Boniface is known as the Apostle of Germany. He not only brought the Christian faith, but also Roman Christian civilization to this portion of Europe.

He was born in Crediton in Anglo-Saxon England and was a leading figure in the Anglo-Saxon mission to the Germanic parts of the Frankish Empire during the eighth century. He organised significant foundations of the church in Germany and was made archbishop of Mainz by Pope Gregory III. Boniface was martyred in Frisia in 754, along with 52 others, and his remains were returned to Fulda, where they rest in a sarcophagus which has become a site of pilgrimage.

Against his father's wish, Boniface devoted himself at an early age to the monastic life and at the age of 30, he became a priest. In 716, when his abbot Wynberth of Nursling died, Boniface was invited to assume his position. Winfrid, however, declined the position and set out on a missionary expedition to Frisia.

Boniface first left for the continent in 716. He traveled to Utrecht, where Willibrord, the "Apostle to the Frisians," had been working since the 690s. He spent a year with Willibrord, preaching in the countryside, but their efforts were disrupted by the war then being carried on between Charles Martel and Radbod, King of the Frisians.

Boniface returned to the continent the next year and went straight to Rome, where Pope Gregory II renamed him "Boniface" (his original name being Winfrid), after the legendary fourth-century martyr Boniface of Tarsus, and appointed him missionary bishop for Germania.

According to legend, Boniface felled the Donar Oak, or "Jupiter's oak," near the present-day town of Fritzlar in northern Hesse. He started to chop the oak down, when suddenly a great wind, as if by miracle, blew the ancient oak over. When the pagan gods did not strike him down, the people were amazed and converted to Christianity. He built a chapel, dedicated to Saint Peter from its wood at the site.

In 732, Boniface travelled again to Rome, and Pope Gregory III conferred upon him the pallium as archbishop with jurisdiction over what is now Germany. He set out for the German lands again and continued his mission. During his third visit to Rome in 737–38, Boniface was made papal legate for Germany.

In 754, he set out with his companions for Frisia. He baptized a great number of people there and summoned a general meeting for confirmation at a place near Dokkum. Instead of his converts, however, a group of armed robbers appeared and killed the aged archbishop and his men. Records mention that Boniface persuaded his comrades to lay down their arms: "Cease fighting. Lay down your arms, for we are told in Scripture not to render evil for evil but to overcome evil by good”, he said.

The remains of Boniface were eventually buried in the abbey church of Fulda after resting for some time in Utrecht, and they are entombed within a shrine beneath the high altar of Fulda Cathedral.

In 2019 Devon County Council, with the support of the Anglican and Catholic churches in Exeter and Plymouth, officially recognised St Boniface as the Patron Saint of Devon.

Other Saints of the Day
1. Saint Tudno
2. Saint Sanctinus
3. Saint Luke Loan
4. Saint Felix of Fritzlar
5. Saint Adalar

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