Saint Elizabeth of Hungary, whose holy actions and ambitions led her to canonization, had her feast day this past Thursday, November 17. It seems appropriate to learn a bit about her past and current legacy.

Born in 1207, she was the second daughter of Alexander II and Gertrude of Hungary. Elizabeth was a very well-educated and intelligent child. A future husband was important to her parents even in her youth, so they matched Elizabeth with Hermann I of Thuringia, Germany. At the age of 4, Elizabeth was sent to Thuringia to be educated. She loved to pray from a very young age. She went to penance regularly as a child and built a relationship with God that would last. Hermann died when Elizabeth was only 9, so she then became engaged and married his brother, Louis IV, Landgrave of Thuringia in 1221.

When Elizabeth was 16, Franciscan friars taught her about Saint Francis of Assisi, and she resolved to live a life similar to his. Elizabeth wore simple clothing and regularly took bread from the palace to give to the poor.  Louis was upset at first that Elizabeth was giving so much to the poor. Once, Louis saw her walk out of the Wartburg castle with a heavy bundle. Louis knew it was bread inside the bundle, so he walked over to his wife to scold her, but when he opened the bundle, it was not filled with bread. Elizabeth’s bundle was full of red roses. This miracle converted Louis, and he started to support Elizabeth’s helping the poor. This miracle is called The Miracle of the Roses. Even though Louis liked and supported his wife’s charity, his mother, brother, and other relatives did not because they thought that she was giving away the family’s estate.

Elizabeth and Louis had 3 children: Hermann II (1222-1241), Landgrave of Thuringia, Sophie of Thuringia (1224-1275), and Gertrude of Aldenburg (1227-1297). Louis died from illness while fighting in the Sixth Crusade in 1227, leaving Elizabeth a widow at twenty years old. Once Louis died, Henry Raspe IV, Louis’ brother, exiled Elizabeth on charges of giving away the estate. Elizabeth and her children were forced to exit the Wartburg castle, without even the bare necessities they needed to live. Benevolently, Elizabeth’s maternal uncle, Egbert, let her have a home close to his place in Marburg, Germany.

Once Louis’s friends came back from the crusades, they fought for her to come back to the regency. They won, and Elizabeth and her children could go back to the Wartburg castle. Hermann II could regain the right to be the heir to the Landgraviate. Elizabeth’s children Sophie and Hermann went back to the Wartburg castle, but Gertrude stayed with Elizabeth. In 1229 Elizabeth decided to go to the convent in Aldenburg where she later became a nun and abbess. Elizabeth spent the rest of her life in Marburg living as a nun. She followed the strict instruction of her confessor, Conrad of Marburg. She opened a hospital, cared for her patients and practiced penance regularly.

Elizabeth died on November 17, 1231, from unknown health reasons in Marburg. She was canonized in 1235 by Pope Gregory IX only four years after her death. She is the patron saint of bakers, countesses, death of children, falsely accused, the homeless, nursing services, tertiaries (an associate of certain Christian monasteries), widows, and young brides. Her life and legacy are most popular around Germany.

Today, St. Elizabeth is remembered as someone who was so close to God on Earth that he was able to work miracles through her, and as a woman who used her gifts in life to serve and help others, devoting everything she could to God. She is someone we should all look up to and ask for prayers from, especially on Thursday, her feast day.

By Elisabeth Smith ‘28, Staff Writer

28esmith@montroseschool.org