Marie-Louise Ruedin
Marie-Louise Ruedin (born November 22, 1880 in Corgémont as Louise Ruedin ; † April 8, 1960 in Pèlerin-sur-Vevey ) was a Swiss Catholic nun who saved around 6,000 Christians and Jews from death in the Turkish struggle for independence.
Life
Louise Ruedin, daughter of James Louis Ruedin and Marie Virgine Soguel was in Corgément in the Bernese Jura born and raised in Neuchatel, Fontainemelon on.
In her youth she regularly visited patients in the Catholic Hospital of Providence in Neuchâtel and decided to join the community of the Sisters of Saint Vincent who worked there. After training in Freiburg and the parent company in Paris , she was sent to Anatolia in what was then the Ottoman Empire . At that time, Jews, Muslims, Christians from Europe and Armenia lived in Aydin in relative harmony. Her congregation ran a clinic and school there. The Turkish dignitaries had their children educated in this Catholic school because it enjoyed an excellent reputation. Louise - now Sister Maria - taught French and German.
After the outbreak of World War I , the sisters in Aydin in Anatolia were isolated. The school was converted into a military hospital. Marie-Louise and her companions cared for hundreds of sick and injured Turkish soldiers there. Many suffered from measles and cholera . In June 1919 three French gendarmes were deployed to protect the two sisters Marie-Louise and Gabrielle. The Greek army captured Aydin three days later. During the subsequent chaos of war, the city changed several times from the Greek to the Turkish side and back. Against the advice of the gendarmes, Marie-Louise Ruedin opened the gates of the monastery to the civilian population, regardless of religion. Her good contacts with influential Turkish parents of former students prevented a bloodbath and made it possible to evacuate over 6,000 Christians and Jews after the end of the war.
On July 16, 1919, Sister Gabrielle Hoppe, Sister Marie-Louise Ruedin and the three French gendarmes were decorated with the Hellenic War Merit Cross. Arrived in Galata (Istanbul) , Sister Marie-Louise received on March 1, 1920 Cardinal Dubois from Rouen the certificate of appointment as Knight of the French Legion of Honor .
After the tragic events in Aydin, Sister Marie-Louise lived in Galata, Paris, Tunis and Pèlerin-sur-Vevey , where she died on April 8, 1960.
Web links
swell
- "Echo de France" newspaper from Smyrna, July 23, 1919.
- Hôpital de la Paix, Sisili, Istanbul
literature
- Glutz, Brigitte: Hirondelle d'Allah: une cornette en mission au pays des Sultans . St-Maurice, 2014: Éditions Saint-Augustin. ISBN 978-2-88926-070-6
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Ruedin, Marie-Louise |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Ruedin, Louise |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Swiss Catholic nun |
| DATE OF BIRTH | November 22, 1880 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Corgémont |
| DATE OF DEATH | April 8, 1960 |
| Place of death | Pèlerin-sur-Vevey |