– 5 June 754), the Apostle of the Germans, born Winfrid, Wynfrith, or Wynfryth in the kingdom of Wessex, probably at Crediton (now in Devon, England), is a missionary who propagates Christianity in the Frankish Empire during the 8th century.
He is the patron saint of Germany and the first archbishop of Mainz.
He is killed in Frisia in 754, along with 52 others.
His remains are returned to Fulda, where they rest in a sarcophagus which became a site of pilgrimage.
Facts about Boniface's life and death as well as his work became widely known, since there is a wealth of material available—a number of vitae, especially the near-contemporary Vita Bonifatii auctore Willibaldi, and legal documents, possibly some sermons, and above all his correspondence.
Through his efforts to reorganize and regulate the church of the Franks, he helps shape Western Christianity, and many of the dioceses he proposed remain until today.
After his martyrdom, he is quickly hailed as a saint in Fulda and other areas in Germany and in England.
His cult is still notably strong today.
Boniface is celebrated (and criticized) as a missionary; he is regarded as a unifier of Europe, and he is seen (mainly by Catholics) as a German national figure.
