Saint Maximus of Aveia (sometimes also known as Saint Maximus of Aquila) is one of the patron saint

Patron saint

A patron saint is a saint who is regarded as the intercessor and advocate in heaven of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or person...

s of L'Aquila

L'Aquila

L'Aquila is a city and comune in central Italy, both the capital city of the Abruzzo region and of the Province of L'Aquila. , it has a population of 73,150 inhabitants, but has a daily presence in the territory of 100,000 people for study, tertiary activities, jobs and tourism...

, Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

.

He was born in Aveia, nowadays known as Fossa

Fossa (Italy)

Fossa is a comune and town in the province of L'Aquila in the Abruzzo region of Italy. Bernardino of Fossa was born in the town....

.
A deacon

Deacon

Deacon is a ministry in the Christian Church that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions...

, he was martyr

Martyr

A martyr is somebody who suffers persecution and death for refusing to renounce, or accept, a belief or cause, usually religious.-Meaning:...

ed for his faith. The tradition says he was tortured and then thrown over a cliff

Cliff

In geography and geology, a cliff is a significant vertical, or near vertical, rock exposure. Cliffs are formed as erosion landforms due to the processes of erosion and weathering that produce them. Cliffs are common on coasts, in mountainous areas, escarpments and along rivers. Cliffs are usually...

 near his native city. This occurred during the persecutions of Decius

Decius

Trajan Decius , was Roman Emperor from 249 to 251. In the last year of his reign, he co-ruled with his son Herennius Etruscus until they were both killed in the Battle of Abrittus.-Early life and rise to power:...

.

In 1256 the Bishop seat of Aveia was moved to L'Aquila, together with his relics.
The newly built cathedral of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of L'Aquila

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of L'Aquila

The Roman Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of L'Aquila is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in Italy. It was erected as the Diocese of L'Aquila on February 20, 1257 by Pope Alexander IV, and promoted to an archdiocese by Pope Pius IX on January 19, 1876...

was dedicated in his name and that of St. George, another martyr.