Saint Amalberga of Maubeuge | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 7th Century Brabant, Belgium |
| Died | c. 690 |
| Venerated in | Roman Catholic Church Eastern Orthodox Church |
| Major shrine | Binche, Belgium |
| Feast | 10 July |
| Attributes | holding an open book and with a crown on her head |
| Patronage | arm pain, bruises, and fever |
Saint Amalberga of Maubeuge (also Amalia, or Amelia of Lobbes or Binche ) was a Merovingian nun and saint who lived in the 7th century.
Amalberga's father was Saint Geremarus. [1] She was born in Brabant. She is said to have been the niece of Pippin of Landen who married her against her will to a great lord, named Thierry, by whom she had a daughter, afterwards St. Pharailda. [2]
Upon the death of her first husband, Pepin had her marry Count Witger, Duke of Lorraine. [3] In her biography she is presented as the mother of five saints: Pharaildis, Emebert, Reineldis, Ermelindis and Gudula.
Sometime after the birth of their youngest child, Gudula, Witger decided to become a Benedictine in Lobbes; Amalberga joined the Benedictine nuns of Maubeuge. [4] [5]
Her feast is celebrated on July 10. The translation of her relics from Lobbes to Binche in the 15th century is celebrated on June 10.
Amalberga of Maubeuge is not to be confused with the virgin Amalberga of Temse (venerated in Ghent, Temse and Munsterbilzen) who died in 772, and whose feast day is July 10 or October 27.
The biography of Amalberga of Maubeuge (s:la:Vita S. Amalbergae viduae) is probably written by Abbott Hugo of Lobbes (1033–1063) between 1033 and 1048. Apart from a few Merovingian details, her genealogy was copied from another 11th-century hagiography, namely the Martyr story of Catherine of Alexandria. The biographical profile of her legendary husband, duke Witger of Lotharingia, is based on an historical figure from the 10th century, Wigeric of Lotharingia. It is largely considered legendary and unreliable. [6]
Ezzo, sometimes called Ehrenfried, a member of the Ezzonid dynasty, was Count Palatine of Lotharingia from 1015 until his death. As brother-in-law of Emperor Otto III, father of Queen Richeza of Poland and several other illustrious children, he was one of the most important figures of the Rhenish history of his time.
Landgrave was a noble title used in the Holy Roman Empire, and later on in its former territories. The German titles of Landgraf, Markgraf ("margrave"), and Pfalzgraf are roughly around the same rank, but below Herzog ("duke") and above the rank of a Graf ("count").
Saint Gudula was born in the pagus of Brabant. According to her 11th-century biography, written by a monk of the abbey of Hautmont between 1048 and 1051, she was the daughter of a duke of Lotharingia called Witger and Amalberga of Maubeuge. She died between 680 and 714.
July 9 - Eastern Orthodox Church calendar - July 11
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Saint Pharaildis or Pharailde is an 8th-century Belgian virgin and patron saint of Ghent. Her dates are imprecise, but she lived to a great age and died on January 5 at ninety.
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The Ezzonids were a dynasty of Lotharingian stock dating back as far as the ninth century. They attained prominence only in the eleventh century, through marriage with the Ottonian dynasty of Holy Roman Emperors. Named after Ezzo, Count Palatine of Lotharingia from 1015 to 1034, they dominated the politics of the middle and lower Rhine and usually represented the royal interests. Under the Salian Emperors, they even briefly held the dukedoms of Swabia, Carinthia, and Bavaria.
Hermann II, Count Palatine of Lotharingia 1064–1085. He was count in the Ruhrgau and the Zulpichgau, as well as a count of Brabant.
Amalberga of Temse was a Lotharingian noblewoman from the Frankish royal house of the Pippinids who is celebrated as a saint in the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church. She is especially venerated in Temse, Ghent, Munsterbilzen and other parts of Flanders. She received the veil from Saint Willibrord of Echternach.
Emebert was an early Bishop of Cambrai, often identified with Bishop Ablebert of Cambrai.
Reineldis was a saint of the 7th century, martyred by the Huns.
Saint Altfrid was a leading figure in Germany in the ninth century. A Benedictine monk, he became Bishop of Hildesheim, and founded Essen Abbey. He was also a close royal adviser to the East Frankish King Louis the German.
Ebrulf (517–596) was a Frankish hermit, abbot, and saint.
Maubeuge Abbey was a women's monastery in Maubeuge, in the County of Hainaut, now northern France, close to the modern border with Belgium. It is best known today as the abbey founded by St. Aldegonde, still a popular figure of devotion in the region. It is thought to have possibly been where the young Jan Gossaert, a Renaissance-era painter known as Jan Mabuse, was educated, claimed by some to have been a native of the town of Maubeuge, which grew up around the abbey.
Saint Amelberga of Susteren was the Benedictine abbess of Susteren Abbey, Netherlands in the 9th century AD; she died about 900 AD. Her remains are kept in the former abbey church in Susteren, which was dedicated to her in the 19th century. Her feast is celebrated on November 21.
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