Marie von Gebsattel

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Marie Olga Emma Freiin von Gebsattel , later Sr. Maria Ancilla (born February 5, 1885 in Bamberg ; † November 3, 1958 in Altötting ) was senior government councilor, member of the Bavarian state parliament , superior of the Sisters of Mary of St. Ludwig Maria Grignion of Montfort and co-founder of the World Federation Regina Mundi .

Live and act

She was the second and youngest child of General Ludwig von Gebsattel and his wife Sophie Wassiliewna von Olsufjew, who came from the Russian nobility. Marie, called Mädy by her parents and relatives, went through the usual schooling for upper class girls: private tuition, public elementary school, high school for girls (with boarding school). After years as a house daughter and prolonged illness, she completed the teacher training for middle and higher girls' schools in Berlin and successfully passed the exam there in 1910. During her training, the baron fell in love with a physically somewhat overgrown doctor. The parents did not agree to this liaison, especially since the older man, in addition to his physical handicap, was also of non-aristocratic descent. The mother wrote: A mother will never give her daughter to a cripple .

But the man she fell in love with became engaged to another woman. This disappointing experience was one of the reasons why Marie Freiin von Gebsattel renounced marriage and children; Her wish to join a monastery is also dated from that time. But from a very young age, she was looking for perfection and total devotion. She attended Holy Mass every day:

She had deepened her faith through daily contact with suffering and reading edifying literature ... Their role models were St. Elisabeth (1207–1231) and St. Francis de Sales (1567–1622). By reading the works of Ludwig Maria Grignion von Montfort (1673-1716) she developed a deep devotion to Mary .

In the following years, the aristocrat was a teacher at the Institute of the English Misses in Augsburg , then from 1914 onwards she did voluntary charitable charitable work in Nuremberg . When the aristocratic family moved to Würzburg in 1917 , Marie von Gebsattel got involved there in the local branch of the Catholic Welfare Association for girls, women and children . She was also an active member of the Bavarian State Association of the Catholic German Women's Association .

In November 1918, the government of Kurt Eisner intended to reduce the influence of the church on the school system. The baron was very angry about this and decided to become politically active. She ran for the state parliament and won a mandate. In 1919 she moved into the Bavarian state parliament for the BVP . As a member of parliament (1919–1923) she fought for the establishment and maintenance of Christian cultural ideals. She not only advocated the retention of denominational schools and the separation of the sexes, but also advocated offering girls and boys different subjects. In relation to this she stated in a speech in the state parliament in 1920:

The character of the female psyche, the biological development curve of girls, the natural determination and task of women as the source of life and center of the family, as guardian of the hearth, carer and educator of the coming generation (requires) an upbringing that is equivalent to the upbringing of boys, but different of the girls .

In 1921 she was appointed as a specialist advisor for the higher female school system . In this role she has supported Martha von Grot , headmistress of a secondary school for girls , since 1924 "Girls' School". The latter developed the educational reform concept of the school of educative teaching . This means that it is a school, not a home, an educational institution, the real task of which is teaching, imparting and acquiring knowledge. The epithet “educating”, however, means that in this school the lessons take place in forms which in themselves have an educational effect .

At the beginning of 1933 the noblewoman was appointed senior councilor for education and culture, but was forced into permanent retirement in October of that year because the official posts in the ministry had to be filled with male party members. The real reason for their eviction, however, was their religious beliefs, which the Nazis did not like. Subsequently, the baroness looked after her aging and sick mother. In addition, Regina Mundi was actively involved in the World Federation , of which she was a co-founder, and which in November 1933 after several years finally received the desired papal recognition. This world union, which still exists today, undertakes to recognize Mary as queen and mistress in life and to perform the common devotion to her every year. All souls who pray, work and suffer for the kingdom of Mary should be united in this world union . With Regina Mundi she took part in many pilgrimages to Lourdes and, according to her own admission, experienced some miraculous healings. a. with her mother and with herself.

After the end of the Second World War, the aristocrat would have liked to rebuild the school system, which was also fallow in Bavaria. Because of her conservative attitude, however, she was no longer wanted. Their reinstatement would have prevented long-term cooperation between the Bavarian government and the SPD .

At the age of 66 she realized her long-cherished wish and entered the community of the Sisters of Mary v. St. Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort a. She took the name Sr. Maria Ancilla. In 1956 she was appointed superior.

When Sr. Maria Ancilla became seriously ill a year before her death, she sought healing in Lourdes, but without success. She passed away shortly after her return. Her body rests in the grave of the Grignion Sisters in the Altötting cemetery.

Works (selection)

  • Sketches . Ravensburg 1910
  • Spiritual war songs . Munich 1916
  • Rosary songs . Paderborn 1916
  • Perfect devotion to Mary . 3 vol., Paderborn 1934–1936
  • School of Educational Instruction (Grotschule) . Paderborn 1949
  • Through Mary to Jesus . Altötting 1953

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ cit. n. Weigl 1977, p. 26.
  2. ↑ cf. Summer 2001, p. 153.
  3. ↑ Muschiol 2003, p. 224.
  4. ↑ cit. n.Summer 2001, p. 153.
  5. ↑ Gebsattel 1949, p. 20.
  6. ↑ Weigl 1977, p. 116.
  7. ↑ Muschiol 2003, p. 232.
personal data
SURNAME Gebsattel, Marie von
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Gebsattel, Marie Olga Emma Freiin von; Sister Maria Ancilla
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German senior councilor, member of the Bavarian state parliament
DATE OF BIRTH February 5, 1885
PLACE OF BIRTH Bamberg
DATE OF DEATH 3rd November 1958
Place of death Altötting