Elisabeth of Thuringia

The title of this article is ambiguous. Further meanings are listed under Elisabeth of Thuringia (disambiguation) .

Elisabeth of Thuringia, Bavarian, around 1520 ( Musée de l'Œuvre Notre-Dame , Strasbourg )

Typical portrayal of Elisabeth caring for the needy; Chalk lithograph after the painting by Hans Holbein, d. Ä. , early 16th century

Elisabeth of Thuringia (* 1207 in Pressburg or at Rákóczi Castle in Sárospatak ( Hungary ); † November 17, 1231 in Marburg an der Lahn ), also called Elisabeth of Hungary ( Hungarian Szent Erzsébet ), was a Hungarian princess, a German countess Saints of the Catholic Church and was at times also known in Germany as “national saints ”. The name day of the patron saint of Thuringia and Hesse falls on November 19 , the day of her burial . The saint is also venerated in Protestantism as a symbol of active charity .

Sources on the life of Elisabeth of Thuringia

The earliest written evidence describing the life of Elisabeth of Thuringia in detail was mostly made after her death. Only the Vita Ludovici , which the court chaplain of the Wartburg wrote after the death of Ludwig of Thuringia , and which can be dated to around 1228, also goes into detail. The text has survived as part of the Chronica pontificum et archiepiscoporum Magdeburgensium and contains a number of later additions. The first testimony that focuses solely on her life is the Summa Vitae from 1232. It was written by Konrad von Marburg , who had also applied to the Pope for the canonization of Elisabeth. The summa vitae is limited to a description of the last five years of her life. This source is supplemented by records of the miracles that are said to have occurred in 1232 and 1233 as well as in 1235 at Elizabeth's grave. In addition to these sources, there is a written record of the testimony of four servants who were heard in Marburg as part of the canonization process: Guda had lived with Elisabeth, who was one year younger than her, from the age of five and later became one of her ladies-in-waiting. Isentrud von Hörselgau was one of the other ladies-in-waiting in her entourage and described Elisabeth's care for the poor and needy far more vividly than Konrad von Marburg. The other two witnesses Irmgard and Elisabeth worked with her in the Marburg hospital.

The three oldest complete descriptions of Elisabeth's life, all of which were written in the first half of the 13th century, are based on the Libellus de dictis quatuor ancillarum sanctae Elisabeth confectus (book of the statements of the four servants, hereinafter referred to as Libellus ) from the year 1235. In 1237 Caesarius von Heisterbach wrote a vita for St. Elisabeth; two more, whose authors are not known by name, were written before 1240 in the vicinity of Frederick II and the papal curia.

The Vita sanctae Elisabethae , which the Dominican Dietrich von Apolda wrote between 1289 and 1291, is considered the most comprehensive work from the High Middle Ages . In the introduction, Dietrich points out that he not only evaluated the testimony of the four servants and the summa vitae of Konrad, but also compiled the oral tradition from Hesse and Thuringia. The Vita sanctae Elisabethae had a decisive influence on the perception of Elisabeth as a person. A series of biographies that were written in the 13th to 15th centuries are based on it. The work of the Dominican monk was also translated into Early New High German and first appeared in print in 1604 by the historian Heinrich Canisius , nephew of St. Peter Canisius .

family

Andreas II of Hungary and his wife Gertrud von Andechs , depicted in the Landgrave psalter , in Stuttgart today

Elisabeth of Thuringia comes from the marriage of the Hungarian King Andreas II (* 1177; † 1235) with Gertrud von Andechs . Her mother belonged to the widely ramified noble house of Andechs - Meranien , whose influence reached from Eastern Franconia to the northern Adriatic . Gertrud von Andechs had seven siblings who either entered into important marriages or held high church offices. One of her brothers was Bishop Ekbert von Bamberg , one of the Mathilde sisters was the abbess of the Kitzingen monastery. Hedwig von Andechs , another sister, was canonized like Elisabeth after her death.

Elisabeth was also connected to the European aristocracy through her siblings, whom she knew only briefly: her brother Béla succeeded his father on the Hungarian throne, her sister Maria married Ivan Assen II , the tsar of Bulgaria , and her sister Yolanda became one Marriage to Jacob of Aragon . From this connection Elisabeth of Portugal comes from, who like Elisabeth of Thuringia is one of the saints of the Catholic Church.

Life

childhood

Elisabeth was promised the eldest son of Landgrave Hermann of Thuringia as a toddler . The marriage plans were probably based on power-political considerations. The house of Andechs-Meranien, from which her mother Gertrud was descended from, was one of the most influential noble families in Europe , just like the Ludowingers . Eckbert von Bamberg and Abbess Mechthild von Kitzingen, two of the siblings of Gertrud von Andechs, were instrumental in establishing the connection. The fact that Elisabeth was also a Hungarian king's daughter increased the luster of this connection.

Minstrel Heinrich von Veldeke , shown here in Codex Manesse , frequented the Thuringian court, which is considered cultivated , around 1300

As early as 1211, at the age of four, Elisabeth, endowed with a rich dowry, was brought to Thuringia . The upbringing of a young girl in the family of her future husband was common within noble families and was practiced well into modern times . Elisabeth therefore grew up predominantly in the residences of the Thuringian landgrave family. These included the Neuchâtel near Freyburg an der Unstrut , the Runneburg near Weißensee and finally the Creuzburg an der Werra , the most important residence of the landgrave couple. Today Elisabeth is often associated with the Wartburg , but in 1211 it was only a strong fortress near the city of Eisenach. It was not until Elisabeth's husband Ludwig had the castle converted into a representative residence for the landgrave family. The Thuringian court was considered cultivated. Along with the Duke of Austria, Hermann von Thuringia was one of the most important patrons of the poets and minstrels of the High Middle Ages . Walther von der Vogelweide , Heinrich von Veldeke and Wolfram von Eschenbach both lived at the Thuringian court for a while.

It is not clear whether Elisabeth was engaged to her future husband Ludwig as early as 1211 . Early descriptions of her life portray him as the firstborn son to whom the Hungarian king's daughter was engaged. However, there are a number of indications that suggest that Hermann, who died early, was the first son and therefore the one to whom Elisabeth was to be married. This is supported by the fact that it was usually the firstborn son who received the same first name as his father; that Ludwig and Elisabeth later spoke to each other with dear brother and sister and that after Hermann's death at the court of Thuringia, consideration was given to sending Elisabeth back to her Hungarian family. These considerations may also have led to the fact that after the violent death of Gertrud von Andechs, the promised second part of the dowry that the mother had promised for the time of her daughter's marriage was not to be given.

Elisabeth's relationship to wealth and money

Elisabeth was confronted very early on with the fact that her human worth was measured primarily in monetary terms.

In the Libellus their servants report:

“When she came of marriageable age, she had to put up with bad and undisguised spitefulness from the relatives, vassals and advisers of her fiancé and future husband. They urged him in every way to cast them off and send them back to their royal father. It was alleged that she received a dowry less rich than the high rank of father-in-law and future son-in-law. In doing so, they tried to persuade him to look around for a higher dowry and more powerful allies in closer proximity and think of another marriage. "

The later life descriptions of Elisabeth interpreted the consideration of her repudiation as if it had happened because of her excessive piety.

The description of childhood goes back primarily to Guda's testimony in the Libellus . She portrays Elisabeth as a lively, strong-willed and resourceful child with a pronounced sense of justice and pronounced piety. So she showed pious zeal from youth and directed her thoughts and aspirations in play and earnest to God . All sources agree that the very young Elisabeth was already hostile to the courtly pomp at the Wartburg. In the hagiographies this is interpreted in such a way that it led to a conflict with her future mother-in-law Sophie von Thuringia very early on. Here, too, there are indications that this, like the alleged considerations about returning the child's bride because of excessive piety, is one of the edifying exaggerations of the saints' legends. Sophie von Thuringia herself entered a Cistercian monastery as a widow and ultimately gave Elisabeth her psalter book, which is now stored as the so-called " Elisabeth Psalter " in the National Archaeological Museum of Östrich in Friuli-Venezia Giulia (Museo Archeologico Nazionale Cividale del Friuli). The passing on of such a prayer book to the daughter-in-law instead of to the biological daughters speaks for a better relationship between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law than the later legends of the saints portray.

Marriage to Ludwig von Thuringia

The legend of the rose miracle is a common motif in the fine arts. However, she does not understand how much Elisabeth of Thuringia was supported by her husband. Panel painting of an altar, Styria, around 1525

Landgrave Hermann von Thuringia died in 1217 and Ludwig took over the reign at the age of 17. In 1221 he and 14-year-old Elisabeth married in the Georgenkirche in Eisenach . The marriage, the sources agree, was a happy one. After that, Ludwig von Thuringia - a determined and sometimes unscrupulous power politician - was devoted to his wife with a loyalty and sensitivity that differed from the customs of his peers. At meals, contrary to the conventions of her time, Elisabeth sat next to her husband. She regularly accompanied him on his travels. If that was not possible for her, she wore mourning clothes, according to Isentrud von Hörselgau's testimony . Her active help for the needy and sick found his support, according to the testimony of the servants he encouraged her to do so. In 1223 the couple founded a hospital together in Gotha and furnished it with plenty of property, from whose income they were to finance themselves in the long term. The popular legend of the rose miracle originally referred to Elisabeth of Portugal and was only later ascribed to Elisabeth of Thuringia. It contradicts the representation of the relationship between the married couple in other sources. According to the early tradition, Ludwig only tried to limit his wife's excessive self-flagellation and nocturnal prayers .

The marriage between Elisabeth and Ludwig von Thuringia resulted in three children:

• Hermann von Thuringia (1222–1241), who later succeeded his father on the throne and married Helene von Braunschweig-Lüneburg (1231–1273);
• Sophie (1224–1275), who later married Heinrich II , Duke of Brabant. Their son Heinrich was the first Landgrave of Hesse , so Elisabeth is often regarded as the ancestor of the House of Hesse . All descendants of Elisabeth who are still alive today descend from Sophie.
• Gertrud (1227–1297), who was only born after the death of her father. She grew up from the age of two in the Premonstratensian monastery Altenberg near Wetzlar and became its abbess at the age of 21. It was in 1348 by Pope Clement VI. beatified .

Enthusiasm for the poverty movement

By the end of the 12th century, a broad religious poverty movement had already established itself in Europe . It found its expression among other things in the Beginine . According to the apostolic ideal, lay women lived in poverty and chastity without submitting to the rules of an order, and earned their living from charitable work. One of its most prominent representatives was Maria von Oignies , who died in 1213 , a French noblewoman who was able to persuade her husband to forego all wealth and who ultimately devoted herself to caring for lepers in Oignies together with other women . Pope Honorius III. had allowed the clergy in 1216 to support such pious women's communities, repeatedly suspected of heresy , and to provide pastoral care. This poverty movement also gave rise to a number of new orders, including those of the Dominicans and Franciscans . The latter had in 1210 by Pope Innocent III. received their legitimation as a monastic order. As early as 1223, the Franciscan lay brother Rodeger was the spiritual advisor to Elisabeth of Thuringia and had introduced her to the ideals of Francis of Assisi , who demanded a life of poverty , obedience and chastity . With Elisabeth, who was already critical of the courtly pomp at the Thuringian court as a young girl, these teachings fell on fertile ground. At first she probably wore a penitential garment under her court clothes and then increasingly gave away her precious clothes and jewelry.

The turn to the radical idea of ​​poverty found its expression in impressive gestures: the church cleansing rites to which a woman who had just given birth had to undergo were normally an occasion for the German aristocracy to go to church in great splendor. Elisabeth renounced it and went with her confidante - probably Guda and Isentrud von Hörselgau -, dressed in a simple woolen dress, with her baby to a church that was far away and could only be reached by a rocky road. Only the lamb that she brought to the altar on the occasion of the birth of her child was the offering of a wealthy person. At other church festivals, too, she attended services barefoot and in a garment woven from coarse wool. With this, Elisabeth came increasingly at odds with her duties as a landgrave. The later legends about her person have taken up this contradiction: They report that God made her appear in a richly decorated robe when she had once again given away all of her clothes and was therefore not in a position to be appropriately dressed to an embassy from her father receive. The so-called “coat miracle” is found even more frequently in the fine arts: Elisabeth of Thuringia gave her richly decorated coat to a beggar as one of her last pieces of clothing. However, her servants found him in the closet when she had to greet a group of nobles at the landgrave's banquet table. Whether this is a pure legend or whether the servants simply took it from the beggar and invented this story remains to be seen.

Commitment to the poor and the sick

Postage stamp of the Deutsche Bundespost for the 800th birthday (2007)

Already during her years as a sovereign, Elisabeth was no longer content with giving alms, but began to do heavy work that was considered degrading by her contemporaries in the service of the sick and needy. She spun wool and, with her servants, wove cloths from it, which she distributed under the arms. She washed and clothed the dead and arranged for their funeral. From 1226 she also helped personally in the hospital that she had built at the foot of the Wartburg with the care of the sick and dedicated herself specifically to those whose diseases were particularly disfiguring. The sources describe her loving affection for children in particular: she also hugged and caressed the leper, dirty and crippled children, bought them glass rings and small pots as toys. Elisabeth founded the hospital at the foot of the Wartburg at the beginning of 1226, when a severe famine led to the impoverishment of large parts of the population. The hunger winter of 1225/1226 was the reason for their first, widely perceived aid action, which, however, was still within the traditional framework of poor relief. While her husband was staying at the Emperor's court in Cremona , she had the landgraves' granaries opened in all parts of the country to take care of the starving population. Those who were still able to work were given work tools and sturdy clothing to take care of themselves. Ludwig von Thuringia expressly approved of the measures criticized at the Thuringian court when he returned to the Wartburg.

Ascent of Konrad of Marburg

During the year 1226, the secular priest Konrad von Marburg replaced the lay brother Rodeger as Elisabeth's spiritual advisor. Pope Innocent III had appointed the eloquent Konrad as a crusade preacher in the ecclesiastical province of Bremen in 1216 and Pope Gregor IX. made him reformer and visitor of the world and religious clergy in Germany in 1227. This granted him extensive rights: he checked monasteries, monasteries and individual priests for strict compliance with the rules of the order and the canonical regulations. If he discovered grievances, he could intervene reforming and, if necessary, even impose church sentences. The contemporary sources describe him as a man who felt obliged to strict asceticism, lived in extreme poverty and advocated reforms within the church. Pope Gregory IX had also hired him to track down heretics and bring them to justice. Konrad was controversial because of his dogmatics, was greedy for power and had the reputation of being a ruthless persecutor of those who, in his opinion, did not follow church teaching.

Konrad von Marburg: Detail of a glass window in the Marburg Elisabeth Church

Konrad's influence on Elisabeth and Ludwig's death

Konrad had persuaded Ludwig of Thuringia to take part in the Fifth Crusade of Emperor Friedrich II. In 1227 he obeyed this vow and set out with a large retinue. On the occasion of the appointment of Konrad as her confessor and in view of the preparations for participation in the crusade, Elisabeth of Thuringia, in the presence of her husband in front of the altar of St. Catherine's Church in Eisenach, made a twofold vow: She promised to obey Konrad, provided that the rights of the Landgraves would not be restricted, and in the event that Ludwig should die before her, unconditional and unrestricted obedience and, moreover, perpetual chastity. Just as Elisabeth submitted to the will of Konrad in large areas of her life with this vow, the latter took on the duty to lead her to spiritual perfection in pastoral care. As one of the first acts, he ordered her to use only those goods in her court that she could be sure that they were not based on unlawfully extorted manorial income. This demand was in line with those of the religious poverty movement, which accused large sections of the population of the unbearable burden of warfare and the pompous court rulers of the secular and ecclesiastical rulers. While this demand was easy to implement for someone who had withdrawn into the seclusion of a monastery, it led Elisabeth to question the external foundations of her princely existence. The descriptions of Isentrud von Hörselgau in the Libellus make it clear which difficulties had to follow this commandment: Elisabeth tried to live exclusively on the income of her Wittumsgüter and hardly ate any of the food that her own court offered the guests. Sometimes she and the women of her retinue were only able to satisfy their hunger poorly. Elisabeth of Thuringia also began to sell jewelry, clothing and household items on a large scale in order to distribute the proceeds to the poor and needy. In his analysis of the relationship between Elisabeth and Konrad von Marburg, Matthias Werner drew attention to the fact that only the bond with the influential crusade preacher, who was respected at court, allowed her to live in such a provocative manner for her immediate surroundings. But this way of life would not have been possible either, had Ludwig not let it be. But he was also the only person besides Konrad who had a decisive influence on her and whom she truly loved.

The pregnant Elisabeth accompanied her husband to the Thuringian border and only said goodbye there. Ludwig moved to Italy via Hesse, Franconia, Swabia and Bavaria, where he met the crusade army of Emperor Friedrich . On September 12, shortly after embarking in Otranto , he died of an infection.

The Wartburg near Eisenach

The Elisabethkemenate, Wartburg

His death was hidden from her for a long time, but Elisabeth suspected it and asked the family to tell her. When she found out about his death, she collapsed: "Now the whole world and all wealth and respect shall have died to me". “If my brother died, the world died for me too.” And she gave everything she had to the poor.

Escalation of the conflicts

With the death of her husband, Elisabeth was robbed of the person who had previously saved her from open conflicts with her relatives, court officials and representatives of the local nobility. The tensions with the relatives resulted not only from their piety, but above all from the fear of influence and the incorporation of their considerable property by Konrad von Marburg. Through Elisabeth's vows he had complete control over her and thus also over the future landgrave, who was still underage. At this time Konrad had risen to become the most feared inquisitor of his time, who bitterly persecuted and threw everyone at the stake who did not want to or could not follow his religious doctrine. Ludwig had acted like a buffer between all the protagonists. After his death, it did not take long for the conflicts, which had previously been painstakingly suppressed, to openly escalate.

Power struggle for Elisabeth's property

According to Konrad, it was Elisabeth's heart's desire to forego all of her possessions and to wander from house to house as a beggar in fulfillment of her ideal of poverty. According to his Summa Vitae , the reasons for this lie in the outstanding repayment of debts that her husband had taken on in preparation for the crusade and in her willingness to use the remaining inheritance for the benefit of the poor instead of letting it fall to the family.

Friedrich II. With his falcon. From his book De arte venandi cum avibus (“On the Art of Hunting Birds”), Southern Italy between 1258 and 1266. Città del Vaticano, Vatican Apostolic Library (Cod. Pal. Lat. 1071, fol. 1v)

So, shortly after the news of the Landgrave's death to Pope Gregory IX. skillful so that this Elizabeth may be placed under his apostolic protection. This was an occasional practice at the time to protect the interests of highborn minors or widows from envious relatives. Konrad thus became the ecclesiastical and legal guardian of the twenty-year-old Elisabeth with complete control over all her concerns and property.

Heinrich Raspe , Ludwig's younger brother, who thought Elisabeth was not sane, had taken over the regency as a substitute for Hermann, who was only five years old, immediately after his brother's death and, as one of his first acts, deprived her of control over the lands and income that Ludwig had given her had promised as widows property. Nonetheless, she was granted a right of residence and the right to continue to dine at the landgrave's table, which she refused because of the meal orders imposed by Konrad von Marburg. Elisabeth then left the Wartburg together with her immediate servants, whereupon she had “her” Franciscans sing a Te Deum that night . She spent the winter of 1227/28 penniless in Eisenach under degrading circumstances. Most of their contemporaries reacted to the rejection of their rank and a proper material supply with incomprehension, disregard, scorn and ridicule. Elisabeth and her ladies-in-waiting were pushed back and forth. None of the wealthier citizens of Eisenach dared to take them into his house. Her first accommodation was the shed of a restaurant, which had previously been used as a pigsty, then they sought refuge in a church. Her three small children were brought after her from the castle. Then they found accommodation with a priest, who soon asked them to move to another house, whose owner Elisabeth did not like. They quartered the company in a tiny room, although many rooms were vacant. When the homeowners insulted Elisabeth, she moved out again and returned to the pigsty with bitter words: “I would like to thank people, but I don't know what for.” Elisabeth of Thuringia experienced disregard even from people she once met was helpful: The Libellus tells of an old woman who had previously been provided with alms and medicine by Elisabeth during an illness and who pushed her former benefactor on a narrow footbridge into the ditch at a meeting in Eisenach. According to the testimonies of her servants, Elisabeth laughed at it, because a life in absolute poverty corresponded to the ideal she was striving for.

The letter of protection that Pope Gregory IX. issued for Elisabeth and who arrived in Thuringia in February or March 1228 has not been preserved. From comparable documents, however, it can be concluded that this protection applied both to Elisabeth personally and to her property. Anyone who violated the rights of the widowed landgrave had to expect excommunication or at least an interdict (the prohibition to participate in a church act). As his local representative, who should look after their interests, Pope Gregory IX determined. Konrad of Marburg.

Isolation of Elisabeth

Konrad wanted to isolate Elisabeth completely from the influence of her family; so he made sure that her previous confidante Guda and Isentrud von Hörselgau were no longer allowed to live with her after they moved to Marburg. In the canonization process, they expressed:

“Magister Konrad made this arrangement out of well-intentioned zeal and intent. He was afraid we would talk to her about her past splendor, and that might tempt her and mourn him for him. In order to lead her to cling to God alone, he withdrew all human consolation from her that she could have drawn from our proximity. "

Housed in a simple house, she lived with two women chosen by Konrad, a young woman from the simplest class and the noble, older widow Hedwig von Seebach, whom Konrad himself described as unfriendly. He later wrote that one should teach her humility and the other to teach her patience. They lived on water soups, legumes and cabbage leaves, which Elisabeth, who was inexperienced in cooking, regularly let burn because she was absorbed in prayer. The women were urged by Konrad to spy on Elisabeth and to tell him about their misconduct, which was then punished draconically. Her former maids report in the Libellus that Elisabeth did not even dare to talk to them when they visited them, as Konrad had forbidden her.

On Good Friday 1228 Elisabeth finally made a new vow in the presence of Konrad and some Franciscans in the Franciscan Church in Eisenach, in which she renounced her family and children as well as all the glamor of the world and again promised unconditional obedience.

Intervention by Elisabeth's family

The maternal family also became active. Abbess Mechthild von Kitzingen had her niece Elisabeth of Thuringia brought against her will to her uncle, the Bishop of Bamberg, probably at the beginning of April 1228, who housed her at Pottenstein Castle in Upper Franconia . Eckbert von Bamberg suggested that she marry again - it is believed that he was considering Emperor Friedrich II as a candidate for marriage. During the canonization process, her servants reported that Elisabeth opposed her uncle's plans to marry by assuring him that by cutting off her nose she would disfigure herself in such a way that it would deter anyone who would seek her. She was finally able to evade the supervision of her uncle in May 1228, when Ludwig's bones were transferred to Thuringia for burial in the Reinhardsbrunn monastery , and fled to Konrad von Marburg.

Comparison between the parties

Shortly after the funeral ceremony, Konrad was able to get the landgrave's family through that Elizabeth should not receive her widow's property, but compensation of 2,000 silver marks. Heinrich Raspe and his brother Konrad von Thuringia also transferred some lands near Marburg to her for lifelong use. As early as the summer of 1228, the construction of a hospital outside the city walls of Marburg began, which was able to accept the first sick at the beginning of the winter half of 1228. As the patron saint of the hospital, Elisabeth chose Francis of Assisi, who was only canonized in July 1228. She herself should serve as a simple hospital nurse in the hospital. Presumably for the consecration of the hospital she was given the so-called “gray robe”, which also externally underlined her vow of poverty and indicated that she had now, as it were, converted into the clergy as “ soror in saeculo ” (sister in the world).

Life in Marburg

Elisabeth spent the last three years of her life as a poor hospital nurse in Marburg. During this time she became more and more radical and developed her own dogmatic conception of belief, which she uncompromisingly demanded from herself and others.

Contemporary picture of Francis of Assisi - mural in Sacro Speco in Subiaco

Elisabeth earned her living spinning wool for the Altenberg monastery, where her youngest daughter Gertrud was housed. In the hospital that had been built with part of Elizabeth's widow's inheritance, she performed the lowest maid services. She devoted herself particularly to the care of lepers , who, according to the terms of the time, were among the poorest of the poor and lived on the margins of society. The reports in the Libellus show that her sympathy was especially directed towards pregnant women, women in labor and children. Several of her contemporaries have described her self-sacrificing care for a paralyzed boy whom she carried several times on her shoulders to the toilet during the night and whose bed she repeatedly cleaned. These reports are mainly due to Irmgard and Elisabeth, who worked together with Elisabeth von Thuringia in the hospital and, along with Guda and Isentrud von Hörselgau, are among the four so-called servants whose statements are recorded in the Libellus . Irmingard describes how Elisabeth's father tried to bring his daughter back to Hungary and sent a count named Panja to her, but she refused to come with them.

Konrad von Marburg forced Elisabeth to renounce her children, to separate from her confidants Guda and Isentrud von Hörselgau and repeatedly punished them severely in order to break their will. The sources report, among other things, that he once let his servants beat her so badly that she bore the marks of punishment for weeks. In the judgment of the contemporary Caesarius von Heisterbach , Konrad, with his severity and harshness towards Elisabeth, made a considerable contribution to her merits and thus also to her canonization. According to the tradition of the Libellus , she responded to the punishment with the frequently quoted words:

“It seems to us that we like to endure such things, because we are like reeds in the river. When the flow rises, the pipe is bent and compressed and the overflowing water penetrates it without harming it. When the flooding subsides, the pipe straightens up again and grows at full speed, cheerful and happy. So it is always befitting of us to be bowed down and humiliated and afterwards to be cheerful and happy again. "

Relationship between Elisabeth and Konrad von Marburg

The relationship between Elisabeth and Konrad gave rise to ridicule and defamation during their lifetime. They were assumed to have had a sexual relationship and even a pregnancy was rumored. In order to refute these claims, she showed her back to good friends, which was regularly beaten to blood by Konrad.

Tensions arose between Elisabeth and Konrad with regard to the care of beggars and the poor and the care of lepers. He probably tried to limit the latter mainly out of fear that it could become infected with lepers. His attempt to limit her generosity towards those in need was very likely to have a similarly pragmatic background: In order to maintain the hospital and their two livelihoods in the long term, careful and economical handling of Elisabeth's widow's inheritance was necessary. The extent to which she gave away her remaining assets to the needy when Konrad let them go is shown, among other things, at the “Festival of the Poor” Quarter of their widow's inheritance, among those present. Werner Moritz estimates that Elisabeth von Thuringia gave presents to around 1000 people in need in this one, well-prepared campaign.

She repeatedly circumvented the restrictions that Konrad placed on her in caring for the poor by interpreting them literally. If he forbade her to give too much at once, she simply gave several gifts. Caesarius von Heisterbach commented on this in his Vita, written in 1237:

"You see, with such pious cunning she circumvented the instructions of Konrad in the works of mercy without violating the duty of obedience in the least."

The historian Raoul Manselli therefore describes Elisabeth von Thuringia and Konrad von Marburg as two equally strong personalities who both had their own view of the fulfillment of religious duties. In essential parts their respective views agreed, in part they accepted Konrad's views as part of their vow of obedience, in part they resisted his requirements.

The evaluation of the excavations at the site of her hospital showed that Elisabeth maintained a certain degree of aristocratic lifestyle despite all the restrictions: For a long time she surrounded herself with a small retinue of her former ladies-in-waiting, and they had a tiled stove - at that time a luxury good that only was available in aristocratic and patrician circles.

death

Elisabeth died at the age of 24. Details about her death come mainly from Irmgard, one of the Marburg hospital nurses, and from a letter from Konrad von Marburg to Pope Gregor IX. According to these sources, she fell ill on November 4th or 5th and died in the night of November 16-17, 1231. Konrad made her last confession, after which she received the sacraments of death. Elisabeth also commissioned him to distribute her remaining fortune to the poor and needy. She was laid out in the chapel of the hospital she founded . Irmgard reported that, as a token of their admiration, many people tore off pieces of the handkerchiefs covering Elisabeth's face, cut off her scalp hair, nails and even one of her fingers during the laying out. On November 19, she was buried in the chapel of the Franciscan Hospital she founded.

The Canonization Procedure

Konrad von Marburg initiated the canonization process for Elisabeth of Thuringia in the spring of 1232 at the latest and carried it forward energetically and skillfully until his death. The canonization process was completed at a time when the bishops, on the basis of a decree issued by Pope Gregory IX in 1234. had already lost their right to canonization and canonization could only be carried out by the Pope and after careful examination by a supervisory body. A credible witness to miracles was considered indispensable for canonization . The relatively extensive testimonies of their contemporaries about their lives can be traced back to this fact, the special value of which is that they are largely official documents.

Depiction of Gregory IX. in a manuscript from around 1270 - he first placed Elisabeth of Thuringia under his apostolic protection and later canonized her

Reports of miraculous healings that are said to have taken place at Elisabeth's grave were made on the first day after her burial. To effect their official testimony, Konrad took advantage of the fact that on August 10, 1232 on the occasion of an altar consecration Archbishop Siegfried III. from Mainz stayed in Marburg. In his sermon on the occasion of the consecration, Konrad asked that all who had been miraculously healed by the invocation of Elisabeth should testify to the archbishop and the prelates who were also present the next day. Siegfried III. was obviously surprised by this. The sixty miracles that he and his prelates found sufficiently credible have only been documented in summary form. The report to Pope Gregory IX, which also contained the request to include the deceased in the list of saints, now bore the signature of Konrad von Marburg as well as that of the Archbishop of Mainz and his prelates.

The Roman Curia found the summary report of miracles to be insufficient; Pope Gregory IX therefore commissioned the Archbishop of Mainz, Konrad von Marburg and Abbot Raimund von Eberbach on October 13, 1232 to interrogate the witnesses again and stipulated in detail what should be asked of them. A precise description of the life and conduct of Elisabeth of Thuringia was also requested. The renewed questioning began at the beginning of the year 1233. This time over 600 witnesses were heard and 105 miracles were recorded.

The canonization process came to a standstill when Konrad von Marburg was murdered on July 30, 1233 and there was political unrest in Pope Gregory IX. forced to leave Rome. It was only resumed a year later after the Teutonic Order had been appointed guardian of her grave and her brother-in-law Konrad von Thuringia joined the order. Pope Gregory IX now commissioned the Bishop of Hildesheim, the Abbot Hermann von Georgenthal and the Abbot Ludwig von Hersfeld with the continuation of the testimony. January 1, 1235 was set as the new date and announced in several dioceses and large cities. The interrogations were carried out with the participation of scribes and legally qualified assessors and recorded in detail. 24 new miracles were logged.

Overall, more than 50 percent of the miracles documented in this way are cured by children and young people under the age of 14. Herbert Zielinski attributes this to the fact that the contemporaries especially noticed Elisabeth's loving attention to children and were therefore ready to undertake long and arduous pilgrimages to ask for help at their grave for sick children. As an example, he cites the case of eight-year-old Adelheid from the Eschwege district , who was unable to move in November after an illness. Her mother vowed to make a pilgrimage with her daughter to Marburg, more than 100 kilometers away , at Easter to place votive offerings at Elisabeth's grave . After the pilgrimage, Adelheid was initially able to move in a hunched position and with the help of crutches. Eventually she recovered enough that she could walk again without crutches. The healing was understood by those around them as so incomprehensible that her father, the village pastor and the mayor made the arduous and multi-day trip to Marburg together in the winter of 1235 to testify to the commission. The places of origin of other people healed by witnessed miracles also show that Elisabeth was worshiped nationwide immediately after her death. Healed people came from Koblenz , Ahrweiler , Cologne , Dortmund , the Amelungsborn monastery , Meiningen , Gelnhausen , Dilsberg and Worms , among others .

At the beginning of the year 1235, all of the files on the witnessed miracles and Elizabeth's way of life were transferred to Pope Gregory IX in Perugia . brought. There it was submitted to a consistory to which numerous archbishops, prelates and bishops belonged. After the reading, it was recommended that Elizabeth be included in the list of saints. The official proclamation of the canonization took place on Pentecost, which fell on May 27, 1235. The length of time between her death and her canonization appears short from today's perspective, but was not an isolated case at that time; Anthony of Padua was canonized less than a year after his death.

Places of worship of Elizabeth

Elisabeth Church in Marburg

St. Elisabeth Cathedral in Košice

A continuation of the Franziskushospital in the sense of Elisabeth did not take place. Due to the reports of the miracles at her grave, Marburg became an important national pilgrimage site for several years before the canonization . Pilgrims were therefore increasingly being admitted to the hospital she founded. In the early summer of 1234, Konrad von Thuringia also managed to get the Pope to transfer the Marburg Hospital and the right of patronage over the Marburg churches to the Teutonic Order . As a knightly order, however, the Teutonic Order was extremely unsuitable for running a hospital in which lepers and other needy people found admission and care. At the same time, the number of pilgrims to Elisabeth's grave decreased - probably also because the Teutonic Order neither wanted nor was able to maintain a pilgrimage site. However, the Teutonic Order had the Elisabeth Church , consecrated to Elisabeth of Thuringia, built from 1235 to 1283 . The chapel of the Franziskusspital and thus the original grave of Elisabeth is integrated into the north conche of this church.

Today hundreds of churches and many religious and hospitals around the world bear the name of St. Elisabeth. A number of modern nursing orders have also given themselves their names. The best-known examples include the Order of the Elizabeth of Aachen, founded by Apollonia Radermecher in 1622, and the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Elisabeth (Gray Sisters). Centers of the veneration of Elizabeth can be found in Vienna , in the monastery of the Elizabethines , in Sárospatak (Hungary), her probable birthplace, whose Roman Catholic parish church of Pope Benedict XVI. has therefore raised minor in 2007 to the basilica, and near her birthplace in the St. Elisabeth Cathedral in Kassa (Kosice, Slovakia ). There are patron saints of St. Elisabeth on the whole territory of the former Kingdom of Hungary, for example in the Szeklerland , near Eliseni . The Hungarian sculptor Károly Senyei created a marble statue of Elisabeth for St. Stephen's Basilica in Budapest in the 1890s .

She is a figure of the Middle Ages , whose memory has remained vivid to this day. Round anniversaries of their birth or death are still the occasion for special commemorative events.

She is also remembered in the Protestant Church: many Diakonie institutions bear her name. On the occasion of her 700th birthday, the women's rights activist Elsbeth Krukenberg-Conze gave an “astonishingly self-confident speech” at the anniversary event of the Evangelical Union in 1907 , in which she did not stylize the saint as an icon of women's emancipation , but clearly from the one marked by “humility and dependence Elisabeth's Vita ”. She did not see her ideal of a “German Evangelical woman” realized in the Evangelical Church, which had indeed broken the “priestly will”, but was still dominated by men. Elisabeth's name day on November 19 can also be found in the Protestant name calendar .

On the 750th anniversary of his death in 1981, the churches in the GDR held their first mass assembly, at which tens of thousands gathered on the square below the Erfurt Cathedral . On the occasion of her 800th birthday in 2007, several exhibitions in Germany commemorated the Thuringian landgravine .

A memorial plaque for Elisabeth of Thuringia was placed in the Walhalla near Regensburg .

The Elizabeth relics

Arm reliquary in the Sayn castle chapel

The cult of relics around St. Elisabeth is closely related to the celebration of the solemn translation of her corpse on May 1st, 1236, which attracted such a large crowd that it is one of the most outstanding events in medieval Marburg. Contemporary sources give the number of those present at 1.2 million; however, it should have been much lower. It is documented that in addition to Emperor Friedrich II, numerous nobles and high dignitaries of the church took part in the ceremony.

In preparation for the solemn elevation , Ulrich von Dürn, the Prior of the Order of the German Order, opened the grave with seven other friars, wrapped the bones in a purple cloth and reburied them in a lead coffin. The head was separated from the rest of the body and the skull exposed. On the morning of May 1st, Emperor Friedrich II - barefoot and clad in a gray penitential robe - lifted the coffin out of the grave together with other princes and probably transferred it to the altar of the pilgrimage church. He put the skull - according to medieval understanding the most important relic - in a gold cup and decorated it with a precious crown. While the bones were reburied in the Elisabethschrein in 1249/50, the head reliquary was probably exhibited in the church from the time of the elevation. Today the reliquary without skull is in the Historical Museum in Stockholm .

The bones preserved in the shrine did not remain complete for long, as Elizabeth's relics were in great demand: The first reliably documented Elizabeth's relic outside of Marburg is a rib that was in the possession of Sophie von Brabant around 1250 . The Altenberg monastery owned an arm relic, which may have reached the monastery as early as 1236, where Elisabeth's daughter Gertrud later became abbess. During the secularization at the beginning of the 19th century, the arm reliquary first came into the possession of Count Boos von Waldeck , whose family handed it over to Sayn Abbey . Today it belongs to the Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn Princely Family , who have it on display in the Sayn Palace Chapel . Relics also ended up in cities such as Halberstadt and Udine . A penitential robe of Elisabeth is now kept in the Catholic parish church of St. Martin in Oberwalluf in the Rheingau . In Sárospatak there has been a relic with a particle of the skull bone since 1988, a gift from the Admont Abbey (Austria), and a piece of brocade robe attributed to St. Elisabeth.

There are no more Elisabeth relics in Marburg today. In 1539, Philip I of Hesse , who converted to Protestantism, had Elisabeth's bones removed from the shrine and the skull from the reliquary in order to end the cult of relics. The whereabouts of the bones is unknown. It is possible that the skull and two shins ended up in the Elisabethinen monastery in Vienna , where they are venerated as Elisabeth's relics to this day. Its authenticity is not excluded, but it has not been proven either.

Representations in art

Representation in the fine arts

Elisabeth statue in Naumburg Cathedral

Elisabeth of Thuringia on a German postage stamp from 1981

The Elisabeth Church in Marburg, together with the Church of Our Lady in Trier, is the first Gothic building in Germany. It is one of the few churches from the 12th and 13th centuries whose original colored glazing has been at least partially preserved. The twelve depictions on the church windows, which Elisabeth of Thuringia show, among other things, how she visits prisoners, cares for the sick, gives shelter to the homeless, feeds the hungry and donates alms, together with the eight-part relief cycle on the shrine are probably the oldest depictions of Elisabeth in the Fine arts . Elisabeth's daughter Sophie donated the shrine in 1240, in which her bones were kept for over three centuries; the glass windows are probably a bit younger. The stained glass windows and Elizabeth's shrine only show scenes that are documented by contemporary sources. One of the highlights of the relief cycle is the farewell scene between Elisabeth and Ludwig of Thuringia, who hug each other one last time. Elisabeth is not depicted in this relief as a young woman, but with the face of an old woman who is marked by pain and suffering.

A stone sculpture in Naumburg Cathedral , which depicts Elisabeth with a book in her hand, dates from around the same period . This statue is sometimes classified as even older than the depictions of the Elisabeth shrine and the stained glass windows of the Elisabeth church. Image cycles on Elisabeth's life can also be found in the Krumau Codex of Images, which was created before 1350 and is kept in the Austrian National Library in Vienna, as well as on the 23 oak panels from around 1420 to 1430 that adorn the parapet of the singing choir in the Holy Spirit Hospital in Lübeck .

Interior of the Liborius Chapel in Creuzburg

Detail of the wall painting in the Liborius Chapel

A monumental cycle of pictures about Elisabeth's life and the miracles attributed to her (rose, crucifix, coat miracles) is in the Liborius Chapel in Creuzburg near Eisenach. Of the wall paintings created by Conrad Stebel from Rotenburg in 1520, 14 pictures are still preserved thanks to the restoration that was completed in 2013 by the Friends of Liboriuskapelle Creuzburg e. V. partly very well preserved.

The most common motif from the Middle Ages to the early modern period shows Elisabeth taking care of the needy. Her attributes are usually a loaf of bread, a jug, sometimes fruit, and she is often depicted with beggars and cripples. For example, it was painted by Hans Holbein the Elder on a panel painting dated around 1530 that hangs in the Alte Pinakothek in Munich. Even Martin Schaffner shows the saint in this manner on an altar of Ulm Minster (also in 1530). Another common motif is the portrayal of the church patroness holding the model of a church in her hand. A beggar is often with them.

Elisabeth figure in the Marburg Elisabeth Church

Elisabeth appeared on the coin of a bracteate during her lifetime . Their further depiction on coins of the Landgraviate of Hesse is continuously traceable for the late 14th century, initially in the Hessian coinage for Schmalkalden. The use of the coin portrait did not end until after the Reformation. The most famous Elisabeth coin is the Guldengroschen from 1502 with the statue of the saint, her church and the inscription GLORIA REI PVBLICE, which points to a new understanding of the state of Landgrave Wilhelm II . Philip the Magnanimous (ruled from 1509 to 1567) had Elisabeth struck under the hand on the coin of his father Wilhelm II of Hesse, long after he had taken action against the Elisabeth cult. One of Philip's early Elisabeth coins provided the design template for Ludwig Juppe's coat of arms from 1524 at the Marburg town hall. The Federal Republic of Germany also honored the saint in 2007 with a silver commemorative coin worth ten euros.

Elisabeth stained glass window in the Minorite Church of Cluj ( Art Nouveau )

Colossal mosaic portrait of Elisabeth of Thuringia in the Mexikokirche (Elisabethkapelle) in Vienna

Crucifix miracle in a section of the left wing of the Elisabeth Altar in the Elisabeth Church in Marburg ( Johann von der Leyten , presumably before 1493); left Ludwig and his mother, right Elisabeth with crown and nimbus

The legends that began to develop around Elisabeth were picked up early on as motifs of the visual arts. Between the 14th and 16th centuries, the so-called crucifix miracle was particularly popular: Ludwig of Thuringia learned from his mother, who, according to legend, was hostile to Elisabeth, that she was caring for a leper in the marriage bed. When Ludwig then went to the bedroom, he saw Christ crucified in bed instead of a leper.

Other depictions, such as the one in Altenberg Monastery from 1340, refer to the miracle of the cloak: Elisabeth receives back from angels the cloak with which she had dressed a beggar. Representations of Italian art with Elisabeth of Thuringia and roses as an attribute go back to the earliest mention of the rose miracle in a Tuscan codex that is kept in the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana in Florence, for example in Arezzo as early as the 14th century. This picture motif gained popularity in the 19th century after two artists from Göttingen, Franz and Johannes Riepenhausen , who lived in Rome , brought it to Germany. It was taken up in the Wartburg fresco cycle by Moritz von Schwind from 1853 to 1855.

The figure of Elisabeth also appears in pictorial representations of the Nine Good Heroines ; in this iconographic series she is a representative of Christianity. She is often found in groups of saints together with her aunt, Hedwig von Andechs , who was also canonized , her great-niece Elisabeth of Portugal , with Clare of Assisi , the evangelist John, Francis of Assisi and with St. Catherine of Genoa , who was born in Siena in 1347 , who also devoted ascetic severity to the care of the sick and poor. Depictions of Elisabeth with a crown at her feet indicate her humility. Occasionally one can also find three crowns on the representations. This motif goes back to her biography by Caesarius von Heisterbach, who awarded her the triple crown of the rank of virgin, wife and widow.

Elisabeth of Thuringia in music

Elisabeth's life has also been the subject of compositions several times. These include, among other things

• Richard Wagner : Tannhäuser and the Singers' War at Wartburg , opera , world premiere in Dresden 1845.
• Franz Liszt : The legend of St. Elisabeth , oratorio , (composed 1857–1862) first performed in 1865.
• Joseph Haas : The Holy Elisabeth , Oratorio, Opus 84, first performance Kassel 1931.
• Kurt Grahl (music), Claus-Peter März (text): When the bread we share , song, printed in some regional editions of the Evangelical Hymnbook and the Catholic Church's Praise for God (GL 470). The song was written on the occasion of the 750th anniversary of death in 1981.
• Peter Janssens (music), Alois Albrecht (text) Elisabeth von Thuringia , scenic play, 1981.
• Peter Janssens (music), Hermann Schulze-Berndt (text): Elisabeth von Thüringen , music game, first performance in 1984 at the 88th German Catholic Day in Munich.
• Christian Bruhn (music), Rose Nabinger (text): Sankt Elisabeth , Lied, 2006.
• The spotlight Musical Production GmbH has the life of Elizabeth as a musical titled Elisabeth - The legend of a saint for performance in Eisenach and Marburg implemented (game season in 2007, 2008 and 2009).
• Nikolaus Fheodoroff (music), Herbert Vogg (libretto): Elisabeth von Thüringen. Chamber oratorio for mezzo-soprano, tenor, bass, speaking voice, acc. Choir, orchestra and organ (2010)
• Ludger Stühlmeyer (music), Barbara Stühlmeyer (text): Ein Lied für Elisabeth , Lied, 2018.

Fiction

• Sabine Weigand : The gates of heaven: A novel about Elisabeth of Thuringia. Fischer Taschenbuch, Frankfurt am Main 2014, ISBN 978-3-596-18344-9 .

Modern reception from a feminist and psychoanalytic point of view

In 1931, on the 700th anniversary of her death, the pedagogue and women's rights activist Elisabeth Busse-Wilson published the book The Life of Saint Elisabeth of Thuringia: The Image of a Medieval Soul , a psychoanalytic study based on the teachings of Sigmund Freud , in which she describes the character of Elisabeth and her relationship to Konrad examines. She diagnoses Elisabeth as a severely personality disordered, egocentric, immature young woman who takes refuge in the pseudo reality of religion in order not to have to deal with worldly reality and the associated responsibility as a landgrave and mother who thinks and acts pragmatically and long-term and has to decide and at which it finally broke. She declared her humility and subservience to her mentor Konrad as a kind of “sex-free” substitute sexuality, which today would be referred to as dominance and submission . This clinical demystification of the “German national saints” earned her bitter criticism from well-known theologians and historians at the time, but also positive criticism from leading intellectuals such as Thomas Mann and Hermann Hesse . The book was no longer published under the National Socialists in 1933. In 2006 the psychoanalyst Horst Eberhard Richter gave a lecture at the Urania in Berlin on the relationship between Elisabeth and Konrad von Marburg:

"So [...] [Konrad von Marburg] watches over her strict asceticism and her unconditional devotion as a charitable benefactress as a confessor. His fanatical educational zeal, which he shows in the process, reveals that he is actually fighting for himself. He wants to show Elisabeth to heaven and its surroundings as his own better self and let her bless his crimes. "

- Horst-Eberhard Richter : " Torture and Humanity "

Others

In 2007, on the occasion of the 800th birthday of St. Elisabeth commissioned the ballet Die Heilige from the composer C. René Hirschfeld, which tells the life story of Elisabeth of Thuringia from today's artistic and human perspective and was first performed in the same year in the choreography by Jutta Ebnother.

In addition, in the anniversary year 2007, the musical Elisabeth - Legend of a Saint was performed in the Eisenach Theater . The composers were Dennis Martin and Peter Scholz, the client was the state of Thuringia. The piece was resumed annually until 2009 due to great demand.

One of the first new Intercity Express trains ( ICE 4 ) was named after Elisabeth von Thuringia in October 2017 .

In Protestant and Anglican areas, November 19 is Elisabeth's day of remembrance. In Catholic countries, the day of her death, November 17th, is celebrated as a day of remembrance. Elisabeth is the patroness of Thuringia and Hesse, the widows and orphans , beggars, the sick, the innocently persecuted and the needy, the bakers, social workers and lace makers , the Teutonic Order , the Caritas associations, the diocese of Erfurt , second patroness of the diocese of Fulda . She is also the patroness of the Archdiocese of Bogotá in Colombia.

swell

Source editions on Elisabeth of Thuringia

• Dietrich von Apolda : Life and legend of St. Elisabeth . Translated by Rainer Kößling . Insel-Verlag, Frankfurt / M. 1997, ISBN 3-458-19172-0 .
• Caesarius von Heisterbach : Vita sancte Elyzabeth lantgavie (1236-1237). In: A. Huyskens at A. Hilka (ed.), The Wonder Stories of Caesarius von Heisterbach , III, 1937, p. 329 ff.
• Caesarius von Heisterbach, Sermo de translatione beate Elysabeth (1237). In: A. Huyskens at A. Hilka (ed.), The miracle stories of Caesarius von Heisterbach , III, 1937, p. 381 ff.
• Lee Maril (Ed.): Elisabeth von Thüringen. The testimonies of their contemporaries . Benziger, Einsiedeln 1961.
• Walter Nigg (Ed.): Elisabeth of Thuringia . Patmos Verlag, Düsseldorf 1967. The book contains u. a. the testimony of the four servants translated by Otto Kragel.
• Monika Rener (Ed.): Dietrich von Apolda, The life of St. Elisabeth. (= Publications of the Historical Commission for Hessen Volume 67/03). Marburg 2007, ISBN 978-3-7708-1311-7 .

literature

• Barbara Stühlmeyer : Elisabeth of Thuringia. Spirituality - history - effect. Topos Plus Verlagsgemeinschaft, Kevelaer 2018, ISBN 978-3-8367-1125-8 .
• Steffen Raßloff , Lutz Gebhardt : The Thuringian Landgraves. History and legends . Ilmenau 2017, ISBN 978-3-95560-055-6 .
• Ulrike Witten: Diaconal learning based on biographies: Elisabeth von Thüringen, Florence Nightingale and Mother Teresa , EVA, Leipzig 2014, ISBN 978-3-374-03884-8 (Dissertation University of Leipzig 2012/2013, 407 pages).
• Ortrud Reber: Elisabeth von Thüringen, Landgravine and Saint, A Biography , Piper, Munich 2009, ISBN 978-3-492-25321-5 .
• Christa Bertelsmeier-Kierst (ed.): Elisabeth of Thuringia and the new piety in Europe. (= Cultural-historical contributions to the Middle Ages and the early modern period , Volume 1), Lang, Frankfurt am Main 2008, ISBN 978-3-631-56992-4 .
• Heinz Josef Algermissen , Martin Hein , Christoph Kähler and Joachim Wanke : More than bread and roses. Elisabeth of Thuringia today . Herder, Freiburg im Breisgau 2007, ISBN 978-3-451-29354-2 .
• Rainer Atzbach : Marburg's holiest place. Excavations 1970/71 at the site of the founding of the hospital of St. Elisabeth. (= Marburger Stadtschriften zur Geschichte und Kultur , Volume 88, with contributions by Katrin Atzbach, Matthias Bischof, Cathrin Hähn, Alissa Theiß and Felicitas Weiß.) Marburg 2007, ISBN 978-3-923820-88-7 .
• Rainer Atzbach , Thorsten Albrecht : Elisabeth of Thuringia. Life and impact in art and cultural history. Imhof, Petersberg 2006, 2nd, expanded edition 2007, ISBN 3-86568-123-9 .
• Daria Barow-Vissilevitch: Elisabeth of Thuringia - saint, queen of love, rebel . Thorbecke, Ostfildern 2007, ISBN 978-3-7995-0177-4 .
• Christfried Boelter: Elisabeth and Reinhardsbrunn . In: Star Path. Communications from the German St. Jakobus Society, issue 40, 2007, pp. 22–24.
• Christoph Kühn: Elisabeth von Thuringia - question for an answer . In: Star Path. Communications from the German St. James Society, issue 40, 2007, pp. 13–21.
• Niklot Klüßendorf : Saint Elisabeth in the Hessian coin image . In: Treatises of the Braunschweigische Wissenschaftlichen Gesellschaft. Volume 56, 2006, pp. 51-89.
• Monika Vogt: Because we are like reeds in the river - encounters with Saint Elisabeth in Hesse and Thuringia , Schnell & Steiner Verlag, Regensburg 2006, ISBN 3-7954-1780-5 .
• Christian Zippert and Gerhard Jost: Dedication and serenity. From the life and work of St. Elisabeth , Verlag Evangelischer Medienverband, Kassel 2006, ISBN 3-89477-913-6 .
• Helmut Zimmermann and Eckhard Bieger: Elisabeth - Saints of Christian Charity , Publishing Community Topos plus, Kevelaer 2006, ISBN 3-7867-8598-8 .
• Uwe Geese: Adoration of relics and mediation of power. The medial nature of the relics in the early Elisabeth cult (= sources and research on Hessian history, volume 54). Hessian Historical Commission Darmstadt and Historical Commission for Hesse. Darmstadt and Marburg 1984, ISBN 3-88443-145-5 (Dissertation A University of Marburg, Department of Modern German Literature and Art Studies, 1980, VIII, 276 pages, Appendix: Illustrations).
• Michael Frase: The translation of St. Elisabeth on May 1, 1236: Considerations on the number of participants and the problem of the oil miracle , in Udo Arnold and Heinz Liebing (eds.): Elisabeth, the German Order and Your Church , Elwert, Marburg 1983, ISBN 3 -7708-0754-5 , pp. 39-52.
• Raoul Manselli : Princely holiness and everyday life with Elisabeth of Thuringia: The testimony of the servants , in Udo Arnold and Heinz Liebing (eds.): Elisabeth, the German Order and Your Church , Elwert, Marburg 1983, ISBN 3-7708-0754-5 , Pp. 9-27.
• Herbert Zielinski : Elisabeth of Thuringia and the children. On the history of childhood in the Middle Ages , in Udo Arnold and Heinz Liebing (eds.): Elisabeth, the German Order and Your Church , Elwert, Marburg 1983, ISBN 3-7708-0754-5 , pp. 27-39.
• Philipps University of Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Thorbecke, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , therein:
  • Paul Gerhard Schmidt : The contemporary tradition on the life and canonization of St. Elisabeth , pp. 1–7.
  • Matthias Werner : Saint Elisabeth and Konrad von Marburg , pp. 45–70.
  • Otto Gerhard Oexle : Poverty and poor welfare around 1200. A contribution to the understanding of voluntary poverty in Elisabeth of Thuringia , pp. 78-101.
  • Werner Moritz: The hospital of St. Elisabeth in its relationship to the hospital system of the early 13th century , pp. 101–117.
  • Josef Leinweber: The church canonization process up to the year 1234. The canonization process of St. Elisabeth of Thuringia , pp. 128-137.
  • Hartmut Boockmann : The beginnings of the Teutonic Order in Marburg , pp. 137–151.
  • Thomas Franke: On the history of Elisabeth's relics in the Middle Ages and the early modern period , pp. 167–180.
  • Renate Kroos: On early written and pictorial testimonies about St. Elisabeth as sources for art and cultural history .
• Arno Borst:  Elisabeth. In: New German Biography (NDB). Volume 4, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1959, ISBN 3-428-00185-0 , p. 452 ( digitized version ).
• Leo Weismantel : Elisabeth. The story of a memorable life. Sebaldus, Nuremberg 1931; Augustinus, Würzburg 1949.

Web links

Commons : Elisabeth von Thüringen  - Album with pictures, videos and audio files

• Literature by and about Elisabeth of Thuringia in the catalog of the German National Library
• Works by and about Elisabeth von Thuringia  in the German Digital Library
• Literature about Elisabeth of Thuringia in the Hessian Bibliography
• "Elisabeth Landgravine of Thuringia". Hessian biography. (As of July 19, 2010). In: Landesgeschichtliches Informationssystem Hessen (LAGIS).
• Elisabeth of Thuringia. In: FemBio. Women's biography research (with references and citations).
• Elisabeth of Thuringia in pictures at the Photo Archive Photo Marburg
• 800 years of Elisabeth of Thuringia In: Evangelical Churches in Hesse on the "Elisabeth Year 2007"

Remarks

1. ↑ The date of birth has not been passed down, following a later tradition it is July 7th, 1207; one of the three copies of Konrad von Marburg Summa Vitae contains the addition: "Obiit XVI kalendas decembri anno etatis sue XXV"; 'She died at the age of 25', which means that Elisabeth, who died in 1231, was born in 1207. According to Reber, the birthday cannot be before August 1207, since Elisabeth's brother Bela was born in the autumn of 1206 and a congratulation from the Pope to the Hungarian king is documented on November 29th. (Ortrud Reber: Elisabeth von Thüringen. Landgrave and Saint. A biography. Friedrich Prustet, Regensburg 2006, p. 49)
2. ↑ Helmut Zimmermann and Eckhard Bieger: Elisabeth - Saints of Christian Charity , Verlagsgemeinschaft Topos plus, Kevelaer 2006, ISBN 3-7867-8598-8 , p. 150.
3. ↑ Daria Barow-Vissilevitch: Elisabeth of Thuringia - saint, queen of love, rebel . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Ostfildern 2007, ISBN 978-3-7995-0177-4 , pp. 24-25.
4. ↑ Paul Gerhard Schmidt: The contemporary tradition on the life and canonization of St. Elisabeth, in Philipps University of Marburg (ed.): St. Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , pp. 4-5.
5. ↑ Daria Barow-Vissilevitch: Elisabeth of Thuringia - saint, queen of love, rebel . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Ostfildern 2007, ISBN 978-3-7995-0177-4 , pp. 26-27.
6. ↑ Helmut Zimmermann and Eckhard Bieger: Elisabeth - Saints of Christian Charity , Publishing Community Topos plus, Kevelaer 2006, ISBN 3-7867-8598-8 , pp. 152–153.
7. ↑ Volker Honemann, Rudolf Suntrup: literary landscapes: writings on German-language literature in the east of the empire , Volume 11 of: Cultural change from the Middle Ages to the early modern times , Verlag Peter Lang, 2008, p. 173, ISBN 3-631-57078-3 ; (Digital scan)
8. ↑ Monika Rener: The Vita of St. Elisabeth of Dietrich von Apolda , Marburg ad Lahn, 1993, publications of the Historical Commission for Hesse, Volume 53; (Review with reference to the first printing; click on Leggi tutto ) ISBN 978-3-7708-1311-7 .
9. ↑ Helmut Zimmermann and Eckhard Bieger: Elisabeth - Saints of Christian Charity , Verlagsgemeinschaft Topos plus, Kevelaer 2006, ISBN 3-7867-8598-8 , p. 36.
10. ↑ Monika Vogt: Because we are like reeds in the river - Encounters with Saint Elisabeth in Hesse and Thuringia, Schnell & Steiner Verlag, Regensburg 2006, ISBN 3-7954-1780-5 , p. 16.
11. ↑ Monika Vogt: Because we are like reeds in the river - Encounters with Saint Elisabeth in Hesse and Thuringia, Schnell & Steiner Verlag, Regensburg 2006, ISBN 3-7954-1780-5 , p. 34.
12. ↑ Libellus quoted in: Walter Nigg (Ed.): Elisabeth von Thüringen, Patmos Verlag, Düsseldorf 1967, p. 73.
13. ↑ Daria Barow-Vissilevitch: Elisabeth of Thuringia - saint, queen of love, rebel . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Ostfildern 2007, ISBN 978-3-7995-0177-4 , pp. 34-35.
14. ^ Walter Nigg (Ed.): Elisabeth von Thüringen, Patmos Verlag, Düsseldorf 1967, p. 70 - quote from the Libellus
15. ^ ^{A b} Matthias Werner : Saint Elisabeth and Konrad von Marburg, in Philipps University of Marburg (ed.): Saint Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , p. 52
16. ↑ The corresponding references in the Libellus can be found below. a. at Walter Nigg (ed.): Elisabeth von Thüringen, Patmos Verlag, Düsseldorf 1967, p. 83.
17. ↑ Helmut Zimmermann and Eckhard Bieger: Elisabeth - Saints of Christian Charity , Verlagsgemeinschaft Topos plus, Kevelaer 2006, ISBN 3-7867-8598-8 , p. 46.
18. ↑ Helmut Zimmermann and Eckhard Bieger: Elisabeth - Saints of Christian Charity. Verlagsgemeinschaft Topos plus, Kevelaer 2006, ISBN 3-7867-8598-8 , pp. 46-48.
19. ↑ Daria Barow-Vissilevitch: Elisabeth of Thuringia - saint, queen of love, rebel . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Ostfildern 2007, ISBN 978-3-7995-0177-4 , pp. 11-16.
20. ↑ Helmut Zimmermann and Eckhard Bieger: Elisabeth - Saints of Christian Charity , Verlagsgemeinschaft Topos plus, Kevelaer 2006, ISBN 3-7867-8598-8 , p. 124 and p. 106-109.
21. ^ Libellus , reproduced by: Walter Nigg (Ed.): Elisabeth von Thüringen, Patmos Verlag, Düsseldorf 1967, p. 79.
22. ↑ Renate Kroos: On early written and pictorial testimonies about St. Elisabeth as sources for art and cultural history , in Philipps University of Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , p. 185.
23. ↑ ^{a b c} Otto Gerhard Oexle: Poverty and poor welfare around 1200. A contribution to the understanding of voluntary poverty in Elisabeth of Thuringia , in: Philipps University of Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , p. 80.
24. ↑ Daria Barow-Vissilevitch: Elisabeth of Thuringia - saint, queen of love, rebel . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Ostfildern 2007, ISBN 978-3-7995-0177-4 , pp. 68-69.
25. ↑ Daria Barow-Vissilevitch: Elisabeth of Thuringia - saint, queen of love, rebel . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Ostfildern 2007, ISBN 978-3-7995-0177-4 , pp. 71-72.
26. ^ Raoul Manselli: Princely holiness and everyday life with Elisabeth of Thuringia: The testimony of the servants, in Udo Arnold and Heinz Liebing (eds.): Elisabeth, the German Order and Your Church, Elwert Verlag, Marburg 1983, ISBN 3-7708-0754 -5 , p. 14.
27. ↑ ^{a b} Otto Gerhard Oexle: Poverty and poor welfare around 1200. A contribution to the understanding of voluntary poverty in Elisabeth of Thuringia , in Philipps University of Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , p. 91.
28. ↑ Otto Gerhard Oexle: Poverty and poor welfare around 1200. A contribution to the understanding of voluntary poverty in Elisabeth of Thuringia , in Philipps University of Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , p. 92.
29. ^ Helmut Zimmermann and Eckhard Bieger: Elisabeth - Saints of Christian Charity , Publishing Community Topos plus, Kevelaer 2006, ISBN 3-7867-8598-8 , pp. 48–49.
30. ↑ Daria Barow-Vissilevitch: Elisabeth of Thuringia - saint, queen of love, rebel . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Ostfildern 2007, ISBN 978-3-7995-0177-4 , p. 74.
31. ↑ Matthias Werner: The holy Elisabeth and Konrad von Marburg, in Philipps University Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , p. 46.
32. ↑ Matthias Werner: The holy Elisabeth and Konrad von Marburg, in Philipps University Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , p. 56.
33. ↑ Helmut Zimmermann and Eckhard Bieger: Elisabeth - Saints of Christian Charity , Publishing Community Topos plus, Kevelaer 2006, ISBN 3-7867-8598-8 , pp. 124–127.
34. ↑ Matthias Werner: The holy Elisabeth and Konrad von Marburg, in Philipps University Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , pp. 45 and 56.
35. ↑ Matthias Werner: The holy Elisabeth and Konrad von Marburg, in Philipps University Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , pp. 49-50.
36. ↑ Paul Gerhard Schmidt: The contemporary tradition on the life and canonization of St. Elisabeth, in Philipps University of Marburg (ed.): St. Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , p. 3.
37. ↑ Daria Barow-Vissilevitch: Elisabeth of Thuringia - saint, queen of love, rebel . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Ostfildern 2007, ISBN 978-3-7995-0177-4 , p. 79.
38. ↑ Matthias Werner: The holy Elisabeth and Konrad von Marburg, in Philipps University Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , pp. 53-54.
39. ↑ Matthias Werner: The holy Elisabeth and Konrad von Marburg, in Philipps University Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , p. 53.
40. ↑ Daria Barow-Vissilevitch: Elisabeth of Thuringia - saint, queen of love, rebel . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Ostfildern 2007, ISBN 978-3-7995-0177-4 , pp. 84-85.
41. ^ Libellus , reproduced in: Walter Nigg (Ed.): Elisabeth von Thüringen, Patmos Verlag, Düsseldorf 1967, p. 84.
42. ^ Libellus , reproduced in: Walter Nigg (Ed.): Elisabeth von Thüringen, Patmos Verlag, Düsseldorf 1967, p. 83.
43. ↑ Matthias Werner: The holy Elisabeth and Konrad von Marburg, in Philipps University Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , p. 53.
44. ^ Libellus , quoted from: Walter Nigg (Ed.): Elisabeth von Thüringen, Patmos Verlag, Düsseldorf 1967, p. 90.
45. ↑ Matthias Werner: The holy Elisabeth and Konrad von Marburg, in Philipps University Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , p. 58.
46. ^ Libellus , reproduced in: Walter Nigg (Hrsg.): Elisabeth von Thüringen, Patmos Verlag, Düsseldorf 1967, p. 93.
47. ↑ Helmut Zimmermann and Eckhard Bieger: Elisabeth - Saints of Christian Charity , Publishing Community Topos plus, Kevelaer 2006, ISBN 3-7867-8598-8 , pp. 61–62.
48. ↑ Daria Barow-Vissilevitch: Elisabeth of Thuringia - saint, queen of love, rebel . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Ostfildern 2007, ISBN 978-3-7995-0177-4 , pp. 90-91.
49. ↑ Matthias Werner: The holy Elisabeth and Konrad von Marburg, in Philipps University Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , p. 55.
50. ^ Libellus , reproduced in: Walter Nigg (Ed.): Elisabeth von Thüringen, Patmos Verlag, Düsseldorf 1967, p. 87
51. ↑ Matthias Werner: The holy Elisabeth and Konrad von Marburg, in Philipps University Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , pp. 55 and 56.
52. ↑ Helmut Zimmermann and Eckhard Bieger: Elisabeth - Saints of Christian Charity , Verlagsgemeinschaft Topos plus, Kevelaer 2006, ISBN 3-7867-8598-8 , p. 71.
53. ^ Libellus , reproduced in: Walter Nigg (Hrsg.): Elisabeth von Thüringen, Patmos Verlag, Düsseldorf 1967, p. 102.
54. ↑ Monika Vogt: Because we are like reeds in the river - encounters with Saint Elisabeth in Hesse and Thuringia, Schnell & Steiner Verlag, Regensburg 2006, ISBN 3-7954-1780-5 , p. 12 - in a different translation also in Libellus , in: Walter Nigg (Ed.): Elisabeth von Thüringen, Patmos Verlag, Düsseldorf 1967, p. 102.
55. ↑ Matthias Werner: The holy Elisabeth and Konrad von Marburg, in Philipps University Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , p. 60.
56. ↑ Paul Gerhard Schmidt: The contemporary tradition on the life and canonization of St. Elisabeth, in Philipps University of Marburg (ed.): St. Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , p. 2.
57. ↑ Matthias Werner: The holy Elisabeth and Konrad von Marburg, in Philipps University Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , p. 60.
58. ↑ Helmut Zimmermann and Eckhard Bieger: Elisabeth - Saints of Christian Charity , Verlagsgemeinschaft Topos plus, Kevelaer 2006, ISBN 3-7867-8598-8 , p. 72f.
59. ↑ Werner Moritz: The hospital of St. Elisabeth in its relationship to the hospital system of the early 13th century, in Philipps University of Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , p. 110
60. ↑ Matthias Werner: The holy Elisabeth and Konrad von Marburg, in Philipps University Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , p. 60.
61. ^ Raoul Manselli: Princely holiness and everyday life with Elisabeth of Thuringia: The testimony of the servants, in Udo Arnold and Heinz Liebing (eds.): Elisabeth, the German Order and Your Church, Elwert Verlag, Marburg 1983, ISBN 3-7708-0754 -5 , p. 19.
62. ^ Rainer Atzbach : Marburg's holiest place. Excavations 1970/71 at the site of the founding of the hospital of St. Elisabeth. Marburg 2007, ISBN 978-3-923820-88-7 (Marburger Stadtschriften zur Geschichte und Kultur 88, with contributions by Katrin Atzbach, Matthias Bischof, Cathrin Hähn, Alissa Theiß and Felicitas Weiß), pp. 33–55.
63. ↑ Daria Barow-Vissilevitch: Elisabeth of Thuringia - saint, queen of love, rebel . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Ostfildern 2007, ISBN 978-3-7995-0177-4 , pp. 113-117.
64. ↑ Helmut Zimmermann and Eckhard Bieger: Elisabeth - Saints of Christian Charity , Publishing Community Topos plus, Kevelaer 2006, ISBN 3-7867-8598-8 , pp. 76-80.
65. ↑ Matthias Werner: The holy Elisabeth and Konrad von Marburg, in Philipps University Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , p. 61.
66. ^ Josef Leinweber: The church canonization process up to the year 1234. The canonization process of St. Elisabeth of Thuringia, in Philipps University of Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , p. 130.
67. ↑ ^{a b} Josef Leinweber: The church canonization process up to the year 1234. The canonization process of St. Elisabeth of Thuringia, in Philipps University of Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , p. 131.
68. ↑ ^{a b} Josef Leinweber: The church canonization process up to the year 1234. The canonization process of St. Elisabeth of Thuringia, in Philipps University of Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , p. 132.
69. ^ Josef Leinweber: The church canonization process up to the year 1234. The canonization process of St. Elisabeth of Thuringia, in Philipps University of Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , p. 133f.
70. ^ Herbert Zielinski: Elisabeth of Thuringia and the children. On the history of childhood in the Middle Ages, in Udo Arnold and Heinz Liebing (eds.): Elisabeth, the German Order and Your Church, Elwert Verlag, Marburg 1983, ISBN 3-7708-0754-5 , pp. 35–37.
71. ^ Philipps University of Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , catalog no. 54.
72. ^ Josef Leinweber: The church canonization process up to the year 1234. The canonization process of St. Elisabeth of Thuringia, in Philipps University of Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , pp. 134-136.
73. ↑ Hartmut Boockmann: The beginnings of the Teutonic Order in Marburg , in Philipps University of Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , pp. 137-151.
74. ↑ Helmut Zimmermann and Eckhard Bieger: Elisabeth - Saints of Christian Charity , Verlagsgemeinschaft Topos plus, Kevelaer 2006, ISBN 3-7867-8598-8 , p. 146.
75. ^ Website of the Elisabethinen, Vienna, Austria
76. ↑ Saint Elizabeth. In: hung-art.hu .
77. ↑ Stefan Laube : Confessional Breaches in the National Hero Gallery - Protestant, Catholic and Jewish Memorial Communities in the German Empire (1871-1918). In: Heinz-Gerhard Haupt , Dieter Langewiesche (ed.): Nation and religion in German history. Campus, Frankfurt am Main u. a. 2001, pp. 293-332, here: p. 326.
78. ↑ Elsbeth Krukenberg-Conze: Saint Elisabeth on the Wartburg and in Hesse and the ideal of the German-Evangelical woman. Lecture given at the 20th General Assembly of the Evangelical Union in Worms on September 30, 1907, Leipzig 1907.
79. ↑ Elisabeth of Thuringia in the Ecumenical Lexicon of Saints
80. ↑ Helmut Zimmermann and Eckhard Bieger: Elisabeth - Saints of Christian Charity , Verlagsgemeinschaft Topos plus, Kevelaer 2006, ISBN 3-7867-8598-8 , p. 148.
81. ↑ Michael Frase: The translation of St. Elisabeth on May 1, 1236: considerations on the number of participants and the problem of the oil miracle. In: Udo Arnold and Heinz Liebing (eds.): Elisabeth, the German Order and Your Church. Elwert Verlag, Marburg 1983, ISBN 3-7708-0754-5 , p. 39.
82. ↑ Thomas Franke: On the history of the Elisabeth relics in the Middle Ages and the early modern period. In: Philipps University of Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , pp. 167-168.
83. ↑ Mr. Göran Tegnér from the Stockholm History Museum announced that the reliquary is in the Statens historika museum : “It is the head reliquary of the saints, crowned by one (or even two) crowns. At first it was believed that the reliquary, spoils of war from 1632, came from Goslar. Arpad Weixlgärtner , who published the reliquary in detail, called it "the reliquary with the crown". Professor Percy Ernst Schramm then found documentary sources that show that the reliquary is the head reliquary of St. Elisabeth. "
84. ↑ Thomas Franke: On the history of the Elisabeth relics in the Middle Ages and the early modern period. In: Philipps University of Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , p. 168.
85. ↑ Martina Junghans: The arm reliquaries in Germany from the 11th to the middle of the 13th century. Dissertation Bonn (2000), Bonn 2002, cat.-no. 31.
86. ↑ Kloster Tiefenthal (official website)
87. ↑ Thomas Franke: On the history of the Elisabeth relics in the Middle Ages and the early modern period. In: Philipps University of Marburg (ed.): Sankt Elisabeth: Fürstin - Dienerin - Heilige . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Sigmaringen 1981, ISBN 3-7995-4035-0 , pp. 168-172.
88. ↑ ^{a b} Daria Barow-Vissilevitch: Elisabeth of Thuringia - saint, queen of love, rebel . Jan Thorbecke Verlag, Ostfildern 2007, ISBN 978-3-7995-0177-4 , p. 120.
89. ↑ Helmut Zimmermann and Eckhard Bieger: Elisabeth - Saints of Christian Charity , Verlagsgemeinschaft Topos plus, Kevelaer 2006, ISBN 3-7867-8598-8 , p. 139.
90. ↑ Helmut Zimmermann and Eckhard Bieger: Elisabeth - Saints of Christian Charity , Verlagsgemeinschaft Topos plus, Kevelaer 2006, ISBN 3-7867-8598-8 , p. 140.
91. ^ History of the Liborius Chapel. In: Friends of the Liborius Chapel Creuzburg .
92. ↑ Helmut Zimmermann and Eckhard Bieger: Elisabeth - Saints of Christian Charity , Verlagsgemeinschaft Topos plus, Kevelaer 2006, ISBN 3-7867-8598-8 , p. 140.
93. ↑ Cf. Christa Bertelsmeier-Kierst: Elisabeth von Thüringen and the new piety in Europe . Peter Lang, Frankfurt am Main 2008, p. 294.
94. ↑ See Thorsten Albrecht, Rainer Atzbach: Elisabeth von Thuringia. Life and impact in art and cultural history . Michael Imhof Verlag, Petersberg 2006, p. 120.
95. ↑ See Christoph Specht: The new German musical: musical influences of rock music on the new German musical . Frank & Timme GmbH, Berlin 2008, p. 35.
96. ↑ See Andrea Schindler: Medieval Reception in Contemporary Music Theater . Dr. Ludwig Reichert Verlag, Wiesbaden 2009, p. 115.
97. ^ Maria Maresch: Elisabeth of Thuringia: Protector of the German People. Verlag der Buchgemeinde, Bonn am Rhein 1931 (= Buchgemeinde Bonn . Religiöse Schriftenreihe. Volume 7).
98. ↑ 800 years of Elisabeth of Thuringia. Modern views of Elisabeth. In: Evangelical Churches in Hessen / Elisabethjahr 2007 .
99. ↑ Ulrike Wiethaus: Gender and Medievalism. Feminist Historiography as Pornography: St. Elisabeth of Thuringia in Nazi Germany. In: Medieval Feminist Forum: A Journal of Gender and Sexuality , ISSN  2151-6073 , 9/1997, (PDF; 9 p., 374 kB).
100. ↑ Horst-Eberhard Richter : Torture and Humanity. Introductory lecture for the conference "Torture and Humanity". Urania Berlin , November 6, 2004.
101. ↑ The ICE 4 names have been determined. ( Memento from October 28, 2017 in the Internet Archive ). In: DB Inside Bahn , October 27, 2017.
102. ↑ Remembrance day: November 19, Elisabeth von Thuringia: Roses in the basket, kathisch.de, November 19, 2018
103. ↑ El Catolicismo: El Catolicismo -. Retrieved October 8, 2019 . 
104. ↑ See table of contents (PDF file; 54 kB) and Stefan Tebruck : Review of: Bertelsmeier-Kierst, Christa (ed.): Elisabeth von Thüringen and the new piety in Europe. Frankfurt am Main 2008. In: H-Soz-u-Kult , February 3, 2010.