Monsieur Vincent, as he was known was the son of a peasant in Raquine, SW France. He was educated by the Franciscans and his father sold two oxen to pay for him to go to Toulouse University. At the age of 19 he was ordained as a priest. After some years as a court chaplain, he underwent a religious conversion in 1609 which changed his life completely. From being a tutor to the sons of the powerful Gondi family, he became parish priest in a very poor parish at Chatillon les Dombes, and then chaplain to the royal galleys (where prisoners were the rowers) in 1622.
Vincent devoted his life to the poor and needy, whose physical and spiritual neglect was the lot of millions in France. His contacts among the nobility enabled him to raise lots of money, even from the Queen herself. In 1622 he began the mission to convicts, and in 1625 founded a training school for priests. When he was given the priory parish church of Saint Lazare in Paris in 1633 his followers were then called Lazarists.
They worked in teams all over France living with those they worked with, and Vincent was often found helping out. Cardinal Richelieu, the King's chief minister asked him to take over the training of priests and by 1660 over 400 priests were coming annually from his seminaries.
Vincent is probably best known for his Sisters of Charity, founded with the help of Louise de Marillac in 1617 to serve 'our lords the poor' (from his writings). This was an unenclosed order of nuns who went into the streets and hovels to care for the poor. They wore grey gowns and the cornette headdress of the poor, and went wherever the need was greatest. They founded hospitals and orphanages, cared for incurables and the dying, nursed wounded soldiers, fed the starving and sent missionaries out, with the men to Africa, Scotland, Ireland, and Poland. Rich women provided the money, and all classes carried out the work. This order still survives.
In 1737 Vincent was canonized and he was later named as patron of all charitable societies. In 1833 Frederick Ozanan founded the lay Society of St Vincent, always highly esteemed everywhere. In 1948 the Saint's life was made into a film 'Monsieur Vincent' with Bernard Luc and Jean Anouilh.