St. Martin is the first bishop and confessor honored by the Church in the West. He was a principal apostle of Gaul, where his feast used to be kept as a holy-day of obligation with an octave and popular rejoicings. Born in Pannonia, he came to Gaul as a soldier. At the age of eighteen he was baptized, became a disciple of St. Hilary and built the first monastery in Gaul at Liguge, near Poitiers. Later, made Bishop of Tours, he founded the famous abbey of Marmoutiers where he used to retire in his free time. He died in 397 and his tomb became famous through many miracles and attracted large pilgrimages.