MALMESBURY’S forgotten saint will be officially celebrated for the first time next week when a party from Germany will honour the Wiltshire monk who founded their town nearly 1,300 years ago.

Educated in Malmesbury, St Lullus is revered in the ancient town of Bad Hersfeld in Germany’s Rhineland which he founded after becoming Bishop of Mainz during the eighth century.

A statue of St Lullus – today affectionately referred to as Lull – dominates Bad Hersfeld which, like Malmesbury, boasts a ruined abbey.

But when historian Sigmar Gliezer from Bad Hersfeld visited Malmesbury’s Athelstan Museum in 2012 he was amazed to discover that no-one in the town appeared to be aware of St Lullus.

The Mayor of Malmesbury Ray Sanderson was invited to attend the Lullusfest, Germany’s oldest folk festival named in honour of the former Malmesbury monk, and has twice since visited Bad Hersfeld.

Now a 14-strong Friends of Malmesbury party from Germany will visit the town and give a presentation on the importance of St Lullus at 7.30pm on May 13 in the Market Room at The Kings Arms.

“We are absolutely delighted to have them here,” said Mr Sanderson. “The connection between Malmesbury and Bad Hersfeld is incredible. But three years ago Lull had been pretty much forgotten about here.”

Mr Sanderson said it was an “absolute irony” that a visitor from Germany should remind Malmesbury of one of its most important sons."

Born in Wessex around 710AD, Lullus was a monk in the Benedictine monastery at Malmesbury.

While on a pilgrimage to Rome in 737 he met Saint Boniface and was persuaded by him to do missionary work in Germany. He later became the Bishop and then Archbishop of Mainz, helping to create the embryonic German Empire.

As the Athelstan Museum puts it: “Our boy from Malmesbury was a major player in the politics of that time.”

During the late 700s he established foundations of communities along the Rhineland including Bad Hersfeld. He died in 786 and was canonised in 852.

Every year around 40,000 people cram into Bad Hersfeld’s ancient streets for a festival which honours the monk from Malmesbury.