Saint Florian (250-304) was a Roman Christian saint-martyr who is the patron saint of chimney sweeps, soapmakers, and firefighters.
Biography[]
Florian was born in Aelium Cetium, Roman Empire (now Sankt Polten, Austria) in 250 AD, and he served in the Roman Army for years, rising to become the commander of the imperial army in Noricum. Not only was Florian a general, but also commander of his army's firefighting brigades, and he created an elite unit of firefighters. Florian refused to carry out Emperor Diocletian's persecution of Christians, and he also refused an imperial envoy's order to sacrifice to the Roman gods. Florian was then sentenced to death by burning at the stake, but Florian challenged the Roman soldiers to light the fire, saying that he would prove to them that he was unafraid and would climb onto the fire in God's name. Apprehensive of his words, the Roman soldiers did not burn Florian, instead drowning him in the Enns River with a millstone tied around his neck.