In 486, when he was thirty-three years old, he was made bishop of the long-vacant See of Valence, and under his care abuses were corrected and morals reformed, restoring its previous stature.
Bishop Apollinaris was so beloved that the news of his first illness filled the city with consternation.
He attended a conference at Lyon, between the Arians and Catholics, held in presence of King Gundobad, where he distinguished himself by his eloquence and learning.
At last the King, stricken with a severe illness, repented, and the Queen in person came to beg Apollinaris to go to the court to restore the monarch to health.
[3] Apollinaris was sixty-four years old when he returned from Sardinia to Valence, and his people received him with joy.