Adelheid von Vilich

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Adelheidis bust in St. Peter
Adelheid and some of her miracles on an 18th century pilgrim's sheet
Adelheidis fountain in Pützchen

Adelheid von Vilich (lat. Adelheidis, * approx. 970 at Geldern Castle on the Lower Rhine; † February 5, 1015 (?) In Cologne ) was the first abbess of the Vilich Abbey near Bonn. The abbey was founded in 978 by her parents, Megingoz von Geldern and his wife Gerberga .

The most important source on Adelheid von Vilich is the "Vita Adelheidis", written in Latin rhyming prose around 1057 by Bertha von Vilich, who claims to be based on memories of Adelheid's chambermaid and some of her fellow sisters.

On the occasion of her memorial day on February 5th, “jackdaw bread” is baked, which commemorates the feeding of the poor.

Life

Adelheid was the daughter of Count Megingoz von Geldern and Gerberga, who was related to the royal family. Gerberga's father was the Lorraine Count Palatine Gottfried , whose brother Wichfrid was Archbishop of Cologne. Gerberga was related to King Heinrich I through her father, and to the West Franconian King Karl III through her mother . Adelheid's parents lived in a castle near Geldern. Megingoz and Gerberga had a total of five children, a son and four daughters, of whom Adelheid was the youngest. Two of the daughters ( Irmintrud and Alverad) were married; Irmintrud was the grandmother of Henry II of Luxembourg, who later was Duke Henry VII of Bavaria, and of Bishop Adalbero III. of Metz and Duke Friedrich II of Lower Lorraine. The third daughter, Bertrada, was the abbess of the St. Maria Abbey in Cologne. The son, Gottfried, died in 976/77 in the campaign of Emperor Otto II in Bohemia, his body was transferred to his homeland near Geldern, where he was also buried.

Adelheid was sent to the monastery of St. Ursula in Cologne for education . There she was taught philosophy, arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, music and theology. She later entered the monastery, but was released from her duty by her mother in order to be installed as abbess at the monastery newly founded by her parents.

After the death of her brother Gottfried, his share of the inheritance was used for the foundation of the Vilich Abbey and the building of the collegiate church in order to establish God as heir, since the parents felt the need "to strive towards the heavenly fatherland, of which they knew it, because it has no end, could never perish ”. They argued that their son had already acquired his inheritance in heaven by his death, "a better inheritance compared to what he owed from a premature one in this valley of tears." While the father Megingoz in his county in Geldern remained, the mother Gerberga devoted herself to building the monastery, which was placed under the special protection of the emperor and the pope. 987 awarded Otto III. the monastery has the same privileges as the imperial monasteries of Quedlinburg , Gandersheim and Essen . Adelheid became abbess, who was released from her duties by her parents by exchanging land for property. The monastic community founded a monastery school here. According to her Vita, Adelheid attended classes herself as often as possible and was convinced of the progress of the students. The heyday of this school is documented by the “Vita Adelheidis” written in Latin rhyming prose by the pupil Bertha in 1057.

After the death of her sister Bertrada, Adelheid also became abbess of St. Maria in the Capitol in Cologne around 1002 and could have introduced the Benedictine Rule in this context and thus converted the monastery into a monastery. Later Adelheid is said to have been a close advisor to Archbishop Heribert of Cologne .

Adelheid was a benefactress for the poor and needy. Her Vita reports that at the time of a terrible drought she gave gifts to the starving population of Vilich. She also begged for water and stabbed the ground with her staff, whereupon a jet of water shot up at this point. The place where this miracle is said to have happened is today the Adelheidis fountain in Pützchen . The name of today's Bonn suburb is derived from the Rhenish “Pütz” for “fountain”. The spring water is considered a remedy for eye diseases.

effect

There is still an Adelheidis pilgrimage to Pützchen today. The main destination of the pilgrimage is the Adelheidis fountain , the origin of which, according to Vita Adelheidis, can be traced back to a miracle by the abbess. The annual “ Pützchen Market ” fair, which takes place in Pützchen-Bechlinghoven , was the result of that same pilgrimage.

Because of her importance as benefactress of the poor, Adelheid's attributes are staff and wine jug, sometimes staff and bread. She is the patroness against eye diseases. Like the spring of the well, this goes back to a miracle shortly after her death. According to the Vita, a blind man fell in front of Adelheid's grave. When he straightened up, his eyesight regained.

Their bones were originally buried in the Vilich collegiate church, but were lost in the Truchsessian War . The late Gothic sarcophagus in the south aisle of the church is empty. However, individual relics are still present and are exhibited every year at the Adelheidis Festival, which is celebrated every year around February 5th, her memorial day.

Adelheidiskapelle in Pützchen

In the Bonn districts of Vilich and Pützchen , the Herz-Jesu-Kloster St. Adelheid and the St. Adelheidis-Stift are dedicated to her, as well as a primary school and the Catholic girls ' high school Sankt-Adelheid-Gymnasium named after her; also the Catholic parish and pilgrimage church " St. Adelheid am Pützchen " and the neighboring Adelheidiskapelle . In Cologne the church of St. Adelheid (Cologne-Neubrück) bears her name, in Troisdorf the parish church of Müllekoven, in Bonn-Beuel-Küdinghoven the kindergarten.

On January 27, 1966, the Roman Congregation for Rites recognized the traditional liturgical cult of Abbess Adelheid von Vilich. Pope Paul VI confirmed them as saints. Her death day, February 5th , is Remembrance Day today. In 2008 the Congregation for Rites raised her to Bonn's patronage alongside Cassius and Florentius .

February 5, 2015 marked the 1000th anniversary of her death and January 27, 2016 the 50th anniversary of her declaration of saints. For the anniversaries, an initiative was started by the Catholic parishes of Sankt Peter in Vilich and Sankt Adelheid am Pützchen, which applied for a special stamp to be issued in honor of the patron saint of the federal city of Bonn. The project was supported u. a. by Auxiliary Bishop Heiner Koch , Lord Mayor Jürgen Nimptsch and City Dean Monsignor Wilfried Schumacher.

literature

  • Friedrich Albert Groeteken : The holy Adelheid von Vilich and her family. The Rhineland-Franconian people's saint is shown in her life and in her veneration according to the sources (= Great German women figures . Vol. 3, ZDB -ID 547307-x ). Butzon & Bercker, Kevelaer 1937.
  • Amato Pietro Frutaz : Confirmationis cultus ab immemorabili tempore praestiti servae Dei Adelheidi Virgini, OSB Abbatissae Monasterii de Vilich Sanctae nuncupatae (1015) positio super casu excepto ex Officio Compilata. Rome 1966.
  • Jakob Schlafke: Life and adoration of the holy Adelheid von Vilich. In: Irmingard Achter: The collegiate church of St. Peter in Vilich (= The art monuments of the Rhineland. Supplement 12, ZDB -ID 527523-4 ). Rheinland Verlag, Düsseldorf 1968, pp. 260-344.
  • Josef Niesen : Bonn Personal Lexicon. 3rd, improved and enlarged edition. Bouvier, Bonn 2011, ISBN 978-3-416-03352-7 , p.
  • Vita Adelheidis. The life of St. Adelheid von Vilich, Latin and German , introduced and translated by Heinz Piesik. Bonn 2003, ISBN 978-3-922832-33-1 .

Web links

Commons : Adelheid von Vilich  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

supporting documents

  1. ↑ a b Vita Adelheidis, translated by Heinz Piesik, Bonn 2003.
  2. ^ Vita Adelheidis, translated by Heinz Piesik, Bonn 2003, chap. 6, pp. 37-38.
  3. ↑ Heinz Piesik, Introduction to the translation of the Vita Adelheidis, Bonn 2003, p. 12.
  4. ^ Vita Adelheidis, translated by Heinz Piesik, Bonn 2003, chap. 3, p. 26.
  5. ↑ Heinz Piesik, Introduction to the translation of the Vita Adelheidis, Bonn 2003, p. 13.
  6. ^ Vita Adelheidis, translated by Heinz Piesik, Bonn 2003, chap. 3, p. 26.
  7. ^ Vita Adelheidis, translated by Heinz Piesik, Bonn 2003, chap. 3, p. 26f.
  8. ↑ For the conversion see Helga Giersiepen, Das Kanonissenstift Vilich from its foundation to the end of the 15th century, Bonn 1993, pp. 54–60.
  9. ^ Vita Adelheidis, translated by Heinz Piesik, Bonn 2003, chap. 6, p. 40f.
  10. ^ Vita Adelheidis, translated by Heinz Piesik, Bonn 2003, chap. 8, pp. 48-49.
  11. ↑ Bonn Minster: Bonn celebrates Adelheid ( memento from March 19, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
  12. ↑ AAS 58/66 400-403
  13. ↑ Amato Pietro Frutaz: Confirmationis cultus ab immemorabili tempore praestiti servae Dei Adelheidi Virgini , OSB Abbatissae Monasterii de Vilich Sanctae nuncupatae (1015) positio super casu excepto ex Officio Compilata. Rome 1966.
  14. ↑ M. Dörr: "Adelheid von Vilich (970-1015): 1966 officially confirmed as a saint!" In: Pastoralblatt für die Diözesen Aachen, Berlin a. a. 58 2006, pp. 57-61
  15. ↑ The program for the festival year can be found under Adelheidjahr .
  16. ↑ Bonner General-Anzeiger: "The mayor wants an Adelheid special stamp"
personal data
SURNAME Adelheid von Vilich
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Adelheidis
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German abbess of the monastery of Vilich
DATE OF BIRTH around 970
PLACE OF BIRTH Geldern Castle
DATE OF DEATH February 5, 1015 or February 5, 1018
Place of death Cologne