on any day of the year, I would suggest coming on any day except Sunday or Monday so you can enjoy some of the shops and boutiques that would otherwise be closed.