Defendens of Thebes (Italian: San Defendente di Tebe) is venerated as a martyr by the Catholic Church.

Venerated as a soldier-saint, Defendens was, according to Christian tradition, a member of the Theban Legion, and thus martyred at Agaunum.

[1] His feast day was celebrated in the cities of Chivasso, Casale Monferrato, Novara, and Lodi on January 2, and oratories, altars, and confraternities were dedicated to him.

[5] Until 1476 his relics, according to the 1578 Martyrologium Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae of Pietro Galesino, were kept in the church of Santa Croce in Casale Monferrato, which suggested that his martyrdom may have taken place in that region.

[6] The painter Defendente Ferrari, born at Chivasso, where Defendens was venerated, carries the baptismal name of this martyr.