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Saint Elizabeth of Hungary.
Feast Day 19 November.
Widow.
Double.
White Vestments.
Elizabeth of Hungary, Third Order Of Saint Francis (T.O.S.F.), (German: Heilige Elisabeth von Thüringen, Hungarian: Árpád-házi Szent Erzsébet), 7 July 1207 – 17 November 1231, was a Princess of the Kingdom of Hungary, Landgravine of Thuringia, Germany, and a greatly-Venerated Catholic Saint.
Elizabeth was married at the age of fourteen, and widowed at twenty. After her husband's death, she sent her children away and regained her dowry, using the money to build a hospital, where she served the sick. She became a symbol of Christian Charity, after her death at the age of twenty-four, and was quickly Canonised.
Elizabeth was the daughter of King Andrew II of Hungary and Gertrude of Merania. Her mother's sister was Saint Hedwig of Andechs, wife of Duke Heinrich I of Silesia. Her ancestry included many notable figures of European Royalty, going back as far as Vladimir the Great of Kievan Rus.
According to Tradition, she was born in the Castle of Sárospatak, Kingdom of Hungary, on 7 July 1207. According to a different Tradition, she was born in Pozsony, Kingdom of Hungary (modern-day Bratislava, Slovakia), where she lived in the Castle of Posonium until the age of four.
A Sermon, printed in 1497 by the Franciscan Friar, Osvaldus de Lasco, a Church Official in Hungary, is the first to name Sárospatak as the Saint's birthplace, perhaps building on local Tradition. The veracity of this account is not without reproach: Osvaldus also transforms The Miracle of the Roses (see below) to Elizabeth's childhood in Sárospatak, and has her leave Hungary at the age of five.
Elizabeth was brought to the Court of the Rulers of Thuringia, in Central Germany, to become betrothed to Louis IV, Landgrave of Thuringia, a future bride who would reinforce political alliances between the families. She was raised by the Thuringian Court, so she would be familiar with the local language and culture.
In 1221, at the age of fourteen, Elizabeth married Louis; the same year he was enthroned as Landgrave Louis IV, and the marriage appears to have been happy. After her marriage, she continued her charitable practices, which included spinning wool for the clothing of the poor. In 1223, Franciscan Friars arrived, and the teenage Elizabeth not only learned about the ideals of Francis of Assisi, but started to live them. Louis was not upset by his wife's charitable efforts, believing that the distribution of his wealth to The Poor would bring Eternal Reward; he is Venerated in Thuringia as a Saint, though he was never Canonised by The Church.
It was also about this time that the Priest and, later, Inquisitor, Konrad von Marburg, gained considerable influence over Elizabeth when he was appointed as her Confessor. In the Spring of 1226, when floods, famine, and plague wrought havoc in Thuringia, Louis, a staunch supporter of the Hohenstaufen Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, represented Frederick II at The Imperial Diet held in Cremona, Italy. Elizabeth assumed control of affairs at home and distributed Alms in all parts of their territory, even giving away State Robes and ornaments to the Poor. Below Wartburg Castle, she built a hospital with twenty-eight beds and visited the inmates, daily, to attend to them.
Elizabeth's life changed irrevocably on 11 September 1227, when Louis, en route to join The Sixth Crusade, died of a fever in Otranto, Italy. On hearing the news of her husband's death, Elizabeth is reported to have said, "He is dead. He is dead. It is to me as if the whole World died today." His remains were returned to Elizabeth in 1228 and entombed at the Abbey of Reinhardsbrunn.
After her death, Elizabeth was commonly associated with The Third Order of Saint Francis, the primarily Lay Branch of The Franciscan Order, though it is not sure that she actually formally joined them. It must be kept in mind, though, that The Third Order was such a new development in The Franciscan Movement, that no one official ritual had been established at that point. Elizabeth clearly had a Ceremony of Consecration, in which she adopted a Franciscan Religious Habit in her new way of life.
Very soon after the death of Elizabeth, Miracles were reported that happened at her grave in the Church of the hospital, especially those of healing. On the suggestion of Konrad, and by Papal Command, examinations were held of those who had been healed between August 1232 and January 1235. The results of those examinations were supplemented by a brief Vita of the Saint-to-be, and, together with the testimony of Elizabeth's handmaidens and companions (bound in a booklet called The Libellus de dictis quatuor ancillarum s. Elizabeth confectus), proved sufficient reason for the quick Canonisation of Elizabeth on 27 May 1235 in Perugia, Italy, — no doubt helped along by her family's power and influence. Very soon after her death, hagiographical texts of her life appeared all over Germany, the most famous being Dietrich of Apolda's Vita S. Elisabeth, which was written between 1289 and 1297.
She was Canonised by Pope Gregory IX. The Papal Bull declaring her a Saint is on display in the Schatzkammer of the Deutschordenskirche in Vienna, Austria. Her body was laid in a magnificent Golden Shrine — still to be seen today — in Saint Elizabeth's Church, Marburg, Germany. Her remains were removed and scattered by her own descendant, the Landgrave Philip I "The Magnanimous" of Hesse, at the time of The Reformation. It is now a Protestant Church, but has spaces set aside for Catholic Worship. Marburg became a centre of The Teutonic Order, which adopted Saint Elizabeth as its Secondary Patroness. The Order remained in Marburg until its official Dissolution by Napoleon I of France in 1803.
Elizabeth is perhaps best known for her Miracle of the Roses, which says that, whilst she was taking bread to The Poor, in secret, she met her husband, Louis, on a hunting party, who, in order to quell suspicions of the gentry that she was stealing treasure from the Castle, asked her to reveal what was hidden under her cloak. In that moment, her cloak fell open and a vision of White and Red Roses could be seen, which proved to Louis that God's protecting hand was at work.
The following Text is taken from The Saint Andrew Daily Missal.
Elizabeth, daughter of Andrew, King of Hungary, was given in marriage to Louis IV, Landgrave of Thuringia. She had three children, Herman, Sophia, and Gertrude. Her husband, who was a Saint, gave her the most entire liberty for her pious exercises and her Charity.
Like the strong women mentioned in the Epistle, she rose in the night to Pray, lavished Alms on the Poor, and spun wool to make warm garments for them. What most characterised her was her love for the sick and the lepers, whom she cared for with maternal tenderness.
At her husband's death, wishing to renounce everything to acquire at this price The Pearl of Eternal Life (Gospel), she put on a dress of course material and entered The Third Order Of Penance of Saint Francis, where she was noted for her patience and humility.
Her brother-in-law, having succeeded to the Title of Landgrave, expelled her with her children from the Princely Castle of The Wartburg and she, who was called The Mother of The Poor, could not find a hospitable roof as a shelter. She died at the age of twenty-four in 1231.
Mass: Cognóvi.
Commemoration: Saint Pontianus. Pope and Martyr.
Saint Elizabeth of Hungary.
Feast Day 19 November.
Widow.
Double.
White Vestments.
English: Saint Elizabeth Church, Budapest, A statue of Saint Elizabeth
showing The Miracle of The Roses, in front of the Neo-Gothic Church
Dedicated to Saint Elizabeth, at Roses' Square (Rózsák tere), Budapest, Hungary.
Magyar: Az Árpád-házi Szent Erzsébet-plébániatemplom
Budapesten. Árpád-házi Szent Erzsébet szobra a templommal.
Photo: 19 June 2008.
Source: Pasztilla.
Author: User:Pasztilla aka Attila Terbócs.
(Wikimedia Commons)
English: Flag of The Kingdom of Hungary between 21 December 1867 - 12 November 1918.
Magyar: A Magyar Királyság zászlaja 1867. december 21. és 1918. november 12. között.
Date: 6 August 2008.
Source: Own work, based on Flags of the World - Hungary -
Angels are vectored from Hungary medium coa 1910.png
Author: Thommy
(Wikimedia Commons)
Elizabeth was married at the age of fourteen, and widowed at twenty. After her husband's death, she sent her children away and regained her dowry, using the money to build a hospital, where she served the sick. She became a symbol of Christian Charity, after her death at the age of twenty-four, and was quickly Canonised.
Elizabeth was the daughter of King Andrew II of Hungary and Gertrude of Merania. Her mother's sister was Saint Hedwig of Andechs, wife of Duke Heinrich I of Silesia. Her ancestry included many notable figures of European Royalty, going back as far as Vladimir the Great of Kievan Rus.
Saint Elizabeth, spinning wool for The Poor.
By Marianne Stokes (1895).
Current location: Private collection
Source/Photographer: Own work, user:Rlbberlin
(Wikimedia Commons)
According to Tradition, she was born in the Castle of Sárospatak, Kingdom of Hungary, on 7 July 1207. According to a different Tradition, she was born in Pozsony, Kingdom of Hungary (modern-day Bratislava, Slovakia), where she lived in the Castle of Posonium until the age of four.
A Sermon, printed in 1497 by the Franciscan Friar, Osvaldus de Lasco, a Church Official in Hungary, is the first to name Sárospatak as the Saint's birthplace, perhaps building on local Tradition. The veracity of this account is not without reproach: Osvaldus also transforms The Miracle of the Roses (see below) to Elizabeth's childhood in Sárospatak, and has her leave Hungary at the age of five.
Elizabeth was brought to the Court of the Rulers of Thuringia, in Central Germany, to become betrothed to Louis IV, Landgrave of Thuringia, a future bride who would reinforce political alliances between the families. She was raised by the Thuringian Court, so she would be familiar with the local language and culture.
English: Saint Elizabeth washing a beggar.
A 15th-Century scene from The High Altar of Saint Elizabeth's Cathedral,
Košice, Slovakia.
Slovenčina: Svätá Alžbeta umýva žobráka, scéna z hlavného
oltára Dómu svätej Alžbety v Košiciach, 2. polovica 15. storočia.
Photo: 23 June 2013.
Source: Own work.
Author: Of
(Wikimedia Commons)
In 1221, at the age of fourteen, Elizabeth married Louis; the same year he was enthroned as Landgrave Louis IV, and the marriage appears to have been happy. After her marriage, she continued her charitable practices, which included spinning wool for the clothing of the poor. In 1223, Franciscan Friars arrived, and the teenage Elizabeth not only learned about the ideals of Francis of Assisi, but started to live them. Louis was not upset by his wife's charitable efforts, believing that the distribution of his wealth to The Poor would bring Eternal Reward; he is Venerated in Thuringia as a Saint, though he was never Canonised by The Church.
It was also about this time that the Priest and, later, Inquisitor, Konrad von Marburg, gained considerable influence over Elizabeth when he was appointed as her Confessor. In the Spring of 1226, when floods, famine, and plague wrought havoc in Thuringia, Louis, a staunch supporter of the Hohenstaufen Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, represented Frederick II at The Imperial Diet held in Cremona, Italy. Elizabeth assumed control of affairs at home and distributed Alms in all parts of their territory, even giving away State Robes and ornaments to the Poor. Below Wartburg Castle, she built a hospital with twenty-eight beds and visited the inmates, daily, to attend to them.
Elizabeth's life changed irrevocably on 11 September 1227, when Louis, en route to join The Sixth Crusade, died of a fever in Otranto, Italy. On hearing the news of her husband's death, Elizabeth is reported to have said, "He is dead. He is dead. It is to me as if the whole World died today." His remains were returned to Elizabeth in 1228 and entombed at the Abbey of Reinhardsbrunn.
Saint Elizabeth Cathedral, Košice, Slovakia.
Date: July 2009.
Author: Ville Miettinen
(Wikimedia Commons)
Very soon after the death of Elizabeth, Miracles were reported that happened at her grave in the Church of the hospital, especially those of healing. On the suggestion of Konrad, and by Papal Command, examinations were held of those who had been healed between August 1232 and January 1235. The results of those examinations were supplemented by a brief Vita of the Saint-to-be, and, together with the testimony of Elizabeth's handmaidens and companions (bound in a booklet called The Libellus de dictis quatuor ancillarum s. Elizabeth confectus), proved sufficient reason for the quick Canonisation of Elizabeth on 27 May 1235 in Perugia, Italy, — no doubt helped along by her family's power and influence. Very soon after her death, hagiographical texts of her life appeared all over Germany, the most famous being Dietrich of Apolda's Vita S. Elisabeth, which was written between 1289 and 1297.
English: The Saint Elisabeth Group. Sculpture in wood by Rudolf Moroder, polychromed
by Christian Delago, in the Parish Church of Urtijëi, South Tyrol, Italy. Date: 1900.
Deutsch: Hl. Elisabeth-Gruppe in Holz geschnitzt, gefasst von Christian Delago
in der Pfarrkirche von St. Ulrich in Gröden des Rudolf Moroder entstanden 1900.
Italiano: Gruppo scultoreo di Santa Elisabetta di Ungheria scolpito
nel legno da Rudolf Moroder, policromia di Christian Delago del 1900.
Photo: 20 February 2009.
Source: This Photo was taken by Wolfgang Moroder
Author: Rudolf Moroder Lenert (†1914).
(Wikimedia Commons)
She was Canonised by Pope Gregory IX. The Papal Bull declaring her a Saint is on display in the Schatzkammer of the Deutschordenskirche in Vienna, Austria. Her body was laid in a magnificent Golden Shrine — still to be seen today — in Saint Elizabeth's Church, Marburg, Germany. Her remains were removed and scattered by her own descendant, the Landgrave Philip I "The Magnanimous" of Hesse, at the time of The Reformation. It is now a Protestant Church, but has spaces set aside for Catholic Worship. Marburg became a centre of The Teutonic Order, which adopted Saint Elizabeth as its Secondary Patroness. The Order remained in Marburg until its official Dissolution by Napoleon I of France in 1803.
Elizabeth is perhaps best known for her Miracle of the Roses, which says that, whilst she was taking bread to The Poor, in secret, she met her husband, Louis, on a hunting party, who, in order to quell suspicions of the gentry that she was stealing treasure from the Castle, asked her to reveal what was hidden under her cloak. In that moment, her cloak fell open and a vision of White and Red Roses could be seen, which proved to Louis that God's protecting hand was at work.
English: Saint Elizabeth's Church, Marburg, Germany.
Deutsch: Elisabethkirche Marburg, Elisabethstraße.
Photo: 24 April 2006.
Source: Own work.
Author: Megacity01
(Wikimedia Commons)
The following Text is taken from The Saint Andrew Daily Missal.
Elizabeth, daughter of Andrew, King of Hungary, was given in marriage to Louis IV, Landgrave of Thuringia. She had three children, Herman, Sophia, and Gertrude. Her husband, who was a Saint, gave her the most entire liberty for her pious exercises and her Charity.
Like the strong women mentioned in the Epistle, she rose in the night to Pray, lavished Alms on the Poor, and spun wool to make warm garments for them. What most characterised her was her love for the sick and the lepers, whom she cared for with maternal tenderness.
At her husband's death, wishing to renounce everything to acquire at this price The Pearl of Eternal Life (Gospel), she put on a dress of course material and entered The Third Order Of Penance of Saint Francis, where she was noted for her patience and humility.
Her brother-in-law, having succeeded to the Title of Landgrave, expelled her with her children from the Princely Castle of The Wartburg and she, who was called The Mother of The Poor, could not find a hospitable roof as a shelter. She died at the age of twenty-four in 1231.
Mass: Cognóvi.
Commemoration: Saint Pontianus. Pope and Martyr.
Beautiful images of these ancient and holy churches dedicated to the little but great St. Elizabeth of Hungary. Thank you yet again, “Dom” Zephyrinus!
ReplyDeleteElizabeth of Hungary is a favorite for her extraordinary kindness and charity, most especially her constancy in those virtues even when her brother-in-law succeeded to the title of Landgrave and expelled her and her 3 children from the castle: it is said with only the clothes on their backs and the few small things they could carry.
And also, even though her courtly in-laws and former relatives turned cold and inhospitable to her so that she had no one who would take them in, just like the Holy Family at Bethlehem, she never became overcome with anger or bitterness or hatred at them, but remained sweet and forgiving and the epitome of charity.
What an example — one I try to remember when relatives and others get under one’s skin!
Gratias, Zephyrinus!
Thank You, Dante Peregrinus, as always, for your welcome Comments and encouragement. Saint Elizabeth of Hungary, as you say, is a great inspiration to all of us, if only we take on board her example.
DeleteSaint Elizabeth of Hungary. Ora Pro Nobis.
Also, I was reminded by someone that Elizabeth’s aunt (her mother’s sister) was S. Hedwig of Silesia, and her great-niece was S. Elizabeth of Portugal, who also was greatly dedicated to the poor. A family of saints—at least the lady-folk!
ReplyDeleteIndeed, Dante Peregrinus, Saint Elizabeth's family connections were very Saintly. Both Saint Hedwig of Silesia and Saint Elizabeth of Portugal have been highlighted on Zephyrinus's Posts on their Feast Days. May they both Ora Pro Nobis.
ReplyDelete