or Valdès
died before 1218
French religious leader.
A successful merchant, Valdès (Peter Waldo was a later form of his name) underwent a religious conversion, gave away his wealth, and began to preach a doctrine of voluntary poverty in Lyon around 1170. In 1179 his vow of poverty was confirmed by Pope Alexander III , but he was forbidden to continue preaching. In 1182 or 1183 he and his followers
called the Poor, or the Poor of Lyon
were excommunicated for violating the ban on lay preaching and were banished from the city. They were formally condemned at a church council in 1184 along with other heretics, including the Cathari , against whom Valdès had originally preached. The so-called Waldenses were severely persecuted in the 13th century, and their preachers began the practice of traveling and teaching in secret. During the Protestant Reformation, the Waldenses accepted Genevan forms of worship and church organization.